Trevin Wax talks about what makes a blog interesting. He boils it down to curiosity. “Curiosity works itself out in two ways,” he notes.
- “The blogger provokes a sense of curiosity and wonder in his or her readers.”
- “The blogger has an innate curiosity that enables him or her to write from a unique perspective.”
Naturally, I’m sure he’s a big fan of BwB. I mean, how could he not be?
Jeff Goins writes, “When I first stated blogging, I was pretty proud of the fact that my writing was being published to a small audience and that they were actually reading it. It felt good to be acknowledged. Really what I was, though, was an insecure writer clinging to every pitiful page view.”
Ouch.
Late to the computer tonight. I had to pick up some family members at the airport. They’re just back from a trip to Germany and Denmark. In Denmark they were able to meet and get to know our distant relatives, in Jutland.
Needless to say, I am filled with impotent rage and envy that I couldn’t go along. However they bought me dinner, so I chose not to steer the car into an abutment, sending us all to a fiery but magnificent demise.
Over at The Corner, Michael Potemra writes of “The Inexhaustible Chesterton:”
One of the things I have come to like most about Chesterton is that he is one of the few writers whose books you can open virtually at random, and have a good chance of finding a breathtaking insight.
Grim at Grim’s Hall posts my book trailer. Thanks, Grim.
I’ve been getting a fair amount of link love for the West Oversea trailer recently. I hope I’m not forgetting somebody in this list… Probably am.
Sam Karnick at the American Culture linked it here.
“Floyd” at Threedonia linked here (link defunct).
Pastor Paul T. McCain of Concordia Publishing gave me this (link defunct).
And just today, Rachel Motte posted it at Evangelical Outpost (link defunct).
Thanks to all. If I’ve overlooked you, let me know and I’ll remedy the situation.
By the way, if you’d like to link it yourself, here’s another option at Blazing Trailers. It has the advantage of including an ordering link (also defunct).
In other news, commenter Nigel Ray posted a comment on my “Apologetic of Story” post, which merits a promotion to the top of the page.
I had a similar experience. I was raised to be a rational atheist, with the philosophy that truth had to be sought in the world. Evil was explained as mistakes that people made, that they could be educated out of. But the older I got, the more evil I saw, until I couldn’t accept that, and had to switch to nihilism and the idea that the world simply was meaningless and thus evil.
But reality occasionally showed me actual goodness, as well, and in a evil world there would be no goodness (hence the argument that everything is really done for selfish reasons, for example). And so I was troubled.
And then I saw an X-files episode where a character, trying to defend himself against the charge that he was selfish, said, “I have love in my heart!” And the reply given him was, “you have love like a thief has money.” And I realized that the love I saw in the world must come from outside it, and this led me to Christ, who reconciles the contradiction of an obviously evil world that yet contains love.
I’m always excited and gratified when authors show up themselves to comment on our reviews of their books. We just got a comment from Jeffrey Overstreet on my review of Auralia’s Colors. I fear he wasn’t entirely happy with what he found here, but it was nice to have a visit from him anyway.
Mulholland Books has a lot of novel previews and a serial by Ken Bruen and Russell Ackerman which is currently in its 18th part. They have links so we can catch up on the story. Look at other current posts to read the opening chapters of new books from other authors.
Mike Gray at The American Culture posted pieces about my books not once, but three times, over the Memorial Day weekend.
A review of the Erling books is here.
An interview with me is here.
And a selection of quotations can be found here.
Thanks, Mike. I’m blushing, but not so much that I’d ask you to take them down.
Over at National Review, Jay Nordlinger has a delightful report on traveling in Norway. I’ve been on the tour he recommends, “Norway In a Nutshell” twice myself, and it’s all he says (the picture above was taken at a stop en route). (Tip: Mark Belanger)
And at I Saw Lightning Fall, Loren Eaton reviews The Windup Girl.
It’s a very good review.
Today was a big day—it was the day I got a link on Instapundit.
I’d noticed that people (usually publishers) send Glenn Reynolds books—often in the Fantasy and Science Fiction fields—and he posts an Amazon link. So I sent him a book, along with a short note mentioning my blogging credentials, and crossed my fingers. Today it paid off.
We sold off our entire Amazon stock within a very short time. Unfortunately, our Amazon stock wasn’t very large. But still it’s something. Maybe I’ll acquire another influential fan or two.
What’s that you say? Not enough Viking content in this post? Well, we can’t have that.
Here’s a video of a couple Scandinavian musicians doing a song called “Ormen Lange,” which I’ve liked for a long time. I first heard it done by a Norwegian folk group called “Vandrerne,” but their version doesn’t seem to be online. The Vandrerne arrangement was a little more processed, and I frankly prefer it, but this isn’t bad.
The song is a “ring dance” song from the Faeroe Islands. The title, “Ormen Lange,” means “The Long Serpent,” and it refers to King Olaf Trygvesson’s great war ship, which I believe I mention in The Year Of the Warrior. In the tradition of Faeroese ring dance songs, this seems to be a very long one. Only the first few verses are here—they tell how King Olaf calls his men to join him in a voyage in his ship, and his men enthusiastically respond that they’ll willingly follow him “into war or peace.” Then they launch the ship and set sail, with the king at the helm. I assume the full version goes on to tell about Olaf’s death at the Battle of Svold.
The chorus goes:
“The dance glimmers in the hall, and we dance in a ring.
Gladly ride Norwegian men to battle (the assembly of Hild).”
My recent lack of book reviews is not because I haven’t been reading books. I’ve been reading a very long book for a while (one I enjoy, but which is taking forever). However, I’ve interrupted that to read a shorter book that someone has asked me to review (more on that anon). I also read a technical manual for a piece of equipment I’m in the way of acquiring. There will be reviews, in time (not of the technical manual, of course). Until then, I vamp.
Tonight’s vamp is Sonja Henie, who was born April 8, 1912.
Norwegians are ambivalent about her, even after all these years. On one hand, she was perhaps the greatest Norwegian celebrity of all time, and a world-beating winter sports athlete. Norwegians will forgive a lot in a world-beating winter sports athlete.
On the other hand, she knew Hitler personally (her husband did business with him), and got along with him quite well. She even gave him the straight arm salute once. Although as a Hollywood celebrity she supported the American war effort, she never lifted a finger to support the Norwegian resistance, something that left a very bitter taste.
Also she was by all accounts alcoholic, narcissistic, and promiscuous. You’ve heard the expression that starts with a vulgar “b” word, and ends with “on ice?” She could have been the inspiration for it, if she wasn’t the inspiration in fact.
Personally, I generally don’t go for the round-faced look, so she never did much for me in the movies.
In other news, Anthony Sacramone posted a new item at Strange Herring, apparently in response to my legendary powers of persuasion.
It’s not a funny piece, but we take what we can get.
Meanwhile, our people have him under surveillance.