Elric of Melnibone (1st Elric book, been meaning to start this series for a literal decade)

The Forge in the Forest, Winter of the World bk 2 (cheap used paperback to hold me over until I can find the HC at a good price)

Storm Front – which thankfully has nothing to do with the neo-n#zi movement.  Yes, I filtered out the letter ‘a’ so people searching for n#zi shit don’t hit this page.

The first two aren’t of much consequence, at least in the sense that I haven’t touched them yet, and it’s quite obvious why I picked them up.  The third one though was basically an impulse buy. I was scanning the shelves on my way to the register (in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy section of course) and caught the “Dresden Files” tagline and stopped a second.  Where had I seen that?  Certainly not on “SciFi” (the channel, under it’s old, PROPER, name I think) as indicated by the books cover…no – it was in a twat from Brandon Sanderson.

So, he said something about someone suggesting he read it, and he finally started, blah blah.  So, I stopped and scanned the back cover blurbs [BACK COVER BLURB NOTE:  YOUR COVER BLURB SHOULD SAY SOMETHING INTERESTING AND USEFUL TO A NEW READER ABOUT YOUR FUCKING BOOK, NOT SOME GENERIC BULLSHIT THAT COULD MEAN ANYTHING - I skipped on another series because the cover blurb was just some idiotic piece of generic fluff, nothing for a new reader to latch on to - and it was the first in a series! Follow the link and click on show back cover if you are curious!  The text is basically "Bob must save the world" - how the hell did someone approve that?].  Wait…where was I?

Oh, right.  Back cover blurbs.  This one was useful, and hooked me right off – it’s fucking pulp detective + urban fantasy (vampires, etc.).  SHIT. That’s the book I started trying to write 3 years ago.  I’m glad it wound up somewhere different – because I don’t think I could compete with this guy in the pulp urban fantasy detective schtick, he seems to have it down pat.  86 pages in and I’m enjoying it. It’s exactly what you’d expect – which is a good thing I THINK when you buy a book and get what you hoped to get out of it – so far.

Woah, just took a shower and I don’t even remember washing the shampoo out of my hair. I hope I did.  I think I did.  Where was I?  Ahh, graham crackers & OJ.  Good times.

Ahh, ok, books.  So, it’s a good thing I didn’t find this book 3 years ago – because dude evidently has like 11 books out in this series!!?  The Fuck.  How did I not find this when I was looking for EXACTLY THIS?  Anyway, I’m glad I didn’t find it then – that’s why I didn’t find it – fate or some bullshiT! – because that might have dissuaded me from trying to write what I thought I was going to write which wound up at least moderately different.

Also, dude has his whole dilemma/plot laid out by page 86, paperback.  So that’s a little something for me to keep in mind as I try and spruce my book up a bit.  What the hell does that mean?  How is making something like a tree making it better?  Oh, ok, evidently it has to do with leather.  Mystery solved, I love English.  And the internet.

OK, other random question – why is this filed in Fantasy (@ Powells) and Laurell K. Hamilton is in Horror?  I mean, I could see filing Mrs. Hamilton in Romance but, beyond that, these two books are exactly the same genre – “Urban Fantasy” (or whatever they’ll call it next year).    Readers of one might actually be interested in the other.  I know I would have gladly jumped ship to this series… Hamilton had potential, but blew it for me with the massive amount of penis & sex references.  Look, I like sex as much as the next guy – but not nearly as much as her target audience – I guess ;P.

Not to retread old ground but, seriously, how are there 11 books in this series, and I just now found it? Maybe Powell’s didn’t stock it?  I would say maybe it had low print runs but this paperback I picked up is, oh, the TWENTY-NINTH PRINTING so…no.  I’ve walked down that aisle a hundred times….looked at every book.  Crazy.

Oh, and yes, he really should have named the book something else, especially in the internet age.  Because, you know, first thing that comes up when you google the title without any other info.  YEESH.  Then again, maybe he did that on purpose?  Fuck, I hope not.

The season has slipped back into obnoxious up here in the Portland of the West (I’m not talking to you Portland, Maine!).  Freezing wind (not literally, yet), cold nights, and RAIN.  RAIN.  Yes, someday we will move and leave you far behind.   New Mexico?  Hawaii?  New England somewheresabouts?  Somewhere!  All we need is that perfect moneymaking job!  Like… being a writer.  That totally pays about $40k a year if you luck out and bust your ass.  Wait.  That’s not that much at all.  Doh!

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There are no movies that look interesting to me because a) I rarely watch trailers and b) when would we have the time?  I suppose I should start netflixing all the stuff I’ve missed this year….right?  American Pie 12 here I come!

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Marvel announced at least three big events so far for next year: Second Coming (X-Men event), DoomWar (seems Black Panther centric, but has X-men & FF members &…Deadpool.  Kay!),  and Siege – the final “ending” of the Dark Reign stuff and return to semi-normalcy with Cap/Thor/Iron Man Avengering around together again.

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Books.  Books.  I haven’t read anything in a while.  I’m slowly working my way through a book of interviews with Michael Moorcock.  He’s been known to write a book in ?3? days I think it was.  Fucknutty!  Somehow I’ve made it to date without reading a single one of his books.  Cardinal sin, I KNOW.  I should be able to find some in old school paperback pretty cheap though, maybe I’ll do that after I finish (and start…) Name of the Wind.  I’m so afraid it will suck I haven’t touched it yet.

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I haven’t tried to watch a single episode of Heroes since my failure to complete the first one.  Jen seems to be enjoying Flashforward though, and it seems moderately interesting.   I think, if it doesn’t go the way of X-Files/Lost?/Heroes etc. (ie dragging out the initial premise to Herculean lengths, then never resolving it satisfactorily because you’ve inserted so much bullhsit in there in the attempt to stretch it out to 7+ seasons) it sounds like it could be decent.  We had a conversation about the different things we’re willing to invest in a TV show – I’m much less willing to start watching any kind of ongoing show these days because I lack the confidence that TV writers have the balls to end something.  If a story is only meant to run 1-2 seasons, that’s all it should run!!  But, of course that runs completely counter to TV programming-think.

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Nothing particularly new to me in the world of music.  I think I may like She & Him.  Still trying to decide. I like some of the songs, but I need to hear the whole album and I’m reticent to buy it without hearing the entire thing first.  I do dig the retro-50s vocal thing she’s doing though.  I like the sound, but not so much in its original context – amusing, yes?

I’m debating ordering Dear Leader‘s now album – it’s ex-Sheila Divine frontman Aaron Perrino’s current project.   They were a great band that I think was just hitting their stride when they vanished so hey, good luck with reincarnation.

I heard a rumor that Jawbox was going to be on some douchebag’s late night show.  That guy from SNL who couldn’t keep a straight face to save his life.  Can’t remember his name for some reason.  Crazy.

The Monsters of Folk album is ok.  Not ok enough for me to rush out and buy it, but ok.

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Z has a selection of chorus lines he says now when he’s in the mood, inevitably going from one to the other.  “Beating like a hammer” (Metric), “It’s cold outside”, (classics), “hit the road jack/don’t come back no more” & a few others I’m brain farting on right now.  He usually knows 1-2 extra lines of the songs as well.  It’s freaking adorable.  He’s starting to get a little bit of melody going too.

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I’m in one of those “everything bores me” phases right now, hoping it will end soon.   Could just be the seasonal doldrums.