The Perfect Gift for a Writer: A Dictionary

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As the title suggests, I recently received the perfect gift that any writer could get: a dictionary. But this was not just any dictionary. This was a copy of The Compact Oxford English Dictionary.

Big whoop, I hear some of you say. Well, actually, it is.

The Oxford English Dictionary (2nd Edition) is a 20-volume beast. No joke. Published in 1989, it clocked in at 21,728 pages. And that doesn’t include all the supplement materials that have since been added. The 3rd Edition is still in production and is not expected to be published until 2037. I hate to think how big the Oxford English Dictionary will be by then.Read More→

9/11: A view of life…

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On the weekend just past, it was the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 disaster.  Every year, for the past 15 years, I have been silent about my memories of that day, fearful that someone would get offended.

The events of that day had a global impact. So many things changed in an instant. The world was in chaos. No one knew what was going on and planes around the world were being grounded.Read More→

Conversations in Science

New Radio Show and Heavy Water

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You never know what opportunities crop up when you put yourself out there. My recent appearances on various shows with KLRNRadio have been no different.

I now have my own show on KLRNRadio: Conversations in Science. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how that happened. Rick Robinson and Jessie Sanders have been trying to convince me for some time, but I was resistant. Producing my own radio show? That was the last thing I wanted to be doing. But apparently, I have the knack of explaining science in a way that everyone can understand. Maybe that's why they kept calling me for help on the science stuff.

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Juno and Jupiter

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Again, I'm on internet radio. YEAH! Go me. Again, it's about something I hold great interest in: astronomy, and in particular, NASA's Juno Mission to Jupiter. The links to the show are found below.

Conversations in Science Juno and Jupiter
(First Aired as part of Jessie's POV on KLRNRadio, Wednesday, August 31, 2016)

There are many things about Jupiter that holds a great fascination to astronomers and other scientist. Even 400 years ago, Galileo was captivated by the giant gas planet, mapping its four largest moons, even though he didn't know Jupiter was a gas giant back then.

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Kiwi in US Writing Market

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I had originally written this post for a site called EpicFantasy.org. However, since the post went live back on April 25, 2016, the site has gone down. As such, I’ve decided to include the post here on my personal blog instead. So here goes:

Kiwi in US Writing Market

New Zealand… Aotearoa, as the native Maori call it — the land of the long white cloud. It’s a country filled with majestic beauty: a mountain range that spans the length of half the country; volcanic lakes and desert terrain; beaches within a few short minutes drive of any major metropolis; secluded forest bush that takes you back in time; and farmland everywhere you turn. Many settlements could be frozen in time, and with the exception of the cars driving down the street, you would never know that you were in the 21st century. New Zealand has become the film industry’s location of choice with many historic and fantasy blockbusters filmed here, including The Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, and the epic drama The Last Samurai. (Sorry to burst the bubble, people, but the images of Mount Fuji in that film were actually of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont.)Read More→