CopperCon is this weekend, and I’m involved in 3 sessions:
I’ll also be attending a Novel Writing workshop run by Michael Stackpole on Sunday morning, “21 Days to a Novel”. Should be a great warmup for NaNoWriMo 2007 for me.
Warren Ellis dropped by Atomic Comics in Mesa last night, on his way to other locales to rest and recover from Comic-Con.
He brought a microburst with him. One that was perfectly aimed at key areas of Mesa. I don’t know how he managed to conceal a weather tracking and targeting system in his cane, but that’s only my best guess as to where it might be.
It’s the only explanation that makes sense to me… he had mentioned not wanting to burst into flames when he arrived here, and having some rain cool the place down a bit is a perfect way to avoid that. It barely rained in some other areas, but it was torrential in the area around Atomic Comics, and in the hour leading up to when his signing event was to begin.
Country Club (Rt 87), the major road going to that strip mall, was partially blocked in 2 areas south of Route 202 (3 northbound and 3 southbound lanes whittled down to 1 lane in each direction), and continuing southbound it was completely blocked off because a trestle underpass was completely flooded out… blocked by fire trucks. The side roads to take to get to other major roads were swamped under. The parallel major roads were either partially blocked, or barely moving because of redirected traffic (sometimes by both).
So getting to Atomic Comics from the north was a bust, and looping around to approach from the south was no better.
The major highway nearby, Route 60, was diverting all traffic onto Country Club (this is south of said mall) because the area where the highway passed under Country Club was flooded out. All evening rush hour traffic was being forced onto an already choked street. One intersection I sat at was reminiscent of the traffic jam caused in the remake of “The Italian Job”… no movement for any green light for several cycles!
Flooded roads, cars in parking lots suddenly under water, mayhem ensuing in the aftermath? Force of nature in action, all converging on Warren’s very location in Mesa. And I’m sure he did it all with a secret button in his cane. Or maybe his hat. I don’t have proof, and I’m not sure I want proof. That could end up going to scary places where I’m not prepared to look yet.
All in all, what should have been a 40-minute drive from work to the comics shop took a total of 115 minutes. But I got there, dammit… I was on a mission, and no force of nature or interference from the universe was going to thwart me.
This went way beyond wanting him to sign my copies “Global Frequency”… this was a rare chance to show a bit of appreciation to someone who made me cry laughing during a rather dark time in my life. Have you ever read his Ripping Yarns essay? If not, go do so now… I’ll wait.
About a month ago, Brian told me he was coming to town, and I knew I had to do something beyond just asking if his schedule would allow him to drop by the studio for an interview. So I asked the very talented Cheyenne Wright if he could come up with some artwork that appropriately reflected the tone and dark humor of that essay, and he exceeded my every expectation.
Because of that I was able to present Mr. Ellis with a unique piece of art commemorating that essay properly. And of course Brian and I got him to sign copies for us, Michael and Cheyenne.
note: Later, if Warren says that I can send that image out into the wild for everyone to share, I will. I have also sent him the digital version, so if he wants to post it himself, he is able to. It’s not my call, unless he says it is.
All in all, it was a good thing. The rain would have prevented us being able to interview him in the studio and get him to Atomic on time, and I don’t think any amount of good scotch would have been able to make up for that faux pas.
I think asking him for an interview on “Cover to Cover” about his book is a very good idea, and fun to boot.
That’s kinda weird… I’m talking about me traveling during the summer, but it’s about my seasonal traveling, not actually me traveling… but enough with the wordplay.
I’m seriously considering skipping Dragon*Con this year, and attending PME instead. It’s closer to home, and I’ve never been to one yet. I am still working out how to get to World Fantasy in Saratoga Springs NY this year… which may be a tough go, since all the nearby hotels are sold out, and I really don’t feel like trudging through 2ft or more of snow to get from the panels back to my bed!
So we’ll see what shakes out.
The other day, ESPN2 aired a “Making of” special on the ABC TV movie “Ruffian”, which airs Saturday June 9.
For those who don’t know, Ruffian was a racehorse, claimed by some to be one of, if not the best filly ever. She amazed the racing world and also piqued the interest of the growing feminist feminist in the early 1970s. Because of that clash of sports and culture, there was a lot of pressure to have her set up in a match race against the best colt of the year, Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure.
Horse racing was seen at the time by many to be a dying sport, and the publicity to be gained by such a race might also bring spectators — and bettors — back to the tracks. So the race was arranged, and was televised live.
Millions watched as the filly broke from the gate against the colt, and many had hopes of seeing a wonderful, well fought race to the finish. Instead, moments later, they watched a mishap unfold before their eyes as the filly broke a leg. What should have been a mere unfortunate accident turned into stunning tragedy, as Ruffian refused to stop running, refused to quit the race.
By continuing to run, she shredded her leg, and turned what could have been simply a career-ending injury into a life-threatening one. Those who were watching the race couldn’t believe what they were seeing, and hours later, despite Herculean efforts of trainers and vets to stablize her to where they could try to save her life, they had to put her down after she rebroke the leg and the cast they’d just put on her.
I have a hazy memory of seeing some of this on TV when I was a child. I hadn’t remembered it until I read “Ruffian: Burning from the Start” by Jane Schwartz. She had talked to people closely involved with Ruffian from when she a foal until she died, and some of the details in her accounting of the final race sparked memories I hadn’t even realized I’d had. I found out later that the recording of the race was never replayed for TV, so I know I had to have seen it when it happened.
For the longest time, I’ve always named my computers after famous horses, both fictional and real. Many years ago, I had named one of my Macs Ruffian. It refused to die when it was accidentally dropped during a move, and it refused to give up when a lightning strike took out the modem and the power strip they were both was connected to. I hadn’t realized at the time how aptly named that machine was.
I will be watching the movie of her life this weekend. The fact that it’s about a horse that always impressed me more than Seabiscuit ever did is a draw, but it also stars Sam Shepard, one of my favorite actors.
It’s also interesting that the movie airs the same day The Belmont is being run, and that’s the track where Ruffian died.
Link: Pedigree Query: Ruffian
Link: Ruffian Memorial
Link: Thoroughbred Champions: Ruffian
Wow… it’s almost the end of May, and I haven’t posted here in a while.
Well, in all fairness, I have been super busy… FarPoint Media is expanding at a crazy rate, and that means more websites and technical consults.
In the long run, it’s a very good thing. In the short run, I’m lacking sleep.
I’m also still sending my special copy of “So Say We All” around to contributors, and as soon as I get it back from Richard Hatch, it’ll be on it’s way to Matt Stover to add his signature to it. After that, I’m not sure who I’ll try to send it to next.
It’s a sad, sad day.
“WKRP In Cinncinnati” is finally being released on DVD… season 1 is available now. But the episodes will be mere shadows of their formerly great selves, for reasons us long-time fans already knew: most of the music is gone.
This is one series where the rock music was integral to the scenes, the life blood of the series. It’s a series about a radio station, so how could it not be?
I understand about the costs of reacquiring the rights to all the music… Universal chose to bite the bullet and obtain the rights to all the music used in “Miami Vice”, and they didn’t price the sets at $70 to try to recoup their expense. That was one battle I watched with keen interest at the time. Universal did right by the “Miami Vice” fans. Fox has never understood the concept of “fans” and the deep connections they can form, not when it comes to television.
Another thing that struck me from this article is that the actors won’t be receiving residuals or any money from the DVD sales, yet they’re still promoting the DVD release.
I know the actors love the series they made, but they aren’t getting anything from the sale of their work, and we’re not getting original music. The editing has even gone so far to remove scenes where cast members were singing snippets of songs… they couldn’t have the music replaced, so they were simply cut out.
As much as I love this series, and it was the last true sitcom I ever watched on television (I simply don’t watch sitcoms anymore… they aren’t funny), I will not be buying these DVDs.
I think I’ll go rewatch a couple of “Miami Vice” episodes now.
Even though this year’s book festival seemed to be less crowded this year than last year, I personally had more fun this time.
The Dragon Page/Slice of SciFi part of the signing didn’t go off quite so well, unfortunately. Between Mike, Mur, Evo and myself, I don’t think we signed a single copy. The copies of “So Say We All” that I had been told would be there weren’t, so I couldn’t have signed anything if someone had wanted it.
The fun part was getting some of books of mine signed. I talked with Melanie Rawn for a little bit while she signed 4 books for me, and I was completely tickled. Her Dragon Prince and Dragon Star trilogies rank up there as some of my all-time favorite books (and those first three are the only other books besides Stover’s “Heroes Die” and Steve Perry’s Matador trilogy that I’ve bought multiple times and given to others to read).
I talked with Emma Bull and Will Shetterly for a long time after she signed “War for the Oaks” for me, and my only regret was that I couldn’t find my copy of “Bone Dance” to bring for her to sign. She talked about a book coming out in July, “Territory”, and I can’t wait to get my hands on that one.
Then I had my ancient copy of “The Gift of Magic” signed by Lois Duncan, and spent nearly an hour sitting with James A. Owen as he was signing and drawing in copies of “Here There Be Dragons”. He told all sort of fascinating stories about the artists and writers he’s worked with over the years, and now I’m just waiting for him to send me an email so we can get him scheduled for a chat at Dragon Page. My day of getting things signed at the festival was complete.
Afterwards, I drove Jim Butcher back to the studio for his interview, and we chatted about all sorts of scifi television geekery. Turns out we’re both fans of Robert Hewitt Wolfe’s work for similar reasons: Andromeda, the first two seasons, and more particularly, Tyr Anasazi, out of Victoria by Barbarosa.
aside: For those, like me, who are interested in writing for television, check out “Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy for Television” by Joe Nazzaro (Titan Books, 2002). It contains interviews with folks like RHW, JMS, DC Fontana, David Greenwalt, Michael Piller, Joss Whedon, Jonathan Glassner, and Rob Tapert. Some of it’s fluff, but overall it gives a pretty good look into the minds of some of the best TV writers out there.
As I was driving Jim back to his hotel, I fessed up on some of the things that had me stuck when it came to finishing longer works, and he suggested I take a look at his Livejournal entries about writing. I don’t think I’d ever seen that part of his website conglomeration before, but I’m glad he pointed it out to me.
Between those suggestions, tidbits from a couple other sites, and Steven Pressfield’s “The War of Art” (both the 1st edition faux-metallic hardcover copy and the MP3 audiobook), I believe I can get back into the long form groove.
And I also suggested that he give “Heroes Die” and “Blade of Tyshalle” a try when he gets a chance.
New fantasy rock-star author Patrick Rothfuss has an amazing first novel, The Name of the Wind, and a shiny new website and blog.
In one of his recent posts, he says that agents are navigators, and for some reason my brain immediately conjured up images of grizzled veteran wilderness guides, armed with only experience and laptops, ready to guide an author through the exotic Outback or Rainforest of the publishing industry.
Only on this trek, they aren’t searching for treasure. They carry the treasure with them, or more precisely, the author is carrying the treasure and the agent-guide is searching for just the right ancient temple or lost city. That treasure will be a long-sought key that will provide entry for the author to that hidden realm they find together.
The catch is, once that treasure, the finished manuscript, is used to gain access to the higher realm, the author has to have the courage to leave what they perceive as a paradise and venture back into the real world. Once back “home” the author will create another treasure and the agent-guide will take them on another trek to find another realm for that treasure to open.
I don’t know why that imagery popped into my head, but I thought it was cool when it did. Only, now I don’t know what adventure metaphor to use for editors…
Spring is in the air… must mean it’s time for the AZ Book Fest again!
We’re going to be rather busy again, interviewing authors, and there’s even a panel for us to participate in. Maybe even a signing session!
Now all I have to do is finish and sell a few more things, so there will be more books people would want me to sign, and we can really have some fun…
Jim Butcher will be there, and there will be much rejoicing. And hopefully he will sign some of my books…
3/23 update: I’ve been informed that there may be some copies of “So Say We All” available, so I’ll be joining Michael and Evo at the FarPoint Media/Dragon Page signing session.
Giddy doesn’t even come close to describing how I feel…
See this article at The New York Times: Authors Find Their Voice, and Audience, in Podcasts.
Scott Sigler (Ancestor, Infection), JC Hutchins (7th Son), Tee Morris (Morevi, Billibub Baddings), and Evo Terra are all mentioned in the article, as is Podiobooks.
It’s about time someone noticed the quality offerings out there, especially since they are free for the offering. Whether that changes significantly over the next few years (Mike Nelson’s RiffTrax comes to mind), I have no idea. All I know is that I’m happy I’m along for the ride.
