Quite literally, swamped. I have never had so much work due in so little time before in my life.
. . . Well, okay, I have, but I still hate it! I might not be able to check in again until next week. If that does turn out to be the unhappy case, do not worry. I will be back.
Speaking of swamps, my history professor randomly asked the class "What is a morass? Anyone know what a morass is?" yesterday during lecture.
I immediately answered with the first word that came to my mind: "A quagmire."
*Sigh* Sometimes being an author and knowing too many synonyms to a word is confusing. But still, how was I supposed to know he was just looking for 'swamp'?
Wow, I would have done the same thing, so don't worry. I actually have had similar occasions at English classes before. Usually I end up wondering if I can hide my head under the table without my professor asking me what on earth I'm doing.
ReplyDeleteI hope you do well, and I understand the disappearing into Mount Homework for a while. I'll be looking forward to hearing from you soon, though! Do you want me to delay calling you until next week sometime?
-Laura
Hey!
ReplyDeleteTell me about Virgil. I saw a book by him on your shelfari. I'm reading Beowulf with my brother right now, and he's interested in tackling Virgil, and I would be too, sometime. Is it good? What is it better/ or similar too?
Love your playlist. Aren't those fun? I like the goo goo dolls, and I've been curious about the edward scissorhands soundtrack.
For Swamped, well...if you had said swamp he would have wanted quagmire. :D I would have stumbled over whatever word I chose.
("Fep...I mean fen. A fen.")
oh i almost forgot...
ReplyDeleteI've read the two princesses of bamarre, and it was very interesting. :D I liked it.
Laura: This is my busy week. Next week Friday would be good :)
ReplyDeleteAnna: The Aeneid by Virgil is a very good read. Ever read The Iliad? Well, it's similar in structure, but very different stylistically, as Virgil's characters are much more vulnerable and human than Homer's were. I recommend it very much. It is more similar to The Iliad than to Beowulf, but all of the above are fantastic poems (and don't forget the Song of Roland!)
I have read part of the Iliad. Virgil sounds interesting...I would like to read it sometime, with my bro.
ReplyDeleteHullo!
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking about something and I thought I would throw it out for discussion.
What, in your opinion draws the reader and the character most easily into the fantasy world that they are about to enter?
I'm working on my story, and I've been thinking about that today....
for instance:
In Harry Potter, Harry starts getting letters, and owls show up at the Dursley's, and then Hagrid is the one that actually introduces him to it.
In Narnia, Lucy steps in and meets a Mr. Tumnus, a faun.
In E.T., Elliot is frightened by the little extra-terrestrial, and recognizes that whatever it is isn't normal, which prompts him to go looking for it.
In the Hobbit, Bilbo is visited by Gandalf, and then thirteen dwarves, and they sort of drag him in.
In the Lord of the Rings, it is again Gandalf but also the ring that forces Frodo to enter the great unknown.
What do you guys think? What is the best way to draw the character and the reader in? A creature/person from the place that you are trying to draw them into?
An object of special significance?
This comment would probably make a good blog post, it's so long. But seriously, what do you think?
Anna
PS What's Nighthawk doing these days? :D I want to find out what happens!
Hey Anna, sorry it took me so long to reply to your interesting musings . . .
ReplyDeleteI think that, for me anyway, I need the style of the writing itself to be excellent. But aside from that, a story should be about ordinary people. I mean, the protagonist can be a super-skilled warrior elf with mind-reading powers or whatever, but he has to be relatable. He can't THINK that he's awesome, or if he does, the job of the story should be to take him down!
Having something abrupt and wonderful happen--like meeting Tumnus in a wood in a wardrobe, like you said--is also a very good method. But again, here Tumnus is outlandish, but he doesn't THINK he is, so he's endearing. And Lucy doesn't just stand about flabbergasted at the unexpected forest. She wants to learn and is trusting . . . which relates to the reader, who is also entering a magical world and wants to know more.
Hm, that's interesting . . .
I think that drawing the characters in is really important. I think about my story all the time, and I've decided to adopt the creature/crisis thing.
ReplyDelete(parents have disappeared, living with eccentric uncle, meeting a new and unlikely friend, etc.)
I just started thinking about all that, because beginnings are awful. I hate beginnings. Trying to think up a creative one is maddening, and reading the beginning of a book that doesn't sound promising is awful. I did that recently and endured 200 pages of bad writing before I realized that the bad beginning was a warning of what was to come. I quit the book.
Afterthought:
ReplyDeleteBut great beginnings are so rewarding! They're just difficult to find.