Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

The Thrill of Victory...

The Agony of Defeat. Who remembers this catch-phrase from a weekly network sports presentation in years past?

I’ve been watching a lot of contests lately. The Olympics. American Idol. Survivor. Chopped. I find myself frighteningly able to identify with the participants, though I’ve never skied down a mountain slope, sang in public or cooked for anyone outside my family and friends. Nor have I braved a jungle setting to win a million dollars.

But as I watch the judges whittle the pool of wannabes down to 24 finalists on American Idol, and the ones who didn’t make it break down in tears, I think I totally get where they’re coming from.

*GASP!* Romance In Sci-Fi??

I’m addicted to the Smart Bitches, Trashy Books blog (honestly, I think there needs to be a support group). I religiously devour every post every day and – on the odd occasion – actually muster up the courage to pull myself out of lurkdom and comment (I am, by nature, quite a shy person. S’true.) Anyways, one of their more recent posts investigated and responded to the ludicrous statement made by one disgruntled male that science fiction has been ruined by female intrusion of the worst kind – romance.

Romance in sci-fi?? Golly, gee! No! What an atrocity! What will happen next? Boys and girls going to the same school?

Guilty pleasures

Guilty pleasures … those things in life that we love, that we can’t do without, and yet feel guilty about enjoying. It can be because they aren’t intellectual enough or aren’t good for us in some way. It may simply be our egos caving in to peer pressure … that need to fit in.

Whatever our guilty pleasure may be, we indulge — often in secret — because it makes us happy.

Surviving the End of the World

I’m not a big fan of reality tv, but I’ll admit I’m hooked on the Discovery channel’s The Colony. It’s about a group of ten people trying to survive a catastrophic event.

RIP: Mourning the Deaths of Fictional Characters

Jen: The first time I remember suffering over a fictional loss was when I was a teenager and went to see the movie Ghost. At the end of that movie when Patrick Swayze says “Ditto” and goes into the light, I sobbed so loud that other people in the theater actually laughed at me {ask Lisa about it, she was with me at the time. (Lisa: Yes, I was there…and laughing at her, too!)} Perhaps it was the teenage hormones at work, or maybe I like to suffer, but I went and saw that movie several more times in the theater—and cried every time. Recently, I caught the ending on cable…and balled all over again.

Why is tragedy and death of beloved characters in popular fiction so prevalent? Is it the shock value? Is it to showcase how life is precious? As a writer, I get why death is necessary. It creates great emotional angst, it allows us to explore the darker side of life. It can create great conflict. But still, from the other side of the table, why do we, as readers and viewers, keep coming back to shows—or rewatch movies and reread books—that rip our hearts out time and time again?

Blogging By The Seat Of My Pants

Or…Damn, It’s Yesterday In America!

Or…Chuck

OK, that sub-heading probably doesn’t make sense, but here’s the thing. I just woke up and realised, oh, golly, I slept through 5pm Friday. (Actually, my language was a touch more R rated, but it’s only early in the morning Down Under and I try to reserve my public displays of profanity to after 10am at least). So the question I hear you asking (or is that crickets I hear? Hmmmm), is what on Earth is Lexxie carrying on about. At this moment in time I’m carrying on about anything that comes to mind until something slams me in the face to blog about. (Yes, I know, I should have been prepared for this, but here’s the thing, I am the most disorganized person in the world. Even my iphone is on the verge of filing for divorce due to irreconcilable differences. Its attempts to alert me to “very important” events and appointments have gone largely ignored since we began out tumultuous relationship and as such, it is giving up on me sniff)

Summer Movie Memories

Summertime might mean a lot of things to different people. A few might be excited for the chance to go camping. Others might see this as the time for them to get their gardening done. Some might look forward to the family vacation to Disneyworld. Ever since I can remember, I’ve looked forward to the summer movie season. The quest for that summer’s great film became a ritual that my family still performs, though perhaps not as religiously as when we were all younger. Those summer adventures have been the pegs on which I hang some of my most important memories.

One of my favourite summer movies as a kid (I know I’m dating myself) was E. T. Here’s this unpopular kid who finds an alien! He gets special powers! He got to fly across the moon! I begged every relative I had in my small eastern town to take me. I saw it in the theatres five times, and whenever I hear John Williams’ score soaring it still takes my heart with it, racing across that moon. E.T. made one of the toughest summers I’ve ever had endurable.

As I grew up, other movies became the summer flick I had to go see as many times as I could. The Never-ending Story I saw while ‘suffering’ (insert preteen angst) through a family camping in P.E.I. Willow was playing in an old release theatre when I got to see on the big screen with my dad. Time spent alone with him was and is scarce and treasured. Independence Day was the next huge blockbuster I had to see with my friend who was soon to move away. Pirates of the Caribbean I saw with my mother just after her open heart surgery. The movies and memories always seem to go hand in hand.
I am moving this summer to a new city. I don’t know anyone there, yet. My next real-life adventure is going to be upon me too soon. But I look forward to finding this year’s summer flick, to tuck away in my memory box so I can say ‘That’s the movie I saw when…’

What’s your favourite summer flick movie or memory?

Friday Five: Five+ Favorite Anime Heroes

Cartoon heroes might seem, um, two-dimensional, but that’s only until you really get to know them. Anime and manga boast some of the most intriguing heroes around. No single media has a monopoly on good characterization—or sexy guys. These are just a few of my favorites.

Alucard (Hellsing)
Yes, the name is Dracula spelled backwards—no spoilers there. But this isn’t your grand-anything’s Drac. Alucard takes the stuff Bram Stoker was afraid to talk about and takes it…

A Big Handful of Hollywood

Jen: Lisa often works as a background actor on movies and TV shows, and I’m used to getting phone calls from her letting me know she’s not going to be available because she’s going to be playing a recovering nymphomaniac (in the movie Domino), a dead nun (in the TV show Angel), a hooker (in half a dozen different shows—does that mean she’s easily typecast? *snicker*).

Often Lisa will call me with just a title of a movie, and I’ll go into research mode and see what I can find out about it on the net. All for research purposes of course. We wouldn’t want Lisa to head blind onto a movie set and act like a dork in front of our favorite hottie flavor actor of the month (and yes she’s done that, but so have I, because yes, we’re just that not cool.)

About a year ago, Lisa called me to tell me she was working on another movie, but this time as a specialty costumer. Lisa’s a kick-ass designer—she made outfits she wore to several award shows including the Grammys, the SAG Awards, and several others. This time she wasn’t designing, but she was getting to work with leather, creating belts and straps for a costume.

Oh Captain! My Captain!

I seem to have a thing for Captains.

Captains with a first name that starts with the letter J, even better.

The first Captain I remember who caught my eye was Captain Jack Sparrow. That swaggering walk, that blatant sensuality, that piercing, eyeliner-heavy stare…rowr. I hold him responsible for my fascination with all things piratical. (Historical pirates, that is. None of these new-fangled pirates need apply.)

Then Captain Jack Harkness came along.