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So a guy on Formspring asked me what books I would recommend to kill time between Dresden Files stories, and I figured I’d reproduce it here. Here’s what I read to ease the pain between hits of beta smack, in convenient alphabetical order!

Douglas Adams — everyone I know has read his “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” series, right? Okay, just checking.

Lois McMaster Bujold — the Vorkosigan saga is some of the best sci-fi I’ve read, and I’m very picky with my sci-fi. The books focus on Miles Vorkosigan, descendant of a long line of war heroes on a planet obsessed with military honor, who was born horribly deformed as a result of an assassination attempt on his mother. He has the mind of a brilliant leader in an all-too-fragile body, and his adventures are suitably grandiose in scale. One of the best part of these books is that the characters grow and evolve over the course of the series, and the tone of the books changes accordingly. Bujold also wrote “The Curse of Chalion,” which I hear is excellent, and “The Sharing Knive” series, which is mind-searingly dull.

Jim Butcher — I know this list started as “recs for people who love Jim Butcher,” but I felt silly leaving him off a list of my favourite authors. Oh, and there’s a map in book 6 of The Codex Alera I hear is pretty cool.

Shannon Butcher — There is altogether too much talent in that household. I’ve only read two or three of her books, as I’m not a big Romance reader, but she has a mind for creating fantastic monsters, and she writes fantastic suspense–I missed my bus stop because I was too engrossed in “Love You To Death.”

Eoin Colfer — his Artemis Fowl series is riotously fun fantasy enjoyable by a wide spectrum of ages.

Jasper Fforde — a genius madman. A worthy heir to Douglas Adams. He creates worlds that are gloriously absurd, but still internally logical and well developed. His Thursday Next series are deliciously clever and demonstrate a real love for literature. His most recent book, “Shades of Grey,” is “a cult classic for people who crave a rich brew of dystopic fantasy and deadpan goofiness,” to quote the Washington Post.

Neil Gaiman — needs no introduction.

Mira Grant — an alias of Seanan McGuire. Not sure why she or her publisher felt the need for the pseudonym, but oh well! Her book, “Feed,” is the first in a trilogy about bloggers following a Presidential election after the zombie apocalypse. This description will either compel you to buy the book instantly or send you fleeing the room, so if you’re in the latter group, I will add that I don’t generally care for most zombie stuff (“Sean of the Dead” being the near-sole exception), but I loved this. It’s much smarter and more thematic than your average campy gorefest. It’s more than a book about zombies–it’s about friendship and family and the politics of fear.

Lev Grossman — I feel the whole “Harry Potter for Grown-Ups” label has become overused, but it’s rather fitting in this instance, “Mixing the magic of beloved children’s fantasy classics (from Narnia and Oz to Harry Potter and Earthsea) with the sex, excess, angst, and anticlimax of life in college and beyond” (Amazon.com Best of the Month).

Nick Harkaway — You need to read “The Gone-Away World.” Right now. I freaking love this book. I don’t know how to describe it, so I’ll use Publisher’s Weekly’s description: “simultaneously a cautionary tale about the absurdity of war; a sardonic science fiction romp through Armageddon; a conspiracy-fueled mystery replete with ninjas, mimes and cannibal dogs; and a horrifying glimpse of a Lovecraftian near-future.”

John Hodgman — “The Areas of My Expertise” and its sequel, “More Information Than You Require,” are an exercise in the very best sort of madness.

N.K. Jemisin — “The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms” is a complex, beautifully-written book about politics, racism, and religion. Her world’s gods are fantastically eerie and absolutely magnetic. I can’t wait for the next in the trilogy!

Scott Lynch — his “Gentleman Bastard” series could be a bit sadistic for my taste, and the book’s constant pinballing between different times in the hero’s life could be confusing, but I still really enjoyed them. Think “Ocean’s 11” in Renaissance Italy. Great stuff. The third book in a planned seven-book cycle has been delayed, which is rather agonizing, considering how the second ended, so I’m sending good vibes in Mr. Lynch’s direction!

Seanan McGuire — I want to be this woman when I grow up. Her filks are among the best I’ve encountered, and her urban fantasy series has me clamoring for more. The Dresden Files are an easy comparison to make, as both heroes are blue collar private investigators with one foot in the mortal world and one in the supernatural community, though half-fae changeling October Daye has significantly less magical muscle to hurl at enemies than Harry Dresden. The world is richly developed from Celtic folklore, and her characters are memorable and lovable. (Tybalt! Quentin! Toby herself! *flings love at them*) I’ve found the endings of the series’ two books somewhat predictable, but the journey there is so enjoyable, it’s more than worth it.

Robin McKinley — I’ve only read a handful of her books, but I’ve adored each of them. Some of her novels re-envision fairy tales like “Beauty and the Beast” and “Donkeyskin,” while others create new worlds that capture the same timeless magical quality that drew us in fairy tales in the first place. “Sunshine” and “Deerskin” are two of my favourites of hers, and yes, I know I need to read “The Blue Sword” already!

Terry Pratchett — his Discworld series is unmissable. His novels ride the line between parody and satire, and his characters you’ll grow to adore. Discworld is actually a collection of a variety of sub-series: the Wizards, the Witches, the City Watch, Death, and a number of stand-alones. My favourites are the Watch and the handful of stand-alones folks quasi-categorize as “industrial revolution”, but you could ask a room full of fans and get a different answer every time. I’d suggest starting with “Guards! Guards!” And I totally need to redo the Angua costume I made in high school.

Pat Rothfuss — “The Name of the Wind” is one of my favourite books to recommend. I’ll lend it to a friend, she’ll disappear for a few days, and then she’ll emerge a frantic wreck, wailing, “YOU SUCK YOU SUCK YOU SUCK WHEN IS THE NEXT BOOK COMING OUT?!?” This is the first in a trilogy chronicling the coming-of-age of a young man, who will grow to be a hero of legend. It’s a beautifully crafted story you just want to curl up with and disappear into for days at a time. I resented my job for taking me away from it.

J.K. Rowling — If you haven’t read Harry Potter, you live under a rock. Under a bigger rock. Under an even bigger rock. Under a tectonic plate. Under a sheet of impermeable metal three feet thick, built to withstand the brunt of time and man. Seriously, how?

Brandon Sanderson — Man, this guy is versatile. Hallmarks of his work include strong character development arcs, deliciously creative magic systems, wonderfully twisty plots-within-plots that are complex without feeling overly contrived, and a real sense of consequence to one’s actions. I adore his “Mistborn” series and plan to cosplay as his heroine, Vin, at my earliest convenience, and “Warbreaker” is also excellent. I couldn’t get into “Elantris,” but I feel it deserves a second chance. He’s also finishing Jordan’s “Wheel of Time” saga, but as I don’t care much for Jordan, I’ll have to trust the positive reviews my friends have given Sanderson’s continuation.

Geoffrey Willans (author) and Ronald Searle (illustrator) — Rede MOLESWORTH, gratest book in the history of man as any fule kno. Quite simply, this is the best book no one I know has ever heard of. It’s written from the point of view of Nigel Molesworth, “Terror of St. Custards,” a British schoolboy with a boundless imagination and a complete disregard for spelling and grammar. This book “contanes the full lowdown on skools, swots, snekes, cads, prigs, bulies, headmasters, foopball, weeds, and various other chizzes-in fact THE LOT.” When I moved to New York, I was living out of my suitcase for several weeks, so I only allowed myself to bring two books: the one I was reading at the time (Heinlein’s “Stranger in a Strange Land”) and Molesworth. That is how much I love this book.

I’m sure there are scads of great writers I’m forgetting, but those are the ones jumping out at me. That should get him through to “Side Jobs,” at least. :D

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Okay, this is getting ridiculous. I haven’t blogged in such a long time that my brain has decided my return needs to be grandiose and epic and cerebral, coupled with a vow to continue blogging every such and such per unit time increment blah blah blah. As a result, I’m thwarting myself before I even begin. Blogging should be fun, not an added stress. Let’s go from there.

So! Recap! For those who have been ignoring my blog in the absence of actual human communication, here’s what’s going on.

WORK

Let’s start with the day job! I’m still at Launch in NYC. We have some new faces in Asset Land (we fused Character and Prop Lands), and I remain second in command. Over time, I’ve slowly become to go-to girl for celebrities, and I’ve gotten to create representations of Robert Pattinson, Heidi Klum, Reese Witherspoon, Tiger Woods (pre-scandal, natch), Roger Federer, Jaime Lee Curtis, J.K. Simmons, Bette Midler, and a bunch of Nascar racers whose names I can’t remember, to name a few.

Just before the holidays, I was moved to a new seat, which is a source of frustration. My previous seat was in front of a window–a window ten feet from another building, but a window nonetheless. I could see the sky reflected in another window! I could kind of see the weather, if precipitation was heavy enough! It was great! My new seat is in the corner of a cramped, windowless pit. I have a whole laundry list of complaints, but it even makes me roll my eyes, so I’m not about to post it on the internet, for fear of being subjected to the world’s tiniest string orchestra.

So instead, I’ll focus your attention on the light amidst this darkness: coworker Erica brings her one-year-old Maltese to work, and every day around 5 I’ll declare “Puppy O’Clock” and indulge in some quality snuggling and petting time. While I’d jump at the chance to move to the shiny new 15th floor, with its ergonomic chairs, spacious setup, high-res monitors, brand-spanking-new Wacom tablets, and soaring picture window view of midtown Manhattan, I’ll make do with puppy love for now. Also, my coworkers are hilarious and have fantastic banter, and I hear it’s a lot quieter on 15. I guess it all balances out.

FANDOM

As for Fandom-Land, last year, I created a map for the Codex Alera, which was published in First Lord’s Fury, the sixth and final novel in the series. It will also be included in upcoming reprints of the first four books! I still haven’t gotten over how awesome this is. Every time I visit a bookstore, I have to find Jim’s books, and if they have a copy, I have to open it to the map and be struck all over again with the fact that MY ART IS IN A #7 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING NOVEL and squee like a maniac. Yes, I am lame, but I have awesome-cred to back it up.

I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback and my fair share of criticism, but my favourite bit of praise came from the blog of a soon-to-be-published author, who was in the process of creating her own map for her fantasy novel. She was studying aspects of other fantasy maps to get her brain-juices flowing, and the three maps she gave particular attention were from the Chronicles of Narnia, Lord of the Rings, and FIRST LORD’S FURY. One of these things is not like the other! I tell myself it’s because FLF was published more recently and was therefore readier in folks’ memory, but that’s some pretty flattering company. It’s one thing for folks to admire an illustration I created–it’s a whole different kettle of fish for it to inspire someone else!

I also made an artistic contribution to the upcoming Dresden Files RPG, masterminded by my friend Fred Hicks. It’s the Gruffs from Small Favor. I need to get back in the swing of doing art outside of work. Sure, the fifty-plus-hour work week makes me not want to go near Photoshop when I get home, but it’s the only way I’ll grow.

And another development since I last blogged: I actually wrote something! My disappointing entry to Yuletide 2008 must’ve rattled my confidence, because I didn’t post anything for ten months following it. Sure, I dabbled, but I never brought anything to completion. 5/6 of the way through the year, I did! I organized a Codex Alera ficathon in an effort to generate some fanfiction before the series concluded, and I wrote an Araris-centric fic called “Fading Away.” For Yuletide, I redeemed myself with “Looking Out,” a Spook story that appears to be the first non-crossover fanfic in the Mistborn fandom. Oh, pioneers! Then Kait did a Writing Chat Thingy and I wrote “Letters,” a highly amusing ficlet in which Tavi and Kitai confront the frustrations of grammar.

DECREASING WORLDSUCK

I started pitching in with my friend Lisa Spodak’s fundraising for the Avon Walk back in July, and over the following months, Lisa finally cajoled me into taking a much more active role in the charity. I’m going to walk in the D.C. event May 1-2, which I’m now training for. I’m so proud of myself; not only am I going to be raising money for a very important cause, but I’m also on an actual exercise regimen, something I haven’t been able to stick to in the past. It’s great to have a goal.

Back in 2004, Lisa created Project Teddybear, in which she collects autographs and photos of celebrities with an Avon Walks bear, which she auctions off on eBay, with all funds going to the charity. I’ve contributed to her efforts by collecting the cast and creator of The Middleman, Billy Boyd of Lord of the Rings, Jorge Garcia of Lost, Robin Thorsen of The Guild, Rick Holmes, and Jim Piddock.

Of course, because of my connections to geeky literature fandom, I’m branching out with Project Teddybear: Geek Lit Edition. (I’m still looking for a good name.) In addition to the photo with a bear, I bring a book for the author to sign–usually the first in a series or their most recent release. I’ve nabbed Jim and Shannon Butcher (The Dresden Files, The Codex Alera, a host of increasingly enjoyable, genre-crossing romance novels), Jane Espenson (Buffy, Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, and more), Pat Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind), Jasper Fforde (the Thursday Next series, Shades of Grey), Lev Grossman (The Magicians, David Anthony Durham (Acacia), Brandon Sanderson (the Mistborn series, The Gathering Storm–also signed for PTB by collaborators Harriet McDougal and Maria Simmons), John Hodgman (Areas of My Expertise), Eoin Colfer (the Artemis Fowl series, And Another Thing), and probably a few others who have slipped my mind. At the most recent KGB Fantastic Fiction event, Ellen Kushner was eager to participate, but I didn’t have any of her books on hand, so it’ll have to wait until next month. I also hope to get Ellen Datlow, Terri Windling, and guest authors N.K. Jemisin and Michael Shea.

ETC

In addition to my increased attendance at book signings, I’m also going to a lot of music events. Leading up to the release of her new album, Katy Pfaffl aka “Mighty Kate” held an abundance of gigs, many of which I’ve uploaded to YouTube, with her permission. I also saw Vienna Teng, Lenka, Billy Boyd’s band Beecake, Regina Spektor, Kristin Chenoweth, Jonathan Coulton with Paul and Storm, and… does a sing-along of Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog with Joss Whedon count? How about a performance of Lemony Snicket’s The Composer is Dead? Though I saw that a looooong time ago, so maybe not. I also saw a taping of Inside the Actor’s Studio with James Cameron, which is not even remotely close to a music event, but I didn’t know where else to mention it.

Hmm, what else has happened? I got my first-ever cavities! And I had a torrid affair with an ocelot, because NO ONE, NOT EVEN MY PARENTS, could possibly be still reading at this point. It’s more a historical document for myself. I also failed to blog about San Diego Comic Con, ConDFW (in which I moderated two panels, go me!), and my trip to D.C. for the Inauguration. I’ll see if I can dig up the half-written entries and finish them at some point in the near future. Or not. Whatever.

Don’t forget to floss!

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The time is finally upon us! Check out the map I illustrated for Jim Butcher’s First Lord’s Fury, which hits stores November 24th. For those new to my mapsquee, FLF is the sixth book in the internationally bestselling fantasy series The Codex Alera. I’m so thrilled to be a part of it.

Download the map as desktop wallpaper in about every desktop size imaginable:

800×600
1024×768
1280×800
1280×1024
1400×900
1600×1200
1920×1200

I’m eager to hear your thoughts. :D

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I recently stumbled across what is indisputably my favourite review of the Storm Front graphic novel ever written. Or poorly translated. Or somehow spontaneously produced by some “Millenium Hand and Shrimp”-style babble generator. It was composed in response to the book reaching #1 on the New York Times Graphic Books Bestseller List, something I may or may not have posted about in this blog, but which is nevertheless AWESOME. *adds to resume, come to think of it*

I’m terrified of it somehow disappearing off the face of the internet in a puff of logic, so I’m reproducing it here, with my favourite bits in bold to save time for the lazy and/or overtaxed:

The New York Times most excellently sellers enter is a Brobdingnagian enter that people require they could be on. They recently opened up a subsidiary payment fair jocose books and explicit novels, and that’s what we be enduring here. This enter compiles uninjured all the approach from the basic past the 6th of June. I secluded included 3 items from 2 sections and nixed the Manga.

The following is the enter presented in visual dimensions. You can peruse the well-built enter before visiting The New York Times online. The Dresden Files: Storm Front before Mark J. 1. Powers and Ardian SyafA explicit multi-storey tale based on the bestselling Harry Dresden books before Jim Butcher!If circumstances neighbouring a misdemeanour lineaments the accustomed and confirmation points to a shady who is anything but forgiving, the men and women of the Chicago Police Department apostrophize b supplicate in the a given gazebo who can current of air unconventional and all past bestial phenomena.

Now the cops be enduring turned to Dresden to consider a horrifying imagery exactness parricide that was committed with louring deviltry. Harry Dresden is a wizard who knows firsthand that the seasonal clique is truly well-built of extraordinary and magical things-most of which don’t simulate good fettle with humans. Never a given to refer to down a paycheck, Dresden also takes on another case-to make a missing say softly quiet who has unreservedly discreet been dabbling in sortilege. 2. As Dresden tries to make use of the apparently separate cases, he is confronted with all the Windy City can flourish well-built of holes at him, from the lower classes to mages and all creatures in between. DARK TOWER: TREACHERY, before Peter David and Robin Furth solely belittling The ka-tet of Roland, Alain, and Cuthbert be enduring returned safely to their household in Gilead.

Roland has kept the awful Maerlyn’s Grapefruit and has befit obsessed with peering into its pinkish depths consideration the unfailing dues it’s bewitched on his well-being. But all is not good fettle. And what the offspring gunslinger sees brings him the darkest of nightmares. And in this enter one’s chastise upon, Stephen Deschain’s sprightliness may be furnish up. Meanwhile, Roland’s framer has led a posse in search of those who threatened his son’s sprightliness in Hambry – John Farson and the Big Coffin Hunters. This legend collects Dark Tower: Treachery numbered 1-6. BATMAN: R.I.P., before Grant Morrison and Tony Daniel Tying into his other blockbuster stories of 2008 FINAL CRISIS and BATMAN: THE RESURRECTION OF RA’S AL GHUL, the great Grant Morrison confronts readers with the incredible: The extermination of The Dark Knight.

3. The troubled sprightliness of Bruce Wayne seems to disclose extreme of the mark of oversee when his releationship with the bewildering Jezebel Jet deepens. Capitalizing on the die of their greatest foe, the Club of Villains instal a misdemeanour carousal past the streets of Gotham that threatens to bring extreme of the mark the bring to its knees.

Soon Bruce Wayne drops extreme of the mark absolutely, having apparently befit the shlemiel of balmy affliction and abandoning his Batman congruence payment a sprightliness on the streets of Gotham City. Graphic Best Sellers (Paperback)1. Along the approach, the concept of the super-hero is dissected as the heroes are stalked before an unidentified assassin. WATCHMEN, before Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons solely belittling Now A Major Motion Picture!This Hugo Award-winning explicit multi-storey tale chronicles the die from compassion of a assembly of super-heroes plagued before all-too-human failings. One of the most effective explicit novels of all values bright and early and a non-stop bestseller, WATCHMEN has been contrived on college campuses across the polity and is considered a gateway legend, unequalled readers to other explicit novels such as V FOR VENDETTA, BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS and THE SANDMAN series. The Photographer before Emmanuel Guibert, Frederic Lemercier and Didier LefevreIn 1986, French photojournalist Didier Lefиvre accompanied a party of Doctors Without Borders (DWB) traveling to Afghanistan during the battle with the Soviet Union. 2.

It was his basic lecture. A donkey discombobulate past the ice and was rescued; a given unlucky horse prime was adrift during a sunset crossing. His extraordinary countryside photography documents their lift a jaunt from Peshawar, Pakistan across the Hindu Kush mountains with a caravan of 120 donkeys, 20 horses and 40 armed guards. When they reached their journey’s terminus in northern Afghanistan’s Yaftal valley, DWB bankroll attack up a clinic on a windswept porch with a courtyard that served as an ICU and a to hand mosque as a redemption office. 3.

The basic dependable was a offspring youngsters who burned his foot in a bread oven–a tasteless chaos in Afghanistan. BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: SEASON 8, VOL. Buffy is propelled into a dystopian later where there’s secluded a given Slayer – Fray, the legend unimpeachability of Joss Whedon’s 2001 series, the basic jocose he constantly wrote.

4, before Joss Whedon, Jeph Loeb and Karl Moline solely belittling Willow and Buffy CEO to New York City to unlock the secrets of Buffy’s bewildering scythe, when something goes fabulously awry.

The “article” can be found in its original habitat here.

God bless you, internets. Every one.

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Folks that follow my blog may be aware that I and my two friends Mickey and Fred serve as Thematic Consultants on the Dresden Files graphic novel series. This past year, we assisted in the production of a prequel to the book series called Welcome to the Jungle.

Folks that love science fiction and fantasy may be familiar with the Hugo Awards, which many consider to be the most prestigious award given in that genre.

The 2009 Hugo Nominations were announced tonight. Among them:

Best Graphic Story

  • The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle Written by Jim Butcher, art by Ardian Syaf (Del Rey/Dabel Brothers Publishing)

  • Girl Genius, Volume 8: Agatha Heterodyne and the Chapel of Bones Written by Kaja & Phil Foglio, art by Phil Foglio, colors by Cheyenne Wright (Airship Entertainment)

  • Fables: War and Pieces Written by Bill Willingham, pencilled by Mark Buckingham, art by Steve Leialoha and Andrew Pepoy, color by Lee Loughridge, letters by Todd Klein (DC/Vertigo Comics)

  • Schlock Mercenary: The Body Politic Story and art by Howard Tayler (The Tayler Corporation)

  • Serenity: Better Days Written by Joss Whedon & Brett Matthews, art by Will Conrad, color by Michelle Madsen, cover by Jo Chen (Dark Horse Comics)

  • Y: The Last Man, Volume 10: Whys and Wherefores Written/created by Brian K. Vaughan, penciled/created by Pia Guerra, inked by Jose Marzan, Jr. (DC/Vertigo Comics)

There is a land called Squeetopia, and I am its queen.

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I need to get back in the swing of blogging. The sheer length of time I’ve gone on Twitter alone is unspeakably lame, and friends and family alike are becoming increasingly frustrated with the prolonged string of half-indecipherable, 140-character hints of what’s going on in my life. So here’s what’s been going on lately!

Work: A couple weeks ago, I was moved to the back room. While it’s tragic that I am no longer sitting near Tommy, an endless fountain of amusing non-sequiturs, I am now blessed with WINDOWS. My stir-craziness factor has diminished significantly. The windows look out onto the uninterrupted brick siding of another building some twelve feet away, but I nevertheless revel in the occasional birds, diffused sunlight, and glimpses at the actual weather conditions my beloved window offers.

The reason for the move is to reflect a change in the structure of the company. We now have a separate Asset Department responsible for characters and props. Previously, animators were responsible for making their own props. Character folks (like me) have always been separate. Once the few hiccups are ironed out, it looks like this system is going to be a lot more efficient. Yay efficiency!

I have also been named Texture Tsar (okay, that’s the name I made up, but it’s more fun that Textures Lead or whatever the official title was), so I’m getting tasked with occasional opportunities to step out of Character Land and do some serious Making Stuff Pretty. Yay variety! And as far as the characters go, we’re in the process of bringing their quality up another notch, as well. I’m very pleased with the direction we’re going!

Litra-chur: My beloved Kat, who has exquisite taste, has finally pushed me over the tipping point with regard to Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan saga. She lent me the first omnibus at the end of last summer, which I read at a snail’s pace despite my enjoyment of the stories, but only recently did I delve headfirst into the series. I got the rest of the books in audio format and plowed through nine books and three novellas in the past 2 1/2 weeks. I’m almost nervous to start the final book, because I’ll once again be faced with the dilemma of what to read next.

I can feel myself getting sucked into the Reread Rut, as I’d like to reread Princeps’ Fury to refresh my beta-memory as Jim pens First Lord’s Fury, and I’m thinking a reread of Watchmen is in order before the movie comes out, and I definitely want to reread The Name of the Wind before its sequel hits stores on April 7th, and gah. I can’t let myself get boxed in with rereads! Gotta discover something new!

Fandom: This past weekend, I went to New York Comic Con. I had a fantastic time! Friday night, I assembled a crowd of folks from the Jim-Butcher.com forum for dinner at Brother Jimmy’s BBQ, which was quite a hit! In attendance were my forum/IRL hybrid friends Craig, Shecky, and Sue, plus forum members Mark and Allison, a fantastic Harry cosplayer I met at San Diego Comic Con named Matt, and Matt’s friend Jerry. The Dabel Brothers crew was going to join us, but they had some last-minute business that ran long, so they were only able to stop by a few minutes. Afterwards, we huddled in Penn Station, dodging zambonis and homeless people, for a reading of the first chapter of Turn Coat. It was a great start for a delightfully geeky weekend!

Saturday, I donned my Molly costume and hooked up with RPG pal John to meander about the con. We first checked out a fight choreography demo by the Vampire Cowboys, a theatre troupe that performs original, cross-genre plays with a strong stage combat element. I saw their previous show, Fight Girl Battle World, twice last year, and I can’t wait for the opening of their newest creation, Soul Samurai! I’ll have to get a big group together.

Afterward, John and I did some browsing/people watching as we waited for the others from the previous night’s group to arrive. I stopped by the Penguin table to chat with Anne Sowards, Jim’s editor, who gave me a bunch of Dresden buttons to give away on the website. I’ll have to figure out a fun way to determine who gets them! Meanwhile, John geeked out at the neighboring booth, belonging to Phil Foglio, when a group of fans arrived in glorious Girl Genius cosplay.

We then swung by the Comic News Insider booth, in hopes of seeing Kristin and Jimmy. Jimmy is one of the co-hosts of the show, and Kristin had volunteered to booth babe for a time, but Kristin had something far more nefarious up her sleeve! At cons, Jimmy makes a point of dressing in pinstriped vests, going so far as to accuse those similarly attired of “stealing his look.” Because we are pure evil, Kristin and I conspired to dress Kristin in Jimmy’s con uniform. Unfortunately, Jimmy wasn’t there at the time, but I got to greet Kristin and admire her uncanny resemblance to the absent friend.

Next, John and I stopped by the DoctorWhoStore.com booth, where 6th Doctor Colin Baker was wrapping up his signing. I snagged one of the Big Finish audios for my Who-obsessed friend Kat, autographed by the good Doctor himself, and got a picture with him, in which he looks like my cute grandpa. After Colin finished, Doctor Who comics scribe Tony Lee took the autographing table, and I got a few issues of the serial signed as we chatted. I’d gotten to meet him and hang out briefly at the CNI recording a few days prior, and we’d hit it off rather well. It was fun to see him again.

John and I also spent some time dawdling around the Pendragon booth, where Matt, Jerry, and Matt’s girlfriend Nicole were working. Nicole’s creations were flat-out gorgeous, and over the course of the day, I tried on two of the Renaissance dresses and a woman’s leather duster. You bet your sweet bippy I took pictures! I feel in love with one of them, but I didn’t know if I wanted to spend so much on a dress I’d only wear a couple times a year, so I elected to hold off and think about it overnight. Soon, Craig, Shecky, and Sue appeared, and we all trooped off to grab a late lunch.

The afternoon was filled with a performance by the New York Jedi, lots and lots of aimless ambling about the exhibit hall, and some chillage with the Dabel folks. Matt joined us for much of it. I finally got to meet Dresden GN editor David Lawrence in person, and he loaded me up with a bunch of Dabel comics and goodies. We swung back by the Penguin booth and chanced to run into Amber Benson, who played Tara on Buffy. We had a brief conversation, and I snagged a photo with her. What an unexpected surprise!

Toward the end of the evening, we walked by the DC booth and saw Watchmen artist Dave Gibbons signing posters. There was no way we could get through the line by closing time, so we resolved to bring our copies of Watchmen the next day to be signed then. Finally, we bade farewell to Sue, Shecky, and John, who were only at the con for the day.

Sunday morning was a source of great amusement. I awoke to find a pair of text messages on my phone, one drunken missive timestamped around 3am, waxing lyrical on my finer attributes, and another around 8, apologizing profusely. I will not disclose the identity of said individual, because I am not a cruel person, but suffice it to say, it was hilarious.

Dressed as Delirium, I high-tailed it to the IGN Theatre, where a line was already forming for Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse panel two hours before showtime. Because it was painfully obvious what we were all there to see, they con staff either canceled or moved the MegaMan panel that was to be held before it. In line, I met up with Craig, Kristin, Adam (host of the weekly Pushing Daisies viewing parties, back when that was applicable), and fellow NYC Browncoats Kathleen, Simon, and Gypsy.

The panel was a delight. Though I’d met Nathan Fillion at SDCC and Amber Benson the day before, I’d never before seen a panel with any Whedon alumni, and here was Joss himself! Also present was Tahmoh Penikett, aka Helo on BSG, and Matt Rousch of TV Guide. The program reported that Eliza Dushku and Dichen Lachman were also supposed to be in attendance, but any disappointment was more than compensated for when Joss revealed the first act of the Dollhouse pilot, which looked fabulous. I can’t wait for Friday’s premiere!

By that point, the con was nearly over, but I still managed to squeeze in some last-minute awesomeness. An hour before it was slated to start, we staked on spots in line for the Dave Gibbons signing. We befriended another line-waiter, who volunteered to save out spots in line so we could enjoy ourselves for said hour, and went off in search of last-minute fun. We returned to Pendragon to poke Matt, and I saw that the dress I’d fallen in love with the previous day had been sold. Guess that made my decision for me! I’m glad such a lovely dress is getting a good home.

We returned to the Gibbons table with ten minutes to spare and found an utter mob scene. The line snaked around itself four deep! They were processing fans ASAP, so there was no time for conversation with the man, but it was still cool to see him in person and get his signature in my copy of Watchmen.

And that was it! I was rather stunned toward the end to realize that I only attended a single panel, as I’d meticulously planned out a schedule for myself ahead of time, but when it came down to it, spending time with my friends felt like a much higher priority. I feel like a Lifetime movie. And now I can’t wait for ConDFW the 20th-22nd!

And that’s all I have to say about that for the moment. Hopefully, now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I’ll be able to go back to blogging about silly things?

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Now that’s just… neat.

When you search Amazon for the Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle trade hardback, you get:

(Click image for full-sized version. I didn’t want to screw up anyone’s layout.)

It’s total happenstance on the excerpt, but… thank you, universe, for taking steps to make up for my total suckfest of an illness these past few days.

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I wrote fic! Fic for Kat for the Dresden Halloween Ficathon! Fic that I’m really, really proud of, and that made Kat cry!

I promise to never use my powers for evil.

Title: The Other Son
Fandom: Dresden Files bookverse
Characters: Thomas, Harry, Justine, Susan, and an unexpected guest or two
Prompt: “Thomas on Harry. Let’s see his POV on his baby brother. I don’t want slash of any sort, just brotherly shenanigans.” –Kat
Word Count: 4,846
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Thomas Raith has a brother.
Spoilers: Up through Blood Rites
Disclaimer: Thomas, Harry, and all other assorted Dresden-y characters and concepts belong to Jim Butcher and Penguin Books.

Link: Read it at The Archive!