Writing, Writing, Writing Away

Over the last three days I've put down over 10,000 words on a new project I'm working on, and I'm pretty sure I'm only about half-way, three quarters through the first act. It's really encouraging to me that I've been doing this, because it's what I really want to be doing with my life. It makes having to go to work that much harder. So, my goal is to really push through writing this manuscript and by November or December really start working on getting it edited up. 2013 is the year I want to publish. Granted, 2012 was the year I wanted to publish as well, but I see now that Aether might just need to be put on the backburner a little.

When I get to that point with this manuscript that I'm looking for agents again, I could really use any and all support, good thoughts and fairy godmothers I can get. I could use those right now too. I'm pursuing my dream, giving it my all, and I believe that my hard work can pay off.

Back to writing now~

Why I don’t care for Movies made from Books.

Why I don’t care for Movies made from Books.

This is one thing that anyone who knows me really well can tell you that I’m particularly vehement about. I like to read. A lot. And in some minds that may be enough to condemn movies altogether. The thing is, I really like watching movies too. I worked at a video store for three years and quite happily watched just about every movie that I could. The problem?

The stories and craft necessary to write a book or a movie are very different.  What is the number one complaint you hear when a new movie based on a novel is released? 9 out of 10 times I’d say it’s “they left out so much! All of my favorite parts!” The other 1 out of ten is usually “it just plain out sucked.” The prime example of that would be the movie version of Eragon. Yikes. The only redeeming part of that movie was how pretty Saphira was.

There’s a reason they’ve extended the upcoming Hobbit movie into 3 full length films. For a book that is around 100,000 words, give or take, that seems like the only way to do it full justice. There’s just too much story to be crammed into a three hour film.

A movie script has about an average of a minute of film per page.  So, let’s say one three hour movie has around 200 pages. A Microsoft word document has usually 300 or so words, give or take based on formatting. That’s a lot fewer words.

But of course, movies aren’t as much about the words. If  you sat through a three hour movie that was nothing but dialogue, it would be absolutely terrible. Movies are about the visual, emotional, connection that the actors portray through a combination of body language and dialogue. A character cannot be as introspective in a movie without a voice over, which can be done very well or very not.

I recently reread the Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, and Children of the Mind. I love those books. They are very philosophical, bringing up issues about what it means to be human, or even sentient. I hate putting those books down once I start reading, I’m kept on the edge of my seat because I just need to know what is going to happen.

They wouldn’t make great movies. A lot of the books are dialogue, and very thought provoking dialogue at that. I’m a little leery of the upcoming Ender’s Game movie. I have faith that Orson Scott Card knows what he’s doing, and Harrison Ford as Col. Graff intrigues me.

I’ve been told by many people that I need to learn to set aside the book when I see a movie. With the Harry Potter movies, I simply was unable to do that. I feel that those movies were too much too soon. If they had waited ten, fifteen years from the end of the series to make the movies it might have been better. I didn’t like the movies at all, but I adore the books. How can I set aside the stories that I absolutely adore when a movie is butchering the same story?

I’ve been asked if I publish a book, if I’ll want to sell the movie rights. I really don’t think I would. Not until at least twenty years after the book is published. Or until I’m dead. Really, either way works for me. If I publish a successful book, I want it to be successful by it’s own merits. I want readers to fall in love with the story and the characters the way they were meant to be. Not because the actor was really really cute. If I want to make a movie, I think I’ll write a screenplay.

Frankly, I think there need to be more truly original screenplays instead of relying on the popularity of books. A good, compelling story on screen is hard to do, but I love it when it’s done right.

Wonder-Toast. He's suave, sophisticated, crunchy. Who could resist?

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Ender's Game Review

Ender’s Game is a Science Fiction novel written by Orson Scott Card. It is the story of a futuristic Earth that has survived two alien invasions, and is desperately preparing for a third invasion. The International Fleet has a Battle School in orbit to train the commanders that will battle the bugger fleet. The trainee that the IF has put all its hopes in is the five year old genius Andrew Wiggin, who goes by Ender.

Orson Scott Card does a spectacular job in weaving such an intricate story from the perspective of a young boy. At the beginning of every chapter the reader is presented with a conversation from the adults that are manipulating Ender’s life. These snippets are a tantalizing foreshadowing to what Ender is really going through. The reader isn’t given a full scope of things until Ender himself is.

The Battle School is a sad example of the brutality that children are capable if trained for it. These children are stripped of cultural or familial identity at a young age, and after a brief training period are placed in an ‘Army’ where they perform mock battles in Zero Gravity with the other Armies. This game is the entire core of the Battle School, and shows the adults which of the children is suited for tactics and command. I forgot several times on my first reading that I wasn’t reading about adults, but young children under the age of twelve. The brutality and cold calculation which Ender is capable of is almost unbelievable when I look at my nephew. He’s the same age as Ender, and it breaks my heart that this School is training such young children to be ruthless warriors.

This only makes the book more worthwhile. Card not only tells a fascinating and engrossing story, but brings to mind many of the same social issues that the book Lord of the Flies addresses.

Overall, I would say that Ender's Game is one of the most finely crafted books I have ever read. It leads into a around 9 books that follow Ender, or another Battle School graduate named Bean, each of which are just as engaging and enjoyable to read as the original.

Craft: 10/10

Characters: 9/10

Plot: 10/10

Significance: 10/10