This week, I want to talk about corporations using global tragedy to “get their brand name out there” and otherwise profiteer off of human misery.

We're getting a new cockpit-focused Star Wars flight game this October! While visions of the classic LucasArts simulators X-Wing and TIE Fighter do barrel rolls in our heads, we should temper our expectations.

Hello, lovely people.

I have another craft post planned for sometime soon… I'm hoping to write about The Housekeeper and the Professor, by Yoko Ogawa, if I can just figure out how to articulate what I want to say. It's such a beautiful book! One of those rare books I got out of the library, read, then decided I needed to own.

Until then, I wanted to share a little bit of blather about Winterkeep (January 19, 2021), plus display all eight new covers — the new USA and UK covers for Graceling, Fire, Bitterblue, and Winterkeep — altogether in one place. If you don't care about the blather and just want to see pretty pictures, scroll down.

So. The first few drafts of Winterkeep were written in many, many points of view. It was early days, and I was trying to figure out how to tell the story I wanted to tell. I pretty much allowed anyone a point of view, sort of as an experiment, to see how each character felt, and figure out whose feelings were most important. Then gradually, across revisions, I whittled those POVs down. In its final form, Winterkeep is told from five points of view — and only three of them are human! 

One is Queen Bitterblue, whose POV will be familiar to those who've read my book Bitterblue. Bitterblue is a little bit older now, twenty-three. She's always working, always doing the best with the problems facing a young queen, and at the moment, she's worried about two of her advisers who died mysteriously in a shipwreck in Winterkeep. She's also worried about a friend, a Keepish man she's sort-of-maybe romantically involved with, named Katu Cavenda. Everyone says Katu is traveling… so why does it seem like he's actually disappeared? These questions, among others, bring Bitterblue to Winterkeep, to figure things out for herself.

Another point of view is Giddon, a character who'll be familiar to readers of Graceling and Bitterblue. Remember what a jerk Giddon was in Graceling? He actually told Katsa once that he was confident she'd want babies someday, because after all, she wasn't "an unnatural woman." YUCK! 

Then, when I started to write Bitterblue, I discovered that Giddon had evolved. I was touched by the friendship he began to develop with Bitterblue, which surprised me while I was writing. I realized that over the course of the last few years of his life, he'd taken responsibility for his behavior and grown up a bit. After all, he was only eighteen years old in Graceling, and he hadn't encountered much pushback against his viewpoints yet. I like to think that Giddon paid attention to the good influences around him and rethought a few things. Anyway, now he's back, and he's had a few more years to grow up even more.

Another point of view is a Keepish girl named Lovisa Cavenda, age 16, who's depicted on the USA cover (below). Lovisa's a sneak and a secret keeper; she's a manipulator and a survivor. Katu Cavenda's niece and a student of politics and government at the Winterkeep Academy, she lives in the dorms but sneaks home frequently, spying on her own parents, who are important political figures in Winterkeep. If I had to choose one character at the very heart of this book, it would be Lovisa Cavenda. Through no fault of her own, she finds herself in an impossible situation… Will she find a way out?

Another point of view is a telepathic blue fox, who has a special, exclusive mental bond with Lovisa Cavenda's mother, Ferla Cavenda. And trust me, though Ferla has a warm hearth and a warm coat with a fuzzy hood it's cozy to ride inside, Ferla's mind is not always a comfortable place! The rules of foxkind are fairly strict. What happens to a fox who can't decide whether to follow the rules?

Finally, my last point of view is a gigantic sea creature with thirteen legs and twenty-three eyes who lives at the bottom of the ocean, protecting her treasures (sunken anchors, sunken human corpses, sunken ships). All she wants is to be left alone… but the machinations of humans and the interests of her undersea world keep interrupting her peace.

Those are my five points of view! Together, they tell the story of Winterkeep, which is, above all, a story of relationships. I hope you'll enjoy watching these five characters come together.

And now for my shiny new covers. 

First up are the USA covers. In the USA and Canada, Graceling is published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Fire, Bitterblue, and Winterkeep are published by Penguin Books. These covers were illustrated by Kuri Huang (@kuri_huang) and designed by Theresa Evangelista and Jessica Jenkins. Shown below in series order.

 

One of my absolute favorite things about this reboot is that both my USA and my UK publishers are updating the series, and both went with a beautiful, rich, textured look — but they're so different from each other. Below are my new UK covers. In the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, my books are published by Gollancz. The covers were illustrated by Micaela Alcaino (@micaelaalcaino) and designed by Tomás Almeida.

 

And that's my update for today. Hope you're all hanging in there. More soon. ????

U.S. District Judge Matthew W. Brann speaking to the only lawyer still willing to argue Trump's case in Pennsylvania, Rudolph Giuliani, on Tuesday:

“You’re alleging that the two individual plaintiffs were denied the right to vote. But at bottom, you’re asking this court to invalidate more than 6.8 million votes, thereby disenfranchising every single voter in the commonwealth. Can you tell me how this result can possibly be justified?”

Hello everyone. You might expect that while we are having to endure this comical yet terrifying attempted coup, my subconscious mind would be having a field day, giving me creative dreams as usual. But here's the dream I had Tuesday night, after that disgraceful show in Michigan: A Republican demagogue, anticipating his loss in the next election and wanting to prime public opinion, begins shouting as loud as he can about how the Democrats are going to steal the election. He loses the election. Then he tries to steal the election, again by accusing the Democratic victors of stealing the election. Rank-and-file Republicans fall in around him, supporting his baseless claims. A depressingly shocking number of voters believe him.

Not a lot of creativity there, subconscious.

For me, the most stressful part of all of this is how terrifying the GOP has become. A massive web of baseless lies that are believed by a gigantic number of people is terrifying. It's what my books are about. Of course, as a fantasy writer, I've always known I'm writing about real life.

 I found a recent episode of the Ezra Klein Show helpful in contextualizing the crisis that's been created by the Republican Party. In it, Ezra talks with Anne Applebaum, who studies authoritarianism. As a writer, I appreciated that the episode included a close study in character. The character of real people, of course, like Lindsey Graham and Laura Ingraham, but writers are naturally interested in the characters of real people. It's how we write believable imaginary people! Anyway, check it out if a grim perspective will help you get your feet on the ground. Don't check it out if what you need right now is comfort or reassurance, however. Those are valid needs too. And I have a couple of TV recommendations for that as well!

About a month ago, I finished watching Jane the Virgin, which now has a permanent place in the upper echelon of my favorite TV shows of all time. It is so funny, so sweet and full of heart. It has political relevance, in a way that will make you feel hopeful. It's about families, writing, relationships between women, parenthood, magic, and it has characters you'll love so much that when you finally finish the last episode, you'll wander around feeling bereft for a while, or at least that's what happened to me. The plot is so absurd that you don't have to worry too much about bad things happening. The voiceover narrator is an absolute delight. I love this show so much, and if you've never seen it before, now might be the time!

Also, last week I started watching Crash Landing on You, a South Korean TV drama in which a South Korean heiress has a hang-gliding mishap that drops her into the North Korean section of the DMZ. A very serious (and brooding) captain in the North Korean Special Police Force finds her and reluctantly decides to help her hide. It's very, very funny and keeps surprising me with its sweet moments — one of my favorite combinations in a TV show — and like with Jane, I'm falling for all the characters. Each episode seems to be incrementally longer than the last episode, to the point that my addiction to the show is interfering with the rest of my life, but I'm enjoying it too much to care. :o)

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62530475

These are my recommendations for today… Hang in there, everyone. ????

Our new online platform and summit will help students learn more about product inclusion and equity.

My web magician and I have set up some really cool code for The Daily Coyote. Starting tomorrow and forevermore, the top post of this site will feature a photo of Charlie from our vast archives, which will change with every visit the blog. I didn’t want the daily pictures to end, or for Charlie’s […]

The FBI is investigating a spate of racist text messages targeting Black Americans in the wake of Donald Trump’s election victory last week. The texts were reported in states including Alabama, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia, addressing recipients as young as 13 by name and telling them they were “selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation” and other messages referencing slavery. For more, we speak with Robert Greene II, a history professor at Claflin University, South Carolina’s first and oldest historically Black university in Orangeburg, where many students were targeted. “Initially when I heard about the texts, I thought it was a bit of a hoax, but … it quickly became clear that this wasn’t just a Claflin problem, it was a national issue, as well,” says Greene. We also speak with Wisdom Cole, senior national director of advocacy for the NAACP, who says “this is only the beginning,” with a second Trump administration expected to attack civil rights and embolden hate groups.

The AAAR, Tamil Nadu in the case of M/s Faiveley Transport Rail Technologies India (P.) Ltd., In Re [A.R. Appeal No. 03/2024 AAAR dated July 10, 2024] upheld the ruling passed by AAR Tamil Nadu wherein it was ruled that GST would be applicable on Car facility extended to employees when the amount of

The AAR Maharashtra, in the case of M/s. The Nisarga Consultancy, In Re [Order No. GST-ARA-21 of 2023-24/2024-25/B-55 dated July 31, 2024] ruled that no tax will be leviable on work allotted by Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikar ("MJP") as per of Jal Jeevan Mission ("JJM") which is a mission of Government

The Hon'ble Madras High Court in the case of M/s S.R.S. Construction v. The State Tax Officer (Data Analytics) [Writ Petition (MD) Nos. 16214 & 16276 of 2024 dated July 19, 2024] set aside the orders which have been signed by the same officer in dual capacity, holding that such orders are liable to

The Hon'ble Madras High Court, in the case of M/s Sri Shanmuga Motors v. State Tax Officer [Writ Petition No. 11737 of 2024 dated June 03, 2024] had set aside the Appellate Order and directed the Department to hear the appeal on merits which has been filed beyond the condonable period for filing of

In this digital world where staying connected is like breathing, we often rely on public charging stations to keep our devices juiced up. But hold your horses! While these stations might seem like a lifesaver, especially in busy places like airports,

Smart home technology is no longer a luxury reserved for the affluent. With advancements in technology, affordable smart home devices are now within reach for tech enthusiasts in India. These gadgets offer convenience and efficiency without straining your budget. Smart lighting

LG has introduced a new stretchable display that can expand by 50% from its original size. This innovative technology allows the screen to grow from 12 inches to 18 inches with a simple pull. The display is designed to endure up

Amazon's Children's Day Store is now open, featuring an array of products specially discounted for the occasion, including top-selling Android tablets ideal for e-learning. With price reductions of up to 75% on select items such as headphones, tablets, and kids' smartwatches,

The latest update to Nothing's operating system is now available for users with the Phone (2a), as the company rolls out the second open beta for Nothing OS 3.0. While this version is currently exclusive to the Phone (2a), users of

Over the next few weeks and months, you'll see social media posts discussing how companies cannot offer holiday bonuses or will have to cut employees due to Trump's tariffs (proposed or enacted).

 

Some of these stories may be fiction or cautionary tales that illustrate the price the average American pays for a politician's decision.

 

But I can 100% tell you this is a reality many business owners in the manufacturing sector now face.

 

If you aren't aware of how tariffs work, it's relatively simple. The company importing the goods from a foreign country pays the fee. If a company has to pay 20%, 60%, or 200% more to bring that item into the United States, who ultimately bears that cost? The American people.

 

Over the last few days, I have been talking at length with my factory representatives, figuring out how much of an item I need to order now to offset any expanded costs later. In addition, we are looking at where we can move manufacturing to outside of China (hard mode, not a lot of places outside of China or Europe produce boardgame components at the scale our industry uses).

 

I've been speaking with my shipping representatives about the increasing freight costs we expect to see with a rise in tariffs. We're already paying extreme freight prices, which will only go up as demand increases. The last time tariffs were levied on Chinese manufactured goods, freight costs went up.

 

Now I am in a position that forces me to examine how much we may need to raise prices if the most extreme of the proposed tariffs goes into effect.

 

I'm also trying to do right by my staff. But I can only do so much, you know? How long can business owners incur these costs, protect our staff, and not have consumers pay through the nose? Can I accept breaking even for the time being to keep my people employed and our games affordable? But what happens when the company starts losing money?

 

Many CEOs and business owners are staring down this reality right now. This isn't just a theoretical exercise. We have to plan for the worst.

 

So, what do I plan to do about this? I will be even more present in my local and state business associations that have direct links to policy makers in D.C. I will take every opportunity to speak directly to those who have a say in this new administration about why this isn't good for the economy. I'm just a tiny player in the world of manufacturing. But I do know the power of my voice. And more importantly, I know the power your voice holds as well.

 

You can start putting pressure on your elected (or newly elected) officials by writing, calling, or contacting them through their open channels (many of them love social media). Tell them you do not want these proposed tariffs, and let them know how these cost increases will impact you. Hold them to their promises. Make your voice heard. 

We are all in this together. 

– Meredith Placko

Warehouse 23 News: A Great Deal Of Adventure!

Excitement is in the cards with the Decks of Destiny for The Fantasy Trip. This collection of resources and reference material contains adversaries, rumors, combat options, and more to make your games of TFT fast and furious. Download this set today from Warehouse 23!

The Smile “The Slip” It’s unfortunate that The Smile records have to carry the weight of questions like “wait, is there never going to be another Radiohead album?” and “hold on, so is this basically Radiohead from now on?” But what can you do? Those are big questions for anyone who’d want to listen to […]

Perky Bros created the branding for Public Pool. The company specializes in swimming accessories, but they’re rooted far from the coast...

The post Public Pool identity first appeared on peopleofdesign.

Animals that hibernate need a way to keep their blood flowing as their body temperature drops, and it seems that the mechanical properties of red blood cells may be key

A type of mathematical problem that was previously impossible to solve can now be successfully analysed with artificial intelligence

Google DeepMind has been using its AI watermarking method on Gemini chatbot responses for months – and now it’s making the tool available to any AI developer

Experts predict that the number of cancer cases around the world will skyrocket, resulting in millions more fatalities by 2050

Allowing for moves that create quantum superpositions makes a quantum version of a Rubik’s cube incredibly complex, but not impossible to solve

An AI-assisted robot can listen to spoken commands and assemble 3D objects such as chairs and tables out of reusable building blocks

3D arena fighting game slated for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, PC in early 2025

Keito Kimura, Makoto Hasegawa, Taiga Tsubaki, more join mixed martial arts story

Manga by Yonemura, Fudeno Saki launches in English on January 29, 2025

“My very first experience was in asking the cards about a novel I was writing at the time and it wasn’t going anywhere," says Chelsey Pippin Mizzi in an interview with Lauren Parker. “Up until that point, so much of my writing had been informed by visuals. And then suddenly there were these three pocket-sized pictures that were inviting me to consider creative ideas.” 

Continue reading “Tarot for Creativity” helps writers and artists get through creative blocks at The Wild Hunt.

To the members of UAW Local 2069: I don’t think you can realize how much of an inspiration you are to how many people. The battle you’re fighting goes far beyond the immediate issues. We’re living in a world where you can’t open your eyes without seeing a cause for despair: the pandemic, first of … Continue reading An Open Letter to Volvo Truck Workers in Dublin, Virginia

Once upon a time a man named Barry Goldwater appeared on the political scene. And the radical cried, “Danger! A fascist!” And the people came running, but they saw that, actually, he was just a right-wing authoritarian, and he was making no effort to build a mass movement based on violence and terror in order … Continue reading A Totally Original Parable Not Derived From Anything Else Really

Well, after 15 years of using this new fangled "Twitter" thing for microblogging, that's enough of that. Back to normal ranting. (For the record, this is not a rant about twitter, it's about me and the internet over the last thirty... years... oh geeze, it's been that long?) When Twitter was just a new thing, i kinda liked the idea of using it for quick micro blogging (since i was such a slacker about writing rants) so i added two new twitter acc...

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7:51: Right wingers are already saying that Biden 1) already knows all the questions and 2) is taking drugs. There are, to my knowledge, no performance enhancing drugs for mental awareness, and *I* know what the questions will be. 7:52: I’m still convinced that Trump will ignore the social distancing rule and immediately come over

Continue Reading "Live Blogging the first Presidential debate" →

Even though my kids are not yet on summer break and even though I, as an adult, do not have a thing called a summer break, I’ve apparently helped myself to one. I’m sneaking off to the beach on weekdays (oops), reading novels, gorging myself on cherries and crisp-from-the-market cucumbers, playing midday tennis like a lady who lunches, and getting vexed when I receive work-related emails and texts. [“Alex, why are they texting me on a Sunday?” “Deb, it’s Tuesday.”]

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Welcome back, everyone! We’re having a string of warmer weather in New England and it’s really harshing my fall vibes. I also keep seeing photos or reels of people I know receiving “boo baskets.” Is anyone else familiar? It’s like an Easter basket, but for Halloween. And I kind of love it? I floated the idea by my partner and I was surprised that they wanted to exchange some. Their reasoning is that we’ve been … Continue reading Links: Public Libraries, Lord of the Rings, & More →