Prime Time Replay:
Dan Simmons
on his novel The Rise of Endymion
MsgId: *omni_visions(1)
Date: Thu Aug 14 20:42:13 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Welcome to OmniVisions. Tonight at 10:00 PM EDT, our guest will be the celebrated writer, Dan Simmons, whose latest book "The Rise of Endymion" is due shortly in hardcover from Bantam Books. As usual, the show will take the form of an interview for about the first hour, and we'll open up to audience participation about 11:00 EDT. Join us!Dan Simmons' work has been compared to Chaucer, John Keats, Dante, Mark Twain, and T.S. Eliot. His "Hyperion Cantos" changed the face of sf literature, and may continue to do so when the CD-ROM version is comleted and released by Microsoft. Among his honors, Dan has won the Hugo Award, two World Fantasy Awards, and nine (!) Locus Polls. Born in 1948, he now lives in Colorado.
Well, it's 10:00 and the unearthly (Hallelujah!) spotlights just came on. Welcome, Dan! To get things started right off, can you give us a brief precis of "The Rise of Endymion," and tell us how it works into the "Hyperion Cantos" universe?
MsgId: *omni_visions(9)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:01:20 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Greetings all. "The Rise of Endymion" is the Omega chapter of the Hyperion series. It is IT. The finale. Do you want a synopsis?
MsgId: *omni_visions(10)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:01:43 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Yes, please!
MsgId: *omni_visions(11)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:03:49 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
In the "Rise of Endymion," the reader learns what the secret of Aenea (the new messiah) is . . . who and what the Shrike is . . . and the secret to the basic fabric of the universe. (That's chapter one.) I hate to reveal anything beyond that.
MsgId: *omni_visions(13)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:05:42 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Aha! Anything important? But seriously, I believe you tried to end the Hyperion series at least once before. Can you bne certain there are no more stories to tell in the Cantos?
MsgId: *omni_visions(15)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:07:36 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
There's always something to add -- that's the nature of the universe, fictional or real -- but I'm finished talking about the Hyperion universe with this novel. (Except for one necessary novelette to come.)
MsgId: *omni_visions(16)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:08:58 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
OK, so there's more to enjoy. Are you indeed still working on the CD-ROM?
MsgId: *omni_visions(17)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:10:48 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Not with Microsoft. Their Dreamworks project killed all other projects in the works, including Hyperion. But I still have the outline and script and it's still mine to develop.
MsgId: *omni_visions(18)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:12:27 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
I hope that happens. If ever there was an important sf work who's nature lends itself to hypertext, it's the Cantos.Have you been getting anticipating queries about the finale from fans?
MsgId: *omni_visions(20)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:13:35 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Thanks, Jim. I agree in the sense that the structure of the four Hyperion novels is a form of hyperlink torus even in the novel form . . . In a fiction quartet where the characters can jump through time and space, connect through four dimensions, there is ample opportunity to express the same tale through other and equal digital formats.Fans just want the Shrike to have four arms in the art.
MsgId: *omni_visions(24)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:16:11 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Repeat of #19: Have you been getting anticipating queries about the finale from fans?
MsgId: *omni_visions(26)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:17:30 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Yes, fans have talked to me about the finale. I was especially interested in what they thought Aenea's messiah message to humanity should be.
MsgId: *omni_visions(27)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:18:36 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Your work crosses all boundaries, taken as a whole. Do you have any fondness for any particular genre, given your sf, fantasy, horror and mainstream work?Crosstalk rebuttal: What were some of the messages the fans proposed for Her?
MsgId: *omni_visions(29)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:20:21 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I have a fondness for all of the genres. I just finished an espionage novel. The only thing I haven't written is a romance novel.Sorry for the time-warp cross messages. That's what you get when you talk to an SF author. The best fan message was . . . "Choose again!" And that, indeed, is Aenea's message.
MsgId: *omni_visions(32)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:24:23 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Great message, and fitting with the books as a whole. Don't worry about the crosstalk -- that's part of the nature of this medium.At an I-Con (Stony Brook's sf/media convention) you challenged genre writers to assimilate their work into the "mainstream". Can you cite those you believe have been successful in this?
MsgId: *omni_visions(34)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:27:42 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
At I-Con I didn't ask for SF authors to assimilate their work into the mainstream . . .I challenged them to write so wonderfully and so well (by standards even the mainstream would accept) that SF DEMANDS the attention of mainstream audiences. Many of our best writers already do this . . . such as Kim S. Robinson and the MARS trilogy.
MsgId: *omni_visions(35)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:28:59 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Aha! Thanks for the clarification.I had found this in an article: In the spring of 1991, during a convention at Stoneybrook University, Dan Simmons gave a speech in which he challenged the "genre" writers who had gathered to rise to the task of integrating their fictions into the mainstream. He compared the unspoken feud between fiction labeled "mainstream" and that known as "science fiction" or "horror" with the rift that arose between Henry James and Robert Louis Stevenson, healed only during the latter years of their lives, when wisdom overcame shortsightedness. He urged the writers to forge trails into the new and exciting territory.
The article was entitled "The Art of Assimilation", and I mistakenly gave the use of that word to your speech. Do you feel there's a trend for sf writing to improve? To become more recognized as Literature?
MsgId: *omni_visions(38)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:35:08 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Please pardon my long answer here and many . . . but this is an important topic to me.
MsgId: *omni_visions(39)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:35:58 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
I welcome long answers (he said, sitting back to enjoy)
MsgId: *omni_visions(40)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:36:01 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I think that ALL fiction, genre and mainstream, needs to improve. The so-called serious fiction has grown effete and inbred. Genres such as my beloved SF and horror have allowed themselves to be ghettoized. At the same time, the genres are the hope of revitalizing so-called mainstream fiction.I just finished a novel in which Ernest Hemingway is the main character. It's obvious in reading (re-reading) his fiction, what a debt his style owed to the terse, mystery fiction of the 1930's.
Sorry. Got kicked off. I was saying that in the same way, SF and horror bring the energy, the human element, and the respect for LARGE IDEAS that have been sorely missing in "litrahhy fiction" for some time. I think our genres are revitalizing fiction to become the serious literature of the next century.
MsgId: *omni_visions(44)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:43:00 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
That's a fine notion I'd never considered -- sf as a font for greater works. Are there any sf novels to date which may have already accomplished this? (I should mention that when I use the term sf, I mean it to imply sf/fantasy/horror)
MsgId: *omni_visions(46)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:45:19 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Sure. For every work of genius such as "1984" an SF reader can name a dozen lesser-known dystopian novels such as "STAND ON ZANZIBAR." These add texture to the literary dialogue. That's why it infuriates me when something like "A HANDMAID'S TALE" is lauded as original and shocking.
MsgId: *omni_visions(47)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:48:18 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Gee, I think you should write more LitCrit--it's dead on. You were a teacher for "gifted children", and you were once (reportedly) torn with the decision whether to continue writing, or to concentrate on your career as a teacher. What was the determining factor in your decision (for which we are thankful)?
MsgId: *omni_visions(48)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:50:56 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
The decision was made for me by a school district that wanted to destroy our beautiful G/T program and transfer me back to a classroom. I loved being in the classroom, but I got sick of the egalitarian ignorance of school districts. So I decided to write full time. But it's August now, so I'm having my annual "back to school" teaching dreams, even though I've been out of teaching for ten years.
MsgId: *omni_visions(49)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:52:25 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
What is G/T?
MsgId: *omni_visions(50)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:53:40 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Gifted/Talented. Sorry.
MsgId: *omni_visions(51)
Date: Thu Aug 14 22:57:46 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
I can't cite a lot of books off the top of my head, but it seems to me there have been more quality sf books involving religion in the last few years. (And Terry Bisson's sequel to "A Canticle for Liebowitz" is due in a few months.) Have you perceived this? If so, is there a reason?
MsgId: *omni_visions(52)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:00:41 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I haven't noticed the trend toward more religious SF, but I wouldn't be surprised. Religion is on the rise worldwide. Read "THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS." It documents the largest religious resurgence -- worldwide -- in many centuries. And it's accelerating.
MsgId: *omni_visions(53)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:03:34 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Some of Aleander Jablokov's works come to mind, along with your's and Bisson's. Is there a role sf can play in religious themes that Mainstream can't, or that sf may have an advantage in this?(Message to all: We have now opened up the forum for audience participation. If you would like to add your comments or chat with Dan Simmons, use the dialog box which should have been added to your screen by now. (Click on "Pause While Typing", first.) Please don't forget to sign your messages so we know who you are.)
MsgId: *omni_visions(56)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:05:32 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Sf has the advantage of trying out religious ideas without demanding acolytes, human sacrifices, or Jihad. Here's an interesting fact. Historians and other scholars assume that there have been about a dozen civilizations in the history of the earth. Seven of those are kaput. Five are left, worldwide. Of these, ONLY the Western civilization has given the world ALL of the ideologies that were fought out during this 20th Centuries. Fascism, communism, capitalism, you name it. But the West has NEVER given the world a serious, widespead religion. That's part of what I offer in "THE RISE OF ENDYMION."
MsgId: *omni_visions(57)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:07:14 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.194.139
How do you plan your plot lines and manage their seemingly overwhelmingly complex interdependencies. Do you diagram them or see them clearly in your mind?
MsgId: *omni_visions(60)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:08:48 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I gave up diagramming in 11th grade.
MsgId: *omni_visions(61)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:08:51 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.170.112.34
In your latest, it seems that Raul and Aenea had to do some "revision" on what was said in earlier novels. Did you have a clear idea of where you were going with this series form the beginning or did you get into some difficulties which required Raul's and Aenea's recanting of Cantos? From Danny
MsgId: *omni_visions(64)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:09:46 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I don't think I revised much of what they said, Danny. Which is not to say I knew where I was going.
MsgId: *omni_visions(62)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:09:16 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 134.117.1.22
I have noticed in at least four of your stories a reoccuring use of "vagina dentatus". Is this a personal paranoia of yours or do you simply think of it as a universal paranoia?
MsgId: *omni_visions(66)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:10:39 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: vagina dentatus -- yeesh! 4 stories? I'll seek help.
MsgId: *omni_visions(65)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:10:19 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 205.160.184.220
I have heard several references to the final Hyperion "novelette". The Hyperion story has been 11 years in the making (or at least in the publishing); do you have any idea on when or where the final piece will be published? Mark Wingenfeld
P.S. You may remember me as "a minor epistemological guest" from the International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts at Ft. Lauderdale.
MsgId: *omni_visions(67)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:11:40 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
To Mark -- Yes, I know where the last tale will go. It's in one hell of an exciting anthology. But secret, now.
MsgId: *omni_visions(68)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:11:45 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Dan, regarding the contributions (and lacks) of Western Civ: Do you have a belief why this is true? I know you may not get to this yet, while you answer the guests' questions.
MsgId: *omni_visions(70)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:13:35 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I think the West built its brilliance upon science.
MsgId: *omni_visions(69)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:13:18 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 207.15.21.100
Congratulations on your latest publication and on finishing the Hyperion series! I deeply admire your imagination and ambition. I'm also pleased to see the cover artist finally put four arms on the Shrike! Yours, Clee
MsgId: *omni_visions(71)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:14:33 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
To Clee --
You ought to know about the Shrike, kiddo. You're the sculptor who did the definitive version of it. Love, Dan
MsgId: *omni_visions(75)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:16:03 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Dan, I'm reposting #55 'cause it may have scrolled off your screen. It's from an unsigned guest:What real world events inspire you to write about individuals affecting events in a world of immensly powerful entities and significant concentrations of power?
Guests: Please don't forget to sign your names.
MsgId: *omni_visions(73)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:15:12 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 208.146.243.110
The Mormon religion, though based on Christianity, is both serious and growing rapidly. It's different enough from mainstream christianity to constitute a significant religious contribution from the west -- though many consider it a cult. I think it's shortsighted to burden the West with ALL modern ideologies worth fighting for. What about cultural and scientific contributions from Asia and Babylon (originators of astronomy)?
MsgId: *omni_visions(77)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:20:19 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Sorry for my slow response. My last message was erased and I have to erase my own previous messages each time. Anyway, re: question #55 -- all of my novels deal, in one way or another, with power and its abuses. I've had a life-long aversion to the violence involved in people wielding power over one another.As for the question about Mormons and Mideastern contributions to society -- Mormonism, while peculiarly American, is another refinement of a desert relion from the mideast. And science and culture aren't ideologies. Those are paradigms worth killing for . . . i.e. communism, capitalism.
MsgId: *omni_visions(79)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:22:45 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Clee: Isn't your sculpture of the Shrike visible on the Web? I think I saw it some time ago. It's magnificent.
MsgId: *omni_visions(78)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:21:16 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.194.139
Have you received any criticism for imagining the Catholic church as party in such a dark Faustian bargain? dpocon@aol
MsgId: *omni_visions(80)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:22:58 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re; criticism from the Church. Not yet. But I look forward to a dialogue with some priest and theologian friends.
MsgId: *omni_visions(82)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:24:36 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Repost from Greg: Is there a pub date for Crook Factory?
MsgId: *omni_visions(84)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:24:38 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
Hi Clee. I still adore the dodo you made for me.
MsgId: *omni_visions(86)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:25:52 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
The Crook Factory should be out in '98. No firm date yet.
MsgId: *omni_visions(90)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:26:52 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.170.112.34
Dan, I enjoyed the character of De Soya very much. Stephen Donanldosn recommended you in an interview a few years back, thus i read you and enjoyed :). Stephen Donaldson is from a religious backgroud, raised by missionaries. Do you two ever get together and shoot the breeze, as it were? Danny again (Hi Greg and dpocon :))
MsgId: *omni_visions(92)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:27:59 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
To Danny -- Yes, Steve and I chat occasionally. A few years ago we spent a wild, ignorant evening trying to define deconstructionism.
MsgId: *omni_visions(91)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:27:44 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.213.167
Dan, I signed on late, so you may have already answered this question. Are you planning on returning to "horror" after the Hyperion series? -- Fanatia
MsgId: *omni_visions(88)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:26:14 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.194.139
With the exception of the novelettte from Hyperion, do you plan to write any more science fiction?
MsgId: *omni_visions(95)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:28:59 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
To both questions -- I don't have any firm plans for more SF or more horror at this date. I'm headed to Hollywood in two weeks.
MsgId: *omni_visions(94)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:28:46 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 134.117.1.22
Are the characters and incidents in "Entropy's Bed at Midnight" based on real people and events? - vagina dentatus inquirer
MsgId: *omni_visions(96)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:29:49 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: "Entropy's bed" . . . it's based on real insurance files that my brother, a private investigator, has compiled.
MsgId: *omni_visions(99)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:30:26 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 207.15.21.100
Jim: Yes, the sculpture can be seen on the web. Look up Dan and you can link to it. Thank you for your compliments.Ellen: Hello, it's so nice to hear from you, and I'm glad you still like the little dodo. Clee
MsgId: *omni_visions(100)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:32:41 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Clee -- is this YOUR interview hour? (It should be, she's a great artist!)
MsgId: *omni_visions(101)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:32:56 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
Clee, he's getting a lovely green patina.
MsgId: *omni_visions(98)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:30:08 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Hollywood? Do tell more!?
MsgId: *omni_visions(102)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:33:25 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: Hollywood, I don't think they need a 49-yr.-old screenwriter, but I'm going to chat with some folks.
MsgId: *omni_visions(104)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:34:06 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
To all: Clee Richeson's sculpture can be admired at http://benctek.com/Gallery/html/shrike.htm
MsgId: *omni_visions(103)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:33:49 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.213.163
I think "THE HOLLOW MAN" is one of the great works of fiction of the 20th century. Period. Do you suspect either of your next two books for Avon will challenge and possibly infuriate more conservative readers in the same manner? -- Edw.
MsgId: *omni_visions(108)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:36:10 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: "THE HOLLOW MAN." Thanks. I hope that both the Avon books -- including "The Crook Factory" -- will create some interest and controversy.
MsgId: *omni_visions(109)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:36:16 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Consider my questions to Clee a sidebar. Besides, you commissioned the thing, no? :-)
MsgId: *omni_visions(110)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:37:02 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Sorry, I was kidding. I thought Ellen Datlow said that I was getting a green patina.I did commission a 9-foot Shrike from Clee. She will build one for anyone who wants to contact her.
MsgId: *omni_visions(120)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:40:41 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 205.160.184.220
A nine foot Shrike sculpture. Wow! I am afraid to ask what that would cost, but it would definitely be cool! Mark Wingenfeld
MsgId: *omni_visions(113)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:37:56 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
I "knew" I should have specified the dodo:>)
MsgId: *omni_visions(116)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:38:53 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
She did. I think she was trying to p*ss you off. (ducking) All in fun.
MsgId: *omni_visions(111)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:37:50 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.205.88
So was Hemingway a good spy? Greg.
MsgId: *omni_visions(115)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:38:32 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Hemingway was a terrible spy. But he did irritate the FBI so much that they spied on him for 22 more years.
MsgId: *omni_visions(114)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:38:15 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 205.160.184.220
Dan: You refer to "both books" from Avon. Crook Factory is one, what is the other? Mark Wingenfeld
MsgId: *omni_visions(117)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:39:20 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
The other Avon book is being discussed. It may be an insurance mystery title "H IS FOR PREPARATION," "T IS FOR SYMPATHY."
MsgId: *omni_visions(131)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:47:01 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 205.160.184.220
RE: "H IS FOR PREPARATION"... One of the things that I enjoy most about reading your stuff is that while you write about very serious issues, you also have a great sense of humor. "VANNI FUCCI" and "ENTROPY'S BED" are is great...I read them all the time. I hope you manage to write some more serious, yet humorous stories. Mark Wingenfeld
MsgId: *omni_visions(118)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:39:22 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.213.163
What might be cool would be to see the "HYPERION" and "ENDYMION" books bound two by two, back to back, like the old Ace Double Novels. Your novels are ambitious and more literate than the Wollheim days, but there's still that terrific slightly nostalgic flavor... -- Edw.
MsgId: *omni_visions(119)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:40:24 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Edw -- Great idea! Blue on the front. Pink on the back! I'll tell Bantam!
MsgId: *omni_visions(121)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:42:30 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Dan, your note about Hollywood, and your former endavors wioth Microsoft cause me to ask: Have you considered writing for other media?
MsgId: *omni_visions(125)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:44:39 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: writing for other media. Yep. I've written two modest (i.e. low, low budget) TV shows, a film treatment, and the microsoft interactive script. I enjoy writing in different formats, although I know that I'm a novelist at the core. But I do hope to write something else -- a film perhaps, or even a play. It keeps one fresh and shows the limits of one's abilities. (Not that I need more of that.)
MsgId: *omni_visions(124)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:44:28 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.213.163
Dunno if someone already asked, but in case they didn't, have you any plans for a new story collection? --Edw.
MsgId: *omni_visions(127)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:45:27 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
No story collections planned. I look forward to writing more short fiction.
MsgId: *omni_visions(126)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:45:24 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.170.112.34
Dan, I remember you had a character called Hsi Wang Mu in the latest. Did you know that Orson Scott Card also had a character, albeit a main character, by that name in the Ender saga? Danny
MsgId: *omni_visions(129)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:46:24 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
I haven't read Scott's Ender saga. How could we end up with the same name? (It's a Chinese/Tibetan philosopher.)
MsgId: *omni_visions(128)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:45:31 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Since others brought up short fiction, here now, is my favorite stock question: You are highly regarded for both your short fiction and novels. How are those crafts different for you?
MsgId: *omni_visions(132)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:47:06 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: short story vs. novel. Steve King said it -- "A story is like going on a date; a novel is marriage."
MsgId: *omni_visions(130)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:46:51 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.194.139
How can we keep track of any of your work hitting TV, hollywood or software? dpocon@aol
MsgId: *omni_visions(133)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:48:10 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Re: my work in Hollywood -- keep watching the skies!
MsgId: *omni_visions(135)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:51:32 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Dan, were those TV scripts produced?
MsgId: *omni_visions(136)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:52:39 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Yep -- two episodes of "MONSTERS." I get residuals.
MsgId: *omni_visions(137)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:54:09 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Gee, now I'll have to watch that show to catch those episodes...
MsgId: *omni_visions(138)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:54:30 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
PS -- those residuals pay for the Lear and the place in Palm Springs.
MsgId: *omni_visions(140)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:55:22 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
We're at the 5-minute mark here. You made references to at least a couple of forthcoming works. Can you recap what's coming out, and when?
MsgId: *omni_visions(142)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:59:20 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
OK -- at the 4-minute mark, I'll plug my next books: "THE RISE OF ENDYMION," available now in bookstores everywhere. I'll be on tour in October . If you want me signing in a store near you, folks, call Bantam Books and demand that they ship me there UPS. (Well . . .maybe not.) Next book after that, "THE CROOK FACTORY," out from Avon Books sometime in 1998. (I hope, Ipray. Please God.) A novelette set in the Hyperion universe, to be found in a forthcoming anthology of re-visited universes, edited by Robert Silverberg. And after that . . . no idea . . . perhaps "H is for Preparation." So I'll just say that this has been an experience. Any last questions, gang?
MsgId: *omni_visions(141)
Date: Thu Aug 14 23:58:06 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 134.117.1.22
It's obvious you are well versed in the classics (Keats, Dante, etc..) but due you have any contemporary influences (in any form, lit., music, etc..)? - brett
MsgId: *omni_visions(143)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:00:02 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Brett -- John Fowles,Stanley Kubrick, Peter Gabriel, etc.
MsgId: *omni_visions(146)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:01:15 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 205.160.184.220
No more questions. Thankyou for taking the time to visit with us. Mark Wingenfeld
MsgId: *omni_visions(147)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:01:32 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 207.15.21.100
Thanks Dan, this was fun...I'll call Bantam right now. Clee
MsgId: *omni_visions(148)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:01:40 EDT 1997
From: guest At: 152.163.205.88
Nope, Thanks, and if "The Crook Factory" is even close to "Phases of Gravity" everyone will be pleased. Greg.
MsgId: *omni_visions(144)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:00:13 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Yeah--will your tour bring you to NYC?
MsgId: *omni_visions(150)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:02:17 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
If invited, Ellen, Jim, I'll come to NYC on my own hook. Bantam has no plans to send me east. They say that no one reads there.
MsgId: *omni_visions(152)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:03:31 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
Dan, writers come to NYC to read all the time.Gibson is coming late August.
MsgId: *omni_visions(153)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:03:57 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Well, I certainly have an invitation for you, but I'll send it provately on AOL...
MsgId: *omni_visions(154)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:04:12 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Writers go to New York??!!?? My publishers have lied to me!
MsgId: *omni_visions(155)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:04:53 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
Amazing, isn't it? (I mean that they lie)
MsgId: *omni_visions(156)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:05:07 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Jim, Ellen, Gang -- Is we done? Do I slink out now?
MsgId: *omni_visions(157)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:05:28 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Dan, it has been a great pleasure to have you here. I know it must've been daunting for you to get all those questions whirling at once, but it was certainly fascinating and entertaining from our end. Thanks a lot!
MsgId: *omni_visions(158)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:05:45 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
If you can get here, there can certainly be readings set up. Jonthan Lethem, Terry Bisson, Harvey Jacobs, etc all have had or will have readings.
MsgId: *omni_visions(159)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:06:07 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
(you can slink now)
MsgId: *omni_visions(160)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:06:22 EDT 1997
From: EllenDatlow At: 38.26.16.193
Thanks for appearing Dan.You were great.
MsgId: *omni_visions(161)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:07:17 EDT 1997
From: DanSimmons At: 152.163.205.87
Thank you for having me here, Jim. And thanks to Ellen and everyone who stayed up past midnight to listen to my drivel. Bye everyone! See you on Hyperion!
MsgId: *omni_visions(162)
Date: Fri Aug 15 00:08:29 EDT 1997
From: Jim_Freund At: 207.38.234.221
Thanks for coming by. Don't forget that next Thursday, August 21 Ed Bryant's guest will be Douglas Clegg who wrote "Bad Karma" as Andrew Harper, and the following week, August 28, my Guest will be M. John Harrison discussing "Signs of Life". Good night.
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