Farewell to an old friend
The link above tells the entire tale, how by November 30 of this year, NCSoft will be shutting down the servers to the first Superhero based MMO ever to succeed in the online marketplace (or at least succeed as well as it did). City of Heroes, City of Villains, Going Rogue. They made an interesting package.
I think, even though I’ve left the game and haven’t really played in a year (or more) I kind of owe City of Heroes something. If it wasn’t for CoX, I’d have never met some of the people in a role play group that I had a great deal of fun with over the course of time in the game. And had it not been for CoX, and that group, then the creativity I had wouldn’t have really come out as it did. There’d be no Black Mask & Pale Rider, no Canyons of Steel, and certainly no Rocket Fox. I’d have been languishing in my ability to write and wouldn’t have been further ahead.
It may be a silly thing to credit to a Massive Multiplayer Online RPG, but that’s the truth of it. Had it not been for City of Heroes, and for the RPCongress (the role play group I had met and joined), none of those ideas I had would have really come to life. So, because of that, this announcement from NCSoft, coupled with the farewell at Paragon Studios, meets me with mixed feelings.
Oh, it was a good run, indeed. In a way, CoX made strides to become comparable to WoW, even though they were completely different genres. And I don’t think CoX was seen as a WoW-killer, like so many other MMOs hoped to become, but I think CoX was seen as a game that could co-exist with WoW and compete on even terms.
But again, for me, CoX will always mean that I managed to kick start Black Mask & Pale Rider, and start putting those ideas I had onto paper (or more realistically, into a wordprocessor).
The Faces of Black Mask & Pale Rider
Whenever I write, I’ll sometime put a face of a real person to the character. I’ve done that with Canyons of Steel, putting Sam Elliott’s face to John Walker, and I did that with Black Mask & Pale Rider, putting Andrea Menard‘s face to Shani Wennemein.
“Who?” you might ask. This person.
Andrea Menard was born in 1971 in Flin Flon, Manitoba and is based in Saskatchewan. An accomplished actress, playwright and jazz singer, she has starred in many different Canadian television series, including Rabbit Fall where she played Constable Tara Wheaton of the Regina Police Services.
Did I mention she’s also a jazz singer? One of the films she was in was called the Velvet Devil, where she acted and sang. She has also released several jazz albums.
Menard is also of Metis heritage, and identifies heavily with her First Nations ancestry.
So this is the actress I think of whenever I’m writing Black Mask & Pale Rider and think of Shani Wennemein, the elven gunslinger.
So, you might be asking “well, that’s Shani, what about Pania” and you’d be correct in your inquiry. I do have a face for Pania Alow.
Kate Beckinsale.
Most should know Miss Beckinsale a little better, having starred in such movies as Underworld, Van Helsing (I actually liked that movie), and Whiteout. She plays a wide range of roles, and would be perfect for Pania. She’s not blonde? Small matter that a wig or hair dye would fix.
As well as being an female action hero in movies, she’s also a model. She’s even let her politics be know, voicing her support for the pro-choice movement, and filming a Funny or Die skit satirizing the Republican’s “War on Women”.
So when I’m writing the adventures of the two elven gunslingers, these are the faces I see for the characters.
The Quotables
Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1955. Deutsch: Winston Churchill, 1940 bis 1945 sowie 1951 bis 1955 Premier des Vereinigten Königreichs und Literaturnobelpreisträger des Jahres 1953. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Here’s a few quotes for this Wednesday morning, as I attempt to draw attention away from the political and racist nonsense I keep reading about at the RNC Convention in Tampa Bay, Florida. Before we begin, a less for everyone; don’t read the comments sections of news articles. They tend to be racist, oppressive, angry and rage inducing. Anyway, on with the quotes.
We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give. –Sir Winston Churchill
The great secret that all old people share is that you really haven’t changed in seventy or eighty years. Your body changes, but you don’t change at all. And that, of course, causes great confusion. ~Doris Lessing
If you have hot flashes you’re too old for wearing hot pants. ~Maxine
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Pictorial of a gunslinger – video game edition
My character Shani from Guild Wars 2. She’s very much a gunslinger now, with dagger and pistol in melee and dual pistols for ranged attacks. The top picture, she’s not flying, she’s swimming. And that’s a spear gun on her back. That’s a might big spear gun on her back.
When she just stands with her guns drawn, she does a few interesting emotes. Twirl the gun, check down the sights, turn left, check the sights again, twirl the gun, holster the pistols.
It’s pretty epic, no matter the situation. And I’ve only uncovered 10% of the entire world while Shani is level 24.
The game is amazingly diverse and very subversive with its story telling. Nothing really feels grindy when you go out and explore the world. There’s lots to do, which seems to be encouraged as the story goes along, because you never ever out level your content. Granted, I don’t know what that’s like in the upper levels as I’ve only hit level 24, which is fine for my third day in the game.
Related articles
- A Guild Wars weekend it was (taholtorf.wordpress.com)
A Guild Wars weekend it was
Guild Wars 2 had their official head start weekend, and I got two of my characters into the game. Pania Alow (top) and Shani Wennemein (bottom). Okay, I know elf isn’t a race in the game, but don’t really care. Pania is a mesmer who uses staff and pistol, and Shani is a thief who uses daggers and pistols. So far, the game is pretty fun. Pania is level 10, while Shani I’ve gotten to level 18.
And yes, this is how I spent my weekend.
Related articles
- Guild Wars 2: the first 48 hours (otherwise known as “I hate my computer”). (the-amateur-professional.com)
- Guild Wars 2 crafter reaches level 80 first (massively.joystiq.com)
- Guild Wars 2: a noob’s journey – part one (vg247.com)
- Massively’s launch guide to Guild Wars 2 (massively.joystiq.com)
Goodreads
It’s taken me a bit, but I’ve finally signed up and am starting to participate at goodreads. I have my account, I have an author page (which is pretty awesome), and I’ve got a list of 60 books so far that I’ve read and 11 that I want to read. The bonus is that both books I’ve written happen to now be listed as well. Click on the images below to view the pages for each book.
Black Mask & Pale Rider
Canyons of Steel
And, if you ever wanna just drop by and check out my list of books, or suggest a few you’ve read, then by all means come on down.
A Helpful Tool
Want to make the characters in your story or book creative with their cursing? Well, there’s help!
As the description says:
Whether you’re annoyed with your neighbor, agitated with your boss, or tired of your lazy roommate, this unique side-by-side flippable flap novelty book of amusing and socially unacceptable phrases will provide endless possibilities for creative and colorful vocabulary.
Both young and old students and professionals alike will appreciate this easy-to-use, uncensored, totally x-rated, and hilarious phrase generator. Unleash the immaturity and skewed sense of humor within and never be left searching for a clever comeback again.
I have just one thing to add:
Black Mask & Pale Rider Outline Complete
The outline is finished. 21 Chapters in all for the outline and things are starting off nicely. Using the original writing from Between Raising Hell And Amazing Grace (the title of the first series as posted online) was 25 pages, 11,500 words in total.
This new write up will have to include descriptions of Carrollton, Arkansas, Chicago, Illinois, Brockton and the Brockton Festival, Shani, Pania, Verit and Scales, along with a description of Captain Williams.
Writing will begin this weekend (or tonight, if I get home at a decent time). Barring how addicted I get to Guild Wars 2, which also begins this weekend for anyone who pre-ordered the game. Hopefully, writing will take a greater amount of priority.
I also still have to get used to the keyboard configuration on my laptop, it’s really cutting down my typing speed.
Related articles
- Black Mask & Pale Rider – Ten Chapter Outline (taholtorf.wordpress.com)
- Black Mask & Pale Rider Chapter Outlines (taholtorf.wordpress.com)
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Quotey McQuoterson
Because it’s been a long day, and really, really tiring at work, no witty repartee to introduce this week’s round of quotes. Which went on a two week hiatus predominantly because I went on a two week hiatus.
English: Helen Keller. Français : Helen Keller. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” Helen Keller
“Our friendships can be like our flower gardens. They need to be nurtured and allowed to grow with a little love and consideration. Treat them well and they’ll bring joy for a long time to come.” ~Francis Gay
“A goal without a plan is just a wish” – Antoine de Saint-Exupery, French writer (1900 – 1944)
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Black Mask & Pale Rider Chapter Outlines
Not posting the results of chapter outlines today, but I have added another five, bringing the total up to 20. I figure that there will be 22 maybe 23 chapters in total.
This is a pretty awesome feeling, and I’ve gotten some of the text down for the initial draft as well, but I know I’ll need to expand on that. This book, which was originally published in the Adventures of Black Mask & Pale Rider as just a part of the adventures of Shani and Pania, totals only 11,000 words. I figure with the outline I’ve made I can make that into something closer to 110,000 words.
Fun fact: the entire book of Black Mask & Pale Rider is only 105,000 words long.
This is going to be a long, hard road. I’ve got to put a lot of work into it. But if I can do it (no, when I get it done), it’ll be more than worth it.
Related articles
- Black Mask & Pale Rider – Ten Chapter Outline (taholtorf.wordpress.com)
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Black Mask & Pale Rider – Five More Chapters of Outline
More outlines for the rewrite of Black Mask & Pale Rider today. That’s been my day, setting up outlines and doing some housework. Five more offerings this afternoon to go with what I posted this morning (which can be found here). For now, here is chapters 11 to 15.
Chapter 11 – The Hunt Begins
The Tale Continues
Desc: Shani and Pania begin the next chapter of the tale, as they attempt to introduce Captain Samuel Williams.
* * *
The Captain
Desc: Captain Williams receives new orders from the President, and heads off to select his men before heading out to bring down any suspected outlaws. There was heavy emphasis on bringing in Black Mask and Pale Rider, due to their popularity and the troubling things being heard from the Mid West.
Chapter 12 – New Friends
To The Victor, The Spoils
Desc: Scene opens with Shani robbing a bank. Several patrons, all with hands in the air, men with pants around their ankles displaying their undies. There are several nervous looks at Scales as Shani scoops up the cash and heads out of town.
* * *
Something New
Desc: Pania discovers wanted posters. To be exact, she discovers her wanted poster along with another for Black Mask, whom she recognizes. After asking around, she learns that Shani is not far from her location. But Pania has the law in Akron to deal with first.
* * *
Odd Discovery
Desc: As Pania is learning about the wanted posters, Shani is also discovering them, and taking note of the woman named Pale Rider. Unknown to either of them, they are both in Akron at the same time, just in very different parts of the city. Shani begins searching for word on Pania, and is directed eastward toward Pennsylvania. But first, she feels the need to engage in a small poker game at a tavern just on the eastern outskirts of Akron.
* * *
The Chase Is On
Desc: Captain Williams and his men are resting for the night in Canton, and in the morning they receive a wire that both Black Mask and Pale Rider were seen in Akron. Together with Private Johnstone, they plan to overtake the pair in Youngstown, not far from the Pennsylvania border.
Chapter 13 – Blockade
Hot heads
Desc: Shani takes a break from riding at a small tavern where a surly man tries to challenge her for a duel, accusing her of reneging on payment for sexual favours. Shani not only dispatches the man, but makes sure to embarass him as well.
* * *
They’re All Human
Desc: Pania discovers a farmer chasing down a trio of Algonquin, shooting erratically at them. She stops the farmer and attends to the three, finding one of them injured. They are hesitant at first, but Pania convinces them and helps the wounded man heal his wounds. As the man rests the other two recognize Pania from the wanted posters and warn her (after she argues that much of what is on those posters is not true) that the cavalry is planning to capture her just outside of Youngstown.
* * *
The Trap Is Laid
Desc: Captain Williams and his men block off the main escape routes through Youngstown, and have the local law watch the surrounding area for any sign of Shani or Pania.
Chapter 14 – Great Escape
You Take The South Road
Desc: Shani rides into Youngstown, hearing word of the blockade on the eastern side of town from a few whispers. She decides to take a few unused roads south of town to elude detection.
* * *
And I’ll Take The North Road
Desc: Pania, having been warned already, makes for a few roads north of Youngstown in order to escape detection.
* * *
Fleeting Encounter
Desc: Shani has a confrontation with a lone deputy, and much to his surprise, she leaves him alive and unharmed as she escapes toward the Pennsylvania border.
* * *
The Hunt Resumes
Desc: Captain Williams is informed of the unfortunate altercation, but seems very glad to hear the deputy is alright. This brings about a question, however, as to the truth of many of the wanted posters. As they often spoke of Shani’s penchant for slaying lawmen without hesitation.
Chapter 15 – Pennsylvania
Running Fast
Desc: Shani and Pania, oblivious to each other’s escape attempt as they seem to pass by, but never bump into each other, continue toward Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. All this time, Captain Samuel Williams and his posse is hot on their heels.
* * *
Welcome to Harrisburg
Desc: Shani enters the town limits of Harrisburg and begins to search around, learning all she can. She hears word of how the banks operate and how the entire town shuts down on Sundays, and she begins to hatch a plan. Her luck is right there as she arrived in town on a Saturday, which gives her time to look around before the big heist.
* * *
Down on the Farm
Desc: Pania gets some help from a farmer outside of Harrisburg, as she is able to have her horse bedded down and watered and she can get sleep in a real bed.
* * *
Easy Capture
Desc: Captain Williams is informed of Pania’s whereabouts and his posse lay in wait just outside the farm.
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Black Mask & Pale Rider – Ten Chapter Outline
The rewrite of Black Mask & Pale Rider has been on my mind for a bit. So while I’m writing Rocket Fox, I intend on making good use of my time to get in some plot outlines for Black Mask & Pale Rider. So here now is the first ten chapters in outline.
Artwork is not mine, and actually it’s a Wild West Witchblade, but damn if that isn’t how I imagine Shani. Minus the Witchblade of course.
Chapter 1 – A Festival Tale
The Festival
Desc: Description of the Brockton Festival and the introduction of Pania Alow and Verit. Eventual introduction of Shani Weenemein and Scales. There are a few descriptions (made through conversation between the two) of events of the festival and dropping of names or other characters. Eventually the pair retires to Pania’s family tent.
* * *
The Story Begins
Desc: The gathered group of elven children (describe a few of them, including those of different cultures to show how far reaching the festival attracts visitors) pleads to hear of the adventures Shani and Pania went on. Eventually Pania gives in, convincing Shani to take part. A small, impromptu theatre is set up outside the Alow family tent, and the story begins.
Chapter 2 – Carrollton, Arkansas
The Gates between worlds
Desc: Before Shani describes arriving in Carrollton, there is a quick description of the gates between worlds. This then flows into the description of Carrollton and the surrounding area, ending with being saved by Johnson.
* * *
The Iron Horse
Desc: Clayton pulls Shani from the tracks just in the nick of time. We’ll note here that Shani has a slight stutter. There is some hesitation between Shani and Clayton, but eventually Shani goes with Clayton.
* * *
At The Cabin
Desc: Shani, along with Scales, arrives at Clayton’s cabin where she gets cleaned up. Discussion about various things, such as Scales and what he is, what Shani is, and Clayton and his guns, along with just what it is he does.
Chapter 3 – Chicago, Illinois
Arrival In Chicago
Desc: Description of Chicago and how Pania learned of the area and what she used to pay for things.
* * *
The Stage
Desc: Pania finds a small theatre in need of actors and actresses. Hiding her elven features, she manages to procure employment in the production of a play by an English play write named Shakespear.
* * *
The Brothel
Desc: Looking for a place to stay, Pania finds Dorchester’s Boarding House for Girls and Women. Verit is discovered.
Chapter 4 – Boomers
The Confrontation
Desc: A pair of slaver bounty hunters tracks Clayton to his cabin. Shani helps fend off the brigands.
* * *
A New Weapon
Desc: After the gun fight, Shani demands to learn how to use a pistol, in order to defend herself should more bounty hunters come calling for Clayton. She soon learns a regular pistol affects her negatively, so a brick of elven steel she has is used to craft a new pair of pistols. Shani also gets some new duds.
* * *
Quick Draw
Desc: Clayton teaches Shani how to shoot, how to stand and how to take care of her weapon. She finds quick draw more to her liking and Clayton is surprised with how quickly she learns. As well, Shani is picking up Clayton’s accent and her stutter is diminishing.
Chapter 5 – Twin Volcanics
The Ruffian
Desc: Pania witnesses a rather rough looking character who tries to have his way with one of Aurella’s girls. Aurella manages to force him to leave at gun point, which makes Pania consider obtaining such a weapon.
* * *
The Weaponsmith
Desc: Pania converses with a local gunsmith about making her a pair of weapons using a brick of elven steel. After a great deal of discussion, she settles on the design of a pair of Smith and Wesson Army 32s to be crafted. This is with the assistance of Aurella, where there is a small exchange regarding why Pania must have the pistols made.
* * *
Practise makes perfect
Desc: Aurella teaches Pania the proper use and care for her Twin Volcanics. Pania also determines to use a moniker whenever she sees fit to do battle against such brigands. Thus, Pale Rider is born.
Chapter 6 – The Legend of Black Mask
A New Threat
Desc: Shani learns a bit more about this world, and what the difference in skin colour means to some people. While in Carrollton looking for supplies, she runs into a small group of gunslingers who recognize her as staying with Clayton. She also learns how vile certain words are as she discovers the term “nigger”. (note: it is important to emphasize that Shani finds the words distasteful and vile, putting a great deal of description into the use of the word by the gunslingers)
* * *
The Sheriff
Desc: Shani is confronted by the sheriff of Carrollton County, and has to explain her way around why she started the fight. She leaves the town, promising never to return.
* * *
The Confession
Desc: Shani talks to Clayton about what happened. He tries to explain that life can be hard in the frontier. They talk about the word she heard as well.
Chapter 7 – The Legend of Pale Rider
News Spreads
Desc: Pania picks up a paper from a newsboy, reading about the new adventures that have been the talk of this small city as the recently talked about Pale Rider is reported on. Has a small talk with the newsboy.
* * *
Talk With Aurella
Desc: Pania and Aurella discuss the dangers involved in what she’s doing. Pania agrees she’ll find a way east within the next day or two. Aurella admits she’s been wanting to head to Indiana, being a free state it would be better for a couple of her girls.
* * *
Late Night Attack
Desc: Aurella’s is attacked by the ruffian from before, and three of his friends. Pania becomes involved, and it’s known that Pania and Pale Rider are one in the same.
Chapter 8 – Wagons East
The Journey East
Desc: Pania prepares to leave, saying her goodbyes to the girls of the boarding house and especially to Aurella. She packs up and mounts her horse to head off to the unknown.
* * *
Adventures East
Desc: Mainly a descriptive scene, detailing Pania’s small adventures and getting used to the terrain, meeting Native Americans and feeling a mix of pity and rage for what’s been done to them.
Chapter 9 – North to Pennsylvania
The Gunfight
Desc: Shani and Clayton find themselves pinned down in Clayton’s cabin, as the brigands that previously encountered Shani seek revenge. This time, there is no mercy as Shani and Clayton cut them down.
* * *
Heading North
Desc: Shani and Clayton part ways, Clayton heading to Indiana, while Shani decides to venture north, maybe even to Canada. A long description ensues of her adventures, robbing stage coaches and banks.
Chapter 10 – The Interlude
The Story Pauses
Desc: Shani and Pania discuss making these stories a daily event during the festival as the first day of the Brockton Festival comes to a close.
* * *
The Next Day
Desc: Shani and Pania move to a larger venue, as the children from the previous day have now brought their parents. Pania quickly recaps before introducing Captain Samuel Williams.
Fox Photos (fotos) Friday!
Random pictures of foxes! I am not the photographer of any of these pictures, those credits are below the photo with a link to the source where they were found.
We’ll actually start things off with a video that’s rather informative of the different calls foxes have. Some are downright eerie.
In this video, you will learn a few different fox calls and sounds, and what they mean. Foxes can make up to more then 40 calls and sounds; contact calls, and interaction calls. Foxes are normally quiet animals, and their calls are mostly heard durning the mating season when foxes are calling out to each other and fighting over territory. Fox cubs are very quiet, and only make sounds when they are playing, fighting, or nursing. Most of the time, fox calls are mistaken for the call of another animal.
Fennec fox kits from the Palm Beach Zoo.
Photo credits: Palm Beach Zoo / Brett Bartek
Red Fox by Nicola Destefano on Flickr.
Fox at Bear Country USA, South Dakota (via wayberlee). As said in the original posting by the photographer: “Oh my god, I died when I took this picture. I was so upset before I took this picture because all of the pictures I took of wolves came out blurry, but when I saw this fox and took a clear picture, I almost cried in happiness.”
Fox on Ice Road by Dan Newcomb Photography on Flickr.
And, just because, a wonderful photo of Caracal kittens.
The Caracal is distributed over Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan and India. Its chief habitat is dry steppes and semideserts, but it also inhabits woodlands, savannah, and scrub forest. They generally prefer open country,
as long as there is sufficient cover, in the form of bushes and rocks, from which to ambush prey.
Its life expectancy in the wild is 12 years, and 17 years in captivity. The caracal may survive without drinking for a long period — the water demand is satisfied with the body fluids of its prey. Since it is also surprisingly easy to tame, it has been used as a hunting cat in Iran and India. (click link to view facebook group)
New stuff in Rocket Fox, and why the women are the main focus
So part of my holiday has been dedicated to writing. And thus, I have indeed.
For the most part, it’s been a matter of organizing and getting things together. But I’ve also been adding a bit of story here and there, which has really been helpful thanks to ywriter (which I mentioned before here). Essentially, I had to introduce an antagonist sooner. That antagonist happens to go by the name of Colonel Stigian (first name I’ll make up in second draft). It’ll also allow for more to be seen with some of Senia’s mentors (and along with Clarfax and Hardy’s), such as Captain Rita Mallard.
I’ve gotten the complaint from a couple of people who have said that this is extremely female heavy for a story, and that it might not go over that well. But to be honest, I wouldn’t be targeting just boys with Rocket Fox, but girls as well. Because I am firmly of the belief that girls can do things boys can. And one of those things happens to be reading sci fi adventure stories (trust me, I’ve seen some of the fandoms on tumblr, and there are a lot of women that are apart of them, like Mass Effect, Star Trek, the Avengers, and on and on and on).
Also, I’m trying to set up Vulpinia as a matriarchal society. Women, or females as the case may be with the characters seeing how they aren’t human, approach the routine of politics, business and so much more of life a lot differently than men do. Women would have more of the high profile positions, but men would also be there as well. Yes, I understand that’s my own viewpoint on what a matriarchal society is, but I’ve also had research that points to other matriarchal societies on Earth. Some are actually cultures within the human race. They worked very well, which is one of the aspects for Rocket Fox. Instead of a society that tried to be controlled by a church (let’s face it, that’s what happened to us), they became very inquisitive. They explored space and met other cultures.
Not saying that their views on religion were less than ours, but they knew how to separate their faith from their government and from the want to discover. The Vulpine and Felanus are actually, very religious, they just don’t wear it on their sleeves and consider it something very private with a few exceptions).
But in this story, the females of the society are the main focus, because they get stuff done. They hold the greatest rank, but also know that the opinions of the males is equally valuable. They understand that different view points might help them out of a situation. So, yes, I may not be targeting or getting a lot of boys with this story (though, it’s possible that many would read it), but that leaves a story that could be read by a good number of girls.
And that’s never really a bad thing at all.
Words… lots of ‘em
As it turns out, this two week break (which is far from over) has offered me the opportunity to write. And, it’s allowed me the opportunity to use a piece of software I haven’t used in quite some time. That software tool is called ywriter, and was creat by Simon Haynes (author of Hal Spacejock series). It’s helpful and handy and organizes things a little better for plotting and writing. It allows me to set up which characters are main, and which characters are minor. Though, it would be handy if it allowed for placement of extremely minor characters as well, thus giving three tiers to work with. For example, in Rocket Fox, Captain Rita Mallard is a minor character. Though she does appear quite often in the story and is set up as instructor and mentor to Left-tenant Senia Felix, she is not the main focus of the story. But she gets the same flag in ywriter as Corporal Sparks (also known as Sparky) who happens to be a House Ocelot cadet and friend of our three main characters, Senia, Hardy and Clarfax. Sparky shows up twice in the story, both times in extremely minor roles that if taken away in second or third draft edits wouldn’t make much difference.
Even Jada Hawkspur, who has more involvement than Captain Mallard, gets flagged as a minor character.
Aside from that, the tool also allows for locations to be named so you can have a quick reference. Such as there should be no mistaking the name the Wooden Wheelhouse Eatery from the Royal Foxburrow Tea House when you set up a scene where the characters are having a meal. There’s a quick description for each place when you enter it into the database. Thus, you can always be sure that you are going to get it right.
Now, while it is a writing tool, it’s not a glorified version of Word or OpenOffice with lots of different colourful text options available. Yes, you can bold and italicize things, but the main point of the tool is to organize and write.
Something else really cool about this little tool is that you can set up chapters based on each scene. Are the trio of pilots going to be at the House Ocelot common room, or are they going to be at the Tea House? Each chapter has a list of scenes and the writer can edit those with ease without having to scroll through a wall of text to find out where the mistake was.
You can also add in items, if there is a particular item that characters must hold onto at some point. The tool will also let you know how many scenes a character has been in, and will also allow you to determine which character the view point is from. And it reports back all of that data right to the user (writer).
This has also given me the chance to add a couple of scenes to previously written material. For example, I needed to set up an antagonist earlier for Senia. One who foils her hopes of (SPOILER) becoming a fighter pilot. That antagonist happens to be a colonel met in the introductory chapter for Senia.
In a nutshell, this tool has really helped out a great deal, and I just had to mention it.
Back to writing.
NASA Announces Next Steps in Effort to Launch Americans from U.S. Soil
The next step in space exploration from NASA.
NASA and its Commercial Crew Program announced new agreements with three American commercial companies to design and develop the next generation of U.S. human spaceflight capabilities, enabling a launch of astronauts from U.S. soil in the next five years.
Advances made by these companies under newly signed Space Act Agreements through the agency’s Commercial Crew Integrated Capability (CCiCap) initiative are intended to ultimately lead to the availability of commercial human spaceflight services for government and commercial customers.
SpaceX’s crewed Dragon will get more lift capability from the next-generation of Falcon rockets. The uncrewed version of Dragon recently made history as the first commercially built spacecraft to rendezvous and then berth with the International Space Station.
Sierra Nevada Corporation will advance its Dream Chaser spacecraft, which resembles NASA’s space shuttle but is smaller and based on improvements to the agency’s HL-20 lifting-body design. The company partnered with United Launch Alliance to launch its spacecraft atop an Atlas V rocket.
Boeing will continue to develop its CST-100 spacecraft, which underwent rigorous testing during two previous commercial crew development phases. It too will launch atop an Atlas V.
I interrupt my holiday to bring you… Mars!
The latest Mars rover Curiosity has landed on the Martian surface and has sent back the first images to NASA.
This image was taken by Front Hazcam: Right A (FHAZ_RIGHT_A) onboard NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity on Sol 0 (2012-08-06 05:20:36 UTC) .
This image was taken by Rear Hazcam: Left A (RHAZ_LEFT_A) onboard NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity on Sol 0 (2012-08-06 05:18:38 UTC) .
For more images sent by Curiosity, click here. As for the NASA Team, they were elated with the success of Curiosity.
Screenshots I got from Ustream broadcast. TOUCHDOWN CONFIRMED. Receiving information from the surface of Mars!! Congrats JPL!! Images coming down! (via thescienceofreality)
There were even those who gave honourary tribute to the success of the mission.
In honor of Curiosity’s successful landing, I present “Three Generations,” courtesy of John Klose , JPL employee since 2002. It shows the Mars landers Spirit (foreground), Opportunity (middle), and Curiosity (background) taken in front of JPL building 180, aka the Directors building. (via spytap)
Naturally, there was congratulations all around, even the President giving his own words of appreciation.
I congratulate and thank all the men and women of NASA who made this remarkable accomplishment a reality—and I eagerly await what Curiosity has yet to discover. ~President Obama on last night’s rover landing on Mars (viabarackobama)
We’ll be watching and hoping that this will give new information about the mysterious red planet.
Related articles
- Mars rover Curiosity lands on surface of Red Planet – Reuters (reuters.com)
- Photos: NASA Rover Curiosity Touches Down on Mars (abcnews.go.com)
- NASA Scientists Celebrate The “Curiosity” Mars Rover Landing (videogum.com)
- F*ck yes! Curiosity lands on Mars! (leilabattison.wordpress.com)
- NASA?s Curiosity Rover Lands Safely on Mars (wired.com)
- Nasa Curiosity Landing: as it happened (telegraph.co.uk)
- Curiosity Lands on Mars: NASA’s Behind the Scenes Images (mashable.com)
- First Photos of Mars from Curiosity [Mars Rover] (io9.com)
- NASA’s Mars Rover Crashed Into a DCMA Takedown (motherboard.vice.com)
- VIDEO: NASA’s ‘Curiosity’ Rover Makes Historic Landing on Mars (foxnewsinsider.com)
- Greetings From Mars! Huge NASA Rover Makes Daring Landing on Red Planet (space.com)
- Huge Mars Rover Set for Nerve-Wracking Landing on Red Planet Today (space.com)
Rules of Storytelling
Some of Pixar’s Rules of Storytelling, only in LEGO. Credit to mattdemers on tumblr.
Today, even more lazy than others
The newspaper was uploaded to the printer last night, and should be done sometime this morning before I begin the usual Wednesday afternoon grind of labeling all of the mailing labels onto 1200 news papers.
Today, there is only one small publication which we print inhouse that we have to do, and that’s already started.
Tomorrow, the delivery of this week’s issue begins, and once that’s done at around 9:00 in the morning (or perhaps 9:15) then the holidays begin. Two glorious weeks off where I can do whatever I want. Already I’ve been asked if I’d like to travel somewhere far off or take a vacation to some distant and exotic location. But really, my holiday is what I want to do.
I hate driving, really. I hate getting into my car and driving for an hour or two to get to some destination. Driving stresses me out. As for going down to some far off place, like Scotland (because I’ve always wanted to), or the tropics, or go as far south Florida or some other place where it’s supposed to be warm all year round. Well, I’m not into that mostly because it would be much better off to fly to some place like that. And quite frankly, I hate flying. I am deathly afraid of getting onto an airplane. And I’m okay with that.
Also, I never understood why someone would want to go to a hot climate when it’s just that way here. It’s been really warm (though some days have been sweltering) and an all around awesome summer. Wouldn’t you want to wait until winter before heading south?
I’m also debating about getting a new laptop for myself. Replacing my old one and getting a brand new one to act as my lone computer, and set up my desktop computer as a sort of entertainment center. Games, movies, music, all in one location.
That might be something to look into during my two weeks off. Along with writing and other such things.
