Review: Barbie Dreamscape

(Note: This is not a novelization of the 2023 Barbie movie.)

Barbie lives in a perfect village in Heartland. Yes, it’s pink. Birds braid her blonde hair every morning. She goes to the perfect school and sees her perfect friends. She always gets high scores on her school tests. Then she does the same thing again the next day. Her life is perfect. Except …

Barbie doesn’t remember her mother, because she died while Barbie was so young. She was killed while defending the village from terrible creatures. A statue of her stands in the school, decked out in full armor. (Maybe the cover gives you a clue as to whether Barbie will end up wearing it.)

Robin, the Headmistress of their school, took Barbie in and raised her like a daughter. Otherwise, Barbie would be like the other orphans. Other orphans?

And her school has a mean girl. Barbie has no idea what she did to offend her, but she always has it in for her. Barbie’s assessment is: “She sucks.”

So we have these subtle clues that Barbie’s village is not perfect. But she is looking forward to Boxing Day, their equivalent of high school graduation. Each student will find out his or her Fate, that is, a lifelong vocation. This is determined by the Fates, whom the villagers never see. They believe the Fates are never wrong. Barbie is glad she doesn’t have to make her own choices. “The Fates are going to tell me.”

On Boxing Day, she touches her mother’s statue and says, “I love you, Mom.” Then her best friend tells her what just happened to her. She walked into a third floor room, and glitter rained down on her. The walls announced her Fate. And most importantly, there were accessories! She then went to a window where the village applauded.

As Valedictorian, Barbie goes last. Excited, she walks into her room. No glitter. She backs up and tries again. Still nothing. No Fate displayed on the walls. No accessories. She goes to the window. The village gasps at her lack of accessories.

This has never happened before. Barbie now has to make choices. When she sees a map of Dreamland, a necklace her mother gave her draws her towards it. Is that where the Fates are?

And so begins a fantasy odyssey.

I’m not afraid of buying a pink book

But I don’t want to be seen reading it

I’m surprised to learn that Barbie Dreamscape is the first Barbie novel. The author, Alex Aster, had to be very successful to be chosen to write it. (She is the author of The Lightlark Saga, among others.) This is a coming of age story, but Barbie has to go on a quest to accomplish it. This is obviously not on a level with Homer’s Odyssey, but more intense than Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

Barbie is meant to be a Young Adult novel, but middle schoolers could easily read it. I think the climactic events would be disturbing to middle schoolers—not in the sense of being too intense, but that age group would have a harder time handling betrayal by a loved one. Also, coming of age stories are meant for Young Adults—Barbie goes from being a naïve teenager to an adult through her trying odyssey.

The motto on the back of the book is: Dream Big. Fail Hard. Get Back Up Again. This is especially true when Barbie falls into Rock Bottom, a dark place that ends up being miles deep. A person there tells her, “Rock Bottom is a pretty solid place to start a new life.” So, is the story really about a physical Rock Bottom? You’ll have to read it and see.

Review of Masters of the Universe

I never watched the animated series He-Man and the Masters of the Universe or read the comic books. But one reviewer said this movie was not as bad as some people thought it would be, so I took a chance and went to see it.

We are immediately plunged into Eternia, a world of vaguely high Medieval architecture and modern-looking body armor. The young of the aristocracy are ruthlessly trained to be warriors. Adam, the son of the king, is the smallest of them and quite hapless. A girl named Teela tries to encourage him, though she could knock him down.

The kingdom is invaded by Skeletor, who pretty much looks like his name. His forces use an odd combination of weapons: high-tech devices what never run out of ammo, and traditional bladed weapons. The power of Eternia is contained in the Sword of Power, so Adam and the Sword are sent through a portal to our world. Alas, the force of the portal rips the Sword from his hands.

We skip fifteen years to find Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) stuck in a dead-end job in human resources. He is subject to tortuous sessions on communication and de-escalation. But he spends every spare minute on endless online searches for the Sword. Will he find it?

Not to spoil anything, but the rest of the movie would be realllly boring if he never did.

Masters of the Universe is a fun combination of over the top action and wry self deprecation. The action involves extremely complex CGI, sometimes too fast for the eye to follow. The best example of the humor is when Adam grasps the Sword in Eternia and calls the overwhelming power into him. Teela (Camila Mendes), who is now grown up and devastatingly lovely, cries out, “We are saved!” The next moment, the sword is knocked from his hand. Teela says, “We are screwed.”

Adam is no reluctant hero. He yearns to be one, but is anything but a hero in our world. Even in Eternia, when he has the sword, he is often bumbling around. But the stakes are high. Skeletor has killed thousands of people. When Adam asks Teela why Skeletor is so evil, she replies, “His face is a skull.” Enough said.

What could be a moral to the story comes from sensitivity training smashing into ultimate evil. Adam uses his human resources training to try to communicate and to de-escalate situations, and he always fails. Duncan (Idris Elba), a worn-out warrior, tells him that muscles are needed. Although not denying that attempts to communicate are important, we see that sometimes evil must be destroyed by a muscular hero (in this case, one swinging a sword.)

So Masters of the Universe is not the politically correct superhero movie some dreaded. It is more of a partial sendup of sensitivity training, using a he-man kind of character.

One disadvantage of the movie is long emotional one-on-one scenes, even while battles are going on? There are a few cases of foul language and swearing, which are not only inappropriate, but do not match the tone of the movie.

Overall, this was a successful transformation of a comic-booky story into a movie that does not take itself too seriously.

Norwescon II—Supplemental

I didn’t take a lot of pictures at Norwescon this year. You can see a lot of pictures from the 2022 Norwescon here and here. Click to enlarge any of them.

Here is an amazing black dress.

These are floor costumes.

We also had a pair of pirate costumes.

Star Wars cosplayers put on quite a production. Here’s a picture—sabers up.

A somewhat different pose.

And a close up of a few of the players.

Book Haul

 

Okay, it’s two books and a magazine. Give me a break.

Princess Mononoke

I recently saw Princess Mononoke in a theater. It was a treat to see it on a big screen. I will not  try to summarize the plot, which concerns nature gods in Japan. But for those who have seen it, consider these themes:

The gods are cruel. I know the movie tried hard to make a distinction between a god in its natural state and a god who has turned into a demon. But such a being can arbitrarily decide to wipe out an entire village. When one goes beyond bowdlerized versions of myths and legends for boys and girls, it becomes clear the ancients and the Japanese until relatively recently characterized the gods as cruel.

Mononoke is an allegory. As human civilization advances, especially with the smelting of iron, the gods become weaker and withdraw. This fast-paced drama in its own way shows that as civilization advances, belief in the old gods fades and eventually dies out.

At the same time, the gods are real. Even though this story is an allegory, at the same time it portrays the gods as real. If one offends or even attacks the gods, they react with terrifying fury. Though some movies in the West do the same sort of parallel messaging, Mononoke is non-Western storytelling.

We have seen these characters before. I will go out on a limb and say Prince Ashitaka is the real main character. While on a quest, villagers who did not know him before sense he is a natural leader and are willing to follow his orders. Contrary to some previews, Lady Eboshi of Irontown is not an evil character. She is quite civil and represents scientific and technological advancement. Princess Mononoke is led by her emotions. She helps in healing Prince Ashitaka and is constantly hostile towards Lady Eboshi.

These are archetypal characters that can be found in Medieval morality plays. We have them in Star Trek: The Original Series as Kirk, Spock, and McCoy.

Doxacon

I went to Doxacon, a Christian science fiction and fantasy convention. It was on Saturday, Feb. 8th, in Woodinville, a suburb of Seattle. Its name comes from the fact it was founded by an Eastern Orthodox priest.

Scenery outside

The attendance was somewhat over fifty, compared to a normal six thousand for Norwescon or thousands more for Worldcon.

One of the volunteers running things was Megan.

The day started with a worship service, the Daily Morning Prayer service of the Anglican/Episcopal Church.

Then, while people were getting coffee or tea or finding their seats, a tall woman with long dark hair simply stood at her table. She wore a black sheath with a couple of gold chains at her waist. She didn’t seem to be looking for anyone, so that was puzzling.

She turned out to be SK Ehra, an author and the first speaker. So she had been standing like that to get a feel for the audience. She gave a lengthy, detailed lecture on science fiction, fantasy, and horror. She granted that these can be forms of escapism. But they are a way of going beyond the material universe to grasp truths that we know exist. She used illustrations from a number of books to show such fiction can ask us hard questions about ourselves.

She gave a defense of horror I had never heard before. When horror is done right, it reflects different mental states. If I remember correctly, a person haunted by a ghost may be having guilt for past sins. (Or it could be bad memories. I apologize if I got that wrong.)

Afterwards, I went up to her and said that was the best lecture I had ever heard on the subject, and I had been to many Norwescons and Worldcons. Her lecture was so good because she emphasized the fallen nature of the world.

The Writers Panel was composed of Reece Friesen, Tasha Kennedy, Suzanne Hayek, Aaron Ryan, Rosamund Hodge, and Kevin King. Sorry, I didn’t think to get a group picture. You might look up their books and see what you think.

There were a number of other sessions, some similar to a regular con, some very different. I’m glad I went and experienced something different.

Sprint into Fun: Review of The Flash

The Flash. Directed by Andy Muschietti. Starring Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, Ron Livingston, Maribel Verdu, Ben Affleck. Rated PG-13 for partial male nudity, violence, foul language. Runtime 2 hours 24 minutes. 

After the obligatory action scene at the start (and who doesn’t love a superhero who saves babies and a dog), we move on to the central angst for Barry Allen aka the Flash (Ezra Miller): He is worried for his father, who is falsely imprisoned for the murder of Barry’s mother when he was a child. Overwrought, the Flash runs wildly fast and finds he traveled a short distance into the past.

Naturally, he wants to go back in time and prevent the death of his mother. Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) cautions him against this, saying he could destroy everything. Barry says he could also save Bruce’s parents. Bruce wisely says “these scars we have make us who we are." The emotional tug is too strong for Barry, so he goes back and does save his mother.

The way he saves her is reminiscent of the Isaac Asimov novel The End of Eternity, when a time traveler moves an ordinary-looking can and changes the course of a civilization. In this case, Barry has somehow removed the metahumans (Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman). What we have left is Batman, an ordinary human. Michael Keaton fills the cape in this alternate universe, and it’s a hoot seeing him as a burnt-out Bruce Wayne who no longer wants to fight the good fight.

Most of the dialog and character interplay are between Barry and a younger, pre-Flash version of himself. Because he didn’t quite come back to the present, the older, driven Barry has constant arguments with the college-age, carefree, obnoxious Barry. Ezra Miller is more than capable of filling both roles. While I was watching the movie, I wasn’t conscious of the fact that it was the same actor playing two characters; they seemed to be two different people.

Sasha Calle is a revelation as the anti-hero Supergirl. (Remember, Supergirl arrived on Earth after Superman, and that's why she exists in this universe.) This Supergirl brutally kills several bad guys. But at first she stays aloof from a world-threatening invasion. As she points out, she’s a Kyptonian, not a human.

Overall, The Flash is a treat for superhero fans. Although, the outfits are too tight in the loin area, if you know what I mean. One does not have to be a geek to recognize a number of multiverse cameos. And the plot holds up. They avoid the futility of endless cycles of endless multiverses, as well as the simplistic idea of always going back in time to fix things when something bad happens. This is more of a cautionary tale than just a show of superpower.

Movie Review—Suzume

Suzume is a high schooler in Kyushu who was orphaned when she was a little girl. She has been living with her aunt for ten years. One day a young man asks her if there are any ruins nearby. Intrigued, she goes there herself. She sees a lone door standing amidst wreckage. When she opens it she sees an otherworldly realm, but cannot reach it. She also sees a carving of a cat, which see pulls out of the ground. It comes to life and runs away.

After that, a monstrous creature comes out of the doorway, causing an earthquake. She and the young man—Souta—are barely able to close the door and avoid disaster. It turns out the cat was a guardian meant to keep the door closed. Suzume and Souta chase the cat across Japan, trying to shut other doors and prevent ever-increasing disasters.

Suzume has flashbacks of herself as young child, wandering around, looking for her mother. But are these memories? Or is she seeing herself in that other realm?

Suzume ranges from scenes of delicate beauty to looming horrific disaster. This is high quality animation, with good detail and realistic motion, no matter how odd the chase scenes are. What stuck in my mind was the kindness Suzume experiences on her journey: From a young woman her age hauling fruit, to a mother who sees her at a bus stop where the next bus will not come for hours, they all want to help her. Suzume does chores for room and board, which is heartening so see.

The director, Makoto Shinkai, has openly said he was influenced by Super-Frog Saves Tokyo, which also involves preventing an earthquake. That in turn must have been influenced by the Japanese myth of Namazu, the giant catfish beneath Japan that causes earthquakes.

The movie has a couple of weaknesses. I suppose this is where I put SPOILERS. Suzume and Souta spend the movie as travel buddies. Then towards the end she tells her aunt that she loves him. This is very sudden. Also, her aunt becomes unaccountably cruel in one scene and tells Suzume she wasted the best years of her life caring for her. It is unclear if another door guardian is making her say these things, but it is unsettling.

So Suzume is well worth watching. Definitely do not walk out the minute the credits start rolling. For those of you who are Makoto Shinkai fans and love his movie Your Name, have your friends watch Suzume first. It is hard for Shinkai to live up to his masterpiece, Your Name.

Powerless—Funniest Sitcom

Emily Locke arrives as a new director at Wayne Security in Charmed City, full of excitement and idealism about her new job. But she almost gets killed before she can arrive at work. Why? Charmed City is ground zero for fights between minor superheroes and supervillains. Emily’s train is derailed by a supervillain, and the superhero Crimson Fox saves her and the rest of the train. Emily looks like she’s going to explode with delight.

Wayne Security was founded by the distant Bruce Wayne. They try to create products to help citizens protect themselves from supervillains (and the fallout from superhero battles). Emily is raring to go with her team of experts. Unfortunately, the Charmed City division is headed by a lesser cousin, Vanderveer “Van” Wayne. He is shallow, obnoxious, stupid—everything that would make a normal person quit. But not Emily. She constantly locks horns with Van, who often doesn’t even get what the argument is about. But she usually wins—kind of.

What makes things worse for Emily are the three leading specialists she has to work with. They are technical geniuses, but normally don’t pay attention to what she says. Teddy is arguably the greatest genius, but is high strung. He is depressed for almost an entire episode. Ron is easy-going—too easy-going when a project needs to be done. Wendy is flat-out hostile to Emily, always insulting her with a smile on her face.

Jackie is Van’s deadpan personal assistant. She started out young and idealistic like Emily, so she constantly tries to discourage her. Although, she is sometimes Emily’s ally. Jackie often gets in a good one to undermine Van, without his being able to figure it out.

Everyone does a fantastic job in the show. The writing is excellent, sometimes with good workplace humor, often with zany lines that come out of nowhere. Usually the best scenes are between Emily—played by Vanessa Hudgens, known from her role in the High School Musical franchise—and Van—played by Alan Tudyk, known from his roles in Firefly and Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Vanessa Hudgens is incredible. She goes through multiple extreme facial expressions every minute.

I say that Powerless is the funniest sitcom ever. Currently on The CW.

photo by swirley18

Sasha Peyton Smith and Rachel Griffin at the Mall

The new Barnes & Noble at Crossroads Mall in Bellevue (a suburb of Seattle) advertised that they would have Sasha Peyton Smith speaking about her second book, The Witch Hunt. I have to admit that I wasn’t familiar with the book. But it’s been a long time since I had heard an author speak in person about a book, so I went. I’m glad I did.

Sasha Peyton Smith is on the right

Rachel Griffin on the left

Some authors do readings of their work, and then answer questions as if the characters are real. In this case, Sasha Peyton Smith was interviewed by Rachel Griffin, a fellow author. The interview was entirely about the writing process. Sasha Peyton Smith discussed the research she did for the two time periods and the two locations for her books—New York and Paris. An interesting insight was she did not start writing her first book with the goal of publishing it. She was just writing to please herself.

When she decided to try having it published, she said she assembled a Frankenstein’s monster from parts of twelve different drafts. She then submitted it with a badly written query letter. Despite all that, her first book was accepted, and now she has her second book out.

While Sasha Peyton Smith was signing books, I asked Rachel Griffin, author of the recent Wild is the Witch, about agents. She said she submitted her first book to seventy different agents before she was accepted. That process took about a year. She could tell I was an aspiring author from my questions, so she wished me well.

Book Review: Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Lynesse Fourth Daughter of the queen knows her land is in peril. Some unnamed horror is sending people fleeing from neighboring forest kingdoms. Perhaps it is a demon. The strongest men cannot face it with a blade. So Lyn climbs the mountain to the Tower of Nyrgoth Elder, last of the sorcerers. She will call upon him to fulfill the great compact to come to her royal family’s aid. Because blood is required, she puts her finger in an opening to the door, and feels the sting of a bite.

Nyr wakes up. He is the last of a team of anthropologists sent here to study this colonized world that has devolved from a spacefaring civilization. He spends most of his time in suspended animation. The system woke him because a visitor is a match for a family he made a compact with. Nyr is horribly depressed from being left alone on this world.

But Nyr is happy to recognize his visitor—the woman he spent time with, even having adventures with her on horseback. He addresses her by name and title. Lyn replies that that was her great grandmother. The woman Nyr remembers is dead.

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky is shorter than a standard novel, so it is actually a novella. But do not make the mistake of thinking it has less value because of that. This is a charming story that alternates between two points of view—a fantasy of a princess on a quest, and a science fiction story of an anthropologist who has to deal with the ignorance and superstitions of a backslidden people.

Lyn is convinced, as they approach the forest kingdoms, that the sorcerer will defeat the horrible evil. Nyr goes along because of the great compact, but is certain this is none of his concern. They are both in for an increasingly terrifying adventure.

Parts of the story are quite funny. Nyr tells Lyn that he is not a magician, he is a scientist. This translates into her language as he is not a magician, he is a sorcerer. The story drags in a few places when it goes into detail about Nyr’s depression, but Elder Race is a worthwhile read.

Norwescon 1 – Supplemental

Norwescon is the largest science fiction and fantasy convention in the Pacific Northwest with an emphasis on writing. They capped their in-person membership at one thousand this year, less than half their usual. This was much better than last year, when it was all virtual—obviously. And it was much better for me, since I could find parking spaces at the hotel and pay the convention rate instead of the sky-high prices in the parking garages.

As usual, a Dalek was hanging around.

I assume it could exterminate its way into the parking lot.

And Iron Man could always jet in.

Cat Rambo was the Writer Guest of Honor. She has given me helpful advice in the past on writing. She actually remembered me, which was surprising.

They also started the Norwescon Speculative Film Fest, which they hope to make an annual event. They showed short films from around the globe. I stayed long enough to see one from Japan about virtual reality and one from France about something mysterious killing sheep—is it human or something else? 

Movie Review—Belle

In the anime movie Belle, a teenage girl name Suzu is very repressed. That’s actually a step up for her from elementary school, when she was constantly crying due to an early tragedy. But then she joins U, a virtual reality world with billions of members. Free to assume a new identity, she becomes the glamorous Bell (the meaning of Suzu, later modified to Belle). In her first moments there, she finds she is able to sing again for the first time since the tragedy. Her voice has a great lyric beauty to it, and her songs gain her over two hundred million followers.

As Belle, her fame increases, until she becomes the ultimate pop star. But then the Beast interrupts one of her concerts. Seething with anger, he is able to overcome any of the self-appointed police in U. His back is covered with bruises. Will Belle agree that he is an enemy to be hunted down, or will she reach out to him?

Belle is neither a cautionary tale of immersion into the internet, nor a tale of how virtual reality can solve our problems. The virtual world of U can be used as an escape, for users to revel in fantasy versions of themselves. But the escape is not ultimate, with all the decency and cruelty in the real world being mirrored in the virtual.

Having said that, Belle astonishes with its beauty. From the details on an individual rose to an overwhelming scene with floating whales that can only exist in virtual reality, this movie reaches new heights with its stunning visuals. This visual beauty is surpassed by the singing. I recommend the Japanese language version with subtitles, since the singing in the final concert almost brought this reviewer to tears.

Although rated PG, I do not recommend taking children to this movie, because of the brutality of real life that is portrayed unflinchingly. But teenagers should enjoy a few awkward teen moments that had people in the theater I was in laugh out loud. 

Worldcon—Autographs and Kaffeeklatsch

One of the nice features of Worldcon is the opportunity for autographs and Kaffeeklatsches. It took a while to figure out where the autographs were being done—way in the far corner of the main floor, beyond all the booths selling books, necklaces, samurai swords, etc.

Carrie Vaughn was there. She autographed my copy of her young adult Martians Abroad, being careful to ask if my name ended with a c or a k.

I thanked her for a brief conversation some years ago that she probably doesn’t remember, when I asked her if there were many urban fantasies where the female protagonist starts out already married. She couldn’t think of any off the top of her head, but she encouraged me to try. I was already working on my vampire parody with the current working title Dust after Slaying, so that was encouraging.

Mary Robinnette Kowal was also there. She had given me a lot of advice several years before, and had made a point of talking to me at a Worldcon some years ago. I said I didn’t know if she still recognized me, and she said, “Of course!” What was embarrassing was that I had brought The Calculating Stars, and while waiting in line I discovered that she already autographed it.

I told her I have a Victorian fantasy manuscript, and the female protagonist is a fairy who only learned to read as an adult. I use that as a way of explaining some of the Victorianisms she sees around her for the benefit of the reader. I asked if that would be a problem for readers, to have the female protagonist being somewhat ignorant, though observant. Mary Robinnette Kowal said no, so long as her emotions on encountering some new thing are included. Ah. That was a key insight.

The Kaffeeklatsches are small meetings of up to ten people. Attendees are encouraged to bring coffee, tea, soda, etc. Signups are ahead of time, and one must inquire redundantly about where the signup sheets will be, and how far ahead of time one can sign up.

I attended one with Cass Morris, author of From Unseen Fire, an alternate history version of ancient Rome. She told us how laborious the process was for getting it published.

She also specializes in rhetoric, and she was throwing around terms like antanaclasis and anadiplosis quite easily. Her novel has multiple viewpoint characters—a scene in a chapter might be told from one character’s point of view, then after a brief line break the scene shifts to another character’s point of view. She said her publisher did not have a problem with that. That was a relief to me, since my recent science fiction manuscript Alpha Shift has multiple viewpoint characters.

There are good panel discussions at conventions like this, but try to find a way to get personal advice.

Worldcon—Arrival

Worldcon—a large science fiction and fantasy convention that a lot of writers go to—was held in Washington, DC This year. I had never been there before. As we flew in for arrival, I realized we were passing what was obviously the Pentagon. I was astonished we could fly so close to it. Continuing on, I could see the Capitol, then the Washington Monument. It was all coming true.

I arrived in time to see the art show by Maurizio Manzieri, who is from Italy. One of his pieces, of a spaceship, was chosen for this year’s badges:

Please see his art at https://www.artstation.com/manzieri He does marvelous work with faces. 

The big treat for the evening was the showing of the restored 1927 movie Metropolis, directed by Fritz Lang. There have been several iterations of this combination of science fiction and social commentary. The 2010 version restored several minutes that were found in a copy in Latin America. More recently, some computer work has helped fill in the gaps, since some scenes were filmed as slowly as 12 frames per second.

This evening’s presentation featured new music by Ryako. She composed and performed all the music herself. She was there to take questions.

In my next post, I may show pics from my sightseeing.

You’re Good at Whole Foods

I know that some people didn’t like it when Amazon took over Whole Foods, but there is an advantage to it.

My internet connection was slowing down, which was more than inconvenient. I’m trying to send out letters to agents to find someone who will sign me on as a client for my historical fantasy, Temple Beyond the Sea. My connection became so slow, some agency websites showed up piecemeal. The ones that did show up okay took a long while to load, especially since one has to look at multiple pages to see which agents accepts which genres, their query letter requirements, etc. I suspected it was my modem.

I ordered a new one from Amazon. Guess what, I ordered the wrong kind.

It had come in one of those huge 11x17 padded envelopes. I had cut the top off, and I didn’t relish the idea of taping it up securely to haul to an Amazon locker.

This is the small part

While setting up my return, Amazon gave me the option of returning it to Whole Foods Market. That’s right, I had noticed the curiosity of the Amazon return area in the store. It’s close by, and I wouldn’t have to put it back in the envelope.

public domain

So I took the modem over there in its box and stood in line at that curious Amazon return area. After the guy there scanned the QR code Amazon had sent me, he put it on a cart and said, “You’re good.”

As an aside, I try to buy my books from Barnes & Noble to keep the local bookstores open. But if it’s going to be something cumbersome I might have to return, I’ll keep the Whole Foods option in mind.

Hot Greece

I’m preparing to send out my manuscript, Temple Beyond the Sea, set in ancient Greek civilization. The standard practice is to send a manuscript out to as many agents as possible in a “shotgun” approach and hope that one will accept it. (And if you are reading this post, dear agent, know that you are special.) What will hopefully work to my advantage is that reimaginings of Greek mythology is a hot trend now. You can walk into a Barnes & Noble and see a number of titles.

One of these novels is about Norse mythology
I’ll let you guess which one

If you follow my blog, you’ll know that I’ve written more than one novel manuscript. Do not leave this to chance. Have more than one way to strike while the iron is hot. For now, here in excerpt from Temple Beyond the Sea.

Book Review: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is actually a lengthy poem, written in Middle English. I read what was probably a standard translation in college, but when I found out that J.R.R. Tolkien had done a translation, I bought his version. Each translation preserves the alliteration in each line. For instance, Tolkien styled a line this way:

“Then he stayed his steed that on the steep bank halted

above the deep double ditch that was drawn round the place.”

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is an anti-romance. The typical romance of the time would describe in detail how the knight or other hero would go through great battles. Then he would save the damsel in distress. In contrast, there is no description of any battle in this poem. It is mentioned that Gawain has a number of battles in his travels, but none are described. And there is no damsel in the story. On the contrary, the owner of a castle shows Gawain great hospitality, but his wife on no less than three mornings comes into Gawain’s bedroom and offers him her body. Each time, Gawain has to refuse her using the most polite language, since his code of chivalry does not allow him to insult such a lady. This series of temptations and denials of temptations is the main part of the story.

The author had to be an expert in romances to cleverly write an anti-romance that was so fascinating.

Tolkien was an expert on Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. His own work, The Lord of the Rings, is an anti-quest. The protagonists already have the great talisman of power—the ring. They have to get rid of it, because no one can wield it without becoming corrupted. A number of turning points in the story have to do with temptation and denying temptation.

It’s very nice to see the connections fall into place.

By the way, there is a movie out there called The Green Knight that is supposedly based on this story. It is awful. They take some parts of the story and reverse everything. Also some truly grotesque “art” scenes are thrown in. This is not a negative blog, but do not see that travesty.

Whack-a-Gnome

So the latest crisis is a shortage of garden gnomes. Supply chains in general have been stressed for the little fellows, but then the Suez Canal was blocked for six, count ‘em, six days. Great Britain felt the shortage quite keenly. Where is gnome central—the Middle East? The Indian subcontinent? Some part of what used to be called the Orient, where factory workers beat those cute hats into shape? What must they think of Western civilization?

image from satellite ESA Copernicus Sentinel-2

This, of course, brings us to fantasy. Special Unit 2 was an early form of urban fantasy on television. Detective O’Malley was played by Michael Landes. Detective Benson was played by Alexondra Lee. Together, they fought creatures of legend, such as mermen, gorgons, werewolves, and even a dragon, who threatened the human race. Their street informant was a gnome named Carl, played by Danny Woodburn. The series was quite funny and full of action, so I highly recommend it.

But to the point, O’Malley and Carl did not get along. The relevant part starts at 5:45.  (Warning: some coarse language.)

Not Making the Cut

Getting writing advice is a tricky thing. I hired a freelance editor to go over my fairy version of The War of the Worlds, tentatively called Fairy War. She gave a lot of interesting advice. Of course, it’s up to me to decide what to accept or decline.

Fairy War mainly takes place in the London area, but I had some side chapters take place in Seattle. The freelance editor thought my story was too long, so she advised me to cut the Seattle chapters.

public domain

I did so, keeping the Seattle chapters in a separate file. After that, I made other cuts that shortened the story by about 10,000 words. But then one of my beta readers said it dragged in the middle. That was where my Seattle chapters had been the most dramatic. Also, a former agent who gives online advice I really trust says agents and editors expect fantasy to be a little longer than I had thought. (The addition of fairies makes my story more on the fantasy side.) Although beginning writers should not push the limits, I’ve decided to add the Seattle chapters back in.

However, when going over these chapters I realized there were too many minor characters. I’ll have to eliminate one of them. So it turns out a pixie named Mona will not make the cut. Here’s the scene where she’s introduced.

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Wycliffe was about to inquire what more he could do to help when a barmaid came over, smelling of rose water, holding a tankard they hadn’t ordered.

She set it down gently. “I apologize for interrupting.”

They stared at her in curiosity. Then Portia reached out and glided her hand down the barmaid’s arm. “Fellow pixie.”

“I heard what you’re planning. They’ll probably attack tomorrow, right? I want to help.”

Tingo looked at her skeptically. “I don’t know what fighting skill you have. And it’s not clear what us women will do. Perhaps you should stay here.”

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Now we’ll never know what Mona would have done. So sad.