Dear readers, I see there are a few more of you than before. WELCOME! I wonder if it was Sophia's awesome guest post that brought you here or least randomosity's post full of 90s boy bands (well, mostly JT's peculiar knees). Alternately, our stats suggest it is more likely you showed up because you thought you'd see a Robot Unicorn kicking Anakin in the face, scarring him for life.
That was a huge tangent. Please forgive my spazziness. I'm operating on little sleep and lots of cortisol. Today's actual post is this:
The Perks of Being a Writer
1. Day dreaming is considered work.
2. Buying new office supplies is considered a work-related expense.
3. That Starbucks run is essential to productivity.
4. Among writers, talking to yourself is socially acceptable.
5. Among writers, talking about imaginary people is socially acceptable.
6. Among writers, talking to imaginary people is socially acceptable.
7. PJs, sweat pants, and yoga pants can be work appropriate attire.
8. Conducting socially unacceptable experiments is socially acceptable.
9. Reading books, watching TV/movies, and generally toodling around on the internet is called "research."
10. All weird quirks can be attributed to your "inner artiste."
Got any more for me? Happy Wednesdsay!
P.S. If you hop on over to Sophia's blog, you may or may not see pics of us hangin' out in Real Life. I also may or may not be singing Lady Gaga.
3.30.2011
3.25.2011
Randomosity on Fridays: Unexposed Edition
Okay, guys, I've a confession: I was never a boy band fangirl. Yes, I was aware of 'NSync and Backstreet Boys and the ongoing rivalry between the two, as well as the other boy bands that sprung up in their wake and died away just as quietly. I heard their songs here and there, but I was so out of the loop (or rather didn't care) that I usually didn't know which songs were written by whom.
Krispy was somewhat aware of my ignorance, though only recently has she been fully exposed to my massive past indifference. Since she noted last month that she has gained a newfound appreciation for boy band dancing, she took it upon herself to show me clips online, which exposure eventually culminated in watching a DVD of 'N Sync's performance at Madison Square Garden (yes, despite Krispy being a Backstreet fangirl).
So! Without further adieu, here's 4 things I am (or was) unexposed to:
1. Boy bands! Seriously, didn't give a crap about them except that occasionally I heard a song that was nice. It wasn't that I was deliberately disliking or avoiding the, it was just that I had no interest because my taste in music was and is more of a sample-as-I-go like-a-song-here-and-there sort of deal, and also because I didn't think any of the boy bands were particularly hot. Krispy and our friend Luce were Backstreet fangirls, but I only recently acquired enough exposure to boy bands via their insistence (and sudden appreciation for oldskool boy bands) to learn most of the names of the members of 'N Sync (Justin Timberlake, JC, Lance…uh…Joey…andthatotherguy) and that the one Backstreet Boy who's still not back is Kevin.
2. Actually, this isn't quite in the same category of unexposure that I was intending to pursue, but Justin Timberlake has really sweaty knees.
Apparently other random people have noticed too. Bizarre, eh? We asked our medical student friend about it and she was just as baffled as we were, but now if a patient ever comes to her concerned about his/her sweaty knees, she can tell them, "It's okay! Justin Timberlake has sweaty knees too!"
Skip to around 2:19 and look carefully at his knees. Looks like he dropped to his knees in a puddle of water, but that isn't water. It's sweat.
3. Horses. I know most girls love horses and generally between the ages of 4-16 have a period of all-consuming horse-crazy. I like horses okay, but I never particularly wanted one. I had more of a unicorn phase than a horse phase (a phase which I have not outgrown, I might add) but even then it was not to the level of thrill and passion that so many of my friends and peers experienced. I wanted a dragon more than I wanted a horse.
4. TV shows I've never watched, literally never watched, never watched to the point that I don't think I've ever seen half an episode or even seen them on TV at all: 90210, Dawson's Creek, Will and Grace, Friends, Seinfeld, and probably many others that I don't remember because I never cared. Now that I think about it, I'm not even sure what those shows are about. And yes, we DID have a TV in the house and no, I was NOT forbidden from watching these shows or anything. I was more into Star Trek, books by Mercedes Lackey, and assorted anime.
5. This one is unrelated to unexposure but relates to both Krispy and me: Krispy's sister has appointed herself our Task Master and is holding The Liar Society hostage until Krispy meets her writing goal. Incidentally, I met my writing goal (hint hint, Krispy) but was still denied the book because I already ceded it to Krispy in addition to having too many other books on my reading plate.
So that's it for this week, fellow blogtastic bloggers! What things were you unexposed to in your heyday or are unexposed to now?
Krispy was somewhat aware of my ignorance, though only recently has she been fully exposed to my massive past indifference. Since she noted last month that she has gained a newfound appreciation for boy band dancing, she took it upon herself to show me clips online, which exposure eventually culminated in watching a DVD of 'N Sync's performance at Madison Square Garden (yes, despite Krispy being a Backstreet fangirl).
So! Without further adieu, here's 4 things I am (or was) unexposed to:
1. Boy bands! Seriously, didn't give a crap about them except that occasionally I heard a song that was nice. It wasn't that I was deliberately disliking or avoiding the, it was just that I had no interest because my taste in music was and is more of a sample-as-I-go like-a-song-here-and-there sort of deal, and also because I didn't think any of the boy bands were particularly hot. Krispy and our friend Luce were Backstreet fangirls, but I only recently acquired enough exposure to boy bands via their insistence (and sudden appreciation for oldskool boy bands) to learn most of the names of the members of 'N Sync (Justin Timberlake, JC, Lance…uh…Joey…andthatotherguy) and that the one Backstreet Boy who's still not back is Kevin.
2. Actually, this isn't quite in the same category of unexposure that I was intending to pursue, but Justin Timberlake has really sweaty knees.
 |
| Source: Bestweekever.tv |
Apparently other random people have noticed too. Bizarre, eh? We asked our medical student friend about it and she was just as baffled as we were, but now if a patient ever comes to her concerned about his/her sweaty knees, she can tell them, "It's okay! Justin Timberlake has sweaty knees too!"
3. Horses. I know most girls love horses and generally between the ages of 4-16 have a period of all-consuming horse-crazy. I like horses okay, but I never particularly wanted one. I had more of a unicorn phase than a horse phase (a phase which I have not outgrown, I might add) but even then it was not to the level of thrill and passion that so many of my friends and peers experienced. I wanted a dragon more than I wanted a horse.
4. TV shows I've never watched, literally never watched, never watched to the point that I don't think I've ever seen half an episode or even seen them on TV at all: 90210, Dawson's Creek, Will and Grace, Friends, Seinfeld, and probably many others that I don't remember because I never cared. Now that I think about it, I'm not even sure what those shows are about. And yes, we DID have a TV in the house and no, I was NOT forbidden from watching these shows or anything. I was more into Star Trek, books by Mercedes Lackey, and assorted anime.
5. This one is unrelated to unexposure but relates to both Krispy and me: Krispy's sister has appointed herself our Task Master and is holding The Liar Society hostage until Krispy meets her writing goal. Incidentally, I met my writing goal (hint hint, Krispy) but was still denied the book because I already ceded it to Krispy in addition to having too many other books on my reading plate.
So that's it for this week, fellow blogtastic bloggers! What things were you unexposed to in your heyday or are unexposed to now?
3.23.2011
GUEST POST: Using my powers for Good, not Emo
We have a SUPER SPECIAL post today. The adorably awesome and multi-talented Sophia of Sophia the Writer (who we met in REAL LIFE last week, btw) wrote a stupendous somethin' somethin' for you all on MUSIC and WRITING and even music IN writing.
So without further ado, on to our first guest post! (Thanks, Sophia!)
How I Learned to Use My Powers for Good, Not Emo
By Sophia Chang
I call it an In The Body experience. Composing characters, that is.
Krispy and Alz asked me to guest blog about writing music for my novels. I'll take it, as they say, from the top.
Like thousands of other Chinese kids in America, I had to play the piano and violin as soon as I could tell my fingers apart.
I taught myself to play the guitar when I was 12 and started writing folksy songs that could give emo kids of today a run for their angst-soaked money. (Songs called, "When You Hate The One You Love." Hey, at least the title tells you what the song's about up front.)
Luckily, I grew out of the Courtney Love phase (even Courtney Love grew out of that - for a while at least) and now I use my music-writing for good, not emo.
I've continued to write songs, and to listen to music while I write novels. In my latest YA Fantasy WIP, I finally brought the two loves together.
My heroine sings a verse from a farm song she's known since childhood. The problem is, the world she lives in exists in my head. I reaaaalllly needed to hear that song in order to connect with her fully.
So I stood up from my computer chair, turned, took two steps, and sat on my piano chair. Cued up the keyboard to "old-fashioned" (actually "clavi") and wrote the song.
Now when I play it, I can instantly hook myself into the mood of that scene. I can picture her in it, feel her longing in my chest when I sing the melody.
You don't have to be a former angsty-girl-with-guitar to do the same. Just hum. Or get up and dance a few steps the way your character would. Maybe draw the way they would, order food and eat it like them. Dress like them. Look at websites they would visit. Covet the kind of boys or girls they would.
For this same heroine, when I wrote one of her character sheets (yes, I did more than one and almost died), I did it in her handwriting. I frickin' hate her handwriting (it's better than mine), but I sure learned a lot writing a page in her hand.
Any sort of embodiment you do for your character has the power to tug you out of your own vessel and into theirs so strongly and immediately it will steal your breath. And that's what you want to do for your reader.
So what angsty music does your character like?
ABOUT: Sophia Chang is a lifelong dancer and singer who has appeared in films including Across the Universe and First Daughter. She performs with the Harvard Yardbirds, an alumni a capella group and has recorded for Hepnova, a mixed media band. She now writes Young Adult fiction.
So without further ado, on to our first guest post! (Thanks, Sophia!)
How I Learned to Use My Powers for Good, Not Emo
By Sophia Chang
 |
| My trusty Casio with the broken C below middle. |
Krispy and Alz asked me to guest blog about writing music for my novels. I'll take it, as they say, from the top.
Like thousands of other Chinese kids in America, I had to play the piano and violin as soon as I could tell my fingers apart.
I taught myself to play the guitar when I was 12 and started writing folksy songs that could give emo kids of today a run for their angst-soaked money. (Songs called, "When You Hate The One You Love." Hey, at least the title tells you what the song's about up front.)
Luckily, I grew out of the Courtney Love phase (even Courtney Love grew out of that - for a while at least) and now I use my music-writing for good, not emo.
I've continued to write songs, and to listen to music while I write novels. In my latest YA Fantasy WIP, I finally brought the two loves together.
My heroine sings a verse from a farm song she's known since childhood. The problem is, the world she lives in exists in my head. I reaaaalllly needed to hear that song in order to connect with her fully.
So I stood up from my computer chair, turned, took two steps, and sat on my piano chair. Cued up the keyboard to "old-fashioned" (actually "clavi") and wrote the song.
Now when I play it, I can instantly hook myself into the mood of that scene. I can picture her in it, feel her longing in my chest when I sing the melody.
You don't have to be a former angsty-girl-with-guitar to do the same. Just hum. Or get up and dance a few steps the way your character would. Maybe draw the way they would, order food and eat it like them. Dress like them. Look at websites they would visit. Covet the kind of boys or girls they would.
For this same heroine, when I wrote one of her character sheets (yes, I did more than one and almost died), I did it in her handwriting. I frickin' hate her handwriting (it's better than mine), but I sure learned a lot writing a page in her hand.
Any sort of embodiment you do for your character has the power to tug you out of your own vessel and into theirs so strongly and immediately it will steal your breath. And that's what you want to do for your reader.
So what angsty music does your character like?ABOUT: Sophia Chang is a lifelong dancer and singer who has appeared in films including Across the Universe and First Daughter. She performs with the Harvard Yardbirds, an alumni a capella group and has recorded for Hepnova, a mixed media band. She now writes Young Adult fiction.
3.18.2011
Randomosity on Fridays: Magic of the Interwebz
OMG, you guys, guess what today is? FRIDAY! Yesterday was Thursday! Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday comes afterwards!
If you have no idea what I'm talking about, well, just take a look at this music video. It has the most literal song lyrics like ever.
It went viral this past weekend, and I've had this piece of musical genius stuck in my head for the majority of the week. Yes, I was looking forward to Friday and "fun fun, think about fun."
Ahem, thus opens this week's Interwebby-themed Randomosity on Fridays!
1. I recently discovered the Stats tab on Blogger. Yeah, I'm a little slow. Anyway, I was surprised and amused to find that the majority of our traffic comes from Robot Unicorn Attack and Anakin Skywalker scar google searches. I don't even remember writing...
Oh right, we did write those posts. I'm sorry all you google searchers who arrived here and found nothing REMOTELY like what you were looking for. The fact is I have NO IDEA why Anakin Skywalker has that scar, and Alz wrote the Robot Unicorn post. Edit: Oh wait, Alz wrote the scar post too, and apparently I DO know how Anakin got that scar because I say so in said post. Whut.
2. However, clearly the lesson of this discovery is that I need to write more about Anakin Skywalker, and actually, I do have a lot to say about him. I did my senior year speech project in high school about him.
You think I'm kidding, but I'm not.
3. Okay, it was actually more about Obi-Wan (since I think Anakin's a brat), but where there's Kenobi, there's Skywalker, and OH GOD I did not just quote Clone Wars (yeah, I watch that too). But yes, I did. I'm going to stop myself now because this is turning into embarrassing word vomit, even though you all already know I'm an epic nerd.
Buuut Anakin on Clone Wars is voiced by this hottie, so yeah...
4. In less fun "going viral" internet video news, UCLA student Alexandra Wallace posted a video this weekend in which she goes on a racist rant about Asians, specifically ones in the library. To add further insult to injury, she brings up the tsunami. The tsunami. As in the horrific natural disaster that has devastated an entire nation and its people that only happened like A FEW DAYS before she posted her ranty vid. Girl, that is so not on, and um, I'm American too, thanks. (This whole thing extra riles the sister up because she goes to UCLA.)
Tons of response videos have since surfaced, but DavidSoComedy's vlog - Asians in the Library about it is the funniest I've seen. *Be warned: mild cursing and some "innapropriosity"
5. BUT the NUMBER 1 awesomest Internet-related moment of this week was our meeting fellow blogger & writer SOPHIA from Sophia the Writer IN REAL LIFE!!! Our mutual lamenting over the closing of Borders stores brought us to the realization that we're from roughly the SAME AREA.
So on Sunday, we met up for a late brunch/lunch, and we ended up chatting for the entire afternoon. Fun times. Sophia was totally sweet and funny, and we share a great love of boba, karaoke, and abusing CAPS LOCK WHEN WE ARE EXCITED!!! So it's pretty awesome. This was a big deal for all involved because this was the first time any of us have met other bloggers IN REAL LIFE. Yay!
Unfortunately, we have no pictures of the event since both Sophia and I forgot our cameras and Alz is painfully camera-shy anyway.
HOWEVER, as a souvenir of the meeting, we did wrangle for you, dear readers, a special GUEST POST from Miss Sophia. So look out for it on Wednesday! Sophia will be blogging about composing music and composing books. (Yeah, she's multi-talented!)
In the mean time, you can catch Alz's post about her experience as a Fantasy writer in an MFA program over at Sophia's blog.
Have a happenin' weekend everyone! After all, you know what day it is! ;) What are your Interwebby stories this week?
P.S. Here are some good posts with compiled links for how you can help earthquake and tsunami relief efforts in Japan. Disaster like this can bring out the worst in people, but it can also bring out the best.
Huffington Post: How to Help Japan: Earthquake Relief Options
Hyphen Magazine: Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Efforts in Japan
League of Extraordinary Writers blog: YA/MG Community Mobilizes to Help Japan
If you have no idea what I'm talking about, well, just take a look at this music video. It has the most literal song lyrics like ever.
It went viral this past weekend, and I've had this piece of musical genius stuck in my head for the majority of the week. Yes, I was looking forward to Friday and "fun fun, think about fun."
Ahem, thus opens this week's Interwebby-themed Randomosity on Fridays!
1. I recently discovered the Stats tab on Blogger. Yeah, I'm a little slow. Anyway, I was surprised and amused to find that the majority of our traffic comes from Robot Unicorn Attack and Anakin Skywalker scar google searches. I don't even remember writing...
Oh right, we did write those posts. I'm sorry all you google searchers who arrived here and found nothing REMOTELY like what you were looking for. The fact is I have NO IDEA why Anakin Skywalker has that scar, and Alz wrote the Robot Unicorn post. Edit: Oh wait, Alz wrote the scar post too, and apparently I DO know how Anakin got that scar because I say so in said post. Whut.
2. However, clearly the lesson of this discovery is that I need to write more about Anakin Skywalker, and actually, I do have a lot to say about him. I did my senior year speech project in high school about him.
You think I'm kidding, but I'm not.
3. Okay, it was actually more about Obi-Wan (since I think Anakin's a brat), but where there's Kenobi, there's Skywalker, and OH GOD I did not just quote Clone Wars (yeah, I watch that too). But yes, I did. I'm going to stop myself now because this is turning into embarrassing word vomit, even though you all already know I'm an epic nerd.
Buuut Anakin on Clone Wars is voiced by this hottie, so yeah...
4. In less fun "going viral" internet video news, UCLA student Alexandra Wallace posted a video this weekend in which she goes on a racist rant about Asians, specifically ones in the library. To add further insult to injury, she brings up the tsunami. The tsunami. As in the horrific natural disaster that has devastated an entire nation and its people that only happened like A FEW DAYS before she posted her ranty vid. Girl, that is so not on, and um, I'm American too, thanks. (This whole thing extra riles the sister up because she goes to UCLA.)
Tons of response videos have since surfaced, but DavidSoComedy's vlog - Asians in the Library about it is the funniest I've seen. *Be warned: mild cursing and some "innapropriosity"
5. BUT the NUMBER 1 awesomest Internet-related moment of this week was our meeting fellow blogger & writer SOPHIA from Sophia the Writer IN REAL LIFE!!! Our mutual lamenting over the closing of Borders stores brought us to the realization that we're from roughly the SAME AREA.
So on Sunday, we met up for a late brunch/lunch, and we ended up chatting for the entire afternoon. Fun times. Sophia was totally sweet and funny, and we share a great love of boba, karaoke, and abusing CAPS LOCK WHEN WE ARE EXCITED!!! So it's pretty awesome. This was a big deal for all involved because this was the first time any of us have met other bloggers IN REAL LIFE. Yay!
Unfortunately, we have no pictures of the event since both Sophia and I forgot our cameras and Alz is painfully camera-shy anyway.
HOWEVER, as a souvenir of the meeting, we did wrangle for you, dear readers, a special GUEST POST from Miss Sophia. So look out for it on Wednesday! Sophia will be blogging about composing music and composing books. (Yeah, she's multi-talented!)
In the mean time, you can catch Alz's post about her experience as a Fantasy writer in an MFA program over at Sophia's blog.
Have a happenin' weekend everyone! After all, you know what day it is! ;) What are your Interwebby stories this week?
P.S. Here are some good posts with compiled links for how you can help earthquake and tsunami relief efforts in Japan. Disaster like this can bring out the worst in people, but it can also bring out the best.
Huffington Post: How to Help Japan: Earthquake Relief Options
Hyphen Magazine: Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Efforts in Japan
League of Extraordinary Writers blog: YA/MG Community Mobilizes to Help Japan
3.16.2011
Book Review: Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen & Bruce Coville
EXTRA: Alz is also guest-blogging over at the fantabulous Ms. Sophia's blog today about getting an MFA in Creative Writing Fantasy. Go check it out!
I bought this book from the library for 25 cents and then discovered that due to a printing error, the book skipped directly from page 202 to 235, out of a total 266. (See #3 in this post for details.) When my Amazon order arrived, I finally got to read those last freaking 64 pages.
Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen & Bruce Coville
Pros: Emotionally and intellectually complex story, down-to-earth yet full of questions of faith, alternately funny and very serious.
Cons: Emily Dickinson? Really?
Intellectual Rating: 9 out of 10 stars
Emotional Grade: A
Book Blurb: The world will end on July 27.
Marina's mom is a Believer. So is Jed's dad. That's why they've dragged Marina and Jed to a mountain retreat with the rest of Reverend Beelson's flock. From the mountaintop the Believers will watch the Righteous Conflagration that will scour the world clean—and then they will descend to begin God's world anew.
But this world has only just begun for Jed and Marina, two teenagers who aren't sure they believe in anything, let alone that everything they've ever known will soon vanish in a blaze of fire. Why should the world end now, when Marina and Jed have just fallen in love for the first time in their lives?
Alz's Take: Given the way the book blurb runs, I feel obliged to point out right now that this book is not primarily a romance, although romance does have a large part to play—and it feels like a pretty realistic tentative hey-that-girl-is-kind-of-pretty hey-that-boy-is-kind-of-cute fourteen-year-old first-love scenario, complete with awkward moments and gradually getting to know each other. It was quite nicely done, actually.
Moving on to the nitty-gritty: The book is told from two first-person POVs—Marina's and Jed's, usually alternating between chapters and occasionally not, making for a natural and well-paced narrative progression. Every now and then between chapters is brief supplementary material in the form of letters, dialogue transcripts, schedules, sermon excerpts, etc. I quite enjoyed this creative touch, as the information gives extra insight into both the external and internal activities of various characters and what the rest of the world is up to.
Marina and Jed are immensely well-developed characters, individual and real and either identifiable or understandable depending on the circumstances. Their voices are distinct and strong, and though I know nothing about how the book was written, I'd bet that Jane Yolen wrote the Marina sections and Bruce Coville wrote the Jed sections, given what I know of the authors' interests and writing styles. I liked Jed better than Marina because Jed is funny—totally a pragmatic and sometimes slightly stupid but quite self-aware 14-year-old-boy, who wouldn't have any truck with his dad's sudden bout of religion except that his dad needs looking after.
Which is not to say that I didn't like Marina. I ended up mostly liking her except for one important trait that I'll get to later. I admit that when I started reading, I had steeled myself in case Marina turned out to be either a soppy heroine or a stereotyped religious one. (Considering the authors involved, I should have known better.) Life has thrown a lot of crap on Marina's plate: struggling with her faith, the responsibility of looking after her five younger brothers, and dealing with a father who may be having an affair and a mother who is turning into someone unrecognizable due to sudden induction into a religious cult.
The cult is the main focus of the book—a cult complete with a leader who takes his chosen ones to camp out on a mountain where they will be the only ones saved from the end of the world, and this means they have to set up camp by storing supplies, building an electric fence, and patrolling the premises with large firearms.
But it's not just a crazy camp, as Jed first believes. A good many of the Believers seem like pretty normal decent people, except for their belief in Reverend Beelson's preaching. Reverend Beelson himself appears to be a man who truly believes the end is coming, and it is his duty to see to it that the right souls are saved. But he's not some crazy old man—he's a gentle and considerate one, who speaks reasonably and kindly to Jed, such that even Jed, a non-Believer immersed in their ranks, begins to feel like he's a part of something bigger than himself and maybe, maybe to Believe.
In this manner, the book shows how reasonable something can seem when everyone around you is passionate about it, and the psychological effects of peer pressure via group fervency—the sheer force of dozens of people whom you know, and like, and trust all believing fiercely, with you there in the thick of it. It's quite superbly subtly done—shown rather than told, experienced and felt by Jed and Marina without heavy-handedness.
There's one primary thing that kept me from giving this book 10 stars, and it's the fact that Marina is an Emily Dickinson fangirl. While I'm not saying it's unrealistic for there to be a 14-year-old girl who's read her copy of the collected works of Emily D. so many times that she actually thinks random lines of poetry to herself relatable to her current situation that—
Wait, what the hell am I saying? That is damnedly unrealistic. No 14-year-old girl is going to sit, awkwardly and nervously, beside the new attractive boy on hill at night where they're not really supposed to be, and think, "Whose cheek is this? What rosy face Has lost a blush today?" (Incidentally, the citation part of my MLA soul screams that there should be some /'s in there to denote line breaks, though I guess I'll forgive the lack of line citations.)
Marina busts out the Emily Dickinson poetry so often that I'm sure if she had a car, her bumper sticker would read, "WWEDD—What Would Emily Dickinson Do?" Marina lives and breathes by the poetry of good ol' Em, reads it to her baby brothers, treasures her poetry book, turns to Emily Dickinson for life inspiration and advice. It's just such a weird thing for a young teenage girl to obsess over. I apologize to any current and former real-life 14-year-old Emily Dickinson fangirls, but I mean come on, Marina's level of obsession is just too absurd when she starts thinking lines of poetry in the face of her increasingly neglectful and abusive mother, the cute boy who moved next door, and the fact that the world is doomed to end on fire on her birthday—no. Just no.
It felt like the result of a writing exercise wherein one must incorporate Emily Dickinson and her poetry into a current unrelated project. Emily Dickinson becomes a deliberate and obvious theme that detracts from everything else because I'd really rather be concentrating on Marina's feelings and not which poem best fits the situation.
Another thing I didn't quite like so much was how the book ended—not the events themselves, which were everything a dramatic climactic ending should be, but rather how the aftermath/falling action proceeded. While I understand that the authors probably wanted to maintain a sense of narrative balance, I felt like the book ended three times: once for each of the last three chapters/sections. I did, however, appreciate the explanation of certain things. I just wish it had been done in a slightly less clunky Here-Is-the-Resolution fashion.
Alz's Conclusion: Armageddon Summer is a fast, fascinating read providing insight into the mentality and organization of religious cults through the eyes of two young teens of differing levels of faith, family, and background. Jed is a wiseass who gradually begins to doubt his belief as well as his disbelief at the same time, while Marina is trying hard to be a good believer and a good Believer, despite her overbearing fangirlishness for Emily Dickinson. Despite an overbearing poetry theme and a wee bit of finessing in the end, the story is solid. This book is a journey through the formation of a cult and how divisions of thought and belief can tear families apart—and how quickly bonds of friendship and trust can form regardless of circumstance.
I bought this book from the library for 25 cents and then discovered that due to a printing error, the book skipped directly from page 202 to 235, out of a total 266. (See #3 in this post for details.) When my Amazon order arrived, I finally got to read those last freaking 64 pages.Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen & Bruce Coville
Pros: Emotionally and intellectually complex story, down-to-earth yet full of questions of faith, alternately funny and very serious.
Cons: Emily Dickinson? Really?
Intellectual Rating: 9 out of 10 stars
Emotional Grade: A
Book Blurb: The world will end on July 27.
Marina's mom is a Believer. So is Jed's dad. That's why they've dragged Marina and Jed to a mountain retreat with the rest of Reverend Beelson's flock. From the mountaintop the Believers will watch the Righteous Conflagration that will scour the world clean—and then they will descend to begin God's world anew.
But this world has only just begun for Jed and Marina, two teenagers who aren't sure they believe in anything, let alone that everything they've ever known will soon vanish in a blaze of fire. Why should the world end now, when Marina and Jed have just fallen in love for the first time in their lives?
Alz's Take: Given the way the book blurb runs, I feel obliged to point out right now that this book is not primarily a romance, although romance does have a large part to play—and it feels like a pretty realistic tentative hey-that-girl-is-kind-of-pretty hey-that-boy-is-kind-of-cute fourteen-year-old first-love scenario, complete with awkward moments and gradually getting to know each other. It was quite nicely done, actually.
Moving on to the nitty-gritty: The book is told from two first-person POVs—Marina's and Jed's, usually alternating between chapters and occasionally not, making for a natural and well-paced narrative progression. Every now and then between chapters is brief supplementary material in the form of letters, dialogue transcripts, schedules, sermon excerpts, etc. I quite enjoyed this creative touch, as the information gives extra insight into both the external and internal activities of various characters and what the rest of the world is up to.
Marina and Jed are immensely well-developed characters, individual and real and either identifiable or understandable depending on the circumstances. Their voices are distinct and strong, and though I know nothing about how the book was written, I'd bet that Jane Yolen wrote the Marina sections and Bruce Coville wrote the Jed sections, given what I know of the authors' interests and writing styles. I liked Jed better than Marina because Jed is funny—totally a pragmatic and sometimes slightly stupid but quite self-aware 14-year-old-boy, who wouldn't have any truck with his dad's sudden bout of religion except that his dad needs looking after.
Which is not to say that I didn't like Marina. I ended up mostly liking her except for one important trait that I'll get to later. I admit that when I started reading, I had steeled myself in case Marina turned out to be either a soppy heroine or a stereotyped religious one. (Considering the authors involved, I should have known better.) Life has thrown a lot of crap on Marina's plate: struggling with her faith, the responsibility of looking after her five younger brothers, and dealing with a father who may be having an affair and a mother who is turning into someone unrecognizable due to sudden induction into a religious cult.
The cult is the main focus of the book—a cult complete with a leader who takes his chosen ones to camp out on a mountain where they will be the only ones saved from the end of the world, and this means they have to set up camp by storing supplies, building an electric fence, and patrolling the premises with large firearms.
But it's not just a crazy camp, as Jed first believes. A good many of the Believers seem like pretty normal decent people, except for their belief in Reverend Beelson's preaching. Reverend Beelson himself appears to be a man who truly believes the end is coming, and it is his duty to see to it that the right souls are saved. But he's not some crazy old man—he's a gentle and considerate one, who speaks reasonably and kindly to Jed, such that even Jed, a non-Believer immersed in their ranks, begins to feel like he's a part of something bigger than himself and maybe, maybe to Believe.
In this manner, the book shows how reasonable something can seem when everyone around you is passionate about it, and the psychological effects of peer pressure via group fervency—the sheer force of dozens of people whom you know, and like, and trust all believing fiercely, with you there in the thick of it. It's quite superbly subtly done—shown rather than told, experienced and felt by Jed and Marina without heavy-handedness.
There's one primary thing that kept me from giving this book 10 stars, and it's the fact that Marina is an Emily Dickinson fangirl. While I'm not saying it's unrealistic for there to be a 14-year-old girl who's read her copy of the collected works of Emily D. so many times that she actually thinks random lines of poetry to herself relatable to her current situation that—
Wait, what the hell am I saying? That is damnedly unrealistic. No 14-year-old girl is going to sit, awkwardly and nervously, beside the new attractive boy on hill at night where they're not really supposed to be, and think, "Whose cheek is this? What rosy face Has lost a blush today?" (Incidentally, the citation part of my MLA soul screams that there should be some /'s in there to denote line breaks, though I guess I'll forgive the lack of line citations.)
Marina busts out the Emily Dickinson poetry so often that I'm sure if she had a car, her bumper sticker would read, "WWEDD—What Would Emily Dickinson Do?" Marina lives and breathes by the poetry of good ol' Em, reads it to her baby brothers, treasures her poetry book, turns to Emily Dickinson for life inspiration and advice. It's just such a weird thing for a young teenage girl to obsess over. I apologize to any current and former real-life 14-year-old Emily Dickinson fangirls, but I mean come on, Marina's level of obsession is just too absurd when she starts thinking lines of poetry in the face of her increasingly neglectful and abusive mother, the cute boy who moved next door, and the fact that the world is doomed to end on fire on her birthday—no. Just no.
It felt like the result of a writing exercise wherein one must incorporate Emily Dickinson and her poetry into a current unrelated project. Emily Dickinson becomes a deliberate and obvious theme that detracts from everything else because I'd really rather be concentrating on Marina's feelings and not which poem best fits the situation.
Another thing I didn't quite like so much was how the book ended—not the events themselves, which were everything a dramatic climactic ending should be, but rather how the aftermath/falling action proceeded. While I understand that the authors probably wanted to maintain a sense of narrative balance, I felt like the book ended three times: once for each of the last three chapters/sections. I did, however, appreciate the explanation of certain things. I just wish it had been done in a slightly less clunky Here-Is-the-Resolution fashion.
Alz's Conclusion: Armageddon Summer is a fast, fascinating read providing insight into the mentality and organization of religious cults through the eyes of two young teens of differing levels of faith, family, and background. Jed is a wiseass who gradually begins to doubt his belief as well as his disbelief at the same time, while Marina is trying hard to be a good believer and a good Believer, despite her overbearing fangirlishness for Emily Dickinson. Despite an overbearing poetry theme and a wee bit of finessing in the end, the story is solid. This book is a journey through the formation of a cult and how divisions of thought and belief can tear families apart—and how quickly bonds of friendship and trust can form regardless of circumstance.
3.11.2011
Randomosity on Fridays
I am so glad this week is over, dudes. I hope it was way better for you than it was for me. But there's no time to be down! It's the weekend!
So here's my Friday 5.
1. My not-even-year-old new phone decided to poop out on me this week. It's a touchscreen phone, and 98% of the touchscreen doesn't work. Right. So I basically couldn't call anyone who wasn't in my contacts, and forget about texting. So...
2. I'm finally joining the ranks of people who own a smartphone! It's pretty exciting. Interneting and what have you. Sadly, it is not an iPhone, but I'm not complaining.
3. My sister got sick after our SF trip, but on top of that, she seems to have contracted the dreaded Bieber Fever. I fear it might be contagious...
4. Speaking of my sister, she just hurt herself while doing a shimmy. She was trying to demonstrate a ridiculous scene from GLEE. Shimmies: they're srs business.
5. I am so excited for the Disneyland summer season because the new and improved Star Tours is open (yeah, I'm a huge nerd if the Star Wars reenactment didn't tip you off) and Ariel's Undersea Adventure at California Adventure is also opening, and it's going to have this crazy cool thing in it:
Yeah, that's an Ursula so real, I will probably scream when confronted by her on the ride.
All righty, friends! Have a fantabulous weekend!
P.S. The awesome-o Beth Revis is giving away SIGNED copies of ALL FIVE Breathless Reads! This is way awesome as I've read 3/5 of them and quite liked all of them. Go check out the contest!
So here's my Friday 5.
1. My not-even-year-old new phone decided to poop out on me this week. It's a touchscreen phone, and 98% of the touchscreen doesn't work. Right. So I basically couldn't call anyone who wasn't in my contacts, and forget about texting. So...
2. I'm finally joining the ranks of people who own a smartphone! It's pretty exciting. Interneting and what have you. Sadly, it is not an iPhone, but I'm not complaining.
3. My sister got sick after our SF trip, but on top of that, she seems to have contracted the dreaded Bieber Fever. I fear it might be contagious...
4. Speaking of my sister, she just hurt herself while doing a shimmy. She was trying to demonstrate a ridiculous scene from GLEE. Shimmies: they're srs business.
5. I am so excited for the Disneyland summer season because the new and improved Star Tours is open (yeah, I'm a huge nerd if the Star Wars reenactment didn't tip you off) and Ariel's Undersea Adventure at California Adventure is also opening, and it's going to have this crazy cool thing in it:
Yeah, that's an Ursula so real, I will probably scream when confronted by her on the ride.
All righty, friends! Have a fantabulous weekend!
P.S. The awesome-o Beth Revis is giving away SIGNED copies of ALL FIVE Breathless Reads! This is way awesome as I've read 3/5 of them and quite liked all of them. Go check out the contest!
3.09.2011
WIP Wednesday: Beginning on the Right Foot
Welcome to the conclusion of our 3 truths and a lie miniseries! Alz here to give you the breakdown. Let's see how you did!
If you guessed #2 as a lie, you are correct. I've never been camping, actually, though Krispy can attest to the fact that I do have a fondness for chasing birds and startling innocent flocks of pigeons and sparrows and crows into flight. I have never chased a single turkey, much less a flock of them, but I am foolhardy enough to possibly do so depending on how much caffeine I've had beforehand.
Now for explanations of my truths:
1. TRUE - Reading 100+ pages an hour: I'm a crazy word monster, but I usually only manage this transcendental state of super reading when it's either a very good book or a very fast-reading one. For instance, I finished Catherine Fisher's Sapphique and Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay each in a four-hour-straight read-through. But depending on my mood, available time, and how engrossing a book is, I'm more likely to take my time reading in chunks here and there. (Incidentally, you can find me on Goodreads if you're interested.)
3. TRUE - Cotton candy and french fries: All right, all you nay-sayers out there, listen up! If you like sweet potato fries, having cotton candy (the regular pink kind that's not flavored and is just spun sugar) and french fries (not seasoned fries) is a bit similar--it's a combo of salty and sweet, and if you've had salty-sweet desserts or snacks before, you know how good they can be. Try sprinkling a bit of sugar on your fries next time and you'll get an idea of what it's like. Go on, try it!
4. TRUE - First short story involved an evil black child-killing zombie-making unicorn: What can I say? I was a twisted child. I think I was maybe 10 when I wrote that story. I'm not sure. I've still got it around somewher to remind me how far I've come and also how I've remained the same.
Moving on, let us talk about beginnings. No matter where you start writing, you're writing a beginning, even if it's the ending. Wow, that sounded existential. I'm so impressed with myself that I totally forgot where I was going with that thought.
Ah, there we go! I wanted to talk about beginnings, whether you begin writing for the day, or begin a story, or begin a chapter, or begin a paragraph. Get it into gear, get into the proper mindset, get into the groove. Once you've caught the rhythm and the story, you're ready to verbally rumble!
In our current co-author effort, Krispy and I are not quite rumbling, but we're getting there. I'd say we're revving the word-engine and warming it up, and had some false starts in the meantime. Krispy's currently on take #1.5 with her section while I'm on #3.0.
Tone was what tripped me up, see. In my first attempt, the tone was very la-dee-dah with the airy prose traipsing along on tippy-toes. Much too peachy-keen, I decided, and wrote a second scene where the character had a craptastic rainy morning complete with leaky roof, no hot water, and hardly any food and all of it moldy. Much too dreary, I decided, and wrote a third scene in which the guy has an okay morning, no hot water but scrounges an edible breakfast.
Et voila! Walking the middle ground between the two extremes produced the desired results: An average sort of morning which becomes all the more remarkable when standing in contrast to extraordinary events.
Do your beginning scenes go through many different incarnations? Do they come out near-perfect on the first try, or do they only necessitate a bit of tweaking? Do you discard them entirely if unsatisfactory, or do you rework and rewrite until eventually they're brand-spanking new?
If you guessed #2 as a lie, you are correct. I've never been camping, actually, though Krispy can attest to the fact that I do have a fondness for chasing birds and startling innocent flocks of pigeons and sparrows and crows into flight. I have never chased a single turkey, much less a flock of them, but I am foolhardy enough to possibly do so depending on how much caffeine I've had beforehand.
Now for explanations of my truths:
1. TRUE - Reading 100+ pages an hour: I'm a crazy word monster, but I usually only manage this transcendental state of super reading when it's either a very good book or a very fast-reading one. For instance, I finished Catherine Fisher's Sapphique and Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay each in a four-hour-straight read-through. But depending on my mood, available time, and how engrossing a book is, I'm more likely to take my time reading in chunks here and there. (Incidentally, you can find me on Goodreads if you're interested.)
3. TRUE - Cotton candy and french fries: All right, all you nay-sayers out there, listen up! If you like sweet potato fries, having cotton candy (the regular pink kind that's not flavored and is just spun sugar) and french fries (not seasoned fries) is a bit similar--it's a combo of salty and sweet, and if you've had salty-sweet desserts or snacks before, you know how good they can be. Try sprinkling a bit of sugar on your fries next time and you'll get an idea of what it's like. Go on, try it!
4. TRUE - First short story involved an evil black child-killing zombie-making unicorn: What can I say? I was a twisted child. I think I was maybe 10 when I wrote that story. I'm not sure. I've still got it around somewher to remind me how far I've come and also how I've remained the same.
Moving on, let us talk about beginnings. No matter where you start writing, you're writing a beginning, even if it's the ending. Wow, that sounded existential. I'm so impressed with myself that I totally forgot where I was going with that thought.
Ah, there we go! I wanted to talk about beginnings, whether you begin writing for the day, or begin a story, or begin a chapter, or begin a paragraph. Get it into gear, get into the proper mindset, get into the groove. Once you've caught the rhythm and the story, you're ready to verbally rumble!
In our current co-author effort, Krispy and I are not quite rumbling, but we're getting there. I'd say we're revving the word-engine and warming it up, and had some false starts in the meantime. Krispy's currently on take #1.5 with her section while I'm on #3.0.
Tone was what tripped me up, see. In my first attempt, the tone was very la-dee-dah with the airy prose traipsing along on tippy-toes. Much too peachy-keen, I decided, and wrote a second scene where the character had a craptastic rainy morning complete with leaky roof, no hot water, and hardly any food and all of it moldy. Much too dreary, I decided, and wrote a third scene in which the guy has an okay morning, no hot water but scrounges an edible breakfast.
Et voila! Walking the middle ground between the two extremes produced the desired results: An average sort of morning which becomes all the more remarkable when standing in contrast to extraordinary events.
Do your beginning scenes go through many different incarnations? Do they come out near-perfect on the first try, or do they only necessitate a bit of tweaking? Do you discard them entirely if unsatisfactory, or do you rework and rewrite until eventually they're brand-spanking new?
3.04.2011
Liar, Liar! The Alz Edition
TGIF! We don't have our usual Randomosity for you today. Instead, we have the Alz edition of 3 truths and a lie! Since this is Alz's shindig, I will be quick with my answers.
Those of you who guessed #3 as the lie, YOU ARE CORRECT! I am not ambidextrous. Just plain-old right-handed. My mom, on the other hand (see what I did there), is ambidextrous by necessity. She is naturally left handed, but since that was not fashionable, she was forced to learn right-handedness.
So yes, my friends and I are as weird as we seem. Here's some explanation on my truths.
1. TRUE - Fake girl pop group: A product of the pop explosion of the 90s + our being impressionable, hyperactive tweens. We were named SMACK. Yes, I'm the K in that acronym. There are no actual videos of all 5 of us performing. Thank goodness for small favors...
2. TRUE - Star Wars at the beach: BFFs and I are pretty into Star Wars. It was summer, and Ep. 3 had come out a few months before. We like making stupid videos. So we re-enacted the end of Obi-Wan & Anakin's epic battle. Turns out sand makes for pretty good special effects! Yes, there is a video of this...
4. TRUE - 50 states in alphabetical order: Yes, I can do this, and when I do it, I have to sing it. Yep, a singing version of the 50 states in alphabetical order. We had to learn this song in 5th grade, and I've had it memorized since then. State capitols are another story.
Now for ALZ's 3 truths and a lie!
1. I can read at a rate of 100+ pages an hour, and I do not mean skimming, I mean serious reading-every-word reading.
2. When I was seven, I got lost in the woods while camping and ended up first chasing and then being chased by a flock of turkeys.
3. I like to eat my cotton candy with French fries.
4. The first real original short story I ever wrote as a child involved an evil black unicorn that killed children and turned them into its zombie servants.
(Alz: And here's a self-pinkified pic of myLord and Master rat Apotheosis and me. Congrats on The Liar Society, Lisa & Laura!)
What are your guesses for Alz? Answers on Wednesday. Have a great weekend everyone!
Those of you who guessed #3 as the lie, YOU ARE CORRECT! I am not ambidextrous. Just plain-old right-handed. My mom, on the other hand (see what I did there), is ambidextrous by necessity. She is naturally left handed, but since that was not fashionable, she was forced to learn right-handedness.
So yes, my friends and I are as weird as we seem. Here's some explanation on my truths.
1. TRUE - Fake girl pop group: A product of the pop explosion of the 90s + our being impressionable, hyperactive tweens. We were named SMACK. Yes, I'm the K in that acronym. There are no actual videos of all 5 of us performing. Thank goodness for small favors...
2. TRUE - Star Wars at the beach: BFFs and I are pretty into Star Wars. It was summer, and Ep. 3 had come out a few months before. We like making stupid videos. So we re-enacted the end of Obi-Wan & Anakin's epic battle. Turns out sand makes for pretty good special effects! Yes, there is a video of this...
4. TRUE - 50 states in alphabetical order: Yes, I can do this, and when I do it, I have to sing it. Yep, a singing version of the 50 states in alphabetical order. We had to learn this song in 5th grade, and I've had it memorized since then. State capitols are another story.
Now for ALZ's 3 truths and a lie!
1. I can read at a rate of 100+ pages an hour, and I do not mean skimming, I mean serious reading-every-word reading.
2. When I was seven, I got lost in the woods while camping and ended up first chasing and then being chased by a flock of turkeys.
3. I like to eat my cotton candy with French fries.4. The first real original short story I ever wrote as a child involved an evil black unicorn that killed children and turned them into its zombie servants.
(Alz: And here's a self-pinkified pic of my
What are your guesses for Alz? Answers on Wednesday. Have a great weekend everyone!
3.02.2011
Liar, Liar! The Krispy Edition
It is MARCH! Can you believe it?
March is a big month because it's got the youngsters' Spring Break and a number of birthdays (not as hectic as November though!). It's also big because (as many of you probably already know), LiLa's book, The Liar Society, is out in the world!
Lisa and Laura's blog was one of the first I started following when I really dove into the blogosphere. They're a sweet, sassy, and funny sisterly duo, and you're seriously missing out if you're not following their blog exploits already! Plus, one of their book giveaways was the first giveaway I ever won from the Interwebz!
So to celebrate the Liar Society book release, I've gone pink (you can too by emailing or tweeting a pic to LiLa) and I'm going to treat you to 3 truths and a lie.
Can you guess which is which?
1. I was once part of a fake girl pop group. It was mostly an inside joke, but we did actually perform...
2. My friends and I re-enacted (and filmed) a key scene from Star Wars Episode III at the beach...in our two-piece swimsuits.
3. I'm ambidextrous...like President Garfield.
4. I can recite all 50 states in alphabetical order at the drop of a dime.
Your turn! Tell me your truths in the comments, along with your guesses as to which are mine! Come back Friday for the answers and for Alz's 3 truths and a lie!
P.S. For more Liar Society fun, click the pic of Kate at the top of the sidebar for a chance to win a copy of the book!
March is a big month because it's got the youngsters' Spring Break and a number of birthdays (not as hectic as November though!). It's also big because (as many of you probably already know), LiLa's book, The Liar Society, is out in the world!
Lisa and Laura's blog was one of the first I started following when I really dove into the blogosphere. They're a sweet, sassy, and funny sisterly duo, and you're seriously missing out if you're not following their blog exploits already! Plus, one of their book giveaways was the first giveaway I ever won from the Interwebz!So to celebrate the Liar Society book release, I've gone pink (you can too by emailing or tweeting a pic to LiLa) and I'm going to treat you to 3 truths and a lie.
Can you guess which is which?
1. I was once part of a fake girl pop group. It was mostly an inside joke, but we did actually perform...
2. My friends and I re-enacted (and filmed) a key scene from Star Wars Episode III at the beach...in our two-piece swimsuits.
3. I'm ambidextrous...like President Garfield.
4. I can recite all 50 states in alphabetical order at the drop of a dime.
Your turn! Tell me your truths in the comments, along with your guesses as to which are mine! Come back Friday for the answers and for Alz's 3 truths and a lie!
P.S. For more Liar Society fun, click the pic of Kate at the top of the sidebar for a chance to win a copy of the book!
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