Against Entropy

How Much for Just the Planet

2024-02-16T05:15:33Z

Posted by: samtravis

Any other fans of the only Star Trek novel that's a musical?

If you haven't read this one yet and you're a fan of Gilbert & Sullivan, musicals, ST:TOS, or the history of film do yourself a favor and read it.

If you HAVE read it... Which songs have you figured out? Here's what I've got:

p75: "We thought that you might like to know" seems from context clues to be sung to the tune of "Now to the Banquet we Press" but I can't get it scan right.

p87: "We'd like to welcome you" seems like it should be set to "stompin at the savoy" based on the final line but again, I can't get to scan right.

p94: "Supposed to be a princess" is probably the same tune as "heard the story" a few pages later. NO IDEA WHAT THIS ONE IS PLEASE HELP!!

p124: "rollin" is sung to the tune of the theme song for the show "Rawhide".

p128: "My Own Sweet Tyrannical Way." No idea. I've seen "hit the road jack" suggested but it doesn't seem to fit at all

p138: "When I was just a little chap, my father said to me" fits PERFECTLY and shares some lyrics with "Lemon Tree" by Peter Paul and Mary but ONLY the music from the verses, not the chorus.

p161: "Falling apart again" this one is fun. The first bit is slow and set to "falling in love again" and when the temp picks up it switches to "just a gigolo" by Van Halen. Genius.

p165: "Monochrome" I tried really really hard to get this to fit with "Kodachrome" by Paul Simon but there's no way. WHAT IS IT I MUST KNOW.

p250: "We hope that you've enjoyed your stay" probably the same tune as "We thought that you might like to know" which I'm still not sure about.

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nemesis_draco @ 2022-07-17T18:19:00

2022-07-18T01:23:11Z

Posted by: jazzfish

Language, Languages, and Dialect in Aspects, an essay by Andrew 'Draco Concordans' Plotkin. I got to the line near the end of the essay where he reiterates the essay's secret title and I started laughing so hard I couldn't explain myself for about a minute.

I'd noticed that Quercian wasn't Latin, and that even given that the etymologies in the book were spurious at best... but I hadn't put the whole thing together.

I have no doubt that "the conlang of Pierre Menard" is exactly what Ford was going for. It's just so ... *waves hands* perfectly shaped.

Also I am sad and angry (at whom?) that there won't be any more, because Aspects really is a masterwork.

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JMF bibliography

2022-04-10T16:22:48Z

Posted by: corder

In celebration of new entries to make(!), I've updated the bibliography:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cEVUfmWLoFsNVcRTXT4GbCHvpd-QkD_-/view?usp=sharing

Happy Mike's Birthday to us all.

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The Dragon Waiting

2020-09-12T20:17:45Z

Posted by: carpe_noir

Hey everyone, just a reminder that the new Tor reprinting of The Dragon Waiting is going to be out later this month! Both in hardcover and trade paperback dress.

Aspects hasn't shown up in the powells.com or amazon.com databases yet, hopefully it's still on track for next year.

edited to add -- And just a reminder to myself about Andrew Plotkin's Draco Concordans for the re-read.

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nemesis_draco @ 2019-12-02T10:46:00

2019-12-02T18:47:58Z

Posted by: jazzfish

From the Historical Notes to The Dragon Waiting:

"... but [Justinian] did not secure his gains. He had the resources, which is not the same as the ability, but he really needed a little more time, like all of us."

Goddammit, Mike.

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The Revival of John M. Ford

2019-11-19T03:08:30Z

Posted by: carpe_noir

I suspect that basically anyone who might see this post has already seen at least one of the two links below. Both are worth your time.

https://slate.com/culture/2019/11/john-ford-science-fiction-fantasy-books.html

https://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/016638.html

But in summary, let me quote PNH from the second:

Tor will, indeed, be reissuing all of Mike’s novels, plus a new collection of short fiction and marginalia. We’ll also be publishing, for the first time, his unfinished final novel Aspects.

Huge thanks to the Ford family and to Tor executive editor Beth Meacham, who worked out this deal over the space of nearly a year. We could not possibly be more excited.

The program will begin with The Dragon Waiting in late 2020, then Aspects in early 2021.

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nemesis_draco @ 2017-11-01T16:44:00

2017-11-01T23:47:53Z

Posted by: carpe_noir

Hi all,

Everything before November 1, 2017 is an import from http://nemesis-draco.livejournal.com

Any future posts and comments are unlikely to be replicated here. An unfortunate split in the conversation may arise over time.

Please feel free to participate in either or both communities, as you will. Any of the existing owners, maintainers, moderators, please say something here if you don't have the proper privileges.

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Dreamwidth migration?

2017-04-08T10:06:00Z

Posted by: damascene.livejournal.com

Should we consider moving this community?

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Once again, uncollected JMF material in a charity auction

2015-04-30T19:15:00Z

Posted by: tool-of-satan.livejournal.com

The annual Con or Bust auction is ongoing (it ends Sunday) and I have a lot of ten issues of Asimov's containing stories and articles by JMF. Seven issues have material that has never been reprinted and another has a story (one of the Alternities, Inc. stories) which was only reprinted in an old Baen alt-hist anthology.

There are of course many other items of interest in the auction, as always.

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He always was a man of many aspects

2014-05-12T07:40:00Z

Posted by: papersky.livejournal.com

If I haven't emailed you post-Boskone then I probably don't have your email address. You might want to email me and say hi: bluejo@gmail.com

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Some uncollected JMF material in a charity auction

2014-02-10T11:41:00Z

Posted by: tool-of-satan.livejournal.com

I have put up a small lot of JMF items in the annual Con or Bust auction.

This includes some things people here probably already have (The Dragon Waiting, Liavek: Festival Week), but also includes some old Asimov's issues with material that is not included in either Heat of Fusion or From the End of the Twentieth Century:

"Hot Pursuit," a story which has not ever been reprinted.

"Slowly By, Lorena," one of the four Alternities Inc. stories. It has only been reprinted in The Fantastic Civil War (a Baen alternate history anthology from 1991).

"What's Wrong with This Picture?," a collaboration with Barry Longyear and George Scithers which was only reprinted in Tales from the Spaceport Bar (a theme anthology from 1987). (The story is admittedly an extended joke.)

"On Playing Roles: A Second Look," one of a (short) series of role-playing game reviews. It's fairly lengthy and (I think) interesting despite its age, assuming you have any interest in RPGs. This has never been reprinted.

"On Opening Night at the Universe," which is about the premiere of Carl Sagan's Cosmos TV show at the National Academy of Sciences. This too has never been reprinted.

There are of course many other interesting things in the Con or Bust auction.

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It strikes me . . .

2013-06-29T19:30:00Z

Posted by: djande.livejournal.com

At one of the panels at 4th Street, someone mentioned GROWING UP WEIGHTLESS. As I thought about it, it struck me that there are still a number of Mike's stories that haven't been collected, and as such, I haven't read. Does anyone have a comprehensive list of what remains uncollected?

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Ahistorical Note or A Historical Note?

2012-12-29T11:28:00Z

Posted by: jazzfish

The Dragon Waiting opens with a brief prologue laying out what Ford is trying to accomplish, and more importantly what he isn't.

In the hideous mass-market paperbacks this is titled "Ahistorical Note," in contrast with the "Historical Notes" at the end of the book.

In the hardback, and also I'm told in the Fantasy Masterworks edition, it's "A Historical Note."

Anyone know which is likely to be the author's preferred text? I'd vote for "Ahistorical" myself, but I really don't know.

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Ask Dr. Mike

2012-02-05T16:34:00Z

Posted by: elisem.livejournal.com

("Ask Dr. Mike" was a highlight of any convention that included it. As TNH said, when she did programming for Minicon, she learned never to schedule anything opposite "Ask Dr. Mike." While most of the hour-long improv was based on questions from the live audience, Mike sometimes would put some seed questions in, just in case there was a lull. These are some of his seed questions. Dating this list is left as an exercise for the reader.)

1) I have a question about household appliances. I once read a book where scientists kept talking about the speed of light in a vacuum. How is this different from the speed of light in, say, a blender?

2) Why do some Olympic athletes inject androids into their blood stream?

3) I've been following the space program for a few years, and I have never been able to understand weightlessness. Why does gravity stop just at the place where the earth's atmosphere peters out? Is this a coincidence, or what? How does gravity work on planets like Venus that don't have any atmosphere at all?

4) How do computers sometimes work?

5) Is it true what they say about Elvis?

6) What would happen if you paint a black hole a different colour?*

7) I was watching old Superman TV shows and noticed that the Man of Steel would just stand still and let bullets bounce off his chest. However, when the crook ran out of ammunition and hurled the empty gun at him, Superman always ducked. Why didn't he just let the gun bounce off his chest too?

8) In international law, what is the legal definition of an "Evil Empire"? Why has the Soviet Union lost its Evil Empire status in the last five years?

* Colloquially, "color"

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a silly thing from the past

2012-02-05T15:20:00Z

Posted by: elisem.livejournal.com

SIX FLAGS OVER BLOOMSBURY
A Literary Theme Park
Over 50 Great Rides and Attractions
Including
* The Tunnel of Angst
* The Pre-Raphaelite Water Slide
* The Haunted Villa Deodati
* Henry James's Morose-O-Rama
* Mad, Bad, and Dangerous To Know Land
* T.S. Eliot's Cathedral of Fun

Mike wrote that and handed it around at gaming one night to amuse the general populace, I do believe. Enjoy!

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Small charity auction

2011-06-28T14:19:00Z

Posted by: tool-of-satan.livejournal.com

A trustworthy person is auctioning off a collection of John M. Ford books for charity - the winner can pick the charity to donate to. The auction runs until midnight CDT on July 3rd.

http://telophase.dreamwidth.org/1990151.html

People without Dreamwidth accounts can bid using their LJ accounts, or e-mail telophase if that isn't working.

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JMF writing for sale

2011-03-04T23:53:00Z

Posted by: tool-of-satan.livejournal.com

Two bits of news which might interest people:

1. I am auctioning copies of The Dragon Waiting, Princes of the Air, and Growing Up Weightless here to support con_or_bust. The books have all been bid on, but someone might want to bid higher. There are also lots of other things up for auction. Bidding ends Sunday March 6th at 11:59 PM EST.

2. As I believe I have mentioned here before, JMF wrote two stories set in the world of Steve Jackson Games' Car Wars. One, "Alkahest: The Deathtool Solution," has been available for free for some time (as are the game notes following it).

The other "Street Legal," has not been (and neither story has ever been reprinted as far as I know). However, the issue of Space Gamer where it appeared can be purchased as a PDF for $2.99. (The issue of Autoduel Quarterly containing "Alkahest" can also be purchased, if you want a copy that isn't yellow on black without formatting it yourself.)

I don't want to oversell this - it is after all a fairly short piece of gaming fiction (plus gaming notes). On the other hand, in the hands of John M. Ford even gaming fiction could turn into something rich and strange. So if you don't happen to own the physical magazine you might want to check it out.

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A couple of The Dragon Waiting reviews

2011-02-08T09:05:00Z

Posted by: papersky.livejournal.com

Rydra Wong's non-spoiler post and her spoiler one. Both well worth reading.

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BaQa'—or Is It Humbug?

2010-12-19T09:18:00Z

Posted by: von-krag.livejournal.com

I think Mike would be very pleased that the WSJ has nice write-up on a St Paul theater group doing a Klingon version of a Christmas Carol. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703395904576025760797375264.html?mod=WSJ_newsreel_lifeStyle#articleTabs%3Darticle

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It's the silly things

2010-11-09T01:10:00Z

Posted by: von-krag.livejournal.com

I just pulled out a batch of older GURPS Traveler to look through. In the book was notes from Mike on a possible campaign. I would have liked to played in it.

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maybe you just had to be there,

2010-09-25T08:31:00Z

Posted by: damascene.livejournal.com

but yesterday, Chip and I were: at the Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex (which is in reality an hour-plus drive out of Canberra on twisty little roads through some of the most "interesting" driving country outside the Scottish Highlands, so the Complex can sit in a sheep-grazing vale sheltered by hills from all the nearby electromagnetic noise).

You can easily see it from the car park: DSS-46, relocated to Canberra when the Honeysuckle Creek station was shut down. The Dish that transmitted the first images of Neil Armstrong walking on the Moon.

Wow, did we both miss having Mike on that excursion.

It wasn't until we were through the Complex and back out to the car park, a couple of hours later, that we realized what the date was.

Damn.

www.flickr.com/photos/35264582@N05/5021035243/

www.flickr.com/photos/35264582@N05/5021035255/

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John M. Ford gaming material in charity auction

2010-05-06T21:30:00Z

Posted by: tool-of-satan.livejournal.com

I've put some John M. Ford designed and inspired gaming material up for auction on debsliverlovers, a charity auction which is raising money to get Deb Mensinger a liver transplant.

The items (which are being offered in various combinatiosn) are:

Two copies of the Star Trek III boardgame set, which JMF co-designed (and which contains bits of uncollected JMF fiction).

The Klingons boxed set for the FASA Star Trek RPG, which JMF worked on while writing The Final Reflection>.

Struggle for the Throne, a FASA boardgame not designed by JMF but featuring his style of Klingons.

The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues, his classic adventure for Paranoia.

Scared Stiffs, an adventure he co-wrote for the Ghostbusters RPG, set at a convention.

Two copies of Superhero '44/2044, the first superhero RPG, inspired by the games he ran an Indiana University.

You can see all four of my auctions here. There are plenty of other interesting things being offered by others, of course.

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Preflash, Heat of Fusion, and Chromatic Aberration

2010-04-14T15:31:00Z

Posted by: charlie-ego.livejournal.com

I never knew JMF personally (I don't feel I can call him Mike because of that), but I wish I had, and I love love love his writing. I think I own every book he ever wrote, and I am trying to get all the short stories as well. I fell in love with his complex and erudite way of telling a story... however, sometimes this means I don't always understand what he's getting at.

For a while I've been wanting to do a reread of all his books in this community, and I kept putting it off. However, the recent post on Heat of Fusion and Other Stories made me think, hey, an easy way to start this, anyway, would be reading his short stories! Does anyone else want to discuss his books/short stories, and maybe help me to figure out what is going on? :)

Because of apostle_of_eris's post I thought I'd start with some of the stories in that book (not coincidentally, the ones that started to be discussed in that post). Here's what I think is going on; anyone want to append or correct me?

( Spoilers, of course; for Preflash, Chromatic Aberration, and Heat of Fusion. )

What other books/stories would people like to discuss the most?

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Heat of Fusion and Other Stories

2010-04-12T09:47:00Z

Posted by: apostle-of-eris.livejournal.com

A title I hadn't known, from a source I hadn't known . . .

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Happy Birthday

2010-04-10T20:38:00Z

Posted by: gypsy1969.livejournal.com

I've been thinking about him all day.

Happy Birthday Mike, where ever you are.

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