Posted by Martin Read on June 28, 1999 at 03:06:17:
In Reply to: Re: Unspiek, Baron Boddissey - any thoughts? posted by Dan Gunter on June 27, 1999 at 01:58:59:
: "Unspiek" I take to be "unspeak": suggesting "unspeakable," but also "not speaking." The pun (and I'm pretty sure I'm not just making it up) suggests that Baron Boddissey is not fully Vance's mouthpiece; or maybe he is, and Vance is playing a double bluff. He is, after all, a tremendously crafty writer!
: As for Boddissey: well, I don't see anything there. "Odyssey"? I can't get much out of it. "Odd"? Again, not helpful. "Bawd"? Entirely pointless. I wondered if it was a family name, or . . . ? Vance has invented an author named "Jan Holberk Vanz" in one of the works (and it seems to me it was one of the Demon Princes books, but I could be wrong).
What about Boden Zee (or is that See) - implying the Baron's writings were deep (profound), or alternatively that the Baron was merely "Wet." ;)