The Reality Break Interviews: Volume #0 Read online

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  Evil Genius Electric Press

  www.evilgeniuscorp.com

  Copyright ©Evil Genius Electric Press, 1999, 2000. Reproduction in any form other than this eBook without written permission is strictly forbidden.

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  NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.

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  Volume #0 Introduction

  by Dave Slusher

  A Dream Begins, Ends and Begins

  It is not every day that a dream comes true, and even more seldom you can nail down the specific moment it happens. For me, it was the afternoon of December 5, 1992 when a group of four Atlanta and Athens area writers sat down in a big studio with me.

  I have a background in radio that begins before I was born. My father was a disk jockey in the small town of Superior Nebraska when he was in high school, working nights and weekends after school. As an adult he was a salesman and air personality at a local AM station in Kansas. I later worked at the same station as a DJ nights and weekends when I was in high school. It was in my pedigree. I continued to work in radio in college, at WREK 91.1 FM, the Georgia Tech campus radio station. I did many odd jobs, from being the voice introducing Stardate to being one of the automated announcers heard at 3 AM behind some weird screechy Laibach track. For many years, my high water mark was the comedy show I did at noon every Saturday. It was actually pretty popular, partly because I was on a constant quest to try to air the dirtiest comedy possible. I aired George Carlin and Richard Pryor bits, with the minimal edits I thought I could do and avoid getting fired. I tried every technique for taking out the actual cursing itself while still making it completely self-evident what the missing words were. I spent a lot of time sitting in front of a reel-to-reel console with a razor blade and magic marker, physically slicing out dirty words. I had a tape with all the removed words strung together, which was one of the funniest things I've ever heard in my life.

  All of this was fun, but in the back of my head I had a dream. What I really wanted to be doing was an interview show. A large chunk of my time since early adolescence was spent reading science fiction and comic books. I had done some interview work for fanzines as a nerdy fanboy in Augusta Georgia. The highpoint was an interview with Dave Sim, the writer-artist of Cerebus. I was convinced interviewing SF and comics writers would make good radio. Like the elephant tied by a piece of yarn, the only thing that really prevented me from pursuing the dream was me. I lacked the confidence to cold call publicists and tell them what I wanted, to ask strangers for favors, to make bizarre requests of nice people—all things that radio producers do every day. My fear was that I wouldn't be able to get enough writers to talk to me to keep such a show going. Such was my naivete that I really thought that would be a problem. I didn't know then that most SF writers are dying for outlets to talk about their work, and that there are hundreds out there waiting to be asked.

  Fast forward a few years to 1992. After graduation, I took a job as a quality control chemist with Merck in Albany Georgia. It paid the bills, but left the soul unsatisfied. I began to pursue the interview show idea again. Mainly, I wanted to succeed or fail having actually tried to do it. This was the birth of a bit of wisdom I now live by—that it is far better to fail honestly than regret never trying. By actually talking to writers, I discovered they almost all were happy to do the show. When I found out how easy it really was, I kicked myself for not doing this years earlier. Over the course of the show, my success rate was something like 1 declination for every 50 acceptances. I found myself coming home to answering machine messages from writers I had long admired. Every fanboy loves that.

  That fateful day in the studio, December 5, 1992, the guests were Brad Strickland, Tom Deitz, Poppy Z. Brite and Nicola Griffith. It was thrilling because what I had wanted for so long was actually happening. It was miserable, because practically everything that could go wrong did. My plan was to have all four writers come in, tape an episode for air later, and then do a live roundtable with all of them. However, there were technical disasters galore, one after another. The microphones didn't work right, the mixing board had problems, the audio would drop in and out. My plan fell apart when I realized that the only thing these folks had to do to keep themselves occupied was to sit there and listen to the other interviews happen. This meant that every interview had an audience of all the other guests, which terrified me! At one point, I was so frazzled and stressed by this nightmare of my own creation that I almost ran out into the hall to cry. At this darkest moment, Nicola Griffith leaned over to rub my arm and tell me everything would be all right. This was the moment that things started to turn around. Prior to that, my perception was that she thought I was an idiot. Hell, prior to that, my perception of myself was that I was an idiot. With her encouragement and that of my wife, I sucked it up and soldiered forward. The day was salvaged, all four interviews were taped, and the live show went on. Instead of airing for a full hour like planned, it started half an hour late and only went for half an hour. At that point, I was glad to have anything. I did a monologue to start the live show which turned out so terrible that I still try to forget it ever happened. When the ON AIR lights went out at 6 PM that day and it was over, I was filled with the most amazing sense of relief. I had made it out alive, scarred but smarter.

  This wouldn't be the last terrible day, nor the last glorious triumph. It's amazing how often those two things are tied very closely together in time. After this bittersweet first experience, I was hooked. I would go on to produce over 200 episodes of this radio show, first for WREK and then later for national syndication on the NPR satellite system. I got help from friends and family, particularly my wife, Darlene, but essentially the entire run of the show was produced by only myself. The show ended as a new production in October 1998, a few months shy of six years after it started. I had the privilege and pleasure of interviewing a vast number of writers of fantasy, science fiction, horror, comic books, and mysteries. Some of these were “big name” types; many were not. However, I'm proud of each and every one of these interviews. I owe a great debt to everyone trusting and foolish enough to waste an hour talking to me.

  What you are reading now is my attempt to take this body of work to a new medium and a new form of interaction. From the production of the radio show, I have hundreds of hours of taped interviews with authors of speculative fiction. This is work I want to keep alive and available to those discerning readers who have an interest in the machinery that creates these works of fiction. At the same time, revolutions in the Internet and eBooks are making it ever easier to publish. This is an experiment, not unlike the experiment that brought four writers to a studio in Atlanta seven years ago. It will probably have much the same results—a lot of mistakes, some failures, some successes and, ultimately, a legacy of which I am proud.

  This is the first of these eBooks, and is free now and forever. It is also freely distributable, so if you enjoy any of these interviews, pass it along to your friends with my blessing. Following this volume will be others, which will not be free. They will, however, all be modestly priced—not unlike what you'd expect to pay for your typical magazine of its kind. My goal is to achieve the best of all possible worlds here by publishing a book's worth of material, charging a magazine's price, and making it available electronically so that anyone who wants it can get it nearly instantaneously.
These words might seem quaint in the future when most books are electronic, but at the time of this writing it is still very much in its infancy.

  I will happily accept any and all feedback from readers. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected] and tell me what you think. For now, that's enough rambling from me. Enjoy the rest of the book, and remember that whenever the details of life threaten to overwhelm you, that's time for a Reality Break.

  Dave Slusher

  November 1999

  Reality Break Interviews, Volume #0

  Chronological Index

  Nicola Griffith—December 1992

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Poppy Z. Brite—October 1993

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Michael Swanwick—January 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Kim Stanley Robinson—March 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Emma Bull—April 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  James Morrow—April 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Michael Bishop—April 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Ann Kennedy and Chris Reed—May 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Tad Williams—June 1994

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  Jonathan Lethem—October 1996

  + Introduction

  + Interview

  About this eBook

  This eBook was originally prepared using the IPress system, developed by Infinite Ink. That technology is now owned by InterTrust Technologies (http://www.intertrust.com). This book has since been additionally formatted for PDF.

  Each section of this book consists of 3 parts: an introduction to the interview, the interview itself, and a reference section. The reference section contains web links where appropriate and limited bibliographies. All the books in this section have hyperlinks. If the book is in print at the time this document is being prepared, it will link to that book's page on Amazon.com. Should the book be out of print, it will link to an ISBN number search at Powells.com. This search may or may not turn up copies, depending on Powell's stock at the time.

  This book is the first of a series. Future volumes will be available periodically. More information about this series of books is available at http://www.evilgeniuscorp.com/egep/realitybreak/.

  Dave Slusher, [email protected]

  October, 2000

  How to Get Other Volumes in this Series

  This book is the first of a series. Volume One slated for release in March 2000. More information about this series of books is available at http://www.evilgeniuscorp.com/egep/realitybreak/.

  Dave Slusher, [email protected]

  October, 2000

  Version history of this eBook

  Version 1.00, November 1999.

  Initial revision.

  Version 1.01, November 1999.

  Added copyright notice.

  Version 1.02, November 1999.

  Fixed a typo on Michael Bishop's interview and several in Michael Swanwick's.

  Version 1.03, October 2000.

  Updated docs in the “About Section", including copyright notices in order to include the PDF version of the document. Adjusted documents for PDF formatting, and changed the optimistic date predictions that have since passed.

  This eBook and all components are copyright © Evil Genius Electric Press, 1999, 2000. Reproduction in any form other than this eBook without written permission is strictly forbidden.

  Michael Bishop Introduction

  Michael Bishop was the very first person to agree to be a guest on the Reality Break radio show, so it is only fitting that his be the first interview in the first book.

  At the World Fantasy Convention in Pine Mountain, Georgia in 1992, I showed up armed with two page flyers describing a show I wanted to do and a stack of business cards. When I approached Michael Bishop, it seemed to be an act of brazen chutzpah—a voice in my head suggested me that I not bother the man. I handed him a flyer and gave him my spiel about the proposed show. He responded with an enthusiastic “Yes” and proceeded to write down his address and phone number for me. For the next month, I kept thinking “Good Lord, Michael Bishop's home number is in my day planner!” It was my first moment of being starstruck, that a writer whose work I so admired was now accessible to me.

  As it turned out, it would be a year and a half before the actual interview in April 1994. Brittle Innings had just been released, and we did the interview just a few days after the 20th anniversary of Hank Aaron's 715th home run. It seemed a fitting time and place to discuss that novel. To this day, Brittle Innings remains one of my favorite novels that I read for the show. In fact, it is one of my favorite novels ever.

  I was delighted to do this interview, but I sure was unprepared. I always feel nervous and unprepared in the moments before I do one, but this time I really was. I found it impossible to remember the title The Secret Ascension (or alternately Philip K. Dick is Dead, Alas,) I asked some really half-assed questions and in general got a little flustered at myself. Despite all that, the interview turned out well. This had far more to do with him than me. He soldiered on, politely giving intelligent answers to stupid questions, and we ended up with something good. To this day, I feel like I owe him a shot at another, more intelligent interview.

  Michael Bishop

  This interview was conducted in April 1994 via telephone with Michael at his home in Pine Mountain, Georgia.

  DS: It's been some time. You were the very first person to agree to appear on the show. We're glad you were able to finally be on with us.

  MB: It took me a while to get on, though, didn't it?

  DS: Something like a year and a half but we're glad to have you here. Your new book is Brittle Innings out from Bantam Books. Tell us a little about the book.

  MB: The book originated primarily from two different directions, I guess. Two of my interests are baseball and literature. I tried to combine those two interests in a novel by taking a look back at a very famous novel by Mary Shelley and trying to yoke that in some convincing way with my interest in baseball. I tried to create a mythical minor league called the Chattahoochee Valley League which is a minor league that exists during World War Two—at least in my own mind, in Alabama and Georgia with four teams in each state. I knew that during World War Two the ball players who remained stateside playing the game were for the most part—I don't want to use the word misfits, because not all of them were misfits but they were certainly very young or very old or they had physical handicaps, anything that would keep them out of the war. As a consequence, you could have a team that consisted of really motley assemblages of players. I felt like that was an interesting group of people to look at and to use as characters in a novel. It also seemed to me that you could come up with some very interesting characters on the ball club and that was one of the things that prompted this particular book. I don't know what else to say at this point, except that the story covers an entire season, the 1943 season in the Chattahoochee Valley League. The main character is Danny Boles, a 17 year old shortstop who comes south from Tenkiller, Oklahoma. He finds himself rooming in the boardinghouse that is owned by the manager, and he requires all the unmarried players to live in this boardinghouse. Danny Boles finds himself rooming with a rather interesting character, and that's another major part of the story.

  DS: You've touched on the disparate elements that make up this book. Did you find it hard to mesh together some radically different ideas?

  MB: I've always worked on the premise that science fiction and fantasy writers, in particular, try to bring together disparate elements and shape something meaningful and maybe even shapely out of those elements. That was one of the things I was attempting to do. I do think it was a difficult task, but at tha
t same time I feel extraordinarily good about this particular book because I think for the most part I bring it off. I don't always feel that way about everything that I attempt, but in this book the elements seemed to mesh. It took a little bit of effort, certainly. It was fun, a very entertaining book to write, even the parts that were difficult to figure out. It was fun figuring out how to do them.

  DS: I'm guessing that it's not a coincidence that the book is coming out at the beginning of baseball season.

  MB: It's no coincidence at all. I had nothing to say about when the book would be out. In fact, I probably would have wished that it had come out a little sooner. It may be that Bantam was wiser than I in that because the book is being reviewed along with other baseball books. Many are published at this time of year simply because the baseball season is starting and there are a great many book pages across the country that will devote sections to baseball books. As a matter of fact, the Atlanta Journal/Constitution today reviewed Brittle Innings on a page with reviews of three other baseball books. That's good. It brings attention to the book and focuses those readers who are interested in the sport would certainly be looking for it at this time of year.

  DS: Do you think that baseball more than most sports is more easily susceptible to fantastic elements, such as in Shoeless Joe / Field of Dreams and stories along that line?

  MB: I'm not sure. I think that there is something kind of mythical about baseball itself. It's so much a part of the American character that I think it engenders tall tales of one sort or another. Baseballs that are hit that supposedly never come down, baseballs that land on freight trains and are carried off to some other state and become the longest home run ever ht. It just seems to me that there is just something in the American character that resonates to the idea of baseball. It's a part of us. Tall tales and myths arise out of it. I think that's one of the reasons that many writers are attracted to it. Football is a great sport, basketball is a great sport. I like both of them, but I can't see myself writing a novel about either one of them. Good novels, I'm sure, have been written about both. Baseball, on the other hand, there is just something incredibly rich about it.