Dennis Cass is . . .

moving

2008-10-14T12:08:00.003-06:00

I have decided to consolidate Dennis Cass is . . . and Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome into one site.

Please join me at the new Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome.

I will delete this site and the Ning site in the next few weeks.

Cheers,

Dennis

the Mystery Agent on Book Roast

2008-09-12T11:17:00.002-06:00

I was honored to once again be a guest on the delightful Book Roast blog. As I was billed as the Mystery Agent, I wasn't allowed to mention the appearance until now. Thanks again to Chris Eldin for having me. You've given me a year's worth of ideas for Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome.

returning from his first journey

2008-09-09T10:58:00.004-06:00

In response to my last post, leatherdykeuk suggested that I go on a journey to find an old book about computers.

And so I am pleased to present this radically condensed version of 1972's COMPUTER DICTIONARY AND HANDBOOK by Charles J. Sippl and Charles P. Sippl:

Opening line:

"Students, teachers, businessmen, scientists, industrialists and alert individuals in practically all vocations and endeavors are suddenly very amazed to learn of the range and depth of utility of man's newest and most awesome servant, the computer."

[Imagine mostly outdated dictionary business here.]

Closing lines:

"Some of the 'creative' activities by computers which have been described in many experiments are now considered unexplainable by humans. Is this the totally new dimension? A completely new super-science?"

Tell me, Alert Individuals, do Sippl's words still ring true? (I don't know about you, but going forward it will be very hard not to call my laptop the Most Awesome Servant.)

asking you to send him on a journey

2008-09-05T10:28:00.002-06:00

One of the nice features of the (relatively) new Minneapolis Central Library is an increased access to older books. If you think procrastinating by reading a book about pandas is fun, procrastinating by reading a book about pandas written in 1923 takes fun to a higher, funner plane of fun-ness.

Nevertheless, there are times when even my prodigious ability to not get things done flags. I find myself attracted to the same topics, browsing through the same stacks, following the same threads. Which is why I'm asking you for your help. Will you please help me waste my time?

Here's the game:

Pick a topic (any topic) and I will venture into the stacks and return with one pristine nugget from books past. Perhaps this nugget will be an anachronism that will invite you to laugh at the ignorance of our recent ancestors. Or maybe I will unveil some Forgotten Truth that will make you quake at the wisdom of those who came before us.

We won't know until we try.

The request lines are open.

saving his blog by killing the conceit

2008-08-18T06:53:00.004-06:00

A month ago I decided I no longer wanted to maintain both this blog and my writing/career advice blog Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. Rather than say this directly, I thought I'd be clever and pretend Dennis Cass is . . . was in a coma.

The idea was to kill this blog without deleting it, and to do so in a way that was funny or at the very least mildly amusing.

This idea was a bad idea for four reasons:

1. People thought the coma was a cynical ploy for driving traffic.

2. People thought I had given up on the dream.

3. Writing meta anti-posts just as hard as writing real posts.

4. Not funny.

And so I am pleased to announce that this blog is no longer in a coma. All better. Just like that.

I am currently on vacation. When I return to work on September 3rd, Dennis Cass is . . . will enter its fourth (and final) incarnation.

Thanks for the flowers.

feeling his blog slip away

2008-07-28T13:37:00.004-06:00

I was working on a post for Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome when I heard a crashing sound on the other side of the internet. I rushed over to find this blog collapsed . . . in a heap . . . of . . . blog parts.

I'm really at a loss. The encouragement and support people have shown in the past few weeks only makes it harder. Blogs don't just go away, do they?

Tell me they don't.

meeting with the best blog doctors

2008-07-21T09:43:00.005-06:00

I've been consulting with the best blog doctors in the country. We stand at my blog's bedside and machines bleep and flowers wilt and not a single, overpaid one of them can tell me something I don't already know.

I feel like I'm in a soap opera.

Am I wearing an eye patch? Is my name Steele? Why can't I forgive Lexi?

They say that it's not me.

Of course it's not me! If I had no words left, then why would things be going so well over at Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome? If I had run out of ideas, then how do you explain all the progress on the second book? Or the TV pilot?

They say it's not Blogger's fault.

This was from that smug bastard from the Mayo. As if I wouldn't recognize server trouble.

They say that sometimes blogs just die.
I refuse to believe this one. My blog is less than three years old. It's a puppy! A sweet, frolicsome puppy.

It can't die! Not when there's a new slate of writers over at Book Roast. Not when book launch 2.0 is still attracting readers. Not when HEAD CASE: How I Lost My Mind Trying to Understand My Brain is still in stock at Amazon.

Please, stop reading. I cannot bear to think that you'll be here when this blog slips away into the void. Stop visiting. Stop reading. Just stop.

unable to rouse his blog

2008-07-14T08:09:00.006-06:00

Strange things are happening.

The other day I allowed my blog a chance to lay down and get some well-deserved rest. Then a kind reader posted a comment that made me realize that someone might think my sleeping blog meant that I had given up on Dennis Cass is . . . or worse, given up as a writer.

For the record: I have not left the game.

I'm still writing furiously over at Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome, working on my next book, teaching creative nonfiction (hopefully with better results than this) and generally making things happen.

I realize that none of this matters if people come here and find a sleeping blog. The problem is that when I try to wake it up, I can't.

I have grabbed its shoulders and shaken it with increasing degrees of violence.

I have tried bestowing a magic kiss upon its forehead.

I have worked myself into a state of operatic hysteria in the hopes that a single tear of redemption would make its eyelids flutter to life.

None of these tried-and-true methods have worked.

I'm at a loss, people. If anyone out there knows how to rouse a sleeping blog, please let me know. My greatest fear is that indeed my blog is not asleep, but is suffering from something far more serious.

I don't even want to say it, lest saying it makes it true:

Can a blog go into a coma?

allowing his blog to rest

2008-07-10T23:54:00.006-06:00

In almost every way, blogs are like people. They need food. They need love. They need rest. Dennis Cass is . . . has been (mostly) well fed and (relatively) well loved, but it hasn't been getting enough sleep.

And so I'm putting it to bed until it needs to open its eyes again.

That said, if you went over to Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome I would bet that it's up right now.

announcing the contest winners (2nd contest)

2008-07-01T08:25:00.005-06:00

Thanks to everyone who participated in my second contest (dig that unmasked URL!). I have awarded leatherdykeuk and r.w. ridley the twin prizes, which are in fact individual copies of HEAD CASE. The former scored points in the category of Most Elaborate Response, while the latter brought it home in the category of Bilious Descent.

I also learned a lesson.

I would much rather give my books away than sell them.

Please don't tell my publisher.

unmasking his URL

2008-06-26T10:32:00.002-06:00

First, thanks again for the good people at Book Roast for roasting me yesterday. I had fun. Being roasted.

Second, I am an idiot.

I've had this blog for two years, during which time I have fussed over it, neglected it, forgotten about it, and fallen in love with it all over again. With the success of my YouTube video, I have started to (gently) hope that this blog might find its place in the blogosphere.

Then I get a very nice e-mail from a very nice writer living in Australia. She wants to link to one of my posts, but she can't because my URL is all f*cked up. I am confused. She is confused. I promise to investigate.

It turns out that when I first set up this site, I elected to "mask" my Blogger blog URL in order to have the URL bar (or whatever it's called) read www.denniscass.com. The problem is that the masking process also makes it impossible (or at least discouraging difficult) for people to link to a specific post.

The reason I did the masking in the first place was because I was embarrassed to have a Blogger blog. (As if by masking the URL you were somehow fooled into believing Dennis Cass is . . . was more than it is!) Now I'm even more embarrassed to think that I have blown who knows how many opportunities to connect with readers and find my place in the writing world.

What's done is done. The only good that might come out of this experience is if other people can learn from my mistakes.

Here is a proverb that will hopefully aid in the learning:

For want of an unmasked URL the hyperlink was lost.
For want of a hyperlink the blog post was lost.
For want of a blog post the chance to reach a wider audience was lost.
For want of a wider audience the chance to make an impact on the culture was lost.
And all for the want of an unmasked URL.

being roasted

2008-06-25T06:38:00.004-06:00

I am upgrading my Book Roast status from "about to be roasted" to "in the middle of being roasted." If you are not visiting from that site, then you need to visit that site. It's a party.

For those of you who are visiting from that site, welcome. Here is an update on what I've been working lately in the event you want to know about what I've been working on lately.

Made this YouTube video to mark the paperback release of HEAD CASE:

Launched a side project called Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. I give writing advice, career advice and awesomize books, movies, websites, comic strips and other cultural artifacts that are weak or infirm. Most recently I awesomized the standard query letter.

Started work on my second book. It's absolutely, 100% completely different from HEAD CASE. But it's also similar. My working theory on why has to do with the fact that both books are written by the same person. If you have other ideas, I would entertain them.

about to be roasted

2008-06-23T09:19:00.002-06:00

This Wednesday, June 25th, I have the honor of being the guest goat/tackling dummy/archery hay bale over at Book Roast, a delightful new site that make interacting with authors playful, creative, and (at times) informative.

On Wednesday morning, one of the roast masters (I was brought on board by the delightful Chris Eldin) will post an excerpt of my book, HEAD CASE. Following the selection, there will be three questions. Answer these questions correctly and you win a prize.

But wait, you say. That word after the word "question" is making me uncomfortable. By correctly do you mean correctly? Or correctly? Or CORRECTLY? Or, God forbid, "correctly"?

I cannot answer that question, lest I give the readers of this blog an advantage. I will only say this:

The cause of your discomfort is (potentially) the source of your eventual triumph.

running another contest

2008-06-13T09:55:00.002-06:00

I have come up with a name for a new social network.

It's called TwitterMyFaceTube.

What does it do?

Write me a description (250 words maximum) and post it in the comments. A free paperback copy of HEAD CASE goes to my two favorites.

Thanks for playing.

submitting internet jokes to Ranger Rick

2008-06-11T05:12:00.002-06:00

Q: Why was the marksman such an adept user of the internet?

A: Because he was really good at AIM-ing!

Q: Why was the candy maker always on Twitter?

A: Because she had a tweet tooth!

Q: When is a book not really a book, but actually a social networking site that allows people to connect with friends, build relationships with people who share common interests, give virtual gifts, and play a (possibly) copyright infringing electronic version of a classic board game?

A: When it's a Facebook!

celebrating an anniversary

2008-06-09T14:19:00.001-06:00

Book Launch 2.0 launched one month ago tomorrow. If I were Google, I would put a party hat, confetti, balloons and some streamers on the "Dennis Cass is . . . " title bar. Regrettably, because I'm me, I have to ask you to imagine that things are visually more festive around here.

As of this writing, the vid is at 33,656 views. In the grand internet scheme of things that's not a lot of views, but it's more views than I ever imagined. More importantly, I now think about life entirely in terms of views. It's like I'm finally a whole person.

I'd like to take this occasion to thank everyone who watched. And to thank everyone who watched and commented. And to thank those who watched and took a chance on my book, which, quite frankly, has little or nothing to do with the video.

I'd also like to thank the widgets. (And, to a lesser degree, the apps.)

So what's next for Dennis Cass is . . . ?

The (mild) fever that is Book Launch 2.0 is subsiding. I'm in the Long Tail now. But I will continue to document my awkward, half-assed attempts to embrace new technology. I will also continue to (occasionally) update my progress on Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome, my TV pilot and my second book. I'm also willing to take direction. What do you, Internet Stranger Who Barely Knows Me, want to see next?

What would you like to view?

proposing some widgets

2008-06-06T09:15:00.002-06:00

LOL Meter
Yes, you LOL'd. But how much did you LOL? And was it is a sad, rueful LOL? Or the innocent, joyous LOL-ing of a young girl? And, while we're at it, are we even LOL-ing for the same reason? Attach a microphone to your computer and it captures, records and sorts all your LOLs. Social network feature allows you to compare and share with friends. You'll never ROTF the same way again.

Comments Aggregator
You make a lot of comments. On blogs. On social networks. On the websites of major media outlets. You comment so much you don't even remember what you wrote. This widget collects sorts through all of your comments, pulls out the three most common words and the three least comment words, and stacks them from least to most. Now you don't have to keep track of who you are. Changes daily.

Shame Culture Widget
So you like Radiohead. Who cares? But what about all those times you're driving around singing Matchbox 20 songs at the top of your lungs? No one needs to find out about that. Unless, of course, they do. This widget parses your iTunes, DVR recorded items list, Amazon shopping cart and Netflix queue for the most embarrassing songs, television shows, books and movies. Don't you think it's time to come clean?

Anxiety of Influence Meter
You just wrote a pretty cool blog post, but something nags. You feel like maybe you read what you wrote somewhere else. Or worse, that you didn't read what you wrote somewhere else, but everyone else has, and the writer who came before you said it first and said it better. Green means you're pretty sure you're being original. Red means you sincerely doubt your artistry. Social networking feature allows people to confirm or deny. Like that LOL meter idea. Red, right?

choosing chicklets

2008-06-04T07:01:00.000-06:00

I know; I know. I could have gone with Flurry or Fwiki or Attensa or Odeo. Pageflakes certainly has its appeal. But I went with the standard Pageburner RSS chicklet. Sometimes you want the 12-grain bread with the dried cranberries and the isoflavones. But sometimes you want a nice, soft white bread so you can concentrate on the meat, cheese, fixings and condiments. In any case, for those of you who have been requesting a chicklet widget to sign up for this site's RSS feed, your wishes have been (albeit blandly) granted.

reviewed on a blog (and enjoying it greatly)

2008-06-02T08:52:00.006-06:00

Thanks to Eudaemonia for the nice review in her Books I Read in May 2008 post (I'm in the number two slot after THE GOD FILE). This is my first review by a book blogger and it's kind of a thrill (and not just because she has good things to say about the book).

What thrills me about this review is that it happened organically. When you're trying to connect with your audience with a new, hardcover release, the entire experience feels forced and fake. I have never speed dated, but I imagine it feels the same way: do you like me? do you like me? do you like me?

The paperback experience has so far felt much more natural. You see someone at the supermarket. You make eye contact over the pineapples. A smile. A flirtatious comment. Why yes, I'd love to come over and see your collection of rare, 18th-century Spanish coins. And then it's on.

annoucing the contest winners

2008-05-29T17:27:00.004-06:00

Melissa Gilman, your "high school boyfriend's mom" comment won me over in the Best Analogy category. You win a book. Send me your address (dennis.cass@gmail.com) and I will send you a book.

Jimmy Porter, your "transparent attempt to sell books" comment scored high marks in the Most Cynical category. (Bonus points for offering to meet for a non-virtual drink.) You win a book. Send me your address (dennis.cass@gmail.com) and I will send you a book.

Wesley Burton, your thoughtful, three-part answer won in the category of Youthful Vigor. You win a book. Send me your address (dennis.cass@gmail.com) and I will send you a book.

As for everyone else, I thank you for your entires. You did not win a book. But check back some other time, k? I will run another contest the instant I can think of an interesting premise. [Emoticon for all smiles.]

comparing superhighways

2008-05-27T14:25:00.004-06:00

First, I have officially closed the contest to new entries. Thanks to everyone who participated. I will announce the winner later this week. The post will probably be titled something like Dennis Cass is . . . announcing the contest winner.

Second, I was off the grid this weekend, traveling by road with the family, and I have this report on the other superhighway:

1. I-94, while a dream to drive, is sloppily designed from an information architecture point of view. At any point, there were a number of birds flying above, across or alongside the highway. Wouldn't it be better to construct some kind of bird widget? Or perhaps locate the bird function on some kind of toolbar? You don't see my "view my complete profile" link circling over this blog post. Let's get it together, people.

2. I'd like to see a little more variety in my roadside interfaces. I understand that the Lands' End Outlet needs to look like other Lands' End Outlets, but hanging a sign on a beige box is not making me want to pull over. Blogger, WordPress and TypePad all have some delightful templates to draw from. I see no reason why the outside of every third Subway can't look like Victorian wallpaper.

3. I'll sum up my third beef in three words: nothing to click. When we stopped for lunch (don't ask where) it seemed as if there were any number of ways to engage with the world, but all that "hot content" was just a tease. We didn't talk to anyone, learn anything from anyone or leave comments on their . . . person. Plus, I can't begin to describe my disappointment at how limited the choices were. A pool of forty people is an embarrassment. I want my millions.

running a contest

2008-05-23T07:31:00.000-06:00

I have three paperback copies of HEAD CASE that are in excellent shape. You have knowledge of the internet beyond my comprehension. My hope is that we can work together.

What follows is an attempt to articulate why I am completely and utterly confused by Facebook. Please read the description of my problem, then post your answer in the comments. I will send a copy of my book to the three people who do the best job of helping me understand.

Here's the deal:

(I think) I understand the point of Facebook. It's a way of connecting with people and socializing with them on the internet, right? So you have your page with your information and the things you like and your causes and your wall, and all of that becomes an online ME and that interacts with other online MEs.

But then when I try to actually use Facebook, I freeze up. Am I supposed to go to your page and look at all of your friends? When I write on your wall, am I writing you a note, or making some kind of semi-private, semi-public declaration that somehow communicates with you and but also puts on a show for other people? Why would I send you an e-mail through Facebook, when I can send you one through your regular e-mail account? What are the gifts for? Why poke?

I guess I'm asking, "What's the point?" But I don't mean it in a mean or cynical way. I honestly want to understand what I'm doing when I'm Facebooking.

Perhaps my question is best captured in MadLib form:

"Hey, Dennis. Yesterday, when you __________ on my Facebook page, that was rad. You showed me that you really understand ________________ and that our relationship means ____________. It really made me feel __________. In the future, I hope we can __________."

Can you fill in those blanks?

updating his progress, again

2008-05-22T07:13:00.002-06:00

Here's what's happened since my May 12th update:

HEAD CASE

Video marking paperback release of the book released on internet, etc., etc.

Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome

Thanks to the vid, membership (and readership) is up. Awesomized Bush-bashing and wrote a review of Dan Roam's The Back of the Napkin by way of Speed Racer. Tomorrow's question is about getting readers to care about your characters.

Book Two

Huge breakthrough about how to handle all the elements I have in play. Can't wait to get back to work after the long weekend.

TV pilot

Took a break from the TV work. A break was needed.

on a phone call about the phone call that feels exactly like the phone call

2008-05-21T13:31:00.007-06:00

I was talking on the phone with a friend yesterday about the vid. He was very complimentary, and I was very thankful, and then he started to bug me about doing another one. I said that I would love to, but that I didn't have any ideas. Still, he kept at it. He wouldn't leave me alone about what was next. Finally, I said:

"Dude, stop. You know what you're doing?"

"What?"

"You're being that guy."

"What guy?"

"That guy on the other end of the phone. In the vid. That guy who's bugging me to do things that I know I have to do, but haven't done."

"No, I'm not."

"Yeah, you are. I know you mean well, but telling me to have another idea just makes me feel bad for not having all the ideas that I know I should have. You get it?"

"I'm not doing that. I'm helping."

"Think about it."

[Bruised-feelings silence.]

"I see what you mean."

"Good. Thanks. But yes: I will do my best to come up with another idea."

"Yeah, you really should. But it kinda has to be better, right? Because if it's isn't as good, then people will be disappointed and . . . ."

widgeting the sh*t out of his site

2008-05-19T15:30:00.004-06:00

A big thanks to my publisher Harper Perennial for helping me get over the widget hump. I didn't realize that a widget was just a piece of code you put into your blog. (Who knew?) So scroll down the full length of the blog, and behold the complete and total widgetization of Dennis Cass is . . .

Of course, I still haven't written a widget. That is quite possibly a hard thing to do. But who knows? Maybe I can team up with a hot widget or app writer, and together we can make the new hot widget. Or app. I'm going to think about what I'd like to see, and post my ideas in next few days. In the meantime, enjoy the widgets, people!

making himself available for commericals

2008-05-18T08:25:00.009-06:00

Comcast

"Comcast Triple Play? What's that? [Pause.] Oh, so I get my phone service, my cable and my high-speed interent all from one company? [Pause.] It's called bundling? Right. Bundling. Got it. [Pause.] Okay, so I just call them and tell them that I want those services. [Pause.] Right, I tell them I want to bundle those services. Okay. Well I guess I gotta do that. [Pause.] Today. Right, I’m going to call them today. [Pause.] I’m going to call them today and tell them to bundle those services. I’ll be like: select allll."

Burger King

"No, I haven't been to Burger King lately. [Pause.] I know. You're right. They do make great burgers. [Pause.] Indy Double Whopper? What's that? Is that somehow related to Indiana Jones and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, in theaters on May 22nd? [Pause.] It is. Okay. So this burger somehow—. Right. Blackened Cajun mayo . . . crispy bacon . . . pepper jack cheese. [Pause.] And all the usual burger stuff like a bun, lettuce, tomato, onions—. [Pause.] And two patties. Wow. Okay. Well, I guess that sounds delicious. [Pause.] Oh, it is delicious!"

We Can Solve It

"Hello. My name is Dennis Cass, star of the viral video book launch 2.0. Finding a solution to climate change is perhaps the great challenge facing our—. [Phone rings.] Just a second. Hey, what’s up? I’m good, I’m good. Actually, I’m right in the middle of filming a spot for The Alliance for Climate Protection. [Pause.] Right. The We Campaign. Right. [Pause.] Yeah, the one with the green circle and the M that’s upside down so it looks like a W. [Pause.] It is a good cause. [Pause.] No, I don’t think it’s hopeless at all. [Pause.] No, I haven’t read that study. [Pause.] Yes, well that does sound pretty bad, but I don’t think that means—. [Pause.] Okay, well that’s your choice. You can not care, but I’m deciding to care. [Pause.] Even if it’s too late, right. [Pause.] Okay, be good. You’re the best. [Pause.] Yes, even if you don’t care about the environment. [Pause.] Okay, gotta go. [Hangs up phone.] Sorry about that. What am I doing here?"

is just now getting the internet

2008-05-15T07:19:00.009-06:00

Have you heard about this thing called a car? It's completely amazing, and I can't wait to tell you all about it. So imagine a big metal box with a bunch of windows. Now put what I just said on top of four wheels that roll. Now imagine that you can climb inside the box and there's places to sit and look out the windows. (Inside there's also another wheel. It's different from the outside wheels, but I think they might somehow be connected.) Anyway, I'm not really sure how this car thing works, but somehow it moves, and you can use it to go just about anywhere. For the most part, you have to stay on these things called roads, but that doesn't end up being much of a limitation. I mean, some of these roads? They go across water. But I haven't told you the best of all best parts. Other people have cars. It's true. And they use them all the time (even at night!). In fact, right now, as we speak, people all over the world are just out there, in their cars, seeing new places and meeting new people and . . . .

Substitute internet stuff for the car stuff and this is how I've been sounding to people for the past two days. I know: it's genuinely embarrassing. But I can't stop. Even when people are telling me that I should be embarrassed. Even when people are saying, "Yes, Dennis. The internet is amazing. It's 2008. We know."

I don't know why it's taken me so long to absorb this message. I'm hardly a Luddite. I've used Amazon to sell used CDs to guys who live on Army bases in Canada. I've written stories about machinima. When I balance my checkbook, I use Quicken; I don't tie knots in yarn. But for some reason it took this silly little YouTube video for me to truly understand. Like I think I get it now. Technology isn't a tool; it's a religion, right? Is that what we're doing here?

Like I said: embarrassing. But also a lot of fun. And so I'd like to offer up a big thanks to the internet for the eye-opener. And a bigger thanks to everyone who's taken the time to comment and write me nice notes. It's been a real treat, and I can see how people can really get into this whole technology. I guess I only have one question:

Is there a downside?

presenting a short video

2008-05-13T12:42:00.001-06:00

updating his progress

2008-05-12T12:42:00.003-06:00

TV pilot

First draft of treatment is done. Now we're working on some additional ideas in case we get a meeting and someone says, "What else do you have?" Right now these additional ideas sound like bar talk, but we're working up a beat sheet for one of them that should fix that problem.

Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome

Introduced new schedule. Also introduced new feature called the Awesomizer. Each week I will take something weak and try to make it strong. So far I've worked up Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Precious Moments figurines. To check it out, check here.

Book Two

Research plan is coming along nicely. I have the basic sequence. Now I need to test it out to make sure I don't waste time following any broken threads. This is tough for me; in the past a big part of my process involved wandering the desert. Now that I'm working on three things at once I'm less inclined to dither.

HEAD CASE

For the past month, I've been working on a YouTube video to announce the paperback version. It should be ready this week.

thanking the Academy

2008-05-05T15:24:00.005-06:00

Awarded by
Eric
to Dennis

Thank you, thank you. Ohmygosh. This is such a surprise! I didn't even prepare any remarks. [Delivers prepared remarks . . . .]

finishing the "beat sheet"

2008-05-02T11:52:00.003-06:00

I'm working with my new writing partner on a treatment for a television show. We're using Alex Epstein's Crafty TV Writing as our guide. It's a great book. I've read a lot of writing advice books over the years, and they either leave me cold or make me laugh. Very few of them will actually help you become a professional. (Most simply indulge the hobbyist, but that's a rant for another time.)

Alex's book is different. He covers the basics of writing for TV, makes it funny, and also dispenses general writing advice that is well above average. Yesterday, we passed our first significant milestone, the "beat sheet" for the pilot. (You can check out the "beat sheet" excerpt from Alex's book here.) One word: yay.

What I'm enjoying the most out of working in this new medium is that it's making me better at basic dramatic structure. I got a lot out of McKee's Story, but there is something about TV writing that makes figuring out the puzzle of a story's dramatic arc a lot easier and a lot more fun.

Part of it has to do with the fact that TV is unbelievably rigid. For a network drama you have:

A teaser (one beat)

Act I (three beats)

Act II (three beats)

Act III (three beats)

Act IV (three beats)

A tag (one beat)

The third beat of each act is the "act out," which is that little dramatic bump that keeps you coming back. You must have that hook at the end, even if it's a small one. Each of those act outs also has to build to the last beat of Act IV (the climax). And you need to set up the tag, which is what brings people back for the next episode.

Writing with act outs in mind is incredibly clarifying. Rather than blunder your way through a scene hoping it will turn into something, you're forced to think about the scene strategically before you even write it. Could it be an act out? Does it serve the act out we already have? Or would it better serve the act out somewhere else?

thanking Carleton College

2008-04-30T17:25:00.002-06:00

Am I true to my school? Truly, I am. Here's proof:

A big "thank you" to my alma mater (I hope that link helps your Google ranking) for having me down to talk about awesomeness. We had a great crowd; most of the jokes worked, and I think the ideas held up pretty well, too. There was that weird patch where it got kinda sad. Sorry about that. The crushing realities of trying to make a living in our culture today will do that.

I'm also grateful because this talk clarified something in my own mind. The "thought leadership" aspect of this subject (which, in fact, properly belongs to people like Chris "The Long Tail" Anderson, et. al.) is necessary at this stage. But it's also the least interesting to me, and, apparently, to you. Things got smokin' hot during the more practical discussion of the calling card and how to make one. Message received.

If you're paying this site a visit because of what you saw today, again I thank you. If you're interested in learning more, head on over to Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. (That is where the more is.)

going to rock it out

2008-04-26T20:10:00.004-06:00

I know; I know. One day I'm thinking about scuttling Dennis Cass is . . . and the next day I'm claiming I'm going to rock it out. It's such a Pisces thing to do. Too bad I'm an Aquarius.

I haven't decided what's next, but I'm considering the following:

a. project diary of my next book
b. short cultural criticism pieces that will help scratch the itch that is no longer being scratch by my magazine work
c. project diary about Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome
d. all of the above
e. none of the above

In any case, thanks to the bloggers who said such kind words about my last post.

I promise that this will be the last of the meta-blogging.

The next post will be the new, new thing.

thinking about shutting it down

2008-04-23T15:44:00.002-06:00

I've been reading a lot of agent and publisher blogs lately as part of my new campaign to get my head out of my ass and place it somewhere nearer to the 21st Century. This post on Editorial Ass really woke me up to one of the big beefs readers have about author blogs. When you use your blog only to promote your book (exactly the approach I've taken here) then people (and rightly so) think ill of you.

The funny thing is that I haven't run this as a promo blog because I'm so eager to climb the author ladder to fame and fortune. I've run this as a promo blog for the following (bad) reasons:

1. Until about a six months ago, I was a technophobe who hoped this whole internet thing would just go away.
2. I was too lazy to come up with an interesting approach to blogging that would make it worthwhile both for me and for my potential readers.
3. I was tight with my ideas and thought (wrongly) that by hoarding my words that would make what I had to say more valuable.
4. I thought that taking the path of least resistance would mean that even if I screwed up, I would minimize any potential damage.

I feel like I've righted some of these wrongs with Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. But that doesn't solve the problem of Dennis Cass is . . . .

Does Dennis Cass is . . . need to go away? Or do I need to run two blogs?

redirecting you to awesomeness

2008-04-11T11:35:00.004-06:00

If you're here because of my recent appearance at ASJA, thanks for stopping by. This is where I promote my book and talk about more general Dennis Cass-related topics.

For awesomeness you will have to go here:

Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome

a man about town

2008-04-07T13:50:00.002-06:00

Well, technically, I'm a man about directly across the street from my house. But no matter. A big thanks to my neighbor, Kate, for having me over to her book club last night. This was the first time I've been in front of a group of people who have actually read the book (as opposed to my tour when my book was too new to have been properly consumed) and I think it went pretty well. If I can get my act together perhaps I'll do more.

Also, I'm adding back some of the press I got for the hardcover. Before I launched Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome I cleaned up this site to make room. But now that DCWYTBMA is its own thing I put back the whatnot.

a "perfectly entertaining failure"

2008-03-28T07:42:00.004-06:00

I wasn't going to post this short review of Head Case from Reason Magazine because it's not exactly flattering, but then I remembered a promise (to myself? to the world? to the animals?) that I would take a warts-and-all approach to promoting my book.

The question is whether or not this a good approach. Yes, you score points for honesty and protect yourself from looking like a self-promoting tool. But I wonder if you also sell yourself short by pointing out the inevitable negative reactions. And doesn't self-deprecation, no matter how well-meaning, infringe on your audience's right to make up their own mind?

Sounds like a topic for DCWYTBMA . . .

enjoying the new look

2008-03-24T08:52:00.002-06:00

Good news over at Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. My friend James Lotter, who is an art director over at Pocket Hercules, did a fine job wrestling with the frustratingly rigid Ning templates and has produced a fine looking site. Even though DCWYTBMA is a side project, it feels official now.

in paperback

2008-03-06T16:13:00.003-06:00

I'm not in paperback, but my book is and I'm quite pleased to have out in the world in a more portable, less expensive form.

Also, I answered my first question over at Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. I like this approach much better than simply pulling topics out of my head, although I'm sure I'll be doing that as well.

tweaking . . . always tweaking

2008-03-04T17:25:00.004-06:00

I have renovated the now titled Dennis Cass Wants You To Be More Awesome. I am still writing broadly on how to have a career in the arts, but it's now more focused on giving direct advice.

Also, Head Case comes out in paperback on March 11th.

a suitable gift

2007-12-06T01:35:00.000-06:00

Peter Anthony Holder out of Montreal was nice enough to put me on his show tonight for his holiday book roundup. He's very easy to talk to, which helped make up for the fact that I am rudely out of practice. Thanks for listening, Canada!

adding value

2007-10-16T09:11:00.000-06:00

The paperback for Head Case is coming out next year and the good people at HarperCollins have invited me to add stuff to the back of the book to make the book even more valuable.

I will not lie: Adding value is not easy work. But I have done it. I have added the value, which is taking the form, in this case, of a Q & A between me and my brain, a deleted scene, and three short reviews of other people's work that fills me with envy.

That's all I can add for now, but in 2010, when the book comes out in hologram form, then I will do what I can to make it even better.

Until then . . .

too hairy . . . for radio

2007-10-15T14:14:00.000-06:00

I have been hoping to post either a radio or television link to my Prairie Lights reading from a couple of weeks ago, but I am curiously absent from the archives.

My take: too hairy. Between my grown-out hair cut and my joke beard I was clearly too poorly groomed to be considered broadcast quality. It seems the level of hairiness reached sufficient levels to be apparent even when captured on audio.

I am, quite frankly, relieved. If I was as furry as I remember being, then I'm not sure I want those kinds of pictures and sounds out there in the internet. That would be something that, as the saying goes, I do not need right now.

thanking you, Iowa

2007-10-01T09:28:00.000-06:00

Thanks to Julie Englander and everyone who showed up at Prairie Lights for my reading last Monday. I felt like I was a bit testy, but still a pretty decent show, even if it was more of a traditional reading than the more fun SLIDE SHOW.

I will post the link to the radio broadcast once it's up. There are also rumors of a televised version, in which you will be able to see my joke beard.

getting in the car, NOW!

2007-09-24T14:56:00.000-06:00

So I was reading this piece in the Daily Iowan today and thinking, "Hmmm. That's interesting. A guy decided to learn everything he could about his brain and a write a book about it, and then it all went wrong but he still wrote the book anyway, and it's actually not half bad and he's going to give a reading at 7pm at the legendary Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City tonight. How nice for him."

Then it hit me: I'm the him! That guy who wrote the book is me guy. And the brain he wrote about is my brain. And the reading he's going to give tonight is going to be performed by me him. And to top it all off tonight is coming, very soon, at the end part of today!

So I'm getting in the car. Right now in the car. Driving right now in the car down to Iowa City, a place that I love because my wife went to college there. And I'm going to do the best job that I can at 7 pm at Prairie Lights and I will read excerpts and pander to the audience that mostly live in the town where my beloved wife went to college and it's going to be great but mostly now I have to go, go, go.

loving the South

2007-09-01T18:01:00.001-06:00

Permission to pander?

I just finished a show at the Decatur Book Festival and I could not be more pleased. We had some technical difficulties and the kitten joke misfired, but otherwise it was a solid performance and a top-two crowd.

Thank you to the festival organizers and to everyone who showed up. You have lovely brains.

Also, even though I've only been here a day I've had the pleasure of making a fool of myself many times over. This is my first book festival, and even though this might sound strange, I also thought it was essentially the only book festival. (In case you were wondering, Google says it's not.) So to every author I've met today I've said something like:

"Are there other book festivals or is this the only one?"

"This is great. A book festival! Other cities should do this!"

"You wouldn't think a festival based around books would work. I mean of course there are art fairs. And crafts fairs. But a book festival? And yet it works. It really, really works!"

So now I'm off to a reception. Almost everyone I talked today will be there and I am now faced with the task of trying to undo the day's idiocy, even though I know that in the process I will only make more.

a high-functioning chocoholic

2007-08-29T20:05:00.000-06:00

Chocoholism wears many faces. Some public. Some private. Some so private they can only be seen with brain scans.

After reading this article I had to take an ooey, gooey, fudge-y look at myself in the mirror. I had to admit to myself that I've had more than my share of rich, decadent, better-than-sex rock bottoms.

I'm going to be at the Decatur Book Festival in three days. You know the chocolate will be flowing in the VIP tent.

Will I be strong enough?

Will you be strong with me?

appearing at the Decatur Book Festival

2007-08-28T09:50:00.000-06:00

It's true. I'm bringing the SLIDE SHOW to the Decatur Book Festival, which is sponsored by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

This is pretty exciting. Two hundred authors, live music, food, etc. Also, Atlanta is one of the few major U.S. cities I haven't visited and as I understand it you can get peach cobbler there.

But of course I will be there to talk about brain science. When I am on the City Hall Stage at 5:30 on Saturday, September 1st I will not be talking about peach cobbler. Nor will I be thinking peach cobbler or about sweet, sticky peaches bubbling under a lightly browned, biscuit-y crust.

I certainly will NOT be thinking about THAT.

featuring other brains

2007-08-07T12:32:00.000-06:00

Because I need to prove I am not a narcissist.

Because I have run out of things to say about my own brain.

Because it's summer, a season best suited to the appearance of effort than effort itself.

Because of all of these becauses and any other becauses I might have missed, I give you:

Stephen Wiltshire's brain.

passing along an important message

2007-07-12T11:08:00.000-06:00

I don't know if you plan to see Transformers, but in case you don't I thought I'd pass along this important message from Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots.

I don't remember the exact line, so I realize that by paraphrasing it I'm kind of ruining it, but basically there is goodness in all of us.

So if you're ever feeling down, just try to remember that even an alien race of robots that can also be cars and trucks and whatnot recognizes our essential goodness, and that, well, that's really all he said, so I'm not sure what you're supposed to do with this information.

Perhaps it's just good to know.

Perhaps you should go around telling this to people.

Perhaps you should put it on a t-shirt.

Optimus Prime sees the goodness in you.

an early bird

2007-07-12T11:03:00.000-06:00

Thanks to everyone who showed up this morning for the Carleton alumni Early Bird Breakfast. It was a little strange talking about the brain at 7 am, but it was also fun, and there were some excellent questions that I got to pretend to know how to answer. Bless you all.

influencing fortunes?

2007-06-28T07:26:00.000-06:00

A friend of mine recently reported receiving the following fortune at a Chinese restaurant in Newark, New Jersey:

"If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple, we couldn't understand it."

That's pretty much my book in fortune cookie fortune form. Which is completely fine. I'm not saying that I shouldn't have written the HEAD CASE and instead written the fortune. You have the potential to reach a larger audience if your words are inside a book as opposed to being inside a cookie. And if people want to seek your work out, you don't want them eating Chinese for a month in the hopes of getting lucky.

But still . . . I wish I would have written that line.

being rewarded for surfing the Internet

2007-06-26T11:34:00.001-06:00

If you would have told me ten years ago that a major radio station would want to have me on the air for a half an hour just talking about what I like to look at on the Internet I would have said you were not only crazy, but kind of mean.

But lo and behold! On the Current with Mary Lucia for a half hour talking about YouTube and lolcats with a little Ocean's 13 chaser.

Best of times? Worst of times?

How could you possible know?

a lolauthor

2007-06-20T16:04:00.001-06:00

Thanks to Party Ben for turning this whole thing around.

Dennis Cass: lolauthor.

back in the hole

2007-06-20T14:08:00.000-06:00

Oh, Internets!

Your ride is so fast! So bumpy!

On a lark I put "lolbrain" into Google and discovered that six days ago (let's face it: a lifetime) someone already posted a lolBrain to Flickr.

Which is better? My lolbrain or their lolBrain?

I don't think it matters. Or if something does matter, whatever it is I have forgotten it a long time ago.

Can someone remind me?

bouncing back from self-doubt

2007-06-20T13:26:00.000-06:00

It will never make it on I Can Has Cheezburger? but still . . . .

I present to you . . .

lolbrain!

questioning his l33t humor skillz0rs

2007-06-20T12:53:00.000-06:00

I can be funny. And my book, which is supposed to be funny, often succeeds in providing a broad range of laughters.

But am I as funny as this lolhamster?

Or (as I am beginning to sincerely doubt) this lolrus?

wondering about the neurobiology of Ocean's 13

2007-06-12T09:19:00.001-06:00

I saw Ocean's 13 yesterday. I realized halfway through that the thing I like most about the franchise is that I genuinely enjoy watching George Clooney and Brad Pitt be relaxed. There is something about handsome men in excellent clothes relaxing around each other in a non-sexual way while simultaneously pulling off an elaborate heist in the city of Las Vegas that my brain finds very appealing.

I think this is an example of a spandrel, a side effect of adaptation. If I were at the beginning of my research into the brain I would have strained to find a strict evolutionary reason for my enjoyment of Ocean's 13. I would have labored in vain to construct a theory. Why would taking pleasure in Clooney-Pitt relaxation give me an evolutionary advantage? Why, why, why?

Now I don't have to have an answer for everything. In fact, in many ways I've given up trying. Let somebody else figure it out. I'm eating Raisinets.

adding PopMatters

2007-06-11T11:18:00.000-06:00

I was looking over the PopMatters Review/Q& A (Review & A?) and realized I hadn't added the link to the Media section of my blog.

I have now added a link to the Media section of my blog.

thankful

2007-06-11T10:36:00.000-06:00

A big thanks to both Davids at Magers & Quinn for helping with the event. I'd also like to thank Lots of Questions about Awareness Guy, Lovely Ladies Who Missed Cafe Scientifique But Showed Up for This One, and the delightful Doug Mack.

I'd say it was a B- performance. A strong B-.

Next stop, the Decatur Book Festival in Decatur, Georgia on September 1st.

More later.

at Magers & Quinn tonight

2007-06-08T14:41:00.000-06:00

Tonight at 7:30 pm.

Magers & Quinn in Uptown.

Me + laptop + digital projector + some knowledge of neuroscience.

Fun?

appearing at Magers & Quinn in Uptown

2007-06-07T18:56:00.000-06:00

It is true. I am bringing the SLIDE SHOW to Uptown.

This Friday, June 8th, I will appear at Magers & Quinn bookstore at 7:30 pm.

At the risk of making a joke so inside that even people who live in Minneapolis might not get it, for the afterparty I will be going to Pam Sherman's.

See you soon.

unsure of his Idea Tube

2007-05-30T13:25:00.000-06:00

The other day I was reading Tim Shafer's blog over at Double Fine Productions (they make video games) and ran across this delightful and personally appropriate post about the nature of ideas.

I suspect that there is something wrong with my Idea Tube. Or rather, my Idea Tube is functioning properly, but the Idea Judging Goggles that I use to inspect my ideas is out of whack. I'm trying to come up with the next book but nothing seems like a good idea right now.

This strikes me as unfair. Other people (who shall remain nameless) seem to have no problem whatsoever acting on their bad ideas. Do I need to get drunk? Or, more pointedly, do I need to get drunk, write a proposal, and then sustain my drunkeness for the two or three years it takes to research, write, and promote a book?

Hmm . . . .

setting himself straight

2007-05-22T09:59:00.000-06:00

Forbes.com has posted this slide show about brain health. Apparently the key to brain health involves, among other things, diet, sleep, exercise, stress reduction, lifelong learning and meaningful social interactions.

Really? You mean those things are not only good for me, but they're good for my brain?

This is a huge wake-up call for me. Because I thought the key to brain health involved staying up all night by myself eating junk food and watching television and worrying about dying friendless and alone.

But at least I have the answer. I'm not sure what all these pictures mean--the vegetables, the people hanging out near some kind of "bar"--but I'm going study them. I'm going to learn.

How hard can it be to live right? Right?

covered nicely by PopMatters

2007-05-20T14:53:00.000-06:00

Here is some nice coverage in PopMatters. It's kind of a combo review/Q &A, which I like.

remembering the bit about the aliens

2007-05-16T08:56:00.000-06:00

I know: watching a stranger think out loud is riveting! But I remember the alien blog idea. The point was that even if some outside authority (i.e. aliens) handed us the answer to one of life's imponderables

a. Some people wouldn't understand it.
b. Some people would understand it but not believe it.
c. Some people would understand it and believe it, but reject it anyway because said truth would require too much change.
d. Some people would understand it and believe it, but be unable to act on it, despite their best intentions.
e. Etc., etc., etc.

This all seemed very profound two weeks ago. Now it just seems peevish. As for the "switch to water" part I still have no idea, but I'm switching to water in the event the older me is a wiser me.

confused about the aliens

2007-05-14T10:47:00.000-06:00

I read somewhere that bloggers are supposed to keep a running list of topics so they never run about of bloggable ideas. I would like to append that bit of advice and say that bloggers should keep a running list of topics that make sense so they never go to their idea list and end up more confused than when they started.

For example, I have on my topic list an idea titled Aliens solve free will. Underneath it reads "Seven mouths. Make sound only some can hear. Better switch to water."

I'm sure when I wrote this I knew exactly how this fit into popular neuroscience or the story of my crazy stepfather. Now I have no idea.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

talking so you can listen to the talking

2007-05-10T13:22:00.000-06:00

Whether you should or not I cannot say. But I am talking and electronic devices of various kinds are recording the talking, storing the talking, and then making the talking available via various other electronic devices should you decide to listen to the talking.

Whew. All this technology is making me tired.

Link!

I mean: Listen!

making a request

2007-05-07T10:39:00.000-06:00

The book has been out for a little over two months, and while it's not burning up the charts it's doing well. I have had some lovely responses from readers and a number of the events and radio interviews have been a success. So thanks to everyone for their support and encouragement.

Now comes the hard part. The big summer books are coming out, and while Head Case is still in play, it's going to get harder and harder to reach readers. Which is why I'm putting out this request to fans of the book. Can you do me a favor and do something Internet-y? Perhaps an Amazon customer review? Or an e-mail to Curled Up or Bookslut or some other blog urging them to review the book?

If you know me personally or professionally and don't want to be guilty of logrolling, I understand. I'm not asking anyone to do anything sneaky or weird. Add whatever disclaimers you feel necessary, fill your comments with misgivings, be yourself. But please do speak up. For all its flaws, this book is a good little book. Help it find its audience.

E-mail me at dennis.headcase@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments.

irritating scientists

2007-04-30T12:16:00.000-06:00

I was at a party this weekend talking to a neuroscientist. I was reminded on the one hand of how much I miss researching this book. When you talk about the brain you get to talk about anything. Hanging out at conferences and chewing the scientific fat with smart people was often a lot of fun.

But there was a dark side as well. At the risk of generalizing, scientists don't like journalists. We "get it wrong" or only care about "selling newspapers." I'm not sure these criticisms are always fair, but I do agree that it's irritating how writers take a piece of scientific information and extrapolate larger meanings (Full disclosure: this describes a large part of my book) or when we try to use a line of scientific inquiry to settle a debate.

Once, while drinking beer and eating lamb with some neuroendocrinologists from New Zealand, I said, in a fit of enthusiasm, "Maybe tonight we could all solve the brain!" The table suddenly grew quiet. Then the guy across from me said, "Now that's just fucking ignorant."

Same thing this weekend. I was talking to a neuroscientist and everything would be fine until I tried to riff on what he was saying. Then I would take it too far and he would roll his eyes or make a face like Kermit the Frog.

Is this professional arrogance, the natural resistance we all have when a outsider tries to tell us our business? Or is there something else at work here? Or am I just that much more annoying that I thought I was?

not, repeat NOT, in Slate

2007-04-26T10:42:00.000-06:00

Sometimes I joke about my failings as a way of protecting my naked, fragile ego. Other times I simply fail. Case in point: this wonderful package about the brain courtesy of the estimable online journal Slate. I tried but did not succeed to put together a funny, informative slide show about the history of the brain as a cultural object. This funny, informative slide show was going to be part of the wonderful package, but it never came together and was quite rightly killed.

Am I sad? Of course. Am I bitter? No more than usual. Should you read the wonderful package, despite the fact that I am in no way contributing to its wonderfulness? Absolutely! It has everything writing about the brain should have (deep skepticism, irony) but rarely does.

Enjoy!

recommending some reading

2007-04-25T07:45:00.000-06:00

Anytime someone wants to talk about human beings making mistakes, I will listen. Anytime someone wants to talk about people making mistakes, neuroscience and Ben Franklin, then I demand that others do the same. Despite the use of the expression "deep-wired" (the whole "wired" thing has got to stop) this is a nice piece by Wray Herbert, writing here for Newsweek.

going to be on the air in Canada

2007-04-24T09:50:00.000-06:00

Permission to pander for a moment? Thank you.

I love Canada. I especially love the city of Montreal, which is the best city in Canada, although in truth also the only city in Canada I have visited so I don't really know what I'm talking about, do I?

But I love Canada and I am pleased to announce that I will be on the radio in Canada this Thursday at 12:30 am Eastern Canadian Time. Peter Anthony Holder is the host. The show is Holder Tonight.

sorry about the dreams

2007-04-20T14:15:00.000-06:00

As I anticipated, I have been getting questions from the audience about the brain and dreams. I did not study the brain and dreams. In fact, I'm a bit hostile toward any talk of dreams and their significance, and I think this is coming across and I'm sorry. The last thing I want to do is use my limited knowledge of science to talk someone out of finding meaning in their sleep.

So yes: dreams! They are super meaningful and important, as this minor, out-of-date web article proves.

pretty much delighted

2007-04-18T13:03:00.000-06:00

Thanks for Shanai and John and everyone at Cafe Scientifique for the show last night. Also thanks to Tanya and Krystal and Matt at the Bryant-Lake Bowl for taking care of me. I added some new segments, including a memory experiment I did with the whole crowd, and I don't think it could have gone any better.

Last night was the final performance of the tour, but it's not the end of the SLIDE SHOW. We're talking with Magers & Quinn in Minneapolis about a May date. I'm also going to start contacting libraries, schools, book clubs and other organizations to see if they are interested.

If you have any ideas, please feel free to contact me at dennis.headcase@gmail.com.

at the Bryant-Lake Bowl tonight

2007-04-17T09:31:00.000-06:00

The final SLIDE SHOW will be presented tonight at the Bryant-Lake Bowl at 6:30 pm. Today I'm busy adding more material in the hopes that the last performance will also be the most comprehensive.

Also, even though I say final, I hope it's not. I've come to enjoy giving this presentation. I can see myself, a week from now, wishing that I could do it again. If only Minneapolis had a richer tradition of crazy street preachers. Then I might buy a generator, tape a sheet to the IDS building and bring this show to Nicollet Mall.

surprised/archived

2007-04-16T10:38:00.000-06:00

A week or so ago I did a radio appearance with Mary Lucia on The Current. It started a little off (they all do) but then I thought it went very, very well. Afterwards, I assumed (with sadness) that they didn't archive their interviews.

I was wrong.

Click on the words "funniest interview yet" to hear what I think is the funniest interview yet. (Note: as far as I can tell this doesn't load into your browser. I believe you'll have to stream. But you know all about streaming, don't you now?)

Also, tomorrow night: Bryant-Lake Bowl. 6:30 pm. Your Brain Is Not Your Friend.

glad he gave out that e-mail address

2007-04-15T13:20:00.000-06:00

I received an e-mail address from an old work friend from a job I held just out of college. The place was called VTR (Video Training Resource) and we sold industrial training tapes (welding, hydraulics, something called SPC) to Fortune 500 companies, very few of whom were interested.

This is why you write a book. You don't know this is why you write a book, but this is why. You write a book so you can hear from people you haven't seen in years. (Hello, Erika!) You write a book so your best friend from when you were ten can come to you reading in DC. You write a book so you can go on the radio and take calls from "Dr. Craig" and find out later it's someone you know and he's pranking you. You write a book so your long-lost biological father can come to your reading in Seattle (and be in the same room with your mom, when they haven't seen each other in 32 years).

You write a book because there is not enough weird in your life. And even when it gets to be too much, you're still really happy you worked all those years by yourself. Because people suddenly appear and they are wonderful. People are wonderful and I will stand by that statement until I die. Or at least until the hate mail starts rolling in.

inviting you to e-mail him

2007-04-13T09:38:00.000-06:00

My complete profile now has a new button. If you click that button you can send me an e-mail. Or you can use this address

dennis.headcase@gmail.com

to send me an e-mail.

If you have any comments about the book, the site or the brain, please drop me a note. I will do my best to respond.

coming home

2007-04-12T07:30:00.000-06:00

Thank you to Marcus at Olsson's for running the show last night, and thanks to Dave for showing up. We had a real live neuroscientist in the audience, which made the Q & A more interesting, but the prize goes to the guy who tied this story about physicist Niels Bohr to the limits of consciousness. (Quote from George Gamow's book Thirty Years That Shook Physics as found on Anecdotage.com.)

"The evening work in the Institute's library was often interrupted by Bohr, who would say that he was very tired and would like to go to the movies," Neils Bohr's colleague George Gamow recalled. "The only movies he liked were wild Westerns, and he always needed a couple of his students to go with him and explain the complicated plots involving hostile Indians, brave cowboys, and desperados, sheriffs, barmaidens, gold-diggers, and other characters of the Old West.

"His theoretical mind showed even in these movie expeditions. He developed a theory to explain why although the villain always draws first, the hero is faster and manages to kill him. This Bohr theory was based on psychology. Since the hero never shoots first, the villain has to decide when to draw, which impedes his action. The hero, on the other hand, acts according to a conditioned reflex and grabs the gun automatically as soon as he sees the villain's hand move. We disagreed with this theory, and the next day I went to a toy store and bought two guns in Western holders. We shot it out with Bohr, he playing the hero, and he 'killed' all his students."

But don't go discounting intended action just yet. It's true that with some activities "blinking" is better than thinking, but what are some scenarios where reflexive thinking would be suboptimal?

at Olsson's in Arlington, Virginia

2007-04-11T08:52:00.000-06:00

Right now I'm in transit between New York and DC but I hope to post soon about last night's reading at KGB, as well as this fine, fine piece in City Pages.

But for now a huge thank you to Jonathan, Eric, Bret, Tod, Amanda, Rob, Sarah, and Heather for showing up and lending their support. You will also want to be aware of and start cultivating an appreciation for fellow readers Heather Byer and Ryan Knighton. C'mon now: get started!

Tonight I will present my SLIDE SHOW at the Olsson's in Arlington, which is in Virginia. Showtime is 7 pm. I hope to see you there.

at KGB tonight

2007-04-10T09:56:00.000-06:00

Tonight at 7 pm Eastern Time I will bringing the SLIDE SHOW to KGB in the West Village. It's Mind Over Matter Night, which to me sounds like Telekinesis Night. I'm not saying that can't happen, but let's try to keep our expectations low.

Being in New York is going quite well this time. Whenever I come back here, back to the scene of the crime, back to the place of my family's decline, I never know how I'm going to feel. Sometimes I feel like this city is going to leave me shirtless and begging for change at the Port Authority. Other times I feel like I could beat this town if I only tried a little harder.

This time something strange happened as into Manhattan. Instead of thinking this place is bad or this place is good I felt a sense of disbelief. Because when you see the city from afar (and especially from the air) it doesn't seem possible, does it? It's like: New York. Really?

not trying to step on any toes

2007-04-09T13:58:00.000-06:00

But it's true when I say that seeing a nun can activate your reward network.

I was on the plane to New York today and the woman in front of me was gushing to her two girls about the eight nuns who were on our flight. "Is it not wonderful what they do for God?" she said in a voice that made me think of Mary Poppins. "I think this must be the most specialist of days. Just seeing them. Really is."

She was playing it up a bit for the kids, because you need to do that with religion once in a while, and who am I to say otherwise? But this was also happening for real deep in her brain. You could almost see the extra dopamine wicking off her skin.

Of course, I am being petty and it's only because I am jealous. I was recently mildly pleased by a "Tyler Florence creation" at Applebee's the other day (the family and I were on a road trip through Wisconsin) and I'm sort of enjoying Baldur's Gate on the PS2, but there haven't been a lot of reward-network-invigorating nuns in my life of late. Perhaps tomorrow night's show in New York will prove different.

thanking the college he went to

2007-04-04T13:23:00.000-06:00

Last night I read at the Carleton College library. It was rad. Thanks to everyone who showed up, but a special thanks to Greg Smith and Susan Jaret McKinstry, two former professors of mine who have exerted a strong influence over how I work and think today. If you don't like the book, surely some of the blame rests with them.

Also a big thanks to all the former students who showed up. Emma, Saeyoon, Joe, Ben, Sam, Henry, Caitlin, Lauren, Addie: it was great seeing you again. And remember that until we figure out how to travel through time, you are the future. (If I were you I'd start figuring out how to travel through time.)

Finally, I was on KARE-11 today doing a broadcast called Showcase Minnesota. A baby nurse shark was on before me. He sat in three inches of water in a clear Lucite box and didn't say a word the entire time. Needless to say, not a tough act to follow.

Next week: New York and DC.

enjoying a moment of clarity

2007-04-02T07:54:00.000-06:00

Is there anything better than shooting dice? This weekend I had a deeply satisfying session at The Turtle with my friend Titus. We went ahead early and were never in the red, and a couple of our fellow shooters (thanks Dennis and Sandy!) went on nice, long runs.

But what I enjoyed most of all was the clarity of the experience. Think of reward not in terms of hedonic pleasure, but as the silent math your brain does when rating how pleasurable an experience is. First, there is anticipation (will this be good? how good?). Then the experience itself, which first registers and then is appraised and compared to the anticipatory assessment. A rewarding experience is one where expectations are exceeded or met. (Note: this does not have to reach the level of consciousness.)

If it sounds complicated it's because life is complicated, and rarely affords us moments when we can see the the direct benefit or punishment from our actions. There is too much time between cause and effect, or too many variables clog the equation.

But gambling is clean. The last card turns, the dice stop tumbling, the wheel slows to a halt and you have your result. You know the odds (or your should) so you know precisely how lucky or unlucky you've been. The payouts are predetermined and fixed so the results are steady, and even with the house's fabled advantage, somehow fair. No one has a head start at the tables.

Shooting dice can be very exciting (it's still gambling, after all) but often I find it to be very peaceful as well. It's like meditation, but better, because you also get to drink and yell shit while being surrounded by people you'll never see again.

double daunted

2007-03-30T08:02:00.000-06:00

If you have been walking around recently enjoying the change of seasons and wish to God to stop, I have something that might help. A recent study has combined two mind-boggling topics (evolutionary biology and global climate change) into a kind of Super Stressor. It seems that global warming is essentially shrinking our brains. Wonderful. But is there were a way to make this news more overwhelming, perhaps by taping it to a giant, planet-killing asteroid?

on The Current today at 4:50 Central

2007-03-29T08:10:00.000-06:00

Do you have a car? Are you often in it, like, listening to radio?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions then I invite you to tune in to 89.3 FM later today. At 4:50 pm (Central Time) I will be live on the air with the Astounding Mary Lucia.

Don't have a car? Not hauling a load of air conditioners through Minneapolis during the twenty-minute window I'll be on the air? Then I direct you to The Current's website here, here and here. If you are not averse to streaming, then you can listen over your computer. Hooray.

on a bestseller list

2007-03-25T13:00:00.000-06:00

The Seattle Times reports that Head Case is number three on their local hardcover nonfiction bestseller list, as reported by the Elliott Bay Book Co.

This is wonderful news. From now on I can refer to myself as "Dennis Cass, the Elliott Bay Book Co. #3 bestselling author, according to hardcover nonfiction sales data compiled between the dates of March 12th and March 18th."

It's a bit of mouthful, but complimentary and true, so I'll take it.

on the radio talking about his dad

2007-03-22T14:08:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow (Friday, March 23rd) I will appear on MPR's Midmorning broadcast from 10 am to 11 am.

If all goes well, I will spend more time than I have in the past talking about my experiences with my stepfather, Bill. I say "if all goes well" because as hard as it was to commit this story to paper, it's even harder talking about it in print and over the air. The assumption about writing a memoir (and even an accidental memoir such as this one) is that the writing process will some how bring about a sense of peace. I have not found this to be the case. While I have a new perspective on Bill's manic depression, his prescription drug abuse and his "zany" antics, I still have more questions than answers.

So wish me luck, dear listener. Tomorrow we take on the brain and a story of ambition, greed and the limits of self-awareness all set in 1980s New York.

thinking about hysterical prostitutes

2007-03-21T09:19:00.000-06:00

In the late 70s, my parents left me with my grandparents while they spent a weekend in New York. My stepfather, Bill, was considering taking a job on Wall Street and this visit was an effort to determine if the city was a good place to move our family.

They stayed at the Roosevelt Hotel, and one of the stories they brought back was of being woken up in the middle of the night by a woman screaming in the hall, demanding to be let in to a room next door. In some versions of the story she was just a woman, but in most she was a hysterical prostitute.

My parents, and especially my stepfather, Bill, took great delight in this experience. I remember him telling me this story as a way of convincing me that New York would be a fun place to live. My nine-year-old mind found the story confusing (what's a prostitute?) and scary (you mean that even in a supposedly nice hotel there is open mayhem?), but most of all I couldn't believe that Bill could view a seeming abundance of hysterical prostitutes as a selling point.

This has me thinking about the nature of bad decisions. It's not enough that we make them, but also that we work so hard to shore them up, to support them, and even fight for them. Admitting that you made a bad choice is not the hard part. It's having to live down all the attendant nonsense. Like trying to win over a fifth grader with stories of a crazy whore.

happy for the rats

2007-03-19T08:03:00.000-06:00

According to a recent study rats demonstrate a capacity for metacognition, which is loosely defined as "thinking about thinking." Another way of putting it might be "an internal and largely unconscious dialogue you have with yourself about what you're capable of learning" or "the ability to probe the limits of one's stupidity."

I did a metacognition experiment in Janet Metcalfe's lab at Columbia. Changed my life forever, even though all I did was study unfamiliar Spanish vocabulary words and then take a quiz afterwards. Now I know that what I know and don't know is all part of my mind getting to know itself, you know?

So well done, rats. You seem to have a taste of the human experience. Now if you could only learn to build your own cages, well then you'd have something.

thanking the West Coast

2007-03-18T09:52:00.000-06:00

I'm back from my Western tour. Thanks to Nadine at Books Inc. for taking care of me, and thanks to everyone at all three stops who showed up, asked questions, bought books, etc. Especially the etc. I can never get enough etc.

at Books Inc. in Mountain View

2007-03-15T11:54:00.000-06:00

Thanks to Nick and Tom at Powell's Ridiculously Large City of Books and Related Matter for doing a fine job of playing host. It was not an easy crowd, but it was a good crowd, and I thank everyone who showed up.

Tonight! Mountain View! The SLIDE SHOW heads south of San Francisco to the Books Inc. in Mountain View. Showtime: 7:30 pm.

And finally, to the person in the crowd last night who wanted to know about OCD and the brain, the answer was orbital cortex, basal ganglia and serotonin, not "Sorry, but I'm blanking on that one."

at Powell's tonight

2007-03-14T07:12:00.000-06:00

Tonight (Wednesday, March 14th) I will be at the Powell's on Burnside in Portland (the Oregon one, not the Maine one).

I will be presenting a SLIDE SHOW based on my book. The show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Hope to see you (and your brain and whatever lingering family issues you have) there.

promising to say more about his stepfather

2007-03-13T12:10:00.000-06:00

Thanks to Tiffany and everyone at Elliott Bay for last night's show. We had a good crowd, who asked some surprisingly complex questions that I think I did a good job of deflecting.

Speaking with people afterwards I got the sense that there is a desire for me to talk more about my stepfather, Bill. Head Case is as much the story of his brain as it is of mine, and so as I go forward with this blog I will start talking about him more.

But not today. Today I prepare to travel to Oregon, where I will be appearing at Powell's tomorrow (Wednesday) night.

In the meantime, if you're craving some science, consider the evolutionary significance of stumpy legs.

in Seattle/on YouTube

2007-03-12T08:41:00.000-06:00

I'm presenting the SLIDE SHOW at the Elliott Bay Book Co. tonight (Monday, March 12th) at 7:30 pm.

My friend James Lotter made this VIDEO from last Thursday's show at the Borders in Minnetonka. The video is short and, if nothing else, proves that my mouth works.

Hope to see you at the show tonight. And remember to ask me if we really use only 10% of our brains.

on the radio in Iowa

2007-03-09T15:28:00.000-06:00

Thanks again to Nate and everyone at the Minnetonka Border's for the event last night. I especially appreciated the lemon pound cake and the batteries.

Thanks also to The Exchange for having me on their special "Big Brain" edition. The show is broadcast from the University of Iowa library. In addition to the host they have on hand a reference librarian and a live audience eating bagels. Talk about pressure! Click on the word "listen" to listen.