My official publication date for Child of Fire is five weeks away, but reviews are already popping up online, thanks to the bound galleys that were sent out.
They’re mostly good (yes, I’ve been reading them), but not all. And no I never expected all of them to be flattering, but come on, how could they not be 100% raves? Really? How could they not?
Of course they’re not. Mostly, they’re very good and very flattering.
I should stop reading them.
“Don’t touch the bacon, it’s not done yet. You let me handle the bacon, and i’ll let you handle..what ever it is you do. I guess nothing.”
“The dog is not bored, it’s a fucking dog. It’s not like he’s waiting for me to give him a fucking rubix cube. He’s a god damned dog.”
“Why would i want to check a voicemail on my cell phone? People want to talk to me, call again. If i want to talk to you, I’ll answer.”
from Sh!1 my Dad says.
Also, many Americans believe false allegations about the health care reform bill.
“Repeat a lie a thousand times and it becomes the truth.”
The only vacation I had this year was my trip to L.A. and San Diego. The L.A. part of the trip was nice, because I got to see friends, but my time in SD was spent at the Comic-Con, which was crowded and uncomfortable.
And that’s all the vacation I’m getting this year.
Someday I think I’d like to visit an Italian villa by the Mediterranean–a little beautiful estate to walk on, cool breezes, unusual foods (for me, at least) and a lot of quiet time to read and play.
What would be your perfect vacation?
You can listen to both voice mails at the link above. Together they’re only four and a half minutes long.
I wrote this a while back for another place but forgot to repost it here. Well, here goes.
Rebooting movie franchises is the new black, and I wondered what I would pitch to G. Lucas if I was asked to come up with a rebooted take on Star Wars IV: A New Hope.
This is my take, written very quickly to get it all down. I wouldn’t call it a final version–there’s a bit more to work out, but I’m not going to put the effort in until someone wants to offer me the job.
What classic movie/movie franchise would you reboot?
STAR WARS: The Rebootening
First, let’s acknowledge that the stuff that came as a surprise in the original series isn’t surprising any more. (“That’s no space station!”)
Start with the attack on Leia’s fleeing ship and the escape of the droids. Vader menaces Leia in front of her staff, then whisks her away.
The droids make it to the planet, but they know exactly where they’re going–straight to Owen and Beru’s place.
Luke works on his uncle’s moisture farm, but old Ben Kenobi is a farmhand there. He’s been keeping an eye on Luke for his whole life. Luke, of course, is the secret son of the incredibly-powerful wizard-general of the Empire, and he might be useful someday.
The droids arrive, and Ben takes them off to an outbuilding to “work” on them. Luke complains about having to do Ben’s chores as well as his own, but the adults are tense and nervous about their arrival.
Luke wants to get off the farm, but not to join the rebellion. He wants to pilot one of those Imperial Dreadnaughts–a lifetime of Imperial propaganda has convinced him that the Republic was weak and corrupt. Biggs–an older friend from a nearby farm–says that there used to be a lot more smugglers, bounty hunters, gangsters etc in the old days, but the Empire has been cracking down. (Did you ever notice how *huge* the criminal class in SW was?) Luke, callow youth that he is, wants to be a big man. He wants to get off this measly farm and be *important*. Continue reading
Be sure to watch to the end. This is classic. As Keith said, I’m glad this guy is out there.
I think I’m going to pick the butt lion for her. The way the fabric is all dark at the center seam is so appealing. Or maybe I should go for the ass owl.
Aw, heck! I’ll get one of each! (seen via Cherie Priest’s FB)
eta: My wife has declared them “brilliant.” I still love her, though.
It was a comment on another board that prompted the informal poll from this morning. The writer stated that many people went to movies they knew would be awful (Hello, Transformers 2) because they wanted to be part of a big event.
Me, I was dubious, because what “event” could he be talking about? The release of a summer tent-pole movie? Somehow, I doubted it. More likely, I thought, was the surge of online commentary–argument about the plot, parodies, discussions of who’s hawt and who leaves you clammy, whatever.
I should note that I don’t go to movies for this–mainly because I don’t go to movies. It’s impossible to find a baby sitter, and my wife and son already saw PONYO without me (do I resent them for it? Fuck yeah.).
Books, well, I buy them near publication now, to support the author and make sure I have a copy when I finally get around to reading it 18 months later. But I don’t generally buy and devour (except for Harry Potter). Books just don’t have the same urgency.
And finally there’s TV. If enough people talk about a TV show, praise or slam, in interesting ways, I’ll make a point of watching it. I watched CASTLE because of this, and DOLLHOUSE, too. I used to read a lot of commentary on SUPERNATURAL, but it’s fallen off my reading list, and I’m not nearly as enthusiastic about the show as I used to be (for several reasons, actually, but that’s just one).
I also watch a couple shows that no one seems to talk about. AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN? Anyone? Even notice how it’s the women on that show who do all the cooking and the men are either taste-testing or in the back experimenting on melon ballers or whatever? No?
Anyway, I was just trying to determine what sort of “event” this fellow was talking about.