Posts Tagged ‘Fantasy’

28 items.

The Wave in the Mind: A Tribute to Ursula K. Le Guin

by Colleen Doran on October 19th, 2011
Posted In: Blog, Culture, Culture, Literature, Fantasy, Culture, Literature

TONIGHT: Weds., Oct. 19th
7:00 p.m.
*The Wave in the Mind: A Tribute to Ursula K. Le Guin*
Authors John Wray, N.K. Jemisin, Ellen Kushner, Michael Swanwick, and
moderator David G. Hartwell discuss Ursula K. Le Guin’s legacy from
the Earthsea books to her influence on today’s new writers.
Wine & booksigning after:

http://www.centerforfiction.org/calendar/big-read-the-wave-in-the-mind-a-tribute-to-ursula-k-le-guin

TOMORROW: Thursday October 20, 2011 #
05:30 pm – 10:30 pm
*EARTHSEA Marathon Group Read & Party!!!*

Some of New York City’s finest actors, writers and musicians will
gather at the Center to read the entire novel aloud in a marathon five-
hour event. Drop in to listen, enjoy some party food and wine…maybe
even to read a page or two yourself! It’s a party plus a reading, a
chance for people to get together and enjoy good company and the work
of a contemporary American author whose work transcends genre. The
list of readers – which includes John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the
Angry Inch), Dion Graham (The Wire) & Barbara Rosenblat (pretty much
every audiobook you’ve ever loved!) – and details are here:

http://www.centerforfiction.org/calendar/big-read-earthsea-group-read

# THIS EVENT will be STREAMED LIVE at http://www.centerforfiction.org

Both events are free and open to the public, though the Center puts
you on a special list if you RSVP via each event’s web page, and you
will be asked if you’d like to make a $5 donation when you arrive.

More information on the Le Guin Big Read events, which continue
through Oct. 26th:

http://www.centerforfiction.org/events/the-big-read/

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Cherokee Girl by Charles de Lint

by Colleen Doran on April 5th, 2011
Posted In: Blog, Culture, Culture, Literature, Fantasy, Culture, Literature, Culture, Music

Music by fantasy author Charles de Lint.

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Ray Bradbury’s “Falling Upward”

by Colleen Doran on November 24th, 2010
Posted In: Blog, Culture, Literature, Fantasy, Culture, Literature, Culture, Music, Culture, Theater

Very close to finishing up the Barry Lyga GN (VERY LATE,) and now Gone to Amerikay, the graphic novel I am working on with Derek McCulloch, is back on the docket.

I’ve been listening to Irish music for inspiration, and had a lovely talk with my homie Kacy Camp, who is getting great notices in the “The Pub Plays” at Theater Banshee in Los Angeles.

BOTH PLAYS HAVE BEEN SELECTED AS
***CRITICS CHOICE*** – Los Angeles Times
***CRITICS PICK*** Back Stage West

To get in the mood, I searched for Irish music with a genuine, live sound, devoid of glossy production. And since our graphic novel is a tale of Irish immigration, I don’t think I could find a better musician for inspiration than Ken O’Malley.

I contacted Ken to ask if I could present some of his music here, and he was very generous. I’ll be posting more about Ken in future.

Originally from Ireland but Los Angeles based, the world got smaller when I mentioned his name to Kacey, and found out the gang at Theater Banshee thinks very highly of Ken’s music.

Ken’s agent Chris Wilson dropped me a line to let me know about an interesting production for which Ken did vocal work as well as music: Ray Bradbury’s “Falling Upward”.

A radio feature produced by This Way Out, the play was broadcast on over 200 radio stations.

“This Way Out” is the award-winning internationally distributed weekly LGBT radio program, currently airing on over 175 local community radio stations around the world, and on Costa Rica-based short wave station Radio For Peace International. The half-hour “magazine”-style program is produced in Los Angeles and distributed to stations via two free-access Web sites, www.radio4all.net and www.indymedia.org, as well as through Pacifica Radio’s Audioport and KU satellite, and via satellite in Australia on the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia’s ComRadSat.

You can subscribe to “This Way Out” broadcasts, or contact them about getting a copy of this special show. Enjoy a taste of Ken’s music, and this interview with Ray Bradbury!

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The Finnish Hobbit!

by Colleen Doran on September 16th, 2010
Posted In: Blog, Culture, Film and Television, Culture, Literature, Fantasy, Lord of the Rings

A little known 9 episode television version of The Hobbit made in Finland, circa 1993. Dug up by the folks at i09. More videos here.

Someone will either deliver a takedown notice, or they won’t. I’m not sure how legal this is, so I will just post a small bit and hope that’s covered by Fair Use.

You have got to see Boromir. He’s some samurai dude with a topknot of many braids. I must run and hug my Sideshow Weta Boromir sculpture, because it’s all about the Sean Bean, baby!

I think they edited out Legolas, which means someone in Finland doesn’t get his value as a love object. What fools these mortals be.

EDIT: OOP! My bad. Much later episode. There’s Legolas. He’s played by actor Ville Vartanen. Could not find pics to compare degree of hotness. And can’t sit through it all again, really.

No, this isn’t a fan made film. Here’s its IMDB page.

Someone wrote a glowing review at IMDB. They swear the series is all that and the chips, but whoever did didn’t like the Peter Jackson version. I can’t wrap my brain around that, so there you go.

It’s titled Hobitit. Heh. Heheh.

The webcomic home page is here.

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Art and Lit and Comics Links: JK Rowling, Jane Austen, Spider-Man, Orbiter team up.

by Colleen Doran on August 31st, 2010
Posted In: Blog, Culture, Literature, Children's, Colleen's Work, Culture, Comics, Culture, Comics, Comics History, Culture, Culture, Literature, Fantasy, Culture, Literature

i09 lists Orbiter among the top SF graphic novels guaranteed to get you hooked for life. Warren Ellis wrote it, and I drew it.

If you are interested in picking up a copy of this fine tome, try to get the first printing. Far better quality paper.

JK Rowling donates 10 million pounds to new multiple sclerosis research center.

The world-famous children’s writer made the generous donation in memory of her mother Anne, who suffered from the degenerative condition and died in 1990 at the age of 45.

Can the iPad Save Spider-Man?

Single issues regularly topped a million in sales during the Depression; last year, the top 300 comics sold in the United States combined added up to less than 75 million copies. Hard-core collectors may still flock to dedicated comic shops, but even the comic-book movie craze hasn’t drawn mainstream fans to the oft-impenetrably serialized monthlies. And while more sophisticated, complex graphic novels have charged into bookstores, it still can’t compare to the widespread accessibility comics enjoyed during their old newsstand days.


Does Peter Parker Have a Moral Responsibility to be Spider-Man?

If we were consequentialists and thought that the rightness and wrongness of actions depends entirely on the good or bad outcomes produced, we would believe that Peter is morally obligated to be Spider-Man, at least on the assumption that being a superhero produces more overall good than being a good scientist, boyfriend, etc. As appealing as consequentialism might seem at first blush, it’s riddled with problems.

Jane Austen had punctuation issues.

“Austen hardly punctuates at all, so what you get is a much more urgent form of language, which becomes more restrained when it is edited,” he said.

“There tends to be an awful lot of clauses and sub-clauses. There is the odd comma, but they aren’t always in the most rational places. There are no paragraphs.”

I used to get a ten-point deduction for every comma splice.

Jane Austen and her homies fight it out.

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