The Dr. has her plate full and The Mrs. is going bananas!
Sorry my dear readers, I haven’t updated the blog last week, but life is taking its toll…again!
However, look what I’ve stumbled on this morning!
One of my coworker’s partner, Matteo Bertoli, is a filmmaker and decided to make a video with the new Iphone 6s.
I loved it so much that I decided to share it with you! Watch it and tell me what you think about it.
Enjoy!
Would you say this video was filmed with a phone?
Keep an eye on this guy! He’s very, very good!
I was eager to write this post this morning as I have some news.
The first good news, mainly for the friend who kindly lent me his book, it’s that I finally managed to finish How to write Sci-fi and Fantasy by Orson Scott Card.
I loved it.
It was very helpful with great insight into the subject.
It took me so long to finish it because I had to take notes all along. Also it was a new book so I had to read it in awkward position in order to preserve the spine without marks! But I think I managed pretty well.
I’ve never read anything by Orson Scott Card till now, a part for this non fiction but I heard he’s very good writer.
What I’ve noticed from this book is that you can see he knows what he’s talking about and also that there is a human being and a real person behind the writer and the lecturer. He admits the mistakes he’d made and also his weaknesses and, to be honest with you, I think that alone requires being humble and strong at the same time…in particular for a person in his position.
I only hope that the day I’ll decide to read one of his books I’ll be able to see the teacher behind the fiction as I’ve noticed with Oisín McGann. In fact this is one of the reasons why Oisín is one of my favorite writers.
The second thing I want to say is about a novella that I was to read in order to understand better three chapters of the book I’m reading now. Yes, the one I’m supposed to write the review about…please, K., forgive me for I’m very slow…
The novella is Of mice and men by John Steinbeck.
I’ve never read Steinbeck before and I’m absolutely fascinated. The reason why I need to write this thoughts down is, not only because I want to share my discover with you, but also because I need to vent.
Why? Because the novella left me utterly sad and a painful sensation inside.
I didn’t know Steinbeck, I knew he was one of the classics but firstly I’ve never been interested in modern fiction and secondly I was regarding it as one of exam topic for the Anglo-American literature students. I had my handful with English classics at the time and the rest of the spare time was dedicated to the speculative contemporary fiction so I didn’t really thought of reading him.
To be honest with you it was a huge mistake, a mistake I’m willing to correct in the near future.
Although I know that it will be a painful reading and I’ll suffer, as it will be more or less like reading Primo Levi’s books, I cannot possible miss the brilliant style and the fantastic way of presenting characters. I want to learn how is properly written the ‘show don’t tell’ into the text and the description without boring the reader to death.
The last news is that, after finishing Orson Scott Card’s book, I have my research slot free, so I began a new book related to one of my two WIPs, Hunter’s Journal. The book I’m talking about is The Wordsworth Collection of Irish ghost stories. It’a a collection of short stories and novellas from Irish classical writers. How it would be terrifying I’ll judge in a few days.
Mainly I hope to find something that could trigger an idea or give me inspiration. Also it is a light reading to sit in the kitchen with, while I’m trying to stay awake and not burn dinner!!!
So, that’s it for the moment. And how about you? What are you reading? Did you discover anything interesting? Do you have any suggestion for me to broaden my culture?
Thanks in advance for your suggestions!
Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen. John Steinbeck
I know this post will be published at the beginning of September…well not really the beginning as you can see, but these dreams are still part of the same bunch!
As I promised in my last post I’ll finish my tale.
To the following list I have to add last night dream in which I was brushing my teeth. I was talking to someone and when I turned to the voice talking to me I realized the person next to me brushing his teeth was Stephen Amell.
Now I don’t even remember what we were talking about but the sensation was like the one you have when your favorite cousin is around!
After this one I’ve had plenty of them but for some reason I couldn’t remember any detail worth telling.
Then we begin again with the old ones.
E., one of my best friends, was in my living room on a blood stained mattress on the floor. She had just had her second baby. She was wrapping the new born in a blanket and getting on her feet, when the image moved to me and S., my other best friend, sitting on the couch watching the TV. I said “How comes that she made it so fast?”
And S. said “Well, everybody’s different!”
***
I was running away from someone and for some reason I landed on the top of a truck. The top of this truck was closed and my dad was driving. We went to chase another truck and we ended up so close that with my hand I could reach the top of the other truck almost at ease. Only problem was that the other truck was full of lentils soup up to the edge.
***
I woke up in a tent either in the space or in a dystopian reality, I don’t remember. Immediately after I was rushing through some corridors that looked like a spaceship corridors. The girl I was chasing had a vial I wanted. She went running down the stairs and activated them letting them transform into a slide.
I managed to catch up with her and I took the vial. In that very moment the doors of the lab opened and some kind of scientist followed by some guards came over to us. “She tried to rob this” I said. For some reason the guards took me into custody and brought me away. Just then I had the sensation that someone was watching me but I had no clue of who he or she was.
***
I was in an old castle for something like a tour. It was dark outside. It was a stone built medieval castle. The more we went inside and discovered the rooms, the more the environment and the situation became real.
At some stage there was a lady in a long dark cloak who had some metal pieces in her hands. She was looking at us leaning on her tall stick. At least I think she was looking at us as the hood covered her face entirely.
“Touch that hand” she said addressing us and pointing to an exit on her left “And you’ll have one bracelet of the witch!”
So the things she was playing with were bracelets.
The door she was pointing at gave to a courtyard that looked like a typical medieval market square.
Dangling from a low roof made of straw there was a blueish hand that was stirring and closing in a fist continuously. Immediately under it there was a wooden bowl full of liquid attached to a thin wooden pole.
The task was to touch the hand and pass away, that’s it.
When my turn came, I walked quickly towards the hand while it was dipping in the bowl. When I was closer I touched it but it grasped my fingers with long black claws.
I immediately woke up. And to be honest where the hand pinched me was still sore. That dream was weird and creepy.
***
I don’t remember much of this dream a part from a huge room, again in a medieval kind of castle.
The only image I remember was of this big brown horse on the floor. His belly was open and his entrails were scattered all around him. There was blood everywhere.
***
There was a poor house.
All the furniture and walls and tapestry were shabby looking and oozing poverty from every angle you could reach scanning the room.
There was mould and it was dark. Everything was colored in blue, black and sick green hues.
The sink was licking on the side making the plaster swollen.
Ok I think I’m done for the moment.
I hope you liked them and also to dream soon something else to share with you!
Sorry it took me so long, but it’s the second post training period and I’m struggling again. My brain is fuming but, as always, I’m trying to do my best!
Dr.Franny and Mrs.Myself 