Author: Joe Vasicek

Joe Vasicek is the author of more than twenty science fiction books, including the Star Wanderers and Sons of the Starfarers series. As a young man, he studied Arabic and traveled across the Middle East and the Caucasus. He claims Utah as his home.

Finishing this novel is harder than I’d thought

So is trying to hit 3,000 words each day.  For the past week, I’ve been doing between 1,500 and 2,500 words every day, but lately it’s just been really hard.  I’m on break, and I know that I should have more time for this kind of stuff, but I don’t know. It has been a… Continue reading Finishing this novel is harder than I’d thought

The Mongol hordes…in SPACE!

A while ago, I wrote a post on this blog about what we were learning in History 240 about the Turks, the Seljuks, and the Mongols.  Fascinating stuff!  Really epic!  Genghis Khan, Tamarlane, Tugril Beg, and all the rest of those guys may have been bloody, totalitarian rulers, but they did some incredible stuff, especially… Continue reading The Mongol hordes…in SPACE!

Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds

Bella and Svetlana have both struggled hard to break into leadership positions in DeepShaft, an interstellar mining company that pushes comets to mining platforms back near Earth.  Bella is the second in command of the Rockhopper, and Sveta is one of the chief engineers.  Both women are the best of friends. While conducting an operation… Continue reading Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds

2,850 words more than I thought I could write today

Yes, that’s true. I wrote 2,850 words today, and it’s more than I thought I could do. I’m trying to finish up Genesis Earth, but it’s difficult because I haven’t been with these characters in a long time and I’ve forgotten a lot of their motivations. I look at what I’ve written before and I… Continue reading 2,850 words more than I thought I could write today

Freedom!

YES!!!  Exams are over!  Finished them just a couple of days ago, and now I’m at home back in Massachusetts.  Ah, sweet freedom!  No school obligations, no stresses for papers or projects or grades or anything!  Lots and lots of free time! …and with that free time, I’m going to undertake something almost ridiculously impossible:… Continue reading Freedom!

I am SO ready to wash the dust of this semester from my feet

Ugh.  I feel like this has been my worst semester yet.  Not in terms of grades, or in terms of social life, or even in terms of workload, but just…in terms of my classes.  Classes, and just school in general. Here’s what I’ve figured out.  My best, most enjoyable classes are the ones that really… Continue reading I am SO ready to wash the dust of this semester from my feet

Change of plans

So, it’s been two weeks since the end of Thanksgiving break, and things have changed quite a bit.  I’ve been struggling quite a bit with my story.  I could hardly get past the first chapter of the second section of the novel, and I’m at a critical point where I have to start introducing key… Continue reading Change of plans

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This week has been rough.  Last day of classes is tomorrow (today), next week is finals. I’m going to take as many finals as possible on Monday, just to get them over with.  Scholastically, it has been a somewhat disappointing semester, though I don’t think my grades have suffered much.  I just want it to… Continue reading …

Crash course

Alright, I haven’t done any writing in my novel today.  I admit it, and I admit that I have no excuse for it.  I just didn’t do it. The reason that I didn’t do any writing (not the excuse) is that I’ve been way too busy checking out this series of fascinating economic presentations. These… Continue reading Crash course