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I wrote previously on the subject of the proposals by book publishers to place age-related guidance information on book covers, and was heartened to have a kind comment on that post from Alan Garner for my trouble, something that indicated that the importance of the web presence was being recognised and utilised by the ranks of writers, librarians and readers massing against these proposals.

Today I have received a mass email from Philip Pullman, detailing his unofficial minutes for a meeting that took place this last Thursday between himself and various publishers’ representatives.  I’m loath to reprint that email (or parts thereof) as it is, first and foremost, an email possibly not meant for public dissemination; secondly, the official minutes of the meeting are pending and will, presumably, be made publicly available.  And, as the email states, it is Pullman’s recollection of the meeting, and may be prone to faults of memory.

However, the mail contains a short, mutually-agreed upon statement that it seems fair to print here, which is this:

‘At a meeting involving The Publishers Association, the Society of Authors, and Philip Pullman (on behalf of the signatories of the online statement), the publishers were happy to confirm that there has been, and remains, no question of age guidance being added to a book without full consultation with the author. The remaining point of difference, which is to be considered further, was that those speaking for authors feel strongly that authors should have the right to refuse to have age guidance on their books.’

Now, it doesn’t take a detailed reading of the above to see that the publishers haven’t really agreed to anything with this statement, beyond that they will consult the author on their opinion, and that they will not concede the right of the author to refuse to have their books rated.

So, if you haven’t already added your voice to the debate, the petition is here, which page also contains an email address for adding your name to the petition.  If you have children, and you would like them to grow up in a country where their reading habits and abilities aren’t handily dictated to them, you should probably give it a look.

Excellent London Review Of Books article on Philip K. Dick from Stephen Burt to be found here.

It’s a thorough and objective account, spanning Dick’s entire career, perfect for the novice, entertaining enough for the fan.

The first issue of Rol Hirst’s PJANG! (”People Just Ain’t No Good”) is now available, featuring a selection of stories to illustrate the truism of the title.

All stories are written by Rol, and are drawn by Tony McGee, Kelvin Green and me, with a cover from Nigel Lowrey.

Best of all, this is a properly printed comic, in a proper comic size (so it was lucky that I drew my story on A3 paper, eh?) and looks very much ‘the business’.

PJANG! is £1.75 and there is a lovely Paypal button here.

Big Brother does not like you watching him. Courtesy of Nobody’s Business.

Stan Winston, the special effects artist and pioneer (Aliens, Jurassic Park, Edward Scissorhands and the Terminator movies, amongst many, many others) has died after a long battle with cancer.  His most recently seen work includes Iron Man and Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.

In these days of dull and poorly executed CGI, the loss of a creative artist of Winston’s calibre seems to place a definitive distance marker to the time when model-making and prosthetic effects created with artistry and ingenuity were the best ways to create a suspension of disbelief as well as an appreciation for the craft in the audience.

Stan Winston’s website features information and tours for all of the studio’s output over the years.

A bit of e-flummery, courtesy of Nick. 

1 - Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to Random quotations: http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

If you want to do this again, you’ll hit refresh to generate new quotes, because clicking the quotes link again will just give you the same quotes over and over again.

3 - Go to flickr’s “explore the last seven days” http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

Put it all together, that’s your debut album.

I end up with this:

In the last few weeks, people more organised than I have posted reviews for the latest issue of West about the internet.  Links are below.  When I get organised, I plan to review a few comics which I bought recently.

Comic Creators’ Guild.

Indie Review.

Sunset Over Slawit.

Nixsight.

The idiots ‘in charge’ are now proposing that children’s books be branded with age-specific restrictions on the covers.  This is, of course, woolly-headed thinking of the first order that will limit the breadth of material available to children: at best, children will be stigmatised for reading below their age; at worst, they may be restricted from reading above their age.  My son was reading Stephen King at 12, my daughter, now 7, is attempting her first Narnia book - this sort of thing will be advised against under these new guidelines.  And if recent years have taught us anything, it’s that things ‘advised against’ have a tendency to become things that are banned.

Obviously, if my children wish to read books that libraries and booksellers refuse to supply, I will obtain these books for them.  That’s a quick-fix and one I consider well within the rights of both me and my children.  But it doesn’t address the idea that age-restrictions imposed on books will be seen as a thin edge of a wedge that could introduce a level of censorship into the author’s work (if only on the level that a book could be edited to appeal to a lower demographic where it might sell more copies).

Check out this site where industry professionals are establishing some sort of a beachhead against the proposals.  Linked to that page (or here, if you want to cut right to the chase), is a supporters’ page, a list of names - including Philip Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson and Alan Garner, amongst many others - publicly opposing the concept of age-restrictions on children’s books.  Don’t be put off by the list of writers, publishers and librarians featured; they seem to take names from all walks of life, and I’ve added my name to the list as a parent and reader.

“There are no old gods,” he said, “only young worshippers.”  The room smelled of chalk dust; pale motes simmered in the meagre beams of sunlight struggling through the blinds.  He left his words in the air, as if expectant of applause.  The thin timbre of his voice echoed into silence within the walls.  Someone in the back row coughed lightly into their fist, and papers shuffled like brittle wings.  Far away, past the gardens and through the trees, the bell in the tower tolled languidly.  Somewhere, it was time.

This week’s story for Elephant Words is now up and can be read here.  It’s based on the picture below, submitted by Xander, taken by Melanie Cook.

So, due to myself and Elephant Words creator Nick living in slightly different time zones, it appears that I was not supposed to be filling in for Rol Hirst this week and next, but rather next week and the week after that.  Nick writes really well, but with the numbers, not so much…

This means that Rol’s story for Thursday is being bumped to Sunday as an extra special bonus story, making our cock-up into a special feature!  Also, that I’m now writing three stories instead of two and disappointing even more Rol fans who pop by the site for glimmering Rolness and get some of my death-laden gibberish instead.