William Wolfe's Den

Chronicles of the Black Company by Glen Cook

2012-02-20T07:00:00.000-05:00

It's a safe bet these days that if I'm not blogging, I'm reading. Lots. Last week, I returned to the former job I had, that of "small town bartender" - that and everyone in my house being afflicted by some curious stomach ailment - which has slowed me down somewhat, pending a readjustment to my scheduling and activities.

This is where I get my reading goals caught up - for this was actually three books in one. Speaking of which, instead of labeling my posts "reading journal", I'm going to do this instead. Easier to glimpse and decide if you want to read it. Housekeeping and navel gazing, woo hoo!

Chronicles of the Black Company - Glen Cook. 2007. (Male, Fantasy, Series, New Author)

Darkness wars with darkness as the hard-bitten men of the Black Company take their pay and do what they must. They bury their doubts with their dead.

Then comes the prophecy: The White Rose has been reborn, somewhere, to embody good once more….

The three stories of the omnibus (as seen on the cover) are The Black Company, Shadows Linger, and The White Rose. While probably not the intention, I thought the first one was superior to the ones that followed.

This was straight up epic military fiction. The best description of it came from Steven Erikson's back cover blurb which reads, "Reading his stuff was like reading Vietnam War fiction on peyote."

The narrative voice was excellent - if you've ever watched a military movie, there's always some old general who does a voice over monologue, and that's how I heard it. Sharp, dry, chopped language. Some things get explained, some things don't. A lot of self-deprecation... it's that alpha male voice that looks back and says, "I coulda done that better."

Very entertaining. And despite it being primarily a military fiction, there were a great number of fantastic elements (flying whales, talking rocks, prophecies, and more) and plenty of magic. The magic was more LoTR than Codex Alera*, but this was balanced by making the practitioners relatively mortal, if not hard to kill. Moreso, the theme of The Black Company, as a military unit, was to use guile to force the enemies to make mistakes, so magic had a role and a place, and did not instantly solve the problems they faced.

Glen Cook is one of those authors that gets a lot of mention on book review blogs. I can see why. He created a solid world, with a memorable cast of well-developed characters. The stories were very fast with lots of gritty action. Having said that, this wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, leaning more towards a Joe Abercrombie** notion on the fuzzy vs gritty scale. This much action, in a military setting, inevitably leaves less room for character development and warm fuzzies at the ending.

However, Chronicles of the Black Company wasn't all doom and gloom, and it certainly wasn't as dark as Abercrombie or GRRM. Mind you, while the omnibus edition came out in 2007, the original stories came out in 1984 and 1985, so this was absolutely pretty dark and gritty for back then.

Overall, I enjoyed it, though. Glad I read it and I'll be returning to read more of it in the future. Solid characters, interesting world, and a stimulating pace. I'm a better writer for having read this.

------

* & ** - I'm not doing book reviews, but I can't really help but to measure things on a scale.

On the magical realism scale, I'd place Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter on one end as the most unrealistic. Wave your fingers, chant a funny word, and something wonderful happens. On that end, magic has more to do with your age and/or destiny.

On the other end of the scale, I'm using Jim Butcher's Codex Alera as a good, balanced, realistic, magical system. In a balanced system, everyone has access to magic, it requires study and practice and it has notable costs and limitations. (Magical realism is all the buzz in bloglandia lately - probably deserves its own post.)

The other scale is the Fuzzy vs. Gritty scale. I'd use LOTR as one end of the scale again, where everyone pretty much grows up and lives happily ever after, the much more wiser for their adventure. The other end of the scale belongs to Joe Abercrombie, where sometimes the bastards win and the heroes get killed. Also, the amount of doom, gloom, blood and generally unacceptable social conditions.

I may have to rework those ideas somewhat. I'm open to suggestion.

Valentine's Day, Game of Thrones style.

2012-02-14T05:28:00.000-05:00

Via Chris Bishop.

Daenerys is my favorite! How about you?

Have a great Valentine's Day.

Manifesting Change - Mike Dooley

2012-02-13T22:01:00.001-05:00

I decided to change up the format for my reading journal (in case that wasn't obvious). In keeping with my reading goals, herein is my first (completed) non-fiction of the year. It took me some time to read it, not due to its length, but rather due to wanting and/or needing to absorb the concepts within.

Manifesting Change: It Couldn't Be Easier - Mike Dooley. (2010) (Male, Non-Fiction)

Author and international speaker Mike Dooley illuminates exactly how to move beyond the law of attraction to the next level—manifestation. In his most powerful and comprehensive work to date, Dooley reveals his master guide for following your heart and taking action on your dreams. Manifesting Change explains the actual mechanics behind every dream, how you fit into the equation of “Reality Creation,” and which steps you can take that will lead you to the desired end results without worrying about the details. Dooley expands upon the universal mysteries of why you are here, who you really are, and all that you deserve. It includes easy-to-understand exercises, stories, and analogies, and reveals the extraordinarily unique concept, the “Matrix” that clearly shows the flow of events that will, or will not, automatically trigger changes in your life based upon your thoughts, words, and actions.

When I was young, and more angsted than I was/am as an adult, I read a number of pop psychology books inbetween the classics, comic books and fantasy fiction. I read Dale Carnegie. I studied sales courses. Always, all of it, about the "power of positive thinking."

Like you're supposed to shrug off the bad things that happen. Not worry about how your bills are going to get paid or if anyone is going to love you. Just be happy and bouncy and that's enough. You know, those books will always sell, because people are always looking for an answer to make their life better, and we all eventually get to looking deep within. But, ultimately, they're all instructionals. Do this. Think that.

None of them had any premise. Anything that you could hold onto, other than "be positive". So vague. So seemingly impossible when life thumps you in the head again and again.

Sometimes I look up quotes and put them on twitter or facebook or append my emails with little clever phrases - I've always had a thing for quotes, since I was in high school. I've also got a thing for pattern recognition - and the thing I noticed this year was that all of the "inspirational" quotes that I found all had the same message, inherently. The same message that Dooley teaches in this book. It's more than "be positive" - it's ... set your mind upon your success.

About a year and a half ago, I did a brief write up for Dooley's first book, Infinite Possibilities. I did well with the information contained within, but my life still sees challenges and I struggle against myself and my demons. I studied too much psychology, so I knew I needed to keep reading, to keep pushing my own personal limits. Enter Manifesting Change.

Manifesting takes everything a notch further. Gives reasons and explanations that pop psychology never will. It's a logic that once you embrace its roots, you will begin to see candles behind the silk screen. I'd been out of work for a month, and a day after I started reading, a former employer called me and asked me back. There are no coincidences.

As a writer, I'm my own worst critic. I spend most days reading blogs on sf/f, author interviews, agent articles, publisher news releases, and a gazillion writing tips. It's so overwhelming, so intimidating. My blog has few followers, I've barely any friends on facebook, there's so much to learn, to know, to try.

It's so EASY to get mired in the swamp of doubt and hesitation and procrastination - and fear. It's not enough to have someone pat you on the shoulder and say, "Oh, it'll be fine. Just smile and think happy thoughts!" Right. You can kiss my a*s. I think for a living, man, give me something to chew on. Explain it to me like I'm a four year old.

I would suggest reading Infinite Possibilities first, but it's not necessary. And while I have strong views on politics, religion, and social psychology - I'm not inclined to soap box too much here, either. I think you'd be surprised to discover that everything that happens to you - is your own doing, one way or the other. That's not a terribly hard concept to grasp - but overcoming the doom and gloom of the daily grind in a world where there's just so much death and destruction, that gets a little more complicated.

Sometimes you just need a reminder. A jump start. A nudge, in the right direction, to get your life the way you want it. No one does it better than Mike Dooley. I said it a year and a half ago, and I'll say it again - if you read just one self-help book in your lifetime, if you open your mind just once to the possibility that you can do and have all of your dreams come true - then read Mike Dooley.

Musical Interlude - Whitney Houston

2012-02-11T23:14:00.000-05:00

Pop music sensation Whitney Houston passed away earlier today from unknown causes, though the unfortunate speculation is the cause of death is drug related.

As a karaoke host in the 90's, I've heard more of Whitney's songs than I could possibly count - hers was a beautiful voice filled with soul, and it was no surprise that so many wanted to emulate that. Her involvement with Bobby Brown was a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions and even after divorcing him, her career was never the same, though she still had the talent.

Whitney Houston was one of the very few pop/ballad vocalists with a voice that I never grow tired of hearing; she was just that good. However, the song that I picked brings back a great memory. My junior year in high school, I played Varsity football (mostly from the bench, alas), and the team was pretty good. We went 7-3, which was our best record in a long while (til my Senior year when I thought I would become a boxer, so I didn't play football that year, and we ended up going 9-1).

Had some great friends playing football. I was probably the smallest guy on the team (besides the kicker), but the players treated me with respect, and the coaches made me work out as if I wasn't supremely scrawny. (Seriously, I was put at nose guard at one point.) I got tough, I got strong, and developed a great deal of self-respect, while fortifying some amazing friendships. I never had much of a sports career, nor glory days, but I always look back on my athleticism with fondness for what it did for me, the geeky guy.

At the post-season banquet, there was a highlight video reel, and this was the song that served as the soundtrack. Every time I hear it, I think of 3-a-days in a Florida summer, of the first time I got hit so hard I saw stars, and the coach mutilating my name at the top of his lungs while motivating me to play harder. Good times.

No matter the mistakes she made in this lifetime, the power of her voice, and the impact of her inspirational songs, will always be her legacy. The good far outweighed the bad, no matter what the media would have you believe. May she rest in peace.

Lyrics:

Each day I live
I want to be
A day to give
The best of me
I'm only one
But not alone
My finest day
Is yet unknown

I broke my heart
Fought every gain
To taste the sweet
I face the pain
I rise and fall
Yet through it all
This much remains

I want one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

I've lived to be
The very best
I want it all
No time for less
I've laid the plans
Now lay the chance
Here in my hands

Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

You're a winner for a lifetime
If you seize that one moment in time
Make it shine

Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will be
I will be
I will be free
I will be
I will be free

Reading Journal | 2-6-2012

2012-02-06T18:29:00.000-05:00

Got about a hundred pages further into my January non-fiction, but alas, didn't finish it. I think, also, the nature of the topic. Perhaps this week I'll finish it.

Kushiel's Justice (Kushiel's Legacy) - Jacqueline Carey. 2008. (Epic Fantasy, Female, Series)

Imriel de la Courcel's blood parents are history's most reviled traitors, while his adoptive parents, Phèdre and Joscelin, are Terre d'Ange's greatest champions. Stolen, tortured, and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood, third in line for the throne in a land that revels in beauty, art, and desire.

After a year abroad to study at university, Imriel returns from his adventures a little older and somewhat wiser. But perhaps not wise enough. What was once a mere spark of interest between himself and his cousin Sidonie now ignites into a white-hot blaze. But from commoner to peer, the whole realm would recoil from any alliance between Sidonie, heir to the throne, and Imriel, who bears the stigma of his mother's misdeeds and betrayals. Praying that their passion will peak and fade, Imriel and Sidonie embark on an intense, secret affair.

Blessed Elua founded Terre d'Ange and bestowed one simple precept to guide his people: Love as thou wilt. When duty calls, Imriel honors his role as a member of the royal family by leaving to marry a lovely, if merely sweet, Alban princess. By choosing duty over love, Imriel and Sidonie may have unwittingly trespassed against Elua's law. But when dark powers in Alba, who fear an invasion by Terre d'Ange, seek to use the lovers' passion to bind Imriel, the gods themselves take notice.

Before the end, Kushiel's justice will be felt in heaven and on earth.

Incredible read. I ripped through 880 pages in a matter of days. The friend who introduced me to Jacqueline Carey, through Kushiel's Dart (book 1 of 3 in the first trilogy of this ongoing, epic series), noted that her interest fell off with Imriel as the protagonist. When I wrote about the previous entry in this series, back in December, I spent more time praising Carey's skills as a writer and the effects of her prose on my mind.

In the middle book in this second trilogy, Carey's prose continues to shine, soothe, and entertain. This entry is much more provocative than the tales have been in awhile - a welcome change, because expressing sensuality is Carey's absolute finest talent as a writer.

Imriel is of age, and Carey takes him to task. His journey and plight is unbelievably harsh, which made for great storytelling. While the author does an amazing job of portraying well-rounded, intelligent and strong female characters, her men tend to be a little flat or a little too perfect. She's getting better as the books progress, and did quite well with some of the male secondary characters (Maslin and Mavros, in particular, I felt stayed true to their character arcs). Perhaps Imriel is somewhat too circumspect for a man his age - no matter how brilliant and gifted we are, it's hard to imagine an 18 year old boy making all the right decisions for the right reasons. But I guess that's why they become heroes and we read their tales.

Overall, I love the story, and the next (Kushiel's Mercy) becomes a "must read" even though there can be little doubt what will happen in the big plot - the enjoyment of Carey is reading the words that describe how it all comes to pass. Beautiful storyteller.

For her skill in soft, intimate, provocative storytelling that still manages to engage blood, battle, magic, heroic journeys and political intrigue, I can't recommend her enough.

Viewing Journal:

I found Spartacus: Gods of the Arena on sale during Black Friday 2011, and it sat on my DVD shelf undisturbed since. I am revising some fight and battle scenes in my WIP, so this past week seemed a good time to go ahead and take a look.

The House of Batiatus has towered above the city of Capua for many years. Spartacus: Gods of the Arena will explore its deadly history before the arrival of Spartacus, and the death he carried with him. Loyalties will be tested, lives shattered, and battles waged in this thrilling prequel to Spartacus: Blood and Sand.

For the sake of continuity, I imported my review of Spartacus: Blood and Sand, and simultaneously provide you with a reason why I don't review things for a living. Fortunately, back then, my blog had a couple readers who endured my ridiculous analyses.

Anyway. I didn't realize S:GoA was only 6 episodes. The realization made me sad. The other thing that made me sad was one of the major subplots was all about Crixus, the monotone gladiator who was easily the least convincing character on the screen (maybe in the world).

However! Lo and behold, the experience of a full season behind them - the chemistry and storytelling between the actors, directors and producers in this second season was clearly evident. Since it's a prequel, the viewer already knows how it's going to turn out - but - the telling was very good. Quite a few "ooh ahh" moments as pieces of the puzzle come together.

Production wise, they toned down the homoerotica without hiding either the not uncommon period homosexuality nor the prevalence of sweaty, oily, slave men. In other words, they found their target audience without being dishonest about the reality of ancient Rome.

Also, it's rather curious how the villianous Batiatus' of Season 1 become almost sympathetic as the viewer learns how and why they become what they did. There's something quite charming about an antagonist with depth.

While there's a megaton of info dump in the first episode, the story picks up well and steams to its conclusion by the end of the sixth hour. You could probably watch the first episode twice, and catch all the nuances - I didn't, because the accents and dialogue and 'telling' made me feel like I was at Shakespeare in the Park.

Overall, Starz' upped their game with this, and showed the ability to take the concept a little further. S:GoA was a strong improvement over the first season. This will never compete with the budget or complexity of The Borgias or A Game of Thrones, but I think it stands well enough on its own as indulgent, fast-paced visual entertainment, reflecting a time in history when troubles were settled with less complications.

*

What have you read or watched this last week that's worth noting?

Comic Relief | On Sonnets

2012-02-03T10:38:00.000-05:00

Sonnets are my favorite poetry form to dabble with, elsewhere.

Click for bigger image, or go to the link below.

Brilliant. I love it.

Source: http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=2136

TiStF | Pythons taking over the Everglades

2012-02-01T06:00:00.001-05:00

I was born in south Florida, some many years ago. As a child living on the west coast with relatives on the east coast, my father and I took many road trips down "Alligator Alley." At the time, it was an unlit, two lane highway cutting through the Everglades. 90 miles or so. No gas stations, no guard rails, no traffic lights. If you were a five year old and had to pee, you held it - or took your chances on the side of the road that a gator or a panther would come up and eat you.

The upshot of that trip was that sugar cane grew wild on the Miami side. Hack a stalk down with a machete and it would last longer than any tootsie pop. Very 1970's, hmm? Yes.

This article on Yahoo caught my eye. According to it, The National Park Service has counted 1,825 Burmese pythons that have been caught in and around Everglades National Park since 2000. Among the largest so far was a 156-pound, 16.4-foot one captured earlier this month.

And now, the smaller mammals that live in the Everglades are slowly disappearing. Imagine that.

Two things happen. One is that pet snakes get too big for their owners - so the clever owner turns it out into the wild, thinking to do both himself and the pet snake a favor. Good idea, bad implementation. Better to take it to a zoo, or a place devoted specifically to the species.

The other thing that happens in south Florida, is hurricanes. When hurricanes hit, people are saving themselves, their children, their bread and water - and not necessarily their pets. Maybe their dogs, but your 10' python isn't fitting in the back of your toyota when you're trying to evacuate. Also, homes and pet shops get storm damage, and those creatures go free. Animals tend to be a bit more resilient to natural disasters than humans, survival instinct and all that. Flooding and power outages and debris keep some storm-ravaged areas unoccupied for days and weeks at a time.

What we end up with is an over population of animals that aren't designed for the particular environment where they end up. A Burmese Python will have no natural predators in the Everglades - because it doesn't belong there.

Although scientists cannot definitively say the pythons are killing off the mammals, the snakes are the prime suspect. The increase in pythons coincides with the mammals' decrease, and the decline appears to grow in magnitude with the size of the snakes' population in an area. A single disease appears unlikely to be the cause since several species were affected.

The report says the effect on the overall ecosystem is hard to predict. Declines among bobcats and foxes, which eat rabbits, could be linked to pythons' feasting on rabbits. On the flip side, declines among raccoons, which eat eggs, may help some turtles, crocodiles and birds.

What's so fantastic about this? Throw this scenario into a fantasy setting. There's some predatory exotic pet that is fashionable to keep. A mighty storm - or war - or dragon fire - ravages the community in question, and suddenly these exotic pets are free. They take up residence in the nearest geographical haven, multiply because their life cycle is uncontested, and next you thing you know you have the cliche' of "The Haunted Forest" filled with man-eating creatures.

Interesting video clip on the situation. Alligator vs Python - it's a draw!

But! Let's go to PBS, where the first python gets eaten. Yay? The second one, however, eats a gator half of its size! Do the math.

Better book those air boat tours to the Everglades now, before it becomes the Python Glades, hmm?

Video | HBO's Game of Thrones Trailer, Season 2

2012-01-31T06:00:00.002-05:00

Virtually every blog I watch has already posted this - but just in case you missed it:

Season 2: Preview - You Win or You Die

Damn... that gave me chills. I can't wait!

Reading Journal | 1-30-2012

2012-01-30T09:00:00.113-05:00

I know I said I'd do it weekly. I GUESS I LIED. (Or, I didn't read anything last week.)

I know I also said I was reading Marquise de Sade, but I can't read that type of prose at this stage in my editing and revisions. So that's shelved for now.

In related news, I got a late Xmas gift of a KINDLE. Which means I get all sorts of new variety in my non-fiction and classic fiction, which enhances my TBR pile significantly. In a good way. I'm excited.

Here's what I've read this past fortnight.

The Warded Man - Peter V. Brett. 2009. (Epic Fantasy, New Author, Male, Series)

From the Amazon page:

"As darkness falls after sunset, the corelings rise—demons who possess supernatural powers and burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years the demons have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and whose protection is terrifyingly fragile. It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms, but those days are gone. Night by night the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle under their relentless assault. Now, with hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will dare the impossible, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past. Together, they will stand against the night."

I was pretty excited to finally get this - it's educational to see what publishers (especially big ones like Del Rey) are looking for in debut novelists. As debut novels go, this was pretty strong. The worldbuilding was elaborate and very well-construed.

It was a curious thing to watch the children become adults - something that we don't see enough of in this genre - but I'm not sure I was ever truly concerned for their life, despite plenty of opportunities to cheer or gasp for the protagonists.

The magic system (of wards) is excellent - perhaps the best part of the world-building, and the story is told well enough such that you're not asking, "Really? No one thought of this or that before now?" (Well, some might.)

The next book in the series is The Desert Spear.

- and -

Last Argument of Kings - Joe Abercrombie. 2008. (Epic Fantasy, Male, Series)

Back cover:

The end is coming.

Logen Ninefingers might only have one more fight in him-but it's going to be a big one. Battle rages across the North, the king of the Northmen still stands firm, and there's only one man who can stop him. His oldest friend, and his oldest enemy: it's time for the Bloody-Nine to come home.

With too many masters and too little time, Superior Glokta is fighting a different kind of war. A secret struggle in which no one is safe, and no one can be trusted. As his days with a sword are far behind him, it's fortunate that he's deadly with his remaining weapons: blackmail, threats, and torture.

Jezal dan Luthar has decided that winning glory is too painful an undertaking and turned his back on soldiering for a simple life with the woman he loves. But love can be painful too-and glory has a nasty habit of creeping up on a man when he least expects it.

The king of the Union lies on his deathbed, the peasants revolt, and the nobles scramble to steal his crown. No one believes that the shadow of war is about to fall across the heart of the Union. Only the First of the Magi can save the world, but there are risks. There is no risk more terrible, than to break the First Law...

Mr. Abercrombie can weave a dark, fantastic tale. If there's anyone out there talking about "dark, gritty, realistic fantasy" - they're comparing it to him. Had I not read the trilogy to its beautifully honest conclusion, I would never have believed that any author had the talent to take absolutely villainous miscreants and make them sympathetic. The cost of war, the cost of choices, the cost of dark magic - everything handled brilliantly, fairly. Characters are seen through to the end: nothing is as it seems, but it's quite exactly as it should be.

Prose, worldbuilding, plot - all excellent. Characters stumble, grow, fail, get beat up, grow some more.

Also, confession: I'm jealous of the dialect and prose of the Northmen. It's perfect. I want it in my head.

Could I read 50 books like this? No, no, no. But I'll be reading more Abercrombie, or rereading this series. Because sometimes fairies and miracles and magic swords DON'T save the day. Not for the faint of heart whatsoever, but if you hear people talking about 'dark fantasy' and want to see exactly how it should be done? Start here: The Blade Itself: The First Law: Book One . Thank me afterwards.

*

This week - Non-fiction, and something light in fiction. Have to tinker with the Kindle, dontcha know?

Musical Interlude - Etta James

2012-01-20T18:06:00.000-05:00

Hers was a beautiful, rich, distinct, powerful voice with honest and compelling lyrics. May she rest in peace.

Reading Journal | 1-16-2012

2012-01-16T09:00:00.043-05:00

So continues my sojourn into keeping up with my goals this year, and paying attention to what I read (and watch). As with the other (writing journal), I'm not exactly sure what I want to do with the format just yet, so we'll just keep this nice and simple.

Reading Journal:

Finished Conqueror by Conn Iggulden. LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. Review posted. (Historical Fiction, New Author (to me), Male)

Finished From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris. Loved it. Harris' skill continues to grow with each book in the series, as well as the evolution from a series of stand alone stories to a growing epic urban fantasy. Also, a female protagonist who is neither a super hero nor utterly weak, Sookie increasingly makes tough emotional decisions and stands her ground and has to live with the decisions she's made. Is this series as dramatic or complex as most of the fantasy I read? Absolutely not. It's light, it's fun, it's part mystery, part paranormal romance, part urban fantasy. It's certainly escapist - but it's well done - and I believe that to be the point. I am certain to continue with the series. (Urban Fantasy, Female Author)

Next: Marquis de Sade, one of his stories in the anthology I have.

Viewing Journal:

Barbarians - The Mongols. Was surprised to find this whole History channel documentary on YouTube. It was informative, of course, and more content than I expected. For me, it went hand in hand with Mongol (2007), in my collection, and Conqueror, above. Research wise, the Mongols intrigue me tremendously due to their nomadic lifestyle and effective war strategy - there's at least one or two tribes in Zherlios that will eventually parallel the Mongols, one way or the other (although not entirely).

History's Turning Points - BC 31, Battle of Actium. This was a historical documentary, reflected in Season Two of HBO's Rome. The interesting facts from this were that Octavius wasn't a member of the household (as the fiction suggested), and the slightly less romantic tale of Antony and Cleopatra. However, historically accurate or not, both of those arcs, as well as the warfare involved, make for fantastic fiction.

History's Turning Points - BC 480 - Battle of Salamis. Everyone knows the infamous Battle of Thermopylae, but what is lesser known is that the Persians continued to advance after defeating the Spartans. Ultimately, the Persians were beaten at sea, then again on land by a larger Greek force. This documentary covered those events, with the focus on the naval battle in the Bay of Salamis.

What's fascinating to me, in watching the documentaries, is the level of technology present 2,000 years ago. So often genre readers complain about how all fantasies are set in "medieval" or "Renaissance" settings - but most of the technologies that are considered medieval were actually developed in classical times, in the reign of the ancient Egyptian, Roman, Greek and Persian Empires.

The Fellowship of the Ring (extended version), The Two Towers (extended version), and The Return of the King (extended version). With The Hobbit (Part 1) coming out in December, I thought it was reasonable to rewatch the trilogy. Watching the modernization of Tolkien is refreshing and inspiring. In many ways, I respect and appreciate his tropes, his world-building, his bestiary. (Truly, for a good time, look up "do Dwarven women have beards" on the internet. Hilarious.) In this way, I think the established tropes should be left alone, and accepted as they are.

However, I couldn't help but notice that the Hobbits as a race aren't particularly believable - and with what I've seen of The Hobbit so far - Dwarves are comedy relief. In my own writings, Halflings are more functional and organized as a tribe, and Dwarves take themselves a little more seriously. And, yes, Dwarven women do have beards. Even in real life, one culture's definition of beauty is not the same as the next. In terms of moral ambiguity (Tolkien is too black and white, it is said), I don't think there's wrong with GOOD vs EVIL. It has a place and it's escapist and entertaining and clean. But I also enjoy shades of grey. If you look close enough, even in Peter Jackson's telling, it's not all "super good" versus "super bad", it's a great deal of "mostly good" versus "mostly bad". This is another post altogether, for another time.

*

Anything that I've read or seen that you are curious about? Do ask! Otherwise, have a great week!

Conqueror: A Novel of Kublai Khan by Conn Iggulden

2012-01-14T08:00:00.000-05:00

As part of the Librarything Early Reviewers program, I received Conqueror: A Novel of Kublai Khan by Conn Iggulden.

The synopsis from Amazon:

The novels of Conn Iggulden bring the past to thrilling life, from ancient Rome to thirteenth-century Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Now he delivers the spectacular story of the rise of Genghis Khan’s grandson, a man destined to become one of the most remarkable rulers who ever lived—the legendary Kublai Khan.
A succession of ruthless leaders has seized power in the wake of the great Khan’s death—all descendants of Genghis, but none with the indomitable character that led a people to triumph. One grandson, Guyuk, decadent and vicious, seeks to consolidate his position through bribery and murder, pitting powerful factions against one another and straining the loyalties of the tribes to the breaking point.
Next comes his cousin, Mongke, who eliminates all possible opposition with breathtaking brutality and dispatches his younger brothers Kublai and Hulegu to far-flung territories, to test their mettle and their allegiance.
Hulegu displays his barbarity with the savage destruction of Baghdad and his clash with the Khan’s age-old enemies, the cult of assassins, who will strike deep into the heart of the nation. But it is Kublai—refined and scholarly, always considered too thoughtful to take power—who will devise new ways of warfare and conquest as he builds the dream city of Xanadu and pursues the ultimate prize: the ancient empire of Sung China. His gifts will serve him well when an epic civil war breaks out among brothers, the outcome of which will literally change the world.
Brilliantly researched and imagined, unforgettably told, Conqueror is a magnificent achievement from an enthralling writer at the peak of his powers, a must read for all lovers of history and storytelling on the grand scale.

When we hear tales about the Mongols, we almost always hear about Genghis Khan in the same breath. For this reason, it was refreshing to see a historical fiction about his grandson, Kublai Khan, the Mongol who ruled the territory that became present day China.

According to the author's website, this is the fifth and final novel in the "Conqueror" series. I hadn't previously read any of the previous books, and it didn't affect my understanding of the events within the story whatsoever.

The story itself is fascinating, and the factual and/or historical aspects only lend itself to the incredulity of what Kublai Khan ultimately achieved in his lifetime. We start off with him as a young man, a scholarly type, and follow along as his other relatives become Khan, during which time Kublai learns the ways of warfare - the tale ends shortly after he becomes the Great Khan.

That was probably the biggest disappointment in the story itself - there was so much more to tell - particularly his struggle in conquering the Chin territories (of present day China) - and so it seemed that the story ended sooner than it could or should have. However, this led to a greater focus on the other influences in Kublai's life, as well as the challenges he had to overcome before he could even become the Great Khan.

In retrospect, it's rather interesting to feel sympathy towards a conqueror, particularly since - although Kublai was somewhat refined as opposed to much of his kin - the Mongols, as a tribe, were considered barbaric compared to the cultures that they defeated. You wouldn't expect to feel that way - it's like cheering for Darth Vader at the height of his strength - and that sensation alone is a tremendous testament towards Iggulden's storytelling skills.

On the downside, the prose had some issues. Particularly in the beginning, there was a good deal of "head hopping" and it was hard to follow the narrative voice and attributed thoughts, feelings and dialogue. In some places, the sentences were choppy, as if translated from another language (perhaps intentional? I doubt it). I struggled with the fluidity of the prose for the first portion of the story, almost to the point where I might not have finished. Several chapters in, the problem was less prevalent, and the action of the story most certainly overcame any flaws in the telling. I flew through the last two-thirds of the story in half the time it took me to get there.

I know there are other stories with difficult beginnings, which is the only reason I mention this. To someone who is going to pick this up, knowing the gist of the tale, I would suggest soldiering on, and it'll pay off.

Overall, Kublai Khan's story, the immersion into Mongol history/culture and the appreciation to be gained for a relatively unsympathetic historical character far outweighs any of the flaws of the telling.

Writing Journal: 1/13/2012

2012-01-13T12:44:00.002-05:00

It wasn't a productive week, I'm afraid. I've had a sinus migraine for the better part of the last two weeks, adjusting to a new sleep schedule and hammering out some domestic issues.

It's arguable that, in so many words, if I can make excuses now, then I'm an amateur writer. Butt in seat, and all that. Yes? Yes. However, one doesn't put a roof and walls on the house before the foundation is built. I know, from my experience, that I can be extremely productive once my environment is settled. So, right now, I'm focusing on settling domestic concerns and taking care of my health. Also, because I can - I'll worry about handling deadlines when I actually have them. ;-)

Not sure yet what I want to include or not in these posts, so for today, it's short and sweet, just to keep me on my program. Have a great weekend!

Original Writing:
Dirty Girl. Scene. Erotica*. 1282 words.
Best to indulge and reminisce, rather than to forego and regret.

A Gift. Flash fiction. Erotica. 305 words.
The lingerie draped her soft, feminine curves, in just the right way - revealing some, alluding more.

2012 Goals post. Essay.

Next project: Book review of Conqueror by Conn Iggulden, for Librarything.

Editing / Revising:

Catalyst: Revised and shortened Chapter 103 to completion. (Not an actual chapter number - just coding for my reference.) Forwarded to beta reader. 2,728 words.

Orcs occasionally were found in the western passages. They were few and far between, never organized, and easily dissuaded. Over the years, of course, there had been some fighting, some unfortunate deaths when a Dwarf was caught unawares, but the creatures remained a vague threat. One was more likely to fall in a river of lava, or die beneath a cavern's collapse, than to be killed by an Orc.

Began revisions to Chapter 105. 6720 words. Material to be carried from excisions in 103, material to be removed, and material to be pushed forward. Tribal dialects to be removed and replaced.

Total Word count, as of 1/14: 133,468
Goal: 125,000 (or less)

* A note on writing erotica. Sex scenes are often the most criticized in any fiction. However, done correctly, they are able to reveal a character's truest sense of self, vulnerabilities, passions, etc. Additionally, bedroom and relationship dynamics are often a reasonable way to explore cultural and gender beliefs and nuances. Lastly, it is the use of a scene in order to evoke an emotional response from the reader. While I enjoy writing provocatively, writing short erotica pieces allows me to hone my skills of visual, emotional and physical interactions. I could probably omit mention altogether, but I am simply not that shamed by it, and these reports are as much for my own use as they might be interesting to anyone else.

2012 Goals | Reading, Writing, Blogging, Personal

2012-01-09T10:19:00.001-05:00

I confess that I'm a bit of a hypocrite - because I've been reading posts about everyone's goals for the new year and I roll my eyes. I'm sure it's documented somewhere that most new year resolutions fall off by February.

And here I am. A sheep. In Wolfe's clothing. Ha ha.

I guess that I'm doing this obligatory post mostly for my own satisfaction - this blog gets some hits, but I don't have the followers or comments here that I've had elsewhere. For now. I'm going to work on that.

When I kept a review blog a year or two ago, there was slightly more traffic and/or watchers - though I suspect that this was a function of "You watch my blog and I'll watch yours." Still. One of the things I did at the beginning of the month was to "mark all as read" in my google reader, and I've been keeping up ever since. Eventually, I'll get around to actually commenting, and (theoretically) that will bring more traffic.

Why? Because it's more interesting to post when people respond.

Reading Goals: Mondays, I'm going to post my reading journal. My goal is a fiction book a week, and one non-fiction book per month. Last year, I read several authors that were new to me, and I want to continue this trend, as well as returning to authors whose skill is much greater than mine, such as Jacqueline Carey, Guy Gavriel Kay and George R. R. Martin. I also want to balance male and female authors. There's something to be gained, as a male author, by reading a female's voice.

In fiction, I am going to return to epic fantasy and historical fantasy as my primary reading efforts - with urban fantasy for my leisure/entertainment reading (meaning: Going to finish up the Southern Vampire Mysteries series, and continue with Patricia Briggs and Carrie Vaughn). I'm going for a ratio of 3 epic fantasy per historical and urban fantasies read.

Last year I didn't keep stats for my reading - this year I'm going to keep records, so that I can look back and see how well I did. Why? Reading is part of an author's job. Seeing what others do right, do wrong, do differently, do exceptionally well. The enjoyment I find in reading a well-crafted tale inspires me and my muse towards my own material.

*

Writing Goals: "Catalyst" is about 40% revised and edited and sitting at about 135k words. There are some fatty sections that need to be trimmed to appeal to the current market. There are some parts that need to be added as well. Ideally, I suspect I should aim for 110k words, but my goal is 125k. Adding in a few antagonist(s) POV chapters, I believe, will support that word count.

Beyond that? Two short stories that fall in the same timeline as "Catalyst", that I need to write for the canon of the world events and tribal foundations. They are mostly notes on pages at this point, though I have the stories in my head. After those are written, I'd like to put down at least 50,000 words towards the next full length project. Ideally, twice that.

Professionally, "Catalyst" to be ready for submission by summertime, giving me a few months by which to hone my query letter and continue research on suitable agents. Not likely a process I will be detailing too much here.

Lastly, the availability of online writing workshops and their relative drop in price has made me reconsider them. I'd like to attend at least one class here, or attend one or two workshops online, before the end of the year. The benefits are countless - but first and foremost, I need to have a finished manuscript.

*

Personal goals.

My financial and domestic situation has never fully balanced out since becoming unemployed in summer 2009. I've worked sporadically in 2010/2011, but nothing special (or permanent), as it turns out. Ultimately, staying with friends and struggling to make ends meet goes a long way towards distracting me from creativity - so this is something I've got to take some time and get on top of. Essentially, I have to choose to pursue writing as my career and find a job that will support that - or pursue my career and go back to writing as a secondary venture. What I'm doing now is neither, and it's not working. I need my own place, my own workspace, and a sense of sanctuary.

Last week, I started working out at a gym. You might be surprised to learn that I'm out of shape, because I'm rather slender. I gained a lot of weight when I was unemployed - and it all went to my midsection. Also, I haven't pursued any serious fitness regimen in over a decade, so I've not only gained some fat, but I've lost what muscle I did have.

Turns out I function better when I get up super early in the morning, work out and get on with the day. That's not terribly surprising, after all - more like a "duh" moment. But it feels good, and I'm in need of it.

Which means I have to quit smoking. I actually like smoking... there's something useful about getting up from the computer, stepping outside, gazing at the surroundings... I have done my best thinking while smoking. But it's also stupid to run 2 miles on a treadmill and then smoke afterwards. Really, really stupid. I just turned 40 last year, and ... yes, it's time to quit. Today, I try the nicotine patch. We'll see how it goes.

It's a funny thing, gaining weight and balancing nutrition with Crohn's Disease. Working out (and quitting smoking) makes you eat more - but Crohn's is not kind to absorption, and the biggest problem I've had with quitting in the past is being able to process all the extra food that I want to eat. I'm hoping that balancing this out with more physical activity will give my body something to do with the extra food, rather than it just irritating my intestines. The other side of that issue is that, due to bad nutrient absorption, all that working out is wasted and muscles don't get what they need to heal. I'm happy to have gained weight, but I need to make this program work so that I can convert it into muscle from fat.

Lastly, this year, I'm happy. I got a little angsted towards the end of 2011, between personal challenges and things not working out the way I would have liked. Not only was it a bummer towards my creativity, but it made me angry and depressed and all sorts of feelings that I decided that I didn't like. You pretty much reach a point where you have to decide what you're going to do - keep doing what you're doing, or do something different. With the New Year came the perfect timing and excuse to get back on track.

All things considered, life is good. Getting better. I just had to remember that.

*

Blogging goals.

Reading journal, writing journal - mostly for me, to see if what I think I'm doing actually has any basis in reality. Also, because I want to compare my progress to the book review blogs I read (morbid curiosity). (Also, also) I think I will track sf/f, historical fantasies and documentaries that I watch - I find myself connecting pieces of puzzles with certain stories told with documentaries covering something similar, etc. You'll see, or rather, I'll see how that works out. Har.

Reviewing - I will still do the occasional review for Librarything, whenever I get chosen there. Beyond that, I'm not inclined to review current works/authors - plenty of folks doing that, and they're much better than me. However, for non-fiction and for older works (Marquis de Sade is on my TBR pile), I will likely write up something more comprehensive - though it still won't be a review.

I have ideas for features, and it will really just be a matter of seeing if I have the time to implement them. I like the idea of divulging some of Zherlios' canon, revealing some of the worldbuilding tidbits here and there - with the possible issue of some factoids changing over time as I do more research. I notice that certain issues spring up on author/reviewer/sff blogs that I may pipe in with my 2 cents worth. (The latest one is moral ambiguity in fiction, which is a rehashed argument from a year ago.)

I like the idea of exploring fantasy tropes, and pursuing the idea I started a couple of years ago. Though, I'm not certain if this doesn't fall in with worldbuilding/canon. Going to play this by ear, too.

Magic the Gathering: I've done little more than collect a ton of cards as a hobby, but Dark Ascension is coming out at the end of the month, and the one MTG post I wrote last year has more hits than anything else I've written.

Problem with certain topics is that you pretty much can't discuss anything that someone else hasn't already covered and with likely more skill. Technically, that shouldn't matter.

Ultimately, though, this blog remains a playground for thoughts and ideas and a place to share. The goal is simply to generate more discussions and be more consistent with content. We'll go from there.

*

Big ass post. Damn. I gotta work on that, too.

What are your goals in 2012?

Reading Journal | Carrie Vaughn, Charlaine Harris, Jacqueline Carey

2011-12-31T18:00:00.001-05:00

Well, here it is, the end of 2011, and to tidy up my sense of what I've achieved, and what I need to strive for, here is the final bit of my reading journal, the books I finished before the clock struck midnight.

Definitely Dead (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 6) - There was a hiccup in the smooth flow of the continuing storyline here. It didn't trouble me overmuch, but the short story "One Word Answer" will fill in the gaps in Sookie's plotline, for those of you following along.

All Together Dead (Sookie Stackhouse Series, Book 7) - Bestseller Harris mixes humorous Southern-fried fantasy with biting satirical commentary in her seventh novel to feature Sookie Stackhouse, the bubbly telepathic barmaid from Bon Temps, La. (after 2006's Definitely Dead). Sookie attends an all-important central U.S. vamp summit on the shores of Lake Michigan as a "human geiger counter" for Sophie-Anne Leclerq, vampire queen of a Louisiana weakened by Katrina and who will be tried during the event for murdering her king. Sookie knows the queen is innocent, but she's hardly prepared for other shocking murders, not to mention protests by the Fellowship of the Sun, a right-wing antivampire movement. Her sleuthing skills, along with those of her new telepath friend, Barry the Bellboy, are put to the extreme test. Harris juggles a large cast, including several romantic contenders for Sookie's heart, with effortless exuberance. HBO's True Blood, based on this addictive series, is scheduled to begin its TV run this fall.

I can't say too much that I haven't already said. The series is keeping my attention. Harris is a skilled writer, and it's not likely that I'll stop reading them at this point. However, it is what it is - light, brisk, fun, escapist literature. Are there global themes and character developments and other such literary aspirations? Of course. But mostly, it's entertainment. And that's what storytelling should be.

By the end of this year, I was intent on mixing it up. Keeping with my theme of female authors...

Kitty and the Midnight Hour (Kitty Norville, Book 1) - Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station?and a werewolf in the closet. Her new late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged is a raging success, but it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf-hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew...

I've been wanting to read Carrie Vaughn ever since I read her piece in the Warriors anthology last year. THIS book, I finished in a day. I don't know if it was the story pace or the smoothness of Vaughn's writing style, but the pages flew by. Vaughn is smart and witty, which I had guessed; and I also confirmed that her ability to represent the inner workings of the female mind is amazing.

Of course, by the time all was said and done, it was time to get back into fantasy fiction, and one female author I always enjoy is Jacqueline Carey. After burning through these 300 page urban fantasies, picking up a 960 page epic - well, that's what I read this past week, finishing up Saturday afternoon.

Kushiel's Scion (Kushiel's Legacy) - Imriel de la Courcel's birth parents are history's most reviled traitors, but his adoptive parents, the Comtesse Phedre and the warrior-priest Joscelin, are Terre d'Ange's greatest champions. Stolen, tortured and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood; third in line for the throne in a land that revels in art, beauty and desire. It is a court steeped in deeply laid conspiracies...and there are many who would see the young prince dead. Some despise him out of hatred for his mother, Melisande, who nearly destroyed the entire realm in her quest for power. Others because they fear he has inherited his mother's irresistible allure...and her dangerous gifts. As he comes of age, plagued by unwanted desires, Imriel shares their fears. When a simple act of friendship traps Imriel in a besieged city where the infamous Melisande is worshiped as a goddess and where a dead man leads an army, the Prince must face his greatest test: to find his true self.

While I wouldn't recommend starting off with this book, it holds its own as the beginning of a new trilogy with a new protagonist. Kushiel's Dart is where it all begins, and I would suggest starting there.

I can't say enough good things about Carey. Her prose is beautiful, the world-building is exquisite, and her voice is so smooth and sweet, it's like having a naked woman whispering in your ear and telling you the story (while feeding you grapes).

As fantasy fiction goes, this departs from the norm. It's not as rich in political intrigue as GRRM, but close. It's certainly not crude or direct sword and sorcery. There is magic, and it's powerful and mysterious and delicately flawed. The plots are adept, and while not entirely linear, they aren't difficult to anticipate.

As a male author writing about manly things, it's sometimes easy to overlook those subtle nuances of human frailty, and that's something that Carey expresses so well. In the genre of fantasy fiction, capturing sensuality is often failed miserably, and here again, Carey is outstanding.

Some may say that the story is slow, languid like a lazy river, and that wouldn't be untrue. But in the telling of epic tales, I can appreciate the immersion into the character's life and thoughts, and the slow, gradual growth of the troubled child into a young adult with a little experience and wisdom beneath their belt. The story leaves one wanting for more, even after nearly a thousand pages.

In a holiday week where I found myself heartsick, homesick and agitated, this deep escape into Jacqueline Carey's delicious, smooth, sensual and beautiful story was exactly what the doctor ordered. It became its own homecoming, a return to epic fantasy, and was just what I needed to end 2011.

Happy Holidays...

2011-12-25T08:45:00.000-05:00

The house is still quiet, the children are still snug in their beds; steam curls and winds its way up from my coffee mug, towards the window. A clear, brisk day and I'm thankful for what has come to pass, and what will be.

I'm thankful that anyone reads this blog. ;-)

In the spirit of the season, here is a poem by Lord Alfred Tennyson. Enjoy.

Ring Out, Wild Bells

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky,
The flying cloud, the frosty light;
The year is dying in the night;
Ring out, wild bells, and let him die.

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Ring out the grief that saps the mind,
For those that here we see no more,
Ring out the feud of rich and poor,
Ring in redress to all mankind.

Ring out a slowly dying cause,
And ancient forms of party strife;
Ring in the nobler modes of life,
With sweeter manners, purer laws.

Ring out the want, the care the sin,
The faithless coldness of the times;
Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes,
But ring the fuller minstrel in.

Ring out false pride in place and blood,
The civic slander and the spite;
Ring in the love of truth and right,
Ring in the common love of good.

Ring out old shapes of foul disease,
Ring out the narrowing lust of gold;
Ring out the thousand wars of old,
Ring in the thousand years of peace.

Ring in the valiant man and free,
The larger heart, the kindlier hand;
Ring out the darkness of the land,
Ring in the Christ that is to be.

Movie Trailers | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

2011-12-21T08:00:00.000-05:00

Silly me... I thought this was coming out THIS December. I was wondering why I hadn't heard any buzz about it... heh. Part one will come out December 14th, 2012. Here is the first official trailer.

It's nice to see the continuity from the previous Lord of the Rings trilogy; another reason I'm glad that Peter Jackson has taken on this project.

I am also reminded that the Dwarves are somewhat comical in The Hobbit, seeing as it was originally a children's story (what we'd now call 'young adult'). It's pretty interesting to consider all the tropes that have derived from Tolkien's work, and to see them come alive so well on the big screen.

Between The Hobbit, A Game of Thrones (Season 2) and probably some things I'm not considering at the moment, 2012 will be a great year for fantasy in the mainstream.

December 14, 2011 | Reading Journal, News, Links

2011-12-14T12:42:00.001-05:00

There's a theory that most people can be connected to one another, for instance, a famous movie star, within 7 degrees of separation. (I may have this idea completely wrong, but since I procrastinate blogging most of the notions in my head, I'm just going to go with it and see what happens.)

1) Big news this week was the release of our first Game of Thrones Season 2 teaser trailer, featuring the Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane) voiceover.

Cold Wind Tease

2) Some may argue that there's actually more footage in this "Making Of" video...

Either way, April can't get here soon enough!

3) Speaking of HBO (see what I did there?), it's been announced all over the web that Christopher Meloni, the former Law and Order: SVU regular lead has been cast as a series regular on True Blood season 5. According to The Hollywood Reporter:

(Executive Producer Alan) Ball describes Meloni’s role as “an ancient, powerful vampire who holds the fate of Bill and Eric in his hands.”

Ever since the news broke that Meloni was negotiating for a role, fans have suspected he may be part of The Vampire Authority, the council which rules over all vampires and gives its royalty their power.

4) Those of us in geekdom may recall the buzz a year ago, when Canadian webcomic artist AK Tettenborn of "Twice Shy" did a parody of Law & Order: SVU - and a month later received the response from the aforementioned Meloni.

The day after the comic went up, I got an email from a man who told me he was Christopher Meloni’s assistant. According to this man, Ice T had seen my comic and sent it to Meloni, who loved it – and could I please mail them a few signed copies? Because Meloni wanted to get them framed and give them as gifts.

The news? Well, unfortunately, as Meloni moves on to become a vampire, so too does AK Tettenborn - she bid the world farewell from her very popular webcomic this week.

Well, all, after a year of Twice Shy, it's time to say goodbye. I've had a great time making comics for you, and while they're not all winners, some of them weren't bad, and a select few were pretty darned good.

ALOT* of them were pretty darned good, AK! Best of luck to you.

1) And speaking of Season 5 of TrueBlood... last night I finished reading Dead as a Doornail, book 5 of the Sookie Stackhouse Novels by Charlaine Harris.

Notable to me was this: This was the first story in the series where Sookie doesn't sleep with anyone! While most of the male characters still want to sleep with her, there was slightly more mystery than romance within.

Also notable, events from previous novels start to have more significance in this book - and - events from within this tale are going to be far more influential in future stories (presumably). In other words, the introduction of longer story arcs.

Overall, still an enjoyable series, though I fear I'm getting saturated - may have to mix things up. I probably won't, though. It's the holidays, lots of stuff going on... keeping it fast, simple, light and fun.

***

Hmm. Not bad, did it in 5. Any of the above catch your eye?

* Yes, I realize I linked to another webcomic, not the one in question. That was today's theme. :-p

Gaming | Stronghold 3 - Trailer

2011-12-08T12:42:00.000-05:00

Don't know how I missed this! It's been out since October!

Undoubtedly, because I've been obsessed with Skyrim (which I'll write about .. soonish).

The Stronghold series has always been fun for me, particularly since in gaming, I thrive on economic strategies and building up the overpaid military. Campaign play in Stronghold is not comparable to say, the Total War series, it's notably simpler. However, the builder mode is amazing - and I've used it often in trying to imagine the little villages, hamlets and cities in Zherlios. Apparently, this has been beefed up quite a bit in Stronghold 3.

The graphics look good - nice job, Firefly Studios!

Which means I'm likely to pick this up at some point - and since it's a PC game, I'll be able to get you some nifty screenshots (like the ones below from the official site)! Yay!

Mmm, I love tearing me down some walls! Rawrrr!!

More information is available here, at medievalists.net, and the official site.

Anyone played with this yet?

Reading Journal - The Southern Vampire Mysteries by Charlaine Harris (1,2,3 and 4)

2011-12-06T20:56:00.002-05:00

Back in June, I mentioned that I had watched HBO's TrueBlood. In some ways, it was a response to not having Thrones on air - in others, everyone I know, including people whose opinion I valued, (haha), were relatively insistent that I watch the series.

So I did. With relish. Something which I had intended to recount here was that by the end of Season 4 of TrueBlood, I had gone and watched Season 1, 2 and 3. Since I am quite the fan of sex and violence, I was hooked.

Going along with my theme of "I should post more often," I had intended to blog when I finished book 1 Dead Until Dark and then after book 2 Living Dead in Dallas. Failing that, I finished Club Dead (#3) over the weekend and finished (#4) Dead to the World this evening.

Good thing I stopped doing book reviews (more or less).

It's safe to say that I enjoyed the reads. Harris, quite simply, is fun. Turn to HBO for the multiple perspective, very intense, multi-layered drama.

In The Southern Vampire Mysteries, it's all from Sookie's point of view.

There are differences - notable ones - from the novel to the television screen. Thrones may be a relatively faithful adaptation - TrueBlood is not.

In the show, Sookie is a slut, and there's little explanation... in the books, however, it fits. There's several references to how her telepathic abilities make dating a nightmare... what if you always knew what YOUR significant other was thinking? Sounds fun for a day. ;-)

What's different in the book, and takes some getting used to, is that you don't know where all the other characters are, unless they're in the scene with Sookie. Having said that, Harris does a good job of filling in gaps without too much exposition. The novels are fast-paced, not overly complicated, and yet there's twists and turns and character development.

Perhaps not as much character growth as in other fantasy tales - on the other hand, these novels take place immediately following the events of the previous book. Further, the events in the book don't often last for more than a month, if that. How much character growth can you expect in a few months?

This is not exactly how it goes in the television series, so again, it's an interesting thing that HBO has done to make TrueBlood .. hmm.. more appealing to their audience and validating the other main roles in the storyline, by giving the other characters more screen time.

In case you're curious... I find that urban fantasy has the best female protagonists. There are subtleties in the novel, things that women consider or think about, that sometimes seem forced or inappropriate when written by a male author; for instance, Sookie checking herself in the mirror is presented for what it is by Harris - she's a woman in her late 20's discovering her self.

Also, moods and the effect of being tired, or scared or angry - so often this is written to sound like women are nags or moody or confusing, yes? When read from inside the mind of the protagonist, (especially one who reads minds), her motivations and impulses, even as a backwoods 20'something girl, make sense. They're valid. They're understandable. This makes Sookie, who is somewhat vain and certainly flawed, a far more sympathetic character than might be expected.

I don't always agree with what Sookie does, of course, but I get it. It doesn't seem false. Too often, television shows do things that seem ... well, a little flaky. Something to get ratings. (Yes, sexposition scenes in Thrones, I'm talking to you.)

I enjoy reading urban fiction because it seems these are the best versions of available female heroines. We know what we see as we see it, but it's nice to get inside Sookie's head and understand motivations.

(Note: This is why I was such a big fan of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Dart
- a well written female protagonist is immensely insightful.)

There are plenty of (what I assume are) strong reviews for The Southern Vampire Mysteries, and having plowed through the first 4 books like they were nothing, I certainly understand why HBO picked up the series.

TrueBlood is a different animal, though some of the markings are similar. There was no way they could tell the same story in television, so they did what they had to do, which was give all the other characters more robust storylines and events. Even the ones who live and die do not follow the novels, necessarily.

Certainly, if TB is too graphic or gritty for you - the novels are more fun, lighter, even more amusing. At the same time, if you want to understand some of the finer details about some of the events in the television series, the novels are a good choice.

Mostly, however, they stand alone as different takes on the same basic story, and are interesting and entertaining enough to be viewed as separate works of art. Charlaine Harris, as noted on the book covers, mixes romance, mystery and the paranormal genres without a hitch. She's done a great job in making a fun, fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek romp through the supernatural world, with characters that are enjoyable to read about, and an original and entertaining protagonist in Sookie Stackhouse.

Comics | Monday Morning Literary Humor

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-05:00

A little something I meant to share last week, but got busy and forgot. And no, I haven't read "Pride and Prejudice", I'm afraid to admit.

Speaking of which, I will update my reading journal this week, maybe later today, even. Happy Monday!

Comic Source

Holiday Wish List | Thoughts on the Kindle?

2011-12-01T12:37:00.000-05:00

Last week, I endured the Black Friday madness - and survived! I'm super tough like that.
One of the things that caught my eye was the Kindle for $75 - I ended up passing on it, for a variety of reasons, the most notable was that .. it was only a $5 discount. It didn't seem necessary to stand in line for an hour to save five bucks.

Image: Kindleport.com

Now, when the E-readers first came out a few years ago, they were more expensive than they are now, which is always rule #1 with new technology: If you can be patient about getting the new technology, you can save a lot of money. But you sacrifice being the coolest kid on the block, which has never been a problem for me. :-p

I'm a bit old school. I like having books. I like the thought of having an expansive library on ornate bookshelves, organized and categorized, reflecting my outlook and interests as a person. It's amazing for novel research, grabbing that old psych textbook or history text, and verifying some things. Notes in the margins.

In this, I cringed at the hundreds of books I left behind in Florida when I moved to North Carolina. In this, E-readers were not interesting to me.

Then something happened. I was looking on Amazon at history books. History was never a strong subject for me, but because I'm writing in a pseudo-prehistoric world, I've become more interested lately in how those hunter-gatherer tribes evolved into the powerful, epic cultures that still have their mark upon the lands, thousands of years later.

I discovered some massive tomes on say, Ancient Rome, the "goto" books, the must-haves, and they were a little pricy. Unless you got the EBook - in which case, they were FREE.

Free books.

Admittedly, pricing on new release Ebooks is not very competitive, in which case, I'd just as soon have real books for the pretty shelves of my imagination/future. On the other hand, recently there've been some amazing sales - recent releases for $3, promotional sales for $1 - only in Ebooks.

Who doesn't love to save some money?

But I've never used an Ereader, so before I put that on my Xmas wish list, I thought I'd ask around and see if any of you have one, what you think of them, and so forth.

Game of Thrones, Season 2 Production Video

2011-11-21T11:29:00.000-05:00

Season 2 - In Production

Hmmm... April doesn't seem so far away after all, huh? Days turn into weeks turn into months... time flies when you're having fun.

I saw some new faces, new characters, and yet some were oddly familiar (Was that Anne Boleyn from The Tudors? Yay!)... I wonder if the DVD set of Season 1 will be out in time to put it on my Xmas wishlist, so I can rewatch the series again before Season 2.. hmm..

How many of you are excited for Season 2 of Game of Thrones?

Source: HBO

Gaming | The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Early Reviews.

2011-11-11T09:36:00.001-05:00

Today is the big day, boys and girls. Maybe some of you lucky buggers already have your copy - me, it's going to have to wait until tomorrow, alas.

I was hoping to find some early reviews, beyond the ones I linked yesterday, but ... unsurprisingly, Aidan at A Dribble of Ink beat me to it.

But the reviews look good - as well they should be.

Game of the Year, says me - in theory. I'll get a dozen or so hours into the game and come back with a report, for those who are waiting before making the investment in money, time and social life. ;-)

Have a great weekend!

Lord of Souls: An Elder Scrolls Novel by Greg Keyes

2011-11-10T13:23:00.000-05:00

Mmm, Skyrim week!

Lord of Souls: An Elder Scrolls Novel

Perfectly, or not, I received the "advance uncorrected proof" copy as part of LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program, back in July - then, unfortunately, it sat in storage for much longer than the two weeks I had planned. I actually finished reading it a few weeks ago, but I wanted to write about it this week, with the release of Skyrim.

Here's the blurb from Amazon:

Forty years after the Oblivion crisis, the empire of Tamriel is threatened by a mysterious floating city, Umbriel, whose shadow spawns a terrifying undead army.

Reeling from a devastating discovery, Prince Attrebus continues on his seemingly doomed quest to obtain a magic sword that holds the key to destroying the deadly invaders. Meanwhile, in the Imperial City, the spy Colin finds evidence of betrayal at the heart of the empire—if his own heart doesn’t betray him first. And Annaïg, trapped in Umbriel itself, has become a slave to its dark lord and his insatiable hunger for souls.

How can these three unlikely heroes save Tamriel when they cannot even save themselves?

Based on the award-winning Elder Scrolls® series, Lord of Souls is the second of two exhilarating novels that continue the story from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, named 2006 Game of the Year by numerous outlets, including Spike TV, the Golden Joystick Awards, and the Associated Press.

Having played a good bit of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, I was somewhat familiar with some of the world-building terminology... however, the first fifty pages went a bit slowly for me. I am unfamiliar with the first book in this series, and I can't help but think that it might be better to read that before reading this.

However, ultimately, the story stood well enough on its own, and as the novel progressed, certain gaps and questions fell into place.

This is a niche novel, not unlike those by Weis/Hickman - you need to be able to immerse yourself into a secondary world with a deeply established set of rules and protocols, some of which stray from traditional fantasy, others which mirror and echo what you might expect in the genre. In other words, fans of the Elder Scrolls games are more likely to enjoy this.

Greg Keyes does a fine job at characterization - none of the characters are perfect, and while the story itself is somewhat short at just over 300 pages, there's plenty of time to explore motivations, back story, and varying degrees of character growth.

Without giving too much away, the ending was not what I expected for a novelization of a video game. While there was certainly an element of resolution and "happily ever after", which may be too saccharine for some tastes, there were also as many, if not more, tragic resolutions which stayed true to not only the characters, but also the storyline.

The beginning of the tale seemed a little awkward with the prose - but I attribute that to the nature of an ARC - otherwise, Keyes is a solid wordsmith, with moments of levity, humor and vivid description enough to keep the whole work entertaining. What Keyes did not do, to his credit, was spend too much time on meaningless narrative. Perhaps a few spots where a character's introspection was mildly overwrought - but again, it fit the particular chapters where they were found.

Who should read this? Those who have read the first novel, of course. Those who have played Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and those gamers who want a little backstory before playing Skyrim.

Near as I can possibly tell, Lord of Souls has actually nothing to do with Skyrim, as it follows events following the storyline at the end of Oblivion, and takes place in Cyrodiil.

As you can see by the nifty map I snagged from the unofficial Elder Scrolls wiki, Skyrim is a region to the north.

Give it a read while you're burning up the time until you get your hands on Skyrim! I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Gaming | The Elders Scrolls V: Skyrim (Part 3) Dragons!

2011-11-10T10:00:00.002-05:00

First, this video with Todd Howard of Bethesda Studios.

Then, this IGN overview video, which shows some material I've not seen elsewhere.

The superlinkhappygoodness for today comes from the Bethesda Blog. Follow this link to find 9 different previews and commentary from a 3 hour tour of Skyrim, as well as a host of new screenshots.

To complete today's Dragon theme, enjoy these Skyrim screenshots.

One more day!

Gaming | The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, (Part 2) Demo Videos

2011-11-09T10:00:00.006-05:00

I did a little snooping and found the extended version of the E3 demo video, as presented by Bethesda Software on their Youtube channel.

Truly looks amazing - and Todd Howard's commentary is somewhat more in-depth than it was in the E3 sneak preview.

What do you think?

Gaming | The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Part 1)

2011-11-08T11:23:00.000-05:00

Friday is the big day, the day that Skyrim goes on sale. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, the predecessor, is easily one of my favorite console RPG's of all time - in my mind, the only thing that could be better than Oblivion Game of the Year edition, is a whole new game.

From the official site:

The Empire of Tamriel is on the edge. The High King of Skyrim has been murdered.

Alliances form as claims to the throne are made. In the midst of this conflict, a far more dangerous, ancient evil is awakened. Dragons, long lost to the passages of the Elder Scrolls, have returned to Tamriel.

The future of Skyrim, even the Empire itself, hangs in the balance as they wait for the prophesized Dragonborn to come; a hero born with the power of The Voice, and the only one who can stand amongst the dragons.

Here's an exclusive video from G4TV, from the E3 convention over the summer.

This looks amazing! I've already reserved my copy.

Too many thoughts and too much excitement for just one post... but

... Improved graphics engine looks great;
... Improved character customization
- special moves
- Duel wielding (!)
- custom skill tree
... 16 miles of terrain, 150 dungeons
... He said, "You can climb to the top of that mountain." I remember being stuck on the side of countless hills in Oblivion.

I'm going to go find some more information and screenshots and videos; In the meantime, what do you think? Any readers of this blog looking forward to Skyrim's release?

Reading Journal, Fall 2011

2011-11-07T15:06:00.001-05:00

Sometime this past summer, I put all of my books into storage... thinking that it wouldn't be in there long.

Boy, was I wrong. And then I've been busy. The last few months, I've read less than at any time in the last couple years. Shame on me.

Moving right along.

R. Scott Bakker, The Darkness that Comes Before (The Prince of Nothing), Book One.

From Amazon:

Strikingly original in its conception, ambitious in scope, with characters engrossingly nd vividly drawn, the first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth-its language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals-the kind of all-embracing universe Tolkien and Herbert created unforgettably in the epic fantasies The Lord of the Rings and Dune. It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both two thousand years past and two thousand years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasûrimbor Kellhus-part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence-from lands long thought dead. The Darkness That Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.

This book took me about a month to read. Bakker is a graduate philosopher, and it's obvious within the first 50 pages that this is not a light read. That's not a criticism - it is what it is. The characterizations, story arcs, and world building were all quite entertaining, and adroitly executed. The prose and the thematic elements are very dense, however.

It's not a tale for everyone. I found myself thinking quite a bit of Steven Erikson when reading this, though Bakker's style is somewhat different. It's perfect, in my opinion, that Erikson did the cover blurb. Fans of Steven Erikson would absolutely love this first book of the Prince of Nothing series.

George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons.

From Amazon:

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance once again--beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has three times three thousand enemies, and many have set out to find her. Yet, as they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind.

To the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone--a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, will face his greatest challenge yet. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice.

And from all corners, bitter conflicts soon reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all. . . .

Dubbed “the American Tolkien” by Time magazine, George R. R. Martin has earned international acclaim for his monumental cycle of epic fantasy. Now the #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers the fifth book in his spellbinding landmark series--as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire.

Undoubtedly the most highly anticipated release of 2011, Martin's 5th installment in A Song of Ice and Fire finally brought us up to speed on all those characters missing from A Feast for Crows. More exciting, of course, with the debut of HBO's A Game of Thrones.

What can I say that hasn't been said? If you're this far along in the series, you're not going to quit reading it now. I think some of the reviews were generous, to be honest. But, in fairness, Martin's worst stuff is still much better than most of what's out there on the fantasy shelves.

Dragons has everything you've come to expect from Martin. Beautiful prose, story complexity, character growth and intrigue, and of course, realism, grittiness, grey morality, and death. It's amazing storytelling, and Martin is as good as people say he is.

However, for those who have been waiting years for this... the overall storyline hardly advances. Originally, he had meant to skip ahead five years in the story, and one of the reasons that he did not was because of the convergence of characters around Daenerys, the infamous Meerenese Knot. As a result, the pace within is glacial, and by the end of the book, barely anything has truly happened at all (and most of that takes place in the last 300 pages).

Some reviews were citing this as one of the best books in the series - I have to disagree. A Storm of Swords remains the strongest, without question. Dragons is on par with A Feast for Crows, in my opinion, and perhaps slightly better because the favored characters are present and the landscapes are more diverse.

The reality is ... it doesn't matter. You're going to read it if you've read this far. You're going to wonder and worry about who dies and who gains the throne, and what mischief Tyrion or Arya will get into. It could be years before book 6, but at least we have the HBO series to keep us entertained.

*
George R.R. Martin, Gardner Dozois, Songs of Love and Death: All Original Tales of Star Crossed Love

I've been picking at this one for months. It didn't resound with me as well as their other anthology, Warriors, did. I guess I was expecting more of a series of Shakespearean tragedies, and therein lies the flaw of an inexperienced author doing book reviews.

Love and tragedy go hand in hand in fiction, and this short story collection was poised to meet my ideas of how that should be. That's not to say the stories weren't good - they were excellent, if not unusual or unexpected. The Jim Butcher and Jacqueline Carey stories alone were worth the cover price of the books, juicy cherries for fans of their respective epic series.

*

That's all I've got for now. It's been a long while since I've posted about any of my reading experiences, and rather than procrastinate and postpone as I've been doing, it was time to just do it.

I've got some non-fiction sitting on my stack, (ancient Rome material, if you must know), but I feel the need for something lighter and I'm debating whether or not to read Charlaine Harris... or maybe you can suggest something?

Movie Trailers | Immortals, Underworld 4: Awakening

2011-11-03T13:24:00.000-04:00

Just the week that I was going to get back to building content on this 'ere blog, I, uh, sliced my thumb open at work. The right thumb. You can laugh, it's funny.

Two movie trailers have me excited - one of them I just found out about a few moments ago.

This first one comes out next week - unfortunately, it's coming out the same day as Elder Scrolls: Skyrim (my most anticipated game release of the year) - let's face it, I'm far more likely to play video games than go out to a movie. Sad, but true. I see myself getting this on DVD for myself as a Xmas gift.

The synopsis, from their official site:

Visionary director Tarsem Singh and producers Gianni Nunnari (300), Mark Canton (300), and Ryan Kavanaugh (The Fighter) unleash an epic tale of treachery, vengeance and destiny in Immortals, a stylish and spectacular 3-D action adventure. As a power-mad king razes ancient Greece and threatens to destroy mankind, a heroic young villager rises up against him in a thrilling quest as timeless as it is powerful.

The brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) and his murderous army are rampaging across Greece, demolishing everything in their wake with ruthless efficiency. Village after village falls to Hyperion's legions and each victory takes him one step closer to his goal: unleashing the power of the sleeping Titans to vanquish both the Gods of Olympus and all of humankind.

It seems nothing will stop the evil king’s mission to become the undisputed master of the world, until a stonemason named Theseus (Henry Cavill) vows to avenge the death of his mother in one of Hyperion’s raids. When Theseus meets the Sibylline Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto), her disturbing visions of the young man’s future convince her that he is the key to stopping the destruction. With her help, Theseus assembles a small band of followers and embraces his destiny in a final desperate battle for the future of humanity.

There's some striking similarities between this, Clash of the Titans, 300, Troy, even Starz Spartacus, but I don't care. I love it.

Greek mythology is rich with tales that beg to be retold. This one seems even better, in the sense that it's about Theseus and Hyperion, who are less frequently referred to when people talk about the classical period.

In short, big thumbs (heh) up for doing mythology (always good for the genre), bigger thumbs up for doing a story that hasn't already been told too many times. To make it flashy, sweaty, and half-naked... eh, if it gets people into the genre of the fantastic, then it's all good.

*

The second one, however, for me, is 'must see'... if for no other reason than Kate Beckinsale in that outfit. HOT!

I don't know that 3D is necessary, but I guess that's the direction more movies are taking. Frankly, it just feels like another way to get a few more bucks out of the customer for those funky glasses.

This one has a Milla Jovovich / Resident Evil vibe to it... here's the plot outline from their facebook page, you can see what I mean.

After being held in a coma-like state for fifteen years, vampire Selene (Kate Beckinsale) learns that she has a fourteen-year-old vampire/Lycan hybrid daughter, Nissa, and when she finds her they must stop BioCom from creating super Lycans that will kill them all.

Mmhmm. The effects in the trailer look to be what I've come to expect from the Underworld series, dark and gritty, and Kate as the action heroine pleases me. I know everyone's tired of werewolves and vampires, but the Underworld franchise has always gone its own way, with more of a classic view on the creatures and realistic implications in terms of socio-political perspectives.

In short? Yay!!

Video: Red Hartebeest vs. Cyclist

2011-10-11T11:44:00.000-04:00

I know I've been lax lately. Very busy boy, and yet, not busy doing the things I should like to be doing. Not yet. Don't worry, content will resume soon.

In the meantime, I caught this via a Facebook link this morning - it was too good to not share.

The most compelling aspect of the video is the size comparison between the prancing antelope (always so victimized in fiction) and the human on a bike. This creature is big and clearly NOT skittish.

Aside, comment on humanity: What do you think is going to happen when you go cycling through the savannah, hmm?

Read the full article here.

Creatures in my Backyard | Tibicen Cicada

2011-09-13T14:53:00.000-04:00

My last foray into this feature taught me a couple things. One is that my cell phone takes horrible pictures. The other is that it was less interesting to me to post photos on my blog of creatures that I knew nothing about.

Perhaps when I get up to a thousand viewers or so, I can post the mystery beasties. Until then, I suppose I'll do my research.

This big fella spent its final days on the screen door to the "mudroom" (an architectural feature of southern homes, apparently) . After which it fell off and fed a colony of ants.

A little google research led me to identify it as a Cicada from the Tibicen genus. The website bugguide.net had a bunch of (significantly better) photos - this one by Larry Clarfeld most closely resembles the one I found.

Image: Tibicen Cicada by Larry Clarfeld
BugGuide.Net

Early in their season, I made the mistake of tapping one of these buggers with the end of a broomstick - I thought it was a dung beetle - and lemme tell ya, this cicada screamed like a scarab out of a mummy horror movie. Incredible, really. According to this wikipedia article, "Some cicadas produce sounds up to 120 dB (SPL) "at close range", among the loudest of all insect-produced sounds."

Some more information from Wikipedia...

The Tibicen genus of cicadas are large-bodied Cicadidae appearing in late summer or autumn. Like other members of the subfamily Cicadinae, they have loud, complex songs, even (in many cases) distinct song phrases. Tibicen are the most common cicada in the United States. Unlike periodical cicadas, whose swarms occur at 13- or 17-year intervals, Tibicen species can be seen every year, hence their nickname "annual cicadas." The lifecycle of an individual, however, is more than a year. Nymphs spend two or three years feeding on tree roots before they emerge. Their annual reappearance is due to overlapping generations. Many other colloquial names exist for Tibicens: locust, dog day cicada, harvest fly, August dry bird, jar fly, bush cicada.

The article goes on to state that the cicada is edible by more than ants, "Cicadas have been eaten in China, Malaysia, Burma, Latin America, the Congo and in the United States. In North China, cicadas are skewered, deep fried or stir fried as a delicacy."

I guess I missed out on a good snack.

The short life span of the cicada, its distinctive mating song, and its transformative process all have provided plenty of material for folklores of different cultures, which I won't cite here - my challenge will be to come up with something original in my own writing.

However, something that I will use is the cicada as medicine. Some quick research gave me this information...

The pharmaceutical name of the substance made from this insect is Periostracum Cicadae or chan tui. [...]

Cicada's healing effects are due to its antispasmodic (reducing spasms), antipyretic (fever-reducing), and sedative (sleep-inducing) effects.

Cicada can prevent or reduce muscle spasms by reducing the tension of the striated muscles. It may also delay transmission of nerve signals at the neuromuscular junction, thereby reducing muscle spasms. Its activity may be similar to that of barbiturates, well-known sedatives, and anti-seizure medications. As an antispasmodic drug, it may be effective as supportive treatment for febrile seizures.

You can read the rest of the article here - some pretty interesting stuff.

And that's all I have for today - I could go on about bugs and medicine and so forth, and maybe I will, but for now, we'll keep it nice and simple.

Creatures in my Backyard | Smiley Face Moth?

2011-08-18T09:00:00.006-04:00

Most of what I write in fantasy, takes place out of doors... primitive, undeveloped areas, with rough structures or things carved from rock. The bitter irony is that, for all intents and purposes, I am a city-slicker. I live now in the smallest town I've ever lived in, in a terrain that (five years later) remains mostly strange to me.

I have done research, have watched an unmentionable amount of NatGeo, Discovery, NOVA, etc. However, when it comes to the outdoors, I remain a city boy.

I'm working on it. I took this picture with my phone a week or two ago, been meaning to figure out what it is.

Smiley Face Moth(?) says, "Have a nice day!"

For starters, I have only cropped the photo to show its relative size against the bricks on the home exterior. Colors are unadjusted.

Death's Head Hawkmoth
Image: Wikipedia

If you look on its back, between the wings, behind its head, there looks to be a big ole smiley face. Now, I've heard of Death's head (hawk)moths, but this doesn't appear to be that.

Until I figure out what it is, I'm a gonna call it the smiley face moth.

Is this the most exciting thing I've found in my backyard? No, but it's the only one I managed to get a halfway decent photo of.

Anyone know what this is? Educate a city boy!

Spoilers don't spoil, according to study.

2011-08-15T12:45:00.001-04:00

One of the reasons I haven't written anything here about A Dance with Dragons is because I am not sure that I could without spoiling it. But, according to Reuters, I might be doing you a favor.

This article on Yahoo news states, "A new study by researchers from the University of California at San Diego shows spoilers may enhance enjoyment, even for suspense-driven story lines and film plots."

Ha, really?

Now personally, I might agree. Depending on the spoiler. As oft as not, I'm reading for the enjoyment of doing so, for the author's prose and for the way they flow the plot. For interesting characters and clever dialogue.

So, no, a spoiler doesn't ruin it for me. Although, if we're going to talk about GRRM, I'd prefer not to know who is going to die. Or, as in ADWD, appear to die. But even if I know that, I'm still going to read the book and most likely enjoy it with/without advanced knowledge.

The article agrees with me, in that. "The researchers said in the study, which will be published in the journal Psychological Science, they found that the success of entertainment does not rest on suspense alone."

Aside, and related, exciting new standards for psychological testing.

"For the study each story was read by up to 30 people and presented in two formats -- in the original version and with a spoiling paragraph inserted in the story." (Emphasis mine.)

Wow, really? Thirty people is enough of a control group to post results in a psychology journal? Bull - if I had tried to pull that sort of nonsense while I was at school, I would have been the class clown.

It's an interesting discussion all the same. What do you think of spoilers?

Source: Yahoo News

Little update.

2011-07-28T10:36:00.000-04:00

Good morning. Got moved. Partially.

Partially, as in, most of my things, including my DESK, remain in storage, along with most my former roommates' things.

So while I have my computer set up (clearly), sitting on the floor is not conducive for clear expression. ;-)

I know that last time I moved my (other) blog went south. Won't be happening with this one. Might be a few days, might be another week or so until I meet with my friends and get the items from storage.

Until the next.

Positive reviews for A Dance with Dragons so far..

2011-07-12T10:00:00.012-04:00

Amidst the chaos that is my domestic life these days, I received the confirmation email from Amazon that A Dance with Dragons shipped this week. After what, six years, the long-awaited sequel will be in my grubby hands hopefully by this weekend!

About the time I will be moving. Again. Ha.

I don't know if there's anyone who is this far into the series who actually will NOT order the book at one point or another, but it's nice to know that the reviews have been fairly positive.

Especially when contrasted with A Feast For Crows. I'll be honest, I was a little disappointed with the first read of AFfC, for reasons cited frequently. Brienne's and Samwell's arcs read like a travelogue, Cersei was not a sympathetic character, Sansa was a passive character, and overall the events and characters portrayed were not the ones that were the most compelling and interesting in the story frame.

The second read of AFfC changed that for me, as I grew an appreciation for what Brienne and Sansa and Sam were observing - especially after reading The Hedge Knight last month. Arya/Sandor and Brienne/Pod are reminiscent of Dunk/Egg in some aspects. Fitting, considering Samwell's arc and the demise of Aemon Targaryen.

If you want to read the reviews before you get the book, or if you're like me, and want to read the reviews just out of morbid curiosity, here's some good starting points.

A Dribble of Ink, unsurprisingly, has beat me to the punch with this idea. As well he should. He had a few I was unaware of, which I'll mix in here.

Jo Walton, on the Tor.com blog.

Jace Lacob, at The Daily Beast.

This is, one could argue, a tale of hubris, heartbreak and horror, a world out of balance where death itself is not an ending, and which threatens to swallow up those more fixated on the game of thrones than the true battle for the survival of man.

Lev Grossman, for Time Magazine.

The complexity of Martin's design ensures that we experience the struggle for Westeros from all sides at once. It's as if he's trying to show us that every fight is both triumph and tragedy, depending on where you see it from, and everybody is both hero and villain at the same time.

Remy Verhoeve, for The Wall Street Journal.

Publishers Weekly, as I recall, broke the first review several weeks ago. This one has been called a little spoiler-y, though it didn't offend me much.

Pat's Fantasy List has his review here, as well as the story behind how he inspired a character in the novel who meets a grisly death. (9/10)

The Wertzone has a review here. Adam is probably one of the most knowledgeable sources of Westeros material that I have stumbled across on the internet. (4.5 stars)

Charlie Jane Anders did a review over at IO9.

All in all, A Dance with Dragons is moving, thrilling, horrifying and thought-provoking — and a propulsive continuation to a series that might have seemed like it was losing forward momentum. By the time you put this book down, you're left with no doubt that this story is racing towards a definitive ending, with only two books (or a mere 2,000 pages!) left to go. Some things happen in this latest book that you've probably been waiting for since Book One, and some huge mysteries are resolved.

Chris Y, SF/F buyer for Borders, on their blog (spoiler free).

I loved the pacing of this book. There is a slow buildup to an explosive finish. The last 100 pages are absolutely intense, and there are some game-changing events near the end of the book.

Rachel Brown gives a brief review, followed up by a GRRM interview for The Atlantic.

Jeff Vandermeer gave a heads-up for his LA Times review last week on his facebook page.

James Poniewozik, who covered the HBO series, did a second review for Time Magazine.

Chris Barsanti, for Barnes and Noble.

Steve Bennett, for My San Antonio. (Mild spoilers.)

Bill Sheehan, for The Washington Post.

Filled with vividly rendered set pieces, unexpected turnings, assorted cliffhangers and moments of appalling cruelty, “A Dance With Dragons” is epic fantasy as it should be written: passionate, compelling, convincingly detailed and thoroughly imagined.

That seems like enough, hmm?

Overall, the reviews seem to be positive, with some complaints about the story overlap (which was to be expected), resolved/unresolved puzzles (there's two more books - from an author's perspective, the puzzles should get answered when they become most relevant), and some cliffhangers. What, suddenly GRRM is going to NOT leave us with cliffhangers? I thought everyone was watching HBO...

Less frequently, comments on rambling and/or need for editing. But, truly, anyone who has read the first four volumes comes to expect a certain amount of Martin's stylistic immersion. Clothes, heraldry, feasts - none of those are things that necessarily forward the plot, but it allows the reader to experience the protagonists' stories. (Notably, this was a question in The Atlantic interview.)

Will I do a review? No, I don't do reviews anymore, per se. I'll share some thoughts when I finish. While Martin is an excellent storyteller and I'm as thrilled as other fans by the book's release, his is also a style that allows immersion, escape and above all else, complexity.

Reading GRRM is a strong lesson in how to combine lush prose with intelligent, adult fantasy fiction. For that reason alone, he will always be a must-read for me.

My first foray into Magic: The Gathering

2011-07-09T13:43:00.000-04:00

Last night, I went to a pre-release party at a local comic & gaming shop. From midnight til about 5am.

I had a blast.

I suspect that some of the geekier readers of this blog will be familiar with Magic: The Gathering, but for those who are not, here is a quote from Wikipedia.

Magic: The Gathering

(colloquially Magic or MTG) is a collectible card game created by mathematics professor Richard Garfield and introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. Magic is the first example of the modern collectible card game genre and still thrives today, with an estimated six million players in over seventy countries.^[1] Magic can be played by two or more players each using a deck of printed cards or a deck of virtual cards through the Internet-based Magic: The Gathering Online or third-party programs.

Each game represents a battle between powerful wizards, known as "planeswalkers", who use the magical spells, items, and fantastic creatures depicted on individual Magic cards to defeat their opponents. Although the original concept of the game drew heavily from the motifs of traditional fantasy role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, the gameplay of Magic bears little resemblance to pencil-and-paper adventure games, while having substantially more cards and more complex rules than many other card games.

MTG will be the first hobby I've had in years that didn't center around some form of debauchery or sitting in front of a computer or television.

Here's the thing about being an (unpublished) author, and blogging. You're supposed to keep a blog to build up your public profile - BUT - you're not supposed to write about writing, which, frankly, is most of what I think about. So, by way of adding content that might be interesting to people who might also read the book I'm writing/revising, this seems a good fit.

How and why?

You might have heard that Sony and the PS3 Network got hacked recently, and was offline for several weeks as they repaired network security issues. When they returned, the PS3 Network offered a "Welcome Back" package, which included a trial membership to their elite PSPlus program.

Part of that PS+ membership allows you to download discounted games, or free trials. During that time, my roommate downloaded a trial version of MTG: Duels of the Planeswalkers. He reminisced about how he played the card game in the 90's, and well, I'd heard of it... but, eh.

In the 70's & 80's, I played tabletop Dungeons and Dragons, sure. In the 90's, though, I switched to computer desktop games and even ventured into online MUDs and MMORPG's when I realized they existed. But mostly, I was DJ'ing and working and partying, and most of the 90's are a blur to me.

But! This was the sort of thing I could do, and I'm always looking for new games to play with my friends. So, I gave it a try last month.

What you can't see is the gorgeous artwork on each of these cards. It's stunning. And moreso, inspiring for me.

What I learned last night was that playing in person was a bit more complicated and clunky than it is to play on the computer. Which was fine, really. It was really a matter of logistics, since I already know the basic rules and am learning the nuances.

There's a bit more to this. This game, like any others, has to progress, grow, develop. "Collectible" card game. Some cards are worth more than others by their intrinsic properties. Other cards are worth more because there are less of them in circulation - the ultimate find in opening up a pack of cards is to find a coveted "mythic rare". Every year, there's a core set released (the event I went to last night), then there's expansions (the next expansion set of cards will release in September of this year).

After two decades, that's a helluva lot of cards! For me, the primary appeal was in the trading of cards. Yes, last night I learned how to play "for real" and that was fun (I lost, often). But it's nice/fun/exciting to know that I can drop $4 on a "booster pack" of 16 cards and - as in the case of my roommate- find a card that's worth about $30.00 to another player. Like this one on the right, that my roommate found (and traded last night).

My roommate has this knack for trading cards. He's the kind of guy that will pick up a pack of Upper Deck basketball cards "with one (spiffy) Michael Jordan" and find FIVE MJ cards. Etc.

And me? In playing on the PS3, I found myself liking the green mana decks (Elves and forests and growth and stampeding beasts - are any of you surprised?), but of course, what do I find when I spend a few bucks?

Now I can't really complain since these are valuable cards, but darn it, it was like a tease, and I indulged myself. And the more packs I bought, the more cards that I found that were not the colors I wanted or to add insult to injury, were really cool black mana cards that my roommate wanted to trade with me so he could build his (pretty badass) vampire deck.

My luck is changing, though. Last night, one of the players handed me a big stack of common and uncommon cards from the 2012 deck. One of those intense players that doesn't even NEED such simple cards! Me, I was focusing on not letting my voice crack. "Really? Thanks!" (My mind was screaming, WOOHOO MORE CARDS, SO PRETTY, SO PRECIOUSSS!)

Though I didn't win last night in my first event/tournament, I did get to open a bunch of packs before they go on sale next week. And amongst a few other decent finds, this bad boy...

No, it's not a "mythic rare" and it's not a $30 card (closer to $2). But, in my failure to find awesome green mana cards, I've collected a decent amount of red Dragon and Goblin cards. And, apparently, there's a lot of good red cards to be played now.

All told, I picked up around 400 cards last night, most of them before they are even out to the general public (although, notably, the M12 collection contains cards that are reprints of cards from previous collections).

I learned that it's nice to get away from the computer and to have something new to babble on about. It's fun having a new hobby, and it's inspiring material for fantasy and conflict and such.

I promise to keep future posts much less lengthy, but what can I say, I write epic high fantasy fiction, and I felt the need to give you some backstory here.

The adventure continues. In coming days, while the world around me is still busy and buzzing with some forthcoming domestic changes and such, I'm still very likely to find some time to put together a few decks and trade some cards with the roommate.

My new goal is to forge a deck and take it to another tournament, see if I can't scrape out a win or two.

I have become my youthful, naive protagonist.

Character Profiles: Angtamin Sildraug, Traveling Merchant.

2011-07-02T16:00:00.005-04:00

[Note: Profiles are an introduction to fictional characters I use in my writing. I'm not entirely sure this feature is a good idea, or if I will leave them up. Since it's a holiday weekend, I am inspired to give it a try. I reserve the right for details to change during revisions.]

Name: Angtamin Sildraug
Race: Anrovian Elf
Sex: Male
Age: Young adult. At first introduction, he is ~185 years of age.
Physical Description: Shoulder length silver hair, tanned skin, brown eyes. Broad-shouldered and muscular (for an Elf) with a slightly stooped posture. Ordinarily handsome (as Elves go), no striking physical features or scars (at this time).

Family (as of Catalyst): Angalamor (Father), Iluvianne (Mother), Turgen (Uncle, missing), Valmiros (brother, elder), Fuitirin (brother, younger), Kortirion (nephew), Lirilwe Cantralone (wife, deceased).

Hobbies: Collecting feathers, music, travel, trading.

Origin: The idea of (adult) Angtamin began early last decade while playing GemStone IV, though I have used him in other RPGs. Originally, he served as a secondary merchant persona who would be more neutral in character - my other primary characters were too strongly opinionated to play the role of merchant. He was first conceived as a soft spoken stoic, someone who could be relied upon to refocus the family energies, to provide calm and logic to heated situations. He added an austerity to certain rituals and relationships. Logistically, he enabled the transfer of loot between characters and enabled transactions with characters that my primaries would not interact with. When there were times that a situation required tact and diplomacy, those were the situations that Angtamin was brought in.

Inspiration: I come from a rather large, extended family, and I see that as more of a common occurrence in (early/primitive) Zherlios. My own uncles had great influence on me as a child/young adult, serving in many ways as big brothers throughout important parts of my life. Angtamin is a tribute to the love I still have for my uncles and the role they play/ed in my life.

Evolution: In Catalyst, I had to be honest about the lifespan of Elves, so it didn't make sense for a (relatively) young Angtamin to be overly mature and patient, as he was in his origins. I wanted, instead, to write from earlier in his life, to show more of his history, and to provide the reader an opportunity to see his development. In Catalyst, he is regarded as a powerful warrior, politically notable as the son of the tribal warlord, who has forgone the ways of war to take up a life of trade and travel. He is under pressure from his elder brother (heir apparent) to rejoin his tribe. However, none of those pressures outweigh the reason that drove him from his forest home, the reason that he truly partakes of the journey in Catalyst. In this, Angtamin is at a crossroads in his life, one that he may not survive.

Quote: (subject to edit)

To his nephew, on the subject of sparring with blunted spears.

There is nothing infinitely more profound towards learning than loss. The greater the loss, the greater the lesson. You will never gain as much skill from sparring your friends as you will fighting for your life. You will never appreciate love moreso than when your heart is broken into countless pieces.

It is through Chaos that the greatest growths take place, nephew. Chaos tears apart the earth beneath your feet and teaches us how to stand more sure-footed. There is no better lesson than pain.

And that is why I will beat you every night...

Foolish Man, insert proverb here...

2011-06-27T13:45:00.000-04:00

I have mentioned that things have been - let's say, "unsettled" - in my home lately. I will spare you the details: it is enough to know that the economic situation has its effect on people, and I have thrown my lot in (one way or the other) and now I must ride out the storm.

I realized just now, while preparing leftovers for lunch, that I'm living wrong. I am living like a man holding his breath, and waiting to exhale. I allow myself moments of levity. It seems that "taking a break" from the pressures of the world and/or my domestic dilemnas, allows me to relax and enjoy my life and not get too stressed out. In general, that would be good advice.

I am stringing together those moments like a man holding his breath - or taking punches to the head in the boxing ring, waiting for the bell. Waiting for the unsettled feeling to go away.

Do we do this, with life? I think we do. I think we make for ourselves a set of circumstances that will allow us to do what we truly want.

I'll get back to writing and revising as soon as I'm less stressed.

But there's always going to be stress. Life doesn't stop just because you need a time out. I suspect the best writers learn how to tune the world out, make it go away.

Instead, I am here, holding my breath and hoping it will go away. This is why I am unpublished. I can analyze the impact of A Game of Thrones (I even watched True Blood last night, along those lines), and I can offer myself all of the comforts of why I should press on with epic high fantasy fiction - and yet, day after day for weeks now, I'm only allowing myself moments of pleasure to ease the discomfort of my situation.

A young child rides his dirtbike outside my window. "Oh, it's too noisy, I can't concentrate." "I'm too tired." "I have to work tonight."

There's always a reason to not do what you want to do. And the world carries on. My situation approaches what we can call a deadline, and the other people involved don't seem terribly concerned.

It'll be fine. Well, things tend to resolve one way or the other, if that's what you mean by fine. Fine shouldn't be good enough. Circumstances shouldn't stand in the way of passion, determination.

"When in doubt, make a fool of yourself. There is a microscopically thin line between being brilliantly creative and acting like the most gigantic idiot on earth. So what the hell, leap." - Cynthia Heimel

I don't know if any of this helps you, but it helped me. Writing always does. Have a great week.

HBO's Game of Thrones, Season 1

2011-06-26T14:06:00.000-04:00

Been a little busy this week, but truly what can be said that hasn't already been said? No, really... check it out.

Winter Is Coming - Episode 10 Recap Roundup

For what it's worth, I was extremely pleased with the season finale - in fact, as far as I'm concerned, it was the best finale of the year on television. (Yes, I'm still grieving over the idiocy of the House season ender.)

There's no one like me.
Hit me with that rock again, and I'll still talk smack.

Joff, our favorite bastard, count your blessings
that you didn't get stuck with the other sister.

As noted last week, the characters (love 'em or hate 'em) have grown into their roles, and for those viewers not familiar with GRRM's brand of brutality - well, I think going into season two, it has been established that no one is safe.

I like to kill fat boys!

Summarily, as far as the season goes, most of my thoughts were shared last week. But what we're looking at is a strong cast of unexpected characters (so many children actors), each now with enough screen time to warrant viewer sympathy and emotional investment, all going into season two with increased stakes - in an environment where no one is safe.

There was a lot of "sexposition" in Season 1 - and while sex and violence are a big part of what occurs in Westeros, Season 2 - based on A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 2), shouldn't require as much background information. Clearly, there's going to be war and the political machinations shouldn't necessarily require hooker scenes to pull off. We'll see.

There's been a lot of positivity regarding the CGI dragons - and I agree, they were well done. But again, the role of the dire wolves becomes increasingly relevant to the story of the Stark children, and I hope that in this filming, they give the pups some more screen time. Which, to their credit, they did manage in the final episode. It's symbolism, it's a magic that can't be ignored, and can't be focused exclusively on the dragons, because that's only one story arc amongst several.

Some puzzles remain for the viewer to chew on in the next several months, and despite what's been done in other fantasy stories, one shouldn't think that baby dragons are anything but a novelty at this point. Dany has no army, the dragons are vulnerable, and meanwhile all the rest of Westeros is armed, ready and marching. This will take awhile to unfold. Even if there are Targaryen loyalists, she still has to get to them (before they get killed under some other banner).

That would be the dilemna, from one perspective, if GRRM were a simple man. But he is not.
Before I digress, a funny or two.

And my favorite feature on WIC, Twitterers gone wild.

*

HBO's motives are clear. Convert this best selling fantasy series into something that will translate into subscribers and merchandise sales.

Long before the first episode aired, I told anyone else who would listen that the significance of the success of this series had a potential impact on publishing.

We've seen how True Blood and Twilight gave rise to urban fiction, to the point where agents and publishers were saying "enough vampires already" by last year.

We've already had a successful Lord of the Rings movie trilogy - and The Hobbit (part 1 of 2) is set to release in December of this year.

This should mean a huge boom for the epic fantasy literature genre. I'm counting on it. Martin is not a prolific author, Tolkien's film adaptations will likely end in 2013, and that's going to leave a void for people who want more.

While the success and quality of A Game of Thrones (as well as Peter Jackson's film projects) are great in entertainment value alone, the bigger picture suggests that this is only the beginning of a huge spike in the popularity of Elves, Dragons, Dwarves, Knights and magic.

Video: Coyote vs Canadian

2011-06-23T13:59:00.000-04:00

Things are a little hectic on this end lately, and content may be a little thin in coming days. But there's always time to show a coyote video!

Beautiful pup. For those concerned about the man's sanity, note that there was no growling or barking, the tail was wagging and the neck fur wasn't bristled. Having said that, I think he toed the line between having fun and needing a rabies shot.

Enjoy!

Music: Cats in the Cradle by Harry Chapin

2011-06-19T10:41:00.000-04:00

My father never wanted me to be a writer. It was (and presumably, remains) too impractical. I grew up in the sort of household where it was expected that I would be a doctor, a lawyer, maybe even a teacher.

Even with our ideological differences, I turned out a lot like my father. Some of my strongest personality traits could only have come from him and the patriarchal side of my family. It's often been a great inspiration to me in writing, ironically. I could probably bore you with all sorts of anecdotal evidence.

After all, we are all - one way or the other - our father's children.

Happy Father's Day.

Reading and Watching, June 2011

2011-06-14T09:00:00.004-04:00

I'm going to be busy for a couple days, so I thought I'd go ahead and put up my latest reading journal.

Between the ending of House, Borgias, and Game of Thrones (forthcoming Sunday), I've kept my eyes peeled for some summer television shows for when I take a break from reading/writing.

Covert Affairs, USA. Season 2. In the "true confessions" department, I admit that I don't watch this sort of thing (I was never sold on Matt Damon as an action hero. These are the same folks who did the Bourne Identity series), and that the only reason I watched was because I've had a crush on Piper Perabo since her role in Coyote Ugly.

And in Season One, she wasn't entirely convincing in the role. However, by the end of the season, the story got interesting, and she was handling herself better in the action sequences. S2E1 was hit and miss with the action editing... the car scene was amateurish, unfortunately.

But, who cares? Sexy girl and a fun espionage storyline. They kicked off the season with a bang, rebooting the disappearance of the love interest Ben, got her back into the field bucking the system, and above all else, the supporting cast and story arcs are being nicely handled. I'm looking forward to the season.

White Collar, USA. Season 3. Guilty pleasure. I like the Ocean's Eleven vibe. I think they kicked off this season well, with Neal Caffrey (played by Matt Bomer), appearing to slide back into his old ways. What can I say, I'm a fan of the anti-hero, and between him and Mozzie (Willie Garson), it doesn't get more "unlikely savior". It'll be interesting to see how far they take the "this is the white whale of cons" arc, but all the same, it's off to a good start.

Burn Notice, Psych, Royal Pains. USA Network has the best summer line up on television. But, I don't watch THAT much TV.

I picked up The Hedge Knight - Second Edition [Graphic Novel] last week, as I find myself more and more excited by not only HBO's series, but also the release of A Dance with Dragons next month. Beautiful art, and of course, a great story within. Fascinating to read the prequels in light of all the buzz about A Song of Ice and Fire, and really, George R. R. Martin tells a good story.

It was only afterwards, while looking for the next novella (I've already read the third installment, The Mystery Knight, in the Warriors anthology), that I learned that The Hedge Knight (1st) and The Sworn Sword (2nd) were released in other anthologies. (Legends: Stories By The Masters of Modern Fantasyand Legends II: Dragon, Sword, and King, respectively.) I'm going to have to go back and get those now, because as much as I enjoyed the art, I love GRRM's prose and I want to read every detail of the prequel stories. (For those of you who have read through AFFC, you'll understand the interest in Dunk and Egg.)

While I'm on the topic...
- Win an autographed copy of ADWD.

Annnd, on the topic of epic stories brought to HBO - what about I, Claudius? (Nice catch, Adam!) That is also gonna be must see tv for me.

Turns out, in the Songs of Love and Death anthology that I've been reading, there's a huge easter egg for fans of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Dart. Anafiel Delaunay's backstory! He and Rolande.

And finally, to complete my reading journal, I started upon R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series, with The Darkness that Comes Before (The Prince of Nothing). I must say, and I'm not alone in this (based on the review blogs I read), that this is NOT a quick read.

I find it a little fitting that Steven Erikson does the cover blurb on this version, because after two pages, Erikson is exactly who I thought of. The styles are different, yes, but the density of the prose is similar.

Having said that, I'm 131 pages in and enjoying the story. At this point, though, I could only recommend this if you are a fan of Steven Erikson.

Oh, and while we're talking about R. Scott Bakker, three very esteemed book bloggers joined forces and did this interview of him recently.

That's all I've got for now. What are you reading?

Thoughts on HBO's Game of Thrones, Episode 9.

2011-06-13T12:48:00.003-04:00

I am far too excited about last night's episode to wait a few days. As before, no recap, just commentary.

Here's a couple of recaps in case you want or need them. (I may add more later. Feel free to check back.)

Winter Is Coming Episode 9 Recap Roundup
Grizzly Bomb Episode 9 Recap (found this site while searching for screenshots; it was only proper to share.)

Last time I wrote about Thrones, I asked you a few questions...

What happened to Arya? Ah, she escaped into the city, living off of fat pigeons and brown stew.

Maisie Williams' acting was excellent. Even the subtle way she put a hand on her sword whenever she was going from one place to the next. Did you recognize the man in black? Joren, the recruiter from Night's Watch.

The Late Lord Frey

We finally meet Lord Walder Frey. While he doesn't have all the tics portrayed in the book, it was hardly noticeable. Excellent portrayal. We'll see more of him in the future, no doubt.

Robb Stark and Catelyn. Now there's been a few complaints about not showing the battle scene at Whispering Woods. But this scene is true to the books - you have to see the fear in Catelyn's eyes, for lack of getting internal monologue. That part? Excellent.

The aftermath? Well, it was clever dialogue, to be sure. But "1 on 1 combat"? - WHERE IS ROBB'S DIREWOLF? Jaime, would you fight Robb AND his wolf? No, Kingslayer, I think not. Fear would look good on you Nikolaj, even for a moment. You've got the range.

The sneak preview of the season finale means they're going to push forward Jaime's arc a little bit, otherwise he'd be captured for much of season 2.

This part of the story is going well - but again, the viewer is losing the impact of the Starks and their remaining direwolves (their banner symbol). A direwolf on the field of battle changes momentum tremendously. And men will talk.

Let's skip to Tyrion. In armor! Fighting his first battle!!

Then he gets trampled by his soldiers? WHAT?! Well, bloody hell. THAT's a notable departure. THIS was supposed to be the battle scene for this part of the story (not Whispering Woods). Knocked on the head by his own man - aww, I'm sorry Peter Dinklage. (But, war is here, you'll probably get another chance to fight. Maybe.)

Storywise, a clever tactic to keep Tywin Lannister and his superior skill and army occupied. But that's only going to work so many times...

In the meantime, we have a new whore. (Some folks thought that Ros would be our Shae.) Well, Shae is pretty and impetuous, like the books. Foreign, NOT like the books. No "sexposition" this time? A drinking game?? What do we call that, "drinxposition?" Ah well. The acting was top notch, but that was a lot of screen time to fill with stuff that wasn't entirely relevant at the time. Mind you, the Tysha story is important, but it could have waited. Undoubtedly, build up towards Tyrion's role in Season 2. Aside, Bronn is fantastic, no?

Jon Snow gets a sword, a reprieve from Thorne, and a lecture from the last Targaryen. Snow is a bit angsted, you know, and Kit Harrington is a bit more believable in the role than he was. Thing is, last week he's angsted about Uncle Benjen's horse coming back without a rider. This week, it's his half-brother has marched off to war. (And, since this isn't clear in the show, I must tell you that Valyrian Steel is a BIG FRIGGIN' DEAL. It's the family heirloom beyond all heirlooms. It's grandmama's priceless set of antique china, but medieval and functional.) The writers need to get to the part where Snow settles into his decision, whatever it is, so that he can carry the role that next season will have for him.

In clever editing, we go from the old Targaryen to the young hot one. This, too, is more or less close enough to the books. It may seem a little rushed, because it is. The viewer didn't get time to feel the angst of Drogo's quick descent into infection, and the numerous interactions Dany has with the witch. The Dothraki are a bit more hostile here than I recall them in the books, but this is nitpicking, truly.

Everything with Dany's arc has been carefully laid points and clues to prepare the viewer for the season finale. Yes, some of it was not according to the books, but here at the end, it's all still lined up. With the events that have taken place in the rest of Westeros, all eyes should be glued to Dany, and not just because she's cute.

For those of you who haven't read the books, this next part must have been a shock. But, even if you have, I have to agree with the Winter is Coming comment (linked above).

Wow, what an emotional ending. I was not expecting to be affected as I was. I knew the story, I knew what was coming, I thought it was the new viewers who would be shocked and appalled and I would just smile knowingly and say, “That’s Martin for you!” Instead seeing it play out on screen, with Ned trying to save his daughters only to have everything go horribly wrong and seeing Sansa and Arya’s reaction. I’m getting emotional again just thinking about it.

Aside, that is Ned's Valyrian Steel sword, "Ice".

To paraphrase Pulp Fiction, Ned's dead, baby.

Farewell, Sean Bean. At first I thought you might've portrayed Ned Stark a little too tough and rough, but by the end, I was convinced. I saw the conflict and emotion and the sheer stubbornness. We didn't get to really understand what was going on with you in the dungeons, but those dream sequences would have been pricy to produce. Thank you for giving Ned Stark some star power, for compelling people to feel his plight, and for once again championing the fantasy fiction genre. Kudos to you.

Also, good job little Joffrey in that scene. Truly, everyone hates your guts of course, but that scene would have been easy to botch. Damn good job.

*

As we approach Episode 10, it seems we have lost a lot of the series' star power. What does this mean? The series is about the children. Children living in an adult world, under ridiculously trying circumstances. One by one, they lose the protection their parents offered them - or that protection becomes meaningless.

What becomes of the Stark children with Ned dead and Catelyn off to war? Does Winterfell become a giant point of vulnerability with all of the north marching south to war? And wildlings and White Walkers just beyond the Wall? What becomes of Daenerys if/when the mighty Khal Drogo dies and only one renegade knight to protect her?

Many people give up the series after the death of Ned Stark. Can HBO, the writers and producers, the young actors in lead roles - can they carry the series as well as the books compel the readers?

Fans of the books will continue to watch the series. We can't help it. We've read the story, many of us more than once, and it's a little geek's dream to see it come alive on screen. Between the series and ADwD coming out next month, this is all too good to be true.

But of those new to the series, not yet read the books, not yet knowing what wicked George R. R. Martin has planned for the characters that remain - will they stay along for the ride?

Next week's season finale has to be done just right, I think, to convince viewers that the characters that remain still have a lot of story to tell. Because, frankly, the next two books/seasons are infinitely more exciting than what has just taken place.

Enough of that seriousness. Here's an awesome reaction to Episode 9, courtesy of the WiC link above.

Writing Tip Posts, June 11, 2011

2011-06-12T13:29:00.000-04:00

You may have noticed that I keep tinkering with the blog title and the "about me" section. That's why I persist in these little 'writing tip' posts - you can never stop improving the craft. And below you'll see the link that made me realize what I need to do differently on here. Everything in my life is a Work-in-Progress (WIP), and every week I get a little better, even if there are greater challenges.

If nothing else, I'm confident that I'm headed in the right direction.

You want proof? My little blog got a shout out this week! Yayy!! Thank you, Erin Reel! *happy dance*

What can I say, I'm often easily amused. I was out for drinks (Rum!) with friends on Friday night, and a coworker said to me the following day, "You're like Peter Pan." I said, "That's not a very masculine comparison." "Oh, no, you were just bouncing around and having fun."

Yes. Yes, I was. In a masculine way. (I got 939 on the boxing glove machine. Rawr.)

Now the post that made me see the light of day with this 'ere blog 'n stuff? Kristen Lamb (no surprise there), Why Writers Blogging about Writing is Bad. 'Nuff said.

Having said that, I'm sure I'm not the only starving, struggling artist in the world, and maybe we can learn stuff from each other along the way. So these posts shall continue.

Openings that Annoy. There's always so much dialogue about the first 5 pages, 5 chapters, 1000 words. Heaven knows I've revised my opening paragraph (what feels like) a thousand times. I'm THIS close to posting it on here in the hopes of constructive criticism. (I suspect I need more followers to get the feedback I want.)

Why publishers reject manuscripts and what you need to do to get noticed.

At Magical Words, a guest post by L. McKenna Donovan, Sharpening Our Narrative.

There are days when I'm not sure what to write, or not able to revise what I've already written. In other projects, I tend to write freely as the thoughts come together, then go back and revise while I'm still thinking about the topic. Most of the time, that turns out well. This post by Melissa Donovan caught my eye: How Freewriting Can Help Writers Overcome Procrastination.

Livia Blackburne: Improving Creativity: The Absorb Brainset and Twenty Ways to Describe Your Characters BFF.

I had a link recently about reading your work aloud. It's something I live by - being a former DJ probably helps me find the rhythm in the words, and since I have no skill with any musical instrument (other than a sound board), I'm sure this is a developed skill. Sarah Duncan has a good post on this, Rhythm in Prose. While mentioning her, this was also an inspiring, quick read: Learning from an Olympian.

On phraseology and rewording. This post goes well with some of the posts above.

Terri Giuliano Long does a guest post on Erin Reel's blog: 7 Ways to Pick Yourself Up After a Painful Rejection. Solid advice in there.

Former-agent-now-author Nathan Bransford has a really sharp post on How to Craft Mystery in a Novel.

Agent Rachelle Gardner advises Write a Break In Novel. wherein she makes several valid points, things I've noticed in sf/f debuts.

And to end this week's linkhappygoodness on a funny note, check out this video shared by agent and query shark Janet Reid. Oh My God, Yes.

Thank me now, thank me later, or even better - share some links in the comments to inspire and compel the improvement of our craft. Cheers!

Game of Thrones. Approaching Episode 9.

2011-06-10T13:48:00.001-04:00

Episode 8, written by George R. R. Martin, was by far the best episode yet this season. Since all of the good recaps have already been done, no need to do that here.

What? Haven't read a good recap? Check out Adam Whitehead over at The Wertzone, and his recap of episodes 7 and 8. I mostly agree.

Or you can go to Winter Is Coming, and see a list of the commercial recaps.

Oh, Ned. All that honor. This is what I like about GRRM - being good and noble gets you a bum leg and jail time. What's fantastic about the way this is portrayed is that if he was truly "doomed" - why would Varys keep visiting him?

And if you didn't like Sansa before, do her actions make her more or less sympathetic? I always thought she was an idiot, in the books and on the show.

See, I'm messing up my pretty dress and everything!

Which is to say that Sophie Turner's portrayal is excellent! Next season will give her a better chance to show off her acting chops.

Can I have more lines, please?

Richard Madden, playing Robb Stark, finally gets more lines than Theon Greyjoy. (Once again, READ THE BOOKS). Unfortunately, the game is late, so Stark's ideology is as yet unclear, since Madden has had so little screen time.

Here again is a role that will develop better next season.

Suuure, he'll lead them into battle.

There was a lot of commentary on how Tyrion's swagger was reduced in the presence of Tywin Lannister (played by Charles Dance). I loved the hill people in all their ugly heathen glory, and Bronn continues to impress. Episode 9 promises to show this amazing juxtaposition - the dwarf who should certainly NOT be making war, going to war with his ragtag army. Again, Martin is brilliant. Without spoiling too much, I cannot wait to see how Peter Dinklage portrays Tyrion as he goes through ... hell.

But the big story last week was what Khal Drogo, (my gf has a big crush on Jason Momoa now - how to compete with that?) and his Dothraki necktie.

ANYONE ELSE NEED A DOTHRAKI NECKTIE? I didn't think so.

Moreso, the episode highlighted the resentment some of the Dothraki have with Daenerys and her increasing role as Khaleesi. Both Emilia Clarke and Momoa (and the excellent Iain Glenn) continue to make this story arc shine. There have been hints and allegations of what will come next. Oh, the witch lamblady is only there to help!

Did you just tell me to bark? You naughty Khal!

Yes I know what happens next, but I see how they've been laying groundwork all season for how this will end. There have been clues, here and there.

Aside, does anyone else find it ironic that the only functional couple on GoT is the arranged marriage that was consummated by rape? Beautiful tragedy.

Oh, there's more - but this isn't a recap.

Here's the questions to ask for Episode 9 and 10.

1) What happened to Arya? Will she get out of the city?
2) Will Catelyn Stark convince Robb to go home before he gets killed in battle? Or will he have crushing victories over the Lannisters?
3) Will Ned get out of the dungeon, and still maintain his honor? What if Sansa begs him?
4) Will critics ignore the barking of Ghost, Jon Snow's direwolf? (In the books, he's silent.) What are the implications of Benjen's horse coming back without a rider?
5) And as notable from the preview of Episode 9, what's gonna happen to the Dothraki if they are not happy with their leadership?

We've already said farewell to Robert Baratheon, Viserys Targaryen, Syrio Forel (maybe), and most of the Stark household. Who else will die before the season ends?

TiStF | Government Scandals

2011-06-08T12:04:00.000-04:00

As much as I enjoy The Daily Show, I must admit that I am weary of hearing about Congressman Weiner's weiner. In last night's episode, there was a strong bit that essentially said, to paraphrase, women don't really care to see a man's junk, unless it can cook, clean, listen, provide financial security and comfort her parents. Now you know.

In Jon Stewart's defense, this is comedy gold at the end of the comedy rainbow. It's too good to ignore, and there is a year's worth of parody and satire and punchlines that will honor the idiot who tweeted his stuff to some female constituent.

Ugh, make it stop.

An interesting way to gain votes.

I was going to post video, during which I tried to come up with some clever way of saying something which hadn't been said. After all, this isn't a political blog, by any stretch of the imagination.

Which got me to thinking...

Our history as a culture is filled with government scandals. There's always a mistress, from Henry VIII to John Edwards. Where now we have CNN and Jon Stewart, even the Greeks had parodists, the Romans had cryers, and medieval times had bards.

Senator lifts his toga and flashes his stuff at a young female thespian in the alley behind the Parthenon. Did it happen? Seems very likely.

Scandal. Bloody scandal. There was even a Discovery episode about such things. Missed it? It's on DVD: Scandals of the Ancient World.

When I write, I try to not to go for those melodramatic conflicts. I like purity of intent, of action, and in my mind, that creates a more dramatic conflict, because (in theory), the reader should empathize with both sides, and in that, they must either choose a side, or sit back and see what happens.

It feels false to me when there is some melodramatic love triangle, when someone is being wicked just for the sake of doing so. To me, it's more compelling when a character is driven into temptation. "Bad" people should have serious motivations, and be well aware of the cost of being naughty.

Then, I watch the news. Pick up the newspaper. Read the headlines on my web browser. Watch a little political satire show. It stares at me, reminds me, that humans are very flawed.

I've been revising Catalyst, and there's multiple character arcs. The arc that I'm currently reworking seemed a little bland to me, so yes, I've had to go back and tighten up the older protagonist, give him a little edge to reflect his experiences. I've had to purify the younger protagonist, so that he would be a little uncomfortable as events unfold that he's never experienced.

But the other arcs seemed fine to me. More organized and coherent peoples, the conflict is more direct, and they all unite - it's pretty standard epic stuff.

Yet, here is the Universe reminding me that people are flawed. That even in Congressman Wiener's perfect life, with his new wife and his secure political position - he goes and mucks up his entire career for no apparent reason. With no sense of logic or responsibility or grace, this otherwise relatively successful man is essentially a fool.

It seems so cheap and vulgar to include this sort of failing in fiction. It's so ridiculous and cheesy. Yet, history is full of these anecdotes. Modern society can't go a week without a scandal.

What's a writer to do?

Do we imagine a world where honor and a person's truth and integrity actually means something - where two people who claim to love each other, actually do so (without either one of them enteraining offers and suggestive notions from another outside the relationship)?

Or do we reflect the decay of organized society? Men (and women) who rule counties, countries and worlds, are simply base peoples, with the same lust, greed and self-indulgent motivations of their constituency?

On the one hand, a perfect paradise is potentially very boring.

On the other, epic heroic fantasy still sells today - because when we are surrounded by war, greed, lust and government scandal, it's nice to escape into a world where people are exactly what they say they are, and that they will fight against all odds to uphold those beliefs.

What do you think?

Game of Thrones, Stupid-Ned-Stark meme

2011-06-05T11:09:00.001-04:00

Link provided, courtesy of the folks over at Winter Is Coming.

I didn't do an episode review this past week. There was quite the buzz about Littlefinger's brothel scene, and I had some mixed feelings about it.

So, in anticipation of the events that will unfold tonight, I would like to share this meme with you.

More memes are here.

Video: Singing Coyote Cubs

2011-06-04T09:00:00.001-04:00

While you're watching this, I'm having a yard sale. This is far more entertaining, I assure you.

For those who wonder why Coyote is my totem, and not the ever-so-popular and much more machismo Wolf (to match my pseudonym), the answer lies not only in this video (SOO CUTE OMG), but in the BBC Series that this clip comes from, Coyote - The Ultimate Survivor.

Writing Tip Posts, June 3, 2011

2011-06-03T12:00:00.002-04:00

Longer list this week, as I've been heavy into revisions of Catalyst, and striving to reaffirm my goals and intents. Also, just maybe, I was lazy last week. Either way, there's lots of gems within this list. Cheers!
All done? Great post on Who to Query First?

Query Shark Janet Reid always has something helpful.
- How to Pitch
- How to Format an Email Query
- Yea, this.
Or maybe you're on the other end of that journey? What's a Newbie Novelist to Do?

Some very insightful posts at Magical Words recently.
- Beginnings, by Lucienne Diver
- What Else Does Your Character Want, by Edmund Schubert
- The Opening Chapter, by Diana Pharoah Francis

Literary Agent Rachelle Gardner reposted several good columns from her archives this week, amongst them Story vs Craft and What's the Story on Backstory?

Speaking of backstory, Do Flashbacks Make Your Butt Look Big? (Excellent analysis in this post, Ms. Blackburne.)

Kristen Lamb: Scene Antagonists - The Making of a Hero.

Hannah Moskowitz: How to Write a Negative Review. (I should have read this long ago, huh?)

Everyone likes numbered lists, right?

Non-fiction writers - Seven Tough Questions for Useful Proposals.
3 Signs You're Renovating a Condemned Novel
3 Things that Screenwriting Taught Me
8 Badass Books that were Rejected by Publishers
T.S. Welti offers 10 Ways to Improve Your (Re)Writing.

On rewriting, Scott Eagan debates whether or not to invest in a huge rewriting project.

One of my biggest issues in my revisions is how to handle dialects. So, I've kept this post bookmarked and keep going back to it for clarity.

Universal themes. Whether you're writing about lasers or Elves, catapults or catacombs, your work should contain A Deeply Felt Theme that will help the reader connect to your story.

Kim Wright: The Value of Reading Your Book Aloud. Something I have always done, and strongly recommend.

If there's any helpful writing tip posts you've found recently, please share! Have a great weekend!

Reading Journal - Songs of Love and Death, Martin and Dozois

2011-05-31T23:47:00.000-04:00

Lately, I have been working on revisions to Catalyst. Trimmed 8,000 words from the manuscript to date. Sounds good, doesn't it? Hahaha. At least 20,000 more to go.

Having just recently finished two rather heavy volumes, I turned back to the anthology for quicker reads when my mind needs a rest.

Here's a few more stories from Martin and Dozois' anthology...

Demon Lover, Cecelia Holland. Fantasy. "There's a cost for everything, but here we learn that sometimes the cost can be much too high, no matter how glittering and wonderful the prize is - or seems to be."

The style didn't resonate with me as strongly as some of the other tales; her King of Norway in the Warriors anthology was an easier read for me. Having said that, this story told much like an old fable, which made it the first of its type so far in the anthology. That alone made it worth reading.

*

The Wayfarer's Advice, Melinda M. Snodgrass. Science Fiction. "Here's a compelling drama set in deep space that reunites lovers long parted by rank, social status and circumstance - although, as they both soon come to realize, it may not reunite them for very long..."

I'd never read Snodgrass before - though I'd heard of her through GRRM's blog and other projects. This piece was very entertaining, quite nearly Shakespearean in scope and intent, complete with a happily tragic end. Very, very nice. And a reminder of how long it's been since I'd read any science fiction. I am a bad boy.

*
Blue Boots, Robin Hobb. Medieval Romance. "In the poignant story that follows, she shows us that although love can build bridges across the widest of chasms, those bridges can be swept away by a flood of troubles - but that sometimes, with luck and persistence, they can be built again."

I have come to enjoy Robin Hobb's method of storytelling, the ease of her prose which allows the reader to be inside the mind of the protagonist. Stand-alone romance tales are not my particular interest - even though this was certainly well written. But, being a man, I favored her Warriors contribution, The Triumph. That I could even finish this tale of a 17yr old kitchen maid indicates to me that I should probably add Hobb to my TBR list.

*
The Thing About Cassandra, Neil Gaiman. Literary. "As demonstrated by the subtle and melancholy story that follows, memory can be a very unreliable thing, even in matters of the heart. Or perhaps particularly in matters of the heart..."

Gaiman is one of those authors that you love or hate - I think he's genius, and I know I'm not alone. Even in a short story, he can turn the reader around and around again - this tale was no exception. Worth mentioning, his crazy brilliant prose; reading his material is like having a conversation with your best friend who's a little crazy, and never wrong.

It's strange, bringing someone home. It makes you see the place you live as if you've not been there before. (pg 203)

Ha, right? I'll let you chew on that one for a bit. Til the next.

Before They Are Hanged - Joe Abercrombie

2011-05-30T09:06:00.000-04:00

From Joe Abercrombie's website:

Superior Glokta has a problem. How do you defend a city surrounded by enemies and riddled with traitors, when your allies can by no means be trusted, and your predecessor vanished without a trace? It’s enough to make a torturer want to run – if he could even walk without a stick.

Northmen have spilled over the border of Angland and are spreading fire and death across the frozen country. Crown Prince Ladisla is poised to drive them back and win undying glory. There is only one problem – he commands the worst-armed, worst-trained, worst-led army in the world.

And Bayaz, the First of the Magi, is leading a party of bold adventurers on a perilous mission through the ruins of the past. The most hated woman in the South, the most feared man in the North, and the most selfish boy in the Union make a strange alliance, but a deadly one. They might even stand a chance of saving mankind from the Eaters. If they didn’t hate each other quite so much.

Ancient secrets will be uncovered. Bloody battles will be won and lost. Bitter enemies will be forgiven – but not before they are hanged.

Well, Joe, you did it to me again. Left me wanting more.

This time, however, I'm not mad about it. I expected it - which gave me a chance to value the story for the telling. Still a page turner.

If you read The Blade Itself, then you're going to want to read this. Some folks might say that it suffers from "middle book syndrome", that of a lot of arcs and webs woven from beginning to end.

I wouldn't say that here. What we have here is character development. We spent a lot of time with the cast in book one, and by the end of book two, we know them a bit better. Much better. If you sniff really hard, you can see some foreshadowing for bigger troubles in Last Argument of Kings [The First Law: Book Three], the next and final installment in the series.

"We're a lot different, you and me. Different in all kind of ways. I see you don't have much respect for my kind, or for me in particular, and I don't much blame you. The dead know I got my shortcomings, and I ain't entirely ignorant of 'em. You may think you're a clever man, and I'm a stupid one, and I daresay you're right. There's sure to be a very many things that you know more about than I do. But when it comes to fighting, I'm sorry to say, there's few men with a wider experience than me. No offence, but we both know you're not one of 'em. No one made me the leader, but this is the task that needs doing." He stepped closer still, his great paw gripping Jezal's shoulder with a fatherly firmness, halfway between reassurance and threat. "Is that a worry?"

Jezal thought about it for a moment. He was out of his depth, and the events of the past few minutes had demonstrated beyond question just how far. He looked down at the man that Ninefingers had killed only a moment before, and the cleft in the back of his head yawned wide. Perhaps for the moment, it would be best if he simply did as he was told.

"No worry," he said.

- pg 173

It's hard to discuss the story without spoiling. Joe is true to his characters. He peels away the layers and sticks to their core truths, the hints of which were only evident in The Blade Itself. And ends the same way. There are surprises along the way, and they're either reasonable or cruel, depending on how sadistic you are.

Seems to me that Abercrombie's voice and writing style improves heavily in the second book. His descriptions are lush and stirring, capturing and foretelling moments through the physical manifestations of the scene's setting. Even more notable is that the prose matches the character's perspective as POV's shift throughout the story - something that I've only ever seen G.R.R.M. pull off well - Abercrombie nails it.

Within the shifting perspectives and ideas of a huge cast of characters, we see just how dark Joe can go - and I suspect he will go darker yet. Love and loss and sacrifice. Blood and death and murder and rape. The events that shape a character, change them. The reader suffers - or rejoices - right along with the characters throughout. Even when the outcome is most likely to be grim or unexpected, the reader still gets to experience that, connect with the character. In short, despite much of the tale leading up to even more dramatic events, yet to be revealed, this is damn good storytelling.

I do wonder if this series is too grim and bloody for the average fantasy reader. Yes, there's humor interspersed within, and intrigue, and clever complications, and even ... sex. Mostly though, a growing black cloud grows over the entire arc and all the characters as they work their way into ... running out of excuses to not confront their issues straight on, as they will have to in the next book.

Truly, I have to give Abercrombie credit where it's due. He beats the hell out of his characters, and shows them no mercy... no mercy at all. This series isn't for the faint of heart... which is why I'm liking it so damn much.

Writing Tip Posts, Week of May 25, 2011

2011-05-29T09:00:00.023-04:00

In the midst of the long Memorial Day Weekend here in the States. Hopefully you're getting some writing done with an extra day off.

Short list of writing tip posts that I found interesting this past week.

Jurgen Wolff talks about the authors guild and why you should join.

Joanna Penn offers some Ebook Publishing Tips.

Sarah Duncan on choosing the right point of view. And When the Right Person to Have Viewpoint is Wrong. Something I've been tinkering with, in my revisions, is shifting scenes to different perspectives.

Along those lines, How Many Characters is Enough? Either way, Characters Must Come First in any Genre.

At Novel Publicity, Rob W. Hart does a post on manuscript spacing.

Kristen Lamb: What "Finding Nemo" Can Teach Us About Story Action.

Meg Mitchell Moore, on Writing about Children. At SF Signal, What Guillermo Del Toro taught me about writing child characters.

Lots of good information, but I suspect we all sometimes need a little jump in the mornings to knock out a reasonable word count for the day. Maybe this will help: Morning Meditations to Unleash Creativity.

Feel free to share any helpful writing tip posts in the comments. Otherwise, I hope some of these were useful to you. Have a great holiday weekend!

Reconciliation of Efforts

2011-05-28T12:00:00.002-04:00

This blog doesn't get a lot of traffic. Truly, that's alright... it's expected with a new blog. You've got to build up readership.

Interestingly enough, I've never had any blog on blogspot that got a lot of traffic - although the last one is still averaging 50 hits a day for some reason. (I'm thinking it's the pictures.)

Anyway, this blog is what it is. As much for my own amusement, my own efforts towards becoming published and having a platform by which to express myself in terms of writing, speculative fiction and other geeky goodness.

I have written recently of my foray into reading "dark" fantasy. While "Catalyst" is not nearly as dark as I can get (I'd label it epic high fantasy), it's a direction that I intend to go in the series. It is the whole reason I built Zherlios, from the ground up, to facilitate my notion of the perfect fantasy world for me to play in. I read other authors' dark fantasy just to see where I fit into the literary scheme.

Meanwhile, I have still have urges to express. Dark, provocative thoughts, ideas, explorations. Ideas that float around in my mind. In the past, in other locations, when I have gone this route, those efforts have been well received.

In my mind, it does not belong here. So, I have ignored my own desires, and plugged along with this more "professional" public effort.

Do I want to soil my platform? Do I make myself unpublishable, because I am, perhaps to some, a wicked man? At first, I thought this might be the case - it is why I removed my book reviews.

Every author has their own interests. We've seen authors on their public blogs discussing medication, depression, anxiety, football, religion, rape, politics - we've seen authors on other blogs arguing over the quality of others' reviews.

They're still publishing.

I would prefer not to shock you. This is a nice, friendly place - with the exception of the occasional adult language when I quote from a book. Most of the time, I'm a nice guy. Maybe even a little boring.

I don't want to hold myself back. Writing is all about the honing and perfection of the craft, and it's an effort without end. Even when I am published, I know for a fact that I will be able to get better. I am reading authors lately who are much more skilled than I am - which just pushes this notion, that I must needs work harder, even further.

For these reasons, I have started another blog, a new playground for me to explore the more provocative aspects of my writing process. To dabble in flash, in prose, in poetry and scenes of a more adult and/or dark nature.

If such things are of interest to you, then please - stop on by. Otherwise, business as usual here.

Have a great holiday weekend!

The Lies of Locke Lamora - Scott Lynch

2011-05-27T09:00:00.001-04:00

Well... damn. That was good.

You may or may not have seen my last post wherein I said I was going to give this a look the other night... I was then unable to put it down.

The cover blurb, from George R. R. Martin, reads, "Fresh, original and engrossing... gorgeously realized."

Yes, just so, Mr. Martin.

The back cover sums up my thoughts rather nicely. (This is to say, since I no longer do 'book reviews', that I don't think it's a crime to tell you when a story kicks ass.)

In this stunning debut, Scott Lynch delivers the thrilling tale of an audacious criminal and his tightly knit band of tricksters. Set in a fantastic city pulsing with the lives of decadent nobles and daring thieves, here is a story of adventure, loyalty, and survival that is one part "Robin Hood," one part Ocean's Eleven, and entirely enthralling...

That Robin Hood stuff isn't clear from the start, but the Ocean's Eleven feel? Amazingly, yes.

I have always wondered about political intrigue in the ancient days. There was no technology. No phone taps, no google searches. Right? Duh. It was all groundwork, based on information that could be obtained while on the go, through a network of spies that you'd have to trust to be loyal. Every written piece of correspondence would have to be accounted for, otherwise it'd be a potential liability.

Dunno about you, but I got busted for passing notes in school ALOT. (Kids these days can just send a text. So lame.)

Locke LaMora pulls off his misdirections and such without cheating, i.e., using magic. Good ole fashioned ground work, trust, and lots of luck. Best fantasy representation of a con-artist that I have ever read.

Lynch's writing style/voice is excellent. Punchy, witty prose, lots of descriptive worldbuilding, and believable dialogue. Easy to read, easy to enjoy.

However, he does one thing some of you may not agree with. Instead of inserting background exposition into the 'present day' chapters, into the dialogue ("Well, as everyone knows Bob...") he does Interlude chapters.

Most of the time I would never advise this. Flashback chapters? Ugh. Because they take you right out of the action of what's happening in the story.

Lynch, however, masters this. It works because he starts off the tale with Locke LaMora as a small child, so the reader becomes interested in the child character; it's essentially reading two stories at once. Moreso, every flashback gives not only weight to the next chapter, but perspective. It makes the 'present' action that much more powerful. Sure, it's manipulative, but in my opinion, he nails it most of the time.

Towards the end of the story, I was reaching a point where the action was non-stop, and my response to the interlude was "Aww, really? I don't care! What happens next?" - suitably, those chapters were shorter. Clever man, Scott Lynch.

Lemme show ya... here's the end of a flashback and the beginning of the next chapter, where the child protagonist speaks to his mentor.

"Why?"

"It's the oldest rule of their guild, a rule without exceptions: kill a Bondsmage and the whole guild drops whatever it's doing to come after you. They seek you out by any means they need to use. They kill your friends, your family, your associates. They burn your home. They destroy everything you've ever built. Before they finally let you die, they make sure you know that your line has been wiped from the earth, root and branch."

"So nobody is allowed to oppose them at all?"

"Oh, you can oppose them, all right. You can try to fight back, for what it's worth when one of them is against you. But if you go as far as killing one, well, it's just not worth it. Suicide would be preferable; at least then they won't kill everyone you ever loved or befriended."

"Wow."

"Yes." Chains shook his head. "Sorcery's impressive enough, but it's their fucking attitude that makes them such a pain. And that's why, when you find yourself face to face with one, you bow and scrape and mind your 'sirs' and 'madams.'"

5

"Nice bird, asshole," said Locke.

The Bondsmage stared coldly at him, nonplussed.
(pp 288 - 289)

That example is a bit direct, but the other usages of the Interlude chapters are equally functional in adding perspective and gravity to whatever action is happening to the protagonist in the 'present' story.

Lies is book one in The Gentleman Bastards sequence, of which Red Seas Under Red Skies is next (and absolutely on my 'must have' list). That noted, Lies doesn't end on a cliffhanger; all the notable threads are handled within the story. It's simply that the concluding action leaves new ripples in its wake.

Scott Lynch website: http://www.scottlynch.us/index.html

Reading journal, for the weekend... Before They Are Hanged (The First Law: Book Two) and continuing with Songs of Love and Death: All Original Tales of Star Crossed Love.

What are you reading over the holiday weekend?

Reading Journal - Songs of Love and Death, Martin and Dozois

2011-05-25T09:00:00.025-04:00

I started reading Songs of Love and Death: All Original Tales of Star Crossed Love the other night. For those who do not know, it is a short story anthology edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois. I suspect the theme is obvious?

I'm not very far into it, to be honest, but I wanted to use this as an opportunity to mention the other anthology released last year by Martin and Dozois, Warriors.

I've never been much into short stories - reading them or writing them. When I have written shorts, they've been scenes only, with the purpose of delivering an emotional response.

But, as a writer, I'm all too familiar with the value of the short story as a way to break into the 'scene', as it were. That's the advice everyone gives.

Moreso, I spent much of last year and the year before reading book review blogs, and I heard of all these wonderful authors that I was unfamiliar with. The problem being, in my mind, is that I'm terribly picky about who I read - and - they can't ALL be that good, can they?

Or maybe they can. I don't know.

Anyway, I figured getting Warriors was safe, because at least Martin had a short story based on the characters in The Hedge Knight in there, and I'd never read any of those. (What kind of ASoIaF fan am I?! Hedge Knight is the quintessential prequel to A Game of Thrones, dontcha know?)

Warriors didn't disappoint. I learned something important about anthologies. They don't all have to be super awesome. The whole "something for everyone". What was more important, however, was that I got to read stories from some authors whose career I've been following one way or the other.

And their writing may have either not been what I was expecting or was even better than I thought it would be. And that's good.

Songs then becomes this natural choice. Thematically, to go from unusual or interesting warriors to lovers, from conflict to romance (in theory), shows the author's abilities in that regard.

Plus, I have this idea for Zherlios, a character arc which is an ode to Shakespeare - and I am paranoid that it's already been written. (Haha?)(I'm kidding, of course it's been written, by Shakespeare. I'm taking a theme and making it my own. It's an homage to ole Will.)

Seriously though, if it's already been done quite this way, I'd rather find out now.

Four stories, so far.

Love Hurts, Jim Butcher. I like Jim Butcher, having devoured his Codex Alera over the past couple of years. I've got notes that I copied from his LiveJournal on writing advice taped to my desk. I've never yet read any of his Dresden Files material, so this was a fun introduction to the character and the world in which he lives.

The Marrying Maid, Jo Beverley. Was unfamiliar with the author until I read this. She did an excellent job of blending mythological elements into her Victorian era tale. While not generally the genre I read in, the story was well paced and enjoyable.

Rooftops, Carrie Vaughn. After reading her story here and also in Warriors, Carrie Vaughn makes it to my "must read" list (once I wander back to urban fantasy). Her style, characterization, prose is - for lack of a better phrase - compelling. Her story in Warriors still comes to my mind on occasion, and I read that months ago.

Hurt Me, M.L.N. Hanover (pseudonym for Daniel Abraham). Here's an author that I've been waiting to read - he's been very productive in recent years and frankly, anyone that GRRM works with can't stink, right? I tease. Objectively speaking, this story could only have one possible outcome. But, once you're reading it, that answer is not there. It's this incredible twist of fate, a balance that's all too perfect and bizarre. Hanover brushes the very edge of sadomasochism (as if the title didn't warn of that) with superb skill, such that the most conservative reader is likely to be only mildly shaken. In short (ha?), I was impressed.

Aside, the Speculative Scotsman did a more in-depth analysis of the story.
Thirteen more stories left... looking very forward to the tales from Neil Gaiman and Jacqueline Carey, as well as the authors I do not know overly well.

But! These days, I have to keep fantasy on the stack, so while I'm slowly indulging Songs, tonight I'm going to start reading a book by an author I have not yet read. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch. Excellent reviews on Librarything, but that's not why I picked it.

Dark Fantasy, boys and girls. After reading Joe Abercrombie, I want to diversify my experience while I try to understand what people think "dark" fantasy really is.

What are you reading these days?

Thoughts on Borgias, Thrones

2011-05-24T18:00:00.012-04:00

Since my last television post was a bit rant-o-rrific, I'll keep this brief. If there's any specifics you'd like to discuss, we can do so in the comments.

The Borgias, Finale - Showtime.

First and foremost, all those promotional clips featuring soldiers and bloodshed were pretty darn misleading. Annoyingly so.

Here it comes! The big battle!!

Oh wait. Next episode. No, wait. Next season. No, really. We promise?

Annoying.

However, let's be positive! Loved the finale. Holliday Grainger continues to amaze and astound with her acting range (the girl can scream, wow!). We see the more subtle and conniving Pope defeat the French through intellect and cunning. Jeremy Irons is much more suited to this.

Cesare' gives us a glimmer of the risk taker he was in the beginning of the season. And Juan, forever useless, shows up to stand around while the French army is camped outside of Rome.

I was wondering where they were going to go with the story, seeing as the promo videos seemed to indicate WAR (you naughty liars), but the resolution was not only convincing, but necessary.

A few more thoughts, but ... eh. Truly, why are "seasons" so bloody short?

A Game of Thrones - HBO

For those who are new to the series, it should be obvious anyway: It's ALL running downhill, at breakneck speed, from here.

Ned Stark, Robert Baratheon - this is solid, perfect, wonderful. Ned's added assertion? Yes, let's see "Winter is Coming" Stark! The man who rules the north, as Hand of the King.

Oh, Cersei, and her badge of honor? Without her brother (who has skipped town)? Enter Tywin Lannister. Lions and Wolves are just beginning to ... it's not looking good for mending fences. Fantastic scenes, there.

The story will push forward now. Episode 7, some of you have seen on HBOGO. NOT the one to watch for. It's Episode 8, the one directed by Martin himself (as I understand).

I am noticing one sad little trend. Where are the Direwolves?

The scene with Bran, Robb, Theon and (new character) Osha played by Natalia Tena? Great! Excellent! Why would Bran leave the company of his brother? To go search for Summer, his wolf. Who would summarily chew up and eat one of the wildings.

The lack of direwolves is going to be an issue for story continuity. The direwolves are pivotal in this series, they are reflections of the Starks. Especially for Bran, because of his physical condition.

Troubled indeed, dear Arya.

Everything else is fine. Fun. Exciting. The way I've imagined it in all my readings. Not sure of the scene between Theon and Ros, but it was a small thing. And nudity to facilitate exposition.

Tyrion's fight for freedom. Bronn, his new accomplice. Mord! Some variation from the book, (turtle stew, ha ha), but not enough to matter. What's relevant here is the new, tentative alliance between Tyrion and Bronn. In terms of character development - what do you think Tyrion will do, with his newly found freedom? Keep an eye on the little man.

In all of this so far, I suspect that Catelyn is not gaining friends at this point, but - without saying too much - I didn't care for her too much at this point in the book, either. Don't give up on her just yet.

The crowning moment of this episode was the beautiful uh... crowning... of Viserys Targaryen. Anyone that annoying must needs die. That is why I love GRRM.

Hat's off to you, Harry Lloyd. You absolutely sold the creepy little horror that was Viserys. There's a great interview with him here. And now, Dany is free to soar!

(Even with the blatant foreshadowing, I think the first time viewers are going to go apesh*t over Dany before the end of this season.)

Episode Six was a large improvement in maintaining the story's integrity while providing visual stimulation and the certain simplicity required for visual media. Yes, you'd get more depth and understanding if you read the books.

But, frankly, it'll be pretty hard to mess things up from here. Buckle your seatbelts, the rest of the season is going to be a helluva ride. I can't wait!

Aside, Winter is Coming does a Twitter recap each week. I was booming laughter reading some of the responses and commentary. Check it out for yourself, you won't be sorry.

Thoughts on Fox's House, MD

2011-05-24T12:47:00.011-04:00

House. At one time, IMLTHO, the best show on network television. After last night? I'm mad. And while this is likely a rant, let me offer some ideas on how to fix Season 8.

At the end of the day, Dr. House is one of the best anti-heroes on television.* That's why I watch, have all the seasons on DVD, and force every girl I've dated in the last few years to watch with me. People say that the show has become formulaic, and I agree - it's a medical drama - and unless you're watching Discovery, medicine is secondary to the drama, it's the setting.

* Particularly since Fox cancelled Lie to Me, as Dr. Cal Lightman was another fantastic anti-hero.

Fox has renewed House for Season 8, and in many ways, that's good news. There's a chance to go out with a bang, and give the fans what we've earned.

Where's the Character Tension? Chemistry?

The best shows on television have this inherent sexual tension between characters. So many fans cried for "HUDDY", the match up between House and Cuddy - and when it came to pass, it was a disaster. So, now television history will call it "jumping the shark".

Why was it a disaster? Because Cuddy wasn't realistic in her expectations of House. They spent an entire season exploring the "maybe" of this - and then once the relationship came to fruition, those notions never carried forward.

Marrying a foreign bride was the answer? No. Bringing back Jennifer Morrison would have been better (producers, you can still do it!).

Bring back a wicked Dr. Cameron?

Is it because I have a huge crush on Cameron? (I totally do. Sorry?) With Cameron, you had tension between House and her, between her and Cuddy, between her and Chase, between Chase and House. It was complicated! That made for tense moments, people wondering "Oh noes, what if?"

Attractive, intelligent, bisexual and dying.

So, then a new hottie is introduced, right? A bisexual Thirteen, that fans didn't seem to like. What's not to like about Olivia Wilde? Her character had depth, passion, and a complicated situation. (You can thank me for not googling a more provocative picture - Olivia Wilde is far more daring than Jennifer Morrison.)

But she's disinterested in anyone. Except Foreman. While Omar Epps is a decent actor, his character is emotionally closed off. What happens when you have two emotionally barren people hook up? Sparks? Or not. (sad face.) Then the writers really dropped the ball in ignoring the potential chemistry between Chase and Thirteen at the end of Season 6. They brought Thirteen back, not from some interesting medical adventure regarding her Huntington's Disease (depth, motivation), but from jail because she euthanized her brother. (who? what?) Huh?

Fans grieve for the loss of "cutthroat bitch" (Amber Volakis) - why? Because there was a weird chemistry between her and House, a relationship between her and Wilson, and the weirdness between Wilson and House, as a result.

The provocative side of Masters? Nice!

I thought Amber Tamblyn, playing character Martha Masters, had some interesting potential. Zero sex appeal (and judging by this picture I found, clearly unfounded). She was a good balance to House's moral compass, until he corrupts her. Masters shows Chase the light where concerns his whoring, but a couple of episodes later, he's at it again. Zero lasting impact. Masters had the potential, too. Taub and his womanizing. Foreman and his uptightness. No one even bothered to become friends with the girl. Poor thing. She must feel so used.

What's our core conflict? We have one man who is a medical genius, can solve any problem, and each episode shows us how he does it. But the man is broken, twisted, and a grumpy bastard. Neat.

He has a team of doctors do the legwork for him, a few friends who have their own lives to live, but have chosen, for whatever reason, to tie their careers and lives to this maniac. It's a fantasy adventure!

The truths of each of the characters, their inherent issues and chemistry, begs complications. No one cares how many girls Taub gets pregnant (unless it's Cuddy), or if Chase picks up girls at bars every night (unless it's Huddy, Thirteen, or maybe one of her girlfriends). Give Foreman some personality, and some bloody ambition, as House self-destructs - Foreman should be going for House's job.

Wilson? He's the one person who knows House too well to be used only for comedy relief. (Chasing chickens? Really?)

What do you do? House is going to jail? (Again?) I don't buy the season finale. He's heartbroken over Cuddy, so he's going to almost kill her by driving his car through her home? Uh, no. He'd go in there and beat the crap out of her lover with his cane. (You can throw him in jail then.) (Aside, Wilson sprains his wrist? Why?) Have him punch Wilson in the face, too!

Ahh, Mira Sorvino. Come back from Antartica!

Bring back Stacy Warner. Bring back Ali (the teen stalker). How about Mira Sorvino from Season 4 (Frozen)? Where is Dr. Edward Vogler in all of this, as House descends into his own personal abyss?

You have a cast of people who understand House's self-destructive behavior, but not a single person who is empathetic towards it. That's the challenge in this series. Can he cure the world and still be a jerk? Who or what can make HIM better?

You can't have him do diagnosis from jail in Season 8. Is being in prison going to help him mend his ways? He'll lose his license, Huddy will fire him - there's no recovery from that ending. No REASONABLE ending. Or beginning. It's too late to undo that finale, of course, but there's still hope for Season 8, the final season of House.

Choose your own adventure, Fox.

Images: Google

TiStF | Incredible Reflexes

2011-05-20T18:00:00.002-04:00

There's always this notion, in writing fiction, that the hero will be TOO powerful. You know, he/she always get himself out of terrible danger with a flick of the wrist.

Instinctive Reflexes.

We see some incredible things in martial arts, in competitions, so in a fight, I rather expect to see some pretty impressive feats... the hero is ready.

But, what about the person who has trained, is in top athletic shape, but is otherwise unaware? Too much, you say? Everyone can be surprised?

Perhaps that is true. I'm a believer in that.

At the same time, Truth is stranger than fiction, my friends. This is Tampa Bay Rays' third baseman Evan Langoria... check this out.

Writing Tip Posts, Week of May 20, 2011

2011-05-20T10:30:00.001-04:00

I spend more time these days reading and revising than writing new material. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but it's a pretty established industry observation that ~~all~~ most authors are insecure of their work.

I find myself torn between wanting to put the finishing touches on this WIP, and begin the next - and avoiding all the traps and errors of the unpublished novelist.

But first? An amusing video!

Now since I'm about six months behind on keeping up with blogs and posting to this one, this post will be lengthier than what I have in mind.

For those further along in the process, here is The Best Agent Blogs of 2011, some of which were new to me. Also, Rene Sears answers Questions on Slush. That's a good start.

Before we take this whole thing too seriously... take it seriously, of course... but bear in mind that blogs about writing tips number in the millions these days - it's a way to draw traffic to the blog. As noted in my reading journal, what I'm getting from my reading is that VOICE and STYLE (and TALENT) are more important than following the rules. Livia Blackburne did an excellent post on this very topic.

Okay? Good! Now let me share with you some links that have caught my eye, or that I have found useful.

Toni McGee Causey, on The Art and Soul of POV, as recommended by Janet Reid, the "query shark".

Kristen Lamb always has some great advice. I am sure you'll see links to her blog quite often. Here are 5 Common Writing Pitfalls and a very extensive look into the Anatomy of Conflict.

Over at A Dribble of Ink, John Ginsberg-Stevens does a guest post on "Mind-blowing" Genre Fiction.

Jurgen Wolff has a nice three part series on writing descriptions, beginning here.

Jennifer Hubbard offers some advice on how to end your writing session.

Rebecca Serle: 7 Things I've Learned So Far. I was impressed by how many of those things I've either told myself or needed to hear.

Ten Universal Tenets of Story, 7 Unmentionables Authors Should Keep in Mind, and 3 Underhanded Ways to Show instead of Tell, courtesy of The Best Damn Creative Writing Blog.

I hope you find some of these links useful. Found a good writing tip article this week? Feel free to share in the comments.

Have a great weekend!

Truth is Stranger than Fiction | Stalin responsible for Roswell UFO crash?

2011-05-19T12:47:00.001-04:00

I admit, without reservation, that I watch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Frankly, I think the world needs humor and satire to go along with the ridiculous news that we have to digest.

So earlier this week, I caught his interview with Annie Jacobsen. She was doing her book tour for her recently published book, Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base.

You have to see it for yourself. This is incredible.

I can't help but wonder how this changes the face of science fiction. It's fun to imagine that aliens landed in New Mexico and were kept in a secret underground military bunker, ala the 1996 movie Independence Day. Good storytelling!

The best part of this is that - some of this is true. Sooo, there is an Area 51. And! There is a UFO hidden deep within Area 51. But the Russians built it! Really?!

Sets the imagination off, no? What if the Russians were wanting to test their secret project, launched this thing into space, and they discovered real aliens? Who then took the UFO and used it to sneak back into the earth's atmosphere, using the space ship's technology?

All of this truly begs the question... WHY would the U.S. keep this a secret? Wouldn't the government (either government, for that matter) gain more credibility by saying, "Nope. No aliens. This was Stalin trying to get one over on us, as part of a big plan to panic their enemies."

What's the purpose of the big secret? There's another story premise right there - that the government wants to use this as their own secret weapon, in order to panic enemies and/or solidify an unruly public trust behind a common enemy. Even the President is on a "need to know" basis (according to the interview), which means we could get attacked by aliens (i.e., ourselves) and yet the leader of the free world wouldn't be in on it. Or would he/she?

Truly, the possibilities are endless. (Which sci-fi author do you think will grab this and run?)

Yahoo does an interesting story on this 'buzz', with multiple links, by the way, if you'd like to do your own research.

Truth is stranger than fiction, my friends.

Reading Journal, Borgias, Thrones

2011-05-16T11:49:00.002-04:00

Monday morning musings...

Finished The Blade Itself (The First Law: Book One) last night. Damn it. Super duper cliffhangers. Rawr. Grrrrr.

Moving on to positivity, here's what Mr. Abercrombie accomplishes in his breakout novel. He does write excellent fight scenes, by the way (noted in one of the back cover blurbs). He compels the reader to root for the underdog. That's a skill, a talent. There's a nice balance between action and narrative, the plot moves forward and the protagonists' lives become interwoven in an interesting way.

He breaks many of the rules that we unpublished writers read again and again in all these ever-so-helpful writing tip blogs. That, in and of itself, is a statement. If you have the talent, it will show. He does. So, instead of taking everyone's advice and having your unique style and voice get washed out in a vanilla coated style compendium of zero risk storytelling - just do what you're gonna do.

This is the lesson I'm finding, again and again, every time I pick up a genre novel. At the end of the day, you cannot argue with success.

Having said that, I get really frustrated with reading 500 pages and not having any resolutions. I won't be doing that. That's not likely to stop me from picking up Before They Are Hanged (The First Law: Book Two). Dang it. :-p

*

Ah, the Borgias. They're going down! I think they rather dragged out last night's episode, considering next week is the season finale... hmm. They're going to leave me on a cliffhanger, too, aren't they?

Damn it.

What can I say after last night's episode? I like Holliday Grainger all the more these days.

And, I told you so, Juan Borgia's an idiot. "Hey, let's just wait for the cannons to fire!" Actually what he said was, "Who gives the order to charge?"

Which, really, says more than any commentary I could add at this point.

*

Thrones.

Last night captured the essence of the relationship between Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon superbly well. And while *I* don't think Maisie Williams looks much like a boy at all, considering the parallel historical time period, I think it's clever that the viewer gets that perspective: she's dirty and not in a dress = boy with long hair.

I think it's a little funny that "sex scene" = "exposition and backstory time". It's almost insulting! (Truly, a good whore is going to piss off her client? Even if she's trying to be cheeky, repeat business insures her income.) I guess it's a reasonable time to chit chat, but the scene with Cersei and Robert was much better.

Ser Loras and Ser Renly. Varys and Illyrio. I weep. Television forces the giant HERE IT IS spotlight, where a novel allows and encourages the reader to take the clues, the hints and draw their own conclusions. Read the book.

I can appreciate that we didn't see Jon Snow or Daenerys Targaryen in this episode, though the timing for Dany is a bit off. Crossing the Dothraki Sea should've taken a whole episode. The action should have clung to her more tightly once they arrived at Vaes Dothrak (which they did in the last episode, as I recall.)

But the Wall? No, the viewer can assume that the four new friends are bonding, being beaten up by Aliser Thorne and teaching Ser Piggy how to fight - the next episode will be a good time to let them take their vows. Their lack of presence in this most recent episode works.

Aside! Apparently some viewers were upset by the demise of direwolf Lady in episode 2. GRRM has addressed that on his Not A Blog, in a manner which I must fully endorse. Spoiler alert: There's going to be a lot more death before the end of the season.

*

Not to get overly meta, but lately I have seen a number of stories where the perceived ruler is fat and decadent. Is this a trope? Or is this a statement towards modern governments - those we choose become bloated, indulgent and selfish, and the countries are actually run by appointed bureaucrats, who are completely out of touch with (and unaccountable to) the common folks?

I do not like the trope. Medieval times were too harsh. A man (or woman) who could not hold their kingdom would lose it. Having said that, it certainly makes sense as a plot point - because at least the reader can appreciate why the ridiculous ruler is going to see war (there is always war).
*

What's next for me to read? I'm deciding between Dune, Songs of Love and Death: All Original Tales of Star Crossed Love, and Kushiel's Scion (Kushiel's Legacy).

In other (personal and irrelevant) news, this weekend marked the first time in two weeks that I was able to eat and not feel pain. The Crohn's has gone back into remission. Huzzah! Now to be a little indulgent myself and regain the weight I've lost... and edit the beast, dang it. ;-)

Reading Journal - Joe Abercrombie, The Blade Itself

2011-05-14T11:16:00.000-04:00

I got called in early to work today, so this will be a brief post. I'm no longer doing "reviews", per se (at least that is my mood this year, ha), but I've seen a few blogs doing reading journals. Let's try that. One doesn't need to reinvent the wheel.

The Blade Itself (The First Law: Book One) is, from what I understand, Abercrombie's debut novel.

It's pretty good. I see a lot of references to Abercrombie in my reading - they say that if you want gritty, dirty, crude fantasy fiction, he's the man to read.

Yes, that is so. Along the lines of GRRM, which I've also seen mentioned.

I'm about halfway through The Blade Itself, and what the strength and draw of this novel is, to me, is the characterizations.

Because these are some despicable characters. Crude, arrogant, ugly, distinctly unlikable. And YET, Abercrombie makes them all entirely sympathetic.

Now I went into this knowing it's the first book in a trilogy, which is to say, the protagonists' motives aren't entirely clear. Seems they'd be happy just to make it through one of their miserable days without dying or suffering or being called to task.

As the story progresses, they get motivated or involved in what's going on - and about a third of the way through the story, you begin to see moments of why these characters were chosen, and how their paths are very likely to cross later.

So, yes, I'm enjoying it.

As far as my writing goes, this has inspired rather an opposite effect on me. While reading this, it occurred to me to make my antagonist more sympathetic. My protagonists are fine (they need some work in the revisions of course); but I've really enjoyed how Abercrombie has made his roguish unlikables - likable. I've been putting it off in my own WIP primarily for the purpose of length - at 140k words, it's too lengthy for a debut novel. Adding more chapters is not helpful.

But perhaps a few chapters here and there... yes, indeed.

Anyway, so off to work for me. It's a good time for things to swirl around and solidify in my head. Have a great weekend!

Thoughts on Showtime's The Borgias

2011-05-10T17:34:00.001-04:00

It took me awhile to begin to enjoy Showtime's previous project, The Tudors, but after reading Sara Poole's Poison: A Novel of the Renaissance, my interest was piqued in their project, The Borgias. The only other reason I'm watching it is because it's gritty historical fiction. I like sex, blood, and political intrigue. Anything less is essentially watching the nightly news.

As yesterday, this is no essay or review - just some random thoughts I've had while watching the series. A writing exercise - I've not been blogging, and I feel rusty.

In many ways, the smaller cast makes it easier to follow than fan favorite Thrones. Casting seems pretty solid. I've had some hesitation with Jeremy Irons, an amazing actor - he just doesn't convince me as a sex-starved power monger. I still closely associate him with his role as the stoic in Kingdom of Heaven. His demeanor is too cool and calculating for me to embrace that he's just a horny old goat. Otherwise? Of course he does well.

I think it is safe to assume that if I'm not watching something on the History Channel, or Discovery, or NatGeo, that there's going to be some degrees of interpretation in the interest of making the story more interesting. In other words, I approach this less as a history lesson, and more as an entertaining retelling. I did the same with the Tudors, and if you haven't caught any of the series yet - I suggest you do the same.

Sex. Seriously, there's a lot of sex. Almost too much, almost to the point of "really?" This goes a long way towards portraying the corruption and decadence of the Borgia clan - and so be it.

The story line moves adequately - you have to swallow the info dumps inherent in the pilot - comparatively, all pilots seem to kinda stink for that reason - and by the third episode, it is easy to gather the relationships and the motivations.

Lucrezia Borgia, played by Holliday Grainger, does an excellent job at portraying a young girl, full of youth and mischief and naivete, plagued with the worries of what she's experienced... and yet, growing, evolving and clearly a Borgia.

Cesare' Borgia, played by Francois Arnaud... now this is a more complicated characterization. In the beginning of the series, he seemed tougher than he seems by episode 7. I suppose that the harshness of the way that he follows his father's orders in order that Rodrigo may become pope - softens once Cesare' is made a cardinal.

The least convincing characterization, to me, is Juan Borgia. He seems the most ill qualified for any sort of responsibility, much moreso leading the papal armies. He's not even loyal to his own little brother. Though, to be honest, I'm not sure if it's the acting, writing or directing that has him all over the place.

Overall? If you like this sort of thing, even if you only remotely enjoyed The Tudors, you'll enjoy this. There's really no major flaws in anything. The sets and costumes are beautiful. The characters are interesting, and true to themselves, for the most part.

Perhaps it is not as complicated or intriguing as Sopranos or Thrones, but that arguably works in its favor. What's missing is the sympathy for the protagonists, as well (and maybe even accurately) as they seem to be portrayed. They get themselves into bad positions and I don't really feel bad for them.

At this point, I'll continue to watch, and while I know that the outcome will be tragic, I'm still hoping to be surprised somehow. In this, Sara Poole's novel (mentioned above) is superior to the television production.

Some links:

Borgias Fan Website
Sara Poole's Blog
The Borgias on Showtime

Thoughts on HBO's Game of Thrones

2011-05-09T13:51:00.002-04:00

My last post seemed redundant the moment I carried over a bunch of old posts from the previous blog. Then, April showered! Maladies, computer problems, and a busy enough social schedule.

But I felt a lack of continuity in my blog here, because - as SOOOO many others - I had been contributing (in my ever so small way) to the growing hype of HBO's A Game of Thrones.

Truly, I can't even talk about my own WIP without mentioning the great desire that I have for HBO to knock this out of the park, ala the next Sopranos or Rome - as GoT purports to be a little of both, in the more fantastical setting of Westeros. I've read the entire series a number of times (four, at least), but I do believe I can discuss this without revealing any spoilers.

I am loathe to "review" the series. As much as I enjoy critical analysis, and apply the same measure to my own works - I'm afraid that an overly critical analysis would overshadow my general joy and happiness towards the project. In short, take what I write herein not as judgemental, but as observation with the intent to highlight the strength of the source material. Ultimately, I am still excited - and very much enjoying - HBO's project.

So, as far as Thrones - READ THE BOOKS. No medium is going to capture the depth and subtlety of Martin's writings. It is too hard to get emotionally invested into the characters when the subtext is limited to what you can insinuate from a 45 second conversation.

I was disappointed a little in the pilot, in that we do not get to hear the children speak, that Jon Snow appears to be so youthful and angsted (and that Catelyn Stark is such a bitch to him), that we don't even know who Theon Greyjoy is until 4 episodes in, and the most tragic deviation of all - Khal Drogo and Daenerys Targaryen.

I think the viewer is losing out on the value of Dany's ascension into a Khaleesi, a Queen, by the deviations in the story. Drogo is gentle with her and smitten. And Dany commands Viserys to walk, not Rakharo. Little things. These are the subtleties that make her decisions at the end of the book that much more powerful - and credible.

And well, you should know that I like my canines - apparently, we could not find an albino pointy earred dog to behave. The relationship with Tarly and Snow, in the book, gains depth and understanding when Samwell is NOT scared of Ghost, and Ghost accepts the fat boy as a friend.

But! Truly, I pick and nag out of love, not because I'm a critical bastard, some angry, sad man who himself is not published because his big fat WIP requires tremendous editing. Overall, the series IS telling the story in a different medium, and as noted elsewhere, it is much like a love letter to A Song of Ice and Fire, as much as a portrayal.

Those nuances noted, casting for Thrones is spectacular. (And it seems impossible to find a casting ensemble picture without infecting your computer with a virus!) I was already quite in lust with Daenerys (played by Emilia Clarke), and from page to screen, I have fallen all over again.

I was never particularly pleased with Cersei on the pages, but Lena Headey brings out the sexual power of Lady Lannister, which somehow makes it easier to accept that she's a bitch. Jaime Lannister? As noted elsewhere, the depth they have given him is commendable. He's charming and clever and cruel. That this is made clear from the beginning is quite the exceptional highlight of an allowable, if not encouraged, deviation.

I knew from the beginning that Mark Addy would pull off Robert Baratheon, and he continues to do so. Peter Dinklage, as Tyrion - brilliant as possible, as everyone on the internet had well predicted. Old Nan? Awesome, perfect and a pleasant surprise. Viserys? Creepy and spastic - bingo! Bran? Stubborn and youthful, with a convincing range of emotion for such a young actor. Nicely done.

Perhaps we haven't seen just enough menace from the Hound, and perhaps Littlefinger is a bit stiffer than I recall him being in the books. Robb Stark is appearing flaky, but I think that's due to lack of screen time; he's just not making sense. And while I am pleased that Sean Bean is playing Ned Stark - the television portrayal has the Stark patriarch as a tad brutish, whereas in the books, my impression was that he was a stoically somber man.

On the other hand? Ser Jorah Mormont, by Iain Glen - fantastic! I'm more convinced by him on screen than I was in the books. Maisie Williams, as Arya Stark - the absolute screen stealer.

The water dancing scene at the end of episode three? It was so good, it made me cry, I kid you not. Arya becomes an increasingly notable POV as the story progresses, and so far young Miss Williams is quite possibly the best casting on the show.

The Artisans: Maisie Williams

Some deviations are necessary, no doubt. As HBO has given a greenlight to Season Two, the producers are really going to have to consider how to carry the story forward with working animals versus CGI. Especially Ghost, damn it - the bastard boy is defined in his books by his freakishly silent wolf.

I wonder how they will reconcile the motivations of the characters, and their actions (Joffrey doesn't like Sansa, what?!), as the story gets even more complex.

All in all, my own selfish motivations aside, I am beyond pleased at the reports that ratings are solid and/or increasing.

For the best commentary on Thrones, I refer you to Winter is Coming or even Adam at The Wertzone. I won't be trying to keep up with those blogs in terms of news and updates.

As an aside, and a post for another time, it is well worth considering what the success of Game of Thrones means for the fantasy genre. If HBO can capture Martin's characterizations and complexity in a world of winters, wargs and wildlings - will it give credibility to a literary genre that is oft neglected or considered immature? Can sex, incest, political intrigue and the cruel nature of war make adult viewers consider that not all fantasy fiction is wands and long-bearded wizards and moreso - understand and appreciate that good and evil is not always black and white, but rather, deep shades of grey? By the Muses, I truly hope so.

However, another discussion that caught my eye and perhaps will catch yours, was a question brought up by the Speculative Scotsman. Martin is notoriously NOT prolific as a writer, and will the series become his deal with the devil, disallowing him time to write what HE wants to write, becoming slave to his success?

Oh, to have such troubles! ;-)

Until the next.

New GRRM Interview

2011-04-11T10:32:00.001-04:00

I am, as well as the rest of the fantasy bloggers, in an absolute tizzy/squee mode about HBO's upcoming Thrones series.

My reasons are different, though. As many, I am a fan of George R. R. Martin. The complexity of his plot, his lush prose, the characters (love them, hate them) - but most of all?

It's for ADULTS. This is the draw, to me. I read Lord of the Rings as a child, and was thrilled with the depth and lore and richness of Middle Earth. And the fantasy tropes and creatures - those are fun, the stuff of my gaming from childhood into adulthood. Swords and magic and orcs, oh my!

But now that I'm an adult, for my imagination to be compelled, I need more.
Can fantasy fans deal with murder and incest? I think so. HBO will make it appealing. Can people who thought that all fantasy was bad CGI Dragons, bad costumes and furry feet be drawn into the depth and complexity of the events within Westeros? I'm hoping, for reasons that I'll likely mention a thousand times here and there.

Six more days...
Enjoy the interview (as seen on GRRM's blog, here.)

Aspiring...

2011-04-05T11:58:00.002-04:00

If we met today, over coffee (or a beer or a glass of wine), I'd eventually tell you that I'm an aspiring novelist, in the genre of fantasy fiction.

Which would be true. But, you (maybe) as well as I (certainly) know that there is no shortage of those. It's a cliche', the starving artist - the cliche' is a little less meaningful with internet access.

Last year, I kept a two-party blog, which focused mostly on book reviews and SF/F news and such. Then I moved, found a night job, and the months went by as life got busy. My blogging partner found another outlet for her creativity, and I was focusing on other things. (Edit: I went ahead and imported some of my older posts, for the sake of continuity.)

This isn't my first blog. I started off on myspace, believe it or not, a decade ago. Following my online roleplaying friends, I kept one on LiveJournal, which lasted awhile. People's lives change, and so do their blogs - which, more oft than not, do not last very long. This one will be my last, methinks.

I kept my first journal at the age of 8, did my first creative writing around that time, and self-published for the purpose of entertainment in high school (before I was recruited by the school paper). Public performance replaced the written word for a decade, and then I went back to it.

I write for adults, in case you're curious. Even when I was a child, I wrote for adults, parodying and rambling on about how messed up things were. I was trying to be funny, but in a laugh-when-people-fall-down way. (You couldn't air Three Stooges or Abbott & Costello in our current politically correct climate.)(Although it is arguable that vaudeville has been replaced by over-the-top scripted reality television.) I tried to fuse intellectual (geeky) humor with slapstick mentality. Ah, youth.

I got some attention when I wrote about my character(s) in roleplaying games, developing their backstories and coming up with scenes for when I wasn't logged in (obsessively) actually playing them. This resparked my interest in the written word.

I have even dabbled in erotica (under a different pseudonym, of course) - but, that was just a way to meet women who weren't interested in Elves and Dragons. I tease. A little.

I won't be blogging every day, not at this point. The purpose of this blog is to continue to develop a platform for when I am published - which sounds very methodical and calculated.

In truth, I just want a place to share random thoughts on the process of creativity, on what inspires me and motivates me, some observations about the process (writing, querying, publishing), the fantasy genre and whatever other cathartic expression which will help me become a better writer.

I'm glad you're here. Hopefully, I'll make it worth your time.

Cheers!

Free Reading, Giveaways, WFC Panel and Nano

2010-11-02T13:33:00.001-04:00

You KNOW that I am procrastinating, but these things were so good, I had to share!

Great article on Urban Fantasy by Daniel Abraham. Specifically, the unwritten, yet understood limits of the female protagonist. Very thought provoking.

Nanowrimo! No, I'll do a post tomorrow on that. But this post by Chuck Wendig had me in stitches.

N.K. Jemisin's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms has won a few awards this year. If you haven't already checked it out, you can read Chapter One here.

Speaking of The Knight Agency, they've got a great giveaway happening today. One of the benefits of not having a huge following is that I can tell you about it without ruining my chances for goodies!

I've been stalking google for uploaded videos from the World Fantasy Convention that took place over this past weekend. My diligence paid off today, when author Blake Charlton put up 4 Videos from the epic fantasy panel.

I'm so excited I couldn't wait to share. Now, if you don't mind, I have to get back to my procrastination!

Water Cooler - Friday, October 22, 2010

2010-10-22T09:49:00.001-04:00

Random bits and pieces from the speculative fiction world.

Top of the list this week: Don't purchase books from Dorchester. Yes, apparently they are not compensating their authors. Bad form! Read the story here. Good luck to those authors who are trying to get their rights and compensation straightened out.

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[image goes here]

Geeky signage! (How can I go from serious to stupid? I do it because I can.) I like this one to attach to all my posts. You can find a ton more here on Flickr.

Edit: Apparently the picture is not inclined to show up. Lame. I'll leave you the link.

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Since I reviewed a couple of series this week, I thought I'd point out another. Steven Till reviewed Pillars of the Earth.

My biggest concern going in was how they were going to fit a 900 page book into the span of eight hours. I was impressed with the amount of information they crammed into such a short time period without really losing anything. Overall, I’d give the series a A- .

I may have to give that a look.

While I'm at it, SQT's first impressions of Spartacus:BaS Season One.

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UK cover art for Steven Erikson's The Crippled God, the final book of his Malazan series.

Pretty sharp cover. Suvudu provides the synopsis here.

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Solaris released their 2011 publishing line up.

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Tor is hosting a Pyr giveaway contest.

The Official Rules: To enter, leave one comment on this post—duplicates won’t count—by Saturday, October 23, leave a comment in Facebook, or reply on Twitter. The 5 winners will be chosen randomly. Please check your email on October 23rd and 24th; if we don’t hear back from the winner in 24 hours, another winner will be chosen.

Hurry!

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Barnes and Noble announced they will be selling the Nook at Walmart.

The popular NOOK devices are expected to arrive on Walmart shelves beginning as soon as October 24, in advance of the holiday shopping season.

The NOOK eBook Readers will be prominently featured as the premier eBook Reader in the consumer electronics area. Many Walmart stores will feature a NOOK-branded eReading area where shoppers can see and touch a demonstration device.

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Kudos to Jasper Kent's new marketing strategy: Vampires that don't sparkle.

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Like multiple links in one easy to find spot? Grasping for the Wind does them daily! I envy his tenacity.

Genre Reader does a frequent "Today in Fantasy" post that is always nicely done, as well.

For an industry perspective, check out Eric's Friday Round over at Pimp My Novel.

Or Nathan Bransford's This Week in Publishing.

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That's all I've got for today. What sort of news are you interested in?

Have a great weekend!

Series Review: Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Season 1

2010-10-17T13:41:00.005-04:00

When I thought about writing this review, I realized that I had to overcome the urge to simply analyze the positive and negative elements, and rather, give a reason(s) why you might be inclined to pass or indulge in watching this series.

Production wise, this is 300 meets Gladiator - without the benefit of either Frank Miller or Ridley Scott. Spartacus:BaS is brutally graphic, and oft times gratuitously so. More on that later.

The story of Spartacus, as we've come to know it through media, was written by Howard Fast (Spartacus (North Castle Books)
). The story was made popular by the Stanley Kubrick movie production in 1960; there was also a 2004 made-for-tv production as well.

Having not read the book, nor seen the other two movies, I will not bother with comparing. Comments and reviews seem to indicate the novel tells the tale much better - but, that's almost always the case. I will say that, overall, the story behind the Starz production was pretty good. The arcs and subplots were well handled, and there were certainly enough interesting twists and turns to take the viewer right up to the dramatic end.

For the story(-ies) alone, it is probably worth a look.

Otherwise, the production is pretty rough. It is a graphic novel come alive without artistry or clear intent. I mentioned Frank Miller earlier, and if you've seen either 300 or Sin City, you can see the artist's hands in either production. There are subtleties of elements that define an artist work - and those subtleties are missing from Spartacus.

Spartacus contains unbelievable amounts of blood and sex and nudity. This would suggest that the target audience, the intent of telling the story this way, is male; specifically the target is to immerse a man into the dark, bloody, gritty story. But, frankly, if that is the case, then this is a homo-erotic fantasy. There is more male frontal nudity in this production than I've ever seen - anywhere. Including the sort of stuff that Cinemax shows late at night.

I'm not homophobic, and I do not mind meaningful nudity in a story, nor did I mind the homosexual relationship story arcs (which are all but expressly inevitable in retelling stories from that cultural history). But it reaches a point where it is gratuitous, outside artistic vision, and perhaps only present for some grim shock value.

All of which would be fine, if the intent was to market Starz' Spartacus:BaS, as homosexual porn. But the rest of the visual elements suggest otherwise. The blood, CGI splattered everywhere, the graphic depictions of intestines being spilled, of throats being cut, of vomit and infectious wounds and worms - these are the sort of graphic, edgy, visual elements that you want to pitch to attract male heterosexuals, "manly men".

It would be unrealistic to expect zero nudity in the representation of such a hedonistic culture, and I think it would be further untrue to the core material to not have a degree of homosexual interaction. In portraying war and combat, yes, there's going to be blood and graphic violence.

I thought the blood was often gratuitous - the male nudity more so. The production fails to choose a target audience. Mind you, I like blood and guts. That can be fun. I'm not remotely prudish. When I say "gratuitous", I mean it exceeds the boundary of what I feel is a reasonable artistic license in producing a visual image.

Now, none of that may trouble you. It's arguable, and a matter of taste, whether certain scenes and conflicts benefit from the graphic nature of the production.

For instance, there's a scene where Ilithyia is choosing a gladiator from amongst new recruits. She's a perv, so they are asked to get naked, which the camera reveals from her perspective. When they do so, the camera slowly pans from behind the men, revealing each and every buttocks. Then her mouth drops open, and she chooses the Gaul with the "horse c*ck." Which the camera shows. Three scenes later (spoiler), the man is punished for an offense, and they show him crucified and his penis cut off. The stump where his penis was spurts blood out onto the sand. (end spoiler)

The writing, particularly the dialogue, is flat and unimaginative for the first few episodes. The series benefits from a few strong actors who carry the entire production - otherwise, especially in the beginning, there is no passion, no chemistry between the characters.

Andy Whitfield, as Spartacus, is an excellent actor with great emotional range (considering the role), and I understand the buzz surrounding his departure from the cast to deal with health issues. Otherwise? Even the formidable Lucy Lawless, as Lucretia, falls a little flat (and for some unknown reason, they have her painted white as a ghost. It looks horrible. As a lower class Roman citizen, she could have had a little color.), but I'm not sure if that's the writing or her. (The upshot of her presence is that she is an attractive woman who spends a great deal of time in various states of undress).

Manu Bennett, as Crixus, is entirely horrid to watch, he has the emotional range of a monkey. Most of the others have very little believable emotional range. Even the accents are muttered and mumbled and fall flat. To be fair, this was more apparent in the beginning of the season - by the finale, there is some character chemistry and comfort.

If you're watching this for the acting, however, you'll be disappointed in not only the writing/dialogue, but in pretty much everyone but Whitfield, and arguably Lawless. If the others have shining moments, they are rare.

Overall? The series succeeds in telling a well-paced story; of that, there can be little argument. The acting and dialogue fall a little flat, and the production is gratuitously graphic without clear intent of who they're trying to entertain.

I'd give this 3.5 out of 5 stars.