Still no winter: My novel “Life Without Giamotti,” still in print, turned 20 this week!
I still have a soft spot in my heart for my quirky science fiction epic, which has a (very small) cult following.
The Verge
Interiors: Lobby of the Westin Bonaventure Hotel, Los Angeles.
Where do humans fit in this massive concrete and glass cathedral of commerce?
Learning about story craft from “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.”
What can a bad movie from 27 years ago teach us about how stories and characters work?
The New York City Draft/Race Riots and “Gangs of New York” (Repost).
On July 13, 1863, the worst episode of racial violence in American history turned New York into a charnel house.
A bug-free summer and its ominous implications.
Notice fewer insects around this summer? Yeah, there's a reason for that, and it's terrifying.
Whaling in the 19th century, by the numbers: A quantitative look at maritime history.
Take a look at a genuine list of all the stuff the operators of New Bedford's whaling fleet bought in 1858 to outfit their ships.
Sweltering in the Old World: The European heat wave of 2003.
A horrifying heat wave in Europe in 2003 killed as many people as the Hiroshima bomb.