Interwebs...Serious Business.

Seems a good time to write this blog as I haven’t written one in awhile, and the mayhem on GameFAQs relates to what it is about. I was given the idea of “Self Control” from Clovis about a week back, and told to comment on how people take the internet too seriously—how they need to exhibit a little self control. So, on a Role Playing note I’ll comment on Chimed’s World Cup Tournament. I’ve noticed the many different styles, not of writing, but of how each writer goes about their writing. Some are very adamant about their posts; getting them up just hours after their opponent makes his move. Others, like myself, find that we are racing the time limit to get in an attack. Some even sacrifice quality to get one in, and others just say, “I’ll post when I feel like it damn it! Stop rushing me!”

Another big issue is the level of seriousness taken in the duels. Coming together in a site-wide tournament involving so many boards—so many styles, is bound to bring up issues involving a character’s acceptability, if their attacks fall under the category of cheeze, or if he is too godly to be fighting. Sometimes I can understand where the complaints are coming from; if an attack involves a bottle of lube, a supernova, and your ass, it is probably cheezing, but in some cases duelists confuse unorthodox with overpowering. Maybe they can’t accept the change of styles from the days when the dueled…or maybe they just aren’t sure how to change.

This leads me into my next point; Ceej, better known as CJayC, updated the boards about a week ago. He gave them a sleek new look and switched around the home page a bit. He even gave the boards a pHp template instead of having tons of html documents. Doesn’t sound like a very big deal, right? Maybe even sounds helpful, right? Well, if you visit the boards you would think the world was ending. Some of the users are just being unreasonable. I’ve encountered multiple threats to actually leave GameFAQs. Keep in mind, all we have is a new style, but no loss of content, no blockage of boards; basically the same face with some new make-up, and yet these people are so attached to the past that they would rather not come at all than to get used to a new look…

RIDICULOUS!

~~~

You people are going to get ulcers. Control thy selves!

Corbs

Delving Deeper

Unraveling The Web

That’s right, after so long I’ve finally churned one out. It’s a bit off the wall, but hey, it’s better than nothing right?

Times have changed, people have changed, but the ideals have stayed the same. Perhaps this is why writing can be so tough at times; it’s been done before and you just keep on getting inspiration from the Hall of Clichés. But then again, isn’t it human nature to emulate what he knows and is familiar with? Such is the reason that personal traits of the author always seem to seep through to a character in their writings. No matter how hard a writer tries, their innermost feelings and deep desires may slip into the framework at any given point.

Sometimes, you will find a character in a story that is a complete opposite from the writer’s own persona, but even then traits about the author can still be just as easily discerned. When reading a piece of work I like to try and dig into the writer’s brain. I want to feel what they felt, see how they saw, and think what they thought. Such is the method I use when wading through the millions of pieces of literature and finding one I actually like. It helps me to understand perspectives of other authors about their writing, characters, and storylines.

Here is an example of how I decipher a personality trait in an author; after getting a good idea of who the characters are and the general story of the book I can get to work breaking down each individual character. With each description and action throughout the carefully spun tale I file away notes about traits, thoughts, and feelings I think may be important to piecing the puzzle together later on. More often than not I find characters overlapping into the same feelings or views of the world shaped around them. This is where the puzzle begins to take shape; by taking into account the most overlaps I can theorize about what the author was trying to portray; unconsciously or not. Say a set of characters has a certain ideal involving an event in the story, you can then guess that either the author intended for this to occur or his own morals slipped silently into each of these characters.

In my own experience I have to look deeper into what kind of affect this standpoint has on the story. Do this character’s feelings contribute to how the storyline unfolds, or is it just a description that the author gave us to give a better idea of where that character stands?

More than likely the main character is going to be who the author is based off of or at least who he wants to be. In most writing the secondary characters carry traits of friends the author knows on a more intimate basis; maybe even an annoying habit of a family member he has. The side characters might be based off of acquaintances, co-workers, or other people not affecting the writer’s life in any significant way.

However, there are always exceptions to this viewpoint. A phenomenal writer is sometimes able to create a character meshed so well with a myriad of facts and details that they seem completely unique, but a writer does have to get his ideas from somewhere…

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You may be asking yourself, “What does this have to do with my writing?” Well, I’ll tell you; this gives you a bit more insight to how some of your readers may view your work, thus letting you understand how to improve.

All in all, this is just a perspective from a single reader and writer. Some people have other means of dissecting your work; your job is just to figure out how to please them all.

Corbow6

I Died

Not really, but with the lack of updates to my blog, you may as well have thought me dead, gone, and other words of a similar meaning to which my absence can be described as.

So, last week on Wednesday I finally got my drivers license. Took the road test exam, did well on it. Only one problem with my driving, I don't shoulder-check when turning right or left at a stop sign, otherwise my driving is good. So, I've finally gotten rid of my 'N' -- can't say I'll miss it, either.

Another thing that happened on Wednesday last week was that I got to fly for the first time in my life. A short hour long flight down to Vancouver. Did I get a window seat? Nope, I got an aisle seat, so I didn't get to see anything. Which is probably for the better, since I fell asleep once the plane was in the air. Just out like a light. I guess you could say I wasn't entirely excited about flying for the first time, or anxious, or even nervous. Just another thing that's happened to me in my rather rushed pace as I head off for Basic.

Oh, yes, and I'm not army, Canadian Forces. I was sworn-in last Thursday at CFRC Vancouver, which was why I flew down there in the first place. A lot of paperwork, but in the end, I think it was well worth it. And then on Sunday, just a couple days ago, I got Baptized. About time I did that -- been a Christian for well over sixteen years now. And lastly, I leave for Basic this Friday.

So much happening in such a short time, who knew?

 

- W. Visarett