Happily addicted to the web . . . .
(Or, In Which Helen Should Avoid Resolutions, Part II)
No, I didn't revise as much as I planned to last month. Anyone really surprised? I did. however, generate a few thousand words of new material, and I spend a considerable amount of time struggling with my novel's setting.
The story's set in a very specific City, which I know lots about; the problem is what world this City is in. Apparently the story gives off a futuristic vibe (which was part of my original idea); but it contains some magical/supernatural elements which prevent it from being the future of our world. Right now I'm thinking it's the future of a sort of parallel universe--our world + my particular brand of "magic." (Sort of like Watchmen, which is our world + "superheroes."*)
Anyway, some small amount of progress has been made by me. And no doubt (no doubt)** there would have been more, had I spent less time online. Hulu is simultaneously a delight and the bane of my existence . . . all those TV shows, available whenever you want them! Ack. But in five days or so my semester will essentially be over,*** and I'll be back home without wireless. Which will be good for my soul and my writing.
Before that happy day, however, I must survive two juries (piano and organ) . . . and actually I probably won't do any writing until after Christmas: I have two full services Christmas Eve and one Christmas morning. So not much chance for relaxation until Boxing Day, when I intend to sleep very late and do nothing useful all day.
Yet despite all this, I am happy. An elusive and fragile state, to be sure: I'm always hesitant use these words, lest the force of words destroy so ephemeral a feeling. But I played my Toccata in Convocation today, and it went splendidly. I haven't performed in a long while (church is a whole different creature), and it's so nice to know that I can still perform--and that I can even enjoy it. Also I spent half an hour outside this evening looking at the moon (which apparently was the closest and brightest full moon in fifteen years), and then came inside and drank hot chocolate whilst ordering Christmas presents.
I only wish it was colder. :-)
*With the important exception that my novel is not a cynical-yet-brilliant deconstruction of an entire genre. (Hopefully it will have a brilliant moment or two; but no cynical deconstruction, thanks!)
**Insert Alan-Rickman-as-Snape-voice here.
***Yes, I split that infinitive. Gleefully, I might add, and with malice aforethought. There is absolutely no reason to not split infinitives in English. (See what I did there?) The only reason it's "wrong" is because some stupid grammarians in the seventeenth century thought that English should be Latin. This is also the reason we aren't allowed to use double negatives--which Old English, and even sixteenth-century English, used freely. Thus we are deprived of a form of dramatic emphasis native to our tongue, and are not under no circumstances to never use it. Solely because some stupid dead guys thought every language should emulate Latin.
No, I didn't revise as much as I planned to last month. Anyone really surprised? I did. however, generate a few thousand words of new material, and I spend a considerable amount of time struggling with my novel's setting.
The story's set in a very specific City, which I know lots about; the problem is what world this City is in. Apparently the story gives off a futuristic vibe (which was part of my original idea); but it contains some magical/supernatural elements which prevent it from being the future of our world. Right now I'm thinking it's the future of a sort of parallel universe--our world + my particular brand of "magic." (Sort of like Watchmen, which is our world + "superheroes."*)
Anyway, some small amount of progress has been made by me. And no doubt (no doubt)** there would have been more, had I spent less time online. Hulu is simultaneously a delight and the bane of my existence . . . all those TV shows, available whenever you want them! Ack. But in five days or so my semester will essentially be over,*** and I'll be back home without wireless. Which will be good for my soul and my writing.
Before that happy day, however, I must survive two juries (piano and organ) . . . and actually I probably won't do any writing until after Christmas: I have two full services Christmas Eve and one Christmas morning. So not much chance for relaxation until Boxing Day, when I intend to sleep very late and do nothing useful all day.
Yet despite all this, I am happy. An elusive and fragile state, to be sure: I'm always hesitant use these words, lest the force of words destroy so ephemeral a feeling. But I played my Toccata in Convocation today, and it went splendidly. I haven't performed in a long while (church is a whole different creature), and it's so nice to know that I can still perform--and that I can even enjoy it. Also I spent half an hour outside this evening looking at the moon (which apparently was the closest and brightest full moon in fifteen years), and then came inside and drank hot chocolate whilst ordering Christmas presents.
I only wish it was colder. :-)
*With the important exception that my novel is not a cynical-yet-brilliant deconstruction of an entire genre. (Hopefully it will have a brilliant moment or two; but no cynical deconstruction, thanks!)
**Insert Alan-Rickman-as-Snape-voice here.
***Yes, I split that infinitive. Gleefully, I might add, and with malice aforethought. There is absolutely no reason to not split infinitives in English. (See what I did there?) The only reason it's "wrong" is because some stupid grammarians in the seventeenth century thought that English should be Latin. This is also the reason we aren't allowed to use double negatives--which Old English, and even sixteenth-century English, used freely. Thus we are deprived of a form of dramatic emphasis native to our tongue, and are not under no circumstances to never use it. Solely because some stupid dead guys thought every language should emulate Latin.
Labels: colllege, novel-writing, organ, resolutions, writing
posted by erendis nasard at 10:51 PM
3 Comments:
**Alan Rickman as Col. Brandon, dear. Please.
***=)That is very interesting. I wonder why? Because all the latinate languages use double-negatives freely. I wonder when that started?
****I'm happy that you're happy. =)
How may organ intermissions have you during your services? In my church (lutheran and swiss reformed) we have three intermissions, usually from Bach, Pachelbel or Mendhelsson.
*** I agree with Gratia Domini: in italian we "must" use double negatives. And for schoolboys it is quite difficult (or at least it was when I was a schoolboy, about 25 years ago) the use of the "simple" negative in english translations.
MERRY CHRISTMAS :-)
Ack, of course it's Col. Brandon. How could I get that wrong?!
Waverley, we don't have any intermissions . . . I usually play a prelude and postlude, and I also play during Communion. But I usually improvise for the prelude and Communion, because I never know quite how long they last, and improvising makes it easier to end at the right time. I sometimes use Bach for the postlude, though. (I have a lot of practicing for school, and not all of my school pieces are appropriate to church, or playable on the organ there.)
Merry (very late) Christmas to you, too. And happy new year. :-)
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