Tonight on Geekerati: Marc Bernardin

Same Geek time.
Same Geek channel.

The Geekerati crew will be hosting EW Editor and comic book writer-guy Marc Bernardin and discussing his new comic book promotional series PUSH timed for release with the upcoming movie.

And I will probably be ranting (as well as dropping a few bits of cool gossip) in the aftershow, so you'll want to download the podcast.

Just in Case You Get Tired of Reading My Rants...

Not that it would EVAR happen, but you can hear them on Geekerati -- our show on Blog Talk Radio.

• Film and Television writer John Rogers discussing the writer strike, LEVERAGE, and comic books.
• Dave Goetsch (Co-Executive Producer on Big Bang Theory)
• Television writer/producer Tim Minear (Angel/Firefly) discussing the writer strike.
• Television writer/producer Rob Long(Cheers) discussing the writer strike.
• Variety editors David S. Cohen and Peter Debruge discussing film animation and this year's crop of films, including the remarkable 3D animation on BEOWULF.
• Game Designer and Author Matt Forbeck.
• Science Fiction author Susan Palwick who discussed her excellent novel "Shelter"
• Comic Writer/Reporter Marc Bernardin discussing his Highwaymen comic book.
• Film Critics Luke Y. Thompson (The OC Weekly) and David Chute (The LA Weekly and Premiere.com)
• Wold Newton Historian Win Eckert discussing pulps and the Wold Newton Universe.
• Comic Book editor and author Jeff Mariotte
• Game Designer James Lowder.
• Many others, including Shelly Mazzanoble (Confessions of a Part-Time Sorceress)

And we plan to have an even better 2009! Tune in.


Hat tip to Shawna, Christian and Eric.

Log On Tonight!!!!

And help us relive the memories of how master creator Dave Stevens touched our lives.

Same Geek Time. Same Geek channel.

Post Tryptophan Hangover...

So, still feeling stuffed after the big bird blowout yesterday. Now as the serotonin levels in my brain begin to lower I am left with a desire to get to work on some projects that I've been juggling lately, and yet here I am blogging...and here you are reading.


(You enablers! Damn you all)


The holidays are now officially in full swing and we will be addressing this in an upcoming Geekerati podcast with our "What I want for Christmas this year" episode. I am taking suggestions now.


John Rogers (who is experiencing the cold up north for the first time in a long time I wager) has a discussion about short online fiction and the death of the anthology following a post by Warren Ellis on the same subject. I'm also wondering what happened to our series paperback characters that seemed to dominate the drug store spinner racks when I was a kid. Does anyone here besides me remember the Richard Blade series of books?


Warren Ellis reminded me the other day about Createspace - a division of Amazon - where you can publish on demand and videopost on demand and monetize the whole thing - including selling DVDs on demand. This is an excellent step toward self-sufficiency for filmmakers. It's possible that there could be a shift toward "regionalism" with something like this set up. Imagine a group of mediamakers who aren't in LA, New York or Chicago who have their own local programs and "stars" and are able to create content for a local market that pays the bills. Possibly similar to where Quebec is in the Canadian market - separate and distinct, but accesible to those who look for that programming. Then, as an afterthought the rights to the programming is sold elsewhere as added revenue not necessary for financial solvency.


(Yes, these are the things that run through my head as the serotonin dips)


Congrats to Denis McGrath whose THE BORDER premiered in Canada last night. I will be searching the webs for it.

I've been searching the web looking for a new blog template that reflects my pulp, movie-making and new media sensibilities. If anyone has a suggestion that seems to fit the bill, please send me a link. The template must be compatible with Blogger, easily adaptable and rockin'. I'm going to be breaking things up into better categories for navigation's sake as well as providing links to my other digital shadows - message boards, networks, business related matters.

I set aside my short story for Astonishing for a week so I can go back to it over the holidays and polish it up. I wrote down a lot of notes and put the file away so I can read it with fresh eyes right before I polish it. The twist doesn't work yet as I haven't set it up properly in the story. It has to be obvious when it happens, but not so obvious that the reader gets it before I give it to him in the story. A delicate touch to be sure and I'm a freakin' sledgehammer...

Later...

"Drive!" He said...

DRIVE, FIREFLY, BUFFY and ANGEL scribe and all around media mensch TIM MINEAR will be our guest in a special podisode of the GEEKERATI PODCAST this friday evening at 7pm PST. The subject of our discussion?

Fans4writers.com and how the fans have come out to support the WGA writer's strike.

.

Have a question for Tim? Have an issue you want to see covered ? Then post your questions in the comments and we'll try to cover it. Can't guarantee anything, as our time will be limited, but we'll be putting the show outline together and we want your input.

The Times Are A - Changin'

If you haven't heard already there is a pending Writer's Strike here in Los Angeles. That means that for the most part, those writers who belong to the WGA will soon be manning the picket lines, and spending the rest of their time working on spec scripts and other writing work.

I was reading Kay this morning and "Anonymous" commented on what other sorts of work he/she should be pursuing...

And here's where the axe falls on some writers' necks.

See, there's ton of work out there that's available if you are entrepreneurial enough to pursue it. No one is going to hand you a contract for a first novel. No one is going to say, "Come write a graphic novel. Here's a check." You aren't going to be flooded with people saying, "You're a tv writer so you can write for me while the strike is on."

That is unless you already have experience in these fields. (Hello Messrs. Whedon, Straczynski, Grillo-Marxuach, Vaughn).

But all is not lost. There are opportunities out there, but you'll have to set them up yourself. Be your own producer or publisher, your own marketing director, your own cameraman, director, art director and publicist.

The great thing is that the tools are already available. Free blogs. Free photo archives. Free editing software. Free publishing services. Free merchandising and marketing.

You could do this, and create an online novel series.

Or just create the novel.

You could create a web serial.

You could create a podcast.

And you can create all the merchandise for free.

You CAN do all this stuff, and the cool part is:

YOU OWN IT. YOU CONTROL IT.

I think this is the opportunity that many of the "lower earning" writer's in the union have been looking for - the opportunity to be their own boss. To own the store. To quit just being an employee. To quit having to take a stupid note because your job's at risk.

And that's when the studios are going to be afraid. That's when they are going to understand that the rules are changing and they HAVE to change with it. They are going to have to understand and look at this with new eyes...

As will all the writers.

Times are changing. Wear a cup.

I'm One of the Walking Dead...

Last night during our Geekerati discussion on zombies, I started to feel nasty and had a slight cough. By 10 pm I was hacking like an asthmatic and doped up on cold medicine.

Now I'm in bed.

Alone. (damn!)

Let this be your lesson: Get your shots before discussing zombies with Shawna and Christian...or else you could end up like this. Go get them now and download the podcast. We are exceptionally brilliant in all things of no consequence whatsoever.