Rick Cowling
@rickcowling.bsky.social
Aging geek. Anime fan. SF fan. Comic fan. Photography enthusiast.
Getting old. And now I’m older still.
Lefty, anti-authoritarian, living 'oop Nooarth' on the edge of Sheffield in the UK.
Getting old. And now I’m older still.
Lefty, anti-authoritarian, living 'oop Nooarth' on the edge of Sheffield in the UK.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Not long now until the Folkestone Book Festival! I’ll be there on Thursday 13th November, and I can’t wait to join such an inspiring line-up of writers and thinkers...
November 10, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Not long now until the Folkestone Book Festival! I’ll be there on Thursday 13th November, and I can’t wait to join such an inspiring line-up of writers and thinkers...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 1650:
No two people see the world in exactly the same way. When creating a character, try considering the unique and personal way in which your protagonist connects with their world; their dominant sense; their limits; their abilities. How do these things define them?
No two people see the world in exactly the same way. When creating a character, try considering the unique and personal way in which your protagonist connects with their world; their dominant sense; their limits; their abilities. How do these things define them?
November 10, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 1650:
No two people see the world in exactly the same way. When creating a character, try considering the unique and personal way in which your protagonist connects with their world; their dominant sense; their limits; their abilities. How do these things define them?
No two people see the world in exactly the same way. When creating a character, try considering the unique and personal way in which your protagonist connects with their world; their dominant sense; their limits; their abilities. How do these things define them?
For my writing chums.
My union, fighting for creators.
Do you have questions about the action brought by a number of authors in the U.S. against Anthropic?
What does the settlement mean for UK authors?
What are the implications of the settlement for the other actions being brought in the U.S. against AI companies?
#AnthropicSettlement
What does the settlement mean for UK authors?
What are the implications of the settlement for the other actions being brought in the U.S. against AI companies?
#AnthropicSettlement
November 10, 2025 at 3:48 PM
For my writing chums.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
My union, fighting for creators.
Do you have questions about the action brought by a number of authors in the U.S. against Anthropic?
What does the settlement mean for UK authors?
What are the implications of the settlement for the other actions being brought in the U.S. against AI companies?
#AnthropicSettlement
What does the settlement mean for UK authors?
What are the implications of the settlement for the other actions being brought in the U.S. against AI companies?
#AnthropicSettlement
November 10, 2025 at 2:41 PM
My union, fighting for creators.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
With Remembrance Day tomorrow, reports of Ukrainians sheltering in subway stations under mass bombardment by an aggressive invader will remind our elders and those who hears their stories of what they fervently hoped was the last war in their lifetime, when Nazis rained bombs on London.
Good morning. As Ukrainian engineers try to put the lights back on after yesterday's 🇷🇺 mass bombing of energy infrastructure, let's begin with this excellent feature in The Counteroffensive on the daily routine of surviving Russia's genocide war 👇
Good morning to readers; Kyiv remains in Ukrainian hands.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Kyiv alone has endured 1,903 air raid alerts and 95 days of Russian airstrikes.
Zoriana tells us what it's like to spend a night sheltering in her local subway station.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Kyiv alone has endured 1,903 air raid alerts and 95 days of Russian airstrikes.
Zoriana tells us what it's like to spend a night sheltering in her local subway station.
November 10, 2025 at 9:55 AM
With Remembrance Day tomorrow, reports of Ukrainians sheltering in subway stations under mass bombardment by an aggressive invader will remind our elders and those who hears their stories of what they fervently hoped was the last war in their lifetime, when Nazis rained bombs on London.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Japan's giant of live SFX Eiji Tsuburaya, who died in 1970, and American actress, director and screenwriter Mabel Normand, who died in 1930, have been inducted into the U.S. Visual Effects Society Hall of Fame alongside VFX creator Glenn Campbell, who died in 2024.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Ultraman creator Tsuburaya becomes Japan's 1st visual effects hall of famer - The Mainichi
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Filmmaker Eiji Tsuburaya (1901-1970), the founder of a production company that created the Ultraman superhero franchise, has been ind
mainichi.jp
November 10, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Japan's giant of live SFX Eiji Tsuburaya, who died in 1970, and American actress, director and screenwriter Mabel Normand, who died in 1930, have been inducted into the U.S. Visual Effects Society Hall of Fame alongside VFX creator Glenn Campbell, who died in 2024.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
From late December, travellers leaving Japan from Tokyo's Haneda airport will be seen off by a 40 metre long, 9 metre high installation showing Godzilla bursting through a building in the departures lounge at Terminal 3. Arrivals will be greeted by Godzilla Minus One.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Huge Godzilla installation to see off travelers at Tokyo airport from Dec. - The Mainichi
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Travelers leaving Tokyo to take international flights will be watched over by the world's largest indoor Godzilla installation from l
mainichi.jp
November 10, 2025 at 10:29 AM
From late December, travellers leaving Japan from Tokyo's Haneda airport will be seen off by a 40 metre long, 9 metre high installation showing Godzilla bursting through a building in the departures lounge at Terminal 3. Arrivals will be greeted by Godzilla Minus One.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Makoto Shinkai was 34 when his #anime 5 Centimeters Per second premiered in 2007. Now Yoshiyuki Okuyama, 34, directs the live-action remake with a crew "around his own age."
www.asahi.com/ajw/articles...
www.asahi.com/ajw/articles...
‘5 Centimeters Per Second’ to get live-action film adaptation | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis
Makoto Shinkai’s 2007 anime “5 Centimeters Per Second” is being adapted into a live-action film.
www.asahi.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Makoto Shinkai was 34 when his #anime 5 Centimeters Per second premiered in 2007. Now Yoshiyuki Okuyama, 34, directs the live-action remake with a crew "around his own age."
www.asahi.com/ajw/articles...
www.asahi.com/ajw/articles...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
A beautiful tribute to #StudioGhibli from one of my favourite LinkedIn accounts, Khoa Trinh, co-founder and CEO of @Otsu Labs. Definitely worth a follow if you're on LinkedIn.
www.linkedin.com/posts/khoaot...
www.linkedin.com/posts/khoaot...
#otsulabs #khoatrinh #animationstudio #signature #conviction | Khoa Trinh
Every studio is born with a voice.
Most lose it trying to sound like everyone else.
Laika shaped motion through imperfection.
Ghibli painted stillness into emotion.
Pixar engineered feeling with stor...
www.linkedin.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:36 AM
A beautiful tribute to #StudioGhibli from one of my favourite LinkedIn accounts, Khoa Trinh, co-founder and CEO of @Otsu Labs. Definitely worth a follow if you're on LinkedIn.
www.linkedin.com/posts/khoaot...
www.linkedin.com/posts/khoaot...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
“This rediscovery of female samurai history reframes centuries of gendered myth and challenges the hyper-masculine image of the samurai that still dominates film, anime and gaming.” Rosina Buckland, queen and goddess, I'm so there for this show. 3 Feb-4 May 2026
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
Groundbreaking British Museum show set to challenge samurai myths
Exclusive: Exhibition will reveal complex reality, featuring women and artistic creations, beyond armour-clad warriors
www.theguardian.com
November 10, 2025 at 11:21 AM
“This rediscovery of female samurai history reframes centuries of gendered myth and challenges the hyper-masculine image of the samurai that still dominates film, anime and gaming.” Rosina Buckland, queen and goddess, I'm so there for this show. 3 Feb-4 May 2026
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
Watching the cloud roll in over Hilltop, Storrs and Dungworth this morning . #weather #weaterwatchers #loxleyvalley #sheffieldweather #paultheweatherman
November 9, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Watching the cloud roll in over Hilltop, Storrs and Dungworth this morning . #weather #weaterwatchers #loxleyvalley #sheffieldweather #paultheweatherman
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Did Donald post this because he is deeply dishonest or irreparably stupid? I'm thinking both . . .
With a “WOW!,” President Trump posts a claim about DOGE and “royalties linked to Obamacare” that originated on a satirical website. That site’s own About section reads: “Everything on this website is fiction… If you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined.”
November 9, 2025 at 5:36 PM
Did Donald post this because he is deeply dishonest or irreparably stupid? I'm thinking both . . .
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 50:
Not all dialogue has to be verbal. What a character does (or not) matters as much as what they say. Rather than fill up your dialogue with descriptions of *how* your characters say their lines, try including some actions too. Looking away; fidgeting; being silent.
Not all dialogue has to be verbal. What a character does (or not) matters as much as what they say. Rather than fill up your dialogue with descriptions of *how* your characters say their lines, try including some actions too. Looking away; fidgeting; being silent.
November 9, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 50:
Not all dialogue has to be verbal. What a character does (or not) matters as much as what they say. Rather than fill up your dialogue with descriptions of *how* your characters say their lines, try including some actions too. Looking away; fidgeting; being silent.
Not all dialogue has to be verbal. What a character does (or not) matters as much as what they say. Rather than fill up your dialogue with descriptions of *how* your characters say their lines, try including some actions too. Looking away; fidgeting; being silent.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Racist, sexist, genius: James Watson, who died on Thursday aged 97.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/j...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/j...
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Racist, sexist, genius: James Watson, who died on Thursday aged 97.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/j...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/j...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
In Derby today? Don’t forget @liamsharp.bsky.social is signing at Forbidden Planet! Details here downthetubes.net/liam-sharps-...
Liam Sharp’s Savage Sword of Conan story, “Tattered Wings”, unleashed
25 years in the making!
downthetubes.net
November 8, 2025 at 6:56 AM
In Derby today? Don’t forget @liamsharp.bsky.social is signing at Forbidden Planet! Details here downthetubes.net/liam-sharps-...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Unsolicited writing advice, no.333:
If your writing is getting too narrative-heavy, break it up with dialogue. This lightens the narraive, introduces variety and gives the reader chance to assimilate what they've read. It doesn't have to be much; just a short interchange every few pages will do.
If your writing is getting too narrative-heavy, break it up with dialogue. This lightens the narraive, introduces variety and gives the reader chance to assimilate what they've read. It doesn't have to be much; just a short interchange every few pages will do.
November 8, 2025 at 11:18 AM
Unsolicited writing advice, no.333:
If your writing is getting too narrative-heavy, break it up with dialogue. This lightens the narraive, introduces variety and gives the reader chance to assimilate what they've read. It doesn't have to be much; just a short interchange every few pages will do.
If your writing is getting too narrative-heavy, break it up with dialogue. This lightens the narraive, introduces variety and gives the reader chance to assimilate what they've read. It doesn't have to be much; just a short interchange every few pages will do.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Anti-piracy group Authorised Books of #Japan (ABJ) estimates that piracy of #manga - mainly in English - loses the industry £55billion a year. Income lost by translators who would localise the pirated works or retailers who would sell them is not included here.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Piracy of Japan manga, literature causes 8.5 tril. yen loss a year: study - The Mainichi
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Lost revenue from illegal online viewing of Japanese manga and other publications worldwide was estimated at around 8.5 trillion yen
mainichi.jp
November 8, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Anti-piracy group Authorised Books of #Japan (ABJ) estimates that piracy of #manga - mainly in English - loses the industry £55billion a year. Income lost by translators who would localise the pirated works or retailers who would sell them is not included here.
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
mainichi.jp/english/arti...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
IGN India also reports the #manga piracy story - and as one of #anime and manga's major new growth markets, India has skin in this game.
in.ign.com/anime/245914...
in.ign.com/anime/245914...
Pirated Manga Websites Reportedly Cause $55 Billion in Annual Losses, Says Japanese Watchdog
ABJ’s new study shows global piracy has become harder to contain.
in.ign.com
November 8, 2025 at 8:46 AM
IGN India also reports the #manga piracy story - and as one of #anime and manga's major new growth markets, India has skin in this game.
in.ign.com/anime/245914...
in.ign.com/anime/245914...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
800+ flights cancelled today because Elon took a chainsaw to the federal government and Trump won’t pay the remaining airport personnel.
Elon’s on his way to becoming a trillionaire.
Trump’s net worth has more than doubled inside a year.
Glad everything worked out for them.
How about you?
Elon’s on his way to becoming a trillionaire.
Trump’s net worth has more than doubled inside a year.
Glad everything worked out for them.
How about you?
November 7, 2025 at 1:13 PM
800+ flights cancelled today because Elon took a chainsaw to the federal government and Trump won’t pay the remaining airport personnel.
Elon’s on his way to becoming a trillionaire.
Trump’s net worth has more than doubled inside a year.
Glad everything worked out for them.
How about you?
Elon’s on his way to becoming a trillionaire.
Trump’s net worth has more than doubled inside a year.
Glad everything worked out for them.
How about you?
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Epstein
Epstein
The entire shut down is happening because Predator Christian Mike Johnson is covering for the Oval Office occupant, who will destabilize a country in order to avoid the release of the Epstein files.
Justify that to your savior, you feckless invertebrate.
Epstein
Epstein
Epstein
The entire shut down is happening because Predator Christian Mike Johnson is covering for the Oval Office occupant, who will destabilize a country in order to avoid the release of the Epstein files.
Justify that to your savior, you feckless invertebrate.
Epstein
Epstein
November 6, 2025 at 10:53 AM
Epstein
Epstein
The entire shut down is happening because Predator Christian Mike Johnson is covering for the Oval Office occupant, who will destabilize a country in order to avoid the release of the Epstein files.
Justify that to your savior, you feckless invertebrate.
Epstein
Epstein
Epstein
The entire shut down is happening because Predator Christian Mike Johnson is covering for the Oval Office occupant, who will destabilize a country in order to avoid the release of the Epstein files.
Justify that to your savior, you feckless invertebrate.
Epstein
Epstein
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 86: You don't have to go far to get ideas. They're everywhere around you. What you need is to train your mind to see the familiar in a new and unfamiliar way. Change angles. Play with perspective. Take tired tropes and wake them up.
November 7, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Unsolicited writing advice, no. 86: You don't have to go far to get ideas. They're everywhere around you. What you need is to train your mind to see the familiar in a new and unfamiliar way. Change angles. Play with perspective. Take tired tropes and wake them up.
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Japanese writers team up with Spanish artists as Kodansha scouts Spain, considered to lack "its own distinctive comics market" like French BD or US superheroes, but with artists with their own distinct and powerful style who "grew up with manga and anime."
japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Spanish artist and Japanese writer duos diversify the manga talent pool in Japan
As manga and anime’s global popularity grows, international artists are getting new opportunities to enter the booming industry.
japantimes.co.jp
November 7, 2025 at 10:31 AM
Japanese writers team up with Spanish artists as Kodansha scouts Spain, considered to lack "its own distinctive comics market" like French BD or US superheroes, but with artists with their own distinct and powerful style who "grew up with manga and anime."
japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
japantimes.co.jp/culture/2025...
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Ask yourself how Nigel Farage got so rich, how much tax he pays and why his money lives offshore. Then ask yourself what he's done for his constituents or the U.K. apart from fuelling anger and helping to fill our streets with vans full of strangers in balaclavas.
A criminal court in Brussels on Wednesday convicted two Polish nationals – including a current European Parliament assistant – of misusing EU funds tied to political entities associated with Brexit-backer Nigel Farage.
https://bit.ly/4oSrA0R
https://bit.ly/4oSrA0R
Belgian court convicts two for EU funds misuse linked to Nigel Farage's Brexit group | Euractiv
Verdict ends decade-long probe into alleged misuse of EU funds by associates of top Brexit campaigner
www.euractiv.com
November 7, 2025 at 10:59 AM
Ask yourself how Nigel Farage got so rich, how much tax he pays and why his money lives offshore. Then ask yourself what he's done for his constituents or the U.K. apart from fuelling anger and helping to fill our streets with vans full of strangers in balaclavas.
😡😡😡
Who is #AndrewMilne, where did he get the money to buy hundreds of Sheffield freeholds, why were they not offered to leaseholders first, and what is the legal profession doing about predators who hide behind legal qualifications? www.sra.org.uk might be interested.
Extraordinary story from @sheffieldtribune.bsky.social: A London lawyer bought hundreds of Sheffield freeholds. Then the ‘very aggressive’ letters arrived.
One woman: “It broke my heart, that was my savings towards a new car...He has just wiped me out.”
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
One woman: “It broke my heart, that was my savings towards a new car...He has just wiped me out.”
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/a-london-law...
November 7, 2025 at 11:09 AM
😡😡😡
Reposted by Rick Cowling
Remember to continue to shun all things Tesla!
The unprecedented pay day will go into full effect by 2035—as long as Tesla hits ambitious financial and production targets.
wrd.cm/4oRWqqp
wrd.cm/4oRWqqp
Tesla Shareholders Approve Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Pay Package
The unprecedented payday will go into full effect by 2035—as long as Tesla hits ambitious financial and production targets.
www.wired.com
November 7, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Remember to continue to shun all things Tesla!