As I once explained to a friend, I don’t have hobbies. I have serial obsessions. I know I’ve talked about this before, and how it often relates to research for the stories and books. I owe at least some of the impetus for the Yamada series to a fascination with ancient Japan and Asian mythology in general, which probably grew out of my general fascination with world mythology. Never met a mythos I didn’t find at least interesting. So in general I have to say that this penchant for serial obsessions, at least where the writing is concerned, is a good thing. It has kick started a lot of stories and probably every novel I’ve ever written. But there’s an aspect to the inpulse that I don’t think I fully appreciated until very recently. Continue reading
Author Archives: ogresan
Favorite Li(n)es
We all have them. Some of them we didn’t even write. Since my brain is otherwise locked up at the moment, I’m putting a couple of my favorites up here instead of, you know, writing something. Both of today’s lines come from one of my all-time favorite writers, Parke Godwin. The first one needs a little context, so know that it was spoken by Guenivere in Beloved Exile after learning of the death of a romantic rival.
“Later I heard she died of the plague. God is good. Sometimes he’s an absolute dear.”
The second is from “Influencing the Hell out of Time and Theresa Golowitz” and needs no context at all.
“Dead one day, and already I need a lawyer.”
While I realize that any single line or small phrase separated from its context is never going to have the same impact, these are two that, anytime I think of them, always make me smile.
And I think I will throw in one more from another of my most favorite writers. This is from Peter Beagle’s The Last Unicorn.
“No cat out of its first fur can ever be fooled by appearances. Unlike human beings, who seem to enjoy it.”
Anyone else have a favorite line? Anyone who doesn’t? (I would need that latter explained to me).
I Can Do That, or “How is a Writer Like a Guitar Player?”
As I’ve mentioned here before, I’m a beginning guitar player. But there’s an aspect of this musical adventure that I haven’t mentioned before, and I do think this simple fact needs to be acknowledged—as a guitar player, I suck. A reader might be forgiven at this point for observing the obvious—“You’re a beginner. Of course you suck.” Sorry, no, it goes far beyond lack of practice and experience. While I’ve always loved music, I discovered early on that I have little natural aptitude for making it. If there’s a musical gene, it does not run in my family and I for sure don’t have it. Yet here I am taking up guitar and massacring “Smoke on the Water” like any beginning fourteen year old (and yes, they still do). Only, of course, I’m a looong way from fourteen, when such things might be considered part of the normal course of events. There’s nothing normal or natural about what I’m doing. So why am I doing it?
Because I’m a writer. Continue reading
Wonder if He Got to Hear the Speech?
It seems a William Park(e)s was an archer in the contingent of Edward, Duke of York during two of Henry V’s French Adventures. That’s right. Two. Meaning he must have survived the first one, then went back. I mean, sure, that was interesting to know, but then I went to the San Antonio Worldcon back in 1997 and discovered that there was also a William Parks at the Alamo.
Before now I only had my own example to go by, but now it occurs to me that common sense just may not run in this family.
Going, Going, Gone
Three days ago, Amazon listed two copies of The Heavenly Fox for $19 each direct from them. As of yesterday there are still two listed, only one’s listed new at $197 and the other is listed used and priced at $99. Yeah, good luck getting those prices, but it does demonstrate something I was rather anticipating—The Heavenly Fox has sold out it in both published states. There was a 100 copy signed, numbered and DJ’d run, which sold out several months ago. I checked with the publisher and, sure enough, the second, unsigned state has also sold out. Since both were limited runs I’m not too surprised. I’m just glad it didn’t take longer.
I’ll know in a few days who it lost the Mythopoeic Award to, but in the meantime I’m getting used to the fact that, for the first time in about five years, I don’t have a single book in print at PS Publishing. Good thing the Yamada novel is coming out from them next year.
Richard Parks 