Whispers

When my world goes to pieces, I tend to read fanfiction. My own. Seriously. I do need to finish some of this stuff.

From arliddian:
Comment to this post, and I will list seven things I want you to talk about. They might make sense or they might be totally random.

Then post that list, with your commentary, to your journal. Other people can get lists from you, and the meme merrily perpetuates itself.


1) What is a book that you will always carry in your heart?

Anne of Green Gables and the rest of the series. The first was my first book given to me as a Christmas present and I still love it and read it often. I quote Anne and Philippa and Rachel Lynde more often than I expect myself to, and these books represent most of the good, innocent stuff of my childhood.


2) If you could only wear one colour for the rest of your life, what colour would you choose?

I do a lot of the one-color thing, and it always keeps changing on me. Now, I'm a little burned out on that and on a serious mixed-color kick. But if I could only pick one, I think I'd go with purple. Right now, anyway.


3) Think back to what you were like five years ago. How do you think you've grown and changed since then?

I'm a lot easier going when my life implodes—which it is currently doing. I try to avoid conflict more, but at the same time, I try to be less of a doormat. I'm more grateful.


4) What is your favourite movie from your childhood?

Tie: Hoosiers and The Secret Garden, hands down.


5) Who do you think has been the most positive influence on your life so far and why?

My grandmother, hands down. She was there when I was born, always made time to teach and love me; even when I was still suicidally depressed, I knew beyond doubt she loved me and was there for me. She's the one that taught me the things that kept me through that time and made me too thoughty to do something stupid like run away or actually commit suicide. She's the one that taught me socialization, "girl stuff" (I'm shocked at how little my mom taught me and the things I'm still learning), and how to get a good job and keep it. She's the one who taught me about God.


6) If you could go anywhere in the world for a holiday, where would you go?

Hawaii. I've been wanting to go as long as I could remember. Mom was actually pregnant with me when she went, and I missed it! :growls: I'd so go there.


7) Writing is obviously your big passion. What keeps you inspired and motivated to work at it?

I can't stop the stories. My characters are almost always with me. I play with ideas of science, religion, culture, and they become worlds that eventually I want to share. Some worlds I'll never share. They are character and premise-building grounds. Some I think I will, but I won't. Some surprise me and take over my pen, and those are the ones we all get to actually meet.

If there is one thing I've always wanted to be and I still want just about more than anything else, it's to be a good writer and to make my living at it.

This is something I also struggle to balance against the "have no other gods before me" bit. Writing requires little motivation (just the appropriate inspiration on something that's had sufficient percolation to be written!), but that other one does.


From in_the_blue

1. Tell me about your family.
I have one of those large, wonderful families where aunts, sister, and grandparents all live under the same roof and we love each other dearly—even when we squabble. I love to come home and come into "our vibes" whenever I've been out. We love God, spend time together, and work in a ministry together.

2. If money was no object, where on this planet of ours would you most like to live?
Colorado. Probably one of those nice rich houses in the forest communities.

3. Did you have a favorite pet growing up?
Our only pet: a guinea pig.

4. How do you define "spare time?" How do you spend it?
Spare time is time I don't have anything else I need to do in, or at least, it's not scheduled time and there are no burning fire emergencies I can actually do something about. I tend to spend it reading.

5. Who's your main literary inspiration?
Zenna Henderson who wrote the People stories and Ursula K. LeGuin. And now you know why I tend toward "literary" style at the most inopportune moments. :grins:

6. Do you have a most-visited non-writing website? If so, what is it?
Hmm... Probably my Yahoo Mail, sadly. I'm always drowning in emails. Thus, I miss a lot of what's going on with my f-list and rarely, if ever, catch up.

7. Where's the last place you went because you wanted to, not because you had to?
It's been too long. I don't even remember. :mournful sigh:

Kris Rusch's story, "Reflections on Life and Death"

A response to Pat Robertson's shameful comments

Worth thinking about...

On Girls, Fiction, & Self-Esteem

There’s a trend in young adult fiction now to have a female main character who in some way doesn’t recognize how special she is.  It could be that she doesn’t know how beautiful she is, or doesn’t understand her full potential.  But this lack of self-esteem is a central part of these characters, and that worries me.  Is a girl really only beautiful if she doesn’t know it?  Can a girl who doesn’t know how smart she is really be that smart?  Do we only appreciate young women who are humble or completely self-aware?

~ Elizabeth on Knit Quip

This, of course, makes me think of Raven in X-Men: First Class and then Emma in the same. One doesn't believe she's beautiful. The other believes she is. Which one is infinitely more appealing?

Gaining self-esteem or self-awareness really shouldn't be the benchmark of an awesome character.

Tris in Divergent by Veronica Roth doesn't realize how amazing she is, failing this understanding in small, but consistent ways. Why? It doesn't really add to the character. It just makes her seem a tiny bit dense.

Emma in Emma by Jane Austen does thinks herself special, except when she recognizes a good trait she's lacking, and I love her all the more for it.

Alanna in The Song of the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce has a love/hate relationship with the things that make her special, but she isn't unaware of them. Do I like her less? Heavens, no!

I had never paid attention to this before, but now that it's been pointed out to me, it makes me want to start pulling books off the shelf and figure out how many characters actually have a real handle on their own strengths and weaknesses. It makes me want to avoid this at all costs in my own fiction unless that genuinely belongs to the character.

Rogue really doesn't understand her own potential because she hates the drawbacks so much. The main character in my manuscript, In This Wood, has low self-esteem and learns to get over it. It's okay to make that journey with a female character, but to me, it's not okay to make that journey when it isn't called for.

I love therefore...
• I'm a sucker for beautiful worldbuilding and this has made me wish once again I was an artist so I could make Vardin as beautiful as I envision it: The Morae River by Brynn Metheney.


I read therefore...
• Eight Against Reality | Panverse Publishing
So this is one I won from the lovely Juliette Wade, whose story opens this collection. Eight SFF short stories. Overall: well worth the buy.

"The Eminence's Match" by Juliette Wade was fabulously written and well nuanced. My only gripe is I wanted more. It didn't feel finished to me, but ah well. It was awesome anyway.

I normally like Aliette de Bodard and everything she writes. I hated this story of hers—"The Lonely Heart," I think—and actually cut it out of my book so I'd never have to see it again.

This was followed by a squid scripty/story thing. It was gross. It didn't merit my scissors—yet, anyway—but I won't reread it. Ever.

Now, "Man's Best Enemy" by Janice Hardy was an awesome little adventure story with a lot of heart and big, nasty dogs. I doubt they'll ever redomesticate these guys.

"Kip Running" by Genevieve Williams disappointed. The action was great, the idea was great, the goal and lack of achieving it was a letdown. The story didn't mean anything, unless it was, "Don't live in a fantasy world."

"Spoiling Veena" by Keyan Bowes was...um...interesting. Veena was certainly spoiled, but it was portrayed as all working out okay. I was uninspired and did not really like it. Kids are not meant to always have their way.

"Dancing by Numbers" by Dario Ciriello was a bit odd with multiple universes through one dancer finding her center of focus, but it reminded me of some of L'Engle's best work and I admit, I enjoyed it. Not sure if it'll become a reread for me, but it was definitely nice for a one-off.

"Love, Blood, and Octli" by T.L. Morganfield was exactly what I would have expected from Aliette de Bodard, a god with two opposing natures and the humans battling for power or goodness. I loved this story.

Best of the batch: "The Eminence's Match," "Man's Best Enemy," and "Love, Blood, and Octli." I give it an 8 out of 10.


I write therefore...
• Complete: Giftfic for ineedmyfics. So excited. Weighed in at 1110 words all said, and I finally figured out the names of these two characters (mentioned once each in a 500 pg book!). And it's good too!

• My regular fiction pen name has been suffering lately. I need to get 2-3 items written for the week and am coming up brain-dry. Somebody, please prompt me.


I hope therefore...
• I want to find a good artist for Vardin. But... I am currently on the poor side. So, hm. I'm trying to think if there's anyone I know that would be willing to illustrate for free to start and we put a tip jar out for their art. Of course, first I got to finish some more stories.

• This post is an exercise in patience. My goal is to only post one major post with all the brain litter I've collected throughout the day. (Note to self: don't count on it, but try anyway.)


I think therefore...
• I think I'm going to let ficspam die by way of neglect. It never did for me what I was hoping, and it's gorgeous, but I like 15_minute_draft better. Eventually, I want to get all my websites up better, instead of just trying to move the whole lot of madness onto LJ.

• I don't think I like AO3. I've tried it again and again, and it's a pain to upload on, it's a pain to browse on, and it's a pain to use. Plus, nobody there knows me, and I don't feel like transferring 70 fics to a place that doesn't really seem to have much use for me. I won't pull it down, but I think I will let my AO3 account die by way of neglect.

• I've noticed Calindria and Vardin are quite similar in tone. However, I still want to keep the work separate 'cause there is such a different focus. Haven't figured out yet if the different pen name is enough on that front.

• Patience is a virtue—that I am still acquiring.

From Tribal Writer soulful + badass:

There is this idea from the 1990’s that the most powerful brands need to ‘own’ a word.

For example:

Volvo: ‘safety’

Marilyn Monroe: ‘sexy’

Clint Eastwood: ‘rugged’

James Dean: ‘rebel’

Maybe you should try to ‘own’ two words.

For example: a friend of mine sent me a news story because the headline “made him think” of me (and my blog). The word in the headline was badass.

The second word is private. It is the secret word, it is your word, that crystallizes — for you — some essential truth about who you are. It calls up a feeling in your body that makes you feel most like yourself.

You don’t choose this word. This word has already chosen you. You just have to relax inside yourself and let it surface.

My private word is soulful.

What’s interesting to me is the way that badass plays off soulful and creates a kind of dynamic: tough vs tender, confrontational vs vulnerable, swagger vs yearning.

What one (or two) words does someone think of when they think of me?

Hmmm...

Comment with an answer if you like or the question and I'll tell you what you make me think of.