• I usually love the work of classic Superman writer Elliot S! Maggin, but in this instance, I think…
• Crocodile Hunter Bunny Has Subdued a Great White…

Digest powered by RSS Digest

“A celebration of the exploits and adventures of the greatest villain of our time?” Really?

Isn’t that akin to throwing a convention so that people can cosplay Osama bin Laden?

And for those who will point out that the Silver/Bronze Age Lex Luthor generally didn’t kill people…well, most of the time that wasn’t for lack of trying. Many of his schemes would have resulted in death if not for the timely intervention of Superman. Plus, let’s not forget that his whole raison d’etre was to kill Superman. “Oh, he wasn’t that bad — he never hurt innocents; he just tried to murder the greatest hero of all time. A lot.”

Furthermore, if Luthor is a figure of post-modern ironic admiration by the population, then that reduces his fear-quotient and makes him a less interesting villain. You don’t worry about Luthor killing Superman if he’s also the guy you celebrate. That makes him ineffectual.

Bad, bad idea.

(From DC Comics Presents Annual #4, 1985. Written by Elliot S! Maggin; art by Eduardo Barreto and Jerry Ordway.)

In I Hunt Killers (rev. 5/12), Jasper Dent helped the police catch the Impressionist, a small-town copycat killer imitating the murders of notorious serial killer Billy Dent—Jazz’s “Dear Old Dad.” Now an NYPD homicide detective requests Jazz’s unique expertise for a new case. The Hat-Dog Killer’s MO is so bizarre that the detectives are struggling to piece together a profile, and the body count is already in double digits. Jazz travels to the big city to review the evidence; unbeknownst to him, girlfriend Connie follows—and soon the two are sucked into the Hat-Dog Killer’s “game.” Jazz suspects that newly on-the-lam Billy may be connected to the murders, but how? All the while, Jazz fights to unlearn the macabre life lessons imparted by his father. Plenty of gory suspense and plot twists will satisfy thriller fans, but, as before, Jazz’s determination to “be human” (aided by Connie and charmingly annoying sidekick Howie) is just as compelling as the murder mystery. With many secrets about the Dent family and Jazz’s own nature remaining to be revealed in the next book, readers won’t want to wait.

Thanks, Horn Book!

• This Week in Rejection!: HarperCollins
• "Fuck Twitter. In 140 characters, one can simplify anything to the point of stupidity, if not rank…"

Digest powered by RSS Digest

Want to play a drinking game with rejection letters? Take a shot every time the word “material” is used in the letter below.

And, yes, there were pet rabbits in this sci-fi novel of mine, but they weren’t “space attack rabbits” of any sort. (Although the idea of rabbits engineered to survive in the vacuum of space, equipped with little rocket packs and laser beam helmets activated by the twitch of an ear, is just too adorable not to exist.)

As always with TWiR! entries, I’m not posting this or pointing out any of this stuff in order to mock those whose names I’ve redacted. I post this to show you that sometimes you will get a rejection letter that seems not to make sense. Trust that it made sense to the person who wrote it. And in the case of the letter above, more important than the rejection itself is that it wasn’t a form letter! I had sent a novel to a major publisher and someone read the whole damn thing and got back to me! That was a huge jump forward for Young Barry.

Remember: It’s not about being rejected or not. It’s about how you’re rejected and what kind of progress you’re making. Did I shake my head at “space attack rabbits?” Well, yeah, of course I did! But at the same time, I was heartened that someone had at least taken me seriously. Seriously enough to write an actual letter back to me.

• Try, Try Again: Rejection Letters Received by Bestselling Authors | Mental Floss
• Microsoft killing off Xbox Points in favor of currency and gift cards system | The Verge
• Best thing on the Internet so far today: Lego 007 in a…
• "Anybody who has really looked at and studied them has
  discovered that comics are a unique form of…"
• "I also worry that with such a small sampling of books that feature African-American boys, my book…"
• Awesome Panels from the Legion of Super-Heroes
• motherjones:

  On Monday, as the Senate at last voted for…

• "A Nebraska public library has rejected a request to either remove Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s…"
• Amazon Coins: A Terrible Idea For Consumers

Digest powered by RSS Digest

• Don't make fun of renowned Dan Brown
• livelymorgue:

  Aug. 30, 1931: “A new turn in the history of…

• Memory Monday: Superheroes Can be Dicks, Too
• motherjones:

  foulmouthedliberty:

  poptech:

  And the highest…

• "You’ve gotta be nice to people. A lot of people have been nice to me. It’s how the world gets…"

Digest powered by RSS Digest

And then your reaction is:

Wow, way to be sensitive and not think about yourself, Kid Flash!

(from New Teen Titans #17, March 1982. Written by Marv Wolfman & George Perez. Art by Perez and Romeo Tanghal.)

• "And I begin to realize what he’s done is he’s loaded in half a dozen action sort of extravaganzas…"
• Wine tasting is bullshit. Here's why.
• reviewinhaiku:

  Iron Man 3

• "I use a trick with co-workers when we’re trying to decide where to eat for lunch and no one has any…"
• "You won’t keep control of your time, unless you can say ‘no.’ You can’t let other people set your…"
• Influenced by Bruce Springsteen and Mark Knopfler? Bruce…
• "the very act of creating is courageous. Making art requires empathy and a willingness to be…"
• A wonderful exploration of life from David Foster Wallace, set…
• Leak sends water pouring into Apple Store on Fifth Avenue – NYPOST.com

Digest powered by RSS Digest