crimini

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:10:27 GMT

Happy Birthday retrobabble!!!

go, joe! no, joe.

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:55:01 GMT

Rented "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra".

It would have been adequately enjoyable as a cartoon on Saturday morning. It even had a moment of mwhahahaha from the evil villain, who ends up calling himself the Commander. With plenty of villainous monologuing.

In some ways, I would have enjoyed the movie more if the villain had actually laughed more with maniacal glee. Instead, we don't really get to see the eeeevil geeenius until the last 1/4 of the movie, and by then, the revelation doesn't matter. The impact is lost in the midst of "meh".

Too bad. I loved seeing the Joes kick Cobra's butt every Saturday morning. I still think Snake Eyes is the best character, but that's just cos I like ninjas. And the fact that the good ninja wore black while the bad ninja wore white. Cheezy, but awesome!

What's up next:
Masters of the Universe (He-Man)
Thundercats
Smurfs

Any more I missed?

How to avoid getting an agent

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:44:47 GMT

Good points made by an agent about writers being negative.

I thought this was succinct:
And of course, all that negativity begs the question: why are you trying so hard to be part of an industry that you clearly disdain?

writerly stuff

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:03:12 GMT

From Robert McKee's Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting, which I find applicable to novel writing (basic overall storytelling):

The measure of the value of a character's desire is in direct proportion to the risk he's willing to take to achieve it; the greater the value, the greater the risk.

The instant the audience has sufficient understanding of character and world to react fully, execute your Inciting Incident.

The Inciting Incident: radically upsets the balance of forces in the protag's life.

[When thinking about your scene] Does the Inciting Incident:
--radically upset the balance of forces in the protag's life?
--arouse in the protag the desire to restore balance?
--inspire the conscious desire for that object he feels would restore balance?
--bring to life an unconscious desire that contradicts need?
--launch the protag on quest for desire?
--raise MAJOR DRAMATIC QUESTION (how will this turn out?) in the mind of the audience?
--project image of Obligatory scene?

Because of the Inciting Incident, the Climax had to happen.

A SCENE is an action through conflict in more or less continuous time and space that turns the value-charged condition of a character's life on at least one value with a degree of perceptible significance. Ideally, every scene is a STORY EVENT.

What value is at stake in my character's life at this moment? How is this value charged at the top of the scene? Look at the close of the scene and ask, "Where is the value now?" If the answer is the same at the top and bottom, why is the scene needed?

[Generally speaking, a lot of this stuff isn't only about screenwriting, but about unveiling the story in the way the writer intended. Breaking stuff down in some of these terms can help writers identify and weed out the saggy bits in their work. The "talking heads" chapters where a lot of "as you know, Bob" stuff appears. Sometimes, you need to put in some exposition to show character development, but there has to be much more going on than the writer using a character as vehicles to move objects or to tell the reader something. There are some writers who can get away with the talking heads; but the characters are still different at the end of those scenes than they were in the beginning, and that's what I think McKee is talking about (especially since movies are mostly talking heads expressing emotions either through action or reaction. It's also why I think a lot of action-adventure movies are so flat--there aren't any feelings; just a lot of reacting to events. And I like a big explosion as much as the next guy, but seeing the superhero pummel the supervillian without any sort of feeling is about as interesting as watching grass grow. And I know you know what I'm talking about.]

sparkly vampires

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:12:31 GMT

In an effort to really understand the phenom that is the Twilight thing, I rented the movie.

a) This is not a vampire movie.
b) This is a teen romance movie.
c) This is not a good movie.

Aside from all the kerfuffle about how bad Meyers can write, I tried to look at the movie with an objective eye. Lots of so-so novels have been adapted into entertaining and enjoyable movies. A good screenplay, adequate acting, and compelling direction can all add to the story rather than skim the already diluted surface.

I believe the Twilight movie fails for the #1 crime of storytelling: too much telling, not enough showing. We're supposed to believe the romance between Bella and Edward (and the whole bloodsucking thing is really just a huge club-on-the-head metaphor for sex--it's purty darn obvious) just happened instantaneously. Or perhaps not. But the film doesn't show them connecting or getting to know one another or any other reason why a new girl in town is suddenly fully blown away by the cute, but weird guy when all these other guys are fluttering around her begging for her attention.

I get the whole teen angst; Bella isn't angsty, she's got ennui. There's a difference. Angst is about understanding and fitting in, of finding one's identity and getting people to recognize it. Ennui is just the slow depression over nothing. I didn't dislike Bella, but I sure didn't *like* her. I wanted to smack her and tell her to get over whatever it was that was bothering her. She liked her new stepdad, thought he made her mom happy. Didn't seem to dislike her emotionally distant father. In fact, they're two of a kind when it comes to liking their solo time. Fine, fine, that's all well and good. There wasn't anything in the movie that made me think that Bella shouldn't just go off and get turned into a bloodsucker--I mean, really, what's the problem? Edward and the rest of the clan seem to be just fine.

And perhaps that's the biggest problem of all. Edward tells Bella that he doesn't like being a monster, but he doesn't show it. I didn't see the conflict at all--I heard him saying words to that effect, but to me, they just sounded like a teenage boy who reallyreallyreally wants to hit that thing but can't for fear of some unknown reprecussion.

Which is another flaw of the story. At the end, Bella admits to him she is willing to do whatever it takes to be with him forever (an identifiable teen theme in many teen romances), and openly exposes her throat to him. Then he doesn't do it, looks pained about it, and The End. It's a terribly dissatisfying ending bereft of tension. We know Edward isn't going to turn Bella because he would have already done it when he was saving her from being turned by the other vampire. He had plenty of time to become her sire.

And I still don't know why he won't! Saying he doesn't want to end her life is pretty lame when his life, and the life of his family, seems pretty copacetic. Whatever the reason for him not being able to turn her, whether his own ethics or outside politics, it's never clearly shown in the film. And because of that, I never grokked the tension. The forbidden was confusing rather than titillating.

Edward, in the beginning, was creepy. More creepy than any of the other Cullen vamps. He's awkward and weird and just a little serial killer manic. Any reasonable romantic lead doesn't have these things in his character description, I don't think. The Cullens exist, but they don't seem particularly forced to remain secretive. They don't do a whole lot to stay incognito other than to disappear when the sun comes out because their skin turns glittery.

Again, I reiterate that this is not a vampire movie. I have not read anywhere about skin turning bedazzled in sunlight. It's grossly insulting to the whole vampire mythos. But then, this is a metaphor for Just Say No, so I guess it's as laughable as you want it to be.

Things that could have made it better:
1) Show the vampires as true monsters.
2) Show Edward's conflict with this part of him. Hence, angst.
3) Show why Bella and Edward have a relationship in the first place.
4) Show Bella's reasons for her ennui.
5) Show why it's bad to turn a human--the reason why Edward has to say No.

Last note: why do the Cullen "kids" have to go to school anyway? They could be home schooled. They're not teenagers anyway, so why pretend to be teens? I never saw a clear reason why the Cullens had to appear "normal" at all.

What I learned about the Twilight movie: if this had been just another teen romance movie not connected to any bestselling series, this probably would have been booed by the audience. Some might not have called it the worst movie ever seen, but there's so little action, so little tension, not enough quirky dialog or humor at all that I wonder who would go tell their friends to see it in the theaters. The actors are okay to look at, but so are so many other teen actors in other teen romances with vampires. It's Hollywood afterall.

If the consequences of turning Bella had been shown, then the action or decision not to act would have had much greater impact and would have made for a more understandable, if not minutely better, story. Note to Writers: this is how not to create tension and show conflict in your story.

In the end, no matter what you think about Meyers or her books, the screenplay and direction of the movie could have gone another way making for a more compelling and less hollow adaptation.

books

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:01:39 GMT

Sarah Langan hasn't been around for a tremendously long time, but if there's anyone who could inherit the King dynasty, I'd pin it on her.

I read The Keeper a few weeks ago and then went out and got Audrey's Door, which was just as enjoyable. Her other book, The Missing is on my list to read next.

If you like classic Stephen King horror/suspense, you'll really like Sarah Langan. And even if you don't like King, you may like Langan. I liked her subtle handling of character and place. Sure, her Bedford, Maine is definitely similar to King's Maine, but you wouldn't mistake one for the other. It's difficult not to compare her to King--they have the same ability to draw characters you want to read about and then set them in a town where awful things happen to them.

But unlike King's earlier works (blame it on the coke, booze or other, I dunno) that seem crowded with an overabundance of sharing, Langan's characters are much tighter, the books shorter. I wouldn't have minded longer stories from her, but overall, I thought the books were well done. I gobbled them right up, so that says something about the suspense. I just had to know what happened next.

I also read Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels' series, Magic Bites, Magic Burns, and Magic Strikes (I know, I'm slow to get to this stuff). These were gourmet popcorn--fun, entertaining, and lite. The plots were compelling and kept me reading; the characters were well drawn and held my attention. I can tell Andrews did her homework and kept the ante high with her inclusion of different mythological elements in each of the three books. By the last book, the writing is smooth as silk and feels effortless--her characters really pop off the page and shine. I'm especially thrilled that her vampires are nothing like the sappy, emotional, gothic all-but-human things dripping across page and screen these days (really, when I first read about her vamps and the People, I blurted out loud, "Thank GAWD"). I kept thinking that the world and her characters would make a great TV series--action, adventure, mythic fantasy critters, hot babe who can kick ass, romantic tension, and a plethora of plotlines to explore. Andrews' strengths lie in her subtle ability to show us her world and characters all the while pulling us along on a rollercoaster ride. I'm not a huge fan of the "paranormal romance" category and I don't normally look twice at that section of the bookstore, but if you're looking for this kind of story and like female protags who aren't passive victims waiting around for their Prince Charming, then this is the series to read.

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 17:13:43 GMT

Weather is chilly; fall has finally set in. I moved my sewing table to another wall, which means I had to clear off the clutter. That led to my making a promised tote for a friend who is knitting me socks. I wish I had the patience to learn to knit socks cos I really really like colorful knitted socks.

I missed the deadline for the Plush Team's Breast Cancer fund raiser, but feel free to check out all the awesome entries at the team site.

Had drinks with a handful of Seattle-ite book people--some writers, some ex-editors, some new writers. Funny enough, I'll see most of them on Sunday at an Oktoberfest gathering. Small world, I tell ya.

Other than that, life is pretty copacetic here. No complaints, no earth shattering kaboom.

I admit I really enjoy the Clone Wars animated series a peck of a lot better than the prequel movies. Actually, it's more than a peck, it's a bushel. There are big gaping holes in the whole Jedi power thing, but it's a half-hour kid-oriented series. I liked the traditional animated series done earlier (for those who don't know, there was a pen-ink animated series done a few years ago with awesome styling and really good stories. There are comics based on that series that mimic the style and they are just great), but I don't mind this stylised CG version.

you can't make this stuff up

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 17:28:12 GMT

I don't post regularly about the whole health care debate and the ludicrous arguments that get thrown back and forth from both sides of the fence. The basic issue (imo) hasn't even been touched upon, nor commented on by any of our elected officials (that is, to tear down the entire "insurance" system altogether--the idea that we need to pay-to-play in the event that something "might" or "might not" happen, but that we do not, in fact, reap any of the accrued interest of our payment into this system has made me leery, critical and often angry at the paper pushers. I know doctors and other people who offer care are not at fault (although we all know there are "health" care practitioners out there who are only interested in the payouts). Listening to the debate is frustrating. I'm also frustrated that the media seem complicit in doing very little to inform the general public.

It's stuff like this that seem unbelievable given that this is an elected official, given that in any other circumstance the talk would not be civilized. There are smiles and chuckles, but really, did no one else think, "WTF did he just say?!"

It's crap like this that makes me understand anarchists just a little bit.

autumn

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 16:22:08 GMT

Woke up this morning to rainy, cloudy, coolish weather--typical Autumn stuff.

It instantly had me planning all sorts of roasted veggie foods, roasted chicken, stews, pot pies, you name it.

And then I started cataloguing my sweaters and hoodies.

Autumn is my favorite time of year (partly sunny is in the forecast for this upcoming week, so it's not quite autumn yet).

chicken in milk

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:52:52 GMT

I made this recipe last night for Sunday dinner.

Image is from the recipe on the Jamie Oliver site .

Ours looked pretty much like the picture. And while it does seem odd--milk and lemon zest?--the resulting sauce is super tasty. It's also a super easy one-pot recipe--brown a whole chicken in butter and olive oil, drain, add sage, garlic, cinnamon stick, milk and zest of 2 lemons. Cook for 1.5 hours. Done. We have a cast iron Dutch oven--I put the lid on for 45 minutes and then took the lid off for 45 minutes, basted once. Good eats indeed.

We ate it over baby spinach that wilted slightly with the warm sauce poured over and mashed some potatoes that I smoothed out with a stick blender upon request (I like rustic chunks of potatoes, but the boy wanted creamy smooth, so we just went with that).

Leftovers will be lunch today--nomnomnom.

If you're looking for a new chicken recipe, definitely give this a try. It's odd and surprisingly tasty. It won't replace our normal herb-under-skin-and-in-cavity roast chicken, but it's a nice alternative when we're looking to make a chicken.

bunny

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 06:48:23 GMT

Needs eyes, still, I think. Maybe a ghost bunny?

needlefelties

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:16:50 GMT

A small handful of little critters. I'd like more colors to play with. I also have no idea why I'm working in such teeeny tiny sizes. I think I just don't pull enough felt off and when I get to a shape, I just go with it.

I'm really liking the wispy fringe on top of the two on the right--reminds me of muppets. I suppose I could add mouths to them, but I really like them without.

Right now, though, I need to get some higher density foam--the foam I have just hangs on to the fibers so I can never get a truly smooth exterior.

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:12:56 GMT

Happy Birthday raecarson!

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 03:40:01 GMT

It's almost the end of August and what have I done?

* Lots and lots of writing, still WIP.
* Moved furniture, so now I have the whole downstairs to myself. It's a lot of space. I've been neglecting all of it except my desk area... because I am (mostly) writing.
* Signed up for Happkido classes. Will begin in September with the boy and husband. I expect to be sore for most of the month. And possibly into October.
* Started to needlefelt. Having fun. Should do more.
* Finally visited the EMP/SFF Museum. Not wowed by either. Thought there could have been more for the cost of entry. Understand they're out of money, but thought the SFF thing really lacked.
* Ate Dim Sum today. Gained 45 lbs. Walked several blocks in shoes that hurt feet. Still gained 45 lbs.
* Survived record breaking summer heat wave.
* Started watching Torchwood. Fun stuff. Very British.
* Decided to grow my hair out again... what? Winter is coming. Time to grow the hair.

garden

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 07:05:35 GMT

Heat wave has passed. Strawberry plant suffered the most. Saved everything else--basil LOVED it. I hope it takes over.

Cukes are growing. Now I have to figure out when they're ripe enough to pick. Cherry tomatoes are also growing, but not maturing. They're still green. I should take a photo.

I really hope the moles don't eat the roots out from under the plants.

hot

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:12:51 GMT

It's hot here.

It's record breaking hot here.

Sitting in a kiddie pool in the backyard is more refreshing than I thought possible.

Tomorrow, temps expected to hit 100.

We are not prepared!

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:50:13 GMT

Sam Raimi to direct WoW movie.

I have no comment on this other than to wait and see if a) it actually gets made, b) Raimi remains the director, c) who writes the screenplay (which also means which/what story line they will decide to follow/adapt), d) who they cast.

All I want to know is whether or not they're going to keep some of the in-game jokes in the movie... because that would just be awesome!

"They're real... they're not mine, but they're real." --female, Forsaken

"We're allied with the Tauren? Fantastic! We'll have steak twice a week!" --male, Bloodelf

"Someday, I'm going to find the nuggets on a chicken." --female, gnome

"Roses are grey, violets are grey, I'm dead and colorblind." --male, Forsaken

"Moo. You happy now?" --male, Tauren

good eats

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:26:42 GMT

Almost-homemade miso soup and edamame for dinner last night. Yum.

I used a miso paste that I added to water, chopped up some tofu, dumped in some dried seaweed, and sprinkled some spring onion as garnish. N wanted noodles, so I dug out some rather old rice noodles, cooked those in hot water (drained them, then added more boiled water to the bowl), and then added them to the bowl before covering with miso.

I was pretty full, and pretty pleased that the miso paste came out pretty much like the kind of miso soup we get at a restaurant. Our local Asian foods market is pretty fully stocked with all this sort of stuff, but for the life of me, I couldn't find the block of seaweed you mix with dashi to make the stock. I found bonito flakes, wakame, and a heck of a lot of different brands of insta-miso, which we usually get, but it's pretty pricey for the 1/4 cup servings. And I wanted to make about 4 servings, not just individual portions. The paste I found ended up in the cold section with the tofu. And, of course, we couldn't leave without getting some rice cracker snacks, which are really really bad for you (there's a reason why I can't eat just one), and mochi. Nomnomnom!

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 16:33:43 GMT

We went to see T:RotF last night. It was fun, but wasn't as good as the first one. It lacked cohesion and really really could have used another edit round. Seriously, if you thought there were plot holes in the first movie, this one is worse than cheesecloth.

I admit I like the fluff that is big stuff going boom! I like robots beating the ever living crap out of each other. And I like stupid villains and their cheezy monologues. There are some moments in life I don't want to be challenged, nor provoked, nor take anything away from it other than the thrill ride. Call it the roller coaster moment.

There were just too many moments in the story that made me scratch my head wondering wtf they added *that thing* or why they didn't take *him* out or why they needed to insert *this* in the first place. And while I understand they're not following the stories of the Transformers from canon, there were some things that just never ever appeared in the universe at all as far as I can tell... and I won't mention it here for spoilers, but if you want you can comment on it below and beware those who don't want to know.

It felt like the studio got its grubby little hands into instead of just letting the director, screenwriters, and actors make their movie. Really.

In other news: 2012 has Roland Emmerich destroying the White House yet again. It's another END OF THE WORLD movie that pretty much puts together all the other End of the World movies together. I don't know about its chance of longevity at the box office. If you've seen Deep Impact and The Day After Tomorrow, then that pretty much looks like 2012. I'm only basing this on the trailer, but still...

Can't wait to see 9. Post-apocolyptic steampunk fantasy. OMG! Squeee! I lovelovelovelove the design of this movie!

ruff

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:47:51 GMT

new stuffie

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 20:55:20 GMT

*smooches*

I don't know what it is. I had a dream about making it, winged the entire "pattern" (which is pretty much how I make most of my stuffies), and finished it today.

If I make another one, I think I will make the head smaller, maybe elongate the tail to resemble an actual tail, and make the feet wider, perhaps adding in pellets for a beanbaggy weight.

I also had a dream about a bunch of alien-ish type of critters, but I don't think I can make them with fleece. Which means I need some rather stiff wool felt. And I have none. *sigh* I need to sell some more stuff before I can buy new materials... I should just take my cotton scraps and start making coasters and other patchwork stuff...

plushies

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 07:13:10 GMT

Iron Plush judging has begun over on the Plush Team blog. Go see all the really spectacular entries!

I made chocolate dipped strawberries. :D

Phantom Menace

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:42:11 GMT

Kidlet wanted to watch some Anakin Star Wars, so we rented The Phantom Menace, which gives me hives every time I think about it. I still think the best part of the movie was the fight between Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and Darth Maul. If only there just could have been more of that in the series, but alas.

Still, the 6-year-old was gleeful about the whole thing, podrace and all. And it made me think back to my 6-year-old self watching The Adventures of Luke Skywalker (I still can't think of it as "A New Hope") and how much that made an impression on my life. The big difference is that I can still watch SW today.

I guess I'm going to have to wait awhile to see if my kid considers Phantom part of his top ten list. :)

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:17:38 GMT

My life just got busier... right when school ends. Of course.

books in 15

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:49:13 GMT

My list of books in 15 minutes.

Rules: Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you've read that will always stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 minutes.

In no particular order:
1. Dune, Frank Herbert
2. The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien
3. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle
4. The Gunslinger, Stephen King
5. A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula Le Guin
6. A Separate Peace, John Knowles
7. The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan
8. The Chicago Manual of Style
9. Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting, Robert McKee
10. Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card
11. Grass, Sheri S. Tepper
12. The Doomsday Book, Connie Willis
13. The Essential Ellison, Harlan Ellison
14. Invisible Cities, Italo Calvino
15. the entire run of Sandman, Neil Gaiman and a bunch of different artists because a graphic novel is not much fun without the graphics

I think we all could go on and on with the list. These were just the first 15 that popped into my head... and I included the Chicago Manual because it's something I refer to on a daily basis even when I'm not aware I'm doing it. It's just one of those things that's engraved in the gray matter.