FreezeRay:  Poetry With A Pop
  • Issue #22
  • About
  • FreezeRay Matinee
  • Submissions
  • Archive
  • FreezeRated
  • Broadcasts From The Watchtower

Freezeray five:  Black Nerd problems ZERO YEAR

1/17/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture







Black Nerd Problems is one of the few nerd sites that makes me think and laugh at the same time, and BNP's livetweets during shows like Walking Dead and The Flash are must-read hashtags when you're watching along with them (#DemDeadz and #DatFlash are the tags to follow).  We decided to pick the brain of BNP head honcho WIlliam Evans about the upcoming pen-and-paper version of the website, Black Nerd Problems:  Zero Year.


Picture
1.  Let's pretend that I'm someone who's never been to the Black Nerd Problems site because I got caught up in a YouTube rabbit hole of Epic Rap Battles for the last year or so.  Tell me briefly what you're all about.

               Black Nerd Problems is an unapologetic deluge of nerd-centric and geek commentary from the perspective of people of color. Every topic that becomes an editorial or a review on the site isn't political, but just the fact that we are people of color that revel in pop and niche culture with our own voice is still political. We nerd hard at BNP, but we speak from a perspective that is still under-reported and I think that makes what we have to say very significant.

2.  What if I'm a BNP regular?   What will the book offer me that I can't get on the site?

                We're putting a lot of original content into the book to reward the people that have been with us from the beginning. There will be plenty of editorials and features that will only appear in the book (never online) including from people that aren't part of our regular staff. Some of our archived content will have some additional commentary attached to them as well. Whether it's background or anecdotal text, we hope those elements will offer some new insight to pieces that people may have already been familiar to from the site. We will also have a lot of original artwork featured that will be exclusive to the book as well.

3.  Part of Zero Year is going to be a Greatest Hits album.   Fire off a few hit singles we can look forward to.

              You know, we're pretty proud about a lot of the content that people have gravitated to on the site. Our biggest problem in editing the book is going to be what gets left out simply due to space. We haven't made any decisions yet, but I can say that some of my personal favorites that represent our mission well are the ones that deal with social politics and identity. Columns such as "I am Woman, I am Nerd" from Carrie McClain or "Exploring Identity as a Gamer" from Ian Khadan. I'm a sucker for a good personal narrative and those along with many others from the site really illustrate why this site exists in the first place.

4.  One of the coolest things about running a site are some of the unexpected interactions that occur.  What's one of the most memorable exchanges you've had as a result of BNP?

              I wrote a piece regarding the newest version of Captain Marvel and how the writer, Kelly Sue DeConnick, cleverly went against type by not having the hero Carol Danvers be the White Savior. About a week or so later, someone forwarded me Kelly Sue's tumblr where she shared my column. That led to me interviewing her on two separate occasions and having a conversation with her husband (and also one of my writing heroes) Matt Fraction when he visited Columbus. That's one of many that the staff members have experienced, but Kelly Sue is my favorite.

5.  If there's one person in the nerd world you'd want to get a copy of Black Nerd Problems: Zero Year, who would it be, and why?

              You know, if I could send it to one person with hopes that they would read it, I would have to say Aisha Tyler. Look, I love Neil DeGrasse Tyson as much as the next nerd, but I've always been a big Aisha fan, ever since I saw her rocking the pistol from Halo: Combat Evolved at E3 one year. She's the quintessential Black Nerd for me, but maybe I'm just hoping that Lana Kane makes a BNP reference on Archer someday.


Black Nerd Problems: Zero Year will be available from FreezeRay Press in May 2015.  FInd out more about it here.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    FREEZE-RATED:

    The FreezeRay Blog!  From the hearts and mind of the staff, these are the things that get us geeked.  In the best way.

    Archives

    May 2021
    March 2021
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    August 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    October 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    July 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Adam Hart
    Alton Sterling
    Amulet
    Atari Landfill
    Black Nerd Problems
    Boredom Break
    Boss Fight Books
    Cartridge Lit
    Comic Book Shops
    Cyborg
    Dalton Day
    Death Note
    Ellyn Touchette
    Eric Morago
    Fake Knife
    Fantasy Poetry Slam
    Freezeray Press
    Gene Hackman
    Geoff Trenchard
    Hanif Abdurraqib
    Hobble Creek Review
    Indiegogo
    Jason Bayani
    #JokerY1
    Joker Year One
    Mikkel Snyder
    Nicole Homer
    Noble/GASP! Qtrly
    Oprah Winfrey
    Pecking Order
    Philando Castile
    Pushcart Prize
    Rain Party And Disaster Society
    Rob Sturma
    Rodney Wilder
    Shinigami
    Star Clipper
    Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
    Teen Titans Go
    Top 5 Albums
    Victor Infante
    Video Games
    William Evans
    Wondercon
    Write Bloody
    X-Men
    X-men Days Of Future Past
    Zine Club

Proudly powered by Weebly