A quick update on the Children No More charity program

(In this entry, I assume you are aware of my goal of raising a lot of money to help child soldiers by donating all of my earnings from sales of the hardback of Children No More to Falling Whistles. If you're not, you can go to the Children No More site and learn more there. I'll be here when you return.)


We're in the mysterious phase of the process now. The book is in bookstores and available online. It's not a bestseller--I'm pretty sure we'd know if it was--but its Amazon ranking was for at least a week respectable (below 10,000), and a lot of copies moved in the dealers' room at the con. But, really, we know nothing yet of its sales, and we won't for many months. Hence the mystery.

What we do know is that a lot of people have pitched in to help, and I appreciate it. For example, Edmund Schubert, the editor of Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine show online magazine, offered me his editorial column to promote the cause; check it out here. More folks than I can possibly list comprehensively have been nice enough to blog it; I thank you all, and each time I've seen a blog, I've tried to thank its writer.

So, you may reasonably ask, are we done?

No. The book has at least two more weeks on the shelves. We need to keep pushing for those weeks. You can help by spreading the news as far and as wide as you can and, of course, by buying the book. If you don't want to buy it, consider donating to Falling Whistles to help those kids; they have an easy-to-use donation page.

We've established a little momentum. Let's keep it going and see if we can't pick up speeds. We can help these kids.

Thanks.

ReConStruction, day 4

Not much was happening at the con today, so I actually got a decent amount of sleep, said a bunch of good-byes, and then headed back to normal life. I'm catching up on work and writing and all the usual stuff, and I'm surprisingly tired despite the rest, so I'm keeping this short.

I watched the Anderson Silva/Chael Sonnen fight, and it was indeed everything folks were saying it was. Wow, did they go at it, and, boy, did Sonnen dominate for all but the last minute. They deserved the Fight of the Night bonus they received.

Sarah called me the other night as she was leaving a Josh Ritter concert in Nashville. It seems that in the midst of a storytelling break he started talking about finding yourself in unexpected places. When he mentioned that you might find yourself living in a shotgun shack, Sarah instantly knew where he was going--but most of the younger crowd did not. That's a shame. We should all know the Talking Heads, and we should all know this song. Enjoy.

UFC 117: How we did

Last night's show featured several surprises and an amazing title fight. Beginning with the undercard, let's see how we fared. I must note that I haven't yet seen the fights; due to the con, I'll be watching my DVR'd copy of the broadcast a day late courtesy. For these comments, I'm relying on the fine MMAWeekly site.

Ben Saunders vs. Dennis Hallman

Kyle and I started the night in fine style by picking Saunders; too bad Hallman won a unanimous decision and, from the sounds of it, dominated Saunders. Color us wrong.

Stefan Struve vs. Christian Morecraft

For the entire first round, it looked like Kyle and I were going to start 0-2, because Morecraft dominated and hurt Struve. In the second, though, Struve chopped Morecraft's leg, ate a few punches, and then dropped and finished Morecraft for the TKO victory. Whew! We're now 1-1, though both of us expected a submission from Struve.

Tim Boetsch vs. Todd Brown

We both expected Boetsch to have an easy time with Brown and to finish him, but we were wrong: the fight went three rounds, and though Boetsch did dominate Brown, he didn't finish his opponent. Still, Boetsch won, so we were 2-1.

Johny Hendricks vs. Charlie Brenneman

For one round, Brenneman gave Hendricks all he could take and more, with Hendricks losing the round.

In the second, however, Hendricks came out punching and dropped Brenneman five times in less than thirty seconds. The referee then stopped the bout and declared Hendricks the winner by TKO.

We called Hendricks, so we were right, but neither of us saw the fight ending in this fashion.

Rodney Wallace vs. Phil Davis

Davis indeed took down Wallace at will, and Davis dominated the whole fight, but he couldn't finish Wallace and so had to settle for the unanimous decision victory. We'd both predicted Davis would take the fight, but we'd also both thought he would finish easily. So, I count it as a correct call, but Davis clearly needs to improve his finishing game.

Dustin Hazelett vs. Rick Story

Boy, were we both wrong. We both expected Hazelett to win easily. Instead, Story took him down repeatedly and battered him for the first round, then beat him more soundly in the second until the ref stopped the fight and gave the TKO to Story.

So, at the end of the undercard, we were 4-2, not great, but not bad either. On to the main card.

Junior Dos Santos vs. Roy Nelson

We both expected Dos Santos to win, and win he did. What was amazing, however, was that it went a full three rounds before he notched a unanimous-decision victory from the judges. From the descriptions I've read, Dos Santos hit Nelson with everything he had, beat the snot out of the man, and still Nelson kept coming and would not fall. You have to credit Nelson for sheer grit.

At this point, we were tied at 5-2, and I was feeling pretty good about our choices.

Matt Hughes vs. Ricardo Almeida

This fight changed that feeling. Kyle and I were completely confident that Almeida would triump over Hughes. Both of us even went so far as to comment on Hughes' need to consider retiring.

We couldn't have been more wrong. At about three minutes into the first round, Hughes tagged Almeida, dropped him, followed him down, and ultimately choked him out. I would never have guessed Hughes would submit a Renzo Gracie bjj black belt. Wow.

I think it's safe to say that we'll see Hughes in the UFC again.

And now we're 5-3.

Clay Guida vs. Rafael dos Anjos

In the first of our two disagreements, Kyle chose Guida to win by superior top control, and I picked dos Anjos to submit Guida.

Kyle won this one, as Guida carried the day. What was most amazing, though, was the way Guida did it: He submitted dos Anjos, who tapped in the third.

I'm now behind Kyle by one. Drat!

Jon Fitch vs. Thiago Alves

In our only other disagreement, I figured Alves would triump, while Kyle went with Fitch grinding out a decision. Kyle was spot on, as Fitch won every single round on all three judges' cards.

At this point, Kyle has won both of our conflicts and beaten me: He's 7-3, and I'm 5-5. Drat.

Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen

From the description I just read on MMAMania, where I went when the MMAWeekly site wouldn't respond, I cannot wait to see this fight. Their reporting had Chael Sonnen dominating Anderson Silva for the first three rounds, nearly getting knocked out in the fourth but then winning it, and then being on top of Silva and winning again in the fifth--until Silva pulled off a triangle, and Sonnen tapped. So, we were right to choose Silva to win, and we both thought it would by by submission--Kyle even mentioned the triangle choke--but neither of us expected anything like this level of competition from Sonnen.


Kyle dominated me in this one, but I'll be back next time!

ReConStruction, day 3

Though I went to bed rather late last night, I still got a reasonable amount of sleep because my first commitment--an autographing session in the back of the dealers' room--wasn't until noon. To my pleasant surprise, I signed books and chatted with people almost continuously for the full hour. Don't get me wrong: I wasn't one of those big-name writers that stare at a huge queue of folks waiting for them to sign books; I can still only dream of that. I've just never had an autograph session at which I signed so many books. It was cool.

At the end of that activity, I met with Eric Flint for lunch. We talked publishing, ebooks, Baen (which publishes both of us), and so on for an enjoyable hour.

I then crammed in some work before my next panel, "The Death of a Character." The discussion ranged over many aspects of death in fiction, and it seemed to go well. Certainly, the audience seemed to enjoy it.

Next up was signing books at Sam's Bull Spec table, where we had also hoped to make me write fiction in return for donations. Alas, no one could find a printer or typewriter, so we bagged that notion. Perhaps another time.

More work, then the Baen author dinner at The Pit. We all ate too much but laughed and talked just the right amount, then waddled back to the hotel like a flock of ducklings overfed on worms.

After a little over an hour of work, I did the party crawl and ran into a lot of the usual suspects; this is a very small con. More work followed, and soon, sleep.

I'd love to see this hotel and facility with a full-sized NASFiC or WorldCon, but somehow I doubt that will happen anytime soon.

UFC 117: Kyle and I pick 'em

Hey, even in the midst of a con and the ongoing attempt to sell tons of copies of Children No More and help child soldiers, we can't forget the UFC. Where would it be without our picks? (Exactly where it is, of course, but we'll ignore that fact.)

Beginning with the undercard, here's how we see the fights.

Rodney Wallace vs. Phil Davis

Mark: You have to feel bad for Rodney Wallace. He was originally slated to face Stanislav Nedkov, but an injury led to Davis stepping in as a replacement. Davis is a vastly superior wrestler who will take down Wallace at will and pound or submit him for the victory. Davis will look great, and Wallace will look like he needs to drop some mass and give up his status as one of the more undersized light heavyweights.

Kyle: Phil Davis is another former Division I wrestling champion who's looked flawless in his first six fights. Wallace is five inches shorter, a weight class higher than he should be, and possessed of questionable conditioning that's earned him two decision losses in a row. Davis should win this one easily.

Ben Saunders vs. Dennis Hallman

Mark: I'm not a fan of Saunders, but he's going to take this fight thanks to his size and reach advantage and his kicks.

Kyle: Saunders is a much bigger man who has good enough take-down defense to stuff Hallman's weak shots and good enough reach to punish Hallman on the feet. Saunders for the win.

Johny Hendricks vs. Charlie Brenneman

Mark: Hendricks is better in every aspect of the game that will figure into this fight. He's unlikely to win in spectacular fashion, but he's going to take the match, probably by decision but possibly by a late submission.

Kyle: Brenneman peaked at 12th in the Division I Wrestling Nationals. Hendricks was a two-time Division I wrestling champion. Since Brenneman reportedly tends to rely on ground-and-pound, that puts him in for a rough night. Look for Hendricks to grind Brenneman down and give him a dose of his own GnP medicine.

Stefan Struve vs. Christian Morecraft

Mark: Morecraft is a tall, undefeated fighter who will be facing a taller, better fighter who's spent time working against far better opponents than Morecraft has ever fought. Struve will get Morecraft against the cage, then take him down, and eventually garner a submission victory.

Kyle: The 6'11" Struve is a physical anomaly who's hard to prepare for. It's unlikely that the 6' 8" Morecraft has ever had to fight up against a taller opponent before. He probably also hasn't faced a submission wizard of Struve's caliber. The Skyscraper, at 22 years old, has managed to rack up a staggering 14 wins by submission in his professional career. Look for Struve to put his limbs where Morecraft doesn't expect them and lock on a choke.

Dustin Hazelett vs. Rick Story

Mark: Hazelett is a better striker than Story and a vastly better submission artist. Story's only advantage is his superior wrestling, but all it can do for him is get him on the ground and into Hazelett's world of submission pain. I doubt this one will make it out of the second round, but however long it goes, it will end with Hazelett's hands up in victory.

Kyle: Hazelett could be a top-ten fighter, if he just had the game plan to match his skills. Story's a tough brawler, but fights with more aggression than technique. Expect Hazelett to tie his opponent up and use his superior jiu jitsu to lock on a submission. End of Story.

Tim Boetsch vs. Todd Brown

Mark: This is another fight that changed radically due to an injury. At one point, Boetsch was going to face Thiago Silva in a bout tailored to give Silva a nice return to the UFC. When Silva went out, Brown came in, and Boetsch's future turned rosy. Brown has a puncher's chance, but that's about it. Expect Boetsch to trade with Brown for at most a round and a half before he connects, drops Brown, and walks away with the KO or TKO victory.

Kyle: Brown comes in on short notice as a replacement for an injured Thiago Silva. Brown has had two professional fights, the second of which he lost to Din Thomas, whom he outweighs by fifty pounds. Boetsch should walk right through him.

Now, to the main, televised bouts.

Junior dos Santos vs. Roy Nelson

Mark: As interesting as it would be to watch the Double Beef Whopper-fueled Nelson find a way to defeat dos Santos, it's not going to happen. The only question is whether dos Santos knocks out Nelson in the first or the second round.

Kyle: The main card starts off with a bang with this battle of heavyweight strikers. Dos Santos is a well-conditioned athlete with superior boxing who can go a hard three rounds. Nelson is tough and arguably more well-rounded, but also pretty round: all the extra body fat that he carries around will start to weigh on him as the fight goes on. Dos Santos should be able to fight off Nelson's take-down attempts and strike from the outside to get the KO.

Matt Hughes vs. Ricardo Almeida

Mark: Matt Hughes' recent victory over Renzo Gracie was one of the saddest wins to watch in recent history. Almeida is a far tougher opponent, so this one will end early with Hughes losing. Unless the UFC is willing to feed Hughes increasingly weaker opponents, this fight may well need to be his last. He's a legend who deserves every accolade he's received, but his time is over.

Kyle: Hughes, like Chuck Liddell, just doesn't know when he should retire. Taking on Renzo Gracie in his last fight, Hughes was less impressive in victory than many fighters are in defeat. Almeida, on the other hand, looked like an absolute terror in his last fight against Matt Brown--and like a completely different fighter from the Ricardo Almeida who had let his previous three fights go to decision. Expect Almeida to stuff Hughes' take-down attempts and use his superior reach to punish Hughes from outside until Hughes just can't take the punishment anymore.

Clay Guida vs. Rafael Dos Anjos

Mark: Clay Guida is an exciting fighter who gives his all and whose heart and energy have deservedly earned him a lot of fans. If Rafael Dos Anjos weren't so very much better than Guida at submissions, Guida would have a shot at grinding out a decision win. The problem is, Dos Anjos is that much better on the ground, so expect to see Guida tapping in a submission loss.

Kyle: Guida is a tough, tough lightweight who's had the bad luck to have run into some of the hardest men in his division. Dos Anjos is an up-and-comer on a three-fight win streak. Both men are enthusiastic, albeit reckless, strikers. Guida has an edge in wrestling. Dos Anjos has an edge in jiu jitsu. This should be a close match, but in the end I think that Guida will be able to use his superior top control to eke out a victory.

Jon Fitch vs. Thiago Alves

Mark: Jon Fitch is not an exciting fighter, but he is one of those guys who is only a few fighters away from a real chance at the welterweight title. Unfortunately for him, Thiago Alves is one of those fighters. Expect a grueling war, but in the end either Alves will knock out Fitch with his superior hand speed or grind through a decision win.

Kyle: Fitch is going to spend this fight wanting to put Thiago Alves on his back. Alves his going to spend this fight wanting to stay outside and throw power punches. Expect neither man to get his wish. Instead, Fitch is going to spend fifteen minutes pressing Alves into the cage while Alves throws rabbit punches at his ears and kidneys. Fitch by decision.

Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen

Mark: Chael Sonnen has been running his month for months about how he is going to crush Anderson Silva in this fight and take away the champ's middleweight title. In many ways, I wish he would, because Silva has become so bored with his opponents that his recent fights have looked like jokes. Unfortunately, Sonnen won't win. Oh, he'll take down Silva, maybe more than once, but he has no way to finish the champ. The only interesting question is how Silva will win: by knock-out as Sonnen charges in for the take-out, by submission as Sonnen shows he hasn't improved his game from the guard, or by dancing around and frustrating Sonnen for 25 minutes. I really hope it's not the third option, but however it goes, Silva will hold up his hands at the end and retain his title.

Kyle: No fighter in the history of the UFC has done more to sell a fight than Chael Sonnen has. The trash-talking Oregonian seems convinced that he's going to dominate by virtue of his sheer manliness, and after back-to-back victories over Yushin Okami and Nate Marquardt, it seems almost plausible. This makes him a curious match for the enigmatic Anderson Silva, a Michael Jackson-like man-child prone to theatrical tantrums and tedious sulks in the cage. Silva is perhaps the best striker in mixed martial arts, but that's unlikely to matter in this fight because he doesn't have the take-down defense to keep Sonnen from putting him on his back. Unfortunately for Sonnen, his fantastic wrestling isn't complemented by fantastic submission defense. He's fallen victim to submissions from the bottom again and again in his career, and I expect him to tap to an arm-bar or triangle choke one more time tonight.


Check back tomorrow to see how we fared.

Finally, as always, don't use us for betting advice.

ReConStruction, day 2

Today was insanely busy and remains so, so I will be keeping this short. I did a full day's worth of PT work; plugged away at the Children No More charity efforts--and wore my Falling Whistles whistle all day; participated in two panels; co-ran a two-hour writers' workshop; spoke at length at the Baen Books Traveling Roadshow about my new books; contributed to another panel from the audience; signed stock for multiple dealers; hung out a tiny bit with friends; hit a bunch of parties; and had a late but tasty dinner at buku.

Tomorrow promises to be a bit slower-paced, but only a bit, because I went from having only three things to do to having six (or maybe seven). I may even be writing flash fiction for the cause if Sam (of Bull Spec) can find a way to print at his dealer's table--or a typewriter. I don't know what possessed me to offer that, but we'll see if anything comes to pass from it.

ReConStruction, day 1

Here I am, sitting at a desk in a hotel working late in the evening at an SF convention, something I've done many times, and it feels slightly odd. The reason is that the con is in my city, Raleigh, and my house is only half an hour away. I'm not driving home, though, because staying here has many advantages, best use of time between panels being the primary one. Because I'm here, though, I'm going to provide my usual con reports. I'll try to stir in the occasional Children No More bit as well, but given how busy I am here, I won't do much on that front until Monday. MMA fans will also get the usual picks from Kyle and me; the blog will be chock full of nuts this weekend.

ReConStruction is the North American Science Fiction Convention (NASFiC), which is the American-based country-wide con that occurs whenever the worldcon is out of the country. (It's in Melbourne in a few weeks, and I really wish I could afford the time to go--but I can't.) Because they cover the entire country, NASFiCs are generally on the large side, but this one does not seem to be.

I worked most of today, but I did catch the opening ceremonies and a few parties in the evening. What struck me most was how much cooler downtown Raleigh is than I had ever realized. I just don't come down here. The hotel is gorgeous: modern and bright and new, with shiny dripping off everything. The convention center is even better. It actually made me feel proud of the city.

I was also surprised to find at least one cool street at night. Check out this picture, which though fuzzy--I took it with my phone in available light--is still good enough to show the nifty lights along this section of the street.


A few years ago, I would never have believed Raleigh would house such a road. I'm very pleased to be so wrong on this front. I'll definitely come back here.

Tomorrow will arrive entirely too early for me--exercise, shower, morning panel (despite my pleas not to schedule me before noon)--so to work I return.