HBO gave us all a little taste of season two of GAME OF THRONES tonight, with an “In Production” feature before the latest kickass episode of BOARDWALK EMPIRE.
In case you missed it…
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Lots of our new second season characters can be glimpsed therein… Melisandre, Stannis, Davos, Brienne, Margaery, and so many more…
You’ll meet them all in April.
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Everybody and his mother-in-law are running polls these days, as year’s end edges near.
So for those who enjoy casting ballots and voicing your opinion, here’s a few places to make your voice heard.
GOODREADS is now on to the semifinals in its balloting for the best books of 2011. (A DANCE WITH DRAGONS is still contending, both in the fantasy category, and for book of the year).
http://www.goodreads.com/award/choice/2011
Meanwhile, the PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS has opened balloting for their 2012 awards. HBO’s series GAME OF THRONES is contending in Best Cable Drama.
http://www.peopleschoice.com/pca/vote/votenow.jsp
People’s Choice has a zillion categories, so you can also vote for your favorite network shows, movies, music, etc.
And over at ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, they’re picking the Entertainers of the Year, and it seems I am one of the candidates. (No one is more suprised at this than I am).
http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/11/17/entertainers-of-the-year-2011-vote/3/
Vote early and often.
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What good taste the folks at LIBRARY JOURNAL have.
They’ve included A DANCE WITH DRAGONS on their list of the Ten Best SF and fantasy books for 2011:
http://reviews.libraryjournal.com/2011/11/best-of/best-genre/best-books-2011-sf-fantasy/
Jimmy Corey’s LEVIATHAN WAKES also made the list. Congrats to that scoundrel Jimmy,
I love librarians.
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Tor has just announced a special holiday sale on the electronic editions of four Wild Cards ebooks. From now until December 14, ebooks of the three Committee books and the reissue of WILD CARDS volume one (with! extra! added! content!) will be only $2.99.
Details can be found here:
http://www.tor.com/blogs/2011/11/wild-cards-ebooks-now-299
If you’re an ebook reader who has yet to sample the Wild Cards series, here’s your chance to get a taste. I’d recommend that you start with either WILD CARDS (where it all began) or with INSIDE STRAIGHT (first of the “next generation” books, and a great intro to the world). But hell, at that price, you can buy all four for less than the price of a pizza.
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Sorry, Froggy. You want to plunk your magic twanger and pop in here in a cloud of smoke muttering about jumping on a zebra with a firearm, no doubt, but I just don’t have the time right now. Too much to do, too little time.
So instead of hinting around, I’ll just flat out announce that the part of the Lord o’ Bones, the wildling raider mocked as Rattleshirt, will be played by EDWARD DOGLIANI.
Welcome to Westeros, Edward. I’m looking forward to seeing you in your bone armor.
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Just wanted to share this great picture from this year’s Lucca Games and Comics Show in Italy.
Wonderful costumes… you guys are great… I’m sorry I wasn’t there to party with you.
The Lucca Show is the San Diego Comicon of Europe, held in a walled medieval city midway between Florence and Pisa. A great event. I attended once, back in 2005, and I mean to get back there one of these days. It just wasn’t possible this year.
But it’s nice to see that Westeros was so well represented.
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Every year, come the holiday season, we get a lot of orders for the signed books offered on my website: http://www.georgerrmartin.com/books.html
The biggest rush is in early and mid-December, from readers planning to use the books as Christmas gifts. Often the buyers send extra money for priority mail, to make sure the books arrived by Christmas.
And that’s all great. Usually.
But this year, it’s not going to work. I am heading east the first couple of weeks of December, for reasons I cannot disclose yet, so I won’t be here to sign books or ship them. And when I return, mid-month, I’m going to be too busy digging out from under and doing my own holiday shopping to deal with orders.
Accordingly, we’ll be closing the “bookstore” on December 1. It will not reopen until the new year, after the holidays.
So if anyone out there is thinking of giving an autographed title of one of my old books as a Christmas present, please place your order in the next two weeks.
Thanks. (And happy reading and happy holidays to all).
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The good folks at Valyrian Steel have announced that they are now taking preorders for their massive, gorgeous replica of King Robert’s warhammer.
http://www.valyriansteel.com/shop/swords/king-roberts-warhammer/prod_14.html
Do note: these are preorders only. The hammer has not yet gone into production, and will not be shipping until Spring 2012.
Questions and comments should go Valyrian Steel.
Thanks.
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The latest Wild Cards reissue from Tor Books will be out in time for Christmas.
Now available for pre-order via Amazon, B&N, or your favorite local bookstore is volume two in our long-running Wild Cards series, ACES HIGH, scheduled for publication on December 20. No new stories this time around, alas, but the new edition will feature another spectacular cover from Michael Komarck, this time starring Pat Cadigan’s character Water Lily.
ACES HIGH features stories by Roger Zelazny, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Victor Milan, Lewis Shiner, Walton Simons, John J. Miller, Pat Cadigan, Walter Jon Williams, and yours truly. (Actually, it includes two stories by me, a Turtle story and the Jube interstitial). The old gang’s all here, almost — Fortunato, Dr. Tachyon, the Great and Powerful Turtle, Demise, Walter Lily, Yeoman, Modular Man, Cap’n Trips.
Make it a Wild Cards Xmas, and join the fun.
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