There seems to be a certain amount of confusion as to which performance of Wolves on Saturday I'm doing the official Q&A-discussion after. It's actually the Saturday evening one, but because there are a lot of people who think it's the Saturday afternoon one, I'll probably do a chat after that as well. Even if it's just in the Tramway cafe.
...
"How would you describe the music of Wolves in the Walls?" I asked Nick Powell, who wrote it.
"Why?"
"Because they just interviewed me for Radio 4's Front Row and I didn't know how to describe it and neither did Vicky. We have to say something to reporters that isn't just, it's not like anything you've heard before, or it's all sorts of different stuff."
"Yeah. Don't say 'it's all different' because that makes it sound like it doesn't have an overall coherent point of view, or it's just pastiche or something."
"All right. So how could we describe it?"
Nick pondered. "Er... somewhere between Bjork and Sondheim...? I don't know. Ask Martin Lowe."
We went and asked Martin, the show's music director.
"Well, it's not like anything you've ever heard before," he said. "And eclectic makes it sound a bit dated...." then he brightened up. "It's haunting," he announced.
"Oh god," said Nick, gloomily. "Don't say it's haunting. That's what journalists always put in descriptions of my stuff when they don't know how to describe it. Haunting."
"But it is haunting," said Martin.
On the bus back from the Tramway we ran into the props person, who was off getting equipment to allow them to turn a tuba into a popcorn popper. "How would you describe the music?" I asked her.
"Er. It's sort of all really different," she said. "I mean, it's not like anything else, is it?"
Sigh. I just hope someone writes something about it we can steal, using neither haunting nor eclectic...
.....
Dear Neil,
I hope you will write a nice introduction to your new short stories collection like you did with Smoke and Mirrors. I loved how you explaned how you got the idea for each story, and whenever I finished a story, I would go back and see where it originated. I hope you include this in your new collection's introduction. Just providing a little feedback!
-Robin
You know, I got an email today from my editor at Morrow, the longsuffering Jennifer Brehl, saying much the same thing. Only she pointed out it was due on her desk in February.
Yes, there will be one. I hope to finish it tomorrow. Wish me luck.
...
Why did you not tell us about this?!
http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002234221
I think I sort of did... at least, I mentioned it back here at http://www.neilgaiman.com/journal/2003/03/dont-know-how-youll-feel-about-this.asp. But I was waiting for them to announce it to mention it on the blog. And now they have. So I have...