Stephen Geigen-Miller
@stephengm.bsky.social
I work at the University of Toronto (but speak only for myself). I love the heck out of my two kids and my wife. In between, I write. He/him
Unrelated, but springboarding off Charlie Jane's post, I've always been grimly amused that Save The Cat - a pernicious book - has a LENGTHY digression in a SHORT book about how bad the movie Memento is, justifying this view by saying the movie was a gimmick AND didn't make much money.
I have been gaslit by a book of writing advice.
When I was a teen I liked John Updike (I know!) until I read a writing advice book called Writing Well by Donald Hall, which included a chapter explaining why Updike was bad.
I've found copies of Writing Well, but none include the Updike takedown.
When I was a teen I liked John Updike (I know!) until I read a writing advice book called Writing Well by Donald Hall, which included a chapter explaining why Updike was bad.
I've found copies of Writing Well, but none include the Updike takedown.
November 14, 2025 at 5:08 PM
Unrelated, but springboarding off Charlie Jane's post, I've always been grimly amused that Save The Cat - a pernicious book - has a LENGTHY digression in a SHORT book about how bad the movie Memento is, justifying this view by saying the movie was a gimmick AND didn't make much money.
My most woke? How much time do you have?
We START with universal basic services. Everyone gets the health care, child care, food, housing, public transit, education, and access to information they need to thrive. Maybe money can still exist, just for treats and perks. But no one should NEED it.
We START with universal basic services. Everyone gets the health care, child care, food, housing, public transit, education, and access to information they need to thrive. Maybe money can still exist, just for treats and perks. But no one should NEED it.
"my least woke opinion is---"
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
November 14, 2025 at 1:08 PM
My most woke? How much time do you have?
We START with universal basic services. Everyone gets the health care, child care, food, housing, public transit, education, and access to information they need to thrive. Maybe money can still exist, just for treats and perks. But no one should NEED it.
We START with universal basic services. Everyone gets the health care, child care, food, housing, public transit, education, and access to information they need to thrive. Maybe money can still exist, just for treats and perks. But no one should NEED it.
I've mostly been reading ebooks lately, via the library app on my phone, and it's been great Convenient! Portable!
But now I feel like I miss holding a book. I never stopped *acquiring* books, so I have a big print TBR pile. I'm going to prioritize that for the rest of 2025 and into the new year.
But now I feel like I miss holding a book. I never stopped *acquiring* books, so I have a big print TBR pile. I'm going to prioritize that for the rest of 2025 and into the new year.
November 13, 2025 at 11:41 PM
I've mostly been reading ebooks lately, via the library app on my phone, and it's been great Convenient! Portable!
But now I feel like I miss holding a book. I never stopped *acquiring* books, so I have a big print TBR pile. I'm going to prioritize that for the rest of 2025 and into the new year.
But now I feel like I miss holding a book. I never stopped *acquiring* books, so I have a big print TBR pile. I'm going to prioritize that for the rest of 2025 and into the new year.
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
RE starbucks picket line--the relevant detail is "picket line, do not cross." Pass that along. Proclaiming that you are in no danger of doing so because you are too aesthetically pure to let Starbucks coffee pass your lips is...unhelpful and does not give the impression you perhaps imagine it does.
November 13, 2025 at 1:56 PM
RE starbucks picket line--the relevant detail is "picket line, do not cross." Pass that along. Proclaiming that you are in no danger of doing so because you are too aesthetically pure to let Starbucks coffee pass your lips is...unhelpful and does not give the impression you perhaps imagine it does.
The Kickstarter is live! Steve's 5e subclasses are always great fun and this one looks ESPECIALLY so. I backed it, and I hope you'll join me!
The Kickstarter for my latest 5E zines (plural!) launches today at noon ET. If you’re so inclined, you can check it out here… stabracadabra.com
November 12, 2025 at 5:27 PM
The Kickstarter is live! Steve's 5e subclasses are always great fun and this one looks ESPECIALLY so. I backed it, and I hope you'll join me!
Exactly this. Continuity matters to this extent: That a) narrative immersion isn't broken by a setting breaking its own rules without repercussions and b) reader/viewer investment isn't broken by the events/consequences of a story being undone in subsequent stories. Anything else is a thief of joy.
Obsessive devotion to continuity is the enemy of epic/mythological storytelling—especially when there are many authors involved. Whether we're talking about Star Wars, superheroes, or Bond, the answer is to nail the essence of the story and care less about making it all "fit."
Or just have him start the next film alive and well and then at some point have someone be like "Bond! I thought you got blown up!" And then have him quip "you know better than to listen to rumors," or "what can I say? That was no time to die" and then absolutely refuse to explain further
November 11, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Exactly this. Continuity matters to this extent: That a) narrative immersion isn't broken by a setting breaking its own rules without repercussions and b) reader/viewer investment isn't broken by the events/consequences of a story being undone in subsequent stories. Anything else is a thief of joy.
That neither opposition party can get *any* traction against Doug Ford is a disaster and a shame - to be fair, the shame is on the voters and the media as well as the parties. Doug should have been terrified of calling an early election, not eagerly romping to an undeserved third majority.
(⭐️ Support Me By Subscribing/Donating ⭐️)
Ontario Provincial Polling:
PCPO: 51% (+8)
OLP: 23% (-7)
ONDP: 19% (-)
GPO: 3% (-2)
Others: 4%
Abacus / Nov 6, 2025 / n=1000 / Online
(% Change with 2025 Election)
Check out more ON details on @338Canada at: www.338canada.com/ontario
Ontario Provincial Polling:
PCPO: 51% (+8)
OLP: 23% (-7)
ONDP: 19% (-)
GPO: 3% (-2)
Others: 4%
Abacus / Nov 6, 2025 / n=1000 / Online
(% Change with 2025 Election)
Check out more ON details on @338Canada at: www.338canada.com/ontario
November 11, 2025 at 12:57 AM
That neither opposition party can get *any* traction against Doug Ford is a disaster and a shame - to be fair, the shame is on the voters and the media as well as the parties. Doug should have been terrified of calling an early election, not eagerly romping to an undeserved third majority.
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
If you wrote an SF/F/H story that was published in 2025 (or read a story that you thought was great), tell me about it in this thread!
Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)
Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)
November 7, 2025 at 1:48 PM
If you wrote an SF/F/H story that was published in 2025 (or read a story that you thought was great), tell me about it in this thread!
Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)
Authors, also send your story to me here: johnjosephadams.com/basff-submis... (Please read the guidelines before submitting.)
Every time the Belgariad comes up - and it's a series that for all its flaws was loved by a LOT of people in its day, including me - SOMEONE ends up being one of the Unlucky 10,000 learning for the first time how horrible the Eddings' were. I don't enjoy that, but I do think it's important to know.
David Eddings has a US Kindle book on sale today, and I won't be getting it for two reasons: first, he's a mediocre writer at best, and everything after the Belgariad didn't even reach that level; and second, he and his wife abused their adopted children so badly they were convicted for it.
November 7, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Every time the Belgariad comes up - and it's a series that for all its flaws was loved by a LOT of people in its day, including me - SOMEONE ends up being one of the Unlucky 10,000 learning for the first time how horrible the Eddings' were. I don't enjoy that, but I do think it's important to know.
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
Yessss
Here We GO! Come along, my dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
November 6, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Yessss
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
Better a pig than a gen A.I. user!
March 27, 2025 at 11:31 PM
Better a pig than a gen A.I. user!
John Waters would be glad in an abstract intellectual sense to know that my politics don't suck. I don't think he'd *dislike* me in a meaningful way. But he'd (rightfully!) consider me *profoundly* normie and have nothing to say to me beyond pleasantries.
I asked this before over at The Old Place and the answers delighted me. So again:
Who is an artist you admire who you suspect would not like you if they met you personally?
I think Peter Dinklage is fantastic. I would absolutely get on his last nerve. He'd be looking for the door while we spoke.
Who is an artist you admire who you suspect would not like you if they met you personally?
I think Peter Dinklage is fantastic. I would absolutely get on his last nerve. He'd be looking for the door while we spoke.
November 6, 2025 at 7:35 PM
John Waters would be glad in an abstract intellectual sense to know that my politics don't suck. I don't think he'd *dislike* me in a meaningful way. But he'd (rightfully!) consider me *profoundly* normie and have nothing to say to me beyond pleasantries.
A fair start and a fair shot for all our kids!
1. Universal free public daycare.
2. Restore and expand public school funding.
3. Fund colleges, universities, and apprenticeships so that everyone can get the education they need, for the future they want, at a price they can afford.
1. Universal free public daycare.
2. Restore and expand public school funding.
3. Fund colleges, universities, and apprenticeships so that everyone can get the education they need, for the future they want, at a price they can afford.
Thought experiment time, Ontario: Part of Zohran Mamdani's success was relentless message discipline with his 3 key ideas. If you could only pick 3 *big*, *bold* ideas for a progressive party in Ontario that would appeal to the *whole* population, what would they be? Quote post with ideas!
November 6, 2025 at 6:54 PM
A fair start and a fair shot for all our kids!
1. Universal free public daycare.
2. Restore and expand public school funding.
3. Fund colleges, universities, and apprenticeships so that everyone can get the education they need, for the future they want, at a price they can afford.
1. Universal free public daycare.
2. Restore and expand public school funding.
3. Fund colleges, universities, and apprenticeships so that everyone can get the education they need, for the future they want, at a price they can afford.
I wrote a thing!
On the blog, @stephengm.bsky.social reviews a new graphic novel, The Witch's Egg, by Donya Todd. "This art straddles and erases boundaries, between grotesque and cute, between crude and refined."
skiffyandfanty.com/b...
skiffyandfanty.com/b...
November 6, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I wrote a thing!
I like Olivia Chow. I voted for her and I will again. I don't expect her to be Zohran - she's a quieter person, more wonkish, more driven to seek consensus.
But I hope she takes one lesson from Zohran, which is to set a clear, bold, easily-communicated progressive agenda and really fight for it.
But I hope she takes one lesson from Zohran, which is to set a clear, bold, easily-communicated progressive agenda and really fight for it.
November 5, 2025 at 7:35 PM
I like Olivia Chow. I voted for her and I will again. I don't expect her to be Zohran - she's a quieter person, more wonkish, more driven to seek consensus.
But I hope she takes one lesson from Zohran, which is to set a clear, bold, easily-communicated progressive agenda and really fight for it.
But I hope she takes one lesson from Zohran, which is to set a clear, bold, easily-communicated progressive agenda and really fight for it.
This is the most perfect thing I've seen all day.
[twitter headquarters]
Elon Musk: eyyyy itsa me, elon musk!
Musk: eyyyy New York you gotta electa cuomo to sava western civilization, capiche?
Musk: i endorsa cuomo!
Musk: anna my endorsement, mama mia, datsa mean something!
[immediately pisses himself in a ketamine hole]
Elon Musk: eyyyy itsa me, elon musk!
Musk: eyyyy New York you gotta electa cuomo to sava western civilization, capiche?
Musk: i endorsa cuomo!
Musk: anna my endorsement, mama mia, datsa mean something!
[immediately pisses himself in a ketamine hole]
November 5, 2025 at 7:06 PM
This is the most perfect thing I've seen all day.
I look at campaigns and candidates like (mayor-elect!) Zohran Mamdani in NYC, and leader of the UK Green Party Zack Polanski, and I begin to feel some hope and see a path forward for me and for other frustrated, disappointed, hope-starved Canadian progressives.
November 5, 2025 at 3:32 PM
I look at campaigns and candidates like (mayor-elect!) Zohran Mamdani in NYC, and leader of the UK Green Party Zack Polanski, and I begin to feel some hope and see a path forward for me and for other frustrated, disappointed, hope-starved Canadian progressives.
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
![Black button with white text says "Despite everything, create."]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:fx5czwfl6527f7zkfhn6f4nt/bafkreid2jp4foumcpc73ws6myau4uinaicr4xdze7on7pu6rn4sdj7jp5u@jpeg)
Fencing and HEMA Bluesky! In the new year I'm finally fulfilling a decades-long dream and starting fencing lessons. What exercises do you recommend for a 54-year-old, decidedly chunky doofus to be better prepared for fencing? Cardio and resistance suggestions both welcome, if they're appropriate.
November 4, 2025 at 12:42 AM
Fencing and HEMA Bluesky! In the new year I'm finally fulfilling a decades-long dream and starting fencing lessons. What exercises do you recommend for a 54-year-old, decidedly chunky doofus to be better prepared for fencing? Cardio and resistance suggestions both welcome, if they're appropriate.
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
Oh my god.
This is why I love baseball.
He has summed it up.
This is why I love baseball.
He has summed it up.
November 2, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Oh my god.
This is why I love baseball.
He has summed it up.
This is why I love baseball.
He has summed it up.
I come from several generations of journalists, who meets all kinds of newsworthy individuals. And my family tree includes German branches recently enough for me to be two or three hops from some staggeringly bad people.
my grandfather worked for NASA in the 1960s and met Wernher von Braun, so yeah, a lot of us are three hops away from all *kinds* of horrible people
(My grandparents were also with the U.S. military in Berlin during the Airlift, which I’m sure makes matters even worse, hops-away wise).
(My grandparents were also with the U.S. military in Berlin during the Airlift, which I’m sure makes matters even worse, hops-away wise).
I'm only three handshakes from Hitler, because of NASA.
November 2, 2025 at 4:01 PM
I come from several generations of journalists, who meets all kinds of newsworthy individuals. And my family tree includes German branches recently enough for me to be two or three hops from some staggeringly bad people.
And yet, every time I mention online that Carney's approach to Trump has been noticeably different from his elbows up tone during the election - and how that's maybe worth discussing - Liberal partisans come out of the woodwork to tell me how WRONG and STUPID I am.
When @mark-carney.bsky.social ran his election campaign on #elbowsup what he really meant was #suckingup
You don't have to agree Ford's ad was a good idea to understand apologizing to The Orange Infant for "offending" him is not what we want nor will it work
www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/art...
You don't have to agree Ford's ad was a good idea to understand apologizing to The Orange Infant for "offending" him is not what we want nor will it work
www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/art...
November 1, 2025 at 2:23 PM
And yet, every time I mention online that Carney's approach to Trump has been noticeably different from his elbows up tone during the election - and how that's maybe worth discussing - Liberal partisans come out of the woodwork to tell me how WRONG and STUPID I am.
October 31, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Asher Elbein has been doing a ton of great science reporting lately, but this one is especially exciting to me. NANOTYRANNUS CONFIRMED AS A DISTINCT SPECIES, NOT JUST A JUVENILE T-REX!
My latest for @nytimes.com! For 40 years, paleontologists have grappled over whether a small tyrannosaur — named Nanotyrannus — was its own animal, or simply a teenage T.rex. The debate has been ... contentious. Which is why it's so fun to finally be able to say this:
Folks? Nanotyrannus is real.
Folks? Nanotyrannus is real.
The Case of the Tiny Tyrannosaurus Might Have Been Cracked
www.nytimes.com
October 30, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Asher Elbein has been doing a ton of great science reporting lately, but this one is especially exciting to me. NANOTYRANNUS CONFIRMED AS A DISTINCT SPECIES, NOT JUST A JUVENILE T-REX!
Reposted by Stephen Geigen-Miller
Actually, seeing a man of color, getting scared, and calling The Police, is pretty typical racist behavior
sting? fucking STING? who in 2025 wants to see solo sting? this has to be a joke
www.yahoo.com/entertainmen...
www.yahoo.com/entertainmen...
NFL Succumbs To Bad Bunny Criticism And Announces Special Super Bowl Concert With Sting
In an unexpected bid to calm the frenzy over Bad Bunny headlining the 2026 Super Bowl show, the NFL has introduced a special feature.
www.yahoo.com
October 30, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Actually, seeing a man of color, getting scared, and calling The Police, is pretty typical racist behavior