Starting the Year with ConFusion
Happy 2011, everyone!
Apologies for not saying that in the last post with the sincerity it deserves. 2010 had massive ups and downs for most everyone, it seems. Like skiing the hardest trail on the mountain for the first time. The one you talked about as a kid like a ghost story. We fell on some of the icier moguls with bruises to show for it, but each time we got our shit back together, clicked the bindings back in place, and nailed the next few, making it to the bottom on both skis. (Sorry, snowboarders, I’m old school. But respect, yo.)
I know my first post of the year was something of a negative one, but I don’t want anyone think that I’m setting a tone for the year, because we are on the chair lift right now, heading for the slope again, and one of these times we’re gonna kick that trail’s ass top to bottom.
Note: If you live somewhere that doesn’t get a lot of snow, substitute your own insane local sport for skiing. Odds are the metaphor will still work.
There is still lots of undocumented 2010 awesome yet to come in meantime. Still need to post pix and comments from my trips to Australia, Portugal, World Fantasy, and other adventures. There are also lots of little bits of reader awesomeness, like Luke Fielding.
Long time peepers may recall that a few months ago, Luke sent in his fan portrait of a Fire Demon, which was pretty damn cool. I wrote him and thanked him, and was informed that he was starting a project even more amazing, a sculpture of a Mind Demon.
His e-mail to me:
Hello Mr Brett,
I am currently sculpting a model of a mind demon, and I wondered if i could clarify an aspect of their appearance.
I am working from your picture of a mind demon, and wanted to ask you about the upper head aspect of a mind demon. Is that like a brain texture? I know it throbs so i’m guessing it is somewhat elastic but i’m not sure if it is an exposed brain or not. It is probably irrelevant, and sorry if it is.
Sorry for subjecting you to a possible tedious detail, but i am a perfectionist and details are important to me artistically.
Thank You
Luke
So I wrote back, answering his questions and showed him the awesome illustrations done in Poland by artist Dominik Broniek. Soon after, I started receiving progress pix, up through the final paint job. Check it out in all its bitchin’ wonder:
ConFusion
Last but not least, I want to mention that in less than two weeks I will be the Special Guest at ConFusion, January 21-23 at the Detroit Marriott Troy in Michigan. ConFusion is an annual SF convention that brings in a lot of big names in the genre. This year’s author track is filled with big names like my friends Paolo Bacigalupi who has won more writing awards than I knew there were, and John Scalzi, an awesome writer in his own right and beloved President of the Science Fiction Writers of America. Along with several other writers and pros, we will be doing panel discussions, signings, doing whiskey shots at the bar, and the like.
It has been noted to me that the con is also sponsoring a charity chili cookoff entitled One Ladle to Rule Them All.
If that’s not a reason to get off your couch and come out, I don’t know what is.
Happy New Year!
[…] https://www.petervbrett.com/2011/01/09/starting-the-year-with-confusion/ […]