londoncalling wrote:Yup, I loved that book. Take away my man card if you want, but I am completely unashamed that I had a tear or two in my eyes at the end. I thought it was beautiful.
Can I call you laser-shark? Personally I think laser-shark may be the most awesome name in the universe.
Because. Are you a big reader?
TIGERSPRITE wrote:Do I detect a hint of Twi-phobia? Twilight is rather bestial though and full of sweaty wolf beings who can't keep their clothes on. Not to mention that hint of paedophilia in the last book...am I the only one who things that a grown man should not already have plans to mate with a newborn baby in the next seven years?
Snoink wrote:Tea cup piggies for the win!
LastPaladin wrote:Greetings, londoncalling, I'll call you London. I don't normally comment on welcome threads, but I'm willing to admit you intrigue me quite a bit. I know it's within reason to say you are definitely a fan of The Clash a good ol' British Punk band. I'm a fan of punk music myself, some of the oldies like Dead Kennedys, Chumbawamba, NOFX, Choking Victims, Left Over Crack ect ect. And many more new bands, like Strike Anywhere, Anti-Flag, Good Riddance, Thought Riot, Destruction Made Simple, Less Than Jake and much more.
I find your favourites books very good, for instance I too loved Of Mice and Men, it such a perfect book and so sad, it is honestly a masterpiece.
My advice is write when ya can but always keep it on com, and sometimes will go back to it, others you won't. All depends, for me I mainly write horror, fantasy and thriller, I also write poetry my favourite being Wilfred Owen.
I know you'll fit in great here, and be sure to pop into the chatroom, we don't bite, and we're a pretty regular bunch, with some newbies coming, but overall, we encourage you to join in, we've various differences, but overall we're united as writers.
ImABookPerson wrote:Hey Cal! ImABookPerson here, but you can call me Booky, or bookie, or whatever you want XD
Anyway, welcome to YWS. How are you liking it here so far? Im sure you will love it here!
Another thing that I wanted to mention, I love your introduction =3
I can tell that you really love words, but then again who doesn't?. So again, welcome to YWS
Don't hesitate to PM or ask me about anything. See you around! and I hope to see some of your work soon.
~Booky~
I'll definitely pop in, where abouts can I find it? Still figuring my bearings around here.
I think I'm going to try and put something up by next Wednesday, so everyone can sort of get an idea about my style. I'd do it sooner, but I'm away in Sussex from Thursday until Sunday. Looking forward to hearing what you all think, really could do with some input.
I prefer to think of it as open hostility.
Well isn't that a lovely little summary, If I'm completely honest I haven't read too much fantasy. I quite ignorantly pressumed it was all just escapism, but I'm open minded enough to give it a try. Do you have any reccomendations?
]For the most part, fantasy nowadays is just enjoyable reading, with varying degrees of enjoyableness. The urban fantasy (which I don't really read) is typically fairly light even if fairly dark in tone. Light fantasy has fallen out of style a little bit, and that was mainly enjoyable reading.
High fantasy, which is what I write when I'm not writing pseudo sci-fi (which is just fantasy in disguise, because I know next to nothing about spacecraft propulsion systems)... On one end, you've got the low of the low. Cliche dialogue, cliche characters, predictable plots, poor writing (either drastically overwritten or just flat-out bad.)
And it can go all the way up to incredibly moving, beautifully written, expertly crafted fantasy. Given the typical fantasy reader's willingness to read books far longer than what a normal reader would tolerate (100,000k is long for general fiction novel, but on the short end for fantasy, where even debuts can range up to 300,000k), there's ample room for character development and devilishly intricate plots. And with that can come depth.
Granted, most books of the fantasy genre are unlikely to achieve a timeless status for one reason or another. But, fantasy allows you to do things that no other genre would even think of allowing, and its reader base is especially dedicated. The result is a whole lot of potential--again, human beings with fantastical elements begs the question of what makes us human. The nature of morality is a fantasy favorite.
Some examples of what I'll call damn good fantasy would be The Summertree by Guy Gavriel Kay, which follows some Earth characters sucked into a fantasy world. Beautifully written, with mythology woven in (Kay was one of Tolkien's friends).
To Ride Hell's Chasm by Janny Wurtz... I just finished this recently. It's one of the rare standalone novels in fantasy, and starts off more slowly than most. It simultaneously moves backward, to a magic system that's fallen out of favor, and forward, dealing with themes of race, racism, and prejudice. The ending bugged me, personally, but I'm a long-time fantasy fan and an opinionated one at that.
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss is the current sensation, and for good reason. I would rant about its flaws but I love it too much. It's an example of great writing and research combining into one. The dude's world functions on all sorts of levels, from the physical and geological to the cultural and economic.
And, as an example of what fantasy can be when it wants to, The Child Thief by Brom. It's the darkest thing I've ever read. It's a retelling of Peter Pan, and it's just about as far away from a children's story as I can imagine. I hesitate against recommending it to people because it is that dark and that unsettling. Not to mention, the author's apparently under the impression that the F word is the only cuss word in English, and it's used liberally, typically several times a page. As the updated version of Peter Pan, taking place in the 2000s, it deals with rape, incest, abuse, murder. It's not for everyone. But as far as I'm concerned, it was brilliant, poignant, beautiful, and hard to forget. So if you're up for a childhood icon being examined for a ruthless new angle, try this one out. My third favorite book of all time, and one of the few where I have actually stopped to reread a passage again because of how beautifully written it was.
I'll stick to the light stuff for the moment. Not sure I can deal with another childhood blow, I'm still reeling from the death of Mufasa. Sad times.
If you need anything, PM away! I totally just said that in a weird voice like I was dropping a bomb out of an airplane. This is why people think I'm funny. Or insane. I've never really stopped to ask them why they're laughing... Okay, well...bye!baywolf25 wrote:*smiles*
Y'all have no idea how happy this thread has made me. Not only do I have a list of new books to read (thanks to Rach!), but I was entertained as well! YWS Welcome Threads are the best! Oh, and welcome to YWS londoncalling! A bit late, I know, but it's the thought that counts. You can call me Bay or Bailey. Whichever you prefer. Just recently I acquired a new nickname from my roommate's boyfriend. He calls me B'ham. Isn't that sweet? Haha!
PS Ocar Wilde is my newest fascination. I swear, his aphorisms never fail to make me laugh at the follies of humanity.
AquaMarine wrote:HIGH FIVE for England, yo.
We're not exactly a majority here, I have to say. But we're blatantly the most awesome (as well as charming, handsome and hilarious...). Modest too, down to the last member. >.>
Anyway, you've had a few days to settle in now, so how're you finding YWS? I'm going to take a wild guess and say you like (even, dare I say it, really like) it here already, but if you have any questions about posting/reviewing/points/where to find the cookies, then feel free to send me (or anyone wearing a green coat) a quick PM.
I get what you mean about the getting words down aspect of writing. I'll come up with something that I think is a great idea, rush home to write it down and then realise that I can never write it as well as I can think it. Sad times, really.
And teacup pigs can be festive, too!
Hope to see you around!
-Amy
psudiname wrote:wow. the first thing I have to say is that this is the most eloquent bio I have ever seen on this forum. If you achieve half of the passion that was used to craft this introduction in your writing, I have no doubt I will enjoy it, as I am also a lover of the simple beauty that the english language has to offer. If you ever need something read or reviewed, I'm your man, so feel free to PM me. also, I would be honored if you would read my writings as well, as I am an aspiring young writer who wishes to improve my technique. your mate,
--- Psudiname
idraax wrote:Hello London!Welcome! You'll feel like you've been here forever in a couple of days. Let's see, there is so much to tell you! First, you can change your title when you get to senior writer or at least, that's when I changed mine. Don't worry it's really easy to get to senior writer. Keep reviewing and you get stars and points, which you can then use to give gifts, pay people to review your work, just donate them to people, hoard them, or post your own work in the forums! Ask questions in the questions thread. And if you need a review, go look at the review for food section or ask people! Yes you like words, but what categories do you write in? What do you like to read? You will find that it'll get hard to write a short post really soon. Sorry about the long post!
125,018 Literary Works • 672,853 Reviews
