Currently Reading Salems Lot By Stephen King see related

Okay, here's the second entry in my summer writing excercise log. I didn't include every step here, only the finished product under step #7. It's not that great, but here it goes:

Instructions: Writers, especially those with less experience, often concentrate on visual detail when writing descriptions. The following exercise is cumulative, adding a new kind of sensory detail with each step.

1. Write a paragraph or so describing a place (either one you know well, or one you've made up). Use only visual details. In other words, describe only what a person would see if they went to that place. Include enough information for a reader to be able to visualize the setting.

2. Rewrite or revise your description from step 1, inserting details of sound. You should end up with a description that allows a reader to both visualize the setting, and imagine what it sounds like there.

3. Rewrite or revise your description from step 2, inserting details of smell. Consider what the objects in the setting might smell like, as well as the air in general. Your result should be a passage allowing a reader to visualize the setting, and imagine the sounds and smells there.

4. Rewrite or revise your description from step 3, inserting details of taste. This can be as simple as the taste of the air in an open mouth, or as complex as your narrator sitting down to a feast. Aim for a piece that allows the reader to imagine the place in terms of visual detail, plus sound, smell and taste.

5. Rewrite or revise your description from step 4, inserting details of touch. These can include what things actually feel like to the touch (in which case you'll need to add in some action to allow your narrator to touch things), what things look like they'd feel like, and other details such as the feeling of a breeze on the skin. Remember that touch can include sensations like temperature, texture, pressure and more. Give your reader some sense of what it is like to be physically present in that setting in addition to the visual, sound, smell and taste details.

6. When you've finished step 5, you'll probably have much more detail that you'd ever need in a descriptive passage. Set aside your description for a moment and decide what you want to convey. Is your piece intended to set a mood? To give a deep sense of place? To serve merely as a background? Assume, for now, that you are trying to build a sense of place that will make your setting really come alive for the reader. Make a list of all the essential details of that place, the things that make it unique--that place rather than any place. Add to your list the details that give flavour to the place, even if they don't make it completely unique; and add those details that you just really like, for whatever reason.

7. Go back to your description from step 5 and use your list of important details from step 6 to edit your passage. Concentrate on using the right details and removing the ones that don't really matter.

Currently Reading Salems Lot By Stephen King see related

Hmmmm.. I've seen a couple movies lately: Secret Window and Lethal Weapon.

Secret Window – This movie is about a divorced writer who is accused of plagiarism, and he knows he didn’t do it. The accuser starts to get creepy, making threats and slaughtering Mort’s puppy. Overall, it was a fascinating story and a pretty good movie. The best part is the ending. Johnny Depp is good as an insane writer. I would say….. B movie. But everyone should read the novella Secret Window, Secret Garden by Stephen King. It’s awesome. :)

Lethal Weapon – This movie is about a suicidal cop named Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson). He is reckless on his missions because he doesn’t care if he dies. But he can’t bring himself to kill himself directly because he knows he is needed at work. He gets partnered with a normal black cop who has a beautiful family, and as they work together, Riggs starts to care a little more. Overall, it was a good movie… I would give it an A. It was hilarious and there was some good action. The movie is fairly old so Gibson is pretty young at this time… it seems like throughout the movie he is showing off his body… haha there are a lot of fight scenes where he conveniently finds some opportunity to remove his shirt. But it’s a good movie… pretty funny.

I'm going to watch Gladiator some time this week... can you  believe I haven't seen it yet? It seems like everyone's seen that movie already, lol.

I went to the libraries used book story and bought these books:

Four Past Midnight by Stephen King (A collection of novellas, including Secret Window, Secret Garden, the story that the movie was based on)

Bag of Bones by Stephen King

The Wolf King by Alice Bordchart

I finished reading Thief of lives by Barb and JC Hendee. It was good, better than the first one, Dhampir.

I'm reading Salem's Lot now. Next I'll read A Clash of Kings by George Martin, and next Ship of Destiny by Robin Hobb.

Okay, that's all for now.

Currently Reading Thief of Lives By Barb Hendee, J.C. Hendee see related

Disorder	Rating
Paranoid:	High
Schizoid:	High
Schizotypal:	High
Antisocial:	Low
Borderline:	Moderate
Histrionic:	Low
Narcissistic:	Low
Avoidant:	High
Dependent:	Low
Obsessive-Compulsive:	Moderate
-- Personality Disorder Test - Take It! --

Okay, so I wanted to practice my writing this summer, so I got some quick excercises of the internet. Here's lesson one (I filled in my responses):

First Lines: An Idea-Generating Exercise

Instructions: Try this exercise all at once. It's fairly quick and #3 can be done any time you want to generate a few ideas.

1. Browse through some novels and stories (and try poems, too), reading only the opening lines.

Mad Ship

The breeze against his face and chest was brisk and chill, yet something in it hinted of spring soon to come. The air tasted of iodine; the tide must be out, exposing the kelp beds just of shore. Under his hull, the coarse sand was damp from the last heavy rain. The smoke of Amber’s small fire tickled his nose. The figurehead turned his blind visage away from it then reached up to scratch his nose.

Salem’s Lot

By the time he had passed Portland going north on the turnpike, Ben Mears had begin to feel a not unpleasurable tingle of excitement in his belly. It was September 5, 1975, and summer was enjoying her final grand fling. The trees were bursting with green, the sky was a high, soft blue, and just over the Falmout town line he saw two boys walking a road parallel to the expressway with fishing rods settled on their shoulders like carbines.

Dhampir

Long past sundown, Magiere walked into another shabby Stravinian village without really seeing it. Peasants lived the same way everywhere. All their bleak, shapeless huts began to blend together after six years, and Magiere only noted their numbers as a gauge of population. No more than a hundred people lived here, and perhaps as few as fifty. None showed themselves this late in the night, though she heard the creak of a door or window shutter as she passed by, someone peeking out when she wasn’t looking. The only other sound was the scrape of her hunting knife on hard wood as she sharpened the end of the short wooden pole no longer than her arm.

Thief of Lives

It was the place he’d nearly died, and here he returned every day before dawn. Leesil stood sweating in the forest clearing’s cold air, surrounded by sparse-limbed, shaggy firs. The sun had crested the high eastern tree line, and winking sparks of sunlight skipped between the ocean wave tops below to the west. Along the shallow bay’s coastal edge sat the small port town of Miiska, its rooftops brightened by the dawn.

2. Do you notice any similarities between opening lines? Are there techniques a writer can use to catch the attention of a reader?

They all convey setting. Most of them describe the weather, the surrounding area, and the time that it is happening. Most also describe what sort of feeling the viewpoint character is experiencing at that moment, such as their reaction to the view they are seeing, etc. They all make you want to find out more about who the person is, where they are, and why they are there.

3. Make a list of brand new opening lines that you make up off the top of your head. Don't worry about whether or not you'd actually want to use them, just think them up and write them down.

Adria sat nestled in the lofty arms of the leafy old tree.

Trith’s eyes grew moist with sorrow as he surveyed the charred ruins of his old village.

Jon watched expectantly as her clumsy little hands eagerly pried the box open.

He lifted the sword as carefully as if it were a baby.

The sun shone brilliantly against its cloudless, blue backdrop, its rays dancing merrily upon the surface of the ocean.

4. When you've got a fair number (say half a page or a page), read through them again. Which ones catch your attention? Which ones make you laugh? Think about why these ones might work better than the others.

5. Pick your favorite couple of opening lines and see if you can expand them into a paragraph or more. If you start getting some really good ideas about any of them, you may want to just keep going to see how far it takes you, or you may want to pause to take point form notes about your ideas first.

Adria sat nestled in the lofty arms of the leafy old tree. As far as spectacular views went, Adria had never seen a better one, and that was certainly a great testimony to its beauty, for she had climbed up a great many trees in the eleven years of her lifetime.
Since the day she had first discovered her special tree, there were few days that Adria did not visit it, and each time, the panorama never failed to steal her breath away. The tree was located at the top of a hill, and from there she had a picture-perfect view of Kaali village, framed by the lush, green hills that it lay nestled between.
Whenever Adria felt sad, angry, or helpless, she would retreat to her haven in the clouds where no one could find her. In the past, it had always made her feel large and important to watch the ant-like people of her village scurry about their business in the streets, oblivious of her birdlike surveillance.
But not today. Today, she felt very small and helpless, because she knew that from the hive of scuttling little ants that was Kaali village, one was missing. For as long as she could remember, that one insignificant little dot in the landscape had been the foundation of her entire existence, and now that it was gone, she felt as though her whole life had tumbled down.
Tears escaped her eyes, washing dirt from her smudged face in long streaks. The crisp breeze stung her damp cheeks, plastering strands of her long dark hair against her sticky face. She wiped them away angrily with her fist. If her mother had been there, she would have looked up at Adria sorrowfully, pleading with her not to cry. It had always pained her to see Adria cry. But her mother was not here.
No, Mother is not here, Adria affirmed bitterly. Mother is not anywhere. Mother is dead.

Trith’s eyes grew moist with sorrow as he surveyed the charred ruins of his old village. His stomach convulsed queasily at the awful stench that wafted up from the wreckage; the sickening scents of blood, smoke and burnt flesh suffocated him like a heavy blanket, filling his senses with an overpowering awareness of death. He poked about in the ashes of the little cottage he had grown up in, biting back tears as a flood of childhood memories washed over him like cold water.
Then he remembered why he had come.
Trith pushed aside his memories with great effort, willing his mind to focus on his task at hand. Emotion inhibits progression, he told himself sternly, echoing his former master’s words. He was here on official business. It was no time for personal thoughts.

“Look outside, Keth Malta,” Liviana instructed him bitterly. The sun shone brilliantly against its cloudless, blue backdrop, its rays dancing merrily upon the surface of the ocean. “It’s a perfect day.” She sighed in frustration. “By all rights, I should be gathering seashells along the shore with Mavis, laughing and telling jokes. But no,” she whined puerilely, “I had to stay at home to take care you.”
He stared at his feet in feigned apology and remained silent. It’s not like I want you to be here any more than you do, he thought indignantly, but wisely remained silent. Liviana shot him an annoyed glare before she plopped down into a chair and pouted at the wall darkly as if she could set it on fire with her eyes.
Keth contemplated her with grim amusement, resisting his impulses to laugh at her. He was only seven years old, but he knew what a spoiled brat was. His stepsister fit the description quite well, he thought decisively.
The silence held for a long time, but Keth was beginning to feel sorry for the wall she was boring holes in with her eyes, so he broke it.
“Livi?” He tugged at her shirt and gazed up at her in mock innocence. She started and jerked away from him, regarding him with irritation. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but then paused, his eyes darting away from her petulant visage nervously. He looked back up at her hesitantly. “Is our wall really so fascinating?” He stared at her with wide-eyed seriousness.
“Little brat,” she muttered angrily and stomped off.
As she was opening the front door to leave, Keth whispered, “Spoiled brat,” loud enough for her to hear.
Liviana’s face reddened and twisted in an uncomplimentary way. She stomped back over to Keth and slapped him. Then she stalked back to the door and left the house with a slam.
Keth grinned mischievously, his face sparkling with triumph. He was finally alone and rid of her childish gripes. Although Liviana was twice his age, she was not half as mature. He had lived on the streets in poverty for six years, only two of which his parents were alive to help support him. The last four years had been very hard; there were all sorts of dangers to living on the streets alone. Not only had it been hard to find food, but he also had had to guard against wild animals and meanspirited men who would try to hurt him. He was often involved in streetfights, and he usually won, but when he lost, the damages were often irreperable. He glanced down at his arms as he had done a million other times. Ropy bands of flesh stood up all over his arm where knives, nails, or teeth had slashed at him. There were more beneath his shirt on his chest and his back.
He thought back to those times soberly; he had been on the brink of death from a knife wound when Liviana’s mother had found him and took him into her home. But although during his poverty he had cursed fate for bringing it upon him, he now looked back on it gratefully. It had taught him many valuable lessons.
Keth had been forced to grow up quickly, but Liviana was still quite immature for her age. She is weak, too, he observed thoughtfully. Her slap had been a pathetic one. A smile twitched at the edge of his mouth.

6. Set the list aside in a place you'll find it again. Later on -- days, weeks or even months later -- have a look at your list again to see if the same lines still grab you. Maybe a different line will really appeal to you; in that case, try #5 with it.

Notes: This is a fun way to get ideas. You may come up with many that will never amount to anything, but now and then you'll get a good one. Try this more than once and save your lists to look at again later.

All right whatever.

Currently Reading 'Salem's Lot By Stephen King see related

I changed the xanga theme and the song. Does it work on your computer?

(Sorry, I didn't take anyone's advice on what song to put.. I chose this one instead.. ^_^)

Guess what it is. It's a good song. Good luck figuring out what he's saying. :) Once you figure it out you'll be impressed. It's got good lyrics.

It's Trent again in the background and profile picture.

Summer is here.. it's nice to be able to read more books.