The Right Movies for Star Wars Saga Titles

The Right Movies for Star Wars Saga Titles

A few of us were kicking the ol' peanut around yesterday on Twitter, and as is the wont of geekish gab sessions, Star Wars came up. I started contemplating the titles of the films in the main series, and the germ of an idea took root. Late last night, that idea matured…
November 20, 2015

No Going Back

Reader JD Cowan left a thoughtful and prophetic reply to yesterday's post on Hollywood remakes that I thought deserved a more extensive reply than I could give in the comments. Here's JD: This must be why only Pixar and Marvel get my movie dollars these days with the occasional Nolan…
November 19, 2015
Hollywood Is Just a Remake Machine

Hollywood Is Just a Remake Machine

Hollywood is out of ideas. In fact, the studios' original thought well ran dry so long ago that pointing out their creative bankruptcy would be a cliche if not for the massive doses of cynicism and intersectional identity politics they've injected into their tedious remakes. Here are just a few…
November 18, 20152 Comments
First Principles

First Principles

Photo by Andrew Dunn Civilized society is governed by time-tested principles. Refined over years; sometimes centuries, by trial and error, these rules have laid the foundations of luminous lives, legendary careers, and vast empires. One such venerable convention applied to rules themselves is that the most important rule comes first.…
November 17, 2015
Sad Puppies, SJWs, and Ethics

Sad Puppies, SJWs, and Ethics

The SJW cult had been going from strength to strength in recent years. From academia to the hard sciences; from SFF publishing to comics, their dominance seemed total--and not about to wane anytime soon. But like the tyrannical governor whose tightly squeezed subjects increasingly slip through his fingers, the dominant…
November 17, 20151 Comment

Geek Gab Episode 31: Spectre

Daddy Warpig, Dorrinal, and I return to discuss Spectre, the latest (and final Daniel Craig?) James Bond film. We also speculate about The Force Awakens and lament Hollywood's lack of originality in general. Take a listen!
November 15, 2015
Reviewing the Breakout Novel: Monster Hunter International

Reviewing the Breakout Novel: Monster Hunter International

At a recent party with several bibliophiles, I overheard a buddy of mine talking about how much he loved Larry Correia's books. Another guy chimed in with something like, "Larry's stuff is OK if you like books where every chapter ends with an explosion, but it gets tedious after a…
November 13, 2015
Not Seeing the Forest for the Dead Trees: Amazon Numbers Show Readers Going Indie

Not Seeing the Forest for the Dead Trees: Amazon Numbers Show Readers Going Indie

Back in September, The New York Times reported that eBook sales have "slowed sharply". Now, there are signs that some e-book adopters are returning to print, or becoming hybrid readers, who juggle devices and paper. E-book sales fell by 10 percent in the first five months of this year, according to the…
November 11, 2015
Movie Review: James Bond 007: Spectre

Movie Review: James Bond 007: Spectre

SPOILER ALERT: This is a full review with spoilers. Proceed at your own risk if you haven't seen the movie yet. Over the weekend, I saw Spectre, the twenty-fourth film in Eon Production's James Bond series. First, some background. In my opinion, Daniel Craig's tenure as Bond has been a mixed…
November 10, 20152 Comments
How I Got Here: A Writer’s Journey

How I Got Here: A Writer’s Journey

Photo by Neil Jones I'm a professional writer. Some of my work is self-published; most of it has been published by other people. A common misconception about writers is that our work is our brand. That's only partly true. The one indispensable element of a writer's brand is himself. Audiences…
November 9, 20152 Comments