… I wonder who she’s talking to…
Category Archives: Writing
Writing Prompt – Going Ape
Ah, the heady days of Pre Code Hollywood.
At the time, this scene was cut – but you are free to use it as a writing prompt!
More Scrivener experiences – scenes
Short and sweet (hopefully) report on my adventures with Scrivener.
First, a note about how I write – I normally do a quick outline, and then think up a structure.
For instance – in the stories I’m writing right now (two 10.000 words pieces) I’m trying to follow the Seven Points Structure I mentioned in a post a while back.
Now, in an ideal world, I could lay back and let the story develop in my mind while I listen to music and browse illustrated books, so that when everything’s fleshed out, I can just go through a long bout of writing, and do a first draft in a few days.
But time is tight – so I basically go and write. Continue reading
Shadufs, prodigal sons, cuckolds and other anachronisms
Language in historical and pseudo-historical stories.
We talked about it back when The Great Swape/Shaduf Debate took place, and I also discussed briefly Ancient Profanities, Their Use and Abuse*.
I tend to give a modicum of attention to the words I use and the way my characters speak.
And I realize their speech patterns and usages are anachronistic.
Nennius Britannicus’ men speak like soldiers in a Viet-Nam movie – “C’mon boss, don’t be so square!”
Amunet’s speech patters vary with her mood – the more melancholy or worried or distracted she gets, the less polished her wording becomes – she says “Dunno” instead of “I don’t know” if she’s got something else on her mind.
Aculeo drops a lot of stuff – pronouns, particles, adverbs, he uses fewer words the more the situation’s heated and urgent – “You right, wench?”; but he can be articulated when he wants to play Amunet, for instance, “I guess I should be impressed by this Aegyptian whatchamacallit you did, right?” Continue reading
Writing Prompt – Clouds
The beginning or the end of a story?
Look at the sky!
One never knows what can turn into reference for a story.
I’m re-reading Gavin Pretor-Pinney‘s delightful The Cloudspotter’s Guide, hunting for bits to add color to the story I’m writing – which features hot air balloons and people drifting through the sky, so it’s fitting.
The guide is not a meteorology handbook, but rather a book about cloud culture – teaches you to recognize and name different cloud formations, gives you a rundown of their behavior, plus lots and lots of other fun facts, folklore and assorted whatnots.
It is an excellent book to have handy when hiking, or when idling in the courtyard, in the summer, watching the clouds as they run through the blue sky.
Or something. Continue reading
Wu Xing for writers – part two
OK, I said I’ll give an example of the way in which I’m trying to use Taoist elemental theory in outlining my characters.
My story features a female character – she’s the female half of the protagonist team.
As you probably know, I like writing about couples of characters – I’m pretty convinced a man and a woman together can work better, as protagonists of an action story, than a man or a woman alone.
Probably comes from growing up watching The Avengers (as in Steed & Peel).
Let’s see what happens when, doing my final draft, I plug-in the Taoist Elements – which, I’d like to remind you, are a logical thing to add considering story, setting etc. Continue reading
Karavansara 