At 40 Years Old, Dungeons & Dragons Still Matters

Tired of all this press about D&D? I hope not. The hits just keep coming as I milk this anniversary for all it's worth. Here's another piece I did tying into the big 4-0 -- for BoingBoing, called "At 40 Years Old, Dungeons & Dragons Still Matters." Enjoy!

D&D 40th anniversary: Media doubleshot!

D&D 40th anniversary media week continues! I appeared on WGBH this week for a segment titled "At 40, What D&D Has Really Created" --- in which I geek out with Emily Rooney on WGBH WGBH News Greater Boston.

Also, I taught WGBH Boston Public Radio hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagan how to play D&D, among other things.

D&D Essay hits 18K Likes, a top read on Salon

I'm not one to blow my own horn *too* loudly, but I'm pretty excited that my essay "All I needed to know about life I learned from “Dungeons & Dragons" that appeared on Salon.com last week, has now topped 18,000 likes on Facebook, as well as making the "Top Reads" section of Salon. I'm really pleased for all the support it's gotten, and for all the kind referrals and favoriting and retweeting it's received in its short life. D&D "officially' turns 40 on Jan 26, so consider this a swell b-day gift for D&D. 

UPDATE: it broke 20K!

Book Picks on WGBH

Um, how terrifying is TV? Not so bad, once you're on camera. And the time just flies.

I'm late to posting this, but I appeared before Xmas on WGBH's Greater Boston program with Andre Dubus (House of Sand and Fog) and Marianne Leone (Jesse, a Mother’s Story). We discussed our holiday book selections. 

Watch below, or get the video plus text of our book picks right on the WGBH site.

Somerville Artist of the Month

Here in my humble home-city of Somerville, Mass., the Somerville Arts Council named me Somerville Artist of the Month for January 2014. This is a program "to celebrate the enormous wealth of talent in our city, by shining a spotlight on a different creative Somervillian each month." I am honored! Here is the announcement, and a Q&A where I try to explain something of what I do in this whole writing racket. Thank you Somerville Arts Council!

All I needed to know about life I learned from “Dungeons & Dragons”

I was lucky enough to publish this piece on Salon.com, using the occasion of D&D's 40th anniversary this month to wax poetical about all the life lessons the game taught me.

Here's an excerpt:

I played a lot of D&D back in the 1970s and 1980s. After conquering me, D&D went on to transform geek culture. Not only had D&D invented a new genre of entertainment — the role-playing game — but it practically gave birth to interactive fiction and set the foundation for the modern video game industry. Into “Halo” or “Call of Duty”? You’re playing an incredibly sophisticated version of a D&D dungeon crawl.

After a long hiatus, I play the game again now, as a 47-year-old, mostly grown-up person. Today, with my +5 Goggles of Hindsight, I can see how D&D was subtly helping me come of age. Yes, it’s a fantasy game, and the whole enterprise is remarkably analog, powered by face-to-face banter, storytelling and copious Twizzlers and Doritos. But like any pursuit taken with seriousness (and the right dose of humor), Dungeons & Dragons is more than a mere game. Lessons can be applied to the human experience. In fact, all I really need to know about life I learned by playing D&D.

Read the rest here.

Desolation of Tolkien: My BoingBoing review of Smaug

Like with the trilogy's first episode, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, this next chapter even further widens the viewfinder beyond the fates of Bilbo (Martin Freeman), Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and the Company of dwarves, lead by Thorin (Richard Armitage).

If you recall, their journey thus far took our heroes from Bilbo's hobbit hole in the Shire, past some trolls, under the Misty Mountains, escaping a seemingly infinite supply of goblins, ending just shy of Mirkwood forest, with the Lonely Mountain, their target, towering in the distance. We last left them after they'd battled orcs and wargs, having just been rescued by eagles from flaming trees and the brink of doom.

An Unexpected Journey took 182 minutes to tell, and covered only about 125 of Tolkien's 375 pages (in my version of the book, anyway). The Desolation of Smaug is slightly shorter, but still runs a hefty 161 minutes, and takes us about 2/3 of the way through the story. Where exactly the film leaves Bilbo, Thorin et al, I won't say here.

If part 1 plodded, then part 2 flies. But in what directions! And, quite possibly, asunder.

Read more of my review of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug on BoingBoing.

On WPR discussing D&D

The D&D display at the Strong Museum, Rochester, NY (Image: Ethan Gilsdorf)

I appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Central Time" Monday 1/20/14 at 4:45PM CST (5:45 ET) on a program about the 40th anniversary of D&D (and Wisconsin native Gary Gygax) in a segment called "The Influence And Wisconsin Origins Of Dungeons and Dragons." The other guest was Dork Tower creator John Kovalic.

You can listen to the archived program here.

So You STILL Want to Be a Writer in 2014?

It's the New Year -- time to commit (or re-commit) yourself to writing in 2014! 

Two sections of my Grub Street class "So You Want to Be a Writer in 2014?" have sold out, so we've just added a third section, on Friday, January 24th, 2:30-5:30pm. Hope you can join me! Details below. Sign up here. 

[NOTE: there's a database error -- it SAYS Monday Jan 24 but I assure you, class actually will run on Friday. This will get fixed soon.]

So You Want to Be a Writer in 2014? Section C

Friday, January 24th, 2:30-5:30pm at Grub Street headquarters.

It's the New Year -- time to commit (or re-commit) yourself to writing in 2014! In this seminar, we’ll inspire you to take your craft and marketplace ambitions seriously. First, we'll debunk commons myths and look in the eye some tough realities that threaten to stand in your way. Then, we'll recommend and discuss concrete strategies to help you become the writer you want to be, including: how to combat psychological issues such as fear, writer's block and rejection; what sacrifices you need to make time and build a career; how to hold your feet to the coals with accountability; how to work on multiple projects in different genres; and how to network and put yourself and your work out there. You'll leave having drafting short-term and long-term goals and action plans to make them happen, as well as connections to a fresh community of fellow writers. For beginners, or anyone looking to re-inspire or re-commit themselves as writers.

How is a lawyer like a wizard? D&D goes to Harvard (and so do I

Wil Wheaton's dream: to have a T-shirt that says "My sword glows blue in the presence of rules lawyers."

How is a lawyer like a wizard? How does a courtroom resemble an epic battle? How is a casebook like the Dungeon Master's Guide?

I'm excited to be part of  the "Berkman luncheon series" to give a talk called "How Dungeons & Dragons and Fantasy Prepare You for Law and Life," February 11, 2014, 12:30pm, at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society.

For this event, I'll be appearing in conversation with Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard wizard (Professor at the Harvard Law School, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and co-founder of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society --- whew!).

We'll discuss such issues, with the audience, as: How the skills, rulebooks and "laws" required to play D&D  --- whether understanding complex "to hit" charts or inventing the backstory of an evil Witch King -- can especially apply to law students; the push and pull of laws and rules vs. imagination in a game like D&D, a book series like Harry Potter, or any fantasy world; and the role of the dungeon master/author/world-builder in the consistent (or inconsistent) application of these rules and standards, and how this all might apply to the imaginary world of law, too.

It is free and open to all, but please an RSVP here. You can also see it webcast live here as well, where you can also get more information.

More info on Ethan-themed events here.

Appearance on the Discovery Channel program

I was lucky to be interviewed for a Discovery Channel program called "Forbidden" that has begun to air around the world. Last I heard, the program was being aired in Poland, Indonesia, and a zillion other countries. Not sure when it actually aired in the U.S., if at all. But someone kindly tracked down an excerpt on YouTube. Here's a snippet from the Nordic "dark Larp" segment I appeared in. I'm also supposed to be in other episodes about farmer role-playing (don't ask), people who dress up like animals, and mermaid subcultures. For some reason, I look a little grumpy in this still. I'm probably just role-playing.More information here.

Huff Post "14 Holiday Gifts For Any Middle-earth Lover's Library" includes Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks

Great news today! Huffington Post named Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks one of "14 Holiday Gifts For Any Middle-earth Lover's Library." 

I am honored to be in the company of these other fine books. The post says Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks is "a moving and funny look at the saving grace and inspirational power of fantasy."

and:

"Journalist Ethan Gilsdorf travels around the world on a poignant and hilarious quest to rediscover his youthful love of fantasy role playing games and Tolkien. He explores Oxford, England (where Tolkien taught and wrote most of his books), Marquette University in Wisconsin (where he gets to hold manuscript pages from The Lord of the Rings) and New Zealand (visiting the locations where the film trilogy was shot). It's a moving and funny look at the saving grace and inspirational power of fantasy."

Thanks so much, Huff Post. Read more.

A Slide Lecture Adventure

Thursday Dec 5 I'll be reading / presenting/ geeking out at Tufts University, thanks to an invitation from the Tufts student Science Fiction Fantasy Society, mysteriously called "Beyond the Light." I'll be showing some slides about my adventures through geekery and fantasy and gamery worlds. There will be a trivia contest, and some give-aways, and I'll sign books afterwards. I even heard there will be grub! Yee haw. Looking forward to it. Free and open to the public, too. More info here on my events page.

How did I get my mojo back?

BY ETHAN GILSDORF

In a new stunt-journalism story for the Boston Globe, I spent some time trying to address the problem of growing older, not being hip, losing my grasp of pop culture, and otherwise feeling old. 

What happened to that 20- and 30-something dude I once was? I don't look that bad for a 47-year-old. But the idea of trying to be “hip” has been on my mind ever since I turned 47. As I write in the story:

Despite my nerdy backpack-wearing, laptop-carrying, latte-chugging lifestyle, I had begun suspecting I wasn’t the youngest person in the room anymore. My cultural sweet spot hovers somewhere between 1979 and 1999. Sure, I have a smart phone, and have built my obligatory social media identities, but I feel bumbling in my efforts to stay on top of technology. I don’t own a TV, so I miss out on the cult shows. The time when I’d endure long lines at clubs to see bands, even ones I’m oblivious to, was passing. I’m happy staying home and listening to my collection of obscure K-Tel records.

Also: People suddenly call me sir. As in: “Here’s your change, sir,” or “Let me just unlock that case where the teeth-whitening products are, sir.” Do the baggy jeans, cowboy shirts, and running shoes give off old-man cooties? Huh. As time marches forward, and I struggle to identify the latest band artistic icon, trending Internet meme, I wonder if I’ve fallen irrevocably behind.

I decided to embark on a Middle Age Makeover. I concocted a quest to regain my musical, pop cultural, technological, and fashion mojo. You can read the results here.

New game Obduction in works from makers who brought us Myst and Riven

Remember Myst? That amazing, groundbreaking, mind-bending game that mystified you back in the 1990s? Then came Riven in 1997. The two were the best-selling computer games of the 20th century.

Then, not much of interest from brothers Robyn and Rand Miller, the team who founded the game company Cyan and dreamed up these two revolutionary, open-ended adventure puzzle games which, compared to the lightning-fast reload speed of a Call of Duty, plodded along at the pace of a hibernating snail.

Those games plopped you onto a proto-steampunk island where, well, it wasn’t exactly clear what your goal was. But it was a fascinating ride. You wandered around, looking at every map and book, and being lured in by the preternatural quiet and creepy ambience soundtrack. What was a clue? What was a puzzle? What was a red herring?

As Myst celebrates its 20th anniversary, there’s some new activity. A new game from Cyan. One in the spirit of the first two, and one that just might provide the same tricksy thrills and head-scratching puzzles of Myst and Riven.

As I write for GeekDad, there's a new game in the works called Obduction. Check out the rest of the post here.

The pitfalls of using science to prop up literature

"Hi, I’m lit-fitness celebrity JK Rowling. If you’re busy like me, then stay tuned because I’m excited to share with you the most innovative piece of emotional and interpersonal exercise equipment ever. I’m talking about the fastest, easiest way to make lightning-fast decisions and get your empathy into its best shape ever. ... Introducing, the great American novel."

We’ve always agreed that books are fun, diversionary, and entertaining. Now they are apparently as good for you as a bowl of bran flakes and a jog around the park.

There's a spate of new studies and research supporting what we’ve suspected all along: Reading is good for you. (Thanks, Mom.)

On one level, this is good news. I mean, who should be grumpy about research helping to boost the cultural relevance of an art form? 

But on another level, I’m skeptical, and a little depressed, by this new kind of literary analysis. (I also think post-structuralist, Marxist, feminist, post-colonialist, and deconstructionist literary theories take the joy out of literature, but that’s another rant.) Is relying on laboratory research to tell us books make us better human beings a positive development?

In my lastest post for the WBUR blog "Cognoscneti," I argue that all these new studies showing that reading good literature is scientifically beneficial to us is, well, kind of depressing, taking all the mystery and magic out of reading. Check out the full post here.

WBCN Remembered in Book and Boston Globe story

Remember the "Rock of Boston"? The Big Mattress? The Rock and Roll Rumble? The on-air hijinks, comedy, in-your-face personalities, the music? A new book called Radio Free Boston: The Rise and Fall of WBCN is out written by 'BCN disc jockey and music director Carter Alan, recalls the era when WBCN ruled the airwaves.

In my story for the Boston Globe today, I was able to sit down with Alan and talk to him about the groundbreaking station, and how it will be remembered. I also spoke with some of the major players at the station -- incuding Charles Laquidara, Oedipus, Ken Shelton, Tank, Mark Parenteau, Lisa Traxler, Adam 12, Tank Juanita, Sam Kopper, Matt Siegel, and others. 

The story ended up being a little shorter than I had hoped. I tracked down as many players from WBCN's past as I could, and asked them to share what 'BNC will be most remembered for in the annals of rock and radio history, but a lot of the great material ended up on the cutting room floor.

Read my original story here, then check out the cut sidebar below.

And incidentally, check out Carter Alan, who's got a few book reading and signing events coming up, including: Wed., Nov. 13 at 7pm at The Book Shop, 694 Broadway, Somerville, MA, www.bookshopsomerville.com; Fri., Nov. 15 at 7pm at The Book Shack, 101 Independence Mall Way, Kingston, MA, www.thebookshack.net; Fri. Nov. 22 at 6pm at the Barnes & Noble, Braintree, MA; and Sat. Dec 7, at 7:30pm, Barnes & Noble, Salem, NH.

Charles Laquidara in the early days (photo: courtesy of Carter Alan)

Voices Carry: WBCN Veteran DJs Through the Ages Recall 'BCN's Legacy

How will WBCN be remembered? The Big Mattress? Its Rock and Roll Rumble? The on-air hijinks, comedy, in-your-face personalities, or the music? We tracked down as many players from WBCN's past as we could, and asked them to share what 'BNC will be most remembered for in the annals of rock and radio history.

"I remember there was a time when you could hear 'BCN without a radio. Literally. You could start in downtown Boston and walk, if you wanted to walk the five miles to Cambridge, to Harvard Square ... Between the cars that were playing it, with their open windows, in the summertime ... and all the dormitories and all the apartments, the houses, it was like you could hear 'BCN from one end of the city to the other." --- Charles Laquidara, DJ, 1968–96

"All media going back to cave drawings ... reflect what is going on in their time and stimulate it. 'BCN happened at a time when socially, politically and musically it was unbelievably charged." --- Sam Kopper, first program director and morning DJ - 1968–71, live music broadcast producer and weekend DJ 1975 - 91, now PD/DJ of WBCN Free Form Rock, wbcn.com  and 100.7HD3

"WBCN was like being in the Sons of Anarchy without the motorcycles." --- Ken Shelton, DJ, 1980–93

"It was an amazing thing to go in there every day and flip on a switch and talk to a couple million people in six states...To make people laugh and make them dance and make them enjoy their life. I miss that style of radio. There's nothing like that now." --- Mark Parenteau, DJ, 1978–97

"It was a different time. Radio was different. It's all commercial now ... Then, they were just a bunch of crazy hippies. .... I can trace my success to BCN. I dont know how I would have developed differently had I not had the 'BCN experience." --- Matt Siegel, DJ 1977–79, now at KISS 108

"The music meant something to the DJ and to the moment in which it was begin played... What's missing [now is] the human touch. The feeling that someone else was there with you." --- Paul "Tank" Sferruzza, Listener Line operator, van driver, producer, sports reporter, 1978–95

"I remember the owners telling me, distinctly, they said, 'You’re gonna make mistakes, and you’re gonna learn from your mistakes. But we like you because you’re intelligent and you’re not afraid to take chances.' Who says that?" --- Oedipus, DJ and Program Director, 1977–2004, now at RadioDBC.com and oedipus1.com

WBCN staff hanging with Elvis Costello on the release of his SPIKE album. 1989 (Courtesy of Warner Brothers Records)"There was a strong sense of history being made. 'BCN would play something and damn the torpedoes. If we believed in something we could go to the wall on it." --- Lisa Traxler, DJ, 1984–90

"The sense of family came across the airwaves. It was a radio station that you listened to find out what was going on ... The DJs were funny and smart and they lived the life." --- Janet "Juanita" King, DJ 1996–2001, 2002–09, now at WZLX

"It was part of the fabric of Boston ... 'BCN for years set the tone for radio stations of its ilk all across the country. But 'BCN as cultural phenomenon, through it s music and its personalities and its event and its presence, really was Boston. It united Boston." --- Adam "Adam 12" Chapman, DJ, 2003–09, now at RadioBDC.com

Red Sox beards vs. Dwarf beards from The Hobbit

Who is Fili and who is Napoli? Balin vs. Buchholz? Ori or Ortiz?

Here's a "Beard Blueprint" --- my guide to the Red Sox vs. Hobbit dwarf beards.

According to The Hobbit, Thorin Oakenshield, head honcho of the dwarven company, had the longest beard. He also wore a sky blue hood with a large silver tassle. On the World Champion of American and Canada Red Sox squad, known to wear Navy blue war helmets and caps, I'd give Fullest Beard Award to Mike Napoli, Grayest and Wisest Beard to David Ross, Wildest Beard to Jonny Gomes and Creepiest Leprechaun Beard medal to Clay Buchholz. (For those making the Gandalf = Manager comparison, Sox skipper John Farrell resisted the urge to get all hirsute on us.) 

Yes, these beards rule. But I can't help but think it's a shame that Ortiz wouldn't weave into his whiskers some silver or gold bling, or that Pedroia wouldn't let his grow into a great braided loop a la Bombur.

Note: Since this chart, some of the Sox beards have gotten even longer. And weider. And wilder. 

A Hobbit Discussion at the Boston Book Festival

I just discovered that the audio archive from the 2012 Boston Book Festival panel I moderated --- called "The Hobbit: There and Back Again" --- is available to listen to here.

The panel featured Wayne Hammond and Christina Scull, author of The Art of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012) and Corey Olsen, aka "The Tolkien Professor" and author of Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit"

Hire me!

Ethan reads, makes world safe for geeks. Sometimes he wears these grampy pants.

I love to give talks and readings, slide presentations, moderate panels, teach creative writing and role-playing games, and inspire people to geek out.

I've appeared at conventions like Pax East, Gen Con and DragonCon; read at book festivals in Atlanta, Brooklyn and Boston; spoken at universities like MIT, Notre Dame, Bryn Mawr and LSU; and appeared at dozens of bookstores, book groups, high schools, libraries, and other venues.

I've fought (badly) with foam swords in public. I'm not afraid to wear my chainmail and tunic. I've taught 25 newbies how to play Dungeons & Dragons in one evening.

If your bookstore, library, book group, writer's festival, college/university, high school, club, game shop, convention, bar, cafe, mother, etc. would like to book me to give a talk, slide-lecture, organize a discussion, teaching a writing class, or have moderate a panel or Q&A, I am a hired gun looking for a microphone to speak into and some dice to roll.  More info here.

For booking, rates and program details, contact me here. 

For a schedule classes I'm already teaching, see this.

Here are some of the events I can happily bring to your lecture hall or dungeon. Custom topics and talks also possible.

Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: The Lecture:
An overview of my award-winning book, with a reading, and (if you want) slide-lecture that encapsulates my journey into fantasy and gaming subcultures (D&D, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, World of Warcraft, medieval re-enactors), what explains the appeal of these fantasy worlds, and my own journey to accept my inner geek.

How Dungeons & Dragons Saved My Life:
An inspiring talk about my personal history playing D&D and other role-playing games, and how they influenced me, changed my life, and helped me become a creative, socialized, and (mostly) full-adjusted human being I am today. With images from my personal gaming collection and the history of role-playing games.

I've Always Wanted to Play D&D, But ....: A Three-Hour Fantasy Role-Playing Game Experience:
Using a quick-start method and simplified version of the rules, I've developed a 3 to 5 hour D&D-like experience that even non-nerds can understand. In one session, you and your pals can play characters, go on an adventure, solve problems and defeat evil in your unique way, help tell a memorable story -- and have a great time. Dortitos and Mountaimn Dew can be arranged.

Writing Workshops:
Teen Writing Adventure (three-hour or day-long writing classes for kids); Adult Writing Bootcamps (same thing for adults: fiction, nonfiction, poetry); How to Be a Freelance Writer (Tips, strategies and craft basics for writing articles, essays and op-ed for publication)

Personal Coaching and Manuscript Editing:
I have more than 15 years experience as a freelance writer and teacher of writing. I'm available for editing, consulting, and coaching (and butt kicking), and to help guide and provide feedback for anyone out there working in nonfiction, essay, op-ed, personal essay, memoir, poetry and fiction. I also consult on book promotion.