L.G. Estrella's Blog, page 66
July 19, 2014
Writing Tip of the Day #5 – The Consequences of Human Emotion
Without telepathy, it is impossible to truly know what someone else is thinking. We can each feel emotion, so we assume that everyone else can too. But how do we know what emotions someone else is feeling? We make judgements based on verbal and non-verbal cues.
Verbal cues are perhaps the quickest and easiest way to make a judgement, but they are not necessarily the most accurate. A verbal cue for sadness might be someone stating that they feel sad. But just because someone says they feel sad...
July 14, 2014
How To Hit People In The Face Really Hard
Punching power is one of those things that people talk about all the time in combat sports. Fans, in particular, are obsessed with fighters who possess the kind of firepower that leaves their opponent twitching on the ground. This is why a good, scrappy brawl often pulls in higher ratings than a highly technical bout.
But what are the secrets behind punching power?
The two most obvious places to begin are size and muscle mass. There is no denying that larger combatants tend to have more strikin...
June 6, 2014
Thoughts On Game Design #1 – Easy To Learn And Difficult To Master
“All the best games are easy to learn and difficult to master. They should reward the first quarter and the hundredth” (Nolan Bushnell, 1971).
The ideas contained in Bushnell’s quote are some of the most discussed in game development, but I’d like to go over them again. It never hurts to make sure that you understand the basics.
A game that is easy to learn is one that a player can pick up and understand relatively quickly and without a great deal of outside assistance. A great example of a game like this is Tetris. The rules of Tetris are very simple, and its controls are equally easy to grasp. You can give Tetris to a child and be confident that they’ll learn how to play it inside of a few minutes.
Another game that is easy to learn is Space Invaders. All that players have to remember is that they need to kill the aliens without being killed. The controls are extremely simple: they can move from side to side and shoot. Once again, you can give Space Invaders to almost anybody, and they will only need a few minutes to understand how it works.
But why does it matter if a game is easy to learn? The answer lies in the psychology of the player. Human beings only have so much time to invest in leisure. If a game doesn’t start to entertain fairly quickly, people will simply move on to another activity. People also like to feel like they are at least partially in control of what happens in a game. If players don’t understand what’s going on (i.e., why they are winning or losing), they will quickly become frustrated and quit. People hate feeling powerless. In contrast, people enjoy feeling powerful. The quicker someone learns how a game works, the quicker they can start feeling powerful.
There are several ways to make a game easy to learn:
- Have simple rules. Games like Tetris, Pong, and Space Invaders have very simple rules, and this makes them very straightforward and easy to learn. In contrast most RPGs tend to have fairly complex rules, which can make them quite daunting to someone who has never played them before.
- Take advantage of familiarity. Racing games and sports games can be easy to learn because they are activities that players are already familiar with. For example, most people who play soccer games already know the rules of soccer. The only things they have to learn are the controls. Likewise, most people who play racing games already know how racing works, all that remains is for them to learn the controls.
- Follow the players’ intuition. During the heyday of the gaming arcade, gun games were very popular. These games were almost always easy to learn because the basic ideas behind the game (e.g., point the gun at the screen and shoot at the bad guys) were all things that seemed natural to the players.
As you can see, there are at least two axes along which a game can be made easier: rules and controls. Rules can be made easier when they are simple, obvious, or similar to the rules of other activities that are already familiar to the player (e.g., the rules of a sport). The controls of a game can be made simpler by matching them more closely to what feels natural for players (e.g., using a gun to aim at enemies on a screen is much easier to learn than learning to use a joystick and buttons).
One thing that not many people are aware of is that there exist versions of the original Street Fighter game that used two buttons (one for punch and one for kick), as opposed to the more familiar six (three different kinds of punch and three different kinds of kick). The trick was that how hard a player pressed the buttons determined what kind of punch or kick came out. As you can imagine, trying to control how hard you pressed a button in the middle of an exciting battle proved to be quite difficult. It is not a coincidence that all subsequent versions of Street Fighter have used the six button configuration – it makes the game much, much easier to learn since the player isn’t struggling with the controls the whole time.
If it’s good for games to be easy to learn, why do we want them to be difficult to master? The answer can be found, once again, in the psychology of the player. If something becomes too easy, it usually becomes quite boring (i.e., unenjoyable). People like winning, but they like it even more when winning actually means something. Think of how it feels to play chess against someone who is much, much worse than you. You might enjoy beating them the first few times, but after that it gets boring. There is no sense of achievement involved, no feeling that you’re doing something awesome – and people like feeling awesome.
A game that ceases to challenge players will become boring, and people do not play boring games for long. This applies to more than just video games. A skilled crossword player will naturally seek out harder crosswords. A gifted chess player will look for stronger opponents. Elite athletes hunger for elite competition.
Mastery involves achieving greater and greater proficiency at something. So how can we make games difficult to master?
- Scale the game’s mechanics. The basic mechanics of Tetris never change. However, as the player reaches higher levels, blocks are dropped at an ever-faster rate. This forces the player to improve, and makes the game difficult to master. You can also increase the number of blocks ahead that a player can see, adding yet another thing to the game that the player must master (planning ahead).
- Include non-essential mechanics that add depth. Street Fighter IV includes a host of mechanics that are not strictly necessary to win (e.g., special moves, Ultra Combos, Super Combos, focus attacks, focus attack dash cancelling, etc.). However, truly mastering the game involves learning all of these things, which is no small task. Indeed, it can take years to learn how all of these things apply to a single character.
- Provide opportunities for players to separate themselves from each other. In Starcraft II, marines are an extremely powerful unit that is highly vulnerable to area-of-effect damage. In order to master Terran in Starcraft II, it is necessary to learn how to overcome this weakness (e.g., by spreading marines out to avoid area-of-effect attacks).
- Reward knowledge and better decision-making. Magic: The Gathering is not the simplest game. But what separate masters from average players is not usually knowledge of the rules. Instead, it is understanding of how all of the various cards interact with each other that sets masters apart from average players. Masters learn how to use their cards to maximum effect, generating card advantage. They also learn how to use cards in combination and how to properly process what can be very complex decision trees. You can give an average player and a master the exact same set of cards, and barring extraordinary luck, the master should win much more often than the average player.
A game that is easy to learn rewards you from the moment you put in the first quarter (assume for a moment, that you’re back in the glory days of the arcade). A game that is difficult to master ensures that your hundredth quarter is worth it too.
The ideas contained in Bushnell’s quote are some of the most discussed in game development, but I’d like to go over them again. It never hurts to make sure that you understand the basics.
A game that is easy to learn is one that a player can pick up and understand relatively quickly and without a great deal of outside assistance. A great example of a game like this is Tetris. The rules of Tetris are very simple, and its controls are equally easy to grasp. You can give Tetris to a child and be confident that they’ll learn how to play it inside of a few minutes.
Another game that is easy to learn is Space Invaders. All that players have to remember is that they need to kill the aliens without being killed. The controls are extremely simple: they can move from side to side and shoot. Once again, you can give Space Invaders to almost anybody, and they will only need a few minutes to understand how it works.
But why does it matter if a game is easy to learn? The answer lies in the psychology of the player. Human beings only have so much time to invest in leisure. If a game doesn’t start to entertain fairly quickly, people will simply move on to another activity. People also like to feel like they are at least partially in control of what happens in a game. If players don’t understand what’s going on (i.e., why they are winning or losing), they will quickly become frustrated and quit. People hate feeling powerless. In contrast, people enjoy feeling powerful. The quicker someone learns how a game works, the quicker they can start feeling powerful.
There are several ways to make a game easy to learn:
- Have simple rules. Games like Tetris, Pong, and Space Invaders have very simple rules, and this makes them very straightforward and easy to learn. In contrast most RPGs tend to have fairly complex rules, which can make them quite daunting to someone who has never played them before.
- Take advantage of familiarity. Racing games and sports games can be easy to learn because they are activities that players are already familiar with. For example, most people who play soccer games already know the rules of soccer. The only things they have to learn are the controls. Likewise, most people who play racing games already know how racing works, all that remains is for them to learn the controls.
- Follow the players’ intuition. During the heyday of the gaming arcade, gun games were very popular. These games were almost always easy to learn because the basic ideas behind the game (e.g., point the gun at the screen and shoot at the bad guys) were all things that seemed natural to the players.
As you can see, there are at least two axes along which a game can be made easier: rules and controls. Rules can be made easier when they are simple, obvious, or similar to the rules of other activities that are already familiar to the player (e.g., the rules of a sport). The controls of a game can be made simpler by matching them more closely to what feels natural for players (e.g., using a gun to aim at enemies on a screen is much easier to learn than learning to use a joystick and buttons).
One thing that not many people are aware of is that there exist versions of the original Street Fighter game that used two buttons (one for punch and one for kick), as opposed to the more familiar six (three different kinds of punch and three different kinds of kick). The trick was that how hard a player pressed the buttons determined what kind of punch or kick came out. As you can imagine, trying to control how hard you pressed a button in the middle of an exciting battle proved to be quite difficult. It is not a coincidence that all subsequent versions of Street Fighter have used the six button configuration – it makes the game much, much easier to learn since the player isn’t struggling with the controls the whole time.
If it’s good for games to be easy to learn, why do we want them to be difficult to master? The answer can be found, once again, in the psychology of the player. If something becomes too easy, it usually becomes quite boring (i.e., unenjoyable). People like winning, but they like it even more when winning actually means something. Think of how it feels to play chess against someone who is much, much worse than you. You might enjoy beating them the first few times, but after that it gets boring. There is no sense of achievement involved, no feeling that you’re doing something awesome – and people like feeling awesome.
A game that ceases to challenge players will become boring, and people do not play boring games for long. This applies to more than just video games. A skilled crossword player will naturally seek out harder crosswords. A gifted chess player will look for stronger opponents. Elite athletes hunger for elite competition.
Mastery involves achieving greater and greater proficiency at something. So how can we make games difficult to master?
- Scale the game’s mechanics. The basic mechanics of Tetris never change. However, as the player reaches higher levels, blocks are dropped at an ever-faster rate. This forces the player to improve, and makes the game difficult to master. You can also increase the number of blocks ahead that a player can see, adding yet another thing to the game that the player must master (planning ahead).
- Include non-essential mechanics that add depth. Street Fighter IV includes a host of mechanics that are not strictly necessary to win (e.g., special moves, Ultra Combos, Super Combos, focus attacks, focus attack dash cancelling, etc.). However, truly mastering the game involves learning all of these things, which is no small task. Indeed, it can take years to learn how all of these things apply to a single character.
- Provide opportunities for players to separate themselves from each other. In Starcraft II, marines are an extremely powerful unit that is highly vulnerable to area-of-effect damage. In order to master Terran in Starcraft II, it is necessary to learn how to overcome this weakness (e.g., by spreading marines out to avoid area-of-effect attacks).
- Reward knowledge and better decision-making. Magic: The Gathering is not the simplest game. But what separate masters from average players is not usually knowledge of the rules. Instead, it is understanding of how all of the various cards interact with each other that sets masters apart from average players. Masters learn how to use their cards to maximum effect, generating card advantage. They also learn how to use cards in combination and how to properly process what can be very complex decision trees. You can give an average player and a master the exact same set of cards, and barring extraordinary luck, the master should win much more often than the average player.
A game that is easy to learn rewards you from the moment you put in the first quarter (assume for a moment, that you’re back in the glory days of the arcade). A game that is difficult to master ensures that your hundredth quarter is worth it too.
May 29, 2014
Godzilla (2014) Review
I’m going to let you guys in on a little secret: I’m a huge, huge fan of giant monsters. Most of the time this means that I have to watch things in Japanese with English subtitles. Nobody – and I mean nobody – does giant, city-crushing monsters the way that the Japanese do.
But that isn’t to say that Hollywood can’t make good monster movies. Both Pacific Rim and Cloverfield were quite enjoyable although I do wish the shaky-cam in Cloverfiled wasn’t quite so shaky.
Way, way back in 1998, Hollywood made a Godzilla movie. It was pure, unmitigated garbage. Here are some of the lovely things we were treated to:
- A Godzilla that looked like a giant iguana.
- A Godzilla that seemed to change size from scene to scene.
- A Godzilla so lame that it actually got hurt by normal missiles. Yes, you read that right. It got hurt by regular missiles. Japanese Godzilla laughs in the face of normal missiles.
- A Godzilla without the iconic atomic breath.
- A Godzilla that laid eggs that then engaged in scenes more reminiscent of Jurassic Park than a real Godzilla movie.
In fact, 1998 Godzilla was so lame that it was renamed Zilla and promptly slaughtered by the real Godzilla in the awesome Godzilla: Final Wars movie. The fact that Godzilla beats Zilla by throwing him into the Sydney Opera House and then blasting him with his atomic breath is simply icing on the cake.
Naturally, I was very worried when I heard that Hollywood would be taking another stab at Godzilla. Even the trailer, and it’s awesome skydiving scene, wasn’t enough to ease my concerns.
Last weekend, I finally got a chance to watch it. It was awesome. Spoilers ahead!
The story kicks off with a discovery in the Philippines of a massive skeleton along with a pair of spores. One of the spores hatches and the creature that emerges goes on a rampage, eventually laying siege to a nuclear power plant in Japan. Joseph Brody (played by Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston) loses his wife in the attack and becomes obsessed with what he feels is a government cover up of the real cause of the disaster, which the government claims was a natural disaster.
Faster forward fifteen years, and Joseph’s son, Ford, has to go to Japan to bail him out after he’s arrested wandering around the quarantine zone. Ford is a bomb disposal expert, and he doesn’t buy into what he views as his father’s crackpot theories. But he still agrees to go with his father to check out the quarantine zone.
It turns out, however, that his father is right. The pair are arrested and discover that a MUTO (massive unidentified terrestrial organism) was responsible. The MUTA hatches, revealing itself to be a winged monster from prehistoric times that feeds off radiation.
The MUTO levels the facility that has been built around it and escapes. Joseph is killed and Ford is introduced to the military officers and scientists tasked with bringing down the beast. It turns out that the MUTO and Godzilla are from the same period in history (when radiation was much more common). Godzilla awakened in the 1950s and they’ve tried killing him with nuclear weapons.
The MUTO makes its to Hawaii, taking out a nuclear submarine along the way, before meeting Godzilla in a pitched battle that ends with the MUTO fleeing and Godzilla giving chase. The second spore, that was brought to Nevada, awakens, wreaking a great deal of havoc. The two MUTOs are headed for San Francisco with Godzilla in hot pursuit. One of the MUTOs is male and the other is female – they’re meeting up so they can mate.
While all this is happening, the humans are busy running for their lives and planning a thermonuclear attack to take out all three giant monsters. Ford gets caught up in everything, first in Hawaii and then when the train he is catching to San Francisco (which is carrying a bomb) is attacked, and then when he joins the skydive into San Francisco.
In San Francisco the three monsters meet and awesomeness ensues. Godzilla kicks ass and takes names, lots of buildings are smashed and the whole thing looks incredible. Godzilla finishes the movie by claiming victory and then returning to the deeps.
So What Are the Cons?
- Bryan Cranston is easily the best actor in the movie. The others are, for the most part, passable, but none stand out. Unfortunately, Cranston dies about a quarter to a third of the way into the movie. Oops.
- The human element of the story may aggravate some people because it means Godzilla isn’t on screen as much. However, I think it helps set the stage for the giant monster, and it provides some context for the battle that ensues in the second half of the film.
- There is some cheesiness involved in the dialogue. The Japanese scientist is the main source of it. But I wasn’t too bothered by that. It felt like an obvious nod at the original films.
So What Are The Pros?
- They really build up to the first real glimpse of Godzilla, and it doesn’t disappoint.
- Some of the shots are amazing – like the skydiving scene. Gold.
- Godzilla looks like he should. This Godzilla is similar in design to the Japanese original but more menacing. He is also wonderfully animated. This is no man dancing around in a suit. This is a computer-generated harbinger of doom. This may well be the best animated giant monster ever in a movie.
- Godzilla is an absolute beast in this movie. He kicks ass. He takes names. He laughs in the face of thermonuclear weaponry. And he has his atomic breath – and it’s damn awesome.
- The MUTOs are great monsters in their own right, and watching them face off with Godzilla is amazing.
The style and scope of the battles is great. It’s monsters rumbling the way they should.
Overall
I absolutely loved this movie. If you’re a fan of giant monsters, I strongly recommend it. I crown it the King of the Monster Movies for 2014.
But that isn’t to say that Hollywood can’t make good monster movies. Both Pacific Rim and Cloverfield were quite enjoyable although I do wish the shaky-cam in Cloverfiled wasn’t quite so shaky.
Way, way back in 1998, Hollywood made a Godzilla movie. It was pure, unmitigated garbage. Here are some of the lovely things we were treated to:
- A Godzilla that looked like a giant iguana.
- A Godzilla that seemed to change size from scene to scene.
- A Godzilla so lame that it actually got hurt by normal missiles. Yes, you read that right. It got hurt by regular missiles. Japanese Godzilla laughs in the face of normal missiles.
- A Godzilla without the iconic atomic breath.
- A Godzilla that laid eggs that then engaged in scenes more reminiscent of Jurassic Park than a real Godzilla movie.
In fact, 1998 Godzilla was so lame that it was renamed Zilla and promptly slaughtered by the real Godzilla in the awesome Godzilla: Final Wars movie. The fact that Godzilla beats Zilla by throwing him into the Sydney Opera House and then blasting him with his atomic breath is simply icing on the cake.
Naturally, I was very worried when I heard that Hollywood would be taking another stab at Godzilla. Even the trailer, and it’s awesome skydiving scene, wasn’t enough to ease my concerns.
Last weekend, I finally got a chance to watch it. It was awesome. Spoilers ahead!
The story kicks off with a discovery in the Philippines of a massive skeleton along with a pair of spores. One of the spores hatches and the creature that emerges goes on a rampage, eventually laying siege to a nuclear power plant in Japan. Joseph Brody (played by Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston) loses his wife in the attack and becomes obsessed with what he feels is a government cover up of the real cause of the disaster, which the government claims was a natural disaster.
Faster forward fifteen years, and Joseph’s son, Ford, has to go to Japan to bail him out after he’s arrested wandering around the quarantine zone. Ford is a bomb disposal expert, and he doesn’t buy into what he views as his father’s crackpot theories. But he still agrees to go with his father to check out the quarantine zone.
It turns out, however, that his father is right. The pair are arrested and discover that a MUTO (massive unidentified terrestrial organism) was responsible. The MUTA hatches, revealing itself to be a winged monster from prehistoric times that feeds off radiation.
The MUTO levels the facility that has been built around it and escapes. Joseph is killed and Ford is introduced to the military officers and scientists tasked with bringing down the beast. It turns out that the MUTO and Godzilla are from the same period in history (when radiation was much more common). Godzilla awakened in the 1950s and they’ve tried killing him with nuclear weapons.
The MUTO makes its to Hawaii, taking out a nuclear submarine along the way, before meeting Godzilla in a pitched battle that ends with the MUTO fleeing and Godzilla giving chase. The second spore, that was brought to Nevada, awakens, wreaking a great deal of havoc. The two MUTOs are headed for San Francisco with Godzilla in hot pursuit. One of the MUTOs is male and the other is female – they’re meeting up so they can mate.
While all this is happening, the humans are busy running for their lives and planning a thermonuclear attack to take out all three giant monsters. Ford gets caught up in everything, first in Hawaii and then when the train he is catching to San Francisco (which is carrying a bomb) is attacked, and then when he joins the skydive into San Francisco.
In San Francisco the three monsters meet and awesomeness ensues. Godzilla kicks ass and takes names, lots of buildings are smashed and the whole thing looks incredible. Godzilla finishes the movie by claiming victory and then returning to the deeps.
So What Are the Cons?
- Bryan Cranston is easily the best actor in the movie. The others are, for the most part, passable, but none stand out. Unfortunately, Cranston dies about a quarter to a third of the way into the movie. Oops.
- The human element of the story may aggravate some people because it means Godzilla isn’t on screen as much. However, I think it helps set the stage for the giant monster, and it provides some context for the battle that ensues in the second half of the film.
- There is some cheesiness involved in the dialogue. The Japanese scientist is the main source of it. But I wasn’t too bothered by that. It felt like an obvious nod at the original films.
So What Are The Pros?
- They really build up to the first real glimpse of Godzilla, and it doesn’t disappoint.
- Some of the shots are amazing – like the skydiving scene. Gold.
- Godzilla looks like he should. This Godzilla is similar in design to the Japanese original but more menacing. He is also wonderfully animated. This is no man dancing around in a suit. This is a computer-generated harbinger of doom. This may well be the best animated giant monster ever in a movie.
- Godzilla is an absolute beast in this movie. He kicks ass. He takes names. He laughs in the face of thermonuclear weaponry. And he has his atomic breath – and it’s damn awesome.
- The MUTOs are great monsters in their own right, and watching them face off with Godzilla is amazing.
The style and scope of the battles is great. It’s monsters rumbling the way they should.
Overall
I absolutely loved this movie. If you’re a fan of giant monsters, I strongly recommend it. I crown it the King of the Monster Movies for 2014.
April 29, 2014
Writing Tip of the Day #1 - Actions Speak Louder Than Words
One of the greatest temptations in writing is to simply tell the readers how a character feels. Naturally, there are times when this may be unavoidable. But what we should be trying to do is to show the readers how a character feels. Consider the following examples:
a) “Why did you betray us?” Bob shouted angrily. “We were your friends!”
b) “Why did you betray us?” Bob’s fists clenched. “We were your friends!”
In the first case, it’s easy to see that Bob is angry – we’ve simply stated that outright. It’s also easy to see that Bob is angry in the second case – but instead of stating it outright, the reader infers that Bob is angry because of his behaviour. Clenched fists are a sign of anger.
How about another example?
a) Just the thought of the test was enough to terrify Amy.
b) Just the thought of the test was enough to make Amy’s hands shake.
Again, this is a fairly trivial example, but the point should be fairly clear. In the first example, we have simply told the readers how Amy feels. But in the second example, the readers infer how Amy feels because of her behaviour. The most likely reason that her hands are shaking is because she is nervous or afraid.
By showing how a character feels through their actions, we give readers a much better idea of who they are and what they’re doing than if we simply state how they feel. Telling the readers that a character is angry doesn’t help them imagine anything. Talking about how a character’s fists are clenched, their teeth are bared, and their voice hoarse from yelling paints a much more vivid picture of what is going on.
If you’re interested in more of my thoughts on writing, you can find those here.
I also write original fiction (mostly fantasy). You can find that here.
a) “Why did you betray us?” Bob shouted angrily. “We were your friends!”
b) “Why did you betray us?” Bob’s fists clenched. “We were your friends!”
In the first case, it’s easy to see that Bob is angry – we’ve simply stated that outright. It’s also easy to see that Bob is angry in the second case – but instead of stating it outright, the reader infers that Bob is angry because of his behaviour. Clenched fists are a sign of anger.
How about another example?
a) Just the thought of the test was enough to terrify Amy.
b) Just the thought of the test was enough to make Amy’s hands shake.
Again, this is a fairly trivial example, but the point should be fairly clear. In the first example, we have simply told the readers how Amy feels. But in the second example, the readers infer how Amy feels because of her behaviour. The most likely reason that her hands are shaking is because she is nervous or afraid.
By showing how a character feels through their actions, we give readers a much better idea of who they are and what they’re doing than if we simply state how they feel. Telling the readers that a character is angry doesn’t help them imagine anything. Talking about how a character’s fists are clenched, their teeth are bared, and their voice hoarse from yelling paints a much more vivid picture of what is going on.
If you’re interested in more of my thoughts on writing, you can find those here.
I also write original fiction (mostly fantasy). You can find that here.
What I Wish All My Students Knew #1 - Failure is Okay
I’ve had the pleasure of teaching quite a few students over the years, and there are some things that I just wish they knew before they came to class. Some of these things are simple, and some are complicated. But all of them would have helped.
Let me start off with something that might sound trite: it’s okay to fail. I know a lot of students have heard that, but I’m not sure they understand what it means. So, let me break it down. Failure isn’t about losing, it’s about learning. Here’s what failing can teach you:
- Failing can help you identify where you’ve made mistakes or don’t understand something. Do not be afraid or ashamed to ask your teacher to go through your exam or essay with you. Most teachers are happy to do that. I know it hurts to have your mistakes pointed out, but that’s the only way you’ll learn what you did wrong so you can do better. I remember when I got an absolutely appalling grade on one of my essays in university. I was so embarrassed about it, but I still went to my tutor and asked them to explain what I’d done wrong. After an hour of having my mistakes pointed out (one of the most awkward experiences in my life), I had a much better grasp of the topic. I ended up doing extremely well in the final exam, and I attribute a large part of that to having my mistakes pointed out so that I could shore up my weaknesses.
- Failing doesn’t have to break your spirit. It’s all right to feel sad or angry about failing. It’s very disappointing to work hard for something only to not get it. But don’t let those emotions get in the way - use them. When I failed in something, I allowed myself a few days to mope about it before trying to turn all of that emotion into something else - the desire to do better, the desire to show everyone that I was better than my last exam mark, better than my last essay. Emotion is a powerful thing - use it, don’t let it use you.
- Failing isn’t something to be ashamed of. So many of my students who have failed feel ashamed for failing. It’s all right to feel sad about failing, but you shouldn’t feel ashamed if you genuinely put all of your effort into it. All a teacher can ask from a student is dedication and handwork. If you have given both of those things, then don’t feel ashamed, regardless of the result. After all, innate intelligence can only take someone so far. Overwhelmingly, my best students are those who work the hardest, the ones who come to me after class with questions or email me about things they don’t understand. No one is talented in everything, but hard work applies everywhere.
- Failing is a part of life, and it can help us make our choices. We don’t live forever, and life is a series of choices. Making the right choices can help bring us success and happiness. But how do we know what the right choices are? We can’t, not easily. But failing can tell you if you’ve made the wrong choice. So don’t feel bad if you’ve failed, it might be that you just need to look somewhere else to find your happiness and success (e.g., if you keep failing a particular subject, perhaps its not the one for you). This isn’t something to be ashamed of - everyone is good and bad at different things. Failing can help you find what you’re best at even faster, so that you can find happiness and success.
- Failing doesn’t change who you are. Too many of my students think of themselves as being defined by their academic success. There is no such thing as a “90% student”. Who you are doesn’t change if you fail an exam anymore than who you are changes if you dye your hair. True, what you can do can change (e.g., failing a test may hold you back a year), but that doesn’t fundamentally change who you are as a human being. Remember that failing something doesn’t mean you are a failure as a human being - it simply means that you’ve failed a particular examination or essay.
Fear of failure is one of the most crippling things we can encounter. It can lead to the kind of nervousness and fear that leads to failure. By understanding that failure is not a death sentence or something to be ashamed of, you can move past that fear, which will make succeeding even easier. Just remember, everybody has failed something in their lives. I always tell my students that I’ve failed things - even your lecturers or tutors who seem invincible have had their struggles in the past.
If you want to read more of my thoughts on writing or teaching you can find them here.
I also write original fiction, which you can find here.
Let me start off with something that might sound trite: it’s okay to fail. I know a lot of students have heard that, but I’m not sure they understand what it means. So, let me break it down. Failure isn’t about losing, it’s about learning. Here’s what failing can teach you:
- Failing can help you identify where you’ve made mistakes or don’t understand something. Do not be afraid or ashamed to ask your teacher to go through your exam or essay with you. Most teachers are happy to do that. I know it hurts to have your mistakes pointed out, but that’s the only way you’ll learn what you did wrong so you can do better. I remember when I got an absolutely appalling grade on one of my essays in university. I was so embarrassed about it, but I still went to my tutor and asked them to explain what I’d done wrong. After an hour of having my mistakes pointed out (one of the most awkward experiences in my life), I had a much better grasp of the topic. I ended up doing extremely well in the final exam, and I attribute a large part of that to having my mistakes pointed out so that I could shore up my weaknesses.
- Failing doesn’t have to break your spirit. It’s all right to feel sad or angry about failing. It’s very disappointing to work hard for something only to not get it. But don’t let those emotions get in the way - use them. When I failed in something, I allowed myself a few days to mope about it before trying to turn all of that emotion into something else - the desire to do better, the desire to show everyone that I was better than my last exam mark, better than my last essay. Emotion is a powerful thing - use it, don’t let it use you.
- Failing isn’t something to be ashamed of. So many of my students who have failed feel ashamed for failing. It’s all right to feel sad about failing, but you shouldn’t feel ashamed if you genuinely put all of your effort into it. All a teacher can ask from a student is dedication and handwork. If you have given both of those things, then don’t feel ashamed, regardless of the result. After all, innate intelligence can only take someone so far. Overwhelmingly, my best students are those who work the hardest, the ones who come to me after class with questions or email me about things they don’t understand. No one is talented in everything, but hard work applies everywhere.
- Failing is a part of life, and it can help us make our choices. We don’t live forever, and life is a series of choices. Making the right choices can help bring us success and happiness. But how do we know what the right choices are? We can’t, not easily. But failing can tell you if you’ve made the wrong choice. So don’t feel bad if you’ve failed, it might be that you just need to look somewhere else to find your happiness and success (e.g., if you keep failing a particular subject, perhaps its not the one for you). This isn’t something to be ashamed of - everyone is good and bad at different things. Failing can help you find what you’re best at even faster, so that you can find happiness and success.
- Failing doesn’t change who you are. Too many of my students think of themselves as being defined by their academic success. There is no such thing as a “90% student”. Who you are doesn’t change if you fail an exam anymore than who you are changes if you dye your hair. True, what you can do can change (e.g., failing a test may hold you back a year), but that doesn’t fundamentally change who you are as a human being. Remember that failing something doesn’t mean you are a failure as a human being - it simply means that you’ve failed a particular examination or essay.
Fear of failure is one of the most crippling things we can encounter. It can lead to the kind of nervousness and fear that leads to failure. By understanding that failure is not a death sentence or something to be ashamed of, you can move past that fear, which will make succeeding even easier. Just remember, everybody has failed something in their lives. I always tell my students that I’ve failed things - even your lecturers or tutors who seem invincible have had their struggles in the past.
If you want to read more of my thoughts on writing or teaching you can find them here.
I also write original fiction, which you can find here.
April 27, 2014
The Last Huntress Free On Amazon Today (27th April)
The Last Huntress
will be available for free on Amazon today (27th April, Pacific Standard Time). Get it here. If you enjoy fantasy with a healthy dose of atmosphere and action, give it a try! Here’s the blurb:
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
March 28, 2014
My New Novel “Durendal” Is Now Available On Amazon!
My newest original story,
Durendal
, is now available on Amazon! You can get it here. It runs to ~80,000 words (and goes for $3.99), making it the first novel-length original story that I’ve made available to the public. It’s a coming-of-age story and a Western with elements of science fiction. If you’ve enjoyed my other stories, I know you’ll love this one. Here’s the blurb:
Twelve-year-old Billy Winchester’s got a feeling that the war made Duren a monster, but maybe he and his sister can make him a man again.
Billy’s always dreamed of leaving Sahara VII, a backwater mining planet, for some adventure. But with the galaxy still reeling from decades of war, and an older sister desperate to hang onto the only family she’s got left, he’s not having much luck.
Then he meets Duren, and suddenly adventure’s right on his doorstep.
The rugged stranger from another planet is everything Billy wishes he could be. When his sister hires Duren to help at their diner, Billy does his best to make him a part of their family. Trouble is, Duren’s got a past, and it’s the worst sort of bloody. To Billy though, he’s just a man, and a good one at that.
But danger’s never far on a planet like Sahara VII.
A cruel mining magnate, Stratton sets his eyes on Billy’s sister, and he won’t take no for an answer. When Stratton kidnaps her, Billy’s going to need the man Duren used to be, the man he hoped Billy would never have to see.
But Stratton isn’t stupid, and he isn’t alone. He knows Duren is coming for him, and there are people who’ve been waiting a long time for Duren to show himself. Duren won’t have to beat just Stratton and his men – he’ll have to stand toe-to-toe with the vengeful ghosts of his past while keeping Billy clear of the crossfire. Billy’s finally got his adventure, but it might cost him the only family he’s ever known.
You can find a longer preview here.
Twelve-year-old Billy Winchester’s got a feeling that the war made Duren a monster, but maybe he and his sister can make him a man again.
Billy’s always dreamed of leaving Sahara VII, a backwater mining planet, for some adventure. But with the galaxy still reeling from decades of war, and an older sister desperate to hang onto the only family she’s got left, he’s not having much luck.
Then he meets Duren, and suddenly adventure’s right on his doorstep.
The rugged stranger from another planet is everything Billy wishes he could be. When his sister hires Duren to help at their diner, Billy does his best to make him a part of their family. Trouble is, Duren’s got a past, and it’s the worst sort of bloody. To Billy though, he’s just a man, and a good one at that.
But danger’s never far on a planet like Sahara VII.
A cruel mining magnate, Stratton sets his eyes on Billy’s sister, and he won’t take no for an answer. When Stratton kidnaps her, Billy’s going to need the man Duren used to be, the man he hoped Billy would never have to see.
But Stratton isn’t stupid, and he isn’t alone. He knows Duren is coming for him, and there are people who’ve been waiting a long time for Duren to show himself. Duren won’t have to beat just Stratton and his men – he’ll have to stand toe-to-toe with the vengeful ghosts of his past while keeping Billy clear of the crossfire. Billy’s finally got his adventure, but it might cost him the only family he’s ever known.
You can find a longer preview here.
March 23, 2014
The Last Huntress Free Today On Amazon (Sunday 23rd March, Pacific Standard Time)
The Last Huntress
will be available for free on Amazon today (23rd March, Pacific Standard Time). Get it here. If you enjoy fantasy with a healthy dose of atmosphere and action, give it a try! Here’s the blurb:
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
February 16, 2014
The Last Huntress Free Today On Amazon (Sunday 16th February, Pacific Standard Time)
The Last Huntress
will be available for free on Amazon today (16th February, Pacific Standard Time). Get it here. If you enjoy fantasy with a healthy dose of atmosphere and action, give it a try! Here’s the blurb:
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress’s heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
If you don’t have a Kindle, don’t worry. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon from here.
You can find my original fiction here.
