The Sword and Laser discussion

OK folks, I know we haven't even posted the Lev Grossman interview yet, BUT we will be recording an interview with Ernest Cline of Ready Player One fame next week.

So here's your chance! Ask your questions about the world, the video games, the fandom, the depth. Whatever you want. Post your questions here.

Thanks!

Great! The most oblivious is to ask when his next book will be out.
Update- and the movie(s).
I think he has two of them in the works

Ready Player One is a love note to the 80s, is there a trend that Ernest is happy that we have moved away from?

Was there any games or movies that he wishes he could have worked into the plot that just didn't make it?

I think Andy's question is an excellent one...as a child of the eighties myself, I absolutely get the nostalgia factor, but is the implication that those were 'the best of times,' and everything since then - this here lovely internet included - has been inferior?

On a more biographical note: clearly the gaming metanarrative is central to RP1; how much opportunity does Cline have to actually game any more? If so, what forms (tabletop, MMO, console...) and why those?

How did you decide what level of explanation to use when referencing the elements of 80s pop culture?

What's going on with the Ready Player One movie? What is your level of involvement with the production?

A bit off topic in relation to the book but hey, you write a homage to 80's pop culture then your opinion on what has happened to it since is going to be asked.
What are Ernest Cline's feelings about the South Park Indiana Jones episode?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chin...

Too harsh on Spielberg and Lucas?

I know I was a little bit angry about the last Indiana Jones movie but it didn't surprise me that South Park went for a gross out analogy of what they felt was being done to a story they loved from their childhoods.

I'm still angry about Jar Jar Binks btw.

I'm guessing that your experience as a screenplay writer influenced how you wrote your novel; did you think about Ready Player One as a movie while you were writing it?

Rush is variety!

How much of a change happens to the plot and story when you write your novel as a screenplay? Is it hard writing dialogue for your characters?

I don't have a question, I just have a comment.

Mr. Cline, thank you so much for writing a book that brought back memories of some really fun stuff. I really appreciate that you managed to do it in a way that my teenage son found appealing too. He may not have understood all the references, but he really enjoyed the story and had fun with the references that he did get (like "War Games").

Oh, here's a question:

What's next?

If it was not for the adventure that ended with me buying Ready Player One on audio book I might never have gotten back into books and in turn started watching Sword and Laser.

So my questions are:

When Wil you be on Table Top?

Second, books don't always translate well to film, yet the movie industry has a habit of grabbing good books and turning them into OK movies. More often then not the books are better then the movies.
What are some book based movies you think held the essence of the book?
Last,what steps are you taking to make a visual story that is a good Companion to the written one?

Thanks for writing such an epic book.

Do you agree with Ogden or Halliday when it comes to immersing ourselves in virtual worlds?

Will there be a sequel and will we see more of the messed up, trailer home Stacked "real world" in it?

First, just like Andrew said above (11), thanks for the book. It was the first hardbound I'd bought new in over a decade, and started a new chapter for me in so many ways. Okay. Fanboy moment over.

How far did you feel you were stretching things from today to get to Wade's "real" world? Is it a stretch from today, or was this a minor tangent from the current direction of "things"?

I was wondering how serious of an on line game player are you? If so what is your favorite(s) game(s)? What is the longest stretch you ever played?

I loved reading Ready Player One and I anticipate this book becoming one of my "comfort" books, which I will probably read with Reese's Pieces, Rice Krispy Treats or some other 80's-type treat. Thank you for writing it.

My first question is about how you felt writing the book. Did you love the experience or was it a special kind of torture to get pieces just right or some other kind of creative experience?

Second, if I'm remembering correctly, Wade is required to pass his classes in his Oasis high school in order for him to keep his laptop and virtual gear. There are a growing number of schools and school districts that are issuing laptops to students as part of an incentive program to get more students to graduate. Do you have an opinion on using technology as an extrinsic reward for education? Please share your thoughts.

I listened to the audiobook read by Wil Wheaton and was totally hooked.

Did you have any say in the choice of Wil to read this, and how did Wil's interpretation stack up with the character you imagined?