BitterSweet Blog

Brick and Mortar

Jamie — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 15:36:12 +0000

According to Ancient Greek chronicler Herodotus, the phrase “earth and water” was used to represent the demands of the Persians from the cities that surrendered to them. It meant that they were giving up every product of the land—unconditional surrender.

Since 1995, book retailers have been wondering if they’d have to use a similar token of surrender to Amazon.com. With 17,000 employees and the GNP of a small rogue nation, it’s easy to be impressed. Until you wander into your local independent bookstore, Borders, or Barnes & Noble.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Amazon—but I also love the smell of a real bookstore, the sensory overload. In fact, there’s a B&N less than a mile from my house. My wife and I have a couples night there once a week with a group of friends, something we can’t really do online.

So what do I use Amazon for? The reviews. It’s like judging Olympic gymnastics. You throw out the highest score (the author’s proud mother) and the lowest (the author’s angry ex-girlfriend) and in the middle lies the truth. Do I buy online or at my local bookstore? It doesn’t matter, I have a membership at B&N, so the Amazon discount is kind of a wash. In my mind, both can peacefully coexist.

Of course that doesn’t stop some from trying to blend both experiences. Have you heard of Zoomii.com? My friend Eric sent this link—it’s sort of the Google Earth of the written word.

So, where do you buy your books?

The most wonderful lover in the world, and other adventures in public relations

Jamie — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:13:20 +0000

If you’re a Mac geek like I am, then you know who Steve Jobs is, right? The vegan, New Balance wearing, Pixar founding, CEO of Apple. But does anyone remember the famed French engineer Jean-Louis Gassée?

When Jobs was ousted by Apple’s board of directors in the mid-80s, they appointed Gassée as Chief Technology Officer. Under Gassée’s watch, Apple gave us the $6,500 Mac Portable, which started a revolution in portable computing despite the fact that you needed a forklift to move it. (Critics called it the Macintosh Luggable). Like Jobs, Gassée was more evangelist than engineer. He wore black leather, sported an earring and was responsible for some truly bizarre and memorable quotes of the early tech boom:

On personal computers––“We must always give our users pure sex. It's like a rendezvous in the back seat of an automobile with a beautiful girl.”

On the Apple logo—“One of the deep mysteries to me is our logo, the symbol of lust and knowledge, bitten into…”

But my favorite was his quote on the roles of advertising and public relations––"With advertising, I, Jean-Louis, say, 'I am the most wonderful lover in the world. But if two of the most beautiful women in the world say they spent the evening with Jean-Louis, this is PR.” (I’m sure it sounds better when spoken with a French accent).

As wince-inducing as that last quote is, he does sort of have a point, that when it comes to promotion, word-of-mouth is golden. Which is why I’m jazzed about this feedback page for HOTEL. Check it out.

I love the smell of WiFi in the morning

Jamie — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 19:26:35 +0000

I’ve never had to go off heroin, but I hear it’s quite unpleasant—according to James Frey anyway, but then again, what does he know?

I imagine it’s probably not unlike a writer having to live without the Internet for two weeks whilst moving across town. (I now have a greater appreciation for the frenzy my daughter goes into when she loses her cell phone).

But (breathing deeply), it’s better now. The cable man arrived yesterday on a golden chariot, pulled by unicorns, heralded by cherubim and seraphim. Harps played, doves flew, the modem sang…

So, the blog is alive and well once again. And what’s new?

The Advance Reader Editions of HOTEL are officially finding their way out there. The pleasant anonymity of writing out here on the hinterlands is slowly eroding as people actually get to check out the literary merchandise. What can I say? If you like it, I wrote it. If you don’t like, um, well, I still wrote it.

I’m gearing up for a little book related travel in two weeks. First to Portland, Oregon for the Pacific Northwest Bookseller Association’s Feast of Authors. I’m looking forward to meeting Ivan Doig. He’s from Montana, writes about Montana, but lives in Seattle. I’m from Seattle, write about Seattle, but live in Montana. Go figure. I fully expect that when we shake hands there will be some sort of matter, anti-matter explosion.

I’m also heading back to NYC––more on that in the weeks to come.

Book #2, tentatively titled, Whispers of a Thunder God, is moving again. It’s been plagued by acute scriptus interruptus. Symptoms include summer travel, school orientations and moving

In unpacking stuff, I found old poetry from high school and a dream journal from college. Wow, apparently a little Pink Floyd goes a long way.

That’s all for now. Must. Keep. Unpacking...

Moving is such sweet sorrow

Jamie — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:02:03 +0000

When I was in NYC a few months ago, I couldn’t help but get sucked into those little TV monitors conveniently installed in the back of the taxis—those little touch screens that show you where you are (in case you’re thinking your non-English speaking cabbie is taking you on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride).

On those little screens you’re flashed the news, which ironically featured traffic accidents, as well as ads for posh NYC real estate bargains.

One that caught my eye was an 800 square foot Upper West Side apartment that could be had for the “bargain price” of $1.2 million dollars. (What is that, like $1,500 per square foot?) The photographs that I clicked through on the touch screen had all been taken with a fish-eye lens to make them look grander and more majestic, thus hiding the fact that the bedroom was probably outfitted with dollhouse furniture. The Lego people used as models were a dead giveaway.

So I wasn’t surprised when New Yorkers reacted with awe and wonder when I told them I was buying a home back in the hinterlands that was roughly the size of Staten Island. (Okay, it’s not that big, but it does have 8 bedrooms—butler not included). Plus we bought it for roughly the cost of the bathroom in that NYC apartment. Granted, I don’t have a view of Central Park, but our little league field is nearby, does that count?

In rounding out an already busy summer, we started the move-in process this week. Moving always makes me rethink the merits of my comic/book collection, which has grown, like a benign tumor, since the second grade. Also of dubious merit is the family piano (suddenly accordions make sense to me).

And how’s your summer going?

Look! Up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…

Jamie — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 16:51:32 +0000

A graphic novel!

The big news next year is that HOTEL will be released January 27th. But the other big news is that in April I’ll have a story appearing in Secret Identities—the first Asian American Superhero Anthology. SI will be a 200+ page graphic novel with stories and art from some of the biggest names in the comics industry.

Writing a graphic novel script is an entirely different animal than writing a novel—much more like writing a play than anything else. Luckily I had editor Jeff Yang to make me look like I actually knew what I was doing and of course the sketches from Alexander Tarampi (see above) are amazing. Also, a big shout-out to Managing Editor, Parry Shen––whom I was happy to meet in San Diego.

My story is titled GAMAN, a Japanese term that means “enduring what seems unbearable with dignity and grace.” I’ll post more about SI as we get closer to the pub date, but since Comic-Con is still fresh on my mind, I thought I’d share.

Comic-Con 2008 Gallery

Jamie — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:40:38 +0000

Some fun images from this year's Comic-Con in San Diego. Enjoy.

Recovering from Comic-Con 2008

Jamie — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:24:12 +0000

I’ve come to the blunt realization that Comic-Con was essentially one ginormous costumed line. With 100,000+ people each day, the lines are epic. So long, that to get into see any of the large, noteworthy panels or previews you need to queue up about an hour beforehand. Or, become as what Entertainment Weekly dubbed a certain type of conventioneer—The Camper. People that inhabit one room for the entire day, packing a lunch, water, laptop, etc. Sure, they sit through a few extraneous previews, but they’re guaranteed a seat for the events they’re most interested in. I couldn’t quite bring myself to do that, so I was a line-lubber.

Aside from contending with the crowds, here are some Comic-Con observations and musings as I bask in the silence of my office and recover from sensory overload:

Stephanie Meyer is indeed, a rock star
Granted, she was there promoting the movie version of Twilight, with the entire cast in tow, but of the 6,500 rabid fans that camped out the night before to see her--you can be sure they've all read the books.

The ambiguous sexuality of stormtroopers
Yes there are costumed fans. The Dark Knight is big this year so there were Batmen and Jokers aplenty, as well as the usual cast of metal-bikini-clad Princess Leias. And the Manga cosplay crowd is out in force. But the funny thing is, imperial stormtroopers can be both men and women—thus occasionally freaking out people in the privy. Hence the tongue-in-cheek posters near each restroom that read, “Costumed Aliens Not Allowed.”

Golden calf anyone?
Sorry, don’t mean to get too preachy, but seriously, is it worth it to wait in line three hours for a limited edition He-Man anything? All of the mega toy companies have limited edition collectibles for sale and the mass of humanity fighting for these things is borderline insane. I love comics. And comic characters become undeniably iconic when translated to film. But the idol worship of a 6” tall figuring is perplexing. I was happy to wait in line an hour to pick up something for a friend (Hi Mariko!) but others stood in line for most of the day. I couldn’t help thinking that many of these things are just destined for eBay.

Comics are dwarfed by films
A panel about DC’s Vertigo comics drew a crowd of 40 people, lazily looking at their schedules and texting friends. A sneak preview of an unanticipated movie like Race to Witch Mountain, with director and a cast members Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Carla Gugina, drew 5,000. Jack Kirby is in his grave choking on a cigar.

TR2N
In addition to the cannily marketed, heavily pumped events, Comic-Con is filled with “unscheduled” hype. I was fortunate enough to be in the main ballroom when we were urged to take our seats between sessions as the lights went out and we were treated to a teaser trailer for the new Tron flick, with Jeff Bridges. It took a few beats for people to realize what they were watching, but when a light-cycle appeared, the crowd went wild—and I was suddenly 14 again.

It’s all about the buzz, isn’t it?
Before every special teaser trailer we were told PLEASE DO NOT VIDEO TAPE ANYTHING. Kevin Smith even had a lengthy comedy bit, begging people not to bootleg the clips for wider release on YouTube. All of which begs the question––why the heck not? Isn’t that what buzz is? Or is asking us not to just some kind of marketing reverse psychology? My head, it hurts. I think I’ll soothe it with this video of the new Wolverine movie…

Frank Miller is a grumpy genius
As a kid destined for art school, I remember fawning over the brooding, silent, noir style that Miller brought to Daredevil. That led to Ronin. Which led to The Dark Knight, though that artistic pedigree is sometimes forgotten, as Miller is better known to the movie going public for Sin City and 300. Still, it was amazing to see Miller talk about directing The Spirit (coming to theaters this Christmas), and sensing that he really doesn’t like movie-making all that much.

Frank Miller has a right to be a grumpy genius
Out of morbid curiosity I stuck around to watch the Eisner Awards—the Oscars of the comics industry. That same ballroom that was packed an hour earlier with fans of the Fox drama Bones, was now 2/3 empty. Hollywood has been banking on comic-based films for years—this year alone Dark Knight is shattering box-office records. What’s being lost is that these stories started in print first. What happens if that well dries up?

(I’ll post pix from Comic-Con later in the week).

Off to Comic-Con

Jamie — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:44:55 +0000

Wow, it's late and I gotta pack for my first pilgrimage to that Mecca of all things geektacular--Comic-Con 2008 in San Diego. No, I'm not packing black spandex or Wolverine claws. Not even a light-saber. Just a camera, and lots of memory cards. And even though I'm going as a fan-boy, I do have a story appearing in a graphic novel anthology next April. More on that later...

Please pardon this crass commercial interruption...

Jamie — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 22:52:35 +0000

Yes–It's cover time!

My background is in design and art direction, so I'm kinda hard to please, but I have to say that I absolutely love it.

Here's a big shout-out to designer, Victoria Wong and the amazing team at Random House.

Whatchathink?

Step beyond the velvet rope

Jamie — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 15:01:20 +0000

I’ve noticed a curious thing. I’ve actually sold a few books on Amazon—sans cover. At first there was just a skeletal placeholder. Then some basic info was propagated to the site. Bit by bit, it’s coming to life, becoming real. But, the cover is still being tweaked.

So, for anyone who’s taken a lovely leap of faith and bought the book, sight relatively unseen, drop me a line and I’ll send you a secret link where you can see the almost-finished cover. I’ll also send you early cover concepts designed by yours truly. I might even share some of the cool stuff that’s happening with HOTEL that’s too juicy to reveal at the moment.