Took this shot with a 1:1 lens at sunset in December, and we were losing light fast, so settings for one shot weren’t accurate for the next shot. Still, I like this image. It’s been brightened and sharpened and filtered, and remains imperfect, but it evokes other images.
If this were a book cover, what kind of story would it contain?
Jamie at the campus
(c2016, KB)
c2016, KB
There’s a meme I occasionally encounter on social media, and it’s a quote from Isaac Asimov:
There is a cult of ignorance, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge’.
Usually, I let the meme pass without comment.
Not so after the most recent encounter:
Unfortunately, democracy is made up of flawed human beings of varying perspectives, values, and educations. One trauma, one triumph, one challenge, one loss, one gain, one ________ can change our view of the world and of ourselves.
We — an all-encompassing “we” — need not assume that someone’s disagreement with our point of view means they are the ignorant one in the conversation.
Regardless of where we stand on certain issues, we too often think we stand above those with whom we do not agree. That, I think, is one main reason there are such gaping chasms between groups in this country.
Are only those with whom we agree worthy of courtesy?
Are only those we deem our intellectual equals worthy of our respect?
Are only those we consider morally correct worthy of being treated with decency?
We tend to assume we’re the ones with the whole truth, and often do not consider we might be mistaken.
On the other hand, there is absolute truth, and if we have no strength of conviction, we’ll never stand for anything.
There’s a time to hear and understand other points of view, even if we never change our own stance.
There’s a time to examine ourselves and explore other ideas, and then decide whether or not we need to adjust or to remain firm.
Simply because others disagree does not mean we double-down, speak louder, or become aggressive in trying to change their minds.
Maybe we’re the ones who are wrong.
Maybe, in our ignorance, we overlook their intelligence.
What happens when a writer grows weary of his characters?
What happens when they fight back?
One is reminded of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle attempting to rid himself of Sherlock Holmes at Reichenbach Falls, or the author in Stranger Than Fiction whose protagonists never make it out alive.
Or perhaps the writer realizes she’s dug herself into a literary hole and doesn’t know when or how to end the story. (Lost, I’m lookin’ at you. And you, too, Once Upon a Time, which should have lasted only a season or two, before you misused your great cast and intriguing premise to go screaming off the rails into soap opera badlands.)
W is a 2016 South Korean television drama in the vein of Stranger Than Fiction, Secret Window, The Truman Show, The God Hater, and other stories where the characters confront or interact with their authors, their audiences, or their creators. In this series, comicbook characters become aware of their fictionhood and enter the real world to confront their creator.
First, the protagonist learns why a shadowy figure is trying to kill him and turns the tables on his creator. then the villain also realizes he can enter the other dimension, and demands of the creator a face and an identity.
How the story begins:
Kang Cheol has a few loyal associates upon whom he relies, but when a mysterious woman saves his life more than once, he’s intrigued. Although the police are seeking her as a material witness and a suspect in the multiple attempts on his life, Kang Cheol hides her in order to protect her not only from the police but also from his murderous stalker.
Meantime, his television station, W—which stands for Who and Why—broadcasts and solves cold cases that the police have abandoned. He has earned a golden reputation in society for his ingenuity, wealth, generosity, and dogged pursuit of justice.
Oh Yeon Joo is alerted by her father’s fellow artists that he is missing. He went into his office one day, and although he was never seen leaving, he cannot be found. As she’s standing in his office, searching for clues, a bloody hand reaches through his art tablet and pulls her into the world of W. Without valid ID, money, or other resources, she attempts to navigate the comicbook world and find a way back to her own.
Oh Seung Moo has made his fortune and his reputation with W, finally rising from obscurity to fame with the bestselling series. Why, then has he written an abrupt ending for the protagonist—a bloody death without the satisfaction of a solved crime? After all, fans have been awaiting the revelation of the villain who killed Kang Cheol’s family.
But Kang Cheol will not die, and he begins to affect the story from the other side of the tablet. Seung Moo is no longer in control of his creation.
Has Seung Moo run away, unable to cope with success? Or is he suffering a common literary malady—an inability to properly resolve the story?
And why does Kang Cheol believe Yeon Joo is “the key to my life”?
The answer to that, my friends, is a plot twist.
At only 16 episodes long, W is fast-paced. However, it does slow down a little on occasion, allowing the viewer to catch his or her breath and often poking gentle fun at kdrama tropes.
The cinematography is excellent, and the special effects—as characters pass from one world to the next, or as pieces of the comic are drawn and then appear in the webtoon world—are top-notch and deceptively simple. Some effects are in-camera rather than digital, lending a level of reality to the cartoon world.
W would fit nicely into any of these genres: horror, fantasy, thriller, mystery, suspense, romance, action, and more. It is twisty, unpredictable, and references many kdrama tropes then refreshes the cliches to turn the story in unexpected directions.
The reason for so many genres intermingling is due to the story being hijacked by the characters, who don’t know the cartoonist’s plans but simply want to live. And to live on their own terms.
Story themes include existence, humanity, determining one’s own life/destiny/future, and the roles and relationships among god/creator, devil/antagonist, and allies and enemies. Choices have consequences—and the choices and consequences become manifold as fictional characters no longer follow the plot but assert their wills on the story. Viewers of varying philosophies or worldviews will find this an intriguing tale.
Currently, W is available on Viki, which allows viewers to comment during the show. However, during your first viewing of the show, I suggest turning off the scrolling comments at the top of the video window, as they can be distracting, annoying, downright funny. Best to watch without them, until you view the show a second time.
Some colors in nature are almost too vibrant to be captured by a lens. These tulips clustered under a tree on a windy day, and I’d hoped the shade would temper the almost-too-vivid nature of the orange. Still, it’s hard not to smile back at these happy faces, eh? As they were tossed by the wind, I was reminded of children running.
A blackbird in a barren tree in early spring — notice the red Christmas lights still twining the branches? 😉
at Myriad Botanical Gardens (c2016, KB)
“Progress” is merely motion in a certain direction, as in advancement toward a goal. Depending on the goal, your motives, or your methods, that progression can be positive or negative.
People say, “Hold on! It’ll get better!” but sometimes we need to let go. As much as we admire people who trudge onward toward their goals, there is, indeed, a time to give up.
Sometimes we persevere in the wrong direction. We may not know it. We may know it but not know how to change it. Our effort, skill, hope, endurance, loyalty, courage, and strength of will are expended in vain.
Step back. Examine goals, motives, methods, relationships, results. Is this truly the path you want to tread? Is this the end result you desire?
Don’t be discouraged by how much road — or how much life — lies behind you. It’s never too late for a course correction.
east on a Wyoming highway (c2013, KB)
Last night’s writer’s meeting was ill-attended; only three of us showed up. However, that allowed me to seek advice from the librarian who leads the group, and ask her how the exteriors of books affect 1) inclusion in the library’s collection, and 2) reader choice.
Concerned about my preference for simplicity in artwork or design, I was surprised — and yet not — by her responses. Sure, if the artwork is cheesy and/or seems at odds with the subject matter, the staff might have a laugh, but what’s most annoying to them are book covers so minimalistic they reveal nothing about the content. She mentioned one publisher that tends toward such spareness there’s no artwork or even a description of the plot. Just the title and the author’s name.
So simplicity of decoration is fine, but tell readers about the story. Give ’em some reason to choose your book.
“If the reader flips to the back to read the blurb, you’re almost guaranteed they’ll check out the book.”
Then she looked at my rough draft for the cover of Thieves Honor. It looked like a thriller, not science fiction, but the fix was easy: She suggested I flip the background image, so the front became the back, and vice versa. The color gradiant and the angle of the light changed, giving the illusion of outer space rather than what the photo actually portrays — a table, a wooden chair, and the light from my computer screen all running together into a tie-dye abstraction of formless color.
The current draft of the front cover:
in-progress cover (c2016, KB)
So, can I get away with no focal image on the cover, or is some artwork still needed? And is the look too “homemade” to be taken seriously?
For reference, the original image in its original orientation:
Abstraction (c2016, KB)
Last week, a fellow editor/writer and I met to work out a few details on a project and ended up hanging out until after dark. We ate supper at The Garage — great burgers and tasty fish tacos — and I brought the camera for our stroll, just in case. Unfortunately, it had the short lens (shallow depth of field, 1:1 ratio), so there’s less detail and more blurring than I’d like.
This first image is of a parking garage, looking rather sci-fi or action-scene-like:
parking garage (c2015, KB)
I edited the next photo to show the heat map, because the dim lighting was insufficient to show detail, such as the spiral fire escape strung on wires above the common space between two buildings. It’s surreal and quirky and cool, but something keeps me from wanting to walk underneath it. 😉
“flying” fire escape (c2015, KB)
The image below is a fuzzier version of one I shared on Facebook a few days ago. It’s the Devon Tower in downtown Oklahoma City, otherwise known as the Eye of Sauron.
Devon Tower a/k/a Sauron’s other lair (c2015, KB)
Miscellaneous images below of old buildings, Christmas lights, and alleyways:
“Cinemascope” lends an older feel to the already old structure (c2015, KB)
a misty, oblique shot that almost transports the viewer to an Old World city (c2015, KB)
another blurry shot, this time of Christmas lights blanketing businesses near Automobile Alley (c2015, KB)
alley behind businesses that front Automobile Alley (c2015, KB)
same alley, Christmas lights in a closed cafe (c2015, KB)
industrial-like structure abutting the alley(c2015, KB)
Below are variations on a theme. These images were taken before I departed the parking lot beside the alley. I was ready to drive away, but caught sight of the spiral fire escape in my rearview mirror. The result is a surreal mix of that reflection and of the alley beside the car.
The ghostly figure in the background is of a passerby walking her dog.
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
(c2015, KB)
Something tells me I need to spend more time downtown, and this time bring a tripod to help hold the camera steady.
NOTE: all images property of Keanan Brand
The photo below is of an ordinary autumn flower, but the image to the left is that same photo transformed by featuring not its original image but its heat map. Although the original is vibrant, the heat map colors are an eye-grabbing rainbow.
So, too, may bland words gain fire and vigor once the writer takes hold of them.
And sometimes they surprise.
along the Soldier Creek Nature Trail (c2015, KB)
Monday night’s writers meeting / NaNoWriMo write-in included what has come to be one of this group’s favorite activities: passing around story-starter sheets on which each member adds one element that will then be incorporated into an impromptu short story.
When we have more people than we have story elements, that means each writer will be given a story sheet he or she has never seen. Surprise!
Some of those surprises are unpleasant — second-person POV, for instance, or paranormal romance involving aliens — but the results are usually humorous or delightfully twisty.
Monday night’s session brought me this puzzler and only fifteen minutes to compose a masterpiece:
Character: Miss Sally Sue from Kalamazoo
Genre: Realistic / Magical Realism
Setting: Kansas
POV: 1st
Problem / Conflict: Her mother is ill and Sally must earn money to pay for her medicine
Line of Dialogue: “Oh Sally, why are you my least favorite child?”
Prop: kazoo
My first reaction: “Borrriiiiing!”
My second reaction: “What in the world am I supposed to do with this?”
My third reaction: “Write a children’s poem.”
The result, however, is –not for children. There are few rhymes (noted by the orange font), and little rhythm, but the ending is darkly humorous.
Miss Sally Sue from Kalamazoo
travelled from Michigan to Kansas
a job to find and money to earn,
for her mother lay ill,
and Sally was the only child still speaking to her.Miss Sally Sue from Kalamazoo
returned to Michigan from Kansas
with medicine and money to spare
for her mother infirm,
but Sally was met by a spurning sigh and a stare.“Oh, Sally, why are you my least favorite child?”
Miss Sally Sue from Kalamazoo
was not daunted by Mother’s despair.
She measured the powder and water,
offered it with a smile,
then Sally played the kazoo all the while Mother choked as Death caught her.c2015, Keanan Brand
Before the psychiatrist is called or anti-depressants are prescribed, no, I’m not feeling murderous, and the relationship with my mother is healthy, thank you. 😉
The transformation of words is what I intended, but how they transformed and what they became was certainly not my intention.
Surprise!
Neon Blue of the image above (c2015, KB)
Snapped this while waiting at the library a couple weeks ago, before a writers meeting:
c2015, KB
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