Not a Blog

Dodos Take Pittsburgh

November 28, 2024 at 10:32 am
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Winners have just been announced for this year’s Pittsburgh Shorts Film Festival (November 21-24), and we’re pleased and proud  to announce that THE UGLY CHICKENS  took home the Jury Award for Best Live Action Short Film.

Mark Raso was in Pittsburgh to represent us, and accept the prize of behalf of our cast and crew and dodo lovers everywhere.  Felicia Day starred in the film, while Mark directed.   Michael Cassutt wrote the script, adapted from Howard Waldrop’s classic short story, winner of the Nebula and World Fantasy Award in 1980-1981.

Pittsburgh Shorts is one of the premiere short film venues in the country, and the competition is always tough.   It is a real honor take home the trophy, and I know Howard would have been thrilled as well.

Current Mood: bouncy bouncy

Josh and Lizzy

November 22, 2024 at 4:25 pm
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I am falling way behind on these posts, alas.   The past few months have been very busy.

But I couldn’t allow Josh Gad’s visit to the Land of Enchantment go unmentioned.   Josh dropped by Santa Fe on September 18, while on tour to promote his new children’s book, PICTUREFACE LIZZY.   He signed a stack of copies for us at Beastly Books, so if you’re looking for a fun Xmas gift for the kids in your family, nothing beats an autographed book.

You can order your copy direct from Beastly.  Just follow the link:

Link to Josh’s book CLICK HERE

And since Josh was in town, there was no way we were going to let him get away without sitting down for an interview, so we adjourned next door to the Jean Cocteau and talked… and talked… and talked.   That was a lot of fun.   We had a full house, but if you didn’t happen to be in Santa Fe that night, well, we got the whole thing on video.   Check it out.

SEE Interview

 

Current Mood: bouncy bouncy

In the Lost Lands

November 19, 2024 at 5:46 pm
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 Save the date: FEBRUARY 28, 2025.

That’s the day that Vertical will release IN THE LOST LANDS  in theaters nationwide.   Milla Jovovich stars as Gray Alys, with Dave Bautista as the hunter Boyce.

Paul W.S. Anderson, whose previous work includes HUNTER HUNTER, EVENT HORIZON, and the RESIDENT EVIL series, directed the film.   Anderson and Constantin Werner wrote the adaptation, based on my short story.  “In the Lost Lands” was one of my earliest fantasies, first published in 1982 in the anthology AMAZONS II.

A long time ago, I had hoped to write a series of stories about Gray Alys and those bold enough to buy from her… but life and other stories intervened, and somehow I never got around to writing that second tale.   But who knows?   If the film does well enough, maybe I will finally write that sequel.  In my copious spare time.

Until then, do check out the movie.  It’s dark and twisted and atmospheric, and a lot of fun.

Current Mood: scared scared

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BLUESKY…Tiz NOT I

November 18, 2024 at 11:17 am
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…At least not yet…

 

I have heard that I’m now apparently on the social network BlueSky, but alas that’s not me. So if you  followed me there I’m sorry to say it’s an imposter.  BUT I will likely be starting up an account there soon, so keep an eye out Here on my BLOG or Facebook social page and I’ll let everyone know when I make the switch and what my handle is going to be.

 

Thanks to all my friends who made me aware of my Bluesky doppelgänger!

 

THIS MESSAGE HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE MINIONS OF FEVRE RIVER

Film Festival Drop

November 17, 2024 at 11:15 am
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If you’re around for a Film Festival or two check out UGLY CHICKENS with Felicia Day at the following locations and dates. 

 

We’re so proud of Howards stories  coming to life and being able to share them you!

MMRG
LA Skins Film Festival
Shorts Block Program 2
Thursday November 21st at 7p at the TCL Chinese Theater
6801 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028
TUC
Yellowstone International Film Festival
Monday November 18 at 5p-9p
American Center, 24 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Near Barakhamb Metro Station
New Delhi, Delhi 110001

A Stop at Oxford

November 13, 2024 at 8:13 am
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Oxford is a legendary place.  One of the world’s great universities, and the literary capital of England, rich with history, it has figured in more novels than I can count, including many classic works of fantasy.   Philip Pullman’s amazing trilogy HIS DARK MATERIAL is set there.  So is BABEL, OR THE NECESSITY FOR VIOLENCE, R.F. Kuang’s Nebula-winning bestseller.   It was the model for Hogwart’s in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books, and a lot of the Potter films were shot there.   And of course J.R.R. Tolkien lived and taught there.

Somehow I never made it there on any of my previous visits to the UK, but I was determined to not it miss it this time around.    When the Oxford Writers House invited me to join Pullman for a panel discussion on Writing Fantasy, I had to say yes.   I had never met Pullman … though I’m a huge fan of HIS DARK MATERIALS, with its daemons and armored bears.   (Armored bears!  So cool!!)    It would have been a thrill to share a platform with him.   I  also wanted to  pop into the Eagle & Child as well,  the pub where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis and the Inklings got together to share a pint and talk about books.

Alas, it turned out that the Bird & Baby (as the Eagle & Child was nicknamed by the locals)  was closed for renovations.   And then Philip Pullman got ill, and had to cancel, so I was left to fend for myself.

Fortunately I have lots of practice with fending for myself.

Instead of panel, the event turned into an interview and booksigning.  We had a sold out crowd (about 450, they told me) lots of eager students and aspiring writers, and more questions than I could possibly answer if I had been there for a week instead of a day.    And beforehand I got a short tour of Oxford itself, which was just as magical as I thought it would be.   The library was astonishing, and they even showed me some of J.R.R. Tolkien’s working papers… including his first vision of Helm’s Deep, which he drew on the back of a student essay he was grading.

Oxford was kind enough to record the session, and upload it to YouTube.

After the questions, we moved to the side of the room  to sign books.   We had a wonderful group of fans and readers on hand.   Not all of them were Oxford students; we had people there from all over England, and some from across the Channel as well.   Several presented me with handwritten fan letters, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciated that.  The letters were heartfelt, thoughtful, and very knowledgeable about my work.   The sort of letters that Tolkien himself might have been moved by.

I had a wonderful time.  I only wish our visit had been longer.  Oxford was just as fascinating as I hoped it would be, and I could easily have spent days exploring it.   But the road goes ever on, and I had promises to keep, so the best we could do was spend the night, and then head off back to London…

But not before we made a stop on the outskirts of town, to visit the graveyard where Tolkien and his wife were laid to read.   I could not leave town without paying homage to the greatest fantasist of all time.

But I’ll save my thoughts about that for the next installment of my “travel blog.”

I hope I will be able to return to Oxford the next time I make it over to England.   There’s so much left to see.

Current Mood: pleased pleased

London Towne

November 10, 2024 at 8:47 am
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London was the third stop on our summer travels, as July turned to August.

The first time I visited London was way back in 1981.   That was also the first time I left the USA, except for the time I went to Canada for the Toronto worldcon in 1993; I was over in the UK for six weeks on that first trip, traveling everywhere from Scotland to Cornwall, on the theory that if I was going to cross that great big ocean, I might as well see everything there was to see.   I did not even come close, needless to say, but I loved what I did see… museums and castles, battlefields and bookshops, Hadrian’s Wall and Cecil Court and so much more.  I have lost track of how many times I’ve been there since, and yet there’s still so much to see and do.  London remains one of my favorite cities.

As usual,  we combined business and pleasure, starting with a delightful lunch with my British editor, Jane Johnson, and her team from Harper Collins Voyager.

Across the street from our restaurant a chess game was in progress.   Love it.

When I was not doing writer stuff, I did tourist stuff, including a ride in the London Eye.   First time I’ve gotten up in it; on previous visits the lines were always too long.

We also took advantage of the West End, and checked out five plays, among them PEOPLE, PLACES, AND THINGS, scripted by Duncan Macmillan, the playwright who is adapting the tourney at Harrenhal for the stage.  I think we’re in good hands.  Duncan’s play was dark, powerful, and intense.   We grabbed a lunch at our hotel a few days before seeing the play, and talked about THE IRON THRONE.

I am told that the show is coming along splendidly.   Our team did a run-through for the managers of a score of West End theatres (before we arrrived, alas, so we did not get to see it), and the excitement we palpable, we hear.   We have not nailed down our opening day yet (next year, most likely), but it looks as though we will have our choice of theatres.

We also got together with Maisie Williams for pizza and pasta, and talked about… well, no, better not get into that, do not want to jinx it.  But it could be so much fun.   And we swung by Locke & Co, Hatters, the oldest hat shop in the UK, where Winston Churchill used to get his headware, and we bought some hats.  (What else?)

A splendid few days, all in all, but of course the time went by too fast, and it was time to move on.

Oxford was waiting.

 

Current Mood: happy happy