The Pecman

I think there's a lot of different ways you could go. One book I often recommend is The First Five Pages, by Noah Lukeman, and he provides a number of suggestions on how to grab the reader's attention from the very beginning. The standard advice is to always try to start scenes in the middle, rather than at the beginning, so that you avoid the set-up and all the boring details. For example, at a dinner scene, you'd start just as everybody was finishing the second course, not when the plates are first set down. The other significant choice for opening paragraphs is: who's telling the story? If you're working in 3rd person, then you have to describe the scene and setting, then find a way to describe the mood of the characters through thought, dialog, and action. In first person, you're limited to only seeing what they see, feel what they feel, and hear what they hear. That can still be useful, if this is essentially the story of one person, but it might be limiting for other kinds of stories. I would avoid relating the back-story at the start. If two kids were adopted, don't necessarily tell the reader this at the beginning. Let the reader work it out over time. Maybe have another character in Chapter 2 ask, "hey, you got a mom?", "and the other character answers, "no. She died when I was born. Jack and Joe adopted me." And move on from there. I would hold back on precise details ("how did your mom die?" "why do you have two dads?") as long as possible. As long as that's justified by some good solid plot or character reason -- maybe their deaths were traumatic for the children, and they don't want to re-live it -- then it's entirely logical. Make the reader wait for the details, and spoon them out when necessary. Just make sure everything is explained, ultimately.

I'm put off by For the Love of David, only because -- in scanning half the chapters -- it looks like the story is 90% sex/romance, without the guts of a story to hold it all together. I think the dialog is a little too stiff and formal (even for British characters), and I also object to the ending [spoiler ALERT] where one of the major characters abruptly commits suicide. I think the piece is reasonably well-written, and while I don't automatically dislike downbeat stories, this one left me flat. Finding Tim is better overall, but again, I think the story is light on plot. My problem here is, there's 52 chapters, but not a lot goes on beyond the growing relationship of the characters. I think there's a way to do pure relationship fiction and make it work, but it's got to have nuggets of story here and there to justify the chapters (beyond just the sex). And I agree with Colin about the repetition factor. Based on what I see, I'd give the first story a thumbs down, but the second story a minor thumbs up.

I just finished it about ten minutes ago (I would've been finished yesterday, but I got dragged into work for 10 hours on Saturday to work on a new film), and I'm still exhilarated. I think I'm two for three on my biggest predictions. I was very impressed with how skillfully Rowling referred back to all the clues in the past six books, and how many familiar faces popped up here and there. My biggest surprises included the revelations about Dumbledore's past -- I didn't expect anything like that. My only critiques (and they're very minor) are that there's a few too many coincidences in the book -- like people showing up at just the right moment for some unexpected rescues -- plus a few weird contrivances, like a certain key character storming out of the story for several chapters for vague reasons. I also was a tiny bit put off by how Rowling dragged the story out for an entire year, almost exactly from June to the following May. But all in all, it was an enthralling, well-told epic. My lips are sealed as to the plot secrets and surprises. I'd give it 9 out of 10, and to tell you the truth, I'm not sure how it could be much better. (And holy god, the mother-of-all-battle-scenes is going to cost $10 million alone to shoot. It almost makes Lord of the Rings look like Mary Poppins by comparison.)

In this case, I think Rowling's work is both good and popular. I think a best-seller doesn't necessarily have to be well-written, but the Potter series is an unabashed classic. You don't get to be a classic unless it's good, and these books have heart and soul and emotion at their core. The final installment is as good as I was hoping for, full of surprises and twists and turns, and yet still fulfilled my expectations. You can't ask for better than that.

Very sorry to hear about your health, TR. Sincere best wishes in getting back to where you need to be. All of us really look forward to reading your new work!

The movie just got some interesting reviews in the U.S. trades. The Variety critic went out of his way to point out how dark and downbeat the story was, with very little of the fun and humor of the previous films. My concern is that film #5 was made from book #5, which was the longest book... but it's the shortest film. They cut out a ton of stuff from the book in order to cram it into 2+ hours of running time, which is a drag. I'm still biting my nails in antici........ pation of the release of book #7. I just hope some a-hole doesn't ruin the ending for me. One MSNBC commentator predicted an interesting ending: Harry Potter defeats Voldemort by sacrificing his wizardry power, basically slamming the evil wizard with all of his power at one time, killing the baddie. But it leaves Harry now powerless, totally human. The commentator pointed out that this way, Harry has made a "supreme sacrifice," but without dying. Not a bad idea. I'm still holding out for both Dumbledore and Uncle Sirus to be alive, and Snape to turn out to be a good guy. And I also believe that Neville Longbottom will be a crucial link in the defeat of Voldemort.* (Jesus, am I a total geek, or what?) * hastily edited to fix my typo!

That's the A*Teens, a Swedish group that had a brief career doing mainly covers of Abba tunes. They originally called themselves the "Abba Teens," but the original group slapped them with a lawsuit and made them change their name. The A*Teens did a fantastic non-Abba song a few years ago, "Upside Down (Bouncing Off the Ceiling)," which is one of my favorite foreign pop hits of the last decade. Sadly, it only made it to #93 in the U.S. back in 2001, but it's an absolutely fantastic song, regardless. If anybody wants the MP3, send me an email and I'll get it to you. Or you can buy their Greatest Hits album, which is very listenable (especially when you consider it's a Swedish group singing English lyrics).

I agree with quite a few of the posts above. Me personally, I hear the words and the music, and concentrate most on how they blend together to make the song. My longtime partner, though, never hears the words. He's often amazed that, with only a few seconds' warning, I quickly remember the words to literally thousands and thousands of songs when I listen to music. Yet another useless skill I have. Getting back to the story: the author, David, responded very nicely to my email, and I invited him to spend some time over here. He says he "lurks" here and there, but hasn't jumped into the discussions here. Hopefully he will soon.

Whenever my partner and I see a news story about a group trying to "change" people from gay to straight, we always laugh at the memory of the Queer as Folk episode on the subject. In that show, the (somewhat-effeminate) head of a fictitious gay-to-straight organization tells his audience, "you can change, you can change, you can change!" And Emmett, one of the QAF characters, immediately mutters, "I'd start with those shoes." My other thought is: where are the straight-to-gay conversion groups? That's something I'd like to see, just in the interest of equal time.

I was surpised to see an entire webpage devoted to Gay Pride Week on CNN.com. It had a lot of links to stories I wasn't aware of, and I thought it was both informative and very entertaining. The link is here on CNN. Note that there are both video stores and text stories up there, so you'll need the plug-ins to watch the videos. I was particularly taken by the video story titled "Transgendered Teen's Journey," which recounts the life of a little girl who's wanted to be a boy since she was three or four. What made my jaw drop is the kid looks about 90% like one of my best friends in high school -- who was definitely a boy (and straight). Fascinating story.

Oh, simple. I'd have the other kid say, "I really like that Beatles song you were playing the other day, 'Look Through Any Window'." Then Carter would laugh and respond, "stupid, that's The Hollies. All I listen to is British hits of the 1960s -- Beatles, Stones, Hollies, you name it." Then it would work.

"I Should've Known Better." That's definitely a Beatles tune! (But it only went to #53 in the summer of 1964, from the soundtrack of A Hard Day's Night.)

This is one wacky story. I agree, the next-door neighbor character, Carter, is one of the strangest (yet most fascinating) characters I've seen on Nifty. I just hope this isn't one of those characters who's "bizarre for the sake of being bizarre," and there's no motivation or explanation at all. I'd like to see where the author takes the story in future chapters. (BTW, he did aggravate one of my pet peeves: "Look Through Any Window" was by The Hollies, not The Beatles. I hate it when people get pop culture references wrong in fiction, film, or TV.)

Sincere congrats on the new story. (I promise, I won't call it a sequel!) You know, to me, subsequent novels for James Bond, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and other literary creations aren't necessarily sequels, either. It's more like one long continuous story. Call it "another colorful part of the resplendent tapestry as it unfolds."

Just stumbled on an absolutely beautifully-written story on Nifty tonight. The story is Summersong, written by Richie, and it's thoroughly professional, really poetic, with some very nice subtleties and emotions. Some may find it a little "literary," but I appreciated the fact that the author was trying for something far above the norm, especially for Nifty. It's a very simple tale of two young teenagers who fall in love, but I thought the mood and the characters were really quite charming. (It's also beautifully typeset and laid-out, which is a rarity on Nifty or anywhere else.) The link is here, and I highly, highly recommend the story. Absolutely the best romantic story I've read in months, and very much worthy of a Best of Nifty nod.

Chuck Panozzo, the bass player and founding member of 1970s/1980s rock band Styx, has just published an autobiography in which he reveals he's gay. The book, titled The Grand Illusion: Love, Lies, and My Life With Styx, traces back his confusion over his sexual identity, along with the years of hiding in the closet. The title is a play on words of a previous Styx band biography, Grand Delusion, which told lots of stories of wretched excess, drugs, sex, groupies, and Styx' rise and fall during those tumultuous decades. I don't believe the previous book mentioned Panozzo's sexual preference. I worked on a lot of music videos in the 1980s, and I remember one particular singer (I can confess it was the lead for Loverboy) coming in with the director. I initially paid little attention to the guy, because he was completely bald and seemed like an older gent. After the singer left, I asked the director, "who was that guy?" He pointed at the monitor and said, "that's our star," only on the film, the singer had hair down to his shoulders. I was taken aback, since he had been so completely unrecognizable. The director laughed and explained, "the two things in rock you can't get away with are being gay or being bald." I raised an eyebrow and responded, "but how about Elton John?" He told me, "well, there's always exceptions." (Rob Halford of AC/DC was another.) Still, it's interesting to see that slowly, the public is finding out that more and more rock icons have lives far different than what they suspect, and that gay people were an integral part of the history of rock and pop music over the last 50 years. I hope that more rock and pop stars have the courage to be honest with themselves (and fans), and consider stepping out of the closet. BTW, the book is here on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Illusion-Love-...2865&sr=1-1 I look forward to reading it. In fact, I'm mulling over someday tackling a book on "Gay Rock Stars," including the lives of important producers like Brian Epstein (manager of The Beatles) and Bob Crewe (songwriter/producer for The 4 Seasons). Crewe's character in the new Jersey Boys musical is over-the-top gay. It'll be interesting to see how they handle this in the forthcoming movie (said to be in development).

Des, you win the award for the year for "Best Use of Icons in a Message"!

I think it's yin and yang, Wibby. Some people suck; some people are terrific. Just when I think people are no damned good, a good friend does me a gigantic favor (which I didn't ask for), or I hear about someone doing an incredible good deed. Miracles happen. But children can be particularly cruel, because they don't understand the need for tact, understanding, and tolerance. It takes some people years to learn that, so I pity the idiots that drove this kid to kill himself, and I also pity the kid for not finding a way to be stronger and not get overwhelmed by the insults. Nobody wins in that story.

It's much more complicated than that. Read these books: The Second Coming of Steve Jobs by Alan Deutschman iCon: Steve Jobs, The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business by William Simon and Jeff Young Insanely Great: The Life and Times of Macintosh, the Computer That Changed Everything by Steve Levy Apple Confidential 2.0 by Owen Linzmayer Barbarians Led by Bill Gates: Microsoft from the Inside by Jennifer Edstrom & Eller Marlin Hard Drive: Bill Gates and the Making of the Microsoft Empire by James Wallace & Jim Erickson Breaking Windows: How Bill Gates Fumbled the Future of Microsoft by David Bank. There are many others (most of which I've read), but these will tell you most of the story, from various points of view, and I think you can get a well-rounded view of what really went on over the last 25 years. The reality is that Apple paid Xerox PARC to see their technology, then used it in the original Macintosh, yet Xerox wound up suing (and settling with) Apple, because Xerox felt Apple borrowed more ideas than they had expected. Microsoft outright stole the Macintosh interface when Gates famously told his engineers, "I want the Macintosh interface on the Windows platform." That's the difference. Apple lost the lawsuit because one of the key elements of patents is the problem of "prior art," when something patented turns out to be based on something that somebody else invented. So they basically perfected PARC's interface, but didn't create it from scratch. I believe Jobs has long since abandoned any hatred of Bill Gates or Microsoft, and I think Jobs looks on both as necessary evils, even collaborators, on the road to helping users and making money. I also believe Microsoft is still nervous about being looked upon as a monopoly, and they want to see Apple stay in business so Microsoft don't own 100% of the computer business, for fear of being forced to split up the company. But at the same time, I don't think Jobs respects Microsoft as an innovator. I think he does respect the company as a business, but those are two different things.

It can be. There's no question to me that neither the Mac nor Windows machines would be as good today if the other had never existed. But competition can also be very bad. The old "Beta vs. VHS" competition from the 1970s and 1980s didn't help consumers or manufacturers at all. There have been many similar lessons learned over the years; the latest is HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray DVD, where again, consumers are confused and manufacturers are losing money. Not an easy situation to predict.

Very cool user interface. The first thing I said when I saw it was, "now, if they can just get the icons to float in 3-D, we'll have the Tom Cruise operating system from Minority Report."

Let's face it: both guys are multi-billionaries who made their fortune on a weird combination of being assholes and geniuses, simultaneously. They have more in common than a lot of people think, but it's obvious to me that the main difference is that Steve Jobs has a lot more taste and style. (Steve said as much in a profile on 60 Minutes a year or two ago, and wound up apologizing to Gates, but adding that it was still true.) I think Jobs realizes the Mac needs Microsoft applications in order to keep going, and I personally use Microsoft products every single day. I still hate the company, but I concede that they make good products. In the case of Apple, for years in the early 1990s, Mac fans paraded around conventions with T-shirts that said "Hate Apple... Love the Mac." Apple as a company has made some unbelievably stupid mistakes over the years, but the Mac OS and their current computers are brilliantly done. I also have to say, Windows fans can bash Apple all they like, but in reflection, it's clear to me that Windows Vista would never be as good as it is had the Macintosh never existed. (And vice-versa, too.)

Microsoft has been doing it for more than six years, so it's not like this is something new. I see both sides of it. On the one hand, it's intrusive, but on the other, I can understand a company wanting to get paid every time you put their software on one of your computers. To me, as long as the price is reasonable, I'm OK with it. $40 per computer (if Apple sticks to their past rate of $199 for a "family 5-pack for OSX") doesn't kill me. I do have a problem paying double that for Windows XP, particularly when XP isn't nearly as good an OS as Mac OSX. Anybody know whether Microsoft has a deal to buy multiple copies of XP or Windows for a lower price? As it was, I had to "cheat" and get the OEM version of XP-SP2B from Tigerdirect.com -- a legit copy intended for use with brand-new computers built by independent stores.

I can say, flat-out, the best ripping tools and MP3 conversion utilites I've ever seen (or heard) are from the guys at dBPowerAmp. Fantastic quality, very flexible tools, and they can convert almost anything to almost anything else. Their MP3 Lame encoding is particularly good -- though I confess I'm a curmudgeon when it comes to MP3s. You can get info on their programs here. I also think the best MP3 tagging software is Tag & Rename, from Softpointer. It's the only program of its type that I know of that can work with MP3s, AACs (as used by default in iTunes), lossless FLACs, APEs, and even WAV files. Terrific program. You can get the info on Tag & Rename here. You can try out both programs for free, and they're both shareware costing under $30 or so. Very worthwhile. (I speak only as a satisfied customer, and I have no connection with either company.)

And I'm glad to report that I now (finally) have a legit copy of XP up and running on the Mac, as opposed to my previous "used" copy from my old Sony Vaio. I got tired of the incessant nagging from Windows Gen-u-whine Disadvantage, so I sprung $80 for the OEM version of XP-SP2B from TigerDirect.com. No more nasty messages, and Bill Gates can now call off his hit-men. Note that Apple is rumored to be readying a similar scheme in the next version of Mac OSX (10.5, aka "Leopard"), where users will -- for the first time -- have to pay for and register every copy of the OS that they use, on just one computer. But I'm told they'll continue their "family pack," where you can put their OS on up to five computers for about $150, which to me isn't a bad deal.