Transcript: Neil at MTV Hanging Out (Part 1)

Charles wrote in to say that he's put up Part 1 of the transcript for Neil's interview at MTV Hanging Out, which aired early this month. You can read Part 1 by clicking here. Charles also wants to thank Neil Rizo for providing a recording of that interview. :) Thanks, Charles and Neil R.! :)

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EDITED TO ADD:

I just received 4 comment spams, darn it. Blogger told me to turn on word verification to try and avoid the spam, so I hope that works. Sheesh.

It's just me babbling and Jamie's interview

I've decided to re-read my damned and doomed copy of "American Gods". Yes, the copy which got itself lost and found a month after Neil's visit. The copy that is now lonely and pitifully devoid of Neil's signature. As my new bear, Shortcake (thanks, love :-*), who tends to travel with me these days said, it serves that book right it's now lonely and unsigned because it got itself lost. :p

I'm now in the part where Wednesday and Shadow drove to the House on the Rock for a meeting. When I read the book the first time around, nothing in my mind clicked about the House on the Rock. But this morning, I remembered a Discovery Channel feature about weird buildings (which included the Hotel Sidi Driss a.k.a. the Skywalker Homestead from Star Wars in Tunisia, a weird house with a shark sticking up its roof, and a house shaped like a naked woman somewhere in South America). When I saw the documentary and what's inside the House on the Rock, I immediately thought "this is straight out of a Neil Gaiman novel" (check the pics in this link and you'll see *wink*). After the replay recently, it was more like "this looks like something out of Mirrormask". :p Thank goodness I finally made the connection, and got rid of what was nagging me about that house since I watched the documentary. :D

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EDITED TO ADD:

Jamie left a comment in the previous post. She was one of the lucky people who were granted exclusive interviews with Neil. She posted a notice through the now defunct gaiman_fullybooked mailing list that the interview will be airing on ABC 5. Unfortunately, the messages weren't getting approved by then. I'm sorry we didn't get to see it. But she just updated her website and posted her thoughts about interviewing Neil, as well as the interview transcript. Check it out! Thanks, Jamie! :)

Surprise! (part 1)

Ah, my Extendable Ears got lucky today. My source *wink wink* is advicing us that it will do us much good to watch out for Fully Booked announcements related to Anansi Boys sometime this week. Looks like this will be the first part of the surprise Neil was talking about on his blog. Hrmmmm...

The Little Endless Storybook

Hec and Nina just told me that we can already reserve a copy of "The Little Endless Storybook" by Jill Thompson at Fully Booked customer service. The shipment will be arriving in a few weeks. :)

Also, I heard that there's gonna be big news soon. Very very soon. ;)

Quills voting (Aug 15 - Sept 15)

Voting for the Quill awards started Monday, 15th August, and will last until September 15. You can vote for Neil Gaiman's "1602" in the Best Graphic Novel category by going to this website:

http://www.quillsliteracy.org/nominatingvoting.html

Patience is not my virtue

From Neil's blog:

Can you further explain what you meant on "Meanwhile Jaime, Erwin and I are plotting a cool thing for the Philippines, and trying to figure out exactly what sort of shape it'll take." Thanks.Ryan Ambrosio

No. Be patient.

*chuckles*

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Word has it that the surprise is happening this year and that it's not:

1. Advanced copies of Anansi Boys exclusive to Fully Booked
2. A bidding contest to name the next characters in a new book
3. Signed copies of Anansi Boys to be given out as prizes to some raffle
4. The movie premiere of Mirrormask

Nor does it involve Neil visiting the Philippines again this year. Darn. Guess we have to keep guessing. :D

Cooking up a surprise?

In his August 12 blog entry, Neil relates that the box containing the gifts presented to him by his Filipino fans arrived, and that he is "plotting a cool thing for the Philippines" with Mr. Jaime Daez of Fully Booked. Can't wait to find out what that is!

Your Name In A Neil Gaiman Book

Neil is supporting the First Amendment Project (FAP): "a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and promoting freedom of information, expression, and petition." The FAP has managed to gain the support of some wonderful authors who agreed to auction off the chance to have a bidder's name included or mentioned in their upcoming works. The list of authors include some of my favorites: Lemony Snicket, Michael Crichton, Amy Tan, and of course, Neil Gaiman. Neil's offer:

"My next novel will be called THE GRAVEYARD BOOK. It's a children's novel, and will be published, er, when it's published. Maybe in 2007 or failing that, 2008. It will have lots of gravestones in it. Your name, or the name of someone you love (who won't mind) can be on a gravestone."

Neat! If you're interested, the details are posted at:
http://www.ebay.com/fap

Delightful Delirium

To banish the very creepy mental picture of The Other Mother's hand tap-dancing to the tune of "The Candyman" (thanks, to The Other Hector), I'm posting a pic that Winnie sent me of her recently-finished Li'l Delirium doll.

*squeeee*

You can check out the other creations of this talented lady through her website: winniedstitchwitch.net.

"1602" Nominated for the Quills

"1602" has been nominated for Best Graphic Novel in this year's Quill Awards. Online voting is from August 15 to September 15.

To view a list of the other nominees, click here.

Vote online starting August 15 at: www.quillsvote.com

Know more about the Quill Awards by clicking here.

I tried to find rules regarding international voters but didn't find any, so I guess it's safe for us Pinoys to vote. :)

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I was in the office, so I wasn't able to catch the MTV Hanging Out segment with Neil. It was shown last Friday at 5pm (thanks for the sked correction, AG!). If anyone has a transcript, please please do email me: acrossthestars@gmail.com :)

Neil on MTV Hanging Out

Don't forget to catch Neil Gaiman on MTV Hanging Out, 3:30pm, if I'm not mistaken. :)

Witch and Stitch

Oh dear. The Terry Pratchett-JK Rowling issue seems to have escalated. Neil talks about it in his recent blog entry. Here's a link to a Google group where Terry Pratchett himself explains his side of the story: click me!

Winnie wrote to share pics she took of the Death doll that she gave Neil during "The Gathering". So cute! I wish I'd seen it personally during the event. :) Here be doll pictures, click click click!

"Better than Fiction" and other stories

Questions from a couple of Pinoy fans were recently featured in Neil's Journal. Jennee and Maila were lucky enough to get their questions answered. Cheers! :)

Maila was also kind enough to inform us that "Anansi Boys" will be available in Fully Booked in October. Thanks, Maila! :)

Chey of Nocturne tipped us off to Part 2 of GlobalPinoy.com's coverage of Neil's visit here. The article is entitled "Better than Fiction" and you guys can check it out by clicking on this link. They also have an image gallery with great photos from the Writers' Forum.

I don't believe I've posted the link for this article. "Filipino Fans Troop to Neil Gaiman's Website" was published in the Infotech section of INQ7.net a few days after Neil's visit.

"The Encounter That Never Was" by Ronald Lim (hey, someone I know, finally! heheh.) from The Manila Bulletin Online.

Here's a pre-event article also from The Manila Bulletin Online. "Neil Gaiman, Rock Star: The Hype Surrounding the Writer's Imminent Visit" by Yonina Chan can be found here: click click click.

"Gaga Over Neil Gaiman" by Rhea Catada from Malaya also covers the July 11 Writers' Forum. Click here, mousie!

Oh, and I love Google (though this site doesn't come up in the search for sites covering Neil's Manila visit, damn). :p

The "Neil in my Notebook" Fan Project

Tobie is going to start a fan-project entitled "Neil In My Notebook". The project aims: "To collect fan fiction, poetry, short stories, artwork and essays written by people who have been touched, influenced or inspired by Neil Gaiman and his works and transform them into a netbook that all consent shall be freely distributed and shared with the rest of the world that chooses to be interested in it. Share the joy, the inspiration and the writings and expressions you have found born in you with those who may have not yet heard or encountered Neil Gaiman or his works."

For more information on the project, please visit Tobie's blog by clicking here.