To let you all know that a flash fiction piece of mine is up on vis a tergo, an online lit mag. It is titled "The Hammock" and was written for combat words a bit ago. Oofda that is a lot of links.
SO. Go read it!
I'll be back June 3rd! I hope you are all enjoying the month of May!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Public Service Announcement
A couple of things:
First, Blog Hiatus, from today until June 1! I am sorry to do it, but May is going CRAZY on me with travel and family obligations (birthdays and anniversaries and weddings galore!) and I really just want to focus on getting this Pirithous draft done with the LITTLE time I will not be spending running around like a chicken with its head cut off. Check back Friday, June 3 for my return to the blog. I have no idea what that post will be about but hopefully it will be spectacular enough to make up for my absence!
Second, my SPOILER FREE review of THOR is up over on GeekaChicas, and do please read up! I can add after my second viewing that 2D is superior and El husband and I both enjoyed the movie even more the second time through! 2D even had better previews. I don't know what they were thinking not including a Captain America preview in front of the IMAX showing, but that was pretty dumb. Oh yes, and when you go to Thor, be sure to stay through the credits for the Avengers teaser scene. Unless you don't care about Avengers or what is coming next for Thor, in which case, feel free to leave before the Foo Fighters song in the end credits.
If you love me, you will not just go read my review, you will also go see the movie, if for no other reason than to see the magic Chris Hemsworth works with the role of Thor. And also so that this movie makes enough money that we get a Thor 2 after Avengers. All right? Excellent! Share the #ThorLove!
And lastly, this quote, because I love it. Paris is speaking (writing) to Helen, trying to convince her to run away with him.
First, Blog Hiatus, from today until June 1! I am sorry to do it, but May is going CRAZY on me with travel and family obligations (birthdays and anniversaries and weddings galore!) and I really just want to focus on getting this Pirithous draft done with the LITTLE time I will not be spending running around like a chicken with its head cut off. Check back Friday, June 3 for my return to the blog. I have no idea what that post will be about but hopefully it will be spectacular enough to make up for my absence!
Second, my SPOILER FREE review of THOR is up over on GeekaChicas, and do please read up! I can add after my second viewing that 2D is superior and El husband and I both enjoyed the movie even more the second time through! 2D even had better previews. I don't know what they were thinking not including a Captain America preview in front of the IMAX showing, but that was pretty dumb. Oh yes, and when you go to Thor, be sure to stay through the credits for the Avengers teaser scene. Unless you don't care about Avengers or what is coming next for Thor, in which case, feel free to leave before the Foo Fighters song in the end credits.
If you love me, you will not just go read my review, you will also go see the movie, if for no other reason than to see the magic Chris Hemsworth works with the role of Thor. And also so that this movie makes enough money that we get a Thor 2 after Avengers. All right? Excellent! Share the #ThorLove!
And lastly, this quote, because I love it. Paris is speaking (writing) to Helen, trying to convince her to run away with him.
"And so Theseus rightly felt love’s flame, for he was acquaint with all your charms, and you seemed fit spoil for the great hero to steal away, [...]. His stealing you away, I commend; my marvel is that he ever gave you back." Ovid, Heroides: 16.
That is in fact my marvel too, Paris.
Friday, May 06, 2011
Thor vs. Green Lantern (This is not a Classics Post. Oops.)
In CELEBRATION of today being THE DAY, I give you this most excellent youtube video.
You can rest assured that I am going to see Thor today in IMAX 3D. A report of its greatness (Please God, let it be great!) will follow in good time.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Faith and Mystery
Studying mythology is very much a journey of faith for me. I don't talk about it a lot on here, because I don't like to step on toes-- it isn't really about TRUTH, or one right way, and I've always felt faith and religion are and should be very private things. Whatever my beliefs, they're between me and the powers that be, and the same for yours. We don't have to agree. In fact, the world would be a much less interesting place if we did. I wouldn't be able to study both Classical Myth and Norse Myth along side my own Catholic upbringing, if everyone agreed, and where's the fun in that?
But as a Classicist (and interestingly enough I rarely feel this way about Norse myth), I often find myself wondering why in tarnation anyone would want to worship gods that were so cruel, so arbitrary, so generally unjust. What is there to honor in a god like Zeus, who rapes women as he pleases, or even Athena, the vaunted goddess of reason, when she throws it all out the window to curse Medusa for being unfortunate enough to draw Poseidon's eye. It's so easy to sit back and say we've evolved beyond that kind of thing, as a race. We've wised up enough to realize that worshipping a god like that makes no sense. There is no substance, maybe, or there is no justice, or there is no worth.
It's easy to think, in those unguarded moments of arrogance, that we are much more civilized now as a culture. But in America, we are by and large a culture firmly rooted in Christianity and Judeo-Christian myth. On the surface, the New Testament does present a more genteel deity than the gods that the ancient Greeks worshipped. The Olympians could be called a lot of things, but Champions of Forgiveness and Love they were not, and Jesus and His Father were something of a revelation in that respect. At least to the Greeks and the Romans (and perhaps that's why it took hold in the west, but the east maintains its own much older faiths still).
But if you look at the Old Testament, you can see the same shapes of those Olympians. Punishments were harsh, sacrifices were demanded, and God could be just as cruel to the people who didn't live by His rules as any Olympian. You don't need to look much beyond Genesis for examples: The punishment and banishment of Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood, and if I had been Abraham, asked to sacrifice my own son to PROVE something to an all-knowing God, I don't think I'd have gone along with it myself. Beyond Genesis there is much, much more, and I could list them all day-- one of my personal favorites is the story of Samson, in Judges (a strange thing to say, I know, because Samson is incredibly mean-tempered and cruel. Maybe he reminds me of Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, who I love to hate, but I also pity Samson and Delilah both).
In fact, I almost find reading the Old Testament to be even more disturbing than Greek Myth. Maybe because I'm not connected to the Greeks with my own faith. But maybe too, that's part of the point. MAYBE faith is supposed to be about the mystery. MAYBE if we aren't wondering if we're a little bit insane for trusting these crazy gods, we're doing it wrong. Maybe that's what faith is all about-- the mystery of whether or not you're completely sane for going through it all and trusting and believing, in spite of everything.
Of course, all the talk of mystery could just be the Catholic in me. But I think, for all the things that change, we will never give up faith in things that don't make sense.
But as a Classicist (and interestingly enough I rarely feel this way about Norse myth), I often find myself wondering why in tarnation anyone would want to worship gods that were so cruel, so arbitrary, so generally unjust. What is there to honor in a god like Zeus, who rapes women as he pleases, or even Athena, the vaunted goddess of reason, when she throws it all out the window to curse Medusa for being unfortunate enough to draw Poseidon's eye. It's so easy to sit back and say we've evolved beyond that kind of thing, as a race. We've wised up enough to realize that worshipping a god like that makes no sense. There is no substance, maybe, or there is no justice, or there is no worth.
It's easy to think, in those unguarded moments of arrogance, that we are much more civilized now as a culture. But in America, we are by and large a culture firmly rooted in Christianity and Judeo-Christian myth. On the surface, the New Testament does present a more genteel deity than the gods that the ancient Greeks worshipped. The Olympians could be called a lot of things, but Champions of Forgiveness and Love they were not, and Jesus and His Father were something of a revelation in that respect. At least to the Greeks and the Romans (and perhaps that's why it took hold in the west, but the east maintains its own much older faiths still).
But if you look at the Old Testament, you can see the same shapes of those Olympians. Punishments were harsh, sacrifices were demanded, and God could be just as cruel to the people who didn't live by His rules as any Olympian. You don't need to look much beyond Genesis for examples: The punishment and banishment of Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood, and if I had been Abraham, asked to sacrifice my own son to PROVE something to an all-knowing God, I don't think I'd have gone along with it myself. Beyond Genesis there is much, much more, and I could list them all day-- one of my personal favorites is the story of Samson, in Judges (a strange thing to say, I know, because Samson is incredibly mean-tempered and cruel. Maybe he reminds me of Gaston in Beauty and the Beast, who I love to hate, but I also pity Samson and Delilah both).
In fact, I almost find reading the Old Testament to be even more disturbing than Greek Myth. Maybe because I'm not connected to the Greeks with my own faith. But maybe too, that's part of the point. MAYBE faith is supposed to be about the mystery. MAYBE if we aren't wondering if we're a little bit insane for trusting these crazy gods, we're doing it wrong. Maybe that's what faith is all about-- the mystery of whether or not you're completely sane for going through it all and trusting and believing, in spite of everything.
Of course, all the talk of mystery could just be the Catholic in me. But I think, for all the things that change, we will never give up faith in things that don't make sense.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Where Centaurs Meet Pirithous, Character is Spawned
This is going to be shock to all of you, I'm sure, but when it comes to mythical beasts, I am not really up on my stuff. I don't know how that facet of my education has been neglected all this time. I guess I just find them less interesting than the actual people involved. I'd rather write about Theseus and Ariadne than the Minotaur, and I'm more interested in Pirithous and Hippodamia than I am the centaurs.
But the war between the Lapiths and the centaurs isn't something that I can overlook in Pirithous' life. Not just because it's one of the few stories of Pirithous that has survived, but also because I can't imagine it not shaping the person he is or his rule as King of the Lapiths.
The war didn't just affect him. It wasn't a personal attack on his wife alone. The centaurs went after all the women who were present, crazed by lust and wine. How many of his people suffered that day, because of his choice to invite the centaurs in the first place? How many women died? How many husbands grieved over the ruined bodies of their wives, and how many children were left orphaned, their mothers taken and their father's killed in the fight? How many women, after being practically gang raped by manimals, went into shock, or were trapped in the nightmare of that day, reliving it every time they heard the clop of hooves, or the thud of hoof beats?
It isn't, necessarily, what happened during the war that matters, either. But what about after? How did Pirithous respond, as a man and a king, to the affront against both his wife and his people? In an age of blood feuds and wars over cattle raids, did it mean the end of what friendship there had been between the centaurs and the Lapiths? Did Pirithous take revenge, beyond the lives lost during the wedding feast?
These are the questions that Classical myths inspire in me. They tell me the story of what, but there is so much left to explore. There is so much CHARACTER left to discover in the places between these myths, and I can't resist the wondering. I can't resist writing the story in the quest to learn more.
But it means that I have to look up centaurs. And it also means that I have to figure out the answer to less interesting questions. Like, do centaurs prefer clubs when they fight? And of course the age old wonder: is a centaur front heavy -- how much does a human torso weigh vs the head and neck of a regular horse?
Let me tell you, finding answers like that are not quite as easy as you might think. It also means that the blog will probably have a real post about Centaurs coming soon. Maybe.
But the war between the Lapiths and the centaurs isn't something that I can overlook in Pirithous' life. Not just because it's one of the few stories of Pirithous that has survived, but also because I can't imagine it not shaping the person he is or his rule as King of the Lapiths. The war didn't just affect him. It wasn't a personal attack on his wife alone. The centaurs went after all the women who were present, crazed by lust and wine. How many of his people suffered that day, because of his choice to invite the centaurs in the first place? How many women died? How many husbands grieved over the ruined bodies of their wives, and how many children were left orphaned, their mothers taken and their father's killed in the fight? How many women, after being practically gang raped by manimals, went into shock, or were trapped in the nightmare of that day, reliving it every time they heard the clop of hooves, or the thud of hoof beats?
It isn't, necessarily, what happened during the war that matters, either. But what about after? How did Pirithous respond, as a man and a king, to the affront against both his wife and his people? In an age of blood feuds and wars over cattle raids, did it mean the end of what friendship there had been between the centaurs and the Lapiths? Did Pirithous take revenge, beyond the lives lost during the wedding feast?
These are the questions that Classical myths inspire in me. They tell me the story of what, but there is so much left to explore. There is so much CHARACTER left to discover in the places between these myths, and I can't resist the wondering. I can't resist writing the story in the quest to learn more.
But it means that I have to look up centaurs. And it also means that I have to figure out the answer to less interesting questions. Like, do centaurs prefer clubs when they fight? And of course the age old wonder: is a centaur front heavy -- how much does a human torso weigh vs the head and neck of a regular horse?
Let me tell you, finding answers like that are not quite as easy as you might think. It also means that the blog will probably have a real post about Centaurs coming soon. Maybe.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
This is not a Norse post.
I'm about 48,000 words into Pirithous' book. (Who knew Pirithous had a WHOLE BOOK in him? I didn't. I mean, I love the guy, but I really didn't think he could carry a whole book. I guess he is showing ME.) What this means for YOU blog-followers, is that my brain is spinning in circles about centaurs and how much zippers will blow Pirithous' mind, and I'm drawing a big fat blank on Norse mythology that isn't directly related to the Thor movie. (THOR TOYS AT BURGER KING, GUYS!)
I'm also rereading The Bull From the Sea by Mary Renault, because it's the Theseus book with Pirithous in it, and I can't really stop myself. As far as I'm concerned, there is not enough Pirithous in mythology-related-fiction. (It goes without saying that there isn't enough Theseus, but at least he has a couple of books and that movie coming out this winter that is some kind of Clash of the Titans, except hopefully good instead of trash.)
So this post? It is the "I just want to get back to writing-- I think I have another 1000 words in me before bed, maybe even 2000 to give me a 5K day! If I just don't let myself get distracted by some kind of Norse something or other for this blogpost I need to write" post of doom.
I hope you'll forgive me.
I'm also rereading The Bull From the Sea by Mary Renault, because it's the Theseus book with Pirithous in it, and I can't really stop myself. As far as I'm concerned, there is not enough Pirithous in mythology-related-fiction. (It goes without saying that there isn't enough Theseus, but at least he has a couple of books and that movie coming out this winter that is some kind of Clash of the Titans, except hopefully good instead of trash.)
So this post? It is the "I just want to get back to writing-- I think I have another 1000 words in me before bed, maybe even 2000 to give me a 5K day! If I just don't let myself get distracted by some kind of Norse something or other for this blogpost I need to write" post of doom.
I hope you'll forgive me.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Writing Notes: Finding the Right Word
I'm working on a Pirithous book. I've been wanting to write him one for a while, but it never came together until I had a conversation with my mother. She asked the right question, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. Two other books in progress, and Pirithous called my name.
37,000 words later, and I'm reliving one of the problems I had when I wrote Helen.
Anatomy.
Pirithous is a very hands on kind of man. In fact, keeping his hands off the women in any book is a lost cause. But trying to find the right word to use from Pirithous' perspective for the hind-end of his leading lady seems to be an impossible task. What says archaic while still being sexy? Not too generic, but not too specific either. The wrong word turns a romantic moment into a comical one and a smooth operation into a jarring and awkward event that takes the reader out of the story.
Pirithous cannot slap a woman on the ass, but he might be able to pinch her behind. Unless of course he's reaching behind someone in order to pat her bottom. Maybe he's admiring her shapely backside, but that could account for more than just the two cheeks. And I don't know about you, but buttocks has always seemed more clinical than complimentary.
The English language has a multitude of words for this one particular portion of the human body, but English isn't Pirithous' language, and that isn't something I can ignore for the convenience of identifying a woman's rump.
I'm sure that Pirithous will hate to hear it, but until I can figure out the word with the right voice to match his very particular voice and history, he's going to have to keep his hands off his love interest's fanny.
(Sorry, Pirithous!)
37,000 words later, and I'm reliving one of the problems I had when I wrote Helen.
Anatomy.
Pirithous is a very hands on kind of man. In fact, keeping his hands off the women in any book is a lost cause. But trying to find the right word to use from Pirithous' perspective for the hind-end of his leading lady seems to be an impossible task. What says archaic while still being sexy? Not too generic, but not too specific either. The wrong word turns a romantic moment into a comical one and a smooth operation into a jarring and awkward event that takes the reader out of the story.
Pirithous cannot slap a woman on the ass, but he might be able to pinch her behind. Unless of course he's reaching behind someone in order to pat her bottom. Maybe he's admiring her shapely backside, but that could account for more than just the two cheeks. And I don't know about you, but buttocks has always seemed more clinical than complimentary.
The English language has a multitude of words for this one particular portion of the human body, but English isn't Pirithous' language, and that isn't something I can ignore for the convenience of identifying a woman's rump.
I'm sure that Pirithous will hate to hear it, but until I can figure out the word with the right voice to match his very particular voice and history, he's going to have to keep his hands off his love interest's fanny.
(Sorry, Pirithous!)
Related: Words Pirithous Doesn't Know
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