Please indulge me in some boasting.

I hope you don't mind a bit of bragging—I recently got news that my short story, Becoming Ishmael finished second in Writer's Digest SciFi short story competition--Woohoo!! Additionally. I will be listed in the May/June 2012 issue of Writer's Digest magazine.

Although most of you know me from my novels about Richard III in the 21st-century, I have always loved the short story and science fiction. About three months ago I came upon a Writer’s Digest competition for science fiction and I immediately thought of my story about a computer scientist who was trying to create the first sentient robot. A dozen or so edits later, I was submitted it and then forced myself to stop thinking about it. Thus, it was a lovely surprise when I got an email and a voice mail to let me know that my story came in second.

“I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.”—Mark Twain

It's Alive!

At last, my redesigned website is finally accessible. Please check it out and let me know what you think. The domain is the same, so if you had bookmarked joanszechtman.com, you should still be able to reach my site via the original bookmark. A nice new feature is that you can now reach all pages with a direct link.

I had been meaning to update my website for some time, but kept finding reasons to keep the update on a back burner whose fire I had allowed to extinguish. However, my ISP provider decided to shut down their free personal website hosting, so I was forced to find a new hosting site. I decided to update the site, instead of just moving it. I got the new site installed and tested and then redirected my domain name to the new site. Alas, Murphy's Law--simply stated, "if something can go wrong, it will"--kicked in. I stumbled and no one could access the site for a couple of days until I fixed the last little kink. My apologies to anyone who wasn't able to find my website these past couple of days.

Ramblings: libraries, no power, no internet, and book review

Along with hundreds of thousands of other Connecticut residents, we lost power starting late Saturday night of October 30th and didn’t get it back until sometime Friday, November 4th. Although most of the days were sunny and the temperatures rose to the mid-fifties Fahrenheit, overnight they cooled down to the mid-thirties or lower, some nights below freezing. We didn’t get the Internet or phone back until the next evening, but at least we were warm and could cook hot meals. What a treat!

Bless the public libraries. Except for Sunday, a nearby library was our daily refuge. In addition to depending on them for certain research and obtaining hard to find books through the inter-library loan system, they also have free WIFI. So, for that week, we drove to the library and connected my laptop to the internet. We also stayed warm, at least during the day. Because of the library, I was able to meet an important deadline--producing the December issue of the Richard III Society, American Branch publication (Ricardian Register).

After we got our services back, I discovered that BigAl's Books and Pals favorably reviewed This Time, my first book about Richard III in the 21st-century.

The week ended well. :-)

The Typo

I had been away on a combined vacation and Richard III Society American Branch Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Chicago. When I returned I found a note in my email letting me know that Loyalty Binds Me, the second book in the series about Richard III in the 21st-century, got a review from Midwest Book Reviews. Now Midwest Book Reviews is one of the better recognized online book review sites, so a review from this site carries some weight. The email only said that Midwest Book Reviews had published their review online in the Smell Press Bookwatch September postings. I prayed it was a typo and that the reviewer didn't think my book stunk. I did wonder how many skunks it got. Phew, it was a typo--should have been Small Press Bookwatch, not smell. I'm actually quite pleased with the review.

Reprinted here (it's short):

Immortality plays into our hands strangely. "Loyalty Binds Me" is a unique novel that spins into a Richard the III alive in the twenty-first century. Wrapped into a centuries old problem and facing what he's been running from for centuries. With a five hundred year old murder mystery turning hot again, "Loyalty Binds Me" is a highly unique twist on historical fiction and mystery, recommended.

Read With Your Partner

I just read a note about a couple taking turns reading a book aloud on a discussion group in which I participate that reminded me of how much pleasure I got from doing the same thing. The book that we happened to do it with was 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff. The story was told in the form of letters between an American screen writer and bibliophile and an English bookstore owner--the book's title is the address of the bookstore. While most books probably won't provide the natural breaks the letters provided, it wouldn't be too difficult to alternate between chapters or scenes. Not only was it a very enjoyable activity for us to do, but I feel that reading aloud enhanced my enjoyment of the book.

I'd love to hear about any experiences you may have had.

2006 Reenactment of the Battle of Bosworth

August 22nd is the 526th anniversary of the Battle of Bosworth. I was able to attend the reenactment in 2006 and produced this video from my photos. Music is by Mince Pye



Or see the video on YouTube.

Cephalopod Camouflage

One of my favorite shows, Science Friday, airs Friday afternoon at 2 pm on my local NPR radio station. This Friday, the show ended with a discussion about the amazing abilities that squids, octopi, and cuttlefish to, within a second, camouflage themselves against various backgrounds and textures by sight, even though they are colorblind. See this amazing video that includes the interview from Science Friday's website.



(I see a bit of the right side of the video is truncated. To see the original, go to Science Friday's website here.)