#Gary Olson

[bandcampsnoop]

9/2/24.

Gary Olson. He's been a part of many of my favorite bands - mostly as a producer (he's always working with Phil Sutton). Sometimes I forget that his band, The Ladybug Transistor (Brooklyn, New York) was magical in its own right.

"The Ablemarle Sound" is being reissued by Happy Happy Birthday To Me (HHBTM Records) with bonus tracks. I hear so many great things in this record: The Kinks, The Four Seasons ("The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette), or The Heavy Blinkers come immediately to mind. This album almost sounds Scottish - I just can't help but think of later era Pastels or BMX Bandits when I hear the lush arrangements.

Members of the band went on to form other great bands such as The Essex Green and The Garment District.

[the-lean-buddha]

My thoughts on the news about The Long Walk's film adaption

I have very little faith that The Long Walk will be a good adaption but maybe I'll be wrong! I can dream, and I've been wrong before. Here are my thoughts on the casting announcements and set pictures.

Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson are the leads, according to Deadline, which means they're presumably Garraty and McVries. Jonsson seems like a good actor but an awful fit for either character, and with Hoffman (presumably Garraty) it comes down to how good an actor he is, I guess, because I can see it working if I squint but I haven't seen anything from Hoffman to suggest he can do Garraty. And I reaaaaally doubt he could do McVries. McVries has a bite to him.

Joshua Odjick is Native American so he's presumably Joe or Mike (not to say that a different character couldn't theoretically be Native American in the adaption, but it's key to Joe and Mike that none of the other Walkers understand their culture at all, and only Baker defends their parents). It's odd that either of those two would have a prominent enough role to be cast already, so I wonder if either one of their roles is beefed up, or if Mike and Scramm will be a composite character and Joe won't feature at all. Alternatively, Odjick isn't playing a Native American character (or he is but Mike and Joe are adapted out), in which case I'd guess Parker.

Roman Griffin Davis is someone I've only ever seen in Jojo Rabbit so I don't know how much range he has. I think he'd fit best as Barkovitch but I wouldn't be surprised if he's been cast as Baker or Olson.

Charlie Plummer is Stebbins. I say this almost entirely because he's a long-haired blonde. If McVries is black then book descriptions (and characterizations, let's be honest, you can't make McVries a black kid in the 70s and keep his character the same) are thrown out the door already, but google Charlie Plummer and tell me he's not been cast as Stebbins. Also, take a look at this.

Ben Wang is Asian American and there are no explicitly Asian American characters, so we've gotta guess this one purely on Vibes (Olson and Barkovitch could both be canonically Asian American, but Barkovitch is openly racist, so). From Wang's YouTube channel and some clips of Chinese Born American I found, he's a nice and playful guy (hmu Ben let's get a lemonade, also tell me who you're playing), so I'd assume Baker or Olson or Abraham because they fit that the closest, I guess? But this is unfortunately a flawed way of guessing because actors playing lunatics are sometimes normal people in real life, walking among us, going almost undetected.

Tut Nyuot's a young, sweet-looking kid. I'd assume Percy? Again, weird to cast Percy already because he doesn't even have any lines in the book, but I can't imagine Nyuout playing a character who's supposed to be the same age as Charlie Plummer's character. Maybe he's unexpectedly good at playing deranged assholes like Barkovitch? We'll see.

For Garrett Wareing I'd say Olson, looking through clips and interviews.

Jordan Gonzalez gives me no strong impression. Sorry, Jordan. Feel free to give me a stronger one over lemonade (and tell me who you're playing). If I'm held at gunpoint then I'll say Abraham.

Mark Hamill is presumably playing the Major. He's absolutely not who I would have picked because he overflows with character and I always pictured the Major as a stoic, empty Big Brother type figure, whose moments of charisma and friendliness were obviously just an act. And I guess Hamill could play that, but I think the Major will more likely have a lot more personality and vim and vigor in the movie, if Hamill was cast - he's easily the biggest draw in the cast. Not necessarily a bad way to portray the Major, but easier to mess up. We'll wait and see.

Judy Greer as presumably Mrs. Garraty will presumably be fine.

Set photos look promising, aesthetically. No half-track, though. And there's a tank. Why is there a tank?

There's a Deadline article suggesting that there are only 50 kids and the pace limit is 3mph. But there's also an article suggesting it's still 100 kids so it might be a mistake? If it's 50 kids then that's presumably done for practicality but it's a bad change, the number will either get too low too fast or it'll drop too slowly (and also no 47 and 61 which would be weird but that's not significant). 3mph isn't necessarily bad, it's more feasible, but it does mean the "first into Massachusetts in seventeen years" can't happen. Maybe they'll make New Hampshire the record instead.

i want lemonade

Reblog with your thoughts! We've got news, people, and I'm sure someone somewhere is more excited about that than I am. Let's get some discussion going on in here.

[seralica]

watched Dan Olson/Folding Ideas analysis of the Somerton "response", and boy HOWDY is he smart

he uses his own knowledge of Canadian filmmaking and the industry here to get into some details about why James is full of shit

If you need any reason to sub to the Folding Ideas Patreon, here it is with his new 30 minute video about the situation go sub and watch it

[graphicpolicy]

Copro Gallery Celebrates Hellboy’s 30th Anniversary with an Art Show Curated by Gary Deocampo

Copro Gallery Celebrates Hellboy’s 30th Anniversary with an Art Show Curated by Gary Deocampo #mikemignola #hellboy

2024 marks the 30th anniversary of one of the most influential independent comic characters in pop culture: Hellboy. Mike Mignola’s iconic character has inspired artists working in every medium for decades. To celebrate Hellboy and Mignola’s legacy, curator Gary Deocampo has assembled a group exhibition with over 40 artists paying tribute to Hellboy with paintings, drawings and sculptures. The…

[gwox]

If It Doesn't Make You Squirm… [Brutal Light]

Recently, I went over the links in my old promotional page for my debut (and so far only) novel Brutal Light from 2011, and discovered that a bunch of the links were dead. Which shouldn't be surprising, since blogs come and go, and these essays and interviews came out twelve years ago now. So over the next few months, I'm going to be reposting these here, starting with "If It Doesn't Make You Squirm...", which I originally wrote for Lincoln Crisler's blog on 12/6/11.

One of the most valuable bits of writing advice I ever read (from a source, sadly, I can no longer recall) went something like this: "If it doesn't make you squirm, it won't make the reader squirm." It was a passing bit of advice with no context--at least, none that I recall--but it's stuck with me like nothing else, and is always at the back of my mind whenever I write.

The first question as a reader you might ask is 'Why would you want to make me squirm? What did I ever do to you?' (That is, unless your first question is 'Are you wearing pants?' If so, you're likely already squirming.) To me, as a fiction writer, it means I've connected with you on a fundamental level--it means I've successfully put you 'behind the eyes' of my main characters and gotten you to feel what they feel. I've somehow connected you with their terrors, trials, exhilarations, despairs, and joys. Ultimately, it means I've given you an experience that will stay with you a while.

So why do I, as a writer, have to squirm to make that happen? I got myself a nice cushioned chair to sit in while writing and possibly being pants-less, so why would I make myself uncomfortable in it?

To me, it means sincerity shouldn't be faked. A writer who unflinchingly faces her or his fears will be able to write those fears with an authenticity that a writer who doesn't want to step outside of his or her comfort zone will find hard to duplicate. I'm not just talking about the things that are stock-in-trade for a dark fantasy or horror genre writer--vampires, zombies, serial killers, giant snakes, and the like. There are day-to-day fears that are even harder to face with honesty.

Take the fear of opening yourself up to another person--to not only admitting your vulnerabilities to yourself but letting your guard down so that someone you love can see them and possibly mock you for having them. Take the fear that you will someday be forced to look at what's beneath the carefully woven tapestry of words you call your identity, and you'll discover that there's nothing there. Take the fear that you'll end up alone, that the one you're with will wise up and leave you, and she or he will be right in their judgment. Even if these are not your fears, specifically, chances are you have others that cut this deep.

Horror and dark fantasy provide canvases like none other to explore these fears. Zombies, vampires, cannibals, werewolves, and even stranger beasts can give voice to our fears of what the world holds, and the desires we publically disdain while privately fantasizing about. There's nothing like a demon for uttering something cruel and monstrous, which may be a lie but is even more terrifying if it is true.

I have fears. They make me squirm, when I give them too close an examination. So I write them--grossly magnified and distorted, mixed in with things from the dead places and lots of bloody mayhem. I have no idea if they'll make you, the reader, squirm--my squirming is just a prerequisite, not a guarantee of success, and my fears may not be yours--but you'll know I've taken my best shot.

By the way, I am wearing pants. There's enough fear in the world without people wondering about that.***

Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and a contributor to the dark fiction anthologies Fairly Wicked Tales and The C.A.M. Charity Anthology: Horror and Science Fiction #1. His blog originates here.

[ruinedholograms]

(1978-1989)

Hiroshi Yoshimura - Green

Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle

Fumio Miyashita - Wave (Sounds of the Universe)

Laurie Spiegel - The Expanding Universe

Angel Olson - Aisles

Howard Shore - Videodrome

Brian Eno - Ambient 4 (On Land)

Brian Eno - Apollo (Atmospheres & Soundtracks)

Vangelis - Blade Runner

The New American Orchestra - Blade Runner (Orchestral Adaptations)

The Reds | Michael Rubini - Manhunter

John Williams - The Return Of The Jedi

Michele Mercure - Pictures of Echoes

Tryanglz | Brad Fiedel - The Terminator

Ryuichi Sakamoto - Left Handed Dream

David Byrne & Brian Eno - My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Giorgio Mororder - Scarface 

Piper - Gentle Breeze

V/A - Pacific Breeze

Steve Hiett - Down On The Road By The Beach

John Williams - Superman: The Movie

Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine

Piper - Summer Breeze

Pixies - Surfer Rosa

[bookaddict24-7]

(New Young Adult Releases Coming Out Today! (September 3rd, 2024)

___

Have I missed any new Young Adult releases? Have you added any of these books to your TBR? Let me know!

___

New Releases:

Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma

The Monstrous Kind by Lydia Gregovic

When Haru Was Here by Dustin Thao

Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White

Second Chance On Earth by Juan Vidal

The Ghost of You by Michael Gray Bulla

Guava & Grudges by Alexis Castellanos

The Loss of the Burying Ground by J. Anderson Coats

Luminous Beings by David Arnold & José Pimienta (illustrator)

Girlmode by Magdalene Visaggio & Paulina Ganucheau (Illustrator)

Fairy Godmother by Jen Calonita

Us in Ruins by Rachel Moore

Please Be My Star by Victoria Grace Elliott

The Dagger & the Flame by Catherine Doyle

Songlight by Moira Buffini

Mismatched by Anne Camlin

Welcome to Fear City by Sarah Dvojack

This Book Kills by Ravena Guron

Repeat After Me by Jessica Warman

I'm Not Really Here by Gary Lonesborough

A Wreck of Seabirds by Karleah Olson

New Sequels:

Celestial Monsters (The Sunbearer Duology #2) by Aiden Thomas

Shadows of Perl (House of Marionne #2) by J. Elle

Rebel Fire (Rebel Skies #2) by Ann Sei Lin

The Mongol Ascension (A Jump in Time #3) by Andrew Varga

___

Happy reading!

[beeclops]

‘Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake’ Renewed for Season 2 at Max

Max has renewed “Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake” for a second season.

A spinoff of “Adventure Time,” which ran on Cartoon Network from 2010 to 2018, the series follows Fionna (Madeleine Martin) and her sidekick, Cake (Roz Ryan), who find themselves in the crosshairs of a powerful new foe, leaving them with no choice but to seek the help of Simon Petrikov, the former Ice King (Tom Kenny). Other characters from from the original series featured in “Fionna and Cake” include Marshall Lee (Donald Glover), Marceline the Vampire Queen (Olivia Olson), Princess Bubblegum (Hynden Walch) and Finn the Human (Jeremy Shada). The cast also includes Andrew Rannells as Gary Prince, Sean Rohani as Prismo and Kayleigh McKee as the Scarab.

The news comes two months after showrunner Adam Muto told Variety he was unsure whether the show would continue, saying, “It’s in discussion. But the person who greenlit the first season is no longer at Max.”

“My hope is that this series did well enough that they feel like they can invest in future seasons,” he added. “What shape that takes, if that’s a ‘Fionna and Cake’ Season 2 or it’s more of an anthology kind of approach and we focus on another character, is still kind of up in the air … There’s a running list of what we think could work as a series, what we think could work as a miniseries or a special.”

Muto executive produces “Fionna and Cake” with Fred Seibert and Sam Register in partnership with Cartoon Network Studios.

“To know that the show will continue into a second season feels both wonderful and frankly surreal,” Muto said in a statement upon the renewal. “Thanks to ‘Adventure Time’s’ creator Pendleton Ward, the team at Max, the talented cast & crew and the passionate audience who made this possible.”

“As proud stewards of the beloved ‘Adventure Time’ brand, we have been delighted to dig deeper into the world through the ‘Fionna and Cake’ lens,” said Suzanna Makkos, executive vice president of original comedy and adult animation at Max and Adult Swim. “We look forward to following them on the next chapter of their journey!”

“‘Fionna and Cake’ gave us all the familiar joys from the land of Ooo while pushing the ‘Adventure Time’ franchise forward,” said Sam Register, president of Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network Studios and Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe. “Thanks to Adam Muto and his amazing team for bringing us to all new multiverses and rich new levels of charm, fun and heart-filled stories. I can’t wait to see where they take us next."

[sharkyrandom]

Songs for Simon, why? Why not

Where Everyone Knows Your Name - Gary Portnoy

Nobody - Mitski

Me And My Husband - Mitski

No Surprises - Radiohead

One - Harry Nilsson

Remember You - Olivia Olson & Tom Kenny

I'm Still Standing - Elton Jhon Other one

Autoclave - The Mountain Goats

[bandcampsnoop]

9/3/24.

Following up on The Ladybug Transistor post was easy. Frequent Gary Olson collaborator, Phil Sutton, is releasing "another "Blue" by Love, Burns (Queens, New York). This band sound remarkably like Pale Lights, but the lineup is sort of an all-star one: Kyle Forrester (Crystal Stilts), Hampus Öhman-Frölund (drummed with many including Jens Lekman) and the aforementioned Gary Olson.

There have been many Love, Burns/Pale Lights posts over the years but I will repeat my RIYL: Felt, Lloyd Cole, Edwyn Collins, and many many more.

This is being co-released by Kleine Untergrund Schallplatte (KUS) and Jigsaw Records.

[garadinervi]

«Yugen», No. 6, Edited by LeRoi Jones (later Amiri Baraka) and Hettie Cohen, Cover art by Basil King, Yugen, New York, NY, 1960 (pdf here) [Better Read Than Dead, Brooklyn, NY. RealityStudio, New York, NY. verdant press. Unoriginal Sins, The Old Primary School, Temple, Midlothian]. Feat. Michael McClure, Charles Olson, Ron Loewinsohn, Philip Lamantia, Paul Blackburn, Robin Blaser, Hubert Selby, Jr., David Meltzer, Ray Bremser, Ed Dorn, Rochelle Owens, Paul Carroll, Robert Creeley, Tristan Tzara, Daisy Aldan, Gary Snyder, Edward Marshall, LeRoi Jones, Jack Kerouac, David Wang, Kenneth Koch, Larry Eigner, Edward Dahlberg, Frank O’Hara, Basil King

[terribletoonietuesday]

We added a feature length watch along to Patreon. patreon.com/riotatthemovies , You should totally join . Its a full watch through of Kindergarten Ninja as tiss the season. Hope you watched last weeks trailer show episode as it leads into some of the references we make here. Sure would be sweeelll if you joined us on Patreon so I can buy some cold and sinus drugs for Morgan. Also whenever we do a watch along I dedicated it to specific members of my Patreon. This episode is dedicated to both Devlan Nicholson and Gary W Olson Stay Awesome everybody

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Sloppy Heads - TV Eye, Ridgewood, New York, January 27, 2023

Is there a new Sloppy Heads record out? Yes, there is a new Sloppy Heads record out! Sometimes Just One Second just dropped on the Shrimper label and — dare I say it — it's the best Heads yet! Ariella Stok, Bill the Drummer, and Jimmy Jumpjump (AKA your friend and mine Jesse Jarnow) have crafted a sprawling masterpiece this time around: 75 minutes of sweet jams, fuzzed-out pop, cracked balladry and even a delicious Dead boogie.

Extra props to Yo La Tengo's James McNew, Ladybug Transistor's Gary Olson, Pee Wee's Playhouse artist Gary Panter and legendary animator Al Jarnow for making this a truly special collection. For a little more detail, check out this recent Jarnow + Jarnow Q&A on Aquarium Drunkard.

I like the RIYL that came along with the Sometimes Just One Second promo, so I'll just reprint it here:

RIYL: WFMU, Mutant Sounds blog, Half Japanese, Yo La Tengo, The Fugs, Seastones, Kluster, Crazy Horse, The Godz, Yoko Ono's Approximately Infinite Universe, Bonzo Dog Band, Pep Lester, Spotted Dick, X, Jefferson Airplane, The Vaselines

You like all that, don't you?! I do. I also like this short live video via the great Roolin YouTube channel of Sloppy Heads out in Ridgewood. Loose as a goose, right as rain.

[069introverted]

𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐎

𝘏𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴! 𝘚𝘰 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘢 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘴𝘰 𝘐 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘸.

𝙉𝙖𝙢𝙚: 𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙭

𝘼𝙜𝙚: 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜~

𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧: 𝙛𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙚

𝙎𝙚𝙭𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮: 𝙣𝙤𝙣-𝙗𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙨𝙚

𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙨: 𝙖𝙣𝙮

𝙇𝙞𝙠𝙚𝙨: 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 . 𝙎𝙡𝙚𝙚𝙥 . 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 . 𝙏𝙑 . 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙘 . 𝙍𝙖𝙞𝙣 . 𝙨𝙣𝙤𝙬 .

𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚𝙨: 𝙡𝙤𝙪𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙨 . 𝙈𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚. 𝙁𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 . 𝙃𝙤𝙢𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙗𝙚𝙨 . 𝘽𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨 . 𝙍𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙨. 𝙎𝙪𝙣.

𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘴: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦 (🏹,⚡,👽,⏰). 9-1-1 (🚔) . 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘚𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯(📧) . 𝘋𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳 (😈)

𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴|

(𝘊𝘞) 🏹: 𝘚𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘹 𝘖𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯 - E2 𝘭𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘹 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘢 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘹 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘚𝘮𝘰ke- 𝘓𝘺𝘭𝘢 𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘦𝘭 𝘹 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘦 - Roy Harper x Thea queen - Malcolm merlyn x maseo Yamashiro

(CW)⚡: leonerd smart x Barry Allen - Hartly rathaway x Cisco remon - mark merdon x Tony Woodward - Lisa snart x Lisa snart

(CW)👽: Lena Luther x Kara danger - James Olson x Winn schott - Alura x Alex Danvers x Kelly Olson

(CW)⏰: mick Rory x ray Palmer x catlian snow - John constantine x Gary green - Sara lance x Nyssa Al goul x Ava sharpe - Nora darhk x zari tomazi 1.0 - charlie x sari tomazi 2.0

(Hulu) 🚔: eddie buckley x Eddie diaz - Harrietta Wilson x Karen wilson - Maddie backley x chimney han - Athena grant x Bobby Nash

(Hulu)📧: simon spier x Bram Greenfield - Abigail Suso x Leah Burke

(Anime)😈: Inosuke Hashibira x Tanjiro Kamado -Zenitsu Agatsuma x Nezuko Kamado

𝘼𝙊3: 𝙨𝙠𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜_𝙘𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚

𝙒𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙥𝙖𝙙: 𝙨𝙠𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜_𝙘𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙘𝙝

𝙏𝙞𝙠 𝙩𝙤𝙠: 𝙎𝙄𝙈𝙋4𝙇𝙄𝙁𝙀

𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙: 𝙨𝙠𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜_𝙘𝙤𝙘𝙡𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙘𝙝

𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘨𝘰 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦?

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘵: 𝘩𝘵𝘵𝘱𝘴://𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥.𝘤𝘰𝘮/𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘦/𝘤7𝘙𝘻𝘤𝘫𝘥𝘦

[gwox]

Like a bad penny [writing]

And so goes by another year and a month...

I'm determined to post here more often. At least enough to flush entries from previous years and... er... decades off the front page of this here blog. Thus, I am typing this now. Hello!

Hello.

It has been an eventful year since the previous post (August 2022). I've stopped and started on the novel rather a lot, amidst moving from one city to another and other assorted interruptive events. The novel not being, for the record, Redscale: Severance (though I may revisit and retool what I did get done with that one someday), and not (yet) the collection of short fiction I had in the works.

What it is, is Tropic of Madness, a comic mad science thriller set on a South Seas island home to all manner of weird and ill-considered experimentation. I'm up to 68.8k in verbage on my first-ish draft, and it looks like it'll end up in the 120k range by the end, though a vigorous editing will likely claw it back to the 100k range. I'm letting my freak flag fly with this one, and am really looking forward to unleashing it on anyone standing still long enough to read it. Though I don't know when that will be yet, so you've got a good head start.

In other news, I went back to the previous post and removed the AI-generated artwork that once graced that entry. It was a fun novelty when it first came along, but I soured on it on learning about all the stolen bits that went into it. I do promise that any art that turns up here in the future will either be by my haand, or purchased/licensed for use here (as is this blog's title bar art).

--

Gary W. Olson is the author of the dark fantasy novel Brutal Light and a contributor to the dark fiction anthologies Fairly Wicked Tales and The C.A.M. Charity Anthology: Horror and Science Fiction #1. His blog originates here.