Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
Dan -- sympathies...

Mike: That's FANTASY MASTERWORKS, since I'm not too embarrassed to say
it on your behalf,  and THE DRAGON WAITING certainly is one of them. 

(It is, for anyone who hasn't read it, an astonishing alternate
history set in Richard 3rd's day; the Dragon in question is Wales, and
the most sympathetic character is, incidentally, a vampire. Wonderful
work.)

I read it in the UK edition. Don't know about the text, but the cover
looked like they'd had an elementary school  "paint a really ugly cover
to a book called the Dreagon Waiting" competition,  and printed the
ugliest.
  

    
And Mike, this topic doesn't really have a topic. It's just all the
people who were left when the COUNTDOWN TO AMERICAN GODS topic ran out
of room, so the Inkwell hosts gave us all somewhere to chat. There is
nothing that *can* be off-topic here, if you see what I mean. So do not
worry about topic drift. This one pulled free of its moorings a long
time ago, and we all pretend not to have noticed.
  

    

And I should mention that Mike will be having his own interview coming up,
but not until October, I think, so there will definitely be a chance to
talk to him then, too.
  

    
E-mail from Kathy Li:

michaela - another option, aside from NESFA, is if you were going to do 
some Dreamhaven shopping, *anyway* (as Neil Gaiman fans are wont to do), 
they also sell NESFA Press books, including FROM THE END OF THE TWENTIETH 
CENTURY.  And while you're there, take a peep at the Dreamhaven Press area, 
and TEMPORARY WALLS, which includes a John M. Ford story "Dateline: 
Colonus" of which I'm particularly fond.

And yes, even if you hate Star Trek, try PLANET.  Really.
  

    
Kathy -- I finally got around today to taking the pens out of my
pocket, and filling them, and will soon start writing some of the thing
I'm doing with Gene Wolfe for the Horror Con with them. They are
lovely and I am grateful. Is there anything I should know about their
care and feeding, filling, cleaning, etc?
  

    
    Neil -- ah.  Okay.  Topicality noted and filed.

    Linda -- Glad to hear about "Colonus."  The only place WALLS got
reviewed was Locus, and the person involved mentioned every story but
that one.  Weird.
    The original story in 20th CENTURY, "Here to Get My Baby Out of
Jail," is vaguely a companion piece to "Colonus" -- they aren't a
series, or set in the same universe, but . . . it's not really
explainable without giving away things, but should be obvious if one's
read them both.  What a circumlocution -that- was.

     Oh, and back to topicality: "Day of the Dead," Neil's episode of
BABYLON 5, will air next Tuesday on the Skiffy Channel, for anyone who
hasn't seen/taped it.
     Which led, in never mind what context, to someone asking about
Minbari humor, which led to:

     A Priest, a Warrior, and a Worker walk into a Minbari bar and
order spiritual enlightenment.
     The bartender says to the Priest, "Shut your eyes and think of
the sun."  The Priest does, and the bartender hits him in the face with
a cream pie.  The Priest splutters and runs away.
     The bartender taps the Warrior on the left shoulder, and when he
turns, knocks him cold from the other side with a bung-starter.
     Then the bartender gives the Worker a beer with a fish in it and
the bills for all three customers.  The Worker pays up without a word. 
After half an hour or so, the fish is starting to swim sideways, and
the Worker's got a big smile.  "You sure you're okay?" says the
bartender.
     "I've achieved true perception," the Worker says.  "You buy a
round of enlightenment, and you get free beer."
  

    
Is this where I admit to a crush on Londo Malari?
Or is that some other topic?
  

    
>(It is, for anyone who hasn't read it, an astonishing alternate
>history set in Richard 3rd's day.... (Wonderful work.)

So *that's* why Amazon.com had an ad for the new DVD release of _The
Black Adder_ series on the same page as _The Last Hot Time_.  I was a
little confused about that.

"Oh dear... Richard the Third."
  

    
Email from shira:

I was just looking through the Walker Art Center calendar (looking for
the listing of when Le Tigre will supposedly be playing there) and I
noticed that Scott McCloud was going to be lecturing there on August
16th. Maybe this has already been mentioned and maybe not, but I figured
I'd post it anyway because it might be of interest to some people.

Neil, it was fun to hear you on Mid Morning the other day. My family
didn't know about it until the night before when, while eating dinner
outside, my next door neighbor stepped out the back door of her house and
said, "You know, Neil Gaiman's going to be on Mid Morning tomorrow." At
that point I realized that I really do have a reputation...

Also, I was wondering, have you heard the Shostakovich 8 string quartet?
I'm really into quartet music these days - I had exactly the sort of
experience at quartet camp that one should have.

I guess that's all for now. Maybe I'll start reading this board more
regularly.

shira 
  

    
Ninave~ I can understand the "people she respects/first name" thing, I
am just as bad, only with musicians. I totally freeze and can barely
talk in those cases. 

Mike~ Topic drift is an evolution in my book. People go from talking
about the most mundane things and it goes in directions you never
thought of. Now if I could keep topic drift out of my stories I'd be
way better off.
And thanks for the B5 update, cause I've been eagerly waiting for this
episode once I figured out they were getting close, has one of my
three favorite moments in it. The first being the "I would have at
least boffed the guy" 

JaNell~ Londo isn't bad,...but how on earth can you overlook
Garibaldi? The man makes me melt. 

Jinx isn't frightened by thunder and lightening,....honest.
  

    
Thanks again, everyone, for the sympathies. I will be sure to deliver
them to my co-star as well... 

I do have some good news, however. I just got back from our final
story-selection/first call-backs for my October show.
One piece is still in rights negotiations, so I can't talk about it.
But...
We'll be doing a short story of Chekhov's called "The Apple Orchard"
This will be directed by a newcomer to the group who has some very
exciting ideas about how to stage it.
There will also be two stories that I will be directing that most of
you are familiar with.
I'll be directing "The Arbitrary Placement of Walls" by our own Martha
Soukup. (Martha, I'm going to want to keep you updated as I work on
the story and *any* suggestions, ideas, objections you have ... well...
let me know, please).
I will also be directing "We Can Get Them For You Wholesale" by our
very own Neil Gaiman. 
Both Martha's and Neil's stories were received with enthusiastic
unanimous approval, and I'm delighted that Neil's story was given to me
in addition to Martha's to direct.
Neil, as with Martha, I'm more than willing to keep you appraised of
the work I'm doing and if you have any objections to anything I
propose, let me know. According to our producer, the rights issues are
pretty much taken care of, but I want to do something you'd be pleased
with. .. and I know that you haven't seen an adaptation you've been
pleased with yet.

For that matter, I know that if I don't do a good job with this show,
I'm going to have the Well Contingent to deal with. *grin*
  

    
Neil - But unlikely people/characters are the best kind.  And is the
unlikely miss Maddy willing to share her book with the rest of us?  :-)

Got Planet, have started it, am already recommending it to people. 
Can't find Peace locally, will have to go the Amazon route.  Don't know
why I've shared that, guess I feel like if my post is only two
sentences long it's not enough to post.

Jen.
  

    

<stagewalker> - that's absolutely wonderful. I can't wait to see how they
turn out.
  

    
     Pamela -- If Dick Plantagenet appears in LAST HOT TIME, it is
entirely without my permission.  He'd stick out anyhow -- it's an
extremely American book, except for the elves, and some of them are
trying to be North Siders.
  

    
Jinxie wrote "Londo isn't bad,...but how on earth can you overlook
Garibaldi? The man makes me melt. "

1) Garibaldi has a drinking problem. Forget that s#!t.
2) Garibaldi turns down his friend in, I believe, aforementioned
episode... wuss. Coward. She loves you, you idiot, are you doing
anything *better* with your time?

I could see him as a friend, definitely, though.

The other one I find attractive, I can't remember his name since I
came in late to the series and only saw most episodes once, is the
Galahad character... but I married him. ; )
Oddly enough, ConCat sent over people in costume one year to answer
phones at the local PBS station's telethon... Cam went as Londo,
wearing some of my costume stuff... we weren't asked back, can't figure
out why...

Don't tell Neil that he wrote my favorite episode... Zoot! Zoot!
  

    
My goodness.
  

    
Martha - who are you my-goodnessing? And about what?
  

    
Oh, sorry.  My-goodnessing the play announcement, which is the first
announcement I've heard they've decided to adapt my story.  (And Neil's.)
  

    
Email from Kathy Li (I inadvertently posted this in the wrong topic
yesterday, moving it over):

Neil -- Well, aside from the vintagepens website advice, not really. The
Lady Patricia Ink-Vue's transparency *might* be dyed by some more
heavily-pigmented inks, so don't stick Parker Penman or Omas in it if it
isn't red.  Like the Sheaffer, the Lady Patricia Ink-Vue isn't a
tip-filler, so you have to dunk to the section to fill it.  And always
have a tissue/penwiper ready with the Lady Patricia Ink-Vue; the Waterman
feed from that era doesn't have any fins (Sheaffer held the patent) to
channel excess inkflow, so it can get soggy.  The 51, I blush to admit,
is not wholly original--I found it in an antique mall, sitting in a mug,
without its cap and forlorn ($3 on the price sticker), and I happened to
have a good 51 cap in my parts box from an earlier
51-restoration-learning-disaster.  I felt like Mrs. Whitaker in
"Chivalry".  Only I couldn't find the Mills & Boon I was looking for.
 
Mike -- Maybe the reviewer in LOCUS didn't know the middle play; after
all, it was only a gospel musical and never an Anouilh. :-) And I'm glad
to have my suspicions confirmed as to the relationship between the two
stories.  Perhaps "Troy: The Movie" is a cousin as well?
 
Linda -- Ooo!  Goodie!  More chances to bug Mike about his stuff!!  And
I've suddenly got this urge to go hunt up CAPTAIN CONFEDERACY #11 (I've
got 9 and 10).
 
  

    
~ Birth Announcement ~

From Chloie Airioldi, Chairman of ConCat, regarding the new child of
her son Jaime and his SO Amy: 

... the baby was born Sat. Aug. 4 at 11:16.
She was 7 lbs. 10 ozs. & they named her Aidyn Ryn. 

Chloie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  

    <scribbled>
  

    
Mike:

>Pamela -- If Dick Plantagenet appears in LAST HOT TIME, it is
>entirely without my permission.  

We were just having a discussion about recalcitrant characters,
wandering in and out of stories and coffee shops of their own
volition, over on #116.  And if ever there was a recalcitrant
character, it's R3.  

(However, I have to 'fess up to ignorance.  I haven't read DRAGON or
LHT--LHT's on my wish list, and I'll certainly keep my eye out for
FANTASY MASTERWORKS.  I was just attempting a random association for
my own amusement.)

>He'd stick out anyhow -- it's an extremely American book, except for
>the elves, and some of them are trying to be North Siders.

Oh, well.  That's okay.  Neil's got some rather interesting types
wandering around his America, too.  And some of them are trying to be
Cheeseheads.
  

    
Martha, sorry if that was a shock.. I know that I had told you a few
times that it was under heavy consideration, but in a fit of excitement
I decided to shout it from the rooftops. The committee was extremely
enthusiastic about it. Universal thumbs up.

Madman, I'm extremely excited too. I did the adaptation of Wholesale
this weekend (the story's amazingly easy to adapt for the stage,
especially since we've got a lot of multimedia resources which allow me
to project Peter Painter's memories, thoughts, and dreams up on the
screen behind him.)
The multimedia also gives me some incredible tools to create the
"ghosts" in Arbitrary Placement. (life size video images on the same
level as the live actors) I'm so excited about this I could pop. During
callbacks I went over the premise of Arbitrary Placement with the
actors, and all the women shuddered in horror at the thought of such a
situation.
  

    
Welcome to Aidyn Ryn.

stagewalker, it'll be fascinating to see how you approach Walls.  I just
need to know, who'll play the nekkid guy?
  

    
"It's not a party 'til the nekkid guy shows up."
the movie P.C.U.