We’ve grown accustomed to using the change of the calendar to take stock, look back at what happened and plan for the future. Now that I have completed two full years of freelance, I thought it made sense to see what was working and what was not.The good news is that I developed a wide […]
Tomorrow I will complete reading my 65th book of the year, which is closer to my normal reading and nearly double what I managed in 2008. As usual, I saw to it I read new authors while indulging in old favorites.Of the 65 read, a higher percentage than usual is Star Trek titles, catching up […]
For as long as I remember, I have had the nervous habit of biting my fingernails. For years, Deb was after me to stop biting them and about five years back, I made myself a New Year’s resolution to stop.Slowly, but surely, I have stopped, almost a finger at a time. About two years ago, […]
The following was written and scheduled to go live Christmas Day, but a technical glitch prevented that. I still wanted to share this with you:Losing a week in December to the much-needed vacation meant some changes to the holiday routine. Moving a piece of the wall unit to the Living Room also necessitated some modifications […]
Losing the election was a real kick in the teeth and while I campaigned, somewhat confident in my getting re-elected, I did tell our First Selectman I was hedging my bets. In September I leaned over to him at a meeting and said, “Keep me in mind for appropriate boards and commissions in case I […]
Initially the Ryndam was scheduled to make Key West its first port of call. This excited Deb since she always wanted to visit but even before we boarded the ship, we were notified that it had been changed to Cozumel. Apparently, there’s an issue regarding getting water in Florida hence the move.We first visited the […]
We’ve been away the past week, a real honest to goodness vacation. It’s been well over ten years since Deb and I were away, just the two of us, for anything other than a long weekend. And as you know, after the last 24 months, we could certainly use a break from the real world.Since […]
When I first heard about Men of a Certain Age, I was unsure if I wanted to try another dramatic series. But, Deb seemed tickled that the title covered my stage of life, and the reviews seemed pretty positive.We tried the show, thanks to the miracle of the DVR, just the other night and I […]
Some time after joining Starlog in 1980, I began chatting with a freelance writer named Dave McDonnell. Dave was living in Pennsylvania and working part-time at Jim Steranko’s Mediascene, the occasionally published magazine. Dave wanted to write for Starlog and we began talking which led to his doing a few pieces.More importantly, Dave was the […]
A while back I wrote a few essays for SmartPop Books and while the books saw print, they didn’t create much of stir. But you know, the line of books offers some smart commentary and criticism about Popular Culture’s darlings and they’re certainly worth your time and attention. With luck, I’ll write more in the […]
You put your nose to grindstone and you suddenly look up and days, even a week, can flash by.That’s pretty much what’s been happening since I am attempting to complete lots of different things before Deb and I take our vacation in less than a week (that too has snuck up on us).As I’ve discussed […]
I was somewhat surprised by the number of people who posted on Facebook their utter amazement that I had already started decorating, shopping, wrapping, and in general welcoming the holiday season.I’ve made it pretty clear, I am a creature of habit and our family does not officially recognize the season until Santa Claus makes his […]
The traditions that bind a family are to be cherished. I’ve written in the past about these and how much they mean to me. Last year, many of these changed as we went through Robbie’s illness and passing and this year, we’re doing things as close to normal as possible.Kate came home Tuesday night and […]
As you know, I prefer being busy, juggling as many balls as possible. It forces me to focus and work efficiently. Whenever I am at loose ends, I fritter away too much time and am sloppy with my work habits.The slow fall has driven me to distraction but these last two weeks have been much […]
Been very busy, for a change, writing and getting stuff done around the house. I’m off to spend the day at DC Comics attending to various projects prior to attending the annual SFWA Reception for the first time in five years. Very excited to see old friends and make new connections.Meantime, I did an interview […]
My pal Steve Rosenhaus alerted me to the following item in the latest issue of Time Out New York. Listed as a recommendation for their Holiday gift guide:The Batman Vault by Robert Greenberger and Matthew K. ManningThis heavily illustrated slab of geek bait gives a detailed tour through the history of Batman, from the first […]
Our town is a growing 57,000+ and gets covered by the Connecticut Post, in addition to three weekly papers – the Fairfield Citizen-News, Fairfield Minuteman and the Fairfield Sun. Interestingly, you have to read all four to get a real sense of what’s going on in town both politically and culturally. The coverage, I’ve noted, […]
I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. A freelance writer probably spends more of his time seeking assignments than actually doing the work. After all, we need to generate and sell ideas or we have little to do.Our reputation and skill sets will get us work, but we can’t depend upon the kindness of […]
I wasn’t sure what to expect from King Con when I was invited to attend, but it came as a most welcome distraction after a rough political week. Held at the Brooklyn Lyceum, it most reminded me of the smaller NYC cons of the 1970s although the dealers’ tables were all replaced with artists’ tables. […]
Tomorrow, I will be in Brooklyn, attending the first ever King Con. For a small off-season show, it has a pretty nice guest list.I’ll have hanging around during the day and appearing on one pane, at 2 p.m.UNLOCKING THE BATMAN VAULT: SATURDAYJoin Denny O’Neil (editor and writer, BATMAN), Matthew K. Manning (author, WOLVERINE: INSIDE THE […]
Yesterday, I arrived at Holland Hill Elementary School just before 6 a.m. and set up signs on my car and prepared the handouts, otherwise known as palm cards, to help remind voters of their options. The Republican challengers were doing the same.At 6, the door opened and the voting began. Throughout the next 14 hours, […]
There’s probably nothing more small town than campaigning for the Representative Town Meeting. Fairfield’s divided into ten districts and each district has five representatives. As a result, each district has about ten candidates crisscrossing the streets, shaking hands, knocking on doors and talking to neighbors.When I first ran in 2005, the Republicans had no one […]
I didn’t have a chance yesterday when our Senator, Joe Lieberman, came out against the public option and intended to side with the Republicans to turn the upcoming debate into the usual circus.This morning, though, I wrote to the Senator and suggest everyone else in the state do so.The argument against a public option is […]
On Thursday, I was fortunate to attend the NYC Launch Party for Windows 7.Held downtown in SoHo, the line moved briskly and we received our name tags and wandered within. We milled about, chatting with whoever we met, and sipped juices or coffee until the main room opened. We then filled in, grabbing seats or […]
Last month, I was interviewed on Howard Margolin’s Destinies and that went swell. Now, this Sunday evening I will be the featured guest on Star Trek on Blog Talk Radio.This was arranged by my long time convention pal Marc Lee and I will be on air beginning at 10 p.m. EST. I’m told we’ll be […]
I seem to recall that when we purchased our first television as a couple, it was a 23” color model that fit nicely on a TV table and kept us entertained. Soon after, we indulged and bought a VCR, adding it to our second apartment and marveling at the ability to timeshift our viewing habits. […]
Everyone deals with grief in their own way. Some hide form the world. Others forge ahead, keeping their feelings internalized.Some run.Kate has decided to train and enter a half-marathon to be held in January down at Disneyworld. She found a program to help whip her into shape, has received tremendous support from her military coworkers […]
On Friday, I had the pleasure of speaking to a room full of fifth graders. Heather Dean, my close friend on the RTM, is a student teacher at our McKinley Elementary School and helped bring the entire topic of graphic novels into the classroom. When she told her supervising teacher, Mr. Lowry, that I existed, […]
Today being a rainy day fits, given that 29 years ago, it was darker and stormier as we got married.29 years feels like a long time and another example of the advancing years. What’s nice is that we remain close and active together. Yesterday, for example, I spent the day at her side wandering through […]
Tony Isabella is reporting that long-time comics artist George Tuska has passed away yesterday at age 93.Another piece of my childhood has vanished. I first encountered George’s work when he replaced Gene Colan as artist on Iron Man and then stayed with the book for years. A versatile artist with a distinct style, you knew […]
I never intended for a week to slip by but things happen.So, what’s been happening? I have written and revised the captions to Wonder Woman: Amazon. Hero. Icon. and designer Chris McDonnell has been making some final tweaks to the design. My revised text increased the word count from 9000 to 13,000 so he had […]
People wonder why I run for the Representative Town Meeting. I usually quip that I serve for the fabulous salary and perks. Well, after serving for two terms, a really cool perk was handed to me yesterday.I was invited to attend a local event headlined by Vice-Present Joe Biden, a press opportunity to promote how […]
With Iron Man: Femmes Fatales out just a few days, Stacy Baugher wins as the first reviewer. She posted a piece at Major Spoilers and noted, “The neophyte comic fan or hardened sci-fi adventure fan will find this a great read; action packed and full of excitement. The die-hard comic fans will enjoy it not […]
Authors love to get a box full of their latest title from the publisher. But there’s nothing like walking into the bookstore and seeing your new book on the rack. We tend to rearrange shelves, maximizing our exposure and usually making certain books by our friends also receive prominent treatment.As you know, Iron Man: Femme […]
Well, we’re a week into the new season and we’ve welcomed back older favorites and sampled some of the new shows, with others yet to debut.Among the new shows, we really liked Flash Forward. It barely resembles Robert J. Sawyer’s novel (which is a fun read) but dramatically demonstrates the global chaos the 2:17 blackout […]
Last night I had a great time on Destinies, chatting for about 40 minutes. The host, Howard Margolin, reminded me that I was his very first guest so it’s nice to be back there and with luck we’ll chatting again in April when the Wonder Woman book comes out.Meantime, for those interested, the chat is […]
I enjoy supporting local efforts, as a result I was among the first guests to appear at Stony Brook’s I-Con and to grace the airwaves of Destinies, the science fiction talk show hosted by Dr. Howard Margolin. Every few years, Howard invites me back to talk about stuff and tomorrow night, I make my return […]
I find myself in an unusual place, professionally. Any minute now, the phone will ring, and the green light will be given on the DC project I’ve been tinkering with since the late spring. Until then, I am in limbo.This morning, I delivered to Chris Cerasi the final files with updated information and corrections for […]
Deb and I somehow managed to stay current with prime time programming throughout the summer and even wound up with a fairly empty DVR now and then. So, curious, we sampled the first season of Bones, a show we thought we’d like and had been recommended by several friends.We borrowed the DVDs from Bob Rozakis […]
The best thing for a freelancer is the phone ringing offering work. Possibly the second best thing for a freelancer is the arrival of the printed work (or the check, depending on your circumstances).Someone asked on one of the message boards recently if it ever gets old receiving the first copy of your latest book. […]
Freelancers love it when the phone rings and an unexpected offer comes through. Such was the case in early July, when Chris Cerasi called to offer me Wonder Woman: Amazon. Hero. Icon.Apparently, the project had been assigned to a poet, Jeff Oaks, and as occasionally happens, a change needed to be made so I got […]
I had no inkling that going to DC Comics for meetings today would prove a stroke of lucky timing. While meeting with Chris Cerasi on a project we’ll talk about in a day or two, I received a call from DC’s President and Publisher Paul Levitz. He heard I was around and could I stop […]
This morning, we concluded our visit to Atlanta by having breakfast with David Klarman, our old college pal, and got a chance to meet his wife Wendy. It was nice to catch up plus get to know his mate. From there, we traveled to the airport, got through security and had a relaxed trip home.Our […]
Saturday was an interesting day at the convention as Deb and I largely followed different paths. I tried to attend one panel, only to discover it had been moved to Monday so we wound up checking out the dealer’s rooms together for a bit.I managed to meet up with Brandie Tarvin, one of my fellow […]
Welcome from Atlanta.Amazingly, our trip down from Connecticut was incredibly ordinary. No traffic to the airport, flight on time, MARTA to downtown was smooth, etc.One nice touch, an old college buddy, Dave Klarman, works in the area and met us downtown to escort us to the hotel and to say hi since we couldn’t get […]
I’ve always been a little jealous of Kate when she spoke of the glorious times she had at Atlanta’s Dragon*Con. Back when the big show there was the Atlanta Fantasy Fair, I went on DC’s behalf numerous times and had a great experience. But Dragon*Con was something else entirely, a cross between Comic-Con International and […]
Withy Deb going to Tangelwood with Lisa and Heather, I get to stay home and do catchup writing. Is it really Saturday? # Powered by Twitter Tools
Back in February, I dropped the few things I had on my desk and gratefully accepted the assignment to complete The Essential Superman Encyclopedia. That seemed to change numerous work habits and I spent the next four-five months totally committed to the desk.Right around the time the book was done and delivered, and I allowed […]
Another 60 pages of the encyclopedia down, another draft done for DC so it must be lunch time. # Powered by Twitter Tools
Another 60 pages of the encyclopedia down, another draft done for DC so it must be lunch time.
Add 3000 words to the Chaykin manuscript, modified 56 pages of the Superman Encyclopedia and took another stab at the DCU project. Done.
Back to work on the research project and hopefully more actual writing for a change.
We now have a 99% complete Howard Chaykin checklist! TIme to get back to the manuscript.
Longer walk than usual to kick off the day but lack of sleep is starting to take its toll so we’ll see what sort of day today will be.
Inglorious Basterds was a sheer delight. Can’t recall laughing out loud this often at a film. Highly recommended.
For variety, I have walked and worked and will skip out for a movie this afternoon, then home for more work.
Overall, not a great day but not a terrible one either. Tuesday should be better…I hope.
Late start to the work day but much accomplished already: walk, papers, laundry.
Weekend wind-up: furniture bought, food stocked, stuff written, took nice long walks, exercised my back. All in all, not a bad two days.
The work front has been a little quiet with bits of turbulence here and there.I’ve been working steadily all this past week on the Howard Chaykin project and reached a point where I am just about done with a first draft but also recognize I have to go back and re-grill Howard on many things […]
More walking, a lunch date, back to Milford to buy furniture and of course, more writing.
A walk, some work and now to the great city of Milford for shopping and a movie. Must be Saturday.
Somehow I’m into overtime and didn’t finish assembling the Chaykin checklist but did have good biz calls and another good PT session.
Long walk to start the morning, freshly showered and still dripping in sweat. This is going to be a long day.
Sailed passed the 2/3 mark on the Chaykin project with more to go. Slow day’s work, lots of distractions, but not bad.
I don’t often review comic books here. But, after reading the much heralded Archie #600, I wanted to give it a look.When word first leaked that Archie Andrews was getting married to Veronica Lodge, my first thought was that the normally conservative company was going to do a cautionary tale about pre-marital sex. Yep, I […]
Our weekend was a very full one, taking full advantage of having Kate home.Friday was a quiet day. Deb and I avoided our computers for the most part and kept one another company. We found ways to stay occupied although we were both handling the somber day pretty well. Kate arrived in the mid-afternoon and […]
Robbie left us a year ago tonight and it’s been a year full of memories and memorials and grief.Looking back, the time between receiving word the leukemia recurred and his death was incredibly fast. A dizzying downward spiral marked by the lung surgery but an increasing number of complications. Deb and I look back over […]
I have to give credit to ABC for giving its small number of fans a chance to see the final episodes of Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies and Dirty, Sexy, Money. Since they were already produced, “burning them off” as it’s called, certainly allowed them to earn some revenue against expenses.Fortunately, in all three cases the […]
Now that everything is filed with the Town Clerk, I just want to go on the record and state that I am running for a third term as a member of the Representative Town Meeting.When I first began serving, finishing out someone’s term in the spring and fall of 2005, I wasn’t entirely certain what […]
Much to my surprise, I managed to whip through the first draft of a project far faster than I expected. I revised the sample chapter on Tuesday, got an enthusiastic thumbs up from my editor and went right to work.Now to be fair, the project is a mere 8000 words long and when I finished […]
What a week this has been. Adjusting back to East Coast time wasn’t too bad, but things were disjointed so the work got done in fits and starts.Tuesday, I managed a full day at the desk and made some serious headway on the latest project and should actually have something done and ready to present […]
I flew out to San Diego to show my face, meet with my current publishers and hopefully return with one more assignment than when I arrived. Now that I am home, it looks like two potential projects cropped up so that’s not too bad.The convention was huge so of course I could not possibly spend […]
Saturday was of course the most crowded day of the con. The place was packed and getting around was harder and slower which meant I or my meeting partner wound up late for appointments throughout the day. I also found myself moving slower as the marathon was catching up to me. My feet ache and […]
At the convention, I was involved a mere one panel, which happened to occur on my birthday and brought me the coolest present ever.Straight from ComicMix, here are the details:The third annual presentation of the International Association of Media-Tie-in Writers (IAMTW) “Scribe” awards just went down at San Diego Comic-Con, honoring the best and the […]
The last time I was at the San Diego Comic-Con was in 2001 when I was working at Marvel and was responsible for the company’s presence at the con. This was my first visit since and my first strictly as a civilian since 1978.People warned me that the show had grown exponentially in the last […]
The benefit of wrapping the most immediate work on Monday allowed me a relatively stress-free Tuesday to prep for the con. As a result, the day passed in a nice way. It was rainy and cool for July, perfect for taking Starbucks up on their offer of a free pastrie. Deb and I met our […]
It’s been some time since the early gangland days was captured on film and when I heard Christian Bale, Johnny Depp, and director Michael Mann were teaming up to tackle the John Dillinger story, I was excited. The trailers made it look like they captured the look and feel of the Depression and I was […]
27, 761 lines. That’s the number of Excel lines once everything was converted from MS Word and poured into the spreadsheet.It’s taken me about six weeks to get this point but I am not at all done. Now I have to go through this line by line and clean it up, deleting duplicates, making sure […]
I meant to post yesterday, but for whatever reason, I seemingly got slammed with extra, unexpected stuff all requiring immediate attention.OK, to wrap up the con, we closed the show with Mystery Trekkie Theater. Our opening skit has been getting longer and more elaborate at the request of the committee. This year, we opened with […]
Shore Leave is like visiting old friends and family. This is the 31st con and I’ve been to all but four of them. The show remains a writer friendly haven and the authors adore getting together and trading stories, shots, and friendly banter. As a result of being around so long, the show has also […]
The rule of thumb is that you spend 80% of your time chasing freelance work while the other 20% is actually doing the work. Sometimes that seems to be the case and then you have entire weeks where all you do is the work.Today, though. Proved a very interesting and productive day.I set out to […]
I’ve been going to Shore Leave since the early 1980s and it’s become a fixture on the summer calendar. And here it is, after many months of anticipation and planning. The preliminary schedule just went live and here’s what I know I will be doing:Friday7-8:30 p.m.Keith DeCandido Roast: As roastmaster, I get first crack at […]
Yesterday, Connecticut governor Jodi M. Rell vetoed seven bills including an omnibus health care bill that included the bone marrow testing item I had testified in favor for.The state has been without a budget since the fiscal year began on Wednesday since the detached Governor and the state legislature are seemingly miles apart on how […]
So, what have been doing since we last chatted?A great deal of data manipulation as I do the extensive research required for my long-term assignment for DC Comics. I’m basically taking word files, stripping out data and altering the formatting, saving the file as a text file and then importing it into Excel and then […]
Thanks to the miracle of something called HBO, I got to watch a lot of movies I never saw in the theater. Back in the 1970s I thought this was absolutely revolutionary since I got to see older films as well as stuff I couldn’t afford or missed. Among them, I adored The Taking of […]
Yesterday at WizardWorld Philadelphia, Nick Barrucci announced The Art of Howard Chaykin, a hardcover book that will examine the creator’s work and career. Yours truly will be writing the project, which is due for Christmas.Nick and I have known and liked one another since I met him during my tumultuous year at Marvel. He’s been […]
Last night ABC aired the final episode of The Unusuals, a midseason replacement they had high hopes for but the ratings weren’t there and the series became a One Season Wonder.Deb and I came late the series, along with the other new cop show Southland, thanks to the miracle of the DVR. As a result, […]
It’s really weird. I blog, I tweet, I update regularly at Facebook and thought I was doing a fairly good job at getting the word out that I remain regularly employed with a variety of freelance projects coming out.And yet…and yet, the following item ran last night at Rich Johnston’s far better read Bleeding Cool:”Bob […]
Well, this first week on the new project hasn’t got worked according to plan.Monday, I took care of lots of little things and really tried to clear the decks so I could begin in earnest on Wednesday. So far so good.Tuesday was the much anticipated day off. Instead of doing nothing whatsoever related to work, […]
The bill, HB5021, featuring the bone marrow legislation is now on Governor Jodi Rell’s Desk for her signature.It got lumped in a with a few other bills but we are told if she gets enough emails and calls she will sign it into law. I’m told by Danny Lemos, who has been championing this for […]
On Saturday, I received notes back from John Wells on the Superman entry, made the changes and closed the file. I have now effectively completed my work on the Essential Superman Encyclopedia. Of course, there are still graphics to pick, changes to make once the line edits and copy edits are done, plus proofreading the […]
Yesterday was a bittersweet day as I awoke thinking about Robbie and his final weeks. Given the distance of time, his diagnosis of new leukemia in July and passing in August now seems incredibly swift.Fortunately, having our nephew Tim and his pals come to install a new roof provided a wonderful distraction from 6 a.m. […]
Once upon a time, I used to receive comps of everything DC, Marvel, Dark Horse and assorted other publishers used to put out. It was one of the all-time perks you could expect from a company.But, there still titles I wanted to read and had to buy so I began subscribing to Westfield Comics and […]
Christine Lavin is singing a song about a 3 year old named Katie who says today is the best day of her life.I paused in my proofreading to wonder what was the best day of my life?I’ve had many great days, some ideal, but the single best day of my life? That’s a tough one. […]
As regulars here know, I visited Hartford earlier this year to speak on behalf of a bill that would have helped people help Robbie last year. Yesterday, one of Fairfield’s state reps, Kim Fawcett, posted frequent updates to her Facebook page, as various bills got passed. At one point, she wrote:“Today the House passed legislation […]
One of the things I have prided myself on is my professional work ethic. While I may not be an award-winning writer, I can be counted on for a clean, professional copy that meets the editor’s expectations and deadline. If the deadline cannot be met, it means there’s a true reason for the delay and […]
So, what sort of a week has it been?Productive, to sum it up in a word.The Essential Superman Encyclopedia has been the predominant thing that has filled my waking hours. Today, I have submitted S (except Superman, being saved for last) and will begin researching T this afternoon. So, we’re closing in on finishing this […]
This is the much-anticipated week when the five networks announce their fall schedules and we lament the cancelled (Sarah Connor) and mourn the lack of clever, fresh, and original ideas. After the quirky and original Eli Stone, Pushing Daisies and Kings all crashed and burned this season, the networks seem poised to retrench.But, several returning […]
Yesterday, I was visiting with art dealer and pal Spencer Beck. As it happened, he had just gotten several boxes of materials from Marie Severin to catalogue and prepare to sell. Marie, for those not in the know, is a terrific artist and colorist, whose career dates back to the days of EC Comics and […]
Someone asked me on Facebook how the Iron Man book was coming. Since I had reviewed the copy edited manuscript in April, I expected to see the galleys by now. I did a quick check at the DelRey website and saw it listed as a September release.Well, that was a surprise. Last I was told, […]
A few years back I sat on a panel and we were asked to discuss what we’d do if we could revitalize Star Trek. My answer was to do what Gene Roddenberry did. Go to the leading futurists and figure out where we were headed technologically and then extrapolate from there and build a new […]
It’s been a long, wearying but full week.On Monday, the RTM had its annual budget meeting. The betting was on a 2-3 hour meeting, which certainly would have been welcome after the previous week’s nearly 6 hour marathon. We wrapped in just under 2 hours and passed a budget. There was lots of talk about […]
Since his introduction in 1974 through 2000, people were fascinated by Wolverine. He was a feral, edgy character at a time few other costumed crime fighters were. There was a tragic element to him since he could not recall his past. Through the years, writers teased us with bits and pieces about him, letting us […]
I didn’t make it. When I accepted the Essential Superman Encyclopedia project, it came with an April 30 deadline. However, today is May 1 and I am working on R.It became apparent last week that there was no way I could finish J-Z in a mere nine weeks. My editor, Chris, agreed and has given […]
I’ve been seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform since December 1975 and each time I go, I am utterly amazed. First of all, it’s pure rock and roll with plenty of showmanship. But you get your money’s worth. The shows last between two and three hours without an intermission. The band rocks […]
When you’re a company as big as Verizon Wireless, there are inevitably gaps in knowledge and training. I understand that but the last week has been an exercise in frustration.On April 14, I earned my $100 credit for an upgrade and I decided I really wanted something a little thinner and lighter, maybe with a […]
It’s been about two months since I did any sort of proper update so let me bring you the latest about my professional career.As you know, I have been writing book jacket copy for Marvel, and was just asked to do my fourth in addition to contributing to their facsimile of the 1939 Daily Bugle […]
We’ve been looking forward to Citi Field, henceforth still called by me as Shea Stadium since construction began. Driving over the Whitestone Bridge Sunday morning, we looked for a new silhouette to replace the familiar one but couldn’t quite spot it. When we did see it coming over a rise on the Whitestone Expressway, it […]
As so many of you know, Len Wein’s house burned down recently and he’s starting to put the pieces of his professional life back together. His pal, and mine, Mark Evanier has begun organizing a drive to collect copies of Len’s written work to replace the ones lost.He writes:Hey, let’s rebuild Len Wein’s comic book […]
Due to unknown wackiness, the websites for Bob Greenberger and Peter David seem to have been delisted from Google. We’re working on resolving it, and one of the best things we can do is to ask people to provide links to their sites so that Google knows they exist. So we’re asking for your help.If […]
I’ve been waiting to talk about this one for a while now and suddenly, it’s gone public.Back in August, David Mack sent out an e-mail called “A Diabolical Plan” and invited a group of selected co-conspirators to make an event out of what we normally do for sport. That is, pick on Keith R.A. DeCandido. […]
We’re slowly catching up on our television watching now that our evening schedules are easing just a wee bit. We’ve decided that Castle is entertaining, thanks to winning performances by the leads. While we know Kings is doomed, we watched the pilot last night and were intrigued enough to stick with it until NBC decides […]
In the spring of 1980, I was facing graduation and needed a job. I researched 35-40 publishers of books, newspapers and magazines, all in the New York area and all I wouldn’t mind working for. Clearly, some were more desirable than others but I couldn’t be picky. I added to the list, Starlog, since I […]
When I turned 21, my dad wrote me a letter, a serious missive discussing the changes this meant, both legal and in terms of how the world will deal with me. It was encouraging and the pride was clear with every word.When Kate turned 21, I wrote something similar to her.Today, Robbie’s 21st birthday, I […]
I-Con 28 was certainly unlike any of the previous 27 cons. Normally held at SUNY-Stony Brook, this year, it was moved given the renovations being done to the sports complex, the hub of the con. As a result, the con found itself split into three – dealer’s room and media guests at Suffolk Community College, […]
For those in Connecticut, a reminder that I will be speaking Tuesday night at the Cheshire Public Library. This is the second place where I will be presenting my Picturesque History of the Graphic Novel. The visual presentation should take about 45 minutes followed by questions and answers until everyone is bored.A big thanks to […]
Deb and I rarely get to watch television live. Partly that has to do with our schedules and party it has to do with our desire to watch everything on DVR and avoid as many commercials as possible, fitting in more programming in less time.However, we sort of made an exception last night for the […]
I’ve been coming to I-Con since the very first one and here we go again…The con will be away from Stony Brook this year and I’ve been assured that all my programming will be in one hotel, allowing me to run away now and then to keep working on Superman entries.My schedule is below for […]
I’ve been a baseball fan all my life. I can recall watching games with my dad, and being taken to Shea Stadium for my birthday for several years in a row. While I can’t throw worth a damn, I love the game.Soon after joining DC Comics, I learned that Mike Flynn and Bob Rozakis belonged […]
Over on the right side of this page is a link to the IAMTW, an organization that is barely three years old but its ranks have been swelling for some time. We’re a friendly bunch and have been very supportive to one another. The nominations for the annual Scribe Awards were just announced and I […]
Some times I really believe there is a balance in life.Monday night’s RTM meeting was about as brutal as I expected. The coverage in the papers will show those who missed it what got covered but no doubt it’ll look even more contentious whenever the public access video is broadcast.I left the meeting feeling like […]
Lunacon kicked off last night and I will be there all day.Here are my panels:Saturday 11:00 – 12:00:00 PM Grand CenterDeep Space 9 Retrospective: The Thinking Person’s Star Trek SeriesFarthest from Roddenberry’s original vision, Deep Space 9 was relatively fixed in place and as much concerned with emotional, moral, and spiritual journeys as with adventure […]
I have not been a faithful correspondent because I’ve been devoting every waking hour; it feels, to two projects. As I mentioned recently, they arrived within 15 minutes of each other and they vie for my time and attention although clearly the short-term gig has to be getting the lion’s share of me for now.Since […]
Sorry for another protracted delay in writing.As I feared, I’ve allowed the two new gigs to consume my daylight hours. On the one hand, I like what I’m doing and that I’m finally earning some cash; on the other, this will be all-consuming until the short-term assignment is complete.Each day starts with some of the […]
Life is suddenly getting busier.This past week, I was working through the little bits and pieces I had to do and was about to turn my attentions to spec projects when there was a flurry of activity at week’s end that will now keep me insanely busy through the end of April.On Thursday, Kate and […]
Lunacon is coming up in just two weeks and I received my schedule. The con for me tends to be more social than useful for self-promotion or business but one never knows. I do know that not seeing my NYC-based pals weekly as I used to, I find myself looking forward to the weekend.Here are […]
I haven’t chatted about television in a while but trust me, we’re still watching an awful lot of it.We’ve seen the first two episodes of Dollhouse and I see it struggling to find its voice. Missing to date is the snappy Joss Whedon dialogue and memorable characters that populated his other productions. So far, the […]
Just a quick reminder to those in the vicinity that I will be giving a talk entitled A Picturesque History of the Graphic Novel at the Fairfield Public Library. There will be a PowerPoint presentation so it’ll be visually interesting and then hopefully the question and answer portion will be engaging.As of last week there […]
When Moonstone announced their acquisition of the Green Hornet license at the NY Comic-Con, I had a chance to personally congratulate publisher Joe Gentile on the smart move. And of course, I knew what was coming next. There’d be a comic, of course, but also a prose anthology and he invited me to contribute a […]
For whatever reason, researching and writing these World War II-related essays has proven tougher than I imagined. However, on Friday, I completed the first draft of the final essay and can now let them marinate for a little bit before polishing and delivering.So, what’s next for a paying gig? Some book jacket copy for Marvel. […]
Today’s Hollywood trades carry the news that Warner Bros. has named a producer and writer for a movie based on the Suicide Squad.The version being adapted is the one I helped create with writer John Ostrander back in 1986 and endures to this day. Before there was Marvel’s Thunderbolts, there was the Suicide Squad, a […]
Over dinner with friends not too long ago, we got onto the topic of exactly how the geeks won. What were the events and who were the key players to get us to the point where being a geek had more street cred than a hip-hop star.I’ve been toying with figuring out this very issue […]
Webmaster and long time pal, Glenn Hauman, has been working on migrating this page to WordPress for some time now and finally, overnight, we moved.Welcome to the newly refurbished website. Look above and you will see new permanent pages that provide one and all with information about me, a complete bibliography and an appearances list. […]
From all the comments received on Facebook, it appears that a cold was an unexpected door prize for attending Farpoint this past weekend. It began its descent on Wednesday and by yesterday afternoon even the simplest tasks were requiring total focus.Fortunately, I completed some projects this week before the fog arrived, and have time before […]
The hotel’s internet connection was down all Sunday so I’ve been playing catch up in a rush and wanted to post this before hitting the road for home.We got through Saturday fairly well but of course, Sunday had people continue to walk up and hugs us, offering additional comments.The con itself adapted wonderfully to its […]
Farpoint is a smaller version of Shore Leave and through the years, as Robbie grew, he seemed to loom large over the con. He was the teen ringleader in the corridors, a constant presence during the masquerade, and a lively spirit.His absence looms large this year, especially, today, as we mark the sixth month anniversary […]
Today is the kick off for Farpoint, which I am very much looking forward to.But, more significantly, today marks a true sign that winter is not for long.Pitchers and catchers report today.Down at Port St. Lucie, my beloved New York Mets already have several hurlers tossing off the mound. With GM Omar Minaya remaking the […]
So, what’s been happening in the world of work? Yes, I’ve been chasing the next big project but I have plenty of little things to fill out the month as I wait and see if my con efforts bear fruit.First, just out is the current issue of Star Trek Magazine which contains an article by […]
Sorry I haven’t been better at posting but the last week has been a whirlwind of con prep, work, the con, con aftermath and more work.The convention was a huge success for Reed Exhibitions, but even better, for me. I had eight meetings plus four panels to manage and everything went off just fine. It […]
While I have served as an elected official in Fairfield, I’ve never had cause to go to the state capitol in Hartford for business.Until today.On Saturday, my State Rep, the honorable Tom Drew, called and said that a bill requiring insurance companies to pay for bone marrow testing was being heard in committee and Tuesday. […]
I’ve been a Bruce Springsteen fan dating back to 1975, just prior to the release of Born to Run. The live broadcast of his concert from The Bottom Line probably sealed the deal for me, but when I saw him at C.W. Post, I was hooked. Rarely have I seen rock and roll played with […]
I’ve been in this racket since 1980 and even dating back to junior high school, I’ve been exposed to celebrities, politicians, actors, directors, producers, etc. My first interview was with Harry Chapin when he played a benefit at the high school and since then, there have been some really cool moments and opportunities. Getting to […]
So, what’s been going on with work and home?The work remains exceedingly slow. January is coming to a close and the proposals that sat on editors’ desks in December remain firmly in place.Of the work I do have, the second Batman book for Stone Arch has been first drafted and will be polished and delivered […]
I’ve been hinting around that I had worked on two projects over the last year but haven’t announced them, at the request of the license holder. The other day, I finally talked about the Stone Arch Batman book I wrote in August. Now, I can talk about the one I wrote before that…Running Press will […]
Last Monday, I attended a press conference conducted by our First Selectman. While there, our assistant town attorney turned up cuddling a ginger-colored, 20 pound dog named, appropriately enough, Ginger. Apparently, she had been abandoned three months ago and had been residing at Animal Control but needed socialization to ready her for adoption. Eileen took […]
It was a year ago today that Deb and I woke up to find Robbie writhing in pain.That night he entered the hospital and our odyssey began. Along the way, we met some wonderful people, benefitted from the kindness and generosity of our neighbors, and learned how incredibly strong our son was.While never far from […]
These days, I regularly check my social network at Facebook and suddenly realize I have 632 friends. Some around town mock me for the large number and I have to pause and figure out how it grew so large.For the most part, they fall into clusters so there are the friends/neighbors and political colleagues in […]
Back in the summer, I mentioned I had written several projects I could not speak about at the publishers’ request.This week, word on one of them went out so it’s finally safe to talk about. Minnesota’s Stone Arch Books has licensed DC’s heroes for a series of chapter books for younger readers with the first […]
I’m home safe and sound. It was a great adventure with a very long, tiring final day.
Our penultimate day saw us eating more good food, driving through horrendous rain and see some amazing sights.
We drive north this morning, heading into the rainy, icy mush but remain undaunted in our search for great road food.
Continuing the detailed report from the road as we wend our way from Georgia into South Carolina with many things falling into place.
The following is a detailed report from the road. In short, I’m traveling north with my friend Matthew as we bring his mother’s things home. I’m riding shotgun, a fellow companion and occasional driver. This is his trip so for members of the family or friends who wish I had time to stop and visit […]