Fantasist's Scroll

The male version of the “bodice ripper”.

Let me preface this review with the simple statement that this is: a) Not the kind of book I usually read, b) There is almost nothing about real “bushido” in the book, and c) Was purchased at a used book store for less than a dollar. Okay, I admit that I was looking for something different, and not too challenging to read, but I was hoping for more.
I finished Code of Bushido by Don Pendelton this week. This is from a series of “men’s fiction” (no, that’s not a euphemism for pornography!) called SuperBolan, which is named after the main character, Mack Bolan. It’s about as low-brow as you can get and still be reading books that don’t have illustrations.
The characterisation is weak and the rest of the writing is worse. Everyone is a giant characature of actual characters. Mack Bolan is a stereotypical, steely-eyed, tough-guy fighting a shadow war against terrorists for the CIA. He’s the ultimate dark hero. A professional killer who’s out there killing the bad guys and keeping America safe. Yes, it’s really that heavy-handed.

But, setting all that aside. It was entertaining. Entertaining in the same way that, say, a Sylvester Stalone movie is. Lots of action, a little mostly bad dialog and not much else. But, I didn’t have to think about it. It was what it was. There wasn’t any really deep social message here, just action and lots of it. So, it was an oddly soothing change of pace for me. The only really annoying thing was the totally wrong presentation of bushido and traditional Japanese culture. This author has obviously never read anything about bushido, or any of the traditional martial arts, or even talked to anyone with more than a passing interest in Japanese culture.
So, while I can’t reccomend this book in all good conscience, if you’re in the mood for mindless mayhem and a break from anything too heavy, this might just get the job done.

But, to counter the “low-brow-ness” of Code of Bushido, I started reading The Science of Words. Nothing like some good linguistics to wash the filth off!

Can it be done?

Well, some folks are working on it at least. This story is a little old, but it’s worth mentioning, I thought, since it could open up so many new possibilities. According to this article on the University of Washington news site, researchers are working on a magnetized-beam plasma propulsion device that will drastically reduce interplanetary travel within our own solar system. I have to agree with the researchers when they say that a two year trip to Mars is too prohibitive for us to risk. But, making the same trip in 90 days is much more reasonable. It would really make our solar system much more usable, in a certain sense, for us as a space-faring race. Who knows, it might even be the start of extra-solar travel as well. At least, if we get up there and start running around, we might find other things that will advance our propulsion science far enough to make interstellar travel a real possibility.
All of which is perfect fare for a science-fiction writer, eh? And, in any case, it’s an interesting article.

I just re-read this last week.

How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy is good enough that I’ve read it three times now and I still picked up something new. In fact, I always pick up something new when I read it, or almost anything else about writing.
This book, though, is different. For one thing, it’s fairly focused on speculative fiction, which is just a euphemism science-fiction and fantasy. Also, the author, Orson Scott Card, is not only a writing teacher, but also a Hugo and Nebula Award winner, so he really does know what he’s talking about. But, beyond that, it’s a damn fine book. So, I’ve read it again, after two years, and this time, I’m doing a bit of a review.
If you’re just starting out, this is a great book to start get you started the right way. If you’ve been at this for a bit, it’s still a great book to read, because it will show you some things that you may not have noticed about writing speculative fiction. At the very least, it’ll be a good refresher course for you. I know that I use the MICE “rule of thumb” when I look at my own story ideas, such as they are these days. This book really taught me quite a bit about making realistic fantays settings and, I think, contributes to the strength of my story, The Chrome Girl.
In any case, I cannot reccomend How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy enough. It’s well worth the price.

Whoa! I almost forgot!

I guess I’ve been busy this week, because I almost forgot to post a Friday Fun Link. So, without further ado, here is the Real FAQ, or Questions You Really Ask. C’mon, let’s face it, these are real-world things that people are always asking, so it makes perfect sense to write up standard responses to them and put them on a webpage.

At least, it made sense on a Friday. Aw, go take a look, it’s not like you were working anyway!

I got this in a spam the other day:

“He soon came to a stop, however, and saw that another of the monsters had
come upon him from the rear and was now, with its mate, circling closely
around him, while both uttered continuously their hoarse, savage cries. Rob
wondered why the Garment of Repulsion had not protected him from the blow of
the bird’s wing; but, as a matter of fact, it had protected him
For it was not the wing itself but the force of the eddying currents of air
that had sent him whirling away from the monster”

Now, golly, what an interesting thing to have in spam to make it seem like a real message. I almost feel like I should work it up into an actual story. Oh, I’d have to edit it some, but it’s not a bad start.

A conlang without a grammar is just a cipher.

Think about that for a minute. If you’re just transposing words, you haven’t created a new language so much as you’ve created a new code. Maybe that’s all you’re after. If so, that’s fine and you can stop reading now, but if you want more than that, think about your native language and your conlang for a minute.

Still with me? Great. I can make up words, either by hand or by machine, but making a grammar takes a lot more thought and work. Last month, I was reading the blog over at Langmaker.com, the Ultimate Constructed Language Resource which is maintained by Jeffrey Henning. He had several links to conlang grammars there, including: The Sixteen Rules of Esperanto Grammar, Syntax for Artificial Languages, and A Training Device for Translation Theory and Practice. Any of them are good places to start looking at what goes into a grammar. If you’re a little more advanced than that, and feeling brave, you can try reading Describing Morphosyntax : A Guide for Field Linguists. But, as good as it is, I have to warn you, this is NOT for he casual reader or the easily intimidated. It is a daunting book that damn near put me into a coma! But, if you can make it through this bad boy, you will have a really good grasp of what can go into a language’s grammar. You will also be able to endure incredible, mind-numbing torture as dosed out by mothers-in-law. Or, you will be a gibbering idiot. Either way, it’s all great fuel for conlanging.
I often find myself getting stuck in the “research phase” of my many creative projects. Sometimes, I get so caught up in the research that I never get the project started. This is where I’m at with my conlanging. I need to get past that. I hope that the inspiration from Langmaker, and Jeffery Henning will help me get started on those projects. As they say on the street, ‘aint nothing to but to do it. So, let’s all take some inspiration from those links up above and get started on that conlang that we’ve been putting off.

As you may have guessed, this is not a serious article.

Look, it’s Friday and nothing can be all that serious on a Friday, right? Well, despite the fact that the article is called How To Write a Best Selling Fantasy Novel, it is NOT serious. It is a joke. But, it’s a good joke, so click on the link.
Now, if you’ve been around the writing game for a bit, especially in the fantasy end of things, you’ve seen jokes like this before. For you, like me, it’s not a joke. For anyone who wants to make a living in the crazy game of speculative fiction writing, this is deadly serious. If I want to make it as a serious writer, I absolutely can NOT make any of the mistakes that are suggested in the article. On the other hand, it is a handy guide for what NOT to do anymore. Oh, for the good old days when that all still worked….

Anyway, no matter how you slice it, the article is worth reading. And, after all, it is a Friday.

Do you journal?

I have in the past, in the “real world”, that is. Blogging is a journaling of a sort, but not the kind that I mean. When someone asks me if I journal, they’re asking me if I record my innermost thoughts on paper. They’re asking me if I write to excise the demons of my heart, mind and soul by opening a vein and pouring ink onto the pages of a book that no one else will see. As I mentioned, I have done that in the past. I often toy with the idea of starting again.
And, I have to admit, I lust after a particular notebook to journal in: Moleskine. If you haven’t seen these gems, find them. Fondle one and you see why anyone who has done any kind of journaling has longed to have their words recorded in these notebooks. The paper is creamy and soaks up the ink. The black, oil-skin covers feel soothing in your hand as you open them, inviting you to write. You can imagine Hemingway or Joyce or even Wilde pouring out their thoughts and adventures into these beauties. Moleskines make you want to journal. So, the other day when I was searching around for things on the web and found them again… Well, let’s just say that I started to think about journaling again.
If you’re looking for an excuse to journal, these would be it.
Moleskine Large Ruled (lined) Notebook
MOLESKINE Large Ruled (lined) Notebook – quantity 2
MOLESKINE Pocket Ruled (lined) Notebook
MOLESKINE Pocket Plain (no lines) Notebook – quantity 2

Go take a look, it’s worth it.