I will be going to the signing and would love to meet up beforehand, but I doubt I'll be able to get there early enough - doing some sightseeing during the day with my daughters and a couple of friends.

Not sure what I'll be wearing, but I should be relatively easy to spot... well, my 6'2" daughter is easy to spot; I'll be with her 

Got info from a trustworthy source that the Chicago signing is cancelled, too. Here's to Jim getting better!

I'll be at the Chicago event!  We'll be getting in just in time for the signing on Friday night, but are going to spend Saturday wandering around town - we'll likely hit some of the sites mentioned in the books again.

We're staying at a Holiday Inn Express in Arlington Heights.  Probably about a 20-25 minute drive from the signing (dep on traffic), but decent rates.  And free breakfast!

You're right, that would be awesome! 

I'm really looking forward to that trilogy.

Thanks, Serak!

First, for your visual delight... a pic!  

I'm next to Jim.  


Here's what I got from the Q&A:

Q.   Will there be another Dresden TV series?
A.   “I’m willing to forgive Hollywood.”

Q.   In Even Hand, we learn that John Marcone is not his real name; does that have significance?
A.   It would certainly have significance if someone were trying to use his Name for spellcasting.

Q.   Will there be a 7th book in Alera?
A.   If Jim were to go back to Alera, it would be years from now.  The book would be a couple of generations in the future to see how things turned out.

Q.   Would you like to see either series in an animated movie or anime?
A.   This is actually how Jim sees things as he’s writing them.  Also, it would be very cool because as an animated movie, it’s a lot less expensive to blow things up.

Q.   Is there a real or historical person or place that you would like Harry to ‘interact’ with but you haven’t been able to yet.
A.   Yes, but he is going to use them, so he won’t tell what they are.

Q.   Are there any big clues that no one has picked up on yet?
A.   At least one person has picked up on every clue, but no single person has put it all together.

Q.   What did you base Harry’s character on?
A.   Jim put together a list of classical popular wizards (e.g. Merlin) and classical private eyes (e.g. Sherlock Holmes), then listed common traits of each.  For example, great wizards are great because they seek knowledge; most great private eyes mouth off to exactly the wrong person at exactly the wrong time. Using that list of characteristics, he created Harry’s personality.

Q.   Will we learn the history of Jack Murphy and why he killed himself?
A.    No.  That would require that he actually killed himself.

Q.   What’s the biggest cliché you’ve used?
A.   A wizard throwing a fireball.

Q.   Will Harry ever jump through time?
A.   That would require breaking a law of magic.  And it’s not like there are 7 books planned, one for each law of magic.

Q.   In the RPG, there is the option of creating different Harrys based on Harry having made different choices.  Is that just for the RPG?
A.   No, and it will actually come into play in a future plot line.  Considering a book called “Mirror Mirror.”

Q.   When did you know Maggie existed?
A.   Was seeing a lot of complaints about LKH’s books, and one in particular said, “It’s just BDSM sex, it could never be relevant to the plot.”  And Jim thought, “Hmmmm…”

Q.   If you could go back and do things differently, what would you change in books 1 and 2?
A.   Would probably throw them out and completely rewrite them.  But that would probably end up in disaster.  There are a lot of things that have come out of mistakes.  For example, a physical therapist told Jim that based on all the injuries Harry had suffered at a certain point in the novel, he would have needed surgeries, physical therapy, etc.  That issue led to defining how wizards’ bodies heal better/faster, and it also linked in nicely with the fact that wizards live so much longer than normal people.

Q.   What actors would you choose for Harry and Thomas?
A.   Favorite choice for Harry would be a 1970s Harrison Ford.  Of current actors, would choose Captain Tight Pants (Nathan Fillion) for Harry, and Bryce from Chuck for Thomas (Matt Bomer).

Q.   Why did Ghost Story get delayed so long?
A.   There was such a large part of the book during which Harry really couldn’t communicate with anyone; since dialogue is the easiest part to write, it took more time to work through the narrative.  Also, parts of the plot turned out differently than originally planned.  Finally, there were some personal changes that took some adapting to.

Q.   What do you read?
A.   Robert Parker, Harry Connely, Benedict Jacka, Brandon Sanderson, Percy Jackson series, Harry Potter series.  Many others he’s sure he left out.

Q.   What genre would you like to write in?
A.   True SciFi…working on a project that is kind of Men in Black meets X-men on the moon.

Q.   Do you figure out the end of a book before you start writing?
A.   “If I’m smart.”  Usually has in mind the ending, 1 big ‘special effects’ scene, ½ dozen sarcastic comments, and a few smaller scenes.

Q.   Did Dresden maintain domain over Demonreach when he died?
A.   Read Ghost Story.

Q.   What other short stories are you considering?
A.   Currently 2/3 through the 2nd book of a Bigfoot trilogy:
      - B is for Bigfoot (elementary school)
      - I was a Teenage Bigfoot (high school)
      - Bigfoot on Campus (college)

Q.   Was Harry’s mom related to Morgan LeFay?
A.   No, LeFay is simply a mark of honor.  And a mark of insanity.

*** GS Spoiler

It was so much fun catching up with some folks I know!

I've typed up my notes from the Q&A, but I haven't been on the forum much since the redesign so I don't know where to post them now.  Is there a section for that?

I don't think I've spent less than 3 hours at any of the signings I've been to... and I think in some cases it's been closer to 5.

A lot depends on how early you plan on getting there and where you are in the signing line.  Especially with a venue this big, if you're near the end of the line for signing, count on hanging around for a few hours.

I plan to be there, and will be bringing my daughter for her first JB signing!