https://www.dsgburke.com/musings daily 0.75 2026-01-26 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/no-one-talks-about-how-embarrassing-this-all-is monthly 0.5 2026-01-08 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/whats-the-deal-with-pre-ordering monthly 0.5 2025-10-13 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/death-valley monthly 0.5 2024-10-22 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/mean-higher-high-water monthly 0.5 2024-06-09 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/generic-november-writing-project monthly 0.5 2023-11-29 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/what-is-solarpunk monthly 0.5 2022-11-15 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/how-to-really-finish-a-story monthly 0.5 2022-09-25 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/sondering monthly 0.5 2025-12-18 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/books-on-my-cat-sci-fi-for-beginners-edition monthly 0.5 2022-08-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/a7eadc53-987f-4704-8e3f-c0950343e2df/IMG_4718.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood What if women were forcibly assigned to produce children for the ruling class of a totalitarian patriarchy? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/4fda2a62-7976-4316-b902-22c16f31ac03/IMG_4716.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut What if a WW2 prisoner of war became unstuck in time? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/5aab4e71-ccaf-45fd-87cb-3eb61f7544cf/IMG_4705.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (series), by Douglas Adams What if the Earth was destroyed by a race of bureaucratic aliens (who write terrible poetry) to make way for an intergalactic bypass? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/f6544f5c-706c-4c07-a905-c8064cbe00de/IMG_4706.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. LeGuin What if a diplomatic mission to a winter-bound, gender-fluid planet proves to be more culturally mystifying than expected? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/fbe0a41b-018b-493a-889e-b0325f66bf8e/IMG_4713.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman What if the complexities of intergalactic travel lead to war between humans and aliens that lasts for millenia? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/abc507dd-0e8f-4184-96a8-4147c829312a/IMG_4722.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - The Three-Body Problem (series), by Cixin Liu What if the previously-ignored Earth sent a signal into space that shows our location? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/76b3ce1e-366f-4814-bb2b-d845302c773d/IMG_4702.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - Philip K. Dick short stories What if the king of ‘what if’ wrote short stories investigating everything from Mars to predicting murder to AI? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/25f4189b-6e6c-4b90-a80d-8b85b91e00d3/IMG_4714.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - Time’s Arrow, by Martin Amis What if the story of someone’s life was told in reverse from death to birth? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/7fb2d390-c48d-4a5c-acda-87992741b79f/IMG_4717.JPG Musings - Books on my Cat, part 2 - Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson What if a pizza delivery guy is given a weapon in the metaverse that can hurt people in real life? https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/musing-on-fallowness monthly 0.5 2022-06-24 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/10-great-places-to-write-in-nyc monthly 0.5 2022-06-24 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/sufficiently-entertaining-or-what-to-do-with-story-fragments monthly 0.5 2022-06-24 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/downward-facing-writer monthly 0.5 2021-10-20 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/getting-away-from-it-all monthly 0.5 2021-10-02 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/how-to-pin-down-your-characters monthly 0.5 2021-08-30 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/ideas-o-matic monthly 0.5 2021-07-10 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/writers-block-series-1-take-a-walk monthly 0.5 2021-07-10 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/minor-characters-briefly monthly 0.5 2021-06-26 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-myth-of-the-perfect-query-letter monthly 0.5 2021-06-26 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/books-with-my-cat-non-fiction-edition monthly 0.5 2021-04-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1619541909099-QZKBRBZUUQP519WFDSFR/IMG_1214.jpg Musings - Books On My Cat (Non-Fiction Edition) - What It Takes, by Richard Ben Cramer A sports writer takes on the 1988 Presidential elections and follows George H.W. Bush, Bob Dole, Dick Gephardt, Michael Dukakis, Joe Biden, and Gary Hart as they compete for the ultimate political prize. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1619542072218-AFJJM3IJRJJSYOCL9UTS/IMG_1215.jpg Musings - Books On My Cat (Non-Fiction Edition) - Stiff, by Mary Roach Ms. Roach writes very funny science for a popular audience. This investigation into what science does with dead human bodies is by far the funniest and is packed with horrible facts to enthrall your friends when social events are a thing again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1619542313358-4LDWMDH64BUM5D2UVFIR/IMG_1217.jpg Musings - Books On My Cat (Non-Fiction Edition) - King Leopold’s Ghost, by Adam Hochschild King Leopold of Belgium felt left out because most European countries were colonizing Africa so he picked the Congo to inflict some of the worst, most inhumane, unspeakable travesties on the people who lived there. Mr. Hochschild doesn’t flinch in the telling (though I certainly did in the reading). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1619542531881-CTNNEFNG3X0S22BXYSV0/IMG_1216.jpg Musings - Books On My Cat (Non-Fiction Edition) - Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich Ms. Ehrenreich goes undercover as a waitress, a housekeeper, and a Wal-Mart clerk to report first hand on the indignity of low wage work in America in the 90s. I first read this book while I was working retail and felt very seen, but anyone can appreciate the main thesis here: being poor can cost a lot of money. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1619542876622-B9Z48PMZSPVMCYSXCVSL/IMG_1220.jpg Musings - Books On My Cat (Non-Fiction Edition) - Me Talk Pretty One Day, by David Sedaris Mr. Sedaris is almost too funny to be non-fiction. Even if he made half of this up, I’d still be forever grateful for the comfort that this book gave me as a young exchange student. Learning another language while in the country is a uniquely embarrassing experience, and it is so nice to know you’re not alone. https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/james-baldwins-greenwich-village monthly 0.5 2021-04-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617459823879-WBZ7DSEDCNG8TFVG1XDZ/IMG_1089.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617459857856-2CZDIT358XH0YHPD8SCO/IMG_1087.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617459870430-ZOGI1DDL65NYHZJ1OGHI/IMG_1090.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617459912083-OS15XQSV26R73X9ZUUA8/IMG_1086.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617459994209-JRWU7NQBTRNT0NABUG9T/IMG_1092.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village 81 Horatio street is just a few blocks from the White Horse Tavern, self-proclaimed as New York City’s second oldest continuously running tavern, established in 1880.* The White Horse is distinguished for its link to another famous patron, Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, who supposedly drank himself to death. Ending his life with 18 straight whiskeys at the White Horse. In addition to probably not being true, I don’t think the White Horse of today would let someone order 18 straight anything. Look at the pretty flowers it has up for it’s outdoor COVID-safe dining! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617460154742-QNAEXOCZI8SBCJMPYOBX/IMG_1093.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617460166919-NP5SPPLDUJE9ZOPQS59B/IMG_1094.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617460181535-MNO8DF6KH431TE005T2A/IMG_1095.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617460192884-BKFVA19YP9Q60R2CODUJ/IMG_1096.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1617460225541-YARQJA7L2I4C6IMN7U5K/IMG_1080.JPG Musings - James Baldwin’s Greenwich Village The most disappointing spot on my literary tour took place not in the Village, but on the Upper West Side. Baldwin bought a rowhouse on 137 W 71st St. and lived there from 1967 until his death in 1987. Not only is it an ugly building, but there is shockingly no plaque. Nothing to tell passersby that the great American poet, novelist, playwright, and icon spent his days there. Do the people that live there now even know what hallowed ground they pace? https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/whats-that-noise monthly 0.5 2021-03-22 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-power-of-three monthly 0.5 2021-03-16 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-dean-koontz-secret-to-being-a-good-writer monthly 0.5 2021-02-22 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/famous-last-words monthly 0.5 2021-02-12 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-movie-was-better monthly 0.5 2021-02-07 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/beta-reading-for-unicorns monthly 0.5 2021-01-30 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/whodunit monthly 0.5 2021-01-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1611424468774-MP33WJCRXQWMDTQA7OFW/IMG_0542.JPG Musings - Whodunit? West 35th street ends at the Javits Convention Center (currently a COVID vaccine distribution site! Woo hoo!) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1611424533964-BOH3O5NJGP9SZOIORNVO/image-asset.jpeg Musings - Whodunit? - So, 922 West 35th street could be this empty lot, which is actually a deep hole. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1611424709793-SQ4NHQOFH2654O7BRB42/IMG_0548.JPG Musings - Whodunit? They chose a building that could be Nero Wolfe’s famous fictional home at 454 West 35th St. It’s better than a convention center, or a hole, but it takes a bit of squinting and imagination to believe that this was the place that the famous detective would never feel the urge to leave. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1611424359629-MHXD26K1226J60U3DJ2V/IMG_0547.JPG Musings - Whodunit? - Here’s the plaque: “On this site stood the elegant brownstone of the corpulent fictional private detective Nero Wolfe with his able Assistant Archie Goodwin. Mr. Wolfe raised orchids and dined well, while solving over 70 perplexing cases as recorded by novelist Rex Stout from 1934 to 1975. Plaque placed by the Wolfe Pack Summer 1996.” https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/when-to-query-a-calendar monthly 0.5 2021-04-30 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/a-thousand-words-is-worth-one-picture monthly 0.5 2021-01-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1609952664375-07VV5HWQB888C5KL59V3/E43FEAE5-3B19-4ACF-BFA2-1F0CCAB3E87E.jpg Musings - A Thousand Words is Worth One Picture My angler fish does not get the Zoom background treatment. https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/well-dressed-characters monthly 0.5 2021-01-07 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/deep-into-that-darkness-peering monthly 0.5 2021-01-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1608313563962-695AN04YCR7FF98IHY56/dsgburke%40gmail.com Musings - Deep into that Darkness Peering I didn’t take or save any pictures of the museum, unfortunately. But this beautiful raven head necklace was my souvenir. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1608313701354-OMM7TYEIK3PAG19NW20U/IMG_0128.JPG Musings - Deep into that Darkness Peering In case your roman numeral knowledge is fuzzy, MCMXXII is 1922. https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/13-clickbait-blog-post-titles-for-writers monthly 0.5 2021-01-07 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/how-it-started-vs-how-its-going monthly 0.5 2021-01-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1606932747379-K5OSM6Q0JC42OOTGLB7W/D4C8802F-E03F-4D67-B256-112042C78F19.JPG Musings - How it Started vs. How it’s Going The Great #NaNoWriMo Heist in practice https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-pilgrimage monthly 0.5 2021-01-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1605725592739-83NFXU63PRA2O55MC0D2/IMG_1907.jpg Musings - The Pilgrimage https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1605725823853-79D3FR6WQ16C1JYW4MQX/IMG_1913.jpg Musings - The Pilgrimage https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1605725793261-W6BGD30DW5W2YTWN95BS/IMG_1923.jpg Musings - The Pilgrimage https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/abq-always-be-querying monthly 0.5 2020-11-17 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/every-word-counts monthly 0.5 2020-12-29 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/character-names-fake-real monthly 0.5 2020-11-17 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/the-great-nanowrimo-heist monthly 0.5 2020-11-18 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/plotting-during-pandemic monthly 0.5 2020-11-18 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/climate-worrier monthly 0.5 2020-11-17 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/category/Literary+Tourism monthly 0.5 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/category/Art+%26+Craft monthly 0.5 https://www.dsgburke.com/musings/category/Climate+Change monthly 0.5 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https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/e3b543dd-5e73-4223-9b56-c4646a824759/MeanHigherHighWater_3D.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/a0051b7c-57cc-42ea-a4be-f527e20e4a70/123_1+3.JPEG D.S.G. Burke - About D.S.G. Burke D.S.G. Burke has a wary fascination with living in a dystopian version of the future, fueling her work on climate solutions—despite a troublesome fondness for air travel. After many formative years in the Pacific Northwest, she now lives in New York City. Several of her eco-flavored stories have appeared in literary journals. Mean Higher High Water, her debut novel, is now available from Vine Leaves Press. https://www.dsgburke.com/shorts daily 0.75 2025-11-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/1611791506618-WT4ML2KSVY9XY1I0NTV3/IMG_2361.jpeg Shorts https://www.dsgburke.com/premise-generator daily 0.75 2026-01-12 https://www.dsgburke.com/books daily 0.75 2026-01-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/033efb23-ddc1-4858-b0ec-0aa28eb667ac/MeanHigherHighWater_eBcov.jpg https://www.dsgburke.com/mhhw-bonus-chapter daily 0.75 2026-01-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5f6be558c7e647347eb671cc/76416f58-e155-453b-9c39-268b07494c07/MeanHigherHighWater_eBcov.jpg https://www.dsgburke.com/store daily 0.75 57753-10-18