This page is where I am putting the transcripts from 2011.<\/p>\n
By the way, it may be quicker to read these transcripts rather than viewing\/listening, but if you have the time I highly recommend you view\/listen as well as read.\u00a0 They say some large (IMO usually arbitrary) percentage of communication is actually contained in the tone of a voice and such, and in these cases, I’d say that a percentage of the\u00a0fun<\/em>\u00a0is distilled out when you only enjoy these in text rather than viewing\/listening.<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part1<\/strong><\/a> MarsCon Q&A session– And here’s my transcript of the interview–the segments correspond to Serack’s videos.<\/p>\n Segment 1: Jim: \u201c….the model city of Tokyo and then he finally gets to strap on the Godzilla suit?\u201d (Mimes stomping motions, to laughter from audience.) \u201cStomp on it, that\u2019s what it felt like, it was great.\u201d<\/p>\n Interviewer: Well, let\u2019s talk about the biggest change\u2026.uhh, you cut your hair!\u201d<\/strong> Jim: \u201cThis is long compared to what I had, but I think, uh, in Side Jobs they put out the new photo, uh, which is with me with the, with the really, really short buzz cut. \u00a0This is getting to where, uh, I don\u2019t know, there\u2019s a lot of maintenance on this hair-do. Uh, I\u2019ve got to stick my head under the faucet and get it all wet and then do this (shakes his head quickly side-to-side, like a dog shaking off), and that seems like a lot of effort compared to the buzz cut.<\/p>\n Interviewer: All right, we, we started late because everybody in Virginia wanted Jim\u2019s autograph, (laughter and applause from the audience) and everybody got it, so uh, we\u2019ve been promised that we\u2019ll get our full hour still. (Applause). So, we\u2019re going to talk for a little bit, and then towards the end, we\u2019re going to let you guys ask some questions. Um, let\u2019s with start with what you finished, let\u2019s talk about Alera for a little bit.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Ok<\/p>\n Interviewer: The uh, how, how did it feel to wrap the series, you know, you been doing one for so long? Interviewer: Do you think you\u2019ll revisit Alera?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: It\u2019s possible, it\u2019s possible that I could. I had kind of one idea for a series of sort of misfit Cursors, uh, once Ehren takes over the Cursor Academy. Um, which would be a lot of fun, you know, to train the first Canim Cursor, and so on. Oh, my gosh, that would be a difficult thing to do.<\/p>\n Interviewer: You\u2019ve apparently got an audience for it already, though.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, I have an idea for that and then the other thing we might do is, is to head 150 years or so down the line, where Alera is a much steam-punkier place than it was before, and uh, about the time that it\u2019s time to deal with the Vord that are still on the other continent. And then, you know, then the real trouble shows up, um, as opposed to the Vord being the real trouble.<\/p>\n Interviewer: Uh, last time I talked to you, you said that you had never had a really original idea; you described the influences that became Alera. So, tell these guys what they were, because it\u2019s hysterical<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Many moons ago, when I was young and had long hair, um, I was a part of the online writers workshop that Del Ray was running, something they were doing at the time. It was me and a bunch of wanna-be writers, we would be submitting material every couple of weeks, and critiquing each other\u2019s material and of course discussing writing craft and how you go about writing. \u00a0And there was this huge flame war discussion going on, uh, it was one of those \u201cdiscussions\u201d where you pretty much just hit the capslock key on your, and you hit \u201creply,\u201d capslock, and then start typing. (Laughter) But, uh, there was a big discussion that was going on about story craft and about how you put together a story, and the, uh, the two sides of the discussion that were going on is that, uh, one side was holding up the idea of the sacred idea of a story, that if you have a good enough idea for a story, you can write it miserably and it will still do really, really well and it will be very popular, and they said look at Jurassic Park. \u00a0(Laughter) \u00a0That was their example, not mine. \u00a0And then, the other side of the argument was, it\u2019s all about\u2026it\u2019s not about originality of ideas, it\u2019s about presentation, and that a good enough writer, uh, can take an old idea and give it his own spin and his own good presentation and write a compelling story out of it. \u00a0And uh, you know, it\u2019s like how many versions of Romeo and Juliet have we seen over the years? And everyone\u2019s like ok. So the discussion ping-ponged back and forth and there was a couple loudmouths on each side sort of leasing the charge, and I was the loudmouth over here on the craft side, and there was another loudmouth over there on the, uh, ideas side. \u00a0And, uh, finally, the guy says, \u2018All right, why don\u2019t you put your money where your mouth is, let\u2019s see you write a novel out of one of these terrible ideas.\u2019 \u00a0And, me being young and arrogant, I said, \u2018No, you know what, why don\u2019t you give me two terrible ideas; I\u2019ll use \u2018em both!\u2019 \u00a0Because I wasn\u2019t gonna get one-upped by the guy, and, uh, I wasn\u2019t too bright. \u00a0And the guy said, \u2018Ok, well, first terrible idea that I want you to use is lost Roman legion. \u00a0I am sick of lost Roman legions, all the lost Roman legions should have been found by now. \u00a0And Lost Rioman legion is the first terrible idea.\u2019 I\u2019m like, \u2018Ok. Now I need number two.\u2019 \u00a0And he says, \u2018Number two? Pokemon.\u2019 (Audience laughter.). \u00a0And I said, \u2018All right.\u2019 And, uh, that\u2019s where Alera came from. \u00a0Um, lost Roman legion, what happens to them? We\u2019ll send them to the land of the Pokemon. And, um, and that\u2019s how it got started. But if you ever go back and reread Furies of Calderon, and you get to the scene at the ford where they\u2019re trying to get away from their, from pretty much the first serious fury fight that we see, and everybody\u2019s calling up their furies, just, uh, saying to yourself, just, in your mind ahead of it, saying to yourself, \u2018Brutus, I choose you.\u2019 (Laughter) as you\u2019re reading, and there it is. \u00a0And after that it\u2019s impossible to take the rest of the story seriously, but it\u2019s funny.<\/p>\n Interviewer: So, how about gaming? What do you\u2026Do you still have time for that?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: I don\u2019t know, my schedule\u2019s kinda busy until at least 5:30, and uh\u2026Oh, you mean generally?<\/p>\n Interviewer: In general, yes.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Generally. Uh, yes, our gaming group meets at our house every Friday that I\u2019m in town. Um, and, lets see, we\u2019ve been playing, uh, Dark Sun, we\u2019ve been doing, we did fourth edition D&D, right now we\u2019re secretly doing something I signed a non-disclosure agreement about, uh, because one of the, our GM is actually, is an editor for Watsi [I was told this is likely WotC which is DnD 4e for “Wizards of the Coast”\u00a0-Serack<\/sup>], uh, one of their freelance editors, so we get to, get to play test stuff. I got to play test fourth edition D&D, uh, before it came out and I had to sign all the \u201cI won\u2019t talk about it\u201d papers and then I had to fill in, they wanted a review for it. \u00a0I don\u2019t know why they wanted a review, the books had already been printed at the time that they said the reviews were due, you know, they were already ready to go, so I filled out my review after I\u2019d been playing fourth edition and I gave them a two word review for fourth edition, which was, \u201cNew Coke.\u201d (Laughter) \u00a0I\u2019ve got to say, fourth edition D&D I mean, it is a great game, but it isn\u2019t really Dungeons and Dragons, it\u2019s some new game. But, uh, so we did that, we\u2019ve done a little bit of Ravenloft play testing, and uh, we generally have a good time. \u00a0Tuesday night is gaming night, but it\u2019s computer gaming night, and that\u2019s when I play City of Heroes. \u00a0So, I\u2019m the only guy who can legally play Harry Dresden on City of Heroes. (Laughter) Because you can\u2019t violate copyright, except, it\u2019s copywritten to me. \u00a0So, uh, they\u2019ve taken my name and costume away several times and I\u2019ve had to go to the staff and say, \u2018No, I\u2019m, I actually am the owner of this copyright. I can play the character!\u2019 \u00a0I guess now there\u2019s a note on my customer thing, so they\u2019ll see it, because they haven\u2019t taken my stuff away in a while. (Laughter) Jim: Oh, I have not played the Harry Dresden role playing game, (laughter) because, if you think about it, it\u2019s impossible. Okay, if I\u2019m the GM, (laughter) it\u2019s just like work. \u00a0If I\u2019m the player, I\u2019m the GM\u2019s nightmare because I can say, \u2018Yes, it is like that, and I\u2019ll write it that way in the next book if I have to!\u2019 (Laughter) But it seems like a lot of people are enjoying it, so that\u2019s good, that\u2019s good. \u00a0I\u2019m kind of out on this one, but that\u2019s okay.<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part2<\/strong><\/a> Segment 2 Jim: Um, yeah, there\u2019s a lot of things kicking around right now, uh, I\u2019m, uh, I\u2019ve got a really good\u2026I was trying to outrun an electrical storm, uh, on the way home from a game at about 5:30 in the morning and I had a van full of sleeping kids who were, you know, who were just exhausted because we\u2019d been playing the entire day before, uh, so, they\u2019d been up, I\u2019d been up for about 24 hours straight, I was really tired, I was playing, uh, some Nine Inch Nails album like really, really loud, one of the really heavy industrial ones, I think it was Pretty Hate Machine (?) and then I noticed, uh, an electrical storm coming, it was coming perpendicular to my course so, if I could get to the city fast enough, I could get ahead of it and I\u2019m like going, \u2018Oh, I could so make a steam punk book out of this situation.\u2019 You know, imagine actually being in that.\u00a0 So I had a great idea for a steam punk world setting which, I mean, it would seem like fantasy but actually be science fiction sort of like the Alera books kinda seem like fantasy though really they\u2019re built more like science fiction, and uh, but\u2026That might be something I\u2019d do next. I\u2019ve got an actual science fiction science fiction series that\u2019s got a little bit of space opera, called U.S. Marshals.\u00a0 I went to all this trouble to create this, uh, it\u2019s 200 years in the future, and everybody who lives off the planet has seceded from Earth because they were tired of taxation without representation, you know, being a teeny, teeny, teeny minority of the number of people on the planet, and, uh, they form their own, you know, they kinda form their own conglomerate of a nation called the United System, and so I had to figure out 200 years of history just so I would be able to have characters named U.S. Marshals, (laughter), uh, and the Marshals are the only ones who know about the aliens. So, it\u2019s sort of Men in Black meets X-Men on the Moon, 200 years in the future, uh, and it\u2019d be a lot of fun. Actually, I\u2019ve got fir…I\u2019ve got half of the first one written and I stopped writing with my character having ejected from his ship in a decaying orbit over the Moon with a solar flare coming on, and he\u2019s been there for like five years. Uh, you know, it was funny, though, writing up to like the hugest, most tensest, deadliest danger moment in the book and then just kind of leaving it there.\u00a0 I feel a little bit bad for doing that, uh, it\u2019s bad enough that I kind of did it to the whole world at the end of Changes. Boom! Haha! (Laughter) And now it\u2019s gonna be a year before you hear anything.\u00a0 Actually, it\u2019s going to be longer than that, but we will deal with that in a second. (Assorted gasps and exclamations of \u201cWHAT?!\u201d from the audience)<\/p>\n Interviewer: So yeah, speaking of Changes, how many people here were ready to form a lynch mob? (Laughter)<\/p>\n Jim: Officers, here they are. (Points, to more laughter) Jim: Uh, I\u2026they were like, \u2018What?! What, what, what are you doing?\u2019 And I assured them that no, I\u2019m not ending the series there, um, and they\u2019re like, \u2018But but but but but but but but but\u2026.,\u2019 they sounded like that, and I said, \u2018Okay,\u2019 and I wrote the first three chapters of the next book and sent it to them, and they went, \u2018Oh. OH!\u2019 and I\u2019m like, \u2018Yeah, come on. My kid\u2019s just starting college, I\u2019m not gonna\u2026(laughter), I\u2019m not gonna end the Dresden Files now!\u2019 So, uh, and then once they had the idea of what Ghost Story was gonna be like and be about they, uh, it was much more, uh, they were much more amenable to it.<\/p>\n Interviewer: You had mentioned before that you saw the series going around 23 books or so?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, the original plan was to have about 20 of the case books like we\u2019ve had so far, and then a big old apocalyptic trilogy at the end, um, it\u2019s taken me a little bit longer to do the story as I\u2019d originally planned it, like, I think I\u2019m about two books behind. On the other hand, I think it\u2019s cool that book 13, you know, uh, I get to have my character being dead solving his own murder.\u00a0 But uh, still it\u2019s going to be 20-ish books, depending on, uh, if the kid goes to doctoral school. (Laughter)\u00a0 I really hope he doesn\u2019t want too much education, uh, goodness knows how long it could be.<\/p>\n Audience member: He could get two Ph.Ds! (Laughter) Jim: Yes.<\/p>\n Interviewer: And you have pretty much pulled out every stop in the book for the battle sequence on this one. Interviewer: Do you worry that you\u2019re going to have trouble stopping it?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Um, actually, no, I mean, I kind of planned it out. We just started rolling and, uh, for what I\u2019ve got in mind, you know, for the rest of the series, I kinda paced myself, in terms of\u2026because I knew that was going to be an issue. You know, power escalation in a series is always something that is a big deal. Although Dresden\u2019s superpowers as he\u2019s growing in the books are mostly, \u2018Gosh, I\u2019m getting smarter, sneakier and more underhanded!\u2019, it\u2019s like, yeah, that\u2019s really\u2026that\u2019s how it actually works in real life. But that\u2019s, uh, so far I think we\u2019re doing all\u2026I think I\u2019m on the right pace. Jim: Abused? (Laughter) I\u2019ve, okay, I mean, I guess some people might consider it abuse. (Points to audience member)\u2026That\u2019s just such a great prosthetic you\u2019ve got for your hand as well, uh, just so you know. But I don\u2019t abuse him. (Laughter) Jim: (Sips his Coke) It\u2019s not my job to be kind to him. (Laughter). That can be for the readers. My job is not, uh, to be kind. Jim: Uh, no. It was just fun. (Laughter) I swear, there are some authors who will kind of occasionally write themselves into the books, or give themselves\u2026put a character into the books who more or less represents themselves, um, I don\u2019t do that, but if I did, uh, Harry Dresden would punch me right in the nose. (Laughter)\u00a0 \u2018You\u2019re the guy who\u2019s\u2019\u2026you know when Dresden goes, \u2018It\u2019s like someone up there just hates me and has it in for me\u2019?\u00a0 That\u2019s me. (Laughter). You know, but yeah, he\u2019d pop me right in the nose if he could.<\/p>\n Interviewer: so do you want to talk about Ghost Story?\u00a0 Is there anything you can say about it? Jim: But yeah, I needed some more time to get it done, it was hard.\u00a0 Um, it\u2019s been difficult to write it, but I think I\u2019ve gotten over the\u2026I\u2019ve gotten over the roughest parts of the book, um, so, you know, my editors were panicking and everything, uh, they\u2019re\u2026they\u2019ve got this thing they call a calendar, which they say is very important. (Laughter) I don\u2019t know, but uh, so I said, \u2018Okay, listen, we\u2019re going to have to do it a different time\u2019 and they\u2019re like, uh, \u2018Okay, end of July\u2019, and I\u2019m like, \u2018Is there any chance that I\u2019d be, you know, making a Comic-Con appearance as part of that?\u2019 Because if I did, then they would pay for it, um, which I still find vital, for some reason. I\u2019ve had some success, and I\u2019m still used to being the poor college kid living in the little 20\u2019x20\u2019 rental house. In my head, that\u2019s who I see myself as, and I know that\u2019s not true any more, but gosh, it feels like it\u2019s true. Uh, you k now, my wife still cuts out coupons. Uh, \u2018We\u2019ve got to get to the store today, before these coupons go!\u2019 Uh, okay, then you kind of stop and think, \u2018Do we?\u2019 \u2018Yes, coupons!\u2019 \u2018Right! Okay, here we go.\u2019<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part3<\/strong><\/a> Segment 3: Audience Member: Uh, how did you come up with your characters? Why did you choose Chicago?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Okay, how did I come \u00a0up with my characters, and why did I choose Chicago. Um, for Harry Dresden himself, uh, I put him together following a checklist that a, that my writing teacher had on a worksheet that was for one of her lectures, and the lecture was entitled, \u201cHow to Construct a Protagonist\u201d And, uh, basically, I wanted to prove to her how wrong she was about everything. So, one semester I said, \u201cOkay, this semester, I\u2019m just going to be your good little writing monkey, I\u2019m going to fill out all your worksheets, and doo all the things, and you\u2019re going to see what terrible, awful, cookie-cutter, pablum crap comes out of that kind of writing process. Uh, which is when I wrote the first book of the Dresden Files. (Laughter)<\/p>\n Interviewer: So have you noticed that Jim\u2019s whole writing career is basically him saying f^$% you to everyone else out there? (Laughter)<\/p>\n Jim: YEAH! Yeah, I\u2019ve\u2026uh, that\u2019s why I try not to be the guy who takes myself too seriously because, you know, I\u2019m basically this idiot that\u2019s just stumbled into things, and uh, gotten a little bit lucky and then\u2026at least, I like to think that I\u2019d recognized that I\u2019d gotten lucky and worked really hard to make it happen. But, but Harry Dresden, the name itself, I was watching TV one night and there were, uh\u2026I had just watched a videotape of one of my favorite movies at the time, which was Cast a Deadly Spell, (applause), yeah, which is a fun movie, and uh, the tape had started skipping, or not skipping but it had gotten, it would stop, and I would rewind it and try to play past it and it wouldn\u2019t go past, but at this part where, in that movie where the guy goes, uh, the main character, Fred Ward\u2019s character, uh, H. Philip Lovecraft shows up to uh, to the gangster bar, and the gangster, the gangster\u2019s henchman comes walking up to him and says, \u2018(sneering voice) Harry wants to see you.\u2019 And Fred Ward goes, \u2018Oh. Harry wants to see me.\u2019 \u2018Harry wants to see you now.\u2019 And what I got to hear about six times as I tried to fast forward past the stuck part of the tape was \u2018Harry wants to see me. Harry wants to see me. Harry wants to see\u2019 like that. \u00a0And then I said, \u2018Okay, the heck with that, I\u2019m going to try and find something on normal television, which I hate, because there\u2019s commercials. And, uh, so I\u2019m skipping through channels, it\u2019s like eleven thirty on a Friday night in Kansas City, and I actually find a channel that\u2019s showing reruns of Babylon 5. So it\u2019s like, \u2018Okay, acceptable.\u2019 (Laughter) And, uh, I\u2019m watching the episode of Amazon 5 (sic), and, with this \u2018Harry wants to see\u2026\u2019 stuck in my head, and then Box Lightner (sp?) is on there playing his character with (deep voice) the gravelly Box Lightner voice, and he\u2019s there talking about various military attacks that have happened throughout history, and one of the attacks that he mentions as he\u2019s going through this monologue is (deep voice) Dresden. \u2018Harry wants to\u2019 Dresden, it\u2019s just stuck in my head. \u2018Harry wants\u2019 Dresden, okay fine, Harry Dresden, character name, get out of my head. (Laughter) And that\u2019s where the name came from.<\/p>\n When I put the character together, I said, \u2018Okay, this guy is a wizard detective.\u00a0 Okay, let\u2019s take a wizard. Gandalf. Let\u2019s take a detective. Sherlock.\u2019 I mean, come on, I could not get any more obvious in terms of picking archetypical choices, and I started pulling attributes from each of them. So I made him tall and skinny like Sherlock, and grumpy like Gandalf, you know, smart and grumpy like Gandalf, and uh, that was pretty much where the character came from.<\/p>\n Murphy, I needed somebody who was gonna be sort of an ally-slash-antagonist in the first book, uh, and I\u2019d been really impressed at an aikido demonstration at OU that year, that I\u2019d seem maybe two weeks before where this little, 5 foot tall woman, 5 foot tall, she was 5\u2019 tall, maybe 45, called three of the defensive linemen from OU up onto the stage as part of the demonstration, and said, like, \u2018Okay, tackle me.\u2019 And she just dumped these guys everywhere. I mean, it was just flying arms and legs, and she\u2019d like, she\u2019d throw them all on the floor and then like, \u2018And now I run away. Okay, get up and do it again.\u2019 \u00a0Whomp whomp whomp whomp whomp. \u2018And now I run away.\u2019 Whomp whomp whomp whomp whomp, \u2018And now I run away.\u2019 Like that. And I was like, \u2018Wow, that is so cool!\u2019 so Murphy was born there.<\/p>\n Bob the Skull was an inside joke between me and my writing teacher. Uh, I was working on Chapter Two or Three, and she\u2019s like, \u2018Okay, you\u2019re going to have to be explaining how some of this magic works.\u2019 And I said, \u2018Yeah, I\u2019ve got this character, this assistant character who I think is going to be working with Harry who\u2019s going to help him. And Harry\u2019s going to consult with him and so we\u2019ll be able to get\u2026you know, I\u2019ll be able to use the joy of idiocy principle to get, uh, information dispersed there.\u2019 And she was like, \u2018Well, okay, fine, do that, as long as you don\u2019t make him a talking head.\u2019 \u00a0(Laughter) Which is writing craft for a character who shows up and spews information but otherwise has no other role. Uh, so, I uh, made him a literal talking head named Bob, and when I showed up with that chapter and she read it she looks at me and says, \u2018You think you\u2019re very clever, don\u2019t you?\u2019 (Laughter)<\/p>\n Um, and it\u2026almost all of them come from stuff like that. Um, some characters are\u2026I only needed for a minute, some characters that I only needed for a minute were actually too cool and I had to keep them. Uh, Butters. (Applause) And, uh, there\u2019s still\u2026there are characters who surprise me with how memorable or how difficult or how surly they are in terms of trying to get them to do what I need them to do. Uh, but\u2026again\u2026now I kind of grab characters when they\u2026when the mood strikes me and I try to recycle a lot, uh, because, you \u00a0know, I went to a lot of work to try to create these people and so by God, I\u2019m going to get my mileage out of them. \u00a0Plus, it\u2019s more fun when you get to see folks show up again. Morty the ectomancer who was originally a throw away character, but know you, at the same time, I\u2019m sitting here thinking you know, I\u2019m going to be having Dresden running around as a ghost, I think I\u2019ve got to get that ectomancer back in here. I mean, I went to all the trouble of making him, so you know, he\u2019ll be, uh, he\u2019ll be playing a role in the upcoming book.<\/p>\n Interviewer: All right, uh, saw a hand over here<\/p>\n Serack: Um, could you explain free will to us from Bob\u2019s perspective?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Free will from Bob\u2019s perspective? Bob thinks free will is a complete illusion, uh, since he doesn\u2019t really have it. Um, it\u2019s a conceit that mortals have to make themselves feel like they can be in control of things. Uh, but really, it doesn\u2019t actually exist, that\u2019s Bob\u2019s take on it. \u00a0But then again, Bob doesn\u2019t really have free will, he\u2019s sort of\u2026<\/p>\n Serack: He said that Lash got it.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Lash isn\u2019t Bob.<\/p>\n Serack: Well, no, but he [Bob] said that Lash got, obtained free will.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, Bob doesn\u2019t have to tell the truth to Dresden! (Laughter) I mean, come on! Bob offered it as a possible explanation, but you know, Bob\u2019s essentially\u2026he\u2019s a theoretician. That\u2019s what he does\u2026 \u2018Explain this\u2019 , \u2018Okay, maybe it was this, I don\u2019t know.\u2019 But yeah, he tries to stay out of the whole, anything like, anything that verges on morality, Bob tries to avoid uh, you know, speaking with any authority on because he doesn\u2019t have any compass himself. It all depends on who actually happens to be in possession of the skull at the time.<\/p>\n Interviewer: Let\u2019s go over this way. Anyone over\u2026yeah.<\/p>\n Audience member: When you play City of Heroes as Dresden, does he have a hat?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: He does not. (Laughter) And the number one question I get asked when I play City of Heroes as Dresden is, \u201cWhere\u2019s his hat?\u201d (Thumps his head with the microphone)<\/p>\n Interviewer: (pointing), Uh, blue shirt<\/p>\n Audience member: Yes, what happens when Bob gets let out of his skull?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Uh, when Bob gets let out of his skull? Um, whatever he can get away with, basically. That\u2019s why Dresden\u2019s usually careful to throw some terms on there. Although, uh, depending on who lets him out and what gets done\u2026we\u2019re going to have some more fun with that next book, I\u2019m not going to say anything else.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Yeah Jim: Why does Toot-toot keep getting bigger?<\/p>\n (Different) audience member: Pizza! (Laughter)<\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, okay, that\u2019s a good answer. (Laughter) Because I\u2019m not going to tell you. \u00a0Um, I will tell you, however, that the Sidhe don\u2019t start out as Sidhe, and leave it at that.<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part4<\/strong><\/a> Q&A, Segment 4<\/p>\n Audience Member: Can you talk at all about the importance of Harry\u2019s penchant for giving names [Names?] to characters and objects in the story that didn\u2019t have a name [Name?] before he took care of that?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Um, can I talk about the importance\u2026how important it is to Dresden to give things names [Names?] when he doesn\u2019t have one. So if he doesn\u2019t have a name for something or it\u2019s just too difficult to pronounce he can just call it Shagnasty and leave it at that. (Laughter) Um. Dresden\u2026well, in terms of him doing it himself, I think it\u2019s part of human nature. Really, if we ran into something that didn\u2019t have a name, we come up with a name for it right quick. You know, I mean, it\u2019s not\u2026you can see, I think you see this mostly demonstrated ably online a lot.\u00a0 It\u2019s not just enough to say that you got beaten by the other team. It\u2019s like you got beaten by them while they were rolling on the floor laughing. You were ROFL-stomped. (Laughter) And\u2026we come up with these names for things, especially in English because English is such a thug language, we\u2019ll just, we\u2019ll just take from anybody. I think there\u2019s some sort of academy in France where their like, \u2018Okay, we have to approve or not approve the new possible words that we\u2019re going to have.\u2019 English, no, we will make them up left and right, and I\u2019ve made up some occasionally, and you know, I think every family has a little bit of their own language that you know, that they\u2019ll have some word that they made up that has significance to them, uh, and not necessarily anybody else. As far as\u2026we need to name things, we need to understand what their role is. Dresden in particular is somebody who grew up without any solidity, without any concrete foundation underneath him.\u00a0 And I think that is\u2026.probably a reflection of that in his character in that he really does need to have things ordered in his own head, because they never are in the real world, and naming things helps with that.<\/p>\n Interviewer: I always saw that as another one of the travis-mcgee ( Jim: Uh, possibly. I don\u2019t know, did he do that a lot?<\/p>\n Interviewer: Maybe not consciously.<\/p>\n Jim: Oh, I steal things left and right, unconsciously, all the time. Bob the Skull is like my own subconscious, in some ways. And uh, he would merrily steal things left and right, with no compunction whatsoever. Yeah, every time I think I\u2019ve come up with something bright and new and original, uh, I find out I haven\u2019t. It\u2019s like, Bob the Skull, I thought that was great, great and new and (laughing) you know, and then I watched the opening sequence to Scooby-Doo and went, \u2018Oh.\u2019 (Laughter) Like, the very first thing in Scooby-Doo. Interviewer: Yeah, you\u2019re upset enough about July. Don\u2019t make him push it back further. (Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: I KNOW, RIGHT?!<\/p>\n Audience member: Not now, but ever?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, at some point I\u2019d like to.<\/p>\n Audience member: You\u2019re not making Codex Alera any more\u2026\u2026(Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n Interviewer: [something unintelligible, to Jim]<\/p>\n Jim: Yes, yes I do.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Greg!<\/p>\n Greg: Yo, I just wanted to thank you (?) I was on a plane when I read the line, \u201cHarry, you stole a Warden\u2019s cloak?\u201d and I\u2019m, I cracked up laughing, and I was unable to explain to everyone that you had been building up to that joke for about four books. (Laughter) [Untelligible] because of you, I have met an Air Marshal. (Laughter and applause)<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: I\u2019ve got my own TSA story to go along with that. Um, I was going\u2026well, I do a lot of travelling when they send me on the tour, and I was on the tour last year and I was coming back from San Diego, and I\u2019d been get\u2026occasionally folks will come up and give me gifts, and if they\u2019re small enough, I can accept them \u2018cuz then I can fit them into my stuff, and somebody had given me a hand carved, intricately hand carved oak wand, apparently on the assumption that I was a Wiccan, but I thanked them very kindly for it.\u00a0 It\u2019s on my Harry Dresden swag shelf at home. But it had a pointy end, and the TSA they stopped and they opened my bag and they held up the wand and the agent, very serious and dour agent, holds up the wand, looks at me and says, \u2018What\u2019s this?\u2019 And I said, \u2018(Disbelievingly) It\u2019s a magic wand. Obviously.\u2019 (Laughter) And the guy kept, the guy kinda looks at me, and I look back at him (nods, innocently and with a serious face) (Laughter). And apparent, I don\u2019t know, I don\u2019t know, because he couldn\u2019t give me really a hard time, uh, maybe he also assumed I was a Wiccan and didn\u2019t want to infringe upon my rights, because he just goes, like, \u2018Okay\u2019 and puts it back in the bag. (Laughter)<\/p>\n Audience Member: [something unintelligible possibly a compliment to do with Murphy] (Applause)<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Ok, thank you.<\/p>\n Audience member: \u2026now I know that they\u2019re talking Martian.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yes, yes, and actually, Shannon helped me with that one, she\u2019s been learning Martian for many years. And occasionally I can say, \u2018How you doing, honey?\u2019 and she\u2019ll go, \u2018Unh,\u2019 which means, \u2018Not so good, leave me alone.\u2019 And I know that, and she knows that, that\u2019s \u2018cuz she\u2019s cool, she\u2019s learned that.<\/p>\n Audience Member: So, have any of your kids shown interest in writing?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Um, I\u2019ve got the boy, and, uh, has he shown an interest in writing? Um, his\u2026we did our first\u2026Shannon and I did our first, like, tandem interview over the phone one day, and he came home from school and the dog made a lot of noise and I had to stop the\u00a0 interview while that was happening and they\u2019re like, \u2018What\u2019s going on\u2019 \u2018Oh, my son just came home from school.\u2019 \u2018Do you mind if I ask him a question?\u2019 \u2018No, go ahead\u2019 and he\u2019s like, they\u2019re like,\u00a0 \u2018What do you think about your mom and your dad, you know, they\u2019re both authors, I mean, that\u2019s really a remarkable thing\u2026\u2019 and J kinda smiles and says, \u2018You know, if these two could do it I\u2019m\u2026I really don\u2019t know how remarkable it could be.\u201d (Laughter) Cruises right on out of the room, I mean, he didn\u2019t even blink coming up with that answer. We\u2019re like, \u2018Yeah, that\u2019s the boy.\u2019 And uh, he\u2019s getting ready for school, he\u2019s originally thinking he wants to go into medicine, I think it\u2019s just because he wants to hear, you know, he wanted to be a trauma surgeon, originally, it was just because he wanted to hear, \u2018Dr. Butcher to Emergency, Dr. Butcher\u201d I think that\u2019s what he wanted, and then he got a taste of exactly what pre-med students have to go through and med students and interns and so on and so at the moment I think he\u2019s working on computers and he says, \u2018You know, I\u2019m going to go to school and\u2026\u2019 one night he sits down with me and he says, \u2018Dad, you know, I\u2019m going to go to school and I\u2019m going to get this degree, and, uh, then I\u2019m going to decide that I just want to be a writer!\u2019 and I\u2019m like \u2018Well, the hours are good, uh, and you get to wear great clothes.\u2019 As a writer that\u2019s the best part of the job is that I can do it in my PJs.\u00a0 So, who knows, he might be writing himself one day, I told him he has to read books if he wants to do it though and he\u2019s like, \u2018Aww!\u2019 (slumps backwards in his chair) (Laughter)<\/p>\n Interviewer: Does he read your books?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Um, oh, oh no. He read Alera, he read Alera, because he was smart enough to understand that when I was writing about Tavi I was writing about him, but uh, other than that, no.\u00a0 He does\u2026he likes the, uh, gaming books, anything that\u2019s written up on you know, Warhammer 40,000 or Warhammer, he snaps those up, but other than that\u2026.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) In the back. Jim: Why Chicago. Ok, why Chicago? Um, because, when I turned the first chapter into my teacher she said, \u2018Jim, I know that I told you to do something similar to what Laura Hamilton was doing befacuse that was what you\u2019d been suggesting, that was what you kept holding up as what you liked\u2019, \u2018cause I really loved the first five or six Anita books, and uh, she says, \u2018But, uh, you know, really, you\u2019re close enough to what she\u2019s doing without also setting the story in Missouri.\u2019 She says, \u2018You can\u2019t use Kansas City. Find somewhere else.\u2019 And, uh, on the globe on her desk there were four cities, uh, in the United States that were on the globe. Uh, er, no there were three cities. Uh, one, no, excuse me, there were four. One was Washington, D.C., which I didn\u2019t want to write, because if you write Washington D.C. you have to write politics, and if you write politics you alienate half your audience at least. (Laughter) One was New York; I didn\u2019t want to write New York because the Fantastic Four and Spiderman have got that all sewn up pretty good.\u00a0 One of them was Los Angeles, which I didn\u2019t want to write because, uh, I just didn\u2019t want to learn about Los Angeles. And uh, the other city\u2026the remaining city was Chicago, and I said, \u2018Okay, can I use Chicago?\u00a0 I know it\u2019s on the river and all, the same river as St. Louis, but can I use Chicago?\u2019 She\u2019s like, \u2018Yes, Chicago will be fine.\u2019\u00a0 That was why I chose Chicago, because otherwise she would not have let me have a good grade.<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part5<\/strong><\/a> [Segment 5: Jim: Um, uh, I\u2026I didn\u2019t when I first started the books, up through about book seven or book 8, I mean , there was just no way I could even\u2026I could possibly afford it. Uh, I did a lot of my research online, uh, I started making contacts online for people in Chicago so I\u2019d be able to say \u2018Hey, I need to know what the west wall of Graceland Cemetery looks like.\u2019 And I\u2019d have somebody say, \u2018Oh, I drive by there on my way to work everyday, I will take pictures on my cell phone and email them to you.\u2019 And I\u2019m like, \u2018Oh, I love the internet!\u2019 (Laughter)\u00a0 Lately, I\u2019ve been able to say, \u2018Okay, I need a couple of rooftops that are about the same height and at fairly close together, let me go get Google Earth, okay and I find two buildings that are exactly what I want, and where are the streetlights, they\u2019re right here \u2018cause I can zoom in and see them, he\u2019d have to remove all these streetlights right here to make this feasible, okay, and, and, so then I can write a good scene that way.\u00a0 I\u2019ve actually gone to Chicago several times now, uh, I was actually in the Field Museum and I got a picture of myself in front of Sue trying to hitch a ride. (Laughter)\u00a0 Uh, the same day I went to the Field Museum I also went to the aquarium, and I\u2019m like, \u2018Oh, I have got to use this in a book!\u2019\u00a0 And they had this lady taking a tour of schoolkids through looking at all the dolphins underwater and I\u2019m like, \u2018Uh, Ma\u2019am?\u2019 Okay, just so you know, if you ask them, \u2018Ma\u2019am, what would happen, uh, if this glass broke? (Laughter) I mean, you know, if somebody shot it or something.\u2019 (Laughter)\u00a0 They don\u2019t take that in nearly a good a humor as you would think.\u00a0 Even if you say, \u2018No, I need to know for professional reasons.\u2019 (Laughter) Ok, so just, FYI.<\/p>\n Interviwer: (Pointing) Yup!<\/p>\n Audience member: Uh, do you ever give yourself nightmares?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Do I ever give myself nightmares? Um, mostly about having\u2026.uh, showing up to a\u2026uh, like, showing up to someplace to sign my books, only, I can\u2019t sign them because I didn\u2019t finish them. (Laughter) It\u2019s like one of those I didn\u2019t get my homework done dreams. I\u2019ve never appeared naked in one, though, which, I think that\u2019s a mercy for all of us. (Laughter) But, uh, other than that, uh, no, not really.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Yeah.<\/p>\n Audience member: Uh, where did MacAnally come from?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Where did MacAnally come from? Uh, MacAnally, I\u2026I basically just needed a neutral barkeep character where I could have a lot of things happen, uh, kind of uh, I wanted to have sort of a, uh, a little microcosm Casablanca where I could have the Nazis and the French rubbing elbows. Uh, and, I needed a name for the barkeep, \u2018cause I was writing it fairly early in the Dresden\u2026in Storm Front, so I named him after my friend MacAnally, who was a buddy of mine all the way through junior high and high school.\u00a0 And who liked his drink, uh, I was always like the sober guy, I was always the guy that the people\u2026the people were going to go somewhere that they were gonna be drunk they were like, \u2018Hey Jim, do you wanna go?\u2019 because they knew I wasn\u2019t going to drink and that way, they had somebody to drive.\u00a0 So I got to wind up in\u2026and I remember all these things that these other people have no memory of (Laughter), so I feel kind of special, you know.<\/p>\n Audience member: Um, so you said that Dresden Files started as this sort of eff you to your teacher moment, and, you know, said that you have panned, you know, so many books and then three apocalyptic trilogy\u2026at what point did it change from \u2018Eff you\u2019 to, like, when did you stop and do that planning?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Uh, when did I stop and do the planning? After I\u2026after I handed the first draft to my teacher and she read it and she looks at me and she says, \u2018You did it.\u2019 I said, \u2018What?\u2019 She said, \u2018This will sell. You will be able to sell this to a publisher. This is of professional quality, you\u2019ve been working towards this for years, you did it.\u2019 And I said, \u2018I did?\u2019 (Laughter) She says, \u2018Yes.\u2019\u00a0 And it was the first time\u2026I mean, her\u2026praise from this teacher was like\u2026.she was not preparing you, uh, to, you know\u2026.she was not the kind of teacher who would, who would write a big star on your paper and put it on the refrigerator for you so everybody could see how good it was.\u00a0 She was the kind of teacher who would, uh, like, literally roll up a chapter, after she\u2019d read it, lean over, thwap you lightly on the head with it, and say, \u2018What were you thinking?\u2019 and then tell you\u2026and then tear it down. Uh, I mean, in a very neutral, mechanic, crasftsman fashion, but that\u2019s what she would do. And so when she said, \u2018You did it.\u2019\u00a0 I was just like, you\u2026I mean, I was rolling my jaw up off the floor on a little\u2026on a stick, because it just kept hitting the floor. And so after that, I said, \u2018Well, uh, if you really think this could go, I mean, do you think I should plan for a series?\u2019 And she\u2019s like, \u2018Well, that might be something that you would consider, yes.\u2019 And so, I went home and wrote out\u2026and planned it for a twenty book series, and I came back and I said, \u2018A twenty book series, do you think that would be okay?\u2019 (Laughter) And she sorta gets this little smile of her face and she says, \u2018You know, I think if you can sell a twenty book series, yeah, you\u2019ll be doing fine.\u2019 (Laughter) Jim: Yeah, uh, I\u2019m doing fine. (Laughter).\u00a0 I had no idea exactly how dry that was at the time. I mean, because there\u2019s no way you can walk up to a publishers as an unpublished author and say, \u2018I want to sell you a twenty book series!\u2019 Uh, that\u2019s impossible, that doesn\u2019t happen. And I didn\u2019t know it was impossible, so I did it.\u00a0 (Laughter). Uh, go figure. Uh, like I said, I\u2019ve stumbled into things a lot. Uh, and then\u2026I think I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to realize in time that I had a good thing going and then smart enough not to ruin it. Uh, so, you know, and plus, you know, there was, you know, writing\u2026uh, writing for ten years without getting paid, is kind of, you know,\u00a0 my \u201cin papers\u201d but, uh, you know, that\u2019s the kind of investment you\u2026you have to make, when you\u2019re not very innately talented, which, apparently I wasn\u2019t.\u00a0 It was a lot of working to build up skills.<\/p>\n Audience member: Are you still in touch with this teacher?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Am I still in touch with the teacher?\u00a0 We swap emails once or twice a year. Uh, I wrote her, uh, I wrote her a letter that was for her students, uh, so that she could show it to them, and I, uh\u2026the letter starts off, \u2018Dear Debbie\u2019s Students, Shut up and do what Debbie tells you to do. (Laughter)\u2019\u00a0 And then I told them that story, and then, at the end, \u2018So, in conclusion, I\u2026you know, my career would have taken off five years sooner if I had just shut up and done what Debbie told me to do. (Laughter). You know, Sincerely, Jim Butcher\u2019<\/p>\n Interviewer: (pointing) Audience member: Um, a buch of us have been chomping at the bit and wondering, um, who\u2019s going to wield Amoracchius and Fidelacchius and [unintelligible]<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Um, yeah, ok, who\u2019s going to get to wield the two new Swords? Um, well really, not the two new swords, but the Swords that are in Dresden\u2019s keeping right now, and are we going to get anything more about that from Ghost Story?\u00a0 Probably not, nah. (Laughter) Jim: I\u2026well\u2026oh, uh, let\u2019s see, we\u2019ll probably get the new\u2026we\u2019ll probably get the new, the new wielder of Fidelacchius in Book 14 or 15. Um, Amoracchius is gonna, uh\u2026we\u2019re gonna\u2026(Jim chuckles evilly), that\u2019s\u2026that\u2019s gonna be apocalypse time by the time we get [unintelligible].\u00a0 Amoracchius is not one of those Swords that really rampages around the world very often, and when if does, you\u2019ve heard about it, so\u2026(Laughter). Jim: I\u2019ve been\u2026I\u2026I\u2019ve been, yeah, there have been several folks who have said, \u2018yeah, you need to write a, uh, a Mouse and Mister short story.\u2019 (Applause) Oh my gosh, that would so be like an episode of Pinky and the Brain. (Laughter and applause, comments about taking over the world.)<\/p>\n Jim: But, uh\u2026but you will learn more about Mouse when, you know, you really have to have someone who\u2019s able to talk to him, and the only one who can talk to animals is, is Injun Joe right now. Jim: Oh, well, if he knew where Mouse was, maybe. Jim: Will harry find love and get to keep it. Um, maybe? Maybe, maybe. Yeah, the romance is the one thing I never really sketched out; I wanted it to be kind of more organic to go along with the story as\u2026as it developed or didn\u2019t, and uh, as it turns out, you know, as it turns out, the person that you\u2019re in love with can have some small effects on other aspects of your life. (Laughter) You know, who knew?<\/p>\n Interviewer: So, you yourself don\u2019t know where that particular angle is going yet?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: No, no, why?\u00a0 It\u2019s too much fun to\u2026it\u2019s too much fun to find out while I\u2019m writing it. Uh, so, I\u2019ll let you know as soon as I do.<\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part6<\/strong><\/a> Segment 6:<\/p>\n Audience member: [comment cut off]\u2026.ants along the side?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: How much was I involved with the back and forth, uh, kinda, the banter between the characters that are in the margins of the role-playing game book. Uh, I went over it, I went over the dialogue to approve it after it was already all done. Uh, and\u2026and basically said, \u2018Yeah, this is good.\u2019 You know, so, that was the work of them, uh, and I think it speaks to, uh, their dedication and commitment as to, uh, how well they actually did do that dialogue. (Applause) Yrah, I swear, I mean, some of these researchers that Fred managed to get to put on the books, I mean, they are just spooky. Uh, you know, they had written all these things into\u2026into the rule book that I was like, \u2018You can\u2019t\u2026you can\u2019t put that, that, you can\u2019t put that there!\u2019 And they\u2019re, \u2018Why not?\u2019 \u2018Well, because it\u2019s not going to be out \u2018til Book 18!\u2019 (Laughter) But they had put together the pieces and inferred the existence of, uh, certain things, and uh, you know, they were just kind of, you know, throwing them in, and I\u2019m like, \u2018Don\u2019t do that, don\u2019t do that!\u2019 (Laughter)<\/p>\n Interviewer: On, on the flip side though, was there anything in there that you looked at and said \u2018Oh, I could use that!\u2019? Audience member: Um, that was a leading question because there\u2019s a back and forth between Harry and Billy about the werewolves being able to talk to animals, uh, dogs specifically. So\u2026. Various: [Unparseable comments about what book and section the information might be found in from various audience members]<\/strong> Jim: Right, yeah, yeah, the wolves can\u2019t\u2026I mean, they\u2026just because you can turn into a wolf doesn\u2019t mean you can talk to a dog. It does give you a little bit more insight and perspective into being a dog. Uh, which almost counts as communication. Um, you know, for me, uh, I think I understand my dog pretty well, although I had to subtitle him for a long time in order to do it. So, I had my dog voice when I do my dog\u2019s dialogue back to me when I talk to him. So, you know, \u2018What\u2019s going on Fros (sp?), whatcha doing?\u2019 (In a high voice) \u2018Oh nothing, I\u2019m not trying to jump up on this chair to get what\u2019s left of your sandwich.\u2019 (Laughter) You know, that kind of thing.<\/p>\n Interviewer: Now that, uh, the SyFy series has ended, uh, what\u2019re\u2026what\u2026what is the state of the rights for the Dresden Files?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Uh, the rights to the Dresden Files have\u2026I got them back early, so they\u2019re all mineminemine again. (Applause) And we\u2019ll see what happens, we\u2019ll see what happens with them. Audience: Yup.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, I got to do the cameo for the\u2026for the TV series, uh, which was fun and cool. And, uh, I got to meet people and so on.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Yeah. Jim: At what point in the series are we going to find out about the connection between Harry and the island of Demonreach? In the last chapter of Ghost Story. (Audience gasps, applauds) Yeah, that came as a shock to the betas who are reading it in progress right now, they\u2019re like, \u2018Really? Really?\u2019<\/p>\n Audience member: Is there any plans\u2026.Side Jobs was an enjoyable book, do you have any plans to do any other novellas like that or collections\u2026?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Ok, um, do I have any plans for any more novellas or collections? The answer to that is I originally wrote Side Jobs because I\u2026I wanted to do the anthology because I wanted to get all the short stories in one place; there are people who can\u2019t afford to go buy, you know, a dozen different anthologies, uh, and so I wanted to be able to have them all in one spot for the readers to be able to get them.\u00a0 Um, and, as it turned out, when Side Jobs came out, there was\u2026there was issues at other publishers and I had two stories out that did not make Side Jobs. Um, so, now, the only thing I can do if I wanted to stick to my original goal is to do another anthology, uh, of short stories, because\u2026(Applause), so that\u2019s kind of the idea now, as\u2026I\u2019m writing several more short stories, uh, early next year\u2026early this year\u2026Oh my gosh, I\u2019ve got to\u2026I\u2019ve got to get those written! (Laughter) Jim: And, uh, and then I\u2019ll also be writing another novella, and, uh, you know, to include, uh, so I\u2019m going to do another few short stories so that I can do another anthology, probably not next year, but maybe the year after.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Yes?<\/p>\n Audience member: What did Margaret LeFay have on Leanansidhe in order to convince her to be Harry\u2019s godmother?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: What did Margaret LeFay have on the Leanansidhe in order to convince her to be Harry\u2019s godmother.\u00a0 Uh, (singsong) I\u2019m not gonna tell you! (Laughter) (Jim nods.) uh, but\u2026but you\u2019ll see. Jim: At some point. (Laughter) At some point. I\u2019m not sure\u2026I\u2019m not sure if that\u2019ll be late in the series or early in the capstone, so\u2026.<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Yeah.<\/p>\n Audience member: The Alphas have started demonstrating a little bit more than just turning into a wolf, how far are you planning on going with that?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: I\u2019m sorry, what was the first part of the question?<\/p>\n Audience member: The Alphas have started demonstrating\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Oh, the Alphas have started, uh, to develop, uh, into something more than just turning into a wolf, and how far will I be running with that. Um, a bit. (Laughter) But, uh, but I don\u2019t want to spoil anything for you, so, uh…yeah, they\u2019re\u2026Okay, the Alphas are\u2026the Alphas are us, they\u2019re the gamers who look at this thing\u2026who look\u2026the gamers\u2026the people who show up at the conventions and cosplay and who suddenly get handed this stuff, this cool stuff they can do.\u00a0 Of course they\u2019re not just going to leave it at\u2026at what they\u2019re handed, \u2018Look, here\u2019s how you can become a wolf, that\u2019s amazing,\u2019 \u2018Oh, that IS amazing!\u00a0 But what else can we do?\u2019\u00a0 (Laughter) \u2018Wouldn\u2019t it be even more amazing if\u2026?\u2019 And uh, yeah, so far nobody\u2019s managed to melt themselves into a puddle of grey goo, that\u2019s sort of the\u2026that\u2019s sort of the ultimate FAIL as a shapeshifter, uh (Laughter) you know, if you get the mega-fail that\u2019s what happens to you, but we\u2019ll see. Jim: Will we get to see Ivy grow up a bit? Oh yes.<\/p>\n Audience member: [Unintelligible]<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Uh, who do I think would play a good Harry. Besides Will Smith, because I\u2019ve always said Will Smith. Uh, this guy in the back (points, to laughter), for one. I really don\u2019t know him but he\u2019s quite tall and he was pointing to himself, so, uh\u2026(Laughter) (suggestions from the audience\u2014\u201cthe dude with the hand\u201d) yeah, well, Matt, yeah, he might do it pretty well, actually, he\u2019s got the right look, um, uh, let\u2019s see, Alexis Denisov, uh, I think, could do it, or could have done it, I don\u2019t know what he\u2019s like lately.\u00a0 Marsters could have done it, I don\u2019t know if he could do it lately, he\u2019s getting kind of\u2026you know, he\u2019s getting a little weathered, we might have to cast him as uh, as somebody else. Um\u2026.(to somebody in the audience) what? Oh, uh, I would\u2026I would accept Hugh Jackman, (Laughter)\u2026I would tolerate him, I would tolerate Mr. Jackman.\u00a0 Uh, uh, really, it\u2019s not something that I really think about so much, because in my head, he\u2019s never somebody who\u2019s in the movies, he\u2019s the guy in my head who, uh, is the guy in the uh, in the prequel cartoon, that Ardien drew. Uh, in the prequel comic, the, uh, Welcome to the Jungle, that\u2019s Dresden as he looks in my head, that\u2019s very, very close to what he is because they worked so closely with me putting the images together.<\/p>\n Note:\u00a0 Here is a picture of “Matt” (Esperacchius<\/a>) from that Marscon with Priscellie (as warden molly from Harry’s Soulgaze) on the left and myself on the right\u00a0-Serack<\/sup><\/p>\n MarsCon Q&A session Part7<\/strong><\/a> Segment 7:<\/p>\n Electric McButters<\/a>: Uh, could Ivy\u2026does the Archive read digital? \u00a0Or is it only print?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Does the archive read digital, or is it only print? \u00a0No, she gets it all. Uh, and\u2026yeah, and nobody ever planned for the amount of information that has actually shown up in the past 20 years or so. Uh, so yeah, that\u2019s not a good thing to be throwing on the\u2026the little girl, don\u2019t-have-any-insulation-against-everything-Archive. (Jim chuckles evilly) Like, totally bad timing for that, haha. Uh, I think Ivy would punch me in the nose too. (Laughter)<\/p>\n (audience gets loud)<\/p>\n Interviewer: Could you start again, please?<\/p>\n Audience member: You\u2019ve got all this written down on indestructible scrolls somewhere, [unintelligible]\u2026we still get the end of the story, right?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Oh, heck no. (Laughter) So it\u2019s in your best interest to see that I am all right. (Laughter)<\/p>\n Interviewer: (Pointing) Uh, way in the back. Jim: On the upcoming short stories? \u00a0Huh. Man, I might have to do a Mister and Mouse one\u2026(Applause) [unintelligible]\u2026although it might really wind up being more Mister, Mouse and Bob (more applause), because that would be really cool. Uh, uh, let me think who else\u2026um\u2026no, I was\u2026I was thinking I\u2019ll probably do another\u2026another Murphy one at some point, and\u2026because, I mean, \u00a0it was so hard to do, the first one, it was like, okay, I did a lot of work on that I need to get some more mileage out of that one. Uh, and then, I will probably actually do one from the point of view of the private eye\u2026 Jim: Yeah, Vince (Applause). Uh, just because, uh, he\u2019s really\u2026I mean, he is so much my tribute to the late Robert Parker character, uh, it\u2019s really\u2026it was my intention to write\u2026to write somebody who\u2019s totally in that Spencer vein. And uh, Vince\u2026.Vince is good for that. \u00a0Uh, he\u2019d be\u2026he\u2019d be hilarious as a\u2026as a point of view character, but\u2026.<\/p>\n Interviewer: Do you have a title for the book after Ghost Story?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Uh, no not yet.<\/p>\n Interviewer: All right, we\u2019ve got time for one last question.<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Wait! I do. I\u2019ve\u2026I put in email somewhere. (Laughter) I can\u2019t remember right now, though, but it\u2019s digital. (Priscellie comes up onto the stage and wispers to Jim). Oh! Right! Okay, duh. Winter Knight. Yeah, Winter Knight. I mean, \u00a0come on, obviously. \u00a0All right, look. Being dead does not get you out of a contract with the Queen of Air and Darkness. It does not. Jim: \u00a0He cheated. What if he cheated? Somebody must\u2019ve.<\/p>\n Interviewer: So, I guess that kind of answers your other question about being hit by a bus, if being dead doesn\u2019t get you out of a contract. (Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Yeah, it doesn\u2019t get you out of a contract with Penguin, either.<\/p>\n Interviewer: All right, we\u2019re coming to the end of the hour, we\u2019ve got time for one last question. (Points) Jim: Uh, I\u2019m only doing the Dresden, uh, for the next year or so, uh, just because my wife says, \u2018Jim, you have got to take some time off or I will kill you.\u2019 (Laughter) Uh, and\u2026and she\u2019s probably right. Um, but I am gong to be starting\u2026I mean, I\u2019m going to be doing another project\u2026I don\u2019t want to be doing just the Dresden Files, I want to be doing other stuff, too. \u00a0I think, in the future, uh, I think the way I\u2019ll do it next is that I\u2019ll\u2026I\u2019ll write the book and have it written and then sell it. Because that seems to be so much of a less, uh, deadline, stressy, uh, time-crunchy way to get things done.<\/p>\n Audience member: Any change you\u2019ll be going back to Alera?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Any chance of going back to Alera? \u00a0Maybe. Jim: Yeah, I kinda talked about that earlier, um, oh, that question doesn\u2019t count, we\u2019ll go one more.<\/p>\n Interviewer: Yeah. Jim: Any\u2026?<\/p>\n Interviewer: Any books coming out on audio?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: Oh, the Dresden books on audio? They\u2019re all on audio. Jim: Yes. Yeah, James Marsters read them all. \u00a0Okay, one more, that one didn\u2019t\u2026<\/p>\n Interviewer: Yeah that one doesn\u2019t count either. Sorry Lunacy!<\/p>\n Audience member: If the faerie queen dies, do you get out of the contract?<\/strong><\/p>\n Jim: If the faerie queen dies do you get out of the contract? No. You just have a different faerie queen show up to\u2026I mean, the faerie queen is an office, it\u2019s not a person, uh, so, I mean, Lily found that out the hard way, you know, so\u2026<\/p>\n 2011 NYC Signing Q&A parts 1&2<\/strong><\/a> Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0If you will turn your books to page\u2026. (laughter) OK, I\u2019m not a podium person is the issue here. OK, so instead of doing a reading or anything like that I thought we could just skip straight to the questions and answers, because that\u2019s the fun part. Plus everybody\u2026most of you have already, uh, read what there was to…so\u2026. Q&A? Is that cool with you? OK, but for this to work, one of you has to ask a question.\u00a0 All right, right here.\u00a0 (points)<\/p>\n Tara\/Starbeam: Is Harry left- or right-handed?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Is Harry left- or right-handed? He\u2019s a righty. (Same audience member then asks about the scar on Harry\u2019s right arm from cleaning a fish at Ebenezer\u2019s; hard to hear over laughter.) Was it on his right arm? Oh, okay. He probably shouldn\u2019t have been trying to cut it left-handed, then, should he? I think that explains itself.\u00a0 (points) Right over here.<\/p>\n Audience member:\u00a0 What happened to the Other Harry Ghost from\u00a0Grave Peril<\/em>?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0What happened to the Other Harry Ghost from\u00a0Grave Peril<\/em>?\u00a0 That was the ghost that was created actually for a purpose, fulfilled that purpose, then was no longer able to \u2026\u00a0 or was no longer trapped there and so it just sort of \u201cpiffed.\u201d<\/p>\n Priscilla:\u00a0 The technical term.<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0I really just should have said that. That\u2019s it. Right here. (points)<\/p>\n Audience member: When are we going to hear more about drakes and dragons?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0When are we going to hear more about drakes, dragons\u2026oh, dragon dragons, oh, you mean, like Ferrovax. When are we going to hear more about dragons. Ferrovax will probably come in real late in the case books and we might see some dragon action about that. I\u2019ve got a good idea for it and it is suitably cool.\u00a0 But we\u2019ll get there at some point. I hope so. I\u2019ll be terribly disappointed if it isn\u2019t, and (little fake shake to his voice) everyone will yell at me on Twitter. (points to audience member)<\/p>\n Audience member: Are you ever going to do a book from Michael Carpenter\u2019s perspective?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Am I ever going to do a book from Michael Carpenter\u2019s perspective? Probably not.\u00a0 I suppose we could go back that way. A short story from his perspective is more likely. But I don\u2019t know that I\u2019d write a whole book that way.\u00a0 I did have an idea if I ever have to\u00a0 pay off my debts or something, I might be able to, uh, do a spin-off series set around the Knights of the Cross but, you know, it\u2019s not something I\u2019ve got planned out hard and fast yet. But Michael got his honorable retirement, you know, without dying, so he\u2019s pretty happy with the way things are.<\/p>\n Audience member: What about Murphy?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Oh, would I write a book from her perspective? Probably not a book but I\u2019d be happy to do some more stories. And also, if there\u2019s ever like a spin-off series where I grab characters and told things from their point of view, that might be fun. But the moment is really nice\u2026did you just say (what sounds like coughBUTTERScough)? But at the time I, uh, kinda need time away from the Dresden Files after I finish a book. Because by the time I get to the end of a book, I\u2019m like, \u201cI\u2019m so sick of you, Harry Dresden. I could just shoot you dead.\u201d (pause, lots of laughs) Oh, wait\u2026. (points to audience member)<\/p>\n Audience member: Did you cackle maniacally when you wrote the end of\u00a0Changes<\/em>?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Did I cackle maniacally at the end of\u00a0Changes<\/em>?\u00a0 Oh, for like thirty minutes.\u00a0 You know, probably all the way until I found somebody to read it and then scream.<\/p>\n Priscilla: Thanks, Jim.<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0(Something unintelligible) Because as you know, writers do not truly exist upon the royalties they receive for their work but upon your pain and suffering.<\/p>\n Shecky: *cough* Skavis!<\/p>\n Audience member: You once said that for\u00a0Codex Alera<\/em>\u00a0you put together lost legions and Pokemon. Are you putting anything else together for another series?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0He\u2019s referring to the story I tell everyone about how I put together\u00a0Codex Alera<\/em>\u00a0out of\u00a0 lost Roman legions and Pokemon. And am I doing something like that for any other series.\u00a0 No, I haven\u2019t really thrown together any, like, really semi-lame ideas to make something cool. I try to go with cool ideas, although the more I think about it the more I think, \u201cMaybe I really DO need to try the lame ideas, because heck, it\u2019s been working so far\u2026. You know, if it\u2019s not broke, maybe\u00a0 I shouldn\u2019t fix it. I dunno. (points) Right here, in the beard.<\/p>\n Audience member: Will we be seeing more from the\u00a0Codex Alera<\/em>\u00a0world?<\/p>\n Jim: \u201cWill we be seeing more from the\u00a0Codex Alera<\/em>\u00a0world?\u201d was the question. If we do, it\u2019ll be a couple of generations after the story we\u2019ve had so far, where you can see how Tavi has basically wrecked the status quo completely. And it\u2019ll be a much steampunkier Alera if we do that.\u00a0 (points) Right here.<\/p>\n Audience member:\u00a0 Is Lash coming back?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Specifically, is Lash coming back?\u00a0 Lash actually appeared in\u00a0Ghost Story<\/em>, although not under that name.\u00a0 (lots of groans at the response, then he uses a sing-song voice, waving his hand) I\u2019m not gonna tell you\u2026. (gleefully \u201cevil\u201d at more groans of dismay) Yes,\u00a0yes<\/strong>\u2026awww, man, that is like heroin for writers.\u00a0 (points to the next questioner)<\/p>\n Audience member:\u00a0 Are we ever going to hear more about the Oblivion War?<\/p>\n Jim:<\/strong>\u00a0Are we ever going to hear more about the Oblivion War? Probably not in\u00a0Marscon Q&A session<\/a>\u00a0(youtube)<\/del>\u00a0cass
\nMarscon Panel “Urban Fantasy, is it an ocean or just a wave”<\/a>
\nGhost Story blerb with Jim produced by his Publisher<\/a><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
\nHere’s the link to the first of the videos, recoded and uploaded by Serack, it should be easy to find the subsequent ones:\u00a0http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=iKCc5tTpppM<\/a><\/p>\n
\nNote: \u00a0I didn’t quite get my recorder on before they started the interview so the beginning of the first question was missed. \u00a0The interviewer asked Jim what it was like to write Changes and Jim said it was like being the guy that has spent the past 2 months making…\u00a0-Serack (aka ufgrad2008 on youtube)<\/sup><\/p>\n
\n(Audience laughter)<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Uh, well, the Alera was about six books long, but, I mean, I, it was planned, I had planned it to be six books. Um, and, uh, to finally get it done, uh, you know, I got finished with it and I\u2019m like, well, we\u2019ve got all the, all the exciting story really closed out here and we know what\u2019s going on and I could\u2019ve done another fifty pages of, of kinda dull boring stuff. \u00a0And I thought, who wants to talk, uh, road projects, yeah, it\u2019s critically important to Alera, but you realize as far as readers go how exciting could that possibly be? Um, and the sort of political fallout after we\u2019re all done with the giant war, it\u2019s like ok, you know what, Star Wars, after the Death Star blows up, there\u2019s exactly zero lines of dialogue and a minute, you know, maybe sixty seconds of movie. \u00a0And so it\u2019s like, ok, look, let\u2019s just have people walk up, we\u2019ll hang the medals on them, end of the series. \u00a0And there\u2019s, there\u2019s\u2026that\u2019s not a bad way to end things. \u00a0But, um, to finally finish it, I\u2019m like going, \u201cOh, man, now I\u2019m done with that. \u00a0I still have ideas for characters and stuff, uh, so I\u2019ll have to hijack them for other stories in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Have you played the Harry Dresden role playing game?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
\nInterviewer: So, with Alera wrapped up, do you have plans for anything that\u2019s not Dresden-related right now?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Did you get a lot of trouble from your editors about that?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Ah, so, that puts you at about the halfway point now?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Ah, yeah, but now we can start the good stuff! (Laughter)<\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: You\u2019ve uh, through the whole series, you\u2019ve always abused Harry.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Well, you haven\u2019t been kind to him.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Was there, uh, anything that you took away from him in the last book that was difficult for you to write?\u00a0 Or was it just fun?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Um, Ghost Story, uh, for me to get it done, in\u2026it\u2019s been a difficult story to write, on account of, um, normally Dresden can\u2026I mean, if, um, I run into a problem when I\u2019m writing it, I can just have Dresden kick down a door somewhere, and hat up and get tough. Being a ghost and all, he\u2019s actually having to use his brain, um, which means that I\u2019m actually having to use my brain, and that\u2019s hard.\u00a0 (Laughter) So, it\u2019s been a difficult story to write.\u00a0 If I wanted\u2026if I\u2019d finished it in time to come out on the April date, it would have been a very half-assed story, and I believe in full-assed stories, (Laughter) so in order to make sure the story has a complete ass, I had to ask for some more time to get it done, so it\u2019s going to be out in July instead of April. (Audience expresses its despair)\u00a0 Fine! I\u2019ll just stop writing it at all! I will go home\u2026(makes a sulky\/pouty expression)
\n
\nInterviewer: You\u2019ll get it in July. You\u2019ll be lucky.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
\nInterviewer: All right, let\u2019s uh, let\u2019s go to the audience because I\u2026we\u2019re going to be flooded here. First one up.<\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Why does Toot-toot keep getting bigger?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n![\"???\"](\"http:\/\/www.jimbutcheronline.com\/bb\/Smileys\/default\/huh.gif\" "\\"Huh\\"")
)\u00a0 traits that you borrowed.<\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Do you have any plans to, uh, make a sequel or make another ZOMG Zombie Apocalypse for City of Heroes?
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Oh, do I have any plans to make another uh, module for City of Heroes? Uh, I wrote a City of Heroes module, it\u2019s called ZOMG Zombie Apocalypse, Zombie Apocalypse Now, is what it\u2019s called, and\u2026uh, where you have to go out and fight zombies. Uh, and it\u2019s\u2026there\u2019s a lot of zombie fighting involved, and it\u2019s intricate. You\u2019ll just have to believe me, you\u2019ll just have to trust me, if you don\u2019t play City of Heroes. Uh, I wold like to write some more, except that I\u2019ve got this editor, uh, who, while being a perfectly sweet person and just one of the nicest people I\u2019ve ever met, really does want to have her book in. So I\u2019ll try to focus on it, I\u2019ve got a\u2026it\u2019ll have to be after this next project gets done.<\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Of all the cities you could pick, why Chicago?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Do you do a lot of travel to do research for locations?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: So, how\u2019re you doing?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: I had the same question.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: How\u2026how long will they have to wait?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: I\u2019ve read the last book, and I was very curious about development of [unintelligible] and I was wondering if we were going to get a little bit of backstory on him?
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Backstory on Mouse?\u00a0 I mean, there\u2019s\u2026there\u2019s like eight weeks before Harry got him, (Laughter), that\u2019s really not a whole lot to fit that in\u2026I mean, in terms\u2026in terms of what he is, um, I will say this about Mouse: uh, he does have a bunch of brothers and sisters, uh, who, who wonder where\u2026.how come they haven\u2019t heard from him. \u2018You never howl, you never pee on anything\u2026.\u2019 (Laughter) And plus, there is\u2026uh, I will just say that the possibility exists that Harry didn\u2019t rescue all of them, and if so, where are the others? (Various awww!s from the audience) Interesting.
\n
\nInterviewer: Don\u2019t ever mess with the dog. The audience hates it when you mess with the dog.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Can Harry [unintelligible] Joe, \u2018cause, [unintelligible] animals, he knows all the animals [unintelligible]<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Will Harry find love and actually get to keep it? (Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Um, not so far, not so far. Uh, there are some things that I\u2019ve looked at and gone, \u2018Ooh, interesting!\u2019 uh, and so it\u2019s gone into the cooker, but, uh, I\u2019ll probably\u2026I\u2019ll probably think it\u2019s original. (Laughter) And then at some point I\u2019ll be going back through the rule book and go, \u2018Oh!\u00a0 Okay, I got it there, I\u2026I really should send a letter to Fred.\u2019 (Laughter)<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Where? Which book?
\n
\nAudience member: I just got them for Christmas; I don\u2019t have them memorized yet.<\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Um, it\u2019s basically, \u2018Billy says \u201cWoof\u201d\u2019. (Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: Uh, considering the experience with the series and how that kind of well, (other audience member: tanked), that happened, uh, what kind of involvement would you insist upon, if anything else were to ever happen again, I mean, would it be similar to the involvement you had with the comic? Final say? I mean, what would you like to have?
\n<\/strong>
\nJim: Oh, um, if\u2026the question is: if we do\u2026if there\u2019s another, uh, shot at a TV show or movie, et cetera, what kind of role would I want to have, would I want to play in it.\u00a0 Um, I think it would depend a lot upon, uh, how much I already had on my plate, uh, because I\u2019m kind of at a point in my life right now where there\u2019s enough to do that if I add anything else to it, I\u2019m going to be letting down someone that I care about a lot, and that\u2019s not acceptable to me. Um, so, uh, I think it would depend on what my schedule was looking like and so on for how much I would want to be involved. And, I mean, if you want to get involved in Hollywood, there\u2019s a number of levels to which you can get involved, and some of them I kind of don\u2019t like, I kinda don\u2019t like the, uh, you know, the executive producer level of involvement, where they put your name on it, and they do things in your name but you\u2019re not actually doing things. Although there is an additional paycheck that goes along with it, I understand. Uh, but, uh, you know, as far as that goes, uh, I would\u2026I would either like to be up to\u2026in it up to my neck with, with uh, veto authority over it, or, you know, not involved, you know, except as the, \u2018And oh here\u2026and by the way, there\u2019s the author.\u2019 Although I think I would say, \u2018I get to appear in the background somewhere, and that\u2019s all there is to it!\u2019 (Laughter)
\n
\nInterviewer: Everyone caught his cameo in the series?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nAudience member: At what point in the series are we going to find out about Harry and the island of Demonreach?<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInterviewer: Good night, everyone, Jim\u2019s got to go!<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: When?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: Will we get to see Ivy grow up a bit?<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/wordof.jim-butcher.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/me-Priscellie-and-Matt-300x225.jpg\")
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\nTranscription by\u00a0cass<\/a><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: Any\u2026give us any teasers on the upcoming shorts?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience: Vince?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience: \u2026[unintelligible] until he died?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: With the Dresden Files is chugging along, and Codex Alera done, are we going to see you doing any other series or are you going to focus solely on doing Dresden?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nInterviewer: \u00a0Did you come in late? (Laughter)<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: Any books coming out on audio?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nAudience member: Are they?<\/strong><\/p>\n
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\nTranscription by\u00a0jeditigger<\/a><\/p>\n