Richard Garfinkle
@rgarfinklesff.bsky.social
Writer and Computer Programmer. I write science fiction, fantasy, and popularizations / textbooks for science, math, and computer programming.
No AI.
He/Him They/Them
No AI.
He/Him They/Them
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
And keyword searches favor known genres over harder to classify.
November 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
And keyword searches favor known genres over harder to classify.
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
It is in some ways easier than when I started because the internet makes it possible to communicate directly (like this). It also makes self publishing and small presses a lot more viable then they used to be, but at the same time, it's a much larger universe of available titles.
November 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
It is in some ways easier than when I started because the internet makes it possible to communicate directly (like this). It also makes self publishing and small presses a lot more viable then they used to be, but at the same time, it's a much larger universe of available titles.
And keyword searches favor known genres over harder to classify.
November 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
And keyword searches favor known genres over harder to classify.
It is in some ways easier than when I started because the internet makes it possible to communicate directly (like this). It also makes self publishing and small presses a lot more viable then they used to be, but at the same time, it's a much larger universe of available titles.
November 29, 2025 at 10:06 PM
It is in some ways easier than when I started because the internet makes it possible to communicate directly (like this). It also makes self publishing and small presses a lot more viable then they used to be, but at the same time, it's a much larger universe of available titles.
It did. It's my most well known book. And is generally classified with alternate history. I subtitled it A Novel of Alternate Science, but it has an alternate history embedded in it.
November 29, 2025 at 9:25 PM
It did. It's my most well known book. And is generally classified with alternate history. I subtitled it A Novel of Alternate Science, but it has an alternate history embedded in it.
Oh. I am stunned into relative silence.
November 29, 2025 at 9:19 PM
Oh. I am stunned into relative silence.
It's available on Amazon and it is explicitly related to the Myth of Eros and Psyche.
November 29, 2025 at 9:16 PM
It's available on Amazon and it is explicitly related to the Myth of Eros and Psyche.
Here's my first novel which came out around thirty years ago when pitches could be a lot longer.
www.amazon.com/Celestial-Ma...
www.amazon.com/Celestial-Ma...
Celestial Matters
Celestial Matters [Garfinkle, Richard] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Celestial Matters
www.amazon.com
November 29, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Here's my first novel which came out around thirty years ago when pitches could be a lot longer.
www.amazon.com/Celestial-Ma...
www.amazon.com/Celestial-Ma...
It's the story how she fell in love with love,The story of how love fell in love with her And the story of a great many other beings who sought to complicate what should have been a simple story But wasn't. /2
November 29, 2025 at 9:06 PM
It's the story how she fell in love with love,The story of how love fell in love with her And the story of a great many other beings who sought to complicate what should have been a simple story But wasn't. /2
Here's my easiest to pitch book with its blurb.
www.amazon.com/Eros-Takes-B...
Eros Takes A Bow is a modern fantasy drawn from the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche. It is the story of Callie Bowen a divorced software engineer with a teenage daughter. /1
www.amazon.com/Eros-Takes-B...
Eros Takes A Bow is a modern fantasy drawn from the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche. It is the story of Callie Bowen a divorced software engineer with a teenage daughter. /1
Eros Takes A Bow
Eros Takes A Bow [Garfinkle, Richard] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Eros Takes A Bow
www.amazon.com
November 29, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Here's my easiest to pitch book with its blurb.
www.amazon.com/Eros-Takes-B...
Eros Takes A Bow is a modern fantasy drawn from the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche. It is the story of Callie Bowen a divorced software engineer with a teenage daughter. /1
www.amazon.com/Eros-Takes-B...
Eros Takes A Bow is a modern fantasy drawn from the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche. It is the story of Callie Bowen a divorced software engineer with a teenage daughter. /1
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
Ironically, I've had an easier time getting interest in textbooks I write because they aren't expected to be simple. /2
November 29, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Ironically, I've had an easier time getting interest in textbooks I write because they aren't expected to be simple. /2
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
Therein lies a problem. Elevator pitches work for stories that fit easily into current ideas or have easy comparisons. I don't write things that have elevator pitches.
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
November 29, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Therein lies a problem. Elevator pitches work for stories that fit easily into current ideas or have easy comparisons. I don't write things that have elevator pitches.
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
Ironically, I've had an easier time getting interest in textbooks I write because they aren't expected to be simple. /2
November 29, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Ironically, I've had an easier time getting interest in textbooks I write because they aren't expected to be simple. /2
Therein lies a problem. Elevator pitches work for stories that fit easily into current ideas or have easy comparisons. I don't write things that have elevator pitches.
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
November 29, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Therein lies a problem. Elevator pitches work for stories that fit easily into current ideas or have easy comparisons. I don't write things that have elevator pitches.
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
The tips for elevator pitches or query letters are restrictive and already select against what I write. /1
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
Most of what I write is hard to classify. It's gotten even more frustrating since people are often asking for comparable books. But I usually try to write in relatively empty spaces with zero to just a few even remotely similar works.
November 29, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Most of what I write is hard to classify. It's gotten even more frustrating since people are often asking for comparable books. But I usually try to write in relatively empty spaces with zero to just a few even remotely similar works.
I did that. I entered author and title for one of my books. It did not show up for pages.
November 29, 2025 at 8:25 PM
I did that. I entered author and title for one of my books. It did not show up for pages.
Most of what I write is hard to classify. It's gotten even more frustrating since people are often asking for comparable books. But I usually try to write in relatively empty spaces with zero to just a few even remotely similar works.
November 29, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Most of what I write is hard to classify. It's gotten even more frustrating since people are often asking for comparable books. But I usually try to write in relatively empty spaces with zero to just a few even remotely similar works.
I think this is basically accurate. But I don't think that competition is really part of System B. System B says competition is part of its ethics, but it cannot tolerate when the wrong people win. I think its third component is entitlement.
November 29, 2025 at 9:27 AM
I think this is basically accurate. But I don't think that competition is really part of System B. System B says competition is part of its ethics, but it cannot tolerate when the wrong people win. I think its third component is entitlement.
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
Or they deny that they wear hats. They insist that the hats are figments of our imaginations.
November 27, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Or they deny that they wear hats. They insist that the hats are figments of our imaginations.
It's good to see one's old works in this light, all the while one's readers appreciate both the old and new works.
November 27, 2025 at 3:53 PM
It's good to see one's old works in this light, all the while one's readers appreciate both the old and new works.
Reposted by Richard Garfinkle
You can’t fake honesty. You can’t automate honesty.
You have something the fascist slop machines will never have. You have humanity. You have a point of view. You have a heart.
You have something the fascist slop machines will never have. You have humanity. You have a point of view. You have a heart.
November 27, 2025 at 3:10 PM
You can’t fake honesty. You can’t automate honesty.
You have something the fascist slop machines will never have. You have humanity. You have a point of view. You have a heart.
You have something the fascist slop machines will never have. You have humanity. You have a point of view. You have a heart.