James Harringtons Creative Work

January 19, 2017 + fantasy, Movies, Opinion, Science Fiction, Uncategorized

Unpopular Opinion: The Phantom Menace Wasn’t A Bad Movie

Shaddap!

Okay we all remember Episode 1 being the most anticipated movie in almost all of history. Fans were nuts! Action figures literally flew off of the shelves (I think I still have a few) and people were ready for Star Wars fever. We’ve been without a new movie for over a decade and were itching for this.

What we got… did not please a great many people…

Yeah… we all know this one. The introduction of Jar Jar Binks alone was a crime that most of us couldn’t get past. If we weren’t wishing his death, we were bringing up identity politics and accusing Lucas of writing him as a gay black freed slave stereotype… yes that’s actually a thing!

No one is going to deny that Jar Jar Binks was awful… and he wasn’t alone…

Aside from stupid characters, PAINFULLY forced dialogue:

and themes that completely destroyed our perception of Jedi lore:

Yeah fans were pretty pissed off. So with all of that, why do I say that it actually wasn’t a bad movie? How could I possibly think that this movie was anything short of complete crap? Well… a few things…

Ewan McGreggor as Obi Wan Kenobi

Like the prequels or hate them, most people would be hard pressed to debate this casting choice. This was the introduction of Ewan McGregor as Obi Wan Kenobi. Oh my God when I saw him and listened to his voice, the first thing I thought was ‘Yes, that is Obi Wan! I could totally see him aging to look like Alec Guiness. Yes!’

He looks the part, he sounds the part, and even his mannerisms are spot on. Say what you will about the rest of the movie, this was an awesome choice.

2. The scenery…

Due to budgetary restrictions, Lucas wasn’t really able to give us much in the way of other-worldly scenery in the original trilogy. Here, we get to see some of the most beautiful, most lush, most wonderfully rendered alien environments ever to hit the screen. From the lush forests and underwater cities of Naboo, to the industrial and densely populated view of Coruscant.

3. Liam Neeson’s casting:

Yes… This is one that some people are divided on, but personally I love Liam Neeson. He’s a long-known and loved actor who has charmed audiences for a long time. When I heard he was cast in this movie, I thought for sure that it was going to be good and honestly, he did bring an expert and rather fatherly air to the group of heroes.

4. Ian McDiarmid as Palpatine

YES BY GOD YES!!! When I heard who was going to play Palpatine, I was like ‘Huh? The Priest from Dragonslager?’

Yeah… no…

I had no idea that he was actually the man who portrayed Palpatine originally. So when I heard his voice and saw his face, I was admittedly surprised by how close he was. Yes, this was something amazing! Throughout the series we see Ian playing the part of Palpatine and he is clearly loving every minute of it. This is a man who found his niche role and is giving it his all the entire time.

5. The ships… given the higher budget, they were able create some pretty impressive and sleek designs. The Naboo fighter to this day remains one of my favorites:

6. Darth Maul

Yes he only had a few lines of dialogue, yes his character was pretty much a segway for Darth Vader, but this is a character the fans seemed to love so much that they came back for more again and again. He became such a phenomenon that books were written about him, fan movies were made:

… and yes, Lucas brought him back, they gave him robotic legs and an unquenched thirst for revenge. He quickly became a primary antagonist in the Clone Wars and continues to be a thorn in the side 0f the heroes in Star Wars Rebels. This character of few words… and even fewer minutes of screen time quickly became a favorite among Star Wars fans.

7. The light saber duels.

If we look back on the original trilogy, the sword fighting wasn’t exactly stellar…

(Hey Obi-Wan, remember when we used to do flips and acrobatics? … … We got so old…!)

Yes, Episode 1 introduced newly choreographed sword fighting that we hadn’t previously seen and it had us hooked. These fights were visually dazzling and kept us on the edge of our seats throughout the entire scene.

So yes, Episode 1 has its flaws. It’s not a classic, but consider, if you took the Star Wars title away from it and judged it on its own merits, the movie would hold up pretty well. The CGI isn’t bad and most of it still holds up pretty well.

But Jim, the racist stereotypes!!!

Oh you mean the a for mentions Jar Jar, Watto as a depiction of Jews, and the Numoidians as a representation of Asians? Please… we here the same people saying this over and over again. There’s no proof of intent. So unless you have something more than a perceived thought crime on the part of the writers, the critics who tout identity politics and try to make something out of nothing, are better left ignored.

So there you have it, The Phantom Menace is a better movie than people give credit to. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

htt p://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

January 16, 2017 + advice, Country Music, Inspiration, Music, Uncategorized, Writing

Off My Writing Playlist.

by Jim

Okay, time to bounce back after sorrow and dirge!

This one was… unexpected…

Let me preface this by saying that I HATE country music… okay rather I hate what country music has become. ‘Devil Went Down to Georgia,’ John Denver, and Johnny Cash are still household names for me.

But when pop culture weaves into something more than it should, that’s where we get problems. Usually when I meet someone who can’t understand my hatred of modern country, I direct them to these two videos:

Yeah… So what’s different about ‘I Love This Life?’

Have you ever heard a song that just makes you feel good? A song where the lyrics, the up-tempo music, and the backing vocals just make you want to throw your hands up and shoot off into the sky? This song has some of the most INTENSE positive energy I’ve ever seen! I could name other songs like this and I probably will at some point, but this is a caffeine song if ever there was one.

When to listen when writing:
WRITERS BLOCK!!!! I’m not kidding, listen to it while suffering writers block. Upbeat sngs are a great way to break you out of it!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 15, 2017 + advice, fantasy, literature, Romance, Uncategorized, Writing

From My Writing Playlist

by Jim

So death and/or despair.

Hoo boy… um… well… I’m going to give you a few before I go back to Romance tomorrow.

I suppose I should post this one for death:

What the hell???

Before you all go scratching your heads, hear me out. I’m not referring to the entire song. Just the opening vocalist.

Still don’t get it? Listen to the opening vocalist again. Now close your eyes and picture a young maiden, maybe a character of yours walking through an open field its pretty, there are flowers, the sun is bright, everything is tranquil. Then she get’s either hit with a spell or shot and falls to the ground in fairly slow motion. Tell me it doesn’t fit.

[Spoiler Alert]

That number is responsible for Lia’na’s death in Tears of the Fallen. It’s how I came up with the idea.

Second song:

This song is off of Evanescence’s little-known Origins Album, well before they became famous with ‘Wake Me Up Inside’ and then quickly faded into obscurity.

Honestly… this is a funeral dirge. This is a song for despair and loss. It’s technically not on my regular playlist, so it won’t come up automatically, but I go to this song when writing a post disaster/death/tragedy scene. It helps with the aftermath.

The first time I heard this when I started writing, I took it and placed the last 20 seconds or so (the harmonizing at the end) over Padme’ Amidala’s funeral scene in Star Wars… and it matched perfectly. Seriously, try it out. Start at about 2:38 (You can do…) and play the funeral scene with no audio:

Anyway like I said, definitely not a casual listen, but it works on many levels.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

January 14, 2017 + advice, Inspiration, Metal, Music, Uncategorized, Writing

From My Writing Playlist

by Jim

I got a request to post some of my death, despair, and romance… not sure why those three subjects are grouped together. Dacia email me later if you need to talk. 🙂

Anyway, I do the best I can to keep my readers happy… so let’s see…

Today I’m going to work with Romance. This is off my gateway metal album:

Okay, more of a tragic romantic song, but one none the less. I usually listen to this one when it’s a romance that I know is going to end in death. I don’t know why. It’s a sweet song, but has a sad element to it.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 13, 2017 + advice, fantasy, Fiction, literature, Music, Uncategorized, Writing

Off My Writing Playlist

by Jim

No Junjou Na Kanjou… let me come right out now and say this… I don’t speak Japanese. I never have. I tried to… but foreign languages are not my strong suit. I successfully learned Latin, and still botch it up on a regular basis when trying to speak it.

Then what are you doing listening to this?

Do you have to understand everything in order to appreciate it? Consider… how many songs out there do you listen to that have Na na, la la, doot doos, scat, chanting in languages you don’t know, or (God help you) yodeling? Several popular songs out there these days have these things. You don’t understand what they’re saying, but you don’t think twice about it.

I look at this like listening to something without lyrics. The vocals, to me, are simply another musical instrument playing.

Also, I’ve tried listening to the only translated versions I’ve heard:

Some lyrics just don’t work when translated. This is one of those songs. The English versions are inferior in every way.

When to listen: Um… I don’t really know… right as the hero rescues his/her love? Really I listen to it all the time regardless, but that’s usually when I find myself going directly for it.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 12, 2017 + fantasy, Fiction, Movies, Opinion, Uncategorized

An Unpopular Opinion: Masters of the Universe

by Jim

As I got older and the internet became a thing… imagine my surprise when one of my childhood favorites didn’t do very well at the box office. I mean I suppose that I shouldn’t be surprised, given the lack of sequels, but I loved this movie. It is, in my opinion, one of the better fantasy movies to come out of the 80s.

Oh God Jim, really??? But come on, the movie sucked!

Thank you for that, here is my response:

But… but… but…

Yup, that’s always where the argument ends. This is a shining example of what I mean when I say that a good bad guy can save an otherwise bland/boring/flat-out bad story and make a great story even better.

Skeletor was performed here by the criminally underrated Frank Langella who was clearly not only having fun with this character, but giving it his all. In an interview back when the movie came out, he mentioned that he did this movie because his kids loved He-Man so much and it clearly shows.

Wait wait wait, Jim the character is NOTHING like the one in the Cartoon!

… would you really have rather had someone portray this in real life?

I think not.

Granted, the movie’s skeletor isn’t the original by any stretch. This is Skeletor as portrayed by Langella and I’m sorry, it’s better!

So really, that’s it? You love the movie because of one character. That’s your only argument?

Do I really need another?

Also, that is not my only argument. The movie is supposedly supposed to take place AFTER the events of the TV show. Which to me is a bold choice, given that most people think that after a show ends, its all happily ever after and roses. NOPE! The movie opens with Eternia getting completely overrun and their remaining armies scattered and in shambles. Their leader retreats off world.

But Jim, didn’t you JUST say that this plot line of sending characters to modern day Earth has been done over and over?

Sigh… yes, I did. But this is when movies JUST started doing this. Last Action Hero, Roger Rabbit, etc. were all coming out around this time period. So back then it hadn’t been done ‘to death.’

I still can’t believe you like this! The characters are…

Yeah okay, but the scenery…

But… but… the writing…

Jim…

Silence!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

January 11, 2017 + advice, Inspiration, literature, Music, Reading, Uncategorized, Writing

From My Writing Playlist…

by Jim

So… this is a weird one. For those of you not familiar with Nightcore, they’re a group that takes certain songs and sort of… Animizes them. For lack of a better term. By that, I mean they speed up the temp and singing, and sometimes add a little techno background. Sometimes it sounds like Alvin and the Chipmunks singing, other times…

It’s actually better than the original.

When to listen: Start the song, close your eyes. Now picture a final battle. It’s a dark night, storm clouds overhead with thunder and lightning. Rain is pouring down on the dark plains. Our hero raises his sword to just below his eye. He fearlessly stares down his shadowy opponent who is barely outlined against the darkness.

Yeah, this is a final battle song.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 11, 2017 + advice, fantasy, Fiction, literature, Movies, Opinion, Uncategorized

Death’s Work-Around

by Jim

Hello Writers,

Did you recently kill off a character? Do you regret it? Do you want to get that character back but are too good to simply resurrect the character?

Well we’ve got a lesser known, yet equally cheap gimmick for you; take the character from another reality! At the low cost of your writing credibility, you can have you character back without any consequences, retconning, or necromancy what so ever!

Ugh… okay… Like I said above, it’s a lesser known work-around for death, but still a pretty bad one. I think I first saw it in the mid-late 90s early TV show: Hercules. At one point late in the series, we see Iolaus, the lovable sidekick get killed off… and almost instantly brought back as a meager character with a different personality. I’m not sure where they went with this, because I lost interest in the show, but I can’t imagine the gimmick stuck.

As I’ve stated before, we’ve seen this type of thing for a very long time. When a character dies in Marvel or DC comics, mass eye-rolling ensues. Why? Because its seen as a gimmick now. It has no heart, no impact, nothing. Everyone knows that more than likely that character won’t be dead for more than a year or two, AT MOST.

This lackluster story-writing is probably one of the main reasons that comic sales are dropping, second only to the complete over-saturation of identity politics in Marvel and DC comics. (Arguably more so Marvel, but when the Green Arrow calls himself a Social Justice Warrior… ugh!)

Anyway, I’ve started seeing this in traditional writing, specifically in the fantasy realm. Fellow writers, if you take nothing else away from my blog, let it be this piece of advice;

Don’t cater to your writers, but please respect them!

Write what you want to write. Make sure that what you right is something that YOU enjoy first and foremost. If you don’t like what you’re writing, it will reflect in your writing, and your readers are going to pick up on it. At the same time however, if you kill off a character, PLEASE don’t find a way to bring them back just because it was a likable character. If your writing is strong enough, a story can survive a beloved main character dying off (Star Wars anyone?).

We’re not fragile little snowflakes. We don’t need to be treated as such. Will we be upset when a character dies? Did I shed a tear when Asajj Ventress was killed off in Dark Disciple? SHUT UP!

But we get over it and often see it as a bold choice that only served to enhance the story as time went on.

Anyway, that’s just my thoughts on the subject. Let a character stay dead, this cop out isn’t a cop out at all. It’s bad… really bad!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 8, 2017 + Directing, Emotion, fantasy, Fiction, Opinion, Science Fiction, Uncategorized

How ROTJ’s Special Edition Could Have Been Saved

by Jim

So we all know how most people feel about the special remastered editions of Star Wars that are sadly now the ‘official’ editions. The theatrical versions that we all know and love have been relegated to the bonus features on ONE release of the DVDs due to Lucas trying to erase them from history.

Most of the fans will tell you that Episode 4 ‘A New Hope’ (which I will be referring to as Star Wars from now on as it was the original title, ‘A New Hope’ being added later), was the biggest casualty of the re-edits. I’ll admit that it took a beating; bad CGI effects replacing practical ones at the Battle of Yavin, all of which are easy to spot… Not to mention the scene that has literally driven every Star Wars fan insane for over a decade:

Yes, Han’s infamous murder scene. Fans have long since gone to war with each other over who shot first and which version is the one that is ‘canon.’

Yeah a significant amount of damage was done, but did it really make the first Star Wars the main casualty?

Hell No!

Maybe I’m biased because Return of the Jedi was my favorite of the original trilogy, but I think it suffered a lot worse… how? Well for starters, the two iconic songs were removed and replaced…

The first, known as Lapti Nek…

… was replaced with a 4th-wall-breaking popish song and a mess of bad CGI…

The second song, while much more well-known… I have to admit is kind of an ear moth. Once you listen to it, you’ll spend a decade trying to get it out of your head. From the original, Yub Nub:

It was then replaced with this far more mellow tune composed by John Williams:

I have to admit… I really like that little scene they added in with the planets of the Republic celebrating their Freedom and rising up against the Empire. Minus the appearance of gungans, this was actually pretty well done. This change actually has me very torn. While it’s certainly not something I’d expect to hear at a victory celebration, it’s actually a pleasant musical number. So… I dunno this change has its pluses and minuses… too bad what happens next destroys not only the scene, but the entire movie for me!

For starters, those robes look like they don’t even fit Christiansen. Secondly… WHY!? What was the effing purpose in doing this!? Replacing Sebastian Shaw with Hayden Christiansen doesn’t work. He looks incredibly out of place!

Really Jim? This ruined the entire movie for you? A little melodramatic aren’t we?

Let me explain… Darth Vader was an evil man. He murdered children and was responsible for he slaughter of the Jedi. He helped the Emperor rule with an iron fist and was responsible for God-Only knows how many atrocities over the years.

In short, there is NO WAY he was walking away from this. Even after returning to Anakin Skywalker, most of the galaxy would not see a difference and he would likely face charges of war crimes. Even if you can get past this, letting him walk away unscathed is just bad story telling. In short, it was not going to happen.

The writers of Star Wars gave Anakin Skywalker the best possible ending that he could hope for. Look closely at his face…

This is not the look of joy. This is the look of a man who, while happy to see them, is seeing both of his children for the first time, knowing that his choices have cost him whatever time he could have had with his family. It is a bittersweet, heartfelt, and very powerful moment that is the best that Vader could have realistically hoped for. Indeed Anakin Skywalker was saved, but every victory has its cost. It was a bold move and it worked incredibly well. This was the ending Star Wars needed, it was the one it deserved and it was the one that brought everything together. It wasn’t the happiest of endings, how could it be? But it was the RIGHT ending.

Almost all of that was lost when Shaw was replaced…

Dude, you’re not even looking in the right God damn direction! Who directed this guy!? This isn’t bittersweet… this is more the look of a guy who’s thinking ‘Okay I’m dead now… Once I get out of here, I am so going to find Padme and get my freaky ghost on…’

Okay okay, in all seriousness his performance here is as bland as the rest of his role as Anakin. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a decent actor who can chew apart a scene when called upon to do so… but in Star Wars… yeah his direction was pretty bad.

I know the scene was 28 seconds long, but to me they were the most important 28 seconds in the movie and they were RUINED! This really messed up Return of the Jedi for me and if you can’t understand why… then I’d advise you to go back and watch both the original and remastered. It makes a huge difference.

Wait a minute Jim, you said that it could have been saved!!!

I lied.

… … … Sigh… okay yes, it could have been saved. It Lucas absolutely had to replace Shaw with Christiansen, there is a way he could have done it that… while it would not have been as powerful, it would have warmed a lot of peoples’ hearts, mine included…

That’s right, if you were going this route, it would have been good to show that maybe Anakin found Padme’ in the force and the two were able to reconcile in whatever afterlife there is. Plus she’s given so little mention in the original trilogy that it would be nice to knit this in.

But Jim, she’s not a Jedi! She can’t be a force ghost!

One, that’s never really established in the movies. Two, she gave birth to two of the strongest force-sensitive children in existence. Perhaps one could make the argument that she inherited some of their sensitivity? I don’t know, its a spitball, but it could be retconned.

Anyway, just my opinion on how this could have been done so much better… if it had to be done at all. Let me know what you think!

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 6, 2017 + advice, fantasy, Fiction, Opinion, Reading, Uncategorized, Writing

Attachment Issues?

by Jim

Hi Jim,

This may sound silly, but I was wondering if you’ve ever had a hard time killing off a character in your stories? I’m at the point where I’m about to kill one off and I admit that every time I try to write the words, I freeze up. I just spent so much time writing this character and I really like them, but it was always the plan to kill him off. I basically took everything I love about my boyfriend and put it into this character along with some of plot devices and personality quirks. Maybe I’m being a bit of a drama queen, but I’m just having a hard time with it.

Thanks,
Mandi.

Hi Mandi,

I don’t think you’re being a drama queen at all… maybe slightly melodramatic, but to be honest, it kind of comes with the playing field of being a writer. Yes I have had trouble killing off a character. Its always something that I have a hard time with.

You spend a lot of time creating this character, all your characters. They’re like your children in many respects. You develop a connection with them. So of course its going to be difficult to kill one off.

I would say that your cardinal sin was using your boyfriend as the template. As someone who’s made this mistake, I can tell you that it makes things a hundred times harder. Know for the future and don’t base characters on loved ones. It doesn’t usually work out to well.

Honestly… there’s no rule saying that you HAVE TO do it. Your story, your rules. As long as you can keep the character alive without violating the rules you set up, you should be fine.

That said… I would try your hardest to detach yourself from the situation and still kill him off. Nothing is more powerful than when you kill off a character that you clearly cared about. When you put your heart and soul into something, it shows. Your audience will see that and feel the same way about the character that you do. This will make it much more powerful when they die.

So it’s up to you. In the end, only you can determine the fate of your characters. If you’d like me to take a look at the story so far and give you my two cents on how to do this, I’d be happy to. Shoot me an email.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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January 6, 2017 + Heavy Metal, History, Metal, Music, Opinion, Uncategorized

What is Metal?

by Jim

Christ… I can’t believe I’m tackling this one. Metal is such a subjective term and it’s hard to specifically define it. There are also several sub genres of Metal… some more insane than others.

So let’s think about this for a moment… what is the makeup of a metal band? A self-proclaimed Metal Purist friend of mine says that the basic metal band is 2 guitarists, a singer, a bassist, and a set of drums.

Thus he considers bands like Five Finger Death Punch:

Or Killswitch Engage:

To be the quintessential makeup of Metal bands…

Bullshit. While they definitely fall under the metal category, I don’t believe that this is the basic standard for metal bands.

So what is?

Well it all started in the late 60s and 70s. Deep Purple is considered by many to be the first metal band with Black Sabbath and Led Zepplin following close behind. Those bands are/were made up the following way:

Led Zepplin:
Lead Guitar
Drums
Bass
Vocalist

Deep Purple:
Lead Guitar
Bass
Vocalist
Drummer
Keyboarder

Black Sabbath:
Guitar
Bass
Drums
Vocalist

Now are these bands considered Metal? Eh… by people who have been with the genre that long, perhaps. Honestly, given the sound of their early work, I think the term proto-metal is more appropriate.

Proto-Metal had a few more names join in the 1970s, including Iron Butterfly, Steppinwolf (Yeah you heard me right), Blue Cheer, and the Stooges. Notice why I’m careful to label these as proto-metal. Alice Cooper would also be added to this mix, however despite starting in 1963, he really didn’t become part of what’s known as metal for many years and did not gain significant enough attention until the 70s.

It was around this time in the 1970s that punk rock began to explode into popular culture and soon became a huge phenomenon. Motorhead was really the first band to bridge the gap and metal… essentially piggybacked off of Punk Rock’s popularity to pull it into the mainstream. This is when metal was truly born. Bands like Iron Maiden and Saxon became household names with other bands such as the scorpions quickly followed.

Suddenly, Metal was in the mainstream and a new genre known as ‘glam metal’ and ‘hair metal’ came to center stage. This is where bands like Quiet Riot, Motley Crew, Guns n Roses, W.A.S.P. and others joined the mix. Even Van Halen is considered by some to be part of this genre. This was also the era of the British Heavy Metal invasion with bands like Judas Priest entering the fray. Yeah the 80s were a good time to be alive if you were in to that kind of music… but all good things have to end…

The 90s…

Anyone who was caught growing up between the 80s and the 90s knows the massive paradigm shift in music styles. It was swift, vicious… and it was NOT pretty.

Ugh… turn it off… turn it off… I SAID TURN IT THE (CENSORED) OFF!!!

Yeah thus begin the boy band wars of the 90s. It was a time when alternate and… arguably perverse styles of R&B, Dance, and techno got mixed together in what most people generally refer to as ‘Pop Music.’ It wasn’t a new phenomenon per se as it owed its roots to the 1970s, but it wasn’t anywhere near as huge or… intrusive at that point.

This is when metal went nuts. I mean went completely insane!

Suddenly Heavy Metal, Glam Metal, and Hair Metal broke up into SEVERAL subgenres…

Power Metal
Speed Metal
Pop Metal
Nu Metal
Rap Metal (Yes that’s a thing)
Avante Garde Metal
Black Metal
War Metal
Epic Metal
Victory Metal
Pirate Metal
Viking Metal
Rhythmic Metal
Symphonic Metal
Melodic Metal
Blackgaze
and perhaps the most recognizable version… at least to people outside of the genre, Death Metal:

So with all of these genres… what does this mean?

Well it means that while this is metal:

So is this…

This…

And yes, even this…

So what about this???

Um… I’ll leave that open to interpretation… Acapella Metal? Who knows…

But Jim, you still haven’t answered the big question, what is the basic metal band?

It’s a subjective term honestly. I do not share my friend’s view… why? Because that’s not the layout of the Heavy Metal bands, nor of the 80s bands and honestly the 70s and 80s are where metal really evolved into what we know and love. So with that in mind, the ideal metal band is as follows:

Standard:
Vocalist
Lead Guitar
Rhythem Guitar
Bass
Keyboard/Keytar
Drums

Minimum:
Vocalist
Guitar
Bass
Drums
Keyboard/Keytar.

So then Jim, what is metal?

Honestly, it’s a convoluted mess!!! Just don’t let anyone tell you that only death metal is true metal and you’ll be fine.

So how do you identify a metal band then???

… … I dunno.

WHAT!?!?

I don’t know! Honestly, does it really matter? Listen to what you like. If you really need to know though, I’d consult the Encyclopedia Metallum. It’s the best resource I know of…

Let me know what you think in the comments.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

January 5, 2017 + Heavy Metal, Inspiration, Metal, Music, Opinion, Uncategorized, Writing

My Writing Playlist

by Jim

I still haven’t decided on a name for this daily installment.

Anyway, working title. Today’s submission:

Oh yeah, the God himself… the man who corrupted a whole generation and continues to make waves today. Alice Cooper himself.

When to listen to this one: Villain creation. Not kidding, I’ve build many a bad guy while listening to this song. Highly recommend it.

Also, who here considers his music Metal??? I’ve heard arguments on both sides and frankly, I do consider him metal… 80s Metal, but metal none-the-less.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.
jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com
I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.
Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

You can also add me on Twitter!

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!
Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim

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