This weekend, I got an email from Farah Mendlesohn (which makes it a red letter weekend by anyone’s standards, no matter what she has to say). Here’s what that email said:

Dear Paul

I am very pleased to say that the Committee have accepted your application to join the Science Fiction Foundation Masterclass, 19th June to 22nd June.

We would be grateful if you could confirm that you wish to accept.

My immediate response (verbally) was a loud and enthusiatic OMGWTFBBQ! I later emailed to accept the offer of a place (pushing aside the awkward thoughts that keep telling me that I’ll need to be selling some major organs this year).

I am absolutely stoked. I applied on the off-chance (I’ve developed a “what have I got to lose” attitude that has landed me an awful lot of reviewing gigs so far), but had no expectation of getting through. Looks like I’d better start upping my professionalism a notch or two. Like, now.

Well, just to prove that Scalzi doesn’t have the monopoly on nice sunsets (even if he does have a far better camera):

Continue reading “Sunsets, plus the unexpected consequences of 1337-speak and search engines”

It’s a tough gig, this blogging thing, y’know. It’s like working in a vacuum, wondering if you’ll ever get a gasp of air. Today, I got a big old lung-full. Continue reading “The ultimate endorsement”