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Business and Pleasure
Jan. 20th, 2008 10:03 pmFirst, business:
The deadline for Contest #2: The Review Contest is this coming January 24th. This is the contest where if you've read any of the three books (Skewed Throne, Cracked Throne, or Vacant Throne) and you write a review for them and post them on Amazon.com or at Barnes & Noble, then you have a chance to get yourself tuckerized in the new book, Well of Sorrows. If you've already got reviews posted, then you can still enter by posting your review on your blog. In all cases, you should email me at jpalmatier@sff.net saying you've posted a review and where so I can enter you in the contest. All of the details are at www.joshuapalmatier.com.
Also, if you're a writer, we're getting close to the start of the Commendable Critique Contest. That starts on February 1st. Details are also at www.joshuapalmatier.com. Keep in mind that for this contest you aren't being judged on the piece of writing you submit (meaning it doesn't have to be perfect by any means) but on how well you critique other people's writing. It's being run in conjunction with the Science Fiction and Fantasy (and Horror) Online Writing Workshop, commonly called the OWW.
And now for the pleasure:
Today, I went to see Cloverfield. I thought the movie rocked. Why has someone not done a movie like this before? It's such a simple idea, one that really snags my interest, which is not a surprise considering Skewed Throne. However, I can totally see why some people out there, say the general public, may not come away from the movie feeling . . . satisfied. It doesn't do what most people expect movies to do. Which in my opinion is a good thing. However, it does do exactly what it promises to do, and it does that very well, so people who feel the movie sucks . . . probably just didn't get it. This ties into an idea that I've talked about before: the hidden contract in all books (and movies) between the author (director) and the reader (viewer). In all such things, there's an agreement at the beginning that this is what you're getting, and then it's up to the author to give the reader that, in an entertaining way. Cloverfield tells you exactly what you're getting in the first minute, and it gives you exactly that. So you wanted something more, the main question I'd ask is, WHY? If you expect something more, then you yourself violated your side of the contract. Nothing more was promised.
[If you'd like to hear more about this hidden contract of which I speak, please ask in the comments. I can always expound on this as a writing tip.]
Anyway, I ALSO enjoyed myself immensely this evening by watching the season finale of The Amazing Race. And it rocked. I like the new tactic of presenting the Racers with some type of "mental" challenge that requires they have actually paid attention to the places they were racing through during the season. Also, I like the new penalty for finishing a leg last but not being eliminated, called a speedbump. It's much better than taking away all their money and belongings and requiring that they beg. Doing an additional task that could put them even farther behind than they already are is penalty enough.
Oh, and the replacement for the Race on Sunday evenings is apparently going to be the return of Jericho. I'll have to catch up on the DVDs before they do that. It starts Feb 12th, I think.
Oh, oh! I almost forgot. There was a trailer of sorts for the new Star Trek movie before Cloverfield as well. In my heart, I know that the movie will probably suck, but I also know I'll go see it, and there will always be eternal hope that it won't suck. I'm an optimist in that respect I guess.
Anyway, writing continues at a decent pace (1/3 of the way through the next chapter already) and I haven't killed any of my students yet, so things are good. Now to try to get some pleasure reading done before crashing for the night. Later!
The deadline for Contest #2: The Review Contest is this coming January 24th. This is the contest where if you've read any of the three books (Skewed Throne, Cracked Throne, or Vacant Throne) and you write a review for them and post them on Amazon.com or at Barnes & Noble, then you have a chance to get yourself tuckerized in the new book, Well of Sorrows. If you've already got reviews posted, then you can still enter by posting your review on your blog. In all cases, you should email me at jpalmatier@sff.net saying you've posted a review and where so I can enter you in the contest. All of the details are at www.joshuapalmatier.com.
Also, if you're a writer, we're getting close to the start of the Commendable Critique Contest. That starts on February 1st. Details are also at www.joshuapalmatier.com. Keep in mind that for this contest you aren't being judged on the piece of writing you submit (meaning it doesn't have to be perfect by any means) but on how well you critique other people's writing. It's being run in conjunction with the Science Fiction and Fantasy (and Horror) Online Writing Workshop, commonly called the OWW.
And now for the pleasure:
Today, I went to see Cloverfield. I thought the movie rocked. Why has someone not done a movie like this before? It's such a simple idea, one that really snags my interest, which is not a surprise considering Skewed Throne. However, I can totally see why some people out there, say the general public, may not come away from the movie feeling . . . satisfied. It doesn't do what most people expect movies to do. Which in my opinion is a good thing. However, it does do exactly what it promises to do, and it does that very well, so people who feel the movie sucks . . . probably just didn't get it. This ties into an idea that I've talked about before: the hidden contract in all books (and movies) between the author (director) and the reader (viewer). In all such things, there's an agreement at the beginning that this is what you're getting, and then it's up to the author to give the reader that, in an entertaining way. Cloverfield tells you exactly what you're getting in the first minute, and it gives you exactly that. So you wanted something more, the main question I'd ask is, WHY? If you expect something more, then you yourself violated your side of the contract. Nothing more was promised.
[If you'd like to hear more about this hidden contract of which I speak, please ask in the comments. I can always expound on this as a writing tip.]
Anyway, I ALSO enjoyed myself immensely this evening by watching the season finale of The Amazing Race. And it rocked. I like the new tactic of presenting the Racers with some type of "mental" challenge that requires they have actually paid attention to the places they were racing through during the season. Also, I like the new penalty for finishing a leg last but not being eliminated, called a speedbump. It's much better than taking away all their money and belongings and requiring that they beg. Doing an additional task that could put them even farther behind than they already are is penalty enough.
Oh, and the replacement for the Race on Sunday evenings is apparently going to be the return of Jericho. I'll have to catch up on the DVDs before they do that. It starts Feb 12th, I think.
Oh, oh! I almost forgot. There was a trailer of sorts for the new Star Trek movie before Cloverfield as well. In my heart, I know that the movie will probably suck, but I also know I'll go see it, and there will always be eternal hope that it won't suck. I'm an optimist in that respect I guess.
Anyway, writing continues at a decent pace (1/3 of the way through the next chapter already) and I haven't killed any of my students yet, so things are good. Now to try to get some pleasure reading done before crashing for the night. Later!
