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Randomness for 9/2

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1) Blind soccer championships, 2010. Video.

2) Gail Simone wants the comics industry to open their eyes.

3) Paul Krugman notices that Trantor is less dense than the state of New Jersey. That doesn’t even include all those Jersey Devils.

4) Normally, I’m not someone who laughs a crotch-kicks, but this sketch gallery of Batman being hit in the balls is pretty funny, even if just for the facial expressions.

5) What it’s like to be captured by Somali pirates. I put this here mainly for myself, so I can read it later.

6) “You don’t have to read my book to be my friend.”

7) Getting out of jury duty via Facebook.

I have web presence!

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This morning my wonderful wife made a fancy breakfast for me. Soon I’ll be heading out into the rain and bluster to visit local book stores so I can sign copies of my books (and “encourage” the staff to move the books onto the shelves).

But! Things I have written have appeared at various online spaces today. On the very same day my book comes out! What a coincidence! Here’s a quick list of where I am today:

My Big Idea essay on John Scalzi’s “Whatever” blog, in which I talk about the pernicious influence of film/TV media on otherworldly creatures in prose fiction.

My editor at Del Rey talks about the process of telling an author that their work needs major changes. Inexplicably, she uses Game of Cages (and me) as an example, and she titled the post “Mudwrestling with authors.”

At SciFiBookshelf.com, I talk (briefly) about the process of writing this book. In other words, you hear about the mudwrestling from the author’s point of view!

I am interviewed at Fiction Kingdom. Curious about what music I listen to while I write? Want to see me dodge questions (in this case, about series-spoilers) like a politician with a hangover? Check it out.

I’ll be hitting the bus stop soon so I won’t be able to respond to comments for a while. I hope you all have a great day, and more importantly, I hope I have a great day.

Reviews of my books, part 17

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Yay! It’s a special Book Day review roundup of my first two books. Whoo-hoo!

1) Starred review from Publishers Weekly! Whoo-hoo! “Connolly fulfills and sustains the promise of his 2009 rural noir debut, Child of Fire, with this thoughtful Lovecraftian sequel.” (no direct link, because it’s behind a pay wall at PW, but you can read the whole thing at Amazon).

2) Game of Cages gets a Harriet Klausner review, and she liked it. “The second Twenty Palace Society rural fantasy (see Child of Fire) is a great thought provoking yet action-packed noir.” The synopsis is a bit wrong, but, you know…

3) Game of Cages got a great review in August Locus (no link because it’s in the paper edition): “This has become one of my must read series.” Oh, yes that makes me very happy.

4) Child of Fire got this fairly positive tweet-review from @johnmbeaulieu: “… almost as good as Dresden Files” Hey, I’ll take it.

5) TJ at Dreams and Speculations gives Game of Cages an 8 out of 10. “Child of Fire was a great debut of a series very much like Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden but with a slightly different flavor. Game of Cages takes that solid beginning and improves on nearly everything–especially the action.”

6) Only 3 stars from RT Reviews this time (after Child of Fire got 4.5): “Connolly handles the noir aspects well, and Ray is an interesting anti-hero, conflicted about his role in society and the choices it forces on him.” What the reviewer didn’t care for was a slow start (!) and a lack of… wait for it!… exposition! Honestly.

7) John Rogers, writer/executive producer of LEVERAGE, gives a reason you might want to buy Game of Cages: “One of the few urban magic books — for lack of a better term — novels I enjoyed last year was Harry Connolly’s Child of Fire. And I loved it.”

Randomness for 8/28

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1) Note to shoplifters: Don’t try to rob a store while they’re in the middle of a police charity event.

2) Deep Fried Beer. Linking is not approval.

3) By the time this post goes online, I expect this policy to be rescinded: School segregates class elections by race.

4) Spontaneous badassery.

5) A treehouse for people who love fantasy and need cardio. Lots and lots of cardio.

6) In case you don’t have enough reason to be sick of TWILIGHT, here’s the toilet decal.

7) Alternative Universe movie posters. Brad Pitt as Plastic Man? Tim Curry as the Joker? Love it. via tor.com

Randomness for 8/25

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1) Hobo Superman, and the sad superheroes of Latvia.

2) Hungover owls. Tumblr has reached its apotheosis.

3) I don’t usually link to “books as construction material” items, mainly because I don’t see the appeal of having walls you want to read but can’t, however this mushroom garden, where the books are both structure and food for the mushrooms, is pretty compelling.

4) Occasionally I’ll see aspiring writers say things like “Don’t pro writers see all sides of a situation? Aren’t they a little wishy-washy?” Really, though, no. Almost all the writers I run into have very strong opinions, most of them dopey. (Warning, that link is aggravating.)

5) Former RNC Chairman and Bush campaign manager Ken Mehlmen comes out of the closet.

And:

6) Remember the “I’m Sorry” people at the last Chicago Pride Parade? The ones with signes that read “I’m sorry that Christians judge you,” “I’m sorry the way churches have treated you,” and “I used to be a bible-banging homophobe, sorry.”? Yeah? Well it turned out to be more “Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin” bullshit. Sorry, people who hoped for better.

7) On a lighter note: Library books thwart purse-snatcher. Good thing that old guy wasn’t reading books on his iPad.

Randomness for 8/23

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1) Medieval copy protection: Sometimes people come to me and ask, “How did medieval filmmakers protect their DVDs from piracy?”

2) Choose (or create) wake up music for NASA astronauts on the last space shuttle mission. via @seattlegeekly

3) Reading, all around the world.

4) The Freedom of the Road wasn’t free for everyone.

5) Small countertop machine turns plastic back into oil Video. Put some solar panels on the top of that bad boy and I’m happy.

6) Why SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD bombed at the box office. “People say it’s become cool to be a geek. That’s not true. People have just started applying the word geek to cool people. Hipsters aren’t geeks and geeks aren’t rock musicians and rock musicians aren’t old school gamers”

7) Brandon Sanderson’s long-awaited WAY OF KINGS available at a charity auction. The charity benefits Doctors Without Borders. Spread the word!

Randomness for 8/20

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1) This is one excellent ad for a pen. Large images, but no video. I’d show these to my son, but then I’d have to buy him a couple. I especially love the UF heroine.

2) Have a spare million dollars? Maybe you can come up with story ideas as good as J.D. Salinger’s if you sit where he sat.

3) Have you been seeing computer folks talking about “P=NP” lately? Have you wondered what it is? Here’s your explanation.

4) An article featuring several writers who are also parents, and how they manage it. One of them happens to be me. Give it a read if you like.

5) INCEPTION… starring Dora the Explorer. Video.

6) “Can you tell me who the author of Shakespeare is?” and “What kind of bookstore doesn’t have anything on BAYWATCH?”

7) Better book titles.

Randomness for 8/18

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1) Everything is better in France. Even muggings.

2) Trends in fantasy cover art for 2009.

3) Your monster instructional video for the day.

4) James Bond, Indian comic book style: “You hide identity for good. But there are Super Dupers who never reveal themselves at the worst.”

5) Seven scientific reasons the zombie apocalypse will not be an extinction event.

6) Rope gymnastics in India. Video. Honestly amazing.

7) Fifty-five incredible manipulated photos.

This is my sad face, indie bookstore edition

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Everyday this month, I’ve posted about a book giveaway, and I’ve included a link to indiebound.org’s listing of Game of Cages every day. In fact, I’ve had a link in the sidebar of my blog for months.

And while I’ve had dozens of click-throughs, no one has bought a book from them.

My bookstore-loving brain is hoping that those sales will show after the book is officially published (which is 8/31–only two weeks away OMG), but come on, Child of Fire has been out since the end of last September, nearly 11 months ago, and no one has ordered that, either.

It’s sad to say that those links aren’t working for me, as much as I’d like them too. I’ll check the affiliate stats again in September, but it looks like I’ll be dropping those links from my site. Which is too bad; I’ve ordered books through indiebound, and it’s a good system.

Randomness for 8/16

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1) Wikipedia’s lamest edit wars.

2) Redesigned book covers.

3) A Star Wars Kid for the new age: HALO KID! Video.

4) Our Daughter Isn’t a Selfish Brat; Your Son Just Hasn’t Read
Atlas Shrugged. “When little Aiden toddled up our daughter Johanna and asked to play with her Elmo ball, he was, admittedly, very sweet and polite. I think his exact words were, “Have a ball, peas [sic]?” And I’m sure you were very proud of him for using his manners. To be sure, I was equally proud when Johanna yelled, “No! Looter!” right in his looter face, and then only marginally less proud when she sort of shoved him.”

5) How to recognize a card skimmer at your ATM. via Mary Catelli

6) How good do you have to be to win the World Yo-Yo Championships? Watch and find out. Video.

7) The history of Aquaman, explained.