Sci-fi – Page 17 – AJ Mullican, Author

A good day for a Song

Celebrity, Convention, Cosplay, Fandom, Geek, Sci-fi

Today will be Day 3 of Phoenix Comicon for me, and I’m most excited for today. Why, you ask? Because I have my first ever official con photo op (not just a selfie at the guest’s booth), and it’s with the one, the only River Song (aka Alex Kingston)!

River Song is my favorite Doctor Who companion, hands down. I cosplayed her as my first cosplay, and ever since they announced that Alex would be at the con I’ve been eager to get a photo op. I’m debating having her sign the photograph later in the day, because sometimes you get a little bit of time to chat with the guest at the autograph table (as opposed to the photo ops, where they have you move right along to keep the line under control).

I’ll be dressed in my Star Wars/Doctor Who mashup cosplay today, complete with Ultrasabers lightsaber:

13307342_1052150321543813_7559592774447620295_n

I got a lot of compliments on my costume Thursday evening when I wore it, and I’m hoping Alex likes it. (Of course, being an actress and all she’ll probably say she loves it regardless of her personal opinion on it haha). I could have done a River Song cosplay again, but I don’t have a good wig for it anymore and my hair is shock-straight no matter what I do with it.

If you’re at Phoenix Comicon today and see me, feel free to ask for a photo if you like my costume. If you don’t like it or don’t want a photo, just wave and say “hi” 🙂

T-minus one day, 8 hours

Convention, Cosplay, Geek, Interview, Sci-fi, Social Media

It’s almost that time of year! Phoenix Comicon begins tomorrow, and while I won’t be able to get there until the festivities are already in full swing (have to wait for my husband to get off work at 1pm) I’m sure I’ll have the time of my life. 🙂 My cosplays are complete–I even got the 4ft fighting fan prop in for my Temari cosplay–and most of what we’re taking is already packed and ready to be loaded into the car tomorrow.

I have three interviews set up so far, and though I’m not overly optimistic at getting more I’m happy that at least a few people wanted to talk to me. I have my questions all ready on little 3×5 note cards that I’ll have handy in my cosplay pocket or purse. My phone has a decent voice recorder app that I’ve tested myself, so that’s taken care of. All I’ll need to do is transcribe and post at the end of each day. Each long day.

This year will be my first attending as media/press, so it will be interesting to see what kinds of things I can do. I know I can’t take photos of the guests without permission, but I plan on taking lots of cosplay photos and Periscoping in the hallways as I go to and fro. Probably won’t be able to Periscope any panels, but maybe I can manage live tweeting a few. And of course, I’ll be on the Talk Nerdy With Us Instagram to document the fun I’m having.

I have a ton of panels that I want to see. Cosplay panels, writing panels, sci-fi panels…things that will help with various different interests I have. I may even go to some of the panels that my sister wants to see. It will be her first Comicon, so I want her to have as much fun as possible. She’s chosen some interesting panels, but there are a few that conflict with panels that I want to see. She doesn’t seem to mind, though, and seems genuinely excited to be going. She’s a bit of a hermit (stays at home when she’s not working & only really leaves the house to go shopping with Mom or to go to Pet Smart) so I’m glad she’s getting excited about going to a big, crowded place full of strangers.

The countdown continues! I may even Periscope or live tweet from the car on the drive up (lol) but not for more than a few minutes. I’m sure no one wants to see 3 hours of interstate. Or 3 hours of me chattering away.

See y’all tomorrow and all weekend on the Talk Nerdy With Us Twitter and Instagram feeds!

May the Fourth Be with You

Convention, Corsetry, Cosplay, Fandom, Geek, Holiday, Movies, Sci-fi, Tattoo

Yes, it’s that day again: the day when the nerds come out of the woodwork to proclaim their love for Star Wars.

I’m one of those nerds. I love the movies (well, most of them), and if I wasn’t a bigger Doctor Who fan I would probably have been getting a Jedi Order tattoo yesterday instead of a TARDIS.

I guess I’ll let my Star Wars/Doctor Who mashup cosplay make up for it. I have less than a month to lose enough weight to comfortably squeeze into it, though I can still fit it. I’d just like the corset a little less…tight. Like, really tight. I mean, I know corsets are supposed to be tight, but this one is homemade, not professionally made. So I’m hoping there aren’t any wardrobe malfunctions at Phoenix Comicon.

Anywho, happy Star Wars Day to all, and May the Fourth be with you!

Work of Art Wednesday

Art, Art for sale, Drawing, Sci-fi

I haven’t done this in a long time, but I’ve gotten some new artwork drawn and I’d like to share some of it.

spacegirl

I really like the forms on this one. It’s for an RPG book called “Quantum Collapse,” to be put out by D3 Adventures. I’ll be posting the art I did for them on DeviantArt here soon…well, eventually. Some of them might even be available as prints! 🙂

Onward towards Twenty

Novel, Sci-fi, Writing

No, I’m not turning twenty years old. I’m long, long past that. No, I’m talking about 20,000 words on my manuscript. It’s slow going, but I broke 19,000 this morning and think I have a decent momentum.

The story rapidly evolved from straight sci-fi to sci-fi/dystopian, which works fine for me. It’s interesting to try to imagine what the world will be like in a century or two. I haven’t fully explored the possibilities yet, but I already have ideas brewing. What wildlife would survive the crap we humans are doing to the environment today? What repercussions will our actions today have on the future environment? What cities/countries will survive the passage of time and what ones will fall?

With my first book, I kept the time frame current and used Christian mythology as a base for some of what I was writing. Now? Now I have almost total autonomy. I’m not creating a new world; I’m not up to full world-building status yet. Still, it’s envisioning the future of this world, so it’s a creation of sorts. I’m creating the future. It’s unreal.

Well, of course it’s unreal. It’s a work of fiction. But you get my point.

Is the Reign of the Nerds Coming to an End?

Convention, Cosplay, Diversity, Fandom, Geek, Musings, Sci-fi, Thoughts

It happens to everyone: you have your fifteen minutes of fame, your time in the spotlight, your moment as King of the Realm. Everything uncool becomes cool at some point, and nerd is no different.

In the past several years, there has been an upsurge in growth of the popularity of nerd culture. Comicons are now hot commodities, cosplay is mainstream, and movies like Star Wars and superhero films are blowing box office records out of the water. It seems like all things nerd are cool.

As happens with all things, though, popularity cycles through the cliques, and nerd is no exception. It can’t last forever. Nothing does. So when will our rise to power come crashing down?

It’s hard to say. With Star Wars and Deadpool killing box office records, Funko Pop! figures selling like hotcakes, and nerdy merchandising overflowing in almost every store, it seems that nerd culture is still on the upswing. It is now cool to admit that you’re a nerd, a geek, a dweeb, a fan. No more hiding in the shadows, no more skulking around, hoping the jocks won’t notice you and stuff you in a locker.

I don’t foresee this as lasting, though. I predict an end to the nerd reign in the next few years. I think we’ve reached a climax. We are at the orgasm of popularity, and after a little while spent in the afterglow, we’ll be left spent and sweaty as society dumps us for a new girlfriend.

Who will overtake the nerds at the top of the food chain? I have no clue. Hipsters, maybe? They’re already mocked as nerds once were. Or perhaps the jock will retake his crown once nerddom falls. The beauty queen? The burnout? Who knows.

Fellow nerds, enjoy our time at the top while we still have it. There’s not telling when we’ll be back in charge again.

The Journey Continues

Novel, Sci-fi, Writing

Things are moving right along with the new manuscript. I’m not writing as quickly as some authors might, but I’m getting a lot accomplished for my personal pace. Less than 9 months left in the year for me to finish the first draft, but I’m still optimistic that I can do it.

My protagonists are out of the city where they were being hunted by the authorities and have now reached another city where their arrival will cause something of a stir.

I’ve noticed that I could be more descriptive. I kind of lack in that department, so during revisions I will probably bump up the verbal painting until the pictures are more vibrant. I can envision my characters clearly, but will the reader be able to?

As is, probably not. But I’ll make it better. I’ll learn and adapt. I’ll create a world that people can step into to escape their own.

A Whole New World

Novel, Sci-fi, Writing

I think I’m getting there. It’s been a rough road these past couple of months, but I’m finally starting to get inside the world I’m writing. I’m understanding where the characters are coming from and their motivations.

I still have a long way to go, though. I don’t even have a name for where the story takes place. I have a bunch of places in the story that say “[insert city-state name here],” but I haven’t gotten a good name for said city-state yet. I’m just plugging along, hoping it comes to me eventually. Then a little “Find and Replace” will take care of that part.

The first two chapters are really short, which is a problem, but I keep trying to tell myself to just get the story down and worry about chapter length once the first draft is done. I’m terrible at listening to myself, though. Lol

At least I have something to fill my early mornings once again. I think I’ll be able to move along more quickly now that I have my head more immersed in the world I’m creating. But we’ll see. I still have 10 months to reach my goal of having a complete first draft by the end of 2016.

Fanfiction: Devotional or Uninspired?

Fandom, Geek, Movies, Novel, Sci-fi, Thoughts, Writing

Yesterday’s post had to do with the strange phenomenon of “shipping” when it comes to fictional characters and worlds. Today, I follow that up with a post about fanfiction, which is basically fans writing “episodes” of TV shows, movies, comics, etc.

My first question is this: Why fanfiction? Sure, some are just little short stories depicting something the fan wishes had happened on the show/in the comic/whatever. But some are epic, novel-length works about their favorite characters and worlds. It boggles my mind, because if you have enough imagination to write a novel, why not create your own world and characters? Why piggy back off of someone else’s characters? Is it really just to show your devotion to the show? Is it to make real the things you wish the show writers had put in there?

I admit, I’ve only written one novel, but I can say without a doubt that it’s my own novel. I didn’t base any of the characters or situations on something I had seen in someone else’s work. I took a character of my own making and created a cast that revolved around her.

Now, I’m not saying that I’m “better” than a fanfic author. That’s not what I’m saying at all. What I’m trying to say is, if you have that much creativity inside you, why not use it to create your own world? Maybe even write a novel that gets turned into one of your favorite TV shows or into a movie. You could have fanfic written about your original idea. Wouldn’t that be even more awesome? To be the origin of fanfic, not a perpetuator?

I don’t know. I could certainly write fanfic if I wanted to. I’m a terrible worldbuilder, so theoretically if I just snatch up someone else’s world and fiddle around with it it should be easier. Then again, I’m also selfish and narcissistic. I want something that I made. Something that I wrote from my imagination. I want to be able to say, “I did that. I created those characters. I wrote the plot. Me.”

Sure, my plots might not be the most original. How does the saying go? Something about how no idea is truly unique anymore. Every story has already been written, and it’s only a matter of the spin you put on it. In that case, isn’t every story fanfiction? Every vampire story a fanfic of Brahm Stoker’s Dracula? Every tragic love story a fanfic of Romeo and Juliet?

Who knows. What I do know is that fanfiction is yet another area of fandom that I don’t fully understand. Why ship things that don’t exist? Why write from other peoples’ ideas instead of creating your own?

I may never know.

There’s such a thing as too much information

Novel, Sci-fi, Writing

I’m so terrible. I wrote an opening chapter that was 90% exposition. Info-dumping. I can’t believe I did it.

Luckily, I have a terrific critique group that has already given me a lot of advice on how to fix the problem. I have rewritten most of the chapter, which cut my word count quite a bit, but I think that most of it is tolerable. Editing/revision will have to fix the rest of it. And I may be getting ahead of myself a bit. Have to finish the first draft … eventually.

My plan is to finish the draft by the end of the year. Plenty of time, right? Not necessarily, but if this is anything like Whispers of Death, once I get the first few chapters done the rest will come more quickly. I had five chapters written at the start of last year and finished the draft in April. It took quite a lot of editing and revising to get the word count from novella to novel, but I managed.

This one will hopefully be better because I’m trying to plan more of it as I go. Trying being the operative word. I’ve plotted out some of it, but so far I’m flying by the seat of my pants again. Maybe outlines just aren’t for me lol