Compromise

It seems like the understanding individuals have for the basic nature of politics has continued to degrade over the years. I personally think that the two party system might have been a bad move, as it puts everyone on one of two teams (for the most part) and pits them against each other. Democrats and Republicans view themselves as so opposite that they could never possibly agree. It is going to be their way or the highway. This is in no way a reasonable or realistic view.

The key to any relationship, with friends, significant others, family, or ANYONE, is compromise. Two people are never going to agree on every single decision on idea. Imagine if everybody behaved how they did with politics, but with EVERY disagreement or discontentment in their lives!

"Do you want to go to Taco Bell, or Pizza Hut?"
"Pizza Hut."
"Well **** you I want Taco Bell! You're an idiot for liking Pizza Hut."
"Pizza Hut is ten times better than Taco Bell!"
"Well obviously you are racist against tacos."

If we were as belligerently hateful toward anyone who disagreed with us as many are to those who disagree on politics, the world would be a terrifyingly violent and lonely place. We are all unique individuals, and built into that is the simple fact that we will often disagree. Our views are not what matter the most, or even that we stand by them. Most important is how we treat those we share those views with, whether they agree or not.

An intelligent person needs to always be aware of one thing. THEY COULD BE WRONG. No matter how fervent your belief, how strong your certainty, there is someone out there who believes just as strongly in the exactly opposite view. Of course, THEY are the ones who are wrong though...right? No rational person can claim that they are correct and all others wrong. To claim to be rational, you must first accept that you could also be incorrect, no matter how strongly you believe otherwise.

Since you might be wrong, the current political practice of throwing tantrums until we get our way is not something to be taken lightly. Instead of debating, intelligently stating our points and persuading the other side, we now riot and burn down buildings. It is our way or the highway! Well you know what that inspires? You have now taken away the possibility of compromise from the other side. If it is your way or the highway, then either they have to completely let go of their beliefs in favor of yours, or simply brush you aside. Can you blame them for choosing the latter? You just did the same after all.

This is why extremist movements, such as the Ballot or the Bullet, aren't the movements that succeed. If people are already afraid of this social change, violent threats won't mitigate that fear. It will simply make them more sure that this is a bad idea, that the people you speak for are indeed violent, and that their biased views are even more correct. The way to change there minds is to defy that view, to take their view of your group as violent and lesser, and show them that you are equal and civilized. It is far harder to call a group lesser or violent when they are peacefully stating their views and allowing the police to take them away than when they are running rampant and lighting things on fire.

These are the kind of lessons that people seem to have forgotten.

Even with just two people, like in a marriage, you need to compromise. If you don't, if you just belligerently demand to have things your way, the marriage hopefully won't last long. How can anyone expect for a nation of millions to allow such behavior when a two person group cannot function this way? It cannot. Diversity is strength, as no matter what situation arises, there will be people able to deal with it. But diversity also takes effort, and is a challenge.

Pack Mule

So yeah, this week has been a rough one. My favorite days at work, which were previously to be spent on automatic mowers driving around listening to music, were replaced with labor intensive days that left me sore and tired. Then the days between them remained grueling. My five day week ended up being over forty hours of hard labor, and to top it all off, my weekend got eaten away. (Alright I am being a little dramatic about the weekend.)

Saturday I got to help my cousin Ben move, so another day of heavy lifting rather than my carefree relaxation. And today I had to help my mom move stuff upstairs! (it was about ten minutes of work after a whole day spent hanging with friends and family, but hey I am going to count it!) So 7/7 for this week, but things are looking up! It has rained all ****ing day and I do not see us realistically being able to landscape tomorrow, so I might get a one day weekend after all! HOORAY!

IotD #22

Another song for you all today, and this one has expanded the universe of the upcoming project. It is called 'Carry on my Wayward Son' by The Wynners. I picked up this song because I am a Supernatural fan, along with 'Wheel in the Sky'.

Anyway, this song evokes a sense of understanding and love from a father for a son who he believes has wandered from the path he should be traveling. Despite the son having wandered astray, he is supportive and understanding and still loves his offspring with all of his heart and wishes only good for him. He tells his son to carry on even though he is going to wrong way in his eyes, and tells him that 'there will be peace when you are done.' I take this to mean that once his path is complete, no matter what, the father will welcome him back with open arms to his home and give him a place to rest and recover.

It is a very touching song to me for a great many complicated and personal reasons. But it has made me change my mind about the main character background and role in society. I think this new direction will be very interesting to write, and hopefully to read!

New Stand Up Favorite

Iliza Shlesinger. If you read nothing else, there you go. Go watch her.

AND NOW THE WHY!

Everything she says is funny and correct (mostly). Very hilarious generalizations about men and women and the problems with them interacting. I found it very amusing, especially watching it with my wife so that we can take the parts that apply to each other and poke fun. The only real issue would be that there are a LOT of generalizations that are...well...generalizations....

Okay I guess that's fair. But seriously, sometimes she will say things like 'every single girl has' or 'every guy has' and I get annoyed when those don't apply to everyone. Well, when they don't apply to me. I'm selfish like that. Specifically, the sexual experiences part. A bit of a touchy subject for me, especially since I am in the outlier group who has only had sex with one person. I tend to not have the kind of sexual experiences most people have had because of that, but hey, still amazingly funny!

So yeah, go watch. I am not going to bother going through and finding all kinds of quotes from her show to convince you. She is on netflix, and I am sure youtube has something. If you want to give it a shot, do so. If you don't like the first five minutes, you won't like the rest of it.

IotD #21

Yeah it has been another short break. It seems whenever I get busy or excited with anything else, I neglect my blog. Well I plan to make up for it today!

I have another song for y'all (always wanted to use that word) today. It is yet another from that wonderful animated web series (which you can find on Rooster Teeth), RWBY. I think I have more songs from this series than from most artists in my library. This song is in a slightly different vein than previous ones I have selected from this source. It is called 'Shine' by Jeff Williams and Casey Lee Williams.

This song is quite upbeat and uplifting, a very up song overall. It is another of the sappy romantic songs that I hurry to hit the skip button for whenever my guy friends are in the car with me. There is a lot in the song that I find moving, and I think that giving it a listen is the easiest way to understand. I would literally be copying and pasting the lyrics if I wanted to select the parts I love.

But overall, I find it almost impossible to not dance when listening to the song. I was walking around landscaping earlier, looking for flags marking broken sprinkler heads, and found myself walking in rhythm and almost dancing along the sidewalk. The scene from the show that this song is from is also quite touching, hilarious and sweet. It is giving me a lot of ideas for the background of Karma, one of the main characters from my new sci fi setting, which is REALLY taking off by the way! Let me know what you guys think of the song, and if you watch RWBY also let me know! I currently have no one to discuss my favorite show with. :(

IotD #20

Again I am compelled to write this because of something being truly moving rather than an attempt to find filler, which is what I was hoping IotD would be!

The other day I went into work to find a large box of movies. I work for my uncle's landscaping company, and I asked him what the movies were for. They were for anyone to take who wanted them, and I immediately spotted 'The King and I' and 'The Help', both movies my wife loves and does not own. So I grabbed them, and today me and my lovely wife watched 'The Help'. I have to say, it seemed vaguely interesting initially but I never expected it to be as amazing as it was.

'The Help' is about black maids during segregation, and I have to say it was one of the most moving movies I have seen in a long time. Seeing how ridiculous people were during that time period is just... wow. I honestly can't wrap my mind around how people like that could really exist. It just seems so cartoonish, the kind of unthinking stupidity, selfishness and hatred that leads to hating people for something as petty as their skin color. It brings to mind the episode of '30 Days' about the Muslim-Americans. People are so quick to hate without even attempting to understand those around them.

But anyway, the movie was fantastic and actually quite uplifting. The parts I truly loved in it showed how even in dark times, there are those who go against the flow and do truly courageous and kind things for each other. One white employer purchased two acres of land from a farmer when that farmer threatened his maid for cutting across it on her way to work. For those who have no faith in humanity, hopefully the movie will help show you that people will come through for each other. For everyone who, like me, believes that mankind is as a whole truly wonderful, watch it and appreciate a little insight into the kind of wonders human hearts are capable of.

IotD #19!

It took me a while to find the last one of these to get the number right, it has certainly been a while. But the goods news is that this time I am not using IotD because I lack anything else to write! No, today I am really pumped about this new source of inspiration!

The source in question is "Words as Weapons" by Seether. This song is on my favorite radio station right now, and is quite moving. It is an excellent song of lamentation and sorrow with more than a hint of resentment and anger beneath it. There are a few lines in it that has made me decide to base the bad guy of the new Recollectors storyline on it. There are so many it is hard to list them, and most of them should be obvious. But my favorite are as follows.

"You're not that saint that you externalize." makes me think that this character pretends to be a good person and manipulates those around them into believing it. A false crusader kind of set up.

"It's oh so playful when you demonize." The main characters are members of a group alienated by the actions of this bad guy. He has turned the populace against them with his manipulations.

"Say can you help me right before the fall." The main character has a personal relationship with the bad guy and it is betrayed. The question is how to do this without being cliche? Father, mother, siblings, mentors, there are a great many examples of all of these betraying those that trust them. I would have to do it really well if I went with any of these.

Lastly we have a line that is going to apply to the main characters. "To never fade away, I wanna live forever!" I am incredibly tired of the settings where immortality is basically seen as a curse. So I am going the opposite way, with the seeking of immortality instead.

So anyway, I have probably listened to this song a dozen times today and am still loving it. Definitely check it out and let me know if you have any solutions to my above problems or suggestions!

Passivity

Well I was pondering my way around the new plot I am exploring, and as usual began to find myself less than happy. Initially I could not figure out why. So instead I turned my mind toward other thoughts, characters, etc. I began to conjure up thoughts of paladins on grand quests for their faith, heroes, blah blah blah, and realized what these all had in common. Surety of purpose and singular direction.

In previous plots, my characters tend to take a more passive stance. They kind of just wander their way through life, taking what opportunities come their way, never really seeking anything out. When they do end up affecting the world around them, it is because they are pushed into it more than out of choice. My characters tend to be much like myself, desiring a fairly average and quiet life rather than adventure. So to push them into exciting situations, they are forced to act as they would rather not.

I personally find this a pretty compelling plot obviously, since I wrote it, but I find that it could easily get predictable. Particularly since I tend to have characters change their ways. They start off thinking one thing, see their error, and alter their path. Instead I am thinking I might head down a different path, one where the character is actually sure of their purpose. Where the development is personal growth within the belief system, and the struggles of following it rather than realizing you were wrong and reconciling you to that.

So yeah, new stuff that is expanding my latest plot idea, and I am happy to say that I grow ever more excited about it. I also managed to get the technology aspect out of the way, which is the part of science fiction I find most tedious.

CONCERT

So I am extremely excited for this. In June there is going to be a concert featuring three of my favorite bands! I have never actually purchased tickets to a concert myself, though I have attended a couple, and it is very rare for a concert to take place that has all bands that I know and like. The bands are Halestorm, The Pretty Reckless and Starset. It is going to be an exciting and hopefully inspiring night with my lovely wife!

Speaking of which, this is an early birthday present for me. My sweetheart knows me so well. So if anyone who reads this is going to be at the Fillmore on June 2nd let me know! I would love to see you at the show.

Oh, and it has been a while since I last blogged. I have been busy working on taxes, writing, working and all kinds of other stuff. I apologize for my sudden laxity, but hopefully things will be back on track.

Names

So I am getting stuck on the part of a plot that is so often difficult, and that is naming the characters. Previously I have taken some rather convenient shortcuts. Mostly, I would use names from characters I had in online roleplay forums. At other times I would make up my own style of naming for a society, like with the Ombra. Then I simply had to come up with strings of three letter words to stick together that sounded good. But whatever the situation, whatever shortcuts I take, there is a pattern I have noticed.

Female characters are ten times as easy to name, and have far more interesting names. My male characters almost always end up with generic names just because I can't think of anything fun. I can come up with female character names in a snap, but not male ones. A current example is this: I recently discovered that my parents wanted my nickname to be Cory, so I was going to be Corbin if a male and Corissa if a female. Personally, I love my name, but the alternative was good too. Inspired by this, I decided the nickname of my male character was going to be Cory, and so set out to find a name that could be shortened to it. Thus far I have come up with the following list:

Corissa (cheating I know, but I really liked it. Plus, I can't exactly take the male alternative :P)
Coral
Corten
Corden
Corwin
Cortiel

Honestly I am not a huge fan thus far. It is way more difficult to find a longer version of a nickname than to shorten a long name. A successful example of doing this is in the book I am co-authoring with my friend Nicholas Casale. I wanted her name to include 'Kali' in it, and extended that to 'Kalianda'. It is SO much easier to make a female name cool, though the male version would be Kaliander, so it is still awesome. Maybe I just prefer more complicated names, and masculine names don't tend to drag on.

Well if you have thoughts (or name suggestions, PLEASE) let me know!

New Job Opportunities

Well thanks to the connections of my wonderful in laws, it seems I have several leads on some office jobs. I do love being outside and being physical all day, but when I get home I am just too exhausted to be motivated. I almost never get writing done after coming home from work, so I think I need something easier and less physically demanding. Sadly, this would also mean that I need to actually work out... damn. Guess life is full of difficult decisions.

Miracle Editor

Well my editor is officially the most helpful person in the world. Spent a couple of hours yesterday talking with her and we ironed out all of the issues with the sci-fi setting. It seems really promising and pulls in a lot of the elements I was hoping that it would. All I need to work on now is the technology and names, and I think that I can get going pretty soon.

On another note, for those who do not know, I have been playing a game called Warframe. I am part of a clan, which is one of many in an alliance. I have been put in charge of the websites for the clan, and also for the alliance. While it is a lot of work, I am also very excited since this includes being in charge of the newspapers. Another writing outlet, and one that is more relaxed and a different format is something I greatly enjoy.

Sci-fi

For those of you with whom I share my musings, you are well aware of my tendency to lean more toward fantasy than sci-fi in my writing. The reason is quite simple. I am not a scientist, in fact science is my worst subject. Sci-fi requires me to explain things that I do not understand, and I am constantly concerned that it will sound utterly ridiculous. At one end, I can use soft science explanations that are vague enough to seem plausible, or I could do a ludicrous amount of research and hope to God that I get it right.

Fantasy on the other hand is very clean cut. Why can the mage explode that mountain with a wave of his hand? Plasma generated particle beams? Nuclear fission? Missiles using some sort of made up element that doesn't really exist? No, it's MAGIC! So much straightforward. Magic doesn't pretend to follow science, doesn't need to explain itself. While soft science is trying to explain its way past the doorman, MAGIC walks in with a wave of his hand and a tip of his pointy hat. Everyone knows magic, knows better than to ask questions of it.

To be frank, most Sci-fi settings seem to replace run of the mill magic with science that does the same thing, but comes from a machine. Mages use shielding spells to protect themselves. Spaceships use mystical devices called forcefields which are never explained and highly improbable to protect themselves. To be honest, it just seems that Fantasy can be more straight forward about the fact that it won't be explaining everything. You don't need to know how, or why, or from where, it's just magic. Sci-fi tries to convince you that what it tells you could happen.

That being said, I am playing around with the idea of a Sci-fi setting. The above is the main struggle I am facing in getting it off of the ground. I find myself wondering why I am wasting any time justifying the workings of machines that are so advanced that they are pretty much magic to us. And the answer is because I think that is what audiences want from sci-fi. Without these justifications, all of the weapons and tech just become magical. The real question is whether or not I can write and enjoy it.

Do you guys think that science fiction requires explanation? Would technology that goes entirely unexplained be something acceptable that adds to a setting? Or is technology without scientific justification just magic being dressed up?