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Fallout
I'm reminded of the book "On the Beach" (Nevil Shute, 1957) published when I was ten and read when I was twenty. The people in Australia could only sit and wait while the radiation cloud approached from the north. There was nothing they could do but take that last vacation, drive in that last race, … Continue reading Fallout
On Holiday Travel
About two months ago, my spouse announced she’s going to visit our daughter (George) in Florida for Christmas. She didn’t expect me to want to go because of… well, let’s just say “issues.” Our other daughter, Fred was also going. “Count me in,” I said, without a lot of enthusiasm — as when agreeing to go to … Continue reading On Holiday Travel
The Other Christmas Letter
Our Christmas letter this year was…well, bland due to my wife’s insistence that I not make it more interesting. I offer this to my friends who really understand my penchant for exaggeration and frivolity. Another year has passed for the Redmond Vaughn’s. At least we survived. I would like to announce my YA series The … Continue reading The Other Christmas Letter
Be Not Afraid
It occurs to me, the uproar about Muslims, terrorists and madmen coming to American to end life as we know it, is all about fear. The Daesh (what I prefer to call ISIS or ISIL) wants us to be afraid. The NRA, your local gun store and the arms industry as a whole, wants us … Continue reading Be Not Afraid
Are Shopping Malls a Thing of the Past?
And then again, a large complex of stores might not make much sense in the future, but in the future… I’m working on The Timkers — Borrowed Time, where the story is set in 2084. The world is a very different place for people as computer “personal assistants” anticipate our every (as in every) need. If we … Continue reading Are Shopping Malls a Thing of the Past?
The 2015 Annual Shareholders’ Meeting
Since I live within artillery range of Microsoft, I got up at 06:30 to attend the annual shareholders’ meeting. I showed up early and got a cup of tea to chat with other stockholders (many were my age or older). Perhaps I would find a publisher for one of my books. I found very few … Continue reading The 2015 Annual Shareholders’ Meeting
A Golden Opportunity
Faced with the unintended (but not wholly unforeseeable) side-effects of toppling yet another leader in the Mideast, we Americans have been given a gift — a golden opportunity as it were. Enemies of civilization masquerading as radical “Muslims” have destroyed Syria and have threatened to destroy other countries in the region — even France, Britain, Russia and the United … Continue reading A Golden Opportunity
2084 — A Glance into the Future
“George Orwell was 100 years off.” Sam Harkins: The Timkers — Déjà Vu. I was six chapters into Borrowed Time, the next book in The Timkers series when it occurred to me that in order to take readers into the future, I would need to fully understand what 2084 would be like. Unlike earlier books where I … Continue reading 2084 — A Glance into the Future
Evolution of a Cover
For the second time in as many weeks, another author has approached me about the cover for The Timkers —Déjà Vu. They wanted to know how I did it — or did I hire it out. We don’t like it, but books are judged by their covers, so readers not intrigued by a cover will keep looking. … Continue reading Evolution of a Cover
Beta V—Creating, Mentoring, Storytelling 