Sense of Adventure

Went off well. If I do say so myself, since I was Toastmaster.

Because they always rent me a tux for my gig as Masquerade MC (which I also am this year) I decided to wear it tonight for OCs. Which went over well enough. I don’t know if I was even the slickest-dressed dude on stage; Rich Zellich, who with his wife Michelle are Fan Guests of Honor, wore a tail coat, a top hat, goggles, and a cane with a brass head that unscrews and becomes a little 3 power spyglass. All of which is awesome.

Steampunk, for which I have a considerable affinity, seems to be all the rage this year. Lotsa cool steampunk hall costumes about. Including Rich’s.

Rich and Michelle are former serial Archon chairs. They’ve also been good friends of mine forever.

Artist and Gaming GoH (he’s also two things in one) John Kovalic seems like a pretty good guy. I met him for the first time today. He has a cool, idiosyncratic drawing style, as seen in his Dork Tower comic strip and his illos for the Munchkin game series, as well as Apples to Apples. Both of which ought be enough to elevate him to the Pantheon among some of my friends (you know who you are.)

Our Media GoHs are Trace Beaulieu, Frank Conniff, Joel Hodgson, Mary Jo Pehl, and J. Elvis Weinstein, whom I hope you recognize as much of Mystery Science Theater 3000, hence gods (well, one goddess) among men.  They couldn’t make OCs, sadly, so I didn’t get to meet them.  Dang.

Author GoH is St. Louis’s own Laurell K. Hamilton, who was lookin’ good in a black leather skirt.

So anyway to open my turn as Toastmaster I said the following:

“ (more…)

To fit in around here, you really have to be a character. For one thing, you need to help keep the other denizens of the madhouse entertained.

Emma continues to show she belongs in the Milán Pack. Just now, with the street full of youths, not all the most reliable-looking, and with bass thumping from the speakers of a truck across the street, what roused Emma to bark fiercely?

What but her nemesis, a young mother with a pram?

To be fair to Emma, the mother was walking a somewhat stout little dog. That’s got to up the threat factor.

•••

To further support Emma’s pack-appropriate eccentricity, on our walk today we got rained on. At home Emma doesn’t like to be out in any kind of weather. By which I of course mean weather, as in, the weather doing something, not just sort of being there. Today, though, she happily ignored the fact that it was raining. As long as the rain stayed light.

To my surprise she didn’t even react to fairly loud thunder. Usually if any kind of boom is even audible when she’s outside, she’s shrieking and thumping at the back door to come in. Out on the ditch this afternoon, she didn’t even blink. Apparently she figures Daddy will protect her.

(This might be ill-advised. Daddy is tall, hence liable to attract lightning.)

I enjoyed the rain myself. Mostly. It’s a rare treat to see New Mexico on a cloudy, rainy day. And light rain falling on me actually feels pleasant. Certainly knocks down the heat.

But then as we approached the point where I intended to turn around the rain began coming down for true. Then Emma was, like, “Daddy, can we seek shelter now? Don’t you know enough to come in out of the rain?” Fortunately there were trees with thick enough foliage to offer some respite.

Even then I was more concerned by the lightning. If I’d expected that, or if I’d heard thunder before we set out, I would have kept us home. Naturally it waited until we were on our way up the ditch.

(more…)

Back from a flying trip, in sundry senses of the word. Some fun stories to tell. Some not to.

Tired now.

When I left it was 90°. Or more. Naturally I left the swamp cooler running so as not to bake the cats. It gets cooler at night usually, of course, but I figured it was no big deal. Especially as opposed to making the cats endure potentially lethal daytime heat.

So I’m flying back this morning and they announce that in Albuquerque it’s 49°. Whoa! 49! And when we arrive, it’s like 48°.

My friend Larry gave me a lift home. Also he drove way to hell and gone north to Corrales so we could retrieve the Em. He’s a pal.

(My car is … not reliable right now. So I had to plea for help.)

When we walk in of course the cooler is churning away. Out come TJ and Squeak. And they look at me and are like, “Dad? FREEZING!”

Oops. I mean, the damn heater was on. Took me a minute to figure out what was making all the noise, once I hastened to get the swamper off.

Oh - I also contrived to get to the kennel without Emma’s retractable leash and X-harness. The kennel guy lent me a leash to get her to Larry’s car. We got in the backseat; she seemed pretty eager.

The plan was for me to sit in back and hold onto her - usually I cinch her in with the shoulder belt through the harness. Which I lacked Also I figured that was less hassle on Larry. I was hoping Emma would be okay with the proximity to Uncle Larry as it was: even though he’s a close friend, and official External Member of the Milán Pack, he hasn’t spent a lot of time around her. So I wasn’t altogether sure he had yet graduated to the Official Emma List of Approved Persons. And if you’re not on that list, you’re on the Watch List.

(more…)

Thanks to everybody who turned out for the signing. I told you a good time would be had by all. And what do you know …?

I just had a big old boatload of fun Saturday at Page One. And as I said, I’m not even in the book. Although as it turned out I was called on to sign copies of various earlier Wild Cards books. And even one or two copies of Inside Straight, for people who apparently wanted to get as many WC authors’ autographs as possible.

We had a good turnout. I’d have to say at least a hundred people and probably more. We got a number of folks from ASFS, including the lovely and irrepressible Pat Rogers, Kevin Hewett, Craig Chrissinger, and Dawn Barela. Various WC authors not in the book appeared as well (so those who wanted as many signatures as possible kinda hit the jackpot), including Laura Mixon, Sage Walker, Gail Gerstner-Miller, Walter Jon Williams, and of course me, as well as Royce (Chip) Wideman and Parris, non-writers who contributed characters to the pantheon. To my pleased surprised a goodly contingent of non-Wild Cards NM authors also came out and supported us, including Pati Nagle and her husband Chris Crohn, Laura’s husband Steve Gould (whose movie Jumper comes out next week!), Robert Vardeman, Steve and Jan Stirling, and Jane Lindskold and her husband Jim Moore, Joan Spicci, and Ty and Jayné Franck. (Anyone I overlooked, please forgive me.)

What was coolest, though, as others in the group also noted, was how many faces we didn’t know. This wasn’t all just the Usual Suspects turning out, grateful as we all are to them for doing so. We got a lot of new people not just to attend, but to buy books. And that’s no bad thing.

The audience seemed to enjoy the presentation in advance of the signing proper. I did. When it was over a lengthy line formed for autographs. I had intended to come and listen to the opening show, then maybe take off. Instead I had such a great time hanging out and talking with people I never could tear myself away.

I also noticed that after the signing finally ended, and most of the regular public drifted away, the area Page One had set up in front of the signing tables with twenty or twenty-five chairs was mostly occupied by various NM SF writers talking to each other, reminding me once again what an incestuous community we are. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

As we packed up Caroline Spector asked the gentleman from Page One who’d run things - profuse apologies; I’ve spaced on his name - how many books sold. He said about seventy-five, plus some put on hold by people who weren’t able to make the signing. While that left a lot of copies out of the 200 they had on hand, he seemed thrilled. That’s pretty good sales for New Mexico. And it’s not as if those’re the only copies that’re going to get sold.

The Wild (Cards) Bunch and select others adjourned to a nearby Garduño’s Restaurant, where super-agent Kay McCauley threw us a swell reception. There, thanks to the kind offices of Melinda, I actually got to meet our editor from Tor, Patrick Nielsen Hayden. I also met a couple of Parris’ very nice friends from Ireland, Paul and Sally. Paul, as he puts it, swordfights for a living - being a notable re-enactor and movie stunt guy.

Laura got concerned because one of her adolescent daughters wasn’t answering her cell phone. Eventually the strayed lamb was heard from. I told Steve I didn’t reckon they’d have much trouble from young men wanting to date their daughters. All they need do, I said, was point to Steve and say: yes, Dad wrote a novel that got turned into a movie starring Samuel L. Jackson. I mean, Samuel L. Jackson. That ought to cut down on the nonsense.

Of course, it also means the daughters will never actually have a date until they move to a different continent and change their names. But what’s that to parental peace of mind?

Many thanks are due to Page One, PNH, and Kay, all of whom did wonderfully well by us. Also Craig, who gave us a nice review in the previous Sunday’s Albuquerque Journal.

Parris said the whole get-together was “a lot like having the band back together.” John Miller said it was the best signing he’s ever participated in.

I tend to agree with both sentiments.

I can’t tell … and if you want some clues, go here.

Click there now and check it out. Seriously. I’ll still be here when you get back.

Y’all know, probably (and if you don’t, hang around a spell and it’ll all become abundantly clear) that I’m more than somewhat slightly skeptical and cynical about conventional Big House publishing and publishers.

That said, Tor Books so far are doing a bang-up job promoting our spanky-brand-new Wild Cards offering, Inside Straight. They’re actually putting some effort into it. And the just-launched American Hero site is a wonderful step.

I’m basically in love with the site. Along with a very fine-looking logo we have brilliant headshots of all the contestant aces (I love Toadie’s big ol’ eye just staring at you) taken from the big group pictures done by artist Mike S. Miller. Farther down, past the first of what will be a continuing series of “confessionals” by the contestants, and a description of the reality-television series which drives the plot for much of the book, we see the group portraits themselves, along with rosters. Fortunately you can click on the group shots for larger versions, which is a good thing, because they’re freakin’ gorgeous.

They’re also, according to the characters’ creators - I’m not one, incidentally - pretty accurate, allowing for a wisp of artistic license. Frankly, from what I’ve read, they’re far, far closer to the characters as described than most illustrations I’ve seen. Indeed, I wish I’d had these pix to refer to when I was writing my sequences for the (ahem!) next volume, Busted Flush. Since some of the characters pictured play prominent roles in my contributions.

Ah, well. I’ll have ‘em for Book Three. Provided I’m in the volume … which, I have to say at the risk of tempting Fate, is fairly likely … they’ll be great to draw upon.

(more…)

This hit me literally out of nowhere: the other day a message appeared in my e-box headed, “SCI FI NIGHT AT NM SCORPIONS HOCKEY,” from one Melissa Gomez, who proved to be the Director of Special Events for the New Mexico Scorpions hockey team (I’m presuming I’m not violating any confidence by posting this, since it concerns a public event, indeed a promotion.) At first I took it to be an invite for me to attend; on reading it, it turned out to be asking if I cared to participate.

Indeed do many things come to pass.

So what’s going on is, at 7:15 PM on Saturday, March 1^st 2008, the Scorpions will host a Sci-Fi Night at their game against the Colorado Eagles at the Santa Ana Star Center. For details I’ll just go ahead and quote the post verbatim:

“Mr. George Noory of Coast to Coast AM will be our guest that evening. Fans will have an opportunity to meet and ask questions. We would love to have local authors available to meet our fans and would like to extend an invitation to you to be our guest that evening. You will be able to display your books or upcoming events on the concourse and mingle with fans as they enter the arena at 6:00 pm. Currently local authors Walter Jon Williams, Jerry Weinberg and Jane Lindskold will also be joining us that evening.”

There you have it.

I wrote back to Ms. Gomez and said, basically, “Sure.” It sounds fun. And of course getting a chance to promote NM authors - myself notably included, o’ course - appeals to me. I don’t know exactly how big a draw a passel of SF authors will be at a hockey game, although if a lot of people turn out to see George Noory (Art Bell’s successor as host of the Coast to Coast overnight radio show, which deals with all sorts of weirdness) (as if you didn’t know) who knows? They might just find our high-quality local science fiction and fantasy entertainment product appealing too.

If nothing else, I’ll get to pass a pleasant evening with friends. I’ll go way out on a limb and predict there’ll be more of us there than Walter John, Jerry, Jane, and Your Humble and Disobedient. Not that anything sucks about that lineup…

And it should be a hoot to meet George Noory. Maybe he’ll decide to have some NM SF authors on his show some evening? We’re a fairly entertaining bunch, if I do say so myself as oughtn’t.

So if you’re in the area that night and find yourself at loose ends, fall by. You don’t know less about hockey than I do. It isn’t possible. We might even become fans. Stranger things happen. I’m just sure.

Since I was rendered mentally fuzzy (okay, more so than usual) by the cruds the last couple weeks, I plumb neglected to announce this: Tor Books is launching the all-new Wild Cards volume Inside Straight with a gala mega-signing Saturday, February 2, 2008 at Page One Bookstore, Montgomery and Juan Tabo NE in Albuquerque, at 2:00 PM MST.

Featured will be George R.R. Martin, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Daniel Abraham, Michael Cassutt, John Jos. Miller, Ian Tregillis, Carrie Vaughn, and Tor Books editor Patrick Nielsen Hayden. That’s, if I reckon right, seven of eight authors and the editor. They’ll be discussing the new mosaic novel as well, of course, as signing it.

Play your cards right and you might live to talk about it even get to see some other Wild Cards authors. Such as, um, me. I don’t have a story in this volume, but I do in the next. I’ve offered to come and heckle.

But wait - there’s more. Since two out of three authors will be there, you can also get your copy of the new SF novel Hunter’s Run by George R.R. Martin. Gardner Dozois, and Daniel Abraham signed.

That should fill anybody’s recommended daily allowance of awesome.

Mark it down on your calendars. A good time should be had by all.

We just finished doing tech rehearsals for the Masquerade this afternoon. One extremely … healthy-looking … young woman is portraying Jessica Rabbit in her entry. Suffice it to say, she can.

At the meeting before rehearsals even began her mother came up to me and said “Jessica” wanted to rub up against me - that’s, the MC - in the course of her act. She asked, very diffidently, if that would be okay.

I said, “You have to be kidding.”

I love this job

===

Yesterday was my 53rd birthday. It passed with little acknowledgement as a birthday per se. By the end of the day, more than a bit irrationally, I was somewhat sad. I put great stock in birthdays, as I do in Christmas. I felt I had missed something.

But indeed that’s silly. I had an extremely full day, and a very fun one. I spent time with old friends and some delightful new ones. I got to ham it up in the dinner-theater play Mike Smith and Florence Achenbach put on for the GoH banquet. Whereas when I have a birthday at home I’ll generally do something special to mark it - which I didn’t get to this year - I’m also often as not solitary. In general I spend too much time in that condition.

So on the whole, really, it was a pretty fine birthday. Even if fatigue and the tail-end of this infection put me in a less-cheerful state at the end of it.

Tonight’s Masquerade should be great. It’s the smallest in memory; a lot of locals aren’t able to attend because of $100+ NASFiC full-membership tag. They’ll be missed. And it’ll still be a fine Masquerade.

Don’t try to tell me you didn’t. I saw who was there.

Granted, it was in a somewhat obscure location (I had to ask directions; so did the person who came in to read after me.)

But it may be you didn’t miss much. I was off a bit. Flat. The audience (all six of them) were kind. But the response was nothing like what I got at the ASFS reading. Even though I added the element of a soundtrack of Renaissance music, which I still think is a good touch. Although I need to compile a special playlist for the reading that leaves out vocal pieces.

Ah, well. Thanks to those who showed up and heard me out. I don’t think I did justice to my story or to you. It wasn’t from lack of trying: I gave you all I had.

Apparently I just didn’t have much today.

We’ll see what tomorrow brings. As always it’s great seeing old friends at the con…

That’s, Holiday Inn, in official Archon abbreviation. Not Hawaii. I’d say, “sadly,” but I’m pretty thrilled to be here.

I’ve been offline for a couple days. Now back thanks to the hotel’s wireless net. At least until the Nerd Wave crashes it sometime Friday evening, along with the elevators.

Did an appearance tonight with Guest of Honor Barbara Hambly, an excellent writer who’s also quite nice, at the Brentwood Library, courtesy of Sheila Lenkman, the Masquerade Goddess. It was fun; we got twenty-five people. We talked a little, read some excerpts, signed some books. Sheila was disappointed that I didn’t bring the famed Toy Dinosaurs; I told her people would have to come to the reading tomorrow at 4:00 PM at the Holiday Inn (or HI.) Although sadly a fair number of attendees can’t make it because of the steep NASFiC membership rates.

Instead I read a couple passages from my story for the upcoming Wild Cards anthology, Busted Flush. It seemed to go over pretty well.

More later. I’m pretty fuzzed, having started the day on an early expedition to do Cowboy Action shooting at a local club and pretty well kept running since. I’ll be a busy lad, writing on my latest Rogue Angel as well as doing a bunch of con stuff.

I’m really looking forward to this con.