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Showing posts from January, 2011

Quit your bitchin' and get to work

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My sons gave me an iPad for Xmas, which makes for a handy way to watch Netflix. One show that I haven't yet decided if I like is Showtime's Californication . David Duchovny's character, Hank Moody, has writer's block, which is fueled by his anxieties despite his publishing success and a movie deal. As expected, the show takes liberties with the life of a professional writer. Unlike Moody, I don't have panic attacks, nor do I have difficulty cranking out the word count. On the other hand, I don't have women chasing me for sex. (Hmmm...maybe I should get writer's block.) One plot complication I don't understand is that Moody claims to be a New York writer and hates living in Los Angeles. So, why doesn't he move back? Here's a glimpse of the show in a funny Russian over-dub. The show's premise hinges on Moody's writer's block. As a professional writer--meaning that if I don't write and write well, I don't get paid--I can't af

Eurovision 2011!

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Why hello there! I'm trapped in JFK, having "missed" my flight to Pittsburgh due to a series of clusterfuck conditions at Heathrow and at JFK. I say "missed" as I was actually at my original flight's gate before it even began boarding, but I'd already been helpfully checked onto the 9 pm flight. And by "helpfully," I mean I've seen better service on Cops, when they run down men wearing their underpants. Anyway, I'm trying to kill some time by blogging, but realistically that means shite will pour forth from my exhausted brain, onto my laptop, and directly to you! Awesome! But I really need to pull up my big girl pants and not complain. Up until the horror which has been Delta's customer service, I've had an absolutely amazing trip. For those of you who haven't seen my travels with Dr. Ruth, she's the photographer. Meaning that the night we were in Paris, we have over 200 beautiful photos. For the rest of my trip, when I

The Game Begins

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HAPPY 30th Birthday Buffy!!! Trailer for HBO’s adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones leads this week's movie and book news. The Game Begins # # # # Then onto a couple of articles about one of my favorite literary and movie characters: James Bond. First, from the Huffington Post : KINGSTON, Jamaica — A new international airport for private jets and small commercial aircraft was unveiled in northern Jamaica on Wednesday, named after the British thriller writer who invented the literary and cinematic super spy James Bond. Ian Fleming International Airport is close to the scenic retreat where the late author reportedly wrote all 14 of his books about the elegant, crafty spy. The property is now an exclusive resort owned by Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, who is credited with introducing reggae great Bob Marley's music to the world. Followed by this from the BBC : The new James Bond book, written by thriller author Jeffery Deaver, will be called Carte Blan

New Year, New Contest

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Hi all-- to start things out this year, Mario and I decided to have a contest The idea sprung from this: Rowan Somerville is the author of two novels, The End of Sleep and this year's The Shape of Her, described by the Economist as "deceptively simple in plot and singularly musical in its voice, it is a study of the place where our past has become our present. A summer read to be kept – and visited in the dark days of winter..." Last month, the novel followed authors including John Updike and Norman Mailer in winning the Literary Review's Bad Sex in Fiction award …with one killer sentence – "like a lepidopterist mounting a tough-skinned insect with a too blunt pin he screwed himself into her" – the novelist Rowan Somerville demolished all comers and secured this year's coveted…award. Which brought up an interesting point. Who would you nominate for a bad sex in books award (notice I added “in books.” Don’t want any disgruntled husbands, wives, boyfriend

Pimpage + a Contest at Mah Site!

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Hello my League friends! Can I just tell you that Jane True Book 3, TEMPEST'S LEGACY, IS OUT! You can see another reading and get some news on a contest to win some Legacy swag, here . In VERY exciting news, Jane now has an Italian title! It's La Principessa Delle Tempeste . HOW CUTE IS THAT? And I can't wait to see what they do with the cover! You can see a conversation about Jane in Italian, here . I have no idea what they're saying, but it sounds sexy, doesn't it??? Finally, you can find a contest here , run by the ever lovely and fabulous Carolyn Crane, in which you can win TL . I am currently gearing up for the January residency of my MFA program. Students will arrive from all over the country (and a few from outside the US), descending on Greensburg to be edumacated in the art of writing popular fiction. I'm running a module on close reading, and one on urban fantasy. Totally looking forward to it! But it's going to be crazy hectic, and the day after

Big Amanda Feral News!!!

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Finally! I can let y'all in on the super sekrit news from last summer. I've recently inked a deal with the Dabel Bros., the guys behind such stuff as this... And what, you ask, will this deal entail? Why AMANDA FERAL chewing up some pages, motherfuckers! ROAD TRIP OF THE LIVING DEAD is going to be the framework for a comic book series, culminating in a graphic novel bind-up. No other news just yet, other than I've agreed to script and we'll be looking for artists soon (I hope). I couldn't be more excited and the timing is great as the mass-market paperback of Road Trip is about to hit the shelves. I'm equally excited for the possibility of people giving Road Trip a chance, it's my favorite of the three books and by far the least known. They tweaked the cover a bit and the high gloss they put on it really makes it awesome! Here's a couple of places you can preorder the mmpb... Barnes and Noble Amazon This has been a long time coming and I can't wait

Downpour Cover

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Hey, looky what I got Greywalker #6 US edition coming August 2011.