Monday, March 31, 2008

Ack! I'm Missing the Yankees' Opening Day!

It's the most wonderful time of the year again! Peanuts, cracker jacks, "Play Ball!" Just the thought of watching a nicely-turned 6-4-3 double play sends pleasurable shivers down my spine. (And it means those of you who read my blog will have to endure six to seven months of baseball rants because I deleted my baseball blog, which was taking up too much of my time. Lucky you!)

And I'm missing the New York Yankees Opening Day because I'm teaching a writing workshop! The last Opening Day ever to be held in Yankee Stadium, and I'm teaching about Plot & Structure. What was I thinking??? Why, oh, why didn't I look at the schedule? Chin Ming Wang had better pitch his heart out for me. (Wait! Wang's on the mound. That means there's also a good chance for a 1-4-3 double play, too, and--oh the joy of spring!!!)

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Now My Right Foot Hurts!

Or, And the Backbone's Connected to the Foot Tendon

Okay, I'm really trying not to complain here, but the tendon in my left foot is still sore, and now a completely different tendon in my right foot is throbbing. ARGH! Speed limping is over; I'm hobbling like an old lady. I guess my right foot just couldn't handle the extra load.

I know many of you are probably wondering what's up with my feet. It's actually a combination of two problems. Problem 1: I have incredibly high arches. When I have wet feet and I walk across a pool deck, the only prints I leave are the balls of my feet, my toes, my heal, and a thin line where the side of my foot barely hits the ground. I can stick my thumb between my arch and the bottom of a sneaker with room to spare, so regular shoes don't give me enough support. I do have these lovely fiberglass insoles that I wear when I wear sneakers and flats, but those don't exactly work with business attire.

Problem 2: I have scoliosis, but we didn't catch it until I was already grown. It's hard to see. If you picture my spinal cord, it forms a small "J" at my pelvis and then continues straight up instead of turning back around to correct itself. So I look like I'm standing up straight, but most of my body leans to my left side. (In an X-ray, my spinal chord goes around my belly-button ring with an inch to spare.) Anyway, I'm really just a Leaning Tower of Pizza. (And I thought I was always off-balance because I was klutzy.)

So my feet hurt because my back is twisted. Go figure. (I'm sure there is a spiritual lesson in here somewhere. You know: one part of the body having a problem and affecting other parts of the body....)

Friday, March 28, 2008

03/28/08 This Week’s Final Cut Show: 10,000 BC (Take 3)

Vacation is over, and I’ve got a new Final Cut in Movies episode coming up. They’ve changed my time slot to 2:00am and 2:00 pm, meaning that the new show will premiere every Friday @ 2:00am. I’m sure most of you will be asleep then, but you can listen to it @ 2:00pm every day for the rest of the week. It’s available on the internet at http://www.adastraradio.com/. So here are the details on this (next...whatever) week’s show. (I kind of copied it from my Final Cut blog, so it might seem a little...um...sterile.)

This week on The Final Cut in Movies, I’ll be discussing 10,000 BC. Find out my opinion on the caveman non-documentary that seems to be doing well despite critical reviews and other science fiction & fantasy news.

The show will air from 2:00-3:00am & pm and re-air throughout the week at the same times on http://www.adastraradio.com/.

Missed last week’s edition of The Final Cut? Don’t worry, you can catch the re-run from 3:00 to 4:00 am & pm (just after this week’s Final Cut) at www.adastraradio.com. Just click the “Listen Live” button on the top right hand corner.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Tomorrow at 9:00 Phil Jason, a journalist for the Naples Sun Times, and I will be featured on Fox 4's Morning Blend (www.fox4morningblend.com), a local news show out of Cape Coral, with Tracey Edwards and Astrid Martinez, where we will discuss the upcoming Naples Press Club Writer's Conference. Phil is the coordinator of the entire conference, and I'm giving my presentation on "Making Make-Believe Believable" at the conference as well, so we decided to drum up a little local publicity. Okay, Phil is the one responsible for getting the gig. He asked me to come because the Naples Press Club Writer's Conference is where I pitched my publisher, which resulted in a publishing contract for A Prophecy Forgotten.

Even though the show airs tomorrow, we filmed the segment today at 9:00. I even took an extra 20 minutes this morning to straighten my hair for the occasion, which meant I had to wake up at 5:30am--quite early for me. I must have been nervous about it** because I literally woke up every half hour last night--and I'm not over-exaggerating. I think I was scared I would sleep through my alarm, which I am prone to do on occasion. I didn't get to talk much about my book during our segment, but I did get my 10 second pitch, "Tolkien-meets-Clancy story of guardian angel warfare and treason...Think Roman soldiers with wings," on air. (Those of you who met me at OmegaCon and MegaCon (and all the other cons) are quite familiar with that phrase.)

Even if you don't live in the Collier/Lee county area, you can view the show atwww.fox4morningblend.com, and they have archives, so you don't have to be at your computer at 9:00am EST to watch it. If you do watch the show, please send me kind e-mails only. If I totally made a fool of myself for all the world to see, I would like to not know about it.

**During my first ever radio interview last year, my chest and neck broke out in hivesbecause of nerves. (I almost wore a turtle neck today because I was afraid of breaking out in hives again, but my Iron Man jaw doesn't look good in a turtle neck.)

Friday, March 21, 2008

This Week's Final Cut Episode Canceled

The 10,000 BC episode of The Final Cut in Movies will not air until the Saturday after Easter, as Ad Astra has kindly given us all the week off.

Patience, my peeps, we will all have a good laugh over the "products" of the ancient velosa raptor/ostrich mating program they must have had during the caveman days (according to the movie) soon enough.

Changes in The Final Cut Show Times

My radio talk show, The Final Cut in Movies, is moving to the 2:00am & pm time slots. This means you can catch the first new show each week on Ad Astra Radio on Friday at 2:00am or on Saturday at 2:00pm. The previous show will air just after from 3:00 to 4:00am & pm.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Regular Cars Don’t Like Diesel and other things I learned at MegaCon

I just returned from MegaCon, and I learned a few things:

  1. Don't fill you car up with diesel fuel instead of gasoline in the middle of Arcadia at 0-dark-hundred in the morning. If you do, the car will not work, and you will be forced to rely on a nice man named Craig to tow you to a mechanic, who will have to take out your engine in order to remove said fuel concoction. You will then be 3 hours late for MegaCon. Special thanks to the guys at Tex's Auto for their speedy service, and to my husband for not killing me for being stupid.
  2. If you are fighting with swords, don't use big sweeping motions. That only works in anime films... (Jim of Barbarian Battles and author Chris Jackson gave me a few tips based on the mistakes a bunch of people were making...)
  3. Speaking of swords, people will pay money to beat up their friends using a foam sword. (I would have, too, but I had to stay at my vendor booth. Gosh, I wish I could do martial arts again...)
  4. Anime is quite popular.
  5. Lots of people like my smile. With 4 years of braces through high school and a retainer at the same time, they'd better. (It was horrible. I had to eat with the retainer in my mouth so I wouldn't break off the brackets on my bottom teeth, and I couldn't speak right--constantly slurring my S's. No wonder I was so unpopular in high school...)
  6. It's great to have a vendor table next to friends. I was sandwiched between authors Chris Jackson and Glenda Finkelstein, and they were so nice. I also roomed with young adult author Tracy Akers, and we had a great time. Mainly we slept because we were so exhausted.
  7. Always bring a camera to a science fiction & fantasy festival. So many great costumes and no camera to photograph them with...
  8. Standing on hard cement in heels all day makes your feet hurt.

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

M. B. Weston’s Events for the Week: 03/02 to 03/09

Here are my author and radio events this week:

  • Tuesday, March 4, 7:00pm-9:00pm: Open Mic Night @ Barnes & Noble.
  • Friday, March 7, 8:00pm-9:00pm: The Final Cut in Movies radio program on Ad Astra Radio. This week is the "Blue Harvest" edition, where we will be discussing all things Star Wars. Click here at 8:00pm to listen, and then click the blinking "Listen Live" button on the top right.
  • Friday-Sunday, March 7-9: MegaCon. I've got a booth at MegaCon where I'll be signing books. I'll also make a few appearances at the Ad Astra booth, so drop by and join me.

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Inside Heaven’s Realm:

Ever wonder what Davian might have been like when he was just a runt in RSO training or imagine how he might handle LAF’s like Salla when he had no rank? Next month, The Elysian Chronicles Radio Program will air on the internet at http://www.adastraradio.com/. The weekly program will take place 200 years before A Prophecy Forgotten, starting with the day Davian is called off Earth and sent to RSO training. (See A Prophecy Forgotten’s Chapter 11 for details.) This means you can get your Davian-fix weekly while you are waiting for Out of the Shadows to be released. Keep checking my blog: (http://www.mbwestonblog.com/) and the Elysian Chronicles website (http://www.elysianchronicles.com/) for updates.

Last Month's Contest:
Congratulations to Kailey Cassidy, who won last month’s contest. She will be receiving a signed copy of Out of the Shadows once it comes out.

Breaking News

The Final Cut in Movies: Putting Science Fiction & Fantasy Movies Center Stage
I’m now an official radio talk show host with a new program, The Final Cut in Movies (http://www.finalcutinmovies.com/), a talk show about science fiction and fantasy movies that airs on Fridays from 8:00 to 9:00pm on http://www.adastraradio.com/. This week’s show is the “Blue Harvest” edition, in which we will be comparing the original Star Wars with the new Star Wars. Be sure to check it out, and if you like the genre, check out The Final Cut site daily for up-to-date movie information.

Out of the Shadows Publication Time Table
I still don’t have a date yet from my publisher on Out of the Shadows’s release, but it is next in line to be edited. You can monitor its progress by clicking here. Many of you have e-mailed, inquiring on its progress, and I really want to thank you. Even though I hate having to tell you I have no idea when it will be out, it’s wonderful that you care enough about the book to e-mail me.

If you want to receive a postcard, notifying you as soon as it’s released, click here and fill out the form!

Website Updates
http://www.elysianchronicles.com/

Pardon Our Dust!
I’m working on updating the website, and I’ve done a ton of work already, so check it out (http://www.elysianchronicles.com/). I’ve also updated my own website, http://www.mbweston.com/. More updates will follow….

Author Events

Open Mic Night @ Barnes & Noble
Join me at Open Mic Night at Barnes & Noble Naples on the 1st Tuesday night of each month! Bring your writing, your singing voice, or your instrument (or any combination of the 3), and let’s have some fun!

The Final Cut Radio Program:
Every Friday night from 8:00 to 9:00pm, catch me on The Final Cut in Movies radio program at http://www.adastraradio.com/. If you miss it, don’t worry. They rerun the show during the week, so check out Ad Astra’s schedule.

MegaCon
I’ll be signing books at MegaCon in Orlando, FL, from Friday, March 7th to Sunday, March 9th. I’ll also be at the Ad Astra Booth a few times, helping them promote the show, so come say hi!

OmegaCon
I’ll be signing books at OmegaCon in Birmingham, AL from Friday, March 14th to Saturday, March 16th.

Television Interview
Those of you in South Florida can watch me, Phil Jason of the Naples Press Club, and the gals from Fox 4’s Morning Blend on March 19th at 9:00am to talk about the Naples Press Club Writers Conference in April.

Young Writers of Naples
Join me and other high school students at Barnes & Noble Naples from 10:00-12:00 on the 3rd Saturday of each month. NOTE: THIS MONTH’S MEETING IS THE 4TH SATURDAY, MARCH 22ND!

Spring Break Writing Workshops!
Join me at Barnes & Noble from 2:00 to 4:00 every day during Spring Break (starting March 31 in Collier County) for writing workshops.