waking from hibernation

Well maybe not from hibernation, but I've been quiet on the blog for quite a long time.
I'm gearing up to have some fun with NaNoMoWri - or whatever it's called. Basically the idea is to write as much as you can in a month, hoping to get to a completed novel.

Right now I'm working on story ideas and concepts, or as it's sometimes known, wasting time on the internet. I'm having a lot of fun with things like this : article on the large hadron collider and the Higgs Boson's plot against it.
»

I'm also living the text dream - recently I've moved back from gui programs to shell programs(think old school unix days), and man I'm having fun. This was started by the failure of the mouse buttons on an otherwise decent 7yr old laptop, and has now moved to a whole new computing experience for me.

Anyways that's what I'm up to currently.
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Summertime and I'm living easy

I've been off the blog for a while now.

Lot of reasons: Family Wedding, Mother's Knee Surgery, general summer slackness, xbox360, etc.

However I'm back. Mostly. I suspect some would question just how present I ever really was.

Some updates on my world:

The writing group has been a great way to study people, not so much in the writing area. I'm ambitious, and still hopeful, so it's not fully dead, but in dire need of revivification.

My computer hasn't locked up recently, principally because I'm using a new (actually used/old) laptop with a decent install of linux(xubuntu) on it. Of course this has it own set of challenges, principally in data migration.

It's frigging hot here. Not much in the way of story ideas are being generated by the heat, but it's great for reading. I'm dancing through the Dunes and pushing upstream in Riverworld.
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Writing Advice (From an Agent!)

Nathan Bransford is one of the many agents who blog, and he's one of the better ones out there. I follow a lot of blogs and long before I started following his I was reading his work. That's because what he writes gets picked up and redistributed throughout the 'Blogosphere'.

And now it's my turn to push his stuff.
Today he has put up a pretty complete index» of his advice articles on writing.
Go now, check it out, bookmark it and follow his blog.
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Nutrition vs Taste: The Vampire Dilemma

So I was talking with my new friend Chris» yesterday and I found myself trying to explain Nutrition vs Taste.

Lets back up a little. Chris is one of the creators of P-brane: The Green Man, a graphic novel I intend to talk more about at a future point. Suffice to say Chris and I have mutual interests in Science Fiction and Fantasy (Or Speculative Fiction ;).

One thing we talked about yesterday which wasn't writing related was my health. I'm a sick guy even though I look generally healthy. That's because one of the main symptoms of my disease is weight loss; I don't get full nutrition from eating. So, unlike my schoolmates, as I slip past thirty I'm still the same slender frame I was 10 years ago, no pot belly. This is part of what I explained briefly to Chris about my disease. The other part is that eating food aggravates my disease and makes me feel, in a word, poorly.

I have to eat food to live, so food is good, but I get sick when I eat, so food is bad.

It's actually something I don't think much about after having had this condition for so many years. However, when I was explaining this to Chris, whilst pouring the unhealthily fatty but tasty cream in my coffee, I was struck by the catch 22.

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How is it that I, with my health, still eat anything except the most nutritious, easy to digest foods? Why would I put cream in my coffee, or even drink coffee? Both of which are less desirable options for my health.

I do it because they are the tasty options.

Food is a common experience for humanity. We all enjoy ice cream and chocolate. Okay maybe not all of us, but we do share a common understanding of the enjoyment of food. Just as my body needs the supplements and liquid meals that are easy to digest; another part of me, my soul perhaps, needs doughnuts and cream in my coffee in order to fully share in the human experience.

There is a recurring character from fiction that faces a similar conundrum: The Vampire.

In fact in Mario Acevedo's 2006 vampire detective novel The Nymphos Of Rocky Flats (my review here) the main character struggles with this very problem. He refuses to drink human blood and attempts to subsist on a near normal food diet. This is one of the ways that he clings to his humanity. He fears that if he drinks human blood he will become like other vampires, indiscriminate, uncaring killers. Ultimately however this leads to problems for him, because by not eating the nutrition (human blood) that he required he was weakened by his disease (vampirism).

For Mario Acevedo's Vampire food has become a focal point for his struggle with what he has become. And like the main character in Nymphos Of Rocky Flats food is also a focal point in my struggle with my health.

For both of us peace comes with the realization that accepting the limits and requirements of our diseases doesn't mean we have to give up our humanity.

*I'm not a madman, mostly I use skim milk in my coffee, the cream was a treat yesterday.





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Coming up with Short Story Ideas: Redux

Or: What's with the 'Story Ideas»' tag?

In the original short story ideas post» I talked about my writing group and eventually shared some links I use to find inspiration. Oddly enough it's one of my most popular posts.

A number of the visitors to And The Chain have gone to google and searched for "Story Ideas". I know their story, and I feel for them because it's my story too. They sit in front of the computer, waiting for their muse to appear, awakening the little god within that can create worlds, characters and stories. And all that while still keeping his weekends free.

But eventually comes a day when the muse doesn't appear, and then their fingers tap out 'Story Ideas' into the search box. Perhaps in despair, or frustration, or perhaps just to see what happens.

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Many of them read that post on my writing group and short stoy ideas, and maybe it has value for them, but few ever go on to explore this blog. That original post on coming up with Short Story Ideas was the first one to receive the Story Ideas» Tag. But now it shows up all over the place on this blog. Once the tag existed, it seems I couldn't stop using it. And I want people to use it as well. In fact I'm adding a link to the original article specifically to encourage people to use it.

When I throw the tag on an article it's because I see an idea there, maybe for me, maybe for someone else. It may not be highlighted with arrows, but it's there for those that are looking.

This blog is about ideas, finding them, developing them, and sharing them. So use the Story Ideas Tag and if anything inspires you, let me know.



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Just how did we get this wasteland?

I love a good post-apocalyptic story, living by your wits, outracing death, and searching for survival. Many stories set in these fallen worlds are focused on restoring what came before. The idea is that before the 'fall' everybody was much better off. Well is that true? Or is it a mistaken assumption by the survivors or author? What if the reality is that the world that came before is the one the precipitated the fall?

There is a fascinating article over at COSMOS Magazine entitled Civilisations: why they fail». What is interesting about the article is the examination of the role of self-deception in the failure of civilizations. The ability for a group of people to ignore an obvious problem, even one that will threaten their survival.

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Somewhere in the middle of the Pacific is a small island with big heads. It's arguably one of the most famous islands in the world but the people responsible for that fame are gone. Their civilization long since failed.

As the COSMOS Article asks:
What did Easter Islanders say as they were cutting down the last palm tree? Were they saying, "Think of our jobs as loggers, not these trees?" Were they saying, "Respect my private property rights?" Surely Easter Islanders must have realised the consequences of destroying their forest. One wonders whether people of the next century – if there are still people alive – will be equally astonished about our blindness today.

I ask, do we look back on the Easter Islanders as a great civilization, one that we would aspire to recreate? How about the Mayans? The Vikings on Iceland? *Maybe* the survivors looked back on those civilizations as something to recreate? If that was the case than they were themselves practising the same self-deception that led to their respective falls to begin with.

Are your post apocalyptic characters deceiving themselves? Do they perceive the world that came before as the paradise they must regain? Civilizations fail for reasons, those reasons don't just disappear after the fall. If your computer crashes and you reboot it, is the problem *really* fixed? Are your characters wise enough to recognize this? What does that recognition do to your story?




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Where's the Basement?

Proof that children the next generation of adults can read, write, and dream is found in the NASA Space Settlement Design Contest». Eric Yam from Northern Secondary School in Toronto, Canada, was one of the Grand Prize Winners»

Eric's winning proposal was for an Orbital Habitat that he named ASTEN (Right click here to save the 12mb PDF) one of the alternate names for the Egyptian God Thoth.

I am amazed by the breadth of thought that has been put into this document. Issues ranging from immigration through to nutrition are addressed. In the context of World Building this is a great example of what can be done if you are motivated.

Congratulations Eric Yam, the First Canadian to win the Grand Prize in this contest in the 16 years that it has been run.



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Lost in Space (well on the Moon at least)

I've had one of those days. A day where you start reading about the biology of Star Trek» and by the end are poring over transcripts of Astronauts lost on the moon». Too bad those astronauts didn't have this Google Moon Map» showing exactly where they were.

Here are some of the highlights from my trip across the web this morning.

Making Aliens: The Repercussions of Planetary Settlement»

Seven ways to control the Galaxy with self-replicating probes»

The Physics of Extraterrestrial Civilizations»

How did that trip bring me to the Moon and a couple of astronauts arguing over a map?
That's where the story idea exists.

Story ideas can be found anywhere, and often by combining different ideas. Just reading and letting your unconscious mind guide you across the web can be a great way to find inspiration.



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What do you want from a Writing Group?

Seriously. What?

I know what I want, but it doesn't matter what I want. What's important is what you want. Do you want to write? Do you want to be critiqued? Do you want to participate? Do you want to rise to the challenge and produce your best work?

Or,

Would you rather flop lifelessly on your keyboard in defeat?

I've done both, and I have my own opinion on which is preferable.

Tonight is the second failure of my writing group to meet. :(

This could be an issue with my bodily odour or just bad timing and luck this spring. ;)

I'm actually not bent out of shape over it because I'm not the one being harmed here. With or without the insight and critique of the group members, the fact remains that I am still writing. That is one of my main goals with the writing group and it's working (for me at least). Now there is a new season upon us and a new member coming out next month. To dwell on the past is only useful if I'm writing my memoirs.


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Ohhhhh GodHood

The Singularity» is coming. Seriously, any day now :). And Vernor Vinge is discussing it over at h+ magazine.

I've been waiting for the singularity for almost 20 years. Pretty much since the first time I was hospitalized. To some people the singularity means enhanced cognition, or free energy. Both wonderful things that will change the world, but to me it means Immortality. That's right I am not a fan of death. Nope, I don't like it at all.

When I was younger I was faced with a fairly scary disease. Death and Pain were suddenly much larger figures in my life than they should be for any child. It was in speculative fiction that I found escape from those terrors. In the stories I read science had conquered disease. Wonderful technologies like cloned organs, or medical nanobots worked miracles on a regular basis. These weren't wishes granted by a genie, or gifts from capricious gods, but the end result of steady scientific progress. This was something I could grab onto, something I could understand and relate to the reality I lived in.

We aren't growing new organs yet, though with stem cells we're close. We also don't have the medical nanobots. But there are many complex surgical procedures that are now done through an incision the size of an inch. I have one of those one inch scars. Had that surgery been done 10 years earlier the scar would have stretched all the way across my belly. In another 20 years perhaps that surgery will not even be necessary.

Over at SciFi Scanner is an article talking about some interesting experiments with Junk DNA». This is unused DNA that's in our genome, left over from the ancestors of humanity. It's similar to legacy code in a computer program that's been commented out, it's still there, just not used. Some of that legacy code when activated (uncommented) could potentially allow for things like an immunity to the HIV virus, or even other 'abilities' that lay in our evolutionary past.

The ability I'd like to see be (re)activated is regeneration. Yup the holy grail of immortality. It's in our genetic past somewhere, only at some point our primitive mammalian ancestors stopped regenerating. Instead they switched to growing scar tissue. Scars are great for mammals that have to run and hide and heal quickly, but that isn't the world humanity lives in. The evolutionary reasons for abandoning regeneration in favour of scars no longer apply to us. Yes, I dare to disagree with Mother Nature.

This is the singularity for me: The moment that we take control of our own evolution and design. When it's no longer just a random collection of genes that decides who is healthy and who is sick, that decides who lives or who dies. This is the future I still dream of.



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Mind Meld of the Gods

I'm doing it again, I'm linking to another Mind Meld over at SF Signal. This one is about Gods in Speculative Fiction».

If you are unfamiliar with a SF Signal Mind Meld let me give you a heads up: This is not an experience for the unprepared. Brew some coffee, find a comfortable seat and settle in for an intimate look into the minds of some of the greatest SF writers out there. People like Elizabeth Bear, Gregory Frost, and L.E. Modesitt Jr.

I have some thoughts of my own as to the nature of religion in stories.

More Below/Beyond the Link...


Religion in real life (there's a mindbender) is something that comes easy for some, hard for others and not at all for the rest. In Fantasy it seems to generally be an expected and active component of the world and in Science Fiction an invisible or non-existent force. I'm not saying that those are the rules for all, in fact there are some fantastic stories that defy my above statement. And how do you really classify A Canticle for Leibowitz or The Algebraist?

In world building and writing I struggle to find the difference between a god and superhuman. What makes one divine and the other merely impressive? I don't believe there is a hard line, no simple criteria or checklist. On a bell curve I would place normal man at one end, and the monotheistic omniscient god at the other end. Then on the hump I would look for my stories. To me that space is where men can achieve greatness and where the gods can falter.

Ultimately given the role faith and religion has in the real world, and the influence it has on the lives of so many, it is a mistake not to give it some thought when world building. You don't need gods with winged horses and lightening powers, just a conscious knowledge of the role religion plays in your characters lives. Some of the most powerful stories written never show the gods, or their motives, but without the characters faith there would have been no story.


For more on the religions in the two books I mentioned check out this review of A Canticle for Leibowitz from SF Reviews.net and this article on The Algebraist from Gordon's Notes





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Eating my own words?

So a few days ago» I listed three common mistakes made by members of a writing group. (at the bottom of the linked post)

* Didn't Finish the Story.

* Didn't Edit the Story.

* Submits Story Late.

Last night I had to send in a story submission for the next meeting of my writing group. So did I follow my own advice and avoid the three mistakes?

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In reverse order:

* Submits Story Late.
I did submit my story on time. I sent my submission sometime around 8pm last night, so I didn't make this mistake. Not that I wasn't tempted as we'll see below.

* Didn't Edit the Story.
I spent a good few hours editing this story. It needed it and sadly I'm not that good at editing. What I struggle with is grammar and I blame myself for that. I didn't really pay attention to grammar in school and by the time teachers started to really get serious about the intricacies for grammar I had already closed my mind to the subject. My instincts were 'good enough'. Well today I am admitting that they aren't 'good enough'. I really need to understand the mistakes I am making so that I can avoid them in the first place. Is my story edited and readable? Yes. Are there still errors in the writing? Plenty.

* Didn't Finish the Story.
Well I finished, but in less than 3000 words. I had a goal of 3 to 5 thousand words and I fell short. This kills me. I tried during editing to increase the length of the story and ironically enough shrank it down by 300 words. So even though I am sure that the story would be better for the addition of a 1000 words, it is finished at least.

So in conclusion, while I did complete, edit and submit my story, I know that I could have done better, and next month I will.



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More Lousy Advice

I've got a little bit of a penchant for advice these days. So to keep things fair and balanced I give the good with the bad, distinguishing between the two I leave as an exercise for the reader. (Gotta use Critical Thinking somewhere people)

Over at The Chronicle Review is an article by Geoffrey K. Pullman entitled 50 Years of Stupid Grammar Advice ».

In the article Pullman discusses the 50th anniversary of The Elements of Style, yes that book. Essentially, as well as some really good advice, there are a number of errors in that book. Errors that have been perpetuated by teachers and writers both for decades now.

Sigh. I remember having my short stories covered in red ink by one particular teacher who was a devout follower of Elements of Style. Hearing the words "Passive Voice" still stirs a decidedly non-passive response within me.

So the message, with any advice, be it from me or from some guys 50 years ago, is to evaluate whether it makes sense for you. Don't allow argument from authority to blind your critical thinking skills.




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Ten Styling Mistakes

Over at Holt Uncensored a few days ago was a fantastic article on Ten Common Mistakes made by all writers». The beauty about these mistakes is that they are all very common, easy to spot once you know what to look for, and by fixing them the quality of your writing will improve immediately.

Moving on, I also wanted to share a link to Writtenwyrdd where today writer D. Lynn Frazier discusses the impact something as simple as Concrete can have on World Building» (puns not intentional).

On the home front, I'm busy working on my next story for my writing group. We have a simple system: 1 short story a month, 3 to 5 thousand words in length. Ideally in a few months each member should be starting to build a collection of short stories that have been peer reviewed and would be suitable for submission to editors and magazines.

See that's ultimately the goal of this group. To write and submit our stories in pursuit of publication. To some writers it's about finding personal meaning in stories, and developing their craft or art. All very literary, and a great use of 6 years of university. I get it,and I could spend years at my desk writing things that make me happy. Of course by ignoring the current markets desires then I would have little chance of being published. Happy, but unpublished, and that's not for me.

So back on the topic of mistakes, here are three common mistakes made by members of a writing group:
(I have made all of these mistakes!!)

* Didn't Finish the Story. Members with an incomplete story that drags on for months (with edits, additions, rewrites and changes) will bore the other members of the group and have nothing of value to use for submission. Finish the story and move on. If you want to edit, fine, but don't resubmit the edited piece the next month and the next month, ad nauseam. The converse of this is the member who submits the first part of a different story each meeting without ever submitting the second parts (or even finishing the second parts oftentimes). They likewise short change themselves. There is no market for half written stories, nobody publishes a book of chapter ones. In the meantime what value is the critique of half a story?

* Didn't Edit the Story. It should be as obvious as the nose on your face that if you write something for publication that commas, periods, paragraphs, and other correct uses of punctuation are expected. To submit unformatted stories, riddled with punctuation errors, to the writing group is a waste of time. Nobody can effectively critique the work because they have to struggle to read it. The writing group isn't there to fix errors that should have stopped in Grade School.

* Submits Story Late. Deadlines are hardly deadly in an informal writing group, and the story may be better for the extra time spent on it, but a late story is less likely to be read and critiqued. Not everybody has a schedule that allows them to read late stories in the hours before the meeting. Which is exactly why many writing groups have stories due days or even a week before the meeting. This allows everyone time to read the story and prepare a critique.

The nice thing about these mistakes is that they are easy to avoid. Just write and finish what you write. Don't delay, don't dwaddle, just DO IT. And on that note: Time to get back to my own writing.


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13 Things that Do Not Make Sense

I'm sure there's more than 13 things that do not make sense », but New Scientist had to end the article somewhere.
(I'm trying something new: the '»' symbol is a link that will open the preceding link a new window.)

The 13 things they list are:

1 The placebo effect
2 The horizon problem
3 Ultra-energetic cosmic rays
4 Belfast homeopathy results
5 Dark matter
6 Viking's methane
7 Tetraneutrons
8 The Pioneer anomaly
9 Dark energy
10 The Kuiper cliff
11 The Wow signal
12 Not-so-constant constants
13 Cold fusion


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The article gives an explanation for each item on the list, briefly explaining some of the questions that surround them. It's a pretty good look at some of the mysteries that are still unexplained by science. Personally I wouldn't advise attempting the experiment they describe to demonstrate the placebo effect. In most jurisdictions that would be considered torture and in others (cue the rim shot) marriage. Hiiyooo!!, I'm here all week folks.

No seriously now, there are legitimate questions in science and, unlike the article I reviewed yesterday, this article does a little bit better at approaching the subject. And these articles are about the same subject, bad science, fringe science, wacky science, it all is the same thing. The unexplained and unexplored.

In my readings I've encountered many of the items on the list and have my own conclusions. To preface: I'm not a scientist, nor am I accredited by any institution that would give me any credibility. (heh) However I can read and follow many arguments in physics and chemistry thanks to a decent education. Yay Canada

Most of the items on the list are acknowledged mysteries of astrophysics and particle physics. Things ranging from Dark Matter to Tetraneutrons. And Most have little impact on life. Impact or not though, the Pioneer Anomaly is pretty cool. It just feeds the imagination to wonder why the probes are moving faster than they should as they exit the solar system.

Also on the list were a couple of the items dealing with health and biology. A subject I only know really through, well, being a biological sometimes healthy being.

The first, #1 (Placebo Effect), is a psychological/physiological mystery, and fascinating to behold. How it works is still unquantified, but the fact it works is well documented and accepted.

The other, #4 (Homoeopathy), I had always thought of as bad science. I'm sure that others disagree, and this is one of those subjects I railed about yesterday as something that needs to be treated seriously. So Seriously, it may make for good medicine, but the chemistry doesn't make sense so it's bad science.

For all the Homoeopaths and their followers out there if you are healthy, or improving then ignore my opinion. I wish you all the best in health and happiness. And really the only problem I have with Homoeopathy is the dilution theory. The idea that you can start with a mixture of water and a substance (ie:nightshade, or charcoal) and dilute it enough that there is nothing left of the substance. Essentially just water is left but that water still has the healing powers of the substance diluted out of it. Crazy enough for me, and a challenge to my preconceptions is the Belfast Study. Here is a controlled scientific study that seems to indicate some basis of truth to the dilution theory.

Two final items on the list that caught my eye were #6 (Viking's Methane) and #11 (the Wow signal). Both offer little in evidence, but they inspire hope in me that there really may be life out there. This is my own little bastion of bad science. I know that there is no evidence in support, and many logical arguments against, but I still believe, even if the only aliens I meet exist in the pages of my library.





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How To: Instantly Lose a Debate

Yup,
That's right, I know how to instantly lose a debate. I used to debate competitively when I was in school. Somewhere I have a box of trophies and plaques which should back up any claim I make to competence at debating. But today I'm not going to tell you How to Win. Today I'm going to tell you How to Lose. (and eventually tie this back to science, technology or speculative fiction writing)

It's easy to lose a debate. All you have to do is bring up one of the Forbidden Cases. These are cases (or 'debate topics' if you don't get the lingo) that will instantly polarize the room in such a way that the judges will have to give you the loss. I have seen this again and again in competition.

And I'm not suggesting you stand up and vomit in your first speech - that does not guarantee an instant loss, for proof look to the year Worlds was in Ireland.

More Below/Beyond the Link...


The Forbidden Cases:
Abortion
Euthanasia
The Holocaust/Israel

Some Non-Forbidden Cases that will likely lead to a loss in competition*
Death Penalty
Creationism in Schools or elsewhere
Marijuana

(*I should mention that these latter three are great starter debates out of competition to learn debating - just keep the debate on the floor - in other words nothing personal and when it's over leave the room friends. And again, these are lousy debates in competition.)

So why do the first 3 cases give you the loss? If it isn't obvious right away, then let me lay it out. People really care about those topics. Personal beliefs that have nothing to do with logic or reason.

In a normal debate tournament the participants are there for sport, competition, but not to actually challenge or defend their deep held personal beliefs. When things become personal all perspective is lost and the debate fails. This is why any government (case presenter in a debate) will instantly lose if they start a debate on those topics.

Now to bring us back to Science, Technology and Speculative Fiction writing.

Over at Space.com is a little bit of a bait/troll article about Wacky Scientific Theories.

Essentially the author: Seth Shostak, Senior Astronomer, SETI Institute, discusses some of the wacky theories that he has been sent over the years. Ideas like:

"Aliens came to Earth a long time ago to engineer a new species, and Homo sapiens is the product."

He then goes on to suggest in a pseudo serious manner that these people pursue publication of their theories. Ideally in an academic setting, however like Galileo, they can also self publish.

It's mean, what's he's done.
It may seem funny, but most Wacky Scientific Theories are like the Forbidden Cases, people actually care about these ideas. Watch the discussion thread to see people take the bait.

Calling out the Crazies Proponents of Alternative Theories with a half mocking, half serious approach is not the way to win this argument. And it is an argument. Bad Science is a serious problem that will not go away because of laughter. Educate, Educate, Educate. Science isn't mythology, you don't need to have special privileges to understand it. You just need to learn.

What Seth Shostak does is invite these people to participate in the scientific discussion without giving them a clue as to the tools, resources and knowledge that will keep them from being dismissed or marginalized in that discussion. I would have liked to have seen Seth Shostak discuss the years of study and education that he himself went through in order to acquire the status and credentials he has in the scientific community.

In fact what I would have liked to have seen even more is Seth Shostak call for greater education in the Scientific Method, in the fundamentals of Observation, Hypothesis, Experiment, Conclusion, and in how it's used in science ranging from biology to quantum mechanics. That would do more to address the problem of Bad Science than any dozen or hundreds of rejected journal submissions and self published wacky ideas. (In Shostak's defence he did state that "Data" backing the idea is valuable)

In Conclusion:
Seth Shostak brought up an important topic to many people, but he handled it badly, so I'm forced to give him the loss, even though I agree with everything he says.




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Advice fail? Me? Never.

So I open my mouth and make a silly statement.
I find Worldbuilding for short stories effortless.
And I get called on it (twice).

Hee hee.
And here I thought nobody paid any attention.
I think that my statement (which was meant as a joke on my laziness when worldbuilding) also illustrates one view of writing fiction. Write first, fix later and only if it needs fixing. I'm not saying that it is a superior view over others, just that it exists.

A few weeks ago I read an interesting Mind Meld Discussion over at SFSignal (seems all I do is read their Mind Melds) where they asked authors for the best advice they've received on writing.

More Below/Beyond the Link...

I've actually linked to this Mind Meld before. Proving just how full of info those Mind Melds are.

One of the answers came from Author John C. Wright and he discussed advice given by Robert Heinlein. I really want to include John C. Wright's answer in full but I don't think that's fair to SFSignal - so go there and read the whole Mind Meld. In the meantime here's a couple of the important bits from Wright:

Heinlein's rules for writing were professional and simple. "1) You must write. 2) You must finish what you write. 3) You must not rewrite unless to editorial demand. 4) You must mail your story to an editor who will pay you money. 5) You must keep it in the mail until someone buys it."

Rule number 1 and 2 are paramount and cannot be over-praised. The Dean of SF is exactly right. Rule 4 and 5 are paramount and cannot be over-emphasized. The Dean of SF speaks words of wisdom more precious than gold, more to be treasured than refined gold.

Rule 3 is just bad advice.

--snip--

Now, on the other hand, Heinlein not only sold these books, but won plaudits and awards for them, so take my caution with a grain of salt. On the gripping hand, A.E. van Vogt wrote tightly-plotting thrillers of cosmic wonder without a wasted scene and barely a wasted word; J.R.R. Tolkien rewrote and rewrote until magic shines from his pages.

Obey Heinlein's rule number 3 if and only if you have Heinlein's knack at charming characterization and if and only if you find a market for meandering, plotless, charm-driven stories.

Don't fall into the trap of rewriting if it means you cannot finish your work. That is a fine rule.

I like John C. Wrights reinterpretation of the Heinlein Rule 3. I edited out a chunk of his answer and again I encourage you to read the complete answer and see his justification for disagreeing with Heinlein. (Wright's is the 8th down the page)

The reality is that Heinlein was writing in a different time and what worked for him doesn't work in a more mature Speculative Fiction Market. I say more mature because our expectations are higher, we've been raised on a solid foundation of character and plot driven stories that make sense (worldbuilding!) and push the boundaries of literature even. Do I need to make a list ? (Simmons' "Hyperion", Atwood's "Handmaids Tale", Brin's "Earth", to start)

My personal opinion of Heinlein (formed when I was a judgemental youth) was that his early work was fantastic and he went crazy later when he was writing the big stuff ("Number of the Beast", "Cat Who Walks Through Walls"). Now I know that he just didn't edit.

Lesson learnt - bad editing and world building can make people think you are crazy. (Perhaps that explains the failure of my writing group to meet last week. ;)




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World Building

Yesterday's ramblings lead to a more focused look at World Building today. I have always found world building difficult. Well, let me rephrase that. In the context of a short story it's almost effortless, for a longer work though I really struggle.

To me the less of the world you reveal in a short story the more room there is for the actual story. And if I need something, I just throw it in. Of course the problem with that philosophy is revealed when a piece starts to get beyond the short story range. It becomes hard or even impossible to just throw something in without breaking the world. This means that if I want to write more than just short stories I need to get a handle on world building (also plotting, characterization, outlining, etc...).

First I want to point out a great blog dedicated to World Building:
WorldBuildingRules!.
It's an informative and insightful blog that tracks resources and provides information to help writers design the reality in which their characters live. For example, the recent discussion on "Write what you know" was useful in allowing me to get my story together for my upcoming Writers Group meeting.

Continuing on with World Building here is an interesting article and other resources over at author S. Andrew Swann's blog Genrewonk.

He breaks world building down to Clarity, Conciseness and Consistency. These are the elements that will allow the 'World' to be an effective supporting part of a story. As long as an author maintains an awareness of these elements without losing their story to them (spending days on huge infodumps) then they should be on the right track. Obviously if the world is consistently crap, it doesn't matter how concise or clear the description is, but none of my worlds are crap, really! :)

And finally for those interested in a technological way of tracking the details of their worlds I would suggest a Writing Wiki. Using a writing wiki it's easy to organize and relate notes on characters, locations and more to each other. Much like in Wikipedia, the wiki about the Real World.


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Coffee and Cigarettes

I'm a hedonist at heart. If it wasn't for the adverse effect alcohol has on my health I imagine I would be comfortable in France. Probably not real France, real France is likely full of normal people, but Hedonist France. Where it's like a Roman Orgy with better food and clothing. Perhaps Pre-Katrina New Orleans fits the bill (maybe even post, I certainly hope so).

Cigarettes. There's something for a hedonist to enjoy. I don't smoke them, I did once, but again that whole health thing. A few years ago I was in New Orleans, or 'NuhOrLens' as I was taught to say it, during Mardi Gras. I remember drinking coffee in the streets of the French Quarter, looking at the aftermath of the night's festivities and nursing a hangover. The air was so thick with moisture that with each exhale I had to push the smoke away from me. Long thick ropes of smoke that I directed toward objects of interest, watching as the smoke curled around another victim. I was no Gandolf, but I did managed to spear a ring or two even.

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I got a number of free meals in New Orleans. Not because the food was bad, but because it was fantastic! And I told the wonderful people that were serving me how much I enjoyed their food, city and atmosphere. I also made a point of bringing my friends back to those places and dropping some coin, repaying their generosity in multiples. That's the beauty of the Hedonist Life, share and share alike. There is nothing more satisfying than introducing someone to a new pleasure for a hedonist.

That's part of what makes New Orleans tick I think. The people I met there were warm and welcoming. They wanted to share their culture and history with visitors. I would have happily stayed forever in the warm fragrant embrace of that city had it been possible. What a contrast from where I lived at a time. The almost sterile mix of steel, water, and mountains that makes up Vancouver. A city where women in business suits and Nikes powerwalk the Stanley Park Seawall during their lunch hour. Holding a Starbucks latte with one hand, and a bottle of water with the other.

What does this have to do with Speculative Fiction? Very little other than colour, but colour is what gives a story texture and depth. Where do your characters come from? What is the nature of the place that they are? Do they have cravings? or passions? These details, perhaps never fully explained in an infodump, will influence your story in every area. Each interaction your characters have beyond their brain will be based in the details of the world around them. Being able to visualize that world, to understand what motivates the characters in that world, will lead to more believable fiction.



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Random Darwin

Been doing a lot of reading on Darwin recently. Fascinating dood. Witty, intelligent and at times charming in his 19th century naiveté. Though I should point out that he could be devastatingly direct and painfully insightful

Some Quotes from Darwin on religion:

Letter to Asa Gray September 17, 1861

Your question what would convince me of Design is a poser. If I saw an angel come down to teach us good, and I was convinced from others seeing him that I was not mad, I should believe in design.

Autobiography of Charles Darwin (1958) p.87

Thus disbelief crept over me at a very slow rate, but was at last complete. The rate was so slow that I felt no distress, and have never since doubted even for a second that my conclusion was correct. I can indeed hardly see how anyone ought to wish Christianity to be true; for if so the plain language of the text seems to show that the men who do not believe, and this would include my Father, Brother and almost all of my friends, will be everlasting punished.
And this is a damnable doctrine.

From his earliest writings to the end of his life religion played a role in shaping how he presented his theories and how they were received. Early on Darwin made a conscious decision to 'Stick to the Facts' in presenting his notes and theories. To avoid colouring his work (in particular the reception of it) with any religious interpretation, positive or negative. The above quotes were from personal letters and notes, but not from the scientific papers he published.

This later went on to become a large part of the modern approach to scientific research. Not only is it politic and somewhat sensitive and respectful of others beliefs, it also makes for better science. Clear, unambiguous documentation of experiments. Theories based only on repeatable, demonstrable evidence from those experiments. This is the foundation of trust and verification that enables science to work. Everybody can read the documentation and repeat each step if they have doubts. There is no need for a 'Leap of Faith'.

I doubt Darwin envisioned the scientific future he created with that simple political decision. I also find it sadly ironic that he and his work, more than a century after his death, is at the centre of the debate(battle) between religion and science. A conflict he consciously tried to keep from being a part of.


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The Readers Voice

There was a post over at SF Novelists discussing a Post Modernist concept Marie Brennan called "Reading In". The idea is that different people will find their own themes and meanings within a story, regardless of the authors conscious intent.
Here is her description of this, minimally edited and I encourage you to read her words for yourself.

...in the context of the type of story with an element that might or might not be fantasy. Me? I say screw the hedging and the ambiguity; I read that type of story as fantasy, and I do so willfully...It happens with other things, too. I willfully read strength into characters (especially women) that aren’t given any, or sympathy into characters the story wants me to demonize. And I choose that phrase for it because this isn’t something I think is in the story at all; I’m adding it wholesale, entirely against any reasonable interpretation that would pass muster with a decent literature professor.

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It's an intriguing idea that I fully agree with slash understand. What Marie Brennan calls "Reading In" I call the "Readers Voice". As a reader we are actors in our own stories. Rather than allowing the story as written to remain static words on a page a reader provides the hundreds of little details that breath life into the story. The hidden beliefs of the characters, the emotions in their voice, the humour or irony in comments that may read stale or sad. This is the same thing that a good actor does as they turn a page of words from a script into a compelling performance.

In my last writing group meeting the Readers Voice came up, though we didn't discuss it directly, it was forefront in my mind. The nature of a writing group meeting is for the members to share their views and impressions of each others work. This is the time for us as writers to find out what our readers see in our work, and use it to strengthen our stories, or to even take them into entirely new directions.

With one story in particular we all had different reactions. The Author meant for it to be a two part story, but the readers were happy with it ending in one part. While one person saw it as a mythical quest for meaning, another read it as an elaborate suicide note. Both interpretations are valid, even though one is more in line with what the author intended than the other. So to sum: Be consciously aware of the Readers Voice, use it to shape the editing of your stories (which means you need Readers). And of course it's ok to disagree with the author if it makes the story more enjoyable for yourself (though there are many 'Egos' that would disagree).



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Data Visualization Ohhhhhh Pretty

Over at SF Signal there was a post that brought to mind all the cyberpunk I read as a, well, punk kid. The visuals are spectacular, works of art that are also full of information. In an odd way it brings to mind Leonardo da Vinci's drawings and technical schematics. It was impossible for him to separate the artist from the designer, the art from the information. This also occurs here to eye pleasing effect.

The videos were taken from a BBC Show called Britain From Above and on their site you can find more videos and photos. When I think of people surfing the datastreams, this is the vision I see, not some blocky digital junk that seems to be most prevalent in the film versions of those books. When it comes to putting my own characters into a cyberworld this is the standard that I'm going to reach for.


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Writing Group Wrap Up

So last night was the second organized meeting of the writing group, and as before everyone had something to share. This week our stories had immortal body snatchers, the melusine and alien fairies by firelight. So a pretty wide collection of stories all falling within the speculative fiction definition. One thing that was surprising to me was the similar darkness to all of our stories. Nobody seemed depressed, so I'm gonna chalk it up to a reflection of the winter, or the current economic climate.

On that note, over at SFNovelists S.C. Butler has posted an article entitled The Happy Place. The article (and associated comments) explores the recent trend of what he calls the Pessimistic Fantasies garnering greater attention over Optimistic Fantasies. Pessimistic Fantasies are stories that start in a dark place, a cruel world so to speak, where characters struggle to bring positive change. Whereas Optimistic Fantasies start in a idealized place, and typically characters attempt to protect this world.

If I were to evaluate the stories presented in the meeting last night I would characterize them as pessimistic, however this is not meant as an insult. Our choices of dark worlds for our stories gave us the freedom to explore the ramifications of our characters decisions, and in a sense let them define Good or Evil, instead of their world defining it. This is one of the strengths of a short story where world building, must by necessity, be a distant second or third to the character development. There simply isn't time to waste filling in all the details of a world when an actual story must unfold. Ultimately it's easier and faster to describe Dystopia over Utopia, because the former doesn't require you to have all the answers.

Next month, new meeting, new stories. Tick Tock goes the clock, time to get writing.


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Contact me? Syndication? Just like what I write?

So recently I recieved a comment on one of my posts informing me that my article had appeared elsewhere.

Cool.

I write this blog to share my thoughts and the information that I come across with others. If someone wishes to reprint something from my blog elsewhere they have my permission. I only request (not demand) two things:
1. That they let me know (and link to the reprint) in the comments of my original article, or in the comments of this article. This way I can enjoy seeing my writing elsewhere and even cross promote their site.
2. That they provide a link back to my site from the article that they reprint. That way people who enjoyed my writing can find more of it.

I've got a copyright notice on the blog - upper right corner currently - but this is the internet, people are going to link to, reprint, repost my work. I expect and even encourage and support that behaviour. As for those who do so without giving any credit to me, well, that's their choice and I'm not losing sleep over it.

Me, I'm gonna try and follow the Golden Rule, Link and Attribute, it's not that hard.

I'm linking this post to my profile as my contact page, any comments or questions about me and my blog that are not directly related to a post can be placed below.


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Nice Agents and Smiles

pic from: Bastholm

Reading the agent blogs today I came across this post on Janet Reid's site at about the same time as someone linked the above pic into IRC.

Janet Reid's other post today is a funny tale that should give some hope to authors struggling to get published today. It's also a good reminder to be nice with everyone you deal with, for you never know when you might meet them again.

And on the topic of meeting people again, I came across this happy ending to a story also on Janet Reid's blog.

Some more Writing humour to lighten your day, courtesy of Agent Rachelle Gardner.


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The Future is ?

Yesterday I talked about the future of the writing industry. So today it seems appropriate to talk about the future described by the writing industry. Over at Locus Online is an interesting piece titled: Pitfalls of Prophecy: Why Science Fiction So Often Fails to Predict the Future by Gary Westfahl. It's an interesting read that looks at some of the basic fallacies often made when predicting the future. I would like to note that it's not only Science Fiction authors that fall into these traps, plenty others predict the future and get it wrong. We just seem to expect the SciFi doods to get it right, perhaps unfairly.

Seriously, Science Fiction is about story telling, and while science has a role in shaping a plausible scenario, few stories can stand alone with just science. It's in the human interactions that Science Fiction excels. In the relationships and decisions that are shaped and forced by the backdrop of the (science) fictional reality. This is why I use the term Speculative Fiction. It frees me from having to defend the science (real or imaginary) in my stories.

The reality is that most of the best science fiction ever written has zero chance of ever being plausible. Hyperdrive? Alien Warfare? Robots using Humans as Batteries? If you look at the science behind those ideas it doesn't make sense. I don't know if there are aliens out there, but it really doesn't matter because the science is pretty clear on extra solar travel. It's SLOW. Lightspeed is a great speed limit, but it's also irrelevant. The energy requirements alone to bring a manned vessel to a fraction of the speed of light (1 or 2 percent) are high enough as to render it effectively impossible. So science tells us that we aren't going anywhere, and it's unlikely we're going to meet others along the way. The human battery thing just falls because it's a dumb idea, you don't really need to understand science to get that one. But Hyperdrive and Aliens and Human Batteries all make great backdrops to compelling stories.

Here is a great Mind Meld from SF Signal that looks at the predictions from Science Fiction and what has occurred and what has not. As with all Mind Melds a lot of the value is in the discussion by the participating authors as they present their own take on the question. James Gunn, Adam Roberts, and others being some of the participants.


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Market Mondays: Industry Future?

So even as the industry is in trouble agents are actually experiencing an upswing in queries. Perhaps it's the current recession driving people to write, losing your job gives you time to pursue your dream of getting published. I tend to think that is a simplistic look at what's happening. It may explain some of the bump in submissions, but that can only be a short term impact. Eventually those who lost their jobs will get new ones. Starving writers are romantic in fiction, but it's a less attractive life if you actually are starving. So what do I think may make up the rest of the rise in queries? Well let's look at the reality of the situation and the future.

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First of all, there is no money in books. J.K. Rawling aside, most authors make a pittance for much of their career. Now show me 20 published books later and we're talking, but how many make it that far? I understand that there will always be dreamers who expect writing to pay their way. But when a mortgage payment is due: How many are going to choose writing over any other form of employment with an hourly wage? Even sitting on a street corner begging can bring in more (though 300$/month isn't that great).

Today the industry is facing the largest changes to the publishing model since the Printing Press. The Internet? Ebooks? Kindle? Print on Demand? Where the technological changes are taking us is a subject of much debate. Can the business change in such a way as to ensure survival? Is it just a matter of improved marketing and lower pricing? Not everyone agrees it's that simple. Readers are driven by a number of factors in making a purchasing decision beyond price. Corey Doctorow perhaps has the best take on this. He believes the industry will survive, but with massive changes. There will be more niche markets for authors, and less of a role for large publishing houses to play. Something that is being witnessed in the music and film industries today.

However people are still writing, and querying in increasing numbers. So why do I think it's happening? Hope, not hope for a better income, but hope for recognition, for discussion, for change and a better world even. These people don't care that the industry is struggling and collapsing around them. They create because they can, and they want to share their messages and ideas. I have no idea what Paramount Pictures, or Producer Jerry Bruckheimer think of the average Youtube video, but they'd be fools not to acknowledge the impact on their industry by the content producers on Youtube. People who could not get a voice in the mainstream market and industry, found and created their own niches and markets. While major studios struggle, 1000's of individuals have found their voice. Whatever future comes for the publishing industry, it will be driven by the content producers, the Writers creating and submitting today, and their Readers. Anyone who tries to control or constrict the channel between them will eventually find themselves shunted to the side as an impediment to progress.

As dark as the world may seem, people are realizing that we are at the beginning of a new century that will probably see more change than the previous 10 combined. New ideas on government, or social interactions are being developed right now by people young and old. The impossible is made reality on a daily basis, be it medical miracles or new technological marvels. While the world struggles with global warming, the prize of free (or near zero cost) energy comes closer and closer to fruition. With all of that going on around us: Who can't help but dream a little?




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Fiction Fridays: Vampires and Nymphos?

For a brief period of time, until Feb. 24th 2009, Mario Acevedo's 2006 novel The Nymphos Of Rocky Flats will be available as a free online ebook. You can read it off of the publishers website here.

Mario Acevedo has combined humour, the supernatural and the classic hard boiled PI into a compelling story. The protagonist Felix Gomez is a Private Investigator, a veteran of the Iraq conflict where he became a vampire. He has come to the Denver area at the request of an old friend to investigate a serious of troubling events at an Dept. of Energy research facility. Throw in some nymphos, and aliens and you get a real page turner.
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Most novels couldn't pull it off. The subject matter seems too ridiculous, but Mario Acevedo succeeds in a way that even leaves you wanting more at the end. Things that worked in this story include the restraint on the sex, the fast pacing of the action sequences and the well constructed characterizations and plot.

Things that didn't work? Well it is what it is, a light afternoon's read. The author touches somewhat on the impact of current and past events on the character's lives, but very quickly moves us into another action sequence before any real character development is achieved. Only at the end of the novel, in a slightly predictable way, does a character show real change and growth, though it has more to do with advancing the next action sequence than enlightenment.

I don't mean to be harsh, for I enjoyed this story because of it's humour and lightness. A dark brooding vampire lamenting the torment of his eternal years for page after page is a tired cliché right now. A little action and getting on with your life (or undead) is a pleasant and refreshing change.

The main reason I'm mentioning this story, and linking to it, is because Mario Acevedo demonstrates very well the Scene-Sequel Pattern approach to creating a novel. That alone makes it worthwhile reading if you are interested in understanding and using this technique.

*Disclaimer some of the stuff on the above linked site is for pay - I link only for information, I am not suggesting you spend money.
*and yes Fiction Fridays can be posted on a Thursday, a calendar is just another cage man. ;)





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Dust Devils on Mars, Diamonds in the Sky

The Spirit Rover on Mars is still going strong after 5 years. Proving that there is life on Mars, if only the robotic type. Just recently Spirit's solar cells got a much needed cleaning. It's not much but a beneficial breeze has cleared enough dust off the solar panels to give Spirit a 30 watt-hour boost in it's daily energy budget.

Those little rovers were designed for a 3 month mission, and yet they are still going strong. There are a two factors the made this so. 1. Good Design/Planning 2. Luck. So much of what we do in space requires that combination. It's a new frontier where much is still unknown. What we can't design and plan for we must trust in luck and good fortune to take us through.

On that note, just a couple of weeks ago passed the anniversaries of Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia. Yes, all three events occurred on the calender within just a few days of each other. I sincerely hope that they are the last deaths in our quest for the stars, but I doubt they will be.

Back to happy thoughts: Diamonds in the Sky, An anthology of scientifically accurate physics orientated short stories, has recently been released as a free download(coming soon, meantime read online here). These are stories from Hugo, Nebula and Campbell-award winning authors, so it should be a good read.


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Secret Agent Contest: What's the Hook?

An interesting contest just wrapped up over at Miss Snark's First Victim. The contest was simple, write a first page to a story and have it evaluated by an agent, with feedback given to you. The best first pages 'win'.

I don't think there was a physical prize but the value of the commentary from an agent is worth more than a free book or cute trophy. Even for those who didn't 'win'. There were 60 entries ranging from way out there speculative fiction to more contemporary settings.

The 'Secret Agent' for this contest was Kristen from Pub Rants. On her blog she discusses the experience and the value to be gained, not just from her comments, but from those of the entrants. That's because in order to participate in the contest each entrant was required to comment on the at least 5 other entrants. In a sense this created an online flash mob/critique group. The comments are insightful and the discussion is a great look at writing the first page and developing a hook.

And speaking of resources, Jeffrey A. Carver, has created a detailed online resource of references and lessons to help develop your skills as a Speculative Fiction writer. Many common concepts and terms specific to the writing industry, like the above mentioned "Hook", are explained and explored there.


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Fantasy Friday? - Sober Facts of Love

There is an article on the Science of Love over at the CBC website. The Article references recent research that shows love acts in the brain much like a drug. Including withdrawal symptoms for love lost.

I like to think that this is something that any poet could tell you. The Science is interesting, but this is one area where I think Fantasy does a better job of capturing all that is love. To try and capture that emotion in something so simplistic as chemical equations is to deny the greatness that love provides us.

Some of the most memorable characters in history and fiction were driven by love. Not just love of a romantic sort, but love of country, or of comrades in arms. A drug can provide superhuman strength, or the ability to stay awake for hours. But no drug can ultimately fulfil us the way simple selfless love can. No drug brings us closer to transcendence than love.
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Happy Birthday Darwin: You haven't changed a bit

Today is the 200 year anniversary of Darwin's (and Lincoln's) Birth. There are celebrations going on all over the world, and some great collections of information on Darwin are out there.

One little known commonality between the two great men, beyond their birth, was their view on Slavery.
To Quote Darwin.
“I thank God, I shall never again visit a slave country. To this day, if I hear a distant scream, it recalls with painful vividness my feelings, when passing a house near Pernamabuco, I heard the most pitiful moans, and could not but suspect that some poor slave was being tortured, yet knew that I was as powerless as a child even to remonstrate."
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Lincoln is famous for his role in ending slavery within the US, and now the impact of the slave trade on Darwin's theories is examined in a recent book.

While Darwin hasn't changed much since his death (funny that), Evolutionary Theory certainly has grown since he first proposed it. The addition of Genetic Science has taken our understanding of Evolution to places that Darwin never suspected. On that note, here is some of the latest Science on the Evolution of Humans (Homo Sap) and the disappearance of the Neanderthals. Through reconstruction of the Neanderthal genome researchers have determined that there was little, if any interbreeding between the two species.

One thing we did have in common, however, was the same variant of the FOXP2 gene known to play a role in speech. So it's possible that we communicated, but in the end, some 30,000 years ago, they ended as a race and we remained. Intellectually it's easy to say our ancestors (Cro-Magnon) were smarter, more able hunters, and better suited to the environment than Neanderthal was. Emotionally though I have to wonder what the reality of "Survival of the Fittest" was between two species so similar that they may have shared languages or even cultures if not beds.



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Writing Wiki Wednesday: Word Count

One thing important to all writers is word count. This is how we get paid, this is the measure of our productivity, this is the demon monkey upon our backs.

I've mentioned before a few times that I use a Personal Wiki to track my writing. Mine is based on Mediawiki running on the MoWeS Software from CHSoftware. I like the wiki because it allows me all the freedom of a word processor, plus the linkability of a wiki. I can track, organize and access all my notes and story ideas very easily. This week I give you another hack to improve your Writing Wiki.

I write stories in sections, generally no more than 4000 words a section, this keeps the wiki pages from getting too big. There are ways around size limits on wiki pages. Also I think ignoring the size limits actually has little consequence for a predominately text page, other than slow loading times. So for me each section is analogous to a chapter. At the top of each section, on the web page, is a little tab counting how many words on that page. Pretty handy.

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I really have this post over at Demented Kitty to thank for this trick. (And she thanks Kishore Asokan)

This is a simple way to get a word count off of wiki pages. Let's be clear, it's crude and will count almost everything on the page. If you really need a precise word count, just cut and paste into a word processor document, but this will give you a good indicator of where you are.

I had to make some changes to the code/instructions to get it to work on my wiki, this is due to some changes in the Mediawiki software since Demented Kitty's post. My version of Mediawiki is 1.13.1 - I've looked at the Monobook skin file for 1.13.3 and I think this should work.


MediaWiki Word Count Tab


Here's how:

1. This requires a Mediawiki software based Wiki 1.13.1 or later - tested against 1.13.1

2. To put this into your Monobook Skin, open: skins/MonoBook.php

3. Look for this big comment and block of code:

# We don't want to give the watch tab an accesskey if the
# page is being edited, because that conflicts with the
# accesskey on the watch checkbox.  We also don't want to
# give the edit tab an accesskey, because that's fairly su-
# perfluous and conflicts with an accesskey (Ctrl-E) often
# used for editing in Safari.
if( in_array( $action, array( 'edit', 'submit' ) )
&& in_array( $key, array( 'edit', 'watch', 'unwatch' ))) {
 echo $skin->tooltip( "ca-$key" );
} else {
 echo $skin->tooltipAndAccesskey( "ca-$key" );
}
echo '>'.htmlspecialchars($tab['text']).'</a></li>';
} ?>

4. Paste the code from below the snip after the } ?> characters at the end of that section and before the next lines of:

  </ul>
  </div>

------------------------------snip----------------------------

// Getting the total words count

global $wgUser, $wgArticle, $db;

//check if its an article

if($wgArticle && !$_GET['action']) {

$c=$wgArticle->getContent();

$stripped= strip_tags($c);

$exploded=explode(" ", $stripped);

//you can print this variable anywhere you want

$totalwords=count($exploded);

}

?>
<li><font color="red">&nbsp; 
<?php echo $totalwords ;
?> words &nbsp;
</font></li>

-----------------------snip------------------------------

5. Save the skins/MonoBook.php file and upload it to your server.

When you finish, there should be a word count tab at the top of every article page. Some special pages will show the word count tab as well.




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Fetters, Shackles and other chains

Fetter (noun )
Etymology: Middle English feter, from Old English; akin to Old English fōt foot
1. A chain or similar object used to bind a person or animal by its legs (usually in plural).
2. Anything that restricts or restrains in any way.

I came across a word in conversation today that I had to pause and think about. "Fetters". This is a word that has a historical context going back as long as we have been restraining people. Not a positive word in most associations, fetters have a long dark history. They were used in Roman Gaols, in Slave Ships leaving the Ivory Coast, and even today in places like Guantanamo Bay.
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Fetters in a metaphorical sense can be the things that restrain us. Many good stories have been written about characters breaking free of shackles. In terms of a fictional character that can be oppression, captivity, duty, debts and more. Identifying and addressing these ideas in your stories can turn a good story into one that inspires.

As a writer fetters can be defined as all the barriers to your writing. I don't mean making supper for the family, I mean lack of confidence, a lack of knowledge or vision. Don't beat yourself up if you are fettered, do something about it. Read, learn, dream and above all write. The best way to escape any prison is with time and effort. So go chain yourself to a keyboard and know that the only way out is to write that story.




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Market Mondays: Who's Looking?

So LAST WEEK I mentioned that the Writing World is facing Market Troubles. In other words everybody is going out of business. Well, before you panic and give up writing entirely, I've got good news.

There's a new Magazine starting up this year, honestly I hope more than one starts this year, but I'll take what I can get. Warren Lapine, of DNA Infamy is back, and hoping to make good with a new Magazine: Fantastic Stories of the Imagination. Follow the link to see what they are looking for.
Here are some others also looking for new Speculative Fiction:
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* 3 Lobed Burning Eye
Online Speculative Fiction Magazine - "Stories that Monsters like to Read"

* Analog SF
Widely considered the magazine where "Science Fiction Grew Up"

* Asimov's Science Fiction
Stories from Asimov's have won 44 Hugos and 24 Nebula Awards, and their editors have received 18 Hugo Awards for Best Editor.

* Electric Spec
An e-zine featuring science fiction, fantasy, and macabre short stories

* Escape Velocity
Hard science fiction stories with a slant toward the future human condition

* Interzone
This speculative fiction magazine often publishes issues based on different themes.

* On Spec This Quarterly Magazine showcases quality works by predominantly Canadian writers and artists, in the genre they call "Fantastic" literature

* Quantum Kiss
A journal of Romantic Speculative fiction (equal weight to both)

* Shiny Magazine
A Young Adult magazine mostly interested in stories with speculative elements - science fiction, fantasy and horror

I wish the list was bigger, but many magazines are still closed to submissions, in the next quarter some more should open up. As always, check Ralan's Market Listings for information.



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The Dream Machine

So I've been out of the game for a day or two, I may have mentioned the chronic pain thing before. But today I'm back and with a look at a little bit of 1960's literature, art, science and drug free Hallucinations.

FLicKeR is a documentary film about Brion Gysin and the Dream Machine. The film explores Gysin's, and others belief, that a state of transcendence could be reached through a combination of science, art and magic.

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What is the Dream Machine?

It's a lamp on a record player covered by a cylindrical shade with a repeating cut out pattern. Or it's the key to tapping into the time space continuum. Take your pick.

Brion Gysin was an artist who experimented with many mediums, and is credited with discovering the 'cut up' method that was used by Williams S. Burroughs in the 'Naked Lunch'. He also was a pioneer in Machine Poetry. You can listen to some of Gysin's work at UbuWeb Sound. I recommend the poem "I Am".

The Film, FLicKeR, focuses principally on the Dream Machine, but through interviews with artists and former acquaintances a vision is built of a wanderer. Gysin is a man who never stayed in one place for too long, the list of countries he lived in is lengthly. Gysin spent his days in a quest of self exploration, his goal to discover new territory in art and literature, using science and the occult. The 'Occult' could also be substituted for '1950's/60's Psychology' with little change to the meaning. Heck even '50's/60's Drug Culture' would work as a substitute.

The Dream Machine can induce hallucinations in people, creating a high like experience. All you have to do is get close to it and shut your eyes, the flickering lights do the rest. Drugs are not required, and could even make the experience dangerous. The idea of a machine that can cause hallucinations through flickering light is straight out of Science Fiction (and fact!).

Musicians like Iggy Pop and Kurt Cobain have used Dream Machines; famous writers, painters, poets, the list goes on, have also used them. Many of those artists even make an appearance in the documentary (though not Kurt, RIP). Some are still espousing the virtues of the Dream Machine while others have moved on. All of them speak highly of the talent and vision of Gysin.

Brion Gysin was just one of many artists on a quest for transcendence and the tools they used were drugs, science and magic. Whether or not any of them found it isn't a judgement made by the filmmakers. What the film does show is how Gysin's and others efforts led to some of the most radical/craziest concepts of the 20th century. Surrealism, Machine Poetry, the Beat Generation, Cultural Terrorism, to name just a few.

A compelling image is created of the lives these people led, of the passions and failures that drove them. One lesson of this movie is that the limits of the mind, of imagination and creativity, are far beyond what many of us accept them to be. If you can handle the potentially seizure inducing lights and images, then there is a lot to be found in this documentary.

FLicKeR was awarded a Special Jury Prize at the 2008 Hot Docs Festival, and has wowed audiences at festivals in Canada and around the world. Currently it is showing on Bravo.



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Market Mondays: Wednesday Worries

This post would have been up on Monday, but due too some, hmmm, "Database" issues, my domain was down for the first half of this week. So Today we get back on track.

The industry is in trouble. Well maybe not, some argue that it's actually in a down cycle but will rebound.

What's going on? A whole lotta changes, some driven by technology, some by consumers. But the end result is that a number of traditional publishers of speculative fiction are either cutting back or worse, getting out of the business.

Realms of Fantasy Magazine is closing. This year would have seen their 100th issue. Other magazines may not be closing their doors, but changing market conditions, lower sales, higher postal cost, etc, are leading them to modify their businesses.
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So who else is in trouble?

Fantasy and Science Fiction (F&FS) Magazine is changing from a monthly publication to a bi-monthly one.

Susurrus Magazine went on an indefinite hiatus starting January 2009

Southern Fried Weirdness closed to submissions January 2009

Æon Speculative Fiction, the quarterly electronic magazine published by Quintamid Publishing Inc., suspended publication November 2008

That's 4 examples from the past few months, but many more are in trouble and the closures in the industry will likely continue throughout this year.

What can be done? Subscribe. I'm renewing my subscription this month to my favourite Speculative Fiction Magazine: Neo-Opsis. If you don't currently subscribe to any magazines go to Ralans to see the active and dead magazines out there. Find something to your taste and get a subscription.



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Fiction Fridays: Tower in the Crooked Wood

Johanson, Paula : Tower in the Crooked Wood
(Bundoran Press, $11.95, November 2008, cover art Erich Schreiner)

I very recently got a chance to read Paula Johanson's YA Novel 'Tower in the Crooked Wood'. Why am I reading Young Adult Fiction?
Why not?!

I'm not young, sure, but I enjoy quality speculative fiction no matter who it's targeted toward. Recently my wife and I have been on a YA novel kick, though I'm unsure if everything in the Twilight Series is really 'Young Adult'. YA fiction has a lot to recommend it, one thing being a lack of pretentiousness. By it's very nature it's accessible to the reader and there are a lot of good authors writing young adult work. Paula Johanson being one of them.

At it's core 'Tower in the Crooked Wood' is a fantasy novel about a young woman trying to bring an end to an evil that is inflicting suffering and death on many people, including her own family. My one sentence outline makes it sound similar to many fantasy novels, and that's a failing on my part. This story is not some tired rehash of an orphan hero who saves the world, though that is what does kindof happen. Instead it is the story of a young woman struggling with emotions like loyalty, vengeance, & love, all the while discovering her own inner confidence and sense of self.
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Jenia, the hero, is an orphan, raised in a small village of mud huts. She's more comfortable trimming fruit trees, than she is in the environment that she now finds herself in. At the beginning of the story we realize that Jenia is running from man and beast, in an unfamiliar land and seeking a "..cursed mountain that she'd left bloody footprints on..".

Very shortly into the tale Jenia finds not what she was seeking (a great evil), but the exact opposite. After her long journey full of danger and fear, and after many sacrifices in pursuit of her goal, the greatest challenge she faces is the one offered by the warmth, respect, and even love of the villagers of Tlakwa.

Paula Johanson's solid writing paints a picture of the life of these villagers as Jenia assimilates into their world. They are a good people, full of love and laughter who's worldview is at times shockingly at odds with Jenia's. There is quite the subtext on the nature of war and the reasons behind fighting.

There are scenes in this story that are very familiar to someone, like me, who's lived on the west coast of Canada for a number of years. At one point Jenia, shortly after enjoying a meal of clams, is walking across the beach and realizes that just as she's discarded the shells from her meal on this beach, so have others. In fact so many others that the beach was almost entirely made of up shells or shell fragments. At that moment Jenia sees the vastness of time stretching behind her, and, with her small pile of shells, ahead of her.

It is scenes like the one above that differentiate this story. Paula Johanson has created a believable world for the village of Tlakwa. The people have a culture and a history. This should be expected from someone who is also a successful science fact writer, but the way those details are used shows Paula Johanson's strength as a storyteller. The Tlakwa have traditions and beliefs that challenge Jenia to examine her own values and morals. Here Paula Johanson gives us a wonderful view into the thoughts and emotions that drive Jenia. At the end we are able empathize with her, because we understand her. We share in her conflict, her triumphs and sorrows.

This a great coming of age story with a strong female lead that any reader of speculative fiction will enjoy. In a time when young adult fiction seems to be getting more and more graphically dark in content, this story was refreshing. 'Tower in the Crooked Wood' is available from the publishers website (first 2 chapters free!), if it's not in your local bookstore or library.



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