tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62107872011-09-26T04:46:05.261Zyou've managed to stumble upon a strange collaborative criticism blog, which is a piece of the s1ngularity ezine. this is an experiment. do not be afraid.gabe chouinardnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3411100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1149000227483847282006-05-30T14:38:00.000Z2006-05-30T14:43:52.670Z

I'd once argued with James Gunn and other SF readers over whether Vonnegut was ashamed to be labeled among the SF writers. Gunn, who apparently knows the man personally, corrected me and I had to accept his word (though I was sure I’d read differently).Vonnegut was on BBC radio this morning, explaining why he didn’t want to be labeled an SF writer. “I’m a novelist!” he said, going on to explain

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1148999879475354052006-05-30T14:33:00.000Z2006-05-30T14:38:03.390Z

Ever since the magic of watching Barfly in high school, I’ve loved the strong character voice from Salinger to Bukowski to Henry Miller. A friend has just fallen in love with Miller, so I’ve been lending her my copies. The man could write about but nothing but a meal and you’d have to gobble his prose. Of all the grungy wit writers, Miller was probably the best.I never got around to

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1148851248485782102006-05-28T21:09:00.000Z2006-05-28T21:20:48.506Z

This explication of Stevie Smith's "Not Waving, but Drowning" is an excellent description of arc, the point by point changes, reversals in perspective--not that poems have to swing so drastically. Also, it points out how shorter stories can compact more story in fewer words. SF seems to reserve the short short for gags, which is rather disappointing.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1148596298002429982006-05-25T22:28:00.000Z2006-05-25T22:31:38.016Z

Slate has a discussion on the old pulps, including praise for Westlake by John Banville.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1132532646675765782005-11-21T00:17:00.000Z2005-11-21T00:28:21.256Z

Originally published in Polyphony, this work by Bruce Holland Rogers won a World Fantasy Award in 2004. Evo Terra of the Dragon Page reads the hispanic voice pretty well.But this isn't a story. Like his Stoker-winning "The Dead Boy at Your Window," originally published in the North American Review, there is no arc--a vignette about a dead person. Dead Boy's prose is closer to a prose poem than

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1132454599734959872005-11-20T02:22:00.000Z2005-11-20T02:52:31.063Z

Online SF Workshop with James Gunn!If you want to write SF, this is an important first step for at least two reasons: 1) You'll go through winnowing an idea to something workable. 2) You'll learn what makes a scene. This workshop flops for a number of writers because they either don't write or don't follow the exercises. Some writers start with the story first and worry about the science

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1132196451739727992005-11-17T02:48:00.000Z2005-11-17T03:00:51.770Z

A professional author said she thought only published professional writers should review. I picked her argument apart*, but it didn't change her mind (of course, I'd rather hear my literary heroes said, but sometimes their judgement isn't any better than Joe Blow's). Aparently, this phenomenon of presumed authority is circulating the web in multiple discussions. Here are two of the best:

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1131832738367723792005-11-12T19:58:00.000Z2005-11-12T21:58:58.420Z

Without doubt, the best image is the vivid one, the visceral one, the evocative one, the right one. It captures a moment. But I've debated writers on the ability to attempt other kinds. Here's proof.If you've read Kelly Link, you may already intuit what I'm getting at, but here are some examples from Christine Schutt's Florida. The vivid/visceral/evocative/right image (for contrast):The

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1131825360731964002005-11-12T19:42:00.000Z2005-11-12T19:56:00.740Z

SciFiction has ceased publication.Datlow has done tremendous work in SF wherever she's gone (Omni, Event Horizon). Let's hope she get a new SF-editor's job soon.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1131737502565521142005-11-11T19:18:00.000Z2005-11-11T19:31:42.576Z

Nalo Hopkinson writes of Michel Faber's comment in a review of Michael Cunningham's Specimen Days: "...perhaps the fiction Cunningham is attempting here is pitched at a reader who doesn't exist: an adolescent who can leap straight from Star Wars to Henry James, or an adult steeped in Woolf and Whitman who nevertheless retains a childlike capacity to be moved by X-Men 2."In fact, Cunningham

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1130903128606356822005-11-02T03:11:00.000Z2005-11-02T04:06:37.153Z

The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling, Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven; And as imagination bodies forth The forms of things unknown, the poet's pen Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing A local habitation and a name.--THESEUS from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, ACT V, SCENE I. Athens. An Apartment in the Palace of THESEUS.Been thinking--as I

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1130244860913897942005-10-25T12:48:00.000Z2005-10-25T12:54:20.920Z

Tipped by Mumpsimus, here's a good quote from a Booker judge:From the beginning, I was clear about my criteria. I was looking for a book that would repay sustained attention, that was worth reading for the quality of the prose itself, that took tenacious hold of one's imagination. I was hoping to find something that would still be admired in 2075: a book that was worthy of the honorific

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1128916072778889702005-10-10T03:40:00.000Z2005-10-10T03:47:52.783Z

"It's not much to think about, but it's certainly something to see."--A. O. SCOTT, N.Y. Times Review I didn't find a single reviewer who saw it as I did. Yes, yes, 9/11, yadda yadda, but keep watching, keep listening, carefully. You guys missed a great deal.I guess I was spending too much time in the symbolic level. Yeah, some of family scenes were a little over the top, but some real powerful

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1128368446536829762005-10-03T19:27:00.000Z2005-10-03T19:40:46.560Z

A Serenity movie promotion last year made the film out to be a minor-league fan-boy operation that happened to find itself lucked into the majors. SF fans, who look cross-eyed at the same flavors in print, go googly-eyed over the same half-baked stories on screen. We seem strangely more forgiving of the movies.So it was that I went in with rather low expectations. A Serenity fan-boy said it

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1128108632332807392005-09-30T19:09:00.000Z2005-09-30T22:45:08.576Z

That's the question on the table for my poetry class as we read through the Norton Anthology of Poetry.I took the liberty of rewriting Herrick since I felt he took too many lines to say what he had to say:"The Argument of His Book" [original]Through lyric schmaltz and poems so cheeze ball,I write of Hell ; I sing (and ever shall)Of Heaven, and hope to have it after all. ***"To the Sour Reader" [

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1128099616425021082005-09-30T16:56:00.000Z2005-09-30T17:00:16.433Z

Via Barth Anderson:In the battle of the ages, "I have a thousand years of power" combats 21st century police! Who shall prevail in this dynamo of will?

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1127864232670927762005-09-27T22:54:00.000Z2005-09-28T02:27:06.460Z

Lewis Shiner has been a two-time finalist for the Nebula (Frontera, Deserted Cities of the Heart), a finalist for the Philip K. Dick (Frontera), and won the World Fantasy award for Glimpses.Earlier comment here on "Perfidia" and othersLewis Shiner's website Contemporary Authors biography ($2.30)Autobiography (free)"Jeff Beck" and an excerpt from Glimpses recently appeared in The Best in Rock

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1127676313545897292005-09-25T19:12:00.000Z2005-09-25T19:28:36.900Z

Listening to DragonPage over someone else's XM Radio, I was intrigued by their synopsis of The Traveler by John Twelve Hawks.Gabe Chouinard has been pimping the book as well and sparking discussion who the author is.Podcasts of old-time SF.Here's Raymond Carver on why the short story.Niall Harrison links Nature's SF short shorts.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1127672646808565492005-09-25T17:37:00.000Z2005-09-25T19:34:19.240Z

Nick Mamatas had the opposite reaction as I did. (For a story so simple, only read the link or the following entry if you don't plan to see or don't mind watching something thoroughly explained in plot/theme.) First paragraph begins with his usual humorous but unsubstantiated gripes. In the second, he expresses glee over anti-"middlebrow striving" (not really a theme of the movie). In the

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1127586579262794472005-09-24T18:16:00.000Z2005-09-24T18:29:39.270Z

Corpse Bride was a pleasant surprise. A bumbling young groom falls suddenly in love but fails in his rehearsal vows and cannot marry until he has perfected them. So he wanders into the woods, practicing....Being generally uninterested in musicals and unimpressed by Burton's recent output, I found this a fun little excursion into the underworld, with splashes of clever humor among a few groaners

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1127257879366042252005-09-20T23:06:00.000Z2005-09-20T23:11:19.373Z

Miami Ohio is having a novella contest (under 40,000 words), with a $25 reading fee.I assume everyone's heard of Jonathan Lethem's Genius Grant.Interviews forthcoming shortly, fingers crossed.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1125584829999271132005-09-01T14:22:00.000Z2005-09-01T14:27:10.003Z

An ad for Borders says, "Bestsellers are 30% off everyday, or create you own bestseller [also 30% off]."Why not convene on which good book to buy and see if there's an impact to be made? I realize this is what blogs are doing in general, but I'm talking about timing, coordinating so that the idea might blip on people's radars.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1124985222360805672005-08-25T15:46:00.000Z2005-08-25T15:53:42.373Z

A sign I saw on a bus on my walk to work read:You see a smaller house payment.We see peace of mind.A man and woman are lifting an infant into the air. Adorable. Heart-warming.I didn't think about it much the first time I spotted it though I thought it weird that anything could be win-win, especially when it comes to an advertisement for a business deal. Then I realized what they were talking

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1124838816912093682005-08-23T22:34:00.000Z2005-08-23T23:24:45.586Z

Any fans of Lewis Shiner must read Shiner's latest, "Perfidia," which genre fans may have missed since it came out in a literary journal, Black Clock. As good as the story is and as attractive the magazine (not to mention contributions by Steve Erickson, Shelley Jackson, Jonathan Lethem, Ben Marcus, Rick Moody, and others), it's twelve bucks that I might have saved had I known that it will be

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1124728358422337292005-08-22T16:25:00.000Z2005-08-22T16:32:38.430Z

Jeff Ford posts a story.James Gunn on the History of SF (where it's been, where it's going). (How did Tobias Buckell get to it before I did? Bastard!)Stephen Leigh on workshops.Deirdre Saoirse Moen has a great series of icons. If you get it, you're in the SF club. It's both funny and enlightening.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1124289069210216632005-08-17T13:51:00.000Z2005-08-17T14:31:09.270Z

A while back, I touched briefly on a methodology of interpretation that troubled me in the book How to Read Literature Like a Professor. The approach was simply a template method: Squeeze the story through the template, but if it doesn’t fit, it’s not the problem of the wrong template but that all templates fit and are wonderfully ambiguous. The text means anything I say it means. Templates

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1123687485446832652005-08-10T15:21:00.000Z2005-08-10T15:24:45.453Z

Geoff Ryman won the Philip K. Dick award for his experimental novel 253, 253 lives of people taking the tube, all described in exactly 253 words each.The BBC just published Ryman's tribute to the lives lost in the London bombing attacks.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1123267042678624912005-08-05T18:33:00.000Z2005-08-05T18:41:34.710Z

My mind's image of the Kazuo Ishiguro review before I wrote it was going to be wonderful. I'm not sure how I feel about it. A year from now I'd have come up with a great way of structuring and phrasing it all, but then I'd be as untimely as ever. I rewrote it somewhat--revised from its original publication on August 1--but never did go into the process of applying and discarding different

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1122393366230329532005-07-26T15:32:00.000Z2005-07-26T15:56:06.260Z

Lit Haven has been posting up a storm. It's gotten more insightful with this spate of new posts, including reviews of small press, market posts, and brief insights on the field such as putting together a small press zine, which isn't to supercede the advice of someone who has actually put together a small press zine, (however, I do wonder if Gavin actually began investing $10,000 for his initial

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1122069453475034882005-07-22T21:13:00.000Z2005-07-22T21:57:33.513Z

I was initially bummed by Dan Green's literary excursions of late probably because I mistakenly viewed his aestheticism to be one where the reader was to admire only the form, which I found bizarre and off-putting. Two posts recently allayed my unfounded fears:On Form vs. Content:I, for one, am not the kind of aesthete who wants to "disavow the obvious content of the work." (Although I would

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1121387033107438382005-07-14T22:44:00.000Z2005-07-15T00:57:51.870Z

Aside: Matt Cheney and Hanah Wolf Bowen have given Readercon reports. (Cheney was proud to be captured on film. I was proud to have eluded capture.)I wrote these entries at the moment of their occurence or later that night. I couldn't get online to reproduce them immediately. Sometimes I went back to fill in. All comments are approximate and may misrepresent intent. If so, I apologize. Let

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1120317991489379692005-07-02T14:41:00.000Z2005-07-02T15:26:31.536Z

Jay Lake, Tim Pratt and others talk about when to trunk stories.A few writers-in-progress are taking apart a novel they liked to see what makes it work. Stephen Leigh discusses fiction: how to be a success and the process. Slashdot pointed out this CNN discussion about Hollywood and SF, including writers Harlan Ellison, Connie Willis and Bruce Sterling.I'm neutral on the Dark Cabal. Either

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1119310739497754052005-06-20T23:27:00.000Z2005-06-20T23:51:41.646Z

I've been spending all my time on the Mundane blog, which has been slash-dotted, Ian McDonalded, Ken MacLeoded, Charles Strossed, Lou Andersed, Chris Robersoned, Patrick Nielsen Haydened etc.Charles Stross' Accelerando is online, as is Cory Doctorow's Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town.Lawrence Schoen points out a way to donate books to troops. Brief film of SF'nal note (I believe Julio

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1116204194462760682005-05-16T00:35:00.000Z2005-05-16T00:49:12.946Z

I'll send a review to SF Site later this week, but here's the low-down:If you're an SF writer, buy it and learn. If you're an Ishiguro fan, you already know you have to buy it. If you're just a regular literary or genre reader, you'll probably want to skip it. If you haven't read his early novels, don't just buy them and read. Read them, ponder, and read again. It may take three reads to get

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1116199930716732472005-05-15T22:56:00.000Z2005-05-15T23:32:10.720Z

Jonathan Strahan suggested an anthology of the best writing about genre writing. Niall Harrison got more specific in his probing about what such a book might require. Sounds good to me. One complaint is finding sufficiently new material, but I suspect if searchers search far and wide enough, they'll discover plenty of material that no one stumbled upon throughout the year.To be most helpful,

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1116197726946819382005-05-15T22:49:00.000Z2005-05-15T22:56:37.766Z

I did not report Sheckley's illness earlier because I was afraid it might turn out to be a rumor. It appears he had a cold that turned into something worse.From comments section at Locus' blog comes a report that he's improving and working his way off the respirator.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115329563946605052005-05-05T21:34:00.000Z2005-05-05T21:46:04.183Z

I just had to quote this spectacular passage of characterization:[Liddy] was smartly dressed, but she didn't look like someone who worked in an office. She could have been pinned together by the stripes of her suit. Loosen her tie and she would fall apart."Liddy, meet Mr. Davison.""Davis," [Davison] said, holding out his hand. She took it, examined it, and returned it.The genre could use a lot

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115309043639692082005-05-05T15:22:00.000Z2005-05-05T16:04:03.896Z

Apparently, Dave Truesdale is riled up over Gordon Van Gelder's preface to the story that suggests that the magazine could be closed down because of Turtledove's story. There's a little discussion at Lit-Haven, too, although they miss Truesdale's point, bringing up points only slightly more minor than Truesdale's. It would certainly be great for business at F&SF if the government did try to do

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115306484884290272005-05-05T15:18:00.000Z2005-05-05T15:21:24.890Z

Wired has an interesting article about new ways of looking at books over at Amazon. This relates tangentially to Michael A. Burstein's examination. Just interesting stuff to note--not a real summation or explicator.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115227321419418352005-05-04T17:05:00.000Z2005-05-04T17:25:33.320Z

Can a compelling story be more than “trash”? Can an action movie with little character development?Not every interpretation is equally viable for Aliens. The film makes statements on Vietnam, but the who-is-who is confused. Neither sapient species is native to the planet, so the Vietnam metaphor breaks down unless the filmmakers believe humans are not indigenous to Earth. One thesis I thought

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115139423592929272005-05-03T16:31:00.000Z2005-05-03T16:57:03.596Z

Errol Morris on All Things Considered:I believe in truth. And in the pursuit of truth.... There is such a thing as truth, but we often have a vested interest in ignoring it or outright denying it. Also, it's not just thinking something that makes it true. Truth is not relative. It's not subjective. It may be elusive or hidden. People may wish to disregard it. But there is such a thing as truth

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115064577394139562005-05-02T19:40:00.000Z2005-05-02T20:09:37.396Z

Hayden' Ferry Review published an interview with Gass, including this great quote:I am gratified if some find my work beautiful. I try to make it so. But failure is the rule where excellence is the goal. I don't try to be dense or difficult or easy either. I try to realize the demands of the piece as it emerges. When I want to know what to do, I ask the text. If things are going well, it

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115005671644641292005-05-02T03:45:00.000Z2005-05-02T19:39:24.216Z

A YA vendor did an extensive interview with Margo and Niall Harrison sums up his thoughts.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1115003232643010142005-05-02T02:27:00.000Z2005-05-02T03:07:12.643Z

Here's the best trailer for the The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, a clever parody of trailers. And it displays more of what was lacking in the movie: wit by the minute. It had much of the wit though at times it got watered down by, say, a romance that ought to have tried for more wit than romance to keep it within Adams territory.I basically if indirectly critique the DVD and original

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1114794306810269752005-04-29T17:01:00.000Z2005-04-29T17:05:06.810Z

Bruce Boston is conducting an online workshop. Class starts May 2 and is limited to 15 students.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1113306821012404482005-04-12T03:51:00.000Z2005-04-12T14:21:17.806Z

[NOTE: I like all parts of a story. If you haven't read anything I've written, please don't assume/limit what kind of writing I like to read/write. Give the exercises Czerneda and Salsitz suggest a try and see if they don't expand limited notions of character. NOTE #2: No, I never want to stop learning about story from anyone who has anything worthwhile to say on the matter. Nothing kills a

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1112798071694015302005-04-06T14:19:00.000Z2005-04-06T14:34:31.700Z

I can't yet weigh in on the Rake's Progress debate without having read the books in question, but being a fan of some postmodern aspects and a scourge to others, I'd like to weigh once more on rules in my own recent viewing/reading experiences.“Rules are meant to be broken” appears to be the mantra of Robert Altman. Alice McDermott, in the Oct/Nov 2000 Writer’s Chronicle article “Bend Sinister:

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1112755122486896902005-04-06T02:27:00.000Z2005-04-06T02:38:42.486Z

Don't know if Toby posts these things anywhere but in his newsletter, but Kirtley has some great responses (takes Zelazny's Books of Amber with him on a desert island, time-travels to kill Orson Scott Card to steal Ender's Game), but especially this:Buckell: What's the most challenging aspect of writing?Kirtley: For me, by far, it's coming up with good ideas. I know that most writers will tell

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111948896200093852005-03-27T18:24:00.000Z2005-03-27T18:46:26.963Z

I love the dollar theater. Although the aiming skills of those who use the stalls leave something to be desired, there isn't a salary in America that won't allow someone to have the theater experience. In the lobby were two vending machines of temporary tattoos: with all the smart-ass remarks the kids wished they could say in a debate, anime characters, or dreams of future glory: soccer balls

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111775650907889862005-03-25T18:17:00.000Z2005-03-25T18:34:10.910Z

Michael A. Burstein has an intriguing look at what kind of language makes a bestseller. The results will underwhelm you.***Michael Schaub of Bookslut writes: Philip K. Dick will be posthumously inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame ["along with director-mogul Steven Spielberg, animator Ray Harryhausen, and the late artist Chesley Bonestell"--seattlepi.com] on May 6. But what the hell

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111422504415762892005-03-21T16:26:00.000Z2005-03-21T16:28:24.416Z

Yet another theory of how to approach the possibility.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111121014588410202005-03-18T04:43:00.000Z2005-03-18T05:04:36.723Z

Jay Lake just posted his "rules" for writing (for getting it done, that is) which he usually hands out at workshops.Tobias Buckell also posted information on his two weekend workshops: the first a short story one with Mike Resnick, the second a novel one with agent Steve Mancino. I attended last year with Stephen Leigh, Jon Hansen, Pam McNew, John Trey, Simon Owens, and Tobias, the 2006 debut

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111081548487866462005-03-17T17:44:00.000Z2005-03-17T17:45:48.530Z

Gwenda Bond offers insight on rewriting her first novel.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1111067698970641602005-03-17T13:40:00.000Z2005-03-17T14:03:58.893Z

Note: This post isn't completely polished. This note will disappear when it is. Hopefully this is worth waiting a month for. I tried to capture both the meaning of the term and its breadth, which means a long article albeit probably not long enough to contain the numbers and ways that style can be used which a book might be able to cover.Style is the feeling you get from reading the text. In

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1110559325401712042005-03-11T16:39:00.000Z2005-03-11T16:43:45.876Z

Wired shares the story of a filmmaker who is making his debut at the SXSW Film Festival for a film he began work on in 1996 after dropping out of college.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1110244542399412502005-03-08T00:53:00.000Z2005-03-08T01:18:18.296Z

Matt Cheney has posted again on "why what I like to read is better than everything else that I don't like to read." I hate disagreeing with Cheney because I enjoy reading the exemplars of any form of fiction and because it makes me out as some curmudgeon battling for the crumbling ruins of the old guard when all that I'm saying is either appreciate it or don't, love it or leave it, give peace a

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1108752054915992712005-02-18T18:37:00.000Z2005-02-18T18:40:54.916Z

Hey, congratulations to the Kelly Link, Tim Pratt, and the mystery person who got into Best American Short Stories!Jeff Vandermeer responded to my last post. I ought to have posted with examples and will do so shortly.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1108667698448630232005-02-17T18:34:00.000Z2005-02-17T19:14:58.456Z

I’m several months late coming to Daniel Green’s argument that style is character. He actually convinced me for the length of the article--clever bastard: Could centuries of analysis be mistaken? It isn’t the first time I’ve heard the argument though I have not heard from where the argument originated, which might aid my coming to grips with the theorist’s underpinnings. But of the theory

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1108037823598636572005-02-10T10:04:00.000Z2005-02-10T12:17:03.596Z

"You will find most books worth reading are worth reading twice." -- John Morely BBC recently attributed to Oscar Wilde the quote, "If a book isn't worth reading twice it isn't worth reading once," though this site claims Scooter(?) said it. Famous, infamous, or unfamous--whoever said it said wisely. "[A]ll aspects of a film are based on formal, structural principles, and meaning as well as

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1108029835887021462005-02-10T09:47:00.000Z2005-02-10T10:03:55.886Z

Jed Hartman pointed out new Star Trek episodes online.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107865250264592432005-02-08T11:32:00.000Z2005-02-08T13:16:49.826Z

Gwenda Bond points out Stephen King's 12 tips for being a writer. Rue D notes the wild stories homeless children of Miami tell. Alan DeNiro had two interesting blogs: one on scrapping what doesn't seem to be working, another criticizing criticism. In the latter, I'm less interested in the speculating of motives but the approach: "The problem is that he really doesn't have any clue what

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107861763762656042005-02-08T11:03:00.000Z2005-02-08T11:32:36.836Z

"I think the writer’s responsibility is to tell the truth. The aim is to try and tell the truth — any kind of truth. It can be a very tiny truth. Truth means not that you read the book and think, "Ah, yes, I make a cup of tea exactly that way." It’s not that. It has to be truth without generalization, without cliche, and without simplification." The interview is somewhat antagonistic, but there

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107718269326682952005-02-06T19:29:00.000Z2005-02-06T19:31:09.326Z

Coupon here

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107323129906427092005-02-02T05:27:00.000Z2005-02-02T05:46:53.713Z

Two of my Clarion classmates have made a huge splash this year already: Stephen Woodworth's second novel, With Red Hands, debuted at #25 on the NY Times bestseller list. His first, Through Violet Eyes, made it into three book clubs: Doubleday, Literary Guild, and SFBC (as a Featured Alternate). Margo Lanagan won an Aurealis award for her collection, Black Juice, four stories of which were

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107319506799560472005-02-02T04:33:00.000Z2005-02-02T04:49:15.463Z

Finally, after all the Paypal phishing scams [if you don't know what phishing is, read this now] via Australians and Europeans (according to the links of their redirect websites, that is), I'm finally getting the promise of money in return for the theft of my identity. It's not quite as kooky as the story about the deposed African ruler with a pot of gold in his backyard that he needs my money

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107271673691629782005-02-01T15:26:00.000Z2005-02-01T15:27:53.693Z

Lit Haven just published a new Aimee Bender tale called "Night."

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107201384665332832005-01-31T19:26:00.000Z2005-01-31T19:56:24.666Z

After some discussion with my movie-watching companion, I thought I would be a lone voice of dissent, but it appears a number of critics were unsatisfied with their movie experience while I, on the whole, was. The movie opens with a song and dance, intimating the extensive choreography to follow. After the blind Mei is nearly raped for turning on a young man while dancing, Mei must perform an

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1107179625312719922005-01-31T06:10:00.000Z2005-01-31T13:53:45.313Z

Jonathan Strahan seeks what you think the past century+ fantasy stories have been.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106749789208504172005-01-26T14:26:00.000Z2005-01-26T14:29:49.206Z

"In Triple M's system of governance, humans are assigned a market value that rises and falls based on how much regulated sex they have." Hal Hartley sure knows how to intrigue with one sentence of description (Wired).

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106679397961718572005-01-25T18:52:00.000Z2005-01-25T18:56:37.960Z

Sherwood Smith noted two interesting bits: Exposing fraud in PublishAmerica (Smith's story of clandestine operations, Beth Bernobich's links to incriminating documents) Karen Traviss on how she does character

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106656128794281142005-01-25T11:58:00.000Z2005-01-25T12:31:02.563Z

It'll be made available online soon enough, but this issue lists possible recipes to be made aboard a human mission to Mars based on the foods they will be growing. Donnie Darko, director's cut is forthcoming, as is the 1982 anime, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, directed by Hayao Miyazaki of Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke fame. It is no longer hip to write or dictate books. Now, if

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106635045143042912005-01-25T03:12:00.000Z2005-01-25T12:59:00.136Z

I predicted that the difference in perception would hinge on science and, lo, it did. I suspect, while it's nothing to wake Sigmund Freud from his slumber to analyze, we all have hidden or buried philosophies supporting our views, but it's difficult to speculate what, without getting to know all the characters better. Jeff Vandermeer offers his view on character consistency. Daniel Green has a

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106622476015251962005-01-25T02:44:00.000Z2005-01-25T03:07:56.016Z

Weird Trailers for Forthcoming Movies From Crispin Glover Tim Burton's Corpse Bride Dave McKean and Neil Gaiman's Mirrormask (links via Rue D and Boing Boing) *** Cheryl Morgan is the transom for rectifying of wrongs done to Tolkien. I already shared my thoughts on this though I've been meaning to put out a statement on the strength of Moorcock's argument (by the way, the article's title

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106465915825337222005-01-23T06:48:00.000Z2005-01-23T20:35:20.646Z

Hawthorne is morally a hard man, which doesn't mean he's cruel or unfair but perhaps a little harsh. His words are whips to ne'er-do-wells, but finishing "Wakefield" and finding aspects of his descriptions that closely mirrored my experience with depression, I only now realized that these harsh words weren't against other people but himself. There's no way he could have captured depression

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106423542278799042005-01-22T19:49:00.000Z2005-01-22T20:00:53.193Z

Briefly, if there were no rules whatsoever, there would be no such thing as criticism. Cheney's blog or reviews would be entirely irrelevant, for he would have no basis upon which to make his judgements. This might suit some writers very well until they realized it would also be impossible to describe or explain or justify what they did. Sooner or later, art will have to justify itself lest it

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106421367420995002005-01-22T17:05:00.000Z2005-01-22T21:15:36.423Z

Matt Cheney has challenged the notion that characters have to behave consistently. This is good. I enjoy it when we challenge one another. However, some of my comments have been turned into a strawman, a simplistic version erected to be knocked down. The main problem in this debate will be one thing: science. Some folk (Matt perhaps?) think folk who trust science fool-hardy because the

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106309805744704432005-01-21T13:13:00.000Z2005-01-21T12:18:52.960Z

Y'all do know that this year's short films and interviews from Sundance Film Festival is all online, don't you? I just haven't heard anyone in the small corner of the blogosphere writing about it. The site was originally designed to highlight online films but they said they didn't find enough quality to put on display. Still, cool news.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106225996957215232005-01-20T13:05:00.000Z2005-01-20T13:04:34.366Z

Gwenda Bond points to Janni Simner who says there are no rules. There may be no anal-retentive rules (i.e. you must write stream-of-conscious, you must write in third person limited, you must not rhyme or rhythm or iambic pentameter your plays at important points of the narrative, you must write likeable characters (likeable to whom?)), but there is no game without rules of play. The rules are

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106141126731110212005-01-19T13:43:00.000Z2005-01-19T13:30:03.636Z

Tobias Buckell weighed in on how he develops his novels. Clarion East is having an auction to help keep it going which will start bidding on midnight January 28, with some fancy rarities and signed editions. Some odd bits include Cory Doctorow's signed, spiral-bound, 10-copy homemade galley of the forthcoming Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town; Neil Gaiman’s Preferred Limited Edition of

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106078320945347082005-01-18T19:53:00.000Z2005-01-18T19:58:40.946Z

Simon Owens of Lit Haven has just taken over duties of blogging paying markets from Write Hemisphere, in addition to posting micro-essays about favorite stories read on the internet transom and the occasional micro-interview (some are silly, some interesting). Explore if you have not already. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1106075686576603522005-01-18T19:07:00.000Z2005-01-18T19:14:46.576Z

Sherwood Smith discusses developing novel ideas and asks other writers how they develop theirs. She also pointed to David Levine's notes from a Dean Wesley Smith session on the novel from the novel workshop he teaches with his wife, Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Here's a coupon for 25% off one item at Borders or Walden. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1105108583935446142005-01-07T14:26:00.000Z2005-01-07T14:36:23.936Z

Buckell has just posted what I consider his best work that I got my hands on, "Four Eyes" from the DAW anthology, New Voices in Science Fiction, which he licensed under Creative Commons. I never got around to posting about his work, but this story is a great place to start if you're interested in taste-testing. He's also got a link to his first novel's fantabulous cover art--great gobs of pulpy

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1105102445162943462005-01-07T13:06:00.000Z2005-01-07T14:39:24.426Z

One common misperception in politics and literature is that you cannot disagree. Non-sequitor has had an on-going series on maligning those who disagree. One problem common to genre or politics is that we cannot possibly be wrong--no matter to what degree. No dissent allowed. Although pure, unalloyed, 100% rightness is impossible, we continue to wear rosy glasses of belief in our perfection.

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1105016090927635252005-01-06T13:45:00.000Z2005-01-06T12:54:50.926Z

Matt Cheney points out Jason Erik Lundberg's and Janet Chui's chapbook, but also note Chui, artist of the chapbook's art and of Strange Horizons, is selling her art to benefit victims of the tsunami (see link to Chui's journal entry on these matters). You've got hours to help out and buy the art. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104952836113587762005-01-05T18:48:00.000Z2005-01-05T19:32:18.690Z

Niall Harrison ranks up there with Matt Cheney as one of my favorite reviewers--although, as far as I know, he only blogs his reviews. He's always civil. He blogged his favorite works of 2004. He puts his critique into some sort of context, which is great. But Niall also points out a worthless set of ratings. I flipped through a few pages but found no explanation for how stories received

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104937187077811582005-01-05T14:06:00.000Z2005-01-05T15:58:15.056Z

It's a little early to tell if Strangerhood will turn out worthwhile, but if it shapes up as well as the older series, Red vs. Blue (not political) you may want to check it out. The first plays off characters in Sims 2 to poke fun at reality programs. The latter uses Halo to create a surprisingly entertaining picaresque tale of what life is like for these video game characters--entertaining

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104236917149223492004-12-28T13:25:00.000Z2004-12-28T12:28:37.150Z

...which has implications for would-be writers of SF: Three novels Margaret Atwood won’t write soon. Not all ideas carry equal weight or fit pre-packaged SF models. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104213764065465202004-12-28T05:54:00.000Z2004-12-28T06:02:44.066Z

The Call of Cthulhu Teaser looks to have good costumes and sets but sets the bar high on cheesiness, which isn't surprising once you view their A Shoggoth on the Roof: A Documentary. Perhaps a good, serious Lovecraft film is impossible to achieve. Ah, well. Hopefully they have a few good chortles in store. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104210715967182732004-12-28T05:09:00.000Z2004-12-28T05:11:55.966Z

I am quite fond of Suzette Hayden Elgin's blog, as I was of her emailings and her Gentle Art of Verbal Self Defense. But potential problems arise for readers who do not read guardedly. First, she points out herself (and I don't think it can be overemphasized): Context matters here; context always matters. It's possible to construct many different scenarios that would provide different

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104210542933040052004-12-28T05:00:00.000Z2004-12-28T05:16:37.653Z

I watched I, Robot again with the nephews. It seems I forgot to mention a criticism in my first review. Don't get me wrong. It was still enjoyable, but the reasoning of robots was not consistent. In the first viewing I only noticed the contrast between Detective Spooner's first meetings and later meetings with Sonny which show him to be peaceful. The three laws (Wikipedia goes into great

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104210040639964862004-12-28T04:58:00.000Z2004-12-28T05:17:06.116Z

I found out about Nine Princes in Amber when a friend gave me a copy of the text computer game. After getting stuck, I consulted the original book. I never figured out how to solve the game, but Roger Zelazny's highly imaginative series swept me away. God knows how many times I reread the series every time a new book came out. Wired recently commented on the phenomenon of amateur gamers

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1104209876979900012004-12-28T04:55:00.000Z2004-12-28T04:57:56.980Z

Xeni Jardin of Boing Boing linked to great story fodder: Hideous ski masks of the past. Could one be so ugly that your grandma would knit one of these? Or would the strangeness of the mask absorb all attention from noticing other details of a bank robber? discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1103445589067446302004-12-19T07:50:00.000Z2004-12-19T08:46:56.453Z

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (the site is rather cleverly put together) [clips] has much marvelous atmosphere to enjoy. Its claustrophobic feel is somehow reminiscent of stage plays that require your imagination to extend the world--that is, its reality brings out a sense of unreality in every location: a house teetering on precipice, a herpetologist's house, and an ocean

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1103442626100414652004-12-19T07:49:00.000Z2004-12-19T07:50:26.100Z

Jib Jab has a few interactive Santa Claus animations: Miracle on 234th Street and Santa Claus! and Who's Your Papua?. They've got other interactive selections for your amusement. They're fairly benign but perhaps a little crude for the more delicate. discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1103140166113607902004-12-15T19:46:00.000Z2004-12-15T19:49:26.113Z

Yahoo has footage of Frosty stolen. Workers protest: "No Frosty, no chocolate." (more substantive post soon--working on mundane blog and site) discuss this post at our messageboard

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1101399595665979432004-11-25T15:01:00.000Z2004-11-25T17:19:43.910Z

NOTE: Because I've been putting this off since the blog began due to length, I'm going to periodically update this essay. You can tell how far I am by whether I add a numeral to the title. When I finish, I'll take down the numerals. Oh, and have a happy turkey day. I. Too Many Variables I recently went to a convention and tried to spread the idea of this new genre meme: Mundane (which we

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1101214315456354502004-11-23T13:43:00.000Z2004-11-23T12:51:55.456Z

Boing Boing points to heroic dolphins who save swimmers from villanous shark who later claimed he'd only wanted a wing. A U.N. meeting off the coast of Sicily unveiled plans for dolphins to sequester carbon and avert global warming. Kofi Annan was reported to have gotten a charley horse from all the bobbing, but he said he needed to get back in shape, anyway. discuss this post at our

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1101196099157104262004-11-23T07:09:00.000Z2004-11-23T11:45:01.573Z

Simon Owens of the blog with blissfully brief insights, Lit Haven, [LJ feed] pointed out this essay from storySouth on short shorts. The author, Jason Sanford, more or less said what I said here with more force (although I didn't think Stern's short was the most successful of that collection--perhaps it was the best available online). As often happens when the MFA is held up as a sign

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1100651354299302232004-11-17T01:22:00.000Z2004-11-17T00:29:14.300Z

I'm not a gamer, really. I've never been good at anything that requires true three dimensions like Zaxxon, which I sucked at. But after reading Matt's fiction for a few workshops, I follow his reviews and enjoy his little fictionally powered embellishments. On Doom 3: "little or poor character development (unless you count escalating emotional hysteria)" On Rome: Total War: "The central

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6210787.post-1100615599110084692004-11-16T13:49:00.000Z2004-11-16T14:37:48.493Z

The Incredibles were incredible. That's all I really need to say. It's one of those rare movies I want to see again--not because of any admirable art or craft, but just because they told the story so compellingly. Almost every line and scene seems fresh (though no doubt it's had a precursor elsewhere). Advice: go with duct tape if you must attend with someone who wants to tell you what

Trenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16691824673281607781noreply@blogger.com