Sigh of Mostly Relief.
Dec. 3rd, 2008 05:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lenora_roseThe finished plates and goblets made it into the kiln on time to be ready for critique tomorrow. I have only the mammoths and some not-schoolwork pieces to finish up over the holiday. (I also need to have some miraculous idea how to evoke an Italian villa's garden with a minimum of cash outlay, but as I won't have that for tomorrow, I'm resigned.)
The first mammoth is virtually entirely done. The second, the one that actually fits with the project (The first one is too large) needs all its detail work still.
But the short version is, school's out as of tomorrow. The fact that the next two weeks involve full time work every day of the week is good, as I could use the money, although it does nothing for the spare time issue.
I've also decided for various reasons to forego Richard Thompson this time through. Issues of both money and spare time have come up. For one thing, I have a sewing project, albeit a quite simple one, I need for Saturday night. (It's basically an over-skirt).
Our house is in serious need of cleaning.
Some reading:
Various - Alternity: a Harry Potter AU
It's broken my heart about fifteen ways already, and it's just December (Actually, i've only read up to November 29th, I think). Oh, my GOD it's good. I'm not wholly surprised (There's at least one published author involved), by it being pretty good, but I'm amazed HOW good, and how hard it is to stop reading, even when I'm DAYS behind and don't have the time to catch up.
Trust me, if you liked Rowling, this take is a vivid re-view of the same world with a much darker lense. If you didn't like Rowling - this probably is still for you, as it looks at several of her flaws face-on, and easily surpasses them.
The people writing this describe it as an RPG played via LJ entries (and comments), which implies they have no idea where it's going in spite of an overarching plot. I've been reading it as a collaborative Fanfiction, which may or may not be a more accurate way of looking at it. There aren't the "rules" of an RPG, at least not in the same way, just the absolute rule of storytelling; be entirely true to the setting, both the parts established by the author, and the alternate universe parts.
The setting is a Harry Potter Alternate Universe - in which, on the day James and Lily Potter died, something very different happened.
Voldemort won, and is now Lord Protector of Britain. The island itself is surrounded by a magical barrier through which only a few approved wizard traders can come. The muggles have been put into work camps, and their magical children - Mudbloods even in official government terminology, are pretty much slaves. Halfbloods born before he took over are allowed to live in the wizarding world, but as second-class citizens, usually fostered buy pureblood families.
And Voldemort's adopted son, known to the wizarding world at large as Harry Marvolo, has just started at Hogwarts. This is not quite the place Rowling envisioned; there are obvious changes. Minerva MacGonagall is headmistress, dealing with almost impossible demands from the government and her conscience. Several of the teachers are different, with the attendant changes this implies. Lupin, a known werewolf, is the groundskeeper. There are mudblood slaves present, who fascinate, horrify, and sometimes earn the complete disdain of young Harry, who believes the party line on their filth almost hook, line, and sinker.
But the changes go deeper. The houses aren't in as much rivalry; they insult one another, but one Slytherin girl spends a fair amount of time tutoring Neville, and there are several cross-house friendships. Which might seem an unexpectedly positive outcome of Voldemort's rule. But then again, there's a definite undercurrent of fear in the school, and the kids seem to be clinging together for that, not for any great desire to work together.
The explanation for the medium to the story is that Voldemort has given all magic-using citizens (And a handful of mudbloods, at MacGonagall's persuasion) journals in which they can scribble notes to be read by anyone. (There's an interesting trick, though, by which we can still see the doings of the Order of the Phoenix, and its current members).
The first thing that happens in the story is that the Sorting Hat puts Harry into Gryffindor - only to have his "father" immediately demand that he be moved back to Slytherin. The second is that *someone* tries to reveal to Harry where he really comes from.
The storyline touches on some of the major events in the Philosopher's Stone - the first encounter with Fluffy, and the appearance of the troll in the school on Hallowe'en, even the first catching of the snitch - but these serve mainly to highlight the differences. And lead to rabid speculation what's really going on, since the villain **can't** have the same motivations, not having been either "killed" (or made a bald noseless snakey-person.) and the heroes, likewise.
Naturally, as an AU, the best and brightest characters are not the people Rowling adores in the books; the strongest characters still include Hermione (Who is, as you can guess, nothing like the one we know), but also Slytherin girls Sally Ann Parks and Pansy Parkinson. And Terry boot. I do love boot. There are also people missing; Dumbledore has made very, very few comments, enough just to spoil any speculation about his non-existence. Snape and Hagrid are absent without explanation. Quirrel has been referred to (since Voldemort never needed him) but not given a chance to speak. Some people have appeared early. Some people have appeared who weren't in the books, though they were mentioned (At least two of these will make most fans rejoice to see then in person at last - and no, not James and Lily. They're still dead.) Some people have been mentioned, and will no doubt join in later years, who didn't exist at all before this AU. Others might well be dead.
it's grim, it's dark, it's terrible and what it does to Rowling's universe is devastate it entirely. It's utterly fabulously addictive. Go back to September and start. It's not so far yet that the task is impossible, but it's far enough that I hesitate to suggest you wait any longer at all.
Which is hard; it started in September this year, and intends to run the whole seven years in roughly real-time. But daunting; between the number of entries, with around 40 characters, and the number of comments, it's really likely to be hard to start from the beginning at this point.
However, jumping in without attempting to do so is not advised. The best way to read it is through this, ostensibly a friendslist. (There's another, here which also lets you read what other fans and fellow readers speculate about the goings on to date, which i decided after a while that most of the speculation wasn't for me.)
Galen Beckett - The Magicians and Mrs. Quent
Very good, slightly odd. It's set in another world in a very close parallel to our Victorian age; some of the most blatant parallels made me roll my eyes. The main differences, in fact, besides the presence of magic, are that daytime and nighttime vary widely not by the year (Which has a much smaller effect on culture and plot both than it sounds), but by the day, and that there are eleven planets (Which is a bigger plot point than it sounds.) My impression is that it's meant to imply that the universe actually does follow the old "Crystal spheres" idea (Which is still very extant in this setting), though how the varying days and nights are derived from that i'm not sure. Not terribly relevant.
The book begins in a rather Austenian way for part one (excepting possibly for the multiple points of view and the amount of time spent with the two male characters, which I suppose is more Trollopean), being as much focused on the marriage prospects and witty personable discussions and the customs as on the mystery and the magic in the background, though both the mystery and magic are non-Austenian. Part two shifts almost entirely into Jane Eyre/Rebecca territory; a classic gothic setting of a girl going as governess to an old house in the country, of ghosts (or at least witches), and a tragically lost wife in the backstory. It even shifts to first person, and the whole tone of the book with it. Beckett almost lost me with the jolt of it, and the fact that following this one person and this intimate a point of view left several threads dangling badly.
The third part, back to third person and multiple povs, does tie the first and second parts together reasonably well, the tone matching the first section, but with with the magical mystery at the forefront, along with all the attending gothic rumblings.
It's clear, and not just by the intimations of the seamier sides of the age, or the occasional unromantic look at the attitudes of the day, that this is written by a modern author, not someone of the day, but the tribute is well done. I liked almost everything about it except the unforewarned jolt, and one bit of bloodthirstiness. The villains are a tad papery in their dimensions, and some other minor characters leave room for growth (Which is a nice way of saying also paper-thin), but... in a way that reminds me of Jo Walton's comments in "In Praise of Cardboard" about how sometimes the urge to make everyone and everything have depth and individuality would hurt the story. Some of the flat characters give the impression they could be made substantial, if we bothered to follow them, but that to do so would wound the story at the heart of the book, rather than expanding on it.
There are intimations in two different places on the cover that there will be at least one more book in this setting, but the book, in spite of leaving one obvious lead-in to future events, is very satisfactorily standalone.
Steven Gould - Jumper
I read Reflex, technically the sequel, some time ago (Not long before Viable Paradise, naturally) and was highly impressed. (Though i recognized places where both VP itself and other people who instruct therein had influence, hardly a bad thing).
It's a huge pity the movie made from this stank, from what I've heard from those who actually watched it. Because the book has all kinds of strengths; a hero who thinks through his actions, their implications, and their consequences, in a way I wish more heroes would, but still has the blind spots and impulses of a teenager. A heroine who reasons about even her emotional reactions, without actually losing the emotion itself. (She reminds me in a lot of ways of my brother, actually). Serious driving events, the personal tangling almost irretrievably from the political and from the physical action.
Heck, short version, it's good, it's logical, and it has a pretty strong soul with it.
The first mammoth is virtually entirely done. The second, the one that actually fits with the project (The first one is too large) needs all its detail work still.
But the short version is, school's out as of tomorrow. The fact that the next two weeks involve full time work every day of the week is good, as I could use the money, although it does nothing for the spare time issue.
I've also decided for various reasons to forego Richard Thompson this time through. Issues of both money and spare time have come up. For one thing, I have a sewing project, albeit a quite simple one, I need for Saturday night. (It's basically an over-skirt).
Our house is in serious need of cleaning.
Some reading:
Various - Alternity: a Harry Potter AU
It's broken my heart about fifteen ways already, and it's just December (Actually, i've only read up to November 29th, I think). Oh, my GOD it's good. I'm not wholly surprised (There's at least one published author involved), by it being pretty good, but I'm amazed HOW good, and how hard it is to stop reading, even when I'm DAYS behind and don't have the time to catch up.
Trust me, if you liked Rowling, this take is a vivid re-view of the same world with a much darker lense. If you didn't like Rowling - this probably is still for you, as it looks at several of her flaws face-on, and easily surpasses them.
The people writing this describe it as an RPG played via LJ entries (and comments), which implies they have no idea where it's going in spite of an overarching plot. I've been reading it as a collaborative Fanfiction, which may or may not be a more accurate way of looking at it. There aren't the "rules" of an RPG, at least not in the same way, just the absolute rule of storytelling; be entirely true to the setting, both the parts established by the author, and the alternate universe parts.
The setting is a Harry Potter Alternate Universe - in which, on the day James and Lily Potter died, something very different happened.
Voldemort won, and is now Lord Protector of Britain. The island itself is surrounded by a magical barrier through which only a few approved wizard traders can come. The muggles have been put into work camps, and their magical children - Mudbloods even in official government terminology, are pretty much slaves. Halfbloods born before he took over are allowed to live in the wizarding world, but as second-class citizens, usually fostered buy pureblood families.
And Voldemort's adopted son, known to the wizarding world at large as Harry Marvolo, has just started at Hogwarts. This is not quite the place Rowling envisioned; there are obvious changes. Minerva MacGonagall is headmistress, dealing with almost impossible demands from the government and her conscience. Several of the teachers are different, with the attendant changes this implies. Lupin, a known werewolf, is the groundskeeper. There are mudblood slaves present, who fascinate, horrify, and sometimes earn the complete disdain of young Harry, who believes the party line on their filth almost hook, line, and sinker.
But the changes go deeper. The houses aren't in as much rivalry; they insult one another, but one Slytherin girl spends a fair amount of time tutoring Neville, and there are several cross-house friendships. Which might seem an unexpectedly positive outcome of Voldemort's rule. But then again, there's a definite undercurrent of fear in the school, and the kids seem to be clinging together for that, not for any great desire to work together.
The explanation for the medium to the story is that Voldemort has given all magic-using citizens (And a handful of mudbloods, at MacGonagall's persuasion) journals in which they can scribble notes to be read by anyone. (There's an interesting trick, though, by which we can still see the doings of the Order of the Phoenix, and its current members).
The first thing that happens in the story is that the Sorting Hat puts Harry into Gryffindor - only to have his "father" immediately demand that he be moved back to Slytherin. The second is that *someone* tries to reveal to Harry where he really comes from.
The storyline touches on some of the major events in the Philosopher's Stone - the first encounter with Fluffy, and the appearance of the troll in the school on Hallowe'en, even the first catching of the snitch - but these serve mainly to highlight the differences. And lead to rabid speculation what's really going on, since the villain **can't** have the same motivations, not having been either "killed" (or made a bald noseless snakey-person.) and the heroes, likewise.
Naturally, as an AU, the best and brightest characters are not the people Rowling adores in the books; the strongest characters still include Hermione (Who is, as you can guess, nothing like the one we know), but also Slytherin girls Sally Ann Parks and Pansy Parkinson. And Terry boot. I do love boot. There are also people missing; Dumbledore has made very, very few comments, enough just to spoil any speculation about his non-existence. Snape and Hagrid are absent without explanation. Quirrel has been referred to (since Voldemort never needed him) but not given a chance to speak. Some people have appeared early. Some people have appeared who weren't in the books, though they were mentioned (At least two of these will make most fans rejoice to see then in person at last - and no, not James and Lily. They're still dead.) Some people have been mentioned, and will no doubt join in later years, who didn't exist at all before this AU. Others might well be dead.
it's grim, it's dark, it's terrible and what it does to Rowling's universe is devastate it entirely. It's utterly fabulously addictive. Go back to September and start. It's not so far yet that the task is impossible, but it's far enough that I hesitate to suggest you wait any longer at all.
Which is hard; it started in September this year, and intends to run the whole seven years in roughly real-time. But daunting; between the number of entries, with around 40 characters, and the number of comments, it's really likely to be hard to start from the beginning at this point.
However, jumping in without attempting to do so is not advised. The best way to read it is through this, ostensibly a friendslist. (There's another, here which also lets you read what other fans and fellow readers speculate about the goings on to date, which i decided after a while that most of the speculation wasn't for me.)
Galen Beckett - The Magicians and Mrs. Quent
Very good, slightly odd. It's set in another world in a very close parallel to our Victorian age; some of the most blatant parallels made me roll my eyes. The main differences, in fact, besides the presence of magic, are that daytime and nighttime vary widely not by the year (Which has a much smaller effect on culture and plot both than it sounds), but by the day, and that there are eleven planets (Which is a bigger plot point than it sounds.) My impression is that it's meant to imply that the universe actually does follow the old "Crystal spheres" idea (Which is still very extant in this setting), though how the varying days and nights are derived from that i'm not sure. Not terribly relevant.
The book begins in a rather Austenian way for part one (excepting possibly for the multiple points of view and the amount of time spent with the two male characters, which I suppose is more Trollopean), being as much focused on the marriage prospects and witty personable discussions and the customs as on the mystery and the magic in the background, though both the mystery and magic are non-Austenian. Part two shifts almost entirely into Jane Eyre/Rebecca territory; a classic gothic setting of a girl going as governess to an old house in the country, of ghosts (or at least witches), and a tragically lost wife in the backstory. It even shifts to first person, and the whole tone of the book with it. Beckett almost lost me with the jolt of it, and the fact that following this one person and this intimate a point of view left several threads dangling badly.
The third part, back to third person and multiple povs, does tie the first and second parts together reasonably well, the tone matching the first section, but with with the magical mystery at the forefront, along with all the attending gothic rumblings.
It's clear, and not just by the intimations of the seamier sides of the age, or the occasional unromantic look at the attitudes of the day, that this is written by a modern author, not someone of the day, but the tribute is well done. I liked almost everything about it except the unforewarned jolt, and one bit of bloodthirstiness. The villains are a tad papery in their dimensions, and some other minor characters leave room for growth (Which is a nice way of saying also paper-thin), but... in a way that reminds me of Jo Walton's comments in "In Praise of Cardboard" about how sometimes the urge to make everyone and everything have depth and individuality would hurt the story. Some of the flat characters give the impression they could be made substantial, if we bothered to follow them, but that to do so would wound the story at the heart of the book, rather than expanding on it.
There are intimations in two different places on the cover that there will be at least one more book in this setting, but the book, in spite of leaving one obvious lead-in to future events, is very satisfactorily standalone.
Steven Gould - Jumper
I read Reflex, technically the sequel, some time ago (Not long before Viable Paradise, naturally) and was highly impressed. (Though i recognized places where both VP itself and other people who instruct therein had influence, hardly a bad thing).
It's a huge pity the movie made from this stank, from what I've heard from those who actually watched it. Because the book has all kinds of strengths; a hero who thinks through his actions, their implications, and their consequences, in a way I wish more heroes would, but still has the blind spots and impulses of a teenager. A heroine who reasons about even her emotional reactions, without actually losing the emotion itself. (She reminds me in a lot of ways of my brother, actually). Serious driving events, the personal tangling almost irretrievably from the political and from the physical action.
Heck, short version, it's good, it's logical, and it has a pretty strong soul with it.
