Words are like oxygen
I’m a big fan of heist shows. The Sting, Catch Me If You Can, the sanctioned heists of Mission Impossible, the doing-it-for-the-little-guy heists of Leverage, the for-the-hell-of-it larceny of Hustle. Even the cons in the gods-battling-to-rule-the-world story of American Gods. I don’t imagine I’d be as enamoured of a real life attempt on my worldly goods, though I flatter myself […]
» Read moreGary: So. That’s… good television, is it? Lissa: Many consider it so. Gary: But it’s just all weird dresses and weirder hats, and everyone finding fancy ways of being obnoxious or stupid. Lissa: Truly, is that all you garnered from it? Gary: Why are you talking funny? Lissa: There is nothing peculiar in my… oh god. Bugger. Sorry. I reread […]
» Read moreTomorrow, In a Year is an opera based on the work and life of Charles Darwin. It is performed by Danish art collective, Hotel Pro Forma, with music by Swedish electronic band, The Knife. It contains opera, dance, avant garde music, projections, smoke effects, laser light effects, Darwin’s text ‘written’ in light on a screen, and very unconventional lyrics taken […]
» Read moreHalloween draws nigh. So do copies of Best New Zombie Tales Vol 2 containing my story The Truth About Brains. In honour of these two events I have a copy of Best New Zombie Tales Vol 2 to give away as first prize! Other prizes may follow, depending on the number of entries. One entry per person! The comp? Invent […]
» Read moreIf you’re looking for something to do at Halloween, the Continuum Convention folks are holding a fundraising quiz night. I’ll be MCing the event! It’s on Saturday 30 October from 8-10pm at the Brian Boru Function Room at the Celtic Club at 316/320 Queen St, Melbourne. Full details are on their Facebook Event Page. I will also be in Perth […]
» Read moreMy short zombie story, The Truth About Brains, is now available!! It was published in the Canadian zombie anthology, Best New Zombie Tales (volume 2), edited by James Roy Daley. This is the story that begins: “My little brother Dylan is dead, but that doesn’t stop him from being a pest. He still follows me everywhere, and Mum still makes […]
» Read moreMany people met Robert Shearman at Aussiecon 4 in September, and we bandied about words like ‘funny’ and ‘adorable’ and ‘wicked’. Well, I bandied them at any rate. And Rob Shearman is all those things. He is also sharp, smart and extraordinarily gifted. I picked up Love Songs for the Shy and Cynical because I like Rob Shearman, I liked […]
» Read moreSome things have been jarring me lately. Jarring me until my teeth ache. So please excuse me while I have a language rant. I love language. I love learning new words and phrases, and I love discovering how those phrases came to be. Etymology – the account of how words and phrases originated – is of endless fascination to me. […]
» Read moreI remember discovering the stories of Sherlock Holmes. After years of being familiar with the character through films, pastiches and pop culture references, I sat down to watch the Jeremy Brett TV series in the 1990s. It was so unlike the character as portrayed elsewhere that I was intrigued. This Holmes was not kindly and avuncular, but sharp and difficult. […]
» Read moreLissa: Vladimir Tod reminds me of you! Gary: A friendless, nerdy kid who’s beaten up by bullies and is clueless with girls? Lissa: No! Dope. I mean a kid trying to find out the rules of vampirism who watches a lot of vampire films and doesn’t eat people. Gary: Oh. Lissa: And you’re not friendless. Gary: I have one friend. […]
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