Today, I'll be questioning Eric Thomas, aka Big E, the guy who gave Dangerous Dan his name and also introduced him to the marvels of Steel Reserve malt liquor. He's also the creator of Hacktastic D/20 Fantasy RPG and the author of The Makings of a Warlock.
What was the impetus behind the creation of Hacktastic?
Hatred. When B.P.P. Inc. first started we were running game days using the open d20 system and having a fine time of it. Then when rumors of 4E started and all the open d20 stuff was fading we got a bit pissed off. I’ve spent thousands of my hard earned dollars on D&D for years and finally said enough is enough. It seemed pretty ridiculous to me that to just play D&D you needed to spend $80-$120 just to get the core books. So we made Hacktastic D/20 Fantasy, It is fun, affordable and easy to learn. Now I’ve heard all the complaints that it looks like it was made in a basement, well it was. It also is priced according. I’m not trying to be the next Gary Gygax, I just wanted make an alternative for those who like their gaming fun and don’t want to mortgage their house to play it.
How did your experience with Lulu differ from your current relationship with Createspace?
VERY! Createspace is hands down the better option for anyone who wants to self-publish. It is cheaper, easier and above all they have customer service...with if you can believe a real, live person on the other end of e-mails and phone calls.
How long was The Makings of a Warlock floating around in your cranium before you finally put it on paper?
Not long really. It just kind of flowed out. Like it was ready to be told.
Was there a book that made you realize you wanted to be a writer?
Not really. I always wanted to be a game designer, but wrote my first novel just to see if I could do it. The fans of our game liked it, so I wrote more. Now I enjoy doing it so I keep writing.
Who are some of your influences (Besides Robert E. Howard)?
Well Howard goes without saying, but Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and The Gray Mouser stories, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Mel Odem, Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkind, George R.R. Martin, Ed Greenwood, All the Thieves World books and of course Tolkien. There are so many others. I find I always take something away from any book I read.
What's your favorite book?
The Hobbit hands down. It was what got me interested in gaming and I read it once every year.
Who's your favorite author?
It would have to be Howard, though Leiber runs a close second. I mean come on, Conan, Fafhard and the Mouser are such cool characters, how can’t you love them. They live hard, play hard and get all the chicks (at least for a time).
What's the best book you've read in the last six months?
I just reread Conan of Cimmeria. The Frost Giant’s Daughter story by Howard is one of my favorites.
Favorite Kurt Russel movie?
That is tough...I’ll have to go with Big Trouble in Little China. It has a Six Demon Bag for God sakes!
Favorite D&D Class/Race combination?
After thirty years of gaming I have many. I like playing Dwarves or Humans mostly. As far as classes, I like Fighters, Ranger or Rogues. Though lately I have been into spell casting classes.
If you could punch one celebrity in the face, who would it be?
Chuck Norris...just to say I did it.
What was your most memorable gaming experience?
I guess it would have to be at Die Con a couple of years ago when I looked across the game room and watched thirty or forty gamers working on their characters before a game session and they were all using a game book that I had written. It is kind of crazy, though pretty damned cool.
Any words of wisdom for aspiring writers?
Well being a fellow that has a Wisdom score of about 9 or 10 I’ll give it a whirl. Write what you think is fun. Once it starts to feel like a job it probably is. Also if you think you are going to quit your job and be the next Hemingway...get ready to eat a whole lot of Romen Noodles and search through your couch for loose change.
What's next for Eric Thomas?
The 2nd Warlock book will be out in October. I have to finish the 3rd Warlock book here soon. I have two other books started as well, though they are a bit different flavor than the Warlock stuff I’m doing of B.P.P. Inc. I’m also working on a supplement for the new version of Villains & Vigilantes with my buddies Robert and Terry Crump, as well as another game project with an old friend of mine. All that and some new Hacktastic stuff for Black Pigeon Press Inc. So I guess quite a bit.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Dangerous Dan Goes to the Movies - Six String Samurai
Welcome to the first installment of Dangerous Dan Goes to the Movies. Today, I'll be talking about an old favorite: Six String Samurai!
In an America devasted by a nuclear attack in the 50's, Elvis has just died and the throne of America is vacant. Every guitar slinger in the devasted country is heading to Vegas to be crowned the new Rock and Roll king. Six String Samurai follows the story of Buddy and a feral kid as they cross the wasteland, running afowl of cannibals, Russians, and a metal band led by Death himself.
Sound awesome? You bet your ass it is. It's part spaghetti western, part samurai, part Wizard of Oz, part Mad Max. The setting is a rundown version of the 1950's, complete with psychotic bowling teams, Cleaver-esque cannibal families, and dying 50's tech.
The soundtrack is spectacular, both the score and the songs by Russian surf band The Red Elvises. The acting? Well, it's passable. Buddy's good but one of the Russians sounds suspiciously Texan. And the kid? I'll talk about him in a moment.
The visual aspect of the film is by far the best part. The costume of Buddy and the assassins on his trail are both very distinctive. Probably because Buddy looks like a post-apocalyptic Buddy Holly and the assassins look like Guns and Roses.
You wouldn't think a B-movie would have a message but the underlying theme of Six String Samurai seems to be that Rock and Roll is an unstoppable force. Buddy and the kid keep going up against bigger and bigger threats. One of my favorite lines in the movie is "Only one man could kill this many Russians."
If it weren't for the film's 85 minute run time, I'd probably give it a 4.5 out of five. But I can't go higher than 3.5 for one reason: The Kid. The Kid, unfortuantely, isn't as cool as the Feral Kid in The Road Warrior. No, he's annoying, much more like the feral kids we all see every day in real life. Not only that, he has a negative impact on my enjoyment as far as the end of the movie is concerned. The little bastard causes Buddy a huge amount of trouble and drags down the entire movie.
Final verdict: 3.5 out of 5.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Pteradactyl Samurai: 13 Questions with Kirsten Alene
The missing piece of the puzzle has fallen into place. Here is my interview with Kirsten Alene, author of Love in the Time of Dinosaurs
How did your becoming one of the New Bizarro Authors come about?
I met Cameron Pierce last year and ended up writing the book for him as a birthday present. When he read it he told me to send it to Kevin Donihe (the editor of the NBAS) immediately.
Other than Jurassic Park and Anonymous Rex, there's a noticeable lack of dinosaur fiction on
bookshelves everywhere. What made you go with a human-dinosaur love story?
I love dinosaurs. When I was nine I discovered that it would be impossible to grow up to be a golden retriever and decided on a Pterodactyl instead. Dinosaurs are really outrageously terrifying. I couldn't think of a better enemy. The love story evolved very organically as I was writing the book. I intended Dinos to be a story about war and destruction. I guess I'm a big softy.
Was there a book that made you realize you wanted to be a writer?
I decided I wanted to be a poet when I was seven for no real reason. It sounded like a really good idea at the time. The book that made me realize I COULD be a writer was Andersen Prunty's Zerostrata.
Who are some of your influences?
Everything I read goes into a big spaghetti-noodle maker in my mind. It all gets ground up and reused so I really have no idea.
What's your favorite book?
100 Years of Solitude. Or In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan. The former is my favorite novel, the latter is my favorite 'thing.'
Who's your favorite author?
My first literary love was Arthur Rimbaud. I love L. Ron Hubbard's classic sci-fi western genre explosion works (like Mission Earth and Buckskin Brigade). My favorite literary author is probably Marquez - no matter what else delights me, I always come back to him.
What's the best book you've read in the last six months?
I re-read The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton recently. I love Edith Wharton in a girl-ish way. The best new book I've read in the last six months was probably Michael Crichton's Pirate Latitudes. It was all of the awesome suspense and action of Michael Crichton without all of the over-researched, analytical bull. And there was a giant squid.
Favorite Kung fu movie?
They're not EXACTLY Kung-fu movies but, Sukiyaki Western Django and Ran.
Favorite dinosaur?
Trachodon. Duh (Although, if Pterodacytls were dinosaurs, it would be the pterodactyl, but they are Pterosaurs, not Dinosaurs).
If you could punch one celebrity in the face, who would it be?
Marlon Brando in Streetcar Named Desire. Then I would fall into his arms and marry him.
What's the strangest thing you've ever ordered at a restaurant?
I don't know. But I do know that I peel the onion out of onion rings and leave it on my plate. People probably think that's weird.
Any words of wisdom for aspiring writers?
Don't expect to publish a short story collection in which none of the short stories have been published elsewhere. Listen to editors and take their advice. Even if they are not smarter than you, their perspective is better than yours. No one can judge his own work.
What's next for Kirsten Alene?
Grad school. But for right now, I'm working on selecting and editing short stories for the websites Unicorn Knife Fight and Bizarro Central. I have a short story in the new issue of Bust Down the Door and Eat All the Chickens (edited by Bradley Sands) and I'm working on another novel now, a little longer than Dinos about a city of skyscrapers surrounded by water and a group of vigilantes who ride genetically altered bionic unicorns.
How did your becoming one of the New Bizarro Authors come about?
I met Cameron Pierce last year and ended up writing the book for him as a birthday present. When he read it he told me to send it to Kevin Donihe (the editor of the NBAS) immediately.
Other than Jurassic Park and Anonymous Rex, there's a noticeable lack of dinosaur fiction on
bookshelves everywhere. What made you go with a human-dinosaur love story?
I love dinosaurs. When I was nine I discovered that it would be impossible to grow up to be a golden retriever and decided on a Pterodactyl instead. Dinosaurs are really outrageously terrifying. I couldn't think of a better enemy. The love story evolved very organically as I was writing the book. I intended Dinos to be a story about war and destruction. I guess I'm a big softy.
Was there a book that made you realize you wanted to be a writer?
I decided I wanted to be a poet when I was seven for no real reason. It sounded like a really good idea at the time. The book that made me realize I COULD be a writer was Andersen Prunty's Zerostrata.
Who are some of your influences?
Everything I read goes into a big spaghetti-noodle maker in my mind. It all gets ground up and reused so I really have no idea.
What's your favorite book?
100 Years of Solitude. Or In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan. The former is my favorite novel, the latter is my favorite 'thing.'
Who's your favorite author?
My first literary love was Arthur Rimbaud. I love L. Ron Hubbard's classic sci-fi western genre explosion works (like Mission Earth and Buckskin Brigade). My favorite literary author is probably Marquez - no matter what else delights me, I always come back to him.
What's the best book you've read in the last six months?
I re-read The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton recently. I love Edith Wharton in a girl-ish way. The best new book I've read in the last six months was probably Michael Crichton's Pirate Latitudes. It was all of the awesome suspense and action of Michael Crichton without all of the over-researched, analytical bull. And there was a giant squid.
Favorite Kung fu movie?
They're not EXACTLY Kung-fu movies but, Sukiyaki Western Django and Ran.
Favorite dinosaur?
Trachodon. Duh (Although, if Pterodacytls were dinosaurs, it would be the pterodactyl, but they are Pterosaurs, not Dinosaurs).
If you could punch one celebrity in the face, who would it be?
Marlon Brando in Streetcar Named Desire. Then I would fall into his arms and marry him.
What's the strangest thing you've ever ordered at a restaurant?
I don't know. But I do know that I peel the onion out of onion rings and leave it on my plate. People probably think that's weird.
Any words of wisdom for aspiring writers?
Don't expect to publish a short story collection in which none of the short stories have been published elsewhere. Listen to editors and take their advice. Even if they are not smarter than you, their perspective is better than yours. No one can judge his own work.
What's next for Kirsten Alene?
Grad school. But for right now, I'm working on selecting and editing short stories for the websites Unicorn Knife Fight and Bizarro Central. I have a short story in the new issue of Bust Down the Door and Eat All the Chickens (edited by Bradley Sands) and I'm working on another novel now, a little longer than Dinos about a city of skyscrapers surrounded by water and a group of vigilantes who ride genetically altered bionic unicorns.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Happy Mother's Day!
Here's what I sent my mom early this morning:
She was pretty Nintendo savy back in the day so I think she'll get it. Damn that Mother Brain was frustrating...
So there was big goddamn explosion at about 5:20 this morning. It was so loud that I was up and pulling on a pair of paints before I realized what happened. I heard a siren and then a quieter boom. I decided it was probably blasting at the quarry not too far from my house. It was a hell of a way to wake up though.
I visited my parents yesterday so there won't be a visit today. I did give my mom a couple Harlen Coben novels and a 16 x 20 print of this:
Maybe I'll venture out in a few minutes and see if any of the neighbors heard that explosion...
She was pretty Nintendo savy back in the day so I think she'll get it. Damn that Mother Brain was frustrating...
So there was big goddamn explosion at about 5:20 this morning. It was so loud that I was up and pulling on a pair of paints before I realized what happened. I heard a siren and then a quieter boom. I decided it was probably blasting at the quarry not too far from my house. It was a hell of a way to wake up though.
I visited my parents yesterday so there won't be a visit today. I did give my mom a couple Harlen Coben novels and a 16 x 20 print of this:
Maybe I'll venture out in a few minutes and see if any of the neighbors heard that explosion...
Friday, May 6, 2011
In Which I Celebrate Seis De Mayo with "Interesting" Blog Stats
Yeah, I really go out of my way to not do anything on my days off. I don't consider myself a stats junkie but I do like checking my blog stats. Here are some that you may find slightly more interesting than watching paint dry.
Most viewed posts:
Most viewed posts:
Most viewed posts:
- The one where I speculated on who drank what was left of the bottle of tequila I left in my car.
- Kirk Jones interview, partly because people from furniture websites keep posting comments on it, which I immediately delete.
- A Nap I took in September. No idea why my nap was so interesting
- A three way tie between the Steve Lowe interview, the James Steele interview, and the Eric Hendrixson interview
- while the coffee brews
- april hairy pics
- hairy april pics
- barbed wire testicle
Most viewed posts:
- Blossom by Andrew Vachss. Vachss linked to this review so it has about ten times more views than #2
- Earth Abides
- Kraken
- a four way tie between Blue Belle, The Walrus and the Warwolf, Bucket of Face, and Behind the Walls of Terra. The Chronicles of an Age of Darkness Wiki linked to The Walrus and the Warwolf, which probably accounts for its position.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Tres De Mayo
There should be a holiday called Cinco De Mayonnaise where people eat dishes where everything contains that blessed condiment.
Well, I have 500 more words than I did this morning on the bizarro detective story that's been festering in my head the past couple of weeks. I'm still not decided on my main character's first name or the title but the story is pretty complete in my head. I guess I'll have to take some time out of my busy schedule of reading and sitting around to do some writing.
The gas station was out of gas when I stopped this morning. You'd think that would be the one thing they'd manage to keep in stock.
Well, I have 500 more words than I did this morning on the bizarro detective story that's been festering in my head the past couple of weeks. I'm still not decided on my main character's first name or the title but the story is pretty complete in my head. I guess I'll have to take some time out of my busy schedule of reading and sitting around to do some writing.
The gas station was out of gas when I stopped this morning. You'd think that would be the one thing they'd manage to keep in stock.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
May Day
Wow. April came and went rather quickly.
I finished How to Eat Fried Furries last night and have now finished reading the 2010-2011 New Bizarro Author Series. I have no regrets. I'll have to read a few more books I already own before I embark on another Bizarro binge of that magnitude. Special thanks to Steve Lowe for enticing me to try them in the first place.
I spent most of Friday putting new gutter guards on my house. No rain yet to test them. The blisters on my thumbs have almost healed. Note to self: When you have the soft hands of a computer programmer, it's best to wear gloves when you do manual labor.
Today is the day the Dark Tower group on Goodreads starts re-reading The Waste Lands. I may have jumped the gun and started last night. Today is also the day I told myself I'd better get back on the writing horse. No word if that's actually going to happen. I've got a ton of housework to catch up on. Damn laundry and vacuuming!
If you give birth today, don't forget to put your baby on the boat so it won't grow up to become Mordred and kill King Arthur.
I finished How to Eat Fried Furries last night and have now finished reading the 2010-2011 New Bizarro Author Series. I have no regrets. I'll have to read a few more books I already own before I embark on another Bizarro binge of that magnitude. Special thanks to Steve Lowe for enticing me to try them in the first place.
I spent most of Friday putting new gutter guards on my house. No rain yet to test them. The blisters on my thumbs have almost healed. Note to self: When you have the soft hands of a computer programmer, it's best to wear gloves when you do manual labor.
Today is the day the Dark Tower group on Goodreads starts re-reading The Waste Lands. I may have jumped the gun and started last night. Today is also the day I told myself I'd better get back on the writing horse. No word if that's actually going to happen. I've got a ton of housework to catch up on. Damn laundry and vacuuming!
If you give birth today, don't forget to put your baby on the boat so it won't grow up to become Mordred and kill King Arthur.
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