09-18-09: Michael Kurland Interviewed at SF in SF on September 12, 2009
"I believe that most writing is done buy the unconscious mind..." — Michael Kurland
That was what Michael Kurland said in the interview, but it was his conscious mind working before, during and after. And I have to say that I'm not surprised when the writers I ask to interview are well, sort of reluctant. But though Kurland expressed some reluctance before the interview, you'd sure as heck never know that once he got going.
Come to think of it, Kurland manages to be as witty and engaging in his interview because, I suppose, he does manage to connect to his unconscious when answering questions. I spoke with him both about his Victorian/Edwardian Moriarty mysteries and his witty, caustic introduction to a collection of science fiction stories. He and I are really in the same place when it comes to how books are shelved. On one hand, the whole genre thing is very convenient, though not as convenient as I would like. They should have shelf labeled, "Books with Monsters" where the polyglot collection of science fiction, fantasy, horror and even literary titles that feature monsters are shelved. But I'm also of a mind with Kurland, in that I'd not mind if they just shelved all fiction together by author last-name, from A-Z and gave up trying to classify fiction. I mean, it's all lies, isn’t it? Or the truth disguised as lies? You can hear our spirited discussion by following this link to the MP3 audio file.
09-17-09: A 2009 Interview with Jeffrey Gonzalez of the Sanger Paranormal Society : Bigfoot, Triangles and Abductions in Central California
The Forteana list is a treasure trove of great reading — so long as you enjoy news about weird stuff that is reported by the even weirder humans of this odd planet. There I am, filing away, and I find a story from the Sanger Paranormal Society, near Fresno, California. They’ve got a new snapshot of Bigfoot. That's close, I think. Maybe I can give them a call.
Indeed, I did manage to call Jeffrey Gonzalez of the Sanger Paranormal Society, and set up an interview for KUSP's Talk of the Bay last Sunday evening, September 13, 2009. We really had a lot of fun, talking about his recent Bigfoot investigation, triangles over Fresno, and an abduction case he was working on. I'm really fascinated by the borders of belief; for example, I'm more inclined to believe in Bigfoot and aliens than I am in the so-called "death panels," which seem like ugly advertising hype to me. And I guess that's what I like about all this Forteana — Bigfoot is such a positive presence. Aliens, whether they’re from another planet or, as Kage Baker suggested in the interview I podcast on Monday, our own, can only be a good thing, no matter what their proclivities are with regards to medical examinations. Gonzalez has a thoroughly positive perspective with regards to becoming a paranormal investigator, which you can hear by following this link to the MP3 audio file of our conversation.
09-16-09: Nalo Hopkinson Reads at SF in SF on September 12, 2009 : Scary Monsters and Super-Creeps
What scares you? What disturbs you? What gets under your skin and makes you shiver? On one hand, it seems to vary wildly from one person to another. One person may bathe in blood, but shiver at the sight of a spider; another may have tarantulas as pets yet quiver with terror in the event of a pinprick. Still, there do seem to be some universals.
Nalo Hopkinson apparently gets the universals, as she had the entire audience shivering at her reading from a forthcoming novel titled, 'Donkey.' I'll not spoil any of the material for you, but I will say that the shudders were indeed universal in front of and behind the podium. To my mind, she really nailed Das Unheimliche — what Freud called "the uncanny." Familiar, yet strange, her narrative was the essence of cognitive dissonance and so well executed in terms of prose, that it just creeped the hell out of all of us. Ready for a chill on this chilly evening? If it is not chilly where you are, it will be as soon as you follow this link to the MP3 audio file.
09-15-09: Michael Kurland Reads at SF in SF on September 12, 2009 : Moriarty Returns, After An Introduction
Michael Kurland has been there in background of the events for SF in SF for quite a while. I've seen him there many times and never known who he was until last night. But when he sat down to read at last night's event, he made a huge impression.
Now, let me first say to listeners, yes, he was talking to me. You'll know what I'm referring to when you hear it. But you'll soon forget it, because when he launches into the introduction to a collection of science fiction short stories, you just might be able to hear the audience's laughter over your own. Kurland does a real Jack-the-Ripper on the idea of genre fiction. Not to be coy, it pisses him right off and he's not shy about eviscerating the marketing focus of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and mystery — even romance, one of which he wrote under the pseudonym Jennifer Plum. (In the forthcoming podcast of the panel discussion you'll hear his hilarious description of how he came to that name.) Then he launches into a spirited reading of the second chapter of his new Moriarty adventure. You can hear all this and more by following this link to the MP3 audio file.
09-14-09: A 2009 Interview with Kage Baker — The View From Spyglass Park
"I'm more Dionysian than Apollonian any day ..." — Kage Baker
Kage Baker lives a little bit of a drive from me — the drive from my house in Aptos to Pismo Beach is a little over three hours. I can spend that in traffic between my house and San Francisco on a bad day. So I decided to take a little road trip.
Though I've interviewed Baker in little bits and pieces at the SF in SF events, I'd never taken the time to talk to her about her wonderful work as a whole. We met and spoke in Spyglass Park, 20 feet from a 100-foot cliff that overlooks the Pacific. It was an incredibly beautiful day. The sun was hot, but there was a cool breeze blowing in from the ocean. As I spoke with Baker, I began to realize just how important she is to the genre and how important I think she will be to American literature. We talked about her earliest reading experience, one that colors her work to this very day, and about her earliest writing, which again, influences and is indeed part of her work to this very day. You can hear our conversation beneath the blue sky, above the blue ocean, by following this link to the MP3 Audio file.
New to the Agony Column
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Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books with Alan Cheus : Allegra Goodman, 'The Cookbook Collector,' Noam Shpancer's 'The Good Psychologist' and Elie Wiesel 'The Sonderberg Case'
07-28-10: Commentary : Rule Britannia, In Space 2 : En Route, RJ Frith and Peter F. Hamilton
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Brian and Wendy Froud at SF in SF on Monday, July 19, 2010: Q & A : "The people you deal with at the publishers ... if they last the end of the week, you're lucky."
07-27-10: Commentary : Rule Britannia, In Space : UK Space Opera Demonstrates Excess is Not Enough (Part one, the Arrived)
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Brian and Wendy Froud at SF in SF on Monday, July 19, 2010 : "Well, I thought if I do faeries then nobody's going to say that I've got it wrong."
07-26-10: Commentary : Brian and Wendy Froud Seek 'The Heart of Faerie Oracle' : Cards, Books and a New Perspective
07-20-10: Commentary : Adam Elenbaas is Caught by 'Fishers of Men' : The Gospel of an Ayahuasca Vision Quest
Agony Column Podcast News Report : The Agony Column Live, July 10, 2010 : Alan Cheuse and Peter S. Beagle : "There are certain phrases I'm leery of using; one's "the creative process" and the other is "inspiration." ” Peter S. Beagle "Habit is the best thing for you if you're trying to write prose." ” Alan Cheuse
07-19-10: Commentary : Phil Cousineau is the 'Wordcatcher' : A Selectionary for Curious Mind
07-09-10: Commentary : Harlan Ellison's 'Deathbird Stories' : Back from the Dead and Ready to Party
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books With Alan Cheuse : Everything by Kevin Canty, The Best of Kim Stanley Robinson by Kim Stanley Robinson, and Glorious by Bernice McFadden
07-07-10: Commentary : Kitchen Testing 'The New Vegetarian Epicure' and 'Get Cooking' : Lentil Power
Agony Column Podcast News Report : The Agony Column Live, June 26, 2010 : Mollie Katzen and Anna Thomas, Part Two : "'You should really write a cookbook,' and I thought, 'Yeah, that's a good idea...'"
07-06-10: Commentary : Anna Thomas Cooks Up 'Love Soup' : Recipes, Menus and Meals
Agony Column Podcast News Report : The Agony Column Live, June 26, 2010 : Mollie Katzen and Anna Thomas, Part One : Time to Get Cooking Because You Love Soup : "It makes a huge difference really, really, it does, to completely clean up when you're done."
07-05-10: Commentary : Abraham Verghese Will Not Be 'Cutting for Stone' : Stories of Spirit and Words of Comfort
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Interview with Abraham Verghese : "Literature has a wonderful ability to restore your imagination for the suffering of others."
07-02-10: Commentary : Sloane Crosley Asks 'How Did Get This Number' : Excellent Essays for the Short of Temper
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Live Interview With Sloane Crosley : We Did Not Mention the Title of Her Essay 'Fuck You, Columbus'
06-30-10: Commentary : Mark Charan Newton Enters 'City of Ruin' : Inspector Jeryd Rides Again
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Panel Discussion at SF in SF on June 12, 2010, with Seanan McGuire, Deborah Grabien and Terry Bisson : "Coke Black was just a horrible thing unleashed on an unsuspecting world."
06-29-10: Commentary : 'Twelve,' 'Thirteen,' Tongues of Serpents,' and 'The Strange Affair of Spring-Heeled Jack' : Historical SF & Horror Makes Rousing Summer Reading
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Seanan McGuire Interviewed at SF in SF, June 12, 2010 : "If I have my unbreakables, I can set my conditionals."
06-28-10: Commentary : Jennifer Egan Gets 'A Visit from the Goon Squad' : Revisiting the Novel Genre
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Conversation with Jennifer Egan : "The characters and the action led the way... I was led into the future not so much because I was thinking, 'I want to write about the future,' but more because I wanted to re-visit this particular person."
06-23-10: Commentary : Adam Langer Corrals 'The Thieves of Manhattan' : Lies, Balderdash and the Absolute, Unvarnished Truth
06-21-10: Commentary : Linda Greenlaw is 'Seaworthy' : Back to the Grand Banks in Not-So-Grand Style
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Interview with Linda Greenlaw : "Well, I call him up and tell him I'm going to the Grand Banks and he pretty much signs himself right up."
06-17-10: Commentary : Georges-Olivier Châteaureynaud Lives 'A Life on Paper' : Translating the Ineffable
06-15-10: Commentary : Donald R. Burleson Whispers 'Wait for the Thunder' : Stories for a Stormy Night
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books With Alan Cheuse : Lucyby Laurence Gonzalez, Spies of the Balkansby Alan Furst, A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
06-14-10: Commentary : James P. Othmer Drinks the 'Holy Water' : Backing Into the Future
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2009 Interview with Juliet Schor : "...We need to move to much more open, collaborative, sharing knowledge systems."
06-10-10: Commentary : Brett Easton Ellis Peers Inside 'Imperial Bedrooms' : Panic After the Year Zero
06-09-10: Commentary : Dan Dion and Paul Provenza Free the '!Satiristas!' : Bleeding the Comedians
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Conversation with Paul Provenza and Dan Dion : "I was raised to respect the printed word so much, when I was in school, I couldn't highlight books..."
06-08-10: Commentary : China Miéville Unleashes 'Kraken' : Comedy of Tentacles
06-03-10: Commentary : Justin Cronin Enters 'The Passage' : A girl who saves the world
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books With Alan Cheuse : The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, The Nearest Exit by Olen Steinhauer, The Passage by Justin Cronin
06-02-10: Commentary : 'Animythical Tales' by Sarah Totton and 'Metrophilias' by Brendan Connell : Better Seeds
06-01-10: Commentary : The Return of The Agony Column : Logic, License and Habit
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Interview with Karl Marlantes : "..these are common human foibles and failings, it's just that they get magnified in a combat, war situation..."
