Julien Mayfair
An extraordinarily powerful warlock, strikingly handsome, bisexual, Mardi Gras enthusiast, dandy, bibliophile, descendant of Petyr Von Abel, lover of his sister Katherine, later his niece Mary Beth, and a man fifty-odd years his junior.
Among his many gifts were an ability to bilocate, and to show himself at any age he chose. He rode a chestnut mare up St. Charles Avenue even into old age, and taught sonnets to the children of Storyville ladies he visited. Divoon!
Brad Pitt...
Definately.
Definately.
The new book is fun. It's alot like "The Witching Hour". (my fave) It has ghosts, witches and spooks as well as vampires! The main character has gay sex with himself and has panic attacks. It has New Orleans, Julien Mayfair, The Talamasca, Lestat, Mona Mayfair, an ancient Italian vampire, Rowan Mayfair, Michael Curry and did I mention that the main character has gay sex with himself?
I adore Anne Rice, and can't wait to read the new one. However, the guy who has gay sex with himself is not that exciting. I have gay sex with myself all the time. Technically speaking, I am a girl having sex with me, a girl. I don't talk to myself or anything, though. And I do usually roll over and fall asleep or just get up and leave when I 'm done. I'm such a pig. 
I don't want to give away too much but this is different.
I was teasing.
I FINALLY have gotten around to reading Blackwood Farm, Im about halfway done with it but it is definately among her great books, and a must for Rice Queens everywhere because it takes over the whole Mayfair/Talamasca threads that were so strong in The Witching Hour through Taltos, as well as updating Lestat and more of the Vamp Chronicles bunch.
The book is much more epic and developed than recent works, the writing more consistent and the new dynasty- The Blackwoods - filled with great new characters.
Highest recommendation - but dont even think of reading it without The Witching Hour first (and hopefully Lasher and Taltos too.)
The book is much more epic and developed than recent works, the writing more consistent and the new dynasty- The Blackwoods - filled with great new characters.
Highest recommendation - but dont even think of reading it without The Witching Hour first (and hopefully Lasher and Taltos too.)
ANNE GETS HER BITCH ON FOR THE MEDDLING RICE PICKERS !!!
Those Amazon.com critics trashing her latest book best be careful .... she might hex 'em! Check out the photo -- Love her quietly seething rage.
Those Amazon.com critics trashing her latest book best be careful .... she might hex 'em! Check out the photo -- Love her quietly seething rage.
quote:
The People Have Spoken, and Rice Takes Offense
By SARAH LYALL
Published: October 11, 2004
The New York Times
Lestat, the vampire narrator of Anne Rice's most recent book, "Blood Canticle,'' begins the novel with a harangue against its readers. "What the hell happened when I gave you 'Memnoch the Devil?' " he asks crossly, referring to an earlier novel by Ms. Rice that some readers, to put it mildly, did not like. "You complained!"
Many people did not care much for "Blood Canticle" (Knopf) either, as Ms. Rice found to her mounting horror when she began scrolling through dozens of virulently negative reviews of the book on Amazon.com.
"I cannot stress to you how bad this book is, and I have been waiting for it for so long!'' wrote a reviewer from California.
Wrote another reviewer, "I have read almost every one of Anne Rice's novels, and I have to say this is the worst one.''
A third was more specific. " 'Blood Canticle's' biggest problem,'' that reviewer said, "is that it is seriously lacking in creative writing, sense of continuity and character development.''
Ms. Rice, the best-selling author of 25 books, including the lush and original "Interview With the Vampire,'' has a passionate following and an unusually intimate relationship with her audience. She reacted to the criticism with shock and horror, although when the positive and negative reviews were averaged, Amazon gave "Blood Canticle" three stars out of five.
Many authors are upset by the snide tone of some Amazon reviews; Ms. Rice decided to do something about it. She posted a blistering 1,200-word defense of her book on the site, laying in to those critics who, she said, were "interrogating this text from the wrong perspective."
"Your stupid, arrogant assumptions about me and what I am doing are slander,'' she wrote. "You have used the site as if it were a public urinal to publish falsehood and lies.''
Ms. Rice seemed particularly incensed by reviewers who implied that she had not worked hard on the book, the 10th in her "Vampire Chronicles'' series, or that she had written it merely to fulfill a "contractual obligation,'' as one reviewer said.
Nor was she thrilled by the suggestion - often made by people who adored earlier books in the series but said they felt that the quality had deteriorated - that "Blood Canticle" might have benefited from some tough love. "Anne, you really should have an editor, or at least someone that would read your book before you send it off to print,'' one reviewer wrote.
No way, Ms. Rice replied.
"I have no intention of allowing any editor ever to distort, cut or otherwise mutilate sentences that I have edited and re-edited, and organized and polished myself,'' she wrote. "I fought a great battle to achieve a status where I did not have to put up with editors making demands on me.''
In a telephone interview, Ms. Rice elaborated on the point.
"People who find fault and problems with my books tend to say, 'She needs an editor,' '' Ms. Rice said. "When a person writes with such care and goes over and over a manuscript and wants every word to be perfect, it's very frustrating.''
She added: "When you take home a CD of Pavarotti or Marilyn Horne, you don't want to hear another voice blended in. I feel the same way about Hemingway. If I read it, I don't want to read a new edited version.''
Writers like Ms. Rice, who produce many books and consistently bring in a great deal of money for their publishers, are often given far wider editorial latitude than other authors. Ms. Rice has been a best seller for Knopf since 1976, when it published "Interview With the Vampire.''
Later Rice books have not done as well as "Interview,'' but they still sell about a half-million copies apiece in hardcover, said Paul Bogaards, a Knopf spokesman. He said that "Blood Canticle'' had sold about 375,000 hardcover copies and that Ms. Rice always "has a built-in audience waiting for her next novel."
An executive at a rival publishing house, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said publishers often took a hands-off editorial approach with stars like Ms. Rice and Stephen King, another prolific, best-selling author, particularly as their careers matured. "Ultimately it's the author's book,'' the executive said. "With an author of a certain stature, they're the artist; we're the amanuensis.''
Ms. Rice said that she had been moved to respond to the Amazon postings because many of them included personal attacks on her health; on her state of mind since the death in 2002 of her husband, Stan; and on her writing ability. She said that she received hundreds of e-mail messages of support, many from writers with their own stories of being "savaged and trashed'' on Amazon.
Although reviews of "Blood Canticle'' were not universally glowing, Ms. Rice said she was pleased with the book, and a number of readers gave it lavish praise on Amazon.
"She has such a built-in fan base; that's why controversy ensued,'' said Sessalee Hensley, the fiction buyer at Barnes & Noble, where, Ms. Hensley said, "Blood Canticle" had sold 20 percent more copies than Ms. Rice's previous vampire book, "Blackwood Farm."
"Everyone is so passionately involved that if, for instance, it's not the way they thought Lestat would act, they are going to say 'It's the worst book I ever read,' '' Ms. Hensley said.
Ms. Rice said that her work was headed in a new direction and that "Blood Canticle'' was definitely the end of the vampire series. "Yes, the 'Chronicles' are no more!'' she wrote in her Amazon posting. "Thank God!''
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Yes 'thank God' the diarreah is over.
A bloodie editor is precisely what she needs. But then the books would only be half as long, and sell for alot less.
"Your stupid, arrogant assumptions about me and what I am doing are slander,'' she wrote. "You have used the site as if it were a public urinal to publish falsehood and lies.''
See the overwriting at work!
"me and what I am doing"
"as if it were"
"public urinal"
"falsehood and lies"
All of it redundant. Hire me now!
Stan's Edit:
"Your arrogant assumptions concerning my work slander me. In publishing such lies, you have used Amazon.com as a urinal."
A bloodie editor is precisely what she needs. But then the books would only be half as long, and sell for alot less.
"Your stupid, arrogant assumptions about me and what I am doing are slander,'' she wrote. "You have used the site as if it were a public urinal to publish falsehood and lies.''
See the overwriting at work!
"me and what I am doing"
"as if it were"
"public urinal"
"falsehood and lies"
All of it redundant. Hire me now!
Stan's Edit:
"Your arrogant assumptions concerning my work slander me. In publishing such lies, you have used Amazon.com as a urinal."
Lex's version:
"Not only are your arrogant assumptions about my work false, but you have used Amazon.com as a urinal to publish slander."
As attractive as the word "urinal" is, I don't think it's the real point of the sentence. I would let the reader hear "slander" or "lies" last, since that's the real incendiary bomb she's trying to drop. But perhaps my version compromises her voice too much, as Ms. Rice contends no editor should. Maybe it sounds too much like me talking. Oh well. I'm content to let her ramble on in any case. (what do I know? My writing hasn't sold a penny .... yet) I love how outspoken she is.
"Not only are your arrogant assumptions about my work false, but you have used Amazon.com as a urinal to publish slander."
As attractive as the word "urinal" is, I don't think it's the real point of the sentence. I would let the reader hear "slander" or "lies" last, since that's the real incendiary bomb she's trying to drop. But perhaps my version compromises her voice too much, as Ms. Rice contends no editor should. Maybe it sounds too much like me talking. Oh well. I'm content to let her ramble on in any case. (what do I know? My writing hasn't sold a penny .... yet) I love how outspoken she is.
You better work "Queen of the Damned"!!!
I love Anne Rice but I have to agree, she needs you.
Daddy's edit:
"Your stupid, arrogant assumptions...
fuck you!"
I love Anne Rice but I have to agree, she needs you.
Daddy's edit:
"Your stupid, arrogant assumptions...
fuck you!"
Agreed S'tan... I have to admit I am fascinated by this whole thing. So fascinated, in fact, that I, too, actually looked up her response on Amazon.com.
In it she likens her writing to a "virtuoso performance." That is simply hogwash from an over-stroked ego. Very few artists have the strength of a Picasso to edit themselves.
Another part of the problem of course is that she has dug her own grave by creating the Vampire Chronicles in the first place-- thereby doubly inviting those "it's not as good as" comparisons.
Another oddity from her post:
"And you have strained my Dickensean principles to the max. I'm justifiably proud of being read by intellectual giants and waitresses in trailer parks,in fact, I love it, but who in the world are you?"
The word Dickensian (spelled like that, Anne,) I believe is generally used as an adjective describing the social and economic conditions illustrated in a Dickens novel. As in, "The working conditions at K-Mart were almost Dickensian-- employees were paid a substandard wage and not permitted to use restroom facilities during working hours."
Rice, however, uses the word in a new way-- touting the fact that she, like Dickens with his serialized offerings, is read and appreciated by prince and pauper alike.
An editor, indeed...
I love also how she almost demands that everyone contact her not only by email, but at her very home address. And offers to personally refund the price of the book if any reader is dissatified. Nuts!
The picture is gorrrrrgeous though!
In it she likens her writing to a "virtuoso performance." That is simply hogwash from an over-stroked ego. Very few artists have the strength of a Picasso to edit themselves.
Another part of the problem of course is that she has dug her own grave by creating the Vampire Chronicles in the first place-- thereby doubly inviting those "it's not as good as" comparisons.
Another oddity from her post:
"And you have strained my Dickensean principles to the max. I'm justifiably proud of being read by intellectual giants and waitresses in trailer parks,in fact, I love it, but who in the world are you?"
The word Dickensian (spelled like that, Anne,) I believe is generally used as an adjective describing the social and economic conditions illustrated in a Dickens novel. As in, "The working conditions at K-Mart were almost Dickensian-- employees were paid a substandard wage and not permitted to use restroom facilities during working hours."
Rice, however, uses the word in a new way-- touting the fact that she, like Dickens with his serialized offerings, is read and appreciated by prince and pauper alike.
An editor, indeed...
I love also how she almost demands that everyone contact her not only by email, but at her very home address. And offers to personally refund the price of the book if any reader is dissatified. Nuts!
The picture is gorrrrrgeous though!
Hatches I went into Amazon.com too, to try to read that stuff and couldn't locate it. Can you tell me where to go, hons?
Love your comments... Anne's "Dickensian" principles in truth put her on the side of the bad guys in those novels - the rich folk, who run industries that trample the little guys!
Lexx your edit works 'cause you made it all one sentence; concision is her #1 problem. Putting 'slander' at the end of the sentence is better too, as I agree her use of "urinal" is a dangling metaphor she doesn't work well enough. She ought to have yellowed up her vitriol with 'spew' 'rank' 'gush' or 'stinking' etc. to bring it all up to a grand smelly displeasure.
Calling even a few of her fans "stupid" because they dare to criticise her is another aspect of a mentality that's suspect. She reminds me of these wannabee Dominatrices on Max Fisch who announce they are 'the greatest' and the 'most beautiful.' Just because you say it's so doesn't make it so. Giant paychecks notwithstanding!
Her saying she has 'achieved the status' of NOT being edited shows she's deep in the adolescent fantasy that she is some kind of 'perfect' artist. I feel being an author, even a great one, isn't something you 'achieve' and then that's that. Like being an athlete, dancer, or musician, it's a craft with a phalanx of muscles. We do sadly deteriorate with age and disuse and have to work hard to keep it all humming.
If even one of your lowly fans dares to make a suggestion, you should at least pretend to give them a hearing. I believe that is only gracious. Hundreds of folk on a website all saying the same thing ought to make some dent in her armour. I do not admire her raving nastiness.
Concerning editors however, I think one of the worst problems in this day and age is not so much that big ol' hogs like King and Beans n'Rice aren't edited... but NOBODY much is being edited. I've asked whenever I have the opportunity if someone knows of a nice, decent hard-ass editor at some publishing house who would like to read something pretty good, and work with me on it! To the end of being published. But such a thing as an in-house workng editor just doesn't seem to exist anymore. Even the small press who most recently published me told me "We never edit anyone." I think that blows.
Not editing the big ol' whales is doing their posterity a disservice. These gross things won't be republished 100 years from now, or, sorry to say Beanie, you'll be edited down for anthologies, to pleasure the even shorter attention spans of the mutant readers of the 2100s.
Love your comments... Anne's "Dickensian" principles in truth put her on the side of the bad guys in those novels - the rich folk, who run industries that trample the little guys!
Lexx your edit works 'cause you made it all one sentence; concision is her #1 problem. Putting 'slander' at the end of the sentence is better too, as I agree her use of "urinal" is a dangling metaphor she doesn't work well enough. She ought to have yellowed up her vitriol with 'spew' 'rank' 'gush' or 'stinking' etc. to bring it all up to a grand smelly displeasure.
Calling even a few of her fans "stupid" because they dare to criticise her is another aspect of a mentality that's suspect. She reminds me of these wannabee Dominatrices on Max Fisch who announce they are 'the greatest' and the 'most beautiful.' Just because you say it's so doesn't make it so. Giant paychecks notwithstanding!
Her saying she has 'achieved the status' of NOT being edited shows she's deep in the adolescent fantasy that she is some kind of 'perfect' artist. I feel being an author, even a great one, isn't something you 'achieve' and then that's that. Like being an athlete, dancer, or musician, it's a craft with a phalanx of muscles. We do sadly deteriorate with age and disuse and have to work hard to keep it all humming.
If even one of your lowly fans dares to make a suggestion, you should at least pretend to give them a hearing. I believe that is only gracious. Hundreds of folk on a website all saying the same thing ought to make some dent in her armour. I do not admire her raving nastiness.
Concerning editors however, I think one of the worst problems in this day and age is not so much that big ol' hogs like King and Beans n'Rice aren't edited... but NOBODY much is being edited. I've asked whenever I have the opportunity if someone knows of a nice, decent hard-ass editor at some publishing house who would like to read something pretty good, and work with me on it! To the end of being published. But such a thing as an in-house workng editor just doesn't seem to exist anymore. Even the small press who most recently published me told me "We never edit anyone." I think that blows.
Not editing the big ol' whales is doing their posterity a disservice. These gross things won't be republished 100 years from now, or, sorry to say Beanie, you'll be edited down for anthologies, to pleasure the even shorter attention spans of the mutant readers of the 2100s.
Warning, mouthful ahead!
I was so stunned by the post, and because it was so bloody long, I cut and pasted it, so I could read it at leisure. So... rather than hunt for the blinkin' page again (the posts are rapidly approaching the 300 mark,) here it is-- allegedly from "Potatoes" O'Brien to her readers:
-----
Reviewer: Anne Obrien Rice (New Orleans, LA United States) - See all my reviews
"Seldom do I really answer those who criticize my work. In fact, the entire development of my career has been fueled by my ability to ignore denigrating and trivializing criticism as I realize my dreams and my goals. However there is something compelling about Amazon's willingness to publish just about anything, and the sheer outrageous stupidity of many things you've said here that actually touches my proletarian and Democratic soul. Also I use and enjoy Amazon and I do read the reviews of other people's books in many fields. In sum, I believe in what happens here. And so, I speak. First off, let me say that this is addressed only to some of you, who have posted outrageously negative comments here, and not to all. You are interrogating this text from the wrong perspective. Indeed, you aren't even reading it. You are projecting your own limitations on it. And you are giving a whole new meaning to the words "wide readership." And you have strained my Dickensean principles to the max. I'm justifiably proud of being read by intellectual giants and waitresses in trailer parks,in fact, I love it, but who in the world are you? Now to the book. Allow me to point out: nowhere in this text are you told that this is the last of the chronicles, nowhere are you promised curtain calls or a finale, nowhere are you told there will be a wrap-up of all the earlier material. The text tells you exactly what to expect. And it warns you specifically that if you did not enjoy Memnoch the Devil, you may not enjoy this book. This book is by and about a hero whom many of you have already rejected. And he tells you that you are likely to reject him again. And this book is most certainly written -- every word of it -- by me. If and when I can't write a book on my own, you'll know about it. And no, I have no intention of allowing any editor ever to distort, cut, or otherwise mutilate sentences that I have edited and re-edited, and organized and polished myself. I fought a great battle to achieve a status where I did not have to put up with editors making demands on me, and I will never relinquish that status. For me, novel writing is a virtuoso performance. It is not a collaborative art. Back to the novel itself: the character who tells the tale is my Lestat. I was with him more closely than I have ever been in this novel; his voice was as powerful for me as I've ever heard it. I experienced break through after break through as I walked with him, moved with him, saw through his eyes. What I ask of Lestat, Lestat unfailingly gives. For me, three hunting scenes, two which take place in hotels -- the lone woman waiting for the hit man, the slaughter at the pimp's party -- and the late night foray into the slums --stand with any similar scenes in all of the chronicles. They can be read aloud without a single hitch. Every word is in perfect place. The short chapter in which Lestat describes his love for Rowan Mayfair was for me a totally realized poem. There are other such scenes in this book. You don't get all this? Fine. But I experienced an intimacy with the character in those scenes that shattered all prior restraints, and when one is writing one does have to continuously and courageously fight a destructive tendency to inhibition and restraint. Getting really close to the subject matter is the achievement of only great art. Now, if it doesn't appeal to you, fine. You don't enjoy it? Read somebody else. But your stupid arrogant assumptions about me and what I am doing are slander. And you have used this site as if it were a public urinal to publish falsehood and lies. I'll never challenge your democratic freedom to do so, and yes, I'm answering you, but for what it's worth, be assured of the utter contempt I feel for you, especially those of you who post anonymously (and perhaps repeatedly?) and how glad I am that this book is the last one in a series that has invited your hateful and ugly responses. Now, to return to the narrative in question: Lestat's wanting to be a saint is a vision larded through and through with his characteristic vanity. It connects perfectly with his earlier ambitions to be an actor in Paris, a rock star in the modern age. If you can't see that, you aren't reading my work. In his conversation with the Pope he makes observations on the times which are in continuity with his observations on the late twentieth century in The Vampire Lestat, and in continuity with Marius' observations in that book and later in Queen of the Damned. The state of the world has always been an important theme in the chronicles. Lestat's comments matter. Every word he speaks is part of the achievement of this book. That Lestat renounced this saintly ambition within a matter of pages is plain enough for you to see. That he reverts to his old self is obvious, and that he intends to complete the tale of Blackwood Farm is also quite clear. There are many other themes and patterns in this work that I might mention -- the interplay between St.Juan Diago and Lestat, the invisible creature who doesn't "exist" in the eyes of the world is a case in point. There is also the theme of the snare of Blackwood Farm, the place where a human existence becomes so beguiling that Lestat relinquishes his power as if to a spell. The entire relationship between Lestat and Uncle Julien is carefully worked out. But I leave it to readers to discover how this complex and intricate novel establishes itself within a unique, if not unrivalled series of book. There are things to be said. And there is pleasure to be had. And readers will say wonderful things about Blood Canticle and they already are. There are readers out there and plenty of them who cherish the individuality of each of the chronicles which you so flippantly condemn. They can and do talk circles around you. And I am warmed by their response. Their letters, the papers they write in school, our face to face exchanges on the road -- these things sustain me when I read the utter trash that you post. But I feel I have said enough. If this reaches one reader who is curious about my work and shocked by the ugly reviews here, I've served my goals. And Yo, you dude, the slang police! Lestat talks like I do. He always has and he always will. You really wouldn't much like being around either one of us. And you don't have to be. If any of you want to say anything about all this by all means Email me at Anneobrienrice@mac.com. And if you want your money back for the book, send it to 1239 First Street, New Orleans, La, 70130. I'm not a coward about my real name or where I live. And yes, the Chronicles are no more! Thank God!"
I was so stunned by the post, and because it was so bloody long, I cut and pasted it, so I could read it at leisure. So... rather than hunt for the blinkin' page again (the posts are rapidly approaching the 300 mark,) here it is-- allegedly from "Potatoes" O'Brien to her readers:
-----
Reviewer: Anne Obrien Rice (New Orleans, LA United States) - See all my reviews
"Seldom do I really answer those who criticize my work. In fact, the entire development of my career has been fueled by my ability to ignore denigrating and trivializing criticism as I realize my dreams and my goals. However there is something compelling about Amazon's willingness to publish just about anything, and the sheer outrageous stupidity of many things you've said here that actually touches my proletarian and Democratic soul. Also I use and enjoy Amazon and I do read the reviews of other people's books in many fields. In sum, I believe in what happens here. And so, I speak. First off, let me say that this is addressed only to some of you, who have posted outrageously negative comments here, and not to all. You are interrogating this text from the wrong perspective. Indeed, you aren't even reading it. You are projecting your own limitations on it. And you are giving a whole new meaning to the words "wide readership." And you have strained my Dickensean principles to the max. I'm justifiably proud of being read by intellectual giants and waitresses in trailer parks,in fact, I love it, but who in the world are you? Now to the book. Allow me to point out: nowhere in this text are you told that this is the last of the chronicles, nowhere are you promised curtain calls or a finale, nowhere are you told there will be a wrap-up of all the earlier material. The text tells you exactly what to expect. And it warns you specifically that if you did not enjoy Memnoch the Devil, you may not enjoy this book. This book is by and about a hero whom many of you have already rejected. And he tells you that you are likely to reject him again. And this book is most certainly written -- every word of it -- by me. If and when I can't write a book on my own, you'll know about it. And no, I have no intention of allowing any editor ever to distort, cut, or otherwise mutilate sentences that I have edited and re-edited, and organized and polished myself. I fought a great battle to achieve a status where I did not have to put up with editors making demands on me, and I will never relinquish that status. For me, novel writing is a virtuoso performance. It is not a collaborative art. Back to the novel itself: the character who tells the tale is my Lestat. I was with him more closely than I have ever been in this novel; his voice was as powerful for me as I've ever heard it. I experienced break through after break through as I walked with him, moved with him, saw through his eyes. What I ask of Lestat, Lestat unfailingly gives. For me, three hunting scenes, two which take place in hotels -- the lone woman waiting for the hit man, the slaughter at the pimp's party -- and the late night foray into the slums --stand with any similar scenes in all of the chronicles. They can be read aloud without a single hitch. Every word is in perfect place. The short chapter in which Lestat describes his love for Rowan Mayfair was for me a totally realized poem. There are other such scenes in this book. You don't get all this? Fine. But I experienced an intimacy with the character in those scenes that shattered all prior restraints, and when one is writing one does have to continuously and courageously fight a destructive tendency to inhibition and restraint. Getting really close to the subject matter is the achievement of only great art. Now, if it doesn't appeal to you, fine. You don't enjoy it? Read somebody else. But your stupid arrogant assumptions about me and what I am doing are slander. And you have used this site as if it were a public urinal to publish falsehood and lies. I'll never challenge your democratic freedom to do so, and yes, I'm answering you, but for what it's worth, be assured of the utter contempt I feel for you, especially those of you who post anonymously (and perhaps repeatedly?) and how glad I am that this book is the last one in a series that has invited your hateful and ugly responses. Now, to return to the narrative in question: Lestat's wanting to be a saint is a vision larded through and through with his characteristic vanity. It connects perfectly with his earlier ambitions to be an actor in Paris, a rock star in the modern age. If you can't see that, you aren't reading my work. In his conversation with the Pope he makes observations on the times which are in continuity with his observations on the late twentieth century in The Vampire Lestat, and in continuity with Marius' observations in that book and later in Queen of the Damned. The state of the world has always been an important theme in the chronicles. Lestat's comments matter. Every word he speaks is part of the achievement of this book. That Lestat renounced this saintly ambition within a matter of pages is plain enough for you to see. That he reverts to his old self is obvious, and that he intends to complete the tale of Blackwood Farm is also quite clear. There are many other themes and patterns in this work that I might mention -- the interplay between St.Juan Diago and Lestat, the invisible creature who doesn't "exist" in the eyes of the world is a case in point. There is also the theme of the snare of Blackwood Farm, the place where a human existence becomes so beguiling that Lestat relinquishes his power as if to a spell. The entire relationship between Lestat and Uncle Julien is carefully worked out. But I leave it to readers to discover how this complex and intricate novel establishes itself within a unique, if not unrivalled series of book. There are things to be said. And there is pleasure to be had. And readers will say wonderful things about Blood Canticle and they already are. There are readers out there and plenty of them who cherish the individuality of each of the chronicles which you so flippantly condemn. They can and do talk circles around you. And I am warmed by their response. Their letters, the papers they write in school, our face to face exchanges on the road -- these things sustain me when I read the utter trash that you post. But I feel I have said enough. If this reaches one reader who is curious about my work and shocked by the ugly reviews here, I've served my goals. And Yo, you dude, the slang police! Lestat talks like I do. He always has and he always will. You really wouldn't much like being around either one of us. And you don't have to be. If any of you want to say anything about all this by all means Email me at Anneobrienrice@mac.com. And if you want your money back for the book, send it to 1239 First Street, New Orleans, La, 70130. I'm not a coward about my real name or where I live. And yes, the Chronicles are no more! Thank God!"
In defense of unedited rambles - and not surprising this would be coming from me ...
As much as one might like to read her writings a bit more clarified ... there is a lulling cadence to be preserved by her semi-not-so-occasional backwards sentence structure. Additionally, some of us LIVE to see words used "creatively - not as they should; in inappropriate contexts; with inappropriate prefix/suffix-ation."
I don't think her use of urinal is off-target at all -- she probably views the posts on Amazon as crap -- and the term also resonates a few other humorous, as well as truthful, inferences to me as well.
These are her books, if she doesn't desire the services of an editor, that should rather be respected.
It is her book sales that will suffer or soar, and I don't think either is the most important thing - nor should be. Editorial consult is a service one should seek when certain goals are desired, and an edited goal is definitely not what she desired for this. I respect her standing up to preserve her pure meandering-river literary existence.
As much as one might like to read her writings a bit more clarified ... there is a lulling cadence to be preserved by her semi-not-so-occasional backwards sentence structure. Additionally, some of us LIVE to see words used "creatively - not as they should; in inappropriate contexts; with inappropriate prefix/suffix-ation."
I don't think her use of urinal is off-target at all -- she probably views the posts on Amazon as crap -- and the term also resonates a few other humorous, as well as truthful, inferences to me as well.
These are her books, if she doesn't desire the services of an editor, that should rather be respected.
It is her book sales that will suffer or soar, and I don't think either is the most important thing - nor should be. Editorial consult is a service one should seek when certain goals are desired, and an edited goal is definitely not what she desired for this. I respect her standing up to preserve her pure meandering-river literary existence.
The tangent in question reminds me of when Joni Mitchell told everybody she was the modern Mozart. Sums her up! (and it was all downhill from there, hon) I like Anne Rice too but she may have turned a corner this time. True also Hatches that the longer a creator keeps a franchise going the more fans become attached to their own expectations of how said franchise should develop, thus audiences become increasingly tough to please.
Editing as an in-house function at publishing houses is indeed becoming something of a dying/lost art. A friend of mine was for several years a successful editor at Knopf of all places, considered to be one of the most prestigous imprints. They cut their editorial staff drastically and fired him, even after he'd edited Katherine Hepburn's autobiography and several other top-sellers. Since then he says the trend is to run manuscripts through spell check and call it a day. You can see the evidence in such tripe as The Devil Wears Prada, etc.
Nevertheless editors can chop things to bits and ruin things too. It's all so subjective. Personally I've never felt her works were too long or needed to be cut in half, IMHO. No one's work will ever be perfect or all things to all people. On my score card Anne falls comfortably in the "well-written trash" column, something I aspire to myself. I think's it a cool place to be, even if she's totally off her rocker!!!
Editing as an in-house function at publishing houses is indeed becoming something of a dying/lost art. A friend of mine was for several years a successful editor at Knopf of all places, considered to be one of the most prestigous imprints. They cut their editorial staff drastically and fired him, even after he'd edited Katherine Hepburn's autobiography and several other top-sellers. Since then he says the trend is to run manuscripts through spell check and call it a day. You can see the evidence in such tripe as The Devil Wears Prada, etc.
Nevertheless editors can chop things to bits and ruin things too. It's all so subjective. Personally I've never felt her works were too long or needed to be cut in half, IMHO. No one's work will ever be perfect or all things to all people. On my score card Anne falls comfortably in the "well-written trash" column, something I aspire to myself. I think's it a cool place to be, even if she's totally off her rocker!!!
A friend who started following the Amazon blather when it started about 2 weeks ago said that the Anne Rice post is allegedly a hoax, and that that wasn't even her real address. Anyone hear? That would mean someone at the NY Times didn't do their facts-checking. What a shocker.
It would be one thing if she recognized herself as good trash, Lexx, but she does think she is the Mozart of la litterature.
And style? That rambling-on, 'free-form,' melodramatic, stream-of-unconsciousness, fawned-over romance-tinged hackery? It's not a matter of proper form... nor is it a more 'sensible' style we honor: we are against gibberish. Mother Chichi has enjoined me on more than one occasion to give her a try. So, loving her, I have tried. I heave to one of the collossi. The feverish little brain each time grazes hopefully ~~ through the rampant repetitions the purple stanzas the florid floribundae, sways vertiginous through boredom into profound snooze.
It would be one thing if she recognized herself as good trash, Lexx, but she does think she is the Mozart of la litterature.
And style? That rambling-on, 'free-form,' melodramatic, stream-of-unconsciousness, fawned-over romance-tinged hackery? It's not a matter of proper form... nor is it a more 'sensible' style we honor: we are against gibberish. Mother Chichi has enjoined me on more than one occasion to give her a try. So, loving her, I have tried. I heave to one of the collossi. The feverish little brain each time grazes hopefully ~~ through the rampant repetitions the purple stanzas the florid floribundae, sways vertiginous through boredom into profound snooze.
S'tanley (or "Queen Of The Damned"),
This Paris trip has obviously been wonderful for you. Your fangs are sharpened to those delicious points that I remember. Your writing in this topic has made me want to re-read (your book) "The Correct Sadist".
That's the vitriol I remember!
This Paris trip has obviously been wonderful for you. Your fangs are sharpened to those delicious points that I remember. Your writing in this topic has made me want to re-read (your book) "The Correct Sadist".
That's the vitriol I remember!
I can't agree with you on this S'tan.
Honey, I've seen some "dangling metaphors" that would take your breath away. Actually gag you!
Honey, I've seen some "dangling metaphors" that would take your breath away. Actually gag you!
Messy you are always... not a dangling no but a flying urinal in these discourses... we must duck and all thought is forgotten. but girl I didn't know you could read...
oh of course you don't... Tha's why you likes ha.
oh of course you don't... Tha's why you likes ha.