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PALEONTOLOGY: There Was An (Ugly) Ice-Age Unicorn

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Ice Age Unicorn

A burly “unicorn” that once plodded over grasslands in Siberia was around for much longer than once thought — long enough to have roamed the land at the same time as modern humans. This one-horned native of the steppes, Elasmotherium sibiricum, was a hefty, furry beast in the rhino family that weighed nearly 4 tons — more than twice the weight of a white rhinoceros, the largest species of modern rhino. Previous interpretations of E. sibiricum bones suggested that they died out 200,000 years ago, but recent analysis hints that E. sibricum fossils are much younger than that, dating to … Read more

CALLS: Two Calls From Avid Publishing LLC

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Avid Publishing

In celebration of Valentine. THEME: Valentine MINIMUM WORD COUNT LIMIT: 7,000 words GENRE: All Genre (Contemporary, Paranormal, Sci-Fi and so on.) CATEGORY: Male/Male (MM), Male/Female (MF), Female/Female (FF) DEADLINE for SUBMISSION: DECEMBER 31, 2018 Email Subject: Submission: Valentine19 – Book Title(word count) Email body: Pen name, Legal Name Book Title Indicate Genre & Category Blurb of 150 words Book description (Main characters, conflict, resolution) ​MANUSCRIPT GUIDELINE: Label Header: Last name/book title. Label Manuscript: Valentine19 – Book Title Paragraphs: No Tab. Use Paragraph formatting 0.5″ first line. Times New Roman 12 Attachment: Manuscript in word doc. format. Submission Email: submissions.avidpublishing@gmail.com In celebration of Second … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: Scourge of the Seas of Time (and Space) Anthology

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Scourge of the Seas of Time (and Space)

QSFer Catherine Lundoff’s Queen of Swords Press has a new pirate anthology book out: Scourge of the Seas of Time (and Space) Anthology. Outlaws. Lovers. Heroes. Villains. With their peg legs, their parrots and the skull and crossbones flying from the mastheads of their ships, classic pirates are some of the world’s best-known and easily recognizable outlaws. Or are they? These fifteen stories spin new tales of pirates crossing dimensional barriers for revenge, fighting terrible foes in outer space and building new lives after the Trojan War. Travel to the South China Sea, then on to New York City after … Read more

FOR WRITERS: Writing a Warming World

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climate change - pixabay

FOR WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer J. Scott Coatsworth: As the climate changes, there will be all kinds of ramifications – on the physical world, on society, and on our institutions. How do you forsee the world changing? What sci fi nuggets can we pry out of it? And can we somehow make a difference in the shape of things to come? Join the chat

SCIENCE: Is This “Hairy Ogre” Microbe A Whole New Branch on the Tree of Life?

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Hairy Ogre Microbe

Who needs aliens when there are bizarre life forms still to be discovered in Canada? Scientists recently detected two previously unknown species of microbes in a Canadian dirt sample, and the specimens were so unusual that the researchers had to reorganize the tree of life to make room for them. The microbes, also known as protists, belong to a group with the tongue-twisting name hemimastigotes, and the first-ever genetic analysis of these peculiar microorganisms revealed that they were even stranger than anyone suspected. Hemimastigotes, first observed in the 1800s, were previously classified as a phylum within a much larger group … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: Balance of Power, by Damien Benoit-Ledoux

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Balance of Power

QSFer Damien Benoit-Ledoux has a new queer superhero book out, the final book in the Guardians pentology: Balance of Power. As The Order’s decimated leadership cowers and licks its wounds after Blake’s brutal blitz against the Archimandrion Council and the successful capture of the Seavey Island facility by U.S. Marines, the maniacal Victor Kraze seizes control of the organization’s resources and strikes back at teenage superhero Quinn McAlester. Dumbfounded by Victor’s sudden and zealous propensity for destruction and revenge, Quinn enlists the help of the enigmatic and reluctant tutor Ana Maria Garcia to stop the super villain from enacting his … Read more

SPACE: Dark Matter Hurricane’s a Comin’

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dark matter hurricane

Scientists think there’s a “dark matter hurricane” heading toward Earth. In fact, it might even be blowing through us already. But don’t worry — it’s definitely not going to kill you. Mostly, it’s just a bunch of normal dark matter with especially good branding. And it really is headed (more or less) this way. Here’s what’s going on: Back in 2017, astronomers spotted a stretched-out line of stars passing through our solar system’s general region of the Milky Way. The scientists named this group the “S1 stream,” identifying it as the nearest of several stellar streams moving through the galaxy. … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT/GIVEAWAY: Blood for the Spilling, by TJ Nichols

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Blood for the Spilling - TJ Nichols

DSP Publications author TJ Nichols has a new MM paranormal book out in the Warlock in Training series: Blood for the Spilling. Sheets of ice are spreading across the human world, ushering in an ice age as the magic drained from Demonside turns that world into a desert. Angus and reluctant warlock Terrance have defected from Vinland to the Mayan Empire—a land of dark and potent magic. But the Mayans aren’t offering sanctuary for free. Nor is the world willing to stand back as Vinland attacks, and the backlash will affect all magic users. Mage Saka has no tribe. He … Read more

FOR READERS: Queer Action Heroes

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superhero - pixabay

FOR READERS Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Hank T. Cannon: Who are your favorite LGBTQIA action heroes? Not necessarily spec-fic. What do you like about them? How do they satisfy action hero tropes? Are they “gay” enough, or does it not matter, because they’re blowing things up? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat