Hey! Who Asked About Us at Balticon? Was It You?

Hi.

I wasn't able to make it to this year's edition of Balticon, the Baltimore-Washington area's premier s-f blowout, but through the generosity of one of my partners-in-crime (yes, you, Sharon Van Blarcom, thank you!), a bunch of Times lanyards and fliers did make the show, as did the show's biggest supporter, my wife Cindy, as she was producing a live gig there for the Prometheus bunch.

So Cindy gets home from the con last night, and she tells me that:
- Out of the 125 or so Times lanyards I gave Sharon on Friday, five were left;
- There were "a few" Times fliers left for the flier table;
- One person remarked that the concept was one he hadn't heard of before for superhero stories; and
- Someone we didn't know at all actually asked Steve Wilson, "When's the next SuperHuman Times episode coming on?"

Figures that the cons I miss are the ones where people talk about the show.

Anyway, if you took a lanyard/flier/both at Balticon, and/or were curious enough to hit the website or MySpace page for more information: Welcome! And in case you were the one who asked: the next episode, "Servant Problem," should hit the 'net in a few short weeks (and I'm overestimating because I want to help Steve maintain his rep as a miracle worker; he's probably already finished it).

Next: I'm set on finishing a one-shot by July 4th, followed by a vacation in August, then proceeding to the next multi-parter -- one I've been waiting to write literally since the beginning of Times.

Hope your summer's just as much fun, and that you'll spend part of it listening to our show.

-- L.

Farpoint: Preparations & Plugs

Things are usually hectic around here before Farpoint because Cindy's getting ready for the convention's Art Show (which she runs), while we simultaneously celebrate our son Greg's birthday (he's 7 years old today, and seems to add a year every February around this time). This year is even more hectic because I've been making the promotional materials for the podcast.

One of the linchpins of the whole "campaign" arrived today: the lanyards. Gorgeous yellow lanyards with the logos of the show and Prometheus on them. They cost a good chunk of change. I'm giving them away to spread the word about the show. I'm an idiot. I'm also desperate. Between those, the fliers, the stickers and the podcast panels, the word should be adequately spread. We'll know one way or the other if it works if listenership to the pilot increases after the con.

No matter how the lanyards fare, I urge you to check out www.lowcostlanyards.com if you have similar needs. Warning: The lanyards are made in China, so if you need them in a hurry or have political leanings against doing business with that nation (I didn't know that's where they were being made until they shipped), go elsewhere. Otherwise, their sales reps (located in this country) are first-rate, so on that basis I recommend their service highly.

Speaking of the con, let me toss in a couple of courtesy plugs here for some fellow podcasters I'll be hanging with this weekend. I've just been introduced to their work and it's worth sharing.

- Jared Axelrod is the highly impressive master of The Voice of Free Planet X on libsyn.com, which also hosts Prometheus' shows. To call what he presents dramatic readings would be an understatement and disservice. Using words and music and precious little time, he creates -- no, becomes -- complete characters and worlds. I've heard only two stories from his site so far -- "What Mechanics Do" and "Saturn Swallows Its Children Whole" (performed by his equally talented partner in crime JR Blackwell, of Voices of Tomorrow). I get to open the podcasting panel with him at 10:00 on Saturday morning. I doubt I'll be as impressive. Hell, I doubt I'll be awake.

- Tee Morris is an accomplished podcaster, writer and actor whose talents are constantly on display at his nifty website, TeeMorris.com. When I heard the prologue from one of his major works, MOREVI: The Chronicles of Rafe & Askana, it conjured images of Captain Blood as if it were painted by the Brothers Hildebrandt. Your visions may differ, but the important thing is: it conjures images, which is always the sign of a good storyteller. I'll be staffing the podcasters' table with Tee on Saturday morning, but if you go, you'll probably see him there throughout the weekend. Steve tells me he's a tireless self-promoter in the best possible way. Stop by and find out.

One last Farpoint-related callout: my thanks to my pal Marc B. Lee for singling me out to potential attendees as a convention guest (or, to use his questionable estimation, "writer extraordinaire"). I knew I had a purpose in life.

While I try to figure out what it is, I'll go back to work. Lanyards, lanyards, lanyards...

-- L.