Book Review: Odd Magics: Tales for the Lost

April 7, 2022April 7, 2022

Book Review: Odd Magics: Tales for the Lost

Odd Magics, by Sarah A. Hoyt, is a collection of classic fairy tales reimagined as short stories set in the modern world. They don’t quite follow the original story, but those who know their fairy tales will quickly figure them out. Sarah Hoyt has given us a collection of stories that are quirky and fun and take you out of your head for a short while. The entire book is a quick read that will give you a lift and inspire you to look for the magic in everyday life.

April 5, 2022April 5, 2022

Space Eats Delivery

I forgot to send in a prompt for the Week 13 challenge at More Odds Than Ends, so I picked up a spare prompt: Space pizza delivery was worth the cost. This is just a short, silly little vignette of Jake and Serena, the planet-hopping archaeologists who occasionally wander through my head. Seriously, though, who wouldn’t spend an arm and a leg for pizza they’d been craving?

April 4, 2022April 4, 2022

For Love of the Boot

Lately I’ve been thinking a bit about the people who insist that the US maintain all the Wuflu ridiculousness that has been “required” for the last two years. These are people who scream that they’re never patronizing their favorite restaurant again because it no longer requires masking inside. They still scream about social distancing. They double-mask when in stores or other public indoor spaces, they wear gloves when out and about. They’re still freaking out about friends and family who are not vaccinated. It’s as if they’re afraid to take up their previous lives again.

March 29, 2022March 29, 2022

Market Day

Coming in at the last minute with my prompt today. I got caught up in editing Magic Abroad and only got to the prompt now. This week at More Odds Than Ends, my prompt came from Cedar Sanderson: They call the wench Mariah. The word “wench” sent me back to Davan, Ubinta, and Pyldraras. This is just a snippet that came to mind. I’m not sure where it would fit in, if it even does (as something other than a bit of background). I’m not sure where we’re going with Davan and Pyldraras, but I guess we’ll find out.

March 25, 2022March 25, 2022

Celebrating Women?

As we enter the last week or so of Women’s History month, I find myself, once again, deeply disappointed at the weakness and failure of the so-called women’s movement. All the goals that were fought for, tooth and nail, in the 1970s are being tossed away by today’s uber-sensitive, uber-woke, anti-women “feminists.” The controversies surrounding Lia Thomas and US Swimming are just one example. The loud, vocal feminist groups, those who claim to support women, have kicked biological women to the curb in their rush to support transwomen… including biological men, who do nothing more than call themselves female and take hormones to lower testosterone levels so that they can compete against biological women in sports where men have their own teams. Women’s groups are pointedly and loudly ignoring the fact that, once again, men are shoving women out of the arena.

March 15, 2022March 15, 2022

Dumpster Dogs

Week 10 in the third year of More Odds Than Ends prompts. This is pretty damn cool. I have gotten so many ideas for stories from these prompts and I’m very grateful that Cedar decided to start this. I’m still amazed that not only can I write fiction, but people seem to like it. So, here we go again!

March 11, 2022March 11, 2022

Title IX and Women’s Sports

On June 23, 1972, Congress passed, and Nixon signed the Education Amendments of 1972. Within that law was Title IX which reads: No person in the United States shall, based on sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance. The act was designed as a follow-on and clarification/expansion of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. It was not specifically written to apply to women’s high school and college sports, but the failure to equally/proportionally fund women’s teams was challenged under it, and the challengers won.

March 8, 2022March 8, 2022

Trash Dragon

Over at More Odds Than Ends, we’re merrily writing prompt responses. For Week 9, my prompt came from ‘nother Mike: There was a baby dragon in the trashcan, laughing as it dug through the trash… I’ve been working on a short story with Jehan Bishara, the vet at Academy Arcane, and this prompt fit right into that.

March 7, 2022March 7, 2022

These People Are Desperate

The Guardian published an opinion piece on Sunday in which they stated “…there is a danger that the battle for Ukraine may divert attention from the approaching climate change crisis.” Seriously?? There’s a war on, there are approaching a million refugees entering neighboring countries, and you’re worried that the war is a distraction? That is sheer desperation on the part of those who planned to pivot us all away from Wuflu and on to climate change. Then Putin, that bastid, stuck a monkey wrench in their plans and invaded Ukraine. The nerve!

March 1, 2022March 1, 2022

Walk This Way

“Please. Step inside,” the man said. Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way” was blasting from hidden speakers. Jack looked around the cluttered office and forced down the impulse to twitch and start organizing the piles of papers and books.