Second contact (in order to make First Contact)

Fun podcast site "The Science in the Fiction" asked me back earlier this week to tackle a new subject. First Contact being a favorite topic of mine, we got to discuss -- beyond lots of speculative science and engineering -- several of my related novels. 2023's On the Shoals of Space-Time chief among them ...

You can catch it all at most popular podcast sites, including here on Spotify.

A milestone

Newly organized notes, outlines, synopses, drafts, page proofs, etc. of all my solo writing -- fiction and non, short and long -- covering about three decades of authorial endeavor -- are newly available to literary researchers (and the curious public). Many thanks to the Special Collections & Archives Department of the University Libraries at Northern Illinois University. 

Herewith, the university's Instagram announcement (clarification: my papers are complete through 2024.)

Similar material for my collaboration with Larry Niven (aka, the Fleet of Worlds series) to follow ....

Random post

First, because I've been watching the LoTR prequel, Rings of Power, wherein Ents have just made an appearance, plus my concurrent rereading of LoTR ... here's me and (just maybe) an Ent. 

(Yes, I'm selfie-impaired. In my defense, it was very sunny, even in Mirkwood.)

Second, because it amuses me greatly, here's an epically great, authorial-centric, cartoon from Grant Snider (first in a 2014 NYT Sunday Book Review article). Tha cartoon, randomly, showed up today in my FB feed.

That, I suspect, is ample randomness for one day :-)

Happy day (they're here)

Four of my earlier novels are freshly re-released in spiffy new hardback, trade paperback, and ebook editions. All, IMO, still timely. 

The novels in questions are

• Fools' Experiments: “When the artificial intelligences … go maverick, they turn out to be the true
  weapons of mass destruction. A fast, fun read.” — Sci Fi Weekly
• Small Miracles: “Suspense and action enough to fuel any thriller, and even to drive it to the big screen.” — SFrevu
• Energized: “A taut near-future thriller about an energy-starved Earth held hostage by a power-mad international cartel … Lerner’s vision of the future is both topical and possible in this crisp, fast-paced hard SF adventure.” — Publishers Weekly
• Dark Secret: “I heartily recommend Ed Lerner’s Dark Secret.” — Tangent Online

The new publisher is the aptly named ReAnimus Press. 

In a word ... huzzah!

Just one of the spiffy new covers