Trailer

The Trailer!

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Heed me, all ye who possess eyes to see, ears to hear, a mind to appreciate, and an internet connection. I draw your attention to MTV Geek, where the trailer for The Rook has premiered! It is out there, a jewel shining in the ether, at http://www.mtv.com/videos/misc/721408/the-rook-trailer.jhtml

I am just immeasurably pleased with this little film. I scripted a bit of it, but so much has come as a complete, and welcome, surprise. Things I never would have thought of. In fact, the basic idea of the story came from the director. It really is the creation of extremely clever people who aren’t me. And I want to make certain that their efforts and their talents are acknowledged. Accordingly, I give you the team behind the film:

 

Ben Hughes — Director, Editor, Producer (http://www.benhughes.com/)

Jamie Carreiro — Director of Photography (http://vimeo.com/maven)

James Van Eyck — Production Assistant

Nancy Noto — Receptionist (http://hellomynameisnancy.tumblr.com/)

With special thanks to Adam Lytle at Greencard Productions (http://www.greencardnewyork.com/)

 

I urge you to hie yourself to MTV Geek immediately and view the trailer.

Of course, in due course, the trailer shall be placed upon this very website, where it will reside for all time, to be viewed by humanity. Just as soon as I have figured out how that is to be done. (In reality, that means bothering my web guru, Jeremiah Tolbert.)

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Proclamation!

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It is Christmas evening, and I am lolling about on the couch, having partaken of a vast feast. Do you know, I do believe that I may actually have eaten something from every phylum. As a result, writing this blog entry is the most difficult thing I have done all year. Every instinct in my body is encouraging me to take advantage of all this stored energy, to find a nice hollow log or cave to crawl into, to slow my heart beat and respiration, and to spend the rest of the season in a blissful state of seafood-fuelled hibernation.

But no. It may be Christmas evening, and I may technically be dead from overeating, but it is ALSO a Sunday, and therefore it is blogging day. PLUS, I have an outstanding holiday announcement. So brace yourself against something soft and yielding, because the sheer awesomeness of this information may literally fling you back from your computer with all the force and glory of a volcanic eruption or a bolt of lightning. If you have sunglasses or welding goggles, don them, and if there are children or animals nearby, swaddle their heads in sound-dampening flannel.

Are you ready? Then behold the glory:

On Boxing Day, the trailer for The Rook shall make its exclusive debut on MTV Geek, which is part of MTV.com!  (http://www.mtv.com/geek/ )

Okay, wait, someone just pointed out that Boxing Day isn’t really a thing in the USA. So, for clarification, Boxing Day is the day after Christmas (so named because, traditionally, in the UK, tradesmen received a ‘Christmas box’ containing gifts or cash.) So, it will be the 26th of December in the USA.

Which will be the 27th in Australia. Sigh.

This announcement is much more complicated than I thought it would be.

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Sudden Appreances

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Woke up this morning to find an email from a friend in the States, advising me that he had been innocently listening to NPR, and the commentators had, without any warning, started talking about The Rook! If you go to http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/12/16/143826802/pop-culture-happy-hour-our-fearless-predictions-for-2012, about 23 minutes and 54 seconds into the cast, you can hear them. Some rather nice things are said.

* * * * *

Also, I got my first-ever online book review, from Fantasy and SciFi Lovin’ News & Reviews (http://sqt-fantasy-sci-fi-girl.blogspot.com/2011/12/rook-by-daniel-omalley.html). It’s also very kind.

* * * *

Intriguingly, Amazon.com emailed me this week. It was one of those emails where they give you a list of books that they think you might enjoy, based (I assume) on one’s previous readings and purchases. At the top of the list was ‘The Rook’ by Daniel O’Malley, which amused me immensely. While Amazon has a point – I am, in fact, my type — this is the sort of thing that reassures me we’re a good long way from the machines taking over.

* * * * *

I’ve had a couple of queries about the fabled trailer. Not to fret, it is coming. Really. In fact, there are two pieces of exciting news about it. The first is that it has been re-edited some, and is very, very good. It had been good before, but this is a different kind of good. Now, I have never been a person who has really noticed the editing of films, but I was really taken aback by the difference. The whole feeling of the trailer is different. So, the trailer has been pretty much finished, but as to when it will be released for you to view, well, that brings me to the second exciting piece of news.

Which, lamentably, I can’t reveal yet.

Sorry, I hate being that guy, the guy who dangles news in front of you, but it’s super cool news, and trust me, really worth waiting for.

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Chortling, and the Real Myfanwy

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Something extremely cool happened this week. I received the rough cut of the trailer for The Rook, and I am just wandering about, chortling in glee. It’s very beautifully shot, and the editing is great (I have never paid any attention to editing in my life, but this editing really appeals to me), and the actress does a great job. I’ve watched it several times now, marveling the whole time. I have to say it’s a very odd sensation to see stuff that you’ve written actually being performed. It makes it more real, like it doesn’t just exist in my head. And what’s even better is that they’ve put in all these little bits that I never would have thought of, taking me completely by surprise.

At the moment the trailer team is fine-tuning it, doing mysterious alchemy with lighting and sound levels. They’ve asked if I have any feedback, and all I have is lavish praise. Soon, the trailer will be available for your viewing pleasure. Ah, you’re in for a treat, once it’s released.

Meanwhile, the twittering is proceeding right along. I’ve moaned before about how twittering in character offers unique challenges. The point of the character who’s tweeting (@RookFiles) is that she works for a secret government organization, and so she wouldn’t be retweeting things, or corresponding with people. But then people out in the twitterverse write replies, and they’re good replies, and I really want to write back, but that would be breaking character. It’s killing me softly.

And, as a fun aside, my friend Myfanwy Galloway has been recruited for the Honda women’s team (http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/news/33777/galloway-s-pro-ride-the-product-of-persistence). She is a cyclist, and, of course, she lends her first name to the main character of The Rook, and I am supremely proud of her.

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I wish to hire a condor

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Well, I am writing this with half an eye, since the other eye and a half are watching the Rugby World Cup. France versus New Zealand. And I’m going to give credit to the French for advancing on the Haka. I dig the Haka, but it leaves the opposing team in a bit of a bind – you cannot be disrespectful, but on the other hand, they can’t just expect you to stand there (especially since you’re not allowed to bring books onto the playing field. I can attest to this from my primary school experiences.)  It would have been even better if the French had been smoking Gauloises as they advanced, but still, very cool. And I’ll be equally pleased no matter which team wins.

 

You may have noticed on the front page of this website that there’s a spot for ‘The Book Trailer – coming soon”.  Work is underway on that particular little project, and I am pretty excited about the prospect. I haven’t seen many book trailers, but I’ve seen a few, and some of them have been very good. Now, I am a huge fan of movie trailers, I always insist on being in the cinema fifteen minutes before a movie starts, to ensure that I catch all the previews. But I was not at all sure how to go about a trailer for The Rook. There’s some scenes that I think would translate quite well to live performance, but some of the concepts would really stretch our trailer budget (does anyone know where you can cheaply rent a condor in New York City?) However, my trailer director has hit upon quite a brilliant concept, and so I have spent the past couple of weeks scripting up some stuff. And it’s been murder – I am accustomed to being somewhat wordy, but with a trailer, you need to cut right to the chase immediately. But, I think it will be good. I have submitted some words, and I am eager to see what he creates.

 

Also, I just want to draw attention to the (Australian) release of SNUFF, the new Discworld novel from Terry Pratchett, who is one of three writers who tie for the position of Dan’s Favourite Author. I’ve been reading Pratchett’s work since Year 7, when my high school librarian placed a copy of Truckers into my youthful hands. I’ve read all of his books many times, and I inhaled SNUFF like… well, like snuff. I enjoyed it immensely. Damn fine writing. If you’re a Discworld fan, odds are that you have it already, and if you aren’t, well, actually it’s probably not the best one to start with. I always recommend Wyrd Sisters or Mort for first-time Discworld readers – they weren’t the first to be written, but they make excellent starting points.

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