The one and only, amazing, science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet, John M. Ford (aka "Mike") with Dr. Victor Raymond. A very quick Tékumel update. John M. Ford won a prestigious award for a Christmas card. In addition to his novel writing, he also wrote for RPGs, including Traveller, GURPS, Star Trek, Paranoia, and Ghostbusters. Paranoia is a joyful HOOT. John M. Ford's take on Klingons (including linguistics) is excellent and sublime, and it's a shame it's not Star Trek canon. "Realistic" space combat in science fiction. Reading a John M. Ford novel is a very rewarding exercise in inference. Recommendations on where to start in his bibliography. A brief digression into Harlan Ellison. Sweet memories of Mike (and Darklands, too).

Shane Plays Geek Talk Episode #289 - 3/30/2026

Like what you hear? Support Shane Plays Geek Talk on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/shaneplays

Listen to the Shane Plays Geek Talk podcast on YouTube, SoundCloud, iTunes, Google Play Music, Amazon Music, Podbean and Stitcher (and other fine, fine podcast directories).

Hey, you! Yeah, you! Buy cool stuff, support Shane Plays Geek Talk with these affiliate links! Humble Bundle https://www.humblebundle.com?partner=shaneplays DriveThruRPG.com https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?affiliate_id=488512

SHOW NOTES

John M. Ford on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_M._Ford

The Disappearance of John M. Ford by Isaac Butler https://slate.com/culture/2019/11/john-ford-science-fiction-fantasy-books.html

Bibliography: John M. Ford on the Internet Speculative Fiction Database https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?226

Dungeons and Desktops: The History of Computer Role-Playing Games 2nd Edition Shane's book! Co-authored with Matt Barton of Matt Chat https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Desktops-History-Computer-Role-Playing/dp/1138574643/