Neil Gaiman Tumblr FAQ: Good Omens

Tumblr questions that Neil Gaiman has already answered. A collection of Asks from Neil's blog (@neil-gaiman).

Good Omens FAQ Links: Main / Season 1 Doc Season 2 Doc Index of All Other FAQ Parts

This FAQ covers questions for the full content of both the book and TV series. There are spoilers. Please check this before messaging me: OrpiKnight's FAQ FAQ

*This post has been edited since the original.

neil-gaiman

Before you ask a Good Omens question, look here. An incredibly impressive job of research and gathering.

And if you have been here before it's time to look again. A lot has been added.

#neil gaiman #good omens #neil gaiman faq #good omens faq #OrpiKnight #pinned post

neil-gaiman reblogged

neil-gaiman

boyakishantriage asked:

I can't be the only one surprised how casually you're just. Here. Mind talking about what it was like to like. Join Tumblr?

neil-gaiman answered:

It was 13 or 14 years ago. From what I remember you just shouldered aside the mastodons, went into the Tumblr cave and carved your mark on the wall, telling people you were now signed up for tumblr, and then they would haul memes on animal hides past you. Back then it was mostly cats doing amusing things, obviously, but we would watch them by the flickering firelight, and chortle to ourselves hopefully before leaving the cave and trudging back to our lives.

dduane

This is just how it was. …Though Neil seems to have had more mastodons on his case than I had.

…I remember having had to hand-knap a meme or two before they finally automated that. (Took them forever, and previously you had to be running the right version of PHP…)

neil-gaiman

mmmbapache asked:

I heard that Lord Dunsany has inspired many authors throughout the world and I was wondering if you had any favorite short story from Lord Dunsany?

Also I am graduating with a Master's in Creative Writing very soon. It might be too much to ask but could I get a "congratulations" and perhaps a motivational phrase from you?

Thank you for all that you do, take care and be loved.

Possibly How Nuth Would Have Practised His Art upon the Gnoles, but if you ask me tomorrow I might give you a different answer. I love it if only for the bit about the drains --

The place suited Nuth, and, whenever anyone came to inspect it before purchase, the caretaker used to praise the house in the words that Nuth had suggested. “If it wasn’t for the drains,” she would say, “it’s the finest house in London,” and when they pounced on this remark and asked questions about the drains, she would answer them that the drains also were good, but not so good as the house. They did not see Nuth when they went over the rooms, but Nuth was there.

“How Nuth Would Have Practised His Art upon the Gnoles” — Lord Dunsany

“How Nuth Would Have Practised His Art upon the Gnoles” by Lord Dunsany Despite the advertisements of rival firms, it is probable that every

Biblioklept

And congratulations! You'll be fine!

neil-gaiman

cylinanightshade asked:

Hello Mr. Gaiman!

How old are Edwin and Charles? (age at death, not time of existence) My mental image of them from the audio book had them quite a bit younger seeming than the Netflix show. And the omnibus (my library took my suggestion to get a copy!!) seems to match my mental image age of them a bit better. Were they aged up for the Netflix show?

They were.

The biggest problem with casting twelve year old ghosts who do not age is that the actors who play them are going to age whether you want them to or not. So better to get actors who can play 16-18ish and will (you hope) continue to be able to play those ages for a good while to come.

neil-gaiman

anastar asked:

This is the longest shot in the world but if I don't ask....

I met you a few years ago when you spoke at the Ace Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. I'm an employee of the bookstore that supplied the books and I helped you sign seven hundred of them. It was such a pleasure to meet you and I'm very grateful that I was given the opportunity.

The point of this message: After working for other people for years, I'm going to open my own bookstore in Los Angeles. You're my favorite living author and so kind when we talked about Robert McGinnis, my favorite illustrator, so I'm hoping it's not disrespectful or pushy if I ask you for help on choosing a name for the store? I love books, I'm terrible at naming things. If you don't have any plans to open your own store and happen to have an idea or two rattling around... I don't even know. Grateful isn't enough for how I'd be. It would be magical. I'd probably cry. But in a good way.

Thank you for all the stories you've given us and I hope you have a wonderful day.

Best,

Ana

I always love the idea of naming a bookshop after short story collections or stories -- stores like The Golden Notebook, Dangerous Visions, Dark Carnival, for example. I always thought I'd like to call a bookshop "Fancies and Goodnights" after the John Collier collection.

What about looking at some of your favourite writers and seeing if any of them have stories, collections or novels that might make good store names?

I'll get you started -- here's a link to Ursula K Le Guin's page of books:

Ursula K. Le Guin — Novels and Collections

Ursula K. Le Guin

#have fun!

neil-gaiman

andey-moonglow asked:

Do you rather read or write?

Yes, definitely. Not reading or writing would be awful.

neil-gaiman

graymetal96 asked:

Hi neil

What is your hair routine?

Asking for a friend

You slay <33

Notice that my hair hasn't been washed. Wash it. Put conditioner on. Dry it. Observe unimpressed that it looks much the same as before I washed it, only a bit fluffier.

If I'm going out in public I sometimes rub a little OSiS hair gum on my hands and rub it through the front of my hair, mostly for luck.

neil-gaiman

losador asked:

Hello sir. I hope this finds you well. I have a question which has been in my mind for what is now decades, which you may or may not be interested in answering.

I remember reading Sandman for the first time whilst I was attending a certain school in the south of London back in the early 1990s. I was struck by how many similarities there were between what I was seeing on the page of the Seasons of Mists story about the two dead schoolboys, and what I was seeing around me at the school itself! May I ask, was the artwork and setting of that issue influenced by aforementioned school?

Wishing peace and love to you, and thank you for all the splendid stories you have given to the world.

Without knowing which school you're talking about, I can't really offer very much. But that story was influenced, in my mind, mostly by the schools I'd been to, so there was a lot of Ardingly in there and dash of Whitgift. As for Matt Wagner, I think he was mostly using my descriptions of places in the scripts, and probably movies set in schools (because this was before the internet and before you could just search for images).

neil-gaiman

fanfictionjumbler asked:

Hi Neil!

Our librarian fraternity is suddenly split on whether or not you actually exist. Any comment on the matter?

I'm with the side that thinks I don't.

neil-gaiman

ourtubahero-blog asked:

Have you wished David a Happy Birthday yet? ❤️😄

Yup.

neil-gaiman

judygrrl asked:

Apparently, I'm looking in the wrong places, sir... but can you tell us if Netflix will drop all the episodes of Dead Boy Detective Agency all at once, or one per week?

All at once, I believe.

neil-gaiman reblogged

:D <3

An iconic collection for a legendary mother.

The LAIKA Shop

You know you want it. Other Mother's Day presents from Laika...

#coraline #other mother

neil-gaiman reblogged

brucebocchi

elon musk admitted under threat of perjury that this is his burner account

neil-gaiman

feminist-dinosaur27 asked:

What’s your favourite piece of Irish literature?

Either The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien or The Crock of Gold by James Stephens or something else that I'm not thinking of offhand but which will be obvious when people ask about it in the notes.

neil-gaiman

fluffybunbunposts asked:

I haven't read the Dead Boy Detective comics (my library doesn't have them) but i have read some sandman comics so i have to ask, are Edwin and Charles the 2 private school ghost boys who meet when hell opens up and private school boy ghost bullies kill one of them?

They are.

neil-gaiman

sinsandsalt asked:

Hello Gaiman sir. I know you have answered about where to find signed copies of GO, but I was looking into getting a signed copy of American Gods. Do you happen to have signed any copies of your other books sitting somewhere too?

The Golden Notebook bookshop in Woodstock is always the answer, although sometimes you may have to wait a few weeks or more until I can get in and replenish their stock of signatures..