Along with great talent and success, The Hemingway family also were given the burden of mental illness, depression and even suicide. Surviving granddaughter, Mariel Hemingway tells her story in a new documentary called RUNNING FROM CRAZY (premiering this Sunday at 9pm ET on The OWN Network). Mariel talks about what drove her to put her demons in front of a camera. Plus Columbian superstar, Carolina Guerra, turns exotic this season on DAVINCI’S DEMONS and that FARSCAPE movie just may be real.
So there I was, flailing around for this week’s topic. The clock was ticking and time was running out. And then it hit me like a wet sock on the end of my nose – it’s appearing on Sunday, which happens to be my birthday. Not only my birthday but my 65th birthday which is supposed to be one of those big hoohah numbers. A milestone (I hope Brother Michael Davis lets me use that word). It marks me officially as a Senior Citizen (as if my balding pattern and gray to white hair hadn’t already done that).
I’m doing all of those things you’re supposed to do at this age. Join AARP? Done that. Applied for Social Security and Medicare? Done and done. Gimme that governmental teat to suckle. Sorry, Junior, but I’m soaking up your financial future and destroying your freedoms. Ask various media.
Except, of course, they don’t give me all that much. Of course, there may not be Social Security by the time you reach my age but I didn’t think it would be there when I reached this age so who knows?
And, of course, I’m going to retire.
Not.
Even if I could afford to retire (which I can’t), why would I stop writing? I love this gig. It’s part of my bones at this point. This is what I do, this is what I am. Writing isn’t like playing sports; the knees may go but, with writers, so long as your mind isn’t completely shot (careful!), the probability is that you can just keep getting better and I think, I hope, I believe that I have.
Regrets, I have a few but then again too few too mention.
Crap. I’m quoting “My Way”. I’m not a fan of the song. Too self congratulatory for me. The only ones who can sing it and make it work are Frank Sinatra and John Cleese at the end of George of the Jungle.
Crap. Now I have it running through my head.
Crap. Now I have the disco version running through my head.
Yeah, now it’s going through yours too, right? You’re welcome.
Anyway, I can look back and see some things I do wish I had done differently. I wish I had done a few more creator-owned projects. Balancing those against the for-hire work is generally a better idea, I think. Folks like Peter David and Mark Waid have done a real good job of that, I think.
I also wish I had gotten into prose more, gotten some novels under my belt. Again, folks like Peter David have done a good job with that. Yes, there are times I wish I was Peter David. Most of the time I’m fine with being me but there are times. . .
But know what? I’m 65. I’m not dead. There’s time to make changes and start doing both prose and creator owned projects. My paternal grandfather lived to be 100 and his daughter lived to be 101. In this day of crowdfunding, it’s more possible than ever to get new work out there.
And I have new projects I’m working on with partners I’ve worked with before. There’s possibilities of a novel or two that I’m actively pursuing. One of the projects that I’m doing with Tom Mandrake, Kros, you may have seen mentioned on Facebook. Timothy Truman, Mike Gold and I are discussing more GrimJack. Lots of stuff I can’t discuss yet but I hope to tell folks soon.
And I’m on social media. I have my Facebook page, I have my Twitter account. Still learning how to use the latter but I’m out there pitching.
When you get right down to it, 65 is just another number. It doesn’t really mean anything in and of itself; the meaning is what we ascribe to it. Getting old? Naw. Pulling back? Hell no. Going to Tahiti? Well, I wouldn’t say no but not on a permanent basis.
He’s the iconic TV Dad of the eighties – Alan Thicke is back with a new series that is part reality, part sitcom. Alan previews UNUSUALLY THICKE (which runs Wednesday on the TV Guide Network), plus Olympic Gold Winner (and DANCING WITH THE STARS Champ), Apolo Anton Ono talks to us about tough times in the ballroom and hosting MINUTE TO WIN IT for GSN.
COMMUNITY’s Jim Rash is back in THE WRITER’S ROOM for another season, and he previews it all here for us including an episode dedicated exclusively to comic book shows. Plus Tyler Labine talks about his new paranormal comedy, DEADBEAT, which is ready for your binge watching and Thanos will pull the Marvel Universe closer together.
…first and foremost, the Hero Initiative. Thanks to you, the Hero Initiative has raised over $700 to help comic creators in need. Thank you to everyone who contributed.
Second, all the participants in the tournament. We were getting widespread reports of traffic spikes at many sites, and we saw thousands of clicks away from our sites to various webcomics. We hope that you have discovered a few new strips that you enjoy and can follow.
Third, what do you think of our Ryan Seacrest impersonation? We spent a lot of time looking at him to see how we could stretch out the time before we announce the winner.
I don’t like to brag, but over the weekend, I deflowered three virgins.
Oh, who am I kidding? I love to brag.
Lest you think my sex life is more interesting than it actually is, I mean the above statement metaphorically. As you know if your’e female, breaking in virgins isn’t really that entertaining. Instead, what I will now describe is how I took three friends to their first comic book convention.
Going to your first anything can be intimidating, even something as simple as a county fair or a school dance. Every event that has occurred more than once has a history. Often, there are traditions and customs with which you are unfamiliar. The way the media portrays comic book conventions, whether on Entourage or The Big Bang Theory or next year’s talk show wars, can be unnerving for newbies. Does one need to dress as a Stormtrooper? How do you know what you’re looking at?
At MoCCA, my friends didn’t have to figure it out. The tables were welcoming, with clear signage, lots of books on display, and friendly smiles by the creators (at least on Saturday, when I was there. The closest thing to cosplay was aggressive hipster-ism, which I noted primarily through the prominent number of heads adorned with hats.
Best of all, my friends didn’t require an undergraduate degree in graphic story-telling to be drawn to the books. Two of my friends are leftist political history junkies, and I soon lost track of them as they found book after book that intrigued them. My other friend, who shares my love of the obscure laugh, joined me in celebrating a new book from Shannon Wheeler and various other booths. There was one by a woman whom I think was named Stevie Wilson, who had a sign claiming her books were all about coffee, feminism and cats.
Everything I want in one place. I wish I could find her again. Stevie (if that is your name), please tell me how to buy your books.
I hope that, when my friends go home, they continue to be curious about graphic story-telling, and start to explore the kinds of books that appeal to them. I hope find more joy.
And next year, if they’re in New York at the right time, I hope they go to MoCCA with me again. Perhaps, for the occasion, we will all dress up like John Lewis.
The International Association of Media Tie-In Writers (www.iamtw.org) is pleased to announce the nominees for the 2014 Scribe Awards, recognizing excellence in the field of media tie-in writing: books based on movies, TV shows and games. The winners will be announced and awards presented in July at a ceremony and panel discussion at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Best Adaptation (Novelization) [[[Man of Steel]]] by Greg Cox [[[Pacific Rim]]] by Alex Irvine [[[47 Ronin]]] by Joan D. Vinge
Best General Novel (Original) [[[Murder She Wrote: Close-Up on Murder]]] by Donald Bain [[[The Executioner: Sleeping Dragons]]] by Michael A. Black [[[Mr. Monk Helps Himself]]] by Hy Conrad [[[Leverage: The Bestseller Job]]] by Greg Cox [[[Leverage: The Zoo Job]]] by Keith R. A. DeCandido
Best Speculative Novel (Original) [[[Fringe: The Zodiac Paradox]]] by Christa Faust [[[Supernatural: Fresh Meat]]] by Alice Henderson [[[Star Wars: Kenobi]]] by John Jackson Miller [[[Supernatural: The Roads Not Taken]]] by Tim Waggoner [[[Star Trek: From History’s Shadow]]] by Dayton Ward
Best Short Story
“The Dark Hollows of Memory” (Warhammer 40,000) by David Annandale
“Locks and Keys” (Shadowrun) by Jennifer Brozek
“So Long, Chief” (Mike Hammer) by Max Allan Collins and Mickey Spillane
“Savior” (After Earth) by Michael Jan Friedman
“Redemption” (After Earth) by Robert Greenberger
“Mirror Image” (Star Trek) by Christine M. Thompson
Best Young Adult [[[Kevin]]] by Paul Kupperberg [[[Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2]]] by Stacia Deutsch [[[The Croods]]] by Tracey West
Best Audio Book [[[Dark Shadows: The Phantom Bride]]] by Mark Thomas Passmore [[[Dark Shadows: The Flip Side]]] by Cody Quijano-Schell [[[Blake’s 7: The Armageddon Storm]]] by Cavan Scott and Mark Wright
The IAMTW was created seven years ago by Max Allan Collins and Lee Goldberg and has over 200 members, all professional, published authors who write books based on movies, TV shows, and games. To find out more about the Scribe Awards, and lists of previous winners & nominees, visit
You’ve followed the contest for a month, and now… the grand finale!
Into the Final Mix March Madness 2014 Webcomics Tournament Thunderdome… it’s Paranatural vs. Grrl Power!
(To see the previous brackets, go back to Round 4.)
[socialpoll id=”2196107″]
As usual, we’re letting you support your favorite strips by paying for additional votes, with your money going to charity. Simply click on the Donate button below, and during checkout, click on “Which comic are you donating for?” and tell us who you’re voting for. For the final round, we’re raising the price a bit to 50¢ a vote, with a minimum of two votes purchased at a time. All proceeds from paid votes will go to the Hero Initiative, an organization that helps comic book creators in need. At the close of the round, we’ll add the paid votes to the totals and announce the winners who move on to the brackets. (And yes, your donations to Hero are tax deductible.)
So far, we’ve raised over $538 for creators in need, let’s see how far we can go!
Voting ends at midnight Eastern Time on Friday night! Good luck to everyone!
