Remix, anyone?

So, did anyone else read the preview of the next Supernatural tie-in novel Bone Key written by Keith DeCandido (who also wrote the first tie-in, Nevermore).*

If you did read it, did you manage to make it past the first few paragraphs? All the way to where he again fucks up Dean’s eye color (not that the color of Dean’s eye has any relevance at that point to begin with…)?

I didn’t… Zzzzz…

And I’m not sure if I feel sorry for myself, because I’d like nothing more than a big, juicy, ‘real’ novel in the Supernatural world to read, or for Mr. DeCandido, who gets outshone as an author by a really large part of the Supernatural fandom fic authors.

I can forgive him for having those rather big chunks of exposition, because, after all, the intended audience of tie-in novels are not the fans but Jane Q Public who outnumbers us big time. I cannot forgive the terrible pacing (yawn…) or the dialog that reads like he consulted a “How To Write Modern American Vernacular” instead of how real people speak. That’s just plain bad writing.

So, I’m inclined to feel more sorry for myself. After all, DeCandido has gotten paid for his… work.

I’m half-wanting to call a “Remix the novel”-challenge. And keep hoping someone will MST it, or spork it to pieces. Because, really, we can do better than that, can’t we?

* With thanks to [info]ficwriter1966 who first alerted me to it.

ETA: I love fandom…! [info]tanaquisga took up my challenge and condensed the preview into a 100 word drabble.

3 Comments

  1. Tanaqui on 20.08.2008 at 18:25 (Reply)

    Ask and ye shall receive….

    Bone Key – the drabble remix

    “Yaphet?” Sam glanced at Bobby.

    “Nut job.” Bobby sipped the champagne they were using to toast New Year.

    “Really? Sure, we’ll check it out.” Dean snapped their father’s old phone closed. “Let’s go, Sam!”

    “You takin’ that hippie burnout seriously?” Bobby stared incredulously.

    Dean shrugged. “Bunch of hauntings, plus some girl got her throat slit and there was sulfur….”

    Unexpectedly, Sam backed his brother. “If it’s a real job, we should go. If it isn’t, Dean gets to cut loose in Key West.”

    The thought that Dean had maybe less than a year to live hung unspoken in the air.

    PS – the original was about 2800 words….

    1. Scribbler on 20.08.2008 at 18:37 (Reply)

      I love fandom…! 🙂

      Brilliantly condensed version! Of course, if you get paid by the word, a drabble will leave you to go hungry *g*

  2. Anonymous on 20.08.2008 at 20:00 (Reply)

    I may laugh about that remix all afternoon. (About the very idea of it – as well as the fact that it’s a good deal funnier than the original.)

    I should have the book in hand in 6 days. I don’t think I’ve ever been so eager to get my hands on something that I know I won’t like. Unless you go by sheer amusement value alone, in which case I ought to have it bronzed.

Leave a comment