On the Radio

This weekend I was a guest on my first-ever live radio show...and I had a great time!

Mostly because host Barry Eva has done almost 500 episodes of his A Book and a Chat show. He was such a great interviewer, had obviously done a ton of research and made me feel very much at ease. A big feat considering I was drawing a blank for days before as to how on earth I could fill an hour-long radio show with anything.

So, without further ado, here is the show where you can hear Barry and me chat about writing, the pros and cons of criticism and the piles of my old junk that are laying around my parents' house. And if that isn't enough to entice you, how about the fact that Barry has a wickedly awesome British accent? Yes? Listen below!

Listen to internet radio with A Book and a Chat on Blog Talk Radio

Barry also wrote up a lovely blog post and review of The Mapmaker and the Ghost which you can read here if you're so inclined.

TV I Love: Torchwood, Season 3

At some point this summer when I got really into Doctor Who (somewhere near the end of Series 1), I decided to take the plunge and watch Torchwood too. All I knew about it was that it was a Doctor Who spinoff, created by Russell T Davies and starring Captain Jack Harkness (a.k.a. John Barrowman).

This is John Barrowman. You should know that he also spends most of the show in suspenders and a 1940s-era long army coat.

My boyfriend once pointed out that he looks like the exact combo of Tom Cruise and Mark Harmon. Which led me to creating this genius mathematical formula: handsome x handsome = HANDSOME

I'm probably going to spend a couple of years in Minsk proving it.

Anyhoo, so. Yes, Torchwood.  I liked it. I will admit that I didn't love it right off the bat. For one thing, Doctor Who is very much a family show and Torchwood is, er, not. So that was a bit jarring. The character of Captain Jack Harkness (which is introduced in Season 1 of Doctor Who) is a little different in this iteration, and that took some getting used to. I also found the first season pretty uneven. There were episodes I liked, but there were also a few I couldn't get into.

But I valiantly carried on. In case you're wondering why, here's another photo of John Barrowman.

Season 2 was better than Season 1. And I thought all the episodes were pretty strong.

And then came Season 3. Holy awesome television, Batman.

Being a BBC series, Seasons 1 and 2 of Torchwood had the standard 13 episodes each. But Season 3 was a 5-episode miniseries. And let me tell you, that sort of taut storytelling worked really well for this show.

It's also a great story arc to look at as a writer. The stakes keep getting higher and higher. The plot goes in a lot of unexpected places but it all ultimately makes sense. And there is a lot of beautiful character work with the leads who are within the whole series and also some new characters that are introduced just for Season 3. It's excellent television drama.

I don't have Starz so I haven't yet seen the new season of Torchwood, which is now being co-produced in the U.S. and partially takes place in America (Seasons 1-3 take place in Cardiff, Wales). I have to admit, I have some qualms about moving such a British show to the states but I've hear murmurings of good things. Has anyone seen it?

Oh, and I'll just leave you with this. Because John Barrowman...also sings. (And, hey, suspenders in action!)

 

Okay, and sometimes he does easy listening.

This video makes me giggle.

The Doctor Is In!

My friend Jenny has been telling me for years to start watching Dr. Who. I'd been shying away only because there were over 70 episodes to get through and I usually don't have much time to spare for TV.

However, I was taking a little writing break over the past couple of months and decided to give it a try. I liked the first few episodes, but somewhere around episode 8 of Series 1, I got hooked.

Yup, Dr. Who. I love it now. And 70 episodes? Pshaaaw! That's nothing! (In other words, I probably needed to get off my break and back to writing much sooner than it actually happened. Yeaaah.)

Wanna know my three favorite doctors, companions, and episodes?*

Okay! Here they are in order (with my absolute favorites on top).

*These lists are only about the new series which started in 2005; I haven't yet watched the older episodes which started in the 60s.

Doctors
1. The Tenth Doctor: the perfect mix of goofy and heart-wrenchingly serious when it mattered. It also doesn't hurt that David Tennant is totally dreamy in a wonderfully nerdy way.

2. The Ninth Doctor: I really got to love this much darker, brooding version of the Doctor and wish Christopher Eccleston had stuck around for at least one more season. (It's also a shame that there seems to be some bad blood between him and the series' execs.)

3. The Eleventh Doctor: It took me the longest to warm up to him, but I finally did during the 11th episode ("The Lodger") of Series 5. I think this has less to do with Matt Smith and more to do with how much I miss David Tennant. But I do like him now, too (and maybe have finally accepted that he's the new doctor and I just have to deal with it!)


Companions
1. Rose: this sweet, quirky friendship that turned into a love story is my absolute favorite. I love the chemistry between Billie Piper and both Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant. And I also love the surrounding characters (Jackie and Mickey) of her story.

2. Donna: is hilarious. After a few seasons of companions crushing on the doctor, it was really refreshing to have one who most definitely did not feel that way about him ("too skinny!"). I think some of her episodes made me laugh the hardest.

3. Rory: I think I can count him as a companion at this point, right? Rory is the sweetest and his devotion to Amy makes me like her more, too.

4. Special Bonus Companion: Captain Jack Harkness. I don't know if he ever technically counted as a companion, but his suave, chiseled character (especially against the 9th Doctor who found him totally cheesy) was awesome fun.


Episodes (for the purposes of this list, I chose one favorite from each Doctor):
1. "The Doctor's Wife" (the 11th Doctor): Neil Gaiman writing a Dr. Who episode? Yes, please! Quirky plot, razor sharp dialogue and peppered with poignant moments. What more could you ask for?

2. "The Stolen Earth/Journey's End" (the 10th Doctor): My favorite season finale so far. I loved the return of all of the Doctor's companions to help him save the world (natch)...especially the return of one very important, seemingly lost forever blond (see above).

3. "Father's Day" (the 9th Doctor): I think this was the episode that made me really love the show wholeheartedly. It was filled with a ton of human emotion (alongside the bad guy aliens) and it made me care deeply about both Rose and the Doctor.

So there you are! Who fans, who are your favorite Doctors, companions and episodes?