With the one-year anniversary of my purchase of a ukulele about a month behind me, and my attendance at the George Formby convention in Blackpool about a month ahead of me, I felt moved to share another song with you. And so, here I am having my way with “Makin’ Whoopee!,” made famous by Eddie Cantor in the 1928 musical Whoopee!

I’m improving slowly … but at least I’m improving. Still quite a ways to go, though, and still hoping I’ll find a local teacher someday.

Can’t wait to learn from my betters next month in Blackpool!

I told you last week that as I was flipping through some of Irene’s old comics, one thought kept going through my mind at the sight of the anxiety-producing situations on the covers of Strange Adventures—

I hate it when that happens!

And as I continued looking at the covers of other DC Comics anthology titles—such as House of Mystery, Tales of the Unexpected, Mystery in Space, and My Greatest Adventure—the phrase continued to repeat in my mind …

I hate it when that happens!

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Sean Howe posted a moving Fred Hembeck strip today over at his Marvel Comics: The Untold Story Tumblr. It seems to have been originally published in 1986 on the occasion of Marvel’s 25th anniversary, but it’s still relevant 27 years later.

And yeah … I know that, and you know that … but I don’t think they know that.

Irene’s been going through her comic book collection, and last night, I found myself attracted by her stack of old Strange Adventures. As I looked at the seductive, anxiety-producing covers, all I could think was—

I hate it when that happens!

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With August so far away, it’s early to be thinking about this year’s World Science Fiction Convention, better known as LoneStarCon 3 … or is it? Regular readers here know that there’s more to any con than the con itself. There’s also the food!

And because I’m not just about expensive and difficult to get into gastronomical marvels like Alinea, Next, Astrid y Gaston, and Steirereck, but also down-to-earth comfort food such as burgers and BBQ, one of the first places I head when researching a city is Adam Richman and Man v. Food.

So what does he have to say about San Antonio?

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One of the unexpected pleasures of last weekend’s Immortal ConFusion was that someone had dumped several decades worth of Locus back issues on the freebie table, which meant I was able to dig though copies from the ’80s and ’90s and sit round with my friends who were there remarking about how much our absent friends had changed.

One article that amused me contained the results of the annual Locus poll, and what made it especially amusing was that in 1991, the editors decided to be more playful than usual. In addition to being asked which novels, magazines, etc., we most liked, we were also asked, “Which author would you most like to meet, marry, publish or murder?”

While the “meet” and “publish” results were mildly interesting, it’s the “marry” and “murder” answers that appeared in the September 1991 issue that were the most fun.

And the author Locus readers most wanted to marry 22 years ago was …

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I told you earlier this week about the Authors Gala that SFWA will be hosting at Mad City Coffee in Columbia, Maryland tomorrow night from 7:00-9:00 p.m.—but just in case that didn’t convince you to attend, here’s an updated flier with even more photos of the authors who’ll be taking part.

Now that you know what we all look like, I’m sure you’ll try real hard to be there. You wouldn’t want to be the one responsible for making those faces sad, would you?

As you know, I was at the Dearborn, Michigan convention Immortal Confusion last weekend. So was John Scalzi. And even though he hates me so much that he broke a tooth while there just to avoid jamming with me on the ukulele, I still think he’s a nice guy.

Why do I think that?

Well, one reason is the essay you’re about to hear him read.

Last Friday, John was the first item of programming at the con. He read some unpublished fiction which you won’t get to witness yet, because I’m not a spoilery guy. But he also read one of his most popular essays, “Who Gets To Be a Geek? Anyone Who Wants to Be,” which spoils nothing for no one. And also proves his menschiness.

Enjoy!

Last weekend, if you wanted to hang with me, you’d have had to travel to Dearborn, Michigan for Immortal ConFusion. But this weekend, buying a book and getting an autograph will be a bit easier. Well, at least for those in the Maryland/Virginia/Washington D.C. area.

Mad City Coffee in Columbia, Maryland will host a gathering of SFWA authors Saturday from 7:00-9:00 p.m. … and if you’re not interested in writers’ writing, why, you can always ignore us all and just listen to a writer singing, because Catherine Asaro will be performing with her band.

Check out the complete details below.

Copies of two of my short story collections—What Will Come After and What We Still Talk About—will be available for purchase. And autographing, too. Though whether that will make the books more valuable or less has yet to be determined …

Hope to see you there!

I’ll be in Dearborn, Michigan this weekend to take part in Immortal ConFusion, where I’ll the Editor Guest of Honor. Other Guests of Honor include Charles Stross (Pro), Jennifer Ouellette (Science), James David Nicoll (Fan), and Mary Robinette Kowal (Special).

If you’re heading there, too, here’s where you’ll be able to find me. (And maybe even my ukulele!)

Opening Ceremonies
Friday 8:00 PM (Michigan)
Welcome to Immortal ConFusion! Join our Guests of Honor and Subterranean Press Special Guests for introductions and speeches. A number of artists will also be on hand to caricature the GoHs and display their work afterwards.
Alastair Reynolds, Charles Stross, James Davis Nicoll, Jennifer Ouellette, Kat Howard, Maria Dahvana Headley, Mary Robinette Kowal, Scott Edelman

Dessert Reception With Guests Of Honor
Friday 9:00 PM (Erie)
This is a great place to walk right up to your particular favorite author or panelist for a quick chat or just to meet someone new. People, food, drink will be on hand.

Kaffeeklatsch
Saturday 11:00 AM (Model T)
Join Editor Guest of Honor Scott Edelman for coffee, tea, and conversation. Limited to 10 participants, please sign up in Ops.

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