i, expressed

NaNoWriMo 2007

2007-11-25T17:33:39Z

Just got my purple bar and winner's certificate today! Actually, I crossed the 50k mark last Sunday, and been working on finishing the story before the end of the month. I figure I need maybe another 10k words (at 60k right now)

I treated myself to a fancy dinner last Sunday, and now that I have my certificate, I'm treating myself to a beignet brunch. Yum!

Halfway Mark!

2007-11-11T06:36:11Z

Hit the halfway mark today (25k)! Did some brainstorming this morning concerning the magic system and bits of the plot that I accidentally tied together. Then this afternoon and evening, sat down and actually cranked through some more action-y bits. It still seems like it's been much longer than I've been wandering down the path of this story.

Day 6 NaNo

2007-11-06T17:49:25Z

It's the morning of Day 6, I haven't written yet today, but last night I hit 25% of the 50k. Word warring on AIM chat rooms have been key as well as my plot outline. I'm not sure I would be able to keep moving this quickly if I didn't have an outline to tell me where I meant to be heading next. I do have some deviations from my outline and have been filling in details that I didn't know before, but so far it's been moving along.

Then again, on Thursday will be the dreaded 2nd week. I hear it's a bad week to slog through. Hopefully even if I slow down some, I'll still stay on track.

The Night Before NaNo - Happy Halloween!

2007-11-01T06:22:22Z

It doesn't feel much like Halloween. Oh I dressed up for work today (as Matrix's Trinity) which everyone recognized so it was a good costume day. Usually I've spent most of October getting my brand new costume together for the Halloween festivities, but not this year. I've also spent most of the day in a zen mood, not really nervous about tomorrow's start, but perhaps I should be nervous about that. I wrote on something completely different tonight and it was pretty darn slow. That can't bode well. I was trying to practice something specific in writing though (dialogue, for the curious) so maybe it'll be completely different than just unhinging the creativity door and letting the words and story through. I hope so. One good thing about not having too many trick-or-treaters is that there's plenty of candy leftover for bribing myself.

I'm going to bed at the normal time and resisting the idea of starting at midnight like many others seem to be doing. I'd rather not start that as a precedent for the rest of the month.

Joining the Insanity!

2007-10-26T16:20:14Z

3 words: I'm doing NaNoWriMo!

I have my MacScribby (laptop), Shecky, (cute stuffed turtle totem), pirate fingerless gloves and a stock of tea, hot chocolate, chai mixes and random snacks at home. I think I'm set. I hope I'm set. I guess I'll find out in a week.

Sullen Silence

2007-09-01T01:44:43Z

It's been 6 weeks since I last wrote. Not necessarily because I didn't have anything to say. But the last time I tried to post was a glowing review of Hairspray that LJ promptly ate. I was so annoyed I went away for a while.

Then there was the exercise in frustration and indignation that was reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and trying to formulate (in my head) why I was so frustrated and reading far more articulate versions of my thoughts elsewhere in the internet.

I have snippets of writing here and there that I haven't taken the time to fully flesh out in publishable form because we've been entertaining loved ones who have come to visit. So, it's not that I don't have anything in the wings to say. Just that I haven't managed to post it yet.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

2007-07-18T02:46:14Z

I saw the latest installment of Harry Potter movies last Friday, July 13.

It was good, but not great. I walked out of the theatre somewhat disappointed actually. I guess I've gotten used to walking out of a Harry Potter movie as jazzed as I when I walked in. This time, I walked out and felt ... flat.

Let's talk about the characters first - Luna, Bellatrix, Umbridge, Tonks. They pretty much nailed every new character they put in there. Luna stole just about every scene she was in. Umbridge was delightfully evil - I think I hated her more for having the oh-so-cute kittens covering her office walls. Bellatrix was perfectly demented and evil. And Tonks, for her brief appearance (the entirety of the Order was treated similarly for that matter) was pretty cool. Some of the already established characters continued to deliver. I'm sad that Gary Oldman will no longer be in the story as once again, I marvelled at his superb treatment of Sirius. I'm convinced that he was the one that inserted the "Good one, James!" line into the Department of Mysteries battle because I believe he understands and puts that kind of thought into his characters. Daniel Radcliffe's acting chops are noticeably improving with every movie. I was gratified to see the Ron I'd always imagined in the books - thankfully, he played less of a comedic role in this movie than in previous installments and more of the staunch friend. I was disappointed that Hermione didn't play as much of a role as she's a favorite of mine. I was bothered by the fact that Ron and Hermione were getting along so well (perhaps even flirting?) in this movie when they were constantly bickering in the book. The twins' exit was spectacular. I felt they underserved the Harry/Cho relationship - I really didn't feel the attraction Harry had for Cho in the film. It was simply the much hyped kiss and that was it. Perhaps that's just as well that they didn't really emphasize how much he liked her since they spent no time on why he stopped liking her in the end. As much as I've hated Michael Gambon's Dumbledore in the past, this was the one movie where his gruff, mean, powerful interpretation made a bit more sense especially in the showdown with Voldemort. As for the CG characters, Grawp was treated more kindly than I was expecting and Kreacher barely even registered.

Getting back to my impression of flat. That was the first word that came to mind when I thought of the film as a whole. Yes, the movie felt truncated and rushed but I'm willing to overlook that due to the fact that OotP was a huge book squished into a two and a half hour movie. I felt like the world sucked (from Harry's POV) at the beginning of the story and it still sucked at the end. Obviously, Voldemort was still in the world by the end and the wizarding community finally believed it. I felt they could have emphasized the relief and lifting of tension from Harry's shoulders once the community stopped calling him a liar. Perhaps that would have made more of a difference in the overall flow of the story, provided more of a feel of resolution. Another thing I noticed that I was missing was the sense of wonder in the world. Yes, it is a darker story, burdened by Voldemort's presence, but it IS still magical. I could have used more of that sense in the movie.

So I thought it was good but not great. A friend who has seen it more than once said that it was better the second time because she didn't have the initial expectations. Maybe I'll give it another shot. But I doubt I'll see it before I get my hands on the final book due out at the end of the week. Based on my experience with the movie, I can't help but feel a bit apprehensive at what the final chapter might have in store for me. Nevertheless, it's been quite a ride.

Alive!

2007-06-26T21:53:24Z

Wow, my login page tells me I haven't posted in a month. Guess I'm that boring huh?

Actually, I'm in the middle of finishing up my creative writing class, leaving my old job and will be starting my new job in a few weeks. Yeah, yeah, excuses.

But the real excuse is that the spare time I have, I've been playing Jade Empire, not once but three times. I tend to be an explore-everything kind of player and that's exactly what I'm doing with that game. Given that I loved their previous game, Knights of the Old Republic it's not much of a surprise that I'm sucked into this one too. It's a good thing I didn't know it was an Xbox game first or else I might have already bought an Xbox to get it. Playing on the PC is good though. I don't really need a 2nd console just yet and even if I did, it would probably be the Wii. Wii Boxing is just that cute and fun. All they need is a karaoke Wii game and I'm there.

Between the Lines

2007-05-26T18:49:16Z

Just posted my first story arc on the balthier_ashe community. I wrote this story because parts of the ending of Final Fantasy 12 confused me. This is my attempt to fill in between the lines and make more sense out of Square's story. Needless to say, there are spoilers to the end of the game here.

Title: Between the Lines
Fandom: Final Fantasy XII
Rating: PG-13

Chapter 1: First Impressions
Chapter 2: Unexpected Support
Chapter 3: Lessons
Chapter 4: Reach for the Moment
Chapter 5: Second Chance
Chapter 6: A Chance to Move On

Creative Writing - Place

2007-05-25T23:14:34Z

So I'm in my 4th week of my creative writing class. Just thought I'd post some of the work I'm doing as assignments for that class. This one was an assignment to describe a place.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our Hana hideaway was not trivial to find. I pride myself on being a good navigator but it took a U-turn on a deserted 2-lane road to find the "opening in the lava rock wall 2 miles after the Hasegawa General Store."

The gravel crunched under oun banana yellow rental car as we left the road and were instantly transported into the jungle. The canopy of trees blocked most of the late afternoon sun. When our eyes adjusted to the relative dim, we noticed our greeters: a pair of Balinese stone statues situated atop some lava rock pillars. They wore toothy grins, cheerfully bright red leis and held aloft a pair of red-fringed parasols.

We parked the car a short distance past the statues in a gravel-topped clearing. A pair of painted green signs indicated that there were 2 buildings on the premises but we had yet to see one. I stepped out of the car and took a deep breath. The air was fat with humidity but the salty tang of the sea breeze kept it from being uncomfortable.

We set our feet to a path of dark, moist earth, overshadowed by tote bag-sized leaves. Only when the path took a turn and changed to concrete did we see our promised bungalow above us, nestled among the jungle foliage. A few steps further and we arrived at a concrete patio where a large frog statue stood at attention, its green paint faded, holding an umbrella. I patted the frog's rough wooden head as a hello and explored the patio. Several bamboo framed pieces of furniture and a large rope hammock were arranged invitingly. Among the redolent jungle scents, I found hints of plumeria and citronella.

My investigation of the hammock was interrupted by my husband's cry of delight, "Oh! You have to see this!"

It took me several moments to extricate myself from the clutches of the hammock to share his discovery. I found him positively beaming inside the moss-covered lava rock outdoor shower. After exclaiming my own enthusiasm and vowing to take advantage of that amenity, we finally headed up the stairs into the bungalow itself.

More delights awaited us upstairs. A small kitchen and bathroom paid homage to the true king of the bungalow: a large, bamboo-framed bed. Dressed in rich, ornate reds with velvety pillows, it truly dominated the room. Red mosquito netting hung lazily over it. Just beyond the bed was a screened-in porch with a few chairs and most importantly, a 2-person jetted tub. Beyond the screens, we could take in the view of the jungle foliage and in the distance, the ocean. The faint crash of the waves and the rustle of the windswept leaves formed a tranquil backdrop to our bungalow view.

We smiled at each other and declared it the best Hana bungalow ever.

Lessons

2007-05-08T17:09:54Z

So I started a writing class last week. Thankfully it's a small class - only 7 or so people so we get plenty of attention from our teacher. Pretty interesting so far. We were talking about words, tips, tricks - small things to start with. I'm looking forward to talking about developing plots. I don't think I think big enough when it comes to stories. I'm too used to the short ranged, open-ended storylines. It's interesting to have to think about the end and where I want to go with the story. How many times have I been disappointed by the ending of a story - so I know it's important. Hopefully, I'll be able to work on my homework assignment tonight.

That's all?

2007-04-25T17:44:33Z

61% Geek Mingle2.com - Free Online Dating

I'm not sure how to feel about that number.
On the one hand, I thought I was far geekier. Then again, perhaps I should be happy I'm not as geeky as I thought I was.

Figuring things out

2007-04-23T18:27:32Z

So I posted my first fic yesterday to the balthier_ashe community. But it occurs to me that I might want to keep my stuff all together on my own journal here.

Title: All the Queen's Men
Fandom: Final Fantasy XII
Rating: R

I might wonder why I started off with something more risque than I'm typically comfortable with but really it's all about pragmatism.
1) It was easier and faster than finishing and coming up with a title for my other Balthier/Ashe story I'm working on.
2) It's good to challenge myself and put stuff out there. Have I mentioned that thing about being an internet hermit?
3) Practice, practice, practice.

Now I'm hungry. Hope it's close to lunch time.

Maroon and Orange

2007-04-20T17:14:30Z

I'm back from my conference in NYC where I had no access/time to be on a computer. It was a lot of fun, I got to take in a bunch of Broadway shows but that's not what I want to talk about today.

My husband is VA Tech alum. He was with me in NY over the weekend and he was on a plane to go back home on the day the shootings happened. He was an engineering science major and spent many, many hours in Norris Hall and had classes in those very same rooms.

I'm wearing maroon today and don't really have orange in my wardrobe. (why must their school colors clash?)

My sister has friends that are currently going to VA Tech. She was relieved to report that she had gotten in contact with all of them and that they're okay.

Without the internet, all I had to go on were the news reports on TV and boy they're pissing me off. I want to hear more about the people we lost needlessly, to celebrate their lives. I don't want to hear more about the shooter, I don't want to hear what he has to say. I know we're looking for the whys and hows of this tragedy and that's one way to process, but in the end I don't think it's going to make any more sense. Kudos to the students, faculty and administration that I've seen interviewed. Even though they were still going through the shock of it all, they were able to be articulate, poised and inspirational in front of the myriads of cameras and microphones that were shoved in their faces. It speaks to the character of the people and of the school.

My heart goes out to the students, family, friends and everyone else affected by this senseless tragedy.

New York City, center of the universe...

2007-04-14T05:02:25Z

Here I come!

It's been years since I've been to New York City and that was when I was too young to really appreciate it and I was with family to boot. We're going to see Avenue Q which I'm looking forward to. Too bad Wicked was all sold out. Maybe I'll try to get into another show while I'm there for a conference. I hear Lion King is good.

Off to bed then.

Testing the waters

2007-04-13T02:43:31Z

Call me an internet hermit.

Oh, I lurk on many forums and read my news on Fark but actually contributing to the wide Web 2.0? Never!
Well maybe not quite never since I'm here and all. And I have Final Fantasy XII to thank for that. It's my latest obsession. Obsessions rarely drive me to take up writing or anything. The last time I took up the pen was years ago with Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series as my muse - but I don't even like that series anymore and haven't bothered keeping up. And that was roleplaying, not actually writing stories.

Which brings me to Final Fantasy XII. There's something about the characters that made me curious enough to see what else was happening behind the scenes of the game. Okay, and Balthier is yummy. So I'm going to try this whole writing thing and hope that I don't pollute the internet up too badly.