Come Say Hi

Mon, JAN 29, 2024 - 9:09

It’s summer in Australia, which means it’s time for festivals, fairs, flings, and fun. And one festival which happens on my doorstep just happens to be Midsumma , a month-long celebration of people and love – if you want to get all hippylike.

But for the past three years, my partner and I have also been regulars at another venue on our doorstep. A board-games bar called Boardies on Smith St. in the trendy Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy. It’s become our second living room and we’ve been lucky to forge a good relationship with the staff and owner, while enjoying some funky cocktails and of course, learning a bunch of new boardgames. If you're ever in the area, you have to go visit, it's a treat!

Not only is it a great venue, but a while ago the owner kindly offered to sell my books on his bar, which has been fantastic for me as the clientele is mostly wonderful nerds and fantasy fans. Then, a month ago he added a new twist to the game, by mentioning that Boardies is going to have a table at the Midsumma street festival on February 11, and that I’d be welcome to set up shop there and hawk my wares.

Of course, I was thrilled with the idea and said I’d love to.

So, if you happen to be in Melbourne at the Midsumma festival on Feb 11, 2024, come say hi! The Boardies table will be located in Peel St. on the small park beside Two Birds Café (also a fabulous venue, if you’re after a good brekky and coffee).

A huge shout out and thanks to Craig from Boardies for organising this with the event planners, and I hope to see you there, dear reader!

Jim :)

Am I Detecting Notes Of Cynicism?

Sun, JAN 28, 2024 - 09:52

I sat down to watch Wonka a few nights ago. And while I do have criticism, overall it was a passable addition to the 'Roald Dahl Universe' (yes, that is happening). Sure, the movie leant a bit too heavily on CGI, Timothé Chalamet is not as charismatic as Gene Wilder (though far less creepy than Johnny Depp, so we'll take it) and the plot was predictable — modern cinema seems content to ignore subtext and clever scripting to focus more on visuals, so that’s nothing new — but it was around the third song mark that I started to wonder if the musical genre perhaps needs to take a little masterclass…because we were only 15 minutes in.

To be fair, Wonka contained a few welcome surprises and a sense of oddball creativity that harkened back to the loose-boundaried fantasy films of the 1980s. It also contained a few toe-tappers that are both genuinely chuckleworthy and catchy. The songs, written by a Joby Talbot ( 'Sing'/'Sing 2' ) and Neil Hannon (an Irish singer-songwriter with comedic inclinations) cover some well-trodden terrain. The ‘Oompa Loompa’ song and ‘Pure Imagination’ are examples of this. But it includes a couple of nice new additions, too. ‘Scrub Scrub’ has managed to lodge itself in my brain and slips out in mumbles as I’m doing housework, while ‘You’ve Never Had Chocolate Like This’ is a worthy cheerleader for the film.

The problem is that, like so many films nowadays, the inclusion of musical numbers was at times clunky and at other times unnecessary. In the worst instances, the songs actually took me out of the film. And don’t get me wrong. I’m a huge fan of the musical. But it seems that increasingly, musical filmwriters and their songwriting compatriots are forgetting a golden rule when it comes to characters flexing their voiceboxes.

That rule is simple, and it was explained perfectly by musical theatre addict, Mo Murray:

…characters should speak when the emotion is too great for silence; sing when the emotion is too great for speech; and dance when the emotion is too great for song.

I believe story theorist and screenwriting guru Robert McKee would agree wholeheartedly, and I have long felt the same way. In musicals, songs are not just add-ons. They carry significant narrative weight and often reveal a character's inner thoughts or advance the plot. It's a unique feature of this wonderful genre, allowing a deeper emotional connection with the audience. So if and when a song happens, it must matter.

Even before Disney’s Frozen , when princess Anna blurted out, “…don’t know if I’m elated or gassy, but I’m somewhere in that zone!” and needlessly tossed aside the immense power of song for a cheap poopie-joke (thank you, K. A. and R. Lopez…), I’ve been cautious about new musicals. I was burned badly again by The Greatest Showman, perhaps the biggest misstep in musical history with its overproduced, unjustified, and poorly written songs (wasting the talents of a truly wonderful cast), but that hasn’t been the only film during which I groaned when a character opened their mouth to sing.

Wonka, more tactful than the aforementioned examples, floats just above the tideline where songs are thrown in just to meet the demands of a genre. At times, musically-fitted words tumbled out of characters’ mouths without much cause, yes, and the numbers don't begin smoothly (recall Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals where the audience almost doesn’t notice a song beginning). But I didn’t find myself wincing with trepidation or an air of vicarious embarassment, wondering if I was going to be able to relax or pray for deliverance as the actors tried their best to perform the unperformable.

This is all to say that overall, while I worry about the musical as a genre, I’d recommend Wonka. It was creative enough, fun enough, and will certainly be a hit with kids. I just didn't feel it was anywhere near daring enough. It didn't make me uncomfortable or tickle my nerves as many of Roald Dahl's stories routinely do and as the original Gene Wilder 'sequel' ('prequel?', 'sidequel?') did. And the songs, clearly designed to cater to the masses (no ‘Wonderous Boat Ride’ in this film!), were not always memorable. In general, though, the film manages to hit a sweet note.

Jim :)

Egypt: Land of Mystery

Thurs, OCT 26, 2023 - 19:39

Two days ago I returned from a month-long trip to Egypt, not quite as tanned as I'd expected, definitely thinner, and with my mind still reeling from the things I'd seen and done and learned.

Modern Egypt is a world of contradictions. It's both organised and chaotic, cruel and kind, poor and wealthy, and even now after days of reflection I'm having a difficult time trying to abbreviate my feelings. Perhaps they can't be. Perhaps they will remain a jumble of disconnected ideas and images. It is, after all, a very complex place. The past is constantly battling for attention in the present, and the present has its own problems to deal with.

I was dismayed as everyone else was on October 8, when two Isreli tourists and an Egyptian tour guide were murdered in Alexandria. At the time I was in Saqqara, just south of Cairo, and the news hit the region like a storm squall. Everyone was talking about it in low and disappointed mutters, worrying about what it would inevitably lead to. Most of the people I met and talked to were realistic about the implications for the region, though one of my drivers muttered darkly that this was the beginning of the final war, which no part of the world would escape. I sipped my carbonated pineapple drink, staring at the desert slipping by out the window of his van and listening politely as he worked his way through the problem and finally changed the subject.

By the time I left Egypt two and a half weeks later, things had indeed worsened, and I will admit to feeling relief as my plane finally reached the Indian Ocean on the homeward stretch to Australia.

Still, nothing will dim the memories of the beautiful things I saw and the experiences I had. There are few places where hospitality still plays such a large role as in Egypt, and fewer places still with such an incredible material legacy. I can't wait to share some of these things with you, so stick around for an announcment on that, very soon.

Jim :)

UPDATE: This Emerald Crucible

Tues, OCT 10, 2023 - 11:46

I first toyed with the idea for This Emerald Crucible back in the summer of 2018 while travelling through Cambodia, for few things can charge up your inspirational battery like a visit to the enigmatic temples of Ankor. Like silent sentinels from a forgotten age, the structures that await the visitor in those steaming jungles are utterly remarkable and if you've been lucky enough to visit, you'll understand immediately why I felt my creativity sparking up.

No matter how much research you do before a trip, actually being there is always different and in the case of Cambodia, it surpassed what I'd imagined. Standing on the causeway gazing at the hulking, graceful monuments, my imagination couldn't help zipping off to wrestle with questions about their purpose and design, and what kind of minds lay behind their construction.

But it was while sitting at my hotel in Siem Reap watching one of the most ferocious downpours I'd ever experienced that I began jotting notes for what I tentatively named 'Deeds, Mouldering in Shadow,' a new story about a young man charged with saving the last seedlings of an exotic fruiting plant. At that point, I was already well into the first draft of The Torril City Mysterion - "A Pinch of Peril", and I began toying with the idea of intertwining this story into Torril's world, Aliru, which I had already come to love so much.

Well, it's five years later and I think it's finally time to announce a couple of things. Firstly, the first draft of This Emerald Crucible is almost done. It's currently enjoying a round of proofreading with some of my eagle-eyed and wonderful friends before it zips off to the editing desk. I think it's shaped up very nicely and I'm excited to have reached this point, once again.

The second thing to announce is that I lied to you all, because This Emerald Crucible will not be "a one-shot novel set in the world of Aliru", as my homepage claims. At this point, it will almost certainly be two books – the reason being that once I threw myself into the story and became familiar with these new characters, I felt their story needed to play out properly.

If you're a fantasy fan like myself, then this news is probably welcome because there's nothing like sinking your teeth into a great big tome. As long as it's a good one. And that's what I'm hoping This Emerald Crucible is. I really hope when it finally drops, you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

Jim :)

A Quick-Take on AI

Sat, APR 22, 2023 - 23:04

I'm an optimist but I have to admit, things are pretty crazy right now.

As a writer, graphic designer, and content-creator who’s with two decades in these professions, I’m witnessing a revolution because in the last two years alone, all of these professions have come directly into the firing line, each at high risk of being ‘destroyed’ by new AI technologies.

At least, that’s what a lot of alarm-bell smacking journalists and furious artists would have you believe.

Honestly, things are moving so fast that nobody really has a clue what’s coming, so with the introduction of services like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and various new, AI-driven video editing apps (many of which are still emerging), some would have us believe that entire industries are about to become obsolete.

But I see things differently. I don’t believe this is the end of human endeavour (unless we’re about to experience an AI-driven apocalypse — totes possible) and I’d like to explain why.

If you’re a nerd like myself, then you’ve no doubt played around with some (or all!) of these new image-generation technologies and, honestly? They’re more than just impressive. They’re magic. I mean, what’s more incredible than coming up with an idea and seeing it appear before your eyes? Never before in human history have we had the ability to watch an idea take shape so quickly and visually. This development is huge.

Text-based AIs like Open AI’s ‘ChatGPT’, or Google’s ‘Bard’ are also amazing, even now in their early stages. And they’re only going to get better.

So of course I see the risk; that a client who asks for an illustrated novel cover will head for AI generated art, far more polished than anything I could come up with in the same time. And for far less money. I can also imagine that people won’t buy my books, in favour of something an AI wrote, which may be both more profound and coherent (and probably also cheaper, too!).

Totally fair. I get it, and I don’t blame people for choosing AI over me if it saves them money and time.

However, there’s something missing from AI generated content that machines will never be able to replicate, and as corny as it sounds, it’s the human-factor.

The reason I go to comedy stand-up shows, for example, is not to hear jokes. I go to see personalities telling those jokes. People whose delivery and style I enjoy. Sure, an AI will be able to duplicate these things, one day, and maybe an android Bill Bailey will dance across the stage and reel off his set with perfect timing and endless energy.

But I still won’t be watching Bill Bailey, and to me (and plenty of other people), that’s the only reason I’m there.

This applies to almost all types of human activity. I don’t just go to a cafe because I like their coffee and menu items, but because I like the interactions with the staff. I want to support a cafe owner or local bookshop because it’s a human endeavour, and as another human, I empathise with their dreams and goals.

I hope the same applies to my own work. I hope that when people read my books, they’ll enjoy them not just for the content, but because they also empathise with a human who has put a great deal of work into creating them for other people’s enjoyment. And that they’ll also appreciate the ideas and dreams that that person has tried to express.

Now, that’s not to say that general AI, when it eventually arrives, won’t have similar dreams and goals. It probably will, and we’ll probably end up enjoying content created by AI personas like we do human personas. The point to consider here is that AI won’t eclipse the experience, but add to it. We won’t give up on watching human stand-up comedians, we’ll just watch them and AI comedians.

As for my work as a designer, I am already using midjourney to inspire myself. It’s great at generating colour palettes, and its compositions can be used as guides for my own work. The thing is, I don’t use it to replace the work I do, but augment my process, because personally, I love the challenge and satisfaction of creation. Again, it’s not eclipsing me, but functioning alongside me.

There is one thing I’ll state right now, however: I do not ever intend to use AI to generate written material. I love and always want to create characters, ideas, problems, and solutions myself. So, if you read one of my books or stories, you can be sure it’s me that’s written it.

Otherwise, though, what I believe AI offers is an endless stream of inspiration to tap into. An endless variety of ways to visualise an idea or overcome a block, or to nudge me onto an alternate, creative path. I have no interest in giving up design or writing or creating fun videos, because I love all of these activities. I want to continue to learn, and improve, and share what I’ve achieved, and it seems to me these are universal, human desires.

I hope that people realise that AI doesn’t have to take that away, but rather lessen our reliance on human labour for mundane tasks, and open fuller, more varied experiences to more people. I also hope it doesn't decide to wipe us out. But hey, it's a big universe, and why go to the trouble of squashing all the ants when you've got endless possibilities to explore?

With no way to tell what's coming, all we can do is wait and honestly, rather than worrying myself sick, I'd rather play the optimist.