David Rose (Schitt’s Creek) and Rarity (My Little Pony) are both characters whose strong aesthetic senses resonate deeply for me… while also causing me to recoil, because they’re so focused on fashion, and I loathe fashion, because I can ONLY WEAR COMFORTABLE CLOTHES, which is anathema to most fashion. Continue reading “David Rose, Rarity, and Fashion”
Author: marylowd
Killing a Character for the First Time
Today, I got to the point in my sci-fi horror novel-in-progress where I got to kill off one of the major characters. He’s been slated for death from the beginning, designed specifically to be annoying, so it’d be fun for me to kill him.
But it wasn’t fun… I don’t know why. Continue reading “Killing a Character for the First Time”
Escaping My Dad Through Fiction
Sometimes I wonder how much of the intensity of my ambition comes from having spent the first two decades of my life under the power of an erratic, terrifying, 6’3” man with social power and a prestigious academic position. Continue reading “Escaping My Dad Through Fiction”
Re-Watching Lord of the Rings
We’re showing the kids Lord of the Rings for the first time. It’s also my first time seeing it in about fifteen years.
And it’s so weird how it goes along like a perfectly normal epic fantasy… and then all of a sudden [MEME!] and then normal fantasy… and then [MEME!]
It’s also disconcerting after fifteen years of Sam being idolized as the most perfect character on the internet to see again how hypocritical and judgmental he is when it comes to Gollum. Continue reading “Re-Watching Lord of the Rings”
Puppy and Kitten
Two chew toys and a remote control… guess which one the puppy wants to gnaw…
Well, today’s been complicated emotionally…
It sounds like our kitten, Hazel, will be okay, but last night her suture from being spayed last week started gushing milky white pus like the android in Alien when he gets speared through the middle. Continue reading “Puppy and Kitten”
Long Day of New Puppy
If I controlled the universe, every day would be filled with 60s style pop songs about spaceships, sung by talking animals.
Yes, I’d change the genre of our space-time continuum to a furry sci-fi pop musical. I don’t know what the deal is with all this mainstream nonsense. Continue reading “Long Day of New Puppy”
Clarity & Cassie: the Conscious and Subconscious Mind
A reader pointed out the way I’ve been posting about my new puppy (24 hrs!) sounds a lot like the voice of Cassie, the living spaceship in my Entangled Universe trilogy who loves bunnies.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot… Continue reading “Clarity & Cassie: the Conscious and Subconscious Mind”
Star Wars Catch-Up, Harrison Ford Dream, Etc.
So, I got confused while watching The Clone Wars and thought the “movie” went at the end, after the rest of the series. You know, rather than jammed somewhere in the middle of the first three seasons…
Anyway, I’m just now seeing the tiny baby Jabba. Continue reading “Star Wars Catch-Up, Harrison Ford Dream, Etc.”
Courtship FTL
by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in Analog Science Fiction and Fact, November/December 2020
Addie stepped onto the fanciest spaceship she’d ever seen and thrilled at the idea that she might soon own it. The twinkling lights, the shining displays, the dashboards of brightly colored buttons — all hers! She’d been saving credits for years and finally had enough to buy a fully AI-equipped, FTL-drive starhopper. Continue reading “Courtship FTL”
Stray Thoughts While Waiting for the New Puppy
The Bengal cats refuse to believe that my keyboard is not for walking on. They are adamant. They are stubborn. They are plural. They are winning this fight.
Me: 52 hours until new puppy!!!
My brain: what if… getting a puppy doesn’t magically fix everything and make us perfectly happy? Continue reading “Stray Thoughts While Waiting for the New Puppy”