This afternoon I received an email from someone I didn’t know. Or at least didn’t remember. His name was Jason and he claimed we’d met at a party some weeks ago. I had only the foggiest recollection of this (sorry, Jason!)
Turns out he’s a producer with CBC news. They were doing a piece on the 30th anniversary of Owl and Chickadee magazines, and they wanted a comment from a children’s writer, preferably one who was a fan as a kid.
Okay, I thought, I was crazy about those magazines. No problem. So I called Jason and he said, “Can you be ready to do an on-camera interview in about an hour?”
No, I thought.
“Yes,” I said.
Sixty minutes later, I met Andrew Nichols on a park bench and gave him the lowdown on the how-slash-why I loved Chickadee and Owl. (It also made me recall Ranger Rick and Cricket. Remember them? I was a fiend. I had subscriptions to all four).
Anyway, it’ll be on the local CBC news here in Toronto, “sometime between 5 and 6:30pm tomorrow,” which couldn’t be more vague. But it’s hard to blame them. Television is clearly a medium that flies by the seat of its pants.
PS: Happy 30th, Chickadee & Owl! Thanks for all the years of fun, and here’s to thirty more!
A teacher friend of mine (thanks, J!) passed on a link to this recent blog-posting by a middle-school teacher. The Shelf Elf describes herself as a former “harpist, pastry chef, children’s bookseller,” and I was quite flattered by the praise she heaped on Zorgamazoo; it’s one of the kindest reviews I’ve read.
This morning I was brushing my teeth and when I looked out the window I saw had a guest. He ambled up to the window and — as the photograph clearly attests — apparently tried to give me a high-5.
I figure either my tooth-brushing is innately fascinating to procyonids or he’s addicted to sunscreen. One of the two.
I’ll be reading from Zorgamazoo at an event called “Dickens Plus!,” a fundraiser for the Cancer Assistance Services of Halton Hills. (I imagine I’m part of the eponymous “Plus”…always nice to be lumped in with the likes of ol’ Charlie.)
This is a two-day event celebrating all things Victorian and raising money for the charity, which serves cancer patients in Halton Region.
I’ll be presenting twice on Saturday afternoon, once at 12:00 and then again at 3:00. Events will be taking place in St. Alban’s Church and Williams Mill Gallery. Apparently, I’ve also been tipped to judge a Victorian costume contest, so don’t forget your bustle!
I’ll be attending the Teacher and Librarian night at McNally Robinson here in Toronto. The event goes from 6:45 – 9:30pm and takes place at the independent chain’s newest location, 1090 Don Mills Road.
Teachers in attendance will recieve a 25% discount on books for their classrooms & libraries, and also have the chance to connect with local children’s authors.
If you’re a teacher or librarian from the GTA, please inquire with McNally Robinson for more information (416-384-0614).
A friend of mine writes for the blog J-Film Pow-Wow. During last week’s After Dark Festival at the Bloor Cinema, he invited me to see a film with an ominous title: Vampire Girl Versus Frankenstein Girl.
I’d been so wrapped up in gutting my second novel (as per my editor’s request, and trust me — it’s improving in leaps and bounds), that I was rather out of the movie loop. To judge from the film’s title, in my absence the film industry had taken a fast trip to psychotronic schlocksville.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, Vampire G. v. F. Girl is extremely gorey and absurd, but it’s also hilarious and very well-structured. The latter isn’t something you can always count on with Japanese film. Or at least you can’t go in expecting the airtight narratives you crave from your Greek tragedies. But I digress. (Not that there’s anything wrong with eschewing airtight narratives. I’m all for it. But I’m digressing, again.)
Anyhow, no point me explaining the premise; it’s right there in the title. Just think blood-fest meets high school rom-com and you’re on the right track. If you can stomach the flesh being gleefully peeled off skulls (this before the opening credits), then I highly recommend this little doozy.
PS: Seems I’ll now have to seek out Tokyo Gore Police, the director’s debut feature from last year…just as soon as I finish my rewrite.
PPS:A warning: There’s a satirical element in the film that those unfamiliar with Japanese youth culture may find offensive. The film’s highschool features a “ganguro” club, which literally translates from Japanese as “face-black.” It refers to a trend among Japanese girls to tan or even take medication to darken their skin. Before the screening, the host was careful to make it clear that the director’s aim was to poke fun merely at the trend itself, not at black Africans.
Word on the Street is the biggest book festival of the year, held simultaneously in multiple cities across the country.
Here in Toronto, I’ll be presenting Zorgamazoo in the Children’s Reading Tent at 5pm…and sharing the day with a ton of other wonderful kid’s writers. The full line-up is here.
If you’re planning on attending the festivities in Queens Park, please come find me at 5!
After the Burlington Book Camp, one of the campers asked about my inspirations for Zorgamazoo. I revealed where the general idea came from, but didn’t have time for more detail.
Notably, chapter four features an intricate lottery machine called The Hero-Selection Divining Device. While I was writing that particular passage, I drew inspiration from Franz Gsellmann’s fiendishly eccentric Weltmaschine (that’s German for World Machine).
I wonder what his wife is yelling about, down there in the bottom right.
Gsellmann worked in obscurity for 23 years to build the device, which consists of hundreds of separate parts, including: a ship’s propeller, two gondolas, a Dutch windmill, a Persian goblet, a salt and pepper set, five crucifixes, 560 wooden beads, a glass Jesus (and a glass Mary), eight lampshades, a barometer, 25 motors, a slot machine, 20 fan belts, 14 bells, 64 bird whistles…
…and the whole contraption does nothing except fill a rural Austrian farmhouse with a blaze of light and sound.
(Reminds me a little of what it’s like to be a writer.)
A couple weeks ago I did a Zorgamazoo reading the Eaton Centre Indigo store here in Toronto. Much to my surprise there was a fairly good showing, with more than thirty people in attendance.
Here’s a pic of the revelry, evidently snapped with an arthritic hand. Hard to believe I was wearing a thick blazer in July! Ugh, sometimes you just gotta figure the weather’s trying to kill us.
This afternoon I received an email from someone I didn’t know. Or at least didn’t remember. His name was Jason and he claimed we’d met at a party some weeks ago. I had only the foggiest recollection of this (sorry, Jason!)
Sixty minutes later, I met Andrew Nichols on a park bench and gave him the lowdown on the how-slash-why I loved Chickadee and Owl. (It also made me recall Ranger Rick and Cricket. Remember them? I was a fiend. I had subscriptions to all four).
Good news everyone. Chapter four of 
September 26, 2009 12:00pm.
Word on the Street
