Writing, Watching, Puppies
Wow! I've had one of those bizarrely productive days I read about on other people's blogs, but never quite believe are real. I've typed "The End" on the first draft of "The Fairy Killers" and am madly happy about how it turned out. I cooked, with wholly horrific results. I cycled. I cleaned. I bought vegan ice-cream. It's like I'm one of those super-persons that Netflix are making series about.
I've even found time in the last few weeks to watch everything under the sun. Far too much to blog about here, really, but a quick summary can't hurt too many people.
WATCHING
Yup, I've seen it all. I like Netflix's Better Call Saul, although some of the episodes grab me more than others. I particularly adored the one from last week, called Marco.
Other Netflixy stuff? There's quite a lot of it at the moment, isn't there? It's of very high quality, but it's not all good. Bloodline, in particular disappointed me, for all that the first ten minutes of episode one were gorgeous. But I just don't care about any of it, or any of them. I can't.
Daredevil is much more enjoyable, but nowhere near as brilliant as most of the internet appears to think. It always seems to me that people who like superhero stuff add 20% to their review scores and close their eyes to the most appalling clichés with the remark, "Well, what do you expect? That's superheros!" But yes, I'm up to episode 5 and will certainly watch the rest of the series, because, in spite of the clichés, it does the most important things right: an interesting and likeable lead character; an interesting villain. And violence.
What else?
I'm giving Orphan Black a second chance. I have made it up to episode 5 this time and am beginning to enjoy just how well the main actor portrays her many roles and how much fun she is having with them. The plot should grab me more than it's doing, but I'm not ready to quit just yet.
PUPPIES
The entire internet has given its opinion about the Sad Puppies Hugo controversy, so why not me?
I'm going to shock a lot of my friends by saying I have a lot of sympathy for their cause. I too, have found the Hugo shortlists awful these last few years. There are exceptions; some fabulous stories still make it through. But yes, I confess that when reading some of them over the last few years, I have thought that there was no way a particular work could have made it onto the ballot unless dozens of people were voting their friendships or their politics.
But that's a popular vote for you. Any popular vote. And all my sympathy comes to a screeching halt with the introduction of a voting slate. Two wrongs do not make a right, and this became crystal clear last year, because the stuff the puppies voted onto the 2014 ballot was even worse, a lot worse in some cases, than the normal dreck, which was at least well-written dreck, or ambitious dreck.
You know what my plan to fix the Hugos is? I'm going to read a crapton of fiction, and every time I come across something that excites me, I'm going to say so right here on this blog. If enough people do that, genuinely great stuff like Robert Jackson Bennett's City of Stairs might not be shut out of the awards next time around... by a Slate.
All my opinions are just opinions. Except they're my opinions and therefore special.
Anyway, time for some of that ice-cream. Who wants some?
I've even found time in the last few weeks to watch everything under the sun. Far too much to blog about here, really, but a quick summary can't hurt too many people.
WATCHING
Yup, I've seen it all. I like Netflix's Better Call Saul, although some of the episodes grab me more than others. I particularly adored the one from last week, called Marco.
Other Netflixy stuff? There's quite a lot of it at the moment, isn't there? It's of very high quality, but it's not all good. Bloodline, in particular disappointed me, for all that the first ten minutes of episode one were gorgeous. But I just don't care about any of it, or any of them. I can't.
Daredevil is much more enjoyable, but nowhere near as brilliant as most of the internet appears to think. It always seems to me that people who like superhero stuff add 20% to their review scores and close their eyes to the most appalling clichés with the remark, "Well, what do you expect? That's superheros!" But yes, I'm up to episode 5 and will certainly watch the rest of the series, because, in spite of the clichés, it does the most important things right: an interesting and likeable lead character; an interesting villain. And violence.
What else?
I'm giving Orphan Black a second chance. I have made it up to episode 5 this time and am beginning to enjoy just how well the main actor portrays her many roles and how much fun she is having with them. The plot should grab me more than it's doing, but I'm not ready to quit just yet.
PUPPIES
The entire internet has given its opinion about the Sad Puppies Hugo controversy, so why not me?
I'm going to shock a lot of my friends by saying I have a lot of sympathy for their cause. I too, have found the Hugo shortlists awful these last few years. There are exceptions; some fabulous stories still make it through. But yes, I confess that when reading some of them over the last few years, I have thought that there was no way a particular work could have made it onto the ballot unless dozens of people were voting their friendships or their politics.
But that's a popular vote for you. Any popular vote. And all my sympathy comes to a screeching halt with the introduction of a voting slate. Two wrongs do not make a right, and this became crystal clear last year, because the stuff the puppies voted onto the 2014 ballot was even worse, a lot worse in some cases, than the normal dreck, which was at least well-written dreck, or ambitious dreck.
You know what my plan to fix the Hugos is? I'm going to read a crapton of fiction, and every time I come across something that excites me, I'm going to say so right here on this blog. If enough people do that, genuinely great stuff like Robert Jackson Bennett's City of Stairs might not be shut out of the awards next time around... by a Slate.
All my opinions are just opinions. Except they're my opinions and therefore special.
Anyway, time for some of that ice-cream. Who wants some?