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Dec. 9th, 2012 04:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkatPot-luck Dinner party went well or better than expected. I got lost on the way there, but asked five different people for directions and managed to find my way. New Yorkers generally speaking are incredibly helpful and friendly - don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
One of the suggestions made at the dinner party - was if you are trying to get your self-published book into Barnes & Noble, or your published one for that matter, a trick you may want to try is to take it into Barnes and Noble and buy it there - they'll scan it into the system as a book that was recently bought there but out of stock. The computer will automatically log it as a book to stock. (I have no idea if this true or if it works, but if you decide to try it and it does or doesn't as the case may be, do be sure to let me know.)
Discovered yet another struggling writer. The son of the people hosting the party, who wasn't in attendance, is a television comedy writer for the John Stewart Daily Show, CNN, Discovery Channel, and the History Channel. He's also published two sci-fi satires that are in the same vein as Terry Pratchett and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. (I was unfortunately the only one at the dinner party that was interested - I have yet to meet fellow geeks at these things. The geeks of NYC remain well-hidden.) I remember the writer's name but not the name of the novel. His name is Michael Rubens.
On TV front..watched one of the Elementary episodes that I've saved to the DVR. This is the second episode. It's actually not a bad series. One of the better procedurals I've seen and definitely one of the more likable Holmes. In comparison to the BBC's Sherlock? Welll...
Elementary's Sherlock is more likable and Watson is more interesting. And their relationship is tad more innovative and less "been there done that 50 times already but hey let's try it again". That said, the BBC's version is definitely better written and to a degree better directed and acted. It's shiner. Yes, the Brits have actually produced a shinier tv series than the Americans.
Moffat is a far better plotter of mysteries than whomever is writing Elementary. His plotting has teeth, Elementary's is a bit on the wimpy/predictable end of the fence.
But...Elementary does a better job with characterization. Elementary's Sherlock is less over-the-top and far more complex and in some respects, more believable not to mention likable. You can empathize with him. While the BBC's is a borderline sociopath and frenetic, as if he has an untreated case of ADD or is just manic 24/7. In short, he's a bit too much like Robert Downey Jr. and not enough like Basil Rathbone. Johnny Lee Miller to give him credit plays neither, and does his own thing - which I find intriguing. Also Lucy Liu's Watson is different than any of the other Watson's I've seen to do date, she's smarter for one thing. And less tolerant for another.
Not to mention more assertive. The mystery here is who Sherlock is, why did he become an addict, and why is he acting the way he is? He's - her mystery to figure out.
The common thread in all Sherlock films is Watson, we are always watching through Watson's eyes. We see what happens mainly through Watson's pov. Liu's Watson is different from the other's not just because she's female, but because Sherlock is her job, she's assigned by an outside party, in this case his father, to see that he gets better. The relationship is neither romantic nor subordinate (aka Cuddy/House) nor is it like Kate/Castle or Bones/Booth or any those buddy detective stories. Joan Watson is not involved with Sherlock to help him solve cases, nor is she all that interested in his cases...she's involved to heal Sherlock, she's his doctor, or rather he's her mystery to solve. This is a wrinkle that I haven't seen done before. How and if they move from doctor/patient to friends...is part of the story.
The BBC version is mainly asking the question - is Sherlock a complete sociopath? Does he care about others? Is he capable of caring for anyone outside himself? Which was the same question that the tv series House, asked. This version isn't asking that question. Elementary's Holmes is not a sociopath, he's a recovering addict - which goes back to Conan Doyle's original depiction of the character. In both the books and earlier 1930's Basil Rathbone Holmes films, Sherlock was an addictive personality, not a sociopath.
At any rate...I'm intrigued enough to continue and it doesn't require too much focus.
One of the suggestions made at the dinner party - was if you are trying to get your self-published book into Barnes & Noble, or your published one for that matter, a trick you may want to try is to take it into Barnes and Noble and buy it there - they'll scan it into the system as a book that was recently bought there but out of stock. The computer will automatically log it as a book to stock. (I have no idea if this true or if it works, but if you decide to try it and it does or doesn't as the case may be, do be sure to let me know.)
Discovered yet another struggling writer. The son of the people hosting the party, who wasn't in attendance, is a television comedy writer for the John Stewart Daily Show, CNN, Discovery Channel, and the History Channel. He's also published two sci-fi satires that are in the same vein as Terry Pratchett and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. (I was unfortunately the only one at the dinner party that was interested - I have yet to meet fellow geeks at these things. The geeks of NYC remain well-hidden.) I remember the writer's name but not the name of the novel. His name is Michael Rubens.
On TV front..watched one of the Elementary episodes that I've saved to the DVR. This is the second episode. It's actually not a bad series. One of the better procedurals I've seen and definitely one of the more likable Holmes. In comparison to the BBC's Sherlock? Welll...
Elementary's Sherlock is more likable and Watson is more interesting. And their relationship is tad more innovative and less "been there done that 50 times already but hey let's try it again". That said, the BBC's version is definitely better written and to a degree better directed and acted. It's shiner. Yes, the Brits have actually produced a shinier tv series than the Americans.
Moffat is a far better plotter of mysteries than whomever is writing Elementary. His plotting has teeth, Elementary's is a bit on the wimpy/predictable end of the fence.
But...Elementary does a better job with characterization. Elementary's Sherlock is less over-the-top and far more complex and in some respects, more believable not to mention likable. You can empathize with him. While the BBC's is a borderline sociopath and frenetic, as if he has an untreated case of ADD or is just manic 24/7. In short, he's a bit too much like Robert Downey Jr. and not enough like Basil Rathbone. Johnny Lee Miller to give him credit plays neither, and does his own thing - which I find intriguing. Also Lucy Liu's Watson is different than any of the other Watson's I've seen to do date, she's smarter for one thing. And less tolerant for another.
Not to mention more assertive. The mystery here is who Sherlock is, why did he become an addict, and why is he acting the way he is? He's - her mystery to figure out.
The common thread in all Sherlock films is Watson, we are always watching through Watson's eyes. We see what happens mainly through Watson's pov. Liu's Watson is different from the other's not just because she's female, but because Sherlock is her job, she's assigned by an outside party, in this case his father, to see that he gets better. The relationship is neither romantic nor subordinate (aka Cuddy/House) nor is it like Kate/Castle or Bones/Booth or any those buddy detective stories. Joan Watson is not involved with Sherlock to help him solve cases, nor is she all that interested in his cases...she's involved to heal Sherlock, she's his doctor, or rather he's her mystery to solve. This is a wrinkle that I haven't seen done before. How and if they move from doctor/patient to friends...is part of the story.
The BBC version is mainly asking the question - is Sherlock a complete sociopath? Does he care about others? Is he capable of caring for anyone outside himself? Which was the same question that the tv series House, asked. This version isn't asking that question. Elementary's Holmes is not a sociopath, he's a recovering addict - which goes back to Conan Doyle's original depiction of the character. In both the books and earlier 1930's Basil Rathbone Holmes films, Sherlock was an addictive personality, not a sociopath.
At any rate...I'm intrigued enough to continue and it doesn't require too much focus.
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no subject
Date: 2012-12-10 12:18 am (UTC)I like Moffat, but the plots on Sherlock are so far all retreads of Arthur Conan Doyle's original Holmes plots/mysteries. Moffat does a great job of updating them for modern London — doing the fanfic, as it were — but the bone structure was already there.
I'm not the hugest AC Doyle expert, but so far I haven't recognized a mystery on Elementary as ripped directly from the source material, so it's impressive that they are as good as they've been. I'm generally not a big fan of procedurals. I'm interested in characters, and most mysteries are pretty easy to figure out after you've figured out the formula, even without Holmesian powers of deduction. But I'm watching both Elementary and Castle this season. Two shows with leading ladies I can appreciate!
no subject
Date: 2012-12-10 01:37 am (UTC)I think that's pretty much bunk. It's a story I've heard before from folks who were vanity publishing, back before self-publishing took off. And with B&N tightening everything up, it's my understanding they don't talk self-published unless it's a) listed in Ingrams and 2) can be returned.
no subject
Date: 2012-12-10 12:18 am (UTC)That's exactly what I don't like about the series.
I'm also not sure I agree about Joan Watson being smarter than other Watsons--specifically than Sherlock's Watson.
no subject
Date: 2012-12-10 02:54 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-12-10 02:43 am (UTC)With Elementary, I love the characters and the plot is just there to enhance the chars, not the other way around. Which is what makes me love it.
Re: Barnes & Noble
Date: 2012-12-10 03:55 am (UTC)Truly, a better strategy is to convince the community relations manager (if the store has one) that you could sell your book at a booksigning. In other words, your friends/fanbase would all come in to buy it, you have a contact who'd do an article, etc. Then you could sign some afterwards to put into store stock, if the booksigning goes reasonably well. (If the book is not returnable, that's a strike against the CRM arranging an autographing.) I hope this helps.
Re: Barnes & Noble
Date: 2012-12-11 12:48 am (UTC)