Pen’s Tip at Sword’s Edge

Due to family illness, the SEP site is going to be quiet. It’s nothing serious, but the whole family has a pretty bad cold, the kids have fevers, and no one is getting much (if any) sleep.
Once this blows over, I’ll be back.

[Read more →]

This is being cross-posted everywhere I can.
I’m betting you’ve all heard about the disaster in Haiti. I’m sure that you would love to be able to positively contribute to helping the people of Haiti. There are lots of ways to do so, from the Red Cross to Worldvision, but I’m going to let you know [...]

[Read more →]

So, listening to music again on the way to work. I started out with a great episode from the BBC’s Thinking Allowed about the concept of the working class, income disparities and self-identification. It was very, very good and very interesting. I’m going to go back to it. But I realized about two minutes into [...]

[Read more →]

If you are going to read blogs about intelligence and/or military theory and thought, with a dose of current events, I have three that I think you need to read.
Abu Muqawama: Out of the Center for a New American Security (sic . . . yes, sic–I’m Canadian), this blog is nominally hosted by Andrew Exum, [...]

[Read more →]

Having done some reading on the Tudor period in England, I naturally cooked up a novel using a lot of the premises. The idea is to set it in a fictional setting based on Tudor England (Jutemark, perhaps?) and focuses on three individuals, let’s call them the Spymaster, the Mayor, and the Outlaw.  Each of [...]

[Read more →]

Unfortunately, my Viking True20 campaign ended without a real conclusion. I’m glad, though, that I got the chance to run it. One of the reasons is that I learned a heck of a lot about the Varangian trade route through Russia to Byzantium. I also learned a lot about Viking history and culture.
I recently finished [...]

[Read more →]

I’ve spouted off before about my mercenary philosophy for writing. I know that there are those out there on both sides of that arguement. That doesn’t matter, because this is my house, so I win.
BOO-YAH!
Here’s something you need to consider when you are looking to submit to that anthology that only offers $10 and a [...]

[Read more →]

The next few days might actually see a fair amount of action on this blog. A few things to say, and this is the place where I say them.
I have recently learned a lesson as a father. As smart and capable as I think my Princess is, I need to follow her timeframe for development.
Here’s [...]

[Read more →]

. . .Or something?
And so it begins. 2010. The Year We Make . . . stuff.
You want to know a secret? I didn’t party hard on New Year’s Eve. I actually haven’t since 2002 (whoa!) and I didn’t make it to midnight that time.
But here we are, in the new year. What of 2009?
Listen, if [...]

[Read more →]