I'm opening with this image for two reasons. First, the gentleman who designed one of my favorite iterations of the Cybermen passed away. He did an amazing job bringing the silver giants into the 80's and was instrumental as a production and costume designer for many other classic British SF shows. It also highlights the… Continue reading Collaboration Nation
Author: urdith
Would be author, photographer and dreamer living in the corporate world.
Sanctuary Between the Shelves
I made myself a small promise this year: I would write more blog entries. At least two a month. I'd also try and do some kind of quasi-podcast. There may be a test of this coming up. But this means I must generate more content! So, I've decided to use some of my time at… Continue reading Sanctuary Between the Shelves
Ripples in the Pond
Warning: This post will contain levels of Doctor Who geekery, discussions of current events, Communism, illegitimate children, and talk about how works can impact the future in unimaginable ways. You have been warned: For Doctor Who fans of a certain age, UNIT means something very deep and abiding. To the point where, when watching the… Continue reading Ripples in the Pond
Violent Ends or Failing Downwards
Allow me to write, just a touch, about recent dreams I've had. Mostly within the last few weeks, as the holiday season came closer and closer. Mind you - these are the ones I remember. The sensation for others still remains. Let me see if you find a common theme. And for clarity, I'll be… Continue reading Violent Ends or Failing Downwards
Community is a Machine
“Community! Jesus, you guys are kind to yourselves. Community.” This was one of my favorite moments in Three Days of the Condor. It’s a moment where Joe Turner (Robert Redford, in one of his best performances), a lowly CIA researcher, finally gets to ask station chief Higgins (Cliff Robertson) who could hire the man that… Continue reading Community is a Machine
Nostalgia for Dystopia
One of my ongoing gags with friends is saying, “This wasn’t the cyberpunk dystopia I was promised. There’s supposed to be more neon and cyberwear.” A recent video takes on Cyberpunk and its reliance on visuals essentially created in the 80’s and, if I had to give it a tagline, it would be my cyberpunk… Continue reading Nostalgia for Dystopia
Monster is as Monster Does
1995. The movie Species had just come out in theaters and there were a lot of problems with it. Let’s put aside the terrible science (as a friend of mine put it, “Breeding doesn’t work that way. After a few generations, the worst you’ll have is someone with the occasional tentacle...”). Let’s put aside the… Continue reading Monster is as Monster Does
Our House, In The Middle of Our Street
Today, I'll be discussing Madness. Not the band, although they're brilliant and you need to dig into their back catalog. No, I'm going to be talking about this madness called being a writer. I'm making a distinction between being a writer and being an author. An author is a writer who's been published a significant number of… Continue reading Our House, In The Middle of Our Street
Having Trouble Finding the Holy Mountain
Today is a day of odd confluences. This morning, after waking up to another rejection, I turned to Twitter for a rant I was rather sure only one person would read. I've included an edited version below. I remember hearing a podcast where JMS (of Babylon 5 & Sense8) told a story of being a… Continue reading Having Trouble Finding the Holy Mountain
Steps in the Ocean
One of the things I enjoyed about my former writer's group was the 20 minute writing exercises which began every session. Now, to help get me going before working on the latest short story or novel project, I've started pulling writing up writing exercises based on images from Michael Whelan's latest collection Beyond Science Fiction.… Continue reading Steps in the Ocean
Biomechanoid Blues 