A “Better late than never” update

After being MIA for a while, you’d think that this would be a much longer post! But, alas, a shorter catch-up might be better.

Finish Year 2012

Mont Fleur, Stellenbosch, view from the top

One of the first things to go onto my Finish Year list was to get a paper accepted for the 2012 SASMARS Conference. Well, earlier this year I got the good news that it had been accepted and my list quickly changed to “finishing the paper”. The Conference was last weekend and it was a truly pleasurable experience. Not just great people, but the papers were all also very interesting. I gave my own paper on the Saturday and it went well – answering the questions afterwards with more than an “I have no idea” or having to hide under my table was also a great relief!
And, who wouldn’t want to spend a weekend in this great location:

View to the top...

Some other news:
The rest of the time away was because of being under the weather. I lost some time at work, but also some writing time. This have, however, taught me to always have some posts, etc. in the “storage cabinet” for when I am suddenly away from my “online life” for a while. My normal posts – fiction, worldbuilding and the like, will be back from next week.

Fynbos

Until then; á Agrai tellarias or s'agrélar silássa

Kreatiewe skryfkuns inspirasie en “Finish Year”

Creative Writing Masterclass met Keith Gray – Plot and milieu 
Hier is twee video’s deur die skrywer Keith Gray. Die eerste handel oor plot, die tweede oor milieu. Die res van die reeks video’s kan ook op You Tube gekyk word.

Finish Year
Ek kan nie glo dat die konferensie net ’n paar weke weg is nie! Ek het ’n bietjie verlof gevat so om die komende naweek na Vrouedag om my tyd te gee om die referaat en voordragte finaliseer. Terselfdetyd soek ek rond op die internet vir ’n paar illustrasies van draugar om te gebruik, maar meeste van die sketse lyk meer na zombies of dié wat in speletjies – soos Skyrim – gevind word as dié wat in die middeleeuse tekste beskryf word. Hierdie twee lyk darem meer soos dié in die tekste (behalwe vir die horings wat ongelukkig byna altyd bygevoeg word, maar mens kan seker nie als hê nie.)













So ek gaan vir my ’n hoop jelliebone aanskaf – die beste lekkers om te eet terwyl mens studeer in my opinie – en dubbel so hard studeer hierdie week.

Creative Writing Inspiration and Finish Year

Creative Writing Masterclass – Plot and Setting
Here’s two more videos by writer Keith Gray. The first is about plot and the second is about setting.

Finish Year
I can’t believe that the conference is only a few weeks away! I’ve taken some leave around the coming weekend to give me some time to finalise the paper and the presentation. I’ve also been wandering around the internet looking for a few illustrations for the presentation and have noticed that the most drawings of draugr are made to look a lot more like zombies or those found in games – like Skyrim – than the ones described in the actual medieval texts. These two, however, are closer to those described in the texts (with the unfortunate addition of horned helmets, but you can’t have everything).

So, I’ll stock up on jelly beans – the best study candy in my opinion – and hit the books double as hard this week. 

Draugr from Medievlists.net

Photo Courtesy of Richard Styles and Stock Exchange

Writing Experiments, Finish Year and Other News

New Technology, new experiments
No, I’m not referring to the Higgs Boson announcement, but to my own experiments with Pinterest. I have started using the boards not only for “pretty things”, but also for pictures which inspire stories (or may in the future) and now also things or people which reminds me of a WIP or finished work.
The first one for which I’ve tried making a separate board is the WIP called “Spilling Beans”. You can see the board here. Started after finishing the drafts, I find that these pictures, textures and people help me to get a firmer “hold” of the picture in my head.


Maps, maps and more maps!
I’ve been drawing some more Airthai maps – one for the Argavér and one of the southeastern part of the Southern and Eastern Lands of the Continent. This shows a closer look at the countries which are featured in some of the earliest worldbuilding I did for Airthai – and which are also being posted on Kammastories bit by bit before I translate these for Hersenskim (these were originally written in Afrikaans).

Map of Battle of the Shadow Plain and Argavér

Map of the Eastern Lands 

All the Airthai maps can be looked at over here. 

Finish Year
I’ve started on a new short story, known at the moment to me as “the clock story”. I’m writing the first draft before completing all of the research about the inner workings of clocks simply so I can get the story down without being side-tracked. However, some inspiration may just follow over here when I get the chance. I’m also submitting the short story “Spilling Beans” in the coming week for publication. I hope I have good news about it soon.

On the study front I am still busy with the paper I’m to give at the beginning of September. As this will only be twenty minutes long, I am a lot more focused on length than I usually am. I am enjoying myself thoroughly though. I guess that’s proof that I’m still on the right track!

"Library" by Louchiere

A tough decision
However, to place more focus on writing and studying, means that I have to scale down my blogging in order to be able to deliver proper posts, especially as I am also working on Kammastories. I have made the following decision: I will still do worldbuilding posts every Wednesdy, and then alternate Mondays and Fridays. This means that I will have sixteen posts per month (both blogs together), instead of twenty four. I think all bloggers can respect the time that this will open up for me. Thanks for all the readers who remain so supportive while I’m finding my blogging and writing feet.

"Library" courtesy of Stock Exchange. 

Finish year update

With a short break behind me (and one I sorely needed), I’m jumping back into my study-writing-working routine – though not specifically in that order. I thought it’s about time I give a proper update on how the Finish Year is going.

Bookish endeavours:
Writing the dissertation is going well, if slower than I had hoped. But I did send off about a novel worth of writing before I went on leave. This week I’m starting on a new part of the dissertation, which I am planning to finish in the next two months. In that time I will also be finishing the essay I’m to read at the conference in September.
I’m a bit behind on the book reviews, but I’m sure I’ll catch them up in time – I am keeping my Good Reads page pretty up to date.

"Fairy Tale Forest" by Krappweis courtesy of Stock Exchange

Writing Endeavours:
I have sent out a flash piece and I’m waiting to hear if it has been accepted for publication. In the meantime, I’m busy with a few short stories which are in different stages of completion. One – “Spilling beans” – I’m planning on finishing the final draft this weekend. It is darker than I had anticipated, but the feedback I’ve gotten so far has been great and a good motivator.
The short vacation has also been a great inspiration - and I saw snatches of many of the places in my imagination – refreshing the senses, so to speak.

Photo Courtesy of Louchiere at Stock Exchange

Idees by dosyne

Ek sien gister op ’n e-pos vanaf www.woes.co.za dat daar elke week ’n “woord van die week” gegee gaan word waaroor inskrywings gemaak kan word:


Elke week, Dinsdag, sal daar ‘n nuwe woord of woorde bekend gestel word waaroor jy dan enige tipe bydrae kan lewer. Die woord/e gaan of met ‘n spesiale geleentheid te doen hê of met nuusgebeure ens. So kan ons bydraes lewer wat aansluit met wat tans in die regte wêreld gebeur.


Ek nooi almal uit om deel te wees van hierdie projek en ‘n bydrae te lewer tot dit. As die belangstelling groei, sal daar meer gereeld as net een maal per week projekte geloods word. Die reël wat gevolg moet word is dat die woord/e wat vir ‘n projek aangewys word in die titel asook die res van die bydrae moet verskyn.


Dus, vir die aansienlike toekoms, dink ek gaan ek probeer om weekliks ’n stukkie flitsfiksie te skryf – net vir die oefening. Hierdie stukkie sal dan op Vrydae geplaas word vir Vrydag Fiksie. Mens weet ook nooit – van hierdie idees sal seker opregte stories word wat ek weer sal verwerk vir moontlike publikasie.

Meer oor die “woord van die week” kan hier gelees word en, as jy self ’n skrywer is, sluit sommer ook by Woes se kreatiewe werkruimte aan!

Intussen lê ’n paar stories en wag vir  om klaar geskryf te word, geproeflees te word, of, in een geval, oorgeskryf te word. Maar vir eers moet hierdie paar wag totdat ek genoeg van hulle vergeet het om met nuwe oë daarna te kyk. ’n Ander storie (’n kortverhaal wat in die wêreld van Airthai afspeel) is ’n stukkie reeds van geskryf, maar ek gaan die res eers puntsgewys moet uitskryf sodat ek spesifiek weet waarheen ek op pad is – anders gooi ek netnou ’n groot deel geskiedenis by die venster uit!

En, natuurlik, neem studies die meeste van my tyd buite werk op – maar die vordering is darem daar!

Tot later, groetnis!

Spoke, boontjieranke en wolhaarstories

Skryfpraatjies 
Wat ’n week! Met die winter wat vinnig nader kom word dit definitief moeiliker om in die aand te werk. Maar dié wat my onlangse twiets gesien het, sou sien dat ek deesdae meer werk (en studiewerk) in die oggend gedoen kry. Dit is nou nie omdat ek vroeër opstaan nie, maar omdat ek later begin werk. Dít gee my ten minste ’n halfuur in die oggend om te skryf voorday ek moet werk toe gaan. In dié tyd het ek dit reggekry om die volgende weergawe van ’n “WIP” klaargemaak waarvoor ek Jan en die boontjierank as inspirasie gebruik. Ek het dit vir ’n paar vriende gegee om te lees en oor kommentaar te gee voordat ek dit weer deurwerk en hopelik gepubliseer kry. Ek het ook ’n ander stuk klaargemaak en gestuur vir moontlike Suid-Afrikaanse publikasie. Nou hou ek net duime vas.

Ek is ook besig met ’n paar ander, korter stukke waaraan ek gaan werk terwyl die “boontjierank” storie vir ’n week of twee in ’n laai lê.

Zombies! Spoke! En ander studiegoeters 
My ander fokus hierdie jaar is natuurlik my studies. Ek gaan die naweek weer op ’n Groot Biblioteekekskursie met ’n lang lys van goed om te doen (en ’n lang speellys van studiemusiek).

Ek het ook lekker gelag hierdie week terwyl ek aan my essay werk. Die droë humor van die skrywer van die Eyrbyggja Saga laat my altyd krul van die lag. Een deel wat my veral laat lag het is in hoofstuk 54, getiteld “More Ghosts”. Nadat ’n groep mans wat gaan visvang het verdrink, keer hulle terug na die plaas elke aand om by die vuur te sit:
Thorodd and his men walked across the main room, which had two doors, and into the living room. They ignored the greetings people gave them and sat down at the fire. The people ran out of the living-room, but Thorodd and his men stayed on until the fire began to burn very low, then went away. As long as the funeral feast lasted this continued: every evening the drowned men would come to the fire. It gave people at the feast plenty to talk about, but some of them thought it would stop once the feast was over. 

Aanhaling geneem uit Eyrbyggja Saga, vertaal deur Hermann Pálsson en Paul Edwards, gepubliseer deur Penguin Classics.

Norsemen Landing in Iceland, deur H. A. Guerber

Ghosts, Beanstalks and Spinning Yarns

Writing Ramblings
This has been quite a week! With the winter quickly drawing near, it’s definitely getting more difficult to work at night. But those who have seen my tweets in the early morning, would have noticed that I’m getting some writing (and studying) done before work. Not that I’m suddenly getting up earlier, mind you, but starting work later. This gives me at least half an hour of hustling on my writing before leaving for work. In that time I’ve managed to finish the next draft of a WIP in which I’ve used Jack and the Beanstalk for inspiration. I’ve now sent it to a few friends to read and comment on before reworking it and hopefully getting it published. I’ve also finished and sent in another piece for South African publication and holding thumbs it gets accepted.

I’m also busy with a few other shorter pieces which I’ll be working on while the “beanstalk” WIP hangs around in a drawer for a week or two.

Zombies! Ghosts! And other Study Ramblings 
My other focus this year, of course, is also my studies. I have another Great Library Quest planned for this weekend, with a lengthy to-do list (and a proper study music playlist).

I’ve also had such a good laugh this week while working on my essay for later this year. The dry humour of the writer of the Eyrbyggja Saga never fails to crack me up. One part which especially cracked me up is in chapter 54, entitled “More Ghosts”, after a party of men go out fishing and drown.

Their ghosts return to the homestead night after night to sit by the fire:
Thorodd and his men walked across the main room, which had two doors, and into the living room. They ignored the greetings people gave them and sat down at the fire. The people ran out of the living-room, but Thorodd and his men stayed on until the fire began to burn very low, then went away. As long as the funeral feast lasted this continued: every evening the drowned men would come to the fire. It gave people at the feast plenty to talk about, but some of them thought it would stop once the feast was over. 

Quote taken from Eyrbyggja Saga, translated by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards, published by Penguin Classics.

Norsemen Landing in Iceland, by H. A. Guerber

Really Big News and Zombies

On 6 January I wrote a post called “Big News and Zombies” about a medieval symposium being held later this year. Well, I read, researched, wrote, edited, wrote again, changed my mind, started from the beginning and at last handed in a proposal for the theme “Mortality and Imagination: The Life of the Dead in the Middle Ages andRenaissance”.

This week I heard that “The Walking Dead of Fróðá” has been accepted! (Did happy dance and had a celebratory coffee, of course.)

So, in the next couple of months (the conference is at the end of August) I will be working full-speed ahead on this as well to try and get it perfect (and short enough to fit into 20 minutes).

But, for now, I can tick off one task from my “Finish Year” list and stare at the beautiful pictures of Mont Fleur, where the conference will be held. 

Mont Fleur, South Africa

Inspiration Friday – Worth a Thousand Words

I don’t often watch music videos, but sometimes there is one which you at first just happen to see and then want to watch again just because it is so good. (It’s even better when you also really like the song.) I usually love Parlotones videos, but this one – “Stars Fall Down” – has especially been on my mind lately.

You can also read my post on "How to study in the real world" and Finish Year 2012 by clicking here.