Realmscapes

Recommended G.K. Chesterton: Essays and Books

~ "A Defence of Penny Dreadfuls"

~ "A Defence Of Nonsense"

~ The Everlasting Man

~ Orthodoxy

~ The Defendant

Patton: "Fear"

by George S. Patton (first published in Cosmopolitan, 1945)

I am that dreadful, blighting thing,
Like rat holes to the flood.
Like rust that gnaws the faultless blade,
Like microbes to the blood.

I know no mercy and no truth,
The young I blight, the old I slay.
Regret stalks darkly in my wake,
And ignominy dogs my way.

Sometimes, in virtuous garb I rove,
With facile talk of easier way;
Seducing where I dare not rape,
Young manhood, from it's honor's sway.

Again, in awesome guise I rush,
Stupendous, through the ranks of war,
Turning to water, with my gaze,
Hearts that, before, no foe could awe.

The maiden who has strayed from right,
To me must pay the mead of shame.
The patriot who betrays his trust,
To me must owe his tarnished name.

I spare no class, nor cult, nor creed,
My course is endless through the year.
I bow all heads and break all hearts,
All owe me homage -- I am FEAR.

Faith & Film: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - The Author

I am engaged in an online Bible study focusing on C.S. Lewis', The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. These posts are more or less the posts I made on the study's blog and I am happy to share them with the Realmscapes audience for discussion here.

C.S. Lewis is one of my favorite writers and Christian apologists. I am happy to be his student through his work because he put the Christian faith on a stage in a way that it could be engaged by all. He didn't write his Christian work (fiction or non-fiction) to convert, merely to meet his reader wherever they were and present an environment or argument for them to apply and/or enjoy at their leisure.

This is the mark of a "good" writer and there isn't enough "good" writing on today's bookshelves. It is fine to have an agenda as a writer, but that doesn't excuse the writer from being civil or approachable. And a writer should always be prepared to discuss their book's content in a conversational manner. This was C.S. Lewis. Those authors or readers who feel intimidated by a children's story about Christian truths are telling; it is ridiculous to believe Lewis intended to "brainwash" his audience. Part of a Christian's life is recognizing truth, and reflection.

And besides, the Christian faith is not a thing that can be chosen [Ephesians 2:8-10, Romans 10:17]. As Lewis so aptly confessed about his faith in Christ: one day you simply find yourself surprised by Joy, and that is how you know you have engaged something completely unique in the world. From there, you just can't help telling people about it, especially if you love to tell stories.

GQB Commentary: Ruminations on Stitched Crosses, Episode 3

I considered skipping this episode, making the Stitched Crosses audio drama a 5-episode affair. My fear was that the episode's heavy exposition and mono-setting would slow the whole story to a halt.

The reality is, "Sir Honour & The Legacy of the Knights Templar" establishes a vital piece of Markus's character (his tunnel vision concerning God's relationship with him), introduces the Norman copy of Scripture that Sir Jacques possesses (which will come into play later), and provides detail on the Battle of Cresson (his survival of which is what prompts the Templar Grand Master, Gerard de Ridefort, to assign Markus to the army marching to meet Saladin in an effort to permanently silence him).

This part of the story also provided me with an opportunity to "teach" some (likely) little known history about both the early Christian period as well as the Medieval world. In the case of the former: it is believed that Hypatia, a prominent Greek female philosopher and scholar from Alexandria during the 4th-5th centuries A.D., may have possessed an original copy of the Septuagint (a Koine Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible) and perhaps some of the New Testament canon. Hypatia herself was a pagan and a powerful female at a time when women were not supposed to be learned or articulate; despite this, she was held up as a hero by several members of the Christian community.

Her possession of these valuable ancient texts is considered a possible reason why a group of Christian monks rose up violently against Hypatia (among several other reasons--Hypatia had her share of political and social enemies due to her powerful persona as a woman in a man's ancient world). Reading about this, I followed it through to conclusion and supposed that perhaps the Christian Bishop of Alexandria, Cryil, recovered the Septuagint and NT canon that was in her possession, forming one of several Codices that would help the Christian world to accurately publish copies of the Bible for centuries. (A few of the Codices are still in existence; the most complete edition, the Codex Sinaiticus, recently became available to the public via a website that reveals the contents of all its pages.)

I also wanted to put my own a theory out there concerning why the Templars were so secretive about their operations. So many scholars and arm chair historians assume the worst about the Templar order--afterall it works so well for lecturing and ratings for History Channel documentaries. So this episode supposes what the Templars might have been planning (and another reason why they would operate in such deep secrecy) if they possessed a complete edition of Scripture written before the Church centralized its power and became as much a political entity as it did the center of Christendom. Under this premise, the Codex that Cyril may have retrieved, and now lost to posterity, five centuries before the Templars existed very nicely slotted into Stitched Crosses.

Thus a closer look at real history reveals possibilities that are much more likely (in my view), while retaining more than enough natural intrigue. One thing that Indiana Jones reveals is that history possesses plenty of mind-boggling mysteries all on its own without adding un-necessary bits of the supernatural to everything. (Although you wouldn't know it if you've only experience the character via Indy 4, heh.)

And speaking of Indy: I had a terrible time title-ing this episode, until my eyes fell on my Indy DVD and book collection...

RE: Stars and Gripes: Tea Party Protests Captain America Comic (NYTimes)

In issue No. 602 of Captain America, the hero and his ally the Falcon find themselves at a rally where protesters hold signs that read “Tea Bag the Libs Before They Tea Bag You!” and “Stop the Socialists!” Captain America remarks that the assembly appears to be an “anti-tax thing,” and the Falcon, who is black, says he probably would not fit in with “a bunch of angry white folks.”

via artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com

Joe Quesada apologized (of course), calling it "a stupid mistake", and promised all reprints would remove the Tea Party-related slogans.

Regardless of your political ideological choice, it is never right to slander the opposition just because you do not agree with them. Either that or MARVEL is admitting that neither The Falcon (a character I actually like very much)--nor themselves--are up to speed on what the Tea Party movement is about (being that "anti-tax thing" Cap remarked about).

This is a great lesson for all writers to learn. It is absolutely your right to script a story as you see fit. But Freedom of Speech employed in a fashion that blatantly mis-characterizes a person or group in a way that is obvious will NOT lead to a large readership.

Due your diligence through research, make informed opinions about the people you do not agree with, and you will find respect truly is a two-way street. From there you will also increase the capital on your reputation, and reap the dividends down the road later as a person of honor and to be trusted.

Amazon/Macmillan Flap Shows Why Self-Marketing is Vital

The recent disagreement over pricing that landed Macmillan books into the vacuum is indicative of the trials that have long plagued the publishing industry (especially the relationship between authour and publisher); it is a harbinger of coming changes that the realm of the internet, digital information, and mobile devices are bringing to the print industry--be it books, film, comics...whatever.

Creators, or writers in this most recent case, are going to be the casualties in this change since down-sizing companies are less likely to cut staff and more likely to cut authours that don't sell a higher threshold of books. A best-selling authour recently observed:

The simple fact is that none of us, no writer, is entitled to a career. We are all a single sales disaster away from working with the phrase, “Would you like fries with that?” Whether it is the downturn in the economy, your editor leaving your publisher, your publisher cutting the division that publishes your books, a retailer (for whatever reason) deciding not to carry your book, no writer should ever have the expectation of a career.

We have never been in control of our own fate.

Until now.

...

Are digital sales to the point where they can supplant traditional publishing income? For some authors they are. Digital readers are proliferating, and the J. K. Rowling demographic is very comfortable with reading off a screen. They’re reading more. And if your work is not available digitally, you don’t exist to them.

It’s time for writers to stop lamenting how the inefficiencies of the old system treat them badly, and to embrace the future. If writers don’t take control of their future, they doom themselves to the obscurity that will swallow the current business model whole.

This scribe's words ring true for many people right now, not just writers. When an economy or a corporate system fails, it is the employee or the contractor that ultimately takes the hit. This cycle will continue so long as people continue to rely on bosses and co-workers for their financial well-being.

So what happens when the axe finally falls? If you're a writer chances are you want to keep writing. (I'm a writer and I know I wouldn't want to abandon my calling just because someone's else's system failed me.) If you're a corporate or retail worker...then what? Unemployment is between 9% and 10%, with some states even worse.

Ultimately everyone turns to the internet to search for an opportunity. And why not? It's the world at our fingertips. And chances are very good that there are others just like us who are tired of playing the game of relying on other people and governments tinkering with economies. For us writers we have stories to tell and we want to make a living off of that if possible. That means finding our niche audience and connecting with them.

So what's the answer?

The answer is in marketing one's self. The answer is finding something that you love to do or create and building a customer base. The answer is setting your own value. Leverage yourself so that the only person you need to rely on when it comes to your financial well-being is you and those others that you decide share your exact same passion for success.

Kas and I have joined an internet marketing team that is building on the knowledge we already had, and helping us to harness the power of the internet even more so that we will never again have to worry about tying our finances to anyone other than our own abilities. Even if you don't have the knowledge of internet marketing, you are still welcome to consider joining our team where you can learn that knowledge and empower yourself to write your own paycheck from the comfort of your home doing whatever it is that you love to do, be it writing books, editing them, selling them...or something completely different.

Moment of Weakness (by KMR)

I remember talking to a fellow writer/artist some time back and his complaints that life has caught up with him and that he now has very little time and energy to focus on the things he wants to do... so he/she gave up...

I spoke with a good friend who opened me up to the friends of my past and learning through him/her that none - as far as I could see - achieved to keep their flowers in their 'field of dreams' blooming.

It made me look at myself and realize that just like them... I had not achieved my goal.

I just sat down because I had a moment of weakness... I had just gone into my 'field of dreams' and kicked my flowers over. Now I am sitting there... picking them up again... and realizing that they took quite the damage (in my mind).

Personally, I think I am just tired, physically, and I hate that my eyes are falling because nature's course forces the body to rest. I rested enough. I sleep enough. There is no reason for this. So yes, I am totally frustrated... and I am not getting things done as fast as I would like them to happen.

Patience. Endurance and faith! It is all right to feel tired, exhausted, disappointed, disillusioned... If I can only write an hour or two a day, that is enough. I work an average of 50-60 hours a week, nothing is going to get done fast into the direction of my goal.

At least, when I get there, I will know the path I had to take rather well because of the pace I kept... maybe that is a good thing.

Violence in Film

It's tough to avoid violence in film these days. I haven't been all that thrilled about the clear and present increasing role that blood and gore plays in on the big screen the last decade. For a time, the violence factor forced me to pass on films I might otherwise have enjoyed. But I couldn't pass on Kingdom of Heaven, Gladiator, and The Patriot... couldn't skip Seraphim Falls and Rambo... and I needed to experience Pearl Harbor, We Were Soldiers, Saving Private Ryan, and The Passion of the Christ.

I have reconsidered my position on the role of violence in film. I still don't like it, but there is a part of me that believes that violence SHOULD play a role in the way a film tells its story when it is neccessary. Violence for the "gross out" factor is violence I will never support; blood and gore as an ingredient to the story is far difference from blood and gore AS the story i.e. the Saw franchise, Kill Bill.

Many of my fellow Christians would argue that advocating violence in film is against the principles of our faith. Yet I would respond that any decent perusal of the Biblical text will reveal as much brutal violence as any stomach can tolerate. The Biblical text doesn't leave much to the imagination when describing one of the Hebrew judges burying his knife (quite literally) into the obese stomach of an enemy leader, or what happened to Judas's body when its weight snapped the tree branch. And in fact the brutality that Jesus suffered at the hands of the Romans is meant to sober us as to just what it cost for our eternal redemption.

But what of the children? True that we should protect their innocence--and especially our daughters. But there comes a time when they all need to realise that this world isn't a cuddly place. Sooner or later they must learn that Heaven is as forever wonderful as this world is terrible--indeed hell with be far more terrible and brutal than this world ever will be. And boys must become men, for it is we that must protect our charges from the violent brutality of evil.

So where do we draw the line? I may admit that violence is necessary, but that doesn't mean that I believe God wants us to bathe in blood. As a writer, I always know when adding too much of a certain plot device is too much. As a student of film I can always tell when the filmmaker goes to far. The camera should never linger on violent acts, never draw them out; and violent act after violent act--no matter how swift--will start to numb the brain, and that isn't effective either.

The filmmaker must realise (and the vast majority do) when their blood and gore ceases to be the result of an equation and becomes mere spectacle. And although we cannot protect our children forever, violent films should not be created specifically for nor marketed directly to them--allow them their time of innocence; children should never be raised to believe that violence is cool or the first choice in a situation. They should be exposed to it as fact and the end-result of a sinful human nature, but never as glorified art.

When your Maximus voice cries, "Are you not entertained?" during a violent film, consider your response.

The DGA Deal (Updated)

Great for them that they made a deal for their people, but the deal is not one I would support as a writer.

Keep in mind that 1) the Studios wanted (needed) this deal to lord it over the WGA leadership and 2) Directors often act as the long-arm of [enter name of the Big 8 Studio here] during the filming and production process.

What is more, Directors get a sizable cut of the film's initial budget of somewhere between 5%-7% (ON TOP of residuals), which on average translates from many 100s of Ks of dollars to a couple million. This same average cut rarely gives a Writer more than 30K. So Directors don't care as much about residuals, whereas for Writers, it's where we make our money (especially during the lean times).

So, I hope that the WGA continues to make headway by brokering deals with individual production companies. The Studios are gambling that they can be successful without the Writers, but the Writers are proving that it is actually the Studios who aren't necessary to the process. This is good old fashioned American oppurtunism at work.

Here are the independent deals that the WGA has made so far (UPDATED 1.25.08):

• United Artists: legendary studio formed by Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, DW Griffith, and Mary Pickford post-WWI and now owned by Paula Wagner and Tom Cruise; distributes the James Bond and Rocky franchises; other recent releases include Rain Man, Rob Roy, Ronin, Dark Blue, Hotel Rwanda, and Capote
• Worldwide Pants: Late Night with David Letterman, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn
• The Weinstein Co: indy studio that also owns Dimension Films; The Matador, Miss Potter, 1408, TMNT, John Rambo
• Media Rights Capital (MRC): new indy TV/film prod co who has invested $250M to fund its first slate of films, which include working with players Sacha Baron Cohen, Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Garner, and James Marsden... Family Guy writer-creator Seth MacFarlane... and director Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko, Southland Tales)
• Spyglass Entertainment: The Sixth Sense, Shanghai Noon, Unbreakable, The Count of Monte Cristo, Reign of Fire, Bruce Almighty, Seabiscuit, Legend of Zorro, Memoirs of a Geisha
• Jackson Bites: new company headed by Doug Liman who directed Swingers, The Bourne Identity, Mr & Mrs Smith, and Jumper; produced the Bourne sequels; and executive produced The O.C.
• Mandate Films: recently acquired by Lionsgate; Stranger Than Fiction, 30 Days of Night
• Sidney Kimmel Production Co.: United 93, Breach
• Lionsgate Films: formed in 1976 it is the most commercially successful indy production company in the U.S.; recent productions include American Psycho, The Punisher, Highlander: The Source, 3:10 to Yuma, The Condemned, and all of the Marvel Studios animated films starting with Ultimate Avengers
• Marvel Studios: the film production subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment that now directly produces many of Marvel's comic book adaptations

On Joker in The Dark Knight and Villains

In a recent LA Times article, the current Batman film franchise director, Christopher Nolan, is quoted as stating The Joker "sort of cuts through the film -- he's got no story arc, he's just a force of nature tearing through." This is exciting news because that is exactly how the character should function. What is even more exciting is that Nolan has also confirmed that Harvey Dent serves as this film's tragic-story "backbone", a character who will eventually add himself to Batman's gallery of archenemies.

Batman Begins already hit the characterisation of Batman out of the park, and now they're setting up The Joker AND Harvey Dent on the tee. It is often a mistaken belief that a villain must have his origins revealed for him to have impact. I have always been staunchly against writers giving readers/audiences a tour of a villain's background because it makes them a sympathetic figure. These days, everyone is too afraid to call Evil what it is--our current "poor thing" culture loves to give Evil an excuse for being evil.

The Joker is an amazing character. Batman hates his guts because The Joker represents the very fine line that seperates a "superhero" from a "supervillain". Harvey Dent hates his guts because The Joker embodies every law-breaking evil that Harvey has sworn a crusade against. No matter who it is, The Joker always and brilliantly exploits his opponents' Achilles Heel in a singular obssessive goal similar to The Devil's in our non-fiction world: to ruin Paradise.

It doesn't matter what The Joker's motives are. All that matters is that he means to destroy everything that is--and can be--good in this world for the simple reason that somewhere along the way it was destroyed for him. The Joker is perhaps the most selfish and exacting individuals in the history of fiction. Maybe even fiction's The Devil Incarnate.