Armchair Alien

05/01/2024

Science is amazing (as are octopuses)
https://www.science.org/content/article/lost-history-antarctica-revealed-octopus-dna

Genes show signatures of an ice sheet collapse and warn of a precarious future

06/07/2023

Come on over…

21/06/2023

Check out the new writing challenge over on Armchair Alien - what would you write from these cards?
https://armchairalien.substack.com/p/its-written-in-the-cards

24/05/2023

A new story has begun over on the Armchair Alien Substack.

Join our favourite space-station-based detectives, Flo and Ned as they investigate something strange on a near by colony…

When There Should Have Been Apple Pie

21/05/2023

Have you checked out our book of the month?

The adventure continues in A Lost Ship in a Dark Grave, Book 2 of The Lyra Cycle Book 2

21/05/2023

Native to Earth and fantastic!

The rare Chirodectes maculatus jellyfish was captured by scuba diver in the New Ireland province of Papua New Guinea.

19/05/2023

These look great!

If you enjoy a found family space opera filled with unique aliens, organic spaceships, and 90s nostalgia, my Consensus Universe series is currently on sale, and I'd appreciate a "share".

Book 1 FREE Worldwide
Book 2 $0.99 US/UK
Book 3 $0.99 US/UK

https://mybook.to/Con-Series

16/05/2023

Human’s have sent some interesting things into space…

A new catalogue attempts to figure out what we're telling the rest of the universe about ourselves.

15/05/2023

One of our authors discusses how to deal with a blank page (and some other cool things) in the latest newsletter.

Hi Everyone, I have a short story side project that I’ve been trying to put together for months. It’s part of an experiment in story prompts and the prompts I’m working from should be the exact kind of thing that should inspire me. But there’s a problem—for me, it’s a big problem…

12/05/2023

And now there are snake robots...

A versatile robot that would autonomously map, traverse, and explore previously inaccessible destinations is being put to the test at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

20/03/2023

A new story has started on the Armchair Alien newsletter.

The kernel for this story came out of the question: what happens when our debt is bought and sold like a commodity, and that debt is worth more than life. Max’s hair fell forward, getting in the way as she contorted her neck in an attempt to read the numbers on the collar. She blew a strand away f...

04/03/2023

Don’t miss the brand new story that just started.

Part 1 of 3

04/03/2023

Let’s mount an expedition to see if anyone lives there…

Mystery silica ejected in huge quantities from Saturn's icy moon Enceladus is powerful new evidence pointing to heat vents on the floor of a global ocean.

03/03/2023

Anyone up for a cool project this weekend?

Like a decoder wheel for the Moon, this calendar will show you where and when to see the Moon and every moon phase throughout the year. 2023 calendar and low-ink printout now available for download!

01/03/2023

Turns out there's a bear on Mars (who knew).

Is there bears on Mars?

01/03/2023

Have you started the lastest free story over on Armchair Alien? Come for the quirky detective caper set on a space station and stay for the tiny elephants and spicy cricket tacos.

A SciFi Short Story

28/02/2023

Have you picked up February's book of the month yet? Sign up for Armchair Alien on substack as a paid subscriber and get the book of the month for free. Sign up for free to get a discount in the shop.

The book of the month club continues. This month's book is A Dead Ship in the Deep Black. Paid subscribers receive the book for free, while everyone else can pick it up with a discount on our store.

19/02/2023

History and chocolate - can it get better?

Among the Maya, cacao has served as a powerful symbol from womb to tomb.

18/02/2023

The book of the month club continues over on the Armchair Alien substack - paid subscribers get a free ebook each month and all subscribers get a discount in our store.

The book of the month club continues. This month's book is A Dead Ship in the Deep Black. Paid subscribers receive the book for free, while everyone else can pick it up with a discount on our store.

16/02/2023

The Armchair and I are in discussions right now about installing one of these:

The Soviet space program used completely different controls and instruments from American spacecraft. One of the most interesting navigati...

15/02/2023

From one of our authors - the slightly sinister gentleman and other distractions.

Hi Everyone, I really like how the above collage turned out, there seems to be a story there revolving around the man. He’s clearly up to no good, but what exactly is he doing? Here’s my working theory—he’s planning to steal the Rosetta Stone. A bicycle caper where he’s using the machine b...

14/02/2023

Space lizards and other conundrums, from one of the Armchair Alien authors.

And other questions in a writer's search history. Despite the cliche writer’s question of “how to get rid of a dead body”, I don’t believe writers have a more interesting browser history but I now have “how to s*x an iguana” in my search history.

05/02/2023

Octopuses are amazingly intelligent ... but sometimes other animals are pretty smart too.

As two divers zeroed in on a fight between a red octopus and a swimmer crab, an unexpected visitor gave their footage a shocking end.

04/02/2023

More love for Marcel the Shell from the Armchair Alien crew ... plus some somethings

Hi Everyone, I feel that I’m finally past the worst of the winter darkness (at least where I live). Thoughts of this year’s garden are starting to percolate though my brain and I’m looking forward to spending more time outside soonish. I’m deep into editing

30/01/2023

How does one get thinking about snail s*x?

So, I titled this newsletter “Curious Cat, Odd Duck & Author”, which I’ve had as a tagline on my website … but I don’t post supporting content nearly often enough. Today that changes, at least for one day. I recently learned that snails are hermaphroditic.

29/01/2023

The latest news from the Armchair:
There's a new story - Hope is the Thing With Feathers by Jeannette Bedard is set in the same universe as the Encoded Orbits series.
https://armchairalien.substack.com/p/hope-is-the-thing-with-feathers-chapter

And there's still a few days left to pick up a great deal on a yearly subscription, giving you early access to serialized novels, a peek behind the scenes, and a free book a month: https://armchairalien.substack.com/p/the-armchair-and-alien-are-back

Hope is the Thing With Feathers is a science fiction adventure that will be serialized here first with the first five chapters free. Don’t miss an episode, subscribe now Chapter 1 Hope is the thing with feathers

29/01/2023

History and space combined! Does it get better? Oh wait, there's a palimpsest.😄

Fabled star catalogue by ancient Greek astronomer Hipparchus had been feared lost.

27/01/2023

Armchair Alien now has its own store! Buying ebooks direct from us is a great way to support our writing - and you get 10% off your first purchase.
https://armchairalien.com/

26/01/2023

Um, everything is fine.

If your name is John or Sarah Connor, this might be the moment to start covering your tracks.

16/01/2023

I have childhood memories of having my hair combed with a special comb. Some things really never change.

A recently discovered inscription on an ancient ivory comb is claimed to be the earliest example of a sentence written using an alphabet that would eventually evolve into the set of 26 letters you're translating into words right now.