© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 11:15 P.M.
I'm borrowing a Buffett song title to report regretfully I've had to cancel my trip to Bouchercon 2016 because the September 1 Amtrak AutoTrain covering 900 miles of the trip was canceled due to inclement weather. The same weather concerns led my relatives to back out of driving, and here we are.
Sorry I won't get to see old friends and make new ones, but I wish you all safe travels and a great con.
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
THE FORSAKEN by Ace Atkins
© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 6:30 A.M.
Before leaving on Thursday for about three weeks on the road winding up at Bouchercon, September 15–18 in New Orleans, I finished reading Ace Atkins' fourth Quinn Colson novel.
Diane Tull, the survivor of a 1977 kidnap attempt during which her best friend was killed, decides to come forward with new information. She tells Sheriff Colson that the black man lynched for the crime was not the real culprit.
Coming to terms with the past is a larger theme of the Colson series, which began with Quinn returning to his hometown for his uncle's funeral in The Ranger. The Forsaken delves most deeply into the past, teasing out history that relates not just to Diane, but to Quinn and town kingpin Johnny Stagg.
Atkins has kept a good handle on the series as it's progressed. Each story is memorable on its own, but also foreshadows future stories. I have the fifth and sixth Colson novels—The Redeemers and The Innocents—but am saving them for after my trip because packing hardcovers isn't packing light.
Diane Tull, the survivor of a 1977 kidnap attempt during which her best friend was killed, decides to come forward with new information. She tells Sheriff Colson that the black man lynched for the crime was not the real culprit.
Coming to terms with the past is a larger theme of the Colson series, which began with Quinn returning to his hometown for his uncle's funeral in The Ranger. The Forsaken delves most deeply into the past, teasing out history that relates not just to Diane, but to Quinn and town kingpin Johnny Stagg.
Atkins has kept a good handle on the series as it's progressed. Each story is memorable on its own, but also foreshadows future stories. I have the fifth and sixth Colson novels—The Redeemers and The Innocents—but am saving them for after my trip because packing hardcovers isn't packing light.
Monday, August 29, 2016
Standing for Ideals
© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com |
Over the weekend, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat through the national anthem, later explaining, "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."
It's Kaepernick's right to protest. Have fellow Americans mistreated me because of my color and beliefs? Yes. But those few don't overshadow the country's ideal of freedom, something it continually aspires to, and to me, what its flag represents, the opposite of oppression.
Moving toward that ideal, it has taken the country's entire history to achieve the practical freedoms we have. Depending on Kaepernick's ideas of oppression and change, we may never see him stand for the anthem again, but it's more important for the country to pursue ideal freedom than to meet one person's idea of freedom.
(SEPT. 8 UPDATE): Since my original post, two other perspectives have influenced my opinion on anthem protests. John Tortorella, coach of Team USA in the World Cup of Hockey, said if any of his players sat during "The Star Spangled Banner" he would sit them for the game. A world competition is a larger platform than the one Kaepernick is on. One would assume people who choose to play on behalf of the U.S. wouldn't sit out the anthem, but Olympic athletes have protested in the past. Then again, in team sports, the coach decides playing time.
Elsewhere, in solidarity with Kaepernick, U.S. Women's Soccer star Megan Rapinoe recently knelt during the anthem before a Sattle Reign match. To prevent a second protest, last night's Reign opponent, the Washington Spirit played the anthem before the teams took the field. The Spirit's reasoning was they didn't want Rapinoe's protest to draw attention away from "an important night for our franchise."
I have two thoughts: First, playing the anthem before teams take the field shows country is more important than individual. Anyone who's been part of a team or a group should be able to empathize, having given of themselves for the collective good.
Second, as Tortorella and others have said, there are ways to show stances in America besides sitting or kneeling out the anthem. The conviction of those who protest should run deeper than this particular sign of protest.
Over the weekend, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat through the national anthem, later explaining, "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."
It's Kaepernick's right to protest. Have fellow Americans mistreated me because of my color and beliefs? Yes. But those few don't overshadow the country's ideal of freedom, something it continually aspires to, and to me, what its flag represents, the opposite of oppression.
Moving toward that ideal, it has taken the country's entire history to achieve the practical freedoms we have. Depending on Kaepernick's ideas of oppression and change, we may never see him stand for the anthem again, but it's more important for the country to pursue ideal freedom than to meet one person's idea of freedom.
(SEPT. 8 UPDATE): Since my original post, two other perspectives have influenced my opinion on anthem protests. John Tortorella, coach of Team USA in the World Cup of Hockey, said if any of his players sat during "The Star Spangled Banner" he would sit them for the game. A world competition is a larger platform than the one Kaepernick is on. One would assume people who choose to play on behalf of the U.S. wouldn't sit out the anthem, but Olympic athletes have protested in the past. Then again, in team sports, the coach decides playing time.
Elsewhere, in solidarity with Kaepernick, U.S. Women's Soccer star Megan Rapinoe recently knelt during the anthem before a Sattle Reign match. To prevent a second protest, last night's Reign opponent, the Washington Spirit played the anthem before the teams took the field. The Spirit's reasoning was they didn't want Rapinoe's protest to draw attention away from "an important night for our franchise."
I have two thoughts: First, playing the anthem before teams take the field shows country is more important than individual. Anyone who's been part of a team or a group should be able to empathize, having given of themselves for the collective good.
Second, as Tortorella and others have said, there are ways to show stances in America besides sitting or kneeling out the anthem. The conviction of those who protest should run deeper than this particular sign of protest.
Saturday, August 13, 2016
Zoe McLellan Leaves NCIS: New Orleans
© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 10:45 A.M.
I'm late to the July 26 news that Zoe McLellan's NCIS: New Orleans character, Meredith Brody, won't be returning for Season 3, a creative decision stemming from Brody's Season 2 romantic dalliance with charismatic Homeland Security infiltrator John Russo (Ivan Sergei).
The casting of McLellan, whom I liked as P.O. Jennifer Coates on JAG, was one reason I bought into NCIS: New Orleans. Brody was awkwardly not fleshed out in the backdoor pilot, NCIS two-parter "Crescent City", but a mid-Season 1 episode revealed she was haunted by her twin sister Emily's death. Season 2 introduced her sassy yet secretive mother Olivia (Annie Potts) and uncovered the truth behind Emily's death.
I suppose, as with NCIS's Kate Todd, Season 2 completed Brody's arc and it was a good point at which to write her out. Sonya Percy (Shalita Grant) got off to a faster start than Brody and can fill the female action lead in her absence. Nonetheless, I'll miss Brody and occasionally wonder what might have been.
I'm late to the July 26 news that Zoe McLellan's NCIS: New Orleans character, Meredith Brody, won't be returning for Season 3, a creative decision stemming from Brody's Season 2 romantic dalliance with charismatic Homeland Security infiltrator John Russo (Ivan Sergei).
The casting of McLellan, whom I liked as P.O. Jennifer Coates on JAG, was one reason I bought into NCIS: New Orleans. Brody was awkwardly not fleshed out in the backdoor pilot, NCIS two-parter "Crescent City", but a mid-Season 1 episode revealed she was haunted by her twin sister Emily's death. Season 2 introduced her sassy yet secretive mother Olivia (Annie Potts) and uncovered the truth behind Emily's death.
I suppose, as with NCIS's Kate Todd, Season 2 completed Brody's arc and it was a good point at which to write her out. Sonya Percy (Shalita Grant) got off to a faster start than Brody and can fill the female action lead in her absence. Nonetheless, I'll miss Brody and occasionally wonder what might have been.
Friday, August 12, 2016
The Sloppy End of the Yankees-A-Rod Era
© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 6:00 A.M.
As a Yankee fan, I never wanted Alex Rodriguez on the team. In his prime, Alex played shortstop, and the Yankees had a shortstop, Derek Jeter. When the Texas Rangers couldn't afford to pay out the 10-year, $252 million contract they made with Alex, and the players' union voided his trade to Boston, the Yankees emerged as the only team that could eat swallow the contract.
Even so, Alex would have to move to third base, and the Yankees had a third baseman, 2003 ALCS hero Aaron Boone, at least until Boone injured his leg in a fateful game of pickup basketball.
Alex's first season in New York was an error-prone media circus as he apparently struggled to fit on the team. Just as he got comfortable, the evidence of steroid use surfaced, his denials, half-admissions, lies, his legal action against the union and the team...
He served the longest MLB player suspension to date, came back and had a nice season last year filling in for an injured Carlos Beltran at DH, surgeries on both hips leaving him without the lateral mobility to play third base. This year, with Beltran healthy, Alex hadn't found a spot in the lineup. When he has played, like many aging Yankees, he's struggled.
Last Sunday, the Yankees announced A-Rod would have one more week as a player before becoming a special advisor to owner Hal Steinbrenner. While it was a sign fences had been mended, it's put an unneeded spotlight on Alex's last days as a Yankee. Despite trading away the best pieces of this year's team, the Yankees still have an outside shot at the playoffs, and the organization hates to throw in the towel completely. That philosophy doesn't jibe with giving Alex this farewell week.
The team could have honored A-Rod later with a quieter ceremony announcing his advisor position, or they could have released him without ceremony. I think A-Rod's stature led everyone to handle his exit too carefully and ultimately incorrectly.
As a Yankee fan, I never wanted Alex Rodriguez on the team. In his prime, Alex played shortstop, and the Yankees had a shortstop, Derek Jeter. When the Texas Rangers couldn't afford to pay out the 10-year, $252 million contract they made with Alex, and the players' union voided his trade to Boston, the Yankees emerged as the only team that could eat swallow the contract.
Even so, Alex would have to move to third base, and the Yankees had a third baseman, 2003 ALCS hero Aaron Boone, at least until Boone injured his leg in a fateful game of pickup basketball.
Alex's first season in New York was an error-prone media circus as he apparently struggled to fit on the team. Just as he got comfortable, the evidence of steroid use surfaced, his denials, half-admissions, lies, his legal action against the union and the team...
He served the longest MLB player suspension to date, came back and had a nice season last year filling in for an injured Carlos Beltran at DH, surgeries on both hips leaving him without the lateral mobility to play third base. This year, with Beltran healthy, Alex hadn't found a spot in the lineup. When he has played, like many aging Yankees, he's struggled.
Last Sunday, the Yankees announced A-Rod would have one more week as a player before becoming a special advisor to owner Hal Steinbrenner. While it was a sign fences had been mended, it's put an unneeded spotlight on Alex's last days as a Yankee. Despite trading away the best pieces of this year's team, the Yankees still have an outside shot at the playoffs, and the organization hates to throw in the towel completely. That philosophy doesn't jibe with giving Alex this farewell week.
The team could have honored A-Rod later with a quieter ceremony announcing his advisor position, or they could have released him without ceremony. I think A-Rod's stature led everyone to handle his exit too carefully and ultimately incorrectly.
Thursday, August 04, 2016
Gerald Goes to Misses Bouchercon 2016
AUG. 30 UPDATE: Bouchercon 2016 was to be part of a road trip for me to begin September 1, but the Amtrak AutoTrain covering 900 miles of the trip was canceled due to inclement weather. The same weather concerns caused the trip's other drivers to back out. I regret I won't be able to see old friends and make new ones, but I wish you all safe travels and a great con. Here are the panels I would have attended:
- Thursday, September 15, 12:00–12:50 P.M., LaGalleries 6: "One More Time" - Novels and characters taking on another life on screen w/ Lee Goldberg, Alexandra Sokoloff, David Morrell, Burt Weissbourd, Nina Sadowsky, and Phoeff Sutton.
- 1:30–2:20 P.M. - Mardi Gras FG: "Jive Talking" - Humor w/ Jessie Chandler, Ryan Aldred, Shelly Costa, Ray Daniel, Parnell Hall, and Kendell Lynn.
- 3:00–3:50 P.M. - Mardi Gras FG: "Dead Man's Party" - Realities of Death Investigation w/ Ayo Onatade, Jan Burke, Karen Ross, D.P. Lyle, Alistar Kimble, Eileen Dreyer.
- 5:15–6:15 P.M. - Balconies LMN, 4th Floor: "Once Upon a Crime: Minotaur Authors Collaborate Live on a Short Story"
- Friday, September 16, 9:30–10:20 A.M. - LaGalleries 6: "Me and My Friends" - Writing groups w/ Eleanor Cawood Jones, Donna Andrews, Ellen Crosby, John Gilstrap, Alan Orloff, and Art Taylor.
- 11:00–11:50 A.M. - Mardi Gras D: "Murder By Numbers" - Ellery Queen w/ James Lincoln Warren, EQMM editor Janet Hutchings, Shelley Dickson Carr, Ted Hertel, Steve Steinbock, and Otto Penzler.
- 2:00–2:50 P.M. - LaGalleries 6: "Dirty Boulevard" - Hardboiled w/ Susan Alice Bickford, Craig Faustus Buck, Rob Hart, Barbara Nickless, Todd Robinson, and Lisa Turner.
- 3:30–4:20 P.M. - LaGalleries 1: "The Boxer" - Writing violence w/ Zoë Sharp, Sheila Redling, Melinda Leigh, Thomas Pluck, E.A. Aymar, and Taylor Stevens.
- Saturday, September 17, 9:00-9:50 A.M. - Bissonet: Weapons with Jim Born
- 10:30-11:20 A.M. - Mardi Gras E: "Thrift Shop" - Ideas from unusual places w/ Lori Rader-Day, Henry Chang, Alex Grecian, Carolyn Haines, Brian Thiem, and Karen E. Olson.
- 12:00-12:50 P.M. - Mardi Gras ABC: "Bad to the Bone" - Anti-heroes w/ Chris Holm, David Swinson, Peter Spiegelman, Ian Hamilton, David Corbett, and Rory Flynn.
- 1:30-2:20 P.M. - Mardi Gras ABC: "24 Frames" - Influence of movies and TV on crime fiction w/ Matt Goldman, Peter Blauner, John Connell, Danny Gardner, John Shepphird, and Ace Atkins.
- Sunday, September 18, 9:00–10:00 A.M. - LaGalleries 1: "Watch That Man" - Thrillers w/ Russel McLean, Robert Bailey, Boyd Morrison, Doug Johnston, Edward Kay, and Julia McDermott.
- 10:30–11:30 A.M. - Mardi Gras ABC: "Master of Puppets" - Manipulating your characters to get the story you want w/ G.J. Brown, Jim Sanderson, Mary Coley, Maegan Beaumont, Cathi Stoler, and Matthew FitzSimmons.
My Feelings on Fan Fiction
© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 9:30 A.M.
This week's 7 Criminal Minds question: What do you think about fan fiction? Have you ever written any yourself?
Fan fiction was long considered infringement on a creator's copyright because fans would write about characters without the creator's approval. I'm against that sense of fan fiction. I'm also against fan fiction in general because it puts off a writer's time working with his or her own characters, the most fulfilling part of writing.
Fan fiction should be distinguished from licensed tie-in or continuation novels, such as the post-Ian Fleming James Bond novels, Lee Goldberg's Diagnosis Murder and Adrian Monk novels, or Ace Atkins's Spenser novels, rightfully approved by the creator or the creator's estate. I approve of and have enjoyed many of these, but continuation authors are often overlooked in the shadows of the franchises for which they write. Developing and shopping your own franchise brings you the most credit.
Have I written fan fiction myself? In 1999 or 2000, before I was aware of copyright infringement, I frequented a message board for the short-lived 1998 TV show Vengeance Unlimited, which starred Michael Madsen as enigmatic do-gooder Mr. Chapel, who nonetheless may have been psychotic. Members of the board and I began to write a fan story one passage at a time. Another member of the board was a fellow Spenser fan, and she brought Spenser into the story. I contributed some passages with Spenser. Sometime after the show was canceled, the board shut down, and I posted the complete story to my website.
Lucky for me, I learned about copyright infringement and took the story down before any lawyers had to tell me.
This week's 7 Criminal Minds question: What do you think about fan fiction? Have you ever written any yourself?
Fan fiction was long considered infringement on a creator's copyright because fans would write about characters without the creator's approval. I'm against that sense of fan fiction. I'm also against fan fiction in general because it puts off a writer's time working with his or her own characters, the most fulfilling part of writing.
Fan fiction should be distinguished from licensed tie-in or continuation novels, such as the post-Ian Fleming James Bond novels, Lee Goldberg's Diagnosis Murder and Adrian Monk novels, or Ace Atkins's Spenser novels, rightfully approved by the creator or the creator's estate. I approve of and have enjoyed many of these, but continuation authors are often overlooked in the shadows of the franchises for which they write. Developing and shopping your own franchise brings you the most credit.
Have I written fan fiction myself? In 1999 or 2000, before I was aware of copyright infringement, I frequented a message board for the short-lived 1998 TV show Vengeance Unlimited, which starred Michael Madsen as enigmatic do-gooder Mr. Chapel, who nonetheless may have been psychotic. Members of the board and I began to write a fan story one passage at a time. Another member of the board was a fellow Spenser fan, and she brought Spenser into the story. I contributed some passages with Spenser. Sometime after the show was canceled, the board shut down, and I posted the complete story to my website.
Lucky for me, I learned about copyright infringement and took the story down before any lawyers had to tell me.
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