The world of writing

Another story of the Chengdu Worldcon 2

This entry was posted in News and tagged China fandom science fiction on by

This weekend, I heard a remarkable account from a science fiction writer who wanted to go to the Chengdu Worldcon. He was talking to a small group of people including me, but I don’t know if he wants it publicized, so I’ll omit his name.

To go to China you need a visa, which requires going through a Chinese embassy. He made his application and, as requested, listed his professional affiliations. One of them, not surprisingly, was SFWA. He was asked what the abbreviation stood for and explained it’s “Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association.” (The name has changed once or twice while keeping the abbreviation.) This got some alarmed responses, and he was told they’d have to get back to him. The process dragged on without a decision. Finally, a few weeks before the con, he withdrew his application so he wouldn’t have a denied visa request on is record.
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Book burying under White House pressure 3

This entry was posted in Censorship News and tagged Amazon books censorship on by

According to a New York Post article, the White House successfully pressured Amazon to put some books under a “do not promote” order. The books remained available but presumably are less discoverable than comparable books not under the order. The order was issued “the same day Amazon officials met with the White House.”

The order covers “anti-vax books whose primary purpose is to persuade readers vaccines are unsafe or ineffective.” The article doesn’t mention any titles, so I can’t judge their worth. Would a book that called attention to legitimate risks or exaggerated claims of effectiveness fall under that category? Biden said, “You’re not going to get COVID if you have these vaccinations,” a claim whose inaccuracy many people have learned firsthand.
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It’s Black History Month, not Black Advertising Month

This entry was posted in Writing and tagged history writing on by

Looking around the Internet and stores, the most obvious signs of Black History Month are ethnically targeted marketing. That’s what advertisers do, I guess. But the original idea was a good one: call attention to people whom older histories tended to ignore.

Writers might get some ideas from looking at black historical figures they admire. Let me just list three:
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The Tianwen project

This entry was posted in Commentary News and tagged censorship China science fiction on by

File 770 has a fascinating article, “Decoding the Tianwen Project”, about the Chinese government’s aims to achieve a dominant position in the science fiction world. The piece is “posted anonymously to protect the author’s identity, as the author is part of the Chinese diaspora who occasionally travels to China.”

China has already engaged in censorship outside its borders through its print shops. It pressured Disney into killing nearly all the distribution of Kundun, which presents the Dalai Lama favorably and Mao unfavorably. A CNN article says China has “the world’s largest known online disinformation operation.”
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Frankenstein (1910) with fresh accompaniment

This entry was posted in Movies Personal and tagged music science fiction silent movies on by

This week I added an ART USBMIX mixer to the audio gear I use to accompany silent movies on Twitch. The 1910 Frankenstein from Edison Studios was one of the movies I showed in January; I redid it with the mixer, hoping to improve the sound quality by eliminating the microphone and the keyboard and room noise along with it. I’m happy with the result and plan to use this setup in my February 14 movie. The proof of concept is now up on YouTube.
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New Hampshire bill seeks to mandate book rating system

This entry was posted in Censorship Commentary News and tagged censorship education libraries New Hampshire on by

A bill before the New Hampshire legislature, Senate Bill 523, is a frontal attack on school libraries in the state and the vendors that provide books to them. The bill is sponsored by State Senator Kevin Avard. It’s the kind of lunacy you’d expect in Kansas or Texas, not New Hampshire.

It would set up a bounty system for bringing complaints against material which is allegedly “harmful to minors.” Anyone claiming to be aggrieved under the bill’s terms would be able to sue for damages. A person bringing a successful suit would be guaranteed a minimum payout of $1,000. What Avard is trying to set up isn’t just a way to remove inappropriate books but a way to incentivize gratuitous challenges.
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Human rights issues with a Kampala Worldcon

This entry was posted in Commentary and tagged conventions fandom liberty science fiction Uganda on by

As fans energetically discuss the aftermath of the Chengdu Worldcon, some are thinking about the risks of future Worldcons in countries with a bad record on free speech and human rights. There are some issues with the UK, which is hosting this year’s convention, but it’s too late to change it. Let’s look ahead to the bid for Kampala in 2028.

There’s never been a Worldcon in Africa, and that helps to make the idea attractive. The bid website talks about Uganda’s literary history:
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Accompanying Son of the Sheik

This entry was posted in Music Personal and tagged music silent movies on by

The next silent movie which I’ll accompany on Twitch will be the 1926 Son of the Sheik on February 14, “Valentino’s Day,” at 8 PM Eastern US time. Following an old tradition, I’ll precede it with a short, Young Mr. Jazz, starring Harold Lloyd. If all goes well, I’ll have some new equipment to improve the sound.

Son of the Sheik was Rudolf Valentino’s last movie. He died shortly after its first, limited public showings. It was based on a novel that had no connection to his earlier movie, The Sheik, but was retrofitted to be a sequel. Valentino plays two title roles. He’s the Sheik as well as his son Ahmed. They sometimes appear in the same shot thanks to double photography.

Spoilers ahead.

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New on Liberty Fund: The Peasants’ War and Martin Luther

This entry was posted in History My writing and tagged Germany history liberty on by

My latest article for Liberty Fund’s Online Library of Liberty, “The Peasants’ War and Martin Luther,” is now online. Marxist claims have largely dominated historical discussions of the Peasants’ War, but it was a revolt in defense of property rights, not against them. Its Twelve Articles contain ideas that appeared in the United States’ Declaration of Independence.

Obituary for a newspaper

This entry was posted in Commentary News and tagged New Hampshire news publishers on by

For the past six years, a newspaper called Carriage Towne News has arrived in my mailbox every week. The next one, scheduled to arrive on February 1, will be the last. The lead article in this week’s paper explains:

The Carriage Towne News — a free weekly newspaper dependent on small local ads and a wrapper for advertising circulars — will publish its final edition Thursday, Feb. 1. …
 
Financial support for the paper has seriously eroded in recent times as the critical revenue from advertising content dwindled while newsprint, production and mail distribution costs continued to increase.
 
Unfortunately, those factors combined to make it economically prohibitive to continue publication and direct marketing of the paper through mailed distribution to 26,000 southern New Hampshire households.

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