I’m going to the gym this morning for the first time in over a year. Yeah, it’s going to cut into my writing time and I’ll need to steal time from something else to make up for it. But I’m in terrible shape and constant pain. I can’t keep living this way and I certainly can’t keep up with my writing commitments.
Starting slow with lots of stretching. We’ll see how my pain levels do.
Ten classic sf novels that were originally considered failures. What does it say about my knowledge of the genre that I haven’t even heard of some of these books? Also, must remember not to sell a book to a publisher owned by a bookstore. Yeesh.
I’ll be in training all morning and taking calls in the afternoon. I expect today to be worse than yesterday. Oh well.
1) A terrific book trailer for Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned. Video
2) Where good ideas come from. Video.
3) ‘Damn. Are we that different from people?’ I can’t think of any way to summarize this profile of Insane Clown Posse except to say that it’s really, really interesting. They’re evangelical Christians? (Added later: the SNL parody. Video. My reaction to that spoof: SNL is still on the air?)
4) Buy artificial hands to touch your baby. Hey, it’s not as creepy as this teddy bear made from a placenta! Hello, horror movie that is the real world.
5) Animator vs. Animation III. Video.
6) McDonald’s burgers can TOO grow mold on them, says McDonals.
7) Sir Ken Robinson talks modern education. Video. This is another RSA Animate video, and I love it. (Let’s ignore the Ritalin error)
Lots of folks are writing about bullies lately, but as far as I can tell (I won’t try to claim I’ve read every article/blog post on the subject) they’re not saying what I want them to, so I’ll have to say it myself.
I’m not one to be particularly worked up over what happened to me in school. My school sucked, but it wasn’t until I grew up and ventured out into the world that I realized it was not the normal thing. As it turns out, most schools don’t have kids who attack other kids with claw hammers in the hall. Most schools don’t have kids who carry huge serrated bread knives in paper towel and scotch tape sheaths. Most high schools don’t have kids doing bong hits in class while the teacher is lecturing.
And so on. I probably would have been better off if I’d dropped out but whatever. Let’s just say that there was a lot of bullying in my schools.
And I perpetrated some of it. Not a lot, because I was pretty freaking low on the social totem pole, but some, because no matter how low I was, it was just unacceptable for me to be lower that that guy.
There was a bit of churn at the bottom of the social ladder, actually. Victims of one kind or another were always searching for someone to be superior to, for someone they could treat with contempt. For someone to be bullied. And while it was one thing to be pushed around or punched by a HS kid who was on the football team and looked like he was twenty-five years old, it was unacceptable to take a punch from another victim, unacceptable to have someone so low on the social ladder get his foot on your neck.
But whatever. Everything back then was bellum omnium contra omnes. My school. My home life (especially). Even my friends–who I loved and will continue to love, who are fantastic people–was a constant sting of insults and put downs. That’s pretty much all we ever said to each other.
I’m going to skip the story about my son in kindergarten because this is getting long. I will say this: Victims of bullying need help. There’s no doubt about that. But the bullies need help, too.
I’m not just taking about assholes like me, who made sure three out of every four words I said were some kind of supposedly-funny insult, or the kids who were bullies just so they wouldn’t be at the absolute bottom. I’m also not just talking about kids with problems that would make good afternoon specials: kids from broken families, or who have abuse or addiction problems at home.
I’m talking about every bully, even the ones who are athletic, good-looking, and smart, the kids from good families with nice clothes. All of them. Because if a kid, any kid, bullies someone, that kid has a problem. The best way to deal with bullying is to protect the victims and care for the bullies. You have to help them get over their shit so they can live like decent human beings.
Because they’re just kids.
Hating life.
New reviews of my work:
1) I try not to duplicate info on my blog and Twitter, and I don’t usually post links to Amazon.com reviews, but I’m making an exception for Charlaine Harris: “Ray Lilly is one of the most interesting characters I’ve read lately, and Harry Connolly’s vision is amazing. I can hardly wait for the next one.”
Score!
2) I didn’t see this when it came out, but Game of Cages got a terrific review from Booklist: “Ray’s voice continues to be charming despite his rough edges, and the plot more than taut enough to keep the pages turning at a breakneck pace; and there is definitely some fascinating history hidden beneath the surface of the world Connolly is spinning, and it’s thoroughly entertaining.” (no link, because I copy-and-pasted it from Amazon.com)
3) Jeremiah loved Game of Cages: “Wow… Way down the rabbit hole with the series after reading this book. Love it.”
4) An unnamed reviewer at Daily Ebook Reviews not so much. “Overall, I’d say the story felt like it was constantly firing away on two cylinders instead of four. Given how much I enjoyed Child of Fire, I know Connolly can do better than that.”
5) Chris Valin at Wax Tadpole liked Game of Cages: “Where the sequel surpasses the first book is in the fleshing out of both the main character and the world in which he lives.”
6) Game designer Rob Donoghue also liked Game of Cages: “… it rockets forward, once again underscoring how scary you can make something without ichor by illustrating it’s impact more than the thing itself.”
7) David Hines didn’t like Game of Cages as much as Child of Fire, but he still liked it: “It’s still a really solid horror action/thriller, and if it’s not as conceptually exciting as its predecessor it does a good bit to compensate in the thrills department.” He also didn’t like the title. Me, I love “Game of Cages” as a title more than any of the others I’ve come up with so far. Child of Fire and Circle of Enemies are okay, but I lurve GoC so much I can remember where I was when I thought of it.
On Monday the 18th, I will have an article on Bitten By Books as part of their new “Authors Speak Out” series. At least, I think I do. I sent the essay, but haven’t heard back whether it’s acceptable or not. Yes, I’m a pessimist. It’s how I survive. Update: It’s acceptable and will run next week. Yay!
However! If any other UF writers out there want to take part, you should contact the good folks over there. It’s a pretty active community. C.E. Murphy is currently talking about whitewashed covers. Check it out (and maybe win some free books).
The casting call for it is online now.
If you’re an actor in the L.A. area, check it out.
1) Random House UK will publish novelizations of new and old Hammer Films. A fine idea, if you ask me.
2) My wife and I saw this guy’s art on the First Thursday Art Walk. Beautiful and fun.
3) Keep it classy, Europe! Mom discovers her missing daughter has been found dead on live TV, while standing in her killer’s dining room.
5) Look at yourself. Now look at Grover. Back to yourself. Now back to Grover. Video.
7) 14 Inflatable Buildings. Maybe it reveals a flaw in my personality, but the urge to puncture the wedding chapel and have it deflate on the whole wedding party would be intense. Via Martha Wells.
Here are some story ideas I’ll never write. I’m putting them here because the act of giving them away will ensure they don’t bug me all the damn time.
1) Ma Kent, anti-vax crusader: School nurse discovers that a local anti-vaccination activist is actually trying to hide the fact that her child is a Kryptonian-style alien w/ alien physiology and maybe unbreakable skin. I see this one as a horror story, where the mom seems crazy and over-protective at first, but the protag suddenly realizes the mom is trying to protect everyone else from her kid.
2) Smaug, jewel thief. A tough female police detective investigating a string of puzzling jewel thefts realizes that the thief is actually a dragon in human form, and it’s trying to rebuild its treasure pile. A paranormal romance/procedural, maybe along the lines of Out Of Sight, with Clooney as the dragon.
3) Urban fantasy/courtroom thriller: This is an idea that seems so obvious that I’m sure it’s been done, but I can’t find evidence of it. A courtroom thriller set in a world with standard UF creatures. How will the law change to accomodate the undead? Will non-humans be granted human rights? Alternately, the fantastical elements might be secret–the lawyer for the opposing side might realize that the guy he’s suing is a vampire, or a member of the faerie court, and how do you win against someone who can hypnotize/glamour your witnesses?
4) Serial Resurrectionist: A man who can bring the dead back to life resurrects suicides. I have no idea how to pull this one off without being completely ridiculous and awful, but I keep thinking about it.
5) The haunted lair: Set in a superhero universe, a mastermind-type supervillain brings in a squad of exorcists to put to rest the ghost of a minor superhero/sidekick the villain killed there. The hero doesn’t know he’s dead, and has been interrupting the villain’s work with bombastic speeches and sudden attacks. Of course, once the exorcists’ job is done, they have only the villain’s word that they’ll be set free.
I like this one. I could write it. I just don’t have the time.
6) Peter Parkour, the Spectacular Spider-man. Spider-man agrees to make a parkour video, the sales of which will benefit his favorite charity (isn’t Aunt May working for a shelter right now?) but his jumping around leads him to stumble onto a villain’s hideout, maybe The Vulture. There’s a big fight–caught on video–and SM seems about to lose, but the videographer convinces the villain to pose in better light for the camera and he does, giving Spider-man a chance to clear his head and win the fight.
Too bad I don’t have the rights to this character.
7) God hates killers. Vampires exist, and holy symbols make them burn and scar. But then, holy symbols burn everyone who’s guilty of murder, because God has decided to give the vampire treatment to every killer in the world, living or dead. Homicide detectives routinely spritz suspects with holy water and war vets need to carry a special ID card so TSA personnel don’t brand them every time they try to reenter the country.
And yet, a murder has been committed, and the only possible suspect (she’s even confessed!) can drink holy water like iced tea and handle every crucifix in the precinct house. How can this be?
Meh. It’s an interesting story idea, but too theological for me.