Website Redesign

The website has gotten a glow-up!

All the information is still there, but the presentation is now much cleaner, more orderly, and less confusing for everyone who hasn't read the books 3 times and isn't steeped in Amaranthe lore.

Most importantly, it should look much, much better on mobile. While I usually interact with the internet on two lovely, giant widescreen monitors (because I'm sitting at my PC writing, obvy....), the fact is, most people come to my website on their phones - and it should be a pleasant experience that results in them easily finding what they're looking for (books!).

Note: I'm technically still working through the new design on all the book pages (OMG, there are so many, what was I thinking?). But it's live on the front page, Amaranthe page, the individual series pages and all the entry-point books.

P.S.: If you're someone who checks in on the WIP word count meter, you'll now find it on the book's page (currently https://www.gsjennsen.com/liminal-space).

Anyway, go check it out: https://www.gsjennsen.com/

The Many Faces of Motoko

A collage of the many adaptations of Ghost in the Shell over the years: manga, anime and film.

I deeply appreciate the 1995 movie as a genuine work of art, but I'll always be a 2002 girl. IMO, Stand Alone Complex was the pinnacle of episodic anime. I rewatched it for the millionth time just a few weeks ago, in fact (such a shame that it’s only 2 seasons + a movie). I’m always excited about another new adaptation on the way, but it’ll be difficult to top SAC.

Murderbot Trailer

Did you catch the Murderbot trailer yet? (If you don’t know, the upcoming Murderbot show on Apple TV+ is based on Martha Well’s hugely popular series of sci-fi novellas featuring, well, Murderbot).

I’ll be honest: they’re leaning into the humor a lot more than I expected. Yes, the books *are* humorous, but with a darker tone woven into MB's internal monologue. This is practically slapstick in its over-the-top comedy. That being said, I hope it's great!

Direct link in case the embed doesn’t work for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lw7DfayGSIA


Cosmic Tornado

Wow. Now THIS is the kind of imagery I am here for. Look at that crispness and clarity! And the galaxies in the background.... On behalf of amateur space aficionados everywhere, I declare that JWST was worth the time, trouble and money it took to build and deploy.

“NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured this beautiful juxtaposition of the nearby protostellar outflow known as Herbig-Haro 49/50 with a perfectly positioned, more distant spiral galaxy. Due to the close proximity of this Herbig-Haro object to the Earth, this new composite infrared image of the outflow from a young star allows researchers to examine details on small spatial scales like never before.

Herbig-Haro objects are outflows produced by jets launched from a nearby, forming star. The outflows, which can extend for light-years, plow into a denser region of material. This creates shock waves, heating the material to higher temperatures. The material then cools by emitting light at visible and infrared wavelengths.”

Blue Ghost's Farewell Message

On March 16, Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost lunar lander completed its mission as lunar night arrived. It was a spectacular success in every sense and marks a new era for commercial space missions.

As the craft shut down, it sent one final message home.

Don't worry, Blue Ghost. You'll have plenty of friends - human and robotic - to keep you company soon.

Buy Me A Coffee, If You Like

It's my once a year reminder that I have a fun Buy Me A Coffee program you can subscribe to if you like (think Patreon, without all the heavy-handed rules and fees). It comes with different tiers, so you can subscribe to exactly what you want and nothing more!

- monthly wallpaper downloads from my book covers and other art

- montly livestream chats, where we cover space news, tech advancements, scifi media, my books and whatever else you inquire about...oh, and I read excerpts from my current WIP

- you get every new ebook 10 days early

- you get to listen to the new audiobook as Pyper is recording it

Check out the program here: https://buymeacoffee.com/gsjennsen

Silo Season 2

Finished Silo S2 last night. I have quibbles, and the pacing was uneven, but it was quality TV. But what I most appreciate is that despite what I imagine was fairly significant Hollywood pressure to do so, they continue to NOT force Juliette into the standard "heroine" archetype. Instead, she remains entirely what she is: an engineer.

When she turned to Solo and said, "I need something to draw on," then ran for the chalkboard, I laughed out loud. Being married to an engineer, I recognize this behavior all too well.

Not going to lie, she reminds me a fair bit of Alex, too. Cranky, at times rude, oblivious to common social cues and manners, determined to pursue what she knows to be true no matter what.

The Notebook

At various times in the last 10 years, key parts of Aurora Renegades, Aurora Resonant, Asterion Noir, and Riven Worlds have all been brainstormed in this notebook on long drives.

When I initially posted this pic on social media, in real time, I said, “Wonder what I'll write in it today?”

Now, of course, I know what I wrote in it. And that’s all I’ll say about that. For now. ;)

I have words on the moon!

It's a historic day for private space exploration. Early Sunday morning, Firefly Space's Blue Ghost stuck the landing, making it the first fully successful private, commercial moon landing!

On a tiny nanofiche onboard Blue Ghost reside two of my short stories, "Apogee" and "Solatium," as part of the Lunar Codex. All the thanks to Samuel Peralta for making so many writers' and artists' dream come true.

Blue Ghost is ALSO carrying a bucketload of science. Instruments will investigate the structure and composition of the moon’s mantle, the heat flow at different depths beneath the lunar surface, the interaction of solar wind and Earth’s magnetic field, and the impact of solar radiation on the lunar surface.

The lander also carries the Lunar PlanetVac, which is designed to collect regolith from the lunar surface that could be returned to Earth as part of a separate mission, and the Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment, which will test the ability to use GPS signals at lunar distances.

Blue Ghost will operate for about 14 Earth days on the lunar surface. On March 14, Firefly expects to capture high-definition imagery of a total eclipse when the Earth blocks the sun above the moon’s horizon. How amazing is that going to be?

Athena Mission

That’s one heck of a selfie, Athena!

This image is from the Intuitive Machines Nova-C “Athena” lunar craft, which is currently headed toward the moon for a scheduled March 6 landing.*

* Wholly incidentially, with a digital recording of three of my short stories, Venatoris, Re/Genesis and Chrysalis, on board (along with hundreds of other stories, novels and art). I am super excited!

The gang's all back together

I'll have more to say about * this * in a few weeks, after more people have finished The Universe Within and I've caught my breath from many goings-on. But over here, we're getting this party started.

P.S.: For those of you who haven’t seen this kind of image from me before, this is a storyboard outline of the next book, created in an app called Plottr. Each row/color corresponds to a character or related set of characters. I won’t give them all away, but blue is Alex and Caleb. The content of the blocks is strategically blurred out so you don’t get spoiled way, way early - but maybe it gets you thinking about what those blocks could involve. :D

Are We Alone?

Nah.

The math of the universe is in our favor. Given the staggering number of planets, it's impossible that we're alone. Still, the more the merrier! Call me an optimist (if you've read my books, you already know I am), but I don't believe "The Dark Forest" theory is correct. And I don't like a future in which we have to hide, anyway.

"Are We Alone? Intelligent Life May Be More Common Than We Thought, New Penn State Study Suggests": https://thedebrief.org/are-we-alone-intelligent-life-may-be-more-common-than-we-thought-new-penn-state-study-suggests/