Friday, January 30, 2015

18 Reasons to Support Classic Alice

I've been tweeting and talking and Facebooking a lot about Classic Alice recently, and I figured it was past time to stop and explain why, and why I think this show deserves your support. I wrote a more formal review over at Read the Screen, but here's a more personal list of reasons why the show is important to me.

1. In the first episode, main character Alice says she "failed" an assignment when she in fact got a B-, and this is the moment at which I knew I'd LOVE HER FOREVER.

2. Alice isn't only a reader, but she reads classics.

3. So, yes, part of the point of the show is to encourage teens and young adults to read, and to read classics, and to think about what they're reading.

4. The fact that it deals with multiple books means the plot is much less predictable than on many book-related web series.

5. It's made by a young independent female creator/writer, and given the state of Hollywood, that's really important.

6. As she explains in the pitch video, showrunner/creator Kate Hackett is trying to actually pay her people fairly for their work, which is rarer than it should be in the world of online video.

7. There's a lot of plaid. I love plaid.

8. There's LGBT representation, including a coming out story presented in a way I haven't seen very often in media, and an awesome character who happens to be gay without that being their only important character trait.

9. There aren't just videos and tweets from the characters - there are PODCASTS too.

10. Also, could I interest you in an episode acted out by cats?

11. It understands the truly important thing about dresses.


12. Anyone for a Game of Thrones sock puppet show?

13. Alice loves lists and graphs and plans.

14. It's feminist.

15. Alice's career aspirations and development are an important part of the story.

16. It's not all about a boy.


17. But trust me, shippers, there's PLENTY of slow-burn swoony romance here. PLENTY. No, really.

18. And yet! THIS IS IMPORTANT:


So please. Don't let this be the end of the story. Give it a look, and if any of these factors I've described are important to YOU, support the show. Every dollar helps.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Morning Coffee (1/20/15)

Hey! My friend Susan Adrian's book Tunnel Vision is out today and it's awesome! And if you post a picture of your Chucks and tag it #TunnelVision you may win a free copy!

Bored with cheap books you can keep forever? For just $300k you can get one that explodes!

Or if you give a FRACTION of that to Save Alice, Tony will get a tattoo of the show's logo (at $120k) and, you know, we get more of an awesome show and FEWER BOOKS WILL BE HARMED. I think.

Speaking of: 10 Ways Classic Alice Taught Us How to Kiss

Come choose the February book for Brain Soup Goes Gilmore!

Aww: Yoko Nagae Ceschina, Countess and Fairy Godmother to the Arts, Dies at 82

This list is PERFECT: 24 Things No One Tells You About Book Publishing

If Hermione Were The Main Character In “Harry Potter”

Friday, January 16, 2015

Morning Coffee (1/16/15)

Yesterday at Read the Screen, I wrote a review of Classic Alice. It's approximately a million words long (okay, 800) and uses fancy phrases like "interrogate the text," so you know I care a lot about this. SO you can go read it all AND/OR just accept that this is really important to me and go pitch in a bit just because you like me. ($5! $2! Anything helps!)

The Oscar nominations mean I'm going to give you a few links that are NOT Happy Friday:

Selma was snubbed because the average Oscar voter is a 63-year-old white man

This Is What The Oscar Nominations Look Like Without All The Men

Moving on! It Is One Thing To Date Your Father But There Is No Excuse For Not Knowing The Difference Between The Tudors And The Hapsburgs. (Seriously, I read that whole incest interview and it was insane, but I too was most struck by the ridiculous misinformation about Henry VIII, so I'm glad Mallory is on this.)

Princess Michael of Kent's 70th birthday portrait involves a tiara and a cat.

Tom Hanks: I Owe It All to Community College

Whoa: Ben & Jerry's Just Released Cookie Butter Core Ice Cream

Aah! The Princess Bride Is Now a Mobile Game as You Wish(ed)

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Morning Coffee (1/14/15)

Save Alice!

I'm so proud to know some of the people involved in this: How ‘Harry Potter’ fans won a four-year fight against child slavery

Alessandra Stanley’s Troubling Reaction to Transparent’s Golden Globe Wins

Aaah, look at the cover for the Fug Girls' forthcoming The Royal We!

I am extremely excited for season two of Penny Dreadful.

There's going to be an Amazing Amy book with the Gone Girl Blu-Ray, because of course there is. I'm actually mildly surprised that they're not publishing it on its own as well.

Whoa, look at this Map of Physics.

How to Interview a Woman Writer

The Onion: HR Director Reminds Employees That Any Crying Done At Office Must Be Work-Related

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Morning Coffee (1/13/15)

I'm running late but SO MUCH EXCITEMENT today. Okay.

First: New Avengers trailer!

Second: Holly Black's The Darkest Part of the Forest is out today and it's incredible and you should go read it immediately.

Third: Robin Wasserman's first adult book is coming out next year and I am already beside myself with excitement.

Fourth: Get your Converse ready to win a copy of Susan Adrian's awesome debut novel Tunnel Vision next Tuesday!

Fifth: Colbert's Late Show will premiere on September 8th!

Sixth: New Kelly Clarkson song!

Seventh: Arthur is doing Downton Abbey!!

Eighth: Don't forget to save Alice!!!

Monday, January 12, 2015

Morning Coffee (1/12/15)

I'll have A WHOLE POST about this for you soon, because I feel very strongly, but Classic Alice is a web series that deserves your attention and any spare change you could throw its way.

Wondering what you need to know from the Golden Globes? Vox has you covered.

Have you seen the new Brain Soup Goes Gilmore book club, run by Emma Approved actress Dayeanne Hutton? This month's book is Emma!

WHAT. All Girls' High School Retouches Photos to Make Students Look Thinner

Ha. Hacked L.A. Traffic Sign Wants You To “Read A F*cking Book”

What's the first piece of recorded music you ever purchased? (Midori's Encore, I think.)

Classic literature gets a facelift in Russian bookstores

The New York Times Accidentally Invented a New Country, and the Internet's in Love

The Comments Section For Every Video Where Someone Does A Pushup