My Amazing Life

If you’re like me, you find it easy to take the everyday for granted.  One of the reasons I don’t blog about my life, when I’m working at home, is that I’m stumped as to how to make it interesting.  I mean, what am I supposed to say?  Today, I ate such and such foods, I wrote on my novel or my blog, I went to the gym, I watched TV, etc?  Exciting stuff, right?  But it struck me the other day that, in many ways, my life is pretty amazing.  For example, in the last twenty-four hours, I’ve:

• Helped my dragon-friend prepare for his eventual introduction to the world, while sitting on my front porch and enjoying the day’s warmth after several weeks of unseasonably cool weather.
• Washed several days’ worth of dishes without getting dishpan hands (because I didn't actually have to wash and dry them).
• Watched two detectives, a human named Matt Sikes and a Newcomer named George Francisco, return a kidnapped and brainwashed child to parents who had thought he was dead (in “Alien Nation” a TV show I’ve loved for over twenty years now).
• Drank clean, warm water all day, without having to draw it from a well, or even light a stove.
• Saw some recent travel photos from family and friends who live hundreds or thousands of miles away.  One recently returned from a tour of Israel.  (Thank you, Facebook!)
• Reconnected with a friend from college, and a young man I’ve not seen in decades.  Of the latter, I worked with him in a church puppet ministry twenty years ago, when he dreamed of making his future in the comics industry.  Now he works for Marvel, doing his dream job.  (Thanks again, Facebook!)
• Enjoyed today’s painting on Facebook from an artist who accepted a challenge to complete thirty paintings in thirty days.  You go, girl!  
• Was inspired by how human ingenuity might eventually transform our solar system in Kim Stanley Robinson’s 2312.
• Wrote a blog entry about Hungarian Fairy Tales that may end up being read today, tomorrow, or even a year from now, by people all over the world.  Additionally, I wrote this without using a pen or a single piece of paper.
• Traveled to Paris in 1931 with Hugo Cabret, thanks to Brian Selznick.
• Enjoyed the CD “Clockwork Angels” by Rush.  While I’ve heard the group's songs on the radio nearly all my life, I never really appreciated their music until author Kevin J. Anderson helped me understand how special they are.  (His novel, based on their album, proved equally enjoyable).
• Discovered where a church is that I first visited with LAPD Homicide detectives Rick “Hunter” & Dee Dee McCall last year.  It’s called the Wayfarer’s Chapel, an outdoor church designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and operated by a denomination I’ve never previously heard of, the Swedenborgian Church.  Now, to plan a visit there!
• Enjoyed a delightful lunch with my wife at a local restaurant.
• Learned how one of my favorite authors, Steven Brust, is wrestling with the structure of his current novel Hawk, and even offered him a suggestion on what to do with all the scenes he’ll eventually cut.  (He replied "Interesting idea, but no."  Oh well...)

When I look over the past week, I realize how many more amazing things I’ve done or experienced, including traveling hundreds of miles in a single day to worship with my mother and share a meal with her, conversing with a man in England who gave me some welcome insight into author E. F. Benson, and after months of searching, finally finding the perfect coat to replace one I left behind in England last year because it was falling apart.  From out of the blue, I’ve even been offered a guest membership to a Science Fiction convention, and invited to speak on some of their panel discussions.  Needless to say, I regard this as an unexpected honor. 

Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the most amazing fact of all, that my wife and I still love each other, after all our years together.  So many couples divorce after a few years, or suffer through marriages that are much less pleasant and rich than ours, that it’s easy to take something like that, a strong and nourishing relationship, for granted.  In today’s world, we live at such a fast pace, and have access to so many amenities, that it’s easy to take all that we have for granted.  It’s only when I sit down, and really think about my life, that I realize how much I have to be thankful for.  I’ll bet if you take a moment to sit down quietly, and clear your mind of all distractions, that you’ll realize how amazing your own life is too. 

Who knows?  You may discover that your life is even more amazing than mine.

Dragon Dave

Related Internet Links

Wayfarer's Chapel

Steven Brust: The Scythe in my Toolshed

Elvira’s Incredible Longevity

When approaching the Mistress of the Dark,
don't let the gargoyle bite off your toes!

I never cease to be fascinated by what captures and holds our interest.  Take police procedurals, for example.  These TV shows, featuring heroes who safeguard our neighborhoods, appeal to a large portion of the viewing audience.  They consistently score high in the rankings.  Yet, unless they are extraordinary in some way (such as “Miami Vice,” for example), they are typically forgotten.  Even the best are regarded as disposable items.  Who needs yesterday’s cop show, when you can watch the current version?

Sci-fi, Fantasy and Horror shows usually score lower, and appeal to a narrower portion of the viewership.  Yet something in them excites and inspires viewers in a way that more mainstream programming doesn’t.  You’ll find far more clubs, forums, and conventions held for these shows than you will for police procedurals, dramas, or comedies.  When was the last time you attended a “Miami Vice” convention, belonged to a Ricardo Tubbs fan club, or purchased any related merchandise?  And forget “Hunter,” the series I’ve been watching lately.  Why should anyone care about “Hunter?”  It was just another cop show, right?

Bounce an Elvira check today,
and you'll pay for it for eternity.

At Stan Lee’s Comikaze, an area of the main floor was devoted to Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.  Examples of the many collectibles produced over the years were on display.  Two game stations had been set up so attendees could try out the latest Elvira video game.  People waited in line to approach Elvira, on her Victorian settee, and pay for her autograph.  Fans continue to seek out her books, videos, and a plethora of licensed products. 

In the last post, I wrote about the connection Elvira forged with me.  It’s obvious I was merely one among many.  “Elvira’s Movie Macabre,” a pleasant weekend comedy-horror show, with a likeable hostess, started on a small, independent TV station in Los Angeles and became a national phenomenon.  The police procedural “Hunter,” on the other hand, started on network TV, was seen by more people, and lasted far longer in its initial series run.  But who wants more “Hunter?”  How many even remember “Hunter?”  What do people want?  Who continues to fascinate children of all ages?  Who continues to win new fans, provoke discussion, and sell related merchandise?  Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.  That’s who.

That’s the power of Sci-fi, Fantasy, and yes, even Horror.  (Now, if someone could just explain this to the TV executives who consistently cancel these popular and enduring shows)!

Dragon Dave

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Fantasy World-building Insights from Police Dramas

Related Internet Links

List of “Elvira’s Movie Macabre” Episodes

Stan Lee’s Comikaze page on Elvira

When Your Favorite Characters Die: Part 2

Spoiler Alert: If you've taken my advice, and are currently watching Seasons Two through Four of Hunter, you may wish to wait until you finish Season Four before reading this post.

In Season Four of the TV show Hunter, Lieutenant Ambrose Finn is torn apart mentally and emotionally by the debilitating illness of his wife.  The stress, and the longing for what he cannot have, lead him to question everything he has always believed in.  Her decline and eventual death twist his psyche until, in the episode “Silver Bullet,” he betrays his oath and assassinates criminals sheltered by the letter of the law.  

Producer Roy Huggins brought the character of Ambrose Finn into the series in Season Two, in the episode “Blow Up,” as a way to soften the antipathy that had previously existed between Hunter, McCall, and the police department hierarchy.  I found him a sympathetic character, and looked forward to watching his participation in episodes.  He cared about his fellow cops, supported Hunter when others did not, and proved a good friend.  Perhaps it was fitting that, for whatever reason, John Shearin, the actor who played him, decided to quit the show when Roy Huggins decided to retire.  Yet, like Dorsk 81, his death struck me hard.

Of course, to make way for the new, sometimes the old must pass away.  In the case of Doctor Who, one of the most enduring characters must be Sarah Jane Smith, who accompanied the Third and Fourth Doctors on their adventures.  When actress Elisabeth Sladen and the producers agreed that the time had come for her character to leave the Tardis, she was given a choice: to go out with a bang, or with a whimper.  Actors get no greater thrill than in making their characters face the most trying emotional and physical obstacles possible.  But Elisabeth Sladen eschewed a great death scene and simply walked out of the Tardis at the end of “The Hand of Fear.”  Her gentle departure allowed Sarah Jane Smith to live on in fans' imaginations, and her character was brought back repeatedly: in novels, in reunion shows, in an attempted spin-off, in an episode of the new Doctor Who series, and finally in her own series, the Sarah Jane Adventures.

I know my favorite characters in fiction will continue to die, regardless of whether or not I approve of the writers’ (or the producers’, or the actors’) decisions.  Yet, after watching “Silver Bullet,” I found I had to go back and review “Blow Up.”  Dee Dee McCall heard a joke about Ambrose Finn before she and Hunter met him.  

Why does Lieutenant Finn wear red suspenders?  

The answer: to hold up both of his guns.  

When they meet him, Finn says that he’s read about them, and (unlike their previous superiors) he likes their style and methodology.  He gives them more resources to catch the mad bomber Otto Minski than any of their former superiors would have.  Yet we only saw Ambrose Finn sporadically after “Blow Up,” and he never got the promotion to captain he wanted.  So, in terms of storytelling and character development, it makes sense that a former street cop, who still wore two guns (even though he spent most of his time at his desk) might grow disillusioned with the effectiveness of the entire justice system when everything else in his life starts to fall apart.

Still, I wish Lieutenant Ambrose Finn, like Sarah Jane Smith, had chosen to quietly leave the police department, and embarked upon another stage of his life in my imagination.

Still Grieving, 

Dragon Dave

P.S.  For those of you who haven't heard, Elisabeth Sladen recently lost her battle with cancer.  Rest well, dear one.

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A Fish Claimed & A Treasure Lost

The other day, the staff at Long John Silver's took far longer than normal to finish our order.  Linda and I talked, sipped our cold drinks, and relaxed, but the large, smooth surface of the table proved too great a temptation.  So I folded my straw wrapper into a paper football and we flicked it back and forth a few times until it flew off the table and onto the floor.  As I didn’t want to get my hands dirty before I ate, I reached for Linda’s wrapper, which she had balled up, and we each scored a few goals with that until it bounced off the table and onto the floor.  Now we were faced with a dilemma: we must either abandon our game, or find another ball.

A solution presented itself with a sugar packet, and it proved an excellent football.  Not only was it shaped perfectly to slide across the flat surfaces, but also its weight prevented it from flying off the table on its own.  After awhile, the staff called our order, and we happily declared a draw as I went to pick up our lunch.

Although we had waited nearly fifteen minutes, I had to edge in between the ice tea dispenser and a retired gentleman who had come in after us.  He evidently felt he had waited long enough.  “I think that’s my order,” he kept insisting, even though my name, not his, was written on the workers’ portion of the receipt.  Finally all three of us (the worker, the old man, and I) we got that straightened out, and I brought our orders back to the table.

As we ate and chatted, another old man sat at the adjacent table.  A little girl, presumably his granddaughter, took the chair nearest us, and moved and angled it so that she ate as close to us as she could.  I felt a little self-conscious, and did my best to ignore her scrutiny.  But she was clearly interested in us, as if we possessed something that she lacked or desired.

When the staff called their order, the old man rose to collect it.  She followed him, never more than a step away.  I noticed that she wore a frilly pink dress with a tutu-style skirt, dark blue jeans, and cowboy boots with matching pink edging.  Although her eyes remained on him, he ignored her.  Instead, he wore a frown as unselfconsciously as the little girl did her outfit.  When they returned to their table, he kept his eyes on his food, and never spoke to her.  She never spoke either.  But she kept watching us while she ate her fish and fries with her fork. 

On a recent episode of “Hunter,” the title character arrives at a mansion to discover a boy hovering over his mother’s body, while his father lay dead in another room.  While the boy claims an intruder ransacked the house and shot his parents, Hunter eventually realizes the boy staged the incident and fired the shots.  He had not found the gun in his father’s study, but procured it from school.  The couple never wanted children; the wife’s pregnancy had surprised them.  So they never talked to him or took any interest in his life, regardless of how much he tried to impress them.  The boy asks Hunter, “Why did I need them?”

I don’t know the specifics of the relationship between the old man and the girl.  I don’t know what caused the silence between them.  But she was clearly interested in us, and from the way she followed him around, looked up to him, and never complained, I can only assume she would have welcomed dialogue with him.  I’m not suggesting that anything on the scope of the “Hunter” episode will occur between them.  But all too soon, she will reach her teens.  She'll discover new interests, and fill her life with all the things that young people use to define themselves as separate entities from their family.  I cannot help but feel as though the old man missed out on a treasure worth far more than fish, and that, all too soon, any opportunity to claim it may be lost forever.

(A treasure worth more than the fish at Long John Silver's?  What am I thinking?)

Dragon Dave

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Getting Up Off The Couch

This morning, we woke early and went to the gym.  But I was just going through the motions: my spirit wasn’t really into it.  My wife tried to perk me up by winking at me, smiling, and making a few anecdotes.  After awhile, she brought a smile to my face.  Yet all I wanted to do, the whole time I worked out, was to come home, sit on the couch, and watch “Hunter” with breakfast. 

Finally, I was on the couch.  My wife had left for work.  I was eating my breakfast.  My food tasted good, but I wasn't really enjoying it.  All I wanted to do was sink back into the couch and watch the TV.

When the episode was over, I gave in to temptation.  “Fine,” I said.  “I’ll put my plate away, get another glass of water, another can of soda, and watch another episode.  Maybe after a little more rest, and some more caffeine, I’ll be ready to work.”  Then a strange thing happened.  I got up, filled my water glass, tossed my paper plate, and rinsed my small fruit bowl and utensils.  In the background, my TV repeated the background music from the “Hunter” DVD episode menu.  Yet, suddenly, I could envision being productive today.  So I walked back into the living room, turned off the TV, and went to brush my teeth.  

I don’t know what this day holds in store for me.  I don’t know if my mind will conk out on me once I sit down to work on my novel.  I have no idea if I’ll actually be productive or not.  But I’ll never know what I can accomplish today, if I don’t get my butt off the couch and try.

Hoping for creativity,

Dragon Dave

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Crockett & Tubbs:
Two heroes indelibly burned into my brain.

Aspiring Science Fiction and Fantasy novelists tend to study the novels of their published counterparts when constructing their worlds.  Writing teachers often promote this as the best way to construct worlds that will draw readers in.  This view makes sense, as TV shows and movies involve a different working process than that of the traditional novelist.  Yet other mediums and genres offer insights into the intricacies that make a society not just function, but survive the constant, daily barrage of change.  In my opinion, would-be World-builders should study all mediums of art, as they seek to master the skills necessary to become published authors. 

Police Dramas portray the constant, necessary fight to protect society from the activities of groups and individuals that, if left unchecked, would lead to its collapse.  In the 1980s, two TV shows that portrayed this fight were “Miami Vice” and “Hunter.”  "Miami Vice" showed the insidious way that drugs can infect all levels of society and aspects of a culture, whether their source filters down from civic leadership or rises from street dealers.  “Hunter” displayed the vigilance necessary to protect citizens in all walks of life from predators who prey on the weak and the successful.  Both shows proved popular with viewers during their broadcast runs.  Yet each was as different from the other as baseball and cheese, and left vastly different legacies.   Why? 

“Miami Vice” initially won viewers with its looks, style, and sound, but the show faltered in later seasons, and completely fell apart during its fifth.  Meanwhile, “Hunter” slowly climbed the rankings to become a mainstay of NBC’s lineup.  From a dismal 65^th in the Nielsen rankings for Season One, the show reached the top thirty by its third, and lasted seven years.  An attempt to reboot "Miami Vice" in the cinemas failed. "Hunter" prompted several reunion movies, and nearly spawned a sequel series.  

Hunter & McCall:
Two heroes winning their way into my heart.

Despite the way “Miami Vice” wowed us, the show proved unsustainable once its novelty had worn off.  It also suffered from drastic changes in oversight.  After the first season of "Hunter," Steven J. Cannell kept a watchful eye on the series, but steered his mentor Roy Huggins into his former role as Executive Producer.  Huggins labored hard to refine his series' characters, style and identity.  Initially, Hunter's fellow police officers disliked his violent methods and disregard of the rules.  In later seasons, Hunter's character and actions were softened.  Nor did his fellow police trust him, as he came from a Mafia family.  Huggins dropped that aspect of Hunter’s history.  The catch phrase “Works for me” and the music video segments were also discarded.  Huggins replaced these discordant elements by building the chemistry between Hunter and his partner Dee Dee McCall.  What emerged was a traditional police drama, but one of the most memorable partnerships in TV history.

As a would-be SF and Fantasy writer, what "Hunter" teaches me is that I shouldn’t worry about delivering a groundbreaking novel the first time out.  What will prove more important, at least for the longevity of my career, is to continually build on my strengths while addressing (not hiding from) my weaknesses.  To seek to add substance to my worlds with each successive story, while not losing my unique voice or style.  Bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson says that, with each new book or series, he tries to evaluate the areas he needs to improve as a writer, and then address those issues in that story.  Coming from such a prolific and successful author, this sounds like good advice.

TV shows from other genres thus offer the aspiring author valuable insights.  “Miami Vice,” while a magnet for the latest music, fashion, and styles, was also an expensive show to produce.  When it fell in the Nielsen rankings, the series was dropped as quickly as Sci-Fi shows that also cost a lot to produce.  This suggests that stories built chiefly on style, regardless of how popular they initially seem, cannot endure.  In my own writing career, I hope to emulate authors like Kevin J. Anderson, Steven J. Cannell, and Roy Huggins.  I want to create substance: stories that will not just wow you, but will last.

Writing substantively (and, I hope, stylishly),

Dragon Dave

The "Hunter" of My Reality

Criminals: Beware!

Let’s face it: crafting a novel takes a long time.  As I write without detailed chapter outlines and comprehensive character charts, I’m exploring my characters, building my fantasy world, and discovering “what happens” with each sentence.  Another aspect of novel writing that drains my spirits is that my novel is always in process until it’s finished.  That’s why I write a daily blog: so I can initiate, develop, finish, and publish something each day.  The satisfaction I derive from those daily achievements buoy my spirits as I trudge on toward the completion of my novel. 

I also find it helpful to watch a TV show during lunch.  Without any mental exertion, I can explore character, study dialogue, and reflect on any issues raised.  In forty to fifty minutes, I fortify myself with the three essential acts of drama, remind myself of the need to arouse the reader’s curiosity in the beginning, sustain it during the middle, and hopefully, satisfy his or her interest with the ending. 

Of course, it goes without saying that all those elements play out, on a smaller scale, within each scene of a good novel.

As I mentioned in “The Hunter of My Memories,” I’ve been watching “Hunter” lately.  This police drama started the same year as the more popular and award-winning “Miami Vice.” In the first season, Hunter took some stylistic cues from “Miami Vice.” Long, music montages played out against action set on the backstreets of Los Angeles.  While “Vice” used the latest Pop music, “Hunter” often opted for Hard Rock or Heavy Metal. “Vice” offered viewers eye candy with beautiful Porsches, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis; “Hunter” offered us big-bodied American-made cars from the ‘70s and ‘80s.  When the action in “Vice” took place in a rundown neighborhood, the production team spruced up streets and painted ramshackle buildings.  “Hunter” portrayed the backstreets of Los Angeles at their grungy worst.

“Hunter” starts off as TV’s answer to "Dirty Harry."  He’s a hard-nosed cop whom no one in his department likes or trusts.  He grabs colleagues’ cases if they interest him.  He eats chili dogs and junk food.  He engages in high-speed car chases, which frequently end in spectacular crashes, in the busiest sectors of the city.  And of course, he’s not afraid to use his gun.

The guest actors provide additional sparkle to each episode.  Some of these allow the viewer to watch a famous actor before he or she became a household name.  Right now, I’m enjoying Season Three.  One episode featured a short but dramatic scene with Claudia Christian (in a bikini!), who would later star as Susan Ivanova in the Sci-Fi series “Babylon 5.”  Another episode offered Brent Spiner, who would go on to paint his face white and win our hearts as the android Data in “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”  And then there’s Garrett Morris, who previously rose to prominence on “Saturday Night Live.”  He plays Sporty James, who drives a Cadillac, uses his friend’s shoeshine stop as his office, and trades in street-information for money and favors.  Not only does he make you laugh, but in one episode, when one of his deals goes wrong and his girlfriend dies, his grief is so palpable, so real, that he reminds us comedians can also rip our hearts out when given the right dramatic role.

Now seems the perfect time to (re)discover “Hunter.”  All seven season are available in one DVD box set, for what seems a reasonable price, when compared to better-known ‘80s shows like “Miami Vice.”  I think you’ll agree with me that the show grows more sophisticated, and thus more satisfying, as the series progresses.  It’s given me valuable insights, which have kept me writing, and perhaps even improved my stories.  But then again, that’s why I'm watching it.

That's also why I'm recommending it to you.

Taking inspiration wherever I find it,

Dragon Dave

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