Lev Raphael's Blog, page 57

Somebody Left Downton Abbey's Cake Out in the Rain

Whatever happened to the witty, sparkling show that surprised and charmed so many of us when it first debuted? The champagne has gone completely flat.



Yesterday's two-hour snooze fest lacked drama and wit, taking its dour tone from Zombie Lady Mary. Most of the characters seemed to be sleep-walking through the episode -- or worse, acting like animatronic versions of themselves in a Yorkshire Disneyland.



Lord Grantham blustered and blundered. Big surprise.



Barrow plotted against another servant....

If Aaron Schock Is Really Gay, We'll Need Proof, Not Rumors

Writer Itay Hod apparently just "outed" GOP Congressman Aaron Schock on Facebook.



In case you don't know who Schock is, he's a model-handsome, uber-fit Illinois congressman who is vehemently anti-gay rights. So his being gay would be quite a story. Is it true?



Hod doesn't mention his name, but lays the clues out for us, and claims on Facebook that:

"a journalist for a reputable network, told [me] in no uncertain terms that he caught that GOP congressman and his male roommate in the shower... to...

Massive Michigan Power Outage Reveals Some People's Dark Side

In case you missed it somehow, half a million people in Michigan lost power this past week after a horrendous ice storm. Not only was it the Christmas season, but this was after 300,000 had lost power less than two months ago in another storm.



We were lucky at our house. Fifteen minutes into the crisis, we made a hotel reservation someplace where we could bring our dog, and were packing up our fridge and whatever else we thought we'd need. We helped out older neighbors in the next twenty-four...

There and Back Again: Rediscovering The Hobbit

I discovered The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings when I was around 11 or 12. My family had taken an inexpensive apartment in Far Rockaway for the summer, in a grey, ordinary two-story frame house with a sagging porch and lush honeysuckle growing on a trellis near the swing that was perfect for reading and dreaming. We had only a few rooms upstairs and shared a bathroom, but it was as far away from our apartment building in Washington Heights as I could ever remember going.



My father and older...

Has Scandal Jumped the Shark?

Last night Scandal turned into 24 and dumped torture porn on us Scandalistas.



We knew well enough that Huck enjoyed torturing people, had seen it in nasty detail. It's his drug, it makes him feel.



And in a bizarre bonding moment, he had shared that love with Quinn, who turned into a torture pervert, too. Her "conversion" wasn't surprising, since she had been so trapped and powerless early in the series and has often seemed to be suffering from PTSD; you could see how she would relish being in...

Book Group B.S.

The publishing industry is always pushing something new as the Holy Grail of promotion. Right now it's social media; a few years ago, it was being social: speaking to book groups via Skype or in person.



A colleague's recent bad experience with a book group reminded me of my own a few years back. I had toured extensively in the U.S. and abroad for many of my books, but hadn't done book groups based on what people in them told me they disliked: the gossip; naïvete and sometimes inane discussions...

Seven Signs You've OD'd on The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is one of the hottest shows on TV, drawing almost as many viewers for its season four opening as NCIS.



The show is seeping into our culture and our lives in unexpected ways -- which means that it may have turned you without your being fully aware. Here are some telltale signs:



You keep looking up recipes for tripe on-line.



The first thing you say when somebody new is introduced on any TV show is, "Stab 'em in the head!"



You make raspy zombie noises sneaking up on your spouse.



You...

Seven Signs You're a True Fan of The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is one of the hottest shows on TV, drawing almost as many viewers for its season four opening as NCIS.



The show is seeping into our culture and our lives in unexpected ways -- which means that it may have turned you without your being fully aware. Here are some telltale signs:



You keep looking up recipes for tripe on-line.



The first thing you say when somebody new is introduced on any TV show is, "Stab 'em in the head!"



You make raspy zombie noises sneaking up on your spouse.



You...

Who Says Writers Have to Write Every Day?

Lots of authors worry about the number of words they write per day. Some even post the tally on Facebook as if they're in some kind of competition.



And if they're not writing at least 500 or 1200 or 2000 words or whatever quota they've set, they feel miserable. Why aren't they working harder? Why are they stuck? What's wrong with them? How come everyone else is racking up the pages?



If that kind of system works for you, fine. But I think too many writers believe that if they're not actually phy...

Where You Live Might Change Your Writing Career

Writers and other publishing types love to give new writers advice about how to be successful. I find these columns and blogs in my Facebook feed at least daily if not more often.



But there's one subject they never mention: location.



Despite the Internet, despite Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Tumblr and all the rest of the ways to reach, create, and seduce fans, where you park your laptop can be as important as what you write and how you promote yourself. Publishers are gaga about social media,...