Watch Captain America 2!

If you have not already, then I recommend watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier!  Here's a photo I made promoting the movie to my friends. :)

Fun facts about the image:

1. I took it over 2 weeks ago and Rotten Tomatoes still has the movie at 89% fresh rating.
2. I posed twice as Black Widow and the Winter Soldier. :) It was a fun double take experiment I've wanted to try. Photoshopping the 2 images was easier than I expected! 

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is my second favorite Marvel movie. The first is The Avengers because of the different interactions between the heroes.

I also prefer Thor's character in The Avengers than the two Thor movies.  He may have been my favorite in that movie. But who is my favorite Avenger based on all the Marvel movies so far? Hmm. It is still Iron Man.

From Madam Tussad's wax museum 2 years ago

Divergent Isn't Much of a Dystopia

I've mentioned Divergent by Veronica Roth, but barely read it. The book series is labeled "The new/next The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins." There are similarities, but the dystopic society in Divergent isn't as developed as in The Hunger Games. There will be spoilers in this post to explain why I think Divergent is a weak dystopia. I try to be vague.

Immediate Reaction

The beginning of Divergent felt slow and for a younger audience than The Hunger Games. I also saw a big flaw in the dystopic society. Dystopic societies are false utopias because they have flaws and usually have false intentions from rulers, but the society is typically united as a whole even if the citizens do not believe the government's proclamations.

Single belief broadcast everywhere in Equilibrium.

The dystopic society in the movie Equilibrium concluded that emotion caused war so emotion was eliminated with sedatives. They united under this envisioned utopia. Violence is used only on those who oppose.

In Divergent, separation from different races, religions, and politics is proclaimed as a cause of war. So for peace they decide to unite by values. However, they remain separated by dividing into factions with different single values. For example, the Dauntless faction live brave, but they have the aggression that Amity faction forbids. This society does not share the same vision and the new arrangement does not sound too different from before. The difference is that you live with people of same expressed thinking. You're still part of the same nation as those who are different..

Shirt design of The Hunger Games districts.

Districts in The Hunger Games have unique cultures as a result of their different production and climates. They all have the same rules from the same ruler. If one district disobeys, then all are punished. The districts are united from the same ruler and on-going punishment. To keep them from uniting into a force against the ruler, they are physically separated from each other. The government forces two children from each district to fight each other annually.

Divergent doesn't have a single ruler figure. One faction has the society's government positions as their contribution.

Factions in Divergent see each other in public areas such as school so anyone can notice the obvious differences. As different as different countries. The devoted members despise the other factions. "We are right. Those guys are arrogant. And these guys are actually ruled by greed." The factions automatically fight each other. They don't even pretend to work towards the same goal, which is peace.

The curious ones observe and consider leaving their own faction. At age 16, everyone chooses which faction to live the rest of their life. Although choosing another faction is felt as betrayal and "Faction before family" is taught to those who change, the choice has too much freedom for a dystopic society. Someone else choosing for you or rigged test results is more dystopic.

But I Still Got Hooked

The concept of living under one value and denying yourself the rest is interesting. The freedom to choose another faction isn't dystopic, but it's interesting too.

Left to right the factions are Dauntless, Erudite,
Candor, Selfless, and Amity.

The main character, Beatrice "Tris," may seem more passive than other heroines because she was raised to be selfless, but she has attitude. She has the teen problems of not meeting family and society expectations.

I was hooked after Tris made her choice. I enjoyed her reactions to new experiences such as running for fun. The author Veronica Roth gave a good description for that example. The story became thrill action militaristic adventure now that she had to pass the initiation for the faction to accept her. This part is the majority of the book. The teen interactions reminded me of the military sci-fi Insignia.

Another problem I had though was that Tris separated herself from everyone with the label Divergent. Even after agreeing with the boy Four that we should have all the values not choose one and put down others. I felt like I was hearing, "I'm special. Who else is one of the special people like me?" instead of "We are all human. Humans cannot live limited by one value. We are all those values." Hopefully she learns in another book.

Then I Lost Interest

After the initiation, the story changed quickly. The evil mastermind and the evil plan appeared. I thought they were weak. A peer during initiation is a stronger antagonist. I lost interest in reading the rest especially as certain characters died. Their deaths were weak scenes. One event was too close to one in Mockingjay, the 3rd book of The Hunger Games.

I had hoped that these events were a simulation. That would explain the quick weak turns. That was the only way I'd be pleased, but the weak events were not a simulation. It was a short section left but I still wasn't eager to read it.

I don't know if the next book Insurgent has a thrill ride too, but I'll stop at Divergent. I'd recommend Divergent for its teen identity struggles, trials, and "What if.." concept, but not as a dystopia. I'll probably see the movie in March 2014 with friends.

Disney Princesses Redrawn

"Snow White" by Chad Sommers

I found a great art book at the library called The Art of the Disney Princess. The Disney Princesses were redrawn in different medias including digital art. My favorite images are the simplistic ones, especially if they require a longer glance for meaning.

The book cover itself is breath-taking. Can you see the hidden image on the right? Artist Chad Sommers said he was inspired by Salvador Dali's surrealist art.

"Snow White" by Eli Trinh

I have to share the Snow White piece down below because it goes with my post The Monster and The Victim on how dead or sleeping woman are depicted as beautiful. At first glance, you think Snow White is standing up, but Eli Trinh must have drawn Snow White when she's unconscious/dead from the poisoned apple. The frame then represents the glass case she is placed in for all to view.


I recommend this book to artists and Disney Princess fans. I'm going to buy my own copy. :D The images will be inspirational for my horror poster parody project and even shirt design.

In fact, the last image I'll show is a Sleeping Beauty one that looks a bit like a horror poster.

Here is Eric Tan's "Sleeping Beauty." I like how the hair looks like fire. :)

And here are 2 old horror posters from my Pinterest board. 

Eric Tan made poster-styled art for other Disney Princesses too.

Sisters Red

A retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.

I mentioned Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce before for a promotional Figment contest. Now I'm halfway done reading it. Almost every time I read a section, I glance at the cover and wonder at the meaning of the overlapped figures.

After grandma is killed by a wolf (called a Fenris), Scarlett hunts Fenris with her sister Rosie and partner Silas. In the first conversation between Scarlett and her partner Silas, I thought of The Hunger Games when Katniss and Gale are in the woods. However, what if Katniss' sister, Prim, started feeling drawn to Gale like Rosie is to Silas?

One element of fairy tales I love is sisters. We know the evil jealous stepsisters very well. Like Cinderella's stepsisters who would do anything, even cut off their foot, in order to surpass the heroine or keep her down. Well, there are also entwined sisters like Snow White and Rose Red. These sisters of the old fairy tales don't get jealous. Snow White and Rose Red both end up with a happy ending and a man.

"Snow White and Rose Red" by AkaiSoul

Jackson Pearce may be mixing Snow White and Rose Red with Little Red Riding Hood. The result is an action story of love and identity. Here are two of my favorite passages so far that describe the sisterly bond.

Rosie:

When we were little, Scarlett and I were utterly convinced that we'd originally been one person in our mother's belly. We believed that somehow, half of us wanted to be born and half wanted to stay. So our heart had to be broken in two so that Scarlett could be born first, and then I finally braved the outside world a few years later. It made sense, in our pig-tailed heads--it explained why, when we ran through grass or danced or spun in circle long enough, we would lose track of who was who and it started to feel as if there were some organic, elegant link between us, our single heart holding the same tempo and pumping the same blood. 

A fan redrew the book cover.
Scarlett is on the left.

Scarlett:

And I have to admit that there is something undeniably fulfilling about hunting with Rosie. Somehow, it makes me feel as if the long list of differences between us doesn't exist. We're dressed the same, we fight the same enemy, we win together ... It's as though for that moment I get to be her, the one who isn't covered in thick scars, and she gets to understand what it is to be me. It's different than hunting with Silas--he and I are partners, not part of the same heart.

So entwined that they have the same heart. However, they cannot share the same heart forever. Along with feelings toward one boy, the girls feel different towards life. Scarlett thinks only of hunting. It calms her, identifies her, and makes her feel right. And she feels that hunting together is what binds her closer to her sister and best friend. Rosie, on the other hand, wonders about having more in her life than hunting. The heart actually has two different beats.

The chapters alternate narration between the two sisters. They never backtrack to what the other felt during the previous chapter. These two aspects add to the suspense. I like the fast pace, the hunt for an advantage, and the relationships. I also like that Silas seems to have an important role other than the love interest.

I have to tell you that this fairy tale retelling is set in modern-day Georgia so if you're imagining a fairy tale woods, then terms like McDonalds will pop out at you. It's magical realism with the magical fantasy elements in our world.

My hand-me-downs may help.

Also I have to mention a factor I dislike. I don't like how much the stalked/murdered victims are described as being ignorant of the consequences of their appearance and merry laughter. Most of them are dressed for a club or girls' night out. It sounds as if they should have worn Harry Potter's hand-me-down baggy gray sweats, have used no beauty supplies including scented soap, and have not vocally expressed their joy.

You can argue that the Fenris attack only when these girls drift from crowds, but a stalked victim is still the victim. The stalker is the cause of the crime. At least the Fenris is shown to attack near a public day event so that victims cannot be faulted for going out at night. Also I appreciate that the Fenris are always described by their deceiving appearance and true nature.

The girls' fashion shouldn't matter as much to the Fenris because they are distinctively said to look at the girls with hunger not desire. They hunger for nourishment and the thrill of chasing and terrifying. Their prey shouldn't be limited to girls only.

The fashion comments come from Scarlett's perspective though. She only thinks in terms of hunting and her body is covered in scars. The book starts with a glimpse of her before she learned of the Fenris.

Once again, I am only halfway through the book and anticipate two big discoveries. I recommend it so far.

Little Guys Can Win

After playing Scrabble with my family, I advise to not take the little words for granted! Here are some of my bigger plays with short words:

Words "SIX" and "PI."
High-valued letters helped. 

Words "SITE," "SO," and "IN" scored one point more
with one-valued tiles and a blank tile with no value (the "T").

Simple words "Hi" and "He" proved
that it's about location, location, location. ;)

Scrabble is more than vocabulary. I think the games Blokus Trigon and Rummikub helped me with strategic planning.




















Happy New Year by the way.

Half-way Through Insignia

I have been picky on sci-fi books this summer. Currently, I am half-way through Insignia by S. J. Kincaid, and I am already more trilled and satisfied than from I, Robot: To Protect and The Maze Runner. If you were in the same room as me as I read Insignia, then you would become intrigued and jealous from how much I laugh and gasp.

Insignia is a new Young Adult (YA) Sci-Fi book published this past July. I found about it from the Dark Days of Summer promotional event for YA dystopias such as Insurgent by Veronica Ruth. I did not attend the event, but it was successful if non-attendees read the books because of the promotion. The first half of Insignia has more military and cyber themes than a dystopic theme.

Reviewers on GoodReads.com described Insignia as "Ender's Game and Harry Potter." Kid recruits are divided into divisions according to talents, but the half point of the book is when it feels more like Hogwarts. The hacker attacks and divisions points reminded me of wizard duels and the houses. By the way, a hacker's target is more personal than your computer. I leave that aspect for you to find out because it is part of the main story for the series.

Still need to look good for the camera.

If those two book comparisons are not enough for you, then how about the need for a sponsor like in The Hunger Games? A sponsorship in Insignia involves more politics and businesses like the fictional war does. Teen soldiers are recruited to fight by controlling robots. The book has an interesting mix.

I recommend Insignia. The beginning may feel too young for older audiences, but hang in there until Tom Raines, the main character, is recruited. It has numerous fun moments and conflicts. The characters have more depth than in The Maze Runner.

Insignia is a series like all the other books I listed. I am not going to read the next installment of I, Robot: To Protect or The Maze Runner, but I am eager for Kincaid's book after Insignia.

Let me know if you read Insignia. =)

Fictional Vacation

I was sick last weekend, and the rainy days felt longer by staying off the computer. The books I ordered had not come yet so I reread Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones. I had not read it from my purchased copy yet because I knew I would want to illustrate some scenes. But I needed a good book to distract me from being sick and waiting for Catching Fire (2nd book of Hunger Games) to arrive. So a compromise was made--I bookmarked the good scenes.

Charmed Life is one of my top favorite Fantasy books. The character descriptions and narration inspire me to draw and to write. I have to admit though that I'm also fond of the Chrestomanci character Chrisptoher and desire most to draw him in one of his grey suits. He is a silly, powerful man sort of like Willy Wonka. I cannot fully figured out Christopher, which is probably why he entertains me. Even if he is pretending to take the literal meaning of what children say, Christopher is still funny and charming.

An artist on Deviantart has her own fun with him by illustrating him in a love comedy:

Click HERE for more book fanart by artist chira-chira

What I also like about Charmed Life and the prequel, The Lives of Christopher Chant, are the innocent narrators and the magical realm aside from the parallel worlds. I forget myself and follow the boys through the  mischief and suspense. I was sick at home for the weekend but recovered and returned to the weekdays as if I had came back from a journey. =) I guess these books are my equivalent of the Harry Potter series to some people.




When my books did arrive, I was too hooked on Fantasy and read the prequel too. Luckily I have ordered other Fantasy books, both children and young adult, along with Catching Fire. They are:

Howl's Moving Castle also by Diana Wynne Jones. 

I already read this book as well after watching Mizaki's film adaptation. The two are different but the book answered questions for the movie such as "Why is there a parade in the town?" Plus you understand better why characters say certain things such as Howl eating girls' hearts.

Characters were omitted or combined in the adaptation. And Howl is different too; In the book, he does not come home late from fighting. Nope.



The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues by Ellen Raskin.

I already read it in high school, but at that time I instantly wanted to re-read it. However, it was banned from the library because the second main character's past actions and harsh words about the poor (vaguely remember that part) were  not suitable for children. I was drawn to the personality of that character because he is an eccentric man like Sherlock Holmes.

In addition, there was a scene where the eccentric character opens up. I must have been moved by the interaction because a melody played in my head until finished the scene. The author, Raskin, did a magnificent job of showing, not telling, the character's suppressed feelings during a discussion of a watch and its chime.

And Poison by Chris Wooding. 

For this book, I have read only half of it because of classes at that time. I first picked up this book because her brother is kidnapped by a Phaerie King like the movie Labyrinth. I bought the book because I remember liking the world and I left off at a suspenseful moment. Katniss' attitude actually reminded me of the heroine in Poison.





Catching Fire was the main book I waited for, but I am happy to own the other ones and reread them like Charmed Life. The bad reviews on Amazon for Germ and Maze Runner discouraged me from buying them. I was not sure if I wanted to own a copy and reread it later. However, I will give the two books a try at the library. Do you have any book recommendations based on what I've shared? It does not have to have a love story just characters and worlds to love. =) A good read.

My wonderful fictional vacation has inspired me to return to my own stories-in-progress. Lately I have written new ones for contests or notes for the existing ones. I am even writing on paper no the computer for a strong focus.

What books do you love reread because of its world?

Beauty in the Familiar

When I edit a story, (like my Machine of Death entry) I refer to Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer by Roy Peter Clark. I refer to it like a checklist of ways to strengthen your writing. The book works for any form of written material.

One concept is to describe something ordinary and familiar as extraordinary.  "...[D]efamiliarization, a hopeless word that describes the process by which an author takes the familiar and makes it strange." Specific details can make the object seem unfamiliar to reader either because of one of the following:

*had a vague image when they read the object's name,
*have not seen the object in person (maybe just on TV),
*or have not notice the object's qualities before.

Here's a microphoto of grains of sand:

See how the familiar can become extraordinary and unfamiliar?  I don't mean for you to put everything under a microscope but think of what objects we overlook and what details make that object.

For more about the photo, click here.

Finished The Hunger Games

I finished the first book of The Hunger Games last week.  It has a dystopic setting, but the story's told as an action adventure. I recommend the book for both readers and writers. =)

In my second story-writing class, I needed more conflicts for the character. The Hunger Games constantly has conflict, which keeps the story going and gives the character Katniss many decisions to make. The book is now an example for me.

I started reading one chapter at a time until some point in the game. I was then reading three chapters at a time. One day as I cleaned my room, I read a section after each time I put something away. I read even before an interview.

When I had three chapters left, I rationed them again. Willy Wonka's reaction to Augustus Gloop's situation is a great way to describe the thrill of reading The Hunger Games:

"The suspense is terrible. I hope it'll last." 

(The line is originally from 30,000 Leagues Under the Sea).

Here's an interesting passage from chapter 13 (Small SPOILER):

Where are the Gamermakers driving me? ...To a whole new terrain filled with new dangers? I had just found a few hours of peace at the pond when this attack happened. ...The wall of fire must have an end and it won't burn indefinitely.  Not because the Gamemakers couldn't keep it fueled but because, again, that would invite accusations of boredom from the audience.

Think of a Gamermaker as a writer and the audience as the story's actual audience (Meta!). Katniss is then questioning the writer's direction. Readers would have been bored if Katniss got to rest a whole day at this moment. They want the story to keep moving.

She's also alone at that moment so just like the Gamemakers, both writer and reader want her to interact with the other characters.  We feel sorry for her pain but back to danger and love! I'm curious if the author, Suzanne Collins, intended to draw attention to the reader's self by mentioning an audience. How much pain and drama did you wish upon Katniss and Peeta?

The quoted section also shows writers that they drive their characters into an adventure. Give them opportunities to make decisions and grow. Character growth gives your readers more than suspense and entertainment.

In addition, writers have to push their characters around to view more of the setting and society. Like pushing a cameraman around.  You push to capture more, but the character or narrator is the one recording details.

How was the suspense for you?

Machine of Death vol 2

Last Fall, a sci-fi anthology  of short stories called Machine of Death came out on Amazon.com. The common theme was a machine that predicted your death in a few words on a slip of paper. However, the interpretation of those words is unknown until the death comes true, which it does. Although the topic is death, the tone of some stories can be ironic and humorous.

Overall, the anthology, which is more than 400 pages, shows different aspects of society affected by the death predictions. For example, school cliques form according to death categories and the insurance company suffers. I recommend the book.  My friend got hooked from the first story. A free PDF file is provided for preview.

For the first volume, anyone could submit a short story with the theme. Volume 2 is now open for submissions until July 15! Artists may submit samples to illustrate selected stories. Please pass the word. I hope to submit a story myself. =)

For more information, click here.

began reading The Unwritten

In my post "Meta," I mentioned an interest in the comic book/graphic novel series called The Unwritten by Mike Carey. I've read vol 1 and am still interested.  There was a lot to like.

The introduction is by Bill Willingham, who wrote the comic series Fables. He talks about comics since the golden age of superheroes.  Then he describes a new type of comic, literary comics. I like comics like Hush and Superman/Batman with my favorite superhero, Batman, but I felt like Willingham addressed craving for literary. So I'm happy to hear about this new wave of comics. The introduction was a good note to start with.


The comic itself parodies Harry Potter and even states the similarity in a comic con scene. haha. There are depictions of fans from causal fan to online debater to the obsessed and delusional. Along with the commentary on fans, the main character stumbles upon a horror writers workshop where each contemporary type critiques the other. I laughed at and admired this setup.  There are also allusions to existing writers and a side story depicting Rudyard Kipling's career as a writer. This comic is packed with literary and commentary.


The main element is the boundary between fantasy and reality. The comic is certainly meta (metanarrative and metafiction I think).  There is a note stating that the author, Carey, had wanted to use prose format somehow with a book actually inside of another book to understand the boundary being crossed.


All these aspects I enjoyed in vol 1.  Before I reached the Kipling side story at the end, I had satisfied my crave for literary.  My taste buds for had a taste of many flavors. So by the time I finished the book, I felt I had just been through a workshop or had enrolled in a genre/author class.  I had gained more than I had craved. And this satisfaction was just from vol 1.


I recommend The Unwritten and hope you get a kick out it too.