Mary Robinette Kowal

Sadie works on her ciphers

So of you are at WorldCon and playing along with my roving launch party for GHOST TALKERS, I should probably tell you what you’re aiming for. Kinda important. In the Tor party tonight (9pm, Crowne Plaza, Ballroom), I’ll write a one page short story, on a manual typewriter, while you wait. Come, even if you

Today, I’ve already had a couple of people come up to me with the correct passphrase for my roving launch party. Here is where I should make it clear that though I said the party is tomorrow, it’s actually all weekend. Except that tomorrow is the day that I’ll be in costume. Perhaps it might be

To celebrate the release of GHOST TALKERS I am being sneaky again today — as if that is a surprise to anyone — and have once again snuck a code into a post. La! It is different from the previous ones. But with all the research I did into ciphers and codes for GHOST TALKERS I have found

This is a test to see what happens if I give one of my code breakers one of these as part of my roving book launch party for GHOST TALKERS at WorldCon, without explanation.

In 1916, as part of WWI the Women’s Auxiliary Corps set up a series of “hospitality rooms.” Maybe that sounds like a euphemism, but at the time it was in response to a recognized need to care for soldiers’ mental as well as physical health. When they had time off, soldiers could go and sit down

My local independent bookstore is Volumes Bookcafe. I have spent many happy hours writing there while sipping a coffee, or cider. Or wine. That’s right, it’s a bookstore with coffee and wine. It is perfect. They are also walking distance from my apartment and thus… if you order a copy of Ghost Talkers, I can

WHEN: Tuesday, August 16, 2016 from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM WHERE: Volumes Bookcafe – 1474 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 6062 I’m so thrilled that Volumes Bookcafe is hosting the new book release for Ghost Talkers. Come join us in the celebration. There will be WWI era costumes, party favors, and shenanigans. You totally don’t have

HA! I told you I was writing science fiction. (h/t Yonaton Junger)

When starting a new project, there’s always that concern that it’ll fail. So, getting a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly is huge. Here’s my favorite part of the review of Ghost Talkers:  Kowal’s depiction of spiritualism is richly imagined, and its complications and consequences are thoughtfully considered. Her depiction of the Western Front includes diverse