Marco Palmieri

@mxpalmieri.bsky.social

1958 Followers 167 Following

Independent Developmental Editor. Knight Errant. Ronin. Helping storytellers is my passion. Previously: Realm Media • Tor Publishing Group • Simon & Schuster • DC Comics he/him mxpalmieri.com photography: https://www.instagram.com/the_megalopolitan

Part 1 of a letter from a client: Dear Marco, A few years ago, you helped me with two books: Soul Binder and Owen Greenley and the Cape of Leaves. I learned a great deal from your developmental edits. You opened my eyes, especially to character agency. I have since then kept working on the projects, working with critique groups, and by some wild luck, I was mentored by [two top executives at a major film studio]. It’s been quite a journey.
Marquee sign outside a Brooklyn church reads, “Don’t oppress an immigrant. —Exodus 23.9”
Scene from Casablanca, New Yorker Rick Blaine telling Nazi Major Strasser: "Well there are sections of New York, Major, that I wouldn't advise you to try to invade."
Still from Michael Clayton: George Clooney stares at a wall on which has been scrawled "Make believe it's not just madness."
A picture of Denethor from “The Return of the King,” framed by a TV new chyron that reads, “DENETHOR’S EXECUTIVE ORDER IMPOSES 300% TARIFF ON TOMATOES FROM THE SHIRE””
"The American imperialism directed towards Denmark and Canada is not just morally wrong. It is strategically disastrous. The US has nothing to gain from it, and much to lose. There is nothing that Americans cannot get from Denmark or Canada through alliance. The very existence of the base at Pituffik shows that. Within the atmosphere of friendship that has prevailed the last 80 years, all of the mineral resources of Canada and Greenland can be traded for on good terms, or for that matter explored by American companies. The only way to put all of this easy access in doubt was to follow the course that Musk-Trump have chosen: trade wars with Canada and Europe, and the threat of actual wars and annexations. Musk and Trump are creating the bloodily moronic situation in which the US will have to fight wars to get the things that, just a few weeks ago, were there for the asking. And, of course, wars rarely turn out the way one expects. Much effort is spent trying to extract a doctrine from all this. But there is none. It is just senselessness that benefits America’s enemies. Hans Christian Andersen told the unforgettable tale of the naked emperor. In Greenland, what we saw was American imperialism with no clothes. Naked and vain."
Black & white photo of Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys as Elizabeth and Philip from The Americans.
“[Speculative Fiction] does not predict. It does the opposite of predicting. It contests. SF demands we always seek out alternatives, where we find something far better than fatalistic optimism: we find hope. Hope is the belief that if we make a change that betters our circumstances, that from our new vantage point we will espy a previously obscured next step that will bring us closer to a better future. Hope is how we’ll get through the polycrisis.”
Sidewalk placard reads, “According to science, alcohol is a solution.”
The representation of women or LGBTQ people or Hispanics or Asian Americans or Black people mattered because their stories had historically not been featured. Erasing them is not a return to some bygone era of color-blind merit, but of blindness to the contribution of anyone who did not fit Trump's whitewashed vision of America. The Trump presidency is, as much as anything, a project of purging and erasing large parts of America, of people, ideas, capacities, and knowledge. Trump has also pledged to remove the Institute of Museum and Library Services, which is an independent federal agency that supports libraries, archives and museums in America. A presidential campaign built on the Big Lie, and incorporating lots of little lies, is intolerant of images, voices or evidence at odds with its worldview. It has only one vision of America in mind, much of it fanciful, and so it will erase anyone not part of that narrative.
Except from article at link: The word "diversity" itself, and "fairness" are too dangerous to survive, painted over to avoid offending the new administration. (“Leadership", "compassion" and "integrity" are also no longer welcome at the FBI).
Post by Amanda Hu: "Friendly reminder that anti-intellectualism is an authoritarian tactic that is used to control a population by robbing people of the tools to understand and solve problems, foster innovation and build up communities. Education gives people power to improve their conditions."
Quote from Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell: “Thoughtcrime, they called it. Thoughtcrime was not a thing that could be concealed for ever. You might dodge successfully for a while, even for years, but sooner or later they were bound to get you. It was always at night -- the arrests invariably happened at night.”
From Adam Serwer: “This is what is important: It does not matter if you approve of Khalil's views. It does not matter it you support the Israelis or the Palestinians. It does not matter if you are a liberal or a conservative. It does not even matter if you voted for Trump or Kamala Harris. If the state can deprive an individual of his freedom just because of his politics, which is what appears to have happened here, then no one is safe. You may believe that Khalil does not deserve free speech or due process. But if he does not have them, then neither do you. Neither do I.”
Musk, Trump, and Vance standing together.
Homemade brown rice with chicken and mixed vegetables.
Banner for my web site, mxpalmieri.com: Editor of Imaginary Worlds—genre fiction, audio dramas, narrative games, and more.
Poster promoting the Feb 28 Economic Boycott. If you have to make purchases, seek out small businesses only. Pay cash.
Meme by God account on FB: “All billionaires must explain what they got done each week for society or have their wealth seized.”
Writer D. L. Mayfield’s advice for resisting fascism.
B&W selfie.
My cat faking his own demise from imagined starvation.
Trump post from 15 Feb, 2025: “He who saves the Country does not violate any Law.”
A plate of baked salmon, roasted potato spears, and a salad of multicolored and halved grape tomatoes.
Clip from NPR piece about Trump administration plan to spend $400m on armored Teslas.
Quote from Qasim Rashid piece on Trump administration assault on DEIA
Painting of an owl wearing a monocle and a fancy hat.
Art nouveau sign that reads, “Please Don’t Do Cocaine in the Bathroom.”
A plate of homemade pork-rib tips, with a side of string beans, sun-dried tomatoes, and toasted almond slivers.
Excerpt from New York Times opinion piece by Jamelle Bouie.
Quote from Ahmed Baba about Trump & Musk attack on the federal government.
Quote by Heather Cox Richardson
Slanted angle on the back of Manhattan apartment buildings, show fire escape shadows.
A plate of homemade meatloaf and a simple salad.
The Legion of Doom
A plate of tacos
Poster art for the 1996 movie Basquiat, showing actor Jeffrey Wright in the title role.
New headshot
NYC subway mosaic art of two people dancing.
Laszlo, Nadja, and Nandor from What We Do In The Shadows.
Two shots of Tim Robbins side-by-side: as Norville from The Hudsucker Proxy, and as Bernard from Silo.
A denuded tree at night with the moon in the background.
Marco in front of his laptop, a mug of coffee at his elbow.
Book cover of The Sky's the Limit, the 20th anniversary Star Trek: The Next Generation shoprt story anthology.
Smokey the cat, asleep with a foreleg curled under his head.
GIF from A Very Venture Christmas, showing Krampus flogging Rusty.
Me, wearing an apron.
Giant skeleton with inflatable Santa lounging on a rooftop in the background.
Black & gold skyscraper rising into blue sky over Brooklyn.
Times Square subway mosaic of armored “Soundsuit” with multicolored radiating waves by artist Nick Cave.
Smokey the cat peeking out from inside a paper shopping bag.