Martyn @martynpedler@mastodon.social

By way of #introduction here's a piece of mine on mental illness, Gotham City, and whether or not Batman can have compassion for his enemies. https://neotextreview.com/culture/residents-of-a-serious-house-a-reflection-on-the-fine-line-between-illness-and-madness-in-gotham/

The real genius of Neil Gaiman's writing in SANDMAN is that he created something broad enough to hold basically any story he wanted to tell.

#sandman #comics #writing

I like Ti West's movies, but – despite some great sequences – was a little underwhelmed by X. It was somehow less than the sum of its parts? And I'm not sure the dual role for the lead added anything to the film.

A very short story of mine, inspired by Elon Musk's neuralink experiments.

https://martynpedler.com/a-little-hammer/

#fiction #scifi

Zoom meetings with multiple producers are like high-stakes Brady Bunch credits.

Kathryn Bigelow made STRANGE DAYS in 1995 and it's set in 1999. Four years made all the difference back then.

#movies #scifi

As some who named their dog Ace after Ace the Bat-Hound, it's oddly emotional to see these scenes of a baby Ace being found by the Joker. (Don't worry, he'll be rescued by Batman eventually.)

I've been thinking about how everyone has a different limit for "feeling lost" in a movie or book. I usually find it kind of enjoyable, so long as the confusion lifts a little by the end; some people seem to hate it, like the story is trying to make them feel stupid...

#movies #books #lost

Getting comic pages back for an upcoming project and it's hugely exciting. Is this why comic writers do it? (It can't be the money.)

#writing #comics

Blushing is such a betrayal. Even your own body is embarrassed for you.

I've only been here for a week and so far I'd say the biggest difference from Twitter is... more sincerity?

There's an old joke about a writer and a producer lost in the desert. Finally they see an oasis with cool, clear water. The producer immediately pisses in the water. "What are you doing?" cries the writer. "I'm improving it!" says the producer.

Which is a long way of explaining how satisfying it is to go back through an old screenplay and strip out all the changes that were demanded for one reason or another.

#writing #screenplay #drafting

The weird day or two after finishing a major creative project. What do I do now? Clean?

I'm a big fan of Jeff VanderMeer, but I have to admit that DEAD ASTRONAUTS may have out-weirded me. It's very well written but feels more like poetry than prose.

#books #weird

My god. I just finished the second draft of a novel. Keeping so many things in your head at once is like spinning plates while serving dinner on them.

#writing

Watched CABARET (1971) again for the first time in years and it remains a stone-cold masterpiece. Bob Fosse only directed a handful of movies, but between this and ALL THAT JAZZ (1979)? Man.

#movies #musicals

I've long been shocked that Swamp Thing #comics aren't making more of – you know – the whole climate apocalypse going on? But adding a Parliament of Gears to represent "industrial horror" is a great move.

I was a goth but I was never THIS goth.

https://lithub.com/apparently-the-brontes-all-died-so-early-because-they-spent-their-lives-drinking-graveyard-water/

I know things are awful right now, but if we can get through the popularity of flashmobs, we can get through this.

While I've been #writing some bigger projects, I've been maintaining my calm with #flashfiction – mostly published by Ahoy Comics. You can read it all here, along with some bite-sized ghost stories and short eulogies for everyone who died in the Steven Seagal movie UNDER SIEGE. Hope you enjoy!

https://martynpedler.com/category/fiction/

“You must be prepared to work always without applause.” I'm not the world's biggest Hemingway fan but this is a hell of a quote.