He insists on creeping into books that are not supposed to be about him and making them about him anyway. He has gone to space in The Dingilliad series (Jumping Off The Planet, Bouncing Off The Moon, and Leaping To The Stars). He’s fought more-than-human super-warriors as the brain of the LS-1187 starship in the Star Wolf series (Voyage Of The Star Wolf, The Middle Of Nowhere, and Blood And Fire). And he’s even popped up as a chapter in my book on writing (Worlds Of Wonder). And I suspect he’s peeking out from behind the scenery in at least half a dozen other projects. In every case, he’s been a damned pain in the ass—because he keeps asking uncomfortable questions. HARLIE loves to create moral and ethical dilemmas. A friend once described HARLIE as the other half of my brain. He postulated that I split myself into two minds so I can have someone ferocious to argue with. He might be right. When arguing with HARLIE, I sometimes feel that I’m talking things over with a superior intellect, and that startles me, because I’m certain I’m nowhere near as smart as HARLIE pretends.
