Links of The Week Vol. 2 Issue 9

http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2011/05/gender-in-job-ads-and-subconscious-bias.html -- Juliette Wade on subtle bias in language and how it effects people's reactions to the text in job listings, etc. Food for thought.

A very helpful post on marketing books for authors from @yukongraham via Twitter: http://j.mp/mogMpJ 

Helpful post from my friend Sam Sykes (Tome Of the Undergates, Black Halo) on the pitfalls of the road to publication: http://samsykes.com/2011/05/sad-sacks-of-fears

A 22-year old performance poet, Sarah Kay, delivers an amazing oration dedicated to her daughter & more:
http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_kay_if_i_should_have_a_daughter.html

Resource for Writers: Dictionary of Military terminology: http://www.militaryterms.net/

My buddy @eruditeogre reviews Sam Sykes' Black Halo for Functional Nerds, a book I'll be reviewing this week: http://functionalnerds.com/2011/05/the-outsiders-a-review-of-black-halo-by-sam-sykes/

My buddy Jamie Todd Rubin writes for SFSignal.com on time travel: http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2011/05/traveling-through-time-and-other-vacations-of-the-mind-part-1/

And lastly two posts from me have drawn some attention this week so I'll list them here in case anyone missed them:

My post on tips for being good beta readers has really taken off like hot cakes. Find it here: http://bryanthomasschmidt.blogspot.com/2011/05/6-tips-for-being-good-beta-reader.html

Excerpts from my debut novel "The Worker Prince" are out and generating buzz from the hits they receive. Here they are if you're interested: http://bryanthomasschmidt.blogspot.com/search/label/excerpt

Links of The Week Vol. 2 Issue 8

After a long delay, more helpful links:

http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2009/08/book-publishing-glossary.html -- Former agent Nathan Bransford offers a glossary of publishing lingo. Very helpful reference.

http://www.graspingforthewind.com/2011/04/07/sffwrtcht-a-chat-with-author-kristine-kathryn-rusch/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GraspingForTheWind+%28Grasping+For+The+Win -- my interview with author Kristine Kathryn Rusch has a lot of good info for writers. First in a column I'll be doing weekly.

http://authorculture.blogspot.com/2011/04/how-to-offer-beneficial-critique.html -- How To Give a Beneficial Critique

http://www.kirkusreviews.com/blog/science-fiction-and-fantasy/sf-signal-how-start-reading-science-fiction-part-1/?fb_comment_id=fbc_10150149431281144_15894166_10150149648101144#f1390c056c -- SF Signal's John DeNardo offers a new series on how to start reading SF for novices.

http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/onepercent/2011/04/barcode-scanner-for-zebras.html -- Barcodes scanners for Zebras?  Scientists develop a tool to identify unique animals by their stripes.

http://lifarre.com/socialnetwork/pg/blog/read/1181/my-unbreakable-heart-why-we-stay --- Author Kimberly Kincade's powerful essay about being in an abusive relationship

http://www.hbo.com/video/video.html?view=grid&vid=1170886&autoplay=true -- Awesome 15 minute preview of George R. R. Martin's "The Game Of Thrones" which comes to HBO next week.

Links Of The Week, Vol. 2, Issue 8

http://nyti.ms/exAwaz -- non-traditional stores are selling more books than ever. Good news for authors, marketers, and publishers. And also for readers.

http://lmstull.com/2011/03/06/so-you-want-to-write-fantasy/ -- a workshop on worldbuilding for fantasy authors and a contest to boot.

http://reluctantadults.blogspot.com/2011/03/that-setting-thing.html -- Kat Richardson writes up her talk from Rainforest Writers Village Session 2 on "Setting"

http://www.shimmerzine.com/2011/03/16/confessions-of-a-slush-reader-why-should-i-care/ - a slushreader explains the slush experience and gives useful tips on how to get your story to succeed

Links of The Week Vol. 2 Issue 7

http://www.blackgate.com/2011/02/27/epic-fantasy-notes-toward-a-definition/ -- Black Gate column discussing what is epic fantasy?

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10150111579106705&id=689201067 -- Why heroes are still important, related to the above. Another perspective: http://bit.ly/hHRRfk

http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2011/03/ttyu-retro-show-dont-tell-exposed.html -- Great post on Show V. Tell--often a bane of writer's existences-- by the talented Juliette Wade.

http://faerye.net/post/find-n -- Great post by Felicity Shoulders on dealing with rejection as a writer.

http://bit.ly/dTATvX -- a slush reader's warning about getting your science right. Important for writers. From writer Patty Jansen.

Links of the Week, Vol. 2, Issue 6

http://www.designspongeonline.com/2011/02/biz-ladies-photo-usage.html -- important information on rights and using photos online. Important for every blogger and website owner.


http://talktoyouniverse.blogspot.com/2011/02/expansion-of-global-information-wars.html -- My extremely smart and talented friend Juliette Wade offers her perspective on controversy over approaches to good v. evil in fantasy


http://www.selfpublishingreview.com/blog/2010/10/12/ebook-opportunities/ -- a successful self-published author rates the various self-pub options and his experiences with them.


http://tinyurl.com/5u2whmo -- agent Jennifer Laughran on how agents decide where to submit clients' manuscripts.


http://www.alanrinzler.com/blog/2011/02/19/book-bloggers-can-help-sell-your-book-tips-for-authors/ -- The importance of Book Bloggers in selling your books. Important strategy for authors.


http://networkedblogs.com/eFg9y -- My friend Moses Siregar, a talented writer, explains how to network well and grow from it by hanging out with successful writers, and, coincidentally, articulates the purpose for which I started #sffwrtcht on Twitter.


Article on Indiana Governor who turned an inherited $600 million deficit into a $370 million surplus the next year http://on.wsj.com/eYLGrE

Links of the Week, Vol. 2, Issue 6

http://bit.ly/hL9b59 -- Jon Sprunk writes on TOR.com about the problems with basing your speculative fiction on Role Playing Games.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/the-lay-scientist/2011/feb/13/3 -- Science commentator asks if political bias is a problem in science. I think it is but either way, thought provoking.

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/columns-and-blogs/cory-doctorow/article/46105-with-a-little-help-the-early-returns.html -- Cory Doctorow's Publisher's Weekly column on the release of his short story collection via Lulu. Interesting stuff re: publishing.

http://www.enter.net/~torve/critics/Dream/dream1.html -- Fascinating essay on "The Death of Science Fiction

http://io9.com/#!5762349/stardust-probe-sifts-through-the-remains-of-a-collision-between-comet-and-machine
-- Comet and Machine collide and provide valuable data on the makeup of a comet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw_GnjE-des -- Mr. Rogers learns to break dance. A funny reminder of a great show.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/a-doctor-at-the-funeral -- Passionate, moving article of a doctor's reaction to attending the funeral of one of her cancer patients.

Links of the Week, Vol. 2, Issue 5

http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/20-awesomely-untranslatable-words-from-around-the-world/ -- 20 Awesomely Untranslatable Words From Around The World

http://bit.ly/dvXW35 -- 20 Obsolete English Words Which Should Make a Comeback (this one comes courtesy of Mary Robinette Kowal and is quite amusing)

http://lilt.ilstu.edu/golson/punctuation/ -- brilliantly helpful, simplified post on how to correctly use key punctuation in English. Very useful for writers.

http://www.forwriters.com/taxes.html --Taxes For Writers, a historical and contemporary view

http://www.sparkfun.com/marcomm/Heaterizer-Instructions-01.jpg -- a rarity, a product manual that's fun, even entertaining, to read. The Heaterizer.

http://www.mbranesf.com/2011/02/two-spaces-controversy-and-other-notes.html - Important commentary on manuscript formatting and the whole "double space/full stop" controversy from MBraneSF. I heartily agree with them.

http://community.livejournal.com/sfwa/210297.html -- 10 great resources for writing hard space-based SF from my friend Mike Brotherton

Links of the Week, Vol. 2, Issue 4

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/kitty_pet -- funny truth for cat owners.

http://linkd.in/fvhoul -- Top 5 Internet Marketing Ideas You Probably Don't Know About.  Good tips for writers especially.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM -- From my friend Jay Lake, one of the funnier videos I've seen in a while with a musician ranting about hating "Pachelbel's Canon."

http://ingridsnotes.wordpress.com/2010/07/14/query-letter-suicide/ -- what not to write in your query letters from agent Jill Corcoran

http://jillcorcoran.blogspot.com/2010/04/formula-for-query-letter.html -- Agent Jill Corcoran's Formula For A Query Letter


http://www.tobiasbuckell.com/2011/01/27/writing-on-the-high-seas/ -- Interesting thoughts on Piracy from Tobias Bucknell

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/03/science/03planet.html?_r=2&emc=eta1 -- 1200 new planets discovered? Vey exciting stuff!

Links Of The Week, Vol. 2, Issue 2

http://io9.com/5714039/the-14-best-speculative-fiction-books-of-2010 - includes books reviewed here among others.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/01/10/big-news-first-solid-exoplanet-found/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+BadAstronomyBlog+(Bad+Astronomy)&utm_content=FaceBook -- First solid exoplanet found.  Fascinating science.

http://theadventurouswriter.com/blogwriting/editing-and-proofreading-tips-%E2%80%93-5-ways-to-proofread-your-writing/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter -- Editing  & Proofreading Tips to Improve Your Own Writing

http://m.smh.com.au/victoria/river-rescue-as-sex-toy-ditches-rider-20110117-19sra.html -- one of the funnier news stories I've read in a long while.

http://beta.io9.com/#!5735083/10-flame+throwing-contraptions-thatll-keep-those-dang-kids-off-your-lawn - Another great laugh from I09: Flame Throwing Contraptions That'll Keep Those Dang Kids Off Your Lawn

http://www.heroicfantasyquarterly.com/ -- A newly discovered market and source of heroic fantasy stories: Heroic Fantasy Quarterly.  Some good reading here.

http://beta.io9.com/#!5733980/downbelow-station-heres-how-you-write-a-novel -- From IO9, Here's How You Write a Novel: Revising CJ Cherryh's "Down Below Station"

Links Of The Week, Vol. 2, Issue 1

http://eruditeogre.blogspot.com/2010/12/idea-train-and-alluring-countryside.html -- thoughtful post on the internet as a distraction for writers.

http://bit.ly/eRAvt4 -- writer Jason Sanford's essay on how one famous writer's tendency to accuse others of plaigarism has harmed his own legacy.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12093345 -- scientists rethinking the theories of human ancestry

http://www.theonion.com/articles/robots-speak-out-against-asimovs-first-law-of-robo,4236/ - good laugh for Asimov and SF fans

http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2011/01/cory-doctorow-net-neutrality-for-writers-its-all-about-the-leverage/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter -- Thoughts on net neutrality & copyright from Cory Doctorow

http://blogs.hbr.org/samuel/2011/01/social-medai-in-2011-who-will.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%20harvardbusiness%20%28HBR.org%29&utm_content=Google%20Reader -- Very important advice on thinking before you act when it comes to using Social Media and the Internet from Alexandra Samuel, Director of the Social and Interactive Media Center at Emily Carr University.

http://motherboard.tv/2011/1/4/nasa-picks-its-best-and-worst-science-fiction-movies--2 -- NASA's Best & Worst SF Movies.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/40943737#40943737 -- Homeless man Ted Williams tells his story on TODAY.

Links Of The Week Issue 2

http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/t5/Explorations-The-BN-SciFi-and/The-Best-Science-Fiction-Releases-of-2010/ba-p/778696 - Paul Goat Allen's ongoing series in best of Science Fiction books for 2010.

http://www.redgage.com/blogs/darkbow/four-indie-fantasy-authors-youve-probably-never-heard-of.html - Fantasy authors you haven't heard of but should look for, includes my World Fantasy Con roomie Moses Siregar.

http://www.atfmb.com/2010/12/30/conversations-with-my-cat-51/ -- Funny post about a conversation Patrick Hester had with his cat which all cat owners can relate to.

http://ht.ly/3dkvp -- 100 Questions to Ask Yourself About Your Plot (good writing stimulation)

http://io9.com/5719944/ -- I09's Power People in Science Fiction & Fantasy for 2010

New Feature: Links Of The Week

I tweet a lot of links and such as I come across worthwhile stuff throughout the week. I've decided to start listing the best of them here so that those who don't use Twitter or don't keep up with all the links have a chance to track them down later.  I hope you enjoy this.  Links are listed followed by a brief description. Where they relate to posts on this blog, it's noted.  Enjoy!

http://theinvisiblegorilla.com/blog/2010/12/24/dont-change-your-worldview-based-on-one-study/ -- interesting examination of the importance of not taking scientific studies at face value.

http://tonymorganlive.com/2010/12/24/9-in-2010-ladies-how-to-welcome-a-man-home/ -- the way any man would want to be welcomed, ladies.

http://locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/TableT13.html -- Locus magazine's updated list of most award winning and losing Science Fiction and Fantasy writers.


http://bit.ly/eEytl4 -- reviewer Paul Goat Allen's annual Barnes & Noble list of Year's Best Fantasy for 2010. Features books by several friends and others, several of which are reviewed on this blog. [See them under the hastag 'Review']


http://bit.ly/hNbUwO -- Paul Goat Allen's Best Steampunk of 2010 list from Barnes & Noble's site. Again, relevant book reviews may be viewed on this blog.


http://jakebible.com/2010/12/28/growing-up-fundamentalist-pagan/ -- interesting article on growing up fundamentalist...pagan. Examines how such strong beliefs effect a writer's work.


http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2010/12/photographs-of-the-worlds-first-aircraft-carrier-resurface/68567/ -- unearthed lost photos of the first aircraft carrier. Fascinating for history and aviation buffs.