Book Giveaway: Legion and the Emperor’s Soul (7/10/2013)
This week’s freebie is Brandon Sanderson’s Legion and the Emperor’s Soul. This guy, he writes like even more books per year than I do. And they still too. Irritating so-and-so… 
I haven’t read it so can’t comment personally on the story.
News: The Splintered Gods has finished edit and gone back to the publisher. I might post some thoughts on that later this week. Next up is another Bulldog Drummond novella.
Usual deal – comment on this post before October 5th and I’ll randomly select a lucky victim for a free copy of the book. Last week’s game maybe put people off. This week I want names, character names. Anything that amuses you, either that you’ve seen or you’d like to see. This comes from the novella I’m about to write being partially set in the Chinese communities in Limehouse and Pennyfields in the late 1920s and the need to resist the desire to pepper the story with good (ahem) English and Chinese names like Professor Wilberforce Throckmorton-Device and Ho Li Phuk. So throw me some bones and help me get the whole stupid names thing out of my system…
Although, though no one has yet complained about how long it takes me to get to the post office and post things, it can take a while and if you live abroad then it can take even longer. Sorry about that, but they do get there eventually. Well, so far. Recent winners, I have a backlog again.
There’s a new review up for The Crimson Shield by The Benign Guy
October 7th, 2013 at 3: 50 pm
There are a few from Jasper Fforde’s The Eyre Affair that amuse me particularly Jack Schitt and Landen Parke-Laine.
October 7th, 2013 at 11: 25 pm
Major Major Major – can’t go wrong with Catch – 22.
October 8th, 2013 at 11: 16 am
Marillion the Minstrel from A Game Of Thrones. If you can’t wear your influences on your sleev n’all. Also George R.R. Martin’s nod at a great British Prog Rock band!
October 8th, 2013 at 1: 55 pm
A beaut for the Chinese theme -
Sum Yung Guy
for a peripheral character
October 9th, 2013 at 1: 57 pm
Oo, pratchett has some goodun’s. Victor Tugelbend, (moving pictures) for example
October 9th, 2013 at 2: 51 pm
I’ve always been amused by Vice-Presidential Candidate Alexander Throttlebottom from Of Thee I Sing.
October 9th, 2013 at 3: 05 pm
I’m going to move the discussion to names that could actually populate your novella:
Hu Da Gai
Gai Xi Li
Bao Ji Shen
and if you want easy (real) Chinese names with the character accompanying them, check out
http://www.mandarintools.com/chinesename.html.
October 9th, 2013 at 3: 10 pm
Lestibournes from Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn.
It amused me even more so when Kelsier names him “Spook” because ‘Lestibournes is too damn long and hard to pronounce’ (paraphrasing). Though he actually did it because he knew that Lestibournes meant in street slang ‘Lefting I’m born’ -> mixture of ‘I’ve been abandoned’ and ‘I’m unwanted’.
By changing his name Kelsier implied that he was no longer unwanted and had a family now.
October 9th, 2013 at 3: 31 pm
Ooh, what a fun idea!
I’ve always found the name Neville Longbottom amusing. I wish I could remember more (I really should take notes), but I’m horrible at remembering things like this on the spot!
October 9th, 2013 at 3: 45 pm
I know this “name” could never really be used in your book, but it amuses me nonetheless. “Assblaster Trollmaster”
October 9th, 2013 at 5: 18 pm
Laura is of course correct. The only acceptable fictional names are from Pratchett: Moist von Lipwig and Adora Belle Dearheart, Sacharissa Crisplock, 71-hour Ahmed, Cheery Littlebottom (Traditional dwarf name) and Constable Visit-the-Infidel-with-explanatory-pamphlets only scratch the surface.
In non-fiction I’ve been reading a little about Theo Roosevelt and some interesting names have popped up:
Champ Clark, Jo Cannon (Speakers of the House)
Elihu Root (Secretary of War) and the British ambassador to America Sir Cecil Spring-Rice.
Truth is never as strange as fiction, nor as true – John Hodgman
October 9th, 2013 at 8: 05 pm
Ned Tender (the name of my band’s one and only EP). Phetalus (a prepubescent wizard in an unforgiving world–the worst stats I ever rolled for a D&D character). Dr. Giggler. Arthur Stoutbladder. Herbert Mancandy.
October 9th, 2013 at 8: 17 pm
Alucard from a number of books, manga and movies… The fact that the character usually end up being a vampire (as alucard is Dracula spelled backwards) is always a nice and somewhat interesting way to indirectly refrence a characters lineage… Through only really work since.
October 10th, 2013 at 1: 53 am
I’ve always liked Hiro Protagonist from Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash. Nothing like telegraphing his plot-centrality. He’s a Hiro with at least 2 faces. And, although Mel Brooks’ Blazing Saddles may not fit our genre orientation, his Biggus (not sure of the spelling) certainly was memorable. In a class with your Ho Li Phuk? Yeah.
October 10th, 2013 at 1: 56 am
Biggus Dickus, that is. I shudder to note that the text editor, not I, removed the Dickus.
October 10th, 2013 at 12: 47 pm
Thomas Trestleking
October 11th, 2013 at 3: 20 pm
Salem Dragoblood. Fantasy name I have used and love.
October 14th, 2013 at 9: 27 am
The gods of random choose Ren. I’m embarrassed to remember how long it took me to “get” Hiro Protagonist. Also, I remember Biggus Dickus from Life of Brian (along with Sillius Soddus) – Blazing Saddles too, eh?