Speaking With a Man of Rohan

Special thanks to actor and MC extraordinaire Bruce Hopkins for the wonderful radio interview on his RadioLive show!

You would probably know Bruce best for his role as Gamling in The Lord of the Rings films. As a complete Tolkien nerd, I must confess that the most difficult part of the interview was restraining myself from geeking out because I was speaking with a valiant Man of Rohan! (Don’t judge me.)

Bruce, I’m pleased for the opportunity to speak with one of Rebecca’s dear friends, and it was a pleasure chatting with you. I truly appreciate it. Cheers!

Howard Lovecraft and the Undersea Kingdom

The advance reviews have been flying in, and they have been fabulous. In case you missed them, I have posted a few select links below:

Comics Worth Reading

Blog Critics

CBR’s Robot6

Chicago Comic Vault

The Outhousers

Howard Lovecraft and the Undersea Kingdom will be released in March, but if you simply cannot wait to get your tentacles on it–or you prefer digital comics–it is also available for download at ComiXology.

It’s not too late to pre-order your copies from your local comic, book, and online dealers. Bruce Brown and I would love to make a third book, but, as with all indie comics, we are completely dependent upon you: the dear reader. So please pre-order your copies today and recommend the book to friends, family, and enemies (hey, why not?) so we can continue to chronicle the weird adventures of Howard and Spot. Oh, and Beastie, too.

-D

Gormen–What or: How Dwight Learned to Love Mervyn Peake

Okay, I’ll admit it: I’d never heard of Gormenghast.

My wife Rebecca and I had an extensive conversation about great fantasy series one evening when she mentioned this classic–though widely overlooked–trilogy.

“What is Gormenghast?” I asked. She responded, “It’s a big book of words.”

Needless to say, I was intrigued. After all, aren’t all books tapestries of written words?

After delving into the first book in the series, Titus Groan, I could see what she meant. Author Mervyn Peake is a master of description, carefully choosing every adjective and adverb with great precision and loving care. His descriptive language alone makes this trilogy well worth reading.

After my disgust with Patrick Rothfuss’ trainwreck of a follow-up to The Name of the Wind, this is a welcome change of pace. This is a timeless classic I can pass along to my children–or even recommend to my parents and friends.

-Dwight

The Last Word

If you have not read the Gormenghast series yet, it is a three book (Titus Groan, Gormenghast and Titus Alone) series devoted to the strange world of the Groans, staid monarchs in a fictional castle-kingdom (literally). The everyday duties and chores of the servants–and of almost every other person in Gormenghast, for that matter–is described in painstaking detail throughout the series.

I’ve always felt the subjects of the books were metaphors for life and how we perceive it, and how we live it.

BBC produced a splendid Gormenghast miniseries and really got the books. The sets and costumes were exactly as I had imagined, and Jonathan Rhys Meyers was a superb choice for Steerpike.

Gormenghast by Alan Lee

There are many artists who have attempted to illustrate Gormenghast, but my favorite by far is Alan Lee. I love his revelation of the vastness of the castle and the endless hallways and corridors of this cyclopean castle.

Back when I was working press with Bruce Hopkins (Gamling) and Craig Parker (Haldir) of The Lord of the Rings films, I was actually able to meet Alan and tell him how much I admired his work. Good times.

So there you have it.

-Rebecca