For this to make more sense: see my previous Blog entry.

I’ve known for a while now that The Dresden Files was being made into a TV series on the Sci-Fi channel, and I’ve had mixed feelings about it. Mostly I’m excited, but there is that little devil on my shoulder that tells me this is too good to be true; obviously, since it’s the Sci-Fi channel, they are going to find a way to screw it up. But the author visited the set, and reviewed the storyline that the series writers and the director (who he said listened to his suggestions) have and gave it the ol’ thumbs up, and he has a lot more ridding on this series success than I do.

As the series gets closer to air date, I get more and more anxious about it. Something happened yesterday to remove some of that angst; I walked into my local comic shop (yes I am a huge comic book geek) and there on the shelf sat Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter. It wasn’t one of the novels, it was a comic book of the first story.

I picked it up, read it, and s#!t myself. It was fantastic! The art was great (detailed, but not overly realistic like some recent comics), and the story followed the spirit (if not the exact letter) of the novel.

I now have an example of a media crossover series that doesn’t just not suck, it rocks. There is no reason to assume that the same thing will happen with the Dresden Files, since there are completely different people working on that project, but I have hope now. That’s more than I allowed myself before.

I like to read. A lot. And I feel like sharing. (I can't believe TV.com doesn't have an Entertainment or Books category.)

Mostly I read series books, since they generally offer more character development than the standard novel. Specify I mostly read modern world (some post-modern) fantasy, military/colonial sci-fi, and some historical fiction; stuff that, on the surface at least, has little to do with normal life and offers some escapism. I used to read straight fantasy, but the series I used to read went down hill. My two favorite series of all time are Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter, and the Dresden Files.

AB:VH was a very good modern world vampire fiction, which has, unfortunately, devolved into almost pure fem porn in prose form in the last five books. It was a 9.5 out of 10, now it’s a 7.5 out of 10; still very readable, but flawed. The Author of the books is Laurell K. Hamilton

The Dresden Files is a series that follows modern day Wizard, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, in his private investigator business as he solves magical crime while getting the crap beat out of himself. Best. Novel. Series. Ever. The novels get exponentially better, and I know of no one who has read the novels and didn't like them. An “Oh my f!#&ing God!” out of 10. Jim Butcher (the author) is a god. The first book is called Storm Front (first chapter).

I also like E.E. Knight’s Vampire Earth (9 out of 10), David Weber’s Honor Harrington (9 to 7.5 depending on the book), the Bedlam’s Bard series by Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill (9 out of 10), Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean Auel (first two books 9.5 out of 10), Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson (9.75 out of 10), Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow (9.75 out of 10), and Chimera by Will Shetterly (9 out of 10). I read other series, but either they aren’t my very favorites (Weather Warden, Codex Alera), are already extremely popular (Harry Potter, LOTR), or they completely stopped being good (Wheel of Time, Dragon Riders of Pern).

Does anyone else have any favorites that I didn’t mention?

Fan-fiction, the freakish child of fandom, is at it’s worst a fouling of beloved characters or an incoherent mess. At it’s best it is a continuation in sprit of an adored fiction, or an examination of that fiction in a different vein; it has even, on rare occasions surpassed the art it is attempting to imitate. Like most things, specific examples of fan-fiction often fall between these two points, but more often closer to the less positive side of the spectrum.

Time, energy, luck, and not a small amount of persistence must be employed in order to wade through the considerable rough in order to find the diamonds within. Some say that his toil is worth the pay-off; that a single exemplary piece of work can make hours or days of searching worthwhile. These adherents also claim that the task of searching for good fan-fiction is getting easier; first with the emergence of the internet, then the increased popularity of fan-fiction archive sites, and now the advent of communities surrounding those sites so that fans of various stories can share those rare gems with each other. However most fond that the cost in time and energy, which cannot be replaced, is to great a cost for the fleeting time that a good story allows, and that the amount of trash fan-fiction that must be wadded trough to find a decent example is too great.

More and more I find myself falling into the second camp as my responsibilities increase. I still read the few stories that I discovered in the past that are still continuing, and check what my favorite authors are writing. Unfortunately, the rate at which my favorite stories are abandoned, degenerate into exercises in self torture, or become completed (all of which lead to less active fan-fiction that I follow) far outstrips my acquisition rate of new authors and stories. Unless things change, I will be abandoning fan-fiction altogether shortly, and I find myself thinking that I will be poorer for it. Those few shining examples of penmanship helped me through some rough times, and helped me to know the difference between superb and just passable writing. I find myself nostalgic.

In the spirit of the fan-fiction enthusiast, the following are the best fan-fictions that I have ever read:

Ranma ½ fan-fiction: Avenging, by D.B. Sommer, Shadow of Ranma by Kyokukou, Comes the Cold Dragon by Donald Lee Granberry, Honour and Pride by Beer-Monster, Eldritch Asylum by obsidian-fox, Careful Destiny by Lorien, Ah! My Ranma ½! by Dreamweaver4121, and Hearts of Ice by Krista Perry

Firefly: The Blue Sun Job by Guildsister, and Flying Lessons by Izhilzha

Teen Titians (animated show): Path to Tamaran by Adament Eve

Spider-man (movie): Just a Face on a Train by Katheryne

DC comics: Wally and Kyle: Two Friends by Darth Yoshi