In case you missed it when it played live (and I wonder if anyone actually did see it that way), here's the video of my reading. I brought four stories along, and until I sat down I wasn't sure which to read ... as evidenced by my hurried shuffle. I ended up going the dark and morbid route with "The Dry Patch." The sound is pretty crappy, and the video quality is poor, so deal with it (I don't think it will come through on Google Reader and the like, so click here in case it doesn't appear below). Have a great weekend. http://qik.com/video/7424402
I Was Soooooo Wrong
Remember how yesterday I said I wouldn't be surprised if no big special guests showed up at Conan O'Brien's show near Philadelphia? Well, the man's mega star power does not disappoint. The opening act was Reggie Watts, who was friggin' hilarious. Check out this satirical music video that may not be for everyone, considering that it's called "Fuck Shit Stack." Then sometime later Trey Anastasio came out, whose name didn't mean anything to me as I've never been a Phish fan, but he played a song, plus appeared again when everyone came out for two more songs for the encore. But the highlight of the evening is without a doubt when Conan brought out the Chuck Norris Lever, which he said legally he could no longer call the Chuck Norris Lever, so he called it something else, and to help him, he introduced the one and only Tina Fey:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpd_lm49NXQ
So yeah. Good times, good times.
Attention, Attention
Tonight my wife and I head down to Philly to see Conan O'Brien on one of his many stops on his tour. We're big fans of Conan, saw him live many times when he was doing Late Night in New York, and once, because we were in the front row, I even got to shake his hand when he came out before the show to greet the audience (yeah, that's right). There have been special guest appearances all along this tour (Jim Carrey appeared twice, once dressed at Superman, another time as Kick Ass), but I won't be surprised if there are no wild special guests at this show (I mean, who mega famous lives around Philadelphia?). Doesn't matter, though, because it's friggin Conan O'Brien!!!
I didn't post a Freaky Friday Fun video last week, mostly because I couldn't find anything I liked, but also because I'm starting to become bored with the whole thing. Maybe I'll keep it up, maybe I'll abandon it completely, but for the time being here's a video of Conan's show when he was in New York City and Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart popped up on stage:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UITgc2XqEaw
The Truth About Book Signings
I had something completely different planned to post for this week's Freaky Friday Fun. But just a few minutes before I did so, Kevin J. Anderson posted this great video on Facebook and I knew I just had to share it (see, Facebook does have a purpose after all). Book signings are interesting things. Unless you're super mega famous, not many people are interested. Not unless you have a healthy following of fans who will drive hours to see you for a few minutes. That must be nice. But for the rest of us?
When I initially planned on doing events for the anthology's release, it was specifically for New York and Los Angeles, and it was specifically for the contributors who could attend. Because let's be honest -- nobody wants to come see the editor of an anthology, not unless that editor also happens to be super mega famous. So that's why I'm not even going to attempt something at my local bookstore for just little old me. Maybe have a little release party at a coffee shop or something along those lines, more of a get together with family and friends, but not in a Barnes & Noble where I'm sitting by myself at a table, forcing a smile at each person that walks with their eyes adverted like I'm not even there. Don't believe me? The video below by author Parnell Hall shows the nasty and sad truth about book signings. Have a great weekend.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZoJ5OKmEJY
Conception Of Inception
In case you haven't seen it yet, the Wigleaf Top 50 has been announced. This year's selecting editor was Brian Evenson. The top 50 is a must-read for flash fiction writers and readers alike. Years ago when I started submitting to online markets, Wigleaf's top 50 introduced me to a number of new markets and helped me understand just what kind of really great work was being put out there. Also check out the long shortlist. I'm honored that my story "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service" was selected. Big thanks to Scott Garson and Ravi Mangla at Wigleaf, and Jensen Beach at Hobart.
And it looks like my friends over at Narrative Magazine have given up the pretense of charging obscene fees for regular submissions and are now just begging for money. Blake Butler tells them where to stick it over at HTMLGIANT.
Finally, for your Freaky Friday Fun, I present to you one of the best movie trailers I've seen in awhile. Because Hollywood has this thing where they like to show you as much of the movie as possible in the two minutes or so that the trailer runs -- if it's a comedy they show all the funny parts; if it's a thriller they show you all the high action parts -- it's refreshing to find a trailer that actually makes you want to see the movie. It also doesn't hurt that the film is written and directed by Christopher Nolan, who is without a doubt one of my favorite directors working today. I saw Memento when it first came out (and I mean when it first came out; this was in an indie art house a month or two before it made it to major theaters) and I liked Insomnia and The Prestige for what they were and I absolutely loved Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. I also have his second film Following around here somewhere which I hope to watch soon. But his latest, a film called Inception? I haven't been this excited to see a movie since the first Matrix sequel. Here's the trailer, which features yet another excellent score from Hans Zimmer:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z75o-F6ja2I
Pretty kewl, no? You ain't seen nothing yet. Because here's a mashup trailer done with Inception and Toy Story 3. Enjoy, and have a great weekend.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHJwgA54Gqk