There was a time when sleep was a refuge, a safe haven. Go there. Hide there. Rest there to come and battle us again. No more.
We have found you.
We are coming.
Flash Prompt – Demons of Sleep
Category Archives: Inspiration
Less Traveled
Poetry has always been something that has given me fits. I hated studying it when I was in school. I was forced to attempt my own poetry. Thankfully all of those creations have been lost to time. I’m certain they were terrible. I’m certain they were terrible not because I failed to take the exercise seriously (like the student in Dead Poets Society who wrote about a cat) but precisely because I took them very seriously. I have no doubt they were beyond terrible.
Looking back it’s easy to regret my failure to connect with poetry. One of the most acclaimed American poets once lived down the road from my house. He taught at the school I attended. I could have delved deep into the works of Robert Frost… and didn’t. Complete failure to connect.
In the many years since I attended school I have attempted to reconnect to poetry. I have gone back and attempted to reconnect with the places that were part of the history of poetry. I took my daughter to the Robert Frost farm while visiting relatives.
I still just don’t connect. I wish I did.
The rekindled desire to connect surfaced again when I saw the video linked below. This video provided an interesting glimpse into the story behind a famous poem along with one of the strongest indicators for me that I may in fact be better off not trying to delve into poetry too deeply. I’m certain I’ve been one of the people that blithely went along with the common interpretation of the final three lines of the poem. Who knew that Frost was gently prodding his indecisive friend rather than making some profound statement about striking out in an uncommon direction?
Flash Prompt – No Harm
“Why
my lady?”
“Because
we must.”
“No
harm shall befall you. Let us go.”
Sharp Eyes and the End of the World
One of the panels I was on at Philcon was titled “A Creative Apocalypse” and the description was, “What creative and original – but scientifically plausible – ways are left for storytellers to destroy the world?”
I kind of struggled with this question initially. Creative I can handle, it’s the scientifically plausible that I was worried about. Part of me really wanted to separate out destruction of all human life from actual destruction of the planet, but that line of discussion didn’t get far. Not much of a story without the people (still horribly narcissistic if you ask me).
Then I seemed to recall something about massive ant colonies that spanned across vast distances. I didn’t have a chance to do any research on it, but it was in the back of my mind that I had seen this so I presented it (when I could) at the panel. I find a plague of bugs to be a less than ideal concept for the end of the world (YUCK!).
I took a moment to see if I could find the information I remembered and found this fun little piece about floating colonies of fire ants in Texas.
Smacking into one of those would certainly ruin your day, but it wasn’t what I remembered. Hunting a little more brought me to the mega-colony. Yes, it was a huge colony and it actually reaches far further than I seemed to recall. Crossing continents. Almost all of them, and they don’t’ seem to fight each other. This could be very bad news for people should these bugs ever band together.
A sharp-eyed friend of mine then pointed me to a whole different point of view. What if all the bugs GO AWAY?
Turns out we need them. We need as many variations and weird combinations as we can keep. We need to learn as much as we can to preserve ourselves. The bug-pocalypse could just be that we don’t have any. A distressing thought indeed. Now to turn that into a world ending story…
The Dwarvenaut
Things lately have been super busy and more than a little crazy. One of the things I’ve found that brings me back to myself again and again is gaming. I have loved playing Dungeons and Dragons for a long time. I’ve also loved to see what people do with their miniatures. I’ve personally got a bunch of the old Grenadier miniatures box sets along with a big stack of others. Carrying lead is always fun when you move… it’s even heavier than the books!
I’ve painted my minis, used them for games, created maps and maps and adventures… but I’ve always had these massive, grand visions of what the game could be with a little extra visualization. How wide is the corridor really when you compare it to the mini?
Dwarven Forge has been that answer for somewhere around 20 years now. I just watched a film about Stefan Pokorny, the founder of that company, called The Dwarvenaut. I’m glad I watched the film. IF you’re a fan of miniatures and the passion that goes along with this wonderful game you should hop onto Netflix and check it out. It’s a good look behind the scenes of the company and their third Kickstarter campaign. I’m glad I got to see the passion behind this company. It certainly gives me a lot more perspective on what they offer and what’s behind the cost of the sets. I plan to dig into these and see if I can add them to my game.
Check out the trailer here:
Get Out
Writing is a solitary business. You and your chosen method of applying words to paper (virtual or otherwise). It can be difficult, draining and many other words that don’t have very positive connotations. There is something you can do that is a tremendous help.
You can get out.
Yes, get up and move. Stretch in the way that makes that spot between your shoulder blades grind and sort of pop. Focus beyond the meager couple of feet between you and your screen and walk out the door.
I tell you this because an “adventure” doesn’t have to be a big deal. You probably won’t travel through the mines of Moria, nor are you likely to slip into London below. You might however find that one street you hadn’t noticed before. It’s turned at just such an angle that the noise from the busy streets at either end of the block doesn’t carry to the middle. There are concrete stoops with unusual plants. Delicate fairy lights dangle in a miniature garden between two houses just before you see a sign for a shop you never knew was there. It could be better lit, but something about it draws you in anyway. Just a trio of steps off the street, with the jingle of dainty bells and suddenly you’re very far away.
It could be anywhere. Down the street, across town or into that restaurant you’ve been meaning to try. You’ll be shocked at just how much little differences can make when you’ve been stuck in the same place for too long. My travels this evening were fruitful. I netted a free book at an author appearance, learned of a particular author I may need to cyber-stalk and came home with at least 3 new story ideas.
Get out. There’s a world out there filled with interesting new places and people. When you’ve had enough, rush back to your key board and finish that story. I think you’ll find a little adventure might just be exactly what you need.
A little mystery…
I truly enjoy that there are so many things to discover still in the world. The world needs a little mystery to keep things going. There are things that are OK being a mystery. Solving the mystery actually takes away that special something that draws you in.
I recently heard about the Voynich manuscript. It’s fascinating if you haven’t heard about it. Imagine a book written hundreds of years ago that still survives today. More than the fact that it still survives, imagine that nobody can read it. That’s right – it’s some kind of code or language that nobody can figure out. There are dozens of images and notations. There are multi-page fold outs and super vibrant colors… and nobody has any idea what it all means. The name even comes from the book dealer that rediscovered it in 1912 because nobody is certain who actually wrote it.
The book has been tested, chronicled, studied and discussed. Scholars, scientists and cryptographers have all attempted to figure it out to no avail. They’ve decided it’s not a hoax. The chemical mix of the inks are right for the time. The parchment has been tested and dated, showing it was created around the year 1420. That’s right, we’re coming up on 600 years and nobody has figured it out.
Kind of cool, right?
When I said there are some things that are acceptable as a mystery? This is one of those times. Would it be valuable to history if we figured out what it all said? Maybe. Would lose something in my mind if we cracked the code and figured out it was a big fat book on medicinal plants? You bet. It’s likely to be something like that really, but it’s better to leave it wrapped up in mystery. Doesn’t it sound better if we can say that John Dee has been associated with it? It could have been referenced by alchemists or coded to keep rival magicians from stealing secret recipes? Was it sold to Emperor Rudolf II in Prague? Where did it go between 1600 and 1912? The mystery is what draws you in.
It’s actually available for download now. Somebody has created a PDF version of it (pretty large download). It’s a fun thing to check out. You can find it here.
I suspect that with more access, a worldwide viewing audience and multiple modern tools the code will be cracked. Somebody has already claimed to have a start on it (here). I’m hoping it’s still a mystery, it’s far more interesting that way.
Writer’s Fuel
Being sick doesn’t have a lot of advantages, it’s mostly terrible with a strong amount of wishing to get better. One of the things being sick can do for you is give you fuel for your writing.
I couldn’t say if it was the self administered ‘cough medicine’ I had before bed combined with vapor rub fumes or not, but last night landed in a very weird place. That was terrible for getting some sleep and the rest needed to get better, but it was really great as writer’s fuel.
My dreams (nightmares?) took place in an expanded haunted house combination version of the place I grew up in Maine and my grandmother’s house. An old house with hidden storage under the eaves between closets where the walls didn’t get constructed all the way to the roof. I was hearing something that I couldn’t define, like I kept trying to tune in a fading radio station that was saying something important or something sinister and I couldn’t quite put a finger on it. The whole thing would fade when I got closer to being awake and then pick up just as I was really drifting off. Hazy, woozy and scrambling forward without being able to make any progress. I don’t really remember the details but the feeling was queasy and panicked. Not a great combination for rest, but just the sort of thing to put one in the right frame of mind for writing something moody.
What sort of fuel do you use for your writing?
You have no right to water…
I feel another story coming on. As soon as I can get away from the office I must hit the keyboard and get some notes down. Resource Command doesn’t seem as far fetched when I first started my military science fiction stories.
Nestle’s lobbying against your right to water…
War and Art
Being part of the military is an intense experience. Despite the time I served being less than 4 years in total, and never in an active combat zone, the things I witnessed and the things I did have affected me in ways that have lasted more than twenty years. I have some sad and some funny anecdotes from the various exercises, training missions and trips over seas. These stories go along with a handful of items, the artifacts and photos of that time in my life. These things bring memories and emotions along with them each time they come out of storage.
Memories when attached to pictures and small objects have a startling clarity. Even with clarity and a deep imagination, I fail to grasp the depth and connection of what the soldiers who served as part of the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops from WWII have when they look at their art.
I am behind the times catching up with the documentary showing the amazing work these artists, these engineers, these soldiers did under the undiluted pressure of the Nazi war machine. Knowing the load of stuff any soldier is asked to carry these true artists were also certain to have pen or pencil and paper with them too. Sketching the war, but also crafting an amazing deception.
If you are an artist and you think from time to time, “I just can’t work under these conditions” or “well, this would be a better picture if I had the right tools” you should definitely take a peek at these inspirational artists. Imagine this quote, “…we were sleeping in hedgerows and foxholes, but nothing kept us away from going someplace to do a watercolor…” They certainly worked under conditions most artists wouldn’t. Being a soldier and being an artist are not mutually exclusive pursuits.
Take the opportunity to catch the film The Ghost Army, I highly recommend it.
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