Posts
I've collected quite a grouping this week, on a variety of subjects. I hope you find them interesting. If you'd like, please drop a note in the comments to tell me if this has proved useful, or what might help make it so. I've tried to add a bit more commentary on some of the links this time.
Writing
Why Good Writers Fail
http://www.topicturtle.com/five-reasons-good-writers-fail/
Confessions of a Contest Judge Part 1 (there are five but this is the start)
http://toniandrews.bravejournal.com/entry/31619
Technique for crafting a query hook/logline
http://edittorrent.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-to-put-it-together-into-one-neat.html
Proof it isn't about you...agent form letters
http://jetreidliterary.blogspot.com/2009/04/shoe-is-on-other-foot-and-it-pinches.html
Solid advice for beginning writers:
http://toniandrews.bravejournal.com/archive/12/27/2008
For writers...and old-style gamers...an amusing look at the creative process:
http://magicdistrict.wordpress.com/2009/04/01/text-adventure/
Readers
How technology is undermining the tension that literature has thrived on for centuries (Had a hard time classifying this one. I'm putting it here in case readers skip over the writing links, if only to show the writing links can be darn fun and relevant even if you don't write.):
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/12/weekinreview/12richtel.html?_r=1
Someone else must have read the same story :D. (Thanks to jjmcgaffey.)
http://www.gocomics.com/outofthegenepool/2009/04/19/
Contests for cool books (yeah, you'll reduce my chances, but...)
Touch of Fire by Maria Zannini
http://www.mariazannini.com/
Not My Father's Horseman and Dark Moon Seasons by Valerie Griswold-Ford
http://vg-ford.livejournal.com/485217.html?view=1697377#t1697377
Not quite reading, but a source of free classical audiobooks:
http://freeclassicaudiobooks.com/
Society
There are a lot of articles/commentary about the sales ranking fiasco on Amazon.com, but this one stands out as looking at the socio-cultural side:
http://www.afterellen.com/TV/2009/4/glitch?page=0%2C0
Now that there's some answers out there, this post deserves serious consideration:
http://www.shirky.com/weblog/2009/04/the-failure-of-amazonfail/
Wolves in Montana and Idaho (yes, this could have gone under science, but society is more appropriate.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/13/opinion/13mon4.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
A reminder that prejudgment can be so far off it's funny. (Also a note to my body language class that the body language in this YouTube video is wonderful.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY
And a followup to the above that's spot on:
http://blog.seattlepi.com/theconstantvalentine/archives/166554.asp?from=blog_last3
Analysis of Twitter as a social tool and social concept:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/14/technology/internet/14twitter.html?pagewanted=2&th&emc=th
J.K. Rowling's Harvard Commencement speech:
http://vimeo.com/1711302
Science
First scuba dives occurring in reverse?
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/04/090413-first-tool-users.html
For those of us who appreciate camels, now they can be made to order? (just kidding.):
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/genetics/2009-04-15-cloned-camel_N.htm?csp=
4 comments:
I loved the Sarah Boyle video and even more the commentary (the next link). But I still wouldn't have looked at it without your explanation of what it was.
And the text adventure link was spectacular. Except it was too easy (for a text adventure - for writing, it was _way_ too easy)!
And the scuba scorpions is a) neat and b) stretching the evidence, I'd say. Stephen Jay Gould has permanently warped my vision in such matters - but guesses/assumptions from faint tracks in ancient sand seems to be pushing it.
I'm trying to leave clear comments, but I didn't want to have people say, "oh, I don't watch that stuff," cause neither do I normally.
And yeah, on the scuba, but still, it's a fun possibility. And makes sense from the angle of just how did they make the transition to land dwellers.
I loved the Sarah Boyle thing, too. I'd seen the one from the British TV show, but not the recording of "Cry Me a River".
And a bit of warning--My internet security software said one of your links has security issues. The blog about handling criticism. It said it was an unsafe site and had 2 trojan horse type viruses, as best I can remember. (I'm not clicking on it again to find out what the exact message was.) Thought you might want to check it out.
Yeah, she's got an incredible voice. And the comment about why she's not whining because she wasn't discovered is precious :).
Thanks for the tip on the link. My software, AVG, does not flag it as a problem and I've been there myself, but I'm removing it anyway, just in case and so people aren't nervous.
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