Thursday, January 28, 2010
The Broken Hourglass: Characters
Hmm. Looking for official character bios on the official Planewalker Games website, and I can't find everyone. Redethe, Sanelon, and Nekos all have brief introductions on the characters page, here. Halima is off by herself, over here. Makarios has snippet of theme music (and I still love the game's music; am listening to it now, in fact). That seems to be all. There may be stuff in the interviews elsewhere--I won't hunt for that because I need to get back to what I should be doing (writing). Hard work today--more the pulling teeth than "pulling fire out of the sky" variety. C'est la vie.
The Broken Hourglass: Writing Some More
Working on PC-NPC(1) dialogs now.
I've roughed out all the random responses & am adding some more actual discussions. I have to admit, sometimes I wish there were not nine different characters, but I can't imagine who I'd leave out, if I were to leave any out. I like them all; I liked them before I started writing for them, and I think players are going to like them too. They're a good mix, so everyone's going to find at least one NPC to love and one to loathe, and it won't be the same for each player.
Two of them I'm still working on the speech patterns for; I love what the previous writers have done with them, but I have a hard time fitting into that rhythm. I'll get there though; in the end, I want there to be no sign of who wrote which dialog.
In the meantime, though, I have to get back to actually writing for the game rather than about it. Yesterday I bogged down completely and ended up taking a long walk and pruning roses instead, and thinking hard about what to say. I'm about three dialogs ahead of myself now, and I figure if I write them, I may find three more on the other side.
Now, back to getting those conversations down on paper (or computer, as the case may be).
(1) Discussions between the Player-Character (the one the player is controlling) and the Non-Player Characters (in this case, the ones who join the player on his/her quest) for those of you who aren't gamers.
I've roughed out all the random responses & am adding some more actual discussions. I have to admit, sometimes I wish there were not nine different characters, but I can't imagine who I'd leave out, if I were to leave any out. I like them all; I liked them before I started writing for them, and I think players are going to like them too. They're a good mix, so everyone's going to find at least one NPC to love and one to loathe, and it won't be the same for each player.
Two of them I'm still working on the speech patterns for; I love what the previous writers have done with them, but I have a hard time fitting into that rhythm. I'll get there though; in the end, I want there to be no sign of who wrote which dialog.
In the meantime, though, I have to get back to actually writing for the game rather than about it. Yesterday I bogged down completely and ended up taking a long walk and pruning roses instead, and thinking hard about what to say. I'm about three dialogs ahead of myself now, and I figure if I write them, I may find three more on the other side.
Now, back to getting those conversations down on paper (or computer, as the case may be).
(1) Discussions between the Player-Character (the one the player is controlling) and the Non-Player Characters (in this case, the ones who join the player on his/her quest) for those of you who aren't gamers.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
An Obsession with Butterflies by Sharman Apt Russell AND Anatomy of a Rose also by Sharman Apt Russell
Sharman Apt Rusell that is.
An absolutely fascinating pair. The books were written with gorgeous, poetic prose and were packed with information; this is a rare and unusual combination--most authors can provide one or the other, but not both.
The books also made a great pair read back to back, since one had a longish section featuring plants from a butterfly's viewpoint and the other butterflies and caterpillars from a plant's view.
Full titles: An Obsession With Butterflies: Our Long Love Affair With A Singular Insect and Anatomy Of A Rose: Exploring The Secret Life Of Flowers.
An absolutely fascinating pair. The books were written with gorgeous, poetic prose and were packed with information; this is a rare and unusual combination--most authors can provide one or the other, but not both.
The books also made a great pair read back to back, since one had a longish section featuring plants from a butterfly's viewpoint and the other butterflies and caterpillars from a plant's view.
Full titles: An Obsession With Butterflies: Our Long Love Affair With A Singular Insect and Anatomy Of A Rose: Exploring The Secret Life Of Flowers.
Two Reasons I Love Huntington Beach Central Park
Taken from the Central Library window; I was working there last week & watching the rain come down.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
The Magicians and Mrs. Quent by Galen Beckett
Short review: Becket is trying too hard. Loads of Austen, a bit of Bronte, some Dickens, magic, a highwayman, court intrigue (vaguely described), and a sprinkling of Loveceraft make this an unwieldy, slow-moving work. It doesn't help that it's also the first in the series and is trying to lay ground for future books.
Longer review:
A bunch of Austen, a touch of Bronte, and a dash of Turn of the Screw, some Dickens, a little bit of Lovecraft--I should be enchanted. There's even a highwayman and a down-on-his-luck noble living by his wits, and there is magic, intrigue, and a spooky wood.
I expected to be enchanted.
I wanted to be enchanted.
I was not.
I tried reading straight, flipping ahead, skimming, flipping-ahead-then-turning back, all to no avail. I remained outside and uninvolved.
One problem is that none of the situations have any real edge. House entailed away to an unpleasant cousin? No problem. The sisters have a six month stay, guaranteed, and another house if only Ivy can find a job to support the move--and she does, right away. Similar familiar situations (creepy house, strange governessing situation, odd illnesses, courtship by the boss, unsuitable and attractive suitor) also fall strangely flat. They are there, but they haven't got the sense of real dilemma present in the originals.
The setting is also mildly annoying; it's almost Victorian England--it has similar historical events and apparently similar laws, but is given a different name and bizarre day and night lengths that vary to no readily apparent pattern or reason; people keep having to look in the almanac to see how long the day will be, and I kept expecting that to matter, and keep wondering what makes this variance happen (To be fair, Beckett may have explained that bit during one of the points where I was skimming).
The Magicians and Mrs. Quent has got just enough promise to be frustrating; I persisted in wanting to like it, I persisted in being mildly bored instead.
Longer review:
A bunch of Austen, a touch of Bronte, and a dash of Turn of the Screw, some Dickens, a little bit of Lovecraft--I should be enchanted. There's even a highwayman and a down-on-his-luck noble living by his wits, and there is magic, intrigue, and a spooky wood.
I expected to be enchanted.
I wanted to be enchanted.
I was not.
I tried reading straight, flipping ahead, skimming, flipping-ahead-then-turning back, all to no avail. I remained outside and uninvolved.
One problem is that none of the situations have any real edge. House entailed away to an unpleasant cousin? No problem. The sisters have a six month stay, guaranteed, and another house if only Ivy can find a job to support the move--and she does, right away. Similar familiar situations (creepy house, strange governessing situation, odd illnesses, courtship by the boss, unsuitable and attractive suitor) also fall strangely flat. They are there, but they haven't got the sense of real dilemma present in the originals.
The setting is also mildly annoying; it's almost Victorian England--it has similar historical events and apparently similar laws, but is given a different name and bizarre day and night lengths that vary to no readily apparent pattern or reason; people keep having to look in the almanac to see how long the day will be, and I kept expecting that to matter, and keep wondering what makes this variance happen (To be fair, Beckett may have explained that bit during one of the points where I was skimming).
The Magicians and Mrs. Quent has got just enough promise to be frustrating; I persisted in wanting to like it, I persisted in being mildly bored instead.
The Dangerous World of Butterflies by Peter Laufer
This book really isn't about butterflies. Really, the full title (The Dangerous World of Butterflies : The Startling Subculture of Criminals, Collectors, and Conservationists) should have warned me, but I was curious about the bugs, and it was on the shelf, so I picked it up anyway.
The first couple of chapters focus on the insects, and Laufer does his best to make the subject sound as hard-hitting and edgy as his more usual topics of war and politics--he gets a lot of mileage out of pupal rape. After that, he turns his focus to the collectors and smugglers, at which point tone and topic start to match a bit better, though he never can quite let go of his previous books.
He mentions Orchid Thief once, as a comparable collection of eccentrics and hangers-on in a field, and there are some similarities in subject, and someone who likes one might, in fact, find the other interesting. Trouble is, Susan Orlean has a sense of humor and Laufer doesn't--or at least, not one he shows in the book.
Readable, but not fantastic.
The first couple of chapters focus on the insects, and Laufer does his best to make the subject sound as hard-hitting and edgy as his more usual topics of war and politics--he gets a lot of mileage out of pupal rape. After that, he turns his focus to the collectors and smugglers, at which point tone and topic start to match a bit better, though he never can quite let go of his previous books.
He mentions Orchid Thief once, as a comparable collection of eccentrics and hangers-on in a field, and there are some similarities in subject, and someone who likes one might, in fact, find the other interesting. Trouble is, Susan Orlean has a sense of humor and Laufer doesn't--or at least, not one he shows in the book.
Readable, but not fantastic.
Monday, January 25, 2010
The Picture I Didn't Get
Wednesday.
It's pouring rain.
A little girl of around three is standing next to the chocolate shop. Her curly red hair is plastered to her head.
She is dripping wet.
In each hand she holds a chocolate covered strawberry almost as big as her hand.
On her face is a look of pure joy.
It's pouring rain.
A little girl of around three is standing next to the chocolate shop. Her curly red hair is plastered to her head.
She is dripping wet.
In each hand she holds a chocolate covered strawberry almost as big as her hand.
On her face is a look of pure joy.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Disneyland in the rain
It had been an almost unprecedented 20 days since I last visited Disneyland, so on Friday I went.
Although it was quite wet, the threatened storm never happened; there was only enough rain to make rainbows.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters
Sense and Sensibility is one Austen book that I have never been able to manage more than a mild sort of liking for.
It turns out, all it ever really needed was a dash of Lovecraft and a liberal helping of sea monsters to make it work.
True, the first 100 or so pages are a bit dull, but that is as much Austen's doing as it is Winters', and after that, the sea monsters provide lively interludes to wooing, gossiping, and false confidences. Lots of people get eaten, and there are plenty of bodily fluids splashed about.
Two wistful afterthoughts:
1) In Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Elizabeth is a noted zombie slayer. In Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Elinor is a noted driftwood carver. There really is no comparison.
2) Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters provided what I wanted and expected--a light read and some laughter. There is just a niggle at the back of my mind, though, that is suggesting that a real combination of Austen and Lovecraft would be truly, breathtakingly awesome, worth reading multiple times. Oh well. It was fun!
Oh, and hey, here's the book trailer:
It turns out, all it ever really needed was a dash of Lovecraft and a liberal helping of sea monsters to make it work.
True, the first 100 or so pages are a bit dull, but that is as much Austen's doing as it is Winters', and after that, the sea monsters provide lively interludes to wooing, gossiping, and false confidences. Lots of people get eaten, and there are plenty of bodily fluids splashed about.
Two wistful afterthoughts:
1) In Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Elizabeth is a noted zombie slayer. In Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Elinor is a noted driftwood carver. There really is no comparison.
2) Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters provided what I wanted and expected--a light read and some laughter. There is just a niggle at the back of my mind, though, that is suggesting that a real combination of Austen and Lovecraft would be truly, breathtakingly awesome, worth reading multiple times. Oh well. It was fun!
Oh, and hey, here's the book trailer:
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
I Think Maybe We Like Tolkien
I decided to reread The Lord of the Rings; it's been a while.
A quick look at the bookshelves revealed 2 copies of The Hobbit, two of The Fellowship of the Ring, three of The Two Towers, two of The Return of the King, and three all-in-one volumes of The Lord of the Rings. And, yes, we do have all three movies, in the extended edition.
There's also a copy of The Silmarillion somewhere around, and I have a copy of Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham.
A quick look at the bookshelves revealed 2 copies of The Hobbit, two of The Fellowship of the Ring, three of The Two Towers, two of The Return of the King, and three all-in-one volumes of The Lord of the Rings. And, yes, we do have all three movies, in the extended edition.
There's also a copy of The Silmarillion somewhere around, and I have a copy of Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Favorite Bits from Books (4)
"It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him."
From The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
From The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
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