Sunday, October 28, 2007
St. Petersburg FESTIVAL OF READING.


So the official name of the thing I went to this weekend was the St. Petersburg Times Festival of Reading. It was one of those classic writer things that most big time writers do all time and are bored with, but which I-- who don't do things like this very often--thoroughly enjoyed. Dude, my own little espresso Lavazza thing, right here in my hotel room! Then there was little golf carts and nice limo-like American Luxury cars to drive you around. Even if you're only going a couple blocks.

I became famous at the festival as the guy who always got lost and couldn't find his car. I missed my car at the airport because I am not used to such things and when I didn't see anyone with a sign that said Mr. Nelson, I panicked and started wandering the airport and missed the car, and then caused a huge problem and from then on whenever anyone had to pick me up they were all: "It's you, the guy who missed his ride at the airport." and then they'd take me by the hand and lead me in the right door so I wouldn't get lost.

Whatever, I don't mind that people think I'm an idiot.

So the highlight of the trip was hanging out with R.L. Stine. He was great. He was like a combination of R. Crumb, Charles Bukowski and Stephen King. He was extremely dry and funny. (from Ohio originally). He worked in kids publishing for years which explains his absolute ease at creating exact age specific horror stuff.

But the thing I found most impressive about him was: he looked like what he was. To me only the very top people actually develop so completely into what they are that you can tell just by looking at them. Like how Stephen King actually looks like a horror writer. Or Bukowski looks like a philosophical drunk. Or Kurt Cobain went from looking like an insecure weirdo into a beautiful rock god, with exact synchronicity to the actual events.

R.L. "Bob" Stine looks like a slyly humorous kids horror book writer. That's EXACTLY what he looks like. It's uncanny. Anyway, I enjoyed every second I was with him. Especially watching him talk to random fans. He was cranky and funny about the star treatment he had to endure, but extremely kind and generous to the stray kids he came upon.


Thursday, October 25, 2007
TAMPA, FLORIDA


So I'm heading off to Tampa Florida this weekend. I am going there to participate in their Festival of Reading. I think that's what it's called. It's a big literary event. They will probably block off some streets. Probably people will stroll around eating ice cream cones. Probably there will be balloons.

Anyway, there are going to be all sorts of great authors there including R.L. Stine, pictured here, who I am going to be on a panel with. I believe someone once told me that he had published more books than any other author in the world . . . or something like that. Lots of Goosebumps books, in any event. And other books too. I try to write horror books occasionally and it's hard. Maybe I'll ask him what his secret is. I can't wait to meet him. He looks like he knows some really funny jokes.

I don't know who else I will meet there. There is a reception for charity when I first get there so I am bringing my suit. How do people dress in Florida? I don't know. Green, is what I picture but can't be sure. But it will also be very warm there so I hope I'm not too hot. I have never been to Florida, so i don't know what to expect. I bought some shorts at LL Bean, caving utterly to the possibility that one just dresses like a dork and that's that.

I hope I can go swimming though, I bought a bathing suit just in case that's possible.


Sunday, October 14, 2007
NEW GIRL PREPARATIONS


The other Big News of this October is the new edition of GIRL. This is the cover and the inside looks even better. I got a chance to go and see everyone at Simon Pulse and they were so psyched about the book and I went from meeting to meeting with all the various publicity and marketing people. It was so fun!

Cara Bedick who spearheaded the whole re-issue, and to whom I am eternally grateful, looked a little worried though as my agent and I went through her books looking for freebies. I wish I had a picture of her and her associates.

The thing about a new edition of a book is that it's hard to get press and media attention, so if you are a media person and would want to do something with GIRL, like just mention that you read it when you were a kid and are psyched to see it out again, drop me a line and we can figure something out.

I am, as always, at Blake@BlakeNelsonBooks.com



PARANOID @ NY Film Festival: La Spina, "Yale Man"


Here's two of my buddies who came with me to the screening. That's Adam Dowis ex-Portlander and now Canal Street denizen in the back ground. In the fore is David La Spina. La Spina goes to Yale Art School and we constantly tease him and call him a "Yale Man" etc. If there's any issues about what color anything is, we bring him in, since he goes to Yale, he must know. We sometimes put one of those straw hats on his head and tell him to sing acapella. Yale people actually do that. Really. Go to one of their football games. I swear to god.



PARANOID @ NY FILM FESTIVAL: The SCREENING


Great fun seeing the movie again at the New York Film Festival. I liked it better the second time. Or at least I was able to watch it in a more normal way. It felt more like seeing a movie. Less anxious, etc. It was great.

The IFC people were great and gushed over me, which I never get used to. They sent me to the green room where there was free stuff and some people looking around to see who was coming in. I gotta soda and went back out and mingled in the hall. Gus Van Sant was chatting with a guy who it turned out was from Portland and was a student of my mom's. That's been one funny thing about all this. Gus went to the highschool my mom taught at and so I am constantly having the conversation with Gus's friends: "I remember yoour mom . . . ." etc.

After the screening Gus did a Q&A and I got called on to stand up and wave, and then later, when someone wanted to know why "Burnside Skate Park" had been renamed "Paranoid Park" when in actuality Paranoid Park was a different park in a different place, Gus tried to answer, then gave up and asked me to answer. From my seat I said: "Because it sounds cool."

Afterward I dragged my considerable entourage of Portland people to the afterparty at Beatrice Inn, which I had been walking by for ten years when I lived near there. But when we got inside it was a rockin' super cool party, that kind of blew our minds. Josh Hartnett was among the assembled though there were extremely cool looking and good looking people in every direction. The only bummer was the VIP area which I wandered into by mistake and which was just like the Green Room, a bunch of people sitting around anxiously waiting to see who would come in. They looked like they were in hell. Some people in my party made it to the dance floor which was seriously hopping. There's nothing like those old school, low ceilinged, cramped and sweaty little dance spots. So New York. All week I was telling people how great the party it was.


Tuesday, October 09, 2007
News From the New York Film Festival


There's some sort of problem with BLOGGER today so no pictures.

Nevertheless, today is the big day of the big screening at Paranoid Park, here at the New York Film festival. I have already got some early reports from the afternoon screening yesterday. Sorry I missed that. One thing I've learned in my limited film festival experience is that there's usually a less formal, earlier in the day screening before the big "main" one. And that one is a lot of fun too. Gus did a Q and A apparently and talked about the book and stuff, he has been exceding generous in giving me credit.

Anyway, in other news, THEY CAME FROM BELOW just got nominated as a "Best Book for Young Adults" by the American Library Association. That is really fun news. THEY CAME has had such an interesting life so far. It seems to really resonate with people.

Also, GIRL is going to be reissued in a new edition at the end of the month. Hopefully this BLOGGER glitch will be over and I can post a pic of the new cover.

Anyway, off I go with a contingent of Portland people (oddly enough. Will hopefully be able to share pics.


Saturday, October 06, 2007
New York Film Festival


Wasn't going to try to make the New York Film Festival for the Paranoid Screening, but at the last minute Simon Pulse called and wanted me to do some stuff to promote the new edition of GIRL which is released October 23.

Some other stuff had come up too so it seemed like a good time to head to New York. Very excited about the screening of the movie. Don't know much about how the NYFF works. I assume I don't need a tux, as I won't have one. It'll probably be pretty relaxed. Maybe I'll meet some IFC people. (They're the company distributing the film in the US.) That would be good. Business stuff. Wear the suit. Meet the people. That stuff is kind of soothing sometimes.

Also might try to meet with my colleagues at Alloy. They are the people who put the Gossip Girl series together. They are no doubt psyched about GOSSIP GIRL the TV show which is doing gangbusters I hear. I did Gender Blender with those guys and have a new book in the works with them.

(a guy named Mark, sent me this cool picture, via myspace.)