So, I haven't posted in a while, mostly cause I spent the last week teaching middle schoolers how to be active and involved citizens, which was a lot of fun, just time consuming.
And this is going to be short, because time is of the essence, although I have been feeling lately, that time is always of the essence. Work deadlines, Moving deadlines, social events, etc. Sometimes I feel like I am too busy living life to actually enjoy the life I am living.
Today I have to format and print 10 documents, make sure two orders which keep being returned are shipped again, all using a printer that doesn't like to work, and staff that doesn't like to edit things.
After which I am going home to pack for my move this weekend, I also need to go furniture shopping, paint walls, buy curtains, stain wood, clean, and hopefully find time to finish the book I have been reading for several months.
And next week isn't any better, I don't have as much "work" work to do, but I have cleaners coming on Tuesday, a critique on Wednesday, then I am going out of town on Saturday coming back Sunday. Then the following week I am going out of town Monday night and coming home Tuesday evening.
Right now I just feel like I need to step back and smell the roses. So that is my goal for the weekend, between all the errands, and all the moving, and driving, and cleaning and packing, and writing, and sleeping, I want to spend about an hour reading, and at least 10 minutes doing nothing, except maybe drinking wine and listening to music.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Evil for Evils Sake
I have folders for each of my characters. In each I have character sketches, cut scenes, random things, character outlines, etc. One of these folders is titled Fitz, and it is by far the biggest folder I have. Now, you could argue Fitzroy is not a main character. If you look at the words on page Fitzroy has you would be right, he isn’t a Leni, or a Damien. But he is an essential character. In fact, to me, he is pretty much more important than Leni, my main character. This isn’t because he is my favorite character, but because he drives the plot. In fact he is the only one that does.
Fitzroy is the “bad guy” although he would be exceptionally surprised to hear that. In his mind, Fitzroy has character flaws; he knows he can be quite ruthless, he knows he has a temper. But he also knows there are many people out there who are ruthless with tempers, who are quite nice guys, and Fitzroy is a nice guy, people close to Lenin probably also called Lenin a nice guy.
The thing is, the reason why Fitzroy has way more character development, he not evil for evil’s sake. He isn’t Sauron. The famous bad guy from LOTR, who all through an entire series, you are never given a reason why he is evil and must be stopped. It would be very easy to make Fitzroy evil for just the sake of needing a bad guy. If he is evil for the sake of being evil I have no need to explain his rational, he doesn’t even need a rational.
If he is evil for the sake of being evil, he needs no reason to take evil steps. If he is not evil for the sake of being evil he needs concrete reasons for being evil. More than that, he needs understandable motives. When I say that I mean the reader has to see his motives, and they need to be rational to them. I want a bad guy, who readers will think, hmm, well given that background, and those choices, I might do that too. And that, takes background.
Song of the Day:
http://youtu.be/AJsrcbVGsa4
Fitzroy is the “bad guy” although he would be exceptionally surprised to hear that. In his mind, Fitzroy has character flaws; he knows he can be quite ruthless, he knows he has a temper. But he also knows there are many people out there who are ruthless with tempers, who are quite nice guys, and Fitzroy is a nice guy, people close to Lenin probably also called Lenin a nice guy.
The thing is, the reason why Fitzroy has way more character development, he not evil for evil’s sake. He isn’t Sauron. The famous bad guy from LOTR, who all through an entire series, you are never given a reason why he is evil and must be stopped. It would be very easy to make Fitzroy evil for just the sake of needing a bad guy. If he is evil for the sake of being evil I have no need to explain his rational, he doesn’t even need a rational.
If he is evil for the sake of being evil, he needs no reason to take evil steps. If he is not evil for the sake of being evil he needs concrete reasons for being evil. More than that, he needs understandable motives. When I say that I mean the reader has to see his motives, and they need to be rational to them. I want a bad guy, who readers will think, hmm, well given that background, and those choices, I might do that too. And that, takes background.
Song of the Day:
http://youtu.be/AJsrcbVGsa4
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Adds
I have adds on my blog, I dont know how they got there or how to get rid of them. I decided that I dont like them. But I also haven't decided that I dislike them enough to fight with blogger to get rid of them.
I want to get better at this(blogging). I really do, and I know wanting something isn't going to get me there.
From the song of the day:
Pale-faces and hollowed eyes
Buried under ruptured skies
Not every smile
means I'm laughing inside
Two-face and compromised
I've enraptured you with lies
Everything means nothings
and tonight everything is mine
From the bottom of my heart
Comes a cold dark feeling
I have buried so much
In the layers I'm peeling
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS4e36B8NdI
I want to get better at this(blogging). I really do, and I know wanting something isn't going to get me there.
From the song of the day:
Pale-faces and hollowed eyes
Buried under ruptured skies
Not every smile
means I'm laughing inside
Two-face and compromised
I've enraptured you with lies
Everything means nothings
and tonight everything is mine
From the bottom of my heart
Comes a cold dark feeling
I have buried so much
In the layers I'm peeling
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS4e36B8NdI
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