Why We Love the Bad Boys

Ah, the romantic and intriguing Byronic hero. Girls swoon over him and guys aspire to be like him.  Who can resist the dark, brooding character that hides in the shadows? Modern literature and pop culture are littered with examples:

Batman,

  

(Dark Knight)

Edward Cullen,

(Twilight)

James Bond,

 (007)

Han Solo,

(Star Wars)

Captain Jack Sparrow,

(Pirates of the Caribbean)

Severus Snape

(Harry Potter)

and, for you anime fans, Edward Elric.

(Fullmetal Alchemist)

Why are we so drawn into these characters struggles? Why does our attention and hearts bond to them whenever they walk across our pages or our screens? Let’s go back to the beginning and look at what a Byronic hero consists of.

The Byronic hero, while still the antagonist of the story, is the antithesis of what we consider a hero to be.  Their characteristics are not exactly admirable, yet if well done, the reader likes them anyway. There are several traits, mostly unattractive, that these dark heroes share:

• Intelligent
• Cunning
• Ruthless
• Arrogant
• Depressive
• Violent
• Self-aware
• Emotionally and intellectually tortured
• Traumatized
• Highly emotional
• Manipulative
• Self-serving
• Spiritually doubtful
• Often reckless or suicidal
• Prone to bursts of anger
• Decidedly prone to substance abuse
• Dedicated to pursuing matters of justice over matters of legality
• Given to self-destructive impulses (study.com)

 Take Edward Elric for example. The series Fullmetal Alchemist is centered on the science of alchemy. (Remember this is all fantasy and this stuff doesn’t really exist.) The number one rule in alchemy is that you cannot create something from nothing, meaning that things don’t just appear out of thin air. Alchemists can break apart materials using their powers and reassemble said materials into something else, but there is always an equivalent exchange. Most alchemists use a chalk drawing on the ground in order to channel their powers, but the Elric brothers are different. When they were only ten and nine, they committed the Great Taboo: they tried to bring someone back from the dead using alchemy. In a desperate attempt to regain their beloved mother, the two brothers learned the law of equivalent exchange the hard way. Edward lost the lower part of one of his legs, and Alphonse lost everything: body and soul. Seeing what he had done, Ed dragged his bloody body to a suit of armor and bound his brother’s soul to it, in exchange for his right arm. (Again, all fantasy.)

Alphonse, waking up as a suit of armor and seeing a mutilated Ed, saves his older brother by taking him to a nearby neighbor. For the rest of the series, Edward struggles with the fact that it was his fault his brother has to live life as a bodiless suit of armor. Edward gets outfitted with a metal arm and leg and he has such a strong will and sense of determination, he makes a full recovery after just one year instead of the projected three.  Edward and Alphonse start working for the government as State Alchemists in order to have access to restricted materials they would otherwise not have. Taking the weight of the brothers’ mistake on his shoulders, Edward leads the way to finding a way to get their bodies back.

At the age of fifteen, Edward has literally been through hell and back. He isn’t perfect. He makes plenty of mistakes, and gets beaten to a pulp on multiple occasions, but he is clever enough to win the battle in the end, or at least escape to fight another day. He is quick to anger and often broods about his past mistakes. There is a moment when his childhood friend starts to cry after seeing a secret scrawled message. When Edward asks why she is crying, she says, “Because you won’t cry. Someone has to.”

I think part of the reason we connect so well to Byronic characters is because we can relate to them. Unlike the usual hero in fantasy or romantic fiction, these tortured heroes are in no way perfect. They make mistakes, and they suffer for those mistakes. They get knocked down again and again, only to get right back up. They fight, not because it’s the right thing to do, but because they believe in the fight. Really, they don’t even want to be the hero, but there is no one else who can do what they can do.

Also, Byronic heroes are incredibly complex to create. There is a skill to making a character dark and brooding without coming off as whiny and self-absorbed. There have been series where one of the main characters is supposed to be a Byronic hero, but he has no redeeming qualities. Just a piece of advice, if you are going to purposely make someone unlikable, he has to have something to make the audience connect to him/her.

I love reading about Byronic heroes. There is something about seeing someone fight and claw toward a goal that is inspirational. We all have struggles, but in order to reach our goal, we have to keep pushing. It’s never going to be easy, and there will be set backs, but with perseverance, any dream can come true.

Below is a clip from Fullmetal Alchemist. It’s a bit of a spoiler, so if you plan on reading/watching the series, just skip to the end of this post. Or if you don’t mind, keep reading.

*SPOILER ALERT*
Ok, so you’re still reading. You have been warned…

In this scene, Edward has gone through the Door of Truth for a second time where he finds his brother, Alphonse’s emancipated, yet alive, body. It shows that there is still hope for the two brothers to return to normal. Near the end of the clip, through sheer stubbornness, Edward fights against the little hands of Truth that are pulling him back to reality to make a fierce promise to his brother.

https://youtu.be/-JhaYY1u1Rw

Looking at this from an outsider it may seem cheesy, but trust me, this scene is a tear jerker.

*END OF SPOILER*

So what other Byronic heroes can you think of? What do you think makes us love the dark hero? Also, do you think a Byronic hero could ever be a female protagonist? I look forward to reading your comments! 

My Vacation Crisis and How Writing is My Therapy

by Kasey Tross

I need to apologize for my absence the last few weeks- I had been preparing for my family to go on vacation to Florida (12-hour drive from our home in VA) and then last week we were there, so I was a bit busier than usual.

Our week was great fun- that is, until the end. That was when my littlest, who had turned 3 while we were there, started having trouble breathing. An Urgent Care visit turned into an ER visit, which turned into a hospitalization. Needless to say, it was stressful. We had to extend our trip to ensure we could bring her home healthy, and I spent Friday night sitting in a chair in the ER, Saturday talking to doctors and nurses and caring for my little girl, and Saturday night sitting in our van as we drove through the night to get home.

When considering what to write about today, I realized how much writing is like therapy for me, and I need some therapy right now. So I decided to kind of decompress my emotional state through some writing, and I hope you'll understand.

Friday

Persistent cough like an engine that won't start. Sparkly hazel eyes dulled to a half-close.
Sleep. She needs sleep.
Lying on the bed, eyes closed but chest heaving. Sleep brings no repose, no relief- she must be dreaming of running from monsters because she can't catch her breath.
Can't…catch..her…
Wake her up. Scoop her up. Tiny heart galloping in a tiny chest, everything working so hard just for each…little…gasp.
I have to save her from the monsters and my heart knows this. It begins to gather speed in the chase.
Into the car. Traffic won't move. Where am I going? No familiar oaks or wood fences here…nothing but palms and stucco and mouse-eared signs. And traffic. So much traffic.

Get to the clinic. Empty. Fill out this form. Give us ID. Wait.
For what?
Check her vitals…tachycardia…doctor come listen…this isn't right…she's too small for this…
Take her to the ER.
Right now.
Don't wait.

Moving through darkness now…searching for hospital lights. More palms. Sticky heat. Make the turn.
Crowded. Chairs filling with people. They're all so big. So loud.
She is so. so. small.
Still gasping. They ask her to wear a tiny mask so she doesn't cough on anyone.

Sit there. Listen. They write. Ask. Write some more.
Can I take off the mask please Mommy?
No, you have to leave it on while you're here. That's what they said.
When I get home can I take it off?
Yes, when we get home.
Wait.
Come back. What's going on?
Can't you see? She can't breathe!
She can't breathe. She's too small.
Phone to ear we need a room she's working too hard to breathe kick someone out we need that room now.
Follow me.

In the room, on the bed, shirt off, gown on, glowing toe measures her pulse which is making the machine make an angry beeping complaint at having to keep up with her tiny racing heart.
When did this start? Any fever? Asthma? Has she been sick?
Doctor…nurse…respiratory nurse…chest x-ray...breathing treatment…oral steroids…
Can't get that heart rate down.
Monsters won't stop the chase.
Another breathing treatment. Watch the heart rate…180…170…still too high.

She sleeps. I sit. My chair with a millimeter of padding and two hard arms, like a tiny cage.
I'm cold. Is she cold? I get us blankets.
She sleeps.
I don't.
Doctor comes in, goes out.
Nurse comes in, another breathing treatment, goes out.
Her heart finally slows, but it comes at a cost. She's not getting enough oxygen.
95...93...92...
Put her on oxygen. But it's not enough.
Doctor says it's all he can do. Time for her to go.

Early, Early Saturday Morning

Needle in her arm, she screams, thrashed out of her peaceful slumber by a stabbing pain. The nurses and I pin her down. I'm sorry I'm so sorry I'm sorry it'll be over soon you're doing so good you're so brave you're so small
I love you.
She sleeps.

I don't.

Wait, wait, and wait some more.
Whenever she tries to get more comfortable the sharp stab of the IV snaps her back to confused frightened painful consciousness and I have to hold her arm and she doesn't understand why and she fights me and screams I want daddy. Me too, I want to say. Me too.

As the sun starts to change the color of the shaded windows from dark gray to light I see them coming with my blurred vision, black shirts with colorful important-looking patches and crackling radios hanging at their hips. They bring a yellow-and-black-wasp-colored rolling bed that buzzes and changes height at the push of a button.
Mom, you can lift her into the bed.
Come on, princess. We're going for a ride.
Sleepy, questioning eyes.
Giant black straps awkwardly placed across her tiny little body.
Look, you're almost as tall as me on that cool bed!
It's an adventure. It's fun. It needs to be just a fun adventure I tell myself. She can't know. She's too small.
I smile at her.
She smiles back.
So brave.

Into the ambulance, bump, bump, bounce, bounce, sway, sway, and we're there.
Engine humming, smell of exhaust, sticky heat, sliding doors, cool, sleek hallway.
Elevator, 6th floor, glass-covered city skyline out the window.
Hospital meets Disneyland, purple room, smiling blonde nurses. So gentle. So kind.
She's so small. They know.
Pancakes and Lucky Charms for breakfast, soft bed, cartoons on the TV.
Doctor kneels down to talk to us in soft, gentle tones.
She might be able to go home today. Yes, please.

Listen to her breathe. Listen some more. And listen again.
Breathing treatment, mac-and-cheese for lunch, roll the IV cart down the hallway to the playroom where we play with a pretty pink princess dollhouse and we forget about being sick for a little while.
Drink, drink, drink. Fluids so important- keeps the monsters away.
Listen to her breathe. Listen some more. And listen again.
Breathing treatment, chicken nuggets and French fries with ketchup for dinner.
Listen to her breathe. Listen some more…until…

The monsters are gone.
She can go home.
She can finally breathe.

And now I can too.

Rock on

By Beckie Carlson
Do you ever get on of those nagging thoughts that just won't go away? Maybe it's a problem you can't figure out. Or maybe its worrying about someone you care about. Maybe it's wondering how you got to this strange life you live. It plagues you at night...interrupting dreams of River Dance with Brandon Fraser, or reruns of New Girl. It's annoying.

I've never had that. You all are weird.

Seriously. I have had a tickle of a thought the last few weeks. It's been something that pulls at my heart strings a bit. I don't have an answer (surprise) but I feel the need to ask the question.

As you may or may not know, I have lived all across the Southern United States. Being in Aerospace, we moved around quite a bit. I've met some wonderful people all across this beautiful land. I'm not great at keeping in touch with people, but I do check up with them on FB. Before that....yeah, I sucked. It is neat to be able to peek in on people I used to see at the school or church regularly, without having to pick up the phone and make awkward calls. I hate talking on the phone.

So, lately (three years or so) I've noticed that several of the women I've know from the various states, have gotten divorced and left the church. I look at these women and I see them as I knew them. They were my visiting teaching companions, my kids primary teachers, scout leaders, etc. They were, in my eyes, spiritual giants. I looked up to these women because they knew stuff. They understood it. They would bear their testimonies and I could feel it. I admit, I leaned on them a bit when I was weak.  What happened?

I know that several of them had awesome husbands that ended up cheating on them. Sometimes with other awesome women I looked up to. How does it happen? How does a person go from being rock solid in the gospel, to leaving it all behind and living another life?

I look at their beautiful pictures of strapless evening gowns, new weddings, strategic tattoos....and I wonder if they ever wake up in the middle of the night and ask themselves where they are. How did they get to this strange life they are living?

There are a lot of single people out there. They all have their reasons for being where they are. The choices we make are ours. No matter what choice anyone else makes, we are still accountable for ours. I'm not judging anyone here. My heart hurts for these beautiful women. Sure, my husband died, and that was hard. It is still hard. But I couldn't do it without my testimony and the gospel in my life.

Maybe I'm weak? Maybe I need that rock to build on. Maybe, it takes strength to hold on to it.
Cause I said so.

Photo credit: www.shop411.com

PiBoIdMo - 8 months later

By Lacey Gunter


I have heard several differing opinions about the good and bad of NaNoWriMo.  Since I have never participated myself, I do not know how useful it is. I have, however, participated in PiBoIdMo - Picture Book Idea Month - for the past two years and I can tell you it has been immensely helpful.

The best thing about PiBoIdMo is that it keeps me writing year round.  I am a much better writer when I am consistently practicing the craft of writing. This is a far easier task to accomplish when I have a well of ideas I can just draw from, than when I am just shooting from the hip.  If nothing else, I can look over my list of ideas and that alone will get my creative juices flowing much quicker than when I don't.

Just this week, eight months after PiBoIdMo,  I started another picture book that was based on one of my PiBoIdMo ideas. Not every book I have written since last November has been a PiBoIdMo idea, but nearly all of them have. Without those ideas I do not think I would be able to achieve my writing goals for the year. 

Another great thing about PiBoIdMo is that you are coming up with many more ideas than you could possibly write in a year. So it is not nearly as hard to feel pretty successful at PiBoIdMo as I imagine it is with NaNoWriMo. You only have to be on top of your game 1/4 to 1/3 of the time to have an entire years worth of good ideas.

Then there are also the obvious benefits of comradery and building connections and friendships. I have reaped these benefits too.

Hmmm . . . As I have been writing this blog post and thinking about PiBoIdMo it has even got my creative juices flowing and thinking about how to solve another writing problem I have, ideas for blog posts. I think this year as I do PiBoIdMo, maybe I will do a BlogIdMo too. Perhaps then I will be writing beautifully year round, both online and off. I can hardly wait!

Taking a Stand on Self-Editing

by Patricia Cates

Do you ever feel like you are walking a tight rope with your writing? You can't see the forest through the trees. You are on the brink of a breakdown and you hear your own voice calling out from a cliff top saying, "IS THERE ANYBODY OUT THERE LOST IN EDITING…editing…editing…? HELLO...Hello...hello...IS ANYBODY THERE…there…there…?” 


photo courtesy of theguardian.com

Guess what? There's actually a lot of us trekking out there! I know it's quiet...but if you look really hard you can see us way out in the distance. Grab your binoculars and take a looksee. And guess what? There is a really convenient set of zigzagging redwood stairs that lead right to camp. (And hey we're in the company of about 250 scouts to the east so we're extra safe.) It sure feels good to know that there is a terrific group of fellow writers right here to help guide us along this journey. 

Looking back through MMW posts I noticed that the last time any bloggers delved into the subject of editing was back in March of 2013, so I thought I’d mention it again. There you'll find a terrific post by Mandi worthy of another read. It mentions a book entitled “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers” by Renni Browne and Dave King. I am always looking to improve and emphasize the need for confidence in this area.

So last month I was fortunate enough to share my blog post with Sue Grafton. I mentioned to her that she was an author whom I admired and thought of, when I was in need of streamlining and refocusing. Her style is straightforward and flows well, and her characters feel like family.  She was gracious enough to give me a bit of advice to share here with everyone. Although it wasn’t a huge interview, this is what she told me:

“Trimming and editing is essential. I think it’s fabulous to write from the heart---almost stream-of-consciousness---while you get that first draft on paper. After that, you have to be ruthless. I think of it as taking 00 sandpaper to my work. I tend to edit and revise as I go along, but I’ve been at this for over 50 years.”

How wonderful to get advice from such a seasoned author. It just solidified my stance on this entire writing process as being such a deeply personal one. She says "YOU" have to be ruthless. That means that you have to edit your own work...and maybe with some sand paper. Our books are our babies. They originate from our hearts. Do you want to entrust them into the hands of a stranger, or a software program? Her example is one that I hope sticks around for a very long while.

Are you a writer who self-edits? If so why? Do you love it? Are you maybe a little bit of a control freak? As most of you know it can be super time consuming, but when it’s your passion, it’s just what you do. For those who detest editing, when you need help, where do you turn? Of course you know it’s imperative to find someone you trust implicitly. If this is you please make sure it's someone you can collaborate with in a marriage type way.

I don’t know about the majority of you, but I love editing. That’s why hours go by that feel like minutes. It is such a blast. And yes I am a control freak to the max. So when I found out about all of the editing software available for purchase, I was pretty ticked. To think that there could come a day when we potentially are all replaced...it makes me fume and cringe at the same time. This lack of a need for humans I assume started somewhere around the time of the assembly line, and has since advanced to computers doing all of the thinking (and now apparently robots.) I truly would like to see this sort of technology fall flat on its round silver face and stay the heck away from our precious little literary world.

I will surely never be caught buying any editing software, but I can see the temptation for people who struggle with this aspect. These programs do promise to cut down on time spent, but remember that a content editing job is one that takes insight and emotion into the author and the characters.

Additionally the power in self-editing is what keeps the novel true to you. How many times have you read a book where you felt like the voice changed midway through? I have put down a few best-sellers over the years, due to the fact that the first 3rd of the book rocked it, and then it felt like someone else completely was writing the thing. Super disappointing. My question is always a resounding why?

I also feel that sometimes there are just so many talented folks out of work and I want those jobs saved. What a jolly slap in the face these programmers are virtually giving to the very folks who wrote their textbooks for them! Whether it is the entry level job of a copy editor, or someone getting a part time freelance gig proofreading, the wonder of words for many of us is the passion in life that keeps us occupied and consumed. For some mom's it is often what helps a family make ends meet. The pay is rarely great, but even if that little is taken away, it will be a sad day indeed.

Okay enough said. In conclusion my advice today is simply to enjoy staying lost in the wilderness of editing. Work on it. There’s a breathtaking view from the rim of the canyon. Take it all in before it’s lost to developers.

What Makes Someone an Author?

By Kathy Lipscomb

So, my husband is pretty much the coolest husband on the planet. He might not be my favorite person when he forgets full length, important conversations we've had. I may also want to beat him with a pillow when his snores keep me up at night. But not only does he support me with my crazy writing dreams, he believes in me more than I do.

When he talks about me to his coworkers, friends, or even random people he meets, he tells them I’m an author. He doesn’t specify that I’m unpublished, or that I probably won’t be published for at least a couple more years. He just straight up says with a pride I hardly ever see in his eyes, “My wife’s an author.”

I used to correct him. “I’m an unpublished author.”

“So?”

Now if you knew my husband, you probably couldn’t imagine him saying “so.” He’s more of the smart-talking, sounds more like a grandpa kind of speech, type of guy. In fact, if I want a character in a novel to sound smart and older, I pay close attention to how my husband talks.

But he’s so dead set on making me believe that the distinction of published or unpublished doesn’t matter that he uses my own more teenager like language to get it into my head.

I’m an author.

Guess what? So are you.

I’ve seen how hard people are on themselves for not being published yet. I’ve done it to myself. Being published is a goal, but is it what will make you happy? No, because we like to write. So who cares if you’re not there yet? You are still an author.

Being published doesn’t make your work magically happen, nor does being published make your work better. You make your writing better. You make it amazing by putting in the effort despite the crazy busyness that is our lives. When you get published, you will still have to work hard. You will still wonder why the heck you’re putting yourself through the insanity that comes with our chosen profession. And you will still wonder if you are good enough (P.S. you are).

So, whether you are unpublished, published, finished with a book, written an entire series, still on your first draft of your first novel, or whatever, remember that you are an author. And don’t let the word “unpublished” make you feel like you’re less of one. Unpublished to me just means I have all the potential in the world. I am not yet branded by agents, nor am I confined to a specific genre. I can write whatever I want. It’s freedom.

So can you have the goal to be published? Absolutely.

Should you let yourself think you’re less of an author because you’re not published yet? Nope.

You are an author.

Isn’t that awesome?  

Buttons on your underwear

By Beckie Carlson
The last two weeks have truly been a gift. No, I didn't finally get to go to Italy or lose those ten pounds. I went on an adventure, right in my own home.
It started two weeks ago with a strange beeping noise that came from my refrigerator. I opened the door and waited for the massive beast to tell me what it wanted, but it just kept beeping. It didn't even get louder or more specific like you are supposed to do when talking to someone that doesn't speak your language. I pushed a few buttons, opened and closed the door a few more times, ate some grapes and decided it probably needed a new water filter. I think you are supposed to change those every....two years? (6 months)
Feeling very grown up and responsible, I headed upstairs to the computer and ordered a new filter. I  opted not to order the two-pack, simply because I was feeling cheap. I patted myself on the back for being so amazing at problem solving and returned to my day.
Two days later, the refrigerator decided it was too much work to keep cold. I'm pretty sure it was feeling under appreciated because it hadn't had a bath in a few weeks (months) and was just throwing a fit. I had the girls clean it (they didn't) and started looking on YouTube for solutions. More back patting occurred as I bought a shop vac and cleaned the coils. (Did you know you could do that?) That should do it! (chest puffing and a bit of strutting might have happened.) I also used the new shop vac to clean out the couch. I found a bag of money from a fundraiser my son did five years ago. I was being rewarded for my efforts already!
Apparently, having clean coils makes the freezer jealous. It decided to go on strike with the refrigerator side. This is where I really put on my "I'm an adult" hat and called the home warranty office. "Remember that warranty I purchased TO COVER MY FRIDGE?" They didn't remember. Everyone that worked at the company had been afflicted with amnesia that only covered the months around when I purchased the FRIDGE WARRANTY. My adult hat turned backwards and I started yelling. It wasn't pretty, and frankly, wasn't effective either. I called a repairman.
The repairman was incredibly helpful. According to him, my fridge was broken. I needed to give him lots of money and he would try to find the part I needed. He assured me that it was a part that was no longer made and it would take months to get it, if it came at all. But, please, give him $700.
Don't judge me, but I was skeptical. I called a friend who found the part I was told I needed online for $80. Huh. When I called the repairman back and asked about this miracle, he assured me it was the part I needed but that the online store was full of liars that would take my money and never deliver. Sounded kind of like....well, I told him it was worth a shot! I ordered the part.
I might have forgotten to mention that during this saga, my air conditioner went out. No biggie....its only 1000 degrees in Mesa in July. "Just get in the pool, kids!" The home warranty decided they could cover the air conditioner, so they were redeemed and the hit-men were called off. For now.
Back to the fridge. After a week, the part arrived! Feeling very smug, I pulled it from it's cute little box and pulled up the YouTube video on how to install it. The lady at the online store had said most people install this part themselves. I figured between me and my brilliant children, we could do this. The weird part was, what I had in my hand and what was on the video was....slightly different. Or possibly, HUGELY different. Poop. My adult hat was crumpled and in the corner. My back was not getting pats. I was ready to throw in the towel.
I called a friend and got a deal at an appliance store in town. I went in, picked out a new fridge and set up delivery for the next day. It was money I didn't want to spend, but I was going to be fat and broke if we kept eating out twice a day. No fridge is a big deal, especially in the summer when all you want is veggies!
The next day, I got a call during my training from the fridge installation guys. Problem. (of course) The fridge couldn't be installed because the electrical outlet had to be higher and there was water everywhere. huh. I thought I had noticed water in the dining room.... I convinced them to take the old fridge anyway and leave the new one in the garage. I would deal with it later. Pause. Another call. Apparently, when the installation guys had turned off the water main to the house to unhook the fridge, it had frozen and they couldn't turn it back on. That's weird, but okay, I'll take care of it.
Fast forward three days. We've been without a fridge and without water at my house. We have all gained ten pounds each from eating fast food garbage, and I've had more repair trucks in front of my house than Mike Holmes. A very nice plumber (dressed to the nines by the way) comes to assess the water main. He cannot figure out why the installation guys touched the water main. He showed me the little valve, complete with INSTRUCTIONS, that turned off water to the fridge. Huh. He was nice enough to write all this information on his bill of $362 to repair the handle on the water main the guys had broken off. I think I'm gonna share that bill with the appliance store. Just for giggles.
So here it is, Sunday. It's a beautiful day. I'm feeling thankful for this day of rest to spend with my family and go to church. I feel very blessed that I have a home and running water and health. I've learned a lot over the past two weeks. It takes a lot to care for a home by yourself. It's not my favorite thing, but I'm glad I am able to do it, even when it is hard. I'm also grateful that tomorrow, if I'm lucky, I'll have a fridge in my house again. And this time, I promise to give it more quality time...cause I said so.
Photo credit: www.applianceconnection.com

Some thoughts on writing, poetry, and other stuff

I have a thousand ideas for my contribution to this blog. Some of them have been floating in the ether for so long they are no more than wispy tendrils of thought; others hit me like a ton of bricks and I can't stop thinking about them. But tonight, I was looking through older posts making sure that a particular thing I wanted to say about poetry wasn't something I'd already said before, and I read a few of my older posts. To make it even better, I read the comments to those posts.

I won't go into all my posts. You can do that if you'd like. But I did learn something amazing. As I read those words, first of all, I felt eloquent for the first time in a long time. Some of that stuff is pretty good! I also heard my voice speaking so lovingly to myself, sounding like a long-lost friend, encouraging me, making me laugh, and reminding me of important truths. Here are a few:

--Don't stop starting over
--What you are is enough
--Remember that you were put on this crazy planet to change it for the better--and if God didn't think know you could do it, you wouldn't be here
--Practice makes perfect, even when we hate practicing so much because we're not perfect.
-- You've spent your whole life becoming who you are, and who you are is wonderful! Let that line shine!

I could go on. My point is that these are things I have forgotten. Scratch that. I haven't forgotten them. I've buried them in my mind and heart under giant piles of inferiority complex, laundry, and to-do lists. Reading them has already strengthened me.

How great would it be if I were writing like this in my own personal journal? How wonderful if I could read the words I wrote as I read the scriptures or pondered the words of the Prophet, and then when I had a hard day, I could gain strength from my own thoughts and feelings?

Of course, when I say "I," I mean "we." :)

Now, another thought--my original one. It's simple and it's not mine:

Wow, that's even related to my previous thoughts. How great is that?

Back to a sister from the old, pre-split Westside Stories chapter of ANWA. She said, more than once, to "write your truth."  I know this comes from Ernest Hemingway. Here is his full quote, discussing what he did when he got stuck in writing. He would tell himself:  

'Do not worry. You have always written before and you will write now. All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.'

So when we are writing poetry, we start with truth. We seek for truth. Sometimes it is with flowery words, sometimes we fit our truth into metered patterns and forms and sometimes we don't. I've said before that my poetry is for me, and that holds true. When I read it, after the fact, I'm often transported to whatever place and time I occupied when I wrote it. If I share it, I do so with hopes that it will help someone else to understand themselves through their reaction to my words; but if they don't, it's okay. Years later, I'll come back to it and find self-understanding and deeper meaning again and again. In that way poetry is like those old blog posts; voices from an old friend who knows me better than I know myself and is reaching out to leave me little treasures of wisdom. 

What have you learned from your writing? What gems of self-discovery have you found? 

Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words?

Supposedly, a picture says a thousand words. But what happens when you combine a chain of pictures, add dialogue, and combine it all into a series long story arch? Ta da! Comic books.  Expand and elaborate the comic book story, and you have a graphic novel. Oh, and if the comic book originated in Japan, it would be considered manga (pronounced mon-ga.)

The work and collaboration that goes into creating a comic book or graphic novel is astounding. Not only must the author have a clear idea of what they want, they must articulate it in a way that an illustrator understands. In traditional reading, if the author leaves out details, our minds fill in the blanks. A graphic novelist and the illustrator must team up to give the reader a complete picture. I have a friend who has done just that. He wrote a story, found an illustrator who enjoyed and believed in the story. Now they have a complete comic book ready to be published. Of course, they have to go through the same rigorous publication process as traditional book authors, but I believe they can do it.

Now for the million dollar question: do graphic novels and manga hold a candle to traditional books?

In my humble opinion, I think graphic novels and manga are amazing. It’s a different way of storytelling that combines art with words. Will they ever truly take the place of regular novels? No, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have value. Looking at it from a teacher’s perspective, graphic novels are an attention-grabbing way to introduce reading to kids who struggle with traditional books. Graphic novels also introduce a visual aspect to reading that will help those who prefer to learn visually. In this light these graphic novels provide a gateway into the literary world.

I have read quite a few blogs and forums that bash the use of graphic novels and manga in the classroom. They acknowledge the fact that it does entice children to read but contend that the content of graphic novels and manga are unlikely to really stimulate higher thinking. They argue that pictures are already there in front of the student, thwarting the readers’ use their imaginations to create the scenes and characters. Another criticism is the restricted point of view in a graphic novel.  Standard novels have a variety of viewpoints:  allowing the reader to see into the character’s mind, to feel what one or more characters is/are feeling, to understand what they are thinking, or to be totally mystified and surprised.  On the other hand, graphic novels usually (not always) have a third person omniscient point of view. To some readers, it seems as if graphic novels are constrained.

I will admit that I love the way my mind can create an entire world just by reading a series of letters printed on a page. It is a type of magic that only novels possess. On the other hand, graphic novels have their own type of magic. They are usually quicker paced and read just like a television episode plays. We get to see the different characters, put names to faces and enjoy their subtle facial expressions.  Graphic novel writers can introduce complicated plot lines without too much confusion. Plus the artwork is amazing and powerful. I mean, just look at this!

Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughan

Also, writers of graphic novels can explore hard -hitting subjects such as drug abuse, loss of a loved one, and war in a real and tangible way. The lion picture above is from a graphic novel about a pride of lions that were in the Baghdad zoo. Due to the war in Afghanistan, bombs were dropped in April 2003, destroying the zoo, particularly the cages housing the lions. Suddenly the lions are faced with freedom and a war they don’t understand. This is actually based on a true story, and I recommend this to teen and adult readers who want a different point of view of the war in Baghdad. It is a beautiful and heart-wrenching story that the author and illustrator brought to life through a combination of their words and art.

There have been numerous research studies done about the benefit of using graphic novels in the classroom. One such study was done at the University of Oklahoma, which showed that graphic novels may improve memory and be more effective in teaching than traditional textbooks. Participants in the study were divided into two groups. One group received information from a traditional textbook while the other group got to read about the same information constructed into a short narrative in the form of a graphic novel. After reading, the participants were given a short quiz over the presented material. Low and behold, the participants who read the information from the graphic novel were able to recall a greater amount of information, including direct quotes! If you would like to read more on this study, follow this link. This is just one study out of many that shows the benefits of graphic novels.

While I don’t think that graphic novels will take over the literary world, I do believe they have a valuable spot on our shelves and the shelves in schools. Whether we think of them as a gateway for further reading endeavors, or as a tool for comprehension, it is hard to deny the worth of this type of writing and the impact it has on readers.

What do you think? Would you allow your children or students to delve into the world of graphic novels and manga? Do you think graphic novels hold the same amount of literary worth as traditional novels? Let me know what you think! 

A Houseful of Marshmallows

- a post by Jeanna Mason Stay

Recently the kiddos and I were discussing the story of the prodigal son.* In the midst of our discussion, I was looking for a way to help both them and me understand the feelings of the older son. If you need a refresher, the older son had stayed home and worked for his father while the younger son ran off, wasted his inheritance, and finally came back asking forgiveness. The older son felt angry about his father’s excitement over the prodigal son’s return.

Suddenly an idea came to me (inspiration! yay!). I ran to the kitchen and returned with six mini-marshmallows.

“How many of these marshmallows do you think you could eat?” I asked them.

They each assured me they could eat all six by themselves.

“So if I gave all six to you [the 7yo], you [the 4yo] wouldn’t have any. Right? What if I gave three to the 7yo, how many would the 4yo get?” (Look! We do math!)

After we figured out all the variations for how many marshmallows they could each get, we discussed what would be a fair division of marshmallows. Not surprisingly, it came out to be three/three.

“Would it be fair of me to promise you each three but then give six to the 4yo?”

They were properly incensed.

But then here’s the catch. What if, instead of only six marshmallows, I had a whole houseful of marshmallows? Curious to find out how many marshmallows they each thought they could eat, I asked the 4yo if she thought she could eat a whole boxful. I thought this was a pretty optimistic estimate, since the box was rather large.

I should not have underestimated her stomach, as she informed me that she could happily eat their whole bedroomful of marshmallows.

And there would still be enough marshmallows left for the 7yo too. I would have enough marshmallows for both of them to have every single last marshmallow they wanted.

I think that’s something that’s easy to forget. When someone else gets something awesome, that doesn’t mean that we can’t also have awesome things in our lives. I have friends that I admit I am a bit jealous of. They run successful businesses, have visible rewards in their chosen careers (including the career of motherhood), seem to just have everything together.

And sometimes, yes, people will have more blessings here on earth than we do. But God doesn’t just look at this tiny little lifespan. And he doesn’t have six measly little blessings to portion out to us. If someone gets a lot, that doesn’t mean we just the get the leftover scraps. God’s love—God’s blessings—are like a houseful of marshmallows. We can eventually receive every single marshmallow we want, every blessing we are prepared to receive—and so can everyone else. There is just no way to run out. What may feel unfair for a moment (even if the moment is this whole mortal life) is evened out by the wealth that God offers each of us.

And now I really want to go eat some s’mores.**

* Minor wordgeek moment here: “prodigal” does not mean “returning” or “lost.” It means “wasteful, extravagant, lavish”—from the same root as “prodigious,” which means “enormous, huge.” So he was hugely spendy. So, please, don’t say of someone you haven’t seen for a long time, “Here comes the prodigal!” Unless you really do mean that he/she was extremely wasteful. Then go for it.

** But not a houseful of them.

5 Tips for Tackling Writer's Block

by Celeste Cox

Here's the thing: writer's block is a thing. It happens. One second the story is flowing like delicious golden liquid onto the page, and the next you feel like you might as well be staring at a three year old's drawing. In crayon. And even that would be more inspired than the gibberish you've just written.

But here's another thing: blocks can be moved. It's not called Writer's Great Impenetrable Wall. It's just a block. It doesn't have to mean the end. Just make like a lego master and move the dang thing. I know, I know. Easier said than done. So here are 5 tips for tackling that mean old writer's block:

1. Take a SHORT Break.

This is definitely the favorite amongst all writers. *Raising my hand slowly* Mine too. It's the well deserved break! We are writers. And it's our passion. But it's hard. Especially when our minds just aren't cooperating. Especially when writer's block shows up! That break is more than well deserved. It is necessary. But here's the problem with "break time". It either lasts way longer than it should. Or there are way too many of them. But I had to go and get another drink, you say. And then I had to use the bathroom. And then I needed a snack! Hey, I get it. But don't let these breaks be a lazy way out. Keep them short. You know how long you really need.

2. Get Inspired.

What inspires you? What makes your insides spark up like the Fourth of July? If it's nature, go for a walk, look out the window, or watch the Discovery channel. If it's a certain song, listen to it. Maybe it's a smell. A book, a movie, a color. Whatever it is, let it inspire you. Make it happen.

3. Write Anyways.

Yes, you have written garbage. And yes, you will write garbage again. And YES, it's okay. That's the wonderful thing about writing. You can write the worst thing you've ever written and still be happy about it. Because you're writing. You're doing what you love. What you crave. And then there's the bonus: there's always something within the garbage. A small piece of treasure. And you never would've written it had you not allowed yourself to stink up the page.

4. Work on Something Else.

You want to finish what you're working on. You need to finish it already! I know. But sometimes you just need to take a step back. Instead of completely taking a break from writing, work on something else. Preferably something fun and easy. Then go back to your work in progress and you'll find that you CAN get past whatever it was that was causing you to go a little more crazy than usual.

5. Get Help.

Read articles (like this one!). Read a book on writing. Or find yourself some writing prompts. Whenever I have really icky bad writer's block I love doing this exercise I learned in one of my creative writing classes. Here's how it works. Find a picture. Any picture that sort of speaks to you. Don't take forever finding a picture though, or now you're just dooming yourself. Here are some random ones for you. A)

B)

C)

D)

E)

F)

G)

H)

Now set the timer! I like to change it up sometimes but let's do 5 minutes. So for 5 minutes write whatever comes to mind about the image you chose. It can be a poem, short story, random facts, random sentences that don't even go together, whatever! Just write. 

AND THERE'S ABSOLUTELY NO EDITING ALLOWED. 

This is just you letting it all out. No holding back. Whatever comes to mind.

Once the 5 minutes are up, read it. Admire it. Yeah, yeah, it's probably a mess, but isn't it a beautiful mess? And look! You wrote something! You thought writer's block had defeated you, that you were incapable of writing even one more word. But you did it.

Multiple Personality Dis... Our Constantly Changing Perspective

By Lacey Gunter

Hey MMWs, if you're anything like me, you have a complicated relationship with your manuscripts. Sometimes when I read one of my manuscripts I think it is awesome. I am sure it will make a great childrens book and I am really excited about trying to get it published.

A couple of months later I will read that same manuscript and think, "Uugh, what did I think was so great about this manuscript? It needs a lot of work" I will be disgusted with it and brain storm about how to fix it, or worse, not want to even to look at it or think about it.

Time will pass and someone will ask me about the same manuscript. I will pull it out to try and fix it and think "Hey, this manuscript is pretty good. Why did I think it was so bad? It was really funny." Then I will get excited about it all over again.

Whether the manuscript is truly good or not is difficult to say. It is also not the topic I want to write about. What interests me is how our perception of our writing and our stories is affected by our current emotional status, our outlook and the experiences were are having at the moment.

When we are grouchy or unhappy with ourselves or our current situation, that affects how we react to and interpret the things that happen to us.  It will also affect how we view our writing or our stories. Likewise when we are happy, excited, worried, whatever.

I am sure that this information comes as no surprise to any of you. But how often do we take this into consideration when we are getting feedback on our work from critique partners and reviewers? No matter how good our story or writing is, we should expect that some of that feedback we get will be negative; if for no other reason that the fact that the people who are looking at our work are human and will have good days and bad days that color the way they see and interpret the world.

So think about that the next time your get a critique or review that totally rips apart everything you have done. Stop, take a breath, calm down, go to sleep, and wake up and look at it from a new perspective. It is constantly changing.

Marriage...The Ultimate W.I.P.

By Nikki Wilson

This is a writing blog, so why would I post about marriage? Mostly because I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. My husband and I recently celebrated our 20 year anniversary and I would love to say it’s been a perfect 20 years but that would be like saying the first draft of my books are perfect. Anyone who’s ever seen even a glimpse of one of my first draft knows that is far from the truth. 

Often times movies and books portray marriage as the ultimate happy ending. Especially romance books where the whole plot is to get two people together despite all the obstacles in their way and hopefully lead them to the alter where their happiness is now assured because they have found their soul mate. But marriage is more than that. Yes, you can find some of your greatest joy in a marriage, but you can also find some of your greatest pain. 

Recently, my husband and I had a disagreement. It was over something stupid like our arguments usually are. But I was suddenly thinking of all the things that had annoyed me about him over the past 20 years and I realized he is never going to change and this is what I will get to deal with forever and suddenly eternity felt like a very long time. I voiced this thought and suddenly all the fight went out of him and he asked very sincerely, “What am I doing wrong?”

This question actually excited me. This was my chance to tell him about all the little annoying things and then maybe he could finally change. After all, he can’t read my mind so if I tell him everything that bothers me and he tells me everything that bothers him, maybe we can make our marriage stronger and it will be better. I opened my mouth to speak when a very strong thought caused me to close it. The thought was this: Stop! He isn’t your critique partner!

I realized I’d been going about this all wrong. I thought back to all the times that we have nit picked at each other and realized that it had never made our marriage stronger. This wasn’t a book I was writing where I need to see all the flaws so I can fix them. I wasn’t dealing with letters on a page that can be rearranged and changed by the touch of a key.

I opened my mouth to speak again but these words came out, “We have done enough of telling each other what we’ve done wrong. We need to tell each other what we are doing right.” I think he was surprised by that but he didn’t even hesitate before he began listing my positive attributes. As I began to do the same I wondered why I found it harder to speak about the positive than the negatives. Not that there wasn’t enough positive things to point out, but talking about them brought out emotions so much stronger than the emotions of anger and frustration brought on when we were focusing on the negative. 

I realized that for the past 20 years I’d been wearing rose colored glasses when it came to my husband but I’d suddenly out grown the prescription and I didn’t like what I saw. I knew as we talked to each other about what we love about the other that I wanted a new pair of rose colored glasses. But this time the prescription would have to be stronger to last the next 20 years. 

I recently watched Pride and Prejudice (the BBC version of course) with my daughters. As we were watching the part where Elizabeth Bennett started to soften towards Darcy, my 15 year old daughter made the observation that he had always been that person that she was falling in love with, she just wouldn’t allow herself to see it at first. 

This struck me very personally. Because I could see that my husband is still the man that I fell in love with all those years ago, but for some reason I wasn’t allowing myself to see it anymore. I had to change what I was focused on. My perspective needed rearranging. 

It would have been easy for me to say that my feelings had changed towards my husband and that we should part our separate ways. After all, the world says you can’t help it if you fall out of love with someone (not that I ever fell out of love by any means). But there’s a voice inside that tells me I can help it. There’s a voice that sounds a lot like Pres. Uchtdorf saying, “Doubt your doubts first.”

I'm happy to report that those feelings of doubt were fleeting and I am able to focus on the positive parts of our marriage again. And because we have been focusing on each other's positive attributes, our marriage continues to grow stronger. But it's something we will continue to work on because it's important to us.

So marriage may be a lot of work, but fortunately there are no deadlines, we actually have eternity to work on it! And as any good writer knows, the joy is in the creating of the story and not the perfecting but both work together to make something to be proud of!