The first time I saw the original Nosferatu, it was a 16mm print with the tinting restored - blue for night, amber for day. I've never seen the Herzog Nosferatu in theater, only on video and DVD. All of the different versions struck me in different ways. They were beautiful and horrific and sad in… Continue reading Old Fears in Oil
CyberNoir Philosophy: Selling Your Mother for Egg in your Beer
You’ve probably heard this old phrase. “He’d sell his own mother for a dollar/drink/free meal.” It’s a character flaw – they’re either desperate or morally bankrupt. Often, they’re poor or have pretensions to social climbing. Think of the sleazy lawyer always on the make. Think of the partner who sold your counterfeiting plates for just… Continue reading CyberNoir Philosophy: Selling Your Mother for Egg in your Beer
Upcoming Blogs: Thoughts from CyberNoirAlley
Life is a series of stages. Those stages, for me, are about being a different “X Guy” at different times. In high school, I was ‘that weird guy’ or ‘that Kafka guy’ because of my love of SFF and deep obsession with the works of Franz Kafka. I even had a T-shirt from the local… Continue reading Upcoming Blogs: Thoughts from CyberNoirAlley
Sam Reich’s Dad is an Anti-Corpo Cyberpunk
There are a lot of things to unpack - in that title, and in the last election. One thing that hasn't required unpacking has been Robert Reich. He's been one of the folks I've followed for decades because, honestly, he's hit a lot of things on the head for a long time. And he communicates… Continue reading Sam Reich’s Dad is an Anti-Corpo Cyberpunk
Strange October Says
If there is a month I don't want to tear by quickly, it's October. This one has been a strange beast. How strange? Let's take a look at the posters at the AFI Silver two weeks ago, when I spent a glorious day indulging in NoirCityDC: Nosferatu and Noir. Conclave and the original Mobile Suit… Continue reading Strange October Says
Helene – and the beginning of Autumn
A cloud hung over this weekend. Despite the joy in visiting my mother-in-law for her 80th birthday and family reunion with her sisters and brother and other family - Helene left darkness in all the corners. I'm going to leave a link to my friend Angela's page (Link Here) to various orgs which are helping… Continue reading Helene – and the beginning of Autumn
AI, NaNoWriMo, and “That Guy with the Idea”
This is a quick post. If you're a writer or writer adjacent, you've likely heard about NaNoWriMo's recent stance on AI contributions. Stephen Blackmoore has some key thoughts as his books were outright stolen to train the Generative AI now sponsoring Nano. What are my thoughts on AI? First, it's not really what most folks… Continue reading AI, NaNoWriMo, and “That Guy with the Idea”
Dreaming the Future in Scotland
Award winning authors spend 60 minutes talking about their cats. Glasgow 2024 is my fourth world SFF convention. It was the capper to a vacation where we spent a week driving around the Scottish highlands, from Sterling to Perth to Inverness and the Isle of Skye before returning to Glasgow. And - all love to… Continue reading Dreaming the Future in Scotland
Back from a Big Country
Just a brief note: We are back from Scotland. This was a combination trip - one to celebrate my wife and I reaching birthdays that end with zero, and one to attend Glasgow 2024's World SFF Convention. Pictured here: (L-> R) Seanan McGuire, Nnedi Okorafor, Naomi Kritzer, Erin Hunter, and John Scalzi discussing their cats.)… Continue reading Back from a Big Country
Nearly Oppressive Humidity
This is not the blog entry I wanted to write. My wife and I just came home from helping my best friend move his mother into an assisted living facility. Saturday was dominated by box unpacking, picture arranging, and getting her cat & SCA memorabilia in place. We figured Sunday morning would be similar. More… Continue reading Nearly Oppressive Humidity
Biomechanoid Blues 