Hey...thanks for posting this! I appreciate your voice--all of this very much resonated with me. Loved your story about the anime that you posted a while back. It's good to know more about you!
Thanks for reading. The Substack algo recently pointed me towards your "Editors don't want male novelists," and it gave me a perverse impulse to post some APF (already-published fiction) touching on The Problematic.
Question: did you write the piece before or after your introduction to Philip Roth?
In these impossible times, I can still make myself laugh by imagining a billboard of Ronald McDonald wearing a Nazi armband and proclaiming, "I LIKE TO TASTE THE BLOOD ON THE THINGS I BUY!" So, thanks for that. :)
For a reader of writings critizicing digital media, I am not very keen on reading in general post Covid, so I would look a little pretentious to ask if you have a similar anecdote about All The Lonely People.
1. I was actually trying to write something I thought the literary agents would like. Once again, it didn't work out that way. I'm actually saltier about AtLP not getting published (legitimately, I mean) than about The Zeroes not getting published.
2. At least one complained about how low-tech it was (dial-up internet?!?! lol), which lead to the terrifying conclusion that at least a few actual literary agents don't understand the concept of a period piece.
3. Years later I revisited a YA sci-fi novel called Interstellar Pig that I didn't think I remembered—and then discovered that it had sunk in a lot deeper than I'd imagined. Apparently I stole its ending scene (the last sentence is identical except for a substituted proper noun) without even being aware I was doing it.
4. If you started reading it and haven't gotten to the twist yet—well, it's suddenly become a lot more topical than it was in 2015. I don't know how I feel about that.
It has crossed my mind as to why you didn't try your hand at making more video game related content (for context, I found your old blog via your old Final Fantasy content).
Highbrow analytical content (or the fiction equivalent) seems to be what a lot of writers default to (and it seems what you have pursued a lot as well). However, it often ends up being difficult to access, with the audience limited to other aspiring writers and introspective brainiacs of the same mental resonance.
Making highbrow analysis of relatable media (like games) hits the sweet spot. People do appreciate depth and high-grade analysis, but they need to be drawn into it by a more "lizard-brained" emotional cue (e.g. childhood-derived nostalgia). Hence, writing an analysis of a video game can pave the path for people into a discussion of high-level topics in a way that few other things can.
I also think a lot of your best posts here already follow this model. I have liked a lot of the content you wrote analyzing/dichotomizing the 2000s internet milieu. And, of course, I liked your old game reviews, for the same reason. I hope you return to this type of vein even more in the future.
Where can I find these novels? And kudos on actually finishing not one but two novels. I’m still having epiphanies about a novel in progress I’ve been writing for about fifteen years and will probably have to self-publish too.
They are available for print on demand or Kindle if you clicky on the 'Books' tab in Pat's profile up there. Or clicky right here. https://bananapeel.substack.com/p/books
Just a random chiming in to say that the Zeroes: Reunion is one of my favorite books and looking forward to what you put out next - thanks for the retrospective!
I've got some pots on the stove, but it's probably gonna be a while till any of them approach a boil. I'm realizing now that the Reunion left me sapped for about two years. I can confidently say that I'll have one *finished* by next summer, but what happens to it after that (self-publishing or actually attempting to shop it??) is anyone's guess.
Hey...thanks for posting this! I appreciate your voice--all of this very much resonated with me. Loved your story about the anime that you posted a while back. It's good to know more about you!
Thanks for reading. The Substack algo recently pointed me towards your "Editors don't want male novelists," and it gave me a perverse impulse to post some APF (already-published fiction) touching on The Problematic.
Question: did you write the piece before or after your introduction to Philip Roth?
In these impossible times, I can still make myself laugh by imagining a billboard of Ronald McDonald wearing a Nazi armband and proclaiming, "I LIKE TO TASTE THE BLOOD ON THE THINGS I BUY!" So, thanks for that. :)
For a reader of writings critizicing digital media, I am not very keen on reading in general post Covid, so I would look a little pretentious to ask if you have a similar anecdote about All The Lonely People.
I will get around to finish it, I swear.
1. I was actually trying to write something I thought the literary agents would like. Once again, it didn't work out that way. I'm actually saltier about AtLP not getting published (legitimately, I mean) than about The Zeroes not getting published.
2. At least one complained about how low-tech it was (dial-up internet?!?! lol), which lead to the terrifying conclusion that at least a few actual literary agents don't understand the concept of a period piece.
3. Years later I revisited a YA sci-fi novel called Interstellar Pig that I didn't think I remembered—and then discovered that it had sunk in a lot deeper than I'd imagined. Apparently I stole its ending scene (the last sentence is identical except for a substituted proper noun) without even being aware I was doing it.
4. If you started reading it and haven't gotten to the twist yet—well, it's suddenly become a lot more topical than it was in 2015. I don't know how I feel about that.
Oh boy, I am getting giddy, I think I will start it again right now.
It has crossed my mind as to why you didn't try your hand at making more video game related content (for context, I found your old blog via your old Final Fantasy content).
Highbrow analytical content (or the fiction equivalent) seems to be what a lot of writers default to (and it seems what you have pursued a lot as well). However, it often ends up being difficult to access, with the audience limited to other aspiring writers and introspective brainiacs of the same mental resonance.
Making highbrow analysis of relatable media (like games) hits the sweet spot. People do appreciate depth and high-grade analysis, but they need to be drawn into it by a more "lizard-brained" emotional cue (e.g. childhood-derived nostalgia). Hence, writing an analysis of a video game can pave the path for people into a discussion of high-level topics in a way that few other things can.
I also think a lot of your best posts here already follow this model. I have liked a lot of the content you wrote analyzing/dichotomizing the 2000s internet milieu. And, of course, I liked your old game reviews, for the same reason. I hope you return to this type of vein even more in the future.
Took your recommendation to heart.
December gets me too.
Where can I find these novels? And kudos on actually finishing not one but two novels. I’m still having epiphanies about a novel in progress I’ve been writing for about fifteen years and will probably have to self-publish too.
Ack. I was on a family vacation/digital detox and unable to reply. Ms. Spriteless had you covered, though.
...and actually, it was three novels. The second one is kind of a different animal than the first and third.
I saw! Already ordered The Zeroes on Amazon 😃.
They are available for print on demand or Kindle if you clicky on the 'Books' tab in Pat's profile up there. Or clicky right here. https://bananapeel.substack.com/p/books
Just a random chiming in to say that the Zeroes: Reunion is one of my favorite books and looking forward to what you put out next - thanks for the retrospective!
<3 <3 <3 <3
I've got some pots on the stove, but it's probably gonna be a while till any of them approach a boil. I'm realizing now that the Reunion left me sapped for about two years. I can confidently say that I'll have one *finished* by next summer, but what happens to it after that (self-publishing or actually attempting to shop it??) is anyone's guess.
With this review I am tempted to get it to see for myself.
Like I said, I *still* think it's the best thing I ever wrote.