2024-February Musings
Blood, sweat, and excuses.
Hello Subscribers (yes, all four of you):
Due to the fact that this was supposed to be released yesterday, I'm going to keep it shortish.
Update!
No new stories published (not even any shorts or microfics) this month. I have been working on a story featuring Miri from Preludes, but I’ve been working on that one since 2019. It’s coming along, but it’s not where I need it to be just yet.
Much of my available time has been spent working on a couple of screenplays, one of which requires me to relearn a bunch on mathematics and cryptography, so I can get it ‘right’. Learning is fun, but it’s been a long time since I did maths like this. Perhaps that’s why my brain has been rebelling.
Unfortunately, much of the month has seen me afflicted by one ailment after another. It’s curtailed my writing considerably, although I have managed to do a little bit of coding.
Recently, I released a very simple piece of python code called Leet converter. It converts a text file into leet speak and writes that to a file. It’s very basic. Use at your own risk.
I did it as part of a Mastodon writing challenge to create a story using Leet speak. Now I just need to write the story.
Spine
A few weeks ago, I was talking with a fellow writer about the spine of my story. They’d never heard that term used before, so I thought I’d briefly explain it here.
The spine is a technique for telling well-structured stories. It’s not the only technique by any means, and it’s certainly not a requirement. However, it’s a useful tool for creating highly organised stories that don’t meander away from their core narrative. Pixar has provided a good video primer explaining the technique.
News
The debacle that is the 2023 Hugo awards continues to rage on. This primer provides a good breakdown of the entire story, including the new scandal that has emerged. BTW the link to Abigail’s article in the video description is wrong. The correct link.
Avatar: The Last Airbender just released on Netflix, and the internet collectively lost its mind. Many existing fans of the cartoon hate the new live-action series, whereas those new to the story liked it. I fall in between, because I didn’t like the cartoon (especially the 20 episode seasons), but I liked this. Hello Future Me provides a decent breakdown of the good, the bad and the… okay.
Oh...and Reddit is releasing an IPO and despite not earning any profit for the last 20 years still managed to pay its CEO $193 million last year. Meanwhile, the mods continue to work for...exposure.
That’s it!
skribe
More inanity available at https://skribeworks.com