Author Archives: John Walters

Book Review: Blackout by Connie Willis

I approach this review with trepidation.  I admire Connie Willis and her writing.  I have read several of her books and a lot of her short stories.  She has won more major awards in the speculative fiction genre than any … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Brief Glimpse of the Goal

A mini-crisis happened this week which might have passed like the proverbial water under the bridge except for my reaction to it. As I have mentioned before, I pay the bills by writing short nonfiction articles, usually from five to … Continue reading

Posted in On Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Getting Rid of Things

Yesterday I did two things I almost never do.  I stopped reading a book I had started, and I threw another book in the trash.  The book I stopped reading I had picked up at the library, so I could … Continue reading

Posted in On Writing, Reading | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Rims End

In lieu of blog post this week, I urge you to check out my latest published short story.  It’s available for free reading at the online magazine Perihelion Science Fiction here. An intergalactic skiing champion has a near-fatal accident that … Continue reading

Posted in On Writing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Harry Harrison! Harry Harrison! A Memoir by Harry Harrison

I picked this book up by chance at the library because Harry Harrison was a science fiction writer and I thought there might be some interesting stories within about the world of science fiction writers and fans.  A word about … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews, Memoir, On Writing, Travel | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Samurai by Shusaku Endo

Last night I watched the movie “The Last Samurai” with Tom Cruise.  I have seen it several times.  I think it’s a great film and one of Tom Cruise’s best.  But if you are looking for the type of samurai … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

On Rereading Storyteller: Writing Lessons and More From 27 Years of the Clarion Writers’ Workshop by Kate Wilhelm

My rereading this book is a result of my reaching out to the Clarion West community here in Seattle after moving back into the area.  Personnel have changed, of course, since I attended Clarion West over forty years ago in … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews, On Writing | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Book Review: Fault Line by Barry Eisler

Casting about for a good fiction book to take away the bad taste of the business self-help book I’d read that turned out to be like eating too much sour cotton candy at a fair, I perused my to-read stack … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Just Start: Take Action, Embrace Uncertainty, Create the Future by Leonard A. Schlesinger, Charles F. Kiefer, and Paul B Brown

There’s an old antacid commercial I used to come across as a kid sometimes – maybe they still run it but I never watch network TV anymore so I don’t know – where a guy burps, thumps his stomach with … Continue reading

Posted in Book Reviews | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

What Happens When You Come In Off The Road?

I have to start this out with a melancholia disclaimer.  If you’re not in the mood for some serious stuff, exit this and move on to a review of some blockbuster movie or other. I wondered about the title as … Continue reading

Posted in Memoir, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments