Book Comments

Holder of Lightning (The Cloudmages #1) S_L_Farrell

The characters were fairly solid but the names were very difficult. I know he was trying to use the Gaelic, but I would have appreciated a pronunciation guide. As it was, the names were so hard to get a handle on that I lost tract of who was who. Despite that, I will be interested to see where he takes book 2.

Geography

This is what I call it when I can't envision the placement of the scene. I tell the members of my critique group that I need more geography. Where is the bookcase in relation to the door or the stairs? Where is the stream in relation to the path?

So it struck me funny when I got the critique in return.

What makes it even worse is that my geography is on another planet. So, I'm taking a step back from rewriting so I can build my geography. I printed some pictures of Greek cities, because they are old and the terrain is similar to what I envisioned for one place. I'll print some street maps also, to help me see the sprawl of the city.

As I started to lay out the physical structure of one city a slew of ideas surfaced about what might be there - parks, and subways, trams, where the government buildings should be and access. How to people get where they want to be.

World building is hard, but it can be a lot of fun.

Inspired by Sting

I love music.

Sometimes, I think I forget that. During the day I work as a bookkeeper. I need to concentrate on numbers, so I like a quiet work space.

I like to sing along to music. That means I can't concentrate while listening to my favorite songs. It's either classical music on NPR or nothing.

The other night I watched a show with Sting and a Country Western singer whose name I can't remember. And they played some of my favorite Sting songs. And I remembered how much I love those songs. But the thing that stood out, was Sting himself.

"He thrums," my sister said. And that was very true. He exuded energy. He was buzzing with life. Bouncing on his toes as he sang. It didn't feel like he was hyped up on a drug. It felt like he was just bursting with life. Wow.

And a little voice in my brain said, "You need a character like that in the book."

The obligatory gratitude post

Being vegetarians, today will not involve any dead birds for us. But we do plan a big meal and yummy desserts.

I am a cynic when it comes to commercial holidays. I hate being told when to be grateful and when to be compassionate. And Black Friday is an event that makes me embarrassed to be American.

That said, I am grateful for where I am today. I have a lovely little house in a wonderful, older, very quiet neighborhood. My small yard keeps me busy year round with gardening, composting, raking leaves and mowing the lawn. My job gives me time to write. And I work out of the house, so I can garden on my breaks.

I've got a supportive family and a great critique group.

I'm not rich or famous (yet), but I've lived the starving artist lifestyle for so long that I don't know what I'd do with a lot of money. Buy the really expensive chocolate? Get massages more often? Maybe buy a fancier car? Meh. I can live without it.

So, when it comes down to it, I'm grateful every day for the simple life I have.

Anne McCaffrey - a major influence

I think one of the reasons I started writing was because my favorite authors didn't produce fast enough and I wanted to play in their worlds. Pern has always been a favorite for me. And some of those characters, all these years later, still resonate with me. The dragons, the fire lizards, Harper Hall, fighting thread...such a completely realized world. I guess that's what makes it so inviting to return.

I didn't know her or much of her life, but her writing deeply touched me. And I am grateful to have visited with the people in her head.

Thanks for everything, Anne. I hope you're on a new and greater adventure now.

More Thoughts on books

Well, I finished the book on the moon - Ben Bova's Moonrise. I have to say that after the protag is killed, I lost a lot of interest. I finished the book, but the characters seemed stuck. 18 years passes, but no one grows, the technology is the same and the son takes over the personality of the character that was killed.

I found the life on the moon base and  the interaction of the people interesting. I also found the research into nanotechnology interesting. The political backlash and rise of the ultra conservative society felt tacked on. It was something that apparently developed very quickly in the background.

In the final confrontation when the son has to save Moonbase (which he sort of doesn't) a minor character is killed for no apparent reason. That aggravated me. It should have made me sad, right? She was a very sympathetic character, so her death should have touched me. Her death is collateral damage. So I guess that it is supposed to underline the evil of the antagonist. Didn't work for me.

The characters start spouting the same dialog over and over. OK. I got it. They're driven. Now tell me something else. Many reviews of this book say that the second book, Moon War is much better. Not sure if I will read it.

He killed off the main character!

Half way through the book I am reading, the author killed off the main character. 

I finished the chapter and thought, what now? I was invested in him. I wanted him to beat the odds. The first page started with his challenge, the obstacle he had to overcome. And he didn't. Bummer.

The book became the story of a dynasty, not just a person. Which was sort of interesting. Because the main character's son basically became him. And the time shifts to 18 years later. I'm not sure that it's working for me. The book is science fiction, but it's really about corporate politics - on the moon. But I'm still reading, so something is working. I have to think about this for awhile. When I'm finished I will give it a fuller review.