Back in December 2009, fans got their first taste of Deathly Hallows with a teaser trailer included in the Half-Blood Prince DVD release. Similar scenes from that teaser now reappear in this new trailer, notably: the trio running through the city streets after the wedding; Hermione with blood on her hands; Harry lying unconcious after Voldemort “kills” him; and Olivander’s creepy voice providing, well, creepy background narration that doesn’t seem too optimistic.

I recommend you also take a look at this YouTube version of the trailer; although shot by camera, it provides a high definition resolution of the trailer and a higher brightness, giving rise to interesting questions, such as: why is Harry running towards something that looks suspiciously like a Horcrux with a knife that resembles the Gryffindor sword — when clearly, it was Ron who destroyed the locket with the sword?

Seems like they’re doing the trailers on the two films at once, regardless of the fact that some of the trailer footage will not appear in the first part, due in November 2010.

Inheritance Cycle » Epistle #1

Why So Many Young Authors Despise Inheritance

There are many popular books in the world. Not all of them are particularly deserving of their popularity. Others are. But few popular novels attract as much hatred as the Inheritance trilogy by young adult Christopher Paolini. On forums all over the internet debates over its quality are carrying on, and often they are quite vicious. The question here is – why? Why do non-fans of this series hate it so much, and why are they so vocal about their dislike? And why are so many of them other young authors not much different from Paolini himself? As fans have demanded time and time again, why don’t these critics simply move on and read something else?

The answer, I think, is quite simple. Other young writers object to Inheritance because they are young writers. In other words they are developing writers hoping to be published one day. This can and has led fans to accuse them of jealousy. This is a false argument which violates the famous Ebert’s Law, but is it true? For the most part, probably not.

In answering the question of why young writers hate the Inheritance series, it is important to note something which most non-writers probably aren’t aware of: publishing a book is not an easy thing to do. In fact it is extremely hard and, for some, impossible. If you were to ask an author with at least one book on the market about their publishing quest, they will almost invariably tell you it took them years of hard work. Not weeks. Not months. Years. And for some it can take a lifetime. The quest for publication usually works like this: an author writes a book. He thinks it is good enough to be published. He then begins writing proposal letters to publishers and, perhaps, seeks out the services of a literary agent. After sending those proposal letters, it’s all a matter of waiting. Then, often months after the initial sending of the letters, the replies come back. It is likely almost to the point of absolute certainty that they will all be rejections. Every professional writer has had rejection letters, and some have entire folders full of them. The legendary J.K.Rowling, for example, was supposedly rejected by nearly every publisher in the United Kingdom. And this is an author who has gone on to make millions and who, many agree, writes quality material.

Young, unpublished authors like the owners of this site are aware of that. They know that years of hard and unrewarding work await them in their quest to attain that distant, shining thing – publication. They long for it. They live for it. It is all they dare to dream of, and they would give anything to achieve it.

And then, quite suddenly, this young man called Christopher Paolini arrives on the scene. He’s published. Twice. He is a bestseller. He has been on TV. He is an international celebrity, and all because he published a book which he famously began writing at age fifteen and finished at nineteen. It all sounds so wonderful, does it not? A child prodigy, according to some. Look at what he has achieved! He’s living his dream and getting rich off it! He has a million fans! He is a genius!

But here’s something those young writers know which most of his fans do not: people who begin writing novels at fifteen are extremely common. There are thousands of them. Many of these young writers began writing before that age. Some of them are still at that age. In essence, the only difference between Mr Paolini and those young writers is that he is published. And he is not published because he wrote those letters and got those rejections. He is not published because he worked hard. He is not published because he is a genius. He is published because he has family connections. He is published because his parents own their own publishing company. He was picked up by Knopf because he did not have to go to school like those other young writers do. Instead he was free to travel the country – probably at great expense – publicising his book. Knopf took him on because they saw a great marketing opportunity in such a young client with his own novel. Most likely they wanted their own J.K.Rowling, and he would be sufficient to fill that role. So they published Eragon and began an aggressive marketing campaign, hailing their prize as a prodigy.

The problem is this: he is not a prodigy. He is, at best, a writer of average skill. If he had been forced to spend years reworking, revising and editing as writers normally do, he could have been very good. As far as young writers go he is perhaps a little above average. But as writers, period, go, he is mediocre. However, the public does not seem to be aware of this. They repeat what Knopf told them, leading some to think that he is still fifteen whereas he is in fact twenty-two and by no means a child any more. Young children and those inexperienced in the fantasy genre find his works accessible and admire him for his success, perhaps encouraged by of his rather naïve and innocent personal charm.

However, young writers like himself despise him. They loathe his books, they loathe the things he says, and most of all they loathe what he stands for. To them he is not a hero, or a genius, or a good writer. The fact of the matter is this: he did not go through those years of hard work. Instead of suffering all the anguish and self-doubt which a writer usually must, he had the world effectively handed to him on a silver platter. Does he have that folder of rejection letters? Does he have that terror that he will never realise his dream? No. Instead he has something which is normally reserved only for those of rare and special ability, something which should have gone to a truly original and distinguished writer. Not one who churns out simplistic, unoriginal airport novels aimed at a young or inexperienced audience.

So those young, unpublished writers are not impressed but enraged. By reaching this high point in the way he did, by becoming famous without hard work or significant ability, he has offended everything they hold dear. He has given the public the impression that publishing is easy, that near-plagiarism of other people’s ideas is acceptable behaviour, and that young authors do not know how to write. They are afraid that this phenomena is symptomatic of the corruption of literature and the transformation of writers from closeted, serious, hard-working people into vapid celebrities whose only gift is being charming on chat-shows.

And when they try and share this fear with others, they are all too frequently met with derision, with accusations of jealousy, intimations that they lack talent, and no form of respect for their opinions. Their refusal to accept Mr Paolini as one of their own means that his fans treat them with scorn, perhaps believing that it is they, and not he, who are phoney writers or pretenders. Not being writers themselves, they cannot know about the passion that drives these people. All they see are a group of individuals who hate what they love and won’t be silenced. They can’t understand their anger.

The writers are angry because they feel their efforts are being mocked. And they are afraid that, if they should ever realise their dream and become published, that status will have been degraded and so mean less than it did before.

Let me put it this way: if you had spent years painting an exquisite and precise picture of a magnificent old building and, having finally completed it after spending what feels like your entire life working at it, perfecting your craft and subordinating all else to getting that painting finished, and then the art gallery turned you down in favour of a piece of canvas which someone had spent an afternoon randomly splattering paint onto, how would you feel?

***It is worth noting that the views of The Epistler are not necessarily the same as those of Bookie or other administrators running this blog and that they are as eager to join in the discussion and debates concerning The Epistler’s criticism as you are.

Upcoming next week on Sunday, May 9th, 2010 » Epistle #2:
Why Eragon – And Eldest Even More So – Should Be Considered Examples Of Bad Writing

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As we get closer to the November release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1, the question on everyone’s minds is: when will the promo train begin to roll?

To date we’ve only received two (1, 2) official stills and one trailer from the film.

Tonight we’re learning that those small numbers will change in June, when Warner Brothers plans to launch an “aggressive marketing campaign that launches with Twilite [sic]“. This bit of information comes from Kelly O’Connor – Vice President of Exhibitor Services for Warner Bros. Domestic Theatrical Distribution. She’s in charge of the WB trailers and advertising materials for theaters in the United States and Canada.

By ‘Twilite’, Ms O’Connor is referring to The Twilight Saga: Eclipse which arrives in theaters June 30th. We wouldn’t be surprised if Deathly Hallows promo material starts appearing slightly before the Eclipse release.

Thanks to MuggleNet reader Scott, who got in touch with Ms. O’Connor recently.

This MuggleNet news story has now changed it’s title to EDIT: Information concerning Deathly Hallows advertising and now reads “At the request of Warner Bros. we’ve had to remove this information.”

Our thanks goes to Google Cache for retrieving this juicy piece of news. :)

Guardians of Ga'Hoole #1: The Capture (Movie Tie-in Edition)

Amazon.com has released the cover of the movie tie-in edition of The Capture, first book of the Guardians of Ga’Hoole series, on which the upcoming Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole film is based on.

This paperback edition is set to be published by Scholastic on August 1st, 2010, almost two months before the release of the movie. The cover references one of the beautiful scenes in the first teaser trailer.

The cover raises two questions: will future promotional posters for the movie resemble this cover with its choice of scene? And will The Journey and The Rescue, books two and three of the series, respectively, have their movie tie-in editions? We will have to wait and see.

On the list of promotional merchandise, this movie edition comes in second. The first product, discovered a few weeks ago, is a 16-month 2011 Wall Calendar with images from the movie. The calendar will be released on August 1st, 2010 as well. And don’t forget to visit your bookstore this May, when the second Ga’Hoolian guidebook, entitled Lost Tales of Ga’Hoole, will be published.

Are you excited to find out what our next Ga’Hoole product might be? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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This work belongs to Christopher Paolini. No copyright infringement intended.

“Where have you been?” demanded Garrow, the lines on his face harsh in the candlelight. “The horses need bringing in.”

Eragon did his best to ignore his waking dreams as he stood on the dais in the main hall of the keep, directly to the right of Lord Bradburn’s throne. He placed his left hand on the pommel of Brisingr, which was sheathed, and adopted a more casual pose, hoping no one would notice his exhaustion.

On the other side of the throne stood Jörmundur, holding his helmet in the crook of his left arm. The hair at his temples was streaked with gray; the rest was brown, and all of it was pulled back into a long braid. His lean face bore the studiously blank expression of a person who had extensive experience waiting on others. Eragon noticed a thin line of red running along the underside of Jörmundur’s right bracer, from some wound or another, but Jörmundur showed no sign of pain.

Between the two of them sat Nasuada, resplendent in a dress of green and yellow, which she had donned just moments before, exchanging the bright raiment of war for garb more suited to the practice of statecraft. She too had been marked during the fighting, as was evidenced by the white linen bandage wrapped around her left hand.

In a low voice, so that only Eragon and Jörmundur could hear, Nasuada said, “If we can but gain their support…”

“What will they want in return, though?” asked Jörmundur. “Our coffers are near empty, and our future uncertain.”

Her lips barely moving, she said, “Perhaps they wish nothing more of us than a chance to strike back at Galbatorix.” She paused. “But if not, we shall have to find other means of persuading them besides gold to join our ranks.”

“You could offer them barrels of cream,” said Eragon, which elicited a chortle from Jörmundur and a soft laugh from Nasuada.

Their murmured conversation came to an end as three trumpets sounded outside the main hall. Then a flaxen-haired page dressed in a tunic stitched with the Varden’s standard—a white dragon holding a rose above a sword pointing downward on a purple field—marched through the open doorway at the far end of the hall, struck the floor with the ceremonial staff he carried, and, with a thin warbling voice announced, “His Most Exalted Royal Highness, Grimrr Halfpaw, King of the Werecats, Lord of the Lonely Places, Ruler of the Night Reaches, and He Who Walks Alone.”

A strange title that: He Who Walks Alone, Eragon observed to Saphira.

But well deserved, I would guess, she replied, and he could sense her amusement, even though he could not see her where she lay coiled in the keep of the castle.

The page stepped aside, and through the doorway strode Grimrr Halfpaw in the shape of a human, trailed by four other werecats, who padded close behind him on large shaggy paws. The four resembled Solembum, the one other werecat Eragon had seen in the guise of an animal: heavy-shouldered and long-limbed, with short, dark ruffs upon their necks and withers, tasseled ears, and black-tipped tails, which they waved gracefully from side to side.

Grimrr Halfpaw, however, looked unlike any person or creature Eragon had ever seen. At roughly four feet tall, he was the same height as a dwarf, but no one could have mistaken him for a dwarf, or even for a human. He had a small, pointed chin, wide cheekbones, and, underneath unswept brows, slanted green eyes fringed with winglike eyelashes. In the front, his ragged black hair hung low over his forehead, while on the sides and back, it fell to his shoulders, where it lay smooth and lustrous, much like the manes of his companions. His age was impossible for Eragon to guess.

The only clothes Grimrr wore were a rough leather vest and a rabbit-skin loincloth. The skulls of a dozen or so animals–birds, mice, and other small game–were tied to the front of the vest, and they rattled against one another as he moved. A sheathed dagger protruded at an angle from under the belt of his loincloth. Numerous scars, thin and white, marked his nut-brown skin, like scratches on a well-used chair or table. And, as his name indicated, he was missing two fingers on his left hand; they looked to have been bitten off.

Despite the delicacy of his features, there was no doubt that Grimrr was male, not given the hard, sinewy muscles of his arms and chest, the narrowness of his hips, and the coiled power of his stride as he walked down the length of the hall toward Nasuada.

None of the werecats seemed to notice the people lined up on either side of their path, watching them, until Grimrr came level with the herbalist Angela, who stood next to Roran, knitting a tube sock with six needles at once.

Grimrr’s eyes narrowed as he beheld the herbalist, and his hair rippled and spiked, as did that of his four guards. His lips drew back to reveal a pair of curved white fangs, and, to Eragon’s astonishment, he uttered a short, loud hiss.

Angela looked up from the sock, her expression languid and insolent. “Cheep cheep,” she said.

For a moment, Eragon thought that the werecat was going to attack her. A dark flush mottled Grimrr’s neck and face, his nostrils flared, and he stared silently at her. The other werecats settled into low crouches, ready to pounce, their ears pressed flat against their heads.

Throughout the hall, Eragon heard the slither of blades being drawn from their scabbards.

Grimrr hissed once more, then turned away from the herbalist and continued walking. As the last werecat in line passed Angela, he took a surreptitious swipe at the line of yarn that drooped from her needles, just like a playful house cat might.

Saphira’s bewilderment was equal to Eragon’s own. Cheep cheep? she asked.

He shrugged, forgetting that she could not see him. Who knows why Angela does or says anything?

At last, Grimrr arrived before Nasuada. He stopped and inclined his head ever so slightly, displaying with his bearing the supreme confidence, even arrogance, that was the sole province of cats, dragons, and certain highborn women.

“Lady Nasuada,” he said. His voice was surprisingly deep, more akin to the low, coughing roar of a male wildcat than the high-pitched tones of the boy he resembled.

Nasuada inclined her head in turn. “King Halfpaw. You are most welcome to the Varden, you and all your race. I must apologize for King Orrin’s absence; he could not be here to greet you, as he wished, for he and his horsemen are even now busy defending our westward flank from a contingent of Galbatorix’s troops.”

“Of course, Lady Nasuada,” said Grimrr. His sharp teeth flashed as he spoke. “You must never turn your back on your enemies.”

“Even so…. And to what do we owe the unexpected pleasure of this visit, Your Highness? Werecats have always been noted for their secrecy and their solitude, and for remaining apart from the conflicts of the age, especially since the fall of the Riders. One might even say that your kind has become more myth than fact over the past century. Why, then, do you now choose to reveal yourselves?”

Grimrr lifted his right arm and pointed at Eragon with a crooked finger topped by a clawlike nail, shocking Eragon out of his latest round of waking dreams, which had involved an Urgal, a dwarf, and a pair of swords made of ice.

“Because of him,” growled the werecat. “One does not attack another hunter until he has shown his weakness, and Galbatorix has shown us his: he will not kill Eragon Shadeslayer or Saphira Bjartskular. Long have we waited for this opportunity, and seize it we will. Galbatorix will learn to fear and hate us, and, at the last, he will realize the extent of his mistake and know that we were the ones responsible for his undoing. And how sweet that revenge will taste, as sweet as the marrow of a tender young boar.

“Time has come, human, for every race, even werecats, to stand together and prove to Galbatorix that he has not broken our will to fight. We would join your army, Lady Nasuada, as free allies, and help you achieve this.”

Whatever Nasuada was thinking, Eragon could not tell, but, for himself, he was impressed by the werecat’s speech, as was Saphira.

After a brief pause, Nasuada said, “Your words fall most pleasantly upon my ears, Your Highness. But before I can accept your offer, there are answers I must have of you, if you are willing.”

With an air of unshakable indifference, Grimrr waved a hand. “I am.”

“Your race has been so secretive and elusive, I must confess, I had not heard tell of Your Highness until this very day. As a point of fact, I did not even know your race had a ruler.

“I am not a king like your kings,” said Grimrr. “For the most part, werecats prefer to walk alone, but even we must choose a ruler to lead us to war when we go.”

“I see. Do you speak for your whole race, then, or only for those who travel with you?”

Grimrr’s chest swelled, and his expression became, if possible, even more self-satisfied. “I speak for all of my kind, Lady Nasuada,” he purred. “Every able-bodied werecat in Alagaësia, save those who are nursing, has come here to fight. There are few of us, but none can equal our ferocity in battle. And I can also command the one-shapes, although I cannot speak for them, for they are as dumb as other animals. Still, they will do what we ask of them.”

“One-shapes?” Nusuada inquired.

“Those you know as cats. Those who cannot change their skins, as we do.”

“And you command their loyalty?”

“Aye. They admire us… it is only natural.”

If what he says is true, Eragon commented to Saphira, the werecats could prove to be incredibly valuable.

Then Nasuada said, “And what is it you desire of us in exchange for your assistance, King Halfpaw?” She glanced at Eragon and smiled, then added, “We can offer you as much cream as you want, but beyond that, our resources are limited. If your warriors expect to be paid for their troubles, I fear they will be sorely disappointed.”

“Cream is for kittens, and gold holds no interest for us,” said Grimrr. As he spoke, he lifted his right hand and inspected his nails with a heavy-lidded gaze. “Our terms are thus: Each of us will be given a dagger to fight with, if we do not already have one. Each of us is to have two suits of armor made to fit, one for when on two legs we stand, and one for when on four. We need no other equipment than that: no tents, no blankets, no plates, no spoons. Each of us will be promised a single duck, grouse, chicken, or similar bird per day, and, every second day, a bowl of freshly chopped liver. Even if we do not choose to eat it, the food will be set aside for us. Also, if you should win this war, then whoever becomes your next king or queen—and all who claim that title thereafter—will keep a padded cushion next to their throne, in a place of honor, for one of us to sit on, if we so wish.”

“You bargain like a dwarven lawgiver,” said Nasuada in a dry tone. She leaned over to Jörmundur, and Eragon heard her whisper, “Do we have enough liver to feed them all?”

“I think so,” Jörmundur replied in an equally hushed voice. “But it depends on the size of the bowl.”

Nasuada straightened in her seat. “Two sets of armor is one too many, King Halfpaw. Your warriors will have to decide whether they want to fight as cats or as humans and then abide by the decision. I cannot afford to outfit them for both.”

If Grimrr had had a tail, Eragon was sure it would have twitched back and forth. As it was, the werecat merely shifted his position, as if uneasy to be standing in one place for so long. “Very well, Lady Nasuada.”

“There is one more thing. Galbatorix has spies and killers hidden everywhere. Therefore, as a condition of joining the Varden, you must consent to allow one of our spellcasters to examine your memories, so that we may assure ourselves that Galbatorix has no claim on you.”

Grimrr sniffed. “You would be foolish not to. If anyone is brave enough to read our thoughts, let them. But not her,” and he twisted to point at Angela. “Never her.”

Nasuada hesitated, and Eragon could see that she wanted to ask why but restrained herself. “So be it. I will send for magicians at once, that we may settle this matter without delay. Depending on what they find—and it will be nothing untoward, I’m sure—I am honored to form an alliance between you and the Varden, King Halfpaw.”

At her words, all of the humans in the hall broke out cheering and began to clap, including Angela. Even the elves appeared pleased.

The werecats, however, did not react, except to tilt their ears backward in annoyance at the noise.

A grand thank you of gratitude goes to Allie for helping transcribe the chapter. I hope you enjoyed it and I encourage you to discuss it in the comments.

Additionally, if you spotted anything strange in the text that might be a sneaky grammar or spelling mistake, verify it with the official snapshot and tell me below!

Are any of you planning to buy the paperback edition of Brisingr?

Wolves of the Beyond #2: The Gnaw Wolf

Amazon.com is reporting that book two of Wolves of the Beyond, previously known as The Gnaw Wolf, is now entitled Shadow Wolf.

It should be noted that the summary and the release date remains the same as reported by Scholastic.com — the book will be released in October 2010 and will be around 160 pages long. The summary of the book can be read here.

Early fans of Wolves of the Beyond may remember that the first instalment of Wolves of the Beyond was originally called Lone Pup and was only later changed to Lone Wolf. Following this pattern, I am assuming that Shadow Wolf is going to replace The Gnaw Wolf in the long run.

Readers will know that a “gnaw wolf” signifies a wolf of low ranking who etches designs on bones of eaten prey – as with Lone Wolf, The Gnaw Wolf would be referring to Faolan, the main protagonist of the series who is a better “gnaw wolf” than Heep, and thus incurs his jealousy. One must wonder why a change in the title occurred and what a “shadow wolf” really is.

Both working titles are from official sources, only time will tell which one Scholastic will decide to use in the end. For now, our one and only cover of the second novel remains entitled The Gnaw Wolf. What are your thoughts on this new title? Which one do you prefer? Tell us in the comments!

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Dear Fans of Guardians of Ga’Hoole,

I wish to thank you for all the enthusiastic emails that have been coming in with the debut of the trailer for the upcoming 3-D animated film “Legend of the Guardians” which is an adaptation of the first three books (The Capture, The Journey and The Rescue) in my fifteen book Guardians of Ga’Hoole series. I only wish I had the time to personally answer each and every one of them, but due to a pressing deadline on two books for my new Wolves of The Beyond series and the next book in Daughters of the Sea series, I am doing a lot of traveling for research and writing full time on the manuscripts.

Please stay tuned to my website as I hope to soon address many of your questions about the film that will be released on September 24th. Like all of you, I am counting down the days, weeks and months in great anticipation!

Thank you for being such loyal fans!

Kathryn Lasky

I’m guessing Kathryn is currently doing research and traveling for Wolves of the Beyond #2: The Gnaw Wolf, which will be released in October 2010. You can email Kathryn Lasky at kathryn /at/ kathrynlasky /dot/ com.

A Title Dilemma

It was exactly like Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, all over again. Seeing a title as a threat to success is only true to a certain extent. A very exaggerated extent, with more than apostrophe. If the public likes what you give it, if the public demands more, then a title with a strange apostrophed word would hardly stop them from going out to watch it!

I thought this was a bad decision, and not just from a fan perspective (the obvious issue being that fans of the books might not recognize the movie as an adaptation of their beloved series), but also from a marketing point of view. Warner Bros. obviously retitled the movie in favor of marketing purposes, but did they not realize that the word “Ga’Hoole” is a brand in itself? Not on the level of Harry Potter (not yet, haha), but it would make a huge difference for marketing purposes. A unique word with direct ties to the plotline that appears in a title — what else do you need to create a successful brand? Meanwhile, what kind of brand or uniqueness can you find in a title like Legend of the Guardians?

Most fans have wondered why there has been no promotional material for the movie of any sort until this week; no concept art, no images, not even a logo for goodness sake! Some speculated that the producers were intentionally keeping everything quiet, focusing instead on building suspense for some sort of extraordinary animation. While I have no doubt the animation is going to be extraordinary, I also realized that you can’t change a title once hundreds of people had already seen its trailer advertising it as Guardians of Ga’Hoole. Were the producers intentionally keeping all promotion down until they got their titles straight?

A Trailer Announced

If so, the wait was over. Satisfied with their apostrophe-less title, Warner Bros. decided to spice things up by announcing that the first Legend of the Guardians trailer would precede Alice in Wonderland on opening night, Friday, March 5th. The trailer would last a full 2 minutes and 15 seconds, and would play in Digital 3D in accordance with Alice in Wonderland’s 3D. The excitement level suddenly increased a notch and I, for one, vowed to see Alice in Wonderland if only for the trailer.

It was hard to believe that we were actually going to see a trailer of this movie. Not having had a single scrap of promotional material (posters, stills, logos), it almost felt like this movie didn’t exist. I had to remind myself several times throughout the day that, yes, it’s happening; it’s actually happening. Shivers of excitement racked my body. The wait was almost over. Three more days for two minutes and fifteen seconds worth of animated footage. It was a deal.

Gathering Momentum

Somewhere at the back of my brain, I wondered what it must have cost Warner Bros. to play the trailer before Alice in Wonderland, who’s success was already predetermined. For a movie which had no previous exposure or promotion whatsoever, the theatre was bound to explode in oooh’s and aaah’s. Then it hit me: this wasn’t a children’s series anymore than only a handful of kids knew about. This was something on a much bigger scale. Seeing the beloved book series I had “nurtured” for most of my childhood now venturing out into the world of blockbuster movies was a scary and nervous experience.

The movie seemed like a cliche snowball rolling down a hill, gathering speed and momentum. Retitling the movie and announcing the trailer release date was the push, and now it was getting hyped up with articles, images, and publicity. There was no stopping it.

As a long-time fan of the books, my enthusiasm for the movie was understandable – it was the enthusiasm, however, of the hundreds of “outsiders” out there that awed me. For whatever reason – whether they liked Zack Snyder, Happy Feet, Jim Stugress, animation, or movies in general – there were people out there who actually cared, screamed, jumped up and down, and caused a flurry of online articles to erupt across Google News from all the major movie blogs and news sources. I was awed.

First Sight

Then: the day. In an exciting twist that suddenly fast-forwarded all my plans and hopes, ReelzChannel’s Hollywood Dailies announced it would exclusively broadcast the trailer two days early on Wednesday, March 3rd at 7PM and 10PM ET/PT. It was just my luck to work that day, but I was sure of one thing: if there was a trailer, there were bound to be stills. And I was going to find them.

Around 7PM, I sneaked into the staff room and logged on the computer. A quick search revealed the prize: USA Today had published an article not one hour ago with five stills, presumably from the trailer. An owl with an ornate metal mask gazed solemnly into the distance. The face of a loving father’s face glowed with sunlight. A dozen of army-clad owls flew fiercely. A cozy sunlit hollow revealed an excluded brother. And a majestic fire-lit hollow, tree roots snaking up its wall, revealed the owl parliament.

It was the stuff of legend: these weren’t just any stills, these were the stills, the first images of Zack Snyder’s world — heck, this was the first promotional material there was! I allowed myself to gorge on their beauty for a few seconds before sending a batch of emails to Ga’Hoole fans, news sources, blogs, and forums. It had began.

Half an hour later of wrenching distress at what was happening in the online world, I thought “Screw work!” and ran back to my computer. First, I took another look at the pictures. A proper look. I couldn’t seem to get enough of them. They were nothing like I imagined. Bordering on fully realistic owls with just a hint of betraying fantasy, it was an animation style of CGI unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The Tale of Despereaux would be put to shame. With this kind of animation, I thought, there’s no way they’d risk having a bad plot. Changes from the book or not, there was now a guarantee that the trailer, and in turn, the movie, would turn out fabulous.

Now, if I was honest with myself, I’d really go watch this just for the amazing CGI! God knows what these look like in 3D! (I am so going to see Alice in Wonderland on Friday now). And I know this sounds a bit far-fetched, but this could very well be the big movie of 2010, like avatar. It’s unique, it’s a new world, it has fabulous animation… it has a title without an apostrophe haha… what more can you want? It seems weird to imagine our old owl series becoming a huge hit (at least to me) but it’s possible! Your thoughts?

Wolves of the Beyond #2: The Gnaw Wolf

The Gnaw Wolf, sequel and second installment in the Wolves of the Beyond, will be released around October 2010. Wolves of the Beyond is a four-book spin-off series by Kathryn Lasky, set in the same world as Guardians of Ga’Hoole was. The title of the sequel to Lone Wolf was officially revealed by Scholastic Rights & Co-Editions, who kindly provided a (rather small) cover and an official summary. The novel will be illustrated by Richard Cowdrey, artist of the first book, and it will be 160 pages long.

The wolf pup Faolan was born with a twisted paw, a slight defect that caused his wolf clan to abandon him in the forest to die. But Faolan, with the help of the grizzly bear who raised him as her own, survived. Now he’s made it back to his clan and as a gnaw wolf, the lowest ranking pack member. And the hardships are just beginning. Another gnaw wolf, Heep, is jealous of Faolan and sets him up for failure. As if these humiliations are not enough, Faolon is framed for the murder of a wolf pup.

Readers of the first book, Lone Wolf, will remember Heep MacDuncan a macaldh pup with a missing tail who makes an appearance in the ending chapters and immediately sees Heap as a rival. It is unfortunate than more than half the summary focuses on recapping the previous book, but we do see some new details: humiliation, murder, and Faolan being framed (by Heep?).

Strangely enough, this book sounds a bit less exciting to me than the first one! Perhaps this is because of the few details revealed? Or perhaps the theme of “proving oneself”, which we encountered largely in Lone Wolf is making another boring reappearance? I also with that the title was simply Gnaw Wolf, continuing the pattern that Lone Wolf began.

The cover does look gorgeous, I’ll admit, so I won’t lose all hope yet. ;-) I am assuming the wolf in the center is Faolan, but notice the concealed wolf in the background, teeth bared. Heep again? Keep your eyes peeled for more information and glimpses into the world of the Beyond to come!

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