GregF

Some of you may have read that BZP member Nuhrii the Metruan made some suggestions regarding the name of the Mangai/Mangaia which I really liked and told him could be official. Ever since, I am getting buried in PMs from other people trying to find other uses for existing names or "explain" other storyline things, in hopes of getting to say they came up with something official too. I appreciate the enthusiasm, but I really don't have the time for this. Having to go through these suggestion PMs is taking time away from answering questions, not to mention working on 2009 story bible and 2010 story summary. Everything in BIONICLE does not need an extensive explanation and every term does not need to be used multiple times -- and even if they did, I have no room to work any of it into story at this late date. So while I praise you for your imagination, I need you guys to cool it. I'm not soliciting suggestions for this stuff right now and I don't really have time to evaluate them fairly. Greg

I've never had a library in another country invite me -- I have yet to have one outside of the state of Connecticut invite me. I tend to doubt there are many libraries in New Zealand that would want to pay my airfare and hotel to go there, sadly, cause I would love to see the place. Greg

Just a note that I am not going to be around much the next few weeks -- I leave for Comic-Con Wednesday and will not have Internet access, and then I am moving when I get back. So expect waits for answers to Q's. Greg

Shark - If they are paying for travel, they are generally paying expenses too. Most writers or illustrators charge a flat fee plus expenses for doing events. I don't ask for expenses if I am doing something in CT, because I know libraries don't have a lot of money to spend these days. Greg

No, no plans to go to Wizard World -- just Comic-Con in San Diego. Basically, for me to go someplace that isn't driving distance, somebody has to be paying for the travel -- and these days, I don't think most libraries/public schools can afford that. Greg

Another library event to announce -- Saturday, October 18th, 11:00 am at the Fairfield-Nichols branch of the Trumbull library in CT. Also -- if you send me a PM, please make sure your settings are set up to get messages back. Lately, people have sent me lists of questions and when I respond, I get a message that they have chosen not to be contactable by Messenger. As a result, I waste my time answering and they can't get their answers. Greg

Nothing too earth-shaking, just bits of news -- -- Probably the one of most import to you guys will be something I did yesterday -- the first ever official map of the BIONICLE universe. I sketched it out for a Polish BIONICLE guidebook set to come out this fall, and it will now be redrawn by some people who can actually draw So if there are Eastern European BIONICLE fans on here, expect to see some scans of it later this year. -- Busy month just past, getting that book done for some very wonderful publishing folks over there, and a busy one coming up -- a library event, my birthday, Comic-Con, and closing on a new house. Then the big move, but hopefully by September things will calm down ... just in time for me to head to Denmark for a 2010 BIONICLE story meeting. -- Spoke to Scholastic last week -- they are hopeful that the movie in 2009 will boost book sales. Meanwhile, sales are going okay in Germany and France and very well in Russia, as I understand it. Certainly the '03 movie did a lot for 2004 book sales -- I think BA #1 is still the best-selling book in the series. Greg

I'd hope so, but I don't see oil prices coming down anytime soon. I am hearing $200 a barrel by 2010, with $7 a gallon gasoline. Greg

Karzahni's Servant -- It's simple. Compare the price of oil now to the price of oil in 2001 when we did the Mata. To do a set with the same number of pieces as the Mata costs way more now than it did then. That's what inflation is all about -- you pay more for the same item. There aren't any extra pieces of bread in a loaf now than there used to be, but the loaf that cost me $1.50 a couple years ago costs $2.50 now. On the packaging issue -- I have no doubt they are looking into whether doing cardboard boxes for the sets would make sense or not. Greg

M&V are not increasing in price. As for the alt. fuels suggestion -- I agree, that would be a good idea, but if your goal is to have lower prices, that won't help. Alt. fuels that could be used for plastic are just as expensive if not more so at this point. Maybe someday tech advancements will change that. As for the suggestion that we use cheap plastic for packaging -- basically, then the package will look and feel cheap, which will make people assume the product inside is cheap and poor quality as well. Greg

BD - I think what you may see is that sales may become a little more seasonal. Parents who might not buy a $12.99 BIONICLE set just on a whim will still buy one for a birthday or holiday gift. Also, keep in mind that the canister sets are still on the low end of LEGO prices for sets in general. Looking at things like piece count and packaging are always options and we are doing them, but you have to also keep in mind how far you can go before it starts to hurt you. If the packaging is dull, the sets don't sell as well; if the piece count gets reduced too much, then the perceived value of the set goes down. Both of those can be just as big problems as higher sale prices can be. Greg

We have already discussed the price increase on the BIONICLE canister figures in this space, but I am seeing a lot of people for whom it is apparently news. So I thought repeating some of what I said before might be a benefit to at least a few people (even if you guys know this, you can pass it on to people who do not). Q. Why are BIONICLE canister prices going up? A. The simple answer is that BIONICLE sets are costing more to buy because they are costing us more to make. Oil prices have doubled in the last two years and show no sign of going back down. That means the cost of producing plastic goes up; the cost of running molding machines goes up; the cost of getting packaging produced goes up; and the cost of transporting the sets to stores goes up. When our manufacturing costs go up, we have two choices: keep prices where they are and make less profit on each sale (which we did for the last few years), or raise prices. If we don't make a profit on our sales, then there is no point in doing the line and we would just cancel it. Instead, we looked at which BIONICLE sets were most popular, and so the best able to survive a price increase, and bumped the prices up. We kept the prices the same for the more expensive sets. Q. Why are they going up by so much? A. Basically. because we held the line for a few years when we should have been raising prices. So now we have to do a bigger increase to get the prices where they should be. Q. Are the prices of all BIONICLE sets going up? A. No. Only the canister sets. Q. Are the prices going to go up again in 2009? A. There are no plans for price increase in 2009, no. Q. I live outside of the US. Are my set prices going to go up too? A. As far as I know, the answer is no. Prices in the US were lower than they should have been for years, which is why we have to do this increase. Customers in, say, Canada were already paying higher prices, so we don't need to increase theirs. Q. Is this something just LEGO Company is doing? A. No, it's a fact of economic life in 2008. Gas prices are up; food prices are up; prices of other toys and goods are up or soon will be. The dollar is weak, and so does not buy as much as it used to, and increasing energy costs mean anything that requires energy to produce or transport (in other words, everything) is going to go up. Q. I think LEGO is just doing this to make a bigger profit! A. No. LEGO Company is doing it to maintain the level of profit we had per set sale in the past. Keep in mind that LEGO does not get $12.99 for every canister set sold, because some of that money goes to the retailer and some of it goes to manufacturing. As manufacturing costs go up, you either have to ask the retailer to take less profit from the set or you have to take less -- unless you raise the price. That's why you are seeing prices up for everything everywhere. Q. I am going to boycott BIONICLE sets so the price will go back down! A. What you choose to spend money on is up to you, of course. But unless you think not buying a BIONICLE set is going to drive oil prices down, your boycott will only achieve two things: you won't have the sets, and if enough people follow your lead, the line will just get cancelled. Simple as that. Q. This is the worst thing LEGO has ever done! A. This is the most practical thing LEGO could do for the health and future of the line. Yes, it stings the wallet -- so does $4.30 gas and a $2.50 load of bread and a $3.50 comic book. But the alternative would have been no more BIONICLE at all, and I don't think anyone wants that. Any other questions, feel free to send them along. Greg

-- The animation test was of Antroz, and it was purely to show character movement and design -- and no, Antroz is not in the movie, but because the set is already out, he was the easiest one for their animators to play around with. -- As far as music goes, I think that is usually the last thing that gets done -- until the movie is animated, you really can't score it. -- I don't have any info on the voice cast, so I don't know if there are name actors in it. Personally, I hope not -- I think you fall into the "Oh, that's so and so playing that character!" trap, which knocks you right out of your immersion in the story. You wind up picturing the actual actor rather than focusing on the character. Greg

Shadowbolt -- Actually, Universal will be doing the marketing for the movie, rather than us. Nuhrii -- I believe I am getting a "Story By" credit this time around. Greg

I finally got to see the animation test for the new movie last week -- wow. For whatever my opinion is worth, it blows away any character animation ever done for BIONICLE and speaks to a lot of things BZPers have said they wanted in a new movie. If the whole movie can look like that, we are going to have quite a film. The latest news I have heard is that a lot of concept art is done, voice recording should be done soon, and the studio is straining at the leash to get started on the script for the 2010 movie. Greg

"Power lance" is the name agreed to by Billund for the weapon -- I can't call it something other than what it is being called in Shop At Home copy and on the web, etc. Greg

Quick update -- story will actually be in two parts, both up this week, so it should run 3000-4000 words in total. As for the divergence that creates it -- what would have happened if Matoro had hesitated just long enough for Voya Nui to slam into the gap and prevent his reaching the core with the Ignika? Sorek - The Level 3 readers are extremely short, only about 1500 words. They are basically a "BIONICLE Jr." series Scholastic wants to do, aimed at 6 year olds. So while I hope the stories will be okay, I am not putting things in them BIONICLE fans HAVE to know, because I don't expect fans your age are going to want to read them. Greg

Right now, the code doesn't lead to anything, but Bink is hoping to have this up by tomorrow or Tuesday. I must admit, I love doing these "what if?" kind of stories. Might be a good idea to do something like this for an S&T contest someday, if BZP is interested. Greg

Hey guys, For those of you who bought Bionicle Legends #10 and wonder what the web code in the book will lead to -- it looks like it will be a new short story called "The Kingdom," which will take place between Bionicle Legends #10 and the first BIONICLE Level 3 reader. It will include how Takanuva lost the Staff of Light and got the Power Lance, and introduce you to the "Kingdom of the Great Spirit," the somewhat bizarre ruling council, and of course, the ruler of the kingdom -- Turaga Takanuva! Should be up on the site early this week. Greg

Hey guys, Recently, in answer to a question, I had stated that Krakua was a MEMBER of the OOMN. This was a mistake on my part (unfortunately, with all the BIONICLE I write, sometimes I confuse things I thought about doing with what I actually did). So, to make up for the confusion, I am going to give you guys a sneak preview of Bionicle Legends #11: Divide and conquer, Pohatu thought as he piloted the Rockoh through a tight turn. The Makuta forces had split up. Gorast and Vamprah had gone after Icarax; Krika had vanished; Mutran, too, was nowhere in sight; and as soon as he spotted Takanuva, Antroz had sent Bitil and Chirox after him. That left Antroz alone against Lewa, Pohatu and Kopaka. Not that the Makuta seemed to mind. In full control of the Jetrax T6, he had darted around, over and through every obstacle Pohatu or Lewa had thrown in his way, and outpaced Kopaka with ease. Hitting and running, he had already done significant damage to the Rockoh. Now Lewa was on Antroz’s tail in the Axalara T9. The Toa of Air was buffeting Antroz’s ship with gale-force winds in an effort to crash it into the forest of stone pillars created by Pohatu. Earlier, Antroz had used his magnetic power to send the Axalara into a spin, and only quick action by Pohatu had kept it from crashing into the swamp. Antroz spotted the Rockoh and fired. The Jetrax’s Skyblasters hit their target, sending the Rockoh into a spin. Pohatu fought to right the ship, but it was headed for one of the stone pillars he had created. Quickly, he used his elemental power to shatter the rock before the ship collided with it. Lewa banked to the left, trying to flank Antroz. The Axalara was a more powerful ship, but the Jetrax was faster. He needed to box Antroz in somehow. Further behind, Kopaka had been working at the same thing. But every ice wall he threw up got blown to pieces by the Jetrax’s weapons or smashed by the vehicle itself. Every rain hail stones had been shrugged off by Antroz and bounced harmlessly off the Jetrax’s armored hull. Pohatu was back in the fight now, and he was angry. Timing it just right, he made a hand of stone erupt out of the swamp and grab the Jetrax. Before Antroz could power it free, Pohatu hit the controls and pulled the Rockoh’s wings in for a dive. Firing as he flew, he raked the side of the Jetrax with bolts of energy. Antroz jolted the craft free of the stone hand and wheeled in mid-air, firing at the Rockoh. When Pohatu dodged, Antroz used his gravity power to send the Toa’s ship plunging toward the swamp. Lewa closed in, rocking the Jetrax with fire from the Axalara’s Skyblasters and shattering the Makuta’s concentration. Free of the increased pull of gravity, Pohatu managed to right his ship just as it skimmed the surface of the water. Then it was Kopaka’s turn. He used his power to drop the temperature around the Jetrax hundreds of degrees in an instant, slowing down the vehicle’s engines and cutting its speed. Lewa and Pohatu closed in from both sides, ready to destroy the wounded craft. Only Kopaka was close enough to see what happened next. Just as the two Toa vessels came in range, Antroz disappeared from the cockpit using his power to teleport. Acting quickly, Kopaka threw up ice barriers in front of the Axalara and the Rockoh, shouting, “Stop!” Neither craft could turn in time, smashing into and through the ice. But the barriers had delayed them just long enough for Kopaka to climb behind the controls of the Jetrax. “All right,” said the Toa of Ice. “If this is the final battle, let’s make it one to remember.”

Oh, no, not at all -- MA is on the list, it's not that far from me. Greg

Pittsburgh, unfortunately, would be about a 9-hour drive for me, so unless the school/library was willing to pay for a plane ticket, not sure how I would make it there. Greg

PA is one of the places I told Scholastic I would be willing to go -- my Mom lives in PA, so I can stay over her house Basically, for me to get somewhere that isn't driving distance, someone has to pay for the travel, lodging, etc. Scholastic isn't going to, and outside of Comic-Con, it's doubtful LEGO would, so it winds up being the people doing the inviting. It's always possible Papercutz may want to send me someplace at some point, I don't know, they haven't talked to me about it. Greg

I am coming to California, Rho -- I am at San Diego Comic-Con, July 24-27, this year. Greg

Doing another library event -- July 10th, 1 pm, Willimantic Public Library, Willimantic, CT. Also, visit info for me will be posted on the www.scholastic.com/authorvisit site soon, so that schools and public libraries in the Northeast interested in having me come speak can find out how to make it happen. Greg