BASIL PAPADEMOS NOVEL MOUNT ROYAL UPDATE!

This just in! Our old pal Basil Papademos' novel, Mount Royal: There's Nothing Harder Than Love has been accepted for CoPro Market at the Berlin International Film Festival!

Mount Royal has been accepted for competition in "Books at Berlinale" and the Berlinale Co-Production Market. “Books at Berlinale” is a joint initiative of the Berlin International Film Festival and the Frankfurt Book Fair. During the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival (February 7-17, 2013) within the framework of the Berlinale Co-Production Market, the 8th edition of “Books at Berlinale” will take place in order to further strengthen the network between the film and the book industries. Mount Royal will be among the official entries to be considered for film co-production.

Many projects have found financing in Berlin during the past eight editions of the Berlinale Co-Production Market. In the meantime, more than 140 projects from previous years are already in production or have been completed, and many more are underway.

Some exciting films that successfully found co-production funding at the Berlinale Co-Production Market returned to celebrate their premieres at the Berlinale: Olivia Silver’s Arcadia won the Crystal Bear at Generation Kplus. Barnaby Southcombe’s I, Anna, starring Charlotte Rampling and Gabriel Byrne, screened at Berlinale Special; and Sharqiya by Ami Livne was presented at Panorama.
Films that premiered this year also include Hiam Abbass' directing debut Inheritance, which screened at Venice Days, Pelin Esmer's Watchtower which was presented at Toronto, Keep Smiling by Rusudan Chkonia which was selected for Karlovy Vary and Venice.

Thanks to everyone who's made the ebook version of MOUNT ROYAL: There's Nothing Harder Than Love such a success!

XMAS GIFT SPECIAL!

The Mount Royal ebook is out on Kindle, ibooks, Kobo, Nook, Android, Sony e-reader, pdf, and whatever other format you want to download onto your device - or onto your PC or Mac.  For the holidays only, Phosphorus Books is offering the e-book for just $4.00 To buy your special offer copy, go to:
MOUNT ROYAL: There's nothing harder than love

Once you are at the page, click on "Add To Cart" and follow the prompts to create a membership. It only takes a moment. When asked for a coupon code, enter: NA69B ... You can then download a copy in the format you like for the e-reader of your choice, or for your PC or Mac!

INSANE WOMEN WE HAVE KNOWN + LOVED - PART 2

This is a reading of one of the two posts which had been censored by Open Book Toronto, home of Basil's author blog. Thankfully, they saw the light and re-posted my work. The background imagery was created by Fernando Perriera, with assistance from Sandra McLelland, at Station Zero.

BASIL PAPADEMOS READING MORE FROM MOUNT ROYAL

The giant scrolling image in the background is the novel's cover and again features model Araina Nespiak. The cover photo, design and image processing were done by Fernando Perriera at Station Zero.

BASIL PAPADEMOS READING / VIDEO

Our old pal Basil Papademos - of frequent guest posting infamy - stars in this video of a reading from his upcoming novel, Mount Royal. While shooting the cover photo for the novel, a video camera was left running to record the whole process. The background imagery is an out-take from that video. The model/performer is Araina Nespiak.

INSANE WOMEN WE HAVE KNOWN + LOVED PART 2

Hey folks! It's time once again for a literary visit by our old pal and regular guest poster Basil Papademos! Enjoy! - YOPJ Okay, this is Part 2 and once again, is all dialogue. It's the same cheat as Part 1 - two guys just sitting around talking. It would of course be much more difficult if there was action to describe - or infer. I guess then you'd be forced to try and include it in the dialogue and it's difficult to see that sounding believable. Anyway, I think one of the purposes of blogging, for me at least, is trying out ideas like this. See what you think... -BP “Mitch, what’s up.” “Plenty. I’ve been into some really classy, low-mileage pussy lately.” “Oh, yeah?” “Fuckin’ Christ, yeah. I’m seeing this woman, right? She’s 50, probably 53 or whatever but she’s got a body like a goddamn teenager. I can’t believe it. I ask her, where the hell have you been hiding? Married to some gaylord or what?” “Is she married?” “Naw, she was mixed up in some weird thing with a French artist asshole in Paris who put on little Louis outfits and she’d spank him with a pricey Marcel Cloutier hair-brush - that sort of bullshit. She told me the guy couldn’t fuck his way out of a wet paper bag. No wonder there’s no Frenchmen left. Anyway, she’s got this really creamy skin and when I look at her lying there, grinning so snakey and sexy, she looks like some college kid. Jesus! It just blows my mind!” “Well, it is well known that if you really wanna get laid, you gotta move up a few floors. Older chicks, they got more style, more sass - in the sack and out.” Continued at Basil's Blog at Open Book Toronto.

INSANE WOMEN WE HAVE KNOWN + LOVED - A BASIL PAPADEMOS GUEST POST

SUMMER in Toronto is drawing to a close. I can feel it mostly while riding my motorcycle, which is the best barometer of changing weather. There are really only a few nights during the summer when you can ride at seriously high speeds in just a t-shirt and jeans and not begin to feel cold, those few nights when the rushing wind feels hot and sultry no matter how fast you're going. And those are the best moments for the kinds of motorcycles I love; Japanese superbikes of a certain vintage that are subtle but sure-footed and aggressive, full of raw and completely unnecessary power, beautiful of line and howl like a banshee… sorta like... well, this isn't the place for that...

Okay, so all this means more sleep lately, which means more waking early, which means more chance to practice one of writing’s most fundamental tenets, the ol’ A.I.C. - Ass In Chair… Speaking of which, thanks to AL C for reminding of all that.

So I’ve been thinking about dialogue lately, a story made almost exclusively of dialogue - sort of like theatre but not. How do you get across references common to say two people in a conversation? They’re not going to explain everything for the benefit of the reader. I’ve been working on this idea while writing a trio of short things that when put together are called Insane Women We Have Known + Loved.

Let’s give Part 1 a shot and see how it rolls…

I run into a guy called I used to know, Mitch Farrango. Hadn’t seen him in decades - literally. Something about drying out over night in the Barrie bucket, late summer during the late ‘90’s, back when Sauble Beach was a big hang-out.
“What you been up to, Mitch?”
“Been making time with this woman I used to know and met again not long ago. I think you probably knew her. Percy.”
“Percy?”
“Persephone.”
“Jesus…”
“Exactly.”
“She Greek?”
“No, you kidding?...

To read the rest, go to: Insane Women Women We Have Known + Loved - Part 1

And as an added bonus, here's a song to get your back-end moving again after a session of Ass In Chair... "I'm Like a Brand New Bitch" by Anjulie. She sang it at the recent Pride event in Toronto. Pretty great stuff.

BASIL PAPADEMOS READS FROM HIS FORTHCOMING NOVEL, MOUNT ROYAL

Many of you Diasporans have been enjoying Basil Papademos's gritty/funky/hilarious revelations about his part-time gig as a chauffeur/bodyguard/babysitter to one of the Big Smoke's finer escort services (check out the DDD archives for a few choice examples and links to further information).

Well, Basil also happens to be the finest prose stylist whom yer old pal Jerky has the privilege of being able to call a friend. His latest novel, Mount Royal, is coming out soon, and it promises to be a scorcher. Check out this page for more information.

Quite enjoying the feedback you people have given his earlier efforts here, Basil asked me would I mind posting a series of videos he shot at the behest of his publisher, and with the able assistance of another one of yer old pal Jerky's trusted real-life cronies, the immortal Mel Rosedale. "Would I mind?!" I replied. "Free content for my stale, moribund site? And excellent content at that? Bring it on!"

And so, without further ado, here are three readings from Basil Papademos' upcoming novel, Mount Royal. Take it away, Baz!