New Readers
Seems I have new readers. Ah, such is the danger of hotlinking to my blog.
Anyway, I’m Steve Murphy. Here is a list of labels that apply.
1. Honorably Discharged Veteran, US Army
2. Unrepentant Veteran of the Persian Gulf War
3. Published Writer (two stories to date, both with honorable mentions)
4. Research Consultant
5. Historian
6. College History Instructor
7. Missourian (while I don’t like the state per se, I’m unrepentant about my Midwestern roots as well).
8. Decidedly NOT politically correct.
9. Definitely NOT a liberal.
Just a few things. If you are looking for examples of my writing, you can find both of them at Apex Online Magazine. Tearing Down Tuesday originally appeared in Interzone Magazine, Issue 210 back in June 2007. Apex picked her up for republication. The Limb Knitter appeared in Apex Online back in September 2008 and was recently converted into a podcast at Paul Cole’s Beam Me Up Podcast. You can buy a print edition of The Limb Knitter when she appears in Descended from Darkness: Apex Magazine Volume One. Just click the link over to the right.
Finally, I usually do not discuss it much, I am the research consultant to John Birmingham. I have two novels to my credit on that front, Final Impact and Without Warning.
Umm, I know a thing or two about science fiction. Some detractors do not care much for that.
So, welcome to the Pondering Tree. Assholes really aren’t tolerated and if you’re all about political correctness then you are probably in the wrong place. But otherwise, folks are pretty well tolerated around here.
Research Project Number – 04
While Trinity was sleeping last night I completed one chapter and got half way through another. This leaves me with two and a half chapters in the hopper to polish up.
For the benefit of the new readers, just what am I doing? My primary job is to work on the military, historical and tactical issues in this project. However, over the course of time, my role has evolved. I will make editorial changes, add details (especially if I have been to a particular place but the client has not) as well as modify dialogue to a degree. The relationship I have with my client is one akin to the apprentice working under a master. I’m very fortunate to have this relationship and as such I generally tend not to toot my horn about it. These RPN updates are more for the client’s benefit and my own than the general reader who might drop by.
But my basic job is to make sure everything is dress right dress. And when in doubt (which happens) and I can’t find answer(that happens to) I blur things just enough so that most readers won’t be able to tell the difference.
Details can be a double edged sword, I find.
Other Fronts
Pretty lazy day yesterday. Trinity and I went to see the latest Transformers movie with her ex-husband (who seems nice enough). The film was okay I suppose. An enjoyable way to spend a cloudy Fourth of July.
We had dinner at the Pod and a quiet night after.
So it goes.
Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri
6 comments
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July 5, 2009 at 9:49 pm
Brad R. Torgersen
Thanks for filling us in on yourself.
Sounds like you’ve got a pretty diverse background.
I’m not much for political correctness either, in all honesty. To my mind political correctness is a set of hypocritical social rules that certain people have invented. These rules allow them to unfairly attack certain other people, while at the same time shielding them from the same level of criticism and scrutiny.
You state you’re not a liberal. How would you classify yourself, on the spectrum?
July 6, 2009 at 2:07 am
chazfh
Welcome to the pondering tree Brad, don’t mind Murph he’s a sweety really (so Trinity says) !! but he tolerates me and Havock so that says alot.
Murph, sounds like you had a good weekend. Me? i started prepping my tax returns…
July 6, 2009 at 12:40 pm
sfmurphy1971
Oh, Brad, you should never have written that bit about your feelings per political correctness. There are people in SF who are keeping lists and checking them twice. Hell, visiting my blog was bad enough.
As for my politics, I suspect that what I truly am is a deeply disgusted and disillusioned Truman Democrat who now regularly votes for Republicans. I have very little use for the post Vietnam Era Far Left Wing Component of the party.
That same element in SF tends to be the very noisy part that generates controversies like the F&SF Workshop Controversy. Near as I can tell though, most folks are pretty much saying what John Birmingham said in my initial post. It is madness to hammer on such things and not worth paying much attention to.
If it weren’t for the fact that I respect Gardner and Gordon and that they were being attacked by people who I specifically feel are part of the problem in science fiction (they probably got one reject letter from them too many I suspect) I probably wouldn’t have bothered with a post of my own.
Chaz, I’m still waiting for the State of Missouri to send my tax refund back. The worthless bastards. They actually owe me some money for once but do they pay? No, sir.
Respects,
Murph
On the Outer Marches
July 6, 2009 at 5:52 pm
Brad R. Torgersen
Guilt by association, eh?
I guess the deed is done. If anyone has a problem with me posting here — or making comments about PC — oh well. Too late now.
Me, I’m disgusted with both parties right now. Mainly because I believe they’re both infested with careerists who couldn’t give a damn about making hard choices that are best for the long-term safety, security, and well-being of the country. They’re just interested in the next election. Period.
Nobody in Washington D.C. has any guts anymore. They’re all CYA all the time and nobody actually wants to get out front and lead in any substantial way. Not if they think it will cost them votes, which it will. Because you can’t get anything substantial done in government without pissing off a huge ton of people — both on the inside and the outside.
Anyway, it’s odd to be seeing these tempests-in-teacups within the SF field. I won’t say “community” because I don’t really like that word in this context. Makes it seem like SF is a little cottage industry for eggheads, which is the stereotype I loathe — and which many people seem to embrace, ironically. To me SF is way bigger than a “community” and every time a major SF or F motion picture scores huge at the box office I have this suspicion that the general consumer public is zooming right past the SF “community” without ever bothering to stop and smell the SF roses; as grown by the cognoscenti of the genre.
But that’s a whole other Oprah.
=^)
July 6, 2009 at 6:09 pm
sfmurphy1971
Odd you should describe them as tempests in a teacup because that is EXACTLY how I have described them.
I also agree on the problem with our political parties.
It’s normally pretty quiet around here, Brad, but feel free to drop in. I like the way you see things.
Respects,
Murph
On the Outer Marches
July 7, 2009 at 1:26 am
chazfh
Murph, thats the advantage of being down here, our FY ends on the 30 th June (don’t ask) and then everyone rushes to get their returns in as we have so many ways of claiming money back. it’s going to be a shite year for me as my employers didn’t deduct tax from over half of my commissions so my deductions will prettyy much cancel out the extra tax i’ll have to pay
(