I’ve recently discovered a game on the Xbox One called “Elite Dangerous”, based on a very old game that I used to play back in the ’80s called Elite. It’s a spaceship/trading/bounty hunting type of game, where you make your way across the galaxy, building up your ship and making as many credits as you can. I think it is only very recently out, and its as buggy as all hell, but I’m getting a huge nostalgia kick out of playing it.
The Victorian speculative fiction convention, Continuum, is running this long weekend. I’ve been to Continuum a couple of times, but couldn’t get away this year. I’ve been vaguely following through Twitter, and it seems like a good time is being had by all. I’ve always found conventions to be a lot of fun, and over time they’ve got better. I’m not exactly “well connected”, but over the years you do get to know a few people and conventions are an excellent way to catch up and get to compare notes with fellow travellers. Hope everyone is having fun – maybe I’ll be able to come along next year!
Many years ago I supported a crowd funding campaign for a book called Glitter and Mayhem. Despite the book itself being released in 2013, I never received a copy. To be honest, I started thinking that perhaps I’d only thought I’d supported it, or maybe supported it at a lower level. Imagine my surprise when a copy of the book showed up through the week, along with an apologetic note saying they’d found a box of books that were supposed to go out back in 2013, but had been misplaced. That is some serious delay, but also a timely reminder that I don’t always check to see that I’ve actually received stuff that I supported through crowd funding.
But, in more timely crowd funding news, I also received my copy of In Your Face, an Australian anthology of speculative fiction stories that tackle confronting themes. I think, given the relative timeliness, I’ll read this one first! The book was put together by Fablecroft Publishing, a really innovative small press here in Australia that is well worth checking out.
And to keep the crowd funding theme, my radio in the car was finally replaced (it only took the insurance company 9 months to process the claim after my car was broken into). Why is that important? Because I’ve finally been able to start listening to the Night Terrace radio series with my daughter. So far, we’ve listened through the bonus “My Name is Eddie” short series, and are now listening to “Horatio’s Travels” before getting to the main event. I sponsored this season at a higher level, and as a result my daughter should be called by name in one of the main episodes. She has no idea, so I’m really looking forward to that particular surprise.
If you haven’t listened to Night Terrace, it is really worth checking out.
I’ve started trying to do a bit more exercise (sorely needed exercise), and I’ve been using an app – Zombies! Run. It overlays your music with a story about the zombie apocalypse, and it is awesome. The production values are fantastic, with great voice acting and an interesting plot. If you’re a spec fic fan and trying to get some motivation to exercise (especially if you’re a runner), I’d certainly recommend it.
OK, that’s about it for this week. Feel free to drop in a comment if you’ve experienced any of the above!
