Monthly Archives: August 2008

Article about Armadillocon

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I am quoted in Richard Whittaker’s excellent Austin Chronicle article about Armadillocon‘s 30th anniversary.

Quote:
For editor/columnist/publishing polymath Rick Klaw, back as a panelist for his 14th year, it’s the presence of highly literary writers like Haldeman, Lansdale, and Crider that makes this event important. “One of the strengths of ArmadilloCon has always been that it’s three fans to every pro, so the pros feel a lot more comfortable,” he said. “You have a chance to sit down and talk about whatever projects you’re working on. As an editor, you can sit down to talk about working with newer writers. As a new writer, you get to meet these people. It enables you to get nearer to the fans.” At the bigger conventions, he adds, “it’s all about promoting whatever you’ve done. This, you’re talking about what you’re going to do.”

Article about Armadillocon was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Article about Armadillocon

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I am quoted in Richard Whittaker’s excellent Austin Chronicle article about Armadillocon‘s 30th anniversary.

Quote:
For editor/columnist/publishing polymath Rick Klaw, back as a panelist for his 14th year, it’s the presence of highly literary writers like Haldeman, Lansdale, and Crider that makes this event important. "One of the strengths of ArmadilloCon has always been that it’s three fans to every pro, so the pros feel a lot more comfortable," he said. "You have a chance to sit down and talk about whatever projects you’re working on. As an editor, you can sit down to talk about working with newer writers. As a new writer, you get to meet these people. It enables you to get nearer to the fans." At the bigger conventions, he adds, "it’s all about promoting whatever you’ve done. This, you’re talking about what you’re going to do."

Bigfoot Trackers Claim They’ve Found Their Prey

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I’m a little dubious…

Quote:
PALO ALTO, Calif. — It’s more than 7-feet tall. Weighs over 500 pounds and walked upright — three “Bigfoot” seekers, including a Redwood City man, Wednesday claimed they have proof that they have found the body of the elusive creature in the wilds of Georgia.

And on Friday, at a news conference in Palo Alto, they say they will present DNA evidence to prove the carcass of “Rickmat” is that of a bigfoot.

Soon after the publication of my anthology The Big Bigfoot Book, I was flooded with letters, cards, and clippings making much the same claims as described above.

(Thanks to Mark London Williams for sharing this with me.)

Bigfoot Trackers Claim They’ve Found Their Prey was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Bigfoot Trackers Claim They’ve Found Their Prey

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I’m a little dubious…

Quote:
PALO ALTO, Calif. — It’s more than 7-feet tall. Weighs over 500 pounds and walked upright — three "Bigfoot" seekers, including a Redwood City man, Wednesday claimed they have proof that they have found the body of the elusive creature in the wilds of Georgia.

And on Friday, at a news conference in Palo Alto, they say they will present DNA evidence to prove the carcass of “Rickmat” is that of a bigfoot.

Soon after the publication of my anthology The Big Bigfoot Book, I was flooded with letters, cards, and clippings making much the same claims as described above.

(Thanks to Mark London Williams for sharing this with me.)

How to Get Published and Avoid Alien Bloodsuckers

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Lore Sjöberg in his excellent Alt Text blog offers up some helpful advice to new writers in the internet age.

Quote:
Scammers can smell fear, and to them it smells like the still-living flesh strips that make up most of their diet. A lot of aspiring writers see publishers and agents as bored nobility, offering contracts in a whimsical attempt to inject some entertainment into an otherwise tedious existence. They suspect that even putting too long a delay between “yes” and “please” will cause the contract to be withdrawn and fed to a purebred Saluki.

Quote:
Now, even if the editor initially appears to be a mammal, it’s still possible to get scammed. There’s a wonderful rule of thumb known as Yog’s Law: “Money flows toward the writer.”

I know that in a world filled with kickbacks and graft, this seems too good to be true. It seems perfectly logical that you might have to spread around some cash, grease some palms and lubricate the chassis of commerce with some crude currency in order to make publishing run smoothly. Scammers leap on this misapprehension like a cat on cantaloupe.

A cat on cantaloupe?

How to Get Published and Avoid Alien Bloodsuckers was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

How to Get Published and Avoid Alien Bloodsuckers

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Lore Sjöberg in his excellent Alt Text blog offers up some helpful advice to new writers in the internet age.

Quote:
Scammers can smell fear, and to them it smells like the still-living flesh strips that make up most of their diet. A lot of aspiring writers see publishers and agents as bored nobility, offering contracts in a whimsical attempt to inject some entertainment into an otherwise tedious existence. They suspect that even putting too long a delay between "yes" and "please" will cause the contract to be withdrawn and fed to a purebred Saluki.

Quote:
Now, even if the editor initially appears to be a mammal, it’s still possible to get scammed. There’s a wonderful rule of thumb known as Yog’s Law: "Money flows toward the writer."

I know that in a world filled with kickbacks and graft, this seems too good to be true. It seems perfectly logical that you might have to spread around some cash, grease some palms and lubricate the chassis of commerce with some crude currency in order to make publishing run smoothly. Scammers leap on this misapprehension like a cat on cantaloupe.

A cat on cantaloupe?

Isaac Hayes, 1942-2008

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[ Listening to Shaft theme!Currently: Listening to Shaft theme! ]
I toyed with the idea of writing a piece about Isaac Hayes and what his death meant to me, but after reading Leon’s Spill post, whatever I had to say would sound trivial.

Quote:
Isaac Hayes was Black Moses.
He was Truck Turner.
Gandolph Fitch
The Duke of New York
Chef.

Isaac Hayes was my hero.

Quote:
I blew it on my first chance to see him. At the Million Man March and I was so busy staring at M.C.Hammer that I didn’t know that Isaac Hayes was standing less than 50ft. behind me until my friends came up and told me later.

In 2001 I drove to Dallas and paid the $5 entry fee for the Nokia-sponsored ‘New Age Festival’ to watch him perform outdoors in front of a full crowd of hipster 20-somethings that only knew him as “Chef” from South Park and probably got most of his songs confused with Barry White’s. It was still a great show even with having the Nokia Employee Band (which I heckled) as opening act.

I was with Leon at that Noika show. A memorable evening.

Leon even exposes the unique Mike Judge-Isaac Hayes-South Park relationship.

Quote:
One of the things I bonded with Mike Judge over was our mutual man-crush on Isaac Hayes. It was he that introduced Hayes to Trey Parker and Matt Stone after having him sing the theme to Beavis & Butthead Do America.

The unique and amazing talent Isaac Hayes will be missed and never replicated.

Thanks to my buddy Leon for the excellent tribute and putting what many of us were feeling and thinking into words.

Quote:
You see this cat Shaft is a bad mother–
(Shut your mouth)
But I’m talkin’ about Shaft
(Then we can dig it)

He’s a complicated man
But no one understands him but his woman
(John Shaft)

Isaac Hayes, 1942-2008 was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Isaac Hayes, 1942-2008

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[ Listening to Shaft theme! Currently: Listening to Shaft theme! ]
I toyed with the idea of writing a piece about Isaac Hayes and what his death meant to me, but after reading Leon’s Spill post, whatever I had to say would sound trivial.

Quote:
Isaac Hayes was Black Moses.
He was Truck Turner.
Gandolph Fitch
The Duke of New York
Chef.

Isaac Hayes was my hero.

Quote:
I blew it on my first chance to see him. At the Million Man March and I was so busy staring at M.C.Hammer that I didn’t know that Isaac Hayes was standing less than 50ft. behind me until my friends came up and told me later.

In 2001 I drove to Dallas and paid the $5 entry fee for the Nokia-sponsored ‘New Age Festival’ to watch him perform outdoors in front of a full crowd of hipster 20-somethings that only knew him as “Chef” from South Park and probably got most of his songs confused with Barry White’s. It was still a great show even with having the Nokia Employee Band (which I heckled) as opening act.

I was with Leon at that Noika show. A memorable evening.

Leon even exposes the unique Mike Judge-Isaac Hayes-South Park relationship.

Quote:
One of the things I bonded with Mike Judge over was our mutual man-crush on Isaac Hayes. It was he that introduced Hayes to Trey Parker and Matt Stone after having him sing the theme to Beavis & Butthead Do America.

The unique and amazing talent Isaac Hayes will be missed and never replicated.

Thanks to my buddy Leon for the excellent tribute and putting what many of us were feeling and thinking into words.

Quote:
You see this cat Shaft is a bad mother–
(Shut your mouth)
But I’m talkin’ about Shaft
(Then we can dig it)

He’s a complicated man
But no one understands him but his woman
(John Shaft)

Michael Moorcock names his top 10 science fiction novels

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Legendary author Michael Moorcock was asked backed in 2001 by the Guardian to list his ten favorite science fiction books.

Quote:
“I would guess that, Wells, Ballard and Aldiss aside, I only have about 10 SF novels I really like. Most SF is fundamentally retrospective, like modern politics. Big spaceships have an immediate soporific effect (the first time I fell asleep in 2001 I was with an amiable Arthur Clarke!) So, if you haven’t read any SF, this list might suit you. Few of these books make any mention of spaceships, but they’re all by substantial writers and most have a characteristic elegaic note inherited from the likes of Shelley and Wells.”

Intriguing list that begins with Brian Aldiss’ Greybeard and culminates with one of my all time favorite books The Exploits of Engelbrecht by Maurice Richardson.

Quote:
10. The Exploits of Engelbrecht by Maurice Richardson
While not actually SF, this was such an enthusiasm of mine, Ballard’s and several others that it deserves inclusion. Richardson certainly knew his science, his literature and his surrealism. If you do not know the Surrealist Sporting Club, The Day We Played Mars and the Night of the Great Witch Shoot (illustrated by Searle, Hoffnung and Boswell in a superior edition) you do not know English literature.

(Thanks to the ever helpful Matt Staggs)

Michael Moorcock names his top 10 science fiction novels was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Michael Moorcock names his top 10 science fiction novels

Posted on by
Reply

Legendary author Michael Moorcock was asked backed in 2001 by the Guardian to list his ten favorite science fiction books.

Quote:
"I would guess that, Wells, Ballard and Aldiss aside, I only have about 10 SF novels I really like. Most SF is fundamentally retrospective, like modern politics. Big spaceships have an immediate soporific effect (the first time I fell asleep in 2001 I was with an amiable Arthur Clarke!) So, if you haven’t read any SF, this list might suit you. Few of these books make any mention of spaceships, but they’re all by substantial writers and most have a characteristic elegaic note inherited from the likes of Shelley and Wells."

Intriguing list that begins with Brian Aldiss’ Greybeard and culminates with one of my all time favorite books The Exploits of Engelbrecht by Maurice Richardson.

Quote:
10. The Exploits of Engelbrecht by Maurice Richardson
While not actually SF, this was such an enthusiasm of mine, Ballard’s and several others that it deserves inclusion. Richardson certainly knew his science, his literature and his surrealism. If you do not know the Surrealist Sporting Club, The Day We Played Mars and the Night of the Great Witch Shoot (illustrated by Searle, Hoffnung and Boswell in a superior edition) you do not know English literature.

(Thanks to the ever helpful Matt Staggs)