It's been a while since I read comic books outside of a graphic novel format, but I am loving Steve Attewell's People's History of the Marvel Universe!

Marvel's use of mutants-as-metaphor is assumed to have always been, but the ground he covers here (and in previous parts) shows how an idea can form over time in a serial, unlike in a novel or film. The evolution *ahem* of characters and how they might fit is a great look back when we know them as they are now. Looking at Magneto's original behaviour and comparing it to the arch-villain and master manipulator he is now is straight-up night and day.

A solid reminder that sometimes the best stories can take a while to find their feet. The films we're getting now? Fifty years in the making. And it's a pretty cool trip!

Paper or Not, Here it Comes!

So.

Trying something a little different: some of you have read my writing (and actually liked it for reasons perhaps best left unasked) so I thought I'd put a bunch of words together and see what came out at the end. For money, yet.

For the next 90 days, I'm going to be selling pre-orders of a 'hard SF' story I've been kicking around for a few years. I'll be putting up sample chapter drafts as I finish them - they might not be the final piece, but it could be interesting to see how much changes between stages. I know I'm curious to find out!

If this goes well, there's another dozen semi-manuscripts running around my ankles here, and it would be nice to find them homes, too.

If you'd like to try a sample, the first chapter of (nine so far) is here:

Farm Boy