Title: Ranger's Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan
Author: John Flanagan
Genre: Fantasy (MG)
Length: 249
Quality Rating: 7
Content Rating: PG
I love middle grade books - just in case you haven't realized that yet. So when I was perusing the Independent Reader section of B&N and I saw this book, I knew I had to read it. High Fantasy without dragons doesn't happen a lot in the MG section, so we have to support it. And this book didn't disappoint. It follows the story of Will, a fifteen-year-old orphan who is apprenticed to a Ranger (essentially a spy, but high fantasy style). It has all the rich detail one would expect from a high fantasy novel. It also does the unexpected for "kids" books. The adults play a large role, an important role, and they act like real adults. I know, I was shocked to. I'm so used to heroes having to break the rules to save the world, or stupid adults who need kids to save them. This was a pleasant and lovely surprise. I highly recommend this book for young readers who don't want to feel patronized (the book has small font!) and who like to read fantasy.
This books gets a PG rating for some fantasy violence, a couple of pretty intense hunting scenes, and harsh bullying. It's definitely still ok for our upper elementary school crowd.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
The Speed of Light & FTL
Today is our first "Engineering Tuesday". In general, anything that I feel relates to my engineering degree can be posted on this day. That can be actual science type things or more work/human factors related stuff. Today's post, however, has a little more to do with actual science, and it also connects to writing, so don't just skip over this post because you're a writer and not a science geek.
So if you're a science fiction reader or writer, you've probably thought about faster than light travel. You've probably imagined hyperspace, warp drive, or some other futuristic thingamabob that allows man to go faster than the speed of light. You may have read a little about Einstein's theories and got confused. (If you didn't get confused, you're either a theoretical physicist or in denial.) Relativity is confusing. I don't pretend to understand it, so if you were hoping that I was going to dive into an easy to grasp explanation of it, well...I'm sorry to disappoint.
So the speed of light is 300,000,000 m/s (or in scientific notation, which is commonly used 3x10^8). You're probably looking at that number and thinking two things: 1) that's a big number and 2) how fast exactly is a m/s? So to give you an idea let's look at the speed of sound. At sea level its on the order of 300 m/s.
Yeah - that's a big difference between the two numbers.
So you've heard the phrase "sound barrier"? When the shuttle comes in and you hear a sonic boom, people say "it's broken the sound barrier." Did you ever wonder where this phrase came from? Undoubtedly you're wondering what this has to do with the speed of light - but hang in there.
It's called the sound barrier because at one time, scientist and engineers thought it was seriously a barrier - as in, you could not break it. We would be able to approach the speed of sound, but never actually hit it. No matter how hard we tried, our airplanes were going to only go so fast.
Now this thought wasn't around too long - as airplanes were invented at the turn of the twentieth century and Chuck Yeager went over Mach 1 in 1947. So you're probably wondering why they thought this. Well, if you looked at the equations for subsonic aerodynamics*, you would see that hitting Mach 1 would make you divide by zero. And you know what happens if you divide by zero.... (just google image "divide by zero". You'll learn.) Going over Mach 1 according to these equations would require taking the square root of a negative number.
What does this have to do with the speed of light and FTL (faster than light) drives? Well, my friend, if you look up special** relativity, you will see there are some similar equations where if your velocity hits the speed of light - you divide by zero. If it goes over, hello imaginary numbers!
If you don't write science fiction, this is just fun facts. If you do write science fiction, you need to realize something. Inventing a new engine that allows you to go faster than the speed of light isn't good enough. You have to invent new science.
It's like when aerodynamicists created new theories for sonic and supersonic flight. Someone in your world - some physicist or propulsion engineering needs to create a new theory for luminal and superluminal flight.
So when you're creating the story Bible for your world, make sure you take into account that your advanced society needs to have a new Newton, a new Einstein, or at least a new Bernoulli - someone who can see beyond what current science is telling them and discover what no one has thought of before.
On the other hand, maybe you don't need FTL travel in your future world. Not every science fiction society needs to have discovered FTL or even have a need for it. But how do you know if this applies to you? Sounds like a post for Thursday...
*I would post one or two if I knew how to make blogger and Equation Editor play nicely together, but unfortunately I don't.
** Don't look up general. Seriously. It's not worth trying to figure out. Your brain might explode.
So if you're a science fiction reader or writer, you've probably thought about faster than light travel. You've probably imagined hyperspace, warp drive, or some other futuristic thingamabob that allows man to go faster than the speed of light. You may have read a little about Einstein's theories and got confused. (If you didn't get confused, you're either a theoretical physicist or in denial.) Relativity is confusing. I don't pretend to understand it, so if you were hoping that I was going to dive into an easy to grasp explanation of it, well...I'm sorry to disappoint.
So the speed of light is 300,000,000 m/s (or in scientific notation, which is commonly used 3x10^8). You're probably looking at that number and thinking two things: 1) that's a big number and 2) how fast exactly is a m/s? So to give you an idea let's look at the speed of sound. At sea level its on the order of 300 m/s.
Yeah - that's a big difference between the two numbers.
So you've heard the phrase "sound barrier"? When the shuttle comes in and you hear a sonic boom, people say "it's broken the sound barrier." Did you ever wonder where this phrase came from? Undoubtedly you're wondering what this has to do with the speed of light - but hang in there.
It's called the sound barrier because at one time, scientist and engineers thought it was seriously a barrier - as in, you could not break it. We would be able to approach the speed of sound, but never actually hit it. No matter how hard we tried, our airplanes were going to only go so fast.
Now this thought wasn't around too long - as airplanes were invented at the turn of the twentieth century and Chuck Yeager went over Mach 1 in 1947. So you're probably wondering why they thought this. Well, if you looked at the equations for subsonic aerodynamics*, you would see that hitting Mach 1 would make you divide by zero. And you know what happens if you divide by zero.... (just google image "divide by zero". You'll learn.) Going over Mach 1 according to these equations would require taking the square root of a negative number.
What does this have to do with the speed of light and FTL (faster than light) drives? Well, my friend, if you look up special** relativity, you will see there are some similar equations where if your velocity hits the speed of light - you divide by zero. If it goes over, hello imaginary numbers!
If you don't write science fiction, this is just fun facts. If you do write science fiction, you need to realize something. Inventing a new engine that allows you to go faster than the speed of light isn't good enough. You have to invent new science.
It's like when aerodynamicists created new theories for sonic and supersonic flight. Someone in your world - some physicist or propulsion engineering needs to create a new theory for luminal and superluminal flight.
So when you're creating the story Bible for your world, make sure you take into account that your advanced society needs to have a new Newton, a new Einstein, or at least a new Bernoulli - someone who can see beyond what current science is telling them and discover what no one has thought of before.
On the other hand, maybe you don't need FTL travel in your future world. Not every science fiction society needs to have discovered FTL or even have a need for it. But how do you know if this applies to you? Sounds like a post for Thursday...
*I would post one or two if I knew how to make blogger and Equation Editor play nicely together, but unfortunately I don't.
** Don't look up general. Seriously. It's not worth trying to figure out. Your brain might explode.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Works In Progress
So this is our first official "writing Monday", so I thought I would talk a little bit about my WIPs (Works in Progress). This way, you guys can relate better to some of the things I'm talking about and why I'm going through a sudden rash of YA & MG books.
So I currently have four projects. I'm only allowing myself to work on these four projects and no others. Some people may not like to work on so many projects, but it really helps me to keep my ADD in line.
No, I'm not really ADD, but when it comes to story ideas, my brain is uber ADD. If I let it, my brain would think of a million stories and we would never write any of them down. This doesn't mean I don't let my brain come up with new ideas. I just record them and let them mull. I don't focus on them or work on them.
So four projects, each in a slightly different phase of incompleteness.
Project 1:
This story is a MG high fantasy novel. It's complete at about 52,000 words. I'm working on revising it and cutting down the word count a little. I've found some discrepancies from agents about what word count is acceptable for a MG high fantasy book, so I think somewhere in the 40,000s (I'm aiming for 48,000) will be completely acceptable.
My revision is basically a complete re-write. I took a class last fall on writing and the teacher there (AC Crispin, not to name drop or anything...) gave me some really good advice. She said that in a story the situation should always get worse for the MC (right up until the very end) and in my book, it seemed things only got better from the beginning. Part of that feeling can't be helped, but I am adding in situations where it seems that the MC's new life isn't all its cracked up to be and even if it was lots of people threaten to jeopardize it.
Reading through the story myself, I decided the story need a more tangible bad guy. The truth of the matter is the bad guy is really society and the MC. She is fighting against how society views her and how society has made her view herself. Society thinks she is worthless, dirty, and unclean, and she has to get over that - to accept who she is - in order to meet the tasks demanded by the plot. However, this is a MG book and I understand that not all upper elementary kids and middle schoolers aren't quite as sharp as me and my friends were back then. So, I've decided to create a character who basically embodies all those awful aspects of the MC's society and becomes the antagonist of the story.
I find revising to be really difficult, mainly when it comes to what to cut and what not to cut, but the more I do the easier it comes. And it helps to be watching Doctor Who or Firefly in the background.
Project 2:
This WIP is a YA paranormal fantasy. Please don't cringe and think I've gone off the deep end. This story is not about vampires. I'm sure I've mentioned on this blog before my feelings about vampires. For reminding: I don't like them. I avoid vampire books like they've got the plague. It's about a high-school wizard, living in modern day Orlando. The paranormal label really bothers me...maybe urban fantasy is the better label? It's hard to tell. I feel like one is pretty much the other, so if you have any insight or opinions on that matter please share.
This story is very much a work in progress. I'm just finished chapter five (draft 1) and its going to have lots more chapters than that.
What I've been doing is sending each new chapter to a few of my friends to critique. They look over it - tell me what they don't like - what doesn't make sense, and what they're thinking at each point in the story. It helps me to know if the reader is thinking what I think they should be thinking at each point. It also helps me to know if my descriptions are doing their job or if the story is lagging. If someone reads a new chapter and is bored, they usually tell me. I've found this to be an extremely helpful experience. My critters are great.
It also helps to keep my writing. I have a serious problem of starting manuscripts and never finishing them. So having people who are bugging me about the next installment is really usefule to motivate me.
Project 3:
This is an adult high fantasy novel that I have plotted out but not actually written. I've been adding to the story Bible, creating myths for the land, and fleshing out ideas about the characters and story line. This story is probably more ready to write than my project 2. It just has one serious problem in the way.
I don't know where to start it.
I know where I want the story to start - but stories have to start with action, they have to start with where the plot starts. Like in Brandon Sanderson's Elantris, where the story starts with the prince discovering he's changed. It's a big thing. It's shocking. It's what changed the lives of everyone in the story from the get go.
I know what this moment is in this story too. It's the moment all my MCs (there are 3) learn that the king has died. However, there is just so much back story to get there. I don't want to have any info dumps, and I don't know how to just jump in the story there. It's very frustrating. I basically have this story, that's begging for me to write it, I just have no idea how to start it.
Usually once I can get that first page, the ball rolls pretty well and the rest comes. This is the first time this particular problem has ever struck me, so its quite mind boggling.
This WIP is pretty much on my backburner, stewing in the back of my mind, taking in everything from the other projects I'm working on and the books I'm reading so I can find a solution to this problem.
Project 4:
This project started as a MG science fiction (SF) novel. I might still go back to that idea as an additional project to this new one, basically the MG novel would take place in the same universe. The WIP has evolved, however, into an adult science fiction novel.
This novel is set in the distant future, and its currently in a story Bible phase. I've got a notebook divided into six distinct sections: History, Society, Geography, Characters, Story Ideas, and Miscellaneous.
Characters and basic plot ideas come easy to me. It's usually where I start with any story. This particular story (not the MG one) started with the idea of a young, mourning widow and the circumstances of her husbands death. From there ideas for a greater plot sprung to my mind. But when a SF story that's being set in the distant distant future, you've got to think through the history that got them there. I want to create a futuristic society that got to where it is through a realistic and logical process (well as logical as history can be).
So all my brainstorming for the past week has been focused on writing "a short history of the universe". It's funny, because whenever I write something like this, I write it like a textbook. When I read it back, I kind of giggle because I use the same tone as my high school history books.
My history is pretty much now complete. I need to line up the events I detailed with some centuries so I have an idea of exactly how far in the future I am, but other than that, the history is pretty much done. Next I want to start thinking about society and geography. These are closely related since in the story people live on many different planets, each with different societies.
I don't often plan out histories and the like this detailed, but I think for a SF novel on the epic scale I'm thinking, its necessary.
So that's what I'm working on. Hope this post didn't seem too terrible long, and I hope it gave you a little insight into my brain and processes when it comes to writing.
So I currently have four projects. I'm only allowing myself to work on these four projects and no others. Some people may not like to work on so many projects, but it really helps me to keep my ADD in line.
No, I'm not really ADD, but when it comes to story ideas, my brain is uber ADD. If I let it, my brain would think of a million stories and we would never write any of them down. This doesn't mean I don't let my brain come up with new ideas. I just record them and let them mull. I don't focus on them or work on them.
So four projects, each in a slightly different phase of incompleteness.
Project 1:
This story is a MG high fantasy novel. It's complete at about 52,000 words. I'm working on revising it and cutting down the word count a little. I've found some discrepancies from agents about what word count is acceptable for a MG high fantasy book, so I think somewhere in the 40,000s (I'm aiming for 48,000) will be completely acceptable.
My revision is basically a complete re-write. I took a class last fall on writing and the teacher there (AC Crispin, not to name drop or anything...) gave me some really good advice. She said that in a story the situation should always get worse for the MC (right up until the very end) and in my book, it seemed things only got better from the beginning. Part of that feeling can't be helped, but I am adding in situations where it seems that the MC's new life isn't all its cracked up to be and even if it was lots of people threaten to jeopardize it.
Reading through the story myself, I decided the story need a more tangible bad guy. The truth of the matter is the bad guy is really society and the MC. She is fighting against how society views her and how society has made her view herself. Society thinks she is worthless, dirty, and unclean, and she has to get over that - to accept who she is - in order to meet the tasks demanded by the plot. However, this is a MG book and I understand that not all upper elementary kids and middle schoolers aren't quite as sharp as me and my friends were back then. So, I've decided to create a character who basically embodies all those awful aspects of the MC's society and becomes the antagonist of the story.
I find revising to be really difficult, mainly when it comes to what to cut and what not to cut, but the more I do the easier it comes. And it helps to be watching Doctor Who or Firefly in the background.
Project 2:
This WIP is a YA paranormal fantasy. Please don't cringe and think I've gone off the deep end. This story is not about vampires. I'm sure I've mentioned on this blog before my feelings about vampires. For reminding: I don't like them. I avoid vampire books like they've got the plague. It's about a high-school wizard, living in modern day Orlando. The paranormal label really bothers me...maybe urban fantasy is the better label? It's hard to tell. I feel like one is pretty much the other, so if you have any insight or opinions on that matter please share.
This story is very much a work in progress. I'm just finished chapter five (draft 1) and its going to have lots more chapters than that.
What I've been doing is sending each new chapter to a few of my friends to critique. They look over it - tell me what they don't like - what doesn't make sense, and what they're thinking at each point in the story. It helps me to know if the reader is thinking what I think they should be thinking at each point. It also helps me to know if my descriptions are doing their job or if the story is lagging. If someone reads a new chapter and is bored, they usually tell me. I've found this to be an extremely helpful experience. My critters are great.
It also helps to keep my writing. I have a serious problem of starting manuscripts and never finishing them. So having people who are bugging me about the next installment is really usefule to motivate me.
Project 3:
This is an adult high fantasy novel that I have plotted out but not actually written. I've been adding to the story Bible, creating myths for the land, and fleshing out ideas about the characters and story line. This story is probably more ready to write than my project 2. It just has one serious problem in the way.
I don't know where to start it.
I know where I want the story to start - but stories have to start with action, they have to start with where the plot starts. Like in Brandon Sanderson's Elantris, where the story starts with the prince discovering he's changed. It's a big thing. It's shocking. It's what changed the lives of everyone in the story from the get go.
I know what this moment is in this story too. It's the moment all my MCs (there are 3) learn that the king has died. However, there is just so much back story to get there. I don't want to have any info dumps, and I don't know how to just jump in the story there. It's very frustrating. I basically have this story, that's begging for me to write it, I just have no idea how to start it.
Usually once I can get that first page, the ball rolls pretty well and the rest comes. This is the first time this particular problem has ever struck me, so its quite mind boggling.
This WIP is pretty much on my backburner, stewing in the back of my mind, taking in everything from the other projects I'm working on and the books I'm reading so I can find a solution to this problem.
Project 4:
This project started as a MG science fiction (SF) novel. I might still go back to that idea as an additional project to this new one, basically the MG novel would take place in the same universe. The WIP has evolved, however, into an adult science fiction novel.
This novel is set in the distant future, and its currently in a story Bible phase. I've got a notebook divided into six distinct sections: History, Society, Geography, Characters, Story Ideas, and Miscellaneous.
Characters and basic plot ideas come easy to me. It's usually where I start with any story. This particular story (not the MG one) started with the idea of a young, mourning widow and the circumstances of her husbands death. From there ideas for a greater plot sprung to my mind. But when a SF story that's being set in the distant distant future, you've got to think through the history that got them there. I want to create a futuristic society that got to where it is through a realistic and logical process (well as logical as history can be).
So all my brainstorming for the past week has been focused on writing "a short history of the universe". It's funny, because whenever I write something like this, I write it like a textbook. When I read it back, I kind of giggle because I use the same tone as my high school history books.
My history is pretty much now complete. I need to line up the events I detailed with some centuries so I have an idea of exactly how far in the future I am, but other than that, the history is pretty much done. Next I want to start thinking about society and geography. These are closely related since in the story people live on many different planets, each with different societies.
I don't often plan out histories and the like this detailed, but I think for a SF novel on the epic scale I'm thinking, its necessary.
So that's what I'm working on. Hope this post didn't seem too terrible long, and I hope it gave you a little insight into my brain and processes when it comes to writing.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Adapt. It'll make you more comfortable.
Dear Nameless Coworker,
I understand that complaining is part of human nature. Heck, I love to complain, especially about how horrible a task master graduate school is and about how all my Project Manager (PM) does is send emails. (The last part isn't strictly true. He does other things....I think.) So I understand why some of my colleagues - like you - at work complain about Florida's heat. They complain about the heat; I complain about the ridiculous amount of air conditioning we use to cool down our office. Seriously - I should never have to consider bringing in gloves to work. That's just not cool. (pun unintended)
I also understand that many of my colleagues, such as yourself, are from up north. They're not used to eighty degree weather, and when it hits ninety, they start melting a little bit. I understand this and get it when they complain. That's why I listen to their - and your- complaints with sympathy and without arguing.
However, don't you dare insinuate that I'm the freak because I like the heat.
I've lived in the southern regions of our nation all my life. I've lived in California, Hawaii, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida. I know all about heat. I've seen eggs fry on side walks. Living in such heat has caused me to become a creature of heat. You might find me wearing a sweater when its eighty degrees outside. Usually, its because I forgot to take it off after stepping out of our frigid office. However, it doesn't bother me to be wearing it for thirty minutes to an hour in eighty degree weather, especially with the sea breeze we've got going on down here in Florida.
You see - this ability of mine to withstand the heat - it's called adapting. You've heard of that right? Darwin wrote a book about it. See when creatures live in certain areas, they adapt to it, and give these good traits to their offspring. Example: My mom was born in Georgia and lived most of her first twenty years in Florida. She learned to adapt to the heat and passed this gene on to me. (Granted, it had to fight my dad's cold adapted northern genes, but her genes won out on that one).*
So what this all basically means is that I've been evolved to be ok with the heat.
You don't see me vacationing to frigid lands very often. I've made it very clear I can't stand cold, and that I think snow is evil. This is why I refuse to live further north than Atlanta - and Atlanta gets too cold for me.
This doesn't mean I'm a freak, it means I'm highly evolved.
You, on the other hand, are complaining like our heat is unnatural. It's Florida. It's what the weather is like here - all the time. Surely you realized this when you accepted a job in Florida. It's not my fault you're from the frigid far north.
I understand you're more adapted to the cold. That's why I let you complain. But listen, I'm not the freak here. I'm not the animal that was perfectly adapted in one environment and then decided to move to another. (Seems like a bad evolutionary move, personally).
And if I ever move to the north - which I fervently pray never happens - just like you do here, I will complain about the weather. But I will never accuse the adjusted northerners of being crazy or freakish in any way. That's just wrong.
So please, leave me alone about this. I like my heat. And I really do think its ridiculous that you would expect me to wear gloves to work.
When you make fun of me when I show up in a jacket and gloves, I'm just going to point out that you told me to do it because you weren't man enough to turn the thermostat up five degrees.
Ok, that's unfair. You don't control the thermostat. I'm not sure who does. It's like a deep dark mystery....
But anyway, please don't make fun of me - or next time we have a cookout, I may just laugh in your face when your shirt gets soaked through in sweat and you start complaining.
Because I'll be wearing long jeans and will not even have started sweating yet.
Peace out.
~Bittersweet Fountain
*Yes, this is a very simplified understanding of evolution. But that doesn't mean its completely inaccurate.
I understand that complaining is part of human nature. Heck, I love to complain, especially about how horrible a task master graduate school is and about how all my Project Manager (PM) does is send emails. (The last part isn't strictly true. He does other things....I think.) So I understand why some of my colleagues - like you - at work complain about Florida's heat. They complain about the heat; I complain about the ridiculous amount of air conditioning we use to cool down our office. Seriously - I should never have to consider bringing in gloves to work. That's just not cool. (pun unintended)
I also understand that many of my colleagues, such as yourself, are from up north. They're not used to eighty degree weather, and when it hits ninety, they start melting a little bit. I understand this and get it when they complain. That's why I listen to their - and your- complaints with sympathy and without arguing.
However, don't you dare insinuate that I'm the freak because I like the heat.
I've lived in the southern regions of our nation all my life. I've lived in California, Hawaii, Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida. I know all about heat. I've seen eggs fry on side walks. Living in such heat has caused me to become a creature of heat. You might find me wearing a sweater when its eighty degrees outside. Usually, its because I forgot to take it off after stepping out of our frigid office. However, it doesn't bother me to be wearing it for thirty minutes to an hour in eighty degree weather, especially with the sea breeze we've got going on down here in Florida.
You see - this ability of mine to withstand the heat - it's called adapting. You've heard of that right? Darwin wrote a book about it. See when creatures live in certain areas, they adapt to it, and give these good traits to their offspring. Example: My mom was born in Georgia and lived most of her first twenty years in Florida. She learned to adapt to the heat and passed this gene on to me. (Granted, it had to fight my dad's cold adapted northern genes, but her genes won out on that one).*
So what this all basically means is that I've been evolved to be ok with the heat.
You don't see me vacationing to frigid lands very often. I've made it very clear I can't stand cold, and that I think snow is evil. This is why I refuse to live further north than Atlanta - and Atlanta gets too cold for me.
This doesn't mean I'm a freak, it means I'm highly evolved.
You, on the other hand, are complaining like our heat is unnatural. It's Florida. It's what the weather is like here - all the time. Surely you realized this when you accepted a job in Florida. It's not my fault you're from the frigid far north.
I understand you're more adapted to the cold. That's why I let you complain. But listen, I'm not the freak here. I'm not the animal that was perfectly adapted in one environment and then decided to move to another. (Seems like a bad evolutionary move, personally).
And if I ever move to the north - which I fervently pray never happens - just like you do here, I will complain about the weather. But I will never accuse the adjusted northerners of being crazy or freakish in any way. That's just wrong.
So please, leave me alone about this. I like my heat. And I really do think its ridiculous that you would expect me to wear gloves to work.
When you make fun of me when I show up in a jacket and gloves, I'm just going to point out that you told me to do it because you weren't man enough to turn the thermostat up five degrees.
Ok, that's unfair. You don't control the thermostat. I'm not sure who does. It's like a deep dark mystery....
But anyway, please don't make fun of me - or next time we have a cookout, I may just laugh in your face when your shirt gets soaked through in sweat and you start complaining.
Because I'll be wearing long jeans and will not even have started sweating yet.
Peace out.
~Bittersweet Fountain
*Yes, this is a very simplified understanding of evolution. But that doesn't mean its completely inaccurate.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Blogalog
So I've been thinking a lot about the mechanics of blogging and this blog in particular. This blog is supposed to mainly be my observations about life as an engineer, writer, and Christian. But my blogging seems to get unbalanced as I often focus on one thing or not the other. Part of this is because, well, my life is random and I only really want to write about things that are what I'm currently going through. However, I think I owe you - the reader - some consistency. So here is what I propose: a schedule*.
Monday:
Writing. A post about what I'm writing, what I'm struggling with in my writing, things I think will help my writing stronger, or observations in the writings of others (by others I mean the authors of the published books I'm reading)
Tuesday:
Engineering. A post about the latest technology, the woes of being a female engineer, work, and other topics related to being an engineer, etc.
Wednesday:
Book Reviews! All the books I have read since the last Wednesday will be reviewed and posted on this day.
Thursday:
Random Thursday!
Friday:
Random Friday!
So this gives us some tiny bit of schedule and consistency and lets me by random. Why no day devoted to God you ask? Well, because I don't want blog posts about God and being a Christian to become something I force myself to do - something I have to do if you will. So I will write as realizations that I feel I need to share hit me - I will write as I feel moved - not as I force myself too.
But before I commit to it for ever - here's your chance to say "yay" or "nay". Do you dislike this and prefer the completely random system? Would you rather only have one random day a week? (We've got to have at least that to compensate for the randomness of my mind). Any thoughts or feelings?
Thanks!
*This schedule is only affective for the summer. All bets are off when we hit August 23rd and school is back in session.
Monday:
Writing. A post about what I'm writing, what I'm struggling with in my writing, things I think will help my writing stronger, or observations in the writings of others (by others I mean the authors of the published books I'm reading)
Tuesday:
Engineering. A post about the latest technology, the woes of being a female engineer, work, and other topics related to being an engineer, etc.
Wednesday:
Book Reviews! All the books I have read since the last Wednesday will be reviewed and posted on this day.
Thursday:
Random Thursday!
Friday:
Random Friday!
So this gives us some tiny bit of schedule and consistency and lets me by random. Why no day devoted to God you ask? Well, because I don't want blog posts about God and being a Christian to become something I force myself to do - something I have to do if you will. So I will write as realizations that I feel I need to share hit me - I will write as I feel moved - not as I force myself too.
But before I commit to it for ever - here's your chance to say "yay" or "nay". Do you dislike this and prefer the completely random system? Would you rather only have one random day a week? (We've got to have at least that to compensate for the randomness of my mind). Any thoughts or feelings?
Thanks!
*This schedule is only affective for the summer. All bets are off when we hit August 23rd and school is back in session.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
A Book Review: Extras
Title: Extras
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Genre: Dystopian (YA)
Length: 417
Quality Rating: 8
Content Rating: PG
I'm not sure this book helped the Uglies series as a whole. The Trilogy ended with Specials, and I kind of liked it that way. It left us imagining what the future could look like - imagining the new depravities humanity might imagine. Sort of like when the statue is crying at the end of the last Planet of the Apes movie. Is he crying because humanity and apes have finally learned to live together? Or because he knows they never will? Regardless of whether Mr. Westerfeld should have left the series as a trilogy and never written this book, it was a very engrossing read. I didn't want to read it in a short time (I'm trying to make my books last so I spend a little less money), but I still read it in a couple of hours. But that might be because the book exploited all my weaknesses as an AE (aerospace engineer): inhuman beings, mention of things shooting into space, and cute little robot things.
This book is definitely PG. There are some explosions and some people get kidnapped at one point- but its definitely more PG than the previous book in the series. Heck, this book might even by G, but lets add the "parental" to the G just for good measure. :)
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Genre: Dystopian (YA)
Length: 417
Quality Rating: 8
Content Rating: PG
I'm not sure this book helped the Uglies series as a whole. The Trilogy ended with Specials, and I kind of liked it that way. It left us imagining what the future could look like - imagining the new depravities humanity might imagine. Sort of like when the statue is crying at the end of the last Planet of the Apes movie. Is he crying because humanity and apes have finally learned to live together? Or because he knows they never will? Regardless of whether Mr. Westerfeld should have left the series as a trilogy and never written this book, it was a very engrossing read. I didn't want to read it in a short time (I'm trying to make my books last so I spend a little less money), but I still read it in a couple of hours. But that might be because the book exploited all my weaknesses as an AE (aerospace engineer): inhuman beings, mention of things shooting into space, and cute little robot things.
This book is definitely PG. There are some explosions and some people get kidnapped at one point- but its definitely more PG than the previous book in the series. Heck, this book might even by G, but lets add the "parental" to the G just for good measure. :)
A Book Review: Specials
Title: Specials
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Genre: Dystopian (YA)
Length: 372
Quality Rating: 8
Content Rating: PG
In this sequel to Pretties, Tally is a special, a member of the elite group that keeps things under control in a city of bubbleheaded pretties. Though Tally loves her new life and its "iciness" she can't let go of Zane, the boy she loves. She wants him to be special too, and that desire sends her on a mission that accidentally changes the world. This book is the best in the series so far. It takes us deep into this dystopian culture and leads us to question what is the "right" path for the future. It leaves the reader with something to think about.
I debated giving this a PG-13 rating. There is some violence, war, and personal loss. But I don't think it isn't anything an upper elementary schooler couldn't handle. At least, its certainly something I could have handled in the fourth or fifth grade - which is about the time I read The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn. What pushed me over the edge for choosing PG was remember that PG does indeed mean "parental guidance." So, as parents, just be aware that there is some violence, war, and personal loss in this book. OK? Good. Now let your kids read it. :)
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Genre: Dystopian (YA)
Length: 372
Quality Rating: 8
Content Rating: PG
In this sequel to Pretties, Tally is a special, a member of the elite group that keeps things under control in a city of bubbleheaded pretties. Though Tally loves her new life and its "iciness" she can't let go of Zane, the boy she loves. She wants him to be special too, and that desire sends her on a mission that accidentally changes the world. This book is the best in the series so far. It takes us deep into this dystopian culture and leads us to question what is the "right" path for the future. It leaves the reader with something to think about.
I debated giving this a PG-13 rating. There is some violence, war, and personal loss. But I don't think it isn't anything an upper elementary schooler couldn't handle. At least, its certainly something I could have handled in the fourth or fifth grade - which is about the time I read The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn. What pushed me over the edge for choosing PG was remember that PG does indeed mean "parental guidance." So, as parents, just be aware that there is some violence, war, and personal loss in this book. OK? Good. Now let your kids read it. :)
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