Neil Gaiman!

For those of you who don't know, the man sitting at the table is Neil Gaiman. And the woman looking slightly faint while professing her undying love standing in front, is me. I've been that close to Neil "freakin" Gaiman! Even just saying that makes me giddy.

If you're a friend of mine on Facebook I'm sure you're tired of seeing pictures of this man. But it's not everyday that someone gets to meet one of their heroes. So pardon me if I'm a tad over-enthusiastic. I have loved many writers. I have a couple writers who I've read all of their books. Neil Gaiman is on the top of both of those lists. So when I heard that Neil Gaiman would be doing his last signing tour I knew I had to find a way to go. The closest stop was Minneapolis so I started making plans. A friend, graciously, went to the bookstore to pick up passes for me. Another friend, as big a Gaiman fan as I am, went with me to the signing. We listened to him talk and read and then read from his even newer book. And I applauded and cheered. And then we waited, and waited. Three hours we waited for the chance to have our books signed. Thanks to my friend Josh for making me stay. Because it was worth the three hours.

Because for 30 seconds I got the chance to talk to my hero. I stood in front of him and babbled something about how much I loved all of his work. And he said something gracious about how it was all so different and I babbled more about how he was an amazing storyteller. And he signed two books with a beautiful fountain pen and I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the night. Every time I open my copy of his book I smile. He was so gracious and genuine. And I can't stop talking about it. So here you go. More pictures. More talking. I just have to say it. I love Neil Gaiman!

Poetry Friday

I feel a bit like I'm cheating doing another Poetry Friday. I've been bad about posting recently and poems are generally easy. But then I thought...hey it's my blog. And I want to post a poem.

I love Neil Gaiman. I love his stories, I love his blog, and I love his poetry. I've only found one thing he's written that I didn't like and considering how much he's written that's pretty incredible. This poem makes me giggle so of course it makes me ridiculously happy.

The Day the Saucers Came
by Neil Gaiman

That day, the saucers landed. Hundreds of them, golden,
silent, coming down from the sky like great snowflakes,
and the people of Earth stood and stared as they descended,
waiting, dry-mouthed to find what waited inside for us
and none of us knowing if we would be here tomorrow,
but you didn't notice it because

That day, the day the saucers came, by some coincidence,
was the day that the graves gave up their dead
and the zombies pushed up through soft earth
or erupted, shambling and dull-eyed, unstoppable,
came towards us, the living, and we screamed and ran,
but you did not notice this because

On the saucer day, which was the zombie day, it was
Ragnarok also, and the television screens showed us
a ship built of dead-men's nails, a serpent, a wolf,
all bigger than the mind could hold, and the cameraman could
not get far enough away, and then the Gods came out
but you did not see them coming because

On the saucer-zombie-battling gods day the floodgates broke
and each of us was engulfed by genies and sprites
offering us wishes and wonders and eternities
and charm and cleverness and true brave hearts and pots of gold
while giants feefofummed across the land, and killer bees,
but you had no idea of any of this because

That day, the saucer day the zombie day
the Ragnarok and fairies day, the day the great winds came
and snows, and the cities turned to crystal, the day
all plants died, plastics dissolved, the day the
computers turned, the screens telling us we would obey, the day
angels, drunk and muddled, stumbled from the bars,
and all the bells of London were sounded, the day
animals spoke to us in Assyrian, the Yeti day,
the fluttering capes and arrival of the Time Machine day,
you didn't notice any of this because

you were sitting in your room, not doing anything
not even reading, not really, just
looking at your telephone,
wondering if I was going to call.

I Like for Things to be Story-Shaped

This fantastic first line comes from "The Flints of Memory Lane", a short story in Neil Gaiman's book Fragile Things. I get a chill listening to it on audio book. It's a line that rings true for me. I do like things to be story shaped. I like the way books make things so much clearer. There is character and plot and progress. But as Gaiman is quick to point out, reality is very rarely story shaped. Perhaps that is why I read so much. Perhaps that is why I tell stories.

I don't remember when I started telling myself stories. I don't remember anything before five so I'll say then. I know I was in middle school when the thought occurred to me that I should write them down. Sadly that only happens some of the time. But the stories keep coming. In the car I sit at stoplights and talk to myself. At home while folding laundry I create dialogue between characters. I move plots forward at breakneck speeds. All in my head. I've been doing this since I was young. It's not going away anytime soon.

I couldn't sleep last night. It was way too hot for sleep (over 80 all night). And as I lay there in bed I thought about my stories and my non-existent writing and I wondered where the disconnect was. I could have written dozens of novels with the stories I've created. I could have already been published. But I rarely write them down and I thought about why that's the case. And I came to a startling conclusion. I'm ashamed of my stories. I have been for years. For a while I would try to force myself to stop. Tell myself that if I stopped telling these silly stories then I could write those great works of fiction that I knew I had in me. Or I could write those wonderful children's stories that would make children happy. Or I could write anything worthwhile. Instead what I tell myself are silly romance stories, or relationship dramas. I created characters who went about their normal lives and had normal dreams. And those stories have never seemed worthwhile to me. Always more like fluff than good fiction. But I think I'm going to try an experiment. I'm going to try writing the stories that are inside me. Stop waiting for those great works of literature to come and just write my silly little tales and see what happens. See where it goes. "I like for things to be story-shaped". Let's see where that goes.

National Library Week

Two of my great loves comes together in this one image. I love libraries. And I love Neil Gaiman. How perfect that he happens to be the Honorary Chair for the National Library Week? So get out to the library (quick, before the week ends) and pick up one of Neil's books. I'll bet you'll fall in love with both as well.

Watching Coraline

I read Neil Gaiman’s creepy little story right after it came out. I remember sitting on the stairs after getting dressed that morning trying to finish the book before I had to go to work. I also remember taking it to work with me so that I could read the final conflict between Coraline and the other mother from my desk drawer. I simply had to find out what happened. I loved the story. As I have said repeatedly, here and to anyone else who will listen, Neil Gaiman has to be one of the most imaginative and fantastic writers out there. I’m constantly impressed by his work.

When Coraline came out in the theaters, I didn’t go, mostly because I hate the theaters. I also don’t normally like movies that are based off books I’ve loved. The book is almost always better. But curiosity got the better of me. And on Sunday I bought the movie (collector’s edition and all) sight unseen with the knowledge that even if I didn’t like the treatment I would love the animation. I wasn’t disappointed. The stop motion animation story of Coraline is a visual masterpiece. I’ve always been a huge fan of stop motion and Henry Selick carries it to its most beautiful and believable conclusion. There were times in the film last night where I was so caught up in the incredible colors and settings that I forgot that the film was stop motion. I am constantly in awe of the amount of thought and work that goes into making a film like this. That’s why I had to buy the collector’s edition. I wanted the “making of” features.

The film stays mostly true to the book with a couple notable changes. While I understand the addition of the character of Wybie, I was mostly just annoyed with him. In fact I, like Coraline, preferred the silent version in the other mother’s world. I loved the treatment of Bobinski and the actresses downstairs Misses Forcible and Spink. Coraline was a wonderful character and we really get a chance to see the depth of her emotion. I’m constantly amazed by how they can create such deep emotions with puppets. But I really thought the Other Mother stole the show. They created a character so cloyingly sweet at the beginning that she is almost smothering, and then a character so incredibly evil that I’m sure there were plenty of children who went home and had nightmares. The film seemed an interesting mix of childish and adult and I went away with the feeling that the movie was actually more geared towards adults than children. That is not a criticism. It is rare to find animated films that have an edge and this one delivered. There were wonderful moments of humor but there was also an edge of creepiness throughout the film.

After watching the film I sat down to watch the “making of” features. I am constantly in awe of any type of animation but stop motion in particular. The bonus features were interesting although I’ll be on the lookout for a book that covers it as well. I wanted more of the puppet building and less on the voicing of the characters. But I may be one of the few people who are interested in that kind of thing. Considering I spent the rest of the evening on the couch reading a “making of” book for Toy Story, I’m far more interested than the average joe. (by the way, did anyone else know that Joss Whedon helped write the script for Toy Story?) I sadly can’t watch Coraline in 3-D (I tried) but with only one real working eye, everything just looked green. But even without the 3-D, I was pulled into the film. I was impressed and awed by the movie, but a little disappointed with the bonus features.

Me Being a Squealy Fangirl

Consider that a warning. This is all fangirl stuff. Feel free to ignore if you like.

I don't like Steven Colbert. It's nothing against him personally but I don't really enjoy the person he plays on his show. I can't sit through his interviews because they annoy me way too much. I have trouble with an interview that hardly lets the person being interviewed get a word in edge-wise or spends most of the time making fun of the person. They are designed to make people uncomfortable and I don't enjoy embarrassment humor. I love Jon Stewart but when Colbert comes on I change the channel. Not sure why I have that distinction (Stewart's interviews can sometimes be just as annoying). But...

I love Neil Gaiman. I will freely admit that I have a huge fangirl crush on him. I've read all of his work and read his blog regularly. He is one of the only audiobooks on my iPod (Fragile Things). He is just brilliant. So when I saw that he had been interviewed by Steven Colbert I bit the bullet and watched. I'm so glad I did. It was a great interview with lots of fun answers and even some fun from Steven. Neither of them appeared to take the interview seriously and that made it enjoyable. Neil talked about why The Graveyard Book could be a children's story even with the early deaths. He talks about Lord of the Rings and they decide on a children's book for Steven to write with a very interesting title. Not once did I feel uncomfortable mostly because Neil didn't seem to take anything Steven said seriously. He had great answers. So here is me being a fangirl but you got to love a man who says he likes any Lord of the Rings character but Tom Bombadil.

Just a few thoughts

I went out for drinks with the girls from my previous office tonight for drinks so I'll keep this short. I have a great group of women who try to get together once a month for drinks and appetizers. I love that they continue to invite me even though I left the office three years ago. We always have a spectacular time and I always drink too much. So I shouldn't be writing. 

I came home to find Jeff watching True Lies. No matter what you think of the current governor of California, this movie is hilarious. The action may be terrible but the jokes make the film. Tom Arnold makes this movie along with Bill Paxton's character. It is just so funny that you can't take the miserable special effects too seriously. Jamie Lee Curtis's character is a lot of fun. I have gained a ton of respect for her in the last couple of years with her push for more realistic body images in Hollywood but it's always good to go back to either True Lies or A Fish Called Wanda to see her silly side. The Governator is even pretty funny. Just a great movie. 

I found out that Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book won the Newbery Award yesterday. I had bought the book a couple weeks after it came out. I had listened to Neil read the book beforehand on his website. When he was doing his reading tour he taped each chapter and posted them for free. It was a wonderful introduction to the book and made me want to buy it. But then again I love Neil Gaiman's work and would have bought it anyway. 

Viewings and Readings

I have been watching movies and reading like a mad women. Today I read a half a book and listened to half of another. I watched two TV shows and a movie. I still have two books that I need to discuss from my trip. I don't even know where to start. So I'll just cover today.

Years ago I had read a book called Towing Jehovah, an incredibly funny book about the death of god. The story goes that god dies and his body falls into the Atlantic Ocean. The vatican wants the death hushed up (can you imagine the anarchy). The atheists want the body destroyed because it meant that he actually existed. So a sea captain is hired to take a tug boat out, retrieve god, and drag him to the Arctic for interment. The author James Morrow mixed just the right amount of humor and satire and seriousness to make it a fantastic book. I don't recommend it out to people (for fear of offending them) but I loved it. So when I was in a book store and found City of Truth by the same author I had to pick it up. This is actually a novella but I would think it would read fast even as a novel.

The story follows Jack Sperry who lives in Veritas (latin for truth). In Veritas no one can lie. The population has been "brainburned" to be incapable of lying. The process, which is described, does not sound fun but it makes citizens sick if they ever think of lying. This makes conversation a little more interesting when married couples tell each other that they are interested with sleeping with other people or two people at work must be truthful about how much they hate each other. Morrow creates a fantastic disutopia. And I love a disutopia story.

When Jack finds out that his son has a incurable disease he sets out to find a group of Dissemblers (liars) who can teach him to lie to his son about his impending death. This is where the novel goes a bit strange. Jack is taken to Satirev (veritas spelled backwards) which the dissemblers have created as a city where lies are possible. I guess I was hoping for the wonderful traveling bands from Fahrenheit 451 where the people memorize poems and stories to keep them alive. Instead Satirev is a fantastic place where pigs fly and snow is hot (the lies used in the brainburning process). I was hoping to see artists and poets and actors who have banded together to create an artist paradise.

The ending is sweet and tender and the disutopian society that Morrow creates is fantastic. Much of the earlier dialogue is painful but funny in it's truth. I love where Jack is asked to create a reference letter where he discusses the candidates flatulence problem and his toady nature. The conversation between him and his wife are blunt, hurtful, and strangely funny. And the images of the brainburn will live in my mind for a long time. A fascinating idea of a society. I wish he would have spent more time there.

I finished that over lunch. I spent most of today working on a company database so it required almost no thought. So in order to make the day a bit more enjoyable, I listened to the first half of The Graveyard Book from Neil Gaiman. Neil, on his book tour, recorded himself reading each chapter from the book. These are now available for free on his website at www.neilgaiman.com/p/cool_stuff/video_clips/the_graveyard_book_tour. If you have not read Neil Gaiman you need to. And if you have read him but never heard him read, you need to listen to these. Not only does he have a beautiful voice, but he does the voices of the characters. I'm hoping he records the audiobook for this book. I'll buy it. The Graveyard Book tells the story of Nobody Owens, a young boy who ends up growing up in a graveyard, cared for by ghosts.

The two shows I watched were both episodes of How It's Made which I have become a huge fan of. Both Jeff and I watch it whenever we catch it. I'm always fascinated by what types of things are handcrafted and what are made by robots and machines. Today we watched how crayons, kayaks, carbon fiber cellos, and braille typewriters are created. I'm not sure I'll get into a kayak again, but I will definitely have more respect for the amazing amount of work that goes into a cello. Crayons were a lot of fun. Almost all the work is done by machine although they sense when crayons are bad (loose wrapper, broken).

The last thing I did before going up to my library to write was to watch the newest version of Pride and Prejudice. Now before I get arguments, yes I still agree that there is only one movie version of Mr. Darcy. This young man certainly played a passable Darcy. He had the smoldering looks and the haughty glare down perfectly but he was still no Colin Firth. I was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed the film. My only real flaw was the ending although I understand that the British version had a different ending and one I would have liked more. I normally hate movies of books I've loved. And I truly love the book. It lists as one of the few books that I have read four times and counting. I'm sure I'll read it many more times.

Keira Knightley was a good Elizabeth Bennett. There were several scenes that really made the movie for me. A scene where Elizabeth and Darcy hold hands for dancing early and film and then he walks away flexing his fingers was beautiful. A scene at the ball in Bingley's home is wonderful as Elizabeth walks towards the camera and we can see Darcy step through the scene and pause to watch her. They remind me of my favorite scene in the BBC version. It is a simple scene where Elizabeth is talking with Georgiana. She has just saved her from an incredibly embarrassing moment. She looks up and meets Darcy's eye. There is so much said in that glance. Those are the kinds of scenes that make these movies so perfect. I once wrote a paper about all the implied things that simply aren't said in Jane Austin novels. The time was so prim and proper that emotions and ideas must be passed in more subtle ways. A gentle touch of the hand. A lingering look. Wonderful stories and a surprisingly good movie.

It's been a productive day for me. Now to listen to the last of the Graveyard Book, try to write something worthwhile, and maybe play some Wii with Jeff.