DO-OVER! DO-OVER!
Well (say it like Reagan), it had to happen sometime. An author interview! How’d I do? Check it out:
And?
Oh man, I totally blew a few questions last night. In a word, DISJOINTED. Okay, it wasn’t quite that horrible. Such as it is in unscripted free-form conversation with a dear old friend, band mate, and media colleague—THE Multimedia Ninja—Bradford Rogers (you have to put emphasis on the THE). My memory doesn’t quite serve well enough to recall it as my first broadcast interview, but that says more about my memory than the facts! Oh well, another fleeting moment passes; now to address those lingering regrets.
Favorite authors?
Mentioned were Ian Fleming, Robert Ludlum, Joseph Wambaugh, and C. Wright Mills. I meant to cite Mills for just the one book, The Power Elite, not so much for the actual writing. In that moment, I forgot Isaac Asimov (but how?), Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Louis L’Amour, Larry Niven, Terry Pratchett, John Grisham, and … oh; there I go naming everybody. Then there are the screenwriters …
Favorite drummers?
God in heaven above (fingernails on chalkboard moment), how could I broach that question without mentioning John Bonham, Stewart Copeland, Rod Morganstein, Phil Collins, Bill Bruford, Buddy Rich, Gary Husband, Terry Bozzio, Jeff Sipe, Tony Williams, Bernard Purdie, Manu Katche, Dave Garibaldi, Mitch Mitchell, and about 50 others I’ll never remember in full at a moment’s notice. Forgive me! But yes, Dom Famularo, Vinnie Colaiuta and Mr. Peart are certainly in my Top 10.
Favorite lenses?
I’ll stand by that 50mm f/1.2 Canon L lens all day long; mostly for portraiture and low light work. I also love the 10-22mm EF-S for architecture and outdoor spaces. Should have also mentioned the 600mm Sports Illustrated standard, and Tamron’s uber-handy 18-270mm tele for documentation. (I understand they have a 16-300mm now. Sweet!).
Android or iPhone?
Android. Currently, that’s a Samsung Galaxy S4. One thing, however; no mention or Mac or PC? WHUUUUTTTT? All simply tools to me, but since I spend the bulk of my time in MS Word, it’s PC and Windows. I should also mention how much I loathe Windows 8.1. Worse than WinME! So now we get W10 for free? Fingers’ crossed. Prayers sent. Incantations mumbled over bubbling cauldron. The only comment I have for Mac and OS(never goes to 11)X: to my observation, the whole “it just works” maxim is a complete myth. Just ask Neil Giraldo (Pat Benatar’s guitarist husband) about crashing sequences during a show! Thing is, Windows’ BSOD forever haunts. Are we not geeks, though? Why no mention of Linux or Chrome? Simple—it’s their relevant software catalog. Or did I mean irrelevant? Hmmmm … for me, for now.
Dealing with thousands of manuscripts
Oh yeah, a synaptic interlude that happens in free range dialogue. Brain Fart? However you wish to label it. I spoke of publishers dealing with manuscript overload. Their solution was to gauge potential output and risk by publishing the famous, newsworthy, or controversial—anyone with built-in sales. The downside is that millions of query letters are instantly disqualified based on that paradigm. Many of those might have contained bestselling stories. No solution? The free market is providing one—sort of—in that writers may decently publish their own works. If they build enough sales, the sharks will smell it. I also meant to relay another interesting Chinese company’s solution for being inundated with tens of thousands of résumés for each job opening. L’Oreal is on to something huge, killing the traditional curriculum vitae for, well, you’d probably need to read it for yourself. I love it! Now if only publishers had something similar. Not everyone can successfully publish their own books. The rest appear to require major assistance. Sounds like a business opportunity for someone.
Ahh … that feels better.
HUGE THANKS to THE Multimedia Ninja, Bradford Rogers, for having me on. Great experience and superb location. Yeah, I’d do it again … but AFTER the gin and tonics.
More Soon, (apologies to David Cantrell for stealing his More Soon tag. Please don’t hire the Marvin Gaye family’s lawyer!)
/T
