The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

This is the second book I’ve read on recommendation by a good friend in the span of just a few months. So shout out to my old college roommate Keith Jones (Or, Kieth, if you prefer). His recommendation was seconded by my other old roommate, Tim Miller.

I was a little hesitant about the book at first because I know that Keith and Tim both lean more to the fantasy than I do as I tend to lean toward the hard sci-fi. But, in all the years I’ve known them to talk about books they have enjoyed, they’ve never suggested one of them to me. Comics=yes, books=no. And, as I was looking for something to read on my new Kindle (thanks Mom and Dad!), it seemed like the perfect choice.

My first complaint probably had more to do with the Kindle than Rothfuss; every time I tried to view a larger image of the cover, it immediately faded and went to the inside elements. No choice ever brought it back up to the top…and I wanted to look at it—I like sci-fi art! Had I been able to get a better look at it, I would have noticed the main character had RED hair and wouldn’t have found that a surprise a couple chapters into the book when a character mentioned it!

The second issue I had was that it was a slow start. The weird thing is that as much as all the current internet scuttlebutt on writing is that you start your story immediately and don’t take so long to get to the story, that doesn’t seem to be true to the successfully published books. I’ve got no answer for that one. Sorry.

After several slow starts, the main character starts telling a story about himself because he’s supposed to be some person of legendary exploits…currently running a bed and breakfast inn. Okay. His story begins with him as a young child because he insists it must start there…four chapters into the book and it turns in to a YA title! Who’da thunk? Except that we know that there is no actual danger of younger self surviving his trials (he’s narrating as an adult—duh!), the story is actually very good. It’s only then that the book becomes a can’t-put-it-down kind of tale. And I couldn’t put it down. The writing flows well and is easy to read, pulling you along in Kvothe’s (the main character) tragic childhood story.

There’s not a lot I can say that aren’t in the form of spoilers. Kvothe is from a family of traveling actors, a sort of band of gypsies. As a youngster, he finds himself in University, the only real place for learning in this sci-fi world. Because of his youth and lack of wealth, we follow his struggles to stay in school, learn magic, play music, and fend off the rich bully…and to get the girl of his dreams.

And then—it pulled the clincher on me: the book ended, but the story was far from done! What? I did not realize that it was part of a trilogy when I began reading. The kindle version did not indicate it was Book 1 or part 1 or whatever. As much as I liked the book and would recommend it to you, I do so only with the understanding that you know it’s continued. It didn’t really resolve itself that well, either, certainly not like a Lord of The Rings—which seems to be the benchmark for all trilogies, now, right? I’d prefer to see publishers/writers follow the Asimov/Foundation model in telling a self-contained story in one book…then another self-contained story that happens to be part of the larger picture in the next.

Do I recommend the book? Yes. It was an enjoyable read…just know you’ll have to seek out the book(?)s that follow for complete reading satisfaction.

MegaCon 2013 report

Me, Brittany, and Tony Fortenberry at MegaCon in 1998.

I feel a bit guilty that I’ve talked about or mentioned Megacon in my last three blogs…but doggone it, I’ve been pretty excited about it—and with good reason. So, this is my report on it!

Brett and Brittany doing table duty at the show. I didn’t realize they color-coordinated until looking at the picture.

I’ve only attended Megacon once before, and that was in 1998. I don’t remember the drive at all, but do remember staying with good pal Tony Fortenberry and his wife Claire. I also remember having a great time…and yes, we went to Disney after!

So, 15 years later, I’m anticipating great things and I wasn’t disappointed. Friday the kids and I set up shop around noon. Unfortunately, Brittany wasn’t feeling well and the first hour or so was occupied with find medicine for her—there’s a story all in itself!

Robert is an Ultraverse fan who stopped by to chat…and I discovered he was a kicker for the Florida Gators…several years back! How cool is that?

Tired and anticipating a big Saturday, the kids and I headed back to the apartment.

Me with Thomas Florimonte and Barry Gregory. I’ve known Barry since the 6th grade. We were creating comics together by the 7th. Yes, they were on notebook paper, but still!

Saturday was indeed a big day. I haven’t seen such long lines since the last time I went to San Diego Comic Con. In fact, Megacon 2013 reminded me a LOT of SDCC when I last went. The parking lot was packed and we had to park in the back, back 40! When the doors opened, the crowds streamed in. The aisles were jammed packed with congoers, all of whom had great attitudes about the entire thing. Lots of folks stopped to get books and signatures. The Wizard of Oz graphic novel proved to be the most popular title on my table for the weekend. One nice fan brought me some comics to sign and I told her that I didn’t write them. She insisted (nicely) that I did and when I opened the cover to check out the credits, Brett immediately pointed to my name indicating me as the writer.

Me with Paul Pelletier holding a copy of DEMON’S TAILS, a mini-series that I wrote and he drew…oh so long ago.

It was a short lead-up story to the Eliminator mini-series that I co-wrote with Hank Kanalz. I had just flat forgot all about it. I gladly signed her copies—but now I’ve got to go hunt those things down for me! I also got to meet Robert McGinty, a guy who I’ve only ever chatted with on Facebook’s Ultraverse page. I learned he was a kicker in the SEC!

Me and Brittany with supercool comic rockstar Jimmy Palmiotti. He took time to offer some good advice to Brittany in regards to getting “into” the acting business.

One of my personal highlights was getting the opportunity to have dinner with my old pals Barry Gregory (and his son), Thomas and Rene Florimonte, and Paul Pelletier. We told stories and caught up for hours. I accused Brittany of being bored and she scolded me later (and in private), telling me she loved to hear the stories we told. The cool thing about old friends like that is that while it had really been 15+ years since I’d really seen any of them, it felt like only last week we were talking. (We did, however, come to the conclusion that Paul has now drawn well over 4,000 pages of comic work! WOW!)

Me with George Perez. He’s holding a copy of Genesis #0 for which he did the cover. An anthology, I wrote one story (drawn by Jimmy Palmiotti) and edited the others.

Sunday was quite a bit slower and all the artists around me were dragging a bit. I got to see and visit with friends George Perez, Jimmy Palmiotti (who was kind enough to take a few minutes to offer Brittany some suggestions for getting into the acting industry), Billy Tucci, Chuck Dixon, as well as make new friends of Brian Demeter and Michael Bramson. Both were incredibly cool guys as well as talented artists.

And yes, once Megacon was over, we made the 12 hour drive back to Mississippi. And yes, we were dog-tired (and Brittany caught some kind of bug while there). All in all though, we’re all looking forward to going to Megacon again next year!

Megacon–today! Plus a Hot Springs Village report

First things first: If you’re in the Orlando, Florida area this weekend, you need to make a point to attend MegaCon at the Convention Center. Megacon is one of the premier comic/geek cons in the US. Yes, yes, San Diego Comic Con is the big one, but it’s become more exclusive these days and so other shows—like Megacon are booming. I’ve been there once before—in 1998—and had a great time. If you’re not in the Orlando area…sorry for you. 🙂

I’m set up in Artist Alley at Brown 9. Bring some stuff for me to sign. Better yet, buy something new from me there and I’ll sign it for you for free!

Last Saturday I had the privilege to lead the workshop in Hot Springs Village courtesy of the Hot Springs Village Writers Group. We talked about how to supe-up protagonists and about POV. I’d never done a presentation on POV before, but it seemed to go over well and all the writers seemed to have an enjoyable experience. Of course, I love the writing process so I’m hoping that love was contagious and they left with a desire to get to work and get busy writing.

Roughly my view while speaking to the Hot Springs Village Writers Group. Note they are busy WRITING!

The photo here is approximately the view I had (though I was standing on the stage when I took the picture…I did NOT stand on the stage when I spoke.)

I’d been to Hot Springs before, but Hot Springs Village is something completely different. Truthfully, I was floored by how remote and beautiful the place is. It IS a writers’ haven! Many of the (I didn’t do any sort of official poll, so it is just a guess on my part) writers in attendance who were from HSV are retired and enjoying the writing life that HSV allows, even encourages!

I haven’t told BJ yet…but I’ve decided it’s now on my top 5 list of places I’d like to retire to!