Watch Phil's animated LOTR dubs on YouTube. Because I quote it when I'm happy.
This is astonishing news to come from one such as I. My general method of story writing starts with grand and glorious inspiration, followed by a feverish desire to write the beginning, a solid idea for an ending, and not a thought to the bridge in between. Thus, I never finish a book. (That’s my excuse theory, anyway.)
Tonight, while waiting for my mother to come out of a department store, I devised the chapter-by-chapter structure and developed the basic plot of Red. Then I scribbled what I could fit onto a receipt from Trader Joe’s–which was obviously not mine because there was no mac n’ cheese to be seen on the list of purchased items.
Blasphemy.
According to my outline, Red will have a Prologue, an Epilogue, and sixteen chapters betwixt. There are some definite gaps that need filling, but it is an incredible weight lifted off my shoulders to have this guide. I cannot even express with words how excited I am! So let me try to show you…
And please take thirty seconds of your time to watch the first thirty seconds of this video to understand the title of this post. Pleeeeaase. And no one will blame you if you watch the entire clip. Really, it’s okay. I won’t mind.
Challenge #9: How do you get ideas for your characters? Describe the process of creating them.
Scenario I.
-What is ‘Persons First’
While sorting laundry in my garage, I was mulling over The Inheritance Cycle. Namely, Eragon’s unfortunate “blessing” to Elva. I thought, in my usual quest for the romantic, of the problems she’d face in finding a husband, being that men aren’t as attuned to the extreme emotional upset that women suffer and in addition to her unique “ability” she’d have a whole host of trouble. Dialogue formed in my mind and I talked it out between two characters. It soon struck me that this wasn’t about Elva, but a new character that had a similar story to be told. She didn’t belong in the realm of Eragon, but deserved her own kingdom.
She became Lira of Tierelyss. And no, I find no shame in disclosing how other stories influence my writing. It’s a high compliment for authors to inspire other authors. That’s why I still love The Inheritance Cycle, regardless of how people complain about the “originality” of them. Show me one story that has no likeness to any historical happening or previous literary work and I’ll take Trigonometry. And in case this needs to be stated, I hate triangles and I hate maths. So, yeah. I’m that confident you won’t.
Scenario II.
-What is ‘Theme Device’
Currently, I’m fleshing out my “Red” character. I’m molding her to fit a desired narrative/plot/story theme rather than using her to carry those elements along. As I figure out how the fairy tale is to be twisted, “Red” grows as a person, shaped by the events that unfold. It works out perfectly for this story because the very start of it places her in unknown territory with no memories. So “Red” and I are learning together who she is and why.
I used a similar process for Emma Browne, Brisella, and I’m sure several others. This can create difficulty down the road if I find myself writing a scenario that conflicts with a previously established character trait and I have to decide if it makes more sense to change the plot or change the character. Either way, it’s a pain. These are the characters that are inseparable from their stories. Meaning, memes are useless. The story is so much a part of who they are that alternate situations confuse. And yet, these characters are the most real to me.
Scenario III.
-What is ‘Dream Catcher’
Sometimes my REM cycles are very kind and hand me well-rounded characters that need little more than names. I can’t give you tips on how to dream as awesomely as I do. Maybe make sure you get a solid five hours? And set an alarm to wake you up. I’ve read you’re more likely to remember a dream when woken from a deep sleep, and it seems to be true. Don’t let yourself wake up naturally.
Those are just three examples of how characters come to be in my head and on paper. But the methods are as vast as the number of side quests in Knights of the Old Republic. Don’t fuss over methods. Just stick to whatever works for you.
Featured Snippet
“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.“
-Richard Bach
Featured Image
HAH! This post’s permalink had the digits 2319 at the end before I gave it a title. I find that amusing.
"Twenty-three nineteen! We have a twenty-three nineteen!"
I’m usually content to leave these movie reviews up to my friend over at The Creative Juicer. I feel like I’m not qualified to do these since I’m more or less just sharing my opinion and how that’s meant to be useful to you, I don’t know. (I obviously feel completely different about book reviews. )
However, this film came out in the theaters before Timotheous had his blogging quill in hand, and as it’s a Disney fairy tale I feel I have some right to be giving my opinion on it.
Tangled
or what should be known as
Rapunzel
I want to start with the negative and move into the positive.
Let’s start with the most blatantly obvious thing; the title. I have mixed feelings about it because while it’s not called Rapunzel, there lives a little flicker of hope that someday they’ll make one in classic Disney style. However, the odds of that happening seem very slim, and as this is the only Disney animation of Rapunzel so far, they might as well call it what it is–Rapunzel. Besides, not once does her hair really get tangled in the movie. It gets caught, rolled up, tripped over, and purposefully wound on things, but never tangled. Makes the title kind of stupid.
Tresemme! Beautiful hair is easy!
My second issue; Mandy Moore. I have nothing against her voice for the role. It’s sweet and expressive and she did an excellent job. But I have a hard time separating her voice from her name and her face. As soon as I heard Rapunzel talk, I knew who was voicing her. And since A Walk To Remember was such a big part of my youth, I kept picturing scenes from that as I watched.
Oh look, it's me! I mean... Mandy Moore.
So to that I’d just say, I wish they picked some sweet voiced unknown for the role. Maybe if I watch it enough times I’ll forget what Mandy Moore looks like.
*Edit* I have now watched it for the third time and am completely reconciled to the fact that it’s Mandy Moore. In fact, I forgot about it being her. In a good way. So yay!
Next… The animation is not like your standard Disney fairy tale. I’m not the sort of person who learns all the technical terms for things, but suffice to say the graphics are more Toy Story than Cinderella. This bothered me a great deal at first, because even though I’d seen all the posters and art and knew it wasn’t the same, I still half-expected something like this:
And instead was met with this:
…which is quite shocking, believe me. And for a while it felt all wrong, like I stepped into an alternate dimension that pretended to be the world of Disney but wasn’t.
Don’t get me wrong! It’s very pretty and looks like a painting come to life, and by the end of the first scene I was okay with it being different. It just takes some getting used to.
Another negative; Flynn is kind of a jerk. Yes, it’s funny that he’s trying to get rid of this long-haired nuisance and feeds on her guilt and takes her to horrible places to try to make her give up on the deal, but despite the outward laughter, I twitched a bit inside. A Disney prince (or even thief, as we have Aladdin for proof) never put a princess (or lady) in harm’s way. He was always getting her out of it. Always. I really wish they would have been more traditional with this. It’s sweet that he has a change of heart as they progress, but even Dimitri from Anastasia (which is not a Disney film, I realize) wasn’t dragging Anya into scary places just to make her be quiet. You may argue that such a thing risks a character that’s too perfect. But duh, this is Disney. The male love interests are supposed to be perfect, even if they’re rogues. This is making sense, right? It makes sense to me.
"Why did you take me to the scary tavern, Flynn?"
Now what I liked.
I loved the little hints of things from other Disney films. There’s the dandelion that blows in the wind when Rapunzel first comes out of her tower, reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast. Flynn and Rapunzel almost kiss in a boat, kind of like in The Little Mermaid, and a line in the song “I See The Light” goes “it’s crystal clear.” Aladdin, anyone? It makes you feel that despite the new designs they tried not to stray too far from their roots. (Haha! Roots, get it??)
I also thought Maximus the soldier’s horse was epic and grand. And Pascal was adorable. Approval on the animal sidekicks.
Now there are basically four scenes that absolutely made the movie for me. Despite all the little issues I had with the… newfangled… things, these four scenes (and one in particular) were right up there with ye ‘ole treasured Disney classics. (In my humble, unprofessional opinion.)
Firstly, when Rapunzel first leaves the tower. All that scene as well as the bit where she goes through some emotional turmoil. I think every girl can relate to that. And my dad laughed so hard he had to rewind it because he kept missing the next piece of dialogue.
As for the song that leads up to that bit, I’ll admit it isn’t long enough or possessing of that old fashioned charm like “Belle,” but Rapunzel’s exuberance from being free at last is catching, and since it’s a reprise the length can be forgiven. The colorful nature of the scene is breathtaking, and the flock of birds was a nice touch. Because it felt like… yes, we’re flying too. In our hearts.
Wow… what Disney films to do me. *coughs* Right… so, moving on.
The kingdom scene. When Rapunzel goes wandering through the kingdom wide-eyed, it reminds me of my favorite Little Mermaid scene, when she’s excitedly pointing everything out to the prince. And everything that follows creates a gem.
This one is so lovely that I must post the scene. You know all those little surveys that ask, “What’s your ideal date?” I always scoffed and said, “I couldn’t possibly pick an ideal.” Well… I lied. I picked one. It’s this scene. *happy sigh*
And it makes me feel like I’m not a crazy weirdo for dancing in the middle of Sam’s Club to a sample of Celtic music they had on the little test album button. Hey, my skirt was from Ireland and it was begging to be taken for a whirl!
I’m mixing things up chronologically now so I can save the best for last. I won’t put any spoilers, but I love how they did the end. Well… not the very end–I actually though the last scene could have been better–but the whole confrontation in the tower with the evil villainess. I was so frightened that it would be a let down, and I was thrilled to see what they did as far as the whole hair chopping and magical tears part went. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, you’ve never read the Grimm’s version. But yes! It was grand! And wonderful! And I did not feel cheated.
ur haire iz lyk p1llow
Now to the best scene ever.
No matter what else bugged me, no matter what I thought the movie lacked, the lantern scene in the boat with the song made up for it all. I will admit to having grown teary-eyed. It gave me shivers. The fact that I’m not describing it well proves I feel I won’t do it justice. What I mean is, it’s too lovely for words.
Someone, someday is going to recreate this scene and live it with me
and then I will marry him in gratitude.
If you haven’t seen the movie, don’t watch this. Because it’ll all be worth it once you get to this part. If you don’t ever plan on seeing the movie, maybe do watch this and you might change your mind. But still probably don’t because it won’t be as meaningful without the build up… and I don’t want dislikers watching my new favorite Disney scene! *sniffles*
I See The Light
Then I was sold. Best movie ever. Let’s buy it. Own it. REWIND SCENE!!
Oh, did you want a little sum up of thoughts? Maybe a rating for this movie?
I’m feeling devious tonight and will refuse. You can take my really long review or have nothing.
But one last thought. If anything needed adding, it’s a song for Flynn. Not one about thieving, because we already have Aladdin’s nice little ditty about robbing. But… I don’t know… something actiony and daring. He really should have had a solo. It could have been part of the scene where Maximus chases him, and then the music swells and ends right as he comes across the tower. It’s an idea.
Farewell! May your lanterns glow like the starlight!
While we’re on the subject, I might as well give you some character reference.
But WAIT!!!
Don’t look at the pictures below until after you read the story, if you plan on reading the story. I don’t want you getting an image stuck in your head. I want these characters to sort of remain as however you picture them while you’re reading. That’s a different approach for me. Usually I’m very specific with character attributes, but not tonight!
I also wanted to keep an air of mystery about the story, and that’s kind of lost if you have a crystal clear image in your mind for everything–that includes what kind of character(s) feature in it–right from the start. So I do urge you to read that thing first.
Anyway… you may scroll down if you wish to see my idea of the female protagonist… (Unless you already scrolled down to see the pictures first thing, in which case you are an impatient ruffian and I must chide you for being too much like me for your own good.)
Yes, that’s Summer Glau of Firefly. And I did get a little “River” with her POV, but that’s just how it goes. Of course, with the generally unhappy theme of this piece, you should have a less cheerful Summer image to go along with it.
I don’t have a really distinct idea of the *cough*spoilers*cough* guy at the end… but I do know what the wolfy wolf looks like!
There. Wolfy wolf. And nooo, I absolutely did not go and grab the first Google image result for “wolf” that popped up. I looked quite long and hard for a wolf with just the right amount of fluff around his neck, a serious enough expression, and the right coloring. [THIS IS NOT SARCASM.] I was very specific in my wolf characterization! That must count for something!
Are you still wanting a picture of that man at the end? Well I don’t have one. I can’t think of an actor who resembles the image in my mind. If you insist on making me find a picture, you’re going to get this…
Two hobbits and a dwarf! Woo!
…because I really have no reference picture. So enjoy that hobbity picture! Oh, sorry Gimli… enjoy that heroic picture of Middle Earthly orc slayers!
And no one will blame you if you watch the entire clip. Really, it’s okay. I won’t mind. 
I find that amusing.
