BilmBlog500

When we’re interviewing for new staff, we’re often talking to people who are currently working at a publishing company, and we’ll often ask why they’re looking to move to an agency. The most common response is a variation of: “I realized that I want to work on the books I like, and at the publishing company, I’m having to work on books the publisher can publish.” And for me, I don’t think that’s ever been truer than in our work on Gil Griffin’s JUMPING AT THE CHANCE , a wonderful fish-out-of-water story about fish swimming very very far from America’s coastal waters. Twenty years ago, I was like many Americans.  Australian Rules Football was this weird thing you heard about, mostly as a strange joke about the strange things you’ll find watching TV in the middle of the night.  Then, in 1999, I went to Australia for the first time, and I went to see this strange thing for myself. Well, let’s just say I was mesmerized.  I sat in the Melbourne Cricket Ground and watched a Kan...

So as we all gear up for the excitement of this evening's Bowl Selection Special... No, the BCS isn't fair, it's rigged against schools that are out of the major BCS conferences, and having a college football playoff will not save the system. As I posted at the start of the year, college football fans and pundits will still argue over which 8 teams make the playoff, because there's no way the supporters of the #9 team won't think it's really #6. And there's no guarantee the best team will win every game, some player will get injured in practice or be suspended for violating team rules. Let's just settle for the idea that college football will never, should never, have a truly declared "champion" and the world will survive. The other scenario that works for me is that college football can institute a playoff the same year that my mother declares which of her children is her one and true favorite. Also on the tube today is the final of the 2...

So a few weeks ago I posted an ode to Australian Rules Football, which you can enjoy here . I've now been introduced to one of the, um, odder customs in the sport. I happened on, rather by accident, the wonderful news that ESPN Classic was doing live coverage of this year's Grand Final. Among the participants, the St. Kilda Saints, whom I'd seen in person win a controversial upset victory during the first round of the playoff series three weeks ago. Well, great game. The Saints fell behind pretty badly in the second quarter, but slowly and steadily made their way back in the second half, and then they go ahead by a goal late in the 4th quarter, fall behind by one point, get that one point back, and we end regulation time dead even at 68-68. Well, imagine if it's game 7 of the World Series, the game is tied 4-4 at the end of 9 innings, and Bud Selig comes on the field to say it's such a great game that we're going to come back tomorrow and play another one. Yo...

Footy is the nickname for Australian Rules Football. It's played on a very extremely large oval pitch, with goals at each end. The central goal is worth six points, and is surrounded by a subsidiary goal on each side which is worth one point. The ball is advanced with a combination of throwing, kicking and running. You kick the ball, the ball is caught cleanly, you establish a mark at the site of the catch and can have free kick from the spot of the mark. Throw and catch the ball you can keep moving the ball but without the benefit of the mark. You can also run up to seven generous steps with the ball in some of these cases, kind of like seven steps and then a few more so you don't have to stop too suddenly.  Lots of times the ball isn't caught cleanly or a couple people can go for it, and then you can get some nice violent competition for possession.  I've now seen footy twice, first time during Aussiecon 3 in 1999, and with much eager anticipation this week during my ...

On the lighter side from some other recent posts... we've all heard of the dreaded pulled hamstring and other pulled muscles, and now The Onion has its laugh-out-loud take on this subject. I wish I'd thought of this one, and I don't think you'll read another article about sports injury in the same way ever again.