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Nick Mamatas Interview

Monday, June 17th, 2013

Nick Mamatas Author Interview

Hello. This is Jean Marie Ward for BuzzyMag.com. With me today is writer, editor and Capclave guest of honor, Nick Mamatas. Welcome, Nick.

Nick Mamatas: Hi. Thanks for having me.

JMW: Our pleasure. You edit the Haikasoru line for VIZ Media. Could you tell our viewers a little bit about the line?

Nick Mamatas: Sure. Haikasoru is an imprint for Japanese science-fiction and fantasy in translation. Soon we’ll be branching out to some English language original material, too. Basically, VIZ Media, as you may know, is a huge company for anime and manga. Pokemon and Naruto were theirs. A few years ago, they thought, “We’ve had some success bringing over anime and manga from Japan. Why not start bringing over [inaudible 00:00:52] fiction from Japan, as well.” Read More→

After Earth – Movie Review

Monday, June 17th, 2013

After Earth – Movie Review

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Writers: Gary Whitta, M. Night Shyamalan, Will Smith (Story)
Stars: Jaden Smith, Will Smith, Sophie Okonedo, Zoë Kravitz, Glenn Morshower
Science Fiction / Thriller

I wanted to like this movie. I really, truly did.

I saw the trailers, and I loved the high concept put forth: that humans had left Earth a thousand years ago (for reasons unknown) and now Kitai Raige (Jaden Smith) and his Dad, Cypher Raige (Will Smith), have crash-landed there.

I was even okay with Kitai being sent off on his own to find a beacon that crashed elsewhere when the ship broke up. And I like the idea that fear is a choice, while danger is real. Cool concept.

If the performances had been spectacular, I might have been minded to overlook the issues in the script. They weren’t.

The problems with the script were legion. To start with, there were just too many ideas here. The humans left Earth, then there were other problems on Nova Prime, where they resettled. Kitai had training issues. Both Kitai and Cypher were absolutely obsessed with the death of Kitai’s older sister, Senshi (Zoë Kravitz), and as a result completely closed in emotionally and unable to communicate with each other. There are alien enemies. They’ve set monsters on us who can only find us when we’re afraid–they’re functionally blind.

They had these awful monsters (Ursas) attacking them at home, yet they didn’t design their homes or their weapons to defeat them.
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Dear Sara –

Is Spring-Heeled Jack just another name for Jack the Ripper?

– Best wishes,
Colleen F.
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Money Talks: Traditional and Self-Publishing Profits
by Julie Butcher-Fedynich

There is information all over the internet telling you that self-publishing is better. “No, wait! Traditional is better.” “Hey! Indie is the only way to go.” For someone who aspires to be a professional writer, as in make a living from writing and still having a roof and food, I’m interested in the dollars and cents involved.
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What is a Siren?

Wednesday, June 12th, 2013
Dear Sara –

In comic books and literary metaphors, I’ve been reading a lot about “the song of the Siren.” Apart from the noise given by emergency vehicles, what exactly is a Siren?

– Fondly, Ernest T.
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Categories : Sara Bellum

A Meek And Thankful Heart by Jeff Somers

Monday, June 10th, 2013

A Meek And Thankful Heart
A Phillip K. Marks Story
by Jeff Somers

Exhalation

urban fantasy short stories

The old man should have been cut off an hour ago, but he was obviously well known to the bartenders, as they continued to serve him gimlets despite his increasing inability to bring their contents successfully to his mouth. He was well-dressed and groomed, with an expensive suit and new shoes. Handsome, in the way old men get handsome sometimes, just from the dignity of their experience. He’d been a semi-regular and was popular with the female staff of Rue’s Morgue. One or two of the waitresses had flirted with him purposefully, but he’d gently turned them down. They all considered him a rich old man, lonely in his money, who came out to a young people’s bar a few times a month to hear some noise around him. He always drank gimlets, always complimented the bartender on her rare ability to make them, and always left a huge tip. He’d been coming to the Morgue for five years now, and every Christmas had given each of the staff a nice monetary gift. They liked him. They thought he added a bit of class to a place otherwise populated by predatory former frat boys and the squeaky women they attract.

This night, however, was different. Usually the old man (who told everyone to call him simply Juno) had at most two drinks, smoked a few cigarettes, and then bid farewell before the real crowd poured in. On rare occasions, he deigned to have dinner at the bar. He would chat amiably with the staff, flirt a little, and then go home with some kind words and a big tip. Tonight, he’d come to drink. He’d been drinking steadily since three in the afternoon and did not seem prepared to stop, had smoked three packs of cigarettes, and had not eaten a thing. His cheerful demeanor had been replaced by a grim monosyllabic personality which frightened the staff a little. They wondered if he was having a breakdown, if there was anyone they should call.
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JONNY LEE MILLER “ELEMENTARY” INTERVIEW
By Abbie Bernstein

Jonny Lee Miller

ELEMENTARY, starring Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Dr. Joan Watson, has been a hit for CBS in its first season and it will be back in the fall. Arthur Conan Doyle’s brilliant detective has been brought to the screen many times, including the BBC SHERLOCK, which will be back for a third season, and two recent films starring Robert Downey Jr., but the U.S. network version by Robert Doherty boasts a few idiosyncratic elements. For one thing, while Sherlock Holmes remains indubitably British, he is doing his deducing in present-day New York. For another, Watson initially is on hand not because she wants to solve crimes, but because Sherlock’s father has hired her as a sober living companion while Sherlock recovers from addiction.
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Were Manatees Mistaken as Mermaids?

Monday, June 10th, 2013
Dear Sara –

I’ve heard that people used to confuse the sea mammals manatees with mermaids. Can this really be true – that someone saw a resemblance between something that looks like a walrus and a seductive woman?

–Best wishes, Larry T.
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Categories : Sara Bellum
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