Joey: no comment. (You want I should blow the surprise?)

Re: comments here...if I found it annoying, I wouldn't be here.

If this were just about flak, about hyping a series, what you'd get would
be what you got when they used other systems to plug "Sneakers," for
instance...a quick or several-month blitzkrieg, a one-way (for the most part)
outflow of information, and then it stops.

For me, the best part of writing is *dialogue*. I'm fascinated by
dialogue...interpersonal, political, social, electronic, you name it. And for
the last five years, I've been trying to develop a dialogue with the SF
communityNot just, "Here's what I'm doing, here's the show, watch it, give us
ratings, and be quiet," but rather, "Here's what I'm doing...how close is this
to what you've been wishing someone would do? What are you tired of? What do
you think of this part over here?" Not so much specific advice, but
attitudes, sort of getting a sense of the room.

My feeling is that SF fans are consistently the most abused and taken-
advantage-of group around. Especially when it comes to media. Every six
months or so, somebody comes in to shill for a new show, they get everyone's
hopes up, then either walk away if the show is a hit, or flat out lie. I
know, I've been in the audience. And as a result, many SF fans have grown
understandably cynical about the whole process, they seem now to *expect* to
be lied to, to expect that it's going to be same old crap they got before.

And to me, this process is about changing that perception.

In most cases of publicizing a show, there is a buffer between the
creator or head of a show, and the viewers. There is no buffer in this case;
if the show fails, I'm right out here with a "Kick Me" sign on my back. If it
works, I convey that back to the other creative people involved. From
standard Hollywood perceptions, that is a very risky and dangerous thing to
do. For me...it's dialogue.

SF fans have always stood by their shows and been loyal, often to be
repaid by being shilled and hyped and thought of as (as one studio person put
it) vegetables witbooks...as long as they keep buying the products, the
merchandising, and stay quiet, that's fine.

I would like this process to be part of a rapproachment, to be more open
and to encourage a two-way conversation. That conversation was had during the
years this show was waiting to spring forth, and will contin afterward. (When
I did the LosCon presentation, during the Q&A following, one fellow asked if
this would stop once the show got on the air, once we had gotten what we
wanted: ratings. And that has been the case in the past. For as long as I
can type and plug into a modem, that will not be the case here.)

Like any dialogue, there are moments of conflict and frustration, and
moments of revelation. So on all levels, this has been a fascinating and
intriguing conversation. I have benefitted from it, and enjoy it despite the
occasional hassles, and look forward to doing so in future, as long as the
audience will want to continue the dialogue.

I hope that somewhere in that flurry of words I've answered your
question.

jms