Tales of the Trickster

Dragon*Con 2007 Bay-bee!

*Does happy dance of sheer geeky joy.*

Won't be here after today, so don't go a-lookin'.  I'm off to Dragon*Con as of tomorrow.  Yay for me!  I'll be gone all weekend, not sleeping much and following around the Whedonverse track like the stalky fangirl I am.  James Marsters (Spike from Buffy) will be there.  Coincidentally, I'm listening to his narration on the first Dresden File audiobook, Storm Front.  It keeps me company on the ride to work.  He has a lovely voice.

Anyway, since I'll probably be in no condition on Monday to do so, I'm wishing everyone a happy Labor Day weekend now.  Stay safe, have fun, and be good.  Or be good at it.  =)

Plugging Along

Not much to say, other than I'm still plugging along.  Haven't had much chance to read Harry Potter 7, so I'm not ready to discuss the Wizardling's exploits as yet.  Still plugging away at my fairy tale, wondering how I got so bad at this writing thing.  This is what happens when you're out of practice.  Oi!  Gotta keep plugging along.  Also trying to figure out a sticky point in my comic book. It's like trying to unravel a knot in your yarn that somehow mysteriously got tangled up after you got up from your knitting to go and make yourself a sandwhich.  It's all tight and twisted and frayed, and your two cats are running away with something that looks a little like blue wool hanging from their claws.  Hmmm. 

Oh, and revising, revising, revising.  Plugging along, doh dee doh...

In happy good news, only 3 more days until Dragon*Con!!!  Woooo!  I'm really bummed out that Anne McCaffrey cancelled because of illness issues.  I was really looking forward to having her sign my Dragonflight book.  I'm not letting it get me down though.  I'm looking forward to watching 20,000 or so geeks wandering the streets of Hotlanta in everything from metal Leia bikinis to full-on Cthullu tentacles.  (I haven't seen the latter yet, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time.)  I even went shopping yesterday and bought myself some girl clothes for the occasion.  I'm so crazy.

Halfway Through Harry

So I'm halfway through Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows.  It's good and all, and my trips to the wizarding world are always fun and everything, but...I don't know.  Am I the only one who thinks that the last two books may have been ghostwritten?  Because I think they were.  It just doesn't feel like the same Potter.  Your thoughts?  And if you give away anything, so help me, I'll put a crucio curse on you. 

*Readies wand.*  Don't test me folks! >={

Lemonade From Sour Grapes...Or Something

Okay y'all, I'll be honest.  I kind of feel like ass today.  I feel bad a lot.  I won't get into why, but I've got tummy issues and that leads to anemia and some days I just feel like an emo vampire that hates everyone.  I'm having one of those days.  I was going to start a post whining all self-pity-like about how assy I feel today, but then I got a little bit of positivity thrown my way.  It made me smile, and then I started thinking about other positive people that can see the bright side in everything.  So I got to thinking that maybe, instead of bitching so much, I'll try and throw some positivity out into the universe.  It may or may not work.  Like I said, I'm cranky as hell today.  Anyway, here goes. 

I throw my money to a few different places.  Since I don't have a lot of money, I don't throw great wads of it, but a few bucks here and there.  Sometimes I can't even afford that, but I try to raise awareness whenever I can.  In the not-likely-but-you-never-know case that someone with great flowing rivers of cash reads my blog and just can't think of what to spend his or her money on next, I'd like to offer some suggestions.  These are in no particular order, just listed them as they occured to me:

1. Equality Now - I know I've mentioned this a few times in the past, but it's worth mentioning again.  Some women/girls out there in the world have it really rough.  Female genital mutilation (FGM) is no joke.  Rape, murder, and torture are condoned in more places than you may realize.  Help the group that helps these women.
2. Amnesty International - I don't always agree with their politics, but I admire their tenacity.  Sometimes they are the voice for those who have none.
3. Female Fighters Against Domestic Violence - These women are like superheroines.  I wish I was half as cool.
4. Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) - Selling, writing, or drawing comic books should not be a crime.  Censorship sucks.
5. American Library Association (ALA) - An amazing but incredibly underrated source of information.  ALA is more than a group of cranky librarians.  They are a political force, they provide free information for people across the country, they promote literacy in countless ways, they fight censorship on all levels.  Hey, they're kind of like superheroes too!
6. American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) - If you see a cute little furry face and feel the need to torture it, you're a dick. Get off my blog.
7. Keep it in the Ring Foundation - Created by Rich "Ace" Franklin, the Foundation advocates non-violence and "help(s) young people learn about life so they can respect it."  The group provides afterschool sports, martial arts, and life skills programs.
8. Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN) - Did a paper on this charity when I was in college and was very impressed with them.  Bad me, I had forgotten about RAINN until just now.

Take some time and look through the websites.  You may be surprised at what you'll learn.

Fairy Tale

Decided to put my comic project down for a bit and give my brain a break.  I've lately taken to writing a fairy tale to amuse myself.  Not the Disney sugar-coated crap, but the old fashioned Grimm and Andersen type of fairy tale.  I'm trying to keep the same style and structure, but at the same time, I'm giving it a few modifications here and there.

I've always been fascinated by fairy tales.  They remind me of those wooden alphabet blocks we all played with when we were babies.  They are like the first stories we all toyed around with, the stuff we build on later as adults.  I heard Neil Gaiman talk about fairy tales at a book signing once, and he says there is something basic, almost primal about them.  They get hardwired into our brains and become part of our language.  Coincidentally, I read something this morning about fairy tales and Shrek, and how this author believed that children are missing out by having their fairy tales scrambled about for them before learning the original versions.  That author held Neil Gaiman's Stardust up as a fine example of the new fairy tale form.  Wooo!  Go Neil!

Anyway, since I'm trying to get my sea legs back with writing, so to speak, I figure a good place to start is the basics.  Fairy tales are a little harder to write then I thought they would be.  They seem to have a rhythm and cadence all of their own, like songs.  After awhile, you know what to expect, but still want to know what happens.  If done well, it's uncanny how easily a fairy tale can suck you into the story.  I have a big book of Grimm's fairy tales at home, and I picked a story at random just to get into the rhythm again.  It was close to the weekend, and I had some time to kill before the food we ordered showed up.  Before I knew it, I was three tales deep before the doorbell rang. 

In any case, with Stardust coming out on Friday, I'm guessing I'll be in Fairyland for another week at least.  Stop by and say hi.  Just beware of the trolls under the bridge.

Crystal Singer Review

My third review for Pink Raygun is up.  You should check it out.  I really admire what Lisa & John are doing over there.  It's nice to see girl power in geekdom.  Anyway, I'm going to try and be more active on the "Trickster's Library" part of this blog, since I've been ridiculously slack so far.  You'd think, with the amount of books I've read in my life, that it wouldn't be so hard to keep up.  Alas, I'm a slacker. What can I say?

From the Stacks: Crystal Singer

With August soon approaching, it seemed appropriate to highlight one of the amazing authors scheduled to make an appearance at the much anticipated Dragon*Con.  For those of us East Coasters (or folks who don’t mind traveling), that would be from August 31 to September 2 in Atlanta, GA.  What better way to spend Labor Day weekend than watching the 501st Legion of Stormtroopers rub shoulders with the Southeastern Browncoats?   Seriously, I can’t think of one.  Sure, you might say “stranded on a tropical island with Johnny Depp,” but I would ask you if that tropical island has a Miss Klingon Empire Beauty Pageant, because if it doesn’t, you should reconsider.  Besides, Dragon*Con has more costumed Jack Sparrows than you can shake a bottle of rum at.

In any case, Anne McCaffrey, the author of dozens of science fiction novels and a fangirl favorite for many years, will be there this year. You would think, since I’m talking about Dragon*Con, that I would be doing a book review on one of the Dragonriders of Pern books.  That would make sense of course, but you would be wrong.  As much as I adore the Dragonrider series (and I did have a fangirl geek spasm when I found out she’d be at the Con this year), I thought Crystal Singer would be more appropriate for Pink Raygun.  Chicks are even cooler than dragons.

The chick in question is Killashandra Ree, who, besides having the coolest name in any sci-fi book I’ve ever read, also has perfect pitch.  That’s right; her super sci-fi power is a musical one.  Maybe not so big a deal for us Earthlings who aren’t in the entertainment business, but for Crystal Singers, it is essential.  A Singer a kind of miner, one that uses voice frequency in combination with a cutting device that allows for a special kind of crystal to be harvested from a planet called Ballybran.  The catch?  Once assimilated to Ballybran’s environment, planet-dwellers may never have the ability to leave because of a special symbiotic spore native to the planet.  Anyone who adjusts well enough to leave won’t be able to leave for long.  Crystal Singer or bust in other words, and that’s even before the actual dangers associated with the mining process.

Seems a pretty high risk for just a couple of shiny rocks, but these crystals are essential for communications systems across the galaxy.  That means pretty big bucks. It’s a dangerous job that comes with a great deal of sacrifice, but Killashandra is nothing if not determined.  Symbiotic spores? They only help her heal.  High death rates for Crystal Singers?  Ha!  Killashandra laughs in the face of danger.  (Actually she sings, but I promise she never once breaks out into “The Sound of Music”).  Jealous classmates, galactic politics, even crazy mentors that try to cut her to bits with mining tools—Killashandra won’t let anything stand in her way.
No dragons in this one, but it is refreshing to see a book that takes a different approach to outer space living. 

Why it’s Worth a Shot (From a Pink Raygun)

Anne freakin’ McCaffrey, that’s why!  Did you know that in 1968, she was the first woman to win a Hugo for fiction?  Come on, how Pink Raygun is that? 

[Link to original review here]

From the Stacks: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

I'm usually not much of a mystery reader, but I'll occasionally make an exception.  For the longest time, I didn't read mysteries because none of them could match up (in my mind) to Sir Arther Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes mysteries.  A little unfair, I later realized, to compare with a series that basically created the standard.  I'm not even talking about just books.  You can't have a show like CSI without inevitably making comparisons.  Without a Sherlock Holmes, would there really be a Gil Grissom?  Similar characters, both like bugs, makes everyone around them go "huh?"  CSI: Baker Street anyone?

Seriously though, even if you're not into mysteries, you should give The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes a shot.  For one, it's free through Project Gutenberg.  For another, it's a collection of short stories, so you can read a mystery during your lunch break and still have time to go back to your desk for some computer Solitaire.  Plus, the first story deals with Irene Adler, and it's nice that the first person to get away with giving Holmes the ol' "nanny nanny boo boo" was a woman.  I only wish there was more of her in the series. 

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes through Project Gutenberg