Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Noir

"Baby Elliot, Do You Know What Family Is?"

2013-03-11T22:32:43Z

That's something little Foxy asked his new baby brother last night, with a smile on his face. I think it was a rhetorical question, though I wouldn't have minded hearing him explain it a little more.

Elliot Arthur Thompson and his mom are both doing good, and we're now back home. I'm gonna be spending most of my time this week helping out with the recovery and the baby. Both Oliver and Claire are thrilled (and wish they were home from school to help out as well).

A Little Ragnarok Does My Soul Good

2013-01-26T06:16:38Z

So, yeah. This is gonna be kind of long. But I'm excited! And a little bit proud. So hopefully you won't mind.

About four years ago, I read a book. It was a book by Greg Van Eekhout called Norse Code. I first met Greg through the Viable Paradise mailing list, and LiveJournal, and had gotten to hang out with him at a few conventions. I had heard several of his stories at Escape Pod and PodCastle, and I loved them all. So, when Norse Code - his debut novel - came out, I was pumped. I'd heard Greg talk about it, liked the idea of Ragnarok and a little known beach bum of a Norse God. It sounded like good times.

I bought the book, took this picture of Claire "reading" it and posted it to LJ, then went to Hawaii for vacation with my family. I always take way too many books on vacation. Even now, when I can read eBooks, I take hard copies too. That trip was no exception, and Norse Code ended up being the only book I actually managed to read.

I enjoyed the hell out of it. It was way more fun than I thought Ragnarok could ever be.

When Anna and I first came onto PodCastle, one of the stories we bought was Greg's "Wolves Till the World Goes Down." It was another story featuring Norse mythology, and some of the same characters as in Norse Code. Buuuuuut it was like an alternate reality of Norse Code. The characters don't follow the same path, and Hermod, the protagonist of Norse Code, is thought dead in the short story, etc. It was a great story about thwarting destiny, and in the end, I got lucky enough to read it for our audience myself. (You can listen to it for free now, if you want.)

The funny thing is, I wasn't sure how that would play. I live in L.A. This is Norse mythology. I felt a little bit out of my depth, but Anna was like, "Dude, people love the readings you've done so far, it'll be fine." So I tried to figure out how to pronounce some of the Norse names, and recorded it, and I ended up feeling pretty good about how it came out, particularly the climax. The audience really flipped out for it when it went live, and some of them liked my reading which was great. But what made my year was the email Greg sent me. "That was just a phenomenal reading. I am not shitting you when I say I actually got shivers." And on and on. (Yes, I looked the email up just now, and it made me smile all over again. Maybe it changed my life a little bit. Maybe that story did?) Anyway, I never know how an author's gonna react to hearing his story read, so like I said, that made my year.

A little while after that, when I really started listening to audiobooks, Greg was one of the first writers I looked up. I was utterly bummed out I couldn't find his books at Audible, or anywhere else. I told Greg this, and he made some flippant comment about how I should record it. I laughed.

And then I thought about it.

And then I emailed him.

And then I tried to figure out what that would actually take.

Here was the issue: Greg didn't have the audio rights - Random House had bought them, but never exercised them*. ACX had just started up around the same time, and I decided to write Greg's editor, and say, Look, I love this book. I do a podcast. I want to see it come to audio, and I would love to read it. Please?

I got passed on to a lot of people, and eventually, someone got back to me. It took a long time for the process to progress after that. A loooooooong time. I'd get an email from RH, and they'd say it sounds like a great idea, and they'd get back to me soon. But I kept pestering them, and they (surprisingly) didn't get super annoyed with me. Eventually, after about 9 months, I got put in touch with Audible who were in charge of making it all happen. Once Audible got involved, things started moving pretty quickly.

And so, I polished off my Norse pronunciations, and recorded Norse Code, and now there's an audiobook of Greg's super fun story that people can buy, and listen to me read it to them!!! That is so freaking cool!

It was a blast - and the story and characters were even more fun than I remembered it being. Hermod, one of the protagonists, is a Norse god whose ditched Asgard for Midgard, and has been seen recently bumming around Venice Beach. I got to read that part, and it was CRAZY FUN.

Thanks, Greg, for writing such a fun story. Thanks for trusting me with it, and believing in me, and encouraging me. I tried following a dream, and this time I managed to catch it.

I hope people get a chance to listen to Norse Code, and that they enjoy it, and that it makes them smile. Because it was a hell of a lot fun to read.

So, yeah. I really like recording audiobooks. I am recording another audiobook now, and it's a lot of fun. I hope I can record a lot more, and chase down a few more dreams, and defy a few more prophecies.

(Thanks to my buddy Graeme Dunlop for doing the production on the audiobook.)

*Something I've learned over the past couple years: Authors, please make sure you know what your publisher plans to do with the audio rights. It SUCKS when they buy them, but don't do anything with them. This has happened to us a couple of times at PodCastle with other authors, and it's always a bummer for all involved).

Where Am I Going, Where Have I Been?

2012-09-11T21:55:15Z

I know, I know, try and control yourselves. Yes, this is a blog from Dave - a rare and endangered species.

Things have been pretty wild here. Additionally, my work has blocked LJ, so...that pretty much sucks.

But here's a quick update:

Briarpatch, the audiobook written by Tim Pratt and read by me, is now available at Audible.com! It's an amazing book, and I'm thrilled that I was able to read it! It's just an amazing contemporary fantasy - it's dark, twisted, sexy, funny, and really heartfelt. l loved every page of it, and that I was able to record it just blows my mind!

(People who have rated it have given it good ratings...no reviews yet, though.)

There's possibly more audiobook news coming, which is the other reason things have been quiet here. I am excited!

So, other stuff. The chickens. My God they're HUGE. I really need to post some more pictures of them. Hopefully they lay some eggs soon so Greg van Eekhout can come up here and make us omelletes or scrambles or whatever it is he does with eggs.

The kids are wonderful. Claire had her first sleepover (a friend at our house) last weekend. They watched one of the American Girl movies (Claire's now read almost all those books). Oliver enjoyed having Claire's friend over too, and enjoyed it even more when we went swimming at the grandparents house, and then he got to stay by himself and spend the night at his grandparents house by himself. He's slept over there lots, but never without his big sister. Being the second kid is tough, I guess.

I am not writing as much as I like (SHOCKER, I know, with all the other stuff). But I have been doing quite a bit of thinking, and I have a pretty solid idea on where I want to go next. We'll see if I get there or not.

I'm lstening to GRRM's Storm of Swords. You know, sometimes you hear so much about a series of books, that it...well, I don't think it turns me off, but it made me feel like I can put them off (probably that it was part of a larger series that's still not complete is something). But a friend of mine at work hounded me, and I listened to the first two and loved them. And Storm of Swords is easily the best thus far. I just got to that part where the character I've hated for the last three books has...well, maybe not redeemed himself, but I don't hate him as much as I did previously. That's pretty hard to do, consdering what that character did in the first place to make me hate him so much. So, yeah. Pretty amazing writing, and I'm so happy I gave in and checked these books out. I hear there's a TV show, and I should probably watch that at some point.

So, that's me. How are you all? Reading anything good? Listening to anything good? Let me know!

I Am Still Alive. Actually, Better Than That - I'm Going to Squee all Over the Internets

2012-05-18T19:41:01Z

Lots of stuff has been happening at la casa de Krylyr. We went to Maui, and I need to post more about that, because more than ever before, Maui totally stole my heart. But this is even better than Maui.

I've been sitting on this for a little while, mostly because it's so cool, I just can't wrap my brain around that it's REALLY HAPPENING. Even after I agreed to a contract. Even after I turned in the first 15 (er, 27 minutes) of my recording and it was accepted.

DUDES. I get to read the audiobook for Tim Pratt's amazing fantasy novel Briarpatch!

Yes, I think I need to type that again. I GET TO READ TIM PRATT'S BRIARPATCH!!!!!!!

I am so stoked beyond words about this, I don't even know what else to say! I keep expecting people to email me that they've changed their minds.

I love this book. I loved it immediately - as soon as I started reading it when it came out last year. And those of you who listen to PodCastle know I love being able to share and read stories with people. Seriously, if there is a word to describe how happy and excited I am about this, please leave it in the comments because I have NO CLUE.

I'm recording. The book is scheduled to be turned in to ACX by the end of July. (Not 100% sure when that means it'll come out).

Those of you further away from the publishing industry who want to know when I can take them on a ride in my private jet like Tony Stark and Rhodey in the first Iron Man, no, I am not quitting my dayjob, but I am doing what I can so that I'll be able to do more of this kind of thing. (I have been talking to people about other things. I am excited. They are excited.) And I hope this is the start of something awesome!

Notes to Self

2012-03-30T19:32:52Z

1. Mirror Mirror opens this weekend. My daughter thinks it looks adorable and thus it makes her giddy. I think she is adorable. I don't know if I'll have time to take her to see it this weekend, but I should take her to see it sometime soon.

2. When I decide to listen to the next of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books, I should really take a week off and do nothing else. Or something. I thought I might listen to A Storm of Swords immediately after a Clash of Kings, but that seems like a very dangerous (or at least, highly irresponsible) thing to do.

3. The thing that encourages me the most as a writer is when I read (or listen to) something that just absolutely knocks me on my ass and leaves me with a stupid grin, wondering how the author did that. Could I ever do that? Or have that effect on someone else? (This is not directly related to note #2.)

4. Be excellent to everyone.

5. I desperately need a vacation. In one week, I'm getting one.

Returning a Library Book has Never Been So Awesome - PodCastle 200, Baby!

2012-03-13T18:19:04Z

You guys, I can barely contain myself! PodCastle hit its 200th episode today! And we're celebrating with Scott Lynch's awesome story "In the Stacks," which has swords, sorcery, and takes place in the coolest, most dangerous library ever!

Also, Anna and I asked a lot of cool people to help us do a full cast reading! Anyone who can place Rachel freaking Swirsky's voice without cheating and looking at the cast list gets a no-prize! But also: Norm Sherman, Wilson Fowlie, M. to the K. Hobson, Graeme Dunlop helped out Peter, Anna and myself hugely with this one. And we got Ann Leckie, Alasdair Stuart, our forum mods Talia and Ocicat, and Marshal Latham to put the icing on the cake as our geek chorus.

It's a looooong one, but it flies by, so go listen, and spread the word! (More Words, MORE WORDS!)

Thanks for listening!

That Was Not the Episode 1 You Were Looking For

2012-02-28T19:28:45Z

I mentioned this on twitter sometime last week, but I rewatched it again, and damn. It's just painful because, between the Obi-Wan/Padme/Anakin triangle, what should have happened on the way to Naboo, what should have happened on the streets of Tatooine, and the mechanical menace of Darth Maul in the FUTURE, this guy really gets it right. Episode 1 could have been glorious.

Ah, well. Somewhere in the Impossible Dreams video library...

This is Happening: Johnny Depp as Kolchak, Directed by Edgar Wright!

2012-02-22T22:54:58Z

I mentioned the possibility of this before, but AICN is now saying things have been SIGNED and are being developed. Which we all know means nothing, really, especially with Depp's insane schedule. But with Depp as Kolchak and Edgar Wright writing/directing? I have already bought my movie tickets, kids! Whether I'm seeing it in this universe, or the Impossible Dreams one remains to be seen, but I will see it!

The Pirate Goats of São Paolo! (Or: an Interview!)

2012-02-14T17:48:45Z

Hey look! I've been interviewed along with my bad-cop partner-in-crime Anna Schwind by csecooneyfor Black Gate magazine! If you want to know exactly what kind of story we're looking for at PodCastle, now's your chance!

I do think it would be pretty cool if someone sent us a Pirate Goats of São Paolo (although I can't promise that's what Anna had in mind)!

Today, I'm Part of Something Bigger

2012-02-09T22:39:22Z

I feel that's true every week, actually - whenever I'm hosting PodCastle.

However, I had the immense privilege of being asked to record Ferrett Steinmetz's story "Devour" for Escape Pod, and I have to say, I'm incredibly proud to have been a part of bringing this one to the audience. When you read a story, you go over it and over it and over it, and I was (once again) impressed by how much Ferrett packed into his story. This is a dark story, but it's the best kind of dark - brimming over with humanity and love.

Ferrett's a writer to keep your eyes on, if you aren't already.

It's also an Escape Pod original, so this is currently the only place you can listen to (or read) it.

What I've Been Up To Recently...

2012-02-09T19:01:49Z

I mentioned this in the intro to this week's PodCastle, but I took January off of reading submissions to focus on writing. Hopefully, nobody noticed PodCastle-wise, because my fearless co-editor was on the scene of the crime, taking notes, writing rejections, and being the all-around bad-ass I've come to expect her to be. Also, I continued to perform host duties, so I don't think anyone noticed. (In fact, bogwitch64 sent me a very pleasant email about it a couple days ago saying WHY DIDN'T I KNOW?)

The month off was really interesting. And I don't mean interesting as a negative. I got a ton out of it - but maybe not what I thought I'd get out of it? Suffice to say, I did some writing on a daily basis, and I'm very happy about that. But that's probably another post.

Other things I've been doing:

Emma and I watched Season 1 of Downton Abbey. I liked it a lot. It made me want to revisit Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, and it made me hope we'll someday see another Big Novel by Susanna Clarke.

I just finished listening to John Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation and enjoyed the hell out of it. It's everything you expect from a Scalzi novel, including bacon! Actually, I was surprised how emotional I got over it in the end.

I just finished reading Saladin Ahmed's Throne of the Crescent Moon. It's very, very fun. There's quite a bit I like about it, and Anna and I will be talking about it at a PodCastle Spotlight soon!

Also, I've watched the Spider-man preview over and over and over again. (I think it might be the best one yet, but I'm often overly optimistic about these things!)

So...how have you been?

Coining a New Definition?

2012-01-24T21:00:02Z

hread - Listening to a book one has previously read (but not previously listened to).

Frex: January, I hread M. John Harrison's Viriconium, and read by Simon Vance. I'm tempted to listen to it again straightaway. Alas, there are other books I want to hread too.

Stop the Internet Blacklist Bills

2012-01-18T17:31:59Z

Here.

Uncalled For Writing Post From the Godforsaken Hours

2012-01-06T23:36:27Z

I've been getting up at the godforsaken hours to write again - like 4 am-ish. This is because I just can't seem to find any other time to write, and what has ended up happening is that if I don't get up, I don't write at all.

So I'm trying to get back in the habit, and I'm writing stuff. And OMG it is hard. I've never been a fast writer, but I feel so out of shape right now it's pathetic. The worst part is, I second guess myself all the time about everything from my word choice to whether anything's happening to where is this going to inner-whine is this boring?

So I've developed a plan.

I've written a bunch of openings for different short stories, and the openings that I like the best are the ones I'm going to keep playing with, one at a time. (Although I'm still giving myself permission to write more openings.) It's kind of liberating to just try and write some good openings and not really worry about what's going to happen next. Well, I'm not sure any of them are good, but I'm having fun with them at least, and that's something.

I'm still second-guessing myself a lot, but I've gotten stuff down this week, and I'm pretty sure on at least a couple stories I'm going to go after. There the ones I keep thinking about.

I just wish Oliver wouldn't get up so early...

My Have Read Pile: 2011 Edition

2012-01-05T00:27:20Z

I want to do a post about resolutions and stuff, but I thought I'd kick the year off by listing everything I read last year. Honestly, I think this is the most I've read (and listened to) novel-wise since my kids were born, in no small part due to Audible and the books on CD at my local library. My TBR pile is still ENORMOUS, but I blame that on reading stories for PodCastle! Anyway, it was a pretty good year for me.

My Have Read Books:

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, by N.K. Jemisin
Stargirl, by Jerri Spinelli
Water for Elephants, by Sara Guren (Audio)
The Broken Kingdoms, by N.K. Jemisin
The Curse of Chalion, by Lois McMasters Bujold (Audio)
Shades of Milk and Honey, by Mary Robinette Kowal (Audio)
White Cat, by Holly Black (Audio)
Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers (Audio) -
The Dragon’s Path, by Daniel Abraham
Love Wins, by Rob Bell
Hunter’s Run, by George R.R. Martin, Gardener Dozois, and Daniel Abraham (Audio) -
A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin (Audio) - I am now a fan
Packing for Mars, by Mary Roach (Audio)
The Body Mod, by Dru Miller
Kraken, by China Mieville
The Illustrated Man, by Ray Bradbury (Audio)
Red Glove, Holly Black (Audio)
Unclean Spirits, by M.L.N. Hanover
The Patriot Witch, by C.C. Finlay
American Gods, by Neil Gaiman (Audio)
Little House in the Big Woods, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Little House on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
On the Banks of Plum Creek, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
On the Shores of Silver Lake, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Swords and Deviltry, by Fritz Leiber (Audio)
Briarpatch, by Tim Pratt
Bone Shop, by T.A. Pratt (Audio)
James and the Giant Peach, by Roald Dahl (Audio)
Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury (Audio)
Boy at the End of the World, by Greg van Eekhout
Fragile Things, by Neil Gaiman (Audio)
Welcome to Bordertown, edited by Ellen Kushner and Holly Black
The Traveling Vampire Show, by Richard Laymon (Audio)
Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury (Audio)
Vicious Circles, by Mike Carey (Audio)
Clementine, by Cherie Priest
The House on Haunted Hill, by Shirley Jackson (Audio)
Rosemary and Rue, by Seanan McGuire (Audio)
The Wordy Shipmates, by Sarah Vowell (Audio)
Isle of the Forsaken, by Carolyn Ives Gilman
Sir Hereward and Mr. Fitz: Three Adventures, by Garth Nix
Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris (Audio)
Charles Dickens’ Christmas Stories (Audio)
A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens (Audio)

Comics:

Captain America: Winter Soldier, by Ed Brubaker, various.
Nightwing: Brothers by Blood, by
Locke and Key: Keys to the Kingdom, by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez
Ex Machina: Term Limits, by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris
Red Robin: Collision, by Chris Yost and Marcus To
Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels, by Mike Mignola and Ben Steinbeck
Batman and Robin, by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, and Philip Tan

Currently Reading:

Embassytown, by China Mieville
The Stress of Her Regard, by Tim Powers (Audio)
After the Apocalypse, by Maureen F. McHugh
Three Messages and a Warning, edited by Edward Jimenez Maya & Chris N. Brown
Hebrewpunk, by Lavie Tidhar
The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James (Audio)
Death’s Heretic, by James L. Sutter
Black Hills, by Dan Simmons
Stories, edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantino
The Best of Gene Wolfe, by Gene Wolfe
Swords and Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery, edited by Jonathan Strahan and Lou Anders
Metatropolis, by Jay Lake, Tobias Buckell, John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, and Karl Schroeder (Audio)
Ghosts by Gaslight, edited by Jack Dann and Nick Gevers

What She Said

2011-12-21T21:31:29Z

tinaconnolly asked for some short story recommendations for the upcoming award season. And yeah, I'm kind of curious too. What have you read this past year that you think is particularly awesome and worth checking out, short story-wise?

My Krampus Story is at Pseudopod!!!

2011-12-16T18:26:28Z

Here's a Christmas present I discovered at the beginning of the year: my Krampus short story "Saint Nicholas' Helper" is at Pseudopod, in time for the holidays! Being as it's at Pseudopod, it is not a nice story. But if you dark fiction to go with the darkest nights of the year, I hope you enjoy it.

There's a storybook my parents had that's disappeared everywhere but in my mind. When I was a kid, I had this book about Christmases around the world, and there was this one story in there about Saint Nicholas and Krampus coming to visit a little girl. HOLY SHIT, I loved that story, and had my parents read it to me over and and over again (probably, it disturbed them a bit - they were extremely conservative and while they somehow tolerated Star Wars, they weren't big fans of sorcery or horror or anything demonic like that). Anyway, in that story, you got the feeling that Saint Nicholas was actually the girl's uncle or neighbor or something dressed up. But Krampus? He was a little demonic elf. I always wondered, who in that story dressed up as him? And this story kind of stems from that, along with some other questions I asked myself later on, like, why would Saint Nicholas need a demon to help him? So for those of you who have been missing my spiritual noir, this might hit some of your squids.

Marie Brennan (aka:swan_tower) gave it an AMAZING read. It's been about a year and a half since I finished writing the story, and so listening to it on my morning commute this morning - well, I got all tense during one of the scenes in the middle. Not because I'd forgotten what happened, but because Marie read it so so perfectly. And Alasdair's comments at the end were, of course, the best icing on the cake.

And I really can't express how nice it is to listen to my story after all that time, and think, you know, I really did okay with it.

Huge thanks to all my friends who beta read this one for me: bogwitch64, avocadovpx, voidmonster, prusik, and Anna Schwind. They definitely made this story so much better than it would've been.

Anyway, that's probably enough out of me. If you've got half an hour, give it a listen and let me know what you thought of it!

Subbed a Story Today

2011-11-30T21:48:23Z

That's the first time I've subbed an unsolicited story in waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too long. I liked doing it. I think I will do it again. (On the brightside, I think I won't have too many issues checking Duotrope 10 times a day.)

Also, I am having fun writing about vampire pumpkins. And then I want to finish up a couple of other stories by the end of the year and sub Sub SUB!

Boneshaker: The Movie

2011-11-30T20:32:14Z

It's far from my favorite Cherie Priest book, but Boneshaker as a Hammer Film? Yeah, I'll see that.

The WFC Post

2011-11-04T23:23:45Z

Things I loved about going to World Fantasy Con, in no particular order:

1) It’s the first major genre con I’ve ever been too, unless you count ComicCon, which I don’t. That’s more of an amusement park. (Not that that’s a bad thing.)
2) Having dinner that first night with all my VPX pals.
3) Also: getting to see VPX pals I hadn’t seen in 5 years – Terri-Lynne, Barbara, Nikki. Hugs all around!
4) Readers Theatre with 20+ people in CSE Cooney and Tina Connolly’s room. I was the anonymous troll asshole in one of the plays, which was fun. Especially Terri-Lynne as a punk rock freak.
5) Having a couple of people recognize my voice. MY FREAKING VOICE. That was fucking awesome, and totally flattering, and made my weekend right there.
6) Meeting so many of the cool authors and readers from PodCastle, and getting to talk and hang out with them a bit.
7) The Escape Artists coffee hour with Mur, Hobson, Tina, Caroline, Sam, Bart, Kelly, BlueLu, and Tempest .
8) Kelly taking Bart, Sam, and me off-campus to have dinner at El Zarape, and the subsequent walk and conversations post-dinner. Awesome stuff was talked about, and I apparently only know the half of it. (Or more likely: probably even less.)
9) That Neil Gaiman and Connie Willis were the guests of honor.
10) Walking into a VP jam session. Awesomely surreal.
11) Talking with Ferrett and Keffy for a couple hours outside of a couple of parties, talking about the hazards of slush, writing, and other fun things.
12) The ridiculously huge autograph session.
13) Reconnecting and expanding my tribe and feeling generally pretty damn inspired to do some more writing.

In short, if I met you at WFC and got to hang out with you, whether it was for a couple minutes at the bar or the con suite, or at night, or something else, THANK YOU SO MUCH. You inspired me, and you’re awesome. I hope I get to hang out with you again soon!

Why I Had to Leave World Fantasy Con A Little Bit Early

2011-11-01T14:39:00Z

Some of you know, I had a pumpkin carving date with Claire Sunday night before sunset. (We don't trust Oliver with any kind of knives. He might make lightsaber noises with it and start dicing.)

I think the thing that amused me most about all this is at some point when we were scooping out the pumpkin guts, Claire decided my pumpkin was a vampire pumpkin, and she was turning into a vampire pumpkin herself. She got really into waving her hands all around, and doing the Bela Lugosi voice. She especially liked putting the cut pumpkin teeth from my Jack-O-Lantern in her mouth, which was kind of awesomely gross.

Part of what amuses me about this is the poor thing is still traumatized from stumbling across this book in her classroom. (I'm not kidding about this, either. We're talking mortal fear here. Clearly, we haven't listened to the Ghostbusters song enough this year.)

So I was happy that for a little while, she was able to embrace and tease the scary.

I really need to read Bunnicula to her at some point soon...

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween!

One Brew to Rule Them All...

2011-10-27T05:29:34Z

So, WFC is tomorrow, but I feel like it's already kind of started. This past weekend, I got to hang out with bogwitch64, voidmonster, and kirizal, as well as meet Terri's husband. And last week, a special little package showed up on my doorstep. One filled with some very interesting bottles. Observe - PodCastleAle!

A couple months back, I talked to a PodCastle listener* who happened to let slip that her husband was a homebrewer. I got to thinking...we have a lot of magical awesome magical things in the ol' PodCastle (Electric Pentacles, Possible Swords, Wonder Scout Uniforms) but one thing that's missing is a fine beer. We don't just drink any meager beer. We're a fantasy podcast, and thus, we want a beer that's fantastic. Thus was born PodCastAle - one brew to rule them all, and in the darkness...er, drink them? It's what's for second breakfast? How about...Man, I had a rough night, and I hate the fucking eagles, man. Anyway, it's a very good beer, and I'm drinking it. Right now.

See you all at WFC this weekend!

(Come by and say hi! Even if I am all out of beer by the time you see me!)

*Many, many thanks to the awesome Dani Daly and her alchemist husband Brian who sent me this really awesome beer. It's FANTASTIC.

I Will Shortly Be Consumed By My TBR Pile

2011-10-14T20:22:45Z

Please note: This is not a complaint.

I've talked some before about my TBR Pile. But HOLY GOD this is a whole new level. My actual Currently Reading pile is throttling me.

I'm currently reading:

Embassytown, by China Mieville (Hardback)
Clementine, by Cherie Priest (e-book)
Black Hills, by Dan Simmons (e-book)
Something Wicked This Way Comes*, by Ray Bradbury (audiobook I downloaded)
Rosemary and Rue, by Seanan McGuire (audiobook from my library)
Metatropolis, by Scalzi, Bear, Buckell, Lake, and Schroeder (audiobook I downloaded)

This does not count the two comic books I'm reading (Witchfinder, Batman and Robin) or the (literally) 10+ collections/anthologies I've been playing musical bedside table with. And there are at least three other books I want to start reading ASAP, but I probably won't crack them until after WFC.

(Oh, wow. I know I'm going to pick up a few books at WFC.)

I need to take a reading sabbatical. Among a bunch of other sabbatical things.

*One of the other things I have to do is blog about rereading this book. I remembered it being great, but I'm kind of shocked by how amazing it still is.

Why Does The Goddamned Frank Miller Hate Dick Grayson and Cripples and Muslims?

2011-09-30T21:01:38Z

Been a rough week for comic books.

I mentioned earlier about the whole Starfire controversy in which a seven-year-old explains what we want to see from female characters.

Then, yesterday, reviews for Frank Miller's Holy Terror started going live. Ouch. I'm sure I've talked about my disdain for this comic in the past, as far back as when it was going to be a Batman comic. But basically, the premise is Batman vs. Al Qaeda, and it sounds even worse now than it did then. Muslims are of course the villains (it is the war on terror, yo! - Who else?) there's a mosque in Manhattan funded by Muslim terrorists, for Muslim terrorists. Essentially, it sounds like Miller is saying, "If you're a Muslim, you're part of the problem."

According to Frank Miller, this was supposed to be the equivalent of him doing propaganda - you know, like Superman or Captain America punching Hitler in the face. Except, Seal Team Six already actually beat him to the punch on that one, I guess? And as Saladin Ahmed points out in the comments over at Tor.com's review, it actually demonizes an entire people group, not a political figure.

Also over at Tor.com, blogger Tim Callahan talks about why he enjoys Miller's work so much. He makes some interesting points - not so much about this book itself, but about Miller's archetypes. For example: "Frank Miller's villains are vile and disfigured." He goes on to call them one dimensional.

I got to thinking about that.

(Let's not even get started on people with disabilities and/or deformities and/or GLBT. I'm looking at you, 300.)

I soured on Frank Miller somewhere during Sin City, I think. I avoided The Dark Knight Strikes Again because of what friends had told me about it and what he did to Dick Grayson. And All-Star Batman and Robin? Goddamned Bah. For those who don't know (SPOILER ALERT) Dick Grayson (AKA the original Robin) turns out to be the Bad Guy in the Dark Knight Strikes Again. Now, this could actually be a good plot twist, if handled well. But as we know, Miller's villains are all very one dimensional, and I'm pretty sure Grayson's never given much depth or layering in DKSA. And I'm kind of confused by how any comic book writer could have such hatred for Dick Grayson to make him a one note villain. If you're gonna write that shit, it better be Shakespearean.

Somewhere, there should be a picture of Dick Grayson punching Frank Miller in the face. Because that would be AWESOME. (I would also be happy to accept Nightrunner, Superman, and/or Batman doing the same deal.)

Then again, maybe it should be one of the above kissing Frank Miller's cheek, because he seems to enjoy hating people (and being hated) a little too much. Wouldn't it be nice if he could learn a little platonic love and acceptance?

What happened to you, Frank Miller? We thought you were a golden god, but right now, you smell more like that yellow bastard.

I Want Her to be a Hero, Fighting Things and Be Strong and Helping People

2011-09-28T20:28:28Z

So I guess I missed this yesterday (dayjob is insane), but it's worth pointing it out to anyone else who might've missed it: fantasy author Michele Lee showed her 7-year-old daughter - a big fan of comic book superheroine Starfire - part of the new comic book Starfire was in. It's worth you checking out.

A lot of people are complaining in the comments there and at io9.com that of course the kid doesn't like it. She's seven. The book is rated "Teen." Also: OMG your 7-year-old knows the word "boobs"? What a horrible mother!

These people are missing the point.

It is not about boobs or ratings.

It is about a female character actually doing important stuff. And then, becoming a bikini clad prop.

Do better, DC, For the seven year-olds in all of us.