This piece irks me, for many reasons...
http://www.salon.com/books/fiction/index.html?story=/books/feature/2010/12/16/21st_century_science_fiction
SF didn't run out of things to say; it's just that people stopped paying attention to it.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Sickies
B1 is sick with stomach flu; I got a call from Exene this morning, asking to come get B1, that he'd been up sick most of the night with stomach flu. Poor guy. I called him in sick from school. I've got the boys for the next few days, so that'll at least give'em a fighting chance, TLC-wise.
B2 hasn't shown any signs, yet (or he may have had it the other day, since Exene told me that he'd been sick the other day). So, hopefully he's over it, since I'd not like to have two sick boys at the same time. I'll handle it, whatever comes along.
B2 hasn't shown any signs, yet (or he may have had it the other day, since Exene told me that he'd been sick the other day). So, hopefully he's over it, since I'd not like to have two sick boys at the same time. I'll handle it, whatever comes along.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Birch Barking
C-c-cold
Way cold today, although, thankfully, not windy. But still, chilly, Chicago-style.
Worked hard this morning, crafting synopses and outlines for one of the books.
Mostly what I was up to today, just because it was a hunker-down chilly kind of day.
Worked hard this morning, crafting synopses and outlines for one of the books.
Mostly what I was up to today, just because it was a hunker-down chilly kind of day.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Writing Machine
I woke up super-early for some reason. Annoying, but I'll make it work for me at the moment. I finished the edits to the book I was working on. I like it well enough -- I remember why I never proceeded further on that one: namely, because it ends on a cliffhanger, fairly demanding a sequel, and, at least at the time, I didn't want to jump right into a sequel for that one. I had originally wanted that one to be a stand-alone Fantasy novel, not the prelude to an epic, since Fantasy novels have "epicitis," basically. And since the marketing of that one will require me to likely pitch it as a lead-in to an epic, which implies that I'd have the entire thing planned out to the end, which isn't the case with something like an epic. But I'm still hopeful that I can market it, even as I'm wary of the larger implications of it. I have a "sequel" of sorts for it I could adapt, and may have to do that. And/or, I may write Fantasy books that are set in the world I created and advance the story I set up in Book 1 with a big brush, without necessarily jumping right into where I left off in the first book. Not entirely sure at the moment.
What I'm not going to do right now is write something cold, right out of the blue; at the moment, I'm occupied with finalizing every book draft I have on file -- three down, nine to go. Just working my way through the stack.
This week'll be primarily occupied with marketing those three books, although I'm also thinking about which book to finalize next. Based purely on word count, I may do Book 2 of the Fantasy (I know, after the brooding above, I'm somewhat ambivalent about that, but if I'm working my way down from longest/most finished book drafts to the shortest, least-finalized ones, it'll be the choice that compels itself). I may bite the bullet (heh, or the crossbow bolt, as it were) and just press on with that, having the first two of the epic finalized, hoping that it'll be enough to entice a publisher, without having to be on the hook for Book 3. We'll see.
Otherwise, it'll be one of the Young Adult/New Adult novels, one of which requires a major revision/rewrite I've been putting off for a month or two. I'm being very disciplined, at least for the moment.
I saw "Black Swan" yesterday, and found I enjoyed it (had "Swan Lake" in my head for the rest of the day). I thought the casting of it was near-perfect, despite not being a fan of Natalie Portman's acting -- but in this movie, it worked, she worked. The director shot it in a style that made me think of a documentary, like the use of film, which added, despite the oddness in it, a kind of reality vibe to it. The movie was laughably over the top in a number of parts -- almost operatically so, amusingly enough, for a ballet movie. There was a little missing in the characterizations, and an unreliable "narrator" kind of thing that made it somewhat disorienting, but there were some good scenes in it, too. Winona Ryder's casting as a discarded ballet star was fascinating, given her also-ran status in Hollywood, anymore -- it was hard to see her in a fairly small role as the unhinged ballet casualty and not think of how her acting life has gone the last decade or more.
And that was something in the movie that was curious -- between Mila Kunis (as the young rival to Portman), Portman herself (as the ingenue ballet star), Ryder (as the fallen star), and Barbara Hershey (as the never-was/wannabe star/mom from hell), there was a curious unity between all of these women. Like past, present, and future all contending with one another and/or represented in one movie. Again, the casting director earns props for their choices, because they resonate.
The Black Swan dance was the standout moment of the movie for me, just visually striking and dazzling to behold, a literal whirlwind of sensation. Anyway, I enjoyed the movie far more than I thought I would, even with the dramatic limitations of Portman in evidence -- the directory adroitly moved around and through them, a kind of ballet of its own, I suppose.
What I'm not going to do right now is write something cold, right out of the blue; at the moment, I'm occupied with finalizing every book draft I have on file -- three down, nine to go. Just working my way through the stack.
This week'll be primarily occupied with marketing those three books, although I'm also thinking about which book to finalize next. Based purely on word count, I may do Book 2 of the Fantasy (I know, after the brooding above, I'm somewhat ambivalent about that, but if I'm working my way down from longest/most finished book drafts to the shortest, least-finalized ones, it'll be the choice that compels itself). I may bite the bullet (heh, or the crossbow bolt, as it were) and just press on with that, having the first two of the epic finalized, hoping that it'll be enough to entice a publisher, without having to be on the hook for Book 3. We'll see.
Otherwise, it'll be one of the Young Adult/New Adult novels, one of which requires a major revision/rewrite I've been putting off for a month or two. I'm being very disciplined, at least for the moment.
I saw "Black Swan" yesterday, and found I enjoyed it (had "Swan Lake" in my head for the rest of the day). I thought the casting of it was near-perfect, despite not being a fan of Natalie Portman's acting -- but in this movie, it worked, she worked. The director shot it in a style that made me think of a documentary, like the use of film, which added, despite the oddness in it, a kind of reality vibe to it. The movie was laughably over the top in a number of parts -- almost operatically so, amusingly enough, for a ballet movie. There was a little missing in the characterizations, and an unreliable "narrator" kind of thing that made it somewhat disorienting, but there were some good scenes in it, too. Winona Ryder's casting as a discarded ballet star was fascinating, given her also-ran status in Hollywood, anymore -- it was hard to see her in a fairly small role as the unhinged ballet casualty and not think of how her acting life has gone the last decade or more.
And that was something in the movie that was curious -- between Mila Kunis (as the young rival to Portman), Portman herself (as the ingenue ballet star), Ryder (as the fallen star), and Barbara Hershey (as the never-was/wannabe star/mom from hell), there was a curious unity between all of these women. Like past, present, and future all contending with one another and/or represented in one movie. Again, the casting director earns props for their choices, because they resonate.
The Black Swan dance was the standout moment of the movie for me, just visually striking and dazzling to behold, a literal whirlwind of sensation. Anyway, I enjoyed the movie far more than I thought I would, even with the dramatic limitations of Portman in evidence -- the directory adroitly moved around and through them, a kind of ballet of its own, I suppose.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Huh
Firefox has a new update, this one with personalization of the browser, blah blah blah. I went with "Yakuza Paint," which caught my eye, although at the moment it keeps drawing my gaze to the upper-right corner of the browser, as my eyes are not yet used to the layout, keeping going "Huh? Huh?"
This morning, I saw a silverfish face a moment of indecision -- I saw it on the floor, was going to stomp it, and the thing was about to zig, then hesitated, contemplating a zag. It really was a moment, like "Do this! No, wait, do THAT!" I'm no fan of silverfish, but it was a charmingly mortal moment, and I actually spared the lil' stinker because of it.
I've got about one-third of the third to-be-finalized book edited, and looking to finish that up today. Then I might catch "Black Swan," which I'm still guardedly curious about. Beyond that, nothing fancier than folding the laundry I did yesterday, and minding the boys, who'll be here later today.
This morning, I saw a silverfish face a moment of indecision -- I saw it on the floor, was going to stomp it, and the thing was about to zig, then hesitated, contemplating a zag. It really was a moment, like "Do this! No, wait, do THAT!" I'm no fan of silverfish, but it was a charmingly mortal moment, and I actually spared the lil' stinker because of it.
I've got about one-third of the third to-be-finalized book edited, and looking to finish that up today. Then I might catch "Black Swan," which I'm still guardedly curious about. Beyond that, nothing fancier than folding the laundry I did yesterday, and minding the boys, who'll be here later today.
Friday, December 10, 2010
HL2
I played through Half-Life 2 in about 34 hours. I'm on HL2: Episode 2 at the moment (having nearly completed HL2: Episode 1 already). Have to hand it to Valve -- they made a sweet sequel to the original Half-Life. Vastly entertaining, marvelously rendered, devastating effort. Loved it.
Can't complain about the addition of the character, Alyx, to the story, either, although she can sometimes be...hmmm...distracting...
Saw a goddamned gnome statue in HL2: Episode 2. I tried destroying the thing, but it was impervious to harm. I toted it along for awhile, but ultimately had to get rid of the lil' fucker...
Mmmmm, Alyx, I'd never leave you behind...
Her face and personality are nice, too... ; )
I liked this writeup of Alyx in Wikipedia...
I found myself while playing the games talking to Alyx. Bahah! They designed her program well, as she does help you out.
Can't complain about the addition of the character, Alyx, to the story, either, although she can sometimes be...hmmm...distracting...
Saw a goddamned gnome statue in HL2: Episode 2. I tried destroying the thing, but it was impervious to harm. I toted it along for awhile, but ultimately had to get rid of the lil' fucker...
Mmmmm, Alyx, I'd never leave you behind...
Her face and personality are nice, too... ; )
I liked this writeup of Alyx in Wikipedia...
Since she first appeared in Half-Life 2, she has received very positive reception. She has received her reception for both her intelligence and her beauty amongst other factors. Play magazine listed her as their favorite computer game female character in their sixth "Girls of Gaming" special, calling her "the best partner Gordon Freeman could ask for."[4] UGO.com rated Alyx thirty-third in their "Top 50 Videogame Hotties" article, stating "Now here's a girl that you could actually take home to Momma. Alyx has it all: brains, good looks, and a stinging personality that can keep the comers at bay."[5] They later listed her at number eight in their "Top 11 Girls of Gaming" article, stating "there's just something about her that makes her unforgettable", noting her bond with the player and describing her as a "cute post-apocalyptic chick with short hair and a take-no-crap attitude, a rarity in this age of eye candy and cheeseball characterization."[6] Bit-tech rated her as the number one PC game NPC of all time, saying, "What makes Alyx such a popular supporting character is how believable she manages to be even in the utterly sci-fi world of Half-Life. The brilliant animation of the character combines with the fabulous voice acting and witty script to create one of the most important characters in a computer game, ever." [7]
GameDaily included her in a list of "Ten Babes Who Should and 10 Babes Who Shouldn't Meet Your Mom", citing her loyalty, her proficiency with electronics, and her sensible choice of clothing.[8] They also included her in their "Babe of the Week: Brunettes" piece, describing her as one of the best sidekicks in video games.[9] GamesRadar ranked her second in their list of the top seven tasteful game heroines, describing her as the "go-to girl for female leads", describing her as one of the most human female video game characters.[10] The Game Reviews editor Mark Fujii listed Alyx as one of their "top 10 video game women who don't use sex to sell", stating that she is as fantastic as video game characters get. He describes her as "smart, funny, belligerent, charming, and cute even with her grungy attire and boyish haircut", adding that gamers grew to love her due to her personality, not looks, citing the negative reaction to a mod that gave her a sexier appearance.[11] Topless Robot named her one of the "11 Most Dignified Videogame Heroines", citing that while she was a secondary character she was still very prominent, though despite her strengths she fulfilled the cliche of a "summer movie heroine".[12] GamesRadar named her "Miss 2004" in their article on the sexiest new characters of the decade, stating that giving her the award required no debate amongst the staff. She was described as brainy and strong-willed, as well as "relentlessly up-beat, funny, and friendly" in the face of peril.[13] They also listed her as one of the top 25 best new characters of the decade, again citing her head-strong attitude and pleasant personality. They described her as one of the first non-playable characters to deviate from the standard.[14]
Alyx was featured in a series of promotional images released by Valve Corporation spoofing an Apple Inc. commercial.[15]
I found myself while playing the games talking to Alyx. Bahah! They designed her program well, as she does help you out.
Winterland
It snowed again last night; not a lot, but a pleasant dusting that left the city looking all winter-sweet.
I'm about one-third done with the editing/revision of one of the fantasy novels. I should have this "finalized" by week's end, and on from there. With that one done, I'm likely to do another fantasy novel, same finalizing treatment for it, and then on to one of the "Contemporary" ones.
I'm about one-third done with the editing/revision of one of the fantasy novels. I should have this "finalized" by week's end, and on from there. With that one done, I'm likely to do another fantasy novel, same finalizing treatment for it, and then on to one of the "Contemporary" ones.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Scenes from the day...
New Volvo sedan, parked in the 'hood. Owner appeared to be sleeping in it/living in it (all their stuff in the back, cardboard screens up on the windows).
Very bright sun dogs today, dazzling.
Very bright sun dogs today, dazzling.
Mending
Getting better; the cold was pretty mild. The past few years, the colds that have struck me have been pretty weak, fortunately. I am not complaining, since before then, the strain of cold virus had been pretty robust.
It's been frickin' cold over here, but it's winter, so I don't dwell on it much. Good writing weather, as I call it.
I love this monologue by Keith Olbermann -- gotta love pissed-off liberals. Our country needs far more of them...
No Peace Through Appeasement
I bought the boys' Christmas presents -- now the challenge will be sneaking them into the apartment -- B2 in particular is eagle-eyed, always on the lookout for things. I am a holiday ninja, with a great track record of non-discovery of presents, but I'll have to bring my A-game with B2 out and about. B1 is usually more concerned about computer games than incoming packages. My hiding place is in the master closet, which is cavernous. There's an area to the side of it where I can secret presents, and it's perfectly screened by clothes. Muahaha!
On the writing front, I keep working on final revisions of books that are nearly ready to go. I want as many of them finalized as possible, to get'em out the door to publishers, just to play the odds. For me, it's purely about word counts -- those with the highest word count are getting consideration first, and I'm working my way down from there.
So, that means tackling a pair of Fantasy novels, then a Young Adult/New Adult novel. After that, another Horror novel (that'll bring my total to three Horror novels, although two of them could perhaps be marketed as Supernatural Thrillers -- that's something I wrestle with a lot, like the genre marketing of such things). After that, not sure what I'll do, next. I'll let you know when I get there.
It's been frickin' cold over here, but it's winter, so I don't dwell on it much. Good writing weather, as I call it.
I love this monologue by Keith Olbermann -- gotta love pissed-off liberals. Our country needs far more of them...
No Peace Through Appeasement
I bought the boys' Christmas presents -- now the challenge will be sneaking them into the apartment -- B2 in particular is eagle-eyed, always on the lookout for things. I am a holiday ninja, with a great track record of non-discovery of presents, but I'll have to bring my A-game with B2 out and about. B1 is usually more concerned about computer games than incoming packages. My hiding place is in the master closet, which is cavernous. There's an area to the side of it where I can secret presents, and it's perfectly screened by clothes. Muahaha!
On the writing front, I keep working on final revisions of books that are nearly ready to go. I want as many of them finalized as possible, to get'em out the door to publishers, just to play the odds. For me, it's purely about word counts -- those with the highest word count are getting consideration first, and I'm working my way down from there.
So, that means tackling a pair of Fantasy novels, then a Young Adult/New Adult novel. After that, another Horror novel (that'll bring my total to three Horror novels, although two of them could perhaps be marketed as Supernatural Thrillers -- that's something I wrestle with a lot, like the genre marketing of such things). After that, not sure what I'll do, next. I'll let you know when I get there.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
*KOFF KOFF KOFF*
Finally got a cold. I was wondering if I'd be able to make it through the winter season without one, but no dice. Nothing too major, fortunately, but it's still irritating, and is lounging in my lungs, wearing me out. I just need some rest.
Had odd dreams last night; one had me walking in at some employer and talking up my good points with an employee there, a kind of ad hoc interview. I'm sure that's just some part of my brain trying to deal with the logistics of this bad economy.
It's supposed to be supercold in the city today. The high is only going to be 23 degrees. Brrr. I lost one of my superwarm polartec gloves. Not sure where the stinker went. Hate that.
I have to craft a new query letter for the next book that's ready to go out the door this month. Query letters are the worst; everything hinges on those handful of words. So much depends on so little.
Had odd dreams last night; one had me walking in at some employer and talking up my good points with an employee there, a kind of ad hoc interview. I'm sure that's just some part of my brain trying to deal with the logistics of this bad economy.
It's supposed to be supercold in the city today. The high is only going to be 23 degrees. Brrr. I lost one of my superwarm polartec gloves. Not sure where the stinker went. Hate that.
I have to craft a new query letter for the next book that's ready to go out the door this month. Query letters are the worst; everything hinges on those handful of words. So much depends on so little.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
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