Coffee CommuniTea: Gotham City Comics & Coffee – Mesa, AZ

Posted on May 18, 2013 by

 Today’s Cup o’ Tea
Gotham City Comics & Coffee
Downtown Mesa, AZ

GothamCitySign

Perks (what I really like!)

Gotham City is low-key, fun, and filled to the rim with comics, action figures, toys, video games, and knowledgeable staff.

MiguelKevinCoffee

Owners Miguel and Kevin are trained to serve up excellent libations, too. @2013 ANVidean

My favorite feature, of course, is the Espresso Bar serving comic-themed coffees and Italian sodas. It’s just a small stand in the midst of geek heaven, but trust store manager Jaime to create you one delicious drink.

Share a cuppa (the stories about the owner, building, history, name)

Owners Kevin and Miguel met in high-school and still share common interests: “devouring” comics, selling toys online, and playing Magic: The Gathering.

Shannon is the resident Magic: The Gathering liaison at Gotham City Comics & Coffee. @2013 ANVidean

Shannon is the resident Magic: The Gathering expert at Gotham City Comics & Coffee. @2013 ANVidean

They used to work together at another well-known comic store. When it closed, they saw an opportunity to buy an existing coffee shop in downtown Mesa featuring a few comic books. They started Gotham City Comics & Coffee in December 2010, and watched the business morph from a coffee shop with comics, to a comic book shop with coffee.

What’s Brewing (coffee, tea, food)

The Espresso Bar features locally roasted coffee from Cortez Coffee Company—a coffee grower, roaster, and full coffee academy, in Tempe, AZ.

Gotham’s drink options are unique and delicious, including Italian ices. They also sell chips and candy.

The Grind (what I would change)

More tea selection would float the boat of this Tea-vangelist, but what they offer should more than fulfill anyone’s specialty-drink palate.

Percolation Factor (the activity/environment/energy/service)

VideoWallSeats

Inviting video game room. @2013 ANVidean

They offer free Wi-Fi, and plenty of seating and electric plugs. In the back, there’s a game wall in a cushy-chair video game room, rentable for just $5 per hour. It looks great for parties or groups.

Events draw the most people to Gotham City Comics. These include:

  • A weekly, Monday-night, live podcast taping of “The Comic Book Insider” with former editor of D.C. Comics Brian Augustyn.
  • Dr. Who gathering on “Dr. Whosday“
  • “New Comic Book Day and Dungeons and Dragons Encounters” every Wednesday morning, with an evening “From Parts Unknown” Indy Pro Wrestling Showcase hosted by Zero1 USA Pure Pro.
  • “Friday Night Magic: the Gathering” play on the first, third and fourth Friday evenings of every month.
  • “Saturday afternoon yo-yo instruction with Julius, a world-wide yo-yo expert, an early evening Pokemon League, and later-night “Saturday Night Magic: the Gathering.”

The Grounds (location)
[Main Street 40, with Link Stops within walking distance]
46 W. Main Street
Mesa, AZ 85201
(480) 649-3065

Tea Times (hours)
Mon.–Th.: 11 a.m.–9 p.m.
Fri.–Sat.: 11 a.m.–11 p.m.
Sun.: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.

Yelp rating:  4.5
Other awards:

  • “Readers Choice” by the Phoenix New Times “Best of Phoenix” 2011
  • #5 of the “Top 10 Places to Geek Out” in Phoenix by the Phoenix New Times

P.S. You can meet Kevin and Miguel—plus ”Garbage Pail Kids” artist Mark Pingitore—at the Phoenix Comicon‘s Gotham City Comics & Coffee booth #374, May 24–26, 2013.

……………………

I love connecting people and ideas, so I’ve been creating small villages my entire life. Really, what better places can writers and musicians find to create “village” than independent coffee/tea shops? I wrote most of my Rhythms & Muse novel and Delfaerune Rhapsody series-in-progress in coffee/tea venues, so it seemed natural to create this blog. Whether you came here to find a new favorite hangout, or suggest a spot not yet not posted, may you find Coffee CommuniTea exactly to your taste!

Posted in Coffee CommuniTea, Mesa, AZ, Village: You+Me+Us | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

#9 Writing Tip: 3 easy solutions to find time to write

Posted on April 23, 2013 by

If you’re a writer, at some time in your career you undoubtedly wondered, “How can I possibly make the time to write this book?” Since most writers I know hold another job to support their writing and have busy family lives, they find it difficult to find the energy and time to put words on paper (or, more likely, type words into a computer).

One way I inspire myself to write, is to schedule writing time with other writers... my brother, for example.

Another way I inspire myself to write, is to schedule writing time with other writers… my brother, for example.

Typically, I hear about three main obstacles:

  1. Inclination
  2. Blocks
  3. Priority

Obstacle 1
Inclination. You’re tired. You don’t know what to write. Your other obligations pull you away. When you’re not inspired to write, it’s hard to sit down and make it happen.

One solution
Set aside just 15 minutes a day to move forward with your writing (perhaps as soon as you get up, on your lunch hour, an hour before you normally go to be). Put it on your calendar and try to do it every day. Often, you’ll find if you just commit those 15 minutes, it expands into more time, and you make good progress every week. Plus, writing every day—even a little—keeps the momentum going, and helps your writing flow more easily.

Obstacle 2
Blocked. You sit in front of your keyboard and think. No ideas come to you. You consider this direction or that direction, but nothing feels right. You just can’t get the words down.

One solution
Just start writing. Simply do a stream-of-consciousness mind dump. Start with anything that’s in your mind and let it flow out on paper or into your computer. Don’t worry about what it says, you can always delete the weedy “chaff” later. After a while, you’ll find your mind drifting toward what you want to write and tasty “wheat” ideas will pop forth. This always works for me.

Obstacle 3
Priority. You think, “I should write, but I’m tired… or, I need to do laundry… or, I have something more important to do.”

One solution
Make a “spiritual” decision to make your writing an absolute priority. We all know, if something is important enough to us, we will make time for it, no matter what. So, you need to look inside yourself and find what is most important. If that actually is your book, you will get up earlier, watch one less TV show, find someone else to do a chore you dislike, or find other means to make time for writing.

My strongest suggestion is to schedule a specific time for writing, even if it’s only 15 minutes a day. Treat it like an unbreakable appointment. By considering my book as one of my clients, setting aside time every day to work on it, I was able to finish the final fourth of my first novel (Rhythms & Muse) in six months. And I’d been working on it for almost a decade already!

No excuses, writers. Which of the solutions above will you start using today to overcome your writing obstacles? What other techniques have been successful for you?

Posted in Rhythms & Muse Updates, Words: Serious Play | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Word-of-mouth photos: Communing with springtime in Phoenix

Posted on April 23, 2013 by
A word-of-mouth marketing example from the lens of Ann Narcisian Videan.
He spent a moment sizing me up, then returned to a more important task. ©2013 ANVidean

He spent a moment sizing me up, then returned to a more important task. ©2013 ANVidean

The Desert Botanical Garden and Phoenix Zoo rank high among my favorite Phoenix-area walking sites, especially in the springtime. I picked out a few charming camera captures to share with you.

Go find some for yourself… and feel free to share in the comments below.

Write on!
Ann Narcisian Videan
Write • Edit • Self-publish • Word of mouth
Roadrunner. If he catches you, you're through! ©2013 ANVidean

Roadrunner. If he catches you, you’re through! ©2013 ANVidean

Entrance to the DBG with glass sculptures by Chiluly. ©2013 ANVidean

Entrance to the DBG with glass sculptures by Chiluly. ©2013 ANVidean

The Phoenix version of snow... cotton from the Cottonwood trees. ©2013 ANVidean

The Phoenix version of snow… cotton from the Cottonwood trees. ©2013 ANVidean

Beautiful songbirds grace the DBG. ©2013 ANVidean

Beautiful songbirds grace the DBG. ©2013 ANVidean

The wildflower trail at the DBG...perhaps my favorite destination in spring. @2103 ANVidean

The wildflower trail at the DBG…perhaps my favorite destination in spring. @2103 ANVidean

Lazy lizard wonders what I'm doing on his path. @2103 ANVidean

Lazy lizard wonders what I’m doing on his path. @2103 ANVidean

Not winning any races today, tortoise. @2103 ANVidean

Not winning any races today, tortoise. @2103 ANVidean

Posted in Rhythms & Muse Updates, Village: You+Me+Us | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

KD Lang’s “Hallelujah”— bringin’ up the tears

Posted on March 18, 2013 by
Listening to KD Lang brings up the same emotion for me as viewing the incomparable New Zealand landscape. @2008 ANVidean

Listening to KD Lang brings up the same emotion for me as viewing the incomparable New Zealand landscape. @2008 ANVidean

KD Lang’s “Hallelujah” tops my list as one of the most beautiful renditions ever. Even better than Justin Timberlake‘s  “Hope For Haiti Now” performance, or the 15-year-old Bobby Andonov’s “Australia’s Got Talent” interpretation.

Ask me, and I’ll tell you…
Lang, a multi-Grammy award winner, is THE voice of the 1980/1990s generation, as Adele reigns as the voice of the current generation.

What control.

Unlike me. [Listening and clutching hands to heart in an unavoidable fan-girl moment replete with tears.] Squeeeeeeeeee!

Posted in Music: Causing Treble, Rhythms & Muse Updates | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Call for songs to add to a character’s iPod in young-adult fiction series

Posted on March 11, 2013 by
My talented young friend John Taylor created this lovely illustration, showing the fae side of my heroine Lark Tūrehu. You can see more of his work at https://www.facebook.com/jktaylor.art.

My talented young friend John Taylor created this lovely illustration, showing the fae side of my heroine Lark Tūrehu. You can see more of his work at https://www.facebook.com/jktaylor.art.

One of my favorite things about writing the Delfaerune Rhapsody Trilogy is involving you in its creation. I’m asking readers’ input on certain scenes in the books. If you respond to one of my requests and I end up using it, I’ll credit your contribution in my “Acknowledgements” when the book is published. Those not used, I’ll add to the contributors page here on my blog.

Here are two areas for which I already need input:

1. A song to add to the heroine Lark’s iPod. I need a song of hope, but with a beat my character can walk to in a not-too-hurried rhythm. Give me a suggestion to fit into this excerpt:

“The entrance to the main path rewarded visitors to the garden with a stunning overview of the grounds. The mirror-like pond at the focal point, today reflected the fluffy clouds and blue sky. Several pebbly paths leading off into various sections of the garden broke between the flowerbeds and willow trees hugging the edge of the water.
“Nobody wandered the garden in plain sight, so Lark took a moment to plug in to her iPod. “SONG NAME” by SO-AND-SO spoke to her hopeful mood this morning. She allowed the music to set her rhythm, and walked around the pond and up a couple of the paths, expecting to run into B’rook at any turn.”

Thanks to those who already suggested songs on my Facebook post. If you want to add something new, please comment and makes sure to provide:

  • Full song name
  • Who performed/composed it
  • Description or even a few adjectives about the song, describing why it will work in this scene
  • Your name, or how you’d like to be identified in the blog or book
  • Your geographic location

(Just so you know, I may use your contact info provided via the comment to communicate with you about the book, but will not publicize it, or use it for any other reason.)

2. A recipe for my vegetarian fae to enjoy during a banquet. Please post your recipe comment to this request in my existing blog entry on this topic.

I will ask for your additional suggestions when needed as I’m writing, so stay tuned.

– Ann

Write on!
Ann Narcisian Videan
Write • Edit • Self-publish • Word-of-mouth

Posted in Delfaerune Rhapsody, Music: Causing Treble, Village: You+Me+Us, Words: Serious Play | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Reader contributions to the DelFaerune Rhapsody young-adult fiction series

Posted on March 11, 2013 by
You all make me happier than anything, even more than my tea addiction. (Photo by my tea-sharing friend Andrea Beaulieu.)

You all make me happy… happier even than my tea habit! (Photo by my tea-sharing friend Andrea Beaulieu.)

Huge thanks to the creative, supportive folk who contributed the following ideas to potentially include in my DelFaerune Rhapsody novel series (in-progress). I could not do this without you!

Anything highlighted in green, I’ve written into the  book already. :)

– Ann

Vegetarian recipes for the Noble Fae banquet scene

Joanne De Biasi
• Stuffed squash blossoms

Songs for the heroine Lark’s iPod

Barbra Simon Anderson
• “Mummers Dance” by Loreena McKennitt

Deb Bader
• “I’m on my Way” by  The Proclaimers
• “Get on Your Feet” by Gloria Estefan
• “Jessica” by the Allman Brothers

Joanne De Biasi
• “In My Mind” by Amanda Palmer
• “You Picked Me” by Fine Frenzy
• “Love on Top” by Beyonce
• “Wolves” by Ego Likeness

Karen Mueller Bryson
• “No Rain” by Blind Melon
• “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves
• “Heart of Gold” by Neil Young

Cynde Cerf-Dehmer
• “Beautiful Day” by U2
• “Sunsets” by Powderfinger

Sandy Anders Crockett
“Protectors of the Earth” by Two Steps from Hell

Kathy Jones Miranda
“Your Heart is Black as Night” by Melody Gardot

Cassandra Reeves
• “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles

Marsha Sandoval
• “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles

Marcus Silving
• “Unwritten”  by Natasha Bedingfield
• “On the Radio” by Regina Spektor
• “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera
• “Closer to Fine” by the Indigo Girls

Robert Videan
• “Love Shack” by the B52s = Pure Joy and fun, but probably too fast
• “Thanksgiving” by George Winston = Beautiful, but maybe too slow
• “Brand New Day” by Sting = Good pace for her
• “Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World” by Izzie

__________________________

Write on!
Ann Narcisian Videan
Write • Edit • Self-publish • Word-of-mouth

Posted in Delfaerune Rhapsody, Music: Causing Treble, Words: Serious Play | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

#8 Writing Tip: Why authors should research the rules, then ignore them

Posted on March 6, 2013 by

You could follow every rule. Or, you could generate a little anarchy in your writing. Angel or “V,” which will you choose?
[My son portrays "V for Vendetta" with an unphased, visiting Halloween angel. @2007 ANVidean]

So many writing resources. So many how-to books. So many style manuals. As a writer, you could spend an entire life reading and studying, intimidating yourself so with everyone else’s ideas and rules that you never actually sit down to write anything from your heart.

One overarching fact crystalized in my head over years of writing/editing millions of words in business content and numerous novels — sometimes the best way to communicate an idea involves blasting away the rules and conventions with a creative blow torch. Creative license makes writing fresh… and, well… yours.

Don’t get me wrong, it is important to research and read when you’re a writer. You need to know the rules—at least the basics, so you can keep your audience intrigued. But, you also need to know when to bend or ignore those rules to best serve your own writing voice. (More on this in my #9 Writing Tip, coming soon.)

So, where to start? Here are a few of my favorite resources for learning writing basics:

For business:

For authors:

  • My favorite book for character development: Goal Motivation Conflict, Debra Dixon
  • My favorite book for plot development: The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler
  • My favorite book on writing. Yes, it’s called On Writing, and it’s by Stephen King (of all people)
  • Books in the genre you’re writing. I’ve been studying Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Beautiful Creatures, and other young-adult novels.
  • Books not in your genre. What cool writing techniques, words, or ideas, can you glean from other authors and stories? New ideas formulate “outside the box.”

There you have it. A couple of great starting places. Now, go forth and create your  masterpiece… I’m eager to read it in your very own voice.

Write on!
Ann Narcisian Videan
Write • Edit • Self-publish • Word-of-mouth

P.S.  What writing resources are your favorites? Please comment below.

Posted in Rhythms & Muse Updates, Words: Serious Play | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment