Category Archives: writing

Fellowship of the Thing

Posted on May 20, 2023 by JE

Apologies for my relative silence on social media. I’m engaged on a lunatic plan to write a pair of novels over the summer, and I’ve made some significant progress. This evening I got north of 20,000 words on one (a … Continue reading →

Posted in academia, fantasy, language, Myth & Legend, social media, writing | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Hopefully the 3-Legged Kind

Posted on May 13, 2023 by JE

The typo of the day is stool (where I intended stood). It changed the meaning of the sentence a little.

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Mercilessly Great

Posted on May 12, 2023 by JE

Not much new here, as I am writing heavily on two new projects, and gearing up to teach a summer course. But here’s some of the stuff I’ve been writing to: Calibro 35, this completely crazy, retro-funk, soundtrackulous band from … Continue reading →

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Outline or Straight-Out Lying?

Posted on May 8, 2023 by JE

Whenever I’m writing anything substantial, there comes a moment where I look at the outline and am reminded of this old Sidney Harris cartoon. If it’s a fantasy novel, frequently what’s required is an actual miracle. Those are the easy … Continue reading →

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Auto Incorrect

Posted on April 29, 2023 by JE

“As a pallette cleanser—” “Palate.” “As a pallet cleanser—” “Palate.” “As a plate cleanser—” “Palate. Like, in your mouth.” “I DO NOT HAVE A PALLET IN MY MOUTH!” “‘Forget / we ever met.’”

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Is this SALAMI Intelligent?

Posted on April 12, 2023 by JE

This is not exactly new, but it’s always fun to watch Cory Doctorow sticking a pin in the AI-hype bubble. I especially enjoyed the proposal of an Italian ex-M.P. to rename AI as “Systematic Approaches to Learning Algorithms and Machine … Continue reading →

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What Counts and What Doesn’t

Posted on April 11, 2023 by JE

In certi momenti, non sono le parole scritte che contano. Una voce, una carezza, un gesto di tenerezza, saranno sempre più forti e risolutivi di un miliardo di parole scritte dal più grande poeta di tutti i secoli. Noi viviamo … Continue reading →

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A Ganelon By Any Other Name…

Posted on April 11, 2023 by JE

Typo of the day (which I discovered in an old slideshow from earlier this year): Gabolen. I’d intended to write Ganelon (the sinister traitor-knight in Charlemagne’s court). But Gabolen sounds like a pretty convincing name; maybe he/she/it will appear in … Continue reading →

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Winter Is Over

Posted on April 8, 2023 by JE

The Spring Equinox notwithstanding, I know that winter has ended when the westering sun doesn’t reach through the southern window of my bookroom to punch me in the eye as I’m writing on my computer. That happens sometime around the … Continue reading →

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A god by any other name…

Posted on March 24, 2023 by JE

Two things were interesting to me in that piece about Sandon Branderson that everyone is talking about (and that I don’t propose to link to because, eh, it’s not great and also Wired has gotten plenty of hits from it … Continue reading →

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