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January 7, 2017
If I give a character any kind of temporary name, it might stick. That’s why I never do it. I give them the name they will keep, or I identify them in strictly descriptive terms—the Prince, the Enemy Leader, the Chief. The less descriptive, the better. (Though sometimes, even those stick. I’m looking at you, True Head Cultist.) It’s a lot easier to give a name to the Swordsman than it is to rename a character with an ill-considered temporary name. Temporary...
April 21, 2016
David Bowie. Alan Rickman. Prince. It seems like beloved celebrities are dropping like flies. I’ve heard people say that this is a terrible year, that our cultural heroes are all passing away. Maybe. Though it occurs to me that, if that’s so, it’s only because we have more heroes now. A million channels. A million stations. A million ways great people can connect with us. That’s not such a bad problem to have, even if we have to lose them all eventually....
October 24, 2015
I was having a discussion at Random Curiosity the other day about whether happy or tragic endings were better. It depends. If someone asked me the number one food they should eat, or the number one exercise they should do, there can be only one answer. It depends. If someone wanted to know the one book they most need to read, you know the answer. Wage Slave Rebellion. At least until my next book comes out. I’m kidding, of course. It depends....
August 21, 2015
From writer, producer, & director Brian Koppelman, on rejection (emphasis mine): You must do a dispassionate evaluation. The step you try to take is, “Okay, that’s a body blow. My emotional reaction is anger and hurt. Now let me step back and dispassionately, to the best of my ability, evaluate the rejection. Is there something in that rejection that hits home in the secret place, where I know the thing is flawed? If it does, is that addressable? If it doesn’t,...
June 13, 2015
In my role as something akin to a critic at RandomC, I’ve run afoul of readers who really don’t like what I said about certain shows. I’ve had people flame me, insult me, rage at me, and worse—all over my opinions on Japanese cartoons. If that sounds silly, remember that this happens all the time, even to casual fans who evince opinions on certain books, movies, or TV shows, and especially if they do it online. People can be inordinately passionate about the stories they identify with. Why?...
June 11, 2015
“I don’t believe in guilty pleasures. If you fucking like something, like it. That’s what’s wrong with our generation: that residual punk rock guilt, like, “You’re not supposed to like that. That’s not fucking cool.” Don’t fucking think it’s not cool to like Britney Spears’ “Toxic.” It is cool to like Britney Spears’ “Toxic”! Why the fuck not? Fuck you! That’s who I am, goddamn it! That whole guilty pleasure thing is full of fucking shit.” – Dave Grohl I...
February 26, 2015
From 1989–1998, Jerry Seinfeld co-created, co-wrote, and starred in one of the most beloved and important TV sitcoms of the last fifty years. It’s impressive that he was able to make such a remarkable show for nine seasons, and perhaps even more so that he stopped before he defiled his own legacy. But to me, there’s one thing that’s even more impressive. He still does stand-up. His best work is quite probably behind him, but he still gets on that stage anyway. There’s a...
November 10, 2014
I once was talking to a young writer—I say young, though he was probably around my age—who watched anime, just as I do. We were talking about the stories we were working on, and at one point, he began tell me about his grand designs. He wanted it to be an anime, done by this studio and with these seiyuu. He could see a live-action movie as well, and described how some of the special effects would look. He thought it could then make...
November 6, 2014
“Don’t you think that that’s why we ended up here [on TV]? It takes a slight delusion … to believe that what I have to say is worthy of people sitting there and paying money to listen to.” “That seems natural to me.” “It does to me too, but I don’t think it seems natural to everybody else.” -Jason Segel and Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report, 9-9-14 I’ve always thought it was the height of arrogance to want to write. Who am I...
October 30, 2014
I remember reading an article some time ago about how men and women approach new job positions. It said that while women waited until they were 100% qualified, men would jump at a new position when they were only 60% qualified. Men figured they would learn the rest once they were on the job, the article explained. I don’t know if that’s true, and it’s a generalization regardless, but if it is I think men have it right this time. If we all waited until...