Features

A collection of 51 posts

Features

Astrolabe Feature: Sea of Stars is the game Chrono Trigger fans have been waiting for

Early impressions of Sea of Stars reveal a game bursting with innovation and beauty while staying true to its classic inspirations

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Sea of Stars and the Jordan Peterson thing

Is Sabotage Studio's sea full of lobsters?

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Astrolabe Digest: 082423

Controversies, sub-pixels, and layoffs, oh my!

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Final Fantasy XVI wants to be the "Game of Thrones" of video games, but is it too late?

The long-running series wants to target new fans with its action-based combat, but is that being undermined by its newfound obsession with sex and gratuitous violence?

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"This is How You Lose the Time War" is a Time Travel Romance with Teeth

But you don't need Bigolas Dickolas to tell you that.

Features Featured

Hayao Miyazaki’s Lost Magic of Parenthood

How the legendary Studio Ghibli filmmaker explores the intersections of childhood, parenthood, and magic in his most famous films.

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I'm loving Tunic—and it's all thanks to "No Fail" mode

Excuse to explore

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Replay Value: Chrono Trigger — A wild side quest appears! (Part 3)

The real treasure was the friends we made along the way

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Size Matters: Xenoblade Chronicles 3

Sometimes bigger *isn't* better

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Replay Value: Chrono Trigger — The Writer on Mt. Woe (Part 2)

From the beginning of time to the end of our hero's journey

Gift Guides

2022 Holiday Gift Guide for Geeks!

A gift for every nerd, geek, and lovable dweeb on your list! Stocking stuffers! Book recommendations! Games, and more!

Features

Replay Value: Chrono Trigger — Party like it's 1999 (Part 1)

Exploring the apocalypse from the Millennial Fair to the depths of Magus's Castle

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Cordelia’s Honor is Thrilling, Intelligent SF from a Genre Grandmaster

This review of Lois McMaster Bujold's Cordelia's Honor is part of my ongoing initiative to archive my work at Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog, which sadly shut down a few years ago. "Keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and Cordelia Naismith

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Why We Still Read Lord of the Rings

I learn something new about myself each time I visit Middle-earth.

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The Witchwood Crown Is a Triumphant Return to a Beloved Fantasy World

This review was originally published by Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog in June, 2017. Sadly the publication closed down, so I'm preserving my favourite pieces, and bringing them to a new audience through these reprints. “By the Ransomer’s Tree, when did we all grow

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How to Pitch and Sell a Freelance Feature Article

So, you think you can freelance? Here's how I do it. When I started pitching freelance gaming articles a few years ago, I was surprised and dismayed by how few resources existed to help new writers understand the intricacies of pitching and breaking into pro markets. I was

Guest Post

Astrolabe Gaiden: "Out of the Labyrinth" by Ryan Van Loan

I've been a big fan of Ryan Van Loan for a while. His kindness and optimism is infectious, he's endlessly interesting, and his Twitter feed is always a breath of fresh air amongst all the doomscrolling. So, I went into his debut novel, The Sin in

Guest Post

Astrolabe Gaiden: "How a Spark Became a BonFiyah" by Iori Kusano and Vida Cruz

Last month, Adri Joy joined me to discuss CoNZealand Fringe—a programming offshoot of CoNZealand that centred fan voices and provided an alternative to official convention programming. "With the idea spearheaded by Claire Rousseau, the first Booktuber—that’s the community of book reviewers and fans on YouTube—to

Guest Post

Astrolabe Gaiden: "Well, somebody has to do this!" The story of CoNZealand Fringe by Adri Joy

One glance at the "Best Related Work" ballot for this year's Hugo Awards reveals a rich collection of voices from the SFF community. Chief among those are two genre conventions: FIYAHCON, an online convention "centering the perspectives and celebrating the contributions of BIPOC in speculative

Features

Fantasy’s Finest: An Appreciation of Daniel Abraham’s The Long Price Quartet

This essay was originally published by Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog in January, 2019. Sadly the publication closed down, so I'm preserving my favourite pieces, and bringing them to a new audience through these reprints. In the mid-1990s, you’d be forgiven for assuming

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Becoming Gandalf

This essay was originally published by The Book Smugglers in January, 2015. My daughter is now six years old, and has a younger sister who's about to turn three, but I think the lessons here remain the same. “Petite, her silver hair shining, Le Guin shrugged and grinned

Features Featured

The Lasting Legacy of Tad Williams’ Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn

A beautiful transition between post-Tolkien idealism and the epic fantasy of today

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2020 Year In Review: The Silver Linings

Join me as I talk about my eligibility for Best Fan Writer at the Hugos

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The Fireside Incident: What went wrong with Fireside Magazine, and how you can support Black SFF Writers

If you’ve been paying attention to SFF/publishing Twitter lately, you’ve no doubt heard about the immensely problematic recording of “Da Art of Speculatin’” by Dr. Regina Bradley released by Fireside Magazine. Fireside has long prided itself on being a platform to raise BIPOC voices and publish anti-

Features

Astrolabe Gaiden: How I write and revise non-fiction

This peek behind the curtain at "Timeless: A History of Chrono Trigger" reveals all the mess you DIDN'T see, and offers advice for developing writers