Ransom Noble's Blog, page 27

Learning Languages

Just because a character is learning a language doesn't mean you need to dump a bunch of information at the reader. By 'information' I mean the endless words that are not native to the language the story is in.

I think this is especially true for fantasy authors who may create their own.

Some authors are masters of creating languages, like J.R.R. Tolkien. We're not all linguistic gurus, though, and we shouldn't subject our readers to random strings of letters.

Not everyone loves Star Trek...

Series Incongruities

I've been reading books by Scott Westerfeld: Uglies, Pretties, and now halfway through Specials. I like the world he's created for Tally Youngblood and her friends, and it shows her character changing throughout the three books.

But I also noticed the little bit about SpagBol, his word for Spaghetti Bolognaise dehydrated, then re-created with a purifier.

In Uglies, Tally runs out into the wild with a bag created by [evil:] Dr. Cable, and every single packet of food in her bag was SpagBol. After ...

Today's Topic: HTML

Oh, I'm not sure why I haven't really picked this up yet. Right- I haven't really built a web page.

Sure, there was that one, way back right after I got married, that my friend built. But I only got the pictures together and provided captions. The two girls with me worked on scanning them and putting them together on a pretty page to share.

Definitely not the way to actually learn how to do it.

I'm finally sitting down with books and other resources (an online writer friend/recovering enginerd a...

And on to the next outline challenge!

Why? I finished my 15-20 word outline for Don't Tell Your Mother. It turned out as 18 words and focuses my intent more.

It also changes my draft quite a bit now that I'm getting into the third. (I think it's the third draft. Sometimes it's hard to keep track.)

It's in a good way, though. I had been trying to get there, but something kept stopping me. I've been having issues putting my inciting incident into a short bit of words. A phone call took me to the heart of it.

I love how the brain...

Self-Imposed Deadlines

Is it really June 1 already? Remind me not to give myself deadlines over holiday weekends, especially when there are party plans in progress.

While I'm still struggling with my outline of Don't Tell Your Mother with all the new changes, I had two straggling ideas come to be much clearer through the process. Why does it always happen that way?

And I keep scratching out lines for the outline I'm supposed to be finishing. If it would just play nicely – but no amount of arm-twisting will put it in ...

Ideas on the Periphery

One line of plot does not always get you from beginning to end of book. It's one of those things that adds to length, either a sub plot or a plot layer. Neither is totally unrelated to the main line, but each adds different elements.

Mom delivered an idea that a friend of hers believes is underdeveloped in books. Oh, it'll require research for me  because I'm not familiar with it. It will have good conflict opportunities for characters. The more I think about it, though, I'm not sure it will m...

Writing on Friday

Huh. I wish.

I think I got trumped when I invited friends over. Housework wins… temporarily.

I should grab a notebook to brainstorm my 15-20 word outline. I have my blue-lined synopsis. It's something. More when the house is clean… enough for guests.

Writers should have alternatives to housework. Like maids!

Thematic Issues

I recently read an amateur piece less than 1000 words long. In it, the author had scene breaks to create three separate scenes. I could see nothing connecting the scenes, except that grief spilled over each of the main characters.

Apparently I do not think about theological troping enough, because the answer to my bit about the vignette feeling disconnected referenced that. There was a young man crying in each bit. Why is it some people who write Christian fiction feel the need to be very...

Continuing Education

What do you choose to do to further your education?

A friend mentioned that her job (and mine, come fall) requires some continuing education and for it she was studying from a book. I'd read the same book for a student I'm tutoring. (Kiss My Math by Danica McKellar) She appreciated that they college requires you to continue to refine your skills by learning.

I can appreciate that, too. My home library speaks to a lot of continued education through books on several subjects. I'm looking up...

James Stevenson

I've been reading Corn-Fed and Cornflakes.

These books are both written and illustrated by James Stevenson, and both are full of fun poetry. My daughter only kind of looks at the pictures at this point – they're not the full-page illustrations in the books she carries around with her – but she listens when I read them to her.

All right, she listens when I read just about anything. She is quieter when someone else is holding her when I'm reading, though.

I really enjoy his short poetry, though...