More odds and ends to consider

If you haven't heard, J.L. Rowling has signed a deal with Little, Brown &Co. as her new publisher.  She's about to come out with something new.  Very hush hush.  Won't reveal the title or a synopsis of the book.  But it sounds like the release is imminent.

Goody!  Looking forward to this.  Yes, I read all the Harry Potter novels.  Turns out that after you get past the first one (originally designed for a YA audience--basically for a bunch of seventh and eighth graders)  the novels begin to get quite innovative and rather dark in nature.  I really do believe Rowling took Fantasy in a whole new direction--came up with some original concepts when the story dealt with magic.

Rowling was original--yet not so original--in her writing.  Original in that she painted a different portrait of magic and the fantasy world.  Different in that she kept to the traditional rules of creating a highly sophisticated plot that required fully developed, three-dimensional, characters to occupy and interact with each other. THAT'S what made the Potter series marvelous to read!  The characters.

But now NEW stuff is coming out!  And I can't help but roll my hands in anticipation.  A couple of years ago a rumor began circulating around that Rowling was spotted frequenting her old writing sites and doing some intensive writing.  The rumors went on and said she was . . . perhaps . . . writing a crime story.

Oooooooh . . . !  Now wouldn't that be delicious!  Adding 'crime' to her brand of 'magic' in a story!



And now this little tidbit. . . .



Ever heard of a website called Kickstarter.com?  A web site to pitch ideas . . . on just about anything and everything . . . to potential would-be investors.  Raising money for new projects to start up.  From businesses to comic books.

In fact Publishers Weekly has a fascinating article about a comic book start up that raised 1.25 million dollars to get it up and running!   This is, frankly, one of the Internets finest moments.  Providing instant access to investors who would be willing/foolish/crazy/or visionary in funding just about anything that comes down the pike.  Honestly, I think it's a fabulous idea!  It by-passes the stodgy traditional gate-keepers in the financial markets and goes straight to the heart of the matter!  An investor either likes the idea or he doesn't.  There are no middle-men to contend with.

Hmmm. . . some friends and I are creating a graphic novel.  Maybe, when the project is three/quarters complete, we ought to think about going this route.