Year: 2009

What a cabbage!

The Twirl and Swirl of Letters

Languages have such wonderful little idioms. For example, in Italian when you want to say “damn!” you say “che cavolo!” That’s literally “What a cabbage!”

English has some quaint expressions as well. In New England, “wicked” is positive. “Wicked good” is several notches above good, and “Wicked awesome” is about as good as you can get.

For example:

Mike: “Did you see the Sox game last night?”

Jim: “See it? I was there! Beating the Yankees 12-0 was wicked awesome!”

 

In creating different cultures (I’m looking at fantasy and sci fi writers specifically), keep in mind the strange things that might not be translated literally. It could be very interesting to have a character translating from his language to another, or even from one area of the country to another, and having a complete miscommunication.

On mistakes and poor characters

The Twirl and Swirl of Letters

The mistake was one out of my control–I went to view a movie for class, and Netflix shipped the wrong one. Instead of viewing L’Ultimo Bacio, I had to watch The Last Kiss.

My assessment of the movie was that the characters were poorly created. It seemed like they all had two emotions: angry and angrier.

Perhaps this movie presents the emotional crisis of turning thirty accurately. The main male characters all strive for freedom from their various relationships, but they lack enough redeeming qualities to make them likeable. The female characters are even less dimensional. There’s the exhausted mother. The mother-to-be who is an emotional wreck.

Out of this rather bland and all-together easy to forget movie (even though I watched this mere hours ago, all I can think of was, “my God, I hate Zack Braff even more now” and “At least Casey Affleck was entertaining enough”), I got one little bit of insight:

To have a watchable/readable story, you need a decent enough conflict. To have a very entertaining story, you need well developed characters.

On charity and The Who

General Geekiness

The Who just finished their first tour of Australia in 40 years; fans have used this occasion to raise money for people in Victoria whose lives have been affected by the recent bush fires.

One member of the fan club made the quilt (by hand!) and got in touch with a few other members, and then Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey. Pete and Roger agreed to autograph the quilt, which is being sold on eBay.

All proceeds go to the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.

I probably won’t post other things like this, but I felt that more people should know about this. It is a wonderful example of people working together to make a difference.

On character development (part IV)

The Twirl and Swirl of Letters

The Character’s Mind
1. Would you describe the character as smart, dumb, or naïve?

He’s very intelligent.
2. Do they think quickly? Slowly? Are they quick-witted? Dull?

He thinks quickly (though never quickly enough for a good comeback), and is quick-witted.
3. What kind of education do they have?

He just completed his freshman year of college.
4. Does the character possess a knowledge or expertise in a particular field?

Not really. Jack of all trades, master of none. His passion is music.
5. Is the character impulsive or deliberate in reaching conclusions? Would you describe them as being logical, rational, or emotional?

He’s very deliberate and thinks everything over. He’s emotional with a touch of logic.
6. Do they think things out before they speak or blurt out the first thought?

He tries to think before he speaks, but sometimes feels like his foot perpetually resides in his mouth.
7. Are they contemplative at times? What occupies their mind when alone?

He is often contemplative, and finds himself thinking about philosophy when he’s alone.
8. Would they be considered an idealist? A pragmatist? A dreamer? An idea person? An action person?

An idealistic, dreaming idea guy.
9. Are they motivated chiefly by abstract ideals or practical rewards?

Ideals and dreams, mostly.
10. Can your character tell a joke?

Not very well. He makes jokes on obscure subjects, and finds that he has to explain them.

Grammar is your friend

The Twirl and Swirl of Letters

Grammar is your friend.

Really. Seriously. It’s that kind of friend who you sometimes ignore, but always understands what the hell you’re talking about, or at least attempting to.

I’m not out to write a how-to guide for grammar. That’s already been done by people who are more knowledgeable in the area than I am (in the process of typing this post, I made and caught three grammatical errors).

I would like to point out that good grammar is key, but quite a few people already know that.

Instead, a story.

When I was younger, I was involved in a creative writing group. One member thought that she was above using proper grammar–and that if she got her story published, her editor would figure it out.

I refused to read her story beyond the first paragraph.

While it may seem that grammar can be fixed by others, people should take the initiative to learn it themselves. Stop making excuses. Do it.