William C Powell

Deploys the apposite line:
Don't threaten me with a good time.

Hiya app is your friend.

Inspired!
Almost as good as a suit with Corn Flakes camo.

In breaking news, to tackle hospital overcrowding, Wes Streeting has pledged to build 40 new corridors.

Reject plans for a mandatory BritCard (digital ID) Sir Keir Starmer is considering a mandatory digital ID scheme called “BritCard” that would make us all reliant on a digital pass to go about our daily lives. Mandatory digital IDs give the state enor...

The Government has revealed plans for a new mandatory digital ID. It’s invasive and could mean millions of people unable to go about their daily lives. Right now it's just an idea - we need to stop it becoming a reality. Join me and sign the petition now! you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/re...

Amazon Echo Dot Max PC Magazine is your complete guide to computers, phones, tablets, peripherals and more. We test and review the latest gadgets, products and services, report technology news and trends, and provide sho...

Amazon launches new death star
Amazon Echo Dot Max - Review 2025 - PCMag UK share.google/VVJuwNilensp...

Wasted Wind Britain wastes millions a day switching off wind turbines. See how much has been wasted today, and in 2025.

I did not know this, but so far in 2025, Britain has wasted £1,178,475,498 switching off wind turbines and paying gas plants to switch on.
wastedwind.energy/2025-10-31

How can they have forgotten the whole Horizon fiasco so quickly?
Politicians are so easily dazzled by technology.
The other danger sign is how quickly the use cases change in response to public pressure. That's how disaster projects begin.

I say, that's a bit strong. Wouldn't an "I hear what you're saying" have sufficed?

An interesting account of how Proportional Representation works to protect against extremists. The UK needs such protection before 2029.

#pretendpanel
Always having something on the go as first draft is my little treat. Sometimes I leave it as the last thing I have to do for the day because it really is a treat just to lay 500 or so words down and revisit whatever place I've gone to, one little bite at a time.

Per the details in the article, it can be spoofed.
But the article is guessing...

It's the new Frankenstein for the 21st century. The things we create turn on us to destroy us. It has always been thus.

I loved this book.
#historicalfiction #booksky

Revise & Resubmit “Live” About a month ago, in response to a submission of my latest undiscovered masterpiece, I received a Revise & Resubmit from an editor at a small press. Great news, in my opinion, but there’…

If I've been silent for a while, it's because I've had a revise and resubmit for a manuscript and I've had my head down for the last month. Today I finished the 1st pass. Here's a blog post about my progress, and where it's going:
wordslayered.wordpress.com/2025/10/19/r...
#writing #editing

Thank you. Good to know the grey cells are still somewhat functional.

But there will be a consultation. And the outcome of the consultation will be FYWA.

How huge London far-right march lifted the lid on a toxic transatlantic soup Tommy Robinson’s ‘free speech’ protest attracted more than 100,000 people – and it was easy to find links to key political figures and events in the US

You are all right Charlies
www.theguardian.com/world/ng-int...

I just remembered Jerome Bixby's The Holes Around Mars, a short story from the pages of Galaxy magazine. There's a Larry Niven short, too, which involves switching off a machine that holds a microscopic black hole in stasis. I can't remember the title. And it may not be Larry Niven.

Brilliant that we're starting to have discussions about the demographics of the UK population, about the declining birth rate, about the increased tax burden on the people of working age, about the way the government responds by raising the age of retirement. That has a ceiling, and it's very close.

That's remarkably like Spike Milligan's "I told you I was ill" inscribed (in Irish Gaelic) on his headstone.

Some very tempting reads here.

What are your favorite noels or short stories in which black holes play a major role?
#BlueskySciFiWriters #SciFiWriters #sf #scifi #specfic #sciencefiction #syfi #amwritingsf #SciFi #scifichat #sciencefiction #speculativefiction #writingcommunity

The only one that springs to mind is Fred Pohl's Heechee Saga.

Cover image of The Best of MetaStellar Year 4, listing (some) author names and with a medieval-themed graphic of an armoured foot pressing down on a wounded goblin. Nice!

You can now pre-order The Best of MetaStellar Year 4 at books2read.com/u/4jdgOD - DRM-free where the platform permits.

#SpeculativeFiction #Fantasy #ScienceFiction #ShortStories #Anthology #ComingSoon #MetaStellar #HumansAreMagic #HumanStoriesByHumanAuthors #Culture #Reading

Microsoft Office CLASSIC subscription successfully renewed today.
Why no, I don't need Copilot's useless suggestions wasting my time when writing. It turns out that thinking for myself is good for the brain. And not using AI is good for the planet.
Win-win.

Bah! Perdido Street Station has been wiped from my Audible library, I just discover. Another one gone, and a reminder that we do not buy Audible books, but only lease them for as long as it pleases Amazon, or the publisher, or whomever.
Angry face.

Broken hearts can become games of shadows on the ballroom floor…. — “The Power We Give” by Larina Warnock The perfect alien planet for human life might not be all it's cracked up to be.... — “Dream Planet” by Jordan Maison Sometimes, androids will do anything for a hot cup of coffee…. — “Coffee Robot” by Bryce Paradis

Front cover of 'The Best of MetaStellar Year 4' as paperback, on tablet and on smartphone, against a backdrop of a whitewashed brick wall, with a picture frame, a white mug and an artists' wooden posable mannequin.

Me again, posting about The Best of MetaStellar Year 4.
This isn't just about me. Here are some teasers for other stories in the volume.
#SpeculativeFiction #Fantasy #ScienceFiction #ShortStories #Anthology
#ComingSoon #MetaStellar #HumansAreMagic #HumanStoriesByHumanAuthors
#Culture #Reading

Reform: Stop hiding from press scrutiny! Nigel Farage says he welcomes freedom of speech, even if people find it offensive. Surely that should apply to freedom of the press too? So why have Reform's Nottinghamshire councillors - who control ...

Reform led Nottinghamshire Council has blacklisted a local paper for asking questions about what councillors were doing. Farage says he welcomes free speech, that should apply to freedom of the press too. Sign the petition to get them to reverse the decision: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/re...

A fascinating list, that asks the important question: do I have room on my bookshelves for another 5 books?