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This vs. That: Star Wars vs. Star Trek
I’m a little leary of a backlash by enraged fans after posting the results of this one, but since I’m a risk taker, I’ll go for it.
First though, I have to admit, the voting surprised me this time around. And apparently, this is a burning question to many folks out there in cyberspace. It was like a double contest: first in the voting, and second in the searches used to find the post. Did they search using STAR WARS vs. Star Trek, or STAR TREK vs. Star Wars?
Okay, I won’t keep you in suspense any longer. Here are the results:
Total votes: 21
Star Wars: 9 votes; 43%
Star Trek: 6 votes; 29%
Neither: 3 votes; 14%
Impossible to choose: 2 votes; 9%
Need more info: 1 vote; 5%
And, because I know you’re all dying to know, here’s the second unofficial contest from the searches:
Star Wars vs. Star Trek: 9
Star Trek vs. Star Wars: 9
Yup, exactly equal as of the writing of this post. Fascinating.
[UPDATE: Star Trek surged into the lead with 12 searches as of this morning!]
Perhaps my fandom totally blinded me on this one, but I really thought Star Wars would be the obvious choice (except, of course for you, Vicki!). So yes, I voted Star Wars. Lets just say that even my two-year old knows who Anakin is, and insists on finding a Star Wars book to check out of the library whenever we go. And she’s a girl. (Not that that SHOULD have anything to do with it, but *ahem* there we are).
So, now that I’ve enraged a bunch of people (I’m sure), on to the next debate:
Speak up:
18 comments| TAGS:
beach, mountains, Star Trek, Star Wars, This vs. That, voteIH8SK8S – The Story Behind the Plate
Thank you to everyone who chimed in with their own backstory to the now infamous license plate “IH8SK8S.” I enjoyed reading them. But here’s the skinny:
Driver X is haunted by a past filled with tragedy related to skates. And I know most of you thought ice skates, but you’re all wrong. They were roller skates.
Incident #1: Christmas, Driver X is 6.
All she wanted for Christmas was a pair of roller skates. She sent several letters to Santa detailing her desires, and even endured sitting on Santa’s lap at the mall to be double sure he got the message. She left catalogs open on her parent’s bed with the exact make, model and size circled in bright pink marker. She just knew she was going to get those skates.
She didn’t. Worse, her older sister got a pair.
Incident #2: Two years later, what has come to be known as “The Incident.”
The Elementary School Driver X attended sponsored a skating night at the local skating rink. Unfortunately, because Driver X didn’t get that pair of skates for Christmas two years earlier, she was a lousy skater. Halfway around her first circle, she fell and broke her hand. Her right hand. The one she writes with.
Normally, this wouldn’t matter, but the next day happened to be when Jeopardy! for Kids was administering a test at her school to qualify participants. Driver X not only missed the test, but her chance for fame.
Incident #3: Eight years later.
A rash of vandalisms had been perpetrated against her High School by a self-proclaimed “Skating Bandit.” Desperate to find the culprit, the administrators performed a secret, systematic locker check.
Normally, this wouldn’t matter, but guess who brought a certain pair of roller skates owned by her older sister to school that day as part of an assignment to give an oral report on an unhappy childhood memory?
Eight weeks of community service AND an incident report added to her permanent record. We won’t mention the trips to the psychologist.
Final Incident: Ten years later.
Speak up:
17 comments| TAGS:
Driver X, personalized license plates, Roller skatesIn Which I Ponder About a License Plate. (Again.)
Yesterday, I saw a license plate that caught my interest:
I know, you’re probably thinking, “Hmmm . . . she must be in pretty desperate need for some entertainment,” but bear with me.
Most license plates I see state something about the driver. Whether it’s a name, fan status for a sports team, a reference to something they love (sports, cars, hobbies, hats, whatever). In essence, these personalized 8 letters reveal something that the driver deems to be significant in his or her life. It characterizes him or her.
So why use the opportunity to tell people what you hate? It’s what you are not instead of what you are. Really, it’s an anti-characterization.
As a writer, my brain went into overdrive to create the backstory for this driver. But before I share MY made-up backstory, I want to hear yours.
WHY does this person hate skates so much???
P.S. And on a blogger business note, starting next week, I’ll be cutting down to only two posts a week for the summer. M/H
Speak up:
16 comments| TAGS:
backstory, characterization, personalized license platesConfessions of a Soccer Mom
I love soccer. LOVE it.1. The players don’t work together. Any given player will take out his own player to get the ball.
- In my first draft, my chapters don’t work together. The beginning lacks the build-up to the end, and the end just plain ignores what happened in the beginning to go its own direction. I won’t even mention the plodding middle.
2. The poor players trip oven their own feet. Often. (It might have something to do with their shoe-tying abilities, but I can’t be sure.)
- Do I really need to mention the bad (stink-worthy, putrid, horrible, awkward to add a few adjectives) writing? Ack. Painful to read. And I’m supposed to make this seem effortless? Yikes!
3. The players forget which direction they’re going. And that’s usually the fortuituous moment that their aim is accurate.
- Have you ever accidentally changed a character’s name midway through a draft? Or suddenly your mc has black hair instead of blond? No? Me neither.
- In that first draft, it’s like I’ve forgotten all the rules of writing. Setting comes in chunks that feel like Aunt Bertha’s famous stone pudding in your gut. Backstory takes the real story hostage, and adverbs go on a rampage. Dialogue feels like talking heads who portrary stiff characters who all sound like the same person. You get the idea.
- And back to the ending. It might be a tad rushed because I was T-I-R-E-D of writing the dang book. But why can’t Prince Charming just kill the bad guy with one quick plunge of his sword instead of orchestrating a whole fight scene? Economy of words, right?
Speak up:
10 comments| TAGS:
confessions, lynch, shoe-tying, soccer, writingSummer Dreaming
Here in Virginia, we still have one more week to go before Summer break (well—technically—one more week and two days). In reality, I’ll have less free time once school lets out. But in my imagination, I see myself high-tailing it to a remote location such as this:
I see myself kicking back, laptop warming my legs while I stare dreamily out across the ocean, plotting my next best seller.
My husband will bring me platefuls of chocolate-dipped strawberries, and skillfully prepare all the meals. My only concern will be writing.
Yeah.
Definitely Summer dreaming.
So where does your Summer dreaming take you?
Speak up:
15 comments| TAGS:
chocolate-dipped strawberries, Lighthouse, SummerAgent Interview: Molly Jaffa
For a list of what she is and isn’t looking for, please see her agent page at the Folio literary website.
While assisting agency partner Jeff Kleinman, I was fortunate enough to work on some really fantastic projects that went on to be very successful, both commercially and artistically. I had the opportunity to really dig in to manuscripts, to help authors transform their work line-by-line, and to make sure it reached the audience it deserved. Playing a part in that process, however small, amazed me. I fell in love with agenting and never looked back.
For me, and agenting is the perfect marriage of business and creativity. So when a full-time position opened up at Folio, I jumped at it, and I’ve been there ever since.
I think that when compared to many adult titles, MG and YA novels often seem to have higher stakes and a greater sense of urgency behind them. There’s something about a story that’s set during a character’s coming-of-age period that makes it feel especially vital. There’s very little room for a meandering, passive story in MG or YA. The protagonist’s age means that everything happening to him or her seems like it could have a profound effect on shaping who he or she is as a human being. Every emotion is amplified; every choice holds extra weight. On a pure storytelling level, that’s really gripping.
I’ve also found a real sense of community in the children’s book world. The agents, editors, and writers are all a pleasure to work with.
to appeal to kids AND teens AND their parents and it will sell a million copies!”), because those show me that the author doesn’t know the market very well.
On a weird note, I just saw “Bridesmaids” and loved it. It would be great to see some YA with similarly multifaceted, funny female characters that talk about something other than boy issues. If it passes the Bechdel Test (Google it!), I’m interested.
Beyond that–and this sounds harsh, but bear with me–it’s boredom that makes me stop. If something inside me isn’t compelling me to scroll down to the next page, then I’ll pass. It’s a very subjective thing. If I’m not totally captivated by a manuscript, then that author should be free to find an agent who is.
- More time in the day! I need more time to read all the fabulous submissions I get.
- More fabulous submissions, of course. I know, it’s a vicious cycle.
- A crystal ball that would allow me to see the future of publishing. If people want to know what it’s telling me, they can pay me in Starbucks cards.
***You can query Molly at molly@foliolit.com. Please include your query and the first ten pages of your manuscript in the body of the email, and the word “query” in the subject line.
Thanks so much, Molly, for your time and your great responses! I would definitely be purchasing some Starbucks cards for a look in that crystal ball. 😀
Best of luck to all you queriers!
Speak up:
13 comments| TAGS:
agent interview, Molly JaffaPossession Launch: Rule Breaking
If you’ve been living in a hole, you may not have heard that Ms. Elana Johnson, woman extraordinaire, is celebrating the release of her debut novel, Possession. I’m so excited for her, that I couldn’t resist participating in the launch.
My job is to tell about a time when I broke the rules. And confession, this was not so easy for me. Can you tell I’m one of those people? The kind who always keeps the rules and tows the line? *cough* Yeah.
But I have broken a rule or two in my day.
I think.
Just give me a second to remember when . . .
Okay! I’ve got it: In sixth grade when I got to help serve lunch (total privilege, btw!), I gave two desserts, count them TWO, to a cute boy. Ha! Take that, cafeteria rules.
And then there was that time or two I pulled a California stop at a stop sign [aka, I only slowed down a little before going through it, rather than coming to a complete stop]. Total rule breaking, right there.
So yeah, I am no Vi (the mc in Possession). Let’s just hope I never live to see the world as it exists in Elana’s book.
What rules have you broken?
And if you care to check out any other blogs participating in this launch, here’s the list:
And P.S. Don’t forget to swing by Friday for the interview with Molly Jaffa, Agent at Folio Literary!
Speak up:
9 comments| TAGS:
Elana Johnson, Possession, Rule BreakingA Day Late and a Dollar Short – Lenny Fest
I totally missed the boat with the Lenny Fest, but my admiration for him overcomes silly things like time, so I am joining the Lenny Fest anyway.
If you haven’t met Lenny, you should go meet him. Like now. He is a ray of sunshine. A slushee in melting-hot weather. Rain boots on a puddly day. A letter from a long-lost friend. A gift-wrapped present on a regular, old day. Well, you get the idea.
Since I’m no good at poetry, I’m offering several personalized license plates for Mr. Lenny. Appropriate, don’t you agree? I get 8 letters:
- LENNYLEE
- RAYOFSUN
- HUGS
- OPTIMISM
- HAPPYBOY
- BE HAPPY
- KINDNESS
- MRSMILES
- LVRACOON
- SHARKBOY
- ILVWATER
- FISH
- LAUGH
- LV2SWIM
- FRND2ALL
What do you think? Which one should Lenny pick?
Hugs, Lenny! We’re all thinking of you. 😀
Speak up:
16 comments| TAGS:
Lenny Lee, personalized license plates, sunshineI’ve Been Tagged!
Medeia Sharif (whose debut book Bestest. Ramadan. Ever. comes out this Summer) tagged me last week, so here we go!
Do number 7 and number 8 have any similarities?
Yes, they are both Canadian. I love Canadians! Shall we have buns for dinner? 😀
And P.S. I’ll be interviewing Molly Jaffa, an agent with Folio Jr., on my blog next Friday! Don’t miss it!
Speak up:
9 comments| TAGS:
Canadians, cold-blooded, mountains, question tag, ZeldaLost in the Louvre
You simply cannot visit Paris without stopping at the Louvre. That would be a travesty!
So of course we did. And being the world’s most famous museum (so say the French) with claims to being the largest there is a lot to see. So much, that it’s impossible to do it all in one day.
You can follow the crowds to go see its most famous painting.
Yes, that is the Mona Lisa back there . . . if you look hard enough past the crowds.
You can see crown jewels and fun swords (though the plaques say the jewels aren’t real on many of them anymore).
You can see rows upon rows of mummies.
And Sphinxes . . .
But if you aren’t careful, you can easily get lost.
Which is what happened to us. And those exit signs? They really weren’t very helpful. (I have to wonder if someone wasn’t having some fun when they posted them because we walked the same Egyptian circle at least three times. For real.)
Anywho . . . I think that the blogosphere can be a lot like the Louvre. So many great sites out there.
You can follow the crowds and find some very useful and fun ones (Adventures in Children’s Publishing, Elana Johnson’s, Jen Daiker at Unedited).
If you search a little harder, you can find some real jewels (Lenny’s World, Seeing Creative, Whole Latte Life).
Then there are those crazy bloggers that hold our fascination like the mummies (Carrie Harris, Chris Philips, Creepy Query Girl, Rambles and Randomness).
And in the crazy-big world that is the blogosphere, it’s easy to get a little lost.
But with a little luck, you’ll have made some great bloggy friends along the way. And somehow, getting lost isn’t so bad when you’ve got them for company (NTM, aka Leigh from That’s Write, Amy at The Green Bathtub, and so many others I can’t list you all. Sorry! Don’t hate me.)
So what blog and/or blogger would you want to get lost with? Share your favorites!
P.S. With Memorial Day, I won’t be around on Monday. Have a great weekend!