Fantasist's Scroll

Well, pretty soon, maybe.
According to this article on WiredNews.com, it’s in the works! To be more specific, big makeup manufacturer L’Oreal is working cosmetics that mimic the structure of a butterfly’s wing using only chemistry and light instead of the traditional pigments, waxes and oils in “normal” offerings. What’s more, they can use these new techniques to create surreal effects that just aren’t possible with traditional cosmetics. Freaky stuff, but kind of cool, too. I wonder how long before this develops into some kind of bizarre body-modification cult thing. I can envision chemicals that create scale and fur-like effects already, so I’m sure someone is working on it.
Once again, science is making science-fiction real.

This is National Novel Writing Month.
Or, if you’re one of the cool kids, NaNoWriMo. The idea, in a nutshell, is to write a book in thirty days or less. Or finish that monster that you’ve always meant to get around to again. Either way, the goal is a completed novel by the end of the month. Frankly, it seems impossible to me, but the guy who puts this on every year is also the author of No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, so, maybe, just maybe it’s possible to accomlish.
Well, I won’t find out this year because I’m just in the wrong place to do that, but I may just get the book and read it so I’m ready for next year.
In any case, if you’re feeling up to it, it’s still not too late for you to start. You are a little behind, but you can still make it up. Hit the website and start writing! (And, yes, I wrote about this yesterday at my other blog, Diary of a Network Geek.)

No, this isn’t a news story.
Nor is it an appeal to the “hero in the grey flannel suit”, either. Rather, just an article on MSN about the value of fantasy. The author claims, and I think rightly so, that because we don’t have to exhibit physical heroism on a regular basis in our modern society, we learn about bravery and heroism through our stories, specifically, fantasy stories. Examples sited included the Lord of the Rings series and Harry Potter, and, in an earlier age, Icelandic Sagas. The claim is that all three examples serve the same purpose, namely, to teach us about how to “act right” and find that little bit of courage inside us when we need it. I’d say the entire article, short as it was, spoke very highly to the need for good, heroic, fantasy fiction.
In a sometimes bleak market for writing in general, and fantasy and science-fiction in particular, I found the sentiments uplifting and hopeful. Now, all I need to do is find more time to write…

“He has the heart of a small boy…
he keeps it in a jar on his desk!” Well, I don’t remember who to attribute that quote to, or who it’s about anymore, either, but it sure is fun. And so is DIY Head in a Jar! Yes, now, just in time for the freakiest holiday of all, you can have your very own head in a jar. If you have an old bottle, you’re halfway there already! So, hurry, it’s still not too late to …

get a head!

(Oh, c’mon, it’s the Friday before Halloween and I’ve got head jokes, what else were you expecting here?)

I know I’ve talked about this before, but not recently.
I love maps. I love looking at them. I love drawing them. Maps can make an otherwise confusing travel story clear or just spark my imagination to new ideas about how geography effects the world. As a result, I’m always looking for more ideas about making my own maps. I use a lot of different tools to make maps, but mainly I use Campaign Cartographer. Though, the tools don’t really matter as much as good technique. And, I know that my technique is pretty weak these days. So, when I saw Maldin’s Greyhawk – A Guide to Mapmaking, by Denis Tetreault, one of the main cartographers for Wizards of the Coast, publishers of Dungeons and Dragons, I got really excited.
Sure, much of the information is a rehash of things I’ve read elsewhere, but plenty of it is new stuff. And, what’s more, it gives a nice look into the mind of a professional fantasy cartographer. How often do you find that kind of information? Right, not very often. That’s why I linked to it and suggest that, if you have any interest in fantasy map making, you check it out.

Oh My God!
Finally, after literally years of waiting Space Above and Beyond – The Complete Series is available on DVD. This was the finest science-fiction show EVER! Yes, I mean ever. Including Star Trek, in all its various incarnations, and both versions of Battlestar Galactica and anything else you can think of to date. It was real, hard-nosed, gritty science-fiction with compelling stories fille with drama and real meaning. Not psuedo, let’s-all-get-high-and-get-Roddenberry-laid messages, but the real deal. Every episode dealt with something that made you stop and think about what it meant to be something, to stand for something, or even to be human. There were funny parts, but not like in Star Trek that played for campy laughs. No, if there was something funny, it was funny the way things are in life, not some wooden slapstick played for laughs with goofy music.
And, of course, it’s the only science-fiction show to ever feature R. Lee Ermey. What can top that!?

Excuse me while I go spend a little money on whole lot of joy.

Alas, too late for this year, but still…
For next Halloween, I might just get one of these freaky portraits. They’re “normal” from one angle, but, from another, they’re quite monsterous. It’s Cool!
As I mentioned, we’ve already passed the deadline for this year, but for next year you can get one. Why, if you have the scratch, you can even get one done from one of your very own photos. Now, that’s really ghoul, er, cool!

Anyway, it’s Friday, this is definately a freaky link, and I worked late last night, so cut me some slack and just click the link.

Hmm, I seem to be talking about this a lot lately…
Still, it’s something that is so often done poorly, that I think it warrants a little extra attention. So, while I was looking around for links on this subject, I found the “One of Us Creative Writing Workshop” online where they had an article on Creating Fantasy Worlds. This article, though, was little more than a collection of links to other articles that went into more depth on specific topics. Still, enough of these links seemed fresh and new to me that I thought it was worth posting. One think I did like about this site was the Discussion Forum. It didn’t seem too active at the time, but I think anyone who’s in that very lonely job of writing needs all the socializing they can get!