Blogging Vs. Writing

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my writing and my blog. The question I’ve been asking myself is;

Does my blogging affect my writing?

It’s true that I haven’t been writing much since I’ve started this blog. I think it really isn’t a bad thing, I believe that I’m beginning to discover more and more things that I need to know. I’ve discovered more about myself and writing while blogging than I thought imaginable. Previously I would write without any preparation; I never worked with character profiles, research, story boards, etc. But now I’ve started to work smarter.

Research is the main lesson learnt for me, so much so I’ve signed up for an interesting writing course; Writing Historical Fiction. Basically it’s all about recreating times, events and places in history accurately and evocatively. Outlining the resources available and methods for researching the details of every-day lives. This workshop will give you a broader knowledge of resources from which to access historical fact, and methodologies for translating that fact into compelling prose.

So I don’t feel guilty that I’m not writing, I feel like I’m learn basic and fundamental tools that will improve my style. I think I’ve learnt more about myself and my writing style in this blog than in just trying to write.

One big advantage is the great community on WordPress.com, I’ve started to find some great minds to bounce ideas off, as well as push me along the way. I know my writing will improve; my editing (hopefully) will improve too. But all in all I’m enjoying learning and sharing what I’ve learnt more than anything else.

The Catcher In The Rye

On one hand The Catcher In The Rye was an impressive insight of teenage life. I identified with many of those feelings when I was in high school. I remember feeling alone, annoyed all the time and never feeling like doing anything. In this aspect J. D. Salinger was a master at capturing the feelings of my youth. But on the other hand, Holden Caulfield is the most annoying character I’ve ever read; I’ve wanted to punch him in the face so many times. He just infuriated me and I struggled to read this book because of that fact. On the upside there is a scene where Holden is having a conversation with an old school teacher, Mr. Antolini. The teacher told him that one day, he will discover what he is meant to do with his life, and on that day he will wish he paid attention in school. This is probably the most identifiable scene in the book; I know the feeling of wishing I paid attention and discovering a passion later in life.

Despite all the Controversy I really want to know why this book is always assigned to students in school. A book about teenage angst and dropping out of school; is that something you want students to learn about? High School Teacher who was involved in the controversy in America Shelley Keller-Gage stated; “[They] are being just like Holden . . . They are trying to be catchers in the rye.”

The Layers of Hell

I was playing a game on Xbox called Dante’s Inferno, when I got to the 8th layer of hell….hang on a second I was under the impression there was only seven layers. So after a bit of research, I realised that I was wrong, there really are nine layers of hell (according to the epic poem Inferno by Dante).

This led me to ask a few people ‘how many layers of hell are there.’ Consistently I got the answer seven. So why do people think there are only seven layers and not nine like in Dante’s Inferno?

The only explanation that seemed plausible is the fact that there are seven deadly sins, one layer for each sin.

If you know of any other reasons please let me know.

What is a Meme?

The term meme has been closely associated with internet catchphrases or fads, but originally it was more a postulated unit of cultural ideas, symbols or practices. The word was coined by British scientist Richard Dawkins who used the word in his book The Selfish Gene (1976) as a basis for discussion of evolutionary principles.

The word only recently was added to the dictionary with the following meaning;

Meme –noun

a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes.

Examples of memes included melodies, catch-phrases, beliefs (notably religious beliefs), clothing fashion, and inside jokes.

Internet Meme’s include things like Fail/Win, Pwnd/Owned, Nom Nom Nom, O RLY?, All Your Base Are Belong to Us & Rickroll.

For interesting insights on Meme’s check out this site.

Nec Spe, Nec Metu (Without Hope, Without Fear)

Beheading of Saint John the Baptist (1608)

A Religious art war was raging, between the Counter-Reformation and Protestants. Protestants believed that art was a distraction or an idol and should not be in the churches, one of the main defences for the Counter-Reformation was that not everyone can read and deserve to learn about religion too, thus the purpose of the art. The Counter-Reformation Church searched for authentic religious art with which to counter the threat of Protestantism, and for this task the artificial conventions of Mannerism, which had ruled art for almost a century, no longer seemed adequate, this was the beginning of the Baroque art movement. The Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church which had decided that the arts should communicate religious themes in direct and emotional involvement.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio’s intensely emotional realism and dramatic use of lighting had a formative influence on the Baroque school of painting. Caravaggio grow up been told to be a painter you need to paint like the Mannerists (by teacher and mannerist Simone Peterzano), though for Caravaggio he couldn’t paint pictures of paradise as he had no knowledge of these things. Caravaggio painted what he knew to be real.

Calling of Saint Matthew (1600)

With paintings like Calling of Saint Matthew, you see nothing of Jesus but his arm calling out to Saint Matthew. “Jesus saw a man named Matthew at his seat in the custom house, and said to him, “Follow me”, and Matthew rose and followed him.” (Matthew 9:9). If you look at the painting you can see it’s a dark and gritty place which you would not see if this painting came from the Mannerist era.

Caravaggio lived by the motto “Nec Spe, Nec Metu” (Without Hope, Without Fear) he believed himself a sinner and it came through in his paintings. Probably the best painting to reflect that would be “David with the Head of Goliath”. In this painting Caravaggio is the head of Goliath; it is very rare for a self portrait to depict the painter as the villain. On the sword that David is holding is inscribed H-AS OS, in Latin: Humilitas occidit superbiam (“Humility kills pride”)

David with the Head of Goliath (1610)

Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights must be one of the first novels where the protagonists can be considered antagonists or anti-heroes. It’s a story of love turning into bitter hatred. The orphan Heathcliff and Catherine were in love but when Catherine’s parents both die, Heathcliff runs away from Wuthering Heights. A few years later Catherine married Edgar and Heathcliff comes back (later that same year). In attempt to hide his broken heart Heathcliff marries Isabella but the pain continues to consume him turning him into a violent and emotional abusive man. The story follows the bitterness towards both families. The wounds were deep and their children Catherine and Linton were faced with the difficult task of mending the families division.

Emily Brontë really knows how to paint a picture with her writing. Wuthering Heights, though very dark is full of passion, love, hate and all emotions in between. The book keeps hinting at a silver lining but often holds it back making you want it more. Emily didn’t hold back when writing this book, she really puts a spot light on emotional abuse and hatred, even used the word ‘slut’ a few times in the book. The depiction of mental and physical cruelty in this book will make it difficult to read for some; you’ll either love or hate this book. While not all full of darkness, there’s a beauty in the story sometimes missed in books nowadays.

RIP – Dick Francis

English Jockey turned Crime Writer Dick Francis died of natural causes this past Sunday at age 89.

Dick Francis has left us with over 40 international bestsellers including Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award (for Best Novel) winners Forfeit, Whip Hand & Come To Grief. The Britain Crime Writers Association awarded him its Gold Dagger Award (best crime novel of the year; Whip Hand) in 1979 and the Cartier Diamond Dagger (outstanding lifetime’s contribution to the genre) award in 1989. Dick Francis will be remembered as one of the best Crime writers of the 20th century.

The Author-Reader Relationship

Like Slaughterhouse-Five, Breakfast of Champions left me with a lot to think about. In the mists of this satirical story there is a whole other element; the book explores the effects of an author-reader relationship, mainly with Kilgore Trout and Dwayne Hoover. The book the sent Dwayne Hoover was in the form of a letter from the creature telling the reader he is the only real person in the world, everyone else were robots, and later in the epilogue the creator has a conversation with Trout.

It’s an interesting concept, and one I haven’t really thought about before, but it is something to ponder.

Breakfast of Champions

Breakfast of Champions: or Goodbye Blue Monday by Kurt Vonnegut is a dark comedy on racism, war, consumerism and greed in America during the 70’s. The book follows two loners, an unknown Sci-Fi writer named Kilgore Trout and a car dealer owner Dwayne Hoover. Both their lives are intertwined by one of the books written by Trout and read by the already plagued with “bad chemicals”, Dwayne Hoover. The book, which Hoover believed was factual, sent him into a violent rampage. Vonnegut is a master satirist and always manages to write some unusual stories, though comparing this to Slaughterhouse Five, Breakfast of Champions comes up short. It was enjoyable to read, weird in a lot of parts (I really didn’t need to know everyone characters penis size), but overall worth the read.

Street Art

Blek Le Rat

Street art is normally considered Graffiti but for artist like Blek le Rat and Banksy it’s a tool for getting their message across. For these artists stencil art or street art is the future of art, one of the few mediums which allows their works to get viewed by millions of people. Often considered satirical pieces of art, the works of Blek le Rat and Banksy are political, cultural, and ethical in nature. Blek le Rat has often claimed that his works are designed to bring often overlooked issues to the forefront of people’s thoughts.

Banksy

Twitterature

Ever wonder what Robinson Crusoe would tweet (he’s twitter name is @iamnotgilligan) about? Probably not, but wouldn’t it be interesting to read? Now you can. Twitterature is a book that takes some of the greatest novels and converts it into a twitter account. All those great books in literature converted into little updates, 140 characters of less. Surprisingly it is very amusing and a lot of fun to read; especially if you’ve read the original.  They are some great novels in this book such as;

• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
• The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
• Dracula by Bram Stoker
• Emma by Jane Austen
• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
• Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
• The Inferno by Dante
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
• Paradise Lost by John Milton
• The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
• Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Dexter By Design

Dexter by Design is yet another psychological thriller about the anti-hero Dexter Morgan. Jeff Lindsay writes about a more Avant-garde crime in this one, making this an interesting and refreshing read.  Dexter by Design revolves around series protagonist Dexter Morgan in Paris on his honeymoon. While in Paris, he gets caught up in the world of modern art. While visiting an art gallery, Dexter and Rita are introduced to the concept of body parts as art. This book continues to reduce the use of First Person storytelling and more into the outsider’s point of view.

Thoughts on Epistemology

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Epistemology (the theory of knowledge). In philosophy it is considered as one of its cornerstones; it addresses the questions:

• What is knowledge?
• How is knowledge acquired?
• What do people know?
• How do we know what we know?

I’m sure there has been much debate and focus on analyzing the nature of knowledge by great people in history. Though I’m more interested in my readers’ thoughts on it.

So please share you thoughts.

Desperate Romantics

I’m not sure how many people have seen this mini series, but I thought in an effort to make sure I post regularly I would mention this wonderful show. Desperate Romantics is a BBC series of the life of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. One thing that was impressive about this show, was all the effort they put into recreating some of the Brotherhoods paintings. In the show you will see a few pieces, such as;

• Christ in the House of His Parents (1849–50) by John Everett Millais
• Ophelia (1851-2) by John Everett Millais
• The Order of Release (1854) by John Everett Millais
• The Scapegoat (1856) by William Holman Hunt
• Bocca Baciata (1859) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
• Beata Beatrix (1872) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
• The Shadow of Death (1872) by William Holman Hunt
• Oxford Union murals (1857-9) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Morris, Edward Burne-Jones et al.

As well as sketch or images of;

• Ecce Ancilla Domini (1849–50) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
• The Hireling Shepherd (1851) by William Holman Hunt
• The Light of the World (1853–54) by William Holman Hunt
• The Awakening Conscience (1853) by William Holman Hunt
• Dante’s Vision of Rachel and Leah (1855) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
• The Blind Girl (1856) by John Everett Millais
• Autumn Leaves (1856) by John Everett Millais
• The Holy Family (undated) by Elizabeth Siddal
• The Rowing Boat (undated) by Elizabeth Siddal
• Venus Verticordia (1868) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti
• Bubbles (1886) by John Everett Millais

Though I’m not sure how accurate the show is, it is a fascinating insight on some of some great artists.

Story Board

I’ve been playing around with a story board app on my iPhone. I did up a story board for a short story idea and I thought I might share it with you all. I would of liked a more detailed board but not bad for an iPhone app.

Click for Full Size