Busy week

I haven't posted much this week because I have been busy writing the intros to each story in my collection "Fantastic Texas", as well as doing the editorial revisions.

I spoke to over 50 students who attended the screening of "Fahrenheit 451" at Northeast Texas Community College last night (Thursday). Although there was some chatter at the start of the movie, the teens got quiet and actually payed close attention to the movie. The only time they hooted was during the scene when Montag was on the run and a quartet of policemen go looking for him using jet packs. The special effects look so bad now...

The two professors who hosted the s-f film series said the finale far and away was the best attended screening.

Bad news

Insurance company says our roof is kaput, and it will have to be replaced.

Aww, hail!

Nasty storm blew through town last night, and dropped golf-ball sized hail on the house. I had to run outside and pull my car in the garage while getting my brains knocked out. I normally park in front because we have a semi-circular driveway. I like to pull in and drive out, and also parking there keeps people from using it as a turnaround (we're on a fairly busy street).

Took a picture of the hail with a ruler and a silver dollar for comparison.

Howard wrote and said he's working on the introduction to the collection. I'm working on my story intros and edits.

Back to basics

Not a blasted thing new to report in ther past few days, so when in doubt, back to Metropolis:

The Lullaby of the Blogosphere

You know, back during the Great Depression, when people were scrambling around for ideas on how to solve the economic crisis, there was a slew of political ideas being floated around - socialism, fascism, technocracy, social justice, social credit, and on and on.

Today, there's basically one idea left - socialism - or so it seems. Truth be told, the real story is that there simply isn't that much diversity left in the media, and it reflects a small segment of America's elite, which is statist. Libertarians - heck, even social democrats - aren't getting much air time.

The down side to this is that, if there is any kind of genuine and spontaneous original political movement in the next few years, it will seemingly come out of nowhere because the media wasn't covering it. I'm hearing all sort of rumblings about "tea parties" and the Republic of Texas movement, but nobody is covering it.

Ron Paul's campaign for president last year attracted some attention, but the media elite only reported it when it became impossible to ignore.

Hope this all turns out for the best. Meanwhile, take a look at this screen capture I came up with. It's from 1935 - the depth of the last depression - and no, it isn't a fascist party rally. It's from the "Lullaby of Broadway" dance number by Busby Berkley from "The Golddiggers on 1935".

Kinda subliminal, huh, about what was on people's minds? I wonder what's really on people's minds these days. We'll never know from the major media. I wish I knew myself.

"Fantastic Texas"

Ian Randal Strock, acquiring editor for Warren Lapine's Fantastic Books, has bought a reprint collection of Texas-themed stories of mine, to be entitled "Fantastic Texas". I believe this is the first collection Fantastic Books has bought. The stories to be included are:

A Rocket for the Republic
The Witch of Waxahachie
The Cast Iron Dybbuk
Avatar
Silence is Golden
The Rocket-Powered Cat
Rome, If You Want To
Big Girl
The Silver Dollar Saucer
Body by Fisher
Video Killed the Radio Star
Professor Malakoff's Amazing Ethereal Telegraph

I got word in the mail yesterday. Needless to say I'm tickled pinkless. I'm now working on the editor's revisions and writing the intros to each story.

Howard Waldrop has agreed to write an intro. Bless you, Howard.

M-Brane hits the stands

It's the first of April and issue No. 3 of M-Brane SF is out. I'm very proud of my story, the second in the line-up, "Good News for the Dead".

The TOC, copied from my pdf author's copy of the magazine, is as follows:

WALLER: Hard Frost 1, 3
ANTONELLI: Good News For the Dead 6
HOWARD: The Sufferance 10
GARDNER: See Saw 13
HAYDEN: End Day 14
McINTYRE: Embrace 19
IVKOVICH: Time Noir 20
CALCATERRA: Tripsy 30
BRILL: Sleepless Sleep 34
VAN BELLE: The Barking Death Squirrels 38