Literary Link - The Procrastiwriter

Hi guys! Sorry, I realize this is very late. I don't have an excuse for this beyond the fact that I read the schedule wrong, thought mine was this week, and then forgot to do it until now. But better late than never, right?

The link that I found was The Procrastiwriter, a blog run by a woman named Shanan. The blog is written to help motivate writers to write and stop procrastinating. She writes most of the posts, but occasionally features guest posts. I connected with this blog because I am VERY bad about procrastinating. I realize that posting this a week late only emphasizes my point further. Enjoy!

http://www.theprocrastiwriter.com/

Epigraph: Fringe

"There are no limits, except for those that we impose on ourselves."
                                -Walter Bishop

Some Epigraphs

Here are some epigraphs that I have pulled from readings:

"One day by chance, there came a man, who saw her, and, for lack of anything better to do, destroyed her."
- The Seagull by Anton Chekhov

"If ever you have need of my life, then come and take it."
- The Seagull by Anton Chekhov

"Here's a small fact: You are going to die."
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

"Sometimes people are beautiful. Not in looks, not in what they say. Just in what they are."
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

"The only way we will survive is by being kind. The only way we can get by in this world is through the help we receive from others. No one can do it alone."
- Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Redshirts Review

REDSHIRTS REVIEW

John Scalzi writes a very refreshing and humorous story throughout Redshirts’ 231 pages. The story is centered on main character, Andrew Dahl, or so it seems. Andrew Dahl is a new member onboard the Universal Union Capital Ship, the Intrepid. As just an ensign, or redshirt, he is of the lower rank on the ship’s crew. While the crew goes off on away missions, Dahl starts to notice something very strange: at least one crew member always dies. This realization becomes clearer as Dahl notices it is always a redshirt.

The story becomes more of the metafiction variety as Dahl starts to take notes on the other strange coincidences that he observes. His interactions with characters throughout the book are comedic as they swear everything happening is normal. This includes higher-ranking crew members healing almost instantly from being beaten to near death, a “magic box” that seems to heal everything including unheard of diseases, and certain crew members being able to travel through space and time. Upon talking to other redshirts and comparing notes, Dahl finally comes to the conclusion that he and the other crew members are characters on a television show. The problem with this is he also realizes that he is not one of the main characters, which means his life is in danger.

Redshirts is a very interesting book using metafiction as its main theme. Author John Scalzi uses characters becoming self-conscious of their whereabouts inside a sci-fi television show for his main story. The book, using tropes from sci-fi shows, such as Star Trek, in a satirical way provides a ton of comedy throughout. The dialogue amongst characters that are learning they are on a television show against those who think it is normal for a crew member to die on every mission provides a lot of laughs. The consistency of comedy throughout the book is one reason the book was an easy and more refreshing read.

One critique I had with this book was not reading it but rather listening to it. I enjoy the casual audiobook as it provides something to listen to while walking to class or working out however, this book was difficult to listen to. John Scalzi writes this book more like a script, which makes sense as it pertains to the plot, but because of this he uses a lot of “he/she said” to end a quotation. Listening to Wil Wheaton continuously repeat nothing but the word “said” after each time a character speaks does get repetitive and a bit annoying. I had to stop listening to the audiobook because of this. I started to read a physical copy of the book (because I was hooked on the story) and the repetitiveness of using “said” after each quotation didn’t bother me as much. Essentially my critique for this book is that Scalzi did not write it with the idea of it being turned into an audiobook in mind. This isn’t a bad thing because the story captivated me into picking up a physical copy and finishing it.

As someone who enjoys messing with common tropes in various media I thoroughly enjoyed Redshirts by John Scalzi. The book was comical throughout with the idea of metafiction in mind which I love reading. If you enjoy Sci-fi novels, this book is definitely for you as well as it satirically comments on many Sci-fi stories. I for one do not read much Sci-fi books but this book appealed to me for it’s unique story and its immense humor. I overall would recommend this book as long you read a physical copy. It is a refreshing read for its change of pace from many serious novels nowadays and is a load of fun to read.

           

The Boxer

"In the clearing stands a boxer,
And a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminders
Of ev'ry glove that laid him down
And cut him til he cried out
In his anger and his shame,
'I am leaving, I am leaving.'
But the fighter still remains"
- "The Boxer" 
Written by Paul Simon

Lit Link

Hello Everyone!

I hope you all enjoyed your Veteran's Day! I would like to extend a thank you to all Vets everywhere.

On this day off I was able to find a clever, "with it," blog that embraces the gritty subtleties of our minds that we tend to withhold from the public. This link is much different from the story I shared with the class, the reason being, to share a side of literature I enjoy but don't always capitalize on.

Enough about me, this blog is called Terrible Minds.

http://terribleminds.com/ramble/blog/

Check it out! I think you will lose yourself from one work to the next, much like I do on YouTube; once I start I can't stop.

My favorite part is the tab labeled, "Holy Shit, FREE STORIES." Free is emphasized, but good should be also be mentioned. They are well-written and fun to read.

Enjoy!

Forgiveness.

"You know, the incredible thing about hearts is their unbelievable capacity for forgiveness. You'd be amazed what people will overlook when they love someone."

From Sherrilyn Kenyon's Devil May Cry.

The Indie View

Hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween. Upon searching for a good literary link to post for everyone to view, I came across a website called The Indie View.

I found this blog through a friend who recommended it to me. He is a writer himself and says he likes this blog because it has a little of everything between interviews with authors, reviews, and a list of books to promote. All the books mentioned on this site are considered indie books which in my eyes just means it was written by an independent author.

This blog is very interesting to me because of the interviews they get with the authors of these indie books. They ask questions such as "Where did you get the idea to write this book?", "Do you have a writing process?", "Do you edit as you go or wait until you finish?", and so much more.

It is really interesting to read these interviews because you get to understand the process of the authors. As we are all writers in this class, it is good to understand the writing processes of all different writers so this blog I thought would be a perfect one to post and talk about.

Here is the link of The Indie View: http://www.theindieview.com/

-Zach Farbman