So my terrifying Halloween costume was part of an overall larger scheme. I've decided to join Movember Canada. As of today, minus the majority of the rub-on tats and body paint, I am now clean-shaven and very pasty.

Movember Canada is raising awareness and funds for prostate cancer by having people sponsor men who are willing to shave themselves and look like idiots and then attempt to grow facial hair during the month of November. On one hand, it's a fun way to finally lose the crunch beard, which had gone totally out of control. On the other hand, I have family members who have had prostate cancer, and if me looking like an idiot (because really, shaving has really confirmed that I do not have a face that begs to be clean-shaven) can get some people to donate money to a good cause, then I am down with that.

BioWare set this up, so it's a bunch of Bio-geeks in on it together. I figure that most people reading this blog know somebody who has died of cancer. If you'd like to donate, here's one way to help make that less likely to happen again. You can make donations at my page.

Thanks.

(And I think I'm going for Wyatt-Earp-style handlebars, but if somebody wants to drop a hundred bucks and suggest something more embarrassing, I am down with that.)

My wife, badass Dragon-Boat paddler, helped paddle the BioWare Dragon Boat team to victory this year in the Edmonton Dragon Boat Festival! They brought home a gold medal, a silver medal, and a sweet jade dragon statue with little ruby bits for the eyes.

Go BioWarriors! You all spent a lot of cold, wet, mosquito-filled nights paddling on the river, and your reward was having a bunch of people look at you in surprise and say, "Wait, you guys make video games? Really? And you're here? I mean, we could see the breast cancer survivor team and the LGBT team and all that, but a video-game-company team? Really?"

If you're breaking down stereotypes, you might as well do it someplace with a dedicated beer tent.

Last week, we had a Design Department meeting. In addition to a bunch of general information, they did an awards thing, like they did last time. And, like last time, I was awarded Outstanding Achievement in Writing or Editing -- or something to that effect. It wasn't necessarily "who do you think is the best or most productive writer", but people were asked about who they thought was helping the company and generally having a good attitude and stuff.

Given that this is an award that is voted upon by all the designers, getting it (uh, twice) really means a lot. We've gone through a lot of changes on the project and at the company overall, and I've tried to stay positive and remind myself that even if they cut my favorite follower/plot/swearword, I'm still getting paid to write video-game dialog, and it sure as hell beats trying to say something new and exciting about the latest line of HP high-availability servers for a marketing website. If I didn't care about it, sometimes it would be easier, but if I didn't care about it, it wouldn't be my dream job.

My acceptance speech gave me a great chance to talk about the problems in Tibet, at least until my wife started humming the "get off the stage" music

Also, we had Monte Cook in to talk on Friday, which was significantly cool. He talked writing in the morning and game design in the afternoon, both of which were fun and interesting and got lots of people to yell at each other good-naturedly as designers are wont to do.

So all in all, pretty good week, workwise.

I pretty much had to give up on cons once the Dude and the Bud arrived. Combined with living in Canada's version of Stockton and wincing every time we paid a few months' rent to fly down to visit family, flying down for WisCon or Potlatch just wasn't worth it. Taking the kids would mean a whole lot of money and logistics crap, and not taking the kids would mean gallivanting off in the wild for a few days while leaving the Damsel to handle two young kids, which is something that I have the points to do a few times, but not every time I feel like seeing my Clarion West buddies or trying to work up the nerve to tell an agent about Ocean's Eleven in Fantasyland, or whatever elevator pitch I use for The Palace Job.

My buddy naomi_travellerjust informed me that this year's World Fantasy is in Calgary, which pretty much made my day. I may not be able to do plane tickets unless someone's getting married or buried these days, but I can swing a road trip to Calgary. So, for the first time in awhile and possibly the last time for awhile, barring other major cons coming to Calgary (one does not even hope for Edmonton), I'm actually going to be at a convention!

I may be doing a talk about writing in video games. It may or may not be right for WFC, but I pitched it, and we'll see how it goes.

The story I wrote for Vestal Review is in the book "You Have Time For This", and they just put out a YouTube trailer for said book. My rise to dubious fame continues!

Arrived safely in Omaha, Nebraska an hour or so late.

I am getting ready to leave for my speaking trip.

Damsel: Do you have your itinerary?

Me: Sure.

Damsel: Do you have two of them? You know, one to turn in for reimbursement to the university, and another for you to have?

Me: Um...

Damsel: Do you know when your flight is?

Me: Well, Inez knows when my flight is. (Inez is the professor who is picking me up -- and an old Clarion West buddy.)

Damsel: Do you think that maybe it would be good for you to know that, too?

Me: ...

Damsel: ...

Me: How about if I just write down the times?

Damsel: Okay, I will go downstairs and do it.

Me: Is it really that important to have a real itinerary and not just the times?

Damsel (slowly): Yes. Yes it is.

Me: Okay. I'll do it. I'm doing it now. (Takes laptop downstairs.)

There, downstairs in the basement next to the printer, is the first itinerary, which after printing I completely forgot to take upstairs with me.

Ah, marriage. Together, we make one competent person.

See everyone in a few days.

I was trying to figure out what story to read at my fiction reading in Iowa next week, and while I had one that I liked (and which was short-ish enough to read without needing potty breaks), I didn't feel quite right on it, especially since BioWare isn't charging me vacation time for this trip (it's reasonably considered recruiting). It finally hit me a couple of nights ago, and when I ran the idea behind the professor who invited me, she was jazzed: I'm lugging my 360 down there, and after I read my short story, I'm going to fire up one or two of my plots and play through it, asking people which options to pick and talking about the differences between normal fiction writing and interactive fiction writing.

I just powerleveled a character to get a whole mess of Charm and Intimidate (and also to complete a plot planet, so that if people want to see more, I can show them Chris L'Etoile's "I Remember Me" plot (with cinematics hacked awesomely by Armando Troisi, I believe) and blow their freaking minds). This is gonna be cool.

My only note of shame is that I used the Lorik Qui'in conversation exploit to max out my Paragon and Renegade scores quickly (which you need to do to unlock the very high Charm or Intimidate levels). I feel dirty, but damn it, this was for educational purposes!

All right. It's gonna look weird for a bit, as I try to find a theme that gives me a tag cloud and then find a way to change the image and colors and such.

Next month, I'll be heading to Iowa and giving a presentation at Buena Vista University on writing. I don't imagine that I've got a ton of readers in Iowa these days, but if anyone is in the neighborhood, let me know. :)

Another note, for those new to the blog: plans for the Mutants & Masterminds game I'm slowly running are f-locked and behind a filter. If you want in, and you're not one of my players, just friend-up and ask me. (We're playing this weekend, so I just tossed another post up.)

Edit: The "game" tag is the filter in question, so if you're in and confused by my random use of bad alien names (which I consider a staple of the genre), that's where to read. I'll try to toss in pointers to helpful posts.

So PureSpec is over, at least for me. Of the four events I was asked to do, only two of them made it to completion. A Sunday afternoon panel was supposed to be rescheduled for Saturday afternoon so that another panelist could make it, but that reschedule apparently got lost somewhere along the line, and so that panel was just canceled instead... and my Celebrity Gaming game was scheduled for 10 in the morning on Sunday (against the charity auction at 11), with no sign-up sheet posted until I asked for one late on Saturday. With all that working against me, I only managed three sign-ups, only two of which actually showed up. Given the group-centric nature of the game, it wasn't worth running.

I enjoyed the panels that did come together, and I really had a great time talking with vendors and fans and publishers, but I wish things had come together a bit more.

On the bright side, I have a one-shot game for 4-6 players prepped, if an occasion ever arises.

Well, it looks like the people at Pure Speculation have got a schedule up. While it's still subject to change, it looks like I'm in the following:

Saturday, October 13th
3:00 - 4:00: Multiculturalism in the Media: Multiculturalism; has the computer games industry done enough? Does it need to do more? And why should it even worry about it? This panel will look at TV, movies, and books, but mostly focusing on video games, and what BioWare is doing to put more variety in games. Cookie Everman and Patrick Weekes will talk about tokenism, stereotypes and how things are getting better in the industry.

5:00 - 6:00: Adaptation: Movies to Games: Examining story and structure as it applies to computer games, this panel will explore how overall plot flow is strengthened or weakened by the videogame format. Contrasting computer games with well-known movies and television shows, the panel will discuss how to keep the story interesting when most of the choices presented in movies are not really viable choices from a dramatic standpoint. Things like “how real is the dilemma when the villain says ‘join me’?”Games are success driven, so playing on character weakness immediately runs counter to the supposedly heroic nature of the plot. How is viable plot and story maintained in a game, when the prime player motivation is simply success or failure? Presented by Patrick Weekes and Luke Kristjanson.

Sunday, October 14th
2:00 - 3:00: Writing for Video Games: Ever wonder what it's like to write for a well-known and influential computer game company like BioWare? Join Patrick Weekes as he tells you what it’s like, how it’s different from fiction writing or game-mastering, and how to do it well. A must attend for anyone interested in writing for the computer game industry, or who just want a look at the writing process behind some of their favourite games. Other BioWare designers may also attend.

Still no word on when I'm running the game, although apparently I still am.

I don't know how exactly I got roped into doing three panels and a game, but apparently I'm doing, well, three panels and a game at the upcoming Pure Speculation. I'll post times when I've got 'em, but for now, anyone in or near the Edmonton area around October 13th and 14th should come on up. It was fun last year, and it's gonna be even bigger this year.

Those happy few of you reading this blog last year may remember that I gave a talk about working at BioWare as a designer at a local convention, Pure Speculation. I just found out that they'd like to have me back again this year as well. It also looks like the con is getting a makeover -- it's being referred to as a festival this year, although I'm referring to it as a constival as kind of a middle ground, and also because it reminds me of that shapeshifter from Deep Space Nine.

Like last year, I'll be doing a panel about working as a designer at BioWare (or, more generally, at any videogame company, although a lot of what I talk about is CRPG-specific). Last year, a cinematic designer (now technical designer) named James Henley helped me out. This year, I have no idea who'll be up there with me.

I also ran a game last year, which is always fun to do immediately after giving a presentation that implies that you know a lot about game design -- "Hey, everyone, want to see if I'm full of it? Let's kick the tires on this thing I whipped up on Friday!" People seemed to have a good time, though, and I'll be running another game this year. I think giving out prizes last time was what did the trick.

In addition, I'll be on two other panels -- one talking about multiculturalism, and one for which specific details are still being discussed, but which should be interesting for anyone who wants to write or design in the gaming industry.

So if you're nearby, or if you're far away but wealthy enough to fly out to Edmonton for a constival, come on up to Pure Speculation! It'll be October 13th and 14th, and it promises to be a rollicking good time.

The June issue of Cerise is up, and it's got an interview with me in it.

(It's also got the world's worst picture of me -- frelling mobile-phone cameras. At least I look genially goofy.)

Any words of wisdom are likely due to the judicious editing of Robyn Fleming (revena). Any gaffes are purely mine.

(Note: the following transcript occurs during the time in which the family viewed the episode of A Total Write-Off! in which Patrick appeared as a guest back in October, and which aired tonight for the first time.)

Damsel: Oh, there you are! There you are!
Me: (to Patrick on the screen) Don't hunch, Patrick, don't hunch, stop hunching!
Dude: Mighty-meesh, Daddy! (Translation: I would prefer to be watching the popular children's show Mighty Machines)
Me: Dude, look! There's Daddy! There's Daddy on the teevee!
Dude: MY-TEE-MEESH! (Translation: That's wonderful, Dad. I'm impressed by your new rise to fame and popularity.)

...

Damsel: You look... not like you.
Me: What, like bad?
Dude: Mighty-meesh! Airpanes, peez? (Translation: If possible, Dad, after you're done impressing me with your performance, could we watch the episode of Mighty Machines that featured the airplanes? Only if we have time, though, and I really don't want to hurt your feelings by implying that I'm less than interested in you being on television.)
Damsel: Not bad, just... maybe it's the lighting or something. The host didn't look like that in real life, either.
Me: Hey, look, it's you! Wait, let's rewind.
Damsel: We really don't have to rew-
Me: Look, it's you, and you're doing that face you do when someone is saying something stupid!
Damsel: I don't really do that face, do I? Wow.
Me: Uh, yeah. I get that eight or ten times a day. Dude, there's Mommy in the audience! Look! Mommy!
Dude: Airpanes, peez, airpanes, Daddy, Mighty-meesh airpanes! (Translation: Mommy? Really? That's fantastic! It's wonderful that she was there to support you!)

...

Damsel: And this is the part where you lie about having worked on the Star Wars game.
Me: Lie is such a strong word.*

...

Damsel and Me in Unison: Ick-or! It's pronounced ick-or!
Dude: Mommy, Daddy, mighty-meesh! (Translation: You're right, although eye-cor is a common mispronunciation.)

Really a good cure for any budding hubris, watching yourself on television with a kid who'd much rather see an episode in which voice actors narrate for farm equipment and airplanes.

* Okay, so here's the deal on me totally lying about working on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. They wanted to know what I'd worked on or what I was working on now in order to interview me. So my options were to say "The project I'm working on right now hasn't been announced yet, so I can't tell you anything about it. Also, I haven't worked on anything that has shipped. Fire away on that interview!"** or to lie through my shining white teeth for the good of the company. Because, to a person, everyone at BioWare I've talked to has said, "Wait, you didn't leak info about Revolver, did you?" And then I say no, and tell them about lying about being on KotOR, and they say, "Oh, yeah. Whatever. As long as you didn't leak anything about the unicorns."

** Ironically, if they'd gotten me a month later, I'd be able to truthfully tell them about working on Mass Effect.

Back in October, I got taped writing a short story in about twenty minutes on a small TV show called "A Total Write-Off!" The show has just started running on Access Television up here in Canada, and those of you who are a) in Canada and b) television-equipped can catch the show Wedensday nights at 9:00 (on Access, which could be on any channel, depending on your lineup, obviously).

The episode in which I team up with sex columnist Josey Vogels to write a powerful triumph of the human spirit is Episode 03, which will be airing February 28th. It looks like the show is going to start airing in March as well, on Canadian Learning Television and Book Television. No word yet on it ever airing in the States, so my mom is still doomed to miss my big rise to fame and stardom, but I'm pretty sure she'll catch it at some point. :)

So anyway, set your PVRs, those noble few of you who a) are in Canada and b) have a television and a provider that gives you any chance of watching my show!

So the weekend is over, which is nice, because any more of the weekend would likely have killed me.

Got home Thursday night at around midnight, got up late Friday (sick from the trip) and found out that I was not only giving a panel discussion on Sunday at Pure Speculation, but also running a game immediately afterward. Also, at 3:30 that afternoon, I was heading downtown to appear on a new TV show called A Total Write-Off.

Cue stress.

The television show turned out to be hiilarious. Writers form teams to write flash fiction with absurd audience requests, and I ended up paired with Sex and Dating Columnist Josey Vogels, who approached the event with the same level of "Wow, I have no idea what we're supposed to do here, so let's just screw around" that I did. Our powerful and resonant short story is a mark of the times, and someday, when the show airs, you will all get to see "It Came from the Mosh Pit" performed by mimes while Josey reads it aloud.

(Also, we called our team "Sex and Violence", because, well, sex columnist and video-game writer.)

Saturday was about two-thirds frantic game-design and one-third frantic panel-design. My mother, who trains professionals for a living, gave me a bunch of pointers on how to talk to adults without boring or aggravating them, at least in a bad way.

Then Sunday arrived, and I was talking or gaming from 10:30 to 5:00, with the help of Henley the Cinematic Designer, who answered audience questions with me and helped fend off a guy who tried to invite himself onto our panel, and Damsel & Dude, who called out helpful advice from the perspectives of an accomplished BioWare technical editor and a two-year-old, respectively.

The panel went well, although the attendance wasn't huge -- Sunday at 10:30 AM is kind of a killer timeslot. People seemed to have a good time, though, and I went the full hour and a half.

The game later on was hilarious -- I had good players, and they successfully undertook my absurdist and slapped-together "Ocean's Eleven in a D&D World"-type game and seemed to enjoy themselves.

So the Patrick Self-Promotional Weekend is over, and I survived. And now I will try to get back to work and see how my friends are doing and actually get my act in gear in the play-by-e-mail-game that I totally flaked on this weekend.