Author Topic: Any news on Peace Talks  (Read 173519 times)

Offline morriswalters

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #60 on: December 22, 2018, 12:35:31 AM »
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before getting to MM which is going to be the fun one.
I have to tell you that I saw the Trek version when it was first broadcast, and in my opinion the best part was Spock with a beard.  I was happy when they dropped a rock on Kirk in a later movie. :) Otherwise meh.  Although YMMV.  And lest you sneer I watched trek on Sundays religiously for ten years waiting for the movie.  11 o'clock AM Sundays.  520 episodes. :o

However on the topic of when we might see Mirror, Mirror.  I'd say sooner rather than later.

Offline Dina

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #61 on: December 22, 2018, 06:32:28 AM »
I love all the Mirror episodes of the Trek series, but curiously I am not interested in the DF: MM book at all (other than because it would move the story towards the BAT). I just don't care for an alternate Harry. I just want to see more Harry (Harry prime  :D)
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Offline KurtinStGeorge

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #62 on: December 22, 2018, 07:59:25 AM »
I love all the Mirror episodes of the Trek series, but curiously I am not interested in the DF: MM book at all (other than because it would move the story towards the BAT). I just don't care for an alternate Harry. I just want to see more Harry (Harry prime  :D)

My guess is while the Mirror Mirror novel will most likely read as almost a stand alone story that is seemingly separate from the rest of the Dresden Files we know after Grave Peril; at or near the end of that novel Harry (prime) will learn several things he couldn't have learned in his own universe.   As you said, these bits of knowledge will help move the overall story arc towards the BAT. 

This is probably four years from when Mirror Mirror comes out (God, that is depressing.), but I hope it is a great stand alone story, because I would mostly be reading it just to find out what Harry prime is going to learn.  One TV show that Jim and many fans are familiar with is Babylon 5.  They used to have episodes; particularly in the first two seasons, that were clearly meant to stand alone from the overall story arc.  Some of those episodes were very good, some were really weak, particularly in the first season of the show.  However, even in some of the weaker episodes there would usually be some tidbit of information casually dropped into that episode that would become significant in the larger arc of the show.  Whenever it comes out, I hope Mirror Mirror is a real page turner, because I don't want MM to be like one of those second rate B5 episodes that are only important because of the odd scraps of information that gave us clues to what was coming next.

P.S.  Also, whatever Harry learns had better be worth the wait.

Methinks you forgot an operation.  It was chapter 36 on 12/7 and 38 on 12/17.  That's two chapters in ten days, averaging a chapter every five days.  If there's 14 to go, that's 70 days, rather than 140.  Maybe mid--to-late-March, assuming he takes some holiday time off from writing?

I don't remember where I heard or read this, but I remember Jim stating that he can average writing about 4,000 words a day when everything is running smoothly.  (Or was it 3,400 words a day? - Just ignore that and pretend it's 4,000.)  The last four novels had these many words in it: Changes: 149,280 words, Ghost Story: 162,899 words, Cold Days: 175,685 words and Skin Game: 151,922 words.  That averages to about 159,947 words. So Jim has finished 38 chapters, and I believe someone has said most of the later books have averaged 52 chapters.  Assuming most chapters average out to same length, that would mean Jim has written about 116,884 words so far. (159,947 words / 52 expected chapters x 38 written ones)  This leaves just over 43,000 words left for Jim to write.  (159,947 - 116,884 = 43,063)

In theory, at 4,000 words a day Jim could be done in less than two weeks, but I doubt that will be the case.  (Of course, we have to add at least a week for Christmas and New Years.)  As Jim approaches the final chapters, I think it's to be expected that it takes longer for him to work out all the details, so the climax of the story isn't just exciting, it also makes sense and fits neatly with what has come before it.  So my guess is if Jim is on a roll now, maybe he will finish in about 4 to 6 weeks.  I hope those updates on his website keep coming.  It's nice to have something to keep track of.

(I know Jim needs to take a break from Harry when he finishes a DF novel, but I really wish he could just take three months off, maybe travel to Australia and New Zealand (or wherever).  It's Summer there now.  Shelve the next Cinder Spires novel for a while.  Then come home and jump into Mirror Mirror.  IMO the Aeronaut's Windlass was OK.  It had some fun parts and there was at least one character that I think might become really interesting down the road, but I can't say I'm dying to read what happens next.)       
« Last Edit: December 22, 2018, 09:10:25 AM by KurtinStGeorge »
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Offline Mira

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #63 on: December 22, 2018, 12:44:56 PM »
I love all the Mirror episodes of the Trek series, but curiously I am not interested in the DF: MM book at all (other than because it would move the story towards the BAT). I just don't care for an alternate Harry. I just want to see more Harry (Harry prime  :D)

  Agreed! :)

Offline Mira

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #64 on: December 22, 2018, 12:57:08 PM »
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This is probably four years from when Mirror Mirror comes out (God, that is depressing.), but I hope it is a great stand alone story, because I would mostly be reading it just to find out what Harry prime is going to learn.  One TV show that Jim and many fans are familiar with is Babylon 5.  They used to have episodes; particularly in the first two seasons, that were clearly meant to stand alone from the overall story arc.  Some of those episodes were very good, some were really weak, particularly in the first season of the show.  However, even in some of the weaker episodes there would usually be some tidbit of information casually dropped into that episode that would become significant in the larger arc of the show.  Whenever it comes out, I hope Mirror Mirror is a real page turner, because I don't want MM to be like one of those second rate B5 episodes that are only important because of the odd scraps of information that gave us clues to what was coming next.

No,  you are mistaken about B5..  The first season was never meant to stand alone.  I agree some
of the episodes were weak than others, but even the most seemingly insignificant episode had
hints for the future..  What mess everything up is the star Michael O'Hare suffered from significant serious mental illness and by some miracle managed to make it to the end of the first season.  This
was kept secret from the public by MJS at Michael O'Hare's request.  He rebounded somewhat on
medication to return twice for a guest appearance in a couple of later seasons.  However his mental
health continued to slide, it ruined his marriage, his career, and eventually he died of a heart attack
while living in a homeless shelter.  After his death MJS revealed his sad story.. When Michael O"Hare
left JMS was forced to do a major rewrite so hints and clues seen in the first season had different significance. 

Offline Dina

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #65 on: December 23, 2018, 09:54:06 PM »
I didn't know all that, Mira. I've never watched B5 so I don't know much about its stars, but I usually read news about actors and things like that. I completely missed that story.
Missing you, Md 

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Offline KurtinStGeorge

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #66 on: December 24, 2018, 05:02:26 AM »
No,  you are mistaken about B5..  The first season was never meant to stand alone. 

No, I think you misunderstood what I wrote.  I didn't say the first season of Babylon 5 was meant to stand alone.  I said some episodes; perhaps more specifically, the main story told within specific episodes, had little or nothing to do with Babylon 5's overarching story arc.  Even show creator J. Michael Straczynski used to talk about episodes as being arc and non-arc stories.  Below is a quote from JMS made during B5's first season about an episode that was accidentally shown out of its intended order during the season.

"Through a miscommunication, Warners thought TKO was in the slot in which we'd placed Quality [of Mercy], so that went out to TV Guide, and it's now too late to change the order back. Doesn't matter; neither are really arc-stories, though it was hoped to hold back some of Susan's development in TKO just a tad longer."
http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/us/guide/014.html

IMO, TKO was one of the weaker first season episodes.  At least the Alpha story about the human boxer who came to Babylon 5 to enter a martial arts contest no human had ever been allowed to participate in before.  (That idea sounds so much better than it actually was.)  The Beta story about Commander Ivanova denying the grief she felt after her father's death gave the character more depth, but also had little to do with B5's overall arc.

The episode Quality of Mercy had three distinct stories, none of which related to the overall story arc.  What was great about each of those stories is they all introduced elements that would be used in later, sometimes much later, episodes in the show.  There was the alien machine that could cure people of any illness by taking the life energy from another person, which Marcus used to save Ivanova's life in Season 4.  Lennier lied to protect Centauri Ambassador Londo's personal honor after Londo caused a fight in a bar when he was caught cheating at poker.  That became important because most people thought the Minbari never overtly lied.  In a later episode a Minbari lying to protect another person's personal honor was an important plot point.  Telepath Talia Winters had to mind scan a convicted murderer to confirm his guilt before the legal sentence of having his mind and personality wiped was carried out.  That came back in the episode; a really good one, about the priest who starting having terrible dreams about murdering women.

Now I bet if you rewatched those two episodes you could find a scene or even two, in each episode where some point was made, or piece of information was revealed that related to the overall story arc or hinted at an important upcoming story arc development, but none of the individual stories within each of the two episodes I mentioned were part of the main story arc of the Babylon 5.  (Damn, I've got to re-watch that series now.)

   
« Last Edit: December 24, 2018, 09:21:55 AM by KurtinStGeorge »
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Offline HistoryDave

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #67 on: December 24, 2018, 06:05:08 AM »
Hello all: just thought I would do my quarterly check on the progress of "Peace Talks".  Over the past couple of years I have had the pleasure of reading the entire "Sharp's rifles" series, the Patrick Rothfuss books (also in a holding pattern, and several non-fiction historical works.  My heart keeps returning to Jim Butcher.  Maybe it's time to catch up on the Raymond Feist universe in Midkemia? 

I hope Jim gets his life and motivation redirected back to the Dresden Files.  The latest news sounds promising but we are looking at a long wait.  I will be back in about three months.  I love JB and this forum.  Bye for now.
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Offline Dina

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #68 on: December 24, 2018, 07:24:52 AM »
See you in a while  :D
Missing you, Md 

There are many horrible sights in the multiverse. Somehow, though, to a soul attuned to the subtle rhythms of a library, there are few worse sights than a hole where a book ought to be. Someone has stolen a book (Terry Pratchett)

Offline Mira

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #69 on: December 24, 2018, 12:18:33 PM »
I didn't know all that, Mira. I've never watched B5 so I don't know much about its stars, but I usually read news about actors and things like that. I completely missed that story.


 Because Mr O'Hare wanted it that way, and JMS kept his promise, he only revealed it a couple of years after Mr O'Hare's death.   At the time the fans were in quite an uproar over him leaving the show, the story told to the public was that he wasn't a big enough star so was replaced.   We know now that Mr O'Hare was suffering from hallucinations at an increasing rate and severity, it is a miracle that he was able to finish the season at all.  Tragically like many suffering from his form of mental illness he went off his meds which of course made things worse.

Yes, JMS did talk about some of the stories not being part of the arc, but again some of that was a cover story because some episodes had to be changed because of Mr O'Hare's health.  That might be why they seem a bit weak compared to the rest of the season.   Yeah, you should watch it again, I did recently and it is amazing how well it holds up.

Offline Dina

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #70 on: December 24, 2018, 09:02:47 PM »
Thanks for the info, Mira!
Missing you, Md 

There are many horrible sights in the multiverse. Somehow, though, to a soul attuned to the subtle rhythms of a library, there are few worse sights than a hole where a book ought to be. Someone has stolen a book (Terry Pratchett)

Offline KurtinStGeorge

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #71 on: December 25, 2018, 09:42:23 PM »

 Because Mr O'Hare wanted it that way, and JMS kept his promise, he only revealed it a couple of years after Mr O'Hare's death.   At the time the fans were in quite an uproar over him leaving the show, the story told to the public was that he wasn't a big enough star so was replaced.   We know now that Mr O'Hare was suffering from hallucinations at an increasing rate and severity, it is a miracle that he was able to finish the season at all.  Tragically like many suffering from his form of mental illness he went off his meds which of course made things worse.

Yes, JMS did talk about some of the stories not being part of the arc, but again some of that was a cover story because some episodes had to be changed because of Mr O'Hare's health.  That might be why they seem a bit weak compared to the rest of the season.   Yeah, you should watch it again, I did recently and it is amazing how well it holds up.

I remember the speculation that Bruce Boxleitner was brought in because he had been in a popular TV series before; Scarecrow and Mrs. King, and he would draw a larger audience to the show.  I remember thinking that Scarecrow and Mrs. King wasn't that big a hit, but the idea that corporate higher ups were interfering with Babylon 5 seemed very plausible at the time.

One sad irony of Michael O'Hare's condition is the character of Commander Sinclair was emotionally tortured by his past, due to almost hallucinatory and painful flashbacks he kept having to events he couldn't remember.  I was glad they brought O'Hare back in season three for those two-episodes about Babylon 4, because the way Sinclair's story arc was completed was really cool.

Dina, you really should watch this show if you can.  Also, anyone who is a fan of Benedict Jacka's Alex Verus series should watch it too because of the three elements Jacka has taken directly from B5.  There are characters named Morden and Drahk which come straight from B5, and he's even had Morden ask Alex, "What do you want?"  That question is an important one in Babylon 5, and I would bet dollars to doughnuts that sometime soon the question "Who are you?" will play an important part in Alex's life.  (Though the rest of the Alex Verus novels are unrelated to B5.)     
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Offline Mira

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #72 on: December 26, 2018, 12:30:21 PM »

   Yeah,  Mr O'Hare got back on his meds long enough to make a guest appearance  to complete
the Sinclair arc.  At that time there was hope that he'd be able to stay on them and continue his
career but sadly it didn't happen.   The last news I had heard about him before hearing of his death
was about a guest appearance at a con, where he shocked his fans both by the amount of weight he had gained and his angry abusive behavior.  Of course even then no one knew the true reason for either.  It is a real tribute to the kind of writer JMS is that he was able to shift gears after his main star departed from the show.
« Last Edit: December 26, 2018, 04:04:58 PM by Mira »

Offline Bad Alias

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #73 on: December 31, 2018, 03:17:02 AM »
Chapter 39 as of 12/27. Also the Christmas Eve short story. http://www.jim-butcher.com/faq/upcoming-works

Offline segaily

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Re: Any news on Peace Talks
« Reply #74 on: January 14, 2019, 09:29:48 PM »
Methinks you forgot an operation.  It was chapter 36 on 12/7 and 38 on 12/17.  That's two chapters in ten days, averaging a chapter every five days.  If there's 14 to go, that's 70 days, rather than 140.  Maybe mid--to-late-March, assuming he takes some holiday time off from writing?

I believe it's been said before that once he gets rolling at the end, things go pretty fast.  It might be finished even faster.  Or as others have said, this could be a final draft that he's making some minor edits on.  If most chapters are fine, he could finish sooner.  If it's a first draft, then surely there'll be at least one more round of edits.

Whatever version or pace, it sounds like he's on track, which I take as great news.
We have another update on Jim's page.
We are now at chapter 40 as of 1/14/19
That is a chapter every 2 weeks but it was also over the holidays and we got a story so looks to me like he is still maintaining a good pace! 

Yes his updates have me all excited for the story again and I am now checking his website every week or so to see if there is anything new plus going back through some of the other books.

Technically the website says chapter 40 as of 2018 not 2019 but I am guessing that will get fixed to 19 as soon as someone who can fix it to 19 notices. 
« Last Edit: January 14, 2019, 09:33:44 PM by segaily »