A Rush and a Push...

I haven't posted in a couple weeks. Not that I haven't been busy, but its just been more of the same. I thought about posting about Sen. Barack Obama's speech last week, but what can I say that hasn't been said already? It was amazing and he inspires me. I'll take hope over fear any day of the week.

I posted the fourth issue of my fan fiction project last weekend. I'm still having a blast with it and those who comment on it generally have only positive things to say. I'm finally at the part where I can stop rearranging the house and start making the title my own.







Antony and I recorded the second episode of X-Addiction on Sunday and it's currently available for download. We clocked in a little over two hours, but we crammed in a ton of content. All killer, no filler. It's a monthly show, so I don't feel too bad about it running long. The regular Comic Addiction Podcast keeps trucking along every week. We've got some potential guests lined up to interview so that should be fun. I'm still cranking out about three or four reviews a week as well as editing other writers' work, so I'm keeping busy with the site.

Old Man has a show on Saturday at the Rudyard Kipling. I'm looking forward to that, but I wonder how it'll sound. The Rud had its PA stolen last month. I'm not sure if it has been replaced or not, so I'm going in this a little in the dark. I figured they'd let us know if we had to provide our own.

I'm still addicted to Team Fortress 2. I couldn't wait for the updates on the XBox version (due out by the end of the year), so I started playing it on my laptop. It's not as smooth (due to limitations of my computer) and I'd rather use a controller instead of a mouse and keyboard, but it's still a blast. You can have a game with twice as many people on the PC version, so it gets pretty crazy.

Life and How to Live It - Project Updates

With the regular television season wrapped up and BSG on hiatus until 2009 (grrr...), I have a little more time to focus on my various projects (when I can pull myself away from Team Fortress 2 on the Xbox 360).

Old Man: The new Old Man line-up made its debut the weekend before last. We played in a bar that Neil and I had never performed at before. Melissa and Jana had played there before in other groups. It was loud, sweaty, drunken, and very rock 'n' roll. I loved it. The crowd was enthusiastic, too, which always helps.

We've got another gig set up at our old stompin' grounds, the Rudyard Kipling one July 1st. It's with a band from the UK, I think, and on a Tuesday night, but I'm sure it'll be fun. We'll probably use the same setlist. If it ain't broke...

Comic Addiction: I've got a couple advance reviews up at the site this week (another one pending until Chris comes back from his vacation). I'm also working on an article which is an overview of what the X-Men titles for the first half of the year.

I'm still editing reviews by other writers and co-hosting the podcast every week. It can be hassle at times, but I'm still enjoying the responsibility and the work. I'm going to Wizard World Chicago this weekend, so it'll be more comic book overload for me.

Fan Fiction: I'm still having a ton of fun with my take on the Uncanny X-Men. The first issue was well received, and I posted the second story last night. The third issue has been scripted out and is ready to be translated into prose format, and I've begun work on issue four's script.

I don't read much fan fic, if any, because it's usually pretty bad. People tend to replace the regular characters with their own creations or it devolves into slash/erotica. The other folks involved in this project with me have done a great job. I think it helps that most of us are new to writing fan fic, so we'll hopefully avoid those typical pitfalls.

nerd[heart]geek: I've still got the rest of the New Order catalogue to discuss (the last three albums and a single, I think). I'll hopefully get at least one review posted this week. Also, I'll continue to review the new Cure singles that come out on a monthly basis, which will lead to the full length album's release in September. Maybe I'll write and overview of their catalogue next.

Just One More... And Then I Gotta Go...

You'd think between playing with Old Man, writing and recording a podcast for Comic Addiction, and writing for this blog, I'd have enough projects to occupy my time. I'm now venturing into the dark and forbidden world of fan fiction. It's been surprisingly fun, so far.

The idea was pitched by someone over at the Uncanny X-Cast forum and a bunch of us regular posters (FUXers - Forum of Uncanny X-Casters) decided to give it a whirl. I quickly claimed Uncanny X-Men as my title and established the era that we would all work from. The idea is that no more Marvel Comics were published after the cover date of October 1986, right before the Mutant Massacre. I thought that would be a good jumping off point, since the X-Books start to really change around that point and there were a lot of cast change ups afterwards.

Basically, I'm rewritting history from that point forward. The Mutant Massacre will have a different end result and the cast change will not be as drastic. There will be some additions to the X-Men, but no subtractions, leaving me the cast I want to write. The reaction to the first issue has been pretty positive, so that's encouraging. Also, the first issue of another person's X-Factor project has been really good, which makes the whole project even more worthwhile. I'm looking forward to reading the other series that will eventually join the "FUX Universe". Some forum members are also going to provide illustrations so even more people can get involved.

If anything this is a fun creative exercise. I start out by writing an issue in the format of a script for a twenty-two page comic book. After that, I translate it into prose form. This way I can make sure I'm writing just enough material for a regular comic book series on a monthly basis and that the format stays consistant.