Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Magical Wiki: Black & Tan

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 27, 2008
Post category:Personal
Post comments:0 Comments

I’m an information junkie and the Internutz is a magical web of information, useful and otherwise, that I can lose myself in for hours at a time. Wikipedia, of course, is an information junkie’s cyber-crackhouse, with useful entries on almost anything you can think of — except, oddly, “Guy LeCharles Gonzalez” (someone needs to fix that!) — and a friend of mine discovered my latest favorite, “Black and Tan“, which includes an impressive list of variations on the theme, including:

Black & Black : A blend of Guinness Extra Stout and Guinness Draught
Black & Orange: Stout and pumpkin ale
Black Magic: Half Guinness and Half Magic Hat #9

Generally speaking, a Black & Tan should only be made with Guinness Stout, but Cape Ann Brewing Company‘s Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout is a good substitute for Black & Orange.

(more…)

Why Your Book Will Never Be in Borders

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 24, 2008
Post category:Media Personal
Post comments:3 Comments

The odds are pretty slim, and not just because they’re on the verge of going out of business:

“I market books for a living, so I can tell you an unpleasant truth: the order for any book, from any account, starts at zero,” [Andrew Wheeler, a marketing manager at Wiley] warns. “The publisher’s sales rep walks in the door with tipsheets and covers, past sales figures and promotional plans, to convince that bookseller’s buyer to buy that book… Sometimes, that buyer is not convinced, and the order stays at zero.”

(h/t GalleyCat)

The distribution system in publishing is arguably broken, partly a result of the industry’s major players’ short-term thinking, and partly because the overwhelming number of books being published these days is more than the system can support.

(Writer’s Digest publishes an aptly titled book: Some Writers Deserve to Starve! Think about it.)

(more…)

The Most Fantastic Genre

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 20, 2008
Post category:Pop Culture
Post comments:0 Comments

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZGqSRtDbEw]

PopCultureShock posted this great little clip about the new Blue Beetle — Mexican-American Jaime Reyes — and Junot Diaz’ Oscar Wao, wherein Diaz notes:

“The most fantastic genre can’t keep up, or refuses to keep up, with how much our country has changed. And so people can dream about aliens, and they can dream about all sorts of things and magical rings, but they can’t dream about brown and black people being protagonists, you know? It’s remarkable.”

Diversity in comics remains a tough slog — Firestorm was cancelled, Blue Beetle doesn’t sell very well and what ever happened to the much-hyped lesbian Batwoman series? — and the DC Universe has historically been much whiter than Marvel’s, but the first two years of Blue Beetle proved that minority superheroes could carry a series — from a quality perspective, at least — as long as the writer and artist focused on telling good, entertaining stories.

(more…)

And he has a sense of humor!

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 18, 2008
Post category:Media
Post comments:0 Comments

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5SWQJWm6Tg] "And I got my middle name from somebody who obviously didn't think I'd ever run for President." I just got around to watching Obama's speech at the Al Smith Dinner the other night and it's funny as hell, taking shots at McCain, Clinton, Schumer, Bloomberg, Giuliani, Wall Street and, most importantly, himself, showing a sense of humor that has rarely been on display during the campaign or in the majority of SNL's political skits.

McCain “I Screwed Up”

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 17, 2008
Post category:Uncategorized
Post comments:1 Comment

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiBqHczYJYo] Funny how he can admit that he "screwed up" by ditching Letterman's show last month to save the economy talk to Katie Couric and make an appearance at a Bill Clinton event, but when Dave presses him on his and Palin's "pals around with terrorists" nonsense, he sticks to the same B.S. line about Ayers and their nefarious connection to ACORN. Loser.

What If…FOX hosted the debate?

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:October 16, 2008
Post category:Pop Culture
Post comments:0 Comments

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l63SRpGXBHE] It's like a mash-up of so many of my favorite things! PS: I'll be back on a regular posting schedule, here and on Spindle, very soon. Seriously.

Moment of Zen

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:August 16, 2008
Post category:Personal
Post comments:0 Comments

121 On the eve of my 39th birthday (aka 13 x 3!), it's probably a good idea to take a step back from the craziness of the past few months, inhale deeply, focus on the many good things, and then exhale deeply....Ah!We're off to a mini-getaway this weekend that includes the Renaissance Faire, my first time. We watched A Knight's Tale with the kids a couple of weekends ago and they were fascinated by the whole thing -- India cheering on Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland's battles was hilarious! -- so it should be lots of fun. Salomé has…