“The light house moment” a term meaning that a
character in a story discovers what it is that he or she wants and declares
“I’m going there!”
Writers hint
In
a romance quest we find what is valuable
The
romantic hero always has a connection to nature
Writers hint
For
a story to be successful good values must be incorporated into it, nobody cares about a person with out good values
Writers hint
Reveal
character in what they say, what other say about them, what they do
How
was the character shaped by history?
By
politics, by religion or by the influences around them
Glasses
hair style dress
Any objects that are important to them
How
would they behave someplace else?
What
would be their favorite photograph of themselves?
Do your characters day dream?
How
does their talk reveal their class?
What
are their wishes for themselves?
What
secrets do they have?
Do
they have any major disappointments, failures or regrets?
What
do they want and what’s at stake? What’s at stake should be heart breaking
What
set their journey in motion?
What
are the things they love to do in a moment of joy?
Do
they have any goals?
What
kind of cause does the character care about?
What
would crush them?
What
would kill them?
What
would be completely out of character for them?
What
is their time and place?
Where
would they fit in time?
Do they have any conflicting desire?
Do
they have any inconsistencies in character?
Is
there any transformation of change in their character?
Is
there a moment of grace?
Is
there a moment of deeper understanding?
Writers hint
Freytag
das erregende moment: “The inciting incident” What is your stories inciting incident
Writers hint
Tragedy
has a winter landscape in which nothing can grow, anti-fertility
Comedy
is fertility
writers hint
The
romantic hero is called by a herald meaning a person or thing viewed as a sign
that something is about to happen. Heralds were originally messengers sent by
monarchs or noblemen to convey messages or proclamations
Good words to have
Omnibus
AHM-nih-bus
1: of, relating to, or providing
for many things at once 2: containing
or including many items
The noun omnibus originated in
the 1820s as a French word for long, horse-drawn vehicles that transported
people along the main thoroughfares of Paris. Shortly thereafter, omnibuses—and
the noun omnibus—arrived in New York. But in Latin, omnibus simply means
"for all." Our adjective omnibus, which arrived in the mid-1800s,
seems to hark back to that Latin omnibus, though it may also have been at least
partially influenced by the English noun. An "omnibus bill"
containing numerous provisions, for example, could be likened to a bus loaded
with people.
Inexorable
(in-EK-suhr-uh-buhl)
Incapable of being persuaded,
moved, or stopped.
From Latin in- (not) + exorare
(to prevail upon), from ex- (out) + orare (to pray, beg).
The Chinese government is locking up writers, but it has favored nation status with the US....come on America, let sget out heads out of asses
Chinese Activists Send Cards to
Hundreds of Prisoners of Conscience
2017-01-26
Rights activists in China have
launched a greetings card campaign for political prisoners around the country
ahead of Chinese New Year celebrations on Jan. 30, as foreign diplomats paid
visits to embattled activists faced with eviction in Beijing.
The campaign started with the
mass mailing of some 200 greetings cards to jailed prisoners of conscience,
sent by around 100 fellow activists, they told RFA.
Cards were sent to detained
rights lawyer Li Heping, website founder Liu Feiyue and free speech activist Wu
Gan, among others, campaign organizer Wu Jixin told RFA.
"Chinese New Year is nearly
upon us, and so some of us petitioners here in Beijing wanted to wish a Happy
New Year and express our care for these innocent people who are now behind
bars," Wu said.
He said petitioners, people who
pursue long-running complaints against official wrongdoing, often to no avail,
are best-placed to understand what political prisoners stood for.
"[Many political prisoners]
used to help out vulnerable groups and petitioners, and made a definite
contribution to society, and to social progress," he said.
"If rights activists don't
stand up for justice, then nobody will, and the dark side of society would get
even darker," Wu said. "They cared about us, so we care about them,
and we want to support them."
He called on the ruling Chinese
Communist Party to release all political prisoners, and to protect citizens'
rights.
"They talk about the rule of
law, but they don't rule by law at all," he said. "They use that
slogan as a stick to beat people with instead."
An outrage 'getting worse'
In Hong Kong, pan-democratic
lawmaker and veteran activist Leung Kwok-hung said 2010 Nobel peace laureate
Liu Xiaobo is China's most famous political prisoner, but there are many more
besides, including human rights lawyers.
"Throwing people in jail for
what they say? It doesn't get much grubbier than that," Leung said.
"It's an outrage, and it's getting worse."
"We can see how they carried
out a massive series of detentions of rights lawyers all around the country,
starting on July 9, 2015," he said. "They went after anyone who
wouldn't do as they were told."
Meanwhile, diplomats from the
U.S., Canada, the U.K., Germany and other E.U. countries visited beleaguered
women's rights activist and artist Ye Haiyan and poet Wang Zang in their homes
ahead of Chinese New Year.
Chinese artist and feminist Ye
Haiyan, known as "Hooligan Sparrow," the eponymous subject of an
award-winning documentary about her activism, is camping out in sub-zero temperatures
at her home in Beijing's Songzhuang artists' village after authorities cut off
her water, electricity and heating.
Ye had previously been issued
with the threat of eviction if she didn't stop posting on social media, but
refused to comply.
Similar treatment has been meted
out to her neighbor, the activist and poet Wang Zang, who has three young
children.
The authorities have put
increasing pressure on both households to move out in recent weeks.
Diplomats visit activists
Wang said he received a visit on
Wednesday from the diplomats, who came with veteran rights activist Hu Jia.
"They [all] expressed their
concern over our family's situation," he said. "When they were done
visiting us, they went over to Ye Haiyan's house, and expressed similar
concerns over their situation."
"The E.U. ambassador ...
said he wished me and my family a Happy Chinese New Year, and good health and
fortunes in the Year of the Rooster," he said. "I am extremely
grateful for their hard work for human rights."
Ye said diplomats from eight
different embassies had visited the artists' village.
"They brought me a New Year
greetings card," she said. "They thought it was very strange that my
water and electricity were cut off, and they asked me why it was."
"I told them that there is
no correct answer in the end, and that I don't really understand it
myself."
Ye has previously said her recent
troubles began after she penned an online article hitting out at China's
growing Maoist movement for its trolling of liberal intellectuals.
Beijing-based eviction activist
Ni Yulan said she had also received a visit.
"I had visits today from
three diplomats, from Germany, the E.U. and Sweden," Ni said. "They
said that some uniformed police tried to stop
them coming in at the door, and
asked them where they were going."
"They said they were coming
to see me, and they weren't prevented from doing so," she said. "They
brought me a card, signed by diplomats from eight different countries,
including ambassadors."
"They asked me about my
life, how I've been doing lately, and if they could offer me any
assistance," she said.
Ni said she remains under heavy
police surveillance, however.
"Somebody follows me
wherever I go, and the police have told my landlord not to let me rent this
place any more," she said. "It's very hard for us to find a [secure]
place to live right now."
Reported by Lee Lai for RFA's
Cantonese Service, and by Qiao Long for the Mandarin Service. Translated and
edited by Luisetta Mudie.
What became of journalism? When did it become advocacy?
Need
inspiration to fight Trump? Look to Bayard Rustin, the man who organized MLK’s March on Washington
Los Angeles Times
Good words to have
Ab
Ovo
ab-OH-voh
From the beginning
"Ab ovo usque ad mala."
That phrase translates as "from the egg to the apples," and it was
penned by the Roman poet Horace. He was alluding to the Roman tradition of
starting a meal with eggs and finishing it with apples. Horace also applied ab
ovo in an account of the Trojan War that begins with the mythical egg of Leda
from which Helen (whose beauty sparked the war) was born. In both cases, Horace
used ab ovo in its literal sense, "from the egg," but by the late
16th century it had been adapted to its modern English meaning of "from
the beginning," perhaps for the first time by Sir Philip Sidney in his An
Apology for Poetry: "If [the dramatic poets] wil represent an history,
they must not (as Horace saith) beginne Ab ouo: but they must come to the principall
poynt of that one action."
Ineffable
(in-EF-uh-buhl)
1. Incapable of being expressed:
indescribable. 2. Not to be expressed: taboo.
From Latin in- (not) + effari (to
speak out), from ex- (out) + Latin fari (to speak). Ultimately from the
Indo-European root bha- (to speak), which also gave us fable, fairy, fate,
fame, blame, confess, and infant (literally, one unable to speak), apophasis,
and confabulate.
Good words to use
Sanction
SANK-shun
1: To make valid or binding
usually by a formal procedure (such as ratification)
2: To give effective or
authoritative approval or consent to
The Latin sancire, meaning
"to make holy," is an ancestor the word.
Vanguard
VAN-gahrd
1: The troops moving at the head
of an army
2: The forefront of an action or
movement
Vanguard and avant-garde both
derive from the Anglo-French word avantgarde, itself from avant, meaning
"before," and garde, meaning "guard." In medieval times,
avantgarde referred to the troops that marched at the head of the army. English
speakers retained that meaning when they adopted vanguard in the 15th century.
Whimsical
WIM-zih-kul
1: Full of, actuated by, or
exhibiting capricious or eccentric and often sudden ideas or turns of the mind:
relating to whims
2 a: Resulting from or
characterized by whim or caprice; especially: lightly fanciful
Whimsical and the related nouns
whim and whimsy all ultimately derive from whim-wham, a noun from the early
16th century that originally referred to an ornamental object or trinket. Later
whim-wham, with its fun sound, came to refer to a fantastic notion or odd
fancy. The word's origin isn't clear, but it's worth noting that the
similar-sounding flimflam had, in its earliest use, a similar meaning referring
to an odd or nonsensical idea or tale
