Just typing this out while listening to your interview on Hour 25, and as a radio journalist, feeling very upset about the guy who is interviewing you. First, I hate his laugh, second, he kept interrupting you, and third, can't he think about something else to ask other than your 'former' career? Strike 3 from journalism school. Thought you handled all the stuff off the top about saving the ship with considerable aplomb. Way to go, Wil.

Too bad about virtual translating to actual with the Linux panel. It's like, do people even bother trying to break stereotypes anymore?

Wil,

did you ever buy a PC that simply didn't work? One that just plain screwed with your head, failed miserably in every respect to meet your needs/wants/expectations? The CD drive won't read anything, the C: drive has been relabelled F: for no reason, half the ram is missing.
Or maybe it was a DVD player or VCR or fax machine or answering machine or car.
These are Friday devices. They're put together late in the week by people whose approach (on that particular day) is "Meh, what do I care?". Any other day of the week they'd be your A-Team, your best crew, they spot errors, they'd solve problems, they'd work to make things work. But on this particular Friday - Meh!

I think you've just had a Friday like that. I think from the sounds of it your audience had a Friday like that. Nobody, least of all yourself, is to blame. It's just one of those things. They're there, in your schedule, just to make you appreciate Mondays that little bit more (hehehehe, appreciate Mondays. Right.)

Hang in there - you're doing great. The site is fantastic, you've got friends all across the world, your wife loves you. You have a dog.

So what did you learn from the authors' panel? Tell us more... tell us all! We'll be right here, Friday or not.

It was so sweet what you said about your wife. You guys are lucky to have each other.

I don't do public speaking. I don't deal with idiots who don't realize you are not the character they see on TV. But I do know a few things that get me through life and keep me happy. The first, and most important this is, don't sweat the small stuff. The second, and even more important that the most important rule is, everything is small. Asshats that think that they are cool by picking on, prodding, poking fun at, embarassing people, are really small. We know you kick their ass. So relax.

Something else I know, is that when you are talking to fifteen people in a big room, don't go up on the stage. Gather them around, and have a small, personal talk. Like Uncle Wil telling ghost stories around the campfire. The listeners will walk away with a great feeling and you will enjoy the moment better.

Keep up the good work.

When I was a wee teenager back in the early eighties, I was at one of those Creation conventions. That was back in the beginning for them. When I went, I was looking for cool Star Trek/ Anime collectibles and such. But my FONDEST and most enduring memory was stumbling into a little side room where some "old guy" was reading one of his science fiction stories.

That old guy turned out to be none other than Isaac Asimov (!!!). I dont even remember which of his plethora of stories he was reading. I just remember his presence and his amazing voice. Myself and all five or so of the other people gave him a small in number, but fierce in enthusiasm, standing ovation when he finished his reading.

So when you get upset that only a handful of people showed up to your reading, you might consider that you may have resonated soundly for those who did show up. For all you know, you may have influenced the direction of someone's literary life or outlook on the world in a way that could not be achieved in a room with dozens or hundreds of listeners.

I know that Mr. Asimov quietly changed my life that day. He shared his wonder of the universe in a very real and undiluted way with the few of us there. And I still value that impact 20 years later!

And what's wrong with your family getting a chance to see you in action with regards to your writing? Does their appreciation mean any less because they are, your family? Of course not- but you already knew that. You just got blinded by a phantom of percieved rejection. But, phantoms are not substantial, and they fade with time.

Just a different perspective to consider...

Here is a direct link to the MP3 of the Hour 25 interview.

http://216.92.236.186/hr25_2003-11-28_wil-wheaton_interview.mp3

Wow, what more to say, after Audent's comments, Touched on everything I can think, but to add a little more to that, you handled the interviewer and his questions beautifly. Your very heartfelt and anyone can tell how sincere you are, oh and funny as hell! ! !

Wil,
Don't worry about the low show at your personal reading - happens to all writers. And who knows if it's even worth it. Check out this article.

http://www.observer.com/pages/publish.asp

You handled the interview very well. I think you put him in his place with your comments. the crowd cheered so much louder when you told them that your kids got to school _on time_ then they did with his ship comment. good job.

Sorry things bummed you out at the Dancing Barefoot event.. If I lived closer I would definately shown up with hubby and friends to show support. You are a great guy, great actor, great author with a beautiful loving family, don't let it get to you :) Soon you will stun the world! I just know it!
-SpooX

Wil,
Think of those fifteen (or eight if you don't count your family). How many of us (WWdN "viewers") would have given our right arm to be in such a small "select" group listening to you. Did it ever occur to you that one of your fans put a "Cancelled" sign on the door to keep the audience small.

finished w/ the interview. excellent. you need to come to Denver some time so i can see you speak. :D

Just finished listening to your interview on Hour 25 and thought you handled the initial conversation with good grace. Even knowing it had annoyed you I couldn't hear it in your voice. I also thought the audience understood what you were trying to get across because they laughed at the right spots. The interviewer came across to me as a pompus ass and some kind of know it all. It's almost hard to tell who was on display him or you.

Wil,

*waving*

Please do not feel bad about having a reading audience of "only" 15 people (even if they are mostly family) -- believe it or not, for a literary SF convention that is a record size crowd.

Most writers, including pretty solid name authors, get only about 2-5 people when they read. It's a peculiar sad fact that almost no convention reading ever draws a crowd, no matter who you are, sometimes even the guest of honor. Indeed, many of us have a standing unwritten agreement with our fellow writer friends that we all try to support each other by going to each other's readings, so that in case of no other audience (which is known to happen often), at least there are friends (or family) or colleagues to hear you read. :-)

So, *please* don't take it personally. You actually did great! If I hadn't been cross-programmed to be on another panel myself, I would've been at your reading.

:-)

Vera

Wil, in the interview I think you said January for Just a Geek. Is that true?

And, to this listener, you didn't sound angry at all. In fact, you had a great come back about what you were really doing with the kids and your writing. I think you handled the question well. I think it all went ok given some of the questions.

The interviewer had an awful laugh, didn't he? And one of those "radio" voices, to boot. Being a literary con, I would have wanted to hear more about your writing. Dumb interviewer. I wonder if he even researched WWDN?

Geeking it is always the best way to go. You'll always get an autograph or a nice compliment from someone, if not for your dazzling charm, for the mere fact that geeks tend to scare specific stupid people.

I think it is very odd that he just got finished talking to Armin about people getting trapped in roles they are known for, and then he goes and talks to Wil as if he is Wesley. Clearly Wil captured the audience and not even a poorly prepared interviewer asking asshat questions could stop him.

On an unrelated note, I'm proud to say I'm one of those people who bought at Powell's.

yea Wil, I gotta say, the interviewer is a huge putz! To whatever extent you do sound deffensive, (which basically only sounds like you're trying to talk to an idiot interviewer) you don't sound like asshole, he does.

Wil,
you may not get an overwhelming number of comments giving you support as most of what people would want to say have already been covered by the first seven who have written in and I think if you can't say something original you tend to keep quiet, so you don't appear to be a parrot, and just nod in agreement and move on.
Having heard the 25HR interview, the last question,
and being married only two years and having three step children, I am just nodding........... and moving on.

Hi Wil,
I was one of the people at your reading on Friday (I'm the dude who bought a book later and gave you a flier for the Berserker fan website I do), and I must say that it was really a highlight of the Con for me. And this was my first con too. It's unfortunate that there was such disparity between the size of the room and the number of attendees; the same number in a smaller room would have felt much different (better). This has actually been scientifically studied in psychology. Personally, I remember when we put on our huge Astrobiology shindig here at UCLA with Bill Nye the Science Guy and Dr. Jill Tarter (of SETI), we had about 500 people come, which was huge! But looking out over the crowd I couldn't help but be dismayed by the 400 empty seats.

But anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I had been looking forward to seeing you at the Con, and I really enjoyed your reading. I had read some of your writing here on WWDN, but not a whole lot, and I was struck with how eloquent, powerful, and touching your words were when you read them aloud for us. Like I said before, you have a great story and are doing a wonderful job telling it. I certainly appreciated you being there and sharing with us. I didn't want to buy your book until after I heard you!

And I think what was said earlier is probably generally correct: that most (if not all) authors have to face hit-miss audience sizes. It was certainly that way for Fred Saberhagen, the writer Guest of Honor, and at least one other pro writer I've talked to has experienced the same. Of course, that probably doesn't make it any easier in practice.

Well, so, thanks very much for being there at the Con and for perservering to connect with us.

I just finished listening to the interview, and I have to say that had you not prefaced it with how angry you were at the opening comment, I would never have known. I thought you handled all of his questions with grace, tact, and a whole lotta wit. I only wish I could think on my feet as quickly as you.

My favorite part of the interview was when you talk about your role as a father and how being a parent has become your most important role. It's always fun hearing interviews with celebrities, but it's really refreshing to hear an interview with one who has his priorities straight.

Yep, nothing wrong with just being a geek.

Jim ( that guy who was NOT on star-trek) ;)

Sorry you had a difficult Friday, glad that Saturday was better.

The interview was wonderful to listen to, as I got to hear your voice with a better quality than the audioblog from your cell phone. That man does not know the first thing about interviewing. Research your subject, lead the interview, but don't cut the interviewee off, and don't be an asshat.
1. As mentioned already that guy's laugh was hideous, fawning and sycophantic, to say the least.
2. You held your own really well, despite his constant interruptions.
3. You are a wonderful stepfather and the boys and Anne are incredibly lucky to have you, as you are to have them.

Hey there Wil,
I havent been here before (i must be the only one who hasnt!) and i just wanted to say well done. Also i look forward to reading more on how emerging novelists can go about things. I have just completed NaNoWriMo month (www.nanowrimo.org) and am about to go and plonk myself in front of mind numbing tv for awhile.
I would of course, like any writer, love to get my book published so any advice on the matter, or indeed in improving my fiction ( i need it ) would be cool.
Toodles!

Friday's book reading? Erm. I would've seized the moment to throw myself on the non-stage floor to say "Everyone gather around! Use your library voices! SHHhhh!"

OK. Ready?

"Put your right foot in, put your right foot out..."

Seriously, if Monkeys could get their Boxer hiney$ together? An HMIC convention in L.A.'d be a plausible reality. I'm a pestering Q & A dork at the moment. So you'd need to get hammered to put up with all the non-BAC love in the room. Partying the only way 50,000 Monkeys can.

With prescription drugs. "My name's jaded wolf, and I'm addicted to children's chewable Tylenol."

*Waves*

I have to second almost all of the above comments about the reading. The room size vs. audience size issue does have a big psychological effect.

Hang in there, and know that even the most phenomenal events sometimes are under-attended for various random reasons that have nothing whatsoever to do with how neat the event really is.

Have fun with the garage tidying, and congratulations on the gardening!

Hey Wil,

Come back to Portland for another reading and we will pack the house.

Wil,

as regards the appraisal of your

"HOME SWEET HOME"

I mean, it's YOURS! (that is Wil's & Anns's)

therefore it must be worth more than any in
your neighborhood....

then.. 1 day,
(much like Mark Twain's in Hartford )

tours will be given!
parties will be thrown!

and a sigh will be posted declaring to one and
all that this was the home of

WIL & ANNE WHEATON!

then... maybe a theme park!

CAN YOU IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITIES!

Ditto what Christine said.

(I'm assuming she meant Portland, OR.)

"...I love being married to her more and more each day. I really believe that there's nothing we can't face together . . . and kick squarely in the nuts!"

I'd love to hear a line like this crafted into wedding vows, it's brilliant!

"Have you saved any ships this week?"

Seriously, the next time someone asks you something like this, you should have something prepared like,"Funny you should ask, no ships actually, but on the way over my car was dying, but I was able to divert power from the onboard computer directly into the fuel injectors to make it the last mile off the freeway." That's really rough though, and I don't know if that'd be too geeky for ya

I think you handled the interviewer very well. Your responses were from the heart and pulled no punches. I can't say I ever cared much for Wesley when I watched ST-TNG, but I do like Wil Wheaton. God bless and continue to remain true to yourself.

"I'm not Wesley Crusher but I played one on TV"

Mr. Wheaton;

I don't normally write to anyone because I feel that I have nothing of note to offer, but, after hearing the suggested interview, I must share with you that, once again, your wit and intelligence has greatly impressed me.

I am a newbiw to WW online and find that a lot of it goes over my head, because I am not very familiar with Star Trek and I'm very clueless about technology so all the jargon baffles me ;) However, I clicked on the link for that interview and was amazed ... not only that i got it to work (!) but also at how well you handled the situation. The interviewer (complete with try-hard jokes and creepy laugh) was really unsettling and was very lucky that your good humour enabled it to be an interesting listen, despite all his fumblings.

After 13 years working in the media, since I was a child, I can't ever remeber an actor being so honest about themselves, and exposing themselves in such a raw and unpretentious way. It was suprising and very refreshing.

I wonder if you have ever been approached by the drama schools that churn out actors, to give talks or info sessions. They would have a lot to learn from you (please forgive if you already do this, as I have said I am not totally familiar with every aspect of your life but it strikes me that this would be very useful for other wannabe actors).

Wil,

Wow, if that weekend had happened to me, I know I couldn't be as upbeat as you're managing to be about it. Kudos on keeping a positive attitude despite the negativity around you. You're the kind of guy, it seems, that if it were raining crap, you'd comment on how "at least it's good for the crops".

Damn, wish I could have filled one of those empty seats... what with your huge internet posse, I can't *believe* more people didn't show for you. What, did they have the BSD Devil Girls doing a show in the next room over? I can't picture anything keeping the /. type crowd, or other SF fans, away from hearing you talk, other than maybe sex.

Come out to Indiana sometime! We have a nice convention here, InConjunction, that happens every summer. I've yet to go, but I would if my fellow geek Wil Wheaton were going to be there.

Chris

I may have been on a different continent (and still am), but I was there in spirit, I promise.

No anger seeping through the voice...just witty banter. Well played, Wil.

Wil,

Even though your interviewer was just awful, you were wonderful on Hour25. I loved listening to you talk and think you'd be a perfect person for This American Life. Go hit up Ira for a job!

You handled the Hour 25 thing really well. That guy was a bit of an asshat, and really, his questions to you were pretty skewed to the anti-Wesley perspective. And he's not a good interviewer, not by a long shot. But you handled his craptacular questions like a pro and didn't sound angry at all. (Though I can say, since I saw it in person, that you did look a smidge frustrated for a second there. But only for a second.)

Wil,
I wish I lived closer, I would have been at that reading in a heartbeat! I've been to this site for the past couple of to see what you are up to. I find your life and experiences so interesting because they seem to reflect almost exactly what my brother is going through at the moment. He is 31, an aspiring writer, and he is the webmaster of www.joesightings.com, the #2 GI Joe site on the web. He is so incredibly creative with his writing that I can't understand why a publisher hasn't scooped him up already. I'm hoping that a prominent publisher wakes up soon and realizes the potential you have to reach so many people with your books because of your great writing style of disclosing your entire being. I'm eagerly awaiting your next printing of "Dancing Barefoot." I would love to spend my winter break from college curled up with your great book! Any news on the Tech TV appearance? I'm addicted to that channel and love to catch you when you are on there. Also, I love hearing about your marriage to Anne, keep up being a big sissy, it's refreshing!

Hey Wil!

You made that interviewer sound pretty professional, despite his shortcomings. He was pretty generic.

I enjoyed your talk.

See ya!

-- Draken

Wil, you did a great job hiding anger in your voice. I think you came across well-poised and made a great transition to your current endeavours. I enjoyed listening, even through knowing a bit of what you were going through inside. BULLY!

If it's of any consolation, Vera Nazarian praised you to the skies -- she said, and I quote, "Wil was awesome." Sorry the reading didn't go so well -- I've been scheduled to do readings and wound up with an empty room for an hour. Talk about ego melting.

just listened to the Hour25 interview, and since most of what I wanted to say has already been said I'll just go with this - I loved that you talked about your step-kids at the end. there are plenty of step-parents out there who would go to one extreme or the other - either force themselves into the role of father/mother, or stay out of it completely. you seem to really understand the fine line and walk it well. kudos to you :)
also, I love how you talk about your wife :) talk about one lucky lady :)

Wil. Dude. You handled yourself amazingly during the interview. You say Armin had them in his hand? It sounded to me like the audience connected to you a lot more. I don't blush to admit that your final piece about your stepkids choked me up a little. If you're half as cool as you put yourself forth, those in your life got lucky, man.

Rock on.

I'm sorry to hear about the reading. I would've been part of the audience if I was there!

Wil,
I'm curious as to why you don't pursue e-book format. I enjoy the format on my pocketPC very much. I think your books would do very well in the format because I think persons who visit this site are tech savvy and most likely already read e-books. Just my $0.02.

Dude Wil, sorry to burst your bubble, but why would you think hundreds of people would go to some con, (which I've never heard of until you pointed it out) on one of the busiest shopping days of the year?

You are one hell of a writer, I keep telling my wife to read your site, as your words are pictures in my mind. You are funny too, and people should go see you and listen to the word that you put on paper, but at an almost non advertised Con on Black Friday?

There were over 1000 people there on Friday, Metalboy. I was shocked about that number, too. I expected two or three hundred, tops.

Because of the huge crowd, and the huge room they put me in, I got my hopes up. My bad.

I have heard from a lot of people that anything more than 5 is something to be proud of, so I need to recalibrate my scale of expectations for next time. Also, I'll get off the stage and drop the mic.

You handled your interview well. One could hardly detect the angst.

I was another of the audience members for your reading, which I quite enjoyed. (Second row, green yarn, next to the woman who offered you a pen.) I was also running the infomation desk for this con, and I've run registration for Conjecture (early October in San Diego, online at conjecture.org) for the past two years.

On Friday afternoon, even on a holiday weekend, people are still arriving and getting settled in to the con. On non-holiday weekends, many people don't show up until after work. Fewer people are working the day after Thanksgiving (though some are), but many have family obligations and simply don't arrive at the con or look at the program grid until later.

Also, you aren't (yet) widely known to fandom as an author and generally funny guy. This is certainly changing -- every person who sees you on a panel, at a reading, doing an interview, enjoying room parties, hanging out in the con suite, or otherwise participating in the con will go and tell their friends what a cool guy you are. Word will spread.

As others have said, it's not just you. Readings are almost always hit and miss. Those of us who attended enjoyed it.

As for the Open Source panel, which I also attended (front row, as I was sitting with a hearing impaired friend), yeah, parts of the audience were way out of line. Unfortunately, that's a very difficult situation; sometimes one of the panelists can get things back under control, but only if they are able to exert some form of authority over the troublemakers. I'm not sure anyone could have salvaged that panel, honestly. (David Brin might've been able to out-talk them, had he been there, but even that, I'm not sure of, and if you've been around David much, you know that's saying a lot!)

I wonder if part of the problem might've been conflicts of expectations. The panel title (The Future of Open Source Programming) and subtitle (Getting started with Linux) didn't really go together. Open Source is far more than just Linux, and a discussion of the future of the movement could've been fascinating. If a significant portion of the audience expected "The Future of Open Source Programming" (I did), they may have been disgruntled by "Getting started with Linux". It's not the panelists' fault, nor is it the audience's fault; programming should have published a clearer/more complete description or used a better title.

I hope you had enough fun Saturday to make up for your disappointing Friday, and I hope to see you at more area conventions in the future!

Wil, have you ever been interested in attending Dragoncon in Atlanta? This past August was my first time there and it was an awesome array of costumes, actors, authors, artists, etc. And the one major thing I was quite surprised about, was that everyone I met there, attendees and guests alike, were all as nice as they could be. I'd never expect a crowd of 20000 people all to be enjoyable around :)

Obligatory Edited Simpsons Quote:
"So, Wil, how did that Friday make you feel?"
"It made me angry, Jerry. Angry, and tired."

Just imagine, if (that's if) you ever do a reading again and nobody turns up, just remember we're there in spirit. All sitting there, in our underwear. Clapping politely, and yelling, "w00t!". I'd have been there. I feel guilty I haven't already got a job to pay for a plane ticket to come support you, or something.
I feel so distanced from geeks- I'm in England, in a girls school, where there are no geeks apart from lil' old me. I start talking to my friends about how I never have any money to buy megatokyo stuff from ThinkGeek, and they look at me like a cow looks at an oncoming train.

Anyways, good luck with the rewrite! h4v 4 l33t d3c3mb3r! ^_^

I think you handled the situation very well on the interview. The interviewer did something similar to Armin. *bad interviewer*

Hang in there! Your journey might be bumpy, but you have always made it through because you did not given up. We'll always be here for you.

Idiot troll.

165.21.154.16

Wil,

I think the main problem is that if I lived near CA I would be in the audience of anything with you talking. Even about Linux. :)

But living in the hell hole that is Utah, I am kind of stuck with no where to go.

Any plans of coming close to Utah anytime soon to speak about anything?? :)

Jennifer Howry

What a TROLL... But the sad truth is that he was probably asking a lot of the dumbass kind of questions 'people in the dark' still haven't had answered yet. Very trying on the soul but Wil - Such grace, bravo!

I also wanted to say that your voice is fantastic! (<--slight tangent, hey, I'm only female ANYWAYS) And having been through a horrible child custody battle with the King of All Insensitve Money Grubing Deadbeat Dads, Anne has truly found a miracle in you. Double bravo.

You are *very* multi-talented Wil, and don't let any trolls stand in your way. Obey!

~Vicky

You pwned the interviewer man, no anger, you just totally pwned the guy. Your intelligence and wit totally shined right through.

I agree with the person who said it was just a small reading group, that almost anyway here would have cut off their right arm to be in on.

Wil,

I am sorry you were disappointed by the appearances. If I weren't on the wrong freaking coast, I would have shown up, I swear! It's the driving across 8 states that slows me down each time! Come out to Florida, though, and the Guinness is on me!

That was a cool interview.

I could sense some tensness in your voice, but it seemed like you were relaxed.

The interviewer had a rather annoying voice though.

You played against the host well, Wil. Screw him and his bad vibes.

Rock on

Wil,
I attended the LosCon30 and was fortunate to get to meet you and your step son. I missed the reading, but did see you on the panel "How to break into pint". Your wit and enthusiaism is charming and refreshing; the panel was informative and thought provoking. Thank you for your contibution.
Please continue with your writing and acting. You have not finished with your acting career, please don't be discouraged. I wish you well. We will be looking for you.

My first Neil Gaiman reading was at some book store on Ventura Blvd where only about 15 people showed up. The LAST time I went to a Neil Gaiman reading, was at Book Soup in LA somewhere and me and my sis were lucky enough to be the last people who got packed into a tiny room to hear him. It was so suffocating that we left early and we were completely pissed and unsatisfied. So trust me when I say everyone who showed to your reading was enthralled because it was so intimate. There's nothing better.

Wil,
Good interview.
FG

Oh that was great! Minute 19 indeed haha!

Actually a great job during the first 18:16 as well too, enjoyed many of your comments and your stance at the beginning about "Oh, so we're going there?" was really perfect.

I'll get my screenplay picked and I'll make sure I get a part in from you 'cause "Man, I remember you from Star-Trek and I LOOOved Stand-By-Me Dude!"

Hi Wil, havent posted before. Just a 50 year old woman walkin a shamanic path with a few thoughts.
Are you familiar with the hero's journey? this is who you are and what you do. You teach others how to discern from the image others put on us to the true essence of who and what we are - even on the bad hair days.

Johnathan Brandis, River Phoenix are only the visibile ones of the thousands of kids who cannot survive the rites of passages our society puts them through, You stand at the other end of the tunnel holding a lantern for the struggling others, including the ones your beloved placed in your care.

Please understand that the images you have portrayed are as much a gift to this planet jope and triamph over adversity as the :reality of your daily life. Robert Heinlein, through his stories and characters, taught me how to live, to fight for what I value... not the politicians, newsmakers, or any of the people I interacted with every day growing up. I had to become 35 and go through a lot of personal ceremonies to come to see their hero's stories, through the grime and warts I saw and experienced with and through them.

Wesley portrayed the epic journey of the one who never quite fit inm who stands in the cold outside watching those gathered around the fire inside. For those who react with derision to Wesley, the truth hurts and those inside never understand the tears of those outside.

Johnthan and Lucas Wolenczak could have done the same thing, but he chose to numb the pain and drown in itm rahter then embrace and walk through it to the lights waiting on the other side.

You couldnt see us when you were on tech tv, smiling, laughing and sharing the apparent joy and pleasure you displayed when co- hosting that show - does that count less then the Con you were just at? or the hundreds of times we see you on ST Generation, smiling with our own memories your actions evoke, pulling for and cheering every time you overcome adversity, in a way we need to learn to do for ourselves?

Do you shoot yourself in the foot by not mentioning in your journal your appearance agenda - ( I never seem to see much on the convention agenda so I just get it from the blog) but over here in Phoenix is a bit of commute and since 9-1-1I prefer to stay with my family anyway... but I HAVE been waiting for DAYS for more news on the next Tech TV escapade to be sure to record the event.
(BTW I DID write the Tech TV programming and screen savers to share my delight at seeing and experiencing you as a co-host.!)

Anyway, I intend from this point to ignore yuou when you trash or regret Wesley Crusher. His gift to me was to remind and show me how hard teens DO try to be part of their adult group - mand many enriching experiences for my Niece and nephew occurred because of what that Image maker taught me.

Just remember Wil, prosperity comes in many forms, beyond what is seen (at the Con for instance) and abundance is what is unseen as well. Those of us who will never meet, talk or even sit in front of you, we count for something as well, only you can set the value.

Party on - Hercules!
From my heart to yours!

About Writing Fiction:
Pick up "The Art of Fiction" by John Gardner. He was a mediocre writer, but a brilliant writing teacher. He taught Raymond Carver (brilliant writer, should pick him up some time, too.) The book is an interesting read with some guidelines that are essential to writing fiction. I like it because some of the stuff makes PERFECT SENSE... I had just never thought of it on my own.

If you had time (Family + Full-time work + webmaster usually = not a minute to spare on anything but the essentials) AND you lived anywhere NEAR the Long Beach area, I'd recommend a little fiction writing class at LB city college. The instructor is excellent, insightful and knowledgeable.

Good luck with writing fiction. It's certainly not easy.

M-

Listened to the interview and from that and what I've read on WWdN, a concept popped into my head. Very likely it's not original at all, but here it is:

Write 1 episode of ST:TNG for Wesley that should have been written.

You're a writer now, and you've complained that the writers of TNG always preferred writing for "the robot" and missed a lot of potential good stuff by not writing for Wesley. What would have been a good episode for Wesley?

I know it may be a drag to drag this out again, but perhaps it would be cathartic for you? (And we all know how much FUN catharsis is!)

"I don't know, kiddo," I said, with a brave smile.

I think that has to be the most heartbreaking thing. Good luck next time, Wil. It happens to the best of us. :)

Nice interview, Wil.

First of all, that guy was a dick. Second of all, the father of your stepkids also sounds like a dick. Thank God there are men out there, (never mind if they are actors, writers or speakers or whatever) that are man enough to love their wife and kids as much as you do. You have a great talent that many would give their right arm for, and if your career came as easily as the other dicks that end up outside the Viper room (nice touch by he way)then you would probably have missed out on all the 'real' things in life. Keep at it Wil, your time has not yet come. One day, I am convinced, you will be holding an Oscar of your own. People like you, dont go un-noticed forever.
Go on my son!

Love from London.

Interesting that anything that's critical about you is labelled a troll. My previous post made legitimate points in a blunt but not particularly harsh manner. I even concluded it with supportive comment "You can do it," was it, I believe. Unfortunately, you only seem to want sychophantic comments. To Hell with that and to Hell with you.
I've been reading this site for a couple of years. I've reccommended it to others. I had compeletely revised my opinion and thought you were pretty cool. I thought you had come to terms with your past and who you are but apparently not. Face the ugly truth, buddy. The only reason anybody outside your friends and family give a shit about what you have to say is because you were that kid on Star Trek. Everything you write about draws on that, either directly or indirectly. That's not wrong, because that's who you are. Your child actor experience made you who you are. Your struggles to continue to grow beyond that are still part of that.
You finally experienced a little of what most writers go through, with a lousy turnout at your reading and you're practically blubbering. It looks like you haven't matured much, you're still a prima donna and you can't accept anything except adulation. You can delete my posts, Will. You can kill the messenger, but you can't kill the message. You've still got some growing up to do.
You're free of my now, I won't waste my time visiting this site every day anymore.

I'm with a lot of people on the announcer having a high creep factor. I only listened to yours and Armin's interviews, but his questions made me cringe.

"So, tell me and all the millions of fans gaping at your agony, how did it feel to be anally raped by rabid donkeys with oozing sores in front of your children?"

Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but it kind of sums up the feeling of his candor.

So, in that light, good job in containing the anger, having been put in such a spot.

I think you handled it marvelously. You didn't come off as angry or bitter or anything but bemused... "oh, so we're going to go there...". Relax and trust yourself. I'm sorry you had a bad day, but you came off great, as always.

Scott

Wil, congratulations on taking a poor situation and making something awesome out of it. I totally would have come and seen you if I weren't on the other side of the country. I hear this interview and despite the hostility of your interviewer, you did a very good job of communicating some important issues. I want to thank you for stating what a lot of people wouldn't be able to say: that being a child actor isn't desirably. One of my friends from school is a former child-actress and recognizing that this would not be her adult career was so difficult for her--I don't envy that position.

And, if it makes you feel better, I've played concerts where only 15 people showed up. It sucks, but hey, 15 people is better than no people, and I've also played concerts where there were well over a hundred people there. It'll get better...just give it time.

I'm sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Loscon as much as I did.

You should have cornered Larry Niven. He would have been flattered.

I'm sorry to hear that you were so uncomfortable during your reading and interview. You're right that Warren James wasn't trying to discomfit you. It's difficult to know what kinds of things will make someone uncomfortable.

I thought the Linux panel was quite successful, though it could have been moderated better. Yes, I remember now that you were trying to moderate. I learned to moderate from watching it being done, mostly badly.

It would be great if you could attend more fan-run sf cons just as a fan. You might want to stick around for a few of the parties at night, too.

I hope your experiance with the Hour 25 interview doesn't sour your feelings towards Hour 25. I'm a long time listener, 25 years, and a fan of the show. Normally his interviews are more indepth. Because you were at a convention, they were probably limited on time. Hopefully, you can do a more indepth interview someday. I'm sure they would love to hear about your writing and your computer skills, after all, the host is a sci fi fan and works for NASA.

Wil
I am another one of the people who worked at LOSCON (I held up the "5 minutes" panel-ending sign that you acknowledged with a thumbs up, hey you may not remember that but it was strangely cool), and I also work at another local convention known as Gallifrey One. (WWW.GALLIFREYONE.COM, hint hint) In my few years of doing this I too have seen the crowd sizes waver from small to huge. Once word spreads about what a cool guest you are, those rooms will fill up more. I know I overheard several conversations the rest of the weekend from people expressing regret at having missed out on seeing you. Don't let the "disappointing" turnout keep you away from future participation in such events. Your demeanor as one of us/them/those people/geeks/freaks/nerds was quite refreshing to see, and quite welcome. Did you REALLY come back in costume? Hardcore, man!!!

DANG! No Guinness!

Wil,

Glad you had fun at LosCon, except for Hour 25, which should have been more fun for you. My wife worked the convention this year and had I not been sick as a dog, I would have attended at least one day and I certainly would have attended the Linux panel, having been wanting to meet you for some time to "geek out."

I have done Mac panels at the con in years past, and just to let you know, no flame wars erupted, because people only interested in the Mac showed up. Most LASFS members and members of the convention are PC users, and LASFS (the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, the oldest SF club in the US) itself seems to run on technology that is two to four years behind, because that is all the club can afford.

I also agree that the subject of the panel was kind of vague. Getting started with Linux and an intro to open source programming are two different things. Oh, well. You live and learn.

Anyway, your blog is great and so are you. Hope you are there next year as I will probably be going.

Steve

The interviewer was a moron. I would have liked to see him talk much more about your writing than trying to bate you into talking about your acting. You got way more laughs than he did and the Few Good Men reference was lost on him. Excellent job. Keep up the good work.

Howdy,

A pal was raving about your website (no, Menolly, it wasn't you ;-), so I decided to check it out. I was annoyed about the JavaScript link for making comments, so I wrote my usual e-mail about the Eeevils of JavaScript (http://rule6.info/javascript.html ). I was surprised to get a prompt response telling me that the static comments page has a form for submitting comments.

Anyway, to repeat the rest of what I said in my e-mail, I enjoyed seeing you at the Linux panel. I especially appreciated hearing about the perspective of a Windows user moving to Linux. I'm the hearing-impaired person Menolly was referring to; I left early because going to panels is fatiguing, so I guess I missed the worst parts of the panel.

(I probably won't be back much, though, because I hate blogs; I'm widely known as Mr. Anti-LiveJournal. I much prefer Usenet because it's better for discussion.)

Wil, I'm sorry that I didn't make it to your reading. I wanted to, but I was helping to man a fan table and everyone else from the group either needed to be given a break, or was on a panel themselves.

I hope you do come to Loscon next year as another fan, rather than as a guest. Warren James is someone I know socially, and...I'll pass on this feedback on to him, because I think he'd want to know. I haven't spoken to him about this yet, because this is the first chance I've had to read your blog in a while.

People might want to consider the fact that Warren isn't a fulltime radio interviewer. I'm listening to the beginning, and yeah, Warren's not in his best stride their. Interviewers have bad days, too. It only gets worse when the interviewer is actually a rocket scientist and a teacher, and he's been working crazy hours. I suspect that Warren was really, really tired.

Give Warren a (small) break, folks, this is a production by fans and scientists trying to get non-mainstream content out.

And if you listen, the interview got better as it went on. Wil *did* get to talk about his writing and the things that are important to him *now*. It's a decent length interview, so it's not like the Wesley stuff was the entirety. For people who haven't been following WWdN, it's a reasonable sort of thing to wonder about Wil's relationship with having been Wesley Crusher.

That's Warren's real laugh, guys. It's just the way he sounds when he's enjoying himself. Sorry it doesn't meet with your approval.

p.s. if people were interested in Warren James' bio: click here

(drat, I'm sorry, please delete the previous, I didn't realize that html would get stripped out.)

The correct URL for Warren James' bio is:
http://www.hour25online.com/Hour25_Welcome.html#who-we-are

Hi! I finally found some time to stop by here and read your blog and had such a blast. I will definitely be checking back.

I was one of the costumed dorks at Loscon. =) To be more specific, I was with the Teen Titans group and I wanted to say thanks for letting us snag you to take a picture with our group! Our Aqualad was very happy. =)

Thanks again!

Hello,

I'm commenting in this old post because I met you at LosCon that year, and I guess I just wanted to say hi. I remember running into you and blurting out "Oh! Damn, if I'd known you were going to be here, I'd have brought my old posters!" I guess you don't really like being stuck with being Wesley, but I loved Wesley, so I was happy to see you.

I'm delighted ath your comment that you'd like to go back to an old-style Con as Just A Geek. I've been going to traditional literary Sci-Fi Cons since I was 9 - the longest unbroken chain is BayCon up in San Jose, which I now work Ops for every year. I'm a 2nd gen fan and proud of it, damnnit. My friends still tease me for being the target audience of Ensign Crusher and Ewoks (not necessarily in that order).

I had a point, I think...

Well, anyway, I hope you enjoy being Just A Geek at traditional Sci-Fi cons in the future, and I hope I run into you sometime at a room party, 'cause I think it would be very cool to sit and talk with the guy you are now.

And I'm really glad I'm posting this in an old entry nobody else is likely to read, 'cause wow, do I sound stupid...

--Ember--

Posted by: EmberLeo at June 11, 2005 01:29 AM