Discussion Group

The Killing Joke
In the graphic novel The Killing Joke, the Joker shoots Barbara Gordon and kidnaps her father, Commissioner James Gordon. He wants to show the Commisioner that all it takes is one bad day to turn honest, law-abiding citizens into lunatics with painted faces. It is filled with the haunted, moving story of a small-time comic who does one small job for a couple of two-bit hoods and comes out of it on the other side a homocidal madman.

It's the kind of writing that I throw in the face of those who call comic books a juvenile pastime.

Where do I go for that kind of writing now? No further than the web. Some of the best writing at this moment is on the independent world wide web. Little sites filled with the small wonders and small pains of being human. Today's case in point: Seth Dillingham's bad day. Filled with the brutal honesty that I try to send to my writing, it's the haunting story of a man...belay that, I'll let you read it.

Read all the way through to the end.

This kind of writing is why there is a Voices of Unreason. The cost to publish online is effectively zero. Many and varied are the ways for the independent publisher to throw words online. I admit to a bias in favor of Conversant, which is much more than a writing and publishing tool. But it does a stellar job at that.

While the dotcoms are crashing, while Microsoft is trying to own the entire web like it owns the desktop space, while the elite whine that the web is so business-unfriendly, while the Immanent Death of the Internet is once again upon us...

...over here, where the real action is, one man's story of his bad day is the most honest and valuable thing I've read all week. Thanks, Seth, for reminding me why I have Unreason.

Now the rest of you, try to write something to top that!

Your future world leader commands it!