There’s so much going on in the world right now that it’s hard to stay sane and not want to escape into our creative worlds full-time. I have things I want to say, and while I’m not sure I want to put it in this space, as I keep this blog as a journal as well, I may have to break my silence. I’m still pondering the idea, so be forewarned. 😉
This is why I feel today’s quote is so very apropos.
If you feel like I do, keep your chins up, my friends! And try to have a wonderful and productive week!
How is it Friday already?! Honestly, it’s like I’m always a day behind, or two in this case.
As many of you are already aware, I love Pinterest. It’s a great way to find and save images that represent a piece you may be writing, or a great time sucker depending on the day. Don’t believe me? Click on the ‘P’ to the right and see. If you were planning on doing something else, you may find yourself in a pin-hole, well, that’s how I refer to it anyway – hours lost to scrolling and clicking and saving and then finding new things…and repeat.
I wanted to get back on track, and no matter the day, there’s always time for a little inspiration. Here’s this week’s Writing Prompt:
Feeling inspired?
Come write with me!
What is that saying about best laid plans?
Oh, yes. They often go awry. And so went the month of September.
A seemingly simple change to my work schedule for the entire month put a huge crimp in my plans. I wrote very little, and the longing I feel to be creative and get lost in my imaginary worlds is palpable, like an ache in the center of my being. This is an oddly nice reminder of the fact that I truly have found my calling. That being said, I didn’t come remotely close to finishing my planned rewrite, I ignored my blog almost completely (Sorry, everyone!), and even the fanfic got the cold shoulder and I’m right in the middle of the juiciest bit.
Not to mention a slew of other things that got pushed to the wayside. A whole month passed by and I have so very little to show for it. Even the change in the work schedule offered little result.
And finally, amidst the monotony, I received word that my pilot was not advancing in the first contest I submitted it to. I swear, if that amateur hour mistake cost me moving forward…
((Sigh))
Sometimes I can’t help feeling as if I’m swimming against the current. There’s a whole lot of energy being expelled with little in the way of development, and I’m kind of at a loss of what decision I can make in order to achieve a more promising outcome. I wonder from time to time how many hours I’ve wasted looking for another job I don’t really want instead of investing that time in the work I actually want to do. I take that back. I really don’t want to know that number.
It’s that kind of thought that compels me to write wherever and whenever I can. Every little step helps, right? Tuesday night, instead of being compelled to do “busy work” after the one table I had (yes, you read that correctly – one), I wrote. I actually sat down at this tucked away little table and wrote. It was fan fiction, because that is the only thing I seem to be able to concentrate on at work, but I wrote…and I wrote a lot of it.
It felt good. I’ve missed it. And it was the nudge and spark of creativity I needed.
Can you believe there are only three months left to the year? Those goals I set for myself are drawing ever closer, and if I want to keep the promises I’ve made to myself, I have to get crackin’. The comforting thing about goal setting is that they can be adjusted to fit your needs/time table. There were a couple of deadlines I was hoping to make, but my overall goal of having my portfolio ready for the new year is still attainable. ((Crosses fingers))
Okay. Now that I’ve reflected on the nonsense that was September, it’s time to look forward to October and what the rest of the year has in store. With the holidays fast approaching and the time sucking that inevitably happens, we’ll have to be even more diligent with the time we have.
Even this big setback had a silver lining – I know I won’t be satisfied with doing anything else.
I’m open to suggestions for how I may best move forward and would love to hear what your goals are for the rest of the year.
Wishing you all the best in your creative endeavors!
It’s hard not to let some words affect you, to keep moving forward in spite of the negativity and resistance, but in our efforts to rise above it all, this week’s quote is a great mantra to adopt.
Keep reaching for your dreams!
It’s hard enough to keep up with the shows I’ve been watching for years (because I haven’t paid for television in nearly 5 years and generally have to wait to stream), let alone stay current with the torrent of new shows available on the numerous outlets nowadays, but since I want to be a part of it all, I had to make a concerted effort to watch some new things.
I decided to go through my various lists and watch the first episode of a number of shows, and see what struck me. Here are the “new to me” stand outs:
4. The Last Kingdom – A wonderful show I discovered via Netflix is the BBC import The Last Kingdom. Set before England is a united nation, the story follows the life of a young Saxon prince who is captured by an invading Dane army and becomes their earl’s slave. As the years pass, he becomes more Dane than Saxon and eventually becomes the earl’s adopted son. His journey is a strange one as he discovers that despite his true heritage, he is a man that doesn’t really belong in either world, and yet finds himself at the center of the great changes that are to come.
It’s a period piece set in England. For me, that’s all it really takes, 😉 but there is something unique and captivating about this show, and I definitely recommend watching the first episode like I did – I’m sure you’ll be hooked too.
3. Galavant – A comedy musical set in Medieval times starring Timothy Omundson?! I was in from the moment I saw the first preview, but because of the not-having-tv-thing, it was just another show that got pushed to the wayside…until Netflix. The first two seasons popped up and I was hooked from first song – Thank you, Alan Menken! (of Disney movie fame: The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Tangled to name a few).
The series follows Galavant, a knight on a mission to reclaim his lost love, but as you can expect in a comedy, things don’t always go as planned. The show is more adult oriented despite the light hearted presentation, special guests make regular appearances, and without commercials, the 18 episodes are only about 20 mins long, so it’s an easy binge watch. And then I discovered the horrible truth – Galavant had been canceled. I think the show is really wonderful, and cleverly done. I’m sad to learn that there won’t be any more of it. If you’re looking for something different and just plain fun, I highly recommend Galavant.
2. Vikings – This was a show I longed to watch, but again, did not have access to, and then I got access to Hulu and voila! Even if I hadn’t been entranced by the first episode, which I totally was, this show was one I was willing to put a little effort into. Thankfully, it didn’t come to that. It’s fantastic! Vikings are often portrayed as this brute invading force, but this show takes us inside their world and, in particular, the life of Ragnar Lothbrok.
Tired of the routine set by his earl of sailing east to lands they have repeatedly pillaged, Ragnar makes a daring-rogue decision and builds a boat of his own to travel to new destinations. Ragnar, besides being easy on the eyes, is a compelling character to watch. He’s a clever man played by a subtle actor who says a great deal with his eyes. (I’m a sucker for that, hello, Mads Mikkelsen.) And then there’s his wife, Lagertha, a famous warrior known as a shield maiden. She is an amazing character and my eyes are drawn to her whenever she’s on screen. She’s a force to be reckoned with, and it’s satisfying to find a character like her.
I’m only on season 2, and there’s already been betrayal and sacrifice (literally) and loss. I can’t wait to see what else is in store for these characters.
1. Stranger Things – Everyone was talking about Stranger Things so I decided to watch the first episode to see what all the hype was about. If you’ve been on the fence, get off of it already and watch this hit from Netflix Originals.
Set in the 80s in a small town, this sci-fi series follows a group of friends, four 12 year old boys who are sort of the geeky outcasts. (In hindsight, they’re the boys I wish I would’ve befriended when I was 12 to learn how to play D&D.) When one of their friends mysteriously disappears, a new friend mysteriously appears, and a “strange” series of events follow as this tale unfolds.
There was a lot of information about this show on every social media outlet (there still is as season 2 is close at hand), and it was hard to stay ignorant to the premise, so if you’re like I was, I won’t give too much away because it is really well done and a lot of fun to watch. I have to say I was surprised how much I enjoyed this, because I didn’t know what to expect, so maybe that’s a good thing…I’ve been disappointed more often than not recently when I’m looking forward to something…and despite the fact that Winona Ryder is one of the leads, she is still not a good actor, the show is worthy of your time.
And the +1 is currently in the “undecided” section:
Black Butler – The Sis has already watched all the available episodes and is a fan, but I’ve only watched a few, and am still on the fence. I really like the premise which is about a young boy, the heir to a vast fortune in Victorian England, who makes a deal with a demon to avenge his family. The demon then becomes his constant companion in the way of his butler, and he is “one hell of a butler”. 😉
Japanime seems to be a cross between a couple of animation types, a beautiful, stylistic art, and this odd, campy, almost childish variant. Black Butler has both, which sometimes pulls me out of the story because the two styles are drastically different, but this is a mainstay in their animation, I’ve discovered, so it’s just something you have to get used to.
Black Butler is available on both Netflix and Hulu and the Hulu version has both the dubbed and subtitled versions, I believe. I would recommend the subtitled versions, because Sebastian, the butler, has a wonderful, soothing voice.
Have you watched any of these shows? What do you think? Wanna talk about any of them? Let’s chat!
I was struck by today’s prompt visually, but I don’t have a story idea…yet.
Are you inspired?
Come write with me!
Today’s dose of inspiration is not so much a quote, but words of encouragement to find that “thing”.
I hope you have all been so lucky and are fanning the flames!
Have a great week everyone!
I try to take advantage of the down time I get at work, which, if you’ve read my fan fiction, you’ll know is a great deal. Even on a Friday night, I found myself with enough time to write three flash fiction pieces.
*Don’t forget, if you’re ever inspired by the Writing Prompts, let me know so I can share your creations here as well.
The first prompt was meant to deter me from writing more romantic fanfic, it really is a problem, one I find myself happy to indulge, but instead it gave me an idea for a scene. Fairly soon, some version of it will find its way there. 😉
Fort Drakon
I wasn’t certain what had startled me awake – the unsettling sounds coming from the dark, the throbbing of my head, or the deep chill upon my skin. I awoke to find myself in Alistair’s protective embrace, on the cold stone floor of a prison cell, in nothing but my small clothes. Looking up to his face, past the bare expanse of his chest, I said teasingly, “It’s a shame we are unable to take advantage of this privacy, given our situation is so dire.”
He laughed in spite of himself, and responded with a wink, “Yes, unfortunately, this is no time for romance.”
The Display
The advert had promised “sights not to be missed,” and the showing had not disappointed, but there was another advert, one meant to be understood only by the one it was intended for. She had read it and arrived early to ensure she would not be taken by surprise. There was nothing about her that would give her away as anything but a proper Victorian lady, but for the one who waited for her across the gallery, she was as deadly as she was well dressed.
Oversight Committee
After watching the birth of yet another system, they were surprised to find that it still gave them chills. There was nothing quite like the explosion of color and the dazzling display of light. Knowing that life would soon be springing forth made them each excited for different reasons. The demon’s smile was smug with all the temptations waiting to be explored. The angel nudged the other knowing that after countless millennia, nothing had changed.
Happy Writing!
When I find a writing opportunity, I like to share.
If you’re not following Aerogramme Writers’ Studio yet, you definitely should! Like right now. Go. I’ll wait. 😉
Okay, now that you’re back, let’s get to business.
Aerogramme sends regular monthly emails with opportunities, and then a number of other emails throughout the month when they discover something new. Now you don’t have to waste your time not writing because you’re looking for avenues to showcase your work, they’ll come to you.
Here are two, for example:
Wishing you the very best in all your endeavors! Good Luck!
I’m breaking from routine this week. It’s time to mix up the schedule, so for today, I thought I would do a review…I’m really, really behind in those. I mean, I never even talked about Star Wars. Who am I?
As always, I will do my best to keep my review “spoiler free”.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels that DC is trying to play catch up with Marvel. Marvel has been interweaving their stories since day one and while not all the movies they put out are stellar, they’ve put out a few great ones and their story telling only continues to get better. From what I’ve seen so far of the DC cinematic world, the same cannot be said.
Suicide Squad, on initial inspection, sounded like an interesting premise: gather together some of the comic world’s worst and let them do something good knowing that if it all goes wrong they’re the perfect scapegoats.
First of all, there are so. many. characters, and for some reason, we needed the backstory of each one. Actually, no, we didn’t. As a writer, I’ve learned that when introducing a group, you should find an interesting way to do it, so it sets them all up with their individual character traits and personalities, and doesn’t waste too much time. This did not happen in Suicide Squad.
I wish I would have timed it, but I felt the set up for all these characters was somewhere in the 45 mins range. Way too long. And a lot of their backgrounds could have easily been summed up in a line of dialogue. With stories of this genre, and with a lot of side characters, I don’t feel that full histories are necessary because we don’t need to emotionally connect with each person on screen. Besides, the movie is only two hours long.
Then there was the plot, or lack there of. What a convoluted mess. Honestly, I felt that the director was having so much fun showing off his cast and special effects that he forgot they were supposed to be doing something – the mission – which, again, was all over the place. With a comic book history that spans 75 years, there are a number of topics to choose from, and yet this is where they really fell flat.
The one redeeming thing in the whole movie: Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. Besides being absolutely gorgeous, her sweet-crazy performance was the highlight of the film, in addition to the very few interactions we got with Jared Leto’s Joker. Long time comic book fans are well aware of the twisted relationship they share, and considering the information of how much footage was shot of the two, I think most movie goers were surprised/disappointed with the less than 10 mins that actually appeared in the film.
This is probably because they were trying to make leads of all their characters, and now this is why so many fans are calling for a Harley/Joker film with these two actors reprising the roles. They were fun to watch.
Sadly, this film was an overall disappointment. It had its moments of comedy, but they were few and far between. Comic books are fun, and yes, they often deal with real world problems, but the characters that are coming to save the day wear tights and capes. Regardless of wanting these stories to feel “real” with a darker side, they should maintain their levity and fun.
Well, that’s my take any way. If you saw the film, what did you think?
A Writer's Discrepant Memoirs and Other Tales 