by Steven-Elliot Altman (SG Member: Steven_Altman)

Our Fiction Friday serialized novel, The Killswitch Review, is a futuristic murder mystery with killer sociopolitical commentary (and some of the best sex scenes we’ve ever read!). Written by bestselling sci-fi author Steven-Elliot Altman (with Diane DeKelb-Rittenhouse), it offers a terrifying postmodern vision in the tradition of Blade Runner and Brave New World…

By the year 2156, stem cell therapy has triumphed over aging and disease, extending the human lifespan indefinitely. But only for those who have achieved Conscientious Citizen Status. To combat overpopulation, the U.S. has sealed its borders, instituted compulsory contraception and a strict one child per couple policy for those who are permitted to breed, and made technology-assisted suicide readily available. But in a world where the old can remain vital forever, America’s youth have little hope of prosperity.

Jason Haggerty is an investigator for Black Buttons Inc, the government agency responsible for dispensing personal handheld Kevorkian devices, which afford the only legal form of suicide. An armed “Killswitch” monitors and records a citizen’s final moments — up to the point where they press a button and peacefully die. Post-press review agents — “button collectors” — are dispatched to review and judge these final recordings to rule out foul play.

When three teens stage an illegal public suicide, Haggerty suspects their deaths may have been murders. Now his race is on to uncover proof and prevent a nationwide epidemic of copycat suicides. Trouble is, for the first time in history, an entire generation might just decide they’re better off dead.

(Catch up with the previous installments of Killswitch – see links below – then continue reading after the jump…)

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Pilot Suicide in Rag Doll

• INTO: Bicycling, ceramic animals, collecting old stuff, records, vinyasa, a good rhyming thesaurus, word masters, traveling.
• NOT INTO: Mosquitos and casseroles.
• MAKES ME HAPPY: My dogs Igby and Fred, sex, cuddles, autumn, making things.
• MAKES ME SAD: Friends who live far away, the world we live in.
• 5 THINGS I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT: My dogs, caffeine, iPhone, bicycle, paint.
• VICES: Tattoos, olives, Jackie-Os.
• I SPEND MOST OF MY FREE TIME: Raping department stores and designing synthetic hairballs for ceramic cats. I also river dance the shit out of spiders from time to time.

Get to know Pilot better over at SuicideGirls.com!

by Blogbot

Artist / SG Member Name: My real name is Gary Mike, and my SG member name is Guss1470. Guss is just a name I like and used while online but I am starting to use my real name more often.

Mission Statement: For my art I really don’t have one. I just like to draw and find out what I can do. The first and main purpose for my art is my own enjoyment, challenge, and to see people enjoy my work. I want to see if I can do it. I like to try different styles just to see if I can.

Medium: Well anything I can get my hands on. I think anything can be a medium but the main one I use is pencil and pen. With my computer it’s a Bamboo and Photoshop. I draw my art on paper first then scan, touch up or trace in Photoshop then color. In the past I have worked with watercolor, color pencil, acrylic, chalk, and clay. I even thought of buying a load of makeup from Mary Kay just to play with skin tones in my art.

Aesthetic: I really don’t know. I like sketchy style, clean style. It’s like the question “who is your favorite band” – it just depends on your mood, what your doing, and how your feeling.

Notable Achievements: I think just making people smile with my art. I really am not aiming for anything when I do my art except to challenge myself and make you smile.

Why We Should Care: Not to sound mean, but you don’t have to. If no one cared about my art I still would be doing the same thing. I have been doing this since I was 3 or 4 and this is what I do for fun. I don’t know any other way. I don’t consider my work special. I draw all the time and throw away my sketches and finished work cause I can do it again. I have given away sketch books to friends, my ex, and to random people because I’m done with them and have no reason to keep them. I think it’s the people that see my art that consider it special so the question goes to you: Why do you like my art???

I Want Me Some: I don’t do contests, I don’t sell my art, I have no political agenda. If you want me to draw something I’ll do it for free. If I have time, all you have to do is ask. You can also check out my work on DeviantArt.

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by Alex Dueben

Karen Abbott’s first book was Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys and the Battle for America’s Soul, which needles to say, was not the kind of history book you read in school. Centered around the Everleigh Sisters who ran a prominent Chicago brothel for more than a decade, Abbott explored not just the sisters and their many famous clients, but the religious and political figures who collaborated with, fought against, and made their names, locally and nationally, around this issue. Abbott’s most recent book which has just been released in paperback is American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare: The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee.

You know Gypsy Rose Lee. The legendary striptease artist and burlesque performer, author of the novel The G-String Murders, which was turned into the Barbara Stanwyck film Lady of Burlesque, who authored a largely fictional memoir (before writing such a tome became popular) that was turned into one of the great musicals. What’s clear from reading her book, is how much we don’t know about Gypsy Rose Lee.

American Rose isn’t a biography, but uses Lee and her career as a way to look at the thirties when vaudeville died and burlesque took over, and when culture as a whole was in a state of flux. It’s fascinating portrait of the theater-owning Minsky Brothers, moralist New York City mayor Fiorella La Guardia, author Carson McCullers, and America in the midst of an economic Depression but a cultural revolution.

Read our exclusive interview with Karen Abbott on SuicideGirls.com.

by A.J. Focht

A new Avengers trailer promoting the IMAX 3D showings is out. A batch of behind-the-scenes photos have been released as well. The Avengers is only about a month out, but we’ve got some reassurance the group’s adventures won’t end then. Black Widow has been confirmed for Iron Man 3, so we know there will still be cross overs amongst The Avengers team.

Despite the poor performance of The Green Lantern, Warner Bros. hasn’t given up on making a movie for The Flash. The company is finalizing their marketing strategy for the DC heroes, but Flash is apparently high on the list. There will likely be more information about upcoming DC hero films after the release of The Dark Knight Rises.

During the Empire Awards, Michael Fassbender (Magneto) and James McAvoy (Xavier) took a moment to discuss the upcoming sequel to X-Men: First Class. While McAvoy seems to be out of the loop, Fassbender expects the film to start shooting soon.

The superhero movies this summer will have their work cut out to compete in a market where The Hunger Games made box-office history with the third largest opening weekend, taking the spot from Spider-Man 3 and falling just short of The Dark Knight. Hunger Games opened at $155 million in the Spring season and is the first movie in a trilogy. Most movies that make that kind of money are usually sequels released during the summer, so it has set the bar extremely high for movies like The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, and Amazing Spider-Man.

The upcoming RoboCop remake will be less robot and more cop, well more human at least. Joel Kinnaman, who has been chosen to play RoboCop, suggests the costume will be little more than an exaggerated sci-fi cop costume. This goes along with some of the new ideas that director Jose Padhila has suggested that concern new breakthroughs in neuroscience.

While some try respect the history of the works they are remaking, others seem to go out of their way to upset the apple cart. After fan outrage at Michael Bay’s announcement that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would now be aliens, the director did some damage control suggesting that could mean as little as “the ooze was from space.” Now there is a fear that they won’t be teenager as the movie’s name has been changed to Ninja Turtles. This doesn’t mean they won’t be teenagers, but it has caused some concern.

Terra Nova’s last hope, Netflix, won’t be saving them after all. Talks concerning Netflix’s attempt to pick up the show for a second season have fallen through. Netflix is however still considering picking up The River for a second season. In future, you can expect to see online networks like Hulu and Netflix pick up an increasing number of popular cancelled shows as they work on building up their own programming schedule.

You can now follow along with the activities on the set of Ender’s Game at the project’s production blog. Only two entries have been posted so far, but one is of a utility deck panel from the ship set.

The first trailer for the new Doctor Who series was leaked after a convention in Wales. The pirated trailer hasn’t been taken down yet so watch it while you can. In related news, the Time Lord’s new assistant has also been unveiled. Former UK soap actress Jenna-Louise Coleman will play Matt Smith’s companion, though little else is known about her role.

As for another Doctor Who spinoff, Steven Moffat isn’t against it, but he doesn’t have the time to be the one making it. Moffat might not be opposed to a Doctor Who spinoff, but he has voiced his issues with the American version of the BBC’s Sherlock. He is upset that CBS is moving forward with Elementary even though they were denied rights by the BBC. Ultimately, he worries the CBS version will be bad and discredit the source show.

Tarion Suicide in Wandering Star

• INTO: Doing things I shouldn’t be doing.
• NOT INTO: Trendy stuff.
• MAKES ME HAPPY: Trent Reznor, Pink Fluffy Killer Bunnies.
• MAKES ME SAD: Shaved Pink (unfluffy) KIller Bunnies.
• HOBBIES: World Domination.
• 5 THINGS I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT: My New Rocks, spikes, Trent Reznor, music.
• VICES: Lollipops and merry-go-rounds.
• I SPEND MOST OF MY FREE TIME: Contemplating what I’ll do first when the world bows before me…Oh and what’s for supper.

Get to know Tarion better over at SuicideGirls.com!

by Tita Suicide

There has been a copy of Betty Crocker’s Cookbook in my house for as long as I can remember. You know the one…It’s bright red, with white lettering, and regardless of the edition, features over 1000 recipes from green bean casserole, to New York cheesecake.

The first one I recall seeing was my Grandma’s tattered and well loved 1950 edition. Then there was my Mum’s hardcover, published in the1980s. And now I have my very own copy, the soft cover, with a spiral spine. (Of course I have my Grandma’s original tucked away safely for nostalgia’s sake.)

According to my Gran, recipes such as this one were a staple in war-time kitchens everywhere. Since fresh groceries were of high value, and often in low supply, it was common to bake with recipes that didn’t require valuable commodities such as butter and eggs. In modern times, baking without these items is more likely to be a lifestyle choice, or dietary consideration, rather than necessity. In my case, I often bake to accommodate the needs and likes of my friends. There are a few vegetarians, several vegans, and one who cannot eat too much protein.

And so, with its lack of eggs, milk or butter, this “accidentally vegan” cake recipe is easily the most well loved page in my Betty Crocker cookbook. (The drips of batter, and spills that adorn the page serve as proof.) – Tita Suicide (a.k.a. @Cupcakedujour)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour*
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup baking cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon white or cider vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup cold water

*I often substitute wheat-free flour in this recipe, and it comes out just as nicely!

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease bottom and side of 9-inch round pan or 8-inch square pan with shortening; lightly flour.

3. In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, stir oil, vinegar and vanilla until well mixed. Vigorously stir oil mixture and oil into flour mixture about 1 minute or until well blended. Immediately pour into pan.

4. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes.

5. Top / decorate as desired.

6. As prepared (without frosting), each serving contains 230 calories, 10g total fat, 0mg cholesterol, 310mg sodium, 37g total carbohydrate and 3g protein.

If you’re in the Seattle area this weekend you can experience more of Tita Suicide’s hospitality at Lo-Fi on April 1st at the SuicideGirls Take The Northwest soiree to mark the closing night of Emerald City Comic Con. Full details can be found here.

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