EMULCA

random observations about taiwan

2011-07-31T04:36:00.000-07:00

1. dogs: hordes of abandoned dogs wander all over the streets. they're mostly black and pointy eared.
2. trash cans: there's like 1 trash can per square mile. I don't wanna litter, but I kinda have to... A couple trash cans per store entrance can take care of the garbage problem, right?
3. Roman sandals: seems to be the latest woman's fashion trend. those shoes that Roman legionnaires used to wear.
4. Lady Gaga: she's pretty huge
5. multicultural: there's like 4 groups: hakka, hokkien, chinese, and aboriginals (and pockets of westerners here and there). pretty surprising for an island that's like 1/10th the size of california. realized this only recently.
6. American movies: nobody laughs at the cultural gags, like getting stoned or whatever. It was weird for me. but a character can fall on his face, and that's funny for everybody.
7. Japanese influence: heavy japanese influence here, which makes sense (history, proximity). like the ladies dressed as dolls that greet you at the elevator, thanking you for your time, and bowing until the doors close..

I ate a cricket at an aboriginal restaurant. It was frightening.

2011-07-23T22:08:00.000-07:00

Ending of Locke Lamora felt manufactured. Just like the ending of Windup Girl, which interestingly has a city-wide riot like in Diamond Age. What do I mean by manufactured? It just felt like it was meticulously outlined, the plotlines tied up neatly with a gift bow. I'm of the school that believes more in a story's organic growth. Not calling on stereotypes, not fillings in holes, not wrapping things up, not following an old formula. I don't know what I'm talking about, I've never been published, but there it is.

The Lies of Locke Lamora

2011-07-09T08:22:00.000-07:00

Some vivid passages that I liked...

Dozens of grotty blankets were set out on the floor, covered with food: bowls of bony chicken marinated in cheap almond wine, soft thresher-fish tails wrapped in bacon and soaked in vinegar, and brown bread flavored with sausage grease. There were also salted peas and lentils as well as bowls of past-ripe tomatoes and pears.

Doña Sofia’s hand briefly settled over Locke’s, long enough for him to feel the assorted calluses and chemical burns no manicure could conceal. She was a true alchemical botanist, then; this barge was her direct handiwork as well as her general design. A formidable talent—by implication, a calculating woman.

At present, a hugely muscled nichavezzo (“punishing hand”), one of the duke’s own household guard, was handing out the beatings. The soldier was armored in black leather, with a gleaming steel breastplate and a steel helmet crested with the freshly severed fin of a giant flying fish. Scales and spines scintillated as the soldier stepped back and forth under the bright sun, striking out seemingly at leisure with an iron-shod staff.

Calo and Galdo whisked damp cloths off serving platters and bowls, revealing the full extent of the meal for the first time. There were indeed sausages, neatly sliced and fried in oil with quartered pears. There were also split red peppers stuffed with almond paste and spinach; dumplings of thin bread folded over chicken, fried until the bread was as translucent as paper; and cold black beans in wine and mustard sauce.

There was stewed mutton with onions and ginger, stuffed eels in spiced wine sauce, and green-apple tarts baked by Jean (with a liberal dose of Austershalin brandy poured over the fruit).

A small waterfall plunges through a hole in the floor, down into the catacombs beneath the Echo Hole, where dark water can be heard rushing.

Then came the cask, a heavy dark object that plunged into the black canal at the base of the waterfall with a loud splash and a geyser of water.

To be continued

what can we learn from prince of persia

2009-09-03T00:04:00.001-07:00

stealables - noun - elements of a creative work that i think are clever and could be stolen to put in your own work.

1. farah - a significant companion who is also a helpful gameplay sidekick

2. the fairy tale atmosphere

3. the ancient middle-eastern setting

4. the use of a frame story, found in literature

5. the clever integration of hundreds of scripted in-game dialogue

disclaimer:

i am by no means an authority on the game subjects that i discuss, for i have no "real industry experience" that credit some of what i say. all writings are based on my own logical assumptions and opinions developed from many hours of self study.

First Impression - Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

2009-08-26T23:46:00.000-07:00

Prince of Frustration. This game is hard, in both the platforming and the combat aspects. Not only must you have the wits to solve some crazy puzzles, you absolutely must be a seasoned gamer (else I don't imagine you ever finishing the game). The relentless action had me tearing my hair out for many nights, and I even gave up on the game for a few weeks. Platforming requires planning, timing (oh the timing), and careful attention to detail. It wasn't uncommon for me to repeat levels at least 30 times before I got down pat what the hell I was doing. Walkthroughs helped me finish the game.

At times I wasn't even enjoying Prince of Persia. The music began to annoy me the 30th time around. The game enemies began to feel like my real enemies. Playing felt more like routine and work than fun. Good thing the story is simple and straightforward, otherwise I wouldn't even remember or care what happened because I'd be too busy with the long, difficult gameplay. And yeah, the game felt excruciatingly long. I even wished for all the grinding to be over just so I could beat the game and get it over with.

I won't argue against the quality of the game, though. Prince of Persia was flawless. The atmosphere was unique and delivered very well. I enjoyed the setting.

Bottomline: You have to know what you're doing. You have to be good at games.

Critique: Call of Juarez

2009-08-24T00:28:00.000-07:00

The main issue that I have with the original PC version of Call of Juarez is the unnecessary complexity of the controls. The controls are not too hard to learn because they generally follow FPS conventions, but some of the more specific controls are incredibly hard to retain. I can imagine coming back to this game in a few weeks and not even BE AWARE that I could kick open doors or switch to alternate fire. The problem stems from way too many input redundancies. Just look, there is a separate button for each of these actions: fire left weapon, fire right weapon, zoom, kick, pick up or interact, bullet time, sprint, and this mechanic that lets you switch to a single pistol in rapid gunslinging action. This is a personal preference, but I consider games with simple consolidated controls* far more superior than hardcore gamey gamer games. The problem can't be fixed with just key remapping, instead the user interface design would have to be "dumbed down".

So here are some of my suggestions for what Techland could do to minimize their game's PC controls:

Remove dual weapons control. Instead of there being a gun in each hand that I could fire from both mouse buttons, why not just combine them into a single weapon slot fired by one button only. This frees up the right mouse button for other functions...like zoom. The default control for zoom is the "X" key which is a very uncomfortable position for your thumb. Getting rid of right pistol fire frees the mouse for zooming which is much more natural. I am okay with removing direct control over both weapon hands because I don't think that the feature adds anything to the game...shooting an enemy is shooting an enemy. There is still only one reticle for godssake, and other games have dealt with dual weapons in single slots just fine. How is this going to affect Reverend Ray's concentration mode (basically bullet time) you ask? Since there are two reticles in concentration mode, either condense the two guns to one reticle or perform concentration mode with one gun only. After all, concentration mode can be activated by only the left mouse button.
Remember, I am discussing the PC version. For the Xbox, there isn't much problem simply because of the design of the Xbox controller. I don't know how Halo handles the dual weapon system on the PC. If you do, can you let me know your thoughts?

Remove control for kick. This is probably the "melee" control best suited for console gaming. Default settings for kick is the "C" key which again is strange and hard to retain, especially since there is already a similar "contextually interact" function with the "F" key. I can count on one hand the number of times that I have had to use kick in the game. The game provides very little reason to use it so it would not affect the game if removed. As a matter of fact, kick is so rarely used that I even got stuck on a level once because I had forgotten that I had to press "C" to kick open that damn door. Kick should be integrated into "interact" (the "F" key) because "F" is already used in game for picking up objects, opening doors, talking to people...it only makes sense. I love the idea of a single key for ALL actions as long as they are within context of the game environment. Players wouldn't have to retain much to progress through the game.

Remove rapid fire control. Again, this is another obscure key, "Z". Removal won't be a compromise and is easily achievable after dual weapons control is relegated. Since rapid fire can only be done with one pistol (as is common for Wild West gunslingers), then why not make rapid fire a permanent feature of equipping a single pistol? If players want to kill enemies with two guns, they can equip two guns. But if players want to be able to cover their enemies with bullet holes in a matter of seconds, they can equip just one pistol.

I don't have too much of a problem with Billy's bullwhip, but it could be simplified further if both cracking the whip and slinging the whip were combined into one left mouse click. Since the game only allows a tree trunk or branch to be slung, then the reminder icons (crack and sling) no longer need to be there and players can count on only left clicking the whip to use it without worrying that they might accidently sling the wrong thing.

*For a good example of consolidated controls, look at the Chronicles of Riddick games. One button for attacking, one button for reloading, one button for crouching, one button for jumping, and one button for everything else.

proposed Entertainment Production Studios

2009-05-20T03:37:00.000-07:00

rough spec for proposed company model

The Dangerous Alphabet

2009-03-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

The Dangerous Alphabet

A is for always, that’s where we embark.
B is for boat, pushing off in the dark.
C is the way that we find and we look.
D is for diamonds, the bait on a hook.
E's for the evil that lures and entices.
F is for fear and its many devices.
G is for good, as in hero and morning.
H is for “HELP ME!”—a cry and a warning.
I am the author who scratches these rhymes.
J is the joke monsters make of their crimes.
K's but a kiss—lovers glow with elation.
L is like ‘eaven, their last destination.
M is for mirrors you’ll stare in forever.
N is for night and for nothing and never.
O is for ovens far under the street.
P is for piracy, blunt or discreet.
Q is for quiet (bar one muffled scream).
R is a river that flows like a dream.
S is for—somewhere—a skull and its smile.
T is for treasure heaped into a pile.
U are the listener who shivers with dread.
W's warnings went over your head.
V is for vile deeds done in the night.
X marked the spot, if we read the map right!
Y's your last question to round out the day.
Z waits alone… and that ends our play!

Written by Neil Gaiman
Illustrated by Gris Grimly

Link

Blueberry Girl

2009-03-02T16:51:00.000-08:00

I came across this magical poem, wishes for a yet-to-be-born daughter, on Neil Gaiman's website. This piece further proves Gaiman's literary mastery. I've italicized the words that rhyme, so take note of the structure and flow of the writing.

Initially, I was wary of Gaiman's work. I couldn't see what all the hype was about. Not only is he a multiple New York Times Bestselling author, but he has received numerous awards, the Newbery Medal among them. However, after reading his short story collections, I have come to understand why readers appreciate Gaiman so much: his authorial voice is reminiscent of fairy tales and is appropriate for all ages.

Neil Gaiman is an acquired taste. Enjoy.

Blueberry Girl

Ladies of Darkness, and Ladies of Never-You-Mind,
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl.

First: May you ladies be kind.
Keep her from spindles and sleeps at sixteen;
Let her stay waking and wise.
Nightmares at three, or bad husbands at thirty;
These will not trouble her eyes.

Dull days at forty, false friends at fifteen;
Let her have bright days and true.
Let her go places that we've never been;
Trust and delight in her youth.

~

Ladies of Grace, and Ladies of Favour,
and Ladies of Merciful Night,
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Grant her your clearness of sight.

Worlds can be worrisome, people complex;
Motives and manners unclear.
Grant her the wisdom to choose her path right,
Free from unkindness and fear.

Let her tell stories, and dance in the rain,
Somersault, tumble, and run;
Her joys must be high as her sorrows are deep,
Let her grow like the weed in the sun.

~

Ladies of Paradox, Ladies of Measure,
Ladies of Shadows-That-Fall;
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Words written clear on the wall.

Help her to help herself, help her to stand,
Help her to lose, and to find.
Teach her we're only as big as our dreams,
tell her that fortune is blind.

Truth is a thing she must find for herself,
precious, and rare as a pearl;
Give her all these, and a little bit more,
give this for a Blueberry Girl.

-Neil Gaiman

Generally, there are 3 stanzas before each break (each a quatrain) with an ABCB rhyming scheme.

Link

Coraline

2008-09-04T17:40:00.000-07:00

Coraline

Neil Gaiman

Not again. The narrative style reminded me of Stardust—jumbled. Neil introduces so many disparate elements that I can't get a grip of the story on the whole. Random details like: an old lesbian couple, a strange eastern european neighbor, singing rats, microwave pizza, a ghost girl with fairy wings.

I'm still trying to figure out why this book garnered so much acclaim and won the Hugo, Nebula, Bram Stoker, and Locus when we've always had William Sleator, Philip Pullman, Roald Dahl. What about them? Coraline was good, but not extraordinary. I don't understand! I'm starting to think that the number of awards tacked to a book doesn't at all signify its merit. *gasp* Awards mean nothing.

However, Neil's prose is as always unique and entertaining. Some passages that struck me:

"When I was a little girl, when we lived in our old house, a long, long time ago, my dad took me for a walk on the wasteland between our house and the shops.

"It wasn't the best place to go for a walk, really. There were all these things that people had thrown away back there—old cookers and broken dishes and dolls with no arms and no legs and empty cans and broken bottles. Mum and Dad made me promise not to go exploring back there, because there were too many sharp things, and tetanus and such.

"But I kept telling them I wanted to explore it. So one day my dad put on his big brown boots and his gloves and put my boots on me and my jeans and sweater, and we went for a walk.

"We must have walked for about twenty minutes. We went down this hill, to the bottom of a gully where a stream was, when my dad suddenly said to me, "Coraline—run away. Up the hill. Now!" He said it in a tight sort of way, urgently, so I did. I ran away up the hill. Something hurt me on the back of my arm as I ran, but I kept running.

"As I got to the top of the hill I heard somebody thundering up the hill behind me. It was my dad, charging like a rhino. When he reached me he picked me up in his arms and swept me over the edge of the hill.

"And then we stopped and we puffed and we panted, and we looked back down the gully.

"The air was alive with yellow wasps. We must have stepped on a wasps' nest in a rotten branch as we walked. And while I was running up the hill, my dad stayed and got stung, to give me time to run away. His glasses had fallen off when he ran.

"I only had the one sting on the back of my arm. He had thirty-nine stings, all over him. We counted later, in the bath.

"So, later that afternoon my dad went back again to the wasteland, to get his glasses back. He said if he left it another day he wouldn't be able to remember where they'd fallen.

"And soon he got home, wearing his glasses. He said that he wasn't scared when he was standing there and the wasps were stinging him and hurting him and he was watching me run away. Because he knew he had to give me enough time to run, or the wasps would have come after both of us.

"And he said that wasn't brave of him, doing that, just standing there and being stung. It wasn't brave because he wasn't scared: it was the only thing he could do. But going back again to get his glasses, when he knew the wasps were there, when he was really scared. That was brave."

"You don't understand, do you? I don't want whatever I want. Nobody does. Not really. What kind of fun would it be if I just got everything I ever wanted? Just like that, and it didn't mean anything. What then?"

Neil wrote this book for young audiences, and he did well with all the creepy, frightening situations. A good children's story is one that doesn't talk down on kids, nor gives a shit about them (haha). Meaning... kids need to learn that the world isn't so happy-go-lucky. Give them lessons on hard truth.

yet another book review--Stardust

2008-09-02T02:08:00.001-07:00

Stardust
Neil Gaiman

Clever story. Amazing illustrations.

You know an author's good when their writing sticks on your mind like chewing gum long after you put the book down. It's writing like this that makes me believe in Neil. I believe in Neil Gaiman.

Possible spoilers in the quotes ahead

Yvaine also cared for the dormouse, who spent most of his time fast asleep, curled up with his head between his paws. When the witch was off gathering firewood or fetching water, Yvaine would open up his cage and stroke him and talk to him, and, on several occasions, she sang to him, although she could not tell whether anything of Tristran remained in the dormouse, who stared up at her with placid, sleepy eyes, like droplets of black ink, and whose fur was softer than down.

You notice, there's only two sentences in that paragraph. That second sentence is long and it works very well in evoking a warm, fuzzy feeling; it reminded me of my hamster. I was saying "awww" when I read the passage (not out loud, okay!).

When the knives were so sharp that she could have drawn either blade across your throat, and you would never have felt more than the touch of thde lightest hair, as the spreading warmth of your life's blood made a quiet escape, the witch-queen put them away and commenced her preparations.

More colorful writing. I would've just written that the blades were deadly sharp but Neil took it beyond that and made this story so much more enjoyable to read. It's like he's tossing the reader candy as he leads them along the novel, and readers clap and hoot and eagerly await for more.

"So," said a voice from behind him, soft as a silken strangling-rope, sweet as a poisoned lozenge...

From that line alone, can you deduce the speaker's tone of voice, inflection, mood, body language, perhaps even character? My immediate thoughts as I read that line: this must be evil in its most wicked form—traitorous, conniving, concealed. Neil Gaiman's a real master of the craft. If words were like paint, he took the all right ones and made them blend beautifully!

Alas, I have to be critical. Though the book was enjoyable (light read, adorable, catered to adults and children if you eliminate the mature portions), that's all it was. There were no moral lessons nor wisdoms that I could part with. There wasn't even any narrative complexity that could be thoroughly analyzed and learned from (if you are an academic on drama, or a writer). I got nothing but entertainment out of it, and that's why Stardust is like a fast food burger, rather than a gourmet steak. The film was a good adaptation, but like the book, merely a fun, forgettable experience.

Stardust was also very eclectic—Neil pulled from Victorian literature, children's literature, classic fairy tales, romance, adventure. I couldn't quite classify the story, which might explain why I felt so strange about it. And the plot was structured as if he pulled random patches from his imagination and pieced them together and strung this part to that part every which way. I think stories should be like big cohesive juggernauts that lodge themselves in your memory, not the jumbling tattered kind that characterizes Stardust; I'm not going to remember this story years down the road, and I'll know why.

---END OF REVIEW---

This book was also one of the tipping points of my literary tastes. I grow so weary of Western European myths. I'm tired of reading about fairies, true names, goblins, English superstitions! This is precisely why as a writer, I'll be intentionally avoiding The Faerie Realm for source material. Those legends have been drained; please, MOVE ON! Also, as an Asian American, I don't feel connected at all to European myths. Not saying that they're trash in any way, but those myths feel like somebody mumbling to me from the other side of a closed door.

another book review--Dandelion Wine

2008-09-01T20:31:00.000-07:00

Dandelion Wine
Ray Bradbury

Bradbury writes of the magic of childhood, when a lot of things we take for granted now as adults still awed us. The stories he writes of childhood before the time of television or the internet, could only make you wonder why we weren't more active as children climbing trees and running through wheat fields. There is so much imagery in this sweet, little novel, and Bradbury's prose could aptly be described as poetic and surreal. He definitely has natural talent. Bradbury, only in his thirties at the time of Dandelion Wine, wrote from the point of view of giggling ladies, bickering old couples, curious children, and ancient Civil War veterans, all real down to the bone—how the fuck does he write with such convincing voice?!

One of the stories even seeped into my real life and affected me. The following passages describe the main character's desire for a new pair of tennis shoes, about how he would shed his battered shoes of winter and lace up new shoes for the summer.

The magic was always in the new pair of shoes. The magic might die by the first of September, but now in late June there was still plenty of magic, and shoes like these could jump you over trees and rivers and houses. And if you wanted, they could jump you over fences and sidewalks and dogs.

"Bang! I deliver your packages, pick up your packages, bring you coffee, burn your trash, run to the post office, telegraph office, library! You'll see twelve of me in and out, in and out, every minute. Feel those shoes, Mr. Sanderson, feel how fast they'd take me? All those springs inside? Feel all the running inside? Feel how they kind of grab hold and can't let you alone and don't like you just standing there? Feel how quick I'd be doing the things you'd rather not bother with? You stay in the nice cool store while I'm jumping all around town! But it's not me really, it's the shoes. They're going like mad down alleys, cutting corners, and back! There they go!"

I went out later that week and bought a new pair of sneakers. I slipped them on and could feel the raw energy that surged through me. I felt like I could leap and bound across the city, parkour style. I still enjoy my new pair of shoes and always think back to the story whenever I look down at them.

I'll end with a final suggestion. Read Dandelion Wine as I did: outside in your backyard on a mild sunny afternoon. Every so often I would put down the book, wander over the sights of nature, and let Bradbury's words simmer in my mind.

fuck prose

2008-08-27T19:41:00.000-07:00

These authors say it all.

Glen Cook:

I learned not to overwrite, to keep things simple as far as sentence structure is concerned. My early attempts at writing were very much influenced by classical British fantasy writers who tended to be very flowery and ornate and lapsed into classical Greek as they were going along and expected you to follow it. I learned that modern American readers aren't interested in that.

Kurt Vonnegut:

Keep it simple
As for your use of language: Remember that two great masters of language, William Shakespeare and James Joyce, wrote sentences which were almost childlike when their subjects were most profound. “To be or not to be?” asks Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The longest word is three letters long. Joyce, when he was frisky, could put together a sentence as intricate and as glittering as a necklace for Cleopatra, but my favorite sentence in his short story “Eveline” is this one: “She was tired.” At that point in the story, no other words could break the heart of a reader as those three words do.

Simplicity of language is not only reputable, but perhaps even sacred. The Bible opens with a sentence well within the writing skills of a lively fourteen-year-old: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”

Have guts to cut
It may be that you, too, are capable of making necklaces for Cleopatra, so to speak. But your eloquence should be the servant of the ideas in your head. Your rule might be this: If a sentence, no matter how excellent, does not illuminate your subject in some new and useful way, scratch it out.

Stephen King:

Remove every extraneous word
You want to get up on a soapbox and preach? Fine. Get one and try your local park. You want to write for money? Get to the point. And if you remove all the excess garbage and discover you can't find the point, tear up what you wrote and start all over again . . . or try something new.

i couldn't help but notice...

2008-08-21T23:30:00.001-07:00

When I saw Michael Phelps finish a race and do that strange gasp with his lower jaw, I knew I'd seen that familiar face somewhere. Not many of you may have heard of him, but H.P. Lovecraft is one of the most celebrated authors of horror fiction. While I'm on it, might as well share with you some of his work, which is all in the public domain.

writers, beware of noise

2008-08-20T06:47:00.000-07:00

Remember the entry on noise?

I found this little blurb at an online writer's toolbox, and it couldn't be more relevant. For a writer, reading other shit can potentially open yourself up to noise, which is why you must stay the backbone when you're reading. And as the quote suggests, when you are writing, cut all disruptions and stop reading altogether.

I temper my enthusiasm for reading with this caution: There will be times in the middle of a writing project when you may want to stop reading. While [writing], I stopped reading books about [...]. I did not want my fascination with the topic to seduce me from my writing time. I did not want to be unduly influenced by the ideas of others. Nor did I wish to be discouraged by the brilliance of finished, published work.

Also, as Stephen King so bluntly put it:

Never look at a reference book while doing a first draft

You want to write a story? Fine. Put away your dictionary, your encyclopedias, your World Almanac, and your thesaurus. Better yet, throw your thesaurus into the wastebasket. The only things creepier than a thesaurus are those little paperbacks college students too lazy to read the assigned novels buy around exam time. Any word you have to hunt for in a thesaurus is the wrong word. There are no exceptions to this rule. You think you might have misspelled a word? O.K., so here is your choice: either look it up in the dictionary, thereby making sure you have it right - and breaking your train of thought and the writer's trance in the bargain - or just spell it phonetically and correct it later. Why not? Did you think it was going to go somewhere? And if you need to know the largest city in Brazil and you find you don't have it in your head, why not write in Miami, or Cleveland? You can check it ... but later. When you sit down to write, write. Don't do anything else except go to the bathroom, and only do that if it absolutely cannot be put off.

mothafuckin BLOOKS!

2008-08-20T02:51:00.000-07:00

Remember the entry about new media? I realized today (after browsing through online literary publications) that what I meant to be enthusiastic about wasn't all of new media, but more specifically blooks!

Self-publishing your stories as serials through blogs.
blog + book = blook

Nowadays, it just gets easier and easier for your shit to get read; good news for writers, but bad news for readers. Content quality has generally waned, but have hope! because my stories will change the world! :)

Apparently, blooks have been around for a long time. Just look at the Web Fiction Guide. Judging from the big listing, I'd say blooks have become quite popular!

innovative storytelling technique

2008-08-09T06:17:00.000-07:00

I just thought these productions were really creative. Using pictures as a narrative device. Blending comics with film. This is damn nice of them, and I think I might start using this technique.

Some background on these two videos...whatever, doesn't matter. Just watch them for their artistic value.

Noise

2008-08-06T02:53:00.000-07:00

The downside of the Information Age is that we have all become flooded with noise, so much so that we can't even hear our own souls nagging at us. I see noise affecting us two ways: first, when we're researching or trying to find something we're looking for, we get bombarded by confounds (the Internet is a major culprit); second, when we're determining where we want to go in life, we receive hoards of influence and advice that don't agree with what we truly want.

Don't fret, if you are aware of the presence of noise, then you are on the first step to navigating through this jungle.

To address Internet research, which I see as a big problem for people these days: Stop! Before you go online, ask yourself what exactly it is you are searching for. Get everything clear in your head first, what your intent is, what you wish to learn, what type of information you seek. Only then, proceed. If you realize that you're slowly starting to veer from the path that you've set for yourself, slap yourself and gain back your senses before you continue further. This is easier said than done. Sometimes you become so engrossed in non-essential information that you don't even realize that you're reading something totally unrelated to what you were originally pursuing. That's when you've been stricken by the "Wikipedia-virus": you go from article, to article, to article, to article, to article...until you're lost, then you leave the computer, forgetting just what in the hell you were doing in the first place.

Lastly, to address those confused about their lives (with school, career, pastimes, etc.): I can only say this, know yourself! Don't let others influence you. Don't lose yourself in things that you think are you. If all your friends like to play ball, don't join just because you're the only one left out, this would only confuse your own identity. Similarly, if all your peers want to pursue a finance career following graduation, that doesn't justify giving up your own ambitions in favor of a job that may be completely out of your league. When people get excited they like to talk and share all their personal interests and ambitions. Hear it, but don't listen to it. It's good to be adaptive, fluid like water, but not to the point where you become so dispersed that you're literally not yourself anymore. You can rely on others specifically for inspiration and personal growth, but be sure to cancel out all the noise.

Too bad for Hansel and Gretel, who have strayed onto weeded paths.

*If you didn't bother to read all that, I summed everything up nicely for you: Don't fall prey to influence. Use information and resources to further your original agenda, not to distract you from your central focus.

NEW MEDIA!

2008-08-04T15:53:00.000-07:00

First, learn what new media is.

Then, consider this: Vin Crosbie described three communications media in “What is new media?”. He saw Interpersonal media as “one to one”, Mass media as “one to many” and, finally New Media as “many to many”.

We must take advantage of the Internet. Now, more than ever, everyone is free to self-publish their content to a mass audience. It doesn't matter if you're an artist, it doesn't matter if you're a dolt, if you got shit to share, you can litter the Internet with your trash. I'm jumping on this bandwagon (in fact I already have), if you wanna come along, please hop on.

How powerful is this tool that we all have before us? Joss Whedon's Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog uses the web as its sole outlet, and has enjoyed immense success.

Dr. Horrible can stop people in their tracks with his Freeze Ray gun. He can extract gold from a bank vault with his nefarious remote-control devices. He can sing, fall in the love with the girl next door and do battle with his arch-nemesis Captain Hammer all at the same time. But can he make money for his creative mastermind?

Joss Whedon is testing the mettle of his own superpowers as an auteur with an ardent following. The "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" creator put up his own coin to finance "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog," a 40-minute "supervillain musical" starring Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day.

The "Web miniseries," as Whedon dubs it, made a big splash in its debut over three days last week as a free streaming option on the Web or paid download via Apple's iTunes. But now comes the really tricky part: Turning "Dr. Horrible" from a one-trick supervillain into a profitable franchise (think DVD release, soundtrack, merchandise, live events and, of course, a sequel or two) wholly owned by its creators.

Whedon's gambit is the most high-profile example of a movement under way among Hollywood scribes to harness the marketing and distribution power of the Internet for their own creative (and moneymaking) ends, sidestepping the major studios and networks in the process.

Like "Dr. Horrible," a number of these ventures were born out of the frustration and long days spent on the picket line during the Nov. 5-Feb. 12 Writers Guild of America strike. By then, veteran multihyphenates Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick had shown that it could be done, even if their made-for-Internet serial "quarterlife" didn't set the world on fire.

"Everybody on the strike line was always saying 'Let's do something for the Internet' -- or 'My feet hurt,' " Whedon recalls.

For some, the sentiment stuck even after the strike ended and the picket-line soreness eased. Screenwriter Aaron Mendelsohn has spent the past few months lining up seed money and advertiser coin for a writers' collective venture dubbed Virtual Artists, steered by a clutch of scribes who have also invested in the company, including such notables as Ron Bass, Tom Fontana, Terry George and Susannah Grant. Mendelsohn first envisioned the company as strictly Web-oriented, but to his surprise found there was strong interest from nontraditional funding sources to back TV and pic projects.

"Sponsors are interested in working with the professional writers in our network on creative ventures that reach every size of screen," Mendelsohn says. "What this is demonstrating is that there is a new way of financing professionally produced content that does not pass through the traditional (studio) gatekeepers and mediators."

The market for Web content would seem to be fertile ground for startups. According to digital ratings firm comScore, Internet users in the U.S. alone viewed 12 billion online vids in May, up 45% from May '07. The average user devoted 228 minutes per month to watching vids online.

Another post-strike startup, aptly named Strike TV, is designed to be a kind of interactive spec marketplace for biz insiders seeking to generate interest in their concepts for adaptations for films, pics, books, etc. Strike TV at the outset will carry only content submitted by members of Hollywood unions. According to Strike TV CEO Peter Hyoguchi, the site has a roster of more than 40 such programs, of varying genres and lengths, set to begin rolling out in the next few weeks.

There's no shortage of enthusiasm for the possibilities for original Web content, but the real question is whether anyone can actually make a profit with the stuff. If even the mighty Google is having trouble wringing substantial coin out of YouTube (which is the equivalent of the Big Four nets, HBO, MTV and ESPN combined in its dominance of the Internet vid market) how can individual Hollywood creatives crack the nut?

Like most everything else in showbiz, timing and luck will surely play a big part. It certainly did for the duo behind the successful "Ask a Ninja" comedy website.

What began as a lark by two aspiring writers, Kent Nichols and Douglas Sarine, in late 2005, has blossomed into a Web business that grosses $100,000 a month from advertising, and averages between 1.8 million and 3 million video viewers per month. It has also spawned "Ask a Ninja" DVDs and a deal with Random House for a book due Sept. 9.

Nichols and Sarine were surviving on P.A. and script coordinator jobs when they began fooling around with their "Ask a Ninja" concept through a social networking site. They collected random questions from other users for a mysterious "Ninja" character, and they began posting short video "answers" delivered by a snarky, streetwise Ninja.

With sponsors including Verizon, Universal Studios, Petco and Netflix, the dedicated website Nichols and Sarine launched with $60,000 in seed money has become incredibly lucrative. But the weekly four-minute vids are still shot in Nichols' West Hollywood apartment. (Recent installments have examined net neutrality, the writers strike, summer jobs and even the future of online video. "New media content creators are like rats, and the Internet is like London circa 1665," the Ninja advises.)

"We created 'Ninja' at a complete low point in our careers when no one would talk to us (about writing gigs)," Nichols says. "We wanted to show people what we could do. And we knew that cheap shortform content works on the Web."

There's a debate within the world of Web entrepreneurs about where the smart money is on Internet content. Is it a vehicle for teasing or showcasing projects to be adapted in other forms, or should the focus be on organically grown Web content? Or does the savvy digital mogul diversify with a little of both?

Whedon's investment in "Dr. Horrible" is seen as a major boon to the made-for-Internet sector, in part because his young, tech-savvy fanatical fan base (who follow the writer-helmer's every move at sites like Whedonesque.com and Whedonage.com) is preternaturally disposed to seek out new content in new forms. And a rising tide lifts all boats, insiders say.

"The more good content that gets out there, the more people explore new (production) business models," says Brent Weinstein, CEO of 60Frames, the Internet production company backed by private investment shingles Tudor Investment Corp. and Pilot Group, among others. "What Joss and his team have created is really great. I'm excited to see how it plays out on DVD and iTunes. I hope he makes a killing."

"Dr. Horrible," which was shot over seven days in high-def vid at a budget in the very low six figures, tells the story of an underdog supervillain, played by Harris, who maintains a video blog to chronicle his efforts to be accepted by the Evil League of Evil. Horrible also has a softer side, as we see when he battles his arch-nemesis, the two-faced Captain Hammer (Fillion), for the heart of a girl he meets in the Laundromat (Day).

Whedon directed "Dr. Horrible," and co-wrote it with his brothers, Zack and Jed, and Jed's fiancee, Maurissa Tancharoen (Jed and Maurissa are writing partners and on staff of Joss' upcoming Fox drama "Dollhouse"; Zack is a scribe on the new J.J. Abrams' Fox skein "Fringe.")

Joss and Jed also penned the music and lyrics to "Dr. Horrible." Much of the musical recording was done at Joss' home studio "with my kids running around." Filming was done on location in Los Angeles at the end of March and some on the Universal backlot, on the New York street set a few months before it was destroyed by a fire.

Joss Whedon leaned on his stable of cast and crew members assembled during the runs of the TV series "Buffy" and "Angel" to give the production a high-quality sheen. F/x house Zoic Studios, a company Whedon helped put on the map by giving them the "Buffy" f/x biz, did a lot of pro bono work on "Dr. Horrible" on the promise of receiving a proper payday when and if the project ever turns a profit.

Whedon also made a point of securing the blessing of the Writers Guild, Directors Guild and Screen Actors Guild on the project, to ensure that everything was done "street legal," he says.

The prospect of "Dr. Horrible" taking off looked good last week after it generated some 200,000 hits per hour with the launch of the first installment July 15. The site crashed from overloaded demand a few hours after it went live, which sent Jed Whedon scrambling to line up more servers to improve capacity.

Joss Whedon characteristically took a different tack in stoking viewership of "Dr. Horrible" than is the norm for Web content these days. The decision was made to launch it as a three-part event, with all three segments being available for free streaming through July 20, and on iTunes at $1.99 per installment through July 29.

After that, it'll be pulled to build interest in a DVD release, for which Joss Whedon's reps at CAA are busy hammering out a deal. (The "Dr. Horrible" team has already penned another original tuner, "Commentary!," which will serve as one of two commentary tracks on the DVD release.)

What is different about this launch strategy is that it bucks the wisdom that the way to gain traction on the Web is to get the content on every bit of shelf space available on Yahoo, Google, MSN, Hulu and the like.

"We wanted to make an event out of it, like an old TV (special) event in a sense you have to be at a certain place and a certain time" to watch it, Whedon says.

The joie de vivre and creative freedom Whedon and Co. enjoyed during the production is palpable onscreen, particularly in the charming perfs by Harris and Fillion.

"There was no one to answer to," Tancharoen says. "We felt like kids on a playground."

Adds star Harris: "We had the freedom to be like professional amateurs," and that sensibility "worked into the vibe of the film."

Joss Whedon insists that part of his mandate in tackling the production, which grew more ambitious as the team grew more excited about its potential, is to share whatever riches may come his way with the friends and colleagues who helped him made it happen. As a producer-financier, he's vowing to be far more generous than the terms his team would be owed under guild contracts.

"You don't make a statement about what we can accomplish as a community ... by screwing people over," Whedon says.

Article Link

why are you alive? update

2008-07-26T01:05:00.000-07:00

Wow, just saw this, and I had to update my entry about finding your passion. Randy Pausch puts it better than I could. His speech is more about spiritual and lifelong wisdoms, though. Still the same message. If you're interested on more of Mr. Pausch's inspirational speeches, find his Last Lecture on Youtube.

some practical tips for college students

2008-07-23T02:11:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few quick pointers on how to effectively prepare for your professional life after graduation:

Join an organization
It will give you hands on experience with working with other people, yes other people, to achieve certain goals, the problems/situations you'll encounter in the professional world, so you won't be surprised when you actually start working. Be sure that this club you're joining has a detailed organizational structure. You know, like VP-> Senior Manager->Manager->Bitch, kinda deal. Be sure to be involved.
Invest in stocks
Not only will this provide insight on a lot of companies, it will also help you keep up with the macroeconomy as well as with what's going on in the world. It doesn't hurt to be updated. If you don't feel like investing, then you can visit finance.yahoo.com once in a while, browse the news, look at some companies.
Take business courses
Believe this: business is fucking everywhere (This warrants another blog entry, but another day). From my understanding, these classes are usually small and the professors actually know what they are talking about. This will open up your eyes to the corporate world...if you let it. Be observant, eager to learn, spongelike.

And remember, nothing comes easy, so don't take anything for granted. Work hard for what you want, rather than talk empty talks and dream empty dreams. You need input in order to have output. I/O, it's basic!

why are you alive?

2008-07-21T06:45:00.000-07:00

I'm gonna talk a little bit about finding your passion.

I don't mean to be a douchebag, but whenever I ask people what they want to do professionally, and they give me the usual answer "to make $", I get really ticked off. Who doesn't want to make $? That's like telling me your ultimate goal in life is to live. Think on your passion for a bit: what is it you truly want to achieve? Perhaps you really want to earn respect, certainly that's a better answer than "making $". But again, still very broad. Maybe you want to have a number of people working under you. Getting more specific, yes, but these answers are still pretty bland. If you give me these answers, you're basically telling me that you don't know what your passion is, and that you just want to be able to support yourself. Every human being since the dawn of time has desired to support themselves, to live. That just totally deflated your plans, didn't it? GOOD, because I respect only people that put serious thought into their careers. Imagine yourself as a piece in the giant jigsaw puzzle of society--where do you fit in? I pay mad respect to those that really understand themselves and have a clear sense and direction.

If you are reading this (a student, or a young individual), then you are very fortunate. Fortunate enough to have the choice of steering your life wherever you want. Some people don't have choices. They're stuck doing what they're doing because they must, else they risk everything. We are still young, we don't have the circumstantial constraint that older people are mired in, we can still decide our careers. We also live in a modern age of excess, whereas before we solely concerned ourselves with finding meat for the cave, now we're carving more and more niches in the job market. So think things through and dig deep inside yourself for that passion. Then, GO FOR IT.

Tell me again that you "want to make $" and I'm gonna strangle you. If you just want to make money, then ROB A FUCKING BANK! I use that line every time because it makes sense. If your concern is to make money to support yourself, then you obviously don't care about how you fit into society, so you should obviously rob a bank because your job doesn't matter, right? Money is very important, no doubt, to eliminate financial pressures, to lead an affluent lifestyle, to take care of people that matter to you. But we sure can choose how we want to make these strange green bills called money, we can choose our careers.

However, some of you may not be so lucky as to know your passion. Some discover it early, some quite late. I understand. You'll eventually find it, and that's called your midlife crisis. So the clock is winding down, you only have so much time to test the waters and to make up your mind. Else you end up being trapped in a job that doesn't fulfill or enrich you and with no way of backing out. Please, don't be an aimless log floating down the river. Before you get your heads in the clouds and pursue ambitious ventures, try extra hard to understand yourselves first. Look within, and I guarantee that there's a whole 'nother inner dimension.

Once you know your passion and ultimate goal in your professional life, then you can go on to formulate plans to take you step by step along the way. If you know your skills, your strengths and weaknesses, and most of all your passion, then you're a step ahead of the game. At least now you know you won't be dressing up for the wrong party.

Uwe Boll?

2008-07-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

Uwel Boll is a strange character...you don't meet people like this very often, which is precisely why he interests me so much. What drives this guy? What goes on through his head?

He's damn genuine, that's for sure.

The right way to review

2008-07-08T10:02:00.000-07:00

One thing I noticed after reading review after review (mainly of video games) from popular websites and magazines, is that there's a wrong way to review something. A review is not just about tacking a number on somebody's work and then giving snarky comments that only serve to inflate your already big head. A review is about the overall picture; what the work adds to the industry; what the author is trying to achieve with said work. I don't care what you think about somebody's work, so I don't need you to tell me about how much you hate it without giving any sort of constructive advice. It's like listening to somebody complain. Maddox is especially good at that. So remember, as a reviewer, don't get caught up in saying things like "Oh, the gameplay here is all sorts of bad, worse than my cat puking all over my favorite Vader figurine," and then BAM giving it a C+ stamp.

Dreamlog

2008-06-25T20:34:00.001-07:00

Had a long dream, but can only remember fragments of it. As I spend more time awake, the more of my dream memories fade and slip away from me, so I'll try to log as much as I can before that happens. Judging from my constant panic during those moments, my dream was a nightmare. I love nightmares, they make for inspiring source material. The dream progressed, as far as I can recall, through three acts.

ACT I
I was in a dense tropical forest, being hunted by a pair of creatures, who appeared like a mix between a Locust from Gears of War and a dome-skulled dinosaur, but their tall head protrustions were much more exaggerated. They sensed prey with this acute sonar that I could see as thick rays of blue laser. I remember avoiding these sonars for the life of me, and trying to stay completely silent. These things ran fast. All the quiet moments scared the shit outta me.

ACT II
They eventually chased me to an urban area, which had the exact look and feel of Midgar from Final Fantasy VII. I dodged into this building that felt like the highschools of Asia, ran and ducked left and right through corridors, laboratories, small diners, double swinging doors. Those two beasts crashed and tore through everything on my trail. And then the scene morphed. I was still in Midgar, but I was following a friend of mine in the real world. I remember this feeling of intense fright. He was pulling out a gun and shooting indiscriminate targets. He shot a total of two people (that I recognized too), and that wasn't the scary part. He kept his hand on his belt (or was it his chest) where he hid his gun, and I kept thinking that he was going to shoot me. Everything about my friend was the same, normal, but the fact that in my nightmare he had this twisted side, this skeleton in the closet, disturbed me. He pointed his gun at me, (o god please no please no), but pulled it open and showed me that it was empty.

ACT III
Again, still in Midgar, but this time, a girl (who I also recognized) and I were being chased across the city by a shaggy haired man, who had this mysterious glow. He ran fast too, but he never caught us because the girl and I could fly. Well, only she could—I was carried by a flying creature. The girl would turn invisible, her clothes would fall off, and she would fly over the dark streets. We stopped at an open diner with Japanese sliding doors, and thought that we had finally lost the freak. "Oh, you're clothed again?" "Yeah, I put them back on." Then I looked across the street from our tatami at this Japanese arcade, and a punk little kid came out and pointed us out to the shaggy haired man. "Shit." And then I had a dream within a dream: what if my flying caretaker carried me and some food up to the highest roof; I could just live up there with no way of being caught.

Damn it, the dream would've lasted longer, but something woke me up.

Trust me, this was all as strange to me as it may seem to you through my description. At the time, the entire dream felt like a random patchwork of imagery and sensations (as they always do). Originally, it felt completely out of place and spontaneous, but after I woke up and thought on it for a while, I realized the cause. I had been reading comics the night before. The girl who could turn invisible—Susan Storm of Fantastic Four (Marvel 1602). My friend who murdered people—the Punisher (The Punisher Kills the Marvel Universe). The Japanese setting—anime I had been watching (Midori no Hibi, don't get me wrong, I'm not an anime fan, as a matter of fact, I think most animes are wastes of my time, and this was one of them). I can't find explanations for the hundreds of other images. I'm still trying to figure out who the glowing, shaggy haired man is.

Another note: dreams in which you're half awake and partially conscious are the best; you're able to experience the dream and think rationally at the same time.

Conan's origins

2008-06-23T17:10:00.000-07:00

CURRENTLY READING:

Conan, Volume 0: Born on the Battlefield (2008)
Kurt Busiek, Greg Ruth

Picked up a copy from the local comic store today! In case you weren't aware, Conan the Cimmerian is a barbarian hero conjured from the minds of Robert E. Howard (back in the days of pulp fiction), and yes, he could definitely kick your ass. Popular culture never seems to let up on this guy. My heroes at Funcom recently released their MMORPG, Age of Conan, to rave reviews.

I don't know what it is about the Sword and Sorcery genre, but it just works for me. Lone heroes wandering a vast expanse in search of adventure... pretty awesome.

Challenge: Interactive Narrative Experiences

2008-06-23T05:50:00.003-07:00

(a call for expanding the game medium)

I argue against the way that most games are currently made. I believe in minimal interface, simple controls, and no HUD. I believe in a game that is easy for anyone, even non-gamers, to pick up and start playing right away without any prior investment. The game will be a short run through, carried by the strength of its interactive storied experience, and will be targeted at the female consumer segment and the Baby Boomer segment by default. Each episode of the game will be cheap like buying a movie ticket or HBO on demand.

I think the FPS genre is the best method for games to tell compelling stories, because unlike movies, people want to be involved in games—firsthand! People want to actively participate by role-playing somebody else's shoes—wish fulfillment! FPS and its use of scripted in-game cinematics can convey the most engaging form of drama. Women love drama on TV and in the movies they watch, so why not in video games? However, women that do play games should not be drawn to and pigeonholed into “casual” games that contain no form of meaningful story (like Bejeweled). More first-person adventures should be developed specifically for women and they will be able to see what’s possible in the interactive medium.

The only element that the game will borrow from FPS is the first-person camera and onscreen manipulation of objects and inventory. There will be no guns, no shooting, no violence, and especially no twitch based achievements. This game is purely casual in the dictionary sense, not the “casual” genre. The game offers challenges that aren't reflex based and that aren't overly complex. Puzzles will be natural and intuitive, unlike the absurd puzzles that killed the popularity of adventure games. FPS are essentially sports games, but beneath the hood are stories that I think women want to experience. The primary barrier of entry like unfriendly gunplay will be removed, so women don’t have to be gaming veterans in order to enjoy these games. Instead, the core mechanic is something nifty like forming a ball of light or painting in the air. Just think, what if Half Life 2's gravity manipulator and Singularity's time warp weren't accompanied by guns and shooting?

To further ease and massage non-gamers into the language of video games, there will be no concepts of game health/life. There will be no immediate threats or enemies, which in effect slows the pace of the game and makes it friendlier for women. However, there will still be instant deathtraps but it is obvious when they would happen. There will be no distracting HUD and all relevant information will be displayed in context on screen (like being able to graphically see how many baseballs are left in hand). Players can only equip one item at any time so that the interface is kept as simple and minimal as possible. As for the heavy investments in the game world that turns off most casual players—there will be no cut scenes, excess back-story, or exposition necessary to just pick up the game and play. All story elements will be introduced in-game, slowly and easily so as to guide the player into the world.

I believe in a game that will overcome the pitfalls that plagued other genres. With traditional adventure games, people do want to engage in the story, but gameplay mechanics are too strange and inconsistent and turns players off. It’s the same issue with Interactive Fiction, where problems of "guess-the-verb" always arise. The problem is that there is no “theme” or cohesiveness in the mechanics—players can literally do anything, and that gives way to far too many possibilities of interaction. With RPG games, they have failed to portray effective drama because the inherent gameplay forces players to be involved too much with the numbers and math, instead of on the driving story which has significantly more meaning for us. Perhaps if Final Fantasy 7’s mechanics were filtered and the game was shaped into more simple dynamics, it would achieve the same desired experience.

Wikipedia's "5 Degrees of Separation" Game

2008-06-23T04:56:00.000-07:00

This is a really fun, potentially educational game played with Wikipedia that a friend suggested tonight. Answering my friend's challenge, I was able to start from an article on "Korean barbeque" and in just 4 clicks arrive at an article on "Mercedes-Benz".

Here was my path:

Korean barbeque -> Korea -> United States -> Auto racing -> Mercedes-Benz

Fortunately, this round didn't require much strategy or thinking, but every round is different. I had a blast though.

A few old book reviews

2008-06-22T00:08:00.000-07:00

I ported over some old book reviews I wrote for my Facebook 'Books Application'. Figured just as much, since it's unlikely anybody reads the content on my Facebook anyway.

Neuromancer
William Gibson
Rating: 4/5

Gibson pioneered the cyberpunk genre, and this book was one of the first of its kind.

Writing Resource: The novel is littered with numerous ideas a writer/world-builder could steal. Gibson employs a useful literary device of note, by composing the end of the novel with multiple scenes and actions that occur simultaneously. This technique is characterized by the climax of The Return of the Jedi, and is quite effective in instilling excitement. I also thought that the Rastafarian character, Maelcum, had a unique personality that writers can potentially borrow from. He was very lovable. Imagine an intimidating black man who smokes marijuana and touts a big gun, and then also imagine him as an approachable 'teddy bear' kind of character who offers his aid generously—the juxtaposition of elements made him very appealing (I wanted to give him a hug!) The final element of the novel that I felt could be borrowed from was the writing style and description of its spaceships. Reading those passages allowed me to really visualize what it was like to sit in a dingy, cramped, piled-together hunk of a spaceship. Cool :)

American Gods
Neil Gaiman
Rating: 2.5/5

Meh. Original premise, though.

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
Max Brooks
Rating: 3.5/5

A zombie 'what-if' novel, detailing the political, economic, and social effects of a worldwide pandemic. Very accurate, smart, and thoroughly planned out.

The author must have done insane research prior to writing this novel—military focused research, more like, since the various first-person perspectives are mostly characters involved in some way or another with the military. Brooks brings up so much jargon and obscure concepts that I had to read the novel with Wikipedia open in front of me.

I want to thank Brooks who opened my eyes to a lot of things going on in the world that I never knew too deeply about. The South African Apartheid, the conflict in Israel, threats from isolated North Korea, the USAF, just to name a few. I swear, the book is riddled with tidbits of information that will make you purse your lips and think "Huh, that's interesting."

I do, however, think that one aspect of the author's style is especially lacking. The book, being an Oral History of the Zombie War, is written from the multiple accounts of people who survived the plague. Unfortunately, these people all sound exactly the same. There is no unique voice in any of the characters. I suppose the author sacrificed prose for technical research and facts.

Read this book instead if you're too lazy to keep up with the world—you'll definitely learn a lot.

Perdido Street Station
China Miéville
Rating: 4/5

Seriously though, what am I reading? An RPG manual?

The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials, Book 3)
Philip Pullman
Rating: 3/5

Garish:
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Pullman is a good writer. A great writer. This master of words has such command of the English language that he is able to paint each scene and landscape in amazingly descriptive detail. However, his prose leaves me with a sickening sweet aftertaste: it's as if Pullman was cranking out this forced creativity just to see his pretty words populate the page.

Overly Ambitious:
It's quite obvious that with His Dark Materials, Pullman was striving to create a grand scale epic. Especially in The Amber Spyglass where all his variegated ideas converge, the story begins to feel convoluted—there is no respite from the mechanical plodding of the storyline (you notice that characters go to sleep and wake up, constantly, in between sections; perhaps Pullman's epic style of transitions). There is a substantial style change, whereas before, the series told an adventurous and inventive tale. Now, the conclusion of the series is brought to us riddled with overly ambitious ideals: philosophical, religious, quasi-scientific, speculative, romantic. I shouldn't like to think that Pullman's audience reads his trilogy just to be spoon fed some of these robust ideals of his, which go far beyond entertainment purposes. Warning: novel not suitable for children, or young adults (as it's marketed) even.

Like Narnia, but explores the other end of Christian dogma.