This is not the same thing as having a lobotomy, though I imagine they are both somewhat disorienting experiences. The creative, funny, and dare I say paranoid genius at Predator Press was kind enough to interview me about Marvellous Hairy and The Amadeus Net, though LOBO was considerate enough to ask me about hockey, the existence of Canada, and inter-species romance as well.

The results can be found at Predator Press, and include such exchanges as:

LOBO: Have you repented to your clergy for all the sex in The Amadeus Net yet? I tried to get my penance reduced by ratting you out about it, but the church was skeptical: rather than take my word for it, they ordered a case of the books to be distributed among the congregation for review. Now they are all blind, and their palms smell like Gillette. All of this could have been avoided with the simple use of a praying mantis. Are you an atheist Mark?

MAR: If you mean, do I believe in a “Magic Sky Father”, then yes. If you mean, do you believe in a “Cosmic Unconscious Fun Monkey,” then the answer is: maybe.

The whole interview is here. And you should check out the blog — it’s very funny.

Early critical buzz already has the film's main director, Bobo, as a potiential BAFTA nominee

According to Metro.co.uk, the BBC is going to be the first national broadcasting network to show a film shot entirely by chimpanzees.

There is no word yet on what the various entertainment unions plan to do about this radical attack on their livelihoods. The British actor’s union, Equity, should be especially worried, as Metro reports that the movie stars the chimpanzees as well.

Metro says:

Betsy Herrelko, studying for a PhD in primate behaviour at the University of Stirling, came up with the idea of giving the chimps a camera to see if she could learn how the animals perceive the world and each other.

You can read the whole article here. HT to Monkeywire. Photo by Tim Ellis.

I stumbled across this review on Goodreads today, and was practically levitating out of my chair. It’s so cool to see a reader’s take on the book, and really interesting when it intersects so closely — but not identically — with my intentions. Plus, the review is well written!

Here’s a clip:

I sensed there was something of The Odyssey lying beneath the surface of The Amadeus Net. Or maybe The Iliad – I’m not well versed in Homer, but the background of at least one or two characters seemed to suggest it. Regardless of whether I imagined that influence, Amadeus is a fantastic story, very well told. The time and labour Rayner put into creating the characters within the pages becomes apparent quickly, and their eclectic richness pays off handsomely as the reader becomes deeply concerned with their individual and collective fates.

You can find the full review here.

There’s a fascinating article about language and why monkeys don’t talk. According to the New York Times:

Monkeys and apes possess many of the faculties that underlie language. They hear and interpret sequences of sounds much like people do. They have good control over their vocal tract and could produce much the same range of sounds as humans. But they cannot bring it all together.

The poor little buggers are locked in. Chimps, for example, could really use language, especially while their planning a coup or other political moves. But they can’t make the jump. It makes you wonder if some day we may be able to help them do so, just as David Brin hypothesized in his Uplift series. Photo by ecmorgan.

Liz Cole at The Productive Cough has given Marvellous Hairy another glowing review:

Rayner accomplishes something that not enough writers do: Each character has his or her own distinct voice. Each person in the book could communicate the exact same piece of information, but each would do it with their own personal vocabulary of phrases. I love it. Why every writer doesn’t do this, I will never know. The characters, as a result, are all believable as people.

You can read the whole review at The Productive Cough, Goodreads or Amazon. Liz is one of the reviewers who responded to my open call on Twitter, and she shouldn’t feel badly about taking so long to write it; I understand how deadlines can go whooshing over one’s head!