Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
yay unca neil! *does happy dance* It's a very good book, and I was not
one bit surprised it won. Good show :)
  

    
I will never go on vacation for this long again. Too much to catch up
on. And I've forgotten how to work. 
I had a fabulous time though. We took a sailboat from Key Largo to the
middle of the ocean and snorkeled around a big reef. Saw lots of
beautiful fishies. Namely the Queen Parrot Fishies. a bunch of Sgt.
Majors decided that I was part of their school and swam around me until
I ran into the Barracuda. They like to grin. I swam away with the Sgt.
Majors. They're pretty smart for fish. Damn, I wish I had a scanner. I
took so many pictures of both the Keys and another place we snorkeled
called Blowing Rocks where I saw the Biggest Damn Sting Ray ever. I was
comfortable around it till it started flapping itself at me. 
I've decided that I want to live in the ocean. 
Went to a family reunion in Indiana and discovered that most of my
relatives all down the line are Irish Storytellers. Many of them
professional. This makes me happy and explains a lot. It's so
wonderful...discovering your roots. 
Many other things happened, most of which would be bring to everyone
else so--

Neil- Many congrats on winning the Hugo! And welcome back!

John-Mike- Sad and amazing poem. Thank you.

Dodge (and just about everyone else it seems)- Who knew one could love
the WB so much? I hardly watch TV, but sometimes I catch Buffy and
Smallville. Can you believe that I've never seen the Superman movies?
(well I have, but I was only five so it doesn't really count. I don't
remember anything.) The show makes me want to see the movies. Oh and
Lex is sexy. 

Danw- what a strange shadow world you have...

Adriana- "About as exciting as Weird Al's episode of Behind the Music"
Buahahaha! Wonderful songs, BTW. You rule. 

Patricia- Thanks for the Happy Birthday. I turned 24. I'm getting old.
And I'm getting scared that I won't get anything published till I'm,
like, 60, because the years keep going faster and faster. I figure 25
is a good year to start acting like a grown-up though. I don't feel
like being one just yet. 

Happy belated birthdays to Elise and Maddy! 

Oh My God. Poems!

Okay there went a good two hours of my life. You people are well worth
it though. Never a dull moment in the goldfish bowl. 
  

    
Yay Hugo!

Not even going to attempt to read the eighty-some-odd posts I've
missed here, so a brief summary or pointer to key things I've missed in
the past 10 days would be cool. No butterflies coccooned up and turned
into caterpillars while I was gone, did they?

Um, Burning Man was awesome. I only suffered one injury (girl fell on
me when she passed out on the dome), but the kneecap shifted back into
place overnight so everything is all hunky dory.

Neil, is Amacker always that insane? ;) She meandered to our camp on
Monday to say hi and see if her handywork was still intact (one of the
Death Guild cars was left in her camp - HappyLand - overnight and came
back the next day with a pirate happy face painted on the side, and
flowers in the MAP gun and flame thrower). In any case, she will be
forever known as the ice cream goddess to me now.

Photos are going to take a while. I've got about 150 digital shots to
sort through, 30 Polaroids, 10 or 11 rolls of 35mm and no scanner at
home. As soon as I start getting stuff put together (in all that spare
time I've got), I'll post a link.

squeaks, happy to be home again - desert weather and my skin don't mix
after 10 days
  

    
madman- good luck with figuring _that_ out.  I thought I had the
perfect solution, but no one on the message board at neilgaiman.com
agreed.  In fact, someone said my theory gave them a headache!  (One of
the reasons I like _AG_ so much is because the discussions continue
and they are as stimulating now as a year ago.) With that I must add a
congratulations to Neil!

erynn and michelle-welcome back. Tomorrow when I am feeding the cows I
will imagine living under the sea. (The life I lead in my head is much
more exciting than the reality.)                          pc
  

    
*clap, clap, clap*

Congratulations, Neil, on your Hugo.

I'm hoping for a triple crown for AG.
  

    
Welcome back to all Desert Dwellers... 
I missed being there with you, but as it turned out... it was for the
best all around for me to stay at home (rehearsals and work and kidney
stones, oh my!).

Squeaks - I will be patient in waiting to see the pics, but eager.

Erynn, if you're referring to the piece (currently called Pinch), it
is a strange and weird and I'm in a slight white panic now that we're
only a month away from opening. I have to keep reminding myself that I
have a wonderful team behind me and it'll all get done in time.
If you're not... yes, my world is strange and shadowy anyway.

Madman - If you figure out it, let me know, too. I've read the book
twice, and will certainly read it again sometime down the line.. I may
even read it TO someone, if I find myself in a promising long term
relationship (it would have to be long term to get through it)... but I
just don't think I'm ever going to be able to do the requisite
research to answer that particular riddle on my own.

Dan, who is wondering what Neil will do with a clone of Victor Hugo
around the house?
.... 
what? It's not a clone? 
Shoot, let me check my notes....
  

    
NEIL! Congratulations, that is amazing.  You definitely deserve it.

I just came by to say that the news here at the Brothers Warner is
that Keanu Reeves will be playing John Constantine in the Hellblazer
movie.  *slapping forehead* It might be old news, I don't know, but
either way...*slap*
  

    

[Que state of denial] 
Keanu Reeves as John Constantine?  Keanu Reeves?!!
*slap*smack**thud* 
  

    
Watching Neil get the Hugo was so cool. Yay, and congrats again, Neil. A
splendid, splendid book and a well-deserved bouquet of awards. <nods in
satisfaction>

Good Mistress Mousey Accost, here is a picture of Amacker for you:
http://dd-
b.lighthunters.net/picpage.cgi/gallery/Guy%20Fawkes%20Day%201999/ddb%20199911%
20060-6.jpg

(I hope that works; the linebreak thingies look weird to me. Email me if it
doesn't, OK?)

Seeing Lisa Snellings Clark
's sculptures at the convention reminded me that I want to go get the book
full of stories about that wonderful spooky carousel. (Well, I want a
sculpture, too, but probably one of the big ones, and couldn't swing that
this time. I contemplated the small rat sculptures, but there was not one
that especially spoke to me, though all were full of ratly goodness. Oh,
well; maybe next time. I shall have to keep my eyes open for conventions
she's Artist GoH at, if that happens. It should, in my opinion. Regularly.)
  

    
Adriana - You're joking, right?
Please, tell me you're joking.

I suddenly have never wanted a movie to suddenly lose its backing
before...
  

    
re: keanu as constantine... But he's too pretty! I always figured
constantine as being more rough around the edges... and we all know
what Keanu sounds like when he tries to play Brit.

<lioness> - She was dressed much more casually when I ran into her on
Monday. I will note this though: She said she's easy to find at Burning
Man; just go to her camp and look for the one with clothes on. :)

<stagewalker> - Starting the web page updates today, but still have 10
rolls to develop and scan. Give it a week before the first photos go
up (too much scripting).

Was mildly bummed to find out earlier today that at least 2 Well folks
came to my camp and I missed them (though one left a souvenir). Also
found out yesterday that two of my other web friends were around and I
missed them too. Maybe next year.

squeaks, back to html-ing
  

    
Neil--Jonathan Carroll sends you *very* amusing things.

Keanu......scarily enough, I actually regard him as a step up from
Nicholas Cage, whom I loathe.  Am considering moving to Borneo, where
perhaps I could stick my fingers in my ears, sing "La, la, la, la" and
pretend Hollywood doesn't exist.

Courtney Davis is visiting.  If you live in the Chicago area, go to
Celtic Fest and meet him & see his beautiful work (or to the gallery
exhibit he's having in Beverly).  Or go to 

www.celtic-art.com 

and envy us the delightful company we'll be keeping for the rest of
the month.

Mary (who can't stop telling people about Neil's Hugo, whether they
want to hear it or not!)
  

    

Three emails regarding the new Harry Potter toy this morning. [shakes
head]

Mary -  Might have to join you in Borneo. I wonder if there are any
rituals against bad casting selections? And thanks for the introduction
to Courtney Davis.

Currently drowning in all the 9/11 commemorations, as if we've been
given even one moment of peace the entire year. For the first time in
my life I really loathe living in NYC, and it's a weird feeling, like
being torn between gratitude and despair.  
  

    
Rocky, here in Los Angeles it feels the opposite, like everyone is
pretending that nothing has happened.  I haven't heard of much being
planned for Wednesday besides a speech at city hall.  And truly, I
don't know what I ought to expect, but it just feels strange somehow. 
I can see where in NY it would be frustrating to memorialize something
that really hasn't left one's daily consciousness yet.  
  

    
Danw- I was talking about the dream you had with squeaks and Neil. But
it's good to hear about Pinch.

Adriana- Woah! No way,dude. Nards.
  

    
lioness was at the convention??  I never saw you!
  

    
Likewise.  Wish I had seen you, Martha. Mostly I was taking it quietly,
though; I went to a couple of parties, but not many. Next convention,
perhaps?
  

    
Late as usual, but no less sincere -- many congratulations, Neil. It
is a very good book, and I'm glad it won.

Am currently drowning in despair and boxes, while Tara tries to
convince me that I can take this weekend off from unpacking and job
hunting to go to the Irish festival. I think I have a very nice job all
but snagged, so I might be convinced, if I can get enough done tonight
and tomorrow. I'm a proper Chicagoan now. hoorah. 
  

    
     Thinking about who ought to play Constantine is difficult, but
then what isn't?
     First person who comes to mind is Phil Daniels, who was in
QUADROPHENIA and I've also seen on stage.  He might technically be too
old by now.  Fifteen years ago, Charles Dance would have been very
interesting.
     Alan Cumming is now a Star, which means a studio might actually
consider him, though I think he's a bit too weedy.  Steven Mackintosh
certainly has the look (he was a startling Ariel to Michael Bryant's
Prospero a number of years back).
     Alex Jennings might be a very good choice.  I've seen him at
least half a dozen times onstage, in a very broad variety of roles
(most recently as wossname from Denmark).
     They apparently want him to be an American, which is just
stupid-as-usual.  It's not that it couldn't be done; it's that someone
would need to rewrite the character from the beginning, and none of the
rather limited number of people who could do that will be asked.
  

    
I'll be at World Fantasy....
  

    
Email from Christy:

Hey, everyone, I hope you all had a nice Labor Day weekend (if you're in
the U.S. or Canada.  Otherwise, I hope you had a nice regular weekend).  
Glad to see that everyone survived their vacations.  :)  This may be a
bit long, since I haven't done a _real_ post in over a week, so I'll try
to leave plenty of whitespace.  ;)

Erynn, your Octopus's Garden sounded especially nice; hope you find a
scanner to borrow!  And happy belated birthday.  You're a baby.  ;)

> because the years keep going faster and faster.

Tell me about it.  ;p "It seems the years just fly right past / While the
days go by so slow" -- Lowen & Navarro

Hooray for _Wolves in the Walls_ art!

Sooo, did anyone get pics at the Hugos?

Wow -- Poems go leor!  I didn't think I knew that many by heart (and I'll
admit that the only Henley I can quote reliably is named Don), but you
guys reminded me of a lot of them that I do know.  "Ozymandias" is
definitely one, along with several Dickinson poems.  (Hey, Meg -- you can
also sing them to the theme of _Gilligan's Island_.)  There are also
quite a few that my friends in the Composers' Society of Montgomery
County (http://www.angelfire.com/music3/csmc/index.html -- sorry for the
blasted Angelfire pop-ups) have set to music in the last few years,
including the aforementioned Tolkien poem and "Crossing the Bar," so I've
learned some poetry as songs.  I even got to sing one at our February
concert!  (Unfortunately, the composer never got the performance rights
to the poem, so my moment in the sun has been banned from the recordings.  
<pout>)

Mary -- Funny you should mention the poetry in the Bible, the Torah, etc.  
I actually consider Solomon to be my favorite writer of all time.  His
dad was pretty darn insightful, too.  :)

Neil -- Thanks for putting up "Madam Life's a Piece in Bloom"; I'd seen
you quote it, and I was curious to see it in its entirety.  By the way,
how's your cold?

> a lot of poems that weren't his were attributed to him over the next 
fifty years, with nothing but their sexual themes to link them (just as 
all manner of not very good gay poetry and writing was attributed to 
Wilde).

And as every clever-sounding e-mail forward now is attributed to George
Carlin.  >;)

"tangled hair and a butterfly mind...":  I love it!

In fact, I spent a couple of seconds wondering why I liked it so much and
what it reminded me of.  Then I realized that it fit both the meter and
the mood of an obscure Thompson Twins song I know.  Now, I'm sure you all
appreciated that little example of what it's like to live inside my head.  
;)

'Course, Holly would insist that _she's_ your muse.  ;)

Michelle --
> the kneecap shifted back into place overnight so everything is all 
hunky dory.

Eeeeep!!  <hair stands on end>  Well, glad it turned out all right.

Dan -- Sorry to hear about the kidney stones.  Ouch!!!

Pam -- Aren't we all!  And he would SOoo deserve it, too.  KOW

When _is_ the third award (the Nebula, is it?) given, anyway?

Hmmm, let's see....  Finished _Midnight Days_, after which my brother
gulped the whole thing down in one night.  I liked "Hold Me" so much that
I showed it to my mom, who often quotes Mother Teresa about loneliness
being the worst disease.  She thought it was great.  Ben liked it, too.

Last night, I got up to this year on the Barking Mad posts, and I
finished Part One of AG.  Now no one can say I didn't accomplish anything
yesterday.  ;)

It's funny, but this "forgotten god" thing doesn't bother me as much as
it seems to bug everybody else.  I just lump it in with all the other
myths in the book that are new to me.  Are the rest of you guys really
that familiar with every entity in the book except for that one?  Yeesh,
and here I thought I was knowledgeable because I loved my Bulfinch's!

FWIW, however, I just figured he was some ancient god of forgetfulness,
maybe related to strong drink, maybe to the river Lethe or similar,
making reincarnated souls forget their past lives or some such.

I mean, I mean... I knew _exactly_ who he was.  But I forgot.

Well, a month and two unanswered e-mails later, CBLDF still hasn't 
managed to finish my invoice.  At this point, I'd cancel it if they 
offered the option.  They must be really short on volunteers or 
something.  Or else....  With the sort of luck I've been having, I'm 
beginning to suspect that Neil doesn't come out on film.

I know a lot of you are into tea.  I just ran across some loose teas at
Gear that Gives, a Web store that donates proceeds to charity:  
http://www.gearthatgives.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CTDStore.woa/wa/item?siteID=22
4&categoryID=251&itemID=1400&pgpID=250100&origin=BCStile_tea
.  This particular link is for The Breast Cancer Site, but you can also
choose to buy it from the stores for The Hunger Site, The Rainforest
Site, or The Animal Rescue Site.  Thought y'all would like to know.

Oh, and for www.homestarrunner.com fans:  This week, Strong Bad says what 
he thinks of the English!  ;)

Christy,
who has been walking purposefully into rooms and then forgetting why 
since she was 10 (and has walked just as purposefully into door jambs 
while looking at cute guys)

Here comes that flower girl,
With her ice cream eyes and faraway smile....
                        -- That infamous Tom 'n' Alannah
  

    
Thanks everyone, so much.

Michelle -- I spoke to Amacker yesterday, who is minding a truck
broken down in Nevada somewhere and checked, and she said, yes, she is
always that crazy.

Christy -- can you do a little summary of what's been happening on
your CBLDF order and e-mail it to Charles Brownstein
<c_brownstein@hotmail.com>, who runs the Fund, and copy it to my
assistant Lorraine (fabulouslorraine@bigfoot.com), and I'll follow up
on it. Backlogged is one thing, but two months is too long.
  

    
Christy - I never would have thought to sing them to Gilligan's
Island, but now that you mention it, I can see how the song fits.
That's absolutely fantastic!

Thanks for the tea link, too! Tea is one of my "bad" habits - I tend
to buy it whenever I find something that sounds delicious, so I have a
pretty large selection of loose and bagged teas in all kinds of
flavors. So much tea, in fact, that my husband has forbid me to buy any
more, but I do have to replace the loose Darjeeling I am about to run
out of... 

We've a regular tea group that goes to several places around the area
once a week for tea. I've not gone with them before, but today I've
finally got the time to go. I didn't even realize there were places
around here that do afternoon tea until these folks started talking
about going. Apparently, the place we're going today also has a wide
selection of loose teas and Tea Stuff, so I'll have to guard my wallet.

Well, now I'm preoccupied with tea instead of my short story or my
database project :) Ah, well!
  

    

Christy - Oooh..the Thompson Twins! They're living in New Zealand now.
 They changed the band's name to Babble and came out with an album
called "The Stone."  It's one of my favorites..very trippy and it got
little or no notice.   

Btw, the CBLDF sent my tee a week after I dropped them a line, so
there's hope for you at the end of the tunnel.  And a word from Himself
wouldn't be a bad thing either. ;>

Um.. Strong Bad?  
  

    
Email from Davey:

Christy - As far as I can tell only LOCUS has photos posted to date, see
htp://www.locusmag.com/2002/News/News09Log1.html. I didn't notice any
flashes during the presentations so it's possible that no candids were
taken, or it could just be that no-one has them anywhere online yet.

I don't know that Pamela's thinking the same way I do, but to me the
third of a "triple crown" would be the World Fantasy Award. This year
it'll be announced and presented on Sunday afternoon 3 November 2002.
(Memo to Neil: Write a speech.) I'm not absolutely sure but I don't think
any novel has ever won both Hugo and WFA, and I am certain that none has
ever won both of those and the Stoker.

Neil - I followed your journal link to the SF Weekly article. Sigh. There
I was, all set to mentally award the author bonus points for accuracy in
so many of the details, and then I also arrived at the last bit...
sheeeesh. (I'll note that "...it's a web [article] and thus infinitely
changeable..." but I suppose sending a note of correction would spoil the
fun; it -is- too bad that Amazon caught on and edited the Nimbus 2000
reviews).

I'm not inclined to argue the demon Lustoffire's four basic truths,
though -- he's definitely on to something there.

Davey