My favorite fantasy author is experimenting.
Specifically, Lawrence Watt-Evans is serializing an Ethshar novel called <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ethshar.com/thesprigganexperiment0.html">The Spriggan Mirror</a>. Apparently, the fans are clamoring for more Ethshar, but not loudly enough to be heard in the halls of the ivory towers of publishing. So, dedicated author that he is, Lawrence has begun serializing the novel on his website. Every week that he has recieved $100, or more, in donations, he will post a chapter, until the entire book is "exposed". Of course, if he hasn't recieved the required donations, he doesn't post anything that week. So, all you rich kids who like Lawrence Watt-Evans, go spend your allowance on this project, so I can read this fine novel for free.

Oh, you know I'm going to contribute, but it's Friday, so I thought I'd have a little fun. Now, go read as much of <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ethshar.com/thesprigganexperiment0.html">The Spriggan Mirror</a> as you can before the boss catches you!

Did I mention that I've turned comments back on?
I probably haven't but since my last upgrade to WordPress v1.5, I've got a new comment moderation system that kills 99.999% of all spam. So, I went and re-enabled comments. Not that I post that much that folks would comment on here, but still, it's the thought. All of which means that both of you reading this blog can comment now. :)

<img class="floatright" src='http://www.fantasist.net/scroll/wp-content/images/teleglass.jpg&#039; alt='TeleGlass' /> Science-fiction comes to life.
William Gibson wrote about this ages ago, but it's finally coming true. A video "screen" that is projected onto glasses. From what I read in <a target="_blank" href="http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,15283820%5E15841%5E%5En… article on Australian IT</a>, it seems to work on any kind of glasses at all. They say that if you're one of those lucky few that don't need corrective lenses, it will project just fine onto sunglasses. "It", incidentally, is the TeleGlass which was developed by a Japanese microscope maker called Scalar. The article talks about people using this to watch portable DVD players, but it also mentions the recent update of the Sony Walkman to include digital video. Coincidence? Knowing how the Japanese kieretsu do business, probably not. Do I care? NO, because this is that damn cool.

No wonder I never got paid for<a target="_blank" href="http://www.fantasist.net/kuntz.shtml"&gt; this</a>!
Apparently, Rob Kuntz never did finish the planned modules that I did maps for in Campaign Cartographer. And, of course, I did them knowing I would not get paid until they were published. So, since they were never published, I was never paid. Now, apparently, he's selling his entire stash of gaming stuff, including the<a target="_blank" href="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=44112&item=52005…; Barbarous Coast Maps</a>.
Even though I have them posted here on my site, Rob retains all rights to them. Insist on getting them signed, if you can manage it, since, in my opinion, that's the only way the printed maps are really worth anything.
Gaming is a tough business and I'm sorry that it looks like Rob has hit a money crunch and needs to sell his stuff. Go check it out and buy something, if you can. He's a great guy and I'm sorry to see him having to do this.
Good luck, Rob.

Actually, it's Sir Aurthur Conan Doyle's birthday.
But, since he is Dr. Watson, and Holmes, too, in a way, well... Anyway, this comes from the <a target="_blank" href="http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/">Writer's Almanac</a>:
<blockquote>It's the birthday of novelist and short story writer Arthur Conan Doyle, (books by this author) born in Edinburgh, Scotland (1859). Conan Doyle studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh where he met Doctor Joseph Bell, whose amazing deductions about the history of his patients fascinated the young student. After completing his studies, Conan Doyle served as a ship's doctor on voyages to Greenland and West Africa, and eventually opened his own practice. In his spare moments, he began writing. Calling on his memories of Doctor Bell, Conan Doyle created a detective who used his great powers of deduction to solve crimes. The first such story, A Study in Scarlet, introduced the detective Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick, Doctor Watson, in 1887. All told, Conan Doyle wrote 56 Sherlock Holmes stories and four Holmes novels.</blockquote>

(And, yes, this also appeared on my other blog, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ryumaou.com/hoffman/netgeek/">Diary of a Network Geek</a>.)

No kidding.
Ever wonder how those really neat Jedi weapons actually work? Well, Howstuffworks.com has an article about <a target="_blank" href="http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/lightsaber.htm">How Lightsabers Work</a>. I love these psuedo-scientific looks at science-fiction technology and lightsabers have long been a favorite of mine.
The funny thing is, I once had a long conversation with my brother about this very topic. Now, that might not seem like much, but my older brother has a PhD. in Physical Chemistry and worked with lasers for years as part of his doctorate research. The man knows lasers. He told me that it might actually be possible to focus a laser, or array of lasers, in such a way that you could actually create a sword-length beam. The trick is getting the engergy to power it. To make a laser or lasers powerfull enough to get lightsaber-like results, would take an enourmas amount of power that could not possibly be contained in a handle-sized device. Today. Who knows what might happen tomorrow.

Anyway, that's enough deep thoughts for a Friday. Go, click the link and enjoy the fun!

Unfortunately, that leaves little time to be creative.
Still, it's that job that pays for this website, so I guess it's not all bad! I have been writing a bit, or at least trying to write. At the suggestion of my therapist, who I can't see right now thanks to insurance and job change issues, I was trying to write a story that did NOT include fantastic or magical or science-fictional elements. Honestly, it was going okay, but I just didn't have much invested in the story, so I haven't done well writing on it. Well, that and my total lack of time for writing and discipline. I still suffer from the illusion that my writing should be "inspired" and just flow naturally onto the page. Sadly, that's just not how it is for most writers, especially the professionals.
Oh, but I do have an <a href='http://www.fantasist.net/scroll/wp-content/images/story.stw&#039; title='OpenOffice Story Template'>OpenOffice Story Template</a>that you can download! (Just click the link and you'll get it.) It might be a little buggy, but it should get you started. If you have problems, let me know and, if I have time, I'll try to get them worked out.

I LOVE Friday the Thirteenth!
Why? Well, mainly because I'm perverse and everyone else seems to distrust it. Also, over the years, I've complained about my bad luck so often that I used to say the only time I had good luck was when everyone else had bad luck. So, Friday the Thirteenth, became one of my "lucky" days. Not sure how this one will turn out, but I'm hoping for the best!
Oh, and here's a link to why everyone else is <a target="_blank" href="http://people.howstuffworks.com/friday-thirteenth.htm">afraid of Friday the Thirteenth</a>.

Hey, why not click that link. After all, what else could go wrong today?

<a target="_blank" href='http://www.fantasist.net/scroll/wp-content/images/waterandrocks02.jpg&#…; alt='Watery Canyon' ><img class="floatleft" src='http://www.fantasist.net/scroll/wp-content/images/thumb-waterandrocks02…; alt='Watery Canyon' /></a> More art!
Yeah, I seem to be stuck in a "water and rocks" phase, but that's mainly because the free version of Vue d'Espirit that I'm using has very limited materials and objects from which to choose. Still, it is fun to mess around with now and again. I've been thinking "nature themes", lately, but I've also been messing around with some more, well, abstract stuff as well. It's a little strange, like most modern art, and, again, defined somewhat by my limited toolset, but, I think it'll turn out okay. In the meantime, you can enjoy this simple scene.

I know why I have such trouble starting stories.
The answer came to me while reading someone else's blog: <a target="_blank" href="http://www.chadfowler.com/index.cgi">Chad Fowler</a>. He was talking about the book he's working on and his observations of other people who want to write books. His observation, which I thought was dead on accurate, was that most people wanted to have written a book, not to go through the process of writing a book. I think many people dream of being a writer, but few dream of the work involved in writing. There are times that I can sympathize with that.
But, my problem tends to be indecision. I have a hard time picking which story is worth writing. Or, which story is most worth writing. So, I fret over which one to start until it just doesn't interest me any more, or until I come up with enough pre-writing requirements, so that I never actually get to the writing part. Hmm, that therapy stuff must be making me more insightfull or something. Damn. One less excuse.