Friday's Interesting Links

Science

Homo floresiensis editorial (because I'm fascinated. I used to study everything there was to know about Lucy.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/02/opinion/02sat4.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

Science? Maybe, but it reminds me strongly of my first novel, especially the top picture. Beautiful cave:
http://www.goodnewsdaily.com/show_story.php?ID=9431

Writing

An interview with Donald Maass about what he sees as important to build a writing career:
http://noveljourney.blogspot.com/2009/05/novel-journeys-interview-with-donald.html

A very nice breakdown of what works and what doesn't for one line pitches:
http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2009/04/dreaded-pitch-what-to-include-in-that.html

Melinda Goodin has updated her spreadsheet that compiles all the Locus sales announcements. It is very useful for agent searches:
http://www.members.optusnet.com.au/~mgoodin68/locus.htm

It's time to consider whether you can participate in an awesome writing conference that is 100% online. No hotels, no airplanes, just you and around 2000 others enjoying workshops, chats, and even pitch sessions. This will be my fourth year at the Muse Conference, and my third year offering a workshop (the first year became the seed for the first ever FM Workshop). This is a celebration of every aspect of writing, with enough going on that there will be at least one if not ten or twenty things you're interested in on each day. Check it out here:
http://sharingwithwriters.blogspot.com/2009/05/free-muse-online-writers-conference.html

For those of you who follow my writing blog, you know that I have issues with the heavy application of "rules" that aren't actually fixed in stone. However, this summary, along with specific examples, is a solid explanation of why it's important to make conscious decisions about how you use the language.
http://www.holtuncensored.com/hu/the-ten-mistakes/

Rachelle Gardner on what happens after "The Call":
http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2009/05/now-that-you-have-agent.html

Solid advice on writers' etiquette from an editor (Miss Manners for the Publishing Industry):
http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2009/05/simple-trick-to-help-you-get-published.html

And something for writers to check in to. Some cities are requiring business licenses for freelance writers, etc.
http://writersweekly.com/this_weeks_article/005353_05062009.html

Simple, step-by-step videos that offer marketing tips for authors and demystify the technological aspects. I'm in it for the tips, being a techie myself, but the example one had no critical errors and was rather straightforward for those less technological.
http://marketingtipsforauthors.com/videotips.html

A breakdown of common myths about editors:
http://www.jeremiahtolbert.com/2009/5-lies-writers-believe-about-editors/

Social

I didn't know how to categorize this, but it's just incredible art done solely with letters in different typefaces:
http://abduzeedo.com/45-amazing-type-faces-typographic-portraits

Ah, one of the reasons to live in a big city. Viral delicacies on the hoof:
http://www.chow.com/san_francisco_bay_area_digest/7534

A little food fun for those with a hand at baking, or just looking for a shocking laugh.
http://bakerella.blogspot.com/2008/08/hope-these-put-smile-on-your-face.html

I've been to several bed-and-breakfasts that had a guestbook for guests to sign with notes for later guests, but I never really connected those to Facebook until this article:
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/the-face-book-fad-is-more-than-a-century-old/?hp

For all procrastinators out there:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/artsandliving/comics/king.html?name=6Chix&date=20090503

This is part of Valerie Comer's excellent workshop on getting in touch with your muse (Me, My Muse, & I) at Forward Motion, but it also is a fascinating test of left and right brain focus. My question is did it make your head feel funny? It did mine :).
http://www.squidoo.com/braintest (Do the spinning dancer one.)

You might have noticed I have a wee bit of a smilie addiction, though I try to control it for the blog. This article is then, of course, fascinating [deleted smilie]:
http://www.neatorama.com/2009/05/05/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-emoticons/

Readers

A friend pointed to this link where you can read classical short stories. Though you can do this at the Gutenberg Project, this site will email you a story a day :).
http://www.americanliterature.com/sstitleindex.html

Umm, okay, reading is stretching it, but an interesting surrealistic tale in short film form:
http://www.bigtimeattic.com/blog/2009/05/chris-ware-andrew-bird-awesome-short.html