Yes indeed, episode o17 of the free Magic of Eyri Podcast is now online.

Listenotron! ::  Downloaderize!

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In podcast news, I was looking over the download stats yesterday and I saw that so far this month, the first episode of the podcast (A Shameless Summer) already has over 150 downloads.

That’s over 150 people starting my podcast. Over 150 new listeners. Man, that is great.  Will all of them stick around after that first episode? I dunno, but at least they gave me a chance. That reminds me, I need to start advertising online again and soon.

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Speaking of promotion, I decided that I will be going to Penguion 2010 in April.  I contacted them yesterday and hopefully I’ll be on panels like I have been for the past two years. I had a blast last year, as I always do, and I certainly know more about podcasting this time around than last year (I think I had maybe three episodes or so up at that point).

My latest feature article for Capital Gains is now online, I interview someone who moved to the Lansing area from China.  I have two more stories in the hopper, I’ll post when those get put online.  I also have two new assignments–one of which deals with being single in Lansing.  Should be interesting.

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I had the pleasure of being a guest at the science fiction and fantasy fan convention, ConClave once again this weekend.  I had a great time like always,  running into  Jim C. Hines, who was there promoting his latest release, Mermaid’s Madness, and the always entertaining M. Keaton.

It is fun to reconnect with writer friends and to make new ones at these conventions.  I was a part of nine events, including the Writer’s Workshop (I read and critiqued stories), panel discussions (ranging from zombies to werewolves to comic books) and I was even a contestant in a Last Man Standing Sci-Fi/Fantasy Trivia Contest–and I came in 2nd place.

My prize for coming in second is that my name will be used for the name of the president of the CDC in an upcoming zombie novel (The Ravening) by Stewart Sternberg. Stewart said that there will be a quote at the start of a chapter, which will be attributed to said CDC president, so something along these lines perhaps, to give you an idea:

“I see no reason to panic. As long as none of them bite you, you’ll be just fine.  Oh, and wash your hands.  Seriously, people.”

- Daniel Hogan, President of the CDC.

I’m excited to see what Stewart comes up with–he’s threatening to make it something that will cause an angry mob to show up at my door. Hey, I can use the publicity.  The novel will be available in stores and obviously I’ll do a post once that happens.  The grand prize winner will be made into a character that gets ripped apart by zombies.  Lucky.  Amusingly, I lost my shot at first place by not knowing the name of Barbara’s brother in the original Night of the Living Dead (Johnny).

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Speaking of Mr. Sternberg, we were on a panel about werewolves at ConClave, which I recorded for this week’s podcast.  Check it out. I’m glad I recorded it, because between late nights at work this week and getting ready for the con, I didn’t have the next episode of the Magic of Eyri finished. Hooray for filler. Give the panel a listen, it is a fun time. Jon David, Rick Moore, Charles Zaglanis and William Jones join us as well.

A Fistful of Costumes: Part One – Danny, Get Yer Gun

Days Until Halloween: 30

I decided the heck with it and ordered the non-firing Colt Single Action Army replica, the leather gun belt/holster and the brass dummy rounds for my Man with No Name costume.

After a lot of searching online, I found a site where I got everything for about $130 (including shipping). Pricey I know, but one of my recent freelance articles more than pays for that (which is the whole reason I write the freelance stuff to begin with–to pay for goofy things like this). Plus, I was part of a focus group for the Lansing State Journal on Monday night, earning me a bounty of $25 for an hour of my time.

When I realized I could use the gun/holster for future costumes (I already have several ideas), I decided it would be a good investment. If anything, it will make for a good show piece at home, how’s that for a conversation starter?

The first website I was found had what I wanted for a few dollars cheaper (sequel pun not intended), but when I went to their shopping cart I kept getting warnings from my browser that their security certificate was expired and/or unreliable. I sent the website an email in regards to this, but I ended up finding a different website to go through and pulled the trigger on the deal (pun intended). I’m glad I did–it is looking like I might get my gear as early as tomorrow, which we be great because I could wear some of it to ConClave next weekend.

Only at a fandom hotel convention can you get away with wearing a gun belt all day. I may wait and wear it only when moderating panels or giving critiques for the Writer’s Workshop. We’ll see.

The website I contacted eventually responded, saying they were in the process of overhauling their site and said I could just pay with Paypal and directed me to their new URL. But the new site had next to nothing on it. I ended up paying a little bit more by using the site I did (maybe $10, if that) but the peace of mind is priceless.

I opted for the Cavalry model over the Peacemaker (the website’s names, as both are technically Peacemakers)–the only difference is the barrel length. The Cavalry has a 6 and 1/4 inch barrel, while the Peacemaker has a 4 inch barrel (start with the Freudian jokes). The shorter barrel was the favorite for trick shots and quick draws in the films and wild west shows (and was more popular with civilians), but since I’m not getting into any quick draw contests, I wanted the gun that had a better ‘look.’

Honestly, when I think of a Single Action Army, I visualize the longer barreled versions, because they had a more distinct look. Eastwood’s SAA in Fistful of Dollars had a barrel length of just under six inches.

I’ll take pictures of the gear once I get everything. I’m excited. I even watched Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More last night as research/inspiration.

My next big task is finding cowboy boots and a hat that is at least somewhat similar to Clint’s. Luckily, I saw that the local TSC store sells spurs at an affordable price. I was on the fence about wearing real spurs at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it would be a cool addition (especially the sound of me walking around with them on).

The local costume shop has plastic spurs, but again, I want stuff that’ll last. I’m sick of spending money on cheap props that break easily (as I’m sure these plastic spurs would).

Boots could be an issue, as a I don’t want to spend a lot on them, but if I can find a pair of real boots for under $40, I might get those. I will hit up the Goodwill and the like first however–you never know what you’ll find there. Eastwood’s boots in Fistful aren’t anything fancy (which I’m thankful for), they are more or less basic cowboy work boots. Again, if I do additional Western themed costumes, buying a pair of boots would be a good investment (as would the spurs).

Stay tuned, I will keep blogging as I put the rest of this costume together and will have photos. I’ll probably do another Flickr set like I did for my Ghostbuster costume.

Chicago Comic Con, Part 3: The Long Walk Home

Part 1 :: Part 2

Guess who? HINT: Not the Iron Giant

I only took my backpack with me for this trip, as I required just one change of clothes and even then just the basics (tshirt/underwear), so I had to watch how much I bought. This did keep me from buying a few things I didn’t really need (ex: a Scud the Disposable Assassin action figure) but also prevented me from getting a couple items I would have really adored (a killer print by the artist of Cursed Pirate Girl). But my rule was:  if it didn’t fit in the backpack, I didn’t buy it. Crushable items, such as prints and posters, were out of the question.

Yes, I could have bought a tube to keep prints and posters safe, but I was afraid of having to check it on the Mega Bus and something happening to it.

Cobra Commander: looking better here than in the live action movie.
My time at the con on Sunday was somewhat abbreviated, as I had to catch the train downtown around 3 PM–but I made the most of the day. Not only did I get my Frank Cho sketch, but I also picked up a Doug TenNapal graphic novel, Flink, for only $5. That ended up being my only purchase of the day, due to me leaving soon and wanting to make sure I had money for food on the way home and for any possible emergencies. There were a few tshirts I eyed, including a Han Shot First shirt I spotted in Artist Alley, but most were too expensive–one of the big tshirt sellers sold theirs for $20.25 each, or two for $35. Yikes.

If you shopped around, you could certainly find better deals, but there were few shirts I spotted that screamed for me to own them (interesting post script, the Monday after the con I bought a $10 Iron Maiden tshirt at JC Penny’s back home using the money I didn’t spend at the con).

Eventually, my time to depart arrived. I called my comrades in geek arms and informed them of my impending departure. They joined me outside and we said our goodbyes. Two of our group I have known since middle-school, another since college and the last, my oldest friend, since first grade. I was happy I decided to trek out to Chicago to see my friends once again (scattered to Washington D.C., Milwaukee, New York and Chicago in the years following college).

The con for me was not about buying comic books, or even being within inches of the likes of Ray Park (Darth Maul), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) or Billy Dee Williams (Lando).  That was when I was younger, but things have changed. Now, going to the con is about seeing some of my oldest friends one more time. As we  march towards our thirties, I wonder how many more times I’ll see these gents, or even have the means and/or desire to go to a comic book convention (and after last year’s fiasco, I nearly swore off going to a Chicago con ever again).

Ironically, I have heard rumors that this con could be the last Chicago Comic Con–at least in its current form (and time of the year).

I had a bit of a misadventure upon reaching downtown Chicago on Sunday afternoon. The ride on the blue line went well enough, but when I reached the stop for the Mega Bus, I looked at the clock on my phone. The time hadn’t switched to Chicago time right away when I arrived on Saturday (as my old phone would do), so thinking I was still on Michigan time, I thought I had an extra hour to kill.

Turns out, I did not.

Figuring I had time to kill, I walked away from the bus stop and ventured over to the Amtrack Station, looking for a place to get an ice cream to help beat the 98 degree heat. I entered the station and looked up at the old analogue clock on the wall.

“Oh, that can’t be right,” I said aloud after figuring out that my time was incorrect. I called my mom and asked her what time it was in Michigan.

“What time is it there right now?”
“Quarter to six, why?”
“That means it is quarter to five here–I gotta run!”

Dangit. I didn’t have an extra hour: I had been at the stop on time. I ran to the bus stop, making it with seconds to spare. That was the last bus to Ann Arbor, and it would have been a long walk home.

The ride home was not as smooth as the ride to Chicago, but that was not the fault of the Mega Bus people–there was a bunch of construction on 94 in Michigan (no surprise), which added about an hour to our ride home. By the time I drove back to Lansing, it was nearly 1 AM. Ugh.

I survived yet another Comic Con. I saw some old friends, including one I hadn’t seen in four years. I had a great time. All in all, not a bad way to spend a weekend.

Chicago Comic Con, Part 2: Obligatory Wrath of Con Joke

Part 1 can be read here

Optimus Claus wants to hear what’s on your Wookie Life Day wish list..just don’t ask for the Matrix of Leadership.

I try to avoid paying cover price for anything at a con, at least in regards to paperback collections of old issues (because you can always get those for less than cover price on Amazon.  I will pay cover price at my local comic book store, however).  The nearest I came to paying cover price was buying vol. 3 of Planetary for 20% off.  Obviously, I paid full price for the Mouse Guard hardcover–but I bought that from David Petersen himself.  As someone who also sells copies of his own book, I have no problem doing that. I regret not buying the second Mouse Guard book, however. Oh well.

I also paid full price for issue #1 of Cursed Pirate Girl, but again I bought that from the artist over in Artist Alley (where I also picked up a great collection of pin-up sketches from another Michigan artist, Katie Cook).

Honestly, one of my favorite finds at the con was something I got for free–a sketch from Liberty Meadows creator/artist Frank Cho.

In typical fan boy fashion, I blanked when I was next in line and couldn’t remember the name of the character (Truman the duck) I wanted drawn. So, I said “Uh, can you draw your duck character from Liberty Meadows?”

Oy.

To further add to my embarrassment, my notebook had a bunch of debris in it, which spilled out on Frank’s table. UGH. I found out later it was the tea leaves from a tea bag that had torn open in my backpack. Stay classy, Dan.

I debated getting an autograph from the fourth Ghostbuster, Ernie Hudson. I decided against it, as Winston isn’t my fav Ghostbuster. Nothing against Ernie Hudson and he does have one of my favorite lines in the film (“Since I have joined these guys, I have seen s— that would turn you WHITE!”). He certainly seemed to be enjoying himself, which is always great to see.

this guy put my Ghostbuster costume to shame.

A few folks from the Battlestar Galactica reboot were on hand, including Edward James Olmos (Admiral Adama).

Eddie “Admiral Adama” Olmos answers some questions. Or ponders your destruction. I’d say it is 50/50.

Michael “Uncle Mike” Hogan was around too, and I briefly thought of talking to him and saying “Hey, remember when we met back in May at Motor City Con?” — only because he got a kick out of the fact I had the same name as his brother (Daniel Hogan…we’re a dime a dozen, seriously).

I made more than a few trips by the SuicideGirls booth and also thought of getting my picture taken with them…but I chickened out. There was never a shortage of guys around the booth, heh. As a fan of pin-up art (especially art cira and post WWII)/photography, I find what they do interesting–featuring women with piercings, tattoos and the like.

Which brings me to something else I noticed–there were a considerable amount of women attending this con.  Families too (saw a toddler in a Chewbacca costume, which was great).

Dark Phoenix knows what you are thinking, so you had better stop.

I tell you, these aren’t the guy heavy conventions I went to in my early teens, things are way more diverse today (or I’m just more aware of it, which is possible). And I think that’s great, and I don’t just mean the cute geek girls (which I’m a fan of), seeing families sharing their love of something like Star Wars or X-Men just warms my heart. I saw a few families in costume and it made my day.

This might be a generation shift thing–Gen X’ers (and my fellow Gen Y’ers) are  having families, and they grew up with a lot of the Star Wars/comic book stuff being so commonplace (merchandising especially) in the ’70s and ’80s, so they are sharing their interests with their kids. I’m not saying Baby Boomers didn’t do that as well (my dad is the reason I got into Monty Python and Star Trek), but I think fandom (and geekdom) has become more mainstream, and therefore more acceptable, as of late.

Next: Chicago Comic Con, Part 3: The Long Walk Home.

I’m breaking my post about the Chicago Comic Con up into a few shorter posts.  Enjoy.

Chicago Comic Con, Part 1: – Fun With Mass Transit

I attended the Chicago Comic-Con this past Saturday and Sunday (would have went on Friday, but I had a prior commitment to be a guest at a teen writing workshop at my local library–which was a blast).

Bebop and Rocksteady search the Con for ‘Toytles’ to stomp.

This convention had been previously known as Wizard World, so named because of its connection with the comic book price guide/mag, Wizard.  Well, it appears that things are not all well in the kingdom of Wizard.  Both DC and Marvel pulled out of this convention, along with other publishers such as Dark Horse, leaving a huge void that couldn’t be filled, no matter how many Jake Buseys  or Todd Bridges were on hand (sadly, Gary Coleman was a no-show, another disappointment).

A friend summed the event up perfectly as “a glorified Motor City Comic Con” (our yearly comic con here in Michigan that has gone down hill, according to regular attendees).  Sure, there were neato guests and plenty of dealers, but the fun thing about cons for me is seeing the big companies there.

I may not read a lot of Marvel and DC titles as of late (I’ve been buying a lot of Dark Horse), but their presence (along with Dark Horse, Image and others) was what always separated the Chicago convention from Motor City Comic Con for me–the sense of scale.  I recalled in years past at Wizard World that there were more companies around, and not just the big comic labels.

Anyway, I digress.

I awoke at 5 AM on Saturday and prepped for my trek to Ann Arbor to pick up the Mega Bus at the  U of M Park and Ride lot.  Driving on the freeway just before 6 AM was interesting.  Thankfully, I avoided any construction (aside from a short detour in downtown Ann Arbor) and made it to the Park and Ride with time to spare.  The only bummer was that it started raining while I waited by the bus stop, causing some water to leak into my backpack–which made my change of clothes, podcast CD sleeves and such soggy.

The Mega Bus trip was actually rather painless, a far cry from the fiasco of my bus/train trip to the convention a year ago. We even arrived in downtown Chicago 45 minutes ahead of schedule.

I walked the block (give or take) to the nearest Blue Line train station and read a book during the 40 minute (give or take) train ride to the convention center).

I Checked in with my online ticket and was given a very annoying wristband.  They had done away with the badges of years past, and expected people to wear a stupid paper wrist band for the duration of the con (for as long as four days in some cases).

I’m sure this was to prevent people from sharing badges. I like the badges though, they make fun keepsakes, and mine came in handy years ago when I met Jason Mewes and had him sign the back.  When you have arms as hairy as mine, any kind of self-adhesive strip around your wrist is going to be painful.

I quickly noticed the absence of DC and Marvel upon entering.  Usually, they have large booths right at the entrance.  Instead, they crammed most of the guest celebs near the front, which created several log jams upon entering.

This year I wasn’t battling some kind of plague, so I enjoyed walking around the large convention center. I also started putting out podcast CDs in the freebie areas–this one thing I like about this con, they don’t care who puts out free stuff, unlike Motor City Comic Con, where you had to be a registered guest to put out freebies in the common areas.  I only brought 30 something CDs, which I quickly regretted after putting out the last of my CDs by mid-afternoon on the first day.

I also saturated the cafeteria areas with my podcast promo cards.

I didn’t buy all that much this year, I think I only spent around $100 over two days–and that included food, snacks, coffees and other necessities (ex: a six pack of Old Style). My most expensive purchase was a hardcover copy of the first Mouse Guard collection ($25), but I bought it in person from its writer/artist, Michigan-native David Petersen (whom I met a few months ago at the first Ink & Stein ‘drink and draw’ event in Ypsilani).  He also signed it and drew an amazing little sketch.

David Petersen, writer/artist of Mouse Guard, signs and sketches my copy of the first collection.

The rest of my purchases were mainly trade paperbacks of comic book back issues.  Since I’m more of a comic reader than collector these days, I opt for the cheap paperback collections over the separate back issues.  You can find booths a-plenty to score cheap trades.  Most will be half-off the cover price and another favorite stop sold all of their trades for $5.  Probably my best trade purchase was a large Judge Dredd collection that I got for only $7.  It didn’t have a US dollar price, only a UK price (13). I saw the next volume in the series at another booth on sale for $24 (US). Go me.

Stay tuned for Chicago Comic Con, Part 2-Obligatory Wrath of Con Joke