And now word is starting to spread that one of the victims of this terrible, unthinkable tragedy may be SF writer Michael Bishop‘s son, who apparently teaches/taught German at Virginia Tech. I hope it’s not true. I don’t know Michael Bishop at all, but E Bear is right: the field is small and we’re a family in some odd, real way. And my heart goes out to the Bishops’–if it’s not true, for believing that it was, even for a little while–and to all those who are hurting tonight because they lost someone important to them.
I always have nightmares after a school shooting and I can’t imagine tonight will be different.
Updated: And Locus has now confirmed that Jamie Bishop was among the victims. There is really nothing to say in the face of such senseless tragedy. If you visit the site at that link, you can see some of his beautiful artwork.