Admittedly, I'm a Trival Pursuit hound. I love it (and you may recall played it with Mary Roach). There are music groups, writers, and other entertainers that I would love to play Trival Pursuit with. The Bloodhound Gang. Nathan Fillion. Cheech Marin. Mary Roach. I'll add Jeff Burk to that list. His pop culture knowledge is immense. He capitalizes on geekdom in a way that I've never seen.
It's easy enough to make fun of fanboys. That doesn't take much talent and plenty of people do it. It does take talent to make fun of, embrace, and be a fanboy culture, all while composing a piece that is entertaining and both an homage to and a farce of the culture. I'm not sure that makes any sense whatsoever. It makes sense in my head, and I'm not revising it, because it is what I wanted to say about Jeff. There's just not too many ways to compose that thought into coherency.
I, like so many other fans, discovered Jeff Burk with the release of Shatnerquake
. Shatnerquake was a book that could have failed miserably - a strong concept that most undoubtedly would have failed had it not been for the strong narrative. I found the book hilarious, the references struck a chord with my inner geek, and the ending was satisfying. At the time, I was not aware that Jeff had been doing Shatnerquake performances around the Pacific Northwest. I was grateful I was able to see a Shatnerquake performance before it was retired. It's an amazing performance, really, and every fanboy should get a chance to view it. What makes the performance genius is that it's done on an uber-low budget scale, once again, paying homage to the low budgetness of the original Star Trek series and the films of Bruce Campbell (who factors into the narrative).
. Shatnerquake was a book that could have failed miserably - a strong concept that most undoubtedly would have failed had it not been for the strong narrative. I found the book hilarious, the references struck a chord with my inner geek, and the ending was satisfying. At the time, I was not aware that Jeff had been doing Shatnerquake performances around the Pacific Northwest. I was grateful I was able to see a Shatnerquake performance before it was retired. It's an amazing performance, really, and every fanboy should get a chance to view it. What makes the performance genius is that it's done on an uber-low budget scale, once again, paying homage to the low budgetness of the original Star Trek series and the films of Bruce Campbell (who factors into the narrative).From there, I learned that Jeff Burk is the editor of The Magazine of Bizarro Fiction, a job that requires copious amounts of reading, strong wits, and the ability to make a Quaterly Publication work. He excels at this. If you've not picked up a copy of the Magazine, please do so.
And, recently, his adoration for daikaiju just got picked up. Remember those Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books from childhood? Well, Jeff's written one, except this is a Choose-Your-Own-Mindfuck-Fest. Super Giant Monster Time! (Choose Your Own Mind-Fuck Fest #3)
was released on March 1st, and it's done marvelously well (as did his previous book). Super Giant Monster Time, as you may have gathered, is a dedication to giant monsters, but pitting you - the reader - against them. He claims there are 52 different endings in "Super Giant Monster Time" and that some of them are hidden. Intriguing? Absolutely. Brilliant? You betcha! Let's see Stephen King concoct something like that, that will require you to revisit the book again, and again, and again, and again...Eric Mays: Jeff, you've written "Super Giant Monster Time". Why giant monsters? It's a sub-genre that rarely gets huge attention.
Jeff Burk: Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve loved giant monsters. I have so many fond memories of watching Godzilla movies on TBS and TNT. Every Easter I would watch “Night of the Lepus” and every Thanksgiving was the double-feature of “King Kong” and “Son of Kong.”
There is something about the image of a huge creature towering over buildings that just catches my imagination. I can never get enough of books or movies with giant monsters, so I wanted to do my own contribution to the cannon.
EM: What piece of classic literature or classic cinema would be much improved by the addition of a giant monster?
JB: Basically – all. Giant monsters are one of those things that I think makes every story better.
It is really interesting to think of the number of classic works that already incorporate giant monster concepts. “Moby Dick” is basically a story about a man hunting a giant monster. Most of Lovecraft’s pieces incorporate what have become giant monster ideas. While giant monsters are considered a niche sub-genre, they are actually a part of the western genre framework.
EM: You've named some of your favorite giant monsters at your website, so I won't go into great detail here, but why does this sub-genre not garner the same interest as, say, vamps and zombies?
JB: I never understood why the sub-genre has always failed to become more popular. For some reason here, in the west, we seem unable to make a decent giant monster movie (see the US “Godzilla” and “Cloverfield” for proof).
I keep holding out hope that the US will produce a good giant monster movie one of these days. Eli Roth is supposedly working on one called “Endangered Species.” I think Roth can do a good one. Also, another company is giving at go at an American Godzilla for 2012. The first one kind of sucked, but I find it unlikely that they would make the same mistakes again.
Fingers crossed on both of those being in 3-D.
JB: It’s not really any more difficult than writing in a linear fashion, but it is incredibly different.
The book starts with the reader picking one of three characters to “play” and each character has two main storylines. Then there is also about fifty pages of “hidden storylines” that the reader has to find on their own. All together, there are 52 different endings the book.
I’ve always been a sucker for books that depict world-wide disasters from a variety of perspectives. I saw a great advantage to using CYOA format to try telling one of those stories.
Because “Super Giant Monster Time” is depicting an end of the world scenario, I basically had to come up with about 50 death scenes – which was pretty easy.
I spend much of my time fantasizing about creative ways the people around me could die (I watch too many horror movies), so for “Super Giant Monster Time” I just had to focus on my daydreams on giant monsters, aliens, and punk rockers.
EM: You also incorporate a level of punk to this tale. Punk and daikaiju, match made in heaven?
JB: I think so. Take those two, add Star Trek, bacon, and marijuana, and you have an average day in my head.
Prior to this you made a name for yourself with the bestselling "Shatnerquake". Are you pigeonholing yourself in geekdom?
I don’t know if I’m pigeonholing myself – if I am, I’m just fine with that. I write about the things that interest me and geek culture is my passion. I’m super nerdy and that comes out in my stories.
With some of my upcoming books, I’m moving a bit away from the nerd topics. I’ll be writing about issues like GLBT rights, drug law reform, and concerns surrounding factory farming. Rest assured though, since I’m writing them you can expect references to Star Trek, NES, and obscure gore films.
JB: Not yet. To the best of my knowledge, the Shat is not aware of the book. I did recently get contacted by a fan that apparently sees Shatner regularly in LA and he said he was going to get Shatner to sign his copy of “Shatnerquake.”
On an amusing note, there is a copy of Shatnerquake out there signed by Bruce Campbell.
EM: Stupid question time: Who would win in a fight between Shatner and Godzilla? (Oh my God, why has this not been written?)
JB: Holy shit! I never thought of that!
I imagine it like “Godzilla vs. Hedorah,” but with more Go-Go dancing.
EM: You're tackling the next chapter in the "Shatnerquake" universe with Leonard Nimoy. Are we going to have an epic series including Nichelle Nicholapalypse and George Takcyclone?
JB:Haha, I assume you are referring to my April Fool’s Day prank. A fan had created a fake cover for “Tsunimoy” as a joke and I wrote up a fake back-cover summary.
I had also a download link for the book but the link actually led to a download of “Super Giant Monster Time!”
There will be a sequel to “Shatnerquake” sometime in the future. “Shatnerquest” will be the title. The book will be about the apocalypse happens and a group of Star Trek fans in Baltimore take it upon themselves to travel across the country to save William Shatner – because if they don’t, who will? Along the way they encounter a rival Star Trek Borg fan club that have been mutated by the apocalypse into zombies.
So the book will have the Borg running rampant across the US and I can promise a fifty-foot Shatner rampaging through downtown L.A.
EM: You had a Shatner performance that was "retired" at BizarroCon last year. Are you prepping a Leonard Nimoy performance? Will it include "Bilbo Baggins"?
JB:Yeah, that Shatnerquake performance hasn’t really gone away. I’ve done it three times since BizarroCon. I think the only way it will go away is when I have a Shatnerquest performance.
Lately I’ve been doing a performance themed around “Super Giant Monster Time!” It’s set up like a game show, where I get volunteers from the audience who I dressed up in silly giant monster costumes. They then smash apart a cardboard city that I build for each show. It’s pretty awesome.
So far I’ve only done the performance twice. Once at the first Naked Lobster Cabaret, which is a bimonthly event in Portland featuring comedy, burlesque, and bizarro, hosted by local stand-up comedian Whitney Streed. The second time was at a May Day event at a hippie art warehouse called “Watershed” – I performed in-between a bunch of jam bands.
JB: I am starting to become rather recognizable around conventions. Surprisingly, a dreaded Mohawk and being covered with patches and studs stands out in a room with people dressed as their favorite RPG and video game characters.
I really love going to conventions and tabling for Eraserhead – I try to make it to as many as possible (roughly eight a year). I’m normally behind the table in the dealer’s room the entire time and it’s priceless seeing the reactions our books get. It’s great getting to opportunity to connect with readers and turn on more people to our unique brand of weirdness.
The people at conventions are wonderful. I love being in any environment where others are not afraid to let their freak flag fly.
JB:For some reason I am constantly getting stories about masturbation. Stories about people masturbating, people thinking about masturbating, people thinking about other people masturbating, etc…
Stop sending me stories about masturbation!
Don’t get me wrong – I love masturbation. But everybody sleeps, everybody eats, and everybody masturbates – it’s just not weird.
EM: Obligatory question - what's next on tap?
JB: So much! Here is the stuff that will (hopefully) coming out this year:
HomoBomb – A bomb who is attracted to other bombs when it is supposed to be attracted to people and buildings. This is my next book that should be out in the summer.
Pothead – about a world where people grow plants instead of body hair and one person who grows marijuana on their body. I stole this idea from J. W. Wargo. Hahahahaha.
Cripple Wolf (with Cameron Pierce) – a werewolf in a wheelchair loose on an airplane. “I’m sick of these motherfucking werewolves on this motherfucking plane!”
“The Magazine of Bizarro Fiction” is going great. Later this year horror superstar, John Skipp, will be guest-editing an issue. He’s putting out a mass market anthology themed around shape shifters (a sequel to his badass zombie antho from last year) and the issue of the mag he’s editing will include the stories that are too weird or extreme for the mass market.
I’m also working on a couple stories for anthologies and overseeing some releases for Shark vs. Badger (Eraserhead’s comic book imprint) and Deadite Press (Eraserhead’s horror imprint).
In my spare time I’m continuing my master plan of becoming a cult leader. Though I must say, these days I’m beginning to rethink my ambition – I believe I may be thinking too small. I starting to think I should be aiming for a nation state – or at least one of those supervillain islands with a volcano in the center.
Jeff Burk is talented in a variety of ways, and if you've not ventured into his world, please do. It's a trippy ride through the twisted side of pop-culture. Hey, even Lloyd Kaufman loves the kid. Your best bet is to start with the phenomenon "Shatnerquake". You know how it feels to be on the outside of an inside joke? Yeah? Well, you're on the outside of the Shatnerquake joke, so it's time to buckle up and get that bad boy. (Just for readers in the state of Virginia, I've donated two copies of this title to the library system, so it's available through inter-library loan, should you be impoverished).
Tomorrow the Giant Monster extravaganza continues! James Morrow, author of such bestsellers as "Towing Jehovah" and "The Eternal Footman", joins us and chats daikaiju. His last book, "Shambling Towards Hiroshima" imagined a world that created Godzilla, and it was one of the Must Reads of last year. Until tomorrow, keep reading.
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