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Sleuth Fest

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TVSquad reports that Sleuth, the new cable net devoted to mysteries from the Universal television vault, will premiere on New Years Day with a marathon of pilot episodes from a slew of vintage crime shows.

Dan Harrison, Senior Vice President, Emerging Networks who oversees Sleuth, also
said: "We can’t wait to launch Sleuth on New Year’s Day. It’s a great day to
start a network that offers some of the most enduring and popular television
genres of all time. We’re starting with the pilots of some classic crime dramas
from NBC Universal’s enormous library. We will give some classic programs new
life as loyal fans mix with a new generation who can enjoy them all day and
continuing throughout Sleuth’s first week."

There’s more details on the jump.

Read more

Hawaiian Eye

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Writer Ken Levine is off to Hawaii today — and as his going away present to his blog readers, he left a very funny post about his last trip to the islands. Here’s a taste:

Their signature restaurant is Humahumanukunukuapua’s (actual name). But people
call is Humahumanhukunu’s for short. Lobster was $59 a pound (again, this is
true). They should change the name to Hubrishubrishubrishubrischutzpah…

…They sell jewelry down at the pool. Women with their guts hanging over their
bikini bottoms trying on pearls. I have no idea whether they like the stuff or
not. Because of the Botox they can’t make an expression.

Went twice to
Roy’s restaurant. Best food on the island and never disappoints. And the view?
Spectacular. Roy’s is in the parking lot of a shopping center. You know you’re
in Hawaii when you see the crimson sun set behind the Safeway and the Crazy
Shirt Emporium.

Have a terrific trip, Ken!

Spec-tacular

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Comedy writer Ken Levine gives some wonderful advice on his must-read blog about writing that perfect sitcom spec:

Don’t view the show from the perspective of a fly. I once read a WINGS spec as
seen by a buzzing fly. I offer this as the first example because I know so many
young writers fall into this same trap.

Don’t put yourself into the show
and make yourself the lead character. I once read a CHEERS where Alan had more
lines than Sam & Diane combined. Alan? Who’s Alan? Alan was one of the
extras. And so he remained.

And just because people tell you you look
like Debra Messing doesn’t mean you should write a WILL & GRACE entitled
“Grace’s Sister”. If I get a script with a photo attached I know I’m in trouble.

Don’t hand write your script, no matter how good your penmanship. Send
your spec in a UCLA blue book and you’ll get an F.

Don’t invent a
format.

Know the characters. I read a spec MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW where
Mary wondered what to get her husband for his birthday. Her “husband”???!

Some other things to avoid, at least in drama specs:  the hero’s evil double, the reappearance of long-lost relatives, or the hero getting amensia, going blind, or getting critically injured. It’s also not a good idea to write a spin-off pilot for one of the secondary characters.

Give the Gift of a Threeway

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The Waking Vixen laments that some people just don’t appreciate the opportunity she gives them to have group sex.

There’s a place in space that Jefferson and I share. We talked about it a bit
the other evening, when we talked about his sex parties, the lovers I’ve brought
to them, the lovers he’s involved, the taboos we’ve broken, the windows we’ve
opened for the people we care about…

Life After Death?

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Bill Crider pointed me to this interesting publishing experiment…

Lawrence Watt-Evans, who has written dozens of books, recently had his series Legends of
Ethshar dropped by his publisher after eight novels. So he started shopping the series around…

Alas, no major mainstream publisher is interested in continuing the Ethshar
series at present. On the other hand, I had several readers saying they
desperately want to see more. I decided to see whether enough of them were
willing to put their money where their mouths are to finance more Ethshar
stories — and perhaps eventually continuations of other series that no longer
have major publishers.

To my surprise, there were enough. My fans came through, and I have
now written the ninth Ethshar novel, financed entirely by reader contributions
rather than an advance from a publisher.

How has his experiment fared? It’s hard to say based on what he reports…

From April to October I posted the first draft of The Spriggan Mirror,
the ninth novel in the series, chapter by chapter. The last two chapters, along
with the epilogue and some endnotes, were posted on October 16, 2005. Below
you’ll find some options for making donations; each week, if I’d received
another $100 in donations (as I always did), I posted another chapter.

If I hadn’t received $100 to pay for a given week’s chapter, it
wouldn’t have been posted — but that never happened. If more than the $100
target came in, as it usually did, the extra was credited toward the following
chapter. No one needed to worry about ”wasting” a payment if I received more
than was needed for a particular chapter. At this point the entire novel has
been paid for, but the more money that comes in, the sooner I’m likely to start
a new serial.

So how much did he make? Was it comparable to what he would have received in advances and royalties if Del Rey had opted to publish another book in the series? I don’t know because he doesn’t say. For now, you can read the entire book for free on his website…until New Years Eve, when he’s signing the rights over to an e-publisher.

UPDATE: In a related story, GalleyCat reports that novelist Diane Duane is making the unpublished third volume in her TO VISIT THE QUEEN series available using POD:

she’s willing to consider satisfying her earlier fans’ desires by using
print-on-demand to bring The Big Meow out… if the market will bear it.
"Let’s just say that a ‘trade paperback’… is going to cost you hardcover
prices, not paperback," she suggests. "If I’m to make any money at all on the
deal (by which I mean, at least recoup my publishing and labor expenses), you’re
going to be paying $20-25 for a copy of this book." And then she invites her
readers to tell her whether they’re prepared to do that.

…Even Duane acknowledges that the demand remains to be measured, and she’ll be
waiting at least until next spring before she decides if there’s what we used to
call on Usenet "A Great Need."

Sweet Dreams

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A screenwriter in Finland dreamed about me last night.

Lee Goldberg was a
performing magician and was giving a show at a stage somewhere. It was a big
outdoor stage and there was quite a big audience. I was his apprentice. Lee
Goldberg said he was going to do a big trick, but it required the presence of
President George W. Bush.

At least I wasn’t naked… and it didn’t involve me helping the President discover the joys of hot hunky man love.

The Bright Purple Interview

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Mystery File has posted Ed Gorman’s 1980s interview with John D. MacDonald. Here’s one of MacDonald’s quotes:

"Professionally, I do not recall any particularly bad memories.  The book which
just won’t jell.  The editor who gets fired when you have half a book in his
shop.  The clown who was taking my old pulp stories and changing the point of
view and selling them to Manhunt.  I
began to learn my trade in late 1945.  Had I begun ten years later, I would
never have had the chance to earn while learning.  The short-story market was
sliding into the pits.  Luck is being born at the right time.  I had an agent
who kept me out of Hollywood despite some pretty offers.  I was lucky to have a
man so wise.  I decided against doing a series character in 1952.  I had no good
reason.  It was just a gut feeling.  I didn’t start McGee until 1964.  By then I
could avoid being trapped in the series.  Saying no was the purest kind of luck."

Simon Remembers Pryor

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Screenwriter Roger Simon remembers Richard Pryor and the movie they did together, BUSTIN LOOSE.

Some time in 1979, shortly after I had done The Big Fix for
Universal, the studio called to ask if I would like to write a movie
for Richard Pryor. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Pryor was
at the top of his game then, acknowledged by many to be possibly the
greatest standup comic of all time. Not only that, he was a cultural
icon of extraordinary proportions, the very voice of black America,
"Daddy Rich." What more could a Jewish white boy who grew up on Miles
Davis want than to work with this man?