Friday Link Pack 07/10/2015

It’s time for the Friday Link Pack! Some of these links I mention on Twitter, if you’re not already following me there, please do! Have a link I should feature in the upcoming link pack? Click here to email me and let me know! (Include a website so I can link to you as well.) Let’s get to it…

WRITING:

The Year Of Women
Author Kamila Shamsie makes her case and challenges the publishing industry to make 2018 a year when only women authors are published.

‘A Year of Women’? How About ‘A Year of Publishing Parity’ Instead?
Author Lorraine Devon Wilke‘s rebuttal to Kamila Shamsie’s piece challenges the industry not to publish only women in 2018, but to be fair and equal in who they choose to publish.

Dune, 50 Years On: How A Science Fiction Novel Changed The World
Great piece from The Guardian on Frank Herbert’s Dune one of the greatest science fiction novels of our time and its impact on society. [The featured image for this post is a Dune illustration by Henrik Sahlström. I highly recommend checking out his work. He does great stuff.]

15 Words To Eliminate From Your Vocabulary To Sound Smarter
Helpful for both conversation and for writing. It’s good advice and a handy list to keep nearby. [Thanks to Dave for sharing this.]

Scottish Prize Goes To Book Rejected 44 Times
Never give up. The only way to fail at writing is quitting.

Six Tools Of My Trade
A few readers and fellow authors have emailed me and asked what tools I use when I write, from software to hardware, even writing instruments. This week, I put together this post sharing six of my essentials, and some of my favorite things I use on a daily basis.

ART:

Cal Redback
I have been seeing Cal’s incredible photo-manipulation work all over the internet as of late. Bending the natural world with human forms he creates pieces that are both haunting and somewhat disturbing.

Zack Mclaughlin’s Sculptures
I’m in awe of these hyper-realistic paper and wood sculptures of birds. They’re beautiful. He sells these in his Etsy shop as well, which you can check out here.

Why Babies In Medieval Paintings Look Like Ugly Old Men
We’ve all thought it. What is with those strange little creatures hanging off people in medieval art. Well, Vox gets to the bottom of it and reveals the reason behind their strange appearance.

RANDOM:

Stuff In Space
An incredible little site that allows you to see all of the satellites and garbage currently orbiting our lonely little planet.

One Vancouver Forest Played Just About Every Wooded Locale On The X-Files
Coming from the Pacific Northwest it’s always amusing when I see shows like Supernatural and The X-Files try to pass off our lush fern-covered forests as places in the Midwest or the South. We PNW locals all know… oh, we know.

The American Home Through The Decade
A fun little infographic that explores the ever-increasing footprint of the American home. As a tiny house, well… sensible house apologist I find it a bit depressing until we see the emergence of the tiny house movement.

WEIRD WIKIPEDIA:

List Of Kim Jong-il’s Titles
“When Kim Jong-il, former leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), is mentioned in North Korean media and publications, he is not simply addressed by name. At least one special title is used, and his name is emphasized by a special bold font, for example: “The great leader Comrade Kim Jong-il provides on-the-spot guidance to the Ragwon Machine Complex.” Alternatively, a larger than normal font may be used. The titles themselves were developed by the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party. The same applies to Kim Jong-il’s father, Kim Il-sung, who ruled North Korea from 1948 to 1994. Scholars have collected the following list of Kim Jong-il’s titles…”