Welcome, readers of the Whatever! As fiber fan Chris put it in her comment that tipped me off to Scalzi’s link to this wee site, “obsessions collide!”
New readers who might want to stick around for a while, might I suggest you bring some yarn and a crochet hook? Coffee is also welcome and encouraged. Many links in the sidebar will clue you in to my favourite topics and interests. And drop a comment letting me know what your favourite sci-fi book is and if you’ve ever crocheted or knitted. Nothing like anecdotal evidence to make us feel we’re all connected.
If you’d like to learn to crochet, might I (*cough*) recommend one of the books in the sidebar? These are books I’ve written, in collaboration with other talented people, and I unabashedly think they’re a good place to start. So is Interweave Crochet magazine, which is where I spend my days, though not in the official office but rather from my garage office at home (or, because I’m never happy in just one place, from my dining room table, where I now sit). Also, ask around. People are good teachers, too, and lots of them crochet.
To my few regular readers, go read the Whatever and do indulge my recommendation of Scalzi’s books (even the ones I haven’t read yet). Crochet and sci-fi go very well together. Perhaps we can have a discussion about why; I’m coming up blank.
And now, as it’s 9AM and thus time for work, I will stick my head back into the summer issue of the magazine to emerge only occasionally over the next few weeks. (Which might or might not be a LIE. Come back soon to find out.)
ETA: Crafty authors, you know there are awful reviews of your books out there. Take up the challenge, won’t you?
EagainTA: Media Bistro linked here, too. Now all you crafty authors simply must take up the challenge.
I'm an astigmatic expat writer, editor, speaker, author of 
Ok, here we go — the worst reviews I can find of my books on Amazon are 2, 2-star reviews for Spin to Knit:
disappointing, October 15, 2007
By Susan Harelson “sdharelson” (Loveland, CO USA)
I’ve just started spinning with a drop spindle, with information I found on various websites. I got this book hoping it would add to that knowledge. I haven’t found anything here that I haven’t found for free, in more detail, elsewhere. I would hope that the art would be higher quality, but there were several of the knit projects that only had one photo, from one angle, with no diagrams or further explanations on how to put them together. I had much higher expectations.
Disappointing, June 16, 2007
By Avery J. Regier
I am both a crocheter and knitter and have recently started spinning. I was rather disappointed by the fact that although the name would lead you to believe the book has a great deal of spinning instruction, the reality is that it is mostly knitting patterns worked with homespun which was produced by many different people and little to no instruction as to how to produce similar yarn yourself.
I AM SO DISAPPOINTING! Ha ha ha. Whatever.
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