Last week, the group behind the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list announced runners-up #51-100, of which I’d been to three. Today, they announced the Top 50.

When the Top 50 was announced for 2014, I was able to say that I’d dined at four of them (though that’s not in a single year, but rather over the course of my lifetime). This year, that number has risen to seven, and you can click through below to see what I thought of each of my visits.

1. El Celler de Can Roca, Girona, Spain
2. Osteria Francescana, Modena, Italy
3. Noma, Copenhagen
4. Central, Lima, Peru
5. Eleven Madison Park, New York City
6. Mugaritz, Guipúzcoa, Spain
7. Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London
8. Narisawa, Tokyo
9. D.O.M., Sao Paolo, Brazil
10. Gaggan, Bangkok
11. Mirazur, Menton, France
12. L’arpege, Paris
13. Asador Etxebarri, Bisquay, Spain
14. Astrid y Gaston, Lima, Peru
15. Steirereck, Austria
16. Pujol, Mexico City
17. Arzak, San Sebastian, Spain
18. Le Bernardin, New York City
19. Azurmendi, Larrabetzu, Spain
20. The Ledbury, London
21. Le Chateaubriand, Paris
22. Nahm, Bangkok
23. White Rabbit, Moscow
24. Ultraviolet, Shanghai, China
25. Faviken, Sweden
26. Alinea, Chicago
27. Piazza Duomo, Alba Italy
28. Test Kitchen, Cape Town South Africa
29. RyuGin, Tokyo
30. Vendrome, Germany
31. Frantzen, Sweden
32. Attica, Australia
33. Aqua, Germany
34. Le Calendre, Italy
35. Quintonil, Mexico
36. L’astrance, France
37. Amber, Hong Kong, China
39. QuiQue Dacosta, Spain
40. Per Se, New York City
41. Mani, Sao Paolo, Brazil
42. Boragó, Santiago, Chile
42. Tickets, Barcelona, Spain
44. Maido, Lima, Peru
45. Relae, Copenhagen, Denmark
46. Restaurant Andre, Singapore
47. Ducasse au Plaza Athenee, Paris, France
48. Schloss Schauenstein, Austria
49. Blue Hill at Stone Barns, Pocatino Hills, New York
50. The French Laundry, Yountville, California, USA

Of all these, I’m happiest for Rodolfo Guzmán and his team at Boragó, who finally cracked the Top 50 by tying for #42. They deserve the recognition.

Will the next twelve months allow me to visit any of the other 43 restaurants on this list? Wait and see!

I’ll be heading off to Chicago in a few days for my third consecutive convention weekend. First it was Balticon, then AwesomeCon, and coming up is the Nebula Awards weekend. Once there, I hadn’t planned to do anything but schmooze and listen to the wisdom of others, but as it turns out, I’ve been chosen to take part in one of the weekend’s panels.

So when I’m not in the Palmer House bar, or in the audience listening to others pontificate, here’s where you’ll be able to find me—

Writing Other Genres
Sunday 11:00-Noon, Salon 8
Another way to diversify your income is to write in other genres. Mysteries seem to lend themselves to SF authors, as they share many qualities associated with sf. What other genres are good for sf authors? What do authors need to know about other genres before starting their own parallel career?
with Russell Davis, Charles Gannon, and Laura J. Mixon

My main words of advice will likely be that if you want a successful career, don’t do as I did. That’s right—I’m there to be a dreadful warning. But perhaps there’ll be something useful to be learned from others.

Check out the full schedule for the weekend here. Lots of great programming! I can easily see a minimum of 3-4 panels I plan to attend.

Hope to see (some of) you there!

Another old comics acquaintance has passed, and though I hadn’t spoken to her for decades, the world still seems a little smaller today.

It’s being reported that Michelle Wrightson has died suddenly, apparently of natural causes. And though I did know her last by that name, I first became acquainted with her when she was Michelle Brand, and not in the flesh, but rather through her groundbreaking underground comics work.

This is how I remember her looking when we finally did meet, as seen in a photo of her and her husband Roger Brand taken by Patrick Rosenkranz.

My acquaintance with her work goes back just about as far as my connection with organized comics fandom itself. I went to my first convention at age 15 in July 1970, which was the same month the all-women’s underground It Ain’t Me Babe was published, featuring Michelle’s “Tirade Funnies.” I can’t say for sure that I bought my copy at that first con, but as I did buy other undergrounds such as Binky Brown Meets the Holy Virgin Mary that weekend, it was either then or shortly thereafter. (more…)

I’ve participated in hundreds of panels during my decades of going to conventions, but the two I took part in yesterday at Awesome Con (sponsored by the Museum of Science Fiction) were a first, in that I can say, without fear of contradiction, that all the other panelists were far more qualified than me to speak on the topics at hand. They’re actual scientists, you see, dedicated to making real the technologies of which we spoke, while I’m but a writer of fiction, who takes what they’re doing in life and tries to imagine what implications their reality might have 50, 100, 1,000 years down the road.

My morning panel was 3D Printing: Replicating Success, on which I pontificated with Mason Peck, PhD (Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University), Nathan Castro (PhD Candidate at GW’s Lab for Nanomedicine and Tissue Engineering), Lewis Sloter, PhD, PE (Associate Director of Materials & Structures at US Department of Defense), and Jamie Gurganus, PhD (Associate Director of Engineering Education Initiatives at UMBC).

See what I mean about feeling outclassed? (more…)

There were many wonderful moments during last weekend’s Balticon, such as my reading, and the podcast I recorded with Brian Keene (about which more later), but the panel I enjoyed most was Saturday’s “Tales from the Slush Pile,” during which I shared a few intriguing letters I received while editing Science Fiction Age from 1992-2000. (I almost wrote “amusing” rather than “intriguing,” but I was not at all amused by the writer who threatened that if I didn’t do what he wanted, he’d behave like Carlos the Jackal.)

One of those letters, a response to one of the approximately 800 rejections I was forced to send out each month, was not only my favorite such response, but was so popular with the audience I thought it worth sharing here.

And so, in the video below, you can hear me read the only response to a Science Fiction Age rejection I ever liked … as well as offer a few words of advice.

I wish I could have shared the laughter and applause as well which attended my performance of this letter Saturday night, but as they say, you had to be there.

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants won’t be announced until Monday, but to whet our appetites, the organization behind the list has announced what they consider to be the best restaurants 51-100.

I’ve eaten at three of these, which you can click through to and check out my experiences below. Sadly, I never made it to #92, St. John, but rather the spin-off St. John Bread and Wine, for reasons explained at the link.

There are a few surprises here—The Fat Duck, which had been #33 in 2013 and #47 in 2014, has fallen out of the top 50 and is now #73.

Manresa, which in 2014 was #62, this year dropped to #100, almost falling off the list entirely. Of course, it was closed for many months due to a fire last year after my meal there. (I had nothing to do with it, I swear!)

51. Geranium, Copenhagen
52. Tim Rau, Berlin
53. Hertog Jan, Bruges
54. Hof Van Cleve, Kruishoutem, Belgium
55. The Clove Club, London
56. Saison, San Francisco
57. Septime, Paris
58. Quay, Sydney
59. DiverXO, Madrid
60. Hedone, London
61. Martin Berasategui, San Sebastian
62. 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana, Hong Kong
63. L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Paris
64. Maaemo, Oslo, Norway
65. Combal Zero, Rivoli, Italy
66. Amass, Copenhagen
67. Nomad, New York
68. Nerua, Bilbao
69. Momofuku Ko, New York
70. Waku Ghin, Singapore
71. De Librije, Zwolle, Netherlands
72. Restaurant at Meadowood, St. Helena
73. The Fat Duck, Bray, UK
74. Jaan, Singapore
75. Coi, San Francisco
76. Fu He Hui, Shanghai
77. Indiana Accent, New Delhi
78. La Maison Troisgros, Roanne, France
79. Ryunique, Seoul
80. Daniel, New York
81. Joe Beef, Montreal
82. Le Louis XV, Monte Carlo, Monaco
83. Tegui, Buenos Aires, Argentina
84. Sepia, Sydney
85. L’Effervescence, Tokyo
86. Hajime, Osaka, Japan
87. Brae, Birregurra, Australia
88. The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français, Franschhoek, South Africa
89. Zuma, Dubai
90. Estela, New York
91. Belcanto, Lisbon
92. St. John, London
93. Jungsik, Seoul
94. Masa, New York
95. FU1015, Shanghai
96. Mikla, Istanbul
97. Esperanto, Stockholm
98. Vila Joya, Albufeira
99. Lung King Heen, Hong Kong
100. Manresa, Los Gatos, CA

One more thing—I’m hoping the absence of Boragó from the extended list—where it was #91 last year—means it has risen into the Top 50, rather than having fallen out of the Top 100, because Chef David Kinch and staff certainly deserve it.

I spent nearly five hours out back yesterday taking down trees and clearing brush around my stand of bamboo, so I’m happy I’ll be doing nothing more strenuous today than pontificating on panels over at Balticon. All that work is necessarily because my bamboo needs more sunlight in order to become the grove I know it has the potential to be. It’s already my favorite spot on our property, not only filling me with peace and joy but also providing a place for me to get lots of writing done.

Yesterday, I discovered I’m not the only one who likes to hang out there.

As I was about to fire up my chainsaw, I happened to glance up and see what I thought was a leaf which had fallen and landed on the head of the statue of Buddha by the bamboo. Then I looked more closely and saw … that was no leaf.

Buddha had a visitor! (more…)

I told you the other day where you’d be able to find me at Balticon, which is coming up this weekend, but there have been a few changes to programming, so instead of being able to catch me on three items Saturday and two Sunday, it’s now the other way around.

Here’s my new and improved agenda—

Tales from the Slush Pile
Saturday, May 23, 8:00 p.m.
Join our panel of editors as they read some of the worst stories to grace their desks.
with Scott H. Andrews, Rosemary Edghill, and Joshua Bilmes

What’s so Great About the Undead?
Saturday, May 23, 9:00 p.m.
A panel/roundtable discussion about why zombies and other undead creatures have such enduring popularity.
with Larry Hodges (moderator), Christiana Ellis, Gary L. Lester, and Jay Smith

Reading
Sunday, May 24, 2:00 p.m.
with Stephen Granade

Autographing
Sunday, May 24, 3:00 p.m.
with Rosemary Edghill and Tom Doyle

What Makes a Story Long-Lived?
Sunday, May 24, 6:00 p.m.
Discuss stories that are remembered, quoted, redone long after publication.
with Jack Campbell/John Hemry, Steve Lubs, Darrell Schweitzer, and Robert Waters

Hope to see you there!

Balticon is coming up this weekend at the Hunt Valley Inn in Hunt Valley, outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Will you be there? If so, here’s the programming on which you’ll able to find me.

Reading as a Writer
Saturday, May 23, 2:00 p.m.
How do writers interact with fiction they’re reading? How do you read not only for pleasure, but to improve your craft?
with Bugsy Bryant (moderator), Sarah Avery, Katie Bryski, Stephanie Burke, Jack Campbell/John Hemry, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Tim Dodge, Gary L Lester, Jack McDevitt, Sunny Moraine, Hugh J O’Donnell, Scott Roche, James Daniel Ross, Hildy Silverman, Jay Smith, Chris Snelgrove, Steven R Southard, Jean Marie Ward, and Trisha J Wooldridge

Tales from the Slush Pile
Saturday, May 23, 8:00 p.m.
with Scott H Andrews, Joshua Bilmes, Rosemary Edghill

What’s So Great About the Undead?
Saturday, May 23, 9:00 p.m.
A panel/roundtable discussion about why zombies and other undead creatures have such enduring popularity
with Larry Hodges (moderator), Stephanie Burke, and Gary L Lester

Autographing
Sunday, May 24, 3:00 p.m.
with Rosemary Edghill and Tom Doyle

What Makes a Story Long-Lived?
Sunday, May 24, 6:00 p.m.
Discuss stories that are remembered, quoted, redone long after publication.
with Steven R Southard (moderator), Jack Campbell/John Hemry, Darrell Schweitzer, Robert Waters, Jeff Young, and Steve Lubs

I hope to see you there!

Last month, I picked up a copy of Bryan Voltaggio’s new cookbook, Home, while he was making an appearance at a Barnes & Noble in Frederick. I’ve been to all of his restaurants often, and was looking forward to preparing some of my favorites at, well, home.

I assumed the first recipe I’d attempt would be his Chicken Pot Pie Fritters, but when a friend invited us to her 60th birthday party, I realized I’d have to start with something else, because fritters don’t travel. So I decided to whip up the Blueberry Cake with Peanut Streusel, which according to the cookbook photo is to supposed to turn out looking like this. (more…)