International Conf. on the Fantastic in the Arts

[Skar]

It's quite good.  Very odd, but good.  I'm interested to know what you think of it. (speaking of Donnie Darko, not a job in New York, although I'd be interested to know what that's like too, after being happy that you got one anyway...)

[Mistress of Darkness]

The only Wrede I found was a 1st ed. paperback of Talking to Dragons. David Hartwell thought there were a couple others in there somewhere (*knew*, actually, because he said he'd held them in his hands sometime over the weekend), but he thinks they must have gone quickly. So anyway, MoD, if you want it, it's yours, but if not, no big deal--it only cost me $3 and I don't have it already.

Thanks Stacer, but I already have that one in hardback.

[stacer]

I'm looking for Shadows over Lyra by Patricia C. Wrede. It's a paperback compilation of three books. I used to own it, but then I lent it to someone who can't find it and it's now about $50 used--if you can find it at all.

I haven't found Shadows over Lyra still, but I did just find The Raven Ring in the book auction room. I bid $20 for it, and I have the only bid in right now. I'm mildly interested in it for myself if you don't want it, MoD, but if you do, tell me how much you'd like me to bid up to. Otherwise, I'm just going to let my bid stand and if I get it, fine, and if not, fine too.

[Peter Ahlstrom]

Yeah, David gave me some advice on getting a job in New York too...

Of course, divine providence did not mean me to get a job in New York at the time, so YMMV.

[stacer]

Fun thing happened today: for volunteering in the book room, they refunded my registration fee. Niiiice.

I should have brought a second suitcase just for books. There's no way they'll all fit in the one I brought, and even if they did, no way it'd weigh less than 50 lbs. At each dinner, they give us one or two free books, and then David Hartwell told me I should read more adult fantasy and gave me a book to help me along with that, and then I bought a few (hardbacks were $6-8, paperbacks were $2-4). I think I'm going home with at least 10 new books. Yay for new books! Boo for having to carry them home.

(But I did bring a very large carryon, and if I rearrange things, perhaps I can put all the books in there and check it, and carry my camera bag separately as a carryon instead of putting it in the larger bag.)

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

(But I did bring a very large carryon, and if I rearrange things, perhaps I can put all the books in there and check it, and carry my camera bag separately as a carryon instead of putting it in the larger bag.)

I read that as "crayon" and I was trying to figure out how crayons helped with books.

[stacer]

They're magic crayons, that let me draw myself anything I want, and it turns into that thing.  

By the way, I'm back now, and will try to put together a report for you. After I eat lunch and take a nap.

Oh, and Donny Darko--wow, very paradoxical. I liked it. The director's cut is apparently better than the original, because he went in and cleaned up some special effects to make them not so cheesy, and added excerpts from the time travel book.

[JP Dogberry]

I disagree with the directors cut, I like the original better. The excerpts from the book DO improve the movie, but it feels very appropriate to the movie to be postmodern and multitextual - looking up the website is PART of the movie.

More to the point, while I liked the images or water and fire, the directors cut draws away from the human aspects to introduce and focus on the deus ex machina idea - the idea of some machine controlling and watching these actions. it doesn't fit for me.

[stacer]

Well, I say "apparently," because I've never seen the original. Everyone else was saying that they understood it so much better with the excerpts. But they'd already seen the original before.

[JP Dogberry]

Yeah, they'd understand the original if they LOOK UP the excerpts on the website like you're supposed to, and in the meantime see all the background knowledge to the movie you're supposed to get working your way through the website.

[stacer]

Uh, yeah, I prefer it being actually in the movie. Postmodern or whatever experience aside. If the movie makes no sense, the experience is not enjoyable.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

yeah, I'm sorry, but that's a big downside to TS Elliot too. Put the dang info in the original work. I shouldn't have to research to understand your fiction piece.

[JP Dogberry]

But the movie still made plenty of sense if you focused on the human elements and ignored the supernatural as "Just what is". which is why I liked it better anyway.

[Entsuropi]

JP is also ignoring the problem of 'what if the website goes down?'

[Mistress of Darkness]

I haven't found Shadows over Lyra still, but I did just find The Raven Ring in the book auction room. I bid $20 for it, and I have the only bid in right now. I'm mildly interested in it for myself if you don't want it, MoD, but if you do, tell me how much you'd like me to bid up to. Otherwise, I'm just going to let my bid stand and if I get it, fine, and if not, fine too.

Thanks stacer. I've also got a copy of the Raven Ring. It's the SFBC version. Just out of curiousity, did you win the bid?