DrakeNews 118: January 11, 2021
Dear People,
I hope you’re well and not too bent outa shape about the election (regardless of the result you wanted). We’ve got to get along with one another people. The US Civil War is an example of what happens if we don’t. (I think the partition of India is an even worse example.)
I have been plotting with difficulty. It was going all right, but a friend suggested I do a short story as a break. About then an editor solicited me for a Baen anthology Chicks in Tank Tops.
I took this to imply a humorous story about warrior maids. It would be a perfect place to do a sequel to Airborne All the way! a story I wrote to get out of a bad mental state after a long time friend finished drinking himself to death some time ago. It involved warrior goblins under a female crew chief in a fantasy universe (the original was based on Fantasy: the Gathering owned and trade-marked by Wizards of the Coast). If necessary I can put my crew chief in a mail tank top but I don’t think that should be necessary. (The crew goblins in the previous one are shown as wearing mail jock straps.)
I hope the story will be suitable for the collection. Regardless, writing it put me in a good mood and I’m back to plotting the novel.
One of the things I’ve been doing a lot of the past few months is watching lecture series from the Teaching Company. Recently that includes George Orwell. One of the things that reminded me of was the fact that the appraisal in his essays and reviews a scrupulously fair. He may fiercely oppose a person or his viewpoint, but if he thinks something is a work of art he says so.
I thought of this because a couple freelancers recently released a documentary on Karl Wagner. They filmed interviews with many people who knew Karl, myself included. Karl had many virtues. There were lots of things wrong as well, but I made a point of being fair and honest. Orwell would have approved.
My wife and I recently attended a Zoom birthday party for Glenn, an old friend out of state. This was put together by his daughter and was really a lot of fun. It included entertainment–dance, music, a monologue and even a tarot reading. It was certainly a case of something innovative and good in the present awful situation.
The beach is coming soon. It’ll be back to the original pattern from the 80s: I rent a beach house and invite congenial friends to join me and my family. One friend commented “It’ll be on your rules.” In fact there’ll be no rules beyond common politeness. I have nothing to prove.
It’s a group of folks who like to do things. Among other things I’m hoping to take a swamp tour and also visit the Navy cruise-missile test sites from the late ’40s.
Recently I’ve been reading Nathaniel Hawthorne short-stories. He was a great writer, but not one I got into in high school, though many of my classmates did. I appear to have actively avoided improving works out of sheer obstinacy. (This was stupid and cost me in the longer term.)
I am really struck by how much of 17th century US history I imbibed from Hawthorne. He provided the feel of early New England for me. In a very real sense I am recovering my own history as well as America’s.
I’m looking forward to the vaccine. Now that Biden is president, I hope release and distribution will go ahead.
Best of luck and health to all of you
And continue to remember that everyone is frazzling (you, and certainly me, included)
–Dave Drake
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