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That was Amaz(on)ing!

At noon yesterday, I clicked through the link to buy Just a Geek at wilwheaton.net

At noon today, it was on my desk.

I'm so impressed right now I can hardly express it. I didn't rush the order, and they expected it to get here between the 17th and the 20th. 24 hours is an INCREDIBLE turn around time. Kudos to Amazon!

I haven't had a chance to crack the book yet, but with an introduction by my favorite author on the back, it's looking very good already.

"Here's the gimmick: Wil isn't *just* a geek. He's a geek who's come from nerdvana - the Paramount lot where they dropped the first Trekbomb and forever changed the world - to tell us that it's not all that it's cracked up to be. He's also a geek who can *write*. Finally, he's a geek who's unafraid to sit and the keyboard and open a vein. There's a lot of scorching honesty mixed in with these convusively funny memoirs."

-Cory Doctorow, Author of Eastern Standard Tribe and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom; co-editor of boingboing.net

2:35 pm | permalink | /technology/web | 0 writebacks |

What Ever Happened to Predictability?

Here's a little mind-boggler for you.

First, recall the theme to Full House:

"What ever happened to predictability, the milk man, the paperboy, evening TV..."

Now, try to recall the theme to Family Matters.

This one had us stumped for hours the other day. See if you can do it without cheating - I'll give the answer here in a few hours.

1:34 pm | permalink | /life | 2 writebacks |

How to be a successful blogger in 60 steps

I just read through a very funny "60 Steps" list courtesy of Frank of dreamwill.net

A few of these made me feel like Ned Ryerson at the end of Groundhog's Day:

Ned: Where are we going?

Rita: Ohhh.. Let's not spoil it!

Ned: Oh.. Let's not.. I got that! Rrrreeoww! (listen [mp3])

1:27 pm | permalink | /technology/web | 0 writebacks |

The Difference Between Writing and Blogging

I've been blogging in this format for almost a year now, sticking to punditry and rants and backing off the personal stuff, for one main reason: I've always wanted to be a writer.

Not a writer just in the sense that I write this blog, but a writer in the sense that I weave stories, fictional or not, that people are interested in. In the world of nonfiction, this means finding the angle - finding the people behind the story or the undercurrent that led to the events you're reporting on. In the nonfictional world, it means telling a tale in a way that keeps the reader wanting more while painting your imaginary world for them in vivid imagery..

The problem with blogging is that I'm not doing this full time, and even saying that is an understatement. I'm doing it in stolen moments in the doctors office, on trains.

If I were a full time writer, I would have taken that Merck/Singular thread and followed it out, called people involved, gotten interviews and found out what it was really like to work on that project, what challenges they've faced.

Instead, it's hurriedly typed into the perfect little portable palm/keyboard pair I've gotten for myself, and slapped on the blog with barely enough time to run aspell -c on it.

At times, I've considered slowing down the pace of my blogs and really working on them like stories, releasing one or two well written pieces a month. The prospect of writing articles that are more fleshed out and interesting to read is appealing, but I'd have to give up the story-nugget/link format and the nice readership growth curve I've been nurturing with timely articles.

I'm interested to hear other blogger's takes on this. Which is better, lots of really fresh content bits, or a few well written pieces here and there?

3:21 am | permalink | /technology/web/blog | 1 writebacks |

Wil Wheaton's Just a Geek is Available

I wanted to hate Wil Wheaton.

Almost a year ago now, I couldn't understand why I was hearing the name of the guy who played Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation on my friend's blogs. I assumed, of course, that Wil was now out of work and in his 30's and looking to cash in on all the girls that used to have a crush on him.

Turns out I was partly right.

Wil is out of work - out of acting that is. These days, he's a writer, and a damn good one at that. His site is full of cleverly written anecdotes, musings about his life (with his wife and 2 step-children), and just about every topic I write about on this site, from politics to Linux.

Just a geek picks up Wil's story right at the "What?" that you just had reading the paragraph above. How does a young actor go from potential to passed over? What's it like both being a geek AND being on the other side of the "signing table" at conventions? How do you balance dreams with reality, and eventually, let them go.

Chapter 9 of his book is available from O'Reilly (of the computer safari book fame). It'll only take you about 20 minutes to read through it, and it really gives you the flavor of the book. Either you'll like it or you won't, but just from the reading a few things are clear: This is not a Star Trek book, this is not a sci-fi novel, and that is not self aggrandizing promotion.

Just a Geek is just a book about a guy trying to define himself, with healthy doses of introspection, self deprecation, and humor sprinkled in. The fact that he has a really interesting past and possible future just helps to fill in the gaps.

It just started shipping today, and I've already ordered my copy.

Stolen Right from Wil

3:14 am | permalink | /technology/web | 0 writebacks |