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San Diego and the Spectrum

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Dear Juliet I hope San Diego's comic-con won't be too overwhelming for you. Admittedly, I do know well you've done it before . Too much light and sound and furore can break down an Asperger and cause a meltdown. However, all that really means is that our ability to cope with all this input is less than yours. Or in other words, we'll just crack up first . I got pitched into so many stressful situations that I think I developed a hard-won resistance to all the sound and fury, but I can't filter out extraneous noise so if it gets too loud, I go deaf. Some arenas are bigger than others, too; and I understand San Diego is pretty massive. Homo Sapiens Mark One was never designed to cope with all this. I once heard that in one day, we have to cope with as much information as a caveman did in his entire life. So it can easily become overwhelming, but I'm sure there will be chill-out zones and water aplenty available. It's a bit of a grind, though. For us fans, too....
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Climb The Steps To... San Diego?

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Dear Juliet As I've just had a physiotherapist pounding my back with a mallet (okay, slight exaggeration there), I don't feel up to a long post today; but as you're going to San Diego  (not Scarborough Fair !) I'll make you a cambric shirt of memory from the early days of you, me, Dear Miss Landau and the comic-cons... London, late 2010. I'm carrying the divine statuette, I've been in the gym (boxing and otherwise) for six months and the shuttle's flying into Heathrow. I'm very nervous, but as we come into land I notice that thinking of you gives me a little extra edge when I'm writing. I guess you're my muse. I stay with a difficult friend in Muswell Hill, circuit towards Heathrow's Renaissance Hotel via Covent Garden and the Underground. There's some jam in Covent Garden so I take the emergency spiral staircase, statuette in hand... 193 steps. I want to get you a rose, and learn there's actually a flower seller in Leicester Square...
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Not Just Reassurance, Protection

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Dear Juliet Just one thing bothering me, so I'll say it once and say it quick: If you do go for that table read, please know that you're under my protection (I am the author of all that stuff, after all), and if anyone even thinks of giving you a hard time, you simply explain that James will not then comply. You are my dear Miss Landau after all, and that's all there is to it. There. It's actually a bit like this wonderful scene in Rocky II ... I guess I'm Mickey. Marvellous actor, Burgess Meredith. A trainer always has to love his fighter. To paraphrase Mickey, I don't think you were lucky just that one time with Buffy . I think you're a hell of a lot more than that, but I'll stand with you whatever you decide to do and that's the beginning and end of it. Okay, that's all I wanted to say. Relax. Have some Ben & Jerry's. Love, James
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The Rock and Wenlock

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Deer Juliet I'm still somewhat influenced by that I Play Rocky trailer, and there is one pretty exact analogy: I was never willing to sell out. Some well-meaning friends suggested I change the names in the Dru Quartet, some well-meaning friends now sleep with the fishes. Well, no they don't but I just ain't gonna. I love my dear old Dru and that is true, but the moments and interplay as they stand could only take place between Spike, Dru and Xander. That's just how it is. I wrote about once in this old HuffPost blog . Anyway, that's it. Just thought I'd say so, get it off my chest. It's a healthy thing to do. Okay, on other matters I had to go to somewhere called Much Wenlock the other day. I found out there's an ancient historic priory there (the house next door is owned by the former actress Gabrielle Drake ) which sounds vaguely similar to the original Monastery of Deer. They both have the remains of libraries, although I called the one at Deer the ...
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Bouquet From Bridgnorth!

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  Dear Juliet I'm probably going to be shot at dawn for this (and I'm really not a morning person...) but I thought you'd like this metaphorical bouquet from Bridgnorth! I didn't really have the stuffing to climb up to the High Town again and, walking over the bridge, noticed these beautiful flower baskets. I lined up a couple of shots, I hope you like your flowers. I really liked doing that. You're really worth it. Love, James
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Point Lobos (Nature Therapy Films)

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Dear Juliet I found this one hour spiritual travelogue about Point Lobos the other day. It begins at Gibson Beach, I'm pleased to say. I hope you'll enjoy it. I'd write more, but I have to do the ironing... Remember, you don't have to be perfect to be liked, and I like you just the way you are. Even when you're doing the ironing! Love, James
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I (Don't) Play Rocky...

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Dear Juliet Maybe I'm being a bit self-indulgent, but I just saw the trailer for I Play Rocky and it gave rise to a few mushy thoughts... Back in the days of Dear Miss Landau , it did seem like I was washed-up . I'd taken the literary beating of all time about Macnab in 2009 and, creatively exhausted, I shelved it. Then, for a bit of fun, I thought I'd write a short story about a certain character in Buffy . It was maybe a bit like suddenly getting a shot at the title. Hollywood royalty and one of the greatest IPs in the world. It takes a while for heavyweights to hit peak form, and I had no idea that grinding away chiefly on Macnab for twelve or thirteen years had beaten my neural networks into top shape. As Dear Miss Landau  and New Scientist explained: “It seems you have to put in at least a decade of focused work to master something and bring greatness within reach ...  both the number and strength of the nerve connections associated with a memory or skill increase ...
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