Author: skzb

I play the drum.

Aaron Sorkin & Competence Porn

Spent some of yesterday evening getting caught up on “Newsroom” with my daughter Toni.  I liked it about as much as I liked “Studio 60,” but not as much as I liked “Sports Night” or “The West Wing.”  I’m one of those in love with Sorkin’s dialogue, and I can ignore his Rodenberryesque didacticism and get past his evident belief that women are a strange species that men will never understand.  The difference between the shows I love and the shows I only like is simple: how engaging the characters are.

But what is it, exactly, that makes the “Sports Night” and “The West Wing” characters so much more engaging?

Toni is the one who suggested the answer.  I first heard the term “competence porn” from Elizabeth Bear and understood it immediately.  It is delightful to watch someone be good at something, both in real life and in fiction. In real life, it fascinates us, and in fiction it pulls us closer to that character.  We loved watching Josh work his magic, and CJ turn everything around, and, well, like that.  The moments of competence porn in “Studio 60” and “Newsnight” are rare.  Sorkin’s interests clearly lie in ethical decisions made by people you don’t expect ethics from, and that’s cool. But it doesn’t pull us in as well as watching someone be brilliant.

Competence porn isn’t the only way to make a character engaging–but if, as Sorkin does (and, come to think of it, as I do) you create characters who are prickly and dysfunctional, you need to find some way to make the reader care about them, and watching them be good at things is one of the better ways.

 

A Few Myths About Strikes

A friend just retweeted this link to a web site discussing the negotiations between the striking Minnesota Orchestra and management. It brought a few things to mind that some of you may not know, mostly myths about how to win a strike.

1. “In order to win a strike, the union must win over ‘public opinion.’

Not really, no. Sometimes it can be useful to win over public opinion (as a source of additional income for the strike fund, &c), but it is never decisive.

2. “To win over public opinion, show how willing you are to compromise.”

This goes beyond myth and reaches the level of outright lie. The great labor battles in the past that have, in fact, won over public opinion (whatever that even means), have done so either because the conditions against which the workers were striking were so obviously appalling that anyone with a shred of conscience couldn’t help but support it (various coal strikes and early textile strikes had this), or, more often, by displaying the sort of firm, uncompromising attitude that convinced people they meant business (the Minneapolis General Drivers strike; the sit-down strikes in Flint, Michigan; the South St. Paul packing house strike in the 40’s are good examples).

3. “Workers are too selfish to risk their comfort to support workers in other industries.”

This, if believed by the workers themselves, is the most dangerous myth. In fact, it has been shown again and again that, in a serious battle between labor and management, efforts to reach out for support from the rest of the labor movement will be rewarded. The clearest case of this in reverse was the PATCO strike, which began what can only be called the destruction of the American labor movement. Many air traffic controllers understood instinctively that the effort by Reagan to break their union would be followed by attacks on the rest of the labor movement; and (more importantly) so did workers throughout the country. The refusal of the trade union bureaucracy to enlist the aid of the rest of labor is exactly what led to the destruction of that union–and the subsequent attacks on labor throughout the country until today, for all intents and purposes, there is no labor movement here at all.

During the writers’ strike, the actors’ union and various unions of technical workers were very willing to support the strike (sometimes, it is true, against the wishes of their own leadership); the offers were refused. In the present case, no effort has been made to reach out to stagehands unions, or riggers, or any of the other associated industries. The leaders of the musicians’ union seem determined to fight with one hand, blindfolded, and a foot in a bucket. Management, meanwhile, is using every weapon at their disposal.

I continue to be optimistic. I think there is sufficient growing discontent that a labor movement will grow here in spite of the dead husks of what remains of  the unions hanging around the neck of the working class like millstones. But it will have to be in spite of those unions that, as the musicians’ union is demonstrating, aren’t worth the name.

Viable Paradise: A Musical Report

Had a wonderful, wonderful time at Viable Paradise. Students were smart as hell, and committed, and geeked.  I less than three them all.

The following atrocity occurred in commemoration of the event:

 

ETA: The Jim MacDonald verse was the first one I wrote, and by the end, it was the only one that was teasing, so I re-wrote it to keep it in line with the others.

 

Haul Away, Bart

(Tune: Haul Away, Joe)
(best accompanied by 3-string cigar box)

The Vineyard ferry drops you off an hour after taking it.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
To where you think that you will be the only writer faking it.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Chorus:

Way haul away, we’re bound for Martha’s Vineyard
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Jim Macdonald’s strong and brave; his mustache has a rakish curl
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
But when he has to stand and speak, he trembles like a little girl
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Jim MacDonald shows you how to make your plot misleading
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
He lit-ra-ly and me-ta-phor-ic-ly can stop the bleeding.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

If your critique went so bad you felt the group was mugging you
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
Pippin will fix everything by smiling and by hugging you.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Dr. Doyle has the job of resident gra-mare-i-un
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
She’s knows so many other things it almost seems unfair-i-un.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Mac’s the one who makes the food that all of us will shovel-in.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
But the staff room is no place for you to have that big kerfuffle in.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Unlike the market with the name, Chris will be reliable.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
The staffers are the ones who make this paradise be viable.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Laura speaks about your muse, as erudite as Twain or Joyce
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
She’d tell you many other things if she hadn’t lost her voice.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

If you are staff then Jen and Erin are the ones who care for you.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
Erin is the quiet one and Jen’s the one whose hair is blue.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Patrick speaks of publishing without lies or evasions
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
Then Stevie-Chuck will come and lower all your expectations.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Bear and Scott will go with you to see the glowing jellyfish
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
Then they will share all that they know because they are not sellyfish.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Teresa had foot surgery which limits her posi-shi-un
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
But she can tell you all you need to know of expos-si-shi-un.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

Maybe you will start to think the writer’s life is wrong for you
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.
Steve-with-hat won’t help too much but at least he wrote this song for you.
Way haul away, we’ll haul away, Bart.

 

Signing Tour Update: San Diego and San Fransisco

I’m now in Virginia, on my way to New York.  It’s been a blast so far.  The release party at Book People was more fun than I’d have thought possible–thank you all who showed up.

 

On Friday the 11th we’ll be at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego (or see the event page on facebook, if you prefer).

On Saturday the 12th, at Borderlands Books in San Francisco. [Note from jenphalian: the events page of their site isn’t as up to date as possible, but the event is at 3 pm, and you can see details if you scroll down to their calendar.]

 

I’d love to see some of you there.

 

The Incrementalists Audiobook Giveaway Contest

Okay, first of all, let me say that I am love with the audiobook. I’ve now listened to it twice, and Mary Robinette Kowal and Ray Porter do an amazing job of capturing the characters. I don’t know exactly how they do that, because their interpretations are so very different: Ray’s version of Oskar has a German accent and Mary’s doesn’t; Mary’s portrayal of Jimmy has a French accent and Ray’s doesn’t. You’d think they’d conflict, but in some weird way they compliment each other.

But the reading of the viewpoint characters: Mary’s Ren and Ray’s Phil, are where I lose the power of speech. So perfect, there needs to be a better term than perfect. There were a couple of points in there where I actually cried–and I’ve read this thing maybe a hundred times. I have no idea how they do that.

We’re giving away three copies (actually promo codes) for the book at Audible.com. We’re running three simultaneous contests here on this blog.

For those of you unfamiliar with the project, I would suggest reading the (free, of course) short story that’s up on Tor.com.  It can be found  here.

Contest 1: Suppose you were given the chance to join The Incrementalists. There’s a 50-50 shot (actually, more or less depending on how strong your personality is) that your personality would be swallowed by another and, though your memories would survive, you would be gone.  But if you did survive, you would become (at least somewhat) immortal, you would have access to memories from throughout human history, and you would be part of a small group dedicated to making the world better. Would you take the gamble? Why or why not? Maximum: 50 words

Contest 2: If you were an Incrementalist, with the power to influence individuals in subtle ways, what would be your first project? That is, what would be the first thing you did in an effort to make things just a little better? Maximum: 50 words

Contest 3: The Incrementalists have been around since the beginning of human history, trying to make things better, or make bad things a little less bad. Name one thing you’ve think they’ve done, and how could it have been worse if they didn’t?  Maximum: 100 words.

The contest will run until noon CDT on Monday, September 30, at which time Skyler and I will pick the best answer in all three categories. Post your answers here. You can answer all three, but you can only win one. Only one answer per contest per person.

Enjoy!

(Warning: If you say something really cool, Skyler and I just might steal it!)

(Note: As far as I know, audible can work on almost any device anywhere; but if I’m wrong, that’s not our problem, okay?)