Fredrik Nael's Blog: Th3Studio
January 3, 2012
Bentala - Imaji: A Tribute to Dreams
I have always wanted to write something about writing.
It'll be somewhat like a tribute to the enormous work that combines the artistry of concepting, plotting, characterization, world-building, editing, and story-telling.
And I did.
While it may not perfectly fit for everyone's taste, I did have my own fun in writing about the excitement of writing itself. :)
The short story, entitled "Bentala - Imaji", has been published in Fantasy Fiesta 2011: Antologi Cerita Fantasi Terbaik 2011
and released on the earliest of this year.
It completes the anthology of 20 short stories selected from Fantasy Fiesta competition held last year (2011).
My story, "Bentala - Imaji", tells about two main characters, Tala and Aji, living in two different worlds, reality and fantasy, Earth and imagination, as the title suggests.
Both lives and both worlds collide in the most beautiful form of wonders, a dream of happiness, a story in the form of writing.
Though the main subject being talked about is writing, I'd still have the story to be considered as an inspiration for dreams of all kinds.
Tala's dream is about being an author, but Aji's is about flying, which I hope is quite open-for-interpretation to be related to all forms of dreams and hope, including yours.
'Cos the story originally inspired from some friends who shared with me their own stories of living lives which not really like the lives they had wanted to. They're still in the process of finding the happiness and in the journey, they had to do some compromises. And this became the foundation of Tala's story line.
So, huge thanks for them, my fellow friends, for your insights and inspirations. ^^
Last but not least, another thing that I'd like to share is the "soundtrack song" that had been played repeatedly when I first wrote the story back in last mid-year.
Most of the time, it was "Alligator Sky" from Owl City (the non-duet original version) that had conquered my playlist.
It's a really nice song which gives me quite a thrill every time I hear it.
I always have the feeling of somewhat like preparing for a voyage beyond familiarity, yet the journey somehow promises marvelous things that in one-and-another way can lead to sparks of happiness and a peace of mind. Truly very inspiring.
Thus, thanks for the song then. :)
What about you? Do you usually have your own certain "soundtrack song" too whenever you're doing something? :D
And what's next then, my fellow readers and writers?
What have you been up to?
Care to join me for a sip of dream-fulfilling?
;)
It'll be somewhat like a tribute to the enormous work that combines the artistry of concepting, plotting, characterization, world-building, editing, and story-telling.
And I did.
While it may not perfectly fit for everyone's taste, I did have my own fun in writing about the excitement of writing itself. :)
The short story, entitled "Bentala - Imaji", has been published in Fantasy Fiesta 2011: Antologi Cerita Fantasi Terbaik 2011
and released on the earliest of this year.It completes the anthology of 20 short stories selected from Fantasy Fiesta competition held last year (2011).
My story, "Bentala - Imaji", tells about two main characters, Tala and Aji, living in two different worlds, reality and fantasy, Earth and imagination, as the title suggests.
Both lives and both worlds collide in the most beautiful form of wonders, a dream of happiness, a story in the form of writing.
Though the main subject being talked about is writing, I'd still have the story to be considered as an inspiration for dreams of all kinds.
Tala's dream is about being an author, but Aji's is about flying, which I hope is quite open-for-interpretation to be related to all forms of dreams and hope, including yours.
'Cos the story originally inspired from some friends who shared with me their own stories of living lives which not really like the lives they had wanted to. They're still in the process of finding the happiness and in the journey, they had to do some compromises. And this became the foundation of Tala's story line.
So, huge thanks for them, my fellow friends, for your insights and inspirations. ^^
Last but not least, another thing that I'd like to share is the "soundtrack song" that had been played repeatedly when I first wrote the story back in last mid-year.
Most of the time, it was "Alligator Sky" from Owl City (the non-duet original version) that had conquered my playlist.
It's a really nice song which gives me quite a thrill every time I hear it.
I always have the feeling of somewhat like preparing for a voyage beyond familiarity, yet the journey somehow promises marvelous things that in one-and-another way can lead to sparks of happiness and a peace of mind. Truly very inspiring.
Thus, thanks for the song then. :)
What about you? Do you usually have your own certain "soundtrack song" too whenever you're doing something? :D
And what's next then, my fellow readers and writers?
What have you been up to?
Care to join me for a sip of dream-fulfilling?
;)
May 16, 2011
The Painter: An Excerpt
Well, it's been a month now since the last post.
I'm back. ^_^
'Cause of the limitations that they have here in Goodreads' blog, I'm actually planning to move Th3Studio to a "real" blog. But it's still in progress. Hope to finish moving and arranging the new home soon.
Concerning writings, nothing new from me. Exception for some fascinating ideas that came to me a few weeks back and have been piling the "idea bank" now. Though, none yet has been materialized. :(
And they're having the competition again!
The 3rd/2011 Fantasy Fiesta Short Story Competition!
News can be read in the official announcement site, Kastil Fantasi.
Unfortunately, it's in Indonesian only (both competition and news).
Will I participate again? Hmm... undecided.
And in case we forget, still remember that none significant writing progress has been made so far...? :3
So I've been saying about trying to have a translation for my published short story, "The Painter", here, and I do still remember promising to give an English version excerpt...
The promise's fulfilling is due for today then. I haven't actually finished doing all translation, but I guess it's good to have feedbacks regarding something we're doing.
As English is not my first language, do pardon me for having any error.
Here you go, first time in English, the first part of "The Painter":
~~~
Nothing comes before the sounds.
Bird’s wings. Flapping.
Just like the once-caged grey parakeet? The one that has flown away with him?
Despite the impossibility, I'd love to have just a simple smile now. For still being able to remember the particular thing. Even in this state, when choices are not meant to be existed. It is the time when my brain administers the truth-be-things. The gift, this is. My curse. That I agonizingly try to avert. That took him away, unavoidably.
'Tis Fate.
A premonition.
In a scene of disperse colours, images are the next projections. Following the approaching heavy footsteps is a depiction of a man whose body is somewhat held to the wall. The man sees whatever thing that just came. He closes both his eyes, and with the power of the mind, he calls, giving instructions.
An uneasiness falls upon me.
Noise of metals' friction.
And darkness.
~~~
Okay, that's it for previewing. :D
Well?
Care to comment?
:)
I'm back. ^_^
'Cause of the limitations that they have here in Goodreads' blog, I'm actually planning to move Th3Studio to a "real" blog. But it's still in progress. Hope to finish moving and arranging the new home soon.
Concerning writings, nothing new from me. Exception for some fascinating ideas that came to me a few weeks back and have been piling the "idea bank" now. Though, none yet has been materialized. :(
And they're having the competition again!
The 3rd/2011 Fantasy Fiesta Short Story Competition!
News can be read in the official announcement site, Kastil Fantasi.
Unfortunately, it's in Indonesian only (both competition and news).
Will I participate again? Hmm... undecided.
And in case we forget, still remember that none significant writing progress has been made so far...? :3
So I've been saying about trying to have a translation for my published short story, "The Painter", here, and I do still remember promising to give an English version excerpt...
The promise's fulfilling is due for today then. I haven't actually finished doing all translation, but I guess it's good to have feedbacks regarding something we're doing.
As English is not my first language, do pardon me for having any error.
Here you go, first time in English, the first part of "The Painter":
~~~
Nothing comes before the sounds.
Bird’s wings. Flapping.
Just like the once-caged grey parakeet? The one that has flown away with him?
Despite the impossibility, I'd love to have just a simple smile now. For still being able to remember the particular thing. Even in this state, when choices are not meant to be existed. It is the time when my brain administers the truth-be-things. The gift, this is. My curse. That I agonizingly try to avert. That took him away, unavoidably.
'Tis Fate.
A premonition.
In a scene of disperse colours, images are the next projections. Following the approaching heavy footsteps is a depiction of a man whose body is somewhat held to the wall. The man sees whatever thing that just came. He closes both his eyes, and with the power of the mind, he calls, giving instructions.
An uneasiness falls upon me.
Noise of metals' friction.
And darkness.
~~~
Okay, that's it for previewing. :D
Well?
Care to comment?
:)
April 14, 2011
The Painter: On Creative Process
"The Painter" ("Sang Pelukis", as in Indonesian language) is the title of my short story which won a prize in the 2010 Fantasy Fiesta Short Story Competition. It has been published in an anthology with another 19 selected stories since December 2010.
The anthology version of the story is a newer version and not entirely the same with the competition version.
Link to the anthology: Fantasy Fiesta 2010: Antologi Cerita Fantasi Terbaik 2010.
The story itself mainly tells about the ending part of the protagonist's journey to stop the apocalypse which he had seen in one of his visions.
On the last days of the journey, the protagonist (the Seer) got to meet a legendary leader of the Order, namely called by his title, Commandant, and also the mysterious entity, The Painter; though rendezvous with the latter was not really face to face.
Hmm...
I'm not gonna re-tell the story here in this post. :D
I'd just like to share some backgrounds regarding the creative process in the making of the story.
So, here it goes...
The Idea
The idea of "The Painter" came into my mind when I was travelling and having my own journey in Ontario.
This was probably the reason why the story ended up as a part of a big journey.
At a near-end moment of my travel, I had one of "the spark-of-idea attacks" (please refer to my previous post 'bout these "attacks" ^^).
So, the twist came first.
And when the essential question arose, I had the storyline and main plot within my understanding.
The Philosophy
The philosophical concepts in "The Painter" are a combination of my own personal beliefs, some factual information that had happened, and a bit inspirations from my other writing (Project E.).
"Can you define goodness?"
That's the major question that encircles the whole story.
To talk about the philosophical meanings and intentions of the writing would be a quite discussion itself, so probably I will have it posted another time... depends on my mood... :D
The Characters
Regarding the choice of characters and their power, I had the Seer and his premonition power from the first spark.
The Painter had some character modifications, especially concerning the background story and the power, although they're not as much as Commandant.
Talking about The Painter, some people actually had guessing that this character somewhat portrays the concept of god.
Well...
It's not ... entirely wrong. :D
The Painter does resemble "God" (with capital "G" and quotation marks).
If you're wondering, that's the reason why I always use capital "T" when mentioning the character. :)
As for Commandant, his true nature was undecided until the last moment of finishing the storyline when I genuinely thought that the Order's philosophy could only be explained best by an antagonist.
The Seer's sibling (a.k.a. the Grey Parakeet) was added in the last moment of editing because I wanted the Seer to have a notable antecedent for his mission.
The Setting
Then I definitely needed settings to spread the whole story out.
So the idea of repression that had to be undergone by the protagonist came easily from one of my favorites, the most impressive Orwell's "1984".
Honestly, Big Brother had even become the prototype of Commandant. Hehe... ^^
And the partial science fiction set was actually contributed by the prominent novel too.
Scenes of the first half of the story probably came from film noir kinda movies which I had seen until that very moment of writing.
But for the second half, it's mostly based on the famous garden of Eden and its forbidden fruit, taken from "Book of Genesis".
As of the ritual procession of delivering wishes, this is actually a mix-and-match from various religious rituals that are practiced in my country of living.
The Writing Sytle
To combine those elements in one complete writing, I had to compromise with few limitations.
I chose a mainstream literary style of writing to deliver the Seer's visions.
I didn't use this style on the whole writing because I did not want readers to get confused of the messages because of the wordplays. In the end, I might be wrong entirely, but either way, it had been decided.
The debate in the first part of the story is inevitable.
I tried to have it in another way, but it's still the best and most efficient means to introduce things surrounding the main plot.
The overall deliverance of writing also took Miyazaki's style of surrealism into account, especially for the second part. Lots of thanks go to his fantastic movies. ^^
To conclude the post,
yes, I had spent time to resolve plot holes and pamper the writing 'till it became the piece which you are able to read now.
Overall, writing "The Painter" was a challenging creative process for me, and I do feel proud with the achievements.
Apparently, things that I wrote here are not too specific, but I do hope this sharing can at least provide something (insights? ^^) regarding the making of "The Painter".
I'm still trying to translate the whole story into English.
Thus another time, probably I'll post an excerpt here. Just for you guys.
;)
The anthology version of the story is a newer version and not entirely the same with the competition version.
Link to the anthology: Fantasy Fiesta 2010: Antologi Cerita Fantasi Terbaik 2010.
The story itself mainly tells about the ending part of the protagonist's journey to stop the apocalypse which he had seen in one of his visions.
On the last days of the journey, the protagonist (the Seer) got to meet a legendary leader of the Order, namely called by his title, Commandant, and also the mysterious entity, The Painter; though rendezvous with the latter was not really face to face.
Hmm...
I'm not gonna re-tell the story here in this post. :D
I'd just like to share some backgrounds regarding the creative process in the making of the story.
So, here it goes...
The Idea
The idea of "The Painter" came into my mind when I was travelling and having my own journey in Ontario.
This was probably the reason why the story ended up as a part of a big journey.
At a near-end moment of my travel, I had one of "the spark-of-idea attacks" (please refer to my previous post 'bout these "attacks" ^^).
So, the twist came first.
And when the essential question arose, I had the storyline and main plot within my understanding.
The Philosophy
The philosophical concepts in "The Painter" are a combination of my own personal beliefs, some factual information that had happened, and a bit inspirations from my other writing (Project E.).
"Can you define goodness?"
That's the major question that encircles the whole story.
To talk about the philosophical meanings and intentions of the writing would be a quite discussion itself, so probably I will have it posted another time... depends on my mood... :D
The Characters
Regarding the choice of characters and their power, I had the Seer and his premonition power from the first spark.
The Painter had some character modifications, especially concerning the background story and the power, although they're not as much as Commandant.
Talking about The Painter, some people actually had guessing that this character somewhat portrays the concept of god.
Well...
It's not ... entirely wrong. :D
The Painter does resemble "God" (with capital "G" and quotation marks).
If you're wondering, that's the reason why I always use capital "T" when mentioning the character. :)
As for Commandant, his true nature was undecided until the last moment of finishing the storyline when I genuinely thought that the Order's philosophy could only be explained best by an antagonist.
The Seer's sibling (a.k.a. the Grey Parakeet) was added in the last moment of editing because I wanted the Seer to have a notable antecedent for his mission.
The Setting
Then I definitely needed settings to spread the whole story out.
So the idea of repression that had to be undergone by the protagonist came easily from one of my favorites, the most impressive Orwell's "1984".
Honestly, Big Brother had even become the prototype of Commandant. Hehe... ^^
And the partial science fiction set was actually contributed by the prominent novel too.
Scenes of the first half of the story probably came from film noir kinda movies which I had seen until that very moment of writing.
But for the second half, it's mostly based on the famous garden of Eden and its forbidden fruit, taken from "Book of Genesis".
As of the ritual procession of delivering wishes, this is actually a mix-and-match from various religious rituals that are practiced in my country of living.
The Writing Sytle
To combine those elements in one complete writing, I had to compromise with few limitations.
I chose a mainstream literary style of writing to deliver the Seer's visions.
I didn't use this style on the whole writing because I did not want readers to get confused of the messages because of the wordplays. In the end, I might be wrong entirely, but either way, it had been decided.
The debate in the first part of the story is inevitable.
I tried to have it in another way, but it's still the best and most efficient means to introduce things surrounding the main plot.
The overall deliverance of writing also took Miyazaki's style of surrealism into account, especially for the second part. Lots of thanks go to his fantastic movies. ^^
To conclude the post,
yes, I had spent time to resolve plot holes and pamper the writing 'till it became the piece which you are able to read now.
Overall, writing "The Painter" was a challenging creative process for me, and I do feel proud with the achievements.
Apparently, things that I wrote here are not too specific, but I do hope this sharing can at least provide something (insights? ^^) regarding the making of "The Painter".
I'm still trying to translate the whole story into English.
Thus another time, probably I'll post an excerpt here. Just for you guys.
;)
March 24, 2011
A Spark of Idea Leads to More Writing!
One of my today's tweets (24/03) is this:
"I love it when the spark of idea lit itself in the disorientation of mind. This just means one thing, more writing. #writing"
And yes, I DO tweet! (@fredriknael)
>_<
So what's so special about the tweet?
Well, basically it's the reason behind the tweet that I'd like to share here...
I was in a stuck (they call it 'block').
It's about a romance short story that I've been working for a few months now...
Probably, you'll be asking: "How long could a short be?"
Rite, it crossed my mind too. :D
Continue...
Earlier this day, suddenly I got the idea about combining this short story with another idea (of another story) that I've had in my mind for quite long time now (probaly since November, last year).
After thinking this through, I thought this will be great.
Out of nowhere, I'll get a series, consists of combination of two stories (I can even add one more if I want to... *smirk*).
The idea of combining both fascinates me a lot because I've never seen this possible before.
Absent the loose things that have to be conjoined, I think this series will be perfect. The best part is now I have the correct ending for the short story.
Yay!
I hope to finish the short story soon.
Currently titled "L", it will be the first part of the series.
Can't wait to have it published here!
;)
"I love it when the spark of idea lit itself in the disorientation of mind. This just means one thing, more writing. #writing"
And yes, I DO tweet! (@fredriknael)
>_<
So what's so special about the tweet?
Well, basically it's the reason behind the tweet that I'd like to share here...
I was in a stuck (they call it 'block').
It's about a romance short story that I've been working for a few months now...
Probably, you'll be asking: "How long could a short be?"
Rite, it crossed my mind too. :D
Continue...
Earlier this day, suddenly I got the idea about combining this short story with another idea (of another story) that I've had in my mind for quite long time now (probaly since November, last year).
After thinking this through, I thought this will be great.
Out of nowhere, I'll get a series, consists of combination of two stories (I can even add one more if I want to... *smirk*).
The idea of combining both fascinates me a lot because I've never seen this possible before.
Absent the loose things that have to be conjoined, I think this series will be perfect. The best part is now I have the correct ending for the short story.
Yay!
I hope to finish the short story soon.
Currently titled "L", it will be the first part of the series.
Can't wait to have it published here!
;)
March 14, 2011
Time Flies... Fast!
Lately, it seems so hard for me to do or finish things I've planned since I don't have time to do them. I can't recount the number of occasions when I had lots of plans for a day and ended up completing only one or two of the tasks.
Whatever happens with time?
Is it really becoming faster and faster?
I still remember several years ago, when I still had to attend school...
(yeah, several years, hahaha)
At the time, my wish was to have the day finished quickly because I couldn't come up with anything to do to spend on the time (other than playing games and *cough* study *cough*).
But now... GOSH! Even weekends and holidays couldn't help me!
So what can cause this?
I don't think that I actually become busier than before (am I? huh?)...
Could it be perception?
Probably since I think I never have enough time, then I DO NOT have enough time...? Because I'll always be in a rush (though this is untrue, :p)?
Hmm... Do the scientists ever have any research regarding this?
Actually, my biggest concern will only be: Can it be worse as I aged?
Because frankly saying, if I already feel like this now, just imagine what will happen in the next 5 years, 10 years, 20 years! Whoooah... probably days will seem like blinks... O_o
STOP!
*closing eyes - struggling to release crazy powers; mimicking the time traveler, Hiro Nakamura, from Heroes TV series*
...
...
(nothing happens)
*sigh*
*need to breathe*
Well, it's already past midnight. I think I just need a good-quality rest...
I'm only going to set the alarm then, to catch up with tomorrow's schedules...
...
AAARGH!
Darn!
T_T
Whatever happens with time?
Is it really becoming faster and faster?
I still remember several years ago, when I still had to attend school...
(yeah, several years, hahaha)
At the time, my wish was to have the day finished quickly because I couldn't come up with anything to do to spend on the time (other than playing games and *cough* study *cough*).
But now... GOSH! Even weekends and holidays couldn't help me!
So what can cause this?
I don't think that I actually become busier than before (am I? huh?)...
Could it be perception?
Probably since I think I never have enough time, then I DO NOT have enough time...? Because I'll always be in a rush (though this is untrue, :p)?
Hmm... Do the scientists ever have any research regarding this?
Actually, my biggest concern will only be: Can it be worse as I aged?
Because frankly saying, if I already feel like this now, just imagine what will happen in the next 5 years, 10 years, 20 years! Whoooah... probably days will seem like blinks... O_o
STOP!
*closing eyes - struggling to release crazy powers; mimicking the time traveler, Hiro Nakamura, from Heroes TV series*
...
...
(nothing happens)
*sigh*
*need to breathe*
Well, it's already past midnight. I think I just need a good-quality rest...
I'm only going to set the alarm then, to catch up with tomorrow's schedules...
...
AAARGH!
Darn!
T_T
A Long-overdue Wish
I've been wanting to have my own blog for... let's say... few years. xD
Well, I have it now. It might not be the proper usual web-based blog, but at least this medium can provide me spaces to do something that I really love. Writing.
So, I celebrate!
Hurrah!
Welcoming all guests and wishing you all fun!
As this is the first post...
I solemnly promise, friends, there will be more.
Rebirth. Soar. Transcend.
Well, I have it now. It might not be the proper usual web-based blog, but at least this medium can provide me spaces to do something that I really love. Writing.
So, I celebrate!
Hurrah!
Welcoming all guests and wishing you all fun!
As this is the first post...
I solemnly promise, friends, there will be more.
Rebirth. Soar. Transcend.
