I'm Getting Sick of Details

Lately my reading experience has been chafed considerably by something I'm embarrassed to get upset over. That being, what I consider, too many details. As I read more literature it's becoming clear to me that when it comes to this medium, I'm a story guy. I want to be riveted and intrigued by narrative. However as I enter the fourth book in Steven King's "The Dark Tower" series, I'm having trouble drudging through what I previously believed was a compelling story. King, and many other authors in my opinion, get too caught up in their own writing and begin to add far too many details than necessary to tell a vivid and lofty story. As I read what I beleive to be massive side tracks I can't help but want to check wikipedia for what happens the rest of the book. Yes, exposition is a necessity for creating a good novel, but there is a line to be drawn. Perhaps I'm just too cranky when I read, and I'm missing the bigger picture. Perhaps...

I See America Competing

I SEE America competing, the many attempts I see;

Those of working men--each of them buying their way to acceptance, sad and pathetic,

The teenager competing, as he thrives for his peers' attention,

The spoiled child competing for what he believes he's entitled to,

The parent competing through their offspring when they have no outlet themselves,

The aspiring performer competing for the affection, and attention of his country,

The corporate leader competing for control of his market, with Machiavellian method,

The governement bigshot competing for aristocratic approval,

The self-deprecating every man competing with himself for a sense of peace,

Competing, with narrow minds, for their misplaced priotrities and ideals.

Self Reliance

"What have I to do with the sacredness of traditions, if I live wholly from within?"

This emerson quote put into words what has been my view on tradition for quite some time. I've been bothered by the concept of tradition. It's restrictive, and at many times unnecessary. I'm not saying all tradition is bad, but I do beleive it's largely unnecessary. In my perfect world everyone would create there own life. Is it not a bit selfish to pass down, or in some cases force your ways onto your offspring? If the world was my way, everyone would create their own personal philosophy and way of life.

Using tradition there isn't much room for improvement. Things can be changed here and there, but it largely keeps things the way they are. From a worldly perspective, traditionalism is dangerous as you can't stay the same while the world obstensibly changes. You must attune things to fit the current times.

Humanism In Writing

Reading the first chapter of The Great Gatsby re sparked my interest in the writing of psychology. Yes, you read that correctly, the writing of psychology. It's my personal opinion that an author's ability to break down and compose the human condition, at least when dealing with characters, is the most important factor in creating compelling prose.
This is not an easy thing to do however. Writing about the inner workings and motivations of characters' is tricky. The writer runs the risk of applying too many of their own idiosyncracies into the writing. Having a strange or abnormal way of viewing things, though creative when executed correctly, can alienate the reader and dislodge them from the world the author is trying to pull them into.
It's also important not to be too convoluted in your interpretations of humanism. It's rarely a good idea to fill your writing with complex ideas related to a characters psyche or motivations. it detracts from the potential deepness of the plot.

Non-fiction is Killing Me

In true blog fashion, I'm going to take some time to bitch and moan, and share my opinions as if they matter. Lets do this.



I hate non-fiction. Why? That's what I'm still trying to figure out. I have a few ideas that might be relevant however. Perhaps it is because my over imaginative mind is so over saturated with thoughts of the fantastical nature that when I'm presented with things grounded in reality my brain immediately dismisses it. This is not something I am proud of, I would like to be interested in non-fiction, as there is a lot to learn about. I am, however, finding it difficult to analyze these non-fiction writings in a thorough matter, even when I'm trying.
Another possibility is that these writings do not contain the narrative hooks I'm so accustomed to. The conflicts aren't ambiguous enough, more enemies are created than friendships, and much of it is irrational in retrospect-and that's all I can pull out of much of the writing.
I will persevere though. It would be selfish of me to expect a class to cater to my interests, and only my interests. Thankfully, some of the more philosophically based essays are catching my attention, which is much better than nothing.

Eight Plot/Character Devices I'm A Sucker For.

1. Time Travel: As contrived and cliched as it's come to be these days, I can never get enough of time travel. Not in the most classical "let's go back to ancient Egypt and learn how they lived!" sense but in dealing with things like the butterfly effect. I'm intrigued by the idea making small changes and creating large ramifications in the future. Good stuff.

2. Flashbacks: I loooove flashbacks. Learning about someone's past and why they're the way they are today is fascinating to me. It's a cool way to introduce psychology to writing, as well as creating climactic reveals and plot twists.

3. Bad Guy Turns Good: Yeah, this one is pretty awful originality-wise, but I still love it for some reason. Getting to see an "evil" character from a new perspective creates a fresh feel to a narrative. Seeing how they develope under new circumstances creates cool situations

4. Good Guy Turns Bad: I almost like this one even more. Seeing a character kicked around so much that they turn immoral actions is very entertaining to me. Another psychological aspect of writing that's intriguing.

5. Snowball Effect: I really like when a narrative begins in a very simple setting, with a simple character in simple circumstances; however, one particular event changes all of this and creates a story of epic porportions. Small scale instantly ramps up to large scale with little oppurtunity to look back.

6: Puppet Master: Even though I always see this one coming, it almost always satisfies me as well. Finding out the coniving master mind that's been pestering the protaganist for some time is only a tool for a much more powerful entity is really cool. Turning what was once an unstoppable villain into an insubstantial rag doll can be a really cool twist, when used correctly. However, this is an awful idea when thrown into at the end just to extend a plot line. If it all makes sense in retrospect, it can work great.

7. Substantial Time-Lapse: Having a substantial time lapse part way through a story is very refreshing to me. This device is actually pretty rare compared to the previous ones. Having a good chunk of a story involve the childhood events of a character, then the entire second half involving it's adulthood can create some really cool progression that would otherwise be lost in a plot that progresses on a day to day basis.

8. Multiple Perspectives/Crossover: Seeing events from multiple prespectives always excites me. It really helps get a full view of what happend. Even little nods here and there to other things that were going on at the same time as a particular event really flesches out a story.

"Times have changed for student protesters"

My theory as to why students are more apathetic towards political causes these days is that it's the current nature of our country. I feel the goverment and (some) media alike have kind of chipped away at our spirit, and have replaced this spirit with a false sense of security in our governments actions. Though usually not completely frowned upon, political protests aren't exactly portrayed in the most positive light by our media and education. Seldom were we ever encouraged growing up to stand up to the government when what you see is wrong. Not to mention the fact that these important events are usually glossed over by the government. You need to be in a progressive and intelligent educational system to get a good idea of what went on during a particular protest.

Now the majority of us don't feel we can make a difference, we feel the government is an unstoppable juggernaut that won't give pause to our actions, great or small. Can I blame us? In recent history large movements such as gay rights and the legalization of marijauna have show little avail on a national scale, so maybe the government is impenetrable these days. Now I'm pissed off and depressed. Bah.