Weirdgrrl's Words

Too Many Blogs

2009-06-09T16:56:00.002-06:00

A couple of years ago, I was blogging up a storm. And I was blogging about so many different topics that it made sense to have dedicated blogs for each one. But now, I'm so busy, and most of my writing time is spent on practice for my creative writing, that blogging has largely become an obligation that I'm avoiding. Plus there's Facebook which has become a sort of shorthand blogging for me (along with many others).

I haven't decided how best to use this space, then, if not for a blog. I foresee a redesign in the future. But at the moment, I'm so wrapped up in pre-production for my spoken word film, "December 6: Reframing School Shootings", that this space will just remain static (apart from the feeds from Limes with Orange) until the film is finished.

So if you want to know what I'm up to, check out Limes with Orange or Facebook. And maybe one of these days you'll pop back onto this site and see a whole new design.

IOU a Pitch Post

2008-11-06T13:03:00.001-07:00

I am planning to write a post about the pitch workshop I attended at imagineNATIVE Film Festival and the subsequent pitch session, but the week at the festival and then coming home to write a grant due on November 1st have left me a little burned out. Hopefully, I'll have that post written by the weekend.

POST-IT to Mr. Harper

2008-10-07T17:54:00.002-06:00

A creative response to Harper's "ordinary people don't support the arts" agenda...

by Artspace Artist Run Centre (Peterborough, ON).

To Be Creative Is Canadian

2008-10-03T14:24:00.009-06:00

I read this article by Margaret Atwood about Stephen Harper's recent, ridiculous attack on the arts and just had to re-post it here:

To Be Creative Is, In Fact, Canadian
Mr. Harper is wrong: There's more to the arts than a bunch of
rich people at galas whining about their grants
MARGARET ATWOOD
From Thursday's Globe and Mail

What sort of country do we want to live in? What sort of country do we already live in? What do we like? Who are we?

At present, we are a very creative country. For decades, we've been punching above our weight on the world stage - in writing, in popular music and in many other fields. Canada was once a cultural void on the world map, now it's a force. In addition, the arts are a large segment of our economy: The Conference Board estimates Canada's cultural sector generated $46-billion, or 3.8 per cent of Canada's GDP, in 2007. And, according to the Canada Council, in 2003-2004, the sector accounted for an "estimated 600,000 jobs (roughly the same as agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, oil & gas and utilities combined)."

But we've just been sent a signal by Prime Minister Stephen Harper that he gives not a toss for these facts. Tuesday, he told us that some group called "ordinary people" didn't care about something called "the arts." His idea of "the arts" is a bunch of rich people gathering at galas whining about their grants. Well, I can count the number of moderately rich writers who live in Canada on the fingers of one hand: I'm one of them, and I'm no Warren Buffett. I don't whine about my grants because I don't get any grants. I whine about other grants - grants for young people, that may help them to turn into me, and thus pay to the federal and provincial governments the kinds of taxes I pay, and cover off the salaries of such as Mr. Harper. In fact, less than 10 per cent of writers actually make a living by their writing, however modest that living may be. They have other jobs. But people write, and want to write, and pack into creative writing classes, because they love this activity - not because they think they'll be millionaires.

Every single one of those people is an "ordinary person." Mr. Harper's idea of an ordinary person is that of an envious hater without a scrap of artistic talent or creativity or curiosity, and no appreciation for anything that's attractive or beautiful. My idea of an ordinary person is quite different. Human beings are creative by nature. For millenniums we have been putting our creativity into our cultures - cultures with unique languages, architecture, religious ceremonies, dances, music, furnishings, textiles, clothing and special cuisines. "Ordinary people" pack into the cheap seats at concerts and fill theatres where operas are brought to them live. The total attendance for "the arts" in Canada in fact exceeds that for sports events. "The arts" are not a "niche interest." They are part of being human.

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Moreover, "ordinary people" are participants. They form book clubs and join classes of all kinds - painting, dancing, drawing, pottery, photography - for the sheer joy of it. They sing in choirs, church and other, and play in marching bands. Kids start garage bands and make their own videos and web art, and put their music on the Net, and draw their own graphic novels. "Ordinary people" have other outlets for their creativity, as well: Knitting and quilting have made comebacks; gardening is taken very seriously; the home woodworking shop is active. Add origami, costume design, egg decorating, flower arranging, and on and on ... Canadians, it seems, like making things, and they like appreciating things that are made.

They show their appreciation by contributing. Canadians of all ages volunteer in vast numbers for local and city museums, for their art galleries and for countless cultural festivals - I think immediately of the Chinese New Year and the Caribana festival in Toronto, but there are so many others. Literary festivals have sprung up all over the country - volunteers set them up and provide the food, and "ordinary people" will drag their lawn chairs into a field - as in Nova Scotia's Read by the Sea - in order to listen to writers both local and national read and discuss their work. Mr. Harper has signalled that as far as he is concerned, those millions of hours of volunteer activity are a waste of time. He holds them in contempt.

I suggest that considering the huge amount of energy we spend on creative activity, to be creative is "ordinary." It is an age-long and normal human characteristic: All children are born creative. It's the lack of any appreciation of these activities that is not ordinary. Mr. Harper has demonstrated that he has no knowledge of, or respect for, the capacities and interests of "ordinary people." He's the "niche interest." Not us.

It's been suggested that Mr. Harper's disdain for the arts is not merely a result of ignorance or a tin ear - that it is "ideologically motivated." Now, I wonder what could be meant by that? Mr. Harper has said quite rightly that people understand we ought to keep within a budget. But his own contribution to that budget has been to heave the Liberal-generated surplus overboard so we have nothing left for a rainy day, and now, in addition, he wants to jeopardize those 600,000 arts jobs and those billions of dollars they generate for Canadians. What's the idea here? That arts jobs should not exist because artists are naughty and might not vote for Mr. Harper? That Canadians ought not to make money from the wicked arts, but only from virtuous oil? That artists don't all live in one constituency, so who cares? Or is it that the majority of those arts jobs are located in Ontario and Quebec, and Mr. Harper is peeved at those provinces, and wants to increase his ongoing gutting of Ontario - $20-billion a year of Ontario taxpayers' money going out, a dribble grudgingly allowed back in - and spank Quebec for being so disobedient as not to appreciate his magnificence? He likes punishing, so maybe the arts-squashing is part of that: Whack the Heartland.

Or is it even worse? Every budding dictatorship begins by muzzling the artists, because they're a mouthy lot and they don't line up and salute very easily. Of course, you can always get some tame artists to design the uniforms and flags and the documentary about you, and so forth - the only kind of art you might need - but individual voices must be silenced, because there shall be only One Voice: Our Master's Voice. Maybe that's why Mr. Harper began by shutting down funding for our artists abroad. He didn't like the competition for media space.

The Conservative caucus has already learned that lesson. Rumour has it that Mr. Harper's idea of what sort of art you should hang on your wall was signalled by his removal of all pictures of previous Conservative prime ministers from their lobby room - including John A. and Dief the Chief - and their replacement by pictures of none other than Mr. Harper himself. History, it seems, is to begin with him. In communist countries, this used to be called the Cult of Personality. Mr. Harper is a guy who - rumour has it, again - tried to disband the student union in high school and then tried the same thing in college. Destiny is calling him, the way it called Qin Shi Huang, the Chinese emperor who burnt all records of the rulers before himself. It's an impulse that's been repeated many times since, the list is very long. Tear it down and level it flat, is the common motto. Then build a big statue of yourself. Now that would be Art!
Adapted from the 2008 Hurtig Lecture, delivered in Edmonton on Oct. 1

One Page Pitch Successful!

2008-09-22T22:10:00.003-06:00

If I were a baseball fan, the title of this post would probably be a clever pun on pitching... but alas, baseball is not my sport, so no punning this time. But I'm happy to announce that my one-page pitch was indeed successful. I have been offered one of the three spots in the ImagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival's pitch workshop with Deborah Day (a principal with Canadian Accents, a Toronto-based production company). The workshop takes place on October 15, my short film screens on the 16th and then, on the 17th, I get to pitch my feature film to a panel of four or five people in hopes of winning the development deal with APTN. Wish me luck!

The One-Page Pitch Idea

2008-09-10T20:31:00.007-06:00

I recently submitted a one-page pitch idea to the ImagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival for their Pitches Competition. After all, I'm pretty much finished the second draft of my feature and, even though I know it needs many more drafts before it's done, I'm beginning to feel ready to workshop it or pitch it or do something with it. So I thought I'd do a little research on how to write a one-page pitch idea. Sounds simple, right? Should be easy to find in my many writing books or on the internet, right? Or not so much.

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People may write about how to write a log line, or a treatment, or a summary, but no one seems to talk much about a one-page pitch. And if they do talk about it, they all seem to have different ideas. One website said that you should definitely have a comparison with other movies, like "Jaws meets The Little Mermaid" (okay, that was my random concept, I think the website had something a little less ridiculous). But another website stated that under no circumstances should you make a comparison like that. I decided to agree with the latter website. Another website said not to bother mentioning your characters by name unless there is some significance to the name(s). Whereas another site said to use the names and make it more personal (which happens to agree with what my screenwriting mentor said, so I included the names).

The one thing that most people seemed to agree on was that it should sound like the blurb on the back of a DVD cover. The author of Complications Ensue: The Crafty TV and Screenwriting Blog wrote that it's typically "heavier on the setup, and may entirely gloss over the finale." So that's the approach that I went with. I gave the background and the opening incident, with a glimpse of how things will unfold but keeping the details out of it.

Oh, and some sites said that you should include your logline at the top of the one-page. (And much as I hate to recommend this book for anything, one of the scant few reasons to read "Save the Cat" is to hammer out the best logline that you possibly can.) But I took my own twist on that one. Having recently reminded a fellow writer that what you want to emphasize in a sentence or a paragraph is best placed at the end, I decided to see if that might apply to a one-page pitch idea. So this is how I ended my pitch (with a little nod to Charles Dickens):

"Ultimately, things begin to fall apart, and a series of traumatic events in her present life forces Katrina to finally realize that she needs to face her past in order to have a future. This vet student who had been longing to be rescued from herself, discovers that she can be the hero of her own life."

In hind sight (or, if I'm being honest... after it was pointed out by my cousin), my tone was a little formal throughout. I tried to make it more colloquial but I realize that I didn't quite get there. But I'll keep that in mind for next time.

And I'll be sure to let you know if I win a spot in the pitching competition!

Great Northern Arts Festival

2008-08-04T13:14:00.004-06:00

I recently returned from visiting my dad in Inuvik for the Great Northern Arts Festival. I experienced 24-hour sunlight for the first time... and I've decided that I prefer having a regular sunset. Not that I want to experience 24 hours of darkness, either. I just realized that I need that balance between light and dark (hmm... I think that works as a metaphor for my personality traits, too).

I had a chance to screen "Coda in G Minor" and "Persephone" alongside a couple of short films that my father had created and one that they made during their film workshop last year, and I went to one of the writing workshops offered (more about that in a later post). I also finally saw "The Journals of Knud Rasmussen" and thought it was brilliant. Slow at times, but purposely slow. I think it makes the ending that much more powerful. And it ended up giving me the spark of an idea for my next feature length screenplay. (Though I must finish the second draft of the screenplay that I'm currently working on first.)

But the highlight of the festival had to be the visual art. My two favourite artists were Jennifer Walden (no website that I could find) and Gilad (Gadi) Katz. Unfortunately, the piece that I coveted by Jennifer was out of my price range and sold already anyway, but here's a photo:

The piece that was thankfully in my price range was a print by Gadi entitled "Cuts":

Call me crazy, but this print makes me think of my film "Persephone" so I just had to have it. And maybe someday I'll be able to afford one of Jennifer's paintings and hopefully, when that day comes, she'll have another one that leaps off of the wall at me the way this raven in flight did.

Another artist that caught my attention was Nicole Bauberger and her 100 dresses series. I contemplated buying some of her small paintings, but felt that it would be better to have a grouping of three rather than just a single painting for a series like this. But, again, most of the paintings that I was drawn to were already sold. I did ask her if she had thought about publishing a book of her 100 dresses series (of which she's done eight series so far and is scheduled to do two or three more, so that will be over 1000 dress paintings in all!). I hope she actually considers the book idea because I, for one, would love to buy it (or, better yet, work on designing it!). She hasn't posted the Inuvik 100 Dresses on her site yet, but here are a couple of examples of paintings from previous 100 dresses projects:

I also met basket maker Jennifer Bowen who turns out to be a filmmaker as well. I gather the filmmaking was put on hold while her children were young (she's married to filmmaker and musician Dennis Allen), but she seems to be putting a project together for the near future. I'll be very interested to find out what that project will be.

Syntax

2008-04-26T22:19:00.002-06:00

Try mixing up the words, she says.
Mixing up words
words mixing.
I can do it in poetry but not prose.
Poetry words go out of order
and still make sense and nonsense,
prose takes words and makes words make order,
prose orders words,
orders words to do what?
Keep writing words
so words keep writing.
Nonsense and sense.
White words write spaces
means nothing to say something.
White words,
blank thoughts,
busy nothingness.
Feels good
feels not me.

Inspired by "Writing Down the Bones" & "Wild Mind" by Natalie Goldberg.

The Writer's Are Back!

2008-02-14T17:17:00.002-07:00

I feel like a little kid on Christmas morning; I want to skip about singing: "The writers are back! The writers are back!" (In my head it sounds not dissimilar to "The British are coming!" but obviously a happy, upbeat version of that particular refrain.)

Yep... Jon Stewart, I luv ya but, as I was watching last night's show, I found myself soooo happy that your writers are back. It's kinda nice to have movie references to films made after "The Breakfast Club" ;-)

I haven't had the chance to check out the terms of the agreement, so I don't know whether the writers got everything that I think they deserve, but for now I'm just relieved and overjoyed that the strike is over.

Pencils2MediaMoguls

2007-12-05T19:54:00.000-07:00

I've already made my stand on the writer's strike clear (see my Writer's Strike post) but now I've put my money where my mouth is. I just found out about Pencils2MediaMoguls, where you can send a box of pencils to the six media moguls who run the six corporate conglomerates that control almost everything you see on TV or in the movies. (Don't worry, the pencils are made from sustainably harvested wood, so no deforesting will result from your ideological stand.) I've even put their handy widget in my sidebar for your convenience.

There are also certain shows that are offering incentives to their fans to support the strike. I personally put my name in to go watch a hockey game with the guy who plays the Chief on Battlestar Galactica. Many of these incentives are listed on the Pencils2MediaMoguls site, but also check with your favourite TV show because they might be offering incentives that aren't listed yet.

Walking the Walk

2007-11-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

So I got this email today from my screenwriting instructor: "Where's your 2nd draft???"

After a twinge of guilt, I realized that he was just teasing and the email was actually to inform me about the release of his film, "Walk All Over Me," on the weekend of December 7. I saw it at a gala screening during the Calgary International Film Festival, but I am definitely keen to see it again.

Now, I don't necessarily believe that someone needs to be a good writer themselves to be a good teacher of writing; it is possible to talk the talk without walking the walk. And I definitely don't believe that being a good writer automatically qualifies you to teach. But it sure is nice when the two go hand in hand. So I was thrilled to discover that my oh-so-talented screenwriting instructor is also a very talented writer. And I had, as Christine Lavin would say, A Proud Moment.

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I was reminded of another Proud Moment that I had many years ago... I was a working student for a three-day event rider on the Canadian Equestrian Team. Whilst acting as her groom for one particular competition, I had a chance to watch part of the cross country course. It was a particularly nasty combination of jumps, starting with a solid fence in the middle of a water hazard followed immediately by a very imposing series of upward steps. Almost every horse refused the steps (assuming they made it past the water). The spectators got into a rhythm with their cheers: an encouraging "c'mon, C'mon, C'MON" as the horse and rider approached the steps, then a disappointed "awww" as they refused. When my rider appeared, the chant started anew: "c'mon, C'mon, C'MON"... then absolute silence as her horse cleared the steps effortlessly on their first approach. I still remember the incredible pride that I felt, wanting to point and proclaim loudly, "I'm with her." But I digress...

It might be too late to make a long story short, but I can at least wrap up the denouement quickly: "Walk All Over Me" opens on December 7, 2007. Go see it. You won't be sorry.

Writer's Strike

2007-11-19T16:42:00.000-07:00

Do I support the writer's strike? Yes. Even though it means reruns and reality shows. Even though it's going to affect Battlestar Galactica (gulp). Why? Watch this video:

$100 Film Festival

2007-11-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

Okay... so I said I was doing NaNoWriMo this year but I've been too busy. Check back in March to see if I manage to do NaNoEdMo. Why have I been so crazy busy? Because I'm on the $100 Film Festival committee and our Call for Submissions deadline is December 1, 2007. Between running the festival's MySpace site and contacting artists, as well as editing my own film submission, NaNo just had to take a back seat.

But all of this focus on film has led me to ponder the writer's strike. See next post...

NaNo Prep - Plot Cards

2007-11-01T15:21:00.000-06:00

Originally posted 9.23.2004 on Limes with Orange

I know I said that I would start on the character sheets today but, as often happens, I have been distracted by shiny objects. The shiny object in this case is Holly Lisle's Fast Plotting technique.

As part of my attempt to "plot the plot" I've broken down my book into 30 chapters, partly because that's the number of days in novel writing month (aka November) and partly because that's the approximate number of chapters in the thriller that I just finished reading (Acid Row by Minette Walters... a compelling read, two thumbs up). So I'm planning on writing a chapter a day. I generally aim to write 2000 words a day, rather than the 1667 words that satisfies the "50,000 words / 30 days" equation; I like the luxurious feeling of a few extra words. If I anticipate 2 or 3 scenes per chapter, we're talking about something in the neighborhood of 750 words per scene. (Keep in mind, 50,000 words is far shorter than a finished novel. A NaNoWriMo "novel" is really a "half-draft" or a well padded outline. So I can either approach my breakdown ... plot, not nervous ... as having certain scenes omitted or as containing brief sketches of every scene. I'm opting for the latter. Otherwise, my scenes would average closer to 1500 words each.)

Total number of scenes = 67.

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Now, using Holly Lisle's notecarding technique, I am going to write one line descriptions of scenes that I would like to include in the book. To give myself the option of tossing some scenes, I should come up with something like 75 scenes in total. Starting with the obvious "candy bar" scenes (the ones I'm itching to write, like the first spellcasting or the heroine's confrontation with the killer) and going from there. Once I have my 75 notecards, I can start putting them into some kind of order. And voila... I'll have a plot outline! (Gee, I make it sound so easy... now come the endless days of torment while I attempt to make this outline a reality.)

So off I go to buy index cards. And maybe I'll stop by the coffee shop on my way home and do some writing practice. (I can't do it at home because Emma, my youngest cat, tends to chase my pen... not very conducive to the writing effort.)

NaNoWriMo Prep

2007-10-31T15:04:00.000-06:00

Originally posted 9.22.2004 on Limes with Orange

I've started giving some thought to my NaNoWriMo goals. The book that I want to write this year is more ambitious than the one I wrote last year, so some preparation might not be amiss. (This year's Hollywood-style pitch is "Mary Higgins Clark meets Charmed"... it's a supernatural thriller with a hint of romance; last year I described "Being Zoe" as "Bridget Jones' Diary for the intelligent woman.") Anyway, I thought I'd start with a list of things I want to do before November 1:

1. Getting to Know You: Write character descriptions for (a) main character (name yet to be determined... thinking she'd be played by Sandra Bullock in the movie), (b) romantic interest (cop... don't know yet who'd play him... maybe Dylan McDermott?), and (c) serial killer (need to determine his MO, among other things... possibly a Billy Bob type character, but not sure yet). Not sure if I'll bother with descriptions for any other supporting characters. I found a character chart that I think I'll try out this time 'round. I won't try to completely fill them out right away, just do the bare bones and add the other stuff as I get to know the characters better. Maybe tomorrow's project?

2. Plot the Plot: I know how the story starts and I know how it ends, with only the sketchiest idea of what happens in-between. Would like more of a plan to get started with it, even if I end up deviating from it once I start writing. There are some good suggestions in Zilpha Keatley Snyder's article on Being a Storyteller. Other sites I'll be using for reference are: Holly Lisle's Forward Motion for Writers and the Tameri Guide for Writers. I may even break down and read a book or two on the subject of plotting, since I feel like it's the weakest aspect of my writing. The Writer's Bookshop has some reasonable suggestions.

3. Keep the Pen Moving: I used to do daily timed writing practices à la Writing Down the Bones, but I've been remiss in the past several months. If I'm going to expect to write 2000 words a day in November, I'd better get used to writing every day again. Not to mention the fact that it will help prime the creativity pump.

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4. Supernatural Romantic Thriller: I know that I can't really read fiction during NaNoWriMo because I too easily lose my voice and start writing like whomever I'm reading. But if I read a few books before November in the genre that I plan to be writing, I think it'll put me in the right mindset. Dream Man by Linda Howard looks like it might work and possibly something by Connie Willis, though I think she's more sci-fi than I'm looking for. Anybody have any suggestions?

5. Shopping, Occult Style: Since my story starts with a visit to an occult shop, I thought it was high time that I popped into a real one myself. I found a list of Alberta Pagan Shopping & Services that should give me a good place to start.

6. Susie Homemaker: Don't need to worry about this stuff until closer to November, but I intend to have cupboards full of groceries and clean dishes, a freezer full of nukeable food and a closet full of clean clothes before November 1st rolls around. Because laundry, dishes, groceries and cooking ~~might not~~ will not be happening in November. (Oh yeah, must not forget to stock up on Scotch, too... mmm, liquid inspiration...)

Oops... almost forgot...

7. For Your Listening Pleasure: Must make songlists to suit the moods of various scenes: quiet moments, action, spellcasting, love scenes, etc. (I already know that I'll be listening to Heather Nova's "Sugar" for the first spell cast... that's kinda how this whole ball got rolling. And hey, while we're talking about it, check out this video clip of "Sugar.")

NaNoWriMo

2007-10-30T12:30:00.000-06:00

For those of you who think the title of this post is gobbledygook, I guess you haven't heard of National Novel Writing Month. Well, it starts on November 1st. Yep, as in the day after tomorrow. I've done it three times. The first time I literally found out about it the day before and I managed to write a full 50,000 word manuscript that I hated and which will never, ever see the light of day. The second time around I prepared thoroughly and also managed to write a full 50,000 word manuscript that I'm quite pleased with and would like to go back and turn into a screenplay someday. The third time around I dithered and couldn't settle on a plot or even a character and I think I was feeling restless with the novel format, already having an urge to write a screenplay but lacking the knowledge and tools. I didn't participate last year because I was just too busy and had thrown myself fully into film at that point. This year, I'm planning on doing it again... in a way.

I'm not writing a 50,000 word manuscript. I'll be completely up front about that. I'm using NaNoWriMo as motivation to complete a second draft of my feature length screenplay. (I really meant to write about my process while I wrote the first draft but I realized that writing about your writing process while you're trying to write is senseless... much like this tongue twister of this sentence.) So I will go back and talk about the first draft later on. During November, I'll try to post wee updates on my progress. I know this project would be more appropriate in National Novel Editing Month which happens in March, but I don't want to wait that long. Why bother with NaNoWriMo when I'm doing something so different? Because the support, the information and the opinions on the forums are so worth it. Resources and motivation, baby!

So here's my plan...

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I figure that I have about 45 pages of writing still to do. At approximately 200 words per page for a screenplay, that leaves me with 9,000 words to write. Piece of cake, right? Except that I also have some substantial restructuring to do, so let's set aside 10 hours for that. Then there's some research required for some of the new writing, so let's set aside another 10 hours for that. So instead of striving to reach the 50,000 word mark, I will be striving for 20 hours of work and 9,000 words. Not your conventional approach, but I think I can make it work for me.

I'm also planning on posting some of my old NaNo posts from Limes with Orange, the personal blog I was writing while I participated in previous years. So check back.

Quote of the Week

2007-10-24T22:59:00.000-06:00

"Fairy tales do not tell children that dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be killed."

~ G. K. Chesterton

Dissertation Writing Service

2007-10-09T00:26:00.000-06:00

You may find it strange that I'm talking about another writing service when I offer a writing service right here. Well, I've never written a PhD and therefore don't offer dissertation writing services, just essay writing services at an undergraduate level. So if you're looking for help with your dissertation or thesis, allow me to recommend Your Dissertation.com. They offer help with all phases of the writing process, from Proposal Development through Research Design to Report Preparation. For example, if you you aren't certain what you want to devote the next few years of your life studying, you might want a little guidance from the experts in selecting a dissertation topic. Or maybe you need help writing your abstract. And so on... you get the idea. Now go forth and dissertate!

Book Catalogue

2007-10-05T16:01:00.000-06:00

I've been cataloguing books today. Something I usually enjoy, but it's made somewhat less fun by the fact that I had actually entered and sorted over 1000 books on my BookCat program before my computer crashed last summer. But I just got a bunch of books out of storage that I want to incorporate into my library now that I've got enough shelf space and I'm trying to input them as I go, as well as input the books in the category that they're sharing shelf space with.

The BookCat program is pretty cool. I'm sure there are similar programs out there, but I've only used this one so I this is the only one I can speak about. It's very easy to enter the information. Just type in the ISBN number and select which sources you want it to check and voila, you now have the author, title, publisher, etc. already entered into the catalogue. I usually have the program check Amazon USA, Amazon UK, Amazon Canada and the Library of Congress. But if you're in the States and most of your books were purchased new, then you probably only need to check Amazon USA.

If the book is too old to have an ISBN number (published before 1970... and even many books published in the early 70's), you might still be able to have the program enter the majority of the information for you if you can find your book in the Library of Congress Online Catalog and it has a Library of Congress catalog number.

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Sometimes you might need to tweak some of the information, but it's a very user-friendly computer program so that's not a problem. And it's great for slightly OCD people like me. I have 11 different bookshelves in my apartment and some of them are divided into different sections (for example, Biographies and Social Sciences share one shelving unit). I tend to group my books according to the Dewey decimal system, which makes for easy decision making... very helpful when you have this many books. But once they're grouped I just figure out location according to space and how much I need the books to be near my computer. Anyway, the reason I'm putting my anal-retentive habits on display is to mention that you can easily include location information for each book as you enter it. A feature that I particularly like.

So if you are an avid book collector (and maybe a little OCD), I highly recommend a catalogue program like BookCat.

Hero Screenplay: The First Draft

2007-09-10T16:31:00.000-06:00

Well, I got my screenplay handed in on time for my screenwriting workshop. I don't consider it a full first draft, since about 1/3 of the scenes were simply described and not written. So let's call it a 2/3 draft (or maybe a 3/4 draft since I did at least have the remaining 1/3 of scenes present).

I've been living with the characters all summer and listening to the soundtrack that I made for my film (yep, I think of a song for each sequence and then put together a mixed CD that I listen to constantly even when I'm not writing), but I only had it about 1/3 finished by the middle of August. And I knew I was going to my cousin's wedding in Victoria for Labour Day weekend. And I knew the screenplay was due on September 7. So I managed to get 60 pages (out of a goal of 90) written before I went away for that weekend. Then I got a few people who were willing to read the script over the weekend to provide me with feedback for that last week-long writing push to get it finished. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to 90 (barely scraped in at 75 pages) but the feedback that I did get was quite helpful, even if it did mean that I needed to take some time out of writing to re-think a few things. So even though it didn't go the way I'd planned (as if things ever do), I'm pleased with the result.

When I find the time, I'll talk a bit more about my own particular process and some of the challenges that I had while writing along with some of the pleasant surprises.

The 3-Day Novel Contest

2007-08-26T13:30:00.001-06:00

I've participated in National Novel Writing Month twice and "won" once (i.e. met my 50,000 word count) but I don't know if I would have the nerve to try writing a novel in three days. But for those of you with nerves of steel (and a little time on your hands), you might be interested in this 3-Day Novel Contest over Labour Day weekend.

Grand Prize: Publication (summer 2008)
2nd Prize: $500 cash
3rd Prize: A great literary prize pack

You have to register for the contest by August 31, 2007 so if you're interested, you'd better hurry up and sign up. And be sure to check out their Survival Guide and the Community Forums... I would imagine that both of them are probably essential if you're to maintain some shred of sanity during this event.

For those of you who decide to do this: Good luck! And may whatever gods of writing you worship be with you during this period of temporary insanity.

Vocabulary Rant

2007-08-20T16:42:00.000-06:00

I was visiting a forum today on which I'm a semi-regular contributor when I was attacked for using the word "erudite." That was my only offence and, according to the reaction of the poster, it was a grave offence indeed. To which I ask: why? Why should my vocabulary be the source of consternation to someone so wholly unconnected to me?

My last post notwithstanding, I love words. They are both my work and my hobby. I love neologisms, whether they're just for fun (e.g. "dinosaur blog") or put into actual use in the language (e.g. "netiquette"). I love precise words (why say "second last" when you can say "penultimate"?). I love word origins (did you know that Shakespeare coined over 1700 words currently in use in the English language?). I love colloquialisms, especially context-dependent ones such as "Macgyverism" or "grassy-knollism." I love creative spellings that horrify many linguists (such as "grrls" and "boyz"). Sometimes I love to write as formally as someone from a Jane Austen novel. At other times I like playing fast and loose with my dangling participles, indulging in run-on sentences and starting my sentences with such no-no words as "and" and "but." Why any of this should offend someone else is incomprehensible to me.

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If I had a friend whose big hobby was... let's say football, a sport which I know very little about except that the big trophy in Canada is the Grey Cup... I think. If my friend spoke about football using proper football terminology, I would probably have little idea of what was being said. But I would not assume that my friend was (a) trying to flaunt their knowledge and/or (b) trying to belittle me for lack of same. I would simply acknowledge that this was a subject that they were passionate and knowledgeable about but was of little interest to me.

So why do people react so differently when that hobby is language? Why do some people take it so personally? I like my vocabulary. I like to expand my vocabulary. I like to use it or not use it as I choose. And those choices have nothing to do with anyone else. I just like words, dammit. And to those individuals who have a chip on their shoulder about that, I say get over it already.

Disclosure

2007-08-15T00:20:00.000-06:00

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. The purpose of this blog is simply to write about all manner of subjects related to writing, books and language that inspire, amuse, vex or interest me. For questions about this blog, please contact cara at weirdgrrl dot ca.

The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely my own. From time to time, there may be some posts on this blog for which I receive a small amount of compensation. These posts may not always be identified as such, but they are always about products or websites that I support and they absolutely reflect my honest opinions. The only thing that will ever be influenced by any compensation received is the topics I choose to write about. My words and opinions are my own and not for sale.

Too.Many.Words.

2007-07-31T22:16:00.000-06:00

Words, words, words
I'm so sick of words...

I've realized that when your day job is editing other people's writing and your off hours are spent writing a feature-length screenplay, creating several niche blogs that require regular posting might not have been the smartest idea I ever had.

Which is why this poor little blog has been so sorely neglected, right down to its coding. But I promise that I will eventually fix the code, add a search box and try to post weekly. It's just going to take a little longer and be a bit more challenging to keep up with than I initially thought. So bear with me...

Dinosaur Blog

2007-07-21T21:02:00.000-06:00

I realize it's been a while since I posted last. I've been alternating between being sick and busy. And while my brain still isn't quite functional enough to come up with anything witty or brilliant at the moment, I thought I would shift over one of my posts from my personal blog because I think it fits this blog better...

Originally posted 3.09.2005 on Limes with Orange

Dinosaur Blog \'dI-n&-"sor 'blŏg\, noun: 1. An out-of-date method of informing a large audience about current events; 2. Newspaper.

Etymology: an amusing new retronym* courtesy of the comic strip Non Sequitur.

*Retronym \'ret-r&-"nim\, noun: 1. A new word or phrase coined for an old object or concept whose original name became used for something else, or was no longer unique (Wikipedia); 2. An adjective-noun pairing generated by a change in the meaning of the base noun, usually as a result of technological advance (Fun with Words).

When asked for an example of a retronym, "Original Star Trek" usually leaps to mind. Which was, of course, simply "Star Trek" before all the various spin-offs. Other (non sci-fi geek) examples include "silent movie" and "acoustic guitar."

And I've noticed that the electronic age has resulted in an increasing number of retronyms (often unflattering). Such as "snail mail," a term coined after the advent of e-mail and generally preferred over the less derogatory options of "land mail" or "paper mail."

Warning: abstruse linguistic tangent ahead...

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As I write this, I notice that although "dinosaur blog" fits the first definition of retronym, it doesn't fit the second. The base noun ("blog") hasn't simply changed its meaning, the word itself is completely modern. So what do you call it when you take a word created for a modern object or concept and apply it to something older? Like someone referring to an abacus as a "non-electronic calculator." Hmm, that doesn't really work since the word calculator just means "one that calculates" and need not refer to something electronic. What about if someone referred to a play as a "live movie" (not that I've ever heard of such a thing, but I'm blanking on any good examples)?

Is it still a retronym?

It is named retroactively, which is the spirit of the word. But it doesn't fit that second definition, since plays existed long before movies were invented. But what would be the opposite of a retronym? Pronym (as in retroactive vs. proactive)? Anteronym (retrograde vs. anterograde)? Unfortunately, I can find no such terms amongst my "nym" words: synonym, antonym, homonym, acronym, pseudonym. Or the slightly less common patronym (a name derived from the name of one's father) or eponym (a name from which another name or word is derived). Not to mention the even less familiar metonym (a word substituted for another with which it is associated), bacronym (the reverse of producing an acronym), etc.

Conclusion of Tangent: Unless someone points me in the direction of another "nym" word that I've overlooked, or thinks I should list "anteronym" on the Wiktionary List of Protologisms, I guess I'll go with my first instinct and call "dinosaur blog" a retronym.

But I've let my inner amateur etymologist ramble on for far too long. Time to go finish last weekend's cryptic crossword in Canada's own national dinosaur blog: The Globe & Mail.