My goal, during this week of vacation, was to get to the end of Part One of this first draft of The Sorcerer's Daughter.
It took a little longer than I anticipated, but I made it, just a few minutes ago. And I'm exhausted.
The best part of setting and achieving a goal, though? The opportunity to reward oneself when one hits it.
Now I'm going to celebrate by giving myself a couple of days off from it. I'm going to work on painting and drawing, and catching up on my reading.
Right now I'm reading Berserker's Star, by Fred Saberhagen. If you're not familiar with the Berserker series, I suggest you check it out. The initial idea behind the stories--doomsday machines built by a long extinct civilization, haunting the Galaxy, wiping out life when they find it--is quite interesting to me.
I went out this morning and took some photos of some beautiful lilies that are blooming on the property around here, with an eye towards painting and/or drawing them. That'll be enough to keep me busy for a long while, I think.
I also did a fairly decent colored pencil drawing of a rose, based on a picture a friend sent me. Roses are really hard--there are a ton of subtle details you have to get just right or it won't look like a rose. This one does, sort of. I tried to post a picture of it here but for some reason Google won't let me. Dammit. Well, you're not missing anything, actually, but I was proud of it.
What's my next goal? I want to be finished with Part Two by the end of next month. There will be five parts, altogether, but I've found taking it one piece at a time is the best way to handle this sort of thing. All the while keeping the ending in mind, of course.
But first I'm going to let it rest for two or three days. We all could use the break, I think.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Rereading favorites
I have a question for those of you who consider yourselves avid readers.
Do you go back and reread a favorite book?
I ask this because I've been derided in the past by people--some of whom claim they are avid readers, themselves--because I'll go back and reread a book I particularly enjoyed. Their response is, "Why? What do you think you'll get out of it that you didn't the first time?"
I usually respond, "Do you only listen to a song you like only once?" The usual reply is, "No, but that's different." I'm not sure how it's different, and no-one has been able to explain it to me so far. I've taken a lot of crap from people because of this--for some reason people seem to think it's a character defect or something.
To me, rereading a treasured book, like The Lord of the Rings, is like dropping in on old friends that one hasn't seen in a long while. Sure, I know what's coming, and there won't be any surprises, but somehow that makes it more pleasurable for me, not less. I don't necessarily read it for the plot, but for the characters I love.
So, to restate the question--do you reread books? Why or why not?
Do you go back and reread a favorite book?
I ask this because I've been derided in the past by people--some of whom claim they are avid readers, themselves--because I'll go back and reread a book I particularly enjoyed. Their response is, "Why? What do you think you'll get out of it that you didn't the first time?"
I usually respond, "Do you only listen to a song you like only once?" The usual reply is, "No, but that's different." I'm not sure how it's different, and no-one has been able to explain it to me so far. I've taken a lot of crap from people because of this--for some reason people seem to think it's a character defect or something.
To me, rereading a treasured book, like The Lord of the Rings, is like dropping in on old friends that one hasn't seen in a long while. Sure, I know what's coming, and there won't be any surprises, but somehow that makes it more pleasurable for me, not less. I don't necessarily read it for the plot, but for the characters I love.
So, to restate the question--do you reread books? Why or why not?
Distinguishing between horror and action/adventure
This is the sort of thing I think about.
At what point does a horror franchise morph into an action/adventure franchise? It always happens--the question is, why?
Think about two movies I know you've seen--Alien and Aliens. The first is undoubtedly horror. The second, while it has horrific overtones, is more action/adventure. But why? What invisible line did the second film cross?
I think it has to do with knowledge, specifically, knowledge of the threat. In the first one the nature of the creature--even it's very existence--was unknown to the characters in the movie. Once it became a problem for them they had to struggle with their own lack of knowledge as they attempted to deal with it. In the second, the characters did have some knowledge about it--not much, but some, so it wasn't completely unknown.
That's the secret, the definition of horror--dealing with the unknown. Once it becomes known, it's no longer horror.
Why is this important anyway? It's probably not to many people. To me, though, it gives me a line, something to keep firmly in mind, as I work on this TV show project I've been thinking about for a while now. It starts out as horror and I want it to remain horror, and that means our heroes will need to be in the dark about whatever threat they are facing.
Fortunately, this won't be too hard, with the nature of the forces that will be bringing the threats the characters will be facing. As soon as one is figured out another, completely different one, will emerge and have to be dealt with.
On a random note--just did some book shopping at a local used book store, and found a hardback addition of John Crowley's Little, Big. For some reason this sort of freaked me out, and I had to buy it. I love those independent bookstores--they have just enough organization so that, if you're looking for something specific, you can find it, but they are just disorganized enough that you can encounter all sorts of things that you weren't looking for. Like the aforementioned Crowley. I also saw Tim Powers' novel, Declare, in the general fiction section instead of fantasy. Whoever buys that book, while probably looking for an espionage thriller (which it kind of is, actually) will be in for a shock with the supernatural elements. Yes, I've read it--I have it, actually--and it's a cracking good read, and I recommend it highly.
On another random note--as I was checking out the owner of the store asked if I was trading in some books, and I said no. (For the record, in addition to the Crowley, I had Fred Saberhagen's Berserker's Star, and Ramsey Campbell's Creatures of the Pool--one fantasy, one science fiction, one horror novel.) The owner laughed and said us science fiction/fantasy people never trade in books. I told her, "I don't either. They're mine."
My total tab? Twelve bucks. For three books, two of them hardcover.
Not bad at all.
At what point does a horror franchise morph into an action/adventure franchise? It always happens--the question is, why?
Think about two movies I know you've seen--Alien and Aliens. The first is undoubtedly horror. The second, while it has horrific overtones, is more action/adventure. But why? What invisible line did the second film cross?
I think it has to do with knowledge, specifically, knowledge of the threat. In the first one the nature of the creature--even it's very existence--was unknown to the characters in the movie. Once it became a problem for them they had to struggle with their own lack of knowledge as they attempted to deal with it. In the second, the characters did have some knowledge about it--not much, but some, so it wasn't completely unknown.
That's the secret, the definition of horror--dealing with the unknown. Once it becomes known, it's no longer horror.
Why is this important anyway? It's probably not to many people. To me, though, it gives me a line, something to keep firmly in mind, as I work on this TV show project I've been thinking about for a while now. It starts out as horror and I want it to remain horror, and that means our heroes will need to be in the dark about whatever threat they are facing.
Fortunately, this won't be too hard, with the nature of the forces that will be bringing the threats the characters will be facing. As soon as one is figured out another, completely different one, will emerge and have to be dealt with.
On a random note--just did some book shopping at a local used book store, and found a hardback addition of John Crowley's Little, Big. For some reason this sort of freaked me out, and I had to buy it. I love those independent bookstores--they have just enough organization so that, if you're looking for something specific, you can find it, but they are just disorganized enough that you can encounter all sorts of things that you weren't looking for. Like the aforementioned Crowley. I also saw Tim Powers' novel, Declare, in the general fiction section instead of fantasy. Whoever buys that book, while probably looking for an espionage thriller (which it kind of is, actually) will be in for a shock with the supernatural elements. Yes, I've read it--I have it, actually--and it's a cracking good read, and I recommend it highly.
On another random note--as I was checking out the owner of the store asked if I was trading in some books, and I said no. (For the record, in addition to the Crowley, I had Fred Saberhagen's Berserker's Star, and Ramsey Campbell's Creatures of the Pool--one fantasy, one science fiction, one horror novel.) The owner laughed and said us science fiction/fantasy people never trade in books. I told her, "I don't either. They're mine."
My total tab? Twelve bucks. For three books, two of them hardcover.
Not bad at all.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Staycation randomocity
I'm taking this week off from work. No, I'm not going anywhere.
I had an appointment earlier today and, when I was scheduling the time off from work for that, I noticed that this Friday is Good Friday, which is a holiday for us. So, I decided, what the hell, and scheduled the whole week.
I'm using the time to get back to my neglected project, The Sorcerer's Daughter, among other things. My goal is to be done with Part One by the end of the week. I figured that would be easy but, after working on it a while this morning, I see that I have a bit more work than I thought.
Oh, well. I'm a writer, right? That's what I do. So, that's what I'll be doing. Writing.
Also going to work on this treatment for a RomCom that I keep talking about but still haven't done. I may do another one, too, for a private detective sort of film that I originally wanted to do as a novel.
I also got a few errands I want to run, sometime this week--there's this Chinese restaurant that I want to try, for one thing, and I want to go back to the used book store for a little shopping. And I need some new shoes, dammit--the ones I wear to work have holes in the soles. Hopefully, I can find another pair like them. They're very comfortable and I've had them a long time.
Plus, I plan to watch a few movies. Mostly old favorites that I haven't seen in a while. Yes, one I plan to watch is Alien. I may sneak in Prometheus, too. And a few others.
I also plan to paint, relax, and do some TV watching, too.
This is the exciting life of the up-and-coming writer. Not everyone is cut out for it.
I had an appointment earlier today and, when I was scheduling the time off from work for that, I noticed that this Friday is Good Friday, which is a holiday for us. So, I decided, what the hell, and scheduled the whole week.
I'm using the time to get back to my neglected project, The Sorcerer's Daughter, among other things. My goal is to be done with Part One by the end of the week. I figured that would be easy but, after working on it a while this morning, I see that I have a bit more work than I thought.
Oh, well. I'm a writer, right? That's what I do. So, that's what I'll be doing. Writing.
Also going to work on this treatment for a RomCom that I keep talking about but still haven't done. I may do another one, too, for a private detective sort of film that I originally wanted to do as a novel.
I also got a few errands I want to run, sometime this week--there's this Chinese restaurant that I want to try, for one thing, and I want to go back to the used book store for a little shopping. And I need some new shoes, dammit--the ones I wear to work have holes in the soles. Hopefully, I can find another pair like them. They're very comfortable and I've had them a long time.
Plus, I plan to watch a few movies. Mostly old favorites that I haven't seen in a while. Yes, one I plan to watch is Alien. I may sneak in Prometheus, too. And a few others.
I also plan to paint, relax, and do some TV watching, too.
This is the exciting life of the up-and-coming writer. Not everyone is cut out for it.
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Seasonal allergy randomocity
The pollen count is in the "extremely high" range here today.
It's mostly trees. Mostly oak. Which is the worst, for me.
Sadly, it's also a beautiful day outside. I actually went out there earlier and my eyes haven't swollen shut yet, though my voice has this raspy quality it gets during days like this. We'll see if there are any further consequences.
Sorry I haven't written anything in a while here. I've had this inability to focus over the past few days. I'm guessing spring fever.
My thoughts are like millions of shards of broken glass in my head. Every time I move, a different shard comes into focus, and I lose the previous one. Makes it really hard to follow through on anything.
I get like this sometimes. I guess everybody does. Hopefully, it won't last long and I'll be able to concentrate once again.
Fortunately, I should be able to manage to bang out a treatment for a film I've been thinking about doing for a long time. This one is a romantic comedy, which is definitely outside of my comfort zone. Can I be funny, on purpose? I guess we'll find out.
In other news, because of an elaborate accident almost a week ago that occurred because I'm really clumsy, I've managed to sprain some ligaments in my right foot. The good news is, it's getting better. The bad news is, it's still sore as hell. I'm glad I've got some loose-fitting shoes I can wear to work, and flip flops I can wear around the house.
That's about all that's up with me, at the moment. Sad, isn't it?
It's mostly trees. Mostly oak. Which is the worst, for me.
Sadly, it's also a beautiful day outside. I actually went out there earlier and my eyes haven't swollen shut yet, though my voice has this raspy quality it gets during days like this. We'll see if there are any further consequences.
Sorry I haven't written anything in a while here. I've had this inability to focus over the past few days. I'm guessing spring fever.
My thoughts are like millions of shards of broken glass in my head. Every time I move, a different shard comes into focus, and I lose the previous one. Makes it really hard to follow through on anything.
I get like this sometimes. I guess everybody does. Hopefully, it won't last long and I'll be able to concentrate once again.
Fortunately, I should be able to manage to bang out a treatment for a film I've been thinking about doing for a long time. This one is a romantic comedy, which is definitely outside of my comfort zone. Can I be funny, on purpose? I guess we'll find out.
In other news, because of an elaborate accident almost a week ago that occurred because I'm really clumsy, I've managed to sprain some ligaments in my right foot. The good news is, it's getting better. The bad news is, it's still sore as hell. I'm glad I've got some loose-fitting shoes I can wear to work, and flip flops I can wear around the house.
That's about all that's up with me, at the moment. Sad, isn't it?
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