Did I get your attention? I hope so. It’s International Blasphemy Day today and it’s also currently Banned Books Week. International Blasphemy Day was the concept of the Centre For Inquiry in response to the outrage over the Mohammed cartoons controversy. The Day is designed to commemorate the controversy and to celebrate free expression...
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Books By Alan
Click on book covers for reviews, previews and purchase options.
RealmShift
A race against time and the Devil
"RealmShift is phenomenal. If it’s not already on your bookshelf it should be."
MageSign
Believe in the blood 
"a gritty tale of blood rituals, mystery, and mysticism… grabs hold of the reader and doesn’t let go"
The Darkest Shade Of Grey
You can tell the story.
"...stunning supernatural noir..."
Ghost Of The Black
"Everything about it is bang on"
Write The Fight Right
“The best way for a writer to learn what’s really involved in brawling, short of going down the pub and starting something.”
Monthly Archives: September 2010
Well, fuck me with a Koran while I read Harry Potter
Versatile Blogger Award
Lorna Suzuki was kind enough to award me a Versatile Blogger Award today. She said: Alan Baxter – not only is he a martial arts master, he is a master storyteller! He blogs about writing and business, and the business of writing. I wonder if she’s thinking about a different Alan Baxter? This is...
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See a bald editor to help cure cancer
Russell B Farr, editor at Ticonderoga Publications, is doing a great shave for charity. Look at those russetty locks and that fulsome beard (pic nabbed from Kirstyn McDermott’s blog). It’s all coming off, hair and beard, to raise money for cancer research. Says Russell: The ACT Eden Monaro Cancer Support Group have given my...
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Adjectives intensified with obscenities
I love xkcd.com for so many reasons, not least of which is the effort and research that goes into some of the comics. Coupled with an awesome concept, we get absolute gems like this:
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A bit of geeky fun for the Battlestar Galactica fans
I was reading the paper over the weekend and this story caught my eye. The story is basically about a plan to start coal seam gas drilling and there’s controversy because it’s going to be near the Warragamba dam, which holds a lot of Sydney’s drinking water. The controversy comes from the fact that...
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While you wait for book three, authors die!
The title of this post is slightly sensationalist, but in a literary sense it’s actually very true. I mentioned recently that I’ve finally started reading A Game Of Thrones, which is the first book in George R R Martin’s A Song Of Ice & Fire series. This comment lead to a few discussions in...
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Starfish by Peter Watts – review
When I posted my review of Raft yesterday I realised that I hadn’t written a review of the book I’d read before it, which was Starfish by Peter Watts. You’ll remember that I’ve talked about Peter a bit here recently, and you’ll probably remember the picture of me pretending his Hugo award was my...
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Raft by Stephen Baxter – review
I don’t read an awful lot of hard science fiction, but do occasionally get the urge. I love Iain M Banks’ work, but I wouldn’t classify that as especially hard or sciencey. It’s just awesome, and usually as hard as I like it (oo-er, Mrs). But now and then I like to read something...
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Aussiecon4 / Worldcon link salad
I know I said before that I’d done my last Aussiecon4 post. I’m just going to stop saying it now. I’m worse than John Farnham on his last ever tour ever honestly this time, there’ll be no more. Till next time. Anyway, this post is not so much from me, but just to direct...
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Language, please don’t abuse it
I’m a stickler for getting things right. We all make mistakes, we’re only human, but some things are not mistakes. They’re ignorance. One of the most pervasive forms of ignorance, and one that really bothers me as a writer, is the incorrect use of language. The other day I was having a conversation with...
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The dangers of online translators
Danger or poetry? This is absolute gold. Cat Sparks emailed me this from the LikeItHateIt website. It’s a Portuguese menu with English “translation” that has ended up being a work of art. Some of the translations are just awesome. Among my favourites are: Clams in the manner of the ever-fighting duck Grilled codfish with...
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No really, the last Aussiecon post
I know I said last post that all those pictures would make my last Aussiecon4/Worldcon post. Apparently I lied. Felicity Dowker kindly pointed out to me that the Novella panel I was on with Robert Silverberg, Peter M Ball and Keith Stevenson has been immortalised on YouTube. Not the whole thing, but a roughly...
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Aussiecon4 photos – last post
I was planning to post a lot more about the recent Worldcon, but time slips away like a banana skin in a prat fall. Rather than keep posting things weeks and months after the event (especially as so many others have so ably blogged all about it), I thought I’d just make a last...
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Top Ten Fictional Characters
I got to thinking about this and, of course, this is my personal top 10. I wouldn’t be so presumptive as to list a definitive top 10 of fictional characters, as everyone will have a different idea of what makes a character memorable. Shit, my own top 10 will change within minutes of me...
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A Dictionary of the Near Future
I found this article called A Dictionary of the Near Future at the New York Times online thanks to Marc Pesce on Twitter. I love the things I find through Twitter – the interwebz is a playground of joy. This is an article by Douglas Coupland, who says, “The thing about the future is...
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The Word
Welcome to the website of author Alan Baxter.
I write dark fantasy, sci fi and horror, ride a motorcycle and love my dog. I also teach Kung Fu, hence the Warrior Scribe tag above. A friend once referred to me that way and I liked it, so it stuck. Learn all about me and my work by clicking About Alan just below the header.
Our world is built on language and storytelling. Without stories, we are nothing.
The Word is a place to learn more about me, my stories and the words of others. Click the links along the top for all kinds of stuff, search the sidebars for loads of other stuff, click on book covers for reviews and previews, enjoy the blog and don't be shy to share your words, in comments or send me an email:
alan [at]alanbaxteronline[dot]com
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