Posts Tagged ‘harry potter’

I once got into a heated debate over how only an idiot would think Harry Potter wins in a comparison with Lord of the Rings because the writing is so superior. Me? I was on Harry’s side.

To some readers J. R. R. Tolkien drones on and on about the details of a leaf when we just want to get to the story, while J. K. Rowling has readership with children barely in their double digits as well as with their grandparents with equal success.

So what is the definition of ’superior writing’ exactly?

As with my previous blog entry, Star Trek vs Star Wars, I do not want my opinion to further cloud this comparison, as I see great strengths in both franchises. Let us begin then, as before, with a quick history.
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Tattooing has been around almost as long as human beings, seen in many cultures throughout history for many varying reasons, usually for personal, cultural, or spiritual expression or identification.

In the previous century there was a time when tattooing was seen as something only for the hardcore, scary people like bikers and gang members, or sailors who got drunk one night on leave. In Japan it is still generally thought of as a sign that you are part of the yakuza, the native gangsters.

But these days nearly everyone you run across could potentially have at least one tattoo, even if that one is merely a typical ‘tramp stamp’ on the lower back.

The average person might only have something small and simple, like Woodstock on their hip or a flower on their ankle, but even the unexpected person might surprise you with a slew of tattoos hidden beneath their clothing.

Tattoos with a geeky origin are more common these days than you might realize. All three of mine fall under that category.
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If you don’t know what fanfiction is…

WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?

Just kidding. I have to explain the definition of fanfiction to a lot of people whenever I discuss my hobbies, so I know that it is not quite the household name that I often think it is.

Fanfiction is really for a specific group of people, and while some others outside the practice of writing it know of its existence, many still do not.

Fanfiction is stories about characters or settings written by fans of an already existing fictional work, rather than by the true creator.

This can be of a book, movie, TV series, anything, really, as long as it is written by a fan, not the author, and normally would never be published as it would not have the permission or backing of the original work.

The usual example I give is this. Say you like Harry Potter. You decide you want to write a story for fun, or maybe for some friends to read, involving Harry’s parents when they were younger, because the actual books don’t cover much of that. The story you write would be fanfiction. Read the rest of this entry »

This was a good summer for movies. This was a good year for movies. Was already, and it’s only half over with many more promising films to go. I think it is fair to say that before now we have been having quite a few years of crap movies, where only a passing few slipped by that were actually worth paying $10 to see. But this year has been remarkably different. I was finally excited to go to the movies again, and almost every new preview I come across increases that movie-lover joy just a little bit more.

But I have come to realize something as I have gotten older and been able to look at films with a more critical eye. While there are still original ideas out there, the films that are made most often, that Hollywood knows are going to sell, usually have an already existing basis: books, comics, older movies, real life stories, etc. There haven’t been too many first-edition Star Wars, if you catch my drift. And while the films that are being made can still be very good, there is almost always something, one little thing about an actor, a scene, the ending, that makes me go ‘oh, if only this had been different’.
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