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Moray continues to have the best day ever
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The Big Idea: Colin Brush
Nov. 20th, 2025 07:37 pmscalziwhatever_feed
When writing a novel, a lot of people think of the process as sort of rigid. You have a specific story to tell and it needs to be an unchanging vision all the way through. Author Colin Brush, however, says in his Big Idea that flexibility is required when creating a story. Follow along to see how in the making of his newest novel, Exo, he made sure to be adaptable and listen to those around him.
COLIN BRUSH:
The budding novelist with some notes for a story is faced with one gargantuan problem: how to turn their few scribbled words into a compelling 100,000-word tale? Months, often years, will elapse before this conundrum is solved to their satisfaction.
But then comes a smaller but no less significant problem – the exact opposite of the first. Now you need to pitch your novel to an agent or publisher. You need to condense your 100,000 words into a succinct hundred or so that will persuasively sell your book.
This, of course, is the challenge publishers face every time they launch a new book. What’s the hookiest way of pitching the story? Both editor and author know the story backwards, but is that any help in persuading someone who hasn’t read the story that they’d want to read it? The multiple elements that draw a reader through a tale often aren’t the same elements that invite the uninitiated in.
For the last twenty-five years, I’ve been a copywriter at one of Britain’s largest trade publishers. Over that time, I’ve written the jacket copy (the blurb, in the UK) for over 5,000 books, both fiction and non-fiction. From classics that are hundreds of years old to the latest romantasy sensation.
It is my job to boil down that 100K story, those months or years of work, into fifty to two hundred words. (Frequently, even half a dozen words for a cover shout line.) Many authors and editors shudder at the prospect. It is not because they find it hard to write short, but rather it is because they are so close to the book. When you’ve been cutting a path through the dense trees of a story it can be difficult to remember why you went into the wood in the first place. From the wood’s farther side – bleeding, sore, exhausted but exaltant – it’s easy to lose sight of what from the outside made entering so appealing.
When it came to writing my own novel, I thought I knew what the process needed to be. Much-missed author Terry Pratchett once advised writers: ‘if you think you have a book evolving, now is the time to write the flap copy – the blurb. An author should never be too proud to write their own flap copy. Getting the heart and soul of a book into fewer than 100 words helps you focus.’
Well, I certainly wasn’t too proud. I had a novel idea: the last murder at the end of a world. I had a tough lead character: an uncompromising eighty-year-old former policewoman wandering a bleak, uninhabited planet. I had an adversary: the Caul, a mysterious multi-dimensional entity that had transformed the oceans into an annihilating liquid. And I had a plot: the truth about the murderous Caul had been discovered but someone was killing to keep it secret. I even had a title: Exo.
I’d written half a million words of blurbs. Writing a couple hundred more about my own novel-to-be would have me up and running.
Reader, it didn’t quite work out that way.
It turns out writing a novel and writing a novel’s blurb are very different activities. When you write the blurb the story is set. You know how it works: beginning, middle and end. The path through the woods is clear. When you’re writing a novel, the story tends to evolve. New ideas inveigle their way into the narrative. Characters don’t behave as you expected. Your big denouement doesn’t land as you hoped. Beginning, middle and end – the path – meander and shift. Sometimes, even the woods go wandering!
Writing Exo’s blurb did not help me, unfortunately. I spent years, on and off, reworking the story to get it to come good.
But – and here’s the big idea – being a blurb writer did help me write and rewrite my story. Writing 5,000 blurbs means you encounter a lot of different stories. But you also have to pitch these stories in multiple ways. I was once asked to do the blurb for a schools edition of Albert Camus’ The Plague. What do teenagers prefer? Reading books that are metaphors for the human condition, or scaring themselves silly at the cinema? So I wrote it like a horror movie, beginning with rats vomiting blood . . .
As a blurb writer I’m constantly re-pitching stories in alternative ways to reach new audiences. You work with the story, knowing you mustn’t misrepresent it; that would please no one. A pitch is all about what you put in and what you leave out. Sometimes the author hates an approach and you have to start over. Or the editor likes the beginning but wants the ending to land differently. As a blurb writer, working to a brief, addressing multiple audiences, you have to be versatile. You never say no.
So when I was struggling with Exo – revisions from my agent, suggestions from interested publishers: ‘how about setting it on Earth?’ – I never once said no. I looked at what I had. I saw where changes could be made – elements added or taken away – and the path shifted. Exo was my novel, but it was also just a very long piece of copy. (Writer Randall Jarrell called the novel: ‘a prose narrative of some length that has something wrong with it.’ Mine had plenty wrong with it.)
As someone who regularly writes five different versions of a blurb for a prospective bestseller, I know that there is no correct or incorrect copy. There are just different responses to a brief – different pathways. Some paths will seem more appealing than others. And the eye is always in the beholder.
It turned out my job as novelist was to find a way of telling my story that others wanted to read. That meant exploring many different routes. My day job, pitching stories in a variety of ways, reminded me that versatility and stick-to-itiveness – never saying no! – were the key to beating the best path through the story woods.
Exo: Amazon US|Barnes & Noble|Powell’s|Bookshop|Publisher|UK retailers
Author socials: Website|Instagram|Bluesky
Extracts: Read Day One here | Listen here (read by Gildart Jackson)
The New Box of Internet
Nov. 20th, 2025 01:31 pmscalziwhatever_feed
I like where I live for most things, but one of the things I don’t love about it is that it is in a not great place for Internet access. I’m on a rural road where providers will not send cable or fiber, because it’s not profitable to do so. It’s always been an access desert: When I moved here in 2001, the only local provider of Internet ran at a speed of 9600 baud, which even for the turn of the century was appallingly slow. Then came satellite at a blistering 1.5mbps (provided there were no clouds), followed by DSL at 6Mbps for a decade and a half, which finally and grudgingly on the part of the DSL provider bumped up to 40Mbps. However, Brightspeed (my current DSL provider) has no intention of ever upgrading anything here, and the connection we do have has been getting progressively spottier.
But! Finally! Networks with 5G capability have finally begun to admit I can get signal at my address, and have offered home Internet via wireless to me. I had a couple of vendors to choose from and I went with Verizon, for no other reason than my phone is already on that network and I know it works here. I got their rectangular prism of a router a couple of days ago, and, after I moved it into Athena’s room, where my computer would not somehow confuse its ability to pick up a signal (this did happen), we were good to go.
And how is it? Good enough so far. The download speeds I get are wildly inconsistent — sometimes it’s at 20Mbps, sometimes it’s at 220Mbps — but most of the time it’s between 80Mbps and 120Mbps, which is twice to three times as fast as the DSL line. The upload speeds are a magnitude faster, too, which is nice. All for a cost that is a third less than my DSL package. Verizon doesn’t have bandwidth caps on the level of service I ordered (which honestly means that bandwidth caps of any sort are just excuses to charge more, not an issue of network capacity), so there aren’t going to be any particular cost surprises on that score. An average 80-120Mbps throughput is still far lower than one can get with cable or fiber (the church has 300Mbps via cable), but, from where I’m coming from in terms of speed, it’s a genuine and substantive bump up.
I’m going to keep the DSL for a month or two to get a bead on the quirks and capabilities of the 5G set-up, but if things continue as they have we’ll make that switchover. The only drawback for this is that we got the DSL as part of a package with our landline, and I am loath to give up that number; it’s still a point of contact for several things. I will have to figure out what to do with that.
In the meantime: Hey, do I feel faster to you?
— JS
The Big Idea: Holly Seddon
Nov. 19th, 2025 07:49 pmscalziwhatever_feed
If everyone had less than an hour to live, would your actions in those moments matter more or not at all? Author Holly Seddon explores this question in the Big Idea for her newest novel 59 Minutes, taking a closer look at whether people are capable of being kind and good up until their last breath. When the rules no longer apply, who would you choose to be?
HOLLY SEDDON:
The terrifying premise of 59 Minutes is that everyone in the UK receives an alert to say nuclear missiles are on their way, and the characters have a race against time to get to their loved ones to say goodbye. I’m very proud of this hook, I know it grabs people’s attention.
But the theme, the big idea, behind the hook is, How do people behave when all the usual rules no longer apply?
This has always interested me. It’s what draws us to shows like The Sopranos, where characters operate in a world that eschews the rules most of us live by, often running within the guard rails of a whole different set of rules. It’s why films like The Purge are so compelling.
But even if the rules go up in smoke, I have to believe, as a human trying to negotiate my way through this life, that most people are good and well-meaning.
So, in writing 59 Minutes, I was in a constant dialogue between that good and bad human impulse. The selfless and the selfish.
Because some people really would use their last minutes to do terrible things. A last hurrah. You only have to look at the boom in crimes that happened under the cover of darkness in the blacked out London of World War Two to know that. Muggings. Sexual assault. Even murder. The serial killer Gordon Cummins who murdered four women and attempted to murder two more over a six-day period in 1942.
But I have to believe that plenty of people, plenty more people, would have sacrificed their own safety to help other people. They always do.
When I first had the idea for 59 Minutes, and started to cautiously tell people the premise to gauge their reaction, I noticed the same thing happened repeatedly. Their eyes would glaze over, they’d clearly stop listening to me waffling on and then they’d snap back to attention and apologize. What they said next was always a variation on the same thing. “I’m sorry, I was just thinking what the hell I would do.”
I understood. That is the universality of the hook – every one of us if forced to confront extinction would have somewhere we wanted to be, some people with whom we wanted to spend those last minutes. But what if, like in the novel, it’s not that simple. What if missing children need help, do you stop and lose those minutes? What if you are forced to choose between your own safety, and the safety of someone you loved?
In writing this book and asking my readers to consider such existential questions, I couldn’t shy away from them myself. I’d like to think that, if not brave, I would at least be kind right up to the end. But we all like to think we’d be heroic, don’t we?
So what about you? What would you do if the usual rules of the world just no longer applied. How would you spend your final minutes?
59 Minutes: Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Bookshop|Powell’s|Simon & Schuster
Baby Paws!
Nov. 19th, 2025 11:27 amdaily_otter_feed
Photos of wee Nipi by Wildlife Response Animal Care Specialist Savannah, via Alaska SeaLife Center - they writes:
Take a pause for paws!
Sea otters have two very different kinds of paws, each with a special job. Their small, sensitive front paws have retractable claws and tough pads that help them catch prey and even use tools to open shells. Their large, webbed back paws work like flippers, propelling them through the water.
With four otter pup patients in our care, it's all hands on deck to provide the best care possible for these little ones.
Thank you for caring about these animals the way we do. If you’d like to be part of these pups' recovery journey, your support truly makes a difference: https://www.alaskasealife.org/donate
Another Mortifying Ordeal
Nov. 18th, 2025 09:56 pmquestionable_content_feed
beep beep dumpling car beep beep
Two Years Post-Twitter
Nov. 18th, 2025 11:48 pmscalziwhatever_feedFor various reasons I was reminded that two years ago this week, I quit the former Twitter for good; I had been doing a slow draw down of my presence for most of 2023 but on November 16 I abandoned the place entirely, mostly decamping to Bluesky, with additional outposts at Threads and Mastodon. At my peak on Twitter I had 210,000 followers (down to about 180,000 when I pulled the plug), accrued through a dozen years of being on the service, so it was no small thing to go. But the other option was to stay and be complicit in the machinations of a fascist asshole who was actively turning the place into a cesspool. Off I went.
Two years on, I’m happy to say that I don’t regret leaving. One, and most obviously, I’m not wading in a dank hot tub of feculent right-wing bullshit, which is a positive for my mental well-being and my general ability to be online. Two, my career hasn’t suffered a whit for not being on the former Twitter; my book sales have chugged along rather happily and my other opportunities have not lessened at all. Three, those 200+K followers have been replaced by more than twice that number on Bluesky, Threads and Mastodon (there are repeat followers on each service, to be sure). So surely my ego is assuaged there.
That said, the business aspects of being on social media are not my primary reason to be there, although of course I do tell people when I have new books and other projects out, or when I’m doing appearances. Mostly, though, I’m just hanging out. And while none of the other social media services are perfect (he said, delicately and understatedly), none of the rest of the ones I hang out on are so aggressively tuned to be unpleasant as the former Twitter was when I left, and still is today. It’s possible to chat and hang out and have fun on Bluesky (and Threads and Mastodon) and not feel icky for being there. That’s the real win for me: I’m enjoying myself online more. These days, that is not a small thing.
I’m aware that people are still on the former Twitter and even prefer it there, for whatever reason, and they are welcome to their own karma. There’s nothing and no one there that’s so essential to my day-to-day life that I need to go back there. Likewise, outside of a few right-wing dickheads who like to snark about me, the former Twitter seems to have entirely forgotten that I exist, and I can’t say this bothers me greatly. It’s a pretty clean separation.
I don’t imagine I’ll do another update about this again; there’s not much point to it from here on out. But again, maybe I’m a useful anecdotal case study. What happens when you leave the former Twitter? For me, mostly, online life just got better. If you’re still on the site, maybe it’ll work that way for you, too.
— JS
The Thinker
Nov. 18th, 2025 11:00 amdaily_otter_feed
Photo by Glen and Rita Chapman, via the IUCN SSC Otter Specialist Group - they write:
Deep in the rivers of Central Africa, the Congo clawless otter (Aonyx congicus) does something few otters dare: it forages by touch, not by sight.
With fingers more like ours than most other otters, it feels its way through the mud for hidden prey - a perfect adaptation to the murky forest waters where visibility can drop to zero. Its unwebbed digits, shorter claws and frosted mask give it an unmistakable look and a serious edge in the dark.
However, Aonyx congicus still remains almost invisible to science. Few confirmed photos exist, and its population trends are a mystery. What do we know? It’s Near Threatened, its habit is shrinking, and understanding its ecology could reshape how we protect Africa’s freshwater systems.
A Most Displeased Cat
Nov. 18th, 2025 02:29 amscalziwhatever_feed
Spice is the cat who is probably the closest to me on a day-to-day basis; she sleeps on the bed near my head, and frequently camps out on my desk whilst I type. She’s also the one who misses me the most when I travel and the one least afraid of offering her editorial comments to me about my absence when I return. It appears that my most recent trip was one trip too far: Spice rather pointedly peed on two of my travel bags this weekend, including, unfortunately, my new Exercising Demons bag from Calamityware.
The two bags are now irredeemably trashed, and Spice does not appear in the least bit regretful for her actions. We will have to have a discussion about this at some near point in the future. However, inasmuch as last weekend’s trip was the last one I had scheduled for the year, it seems unlikely there will be further editorial comment along this line. At least, hopefully. Anyway, it’s nice to be missed. Just not that way.
— JS
Keeping It Together
Nov. 17th, 2025 09:29 pmquestionable_content_feed
she's got one hell of a poker face
Hello, I Have a New Name
Nov. 17th, 2025 11:08 amdaily_otter_feed
Via Alaska SeaLife Center, which writes:
Our male otter pup patient, admitted in July, now has a name!
Say hello to Nipi, which means “sound” in the Iñupiaq language. It is a fitting name for a pup who has boisterous vocalizations.
We are grateful to honor one of the Alaska Native languages and cultures with his name as we continue caring for this little one!
Taint One, Taint The Other
Nov. 16th, 2025 10:00 pmquestionable_content_feed
could be both a ponzi scheme AND a sex cult
Small Business Saturday: Face By Kelsi
Nov. 15th, 2025 05:00 pmscalziwhatever_feed
For all my Dayton and Cincinnati readers, I have an excellent small business recommendation for you today if you find yourself in need of a makeup artist or esthetician! A few weeks ago, I was a bridesmaid in my friend’s wedding, and she had a makeup artist from West Chester come up to Englewood to do all of our makeup. As someone who never does their makeup, I love having the opportunity to have it professionally done for me, and usually the only time that happens is when I’m in a wedding. So I always hope that it turns out well since it’s such a rare occasion for me.
Thankfully, Kelsi is a very talented makeup artist, and everyone ended up looking amazing! She was able to do a variety of looks, as I wanted soft glam with false lashes, while the matron of honor wanted a very natural, subtle look with no falsies. Everyone was a little different, and Kelsi listened to everyone’s requests perfectly. She totally nailed my eyeliner wing and sparkly rose gold eyeshadow, and I felt so pretty.
While I was in the chair and Kelsi was working her magic on me, we ended up talking a little bit and right off the bat I really loved her energy. She was friendly and accommodating and I found her to be very funny, as well. I enjoyed talking with her and decided that I would really like to book a facial with her at her studio sometime. So I did! And I drove all the way down to West Chester this past week to get a Pumpkin Spice Facial.
Let me tell you, this facial was totally worth the drive. I loved how cute Kelsi’s studio set up was, it was very comfortable and relaxing. The bed was heated and the blankets were so soft and comfy. Though the Pumpkin Spice Facial comes with some pre-determined items like the Pumpkin Perfecting Mask by Circadia as well as the Hydrating Marshmallow Mask, she customized some of the other items based on my skin’s needs. I was particularly dry from the colder weather, and she adjusted the facial accordingly.
Plus, I added on a dermaplane, and it was a totally painless and comfortable experience! Not that a dermaplane should ever really hurt, but Kelsi had a particularly gentle approach when using the blade that was much appreciated.
Before starting our session, Kelsi asked if I wanted a “yap sesh” or a “nap sesh,” and I love the consideration of this question. Do I want to chit chat or do I want to relax and drift off? Normally, I’m more a fan of the latter, but I enjoyed talking to Kelsi so much at the wedding that I wanted to converse more, so I went ahead and ordered a Yappaccino (aka I opted to talk to her more).
In between sharing recommendations of where to find the best espresso martini in Cincinnati and talking about weddings, I was treated to a truly excellent facial that felt incredible. Between Kelsi’s massage techniques and her running jade combs through my hair, I was becoming more destressed by the second. It’s so nice to find an esthetician who has immaculate vibes and provides amazing service! At the time I got my facial, I just so happened to catch a promotion she was having. It was a 50% off special on the Pumpkin Spice Facial, and I felt so lucky I managed to be included in that window when the special was happening. Thank you for the amazing deal, Kelsi!
Kelsi also agreed to a mini interview, so please enjoy these couple of questions I threw her way:
Q: What got you into the makeup and skincare scene?
A: I’ve always had interests that were adjacent to the beauty industry; I was always the girl with my nails painted in middle school (even though we weren’t allowed to have them painted) and I was definitely a victim of the 2016 makeup craze! I have a friend that does hair who pitched me the idea of being a makeup artist for her bridal team in 2019, and everything took off from there!
Q: What’s your favorite look to do on a person? Glam? Natural? Halloweenie?
A: I love a good solid soft glam that reflects the personality of the person wearing it. Makeup is so personal, it’s always so fun learning what makes someone feel beautiful. Whether it’s the waterline black liner you’ve been rocking since the 90s or a signature red lip that you wouldn’t feel like yourself without! My favorite glam is a look that makes my client feel like the best version of themself!
Q: What’s been your favorite part of having your own business?
A: My favorite part of owning my own business has been being able to customize the services I offer so I know I’m only doing things I’m passionate about. I love being able to offer fun seasonal facials, I love doing bridal makeup, and I love a good lash and brow transformation! I think it’s so important when you’re in a creative industry like this to only do things you’re passionate about so your heart can really be in it and your work will reflect that sincerity.
Q: What’s something you’ve really enjoyed about your work, and one thing that’s challenging?
A: Something I’ve really enjoyed about my work is being able to connect with so many lovely people! It’s so easy these days to feel cynical about the state of the world and the people in it, but I’ve found that there’s so many beautiful people out there if you let yourself find them. One thing that’s been challenging has been pushing myself harder on slow days when it’s easy to be lazy and pessimistic. I knew when I opened my suite this year that things would be challenging to start out on my own, but I’m constantly reminded how lucky I am to be where I’m at, and I’m so excited to see where I’ll be 5, 10, and even 20 years from now!
There you have it, folks. If you have a kid going to prom in the Spring, you’re an Ohio bride in 2026, or you just want to treat yourself to a lovely self-care moment and get a facial, Kelsi is your girl.
You can book a facial service through her website, or follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and Tik Tok. I know I definitely need to book myself a Peppermint Hot Cocoa Facial for the holidays.
Have you been part of a wedding before? Do you like getting your makeup done? Would you try the Peppermint Hot Cocoa Facial? Let me know in the comments, and have a great day!
-AMS
View From a Hotel Window, 11/15/25: Jacksonville, FL
Nov. 15th, 2025 02:02 pmscalziwhatever_feed
Folks, I think we may have hit the parking lot motherlode here: Three parking lots and a parking garage! Another city is going to have work very hard to ever beat Jacksonville’s bounty here.
I’m in town for an event at the Jacksonville Public Library, starting at 1pm: I’ll be interviewed, do an audience Q&A, and then sign books. Come on down and see me.
Then when it’s done I go back home and write like the wind, after all I have a novel to finish before (mumble mumble mumble). The life of a science fiction writer is always intense, it seems.
— JS
Well? How's It Taste?
Nov. 15th, 2025 11:00 amdaily_otter_feed
Via MTSOfan, who writes, “An otter's focus of attention is always changing. Here, Jet still had a mouthful of food when he thought about the humans watching him.”