How to use this Page

Report: Luis Alfaro's adaptation of Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannos, Oedipus El Rey. A staged reading performed at the Getty Villa, Pacific Palisades, Califas.

Michael Sedano
The recently completed run of Oedipus El Rey’s four performances has been one of those only in Los Angeles classical theatre experiences made possible by the Getty Museum's Villa Theater Lab. Last year, it was Culture Clash’s uniquely staged Aristophanes The Birds. This year it has been Alfaro and earlier in February, Ellen McLaughlin’s one-woman original work, Penelope. Upcoming in April and May are Director Michael Hackett and actor Henry Goodman with Sophocles Philoktetes, followed by Chicago's Lookingglass Theatre Company in a new work, Icarus. At $7 a head, the Getty offers the best bargain in El Lay arts (add $8 for parking).

Alfaro’s done it again with Oedipus El Rey, turning in a remarkable treatment of other people’s material. A few years ago it was Black Butterfly, Jaguar Girl, Piñata Woman and Other Superhero Girls Like Me, turning short fiction and poetry by the superb trio of Alma Cervantes, Sandra C. Muñoz, Marisela Norte into a devastatingly funny and moving masterpiece. Then it was Electricidad, borrowed from Sophocles, that, unlike Black Butterfly, made it to the Mark Taper main stage. Now Alfaro has adapted Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannos moving it from plague-ridden Thebes to a modern-day California. Joined by director Jon Lawrence Rivera and a superb cast with first-among-equals Marlene Forte’s Jocasta, Oedipus El Rey will breathe new life into classical drama, and educate a new generation to the actual meaning of “oedipal”.

Evidently, such renewal is long overdue. Alfaro laughed at the audibly stunned college audience Friday night when Justin Huen’s Oedipus comes to his own realization that the man he killed on Highway 99 was his father, which means Oedipus’ wife is…gasp!! These young people must have been reeling at that point, as they thought back to their laughter following the torrid mating scene when Huen and Forte undress one another then spend three weeks cavorting in bed.

There is not much laughter in Sophocles’ play, but Alfaro injects a hugely hilarious Sphinx into the action. The Million Dollar Farmacia on Broadway is run by a three-headed critter straight out of rasquachi teatro with a strong affinity to the twin-headed beast from Men in Black 2. After solving the riddle, the old gals are out of business and the Pico-Union barrio returns to its old order. Here the overlay of ancient Thebes upon modern LA doesn’t work so well and is stretched too thin. Oedipus and Jocasta have the community’s respect. They behave like cold-hearted Don Corleones rather than the gangbangers in the news whose power derives from intimidation and extortion, not doing favors for community people while maintaining a kingly dignity and honor. And therein lies the major problem with this work-in-progress.

Turning stereotypes on their heads is part of the job description of a revolutionary poet, to affirm what would otherwise be vilified even within la cultura . And when a gifted poet is himself a pinto, his themes and images resonate with gut-wrenching authenticity. Which is why work of the late raúlrsalinas, “A Trip Through the Mindjail”, and Ricardo Sánchez, “Soledad”, should be included in any anthology of letras chicanas, along with such non-pinto pachuco poems as José Montoya’s “El Louie”, Tino Villanueva’s “Aquellos Vatos”, and J.L. Navarro’s “To A Dead Lowrider.” Powerful work that was necessary for its time.

But that was the 60s and 70s. Chicano culture has reached a kind of maturity today, and there’s less, if any, requirement to lionize our criminals. Pintos are not heroes, and they’re certainly not gods. Yet jail is where Luis Alfaro starts off his work-in-progress Oedipus el Rey, and pintos form his Chorus. It’s a strangely inappropriate starting point that Alfaro explains in the program like this: “the more versions (of Sophocles) I read, the deeper the themes of the play started to take root inside my head. I began to obsess about the notion of destiny. Well, of course, that little idea kept me awake for endless nights. Aren’t we all masters of our own destinies? That got me thinking about the sizable population that makes up our ever-expanding prison system.” Destiny? That got me thinking what about our kids who see the military as their only chance off the block?

Fortunately, Oedipus El Rey will change and grow. As Alfaro and director Jon Lawrence Rivera (pictured right,left respectively) noted during the post performance Talkback session on Saturday afternoon, Alfaro didn’t have much of anything finished even as the superb cast came together for the first rehearsal. Rivera, Alfaro, and presumably dramaturg Christopher Breyer (his name didn't come up in the Talkback), indulged the playwright’s stream of consciousness for this set of staged readings. I hope they’ll iron out the prison wrinkle in favor of something more appropriate both to Sophocles and for a contemporary audience. That noted, John H. Binkley’s spare set is beautiful and need not be changed in a finished production. Stainless steel cables hang from the ceiling suggesting the cages these men live in, and a handful of black chairs. Elizabeth Huffman’s costumes are a few red shawls, two shirts for Huen, two dresses for Forte, the other actors appear in their streetclothes. Dark glasses and cane for blind Tiresias (Winston J. Rocha) constitute the props.

I attended in the company of two high school girls. As we left the auditorium, I asked them how they reacted to the graphic profanity of the opening three minutes. “We hear worse than that in school every day,” they answered in unison, not that they enjoyed it. Their mother shrugged helplessly at that truth. Although the Getty forewarns, “This workshop contains adult themes and strong language”—it is Oedipus after all so adult themes definitely come with the territory. But strangely, only that opening dialog featured foul language. Worse, it was neither artful nor funny, neither authentic nor effective. I’d like to sit Alfaro down and pull his ear about that crap, encourage him to find what Villanueva said about his vatos, they were “uncouth but squared away”.

The cast includes gente you’ve seen and will continue seeing on television, movies, and regional theatre. Laius is Geno Silva, perfectly mature and powerful. Michael Manuel as a sappy Creon. Javi Mulero, Daniel Chacón, Bobby Plasencia play several roles but especially the three-headed hilarious Sphinx. Híjole, guys, don't change a thing, in fact, give us more!

That's the view from the coast this penultimate Tuesday of 2008's leap year February. Ordinarily, La Bloga runs Monday through Friday and many Sundays. RudyG's delayed Valentine on Saturday is a good reminder it's always good to check in on weekends, a ver que pasa. Remember, La Bloga welcomes and encourages guest columnists. Let us know in a comment or an email that you have something to share. If it fits, if it's finished, let La Bloga's readers share it with you. We love your comments, but La Bloga apologizes in advance if some spammer drops their piece of you-know-what on our pages. We'll delete it as soon as we notice it. Until next Tuesday, hay les wachamos.

mvs

Add a Comment

March 14th through March 27th, Simon & Schuster is holding a Blogfest featuring a hundred Simon Pulse authors. According to the publisher, readers will be able to submit questions for the authors in advance. (I assume this will happen through the site, though interactive options aren't available there just yet.) S&S will then pick questions from that overflowing pool and post the authors' responses each day of the event.

Bookmark it now: http://www.pulseblogfest.com/

I was incredibly pleased that mediabistro/GalleyCat noted that this new event was inspired by the success of the 31 Flavorite Authors event held last October by readergirlz and YALSA. Thank you.

The authors scheduled to take part in Blogfest: Kim Antieau, Marc Aronson, Avi, Lauren Baratz-Logsted, Lauren Barnholdt, Hilari Bell, Phi Bildner, Franny Billingsley, Holly Black, Jennifer Bradbury, Kate Brian, Linda Buckley-Archer, Marina Budhos, Christian Burch, Deb Caletti, Janet Lee Carey, Cassandra Clare, Rachel Cohn, Rhody Cohon, Susan Cooper, Melissa de la Cruz, Stacia Deutsch, Allison van Diepen, Frances Dowell, Erin Downing, Sharon M. Draper, Kathleen Benner Duble, Kathleen Duey, Clare B. Dunkle, Jennifer Echols, Thomas Fahy, Susan Fletcher, E.R. Frank, Lorie Ann Grover, Randi Hacker , Margaret Peterson Haddix, Pete Hautman, Julie Hearn, Nancy Holder, Ellen Hopkins, James Howe, Jeffry W. Johnston, Cynthia Kadohata, Ronald Kidd, Annette Curtis Klause , Chris Krovatin, Nancy Krulik, Evan Kuhlman, Dakota Lane, Hope Larson, Richard Lewis, Julie Linker, Greg Logsted, D. Anne Love, Whitney Lyles, D.J. MacHale, Eric Marcus, Amanda Marrone, Kelly McClymer, Lisa McMann, Kai Meyer, Sarah Miller, Annabel Monaghan, Kate Morgenroth, Sarah Mussi, Donna Jo Napoli, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Ken Oppel, James A. Owen, Bronwen Pardes, Staton Rabin, Randi Reisfeld, Ashley Rhodes-Courter, Paul Ruditis, Alex Sanchez, Elizabeth Scott, Gloria Skurzynski, Brian Sloan, Tom Sniegoski, Sonya Sones, Todd Strasser, Wendy Toliver, Roderick Townley, Kristen Tracy, Adrienne Maria Vrettos, Judy Waite, Robin Wasserman, Scott Westerfeld, Matt Whyman, Elisabeth Wolfe, Bil Wright, Janet Ruth Young

The Blogfest website asks those with questions to contact [email protected]

Add a Comment

Colleen of Chasing Ray asked bloggers to name some books they are looking forward to reading this year. I have my eyes set on many forthcoming releases. Here are some highlights, including some titles I was fortunate enough to read in advance and others I can't wait to read:

January 2008
Girl Overboard by Justina Chen Headley - Recovery and self-discovery. (Read my review.)
I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder - This verse novel, Schroeder's debut, sounds literally haunting.
The Opposite of Invisible by Liz Gallagher - Growing up doesn't have to mean growing apart. (Read my review.)

February 2008
Crimes of the Sarahs by Kristen Tracy - Sure to be as quirky-funny as her previous novel Lost It.
The Squad: Perfect Cover and The Squad: Killer Spirit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - Spy cheerleaders = bring it on!

March 2008
42 Miles by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer - I adored her 2006 release Reaching for Sun.
The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti - I was truly fortunate to read this early. (Read my review.)
A Little Friendly Advice by Siobhan Vivian - I read it, loved it, and passed it to one of my most discerning teen customers. We talked about it for a good half hour today. I think it's safe to say she loved it too.

April 2008
Feathered by Laura Kasischke - Utterly captivating and engrossing. I want to put this in the hands of adults and teens alike. (Read my review.)
Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen - I have enjoyed all of Dessen's novels to date.
Wish You Were Here by Catherine Clark - An unexpected and unusual road trip. (Read my review.)
Zibby Payne & the Party Problem and Zibby Payne & the Trio Trouble by Alison Bell - The third and fourth books about a headstrong sixth grader that would become fast friendswith Ramona Quimby. (Read my reviews.)

May 2008
How to Build a House by Dana Reinhardt - A solid story that will hopefully move others into action.
A Kiss Before the Apocalypse by Thomas E. Sniegoski - Tom's first solo adult novel!
Mind the Gap: A Novel of the Hidden Cities by
Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon - It's like Neverwhere, but with Golden touches and Tim trimmings.
Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson - A family tries to keep up a hotel that's been passed down through the generations. This book has burnt food, fresh bagels, unicyclists, Hamlet, a former actress, and shiny things. What more could you want?
What Happens Here by Tara Altebrando - Perfect title for a story set in Vegas.

June 2008
A La Carte by Tanita S. Davis - I'm so excited for Tanita, I could burst.
Almost Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor - I've been reading this series for decades.
House of Dance by Beth Kephart - I am a dancer. I am drawn towards books about dancers.

July 2008
Poison Ink by Christopher Golden - A new Golden thriller means a new chance to introduce him to teen and adult readers.

August 2008
The Brimstone Network by Tom Sniegoski - The start of a juvenile action-adventure/fantasy series.

September 2008
living dead girl by Elizabeth Scott - I've read two of Scott's novels and am anxious for more. She has three coming out this year: Perfect You comes out in March, Stealing Heaven in May, then ldg. The title has me, and you can thank Faith from Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel for that.

October 2008
My So-Called Family by Courtney Sheinmel - Debut novel for middle schoolers.

November 2008
Dog and Bear: Two's Company by Laura Vaccaro Seeger - This is the second book about these fun friends. The first book, simply titled Dog and Bear, had three adorable stories, one of which was meta-fiction. That's right - META-FICTION in a picture book! Loved it!

December 2008
I So Don't Do Mysteries by Barrie Summy - Mysteries and ghosts and rhinos, oh my!

For more titles, check out my entire list of books to read.

Blogs participating in today's highly anticipated round-up include:
Bildungsroman
Chasing Ray
Finding Wonderland
Fuse #8
The YA YA YAs

Add a Comment

In August 2008, you can become a part of The Brimstone Network.

Thirteen-year-old Abraham - Bram - Stone has never lived an ordinary life. Home is a monastery in the Himalayan mountains, where the monks train him in otherworldly fighting skills. Bram's father, Elijah Stone, leads a group called The Brimstone Network - an order of warriors and sorcerers who provide the last line of defense against all paranormal dangers.

Bram always knew one day he'd take his father's place. But that day comes far too soon when a bizarre man named "Mr. Stitch" arrives at the monastery and breaks the news to Bram -- every member of the Brimstone Network, including Elijah, has been assassinated. Suddenly it's up to Bram to form a new Brimstone Network out of the rubble of the old, and hope that he can rise to the challenge in time to stop a terrifying threat to humanity.

Visit Tom Sniegoski's official website.

Learn more about Sniegoski's other series for kids, OutCast (co-written by Christopher Golden) and Owlboy (illustrated by Eric Powell).

Add a Comment

THE SISTERHOOD

The Order of the Holy Sepulchre is an elite group of specially trained nuns, the world's most powerful exorcists. But they don't just get rid of the demons they exorcise . . . the Sisters draw the demons into themselves, using their own bodies as cages of flesh. If they die a natural death, the demons die with them, small pieces of the world's evil gone forever. But if the Sisters should dies violently…the demons are released into the world again!

Now someone has sent assassins to kill the oldest of the sisters, releasing the captive demons out into the world. Eden Parish is assigned the task of discovering who is behind this massacre, and why. In her journey she will uncover dark secrets about the Order, and about their enemies. And the real reason behind all this murder.

The Sisterhood is a three-issue series from Christopher Golden, Tom Sniegoski, and Wellington Alves. The first issue is due out in February 2008.

See a sneak preview.
Visit Christopher Golden's official website.
Visit Tom Sniegoski's official website.

Add a Comment

Here's what Tom Sniegoski calls "a quick list of the cool stuff that I read in 2007."

The Ruins by Scott Smith
Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill
Baltimore by Christopher Golden and Mike Mignola
Berserk by Tim Lebbon
Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan

He adds, "These were all a blast."

Find out what others have read and loved this year.

For more author picks, visit Bildungsroman every weekday for the rest of the month!

Add a Comment

I have interviewed Tom Sniegoski a couple of times before, and I'll interview him again right now as part of the Winter Blog Blast Tour. Let's go!

First of all, how are you?

I'm good. A little bit crazed right now with deadlines, but I'm good. Thanks for asking.

Let's talk about your first published work.

The Way was my first published story, but I'd been writing stuff and telling stories for many, many years before that. I used to have all these action figures in this box was I was like seven or eight -- or maybe even older now that I'm thinking about it. How embarrassing.

Anyway, I'd use all these toys to help me tell these big elaborate stories that I would have continue day after day after day. Thinking about it, I was doing my own sort of TV series, or comic book series. I was a pretty crazy kid, lost in my head a lot.

I can also remember just sitting down at the old fashioned typewriter and just typing away, telling some insane story off the top of my head - usually having something to do with Godzilla - and it had no punctuation at all and minimal use of spacing so it would just all sort of run together. But I knew what it said.

Owlboy, your hilarious series for kids, has a little bit of everything - adventure, horror, comedy, superheroes - something for everyone. What were you like as a kid?

Like I said above, I was a little odd, into some really bizarre stuff. It's funny - I see kids today that are more like me. It's almost as if as time marched on, people became more tolerant of a little weirdness. Boy, did I get looks when I'd start to talk about dinosaurs, monsters, and superheroes. My mother used to try and bribe me with Hot Wheels cars so I wouldn't like weird stuff. She's say, "I'll buy you this Hot Wheel, but you have to stop talking about Frankenstein." I'd agree, and then that night I'd be talking about the Creature From the Black Lagoon.

You've written for many different comic lines, including Stupid, Stupid Rat Tails, Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Batman. If you could write for any existing or classic comic book series, what would you pick?

I'd love to something sort of obscure and a little off-kilter. There was this comic in the 70's called DEVIL DINOSAUR that is one of the most insane things I've ever read. It only ran for nine issues and it was written and drawn by one my greatest heroes, Jack Kirby. I actually got to do a DEVIL DINOSAUR story with my Owlboy artist Eric Powell for Marvel comics about two years ago that was a blast. I think I'd like to do a regular DEVIL DINOSAUR comic. And then there's BATMAN and the FANTASTIC FOUR -- of course I'd like to do something with them, but right now, since you're asking, DEVIL DINOSAUR, please.

The Menagerie, a dark fantasy series you co-write with Christopher Golden, combines elements of mythology with recognizable characters from classic literature as well as modern-day original characters. Which character do you most resemble?

It's sad to say, but it would have to be the foul-mouthed, shadow-traveling Hobgoblin, Squire. Yep, he's short and nasty, sarcastic and has a bad attitude. I don't have all of these traits (though Chris and my wife might say differently) but I think he's the closest member of the team that thinks and reacts like me.

Tell us more about The Brimstone Network, your juvenile series due out in the fall of 2008.

The Brimstone Network is a complete blast. It takes place in this slightly off-kilter world where threats of the supernatural are kept in check by an organization called The Brimstone Network that has existed since the dawn of time. They're a crack team of special warriors and magick users who respond to a vampire attack, or zombie outbreak in a heartbeat, and deal with it.

But then something terrible happens: the Network is attacked from within, and all the agents stationed around the world killed. Suddenly, there isn't a Brimstone Network anymore, and the supernatural threats begin to gather their strength to take the world as its own.

The leader of the Network, one Elijah Stone, planned for something like this -- he had a contingency plan, a secret weapon. His thirteen-year-old son has been hidden away in a monastery in Tibet, learning everything that there is about combating the forces of darkness. His name is Abraham Stone -- Bram Stone -- and it is up to him now to put together a new Brimstone Network to defeat this new, organized, supernatural threat to the world.

His team is made up of all these people his own age that have been somehow touched by the paranormal. We have a teenage girl who is a werewolf, a handicapped boy whose brain is one of the most deadly weapons on the planet, and a guy called Mr. Stitch who is sort of like the Frankenstein monster, his body made from the best Brimstone Network agents that lived - and died.

It's pretty much the series of books that I was always looking for as a kid, but could never find. If I would have found The Brimstone Network at the bookstore or library when I was ten or twelve, I probably would have had a stroke.

I'm in the middle of writing the second book in the series right now. I had a bit of a nightmare occur last month when I accidentally (yes, I'm an idiot) deleted the entire manuscript. Close to two hundred pages gone in one deft move. Luckily, I had the first one hundred and twenty pages on my old laptop that I could recover, but there was close to a hundred pages wiped out. That's what I'm working on re-writing right now.

A Kiss Before the Apocalypse comes out in May 2008. What (or who) is at the heart of that story?

A Kiss Before the Apocalypse is my first solo adult novel. It's realy personal, and I think it's the best thing I've ever written. How's that for setting myself up for failure?

It's a supernatural/hardboiled detective/fantasy/love story about a Boston private investigator, that just so happens to be an angel that left Heaven a few millenia ago because of the whole war with Lucifer. Disheartened, he came to earth, and eventually started living like a human. He loved the hardboiled writer Raymond Chandler, and decided that maybe he'd like to try being a private eye. What the heck?

This particular book deals with a case that Remy is working on the involves him being hired by a host of angels from Heaven to find the Angel of Death who has gone missing. I really don't want to say anything more. I don't want to spoil anything.

I actually just finished the first draft of the second Remy book yesterday. It's called Dancing on the Head of a Pin, and this one is pretty special as well.

What's next for...

Owlboy?

I just finished writing the third Owlboy adventure, Tremble at the Terror of Zis-Boom-Bah. I think that will be out in October of 2008. I still need to write the fourth adventure, The Flock of Fury. If you can't tell, I really do love this series. They're a riot to write.

The Menagerie?

The fourth Menagerie book -- Crashing Paradise -- hit stores this summer, and we're still waiting to hear if we're going to do anymore. We'd love to do at least one more, just to finish off the main story that has been running through all the books. Fingers crossed.

Your dog, Mulder?

Mulder is very much looking forward to his walk in a little while, and the snack that will soon follow. He's all about the snacks.

Visit Tom at http://www.sniegoski.com (You'll see Mulder there too.)

See all Bildungsroman posts regarding Thomas E. Sniegoski.

Today's WBBT schedule:

Perry Moore at The Ya Ya Yas
Nick Abadzis at Chasing Ray
Carrie Jones at Hip Writer Mama
Phyllis Root at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Amy Schlitz at Fuse Number 8
Kerry Madden at lectitans
Tom Sniegoski at Bildungsroman
Connie Willis at Finding Wonderland

View the entire schedule. Learn more about WBBT.

Add a Comment

Billy Hooten, Owlboy is now flying off of the bookshelves!

Have you ever dreamed of being a superhero? Wonder what it would be like if you got the chance to live that dream? Then you are going to love the Owlboy series!

I highly recommend this series to both kids and grown-ups. Written by Thomas E. Sniegoski and illustrated by Eric Powell, the Owlboy books are packed with adventure, action, and humor. Where can you find walking skeletons, a talking firefly named Walter, and dust bunnies that are actually in the shape of bunnies? Nowhere other than Monstros City, my friend. Let's take a trip there now and see what's really going on in Bradbury, Massachusetts . . .

Billy Hooten, Owlboy is our hero. Billy knows he's a weird kid. He likes weird things, like comic books and monster movies. He gets beat up a lot, and spends the rest of his time doggedly trying to build a robot.

Then one day, Billy Hooten hears a cry for help coming from the cemetery that borders his backyard. Against his better judgment, he runs toward it. And after that, everything changes for Billy.

Because Billy Hooten, you see, is Owlboy, a quick-thinking, goggle-and-feather-wearing superhero who protects the bizarre and monstrous citizens of Monstros City, a city that exists under Billy's hometown of Bradbury, Massachusetts. And what a city it is: full of crazy-cool gadgets, transparent oozing police detectives, and Slovakian Rat-toothed Hopping Monkey Demons, who aren't about to let Owlboy come between them and their grape bubble gum.

But has Billy bitten off more than he can chew? Is he truly worthy of the moniker Owlboy? Can superheroes still be given super-wedgies in gym class by that bully Randy Kulkowski?

The adventure continues in Owlboy: The Girl with The Destructo Touch.

One day, using the magical passage that will take him to Monstros City, Billy forgets to close the door to the crypt, and is followed by . . . Victoria.

Oh, no.

Victoria is Billy's neighbor, his constant shadow, and a huge pain in the butt. Worse, Monstros City seems to exaggerate the traits people have in Bradbury -- and Victoria arrives in Monstros with something that Billy and Archebold name the Destructo Touch. Owlboy is supposed to protect Monstros City -- but has he just introduced the agent of its destruction?

The first two Owlboy books are now available in stores.

Owlboy: The Terror of Zis-Boom-Bah and Owlboy: The Flock of Fury, will be released next year.

The reviews are in!

"Billy Hooten is a HOOT. I'd fly with Owlboy anytime! The adventures are fast - and very funny. And watch out for the Rollerblading spider!"
-- R.L. Stine

"It's every boy's dream to have his fantasy world of heroes and villians come to life -- until it actually happens! Believable characters you'll want to cheer for."
-- Jeff Smith, creator of the Bone series

Things you'll only find in Monstros City
- Billy's protector and sidekick, a tuxedo-wearing creature named Archebold
- Their savvy helper, a fast-working troll named Halifax
- The Owlmobile (Billy's too young to drive, so Archebold takes the wheel)
- Slovakian Rat-Toothed Hopping Monkey Demons
- A little red female dragon named Ferdinand
- A talking firefly named Walter
- Dust bunnies, which are really bunny-shaped
- Ghost juice, which is invisible (Is the glass really half-full?)
- Cloud cake, which is light and floaty in the tummy
- All sorts of creatures in clothing
- Buildings that are alive and growing

People you'll meet in Billy's hometown of Bradford
- Billy's scatterbrained, forgetful, and loving mother
- His oblivious father
- Five-year-old neighbor Victoria and her stuffed bunny, Mr. Flops
- Cole, who runs a comic book store called Hero's Hovel alongside his seeing eye dog, Claudius
- Randy Kulkowski, a bully, and his crowd
- Billy's friends, each smart and talented in his or her own way, all totally destined to become nerd fighters (see: Brotherhood 2.0)

Some of my favorite quotes from Billy Hooten, Owlboy

"I think evil needs to take a bath." - Billy, Page 203

He never expected evil to be quite so helpful. - Page 205

"Put your paws, tentacles, feelers, claws, or whatever you got in the air, you're all under arrest!" - Chief Bloodwart, Part 229

"To Billy Hooten, Owlboy . . . Evil doesn't stand a chance." - Archebold, Page 233

Billy Hooten didn't need to dream. His dreams had become reality. - Page 239

Author Tom Sniegoski took a break from saving the world to be interviewed. Then he shared some of his favorite quotes from the first book with me.

Billy's "friends" smiled at him like a pair of sharks at an all-you-can-eat people buffet. - Page 8

"What's going on?" Billy asked.
"Don't ask me," said the chimpanzee, adjusting the blonde wig on its head before going back to the crossword puzzle. "I just work here." - Page 106

Billy chased after the little goblin, making sure to look both ways before crossing the street. After some of the things he'd seen in Monstros City, he didn't want to take the chance of getting run over by a dinosaur passing by, or maybe even a UFO. - Page 176

"Please move aside, good citizens," Billy said, careful not to step on anybody's feet, claws or tentacles. "There is evil afoot that requires my immediate attention." - Page 179

Suddenly, it hit him with the force of a phaser on stun: an idea that could very well change everything. - Page 222

Be Your Own Superhero

Fly over to the Owlboy website to learn more about these fabulous books!

PR types can also pick up the Electronic Press Kit (EPK) at the website. If you promote the release at your blog or website, please let me know!

More importantly, if you've read the series, please tell me what you think! Let's create a discussion group made up of heroes of all ages and abilities who know that imagination is a superpower! I am Little Willow, aka Supergirl. I will be your host. :) Join the discussion!

Add a Comment

Billy Hooten keeps his identity as Owlboy a secret because he doesn't think anyone would believe him, and because he wants something that is his and his alone.

If you were a superhero, would you keep it a secret?

Leave a comment below and let me know!

Add a Comment

The story began in Billy Hooten, Owlboy, written by Thomas E. Sniegoski and illustrated by Eric Powell. The adventure continues in Owlboy: The Girl with The Destructo Touch.

One day, using the magical passage that will take him to Monstros City, Billy forgets to close the door to the crypt, and is followed by . . . Victoria.

Oh, no.

Victoria is Billy's neighbor, his constant shadow, and a huge pain in the butt. Worse, Monstros City seems to exaggerate the traits people have in Bradbury -- and Victoria arrives in Monstros with something that Billy and Archebold name the Destructo Touch. Owlboy is supposed to protect Monstros City -- but has he just introduced the agent of its destruction?

Learn more about Owlboy - because every kid deserves the chance to be a superhero!

Available in bookstores next week!

Add a Comment

Billy Hooten is a weird kid. He likes weird things, like comic books and monster movies. He gets beat up a lot, and spends the rest of his time doggedly trying to build a robot.

Then one day, Billy Hooten hears a cry for help coming from the cemetery that borders his backyard. Against his better judgment, he runs toward it. And after that, everything changes for Billy.

Because Billy Hooten, you see, is Owlboy, a quick-thinking, goggle-and-feather-wearing superhero who protects the bizarre and monstrous citizens of Monstros City, a city that exists under Billy's hometown of Bradbury, Massachusetts. And what a city it is: full of crazy-cool gadgets, transparent oozing police detectives, and Slovakian Rat-toothed Hopping Monkey Demons, who aren't about to let Owlboy come between them and their grape bubble gum.

But has Billy bitten off more than he can chew? Is he truly worthy of the moniker Owlboy? Can superheroes still be given super-wedgies in gym class by that bully Randy Kulkowski?

Welcome to the world of Owlboy, written by Thomas E. Sniegoski and illustrated by Eric Powell!

Add a Comment

Fear not, citizens! Beware, evildoers! BILLY HOOTEN, OWLBOY is now protecting the internet!

http://www.sniegoski.com/owlboy/

Who is Billy Hooten? He's is a weird kid, that's for sure. He gets picked on at school and hugged at home, but his mother is extremely absentminded and his father fairly oblivious. Billy would rather read comic books than hang out with other kids his age.

Then one day, Billy Hooten hears a cry for help coming from the cemetery that borders his backyard. Against his better judgment, he runs toward it. And after that, everything changes for Billy . . .

I'll be posting about this series all week long because I feel the need to put the first book in the hands of every kid who wished he or she had superpowers, who wants to be a superhero, who needs to find inner strength - and have a great adventure (with big laughs!) while doing so.

PR types can also pick up the Electronic Press Kit at the website.

Author Tom Sniegoski took a break from saving the world to do this interview.

Wing on over to the site today to learn more about these fabulous books!

Add a Comment

Author Tom Sniegoski took a break from saving the world to do this interview with Little Willow from Bildungsroman.

How did Billy Hooten become Owlboy?

He just happened to be in the right place at the right time to perform a kinda, sorta heroic act. And, the costume fit . . . kinda, sorta.

When did the idea for this series first strike you?

Billy has actually been with me for quite some time. Originally, my idea was to do Billy as an all-ages comic book series. After reading amazing comics that could be enjoyed by all ages -- Bone, Hero Bear and the Kid, et cetera -- I felt that there really needed to more of this kind of stuff. It was just so much fun, and I wanted to get my two cents in.

How did you get Eric Powell on board to provide the artwork?

I'd talked with a few artists here and there, but nothing really ever jelled. Finally, I decided that maybe Billy would be better off in book form and altered my original comic book pitch into a book pitch.

Eric came on board because I asked him very sweetly and batted my baby blues.

No, really, he just thought the project was cool, and wanted to try something outside of comics for a change. And let me say, I'm really glad he did. His illustrations rock on this. Amazing stuff.

Have you ever tried your hand at cartooning or any other visual arts?

I used to draw quite a bit when I was a youngling. In fact, I did all the illustrations for my high school yearbook. The ability to draw comes in pretty handy when you're trying to explain something to an artist, and words just aren't cutting it. You'd be amazed what a simple doodle can accomplish.

When did you first start writing comic books?

So very long ago, it seems. My first published comic book story came out in 1988. (Yes, there were still dinosaurs then.) It was an adaptation of a horror short story that I did for a collection of horror stories called Taboo. My next published work was a series that I did for Caliber Comics called Swords of Shar-pei in 2000.

How did you come to make the leap from comic book writer and pop culture journalist to novelist?

It got sort of tough in the comic book market in the late nineties, and I had a mortgage to pay. Around that time, I met an amazing editor over at Simon & Schuster named Lisa Clancy, and the novel part of writing career started there. I did some stuff based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel television series.

Who do you think is your most discerning audience?

I think they're all discerning these days. People want something good - something entertaining, thought-provoking, exciting, and funny - for their hard-earned cash, and I don't blame them one bit. When I buy a book, that's exactly what I'm looking for. I want the writer to have done his job. It's what I bring to every book I write, whatever the age group.

Speaking of leaping, your bibliography has grown by leaps and bounds over the past few years, with many collaborative efforts between you and Christopher Golden. How did the two of you meet?

I think I met Chris when World War I was just about wrapping up. Actually, I met Chris in the late nineties at a horror convention in Stamford, Connecticut. He was really interested in getting into comics, and we traded secrets. I worked with him on some comic stuff, and he helped me get my foot in the door of the book writing department. In fact, he was the guy that introduced me to Lisa Clancy over at Simon & Schuster. We've been best pallies ever since.

Two Golden & Sniegoski projects - the children's fantasy series OutCast and the comic book Talent - have been optioned. Any news on either front?

Both projects are with Universal Pictures, and scripts are being worked on. That's pretty much what I know at this time.

Give us a taste of Crashing Paradise, the fourth book of the dark fantasy series The Menagerie, which you also write with Golden.

As the threat of world devouring Demogorgon draws closer to earth, the heroes of The Menagerie must square off against a collection of their most deadly enemies. I really enjoyed the scope of this one, and the fans seem to be especially excited because this is an Eve-centric book. We find out quite a bit about her past and how she came to be the way she is.

Your mythology-based quartet of novels called The Fallen became a limited series on ABC Family. The first portion aired in 2006 and had a huge audience. The second and third parts are going to air in August 2007. Have you seen any early cuts from the next part?

ABC Family is supposed to be sending me a DVD of the next four hours, and I'm [waiting for that]. I'm really curious as to what they've done. I understand that they've deviated quite a bit from the books, sort of going off in their own direction.

From what I understand, they're planning on airing the new episodes on August 3rd, 4th, and 5th. I think they're making it a whole Fallen weekend, airing the original film, followed by the new material. It's all very exciting.

You have an awesome dog named Mulder. Is he your sidekick, or are you his?

I really think he believes that I'm his sidekick, and the more I think about it, he just might be right. I've never seen a more spoiled animal. I just thank God he treats me so nicely and lets me live in his house.

If you were, say, Dogboy, what would be your coolest superpower?

Hmmmm, let's see. As Dogboy, I'd have the uncanny ability to sleep twenty-two out of the twenty-four hours a day, and be able to eat seven times my body weight in those twenty-two hours. Now THAT'S power!

Anything else on the horizon?

I've got a new series of books coming out from Simon & Schuster: Aladdin called The Brimstone Network. It's a horror/adventure series about a boy who must assemble a team of supernaturally-enhanced misfits to combat a growing paranormal threat to the world. It's a real blast [to write], and I'm wrapping up the first book as we speak. There will be three books to start, with (hopefully) more to follow. The first book should come out in the fall of 2008.

I've got two more Billy Hooten: Owlboy books on the way, then a new novel coming from Ace Books in May 2008 called A Kiss Before the Apocalypse. I'm very excited about that one, and think it just might be the coolest thing I've written.

Thanks, Tom!

The first two books in the series, Billy Hooten: Owlboy and Owlboy: The Girl with the Destructo Touch, go on sale July 24th, 2007. Look for them in the kids' section and share them with your family!

If you're a member of the press, a blogger, or a fan who wants to repost this interview in your magazine or at your website, feel free! Download the interview as a Word DOC or as a PDF.

For more about the author and the series, please visit http://www.sniegoski.com and http://www.sniegoski.com/owlboy

Add a Comment

Emily of Whimsy Books has declared July 16th Tell An Author You Care Day.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the authors who have shared their stories with the world and, in doing so, touched mine.

I would have loved to have met and worked with many people who were gone before I existed, and it is to them I dedicate my next paragraph:

To Jack London, who is well-liked by my mother and whose controversial death raised the eyebrows of my third-grade teacher during my author biography report. To L.M. Montgomery and Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis Carroll, who created characters who were intelligent, curious, and determined. To Michael Ende, whose story will never end. To F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose light at the end of the dock helped me to ignore my eleventh-grade classmates when they complained about my high grades.

I would like to thank the authors who have shared their time with me over the past few years. Thank you for the interviews, the words of encouragement, and the sweet and surprising letters and emails. I was reluctant to single out any modern authors, because that, as the phrase implies, leaves out others. I hope that the others know who they are and how much they are appreciated.

To all of the authors who have chosen little ol' me to design, run, and/or update their websites: Christopher Golden. Tom Sniegoski. Jennifer Lynn Barnes. The readergirlz divas: Justina Chen Headley, Lorie Ann Grover, Janet Lee Carey and Dia Calhoun. Kristen Tracy. Mitali Perkins. Sarah Miller. Liz Gallagher. Laurie Faria Stolarz. Micol Ostow. There are a few more folks who are incredibly busy with life/deadlines/manuscripts and want me to do their websites when they come up for air. Thank you in advance.

I simply must thank my Boston Boys.

To Thomas E. Sniegoski, the guy with the six-syllable name that's a tongue-twister to my customers, but to me is simply Tom. Dogs are to Tom as cats are to me. He knows that pets are family. Tom is also wicked funny. He makes me laugh so hard that I start crying, and I continue laughing so hard that I can't speak clearly. Ah, good times, good times. Thanks, boy-o.

To Christopher Golden, who makes me smile whenever he calls me Supergirl. This event is well-timed: Chris celebrated his birthday just yesterday. I can't believe that I've known him for ten years now! I may never had made his acquaintance nor had the online or real-life jobs that I had and that I still do if it weren't for the internet. I read his books, I liked his books, and I told him so online. Before I knew it, I had a job updating his website and doing online publicity for his books. More importantly, he became my friend. Thanks, Chris. You rock.

I hope that you too will participate in Tell An Author You Care Day. Emily's suggestions include:
1. Write a letter or an email to a favorite author.
2. Write a positive book review.
3. Buy a book by a favorite author and give it to someone who will enjoy it.
4. Profile an author on your blog.

Related Posts:
Author Spotlights, Christopher Golden, Tom Sniegoski

Add a Comment