Hello there!

Fancy meeting you here, you being a reader, me being a writer and all that. Kismet, if you ask me. If you’re new here, I imagine you found this little slice of internet bits and bytes through one of my books. I’m an author of all and sundry, known mainly for science fiction and fantasy of many varieties. Yes, I hop genres as frequently as Hazel hopped the fields over Sandleford Warren or Y.T. skateboarded the streets of Mr. Lee’s Greater Hong Kong franchise nation. I do words, in other words, all kinds of them. And if you like words, I will endeavor to ensure you’ll like the ones you find here.

I’m thrilled you’re here. This newsletter will mostly be news and updates on my current projects. I may occasionally share thoughts and inspirations that have captured my attention, too. Once each year, I have a big sale on all my books, and for subscribers, a giveaway. The newsletter is always free. If you would like to support an artist, though, you’re invited to pledge and help me keep my cats living in the catnip-lavish lifestyle they’ve grown accustomed to. And, oh yeah, to keep my caffeine drip on constant flow.

A Note on AI and LLM Stuff

You’ll definitely see some LLM-generated older images on this ’stack. I even used them for some book covers, once upon a time, though I am replacing those (or maybe already have, depending on when you read this) through hired book cover designers. I wasn’t immersed in the controversy of the technology when I made them, and like many, I was enamored by the easy way I could now create images that were exactly or even better than what my brain was imagining for no cost but a subscription fee. But philosophically, I’m disgusted by the entitlement of the companies who’ve created their tools on the backs of people who genuinely rely on their work to earn a living. I find this ruthless, inhumane capitalism utterly devoid of morality, and ultimately, I don’t want to contribute to that. Plus, jeebus, the environmental impacts—yikes.

My thoughts on copyright in general are starting to move in a decidedly Woodie Guthrie direction, but that’s a discussion for another time.

So if you’ve seen the AI/LLM stuff on here and it turned your stomach, please know that I’m aware of the ethical implications and have come down on the side of “no thanks.” Keeping in mind that there’s a difference between generative AI and iterative AI (which can do great things in fields like medicine), I and my judgment will evolve as the regulation of these companies and how they work does too, but for now, yeah, no.