Novel Update

It's been a few months since I put anything on this blog about my fifth novel, though I've posted brief updates on Facebook over that stretch.  The current status is that I'm nearly done the 8th chapter, though that still leaves me a little shy of the midway point since the chapters are tending toward shorter-than-usual this time around for some reason.  It's been going well lately, in general, but I'm still finding it difficult to get into the right frame of mind for writing all too often.  At this point it's definitely looking like a Fall release rather than a Spring one, as there's no way I'll get it done in time for April or May.

I did find my cover photographer nice and early this time around, however, and he's mulling over possible approaches to take already.  Unfortunately I don't have a good, representative cover image in mind yet, making it more like Leap of Faith (where it was Dana Chapman who came up with the specific look of the cover) than any of the first three novels for which I knew what I wanted before engaging the artist.

So things are progressing on the project, just slowly.

Boyhood Receives 6 Oscar Nominations

The 2015 nominations for the Academy Awards were announced this morning, and Boyhood, my personal favourite film of 2014, received 6 big nominations:

• Richard Linklater got 2 nominations, for Best Original Screenplay and Best Director
• Ethan Hawke is nominated as Best Supporting Actor
• Patricia Arquette seems to be a favourite for Best Supporting Actress
• Sandra Adair is up for Best Film Editing
• and the film itself is nominated for Best Picture

This is a huge accomplishment for an independent film!  Considering how few people have viewed this little gem up to now (a tiny, tiny fraction of the audience for any of last year's blockbusters), and how many additional eyeballs this may bring to it, these nominations could go a long way toward expanding its fan base.

I somehow failed to write a blog post about Boyhood right after Vicki, Tammy and I saw it in Toronto last year, but I can say that it was one of the best movie-going experiences I've ever had.  I was emotionally drained by the end of it.  There's something surreal about watching the characters, especially the two children, age a dozen years over the course of a few hours.  I think the story itself could've been slightly more compelling, but that's a very minor complaint against an otherwise amazing production.  I encourage anyone who enjoys good movies to seek Boyhood out (I have a Blu-Ray copy that can be borrowed by anyone with the appropriate player, including a PS3 or PS4).

With the competition for all of the awards as fierce as always this year, it's possible that Linklater's classic will be shut out completely in terms of golden statues.  But here's hoping that isn't the case, and that it takes home at least a couple of them.  It definitely deserves the accolades.

How To Become A Writer

Neil Gaiman finally reveals the secret to it... (I've been going about it all wrong, it turns out!)

Rarified Air

It's not every day that I get to see my name in a list of acknowledgements that includes J Bone (the comic artist), John Cassaday, Neil Gaiman, Dave Gibbons and Alan Moore, but today is that day:

This is the first page of the Dave Gibbons Watchmen Artifact Edition that I contributed a scan to, back in March of last year.  It's a monster of a coffee table book, only equaled in size by the Alien Illustrated hardcover that I bought in Las Vegas a couple years ago.  And it has my name it!  Sweet.

The DC Universe, 1970s Style

Just an amazing image, which apparently has been up in the lobby of DC Comics in New York City for decades. Surprisingly, there are at least a couple characters in this shot that I can't identify off the top of my head (click for a closer look):