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Stubby the Rocket

This Week in Publishing: Pottermore Presents and Unbound Worlds

This week in science fiction/fantasy (and related subjects) publishing news… Beloved book universes, from J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world to M.R. Carey’s post-outbreak future from The Girl with All the Gifts, are expanding thanks to recently-announced sequels and prequels. New Neil Gaiman and John Scalzi covers abound, a young adult anthology will reimagine Asian mythology and folklore, and we look at what’s next for the Hugo Award fiction winners.

[Read more]

Television’s Greatest Hacker has been Hacked!

Rami Malek and his Mr. Robot character, Elliot Alderson, have one thing in common: they shy away from social media. During a conversation with Stephen Colbert, the actor confessed that while he had an Instagram account, he’d never actually posted anything. At this point, Colbert startled the actor by telling him he had about 100,000 followers, and then, eager to please a hungry audience, whipped out a selfie stick and hijacked Malek’s account.

Malek seems to be OK with it, though. You can become one of the thousands here! But maybe don’t expect too much activity.

[via Mary Sue!]

Everything Was Going Great Until He Died in the Snorlax Pit

The resurgence of Poké-popularity has brought us many wonders, but maybe our favorite so far is the stunning mashup Bulba Fett. Bootleg Star Wars toys are always fun, but this is perfection. So simple, so pure.

And yet it raises a serious question: when you combine the Great Bounty Hunter Of All Time with a Pokémon, are you the one catching ’em all… or will you be the one caught?

[via Nerd Approved!]

Do Worldcon the Radchaai Way, With Plenty of Tea Breaks

All devoted congoers know that after hours of pushing through throngs, standing in line for signings, and rushing from panel to panel, you need somewhere to put your feet up and take a breather. According to Ancillary Justice author Ann Leckie, Worldcon is catering to that need by turning all of the open space in Exhibit Hall H into a mix of fake “parks,” “rivers,” and benches: “This is meant to be a place where folks can sit and chat, or gather, or whatever, kind of like the awesome Fan Village at LonCon,” she wrote on her blog the other day. In fact, Leckie couldn’t resist sponsoring a little park—and once she touched down at Worldcon, she tweeted some photos of this little corner of the universe, right out of the Imperial Radch trilogy. (Spoilers if you haven’t read Ancillary Justice!)

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Pokémon Goes Medieval

We’ve found the oldest documented game of Pokémon Go! The British Library shared images from an illuminated manuscript that proves beyond all doubt that 2016’s most addictive game is also an ancient tradition as venerable as Bede himself. Here, you’ll not that the…um…we’re guessing monkey? Is about to throw a PokeBall at that… toucan?

Click through for more of ye olde Pokémon Go!

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We Want to Get Lost in this Amazing Dungeons & Dragons Map!

While some aspects of the aging process are unreservedly terrible, one clear benefit is that sometimes adult nerds can get away with the kind of stuff that child nerds only dream of. Case in point one Ryan Devoto, a Dungeons & Dragons enthusiast who decided that graph paper just wasn’t cutting it, and hired a team of craftspeople to build an amazing, immersive, mind-blowing diorama that just aches to welcome little mini adventurers. What you see above is an aerial shot of most of the terrain, complete with farmland, a labyrinthine dungeon, and a harbor bustling with ships. Check out details of the map below!

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Stranger Things Cupcakes Will Transport You to a New Realm of Deliciousness

Stranger Things has already inspired a lot of memes and mashups over its short life, but now we’re moving into a delicious new area: Stranger Things cupcakes. Redditor youdevillog has created themed cupcakes in honor of several of the characters (and also for stamina) and they’re all spot-on, from a coffee-and-Schlitz concoction for Police Chief Hopper, to a strawberry cupcake in honor of Barb’s perfect hair.

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Live Long and Purr!

We try not to overdo it with cute animals here at Tor.com… but… but… STAR TREK CATS. These two lovely kitties are Iriss and Abyss, 9-month-old sisters with heterochromia – hence the unusual eye colors – who are lucky enough to live with a pair of avid Star Trek fans. And their Star Trek-loving humans are lucky enough to live with cats who will not only wear TOS uniforms, but also attempt a classic LLAP for the camera. You can follow the kitties (and their humans) over on Instagram!

[via Neatorama!]

Hang Out with George R. R. Martin and Nearly 20 Authors in Kansas City, August 19th

George R. R. Martin is coming to Kansas City on August 19th and in celebration Rainy Day Books is hosting a MASSIVE book signing with Martin and the editors and authors of the Wild Cards book series!

The 5 P.M. signing is open to any who want to attend and will be held at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown in their Count Basie Ballroom. Tickets are $28 and get you admission and a free copy of High Stakes, the latest (and very Lovecraftian) installment in George R. R. Martin and Melinda Snodgrass’ Wild Cards series.

[More info]

IT US

Who wants to go to space? If your hand just shot involuntarily into the air, straining toward the heavens you long to explore, you might want to check out the greatest Craigslist ad in the history of Craigs, lists, and ads.

This lovely Park Slope-based rocket man is selling his MINT condition spaceship, certified “Official” by NASA itself, and it could be yours for a mere $5,000,000. Apparently the current owner has also updated the stereo system (he describes it as “SICK”), replaced the rocket boosters, and even left some rocket fuel in the tank to get you started. And as if all that wasn’t enough, it has cupholders! CUPHOLDERS.

If you decide to live your dream of space travel, might we make a suggestion? Slap some red paint on that sucker and it’s going to look like a certain Greatest Rocket of All Time.

…Just a suggestion.
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