Doujinshi 4

The Love&Peace website/blog by the Japanese doujinshi artist Tajima Minato has relocated due to foreigners using her work without permission. That made me very sad, and also made me think about my own posts of doujinshi images here. Although my intention is to promote their work, it's still using their work without permission. I'm not sure what my answer is yet, since for the most part I've only posted coverpages.

But some of their restrictions are unreasonably severe--one circle asks for readers to not download any images at all and delete ones they already have. On the technical side, there's no real way to restrict the user from saving images, since the images have already been downloaded when the page loaded, and the act of saving it into a folder different from temporary internet files is merely on the browser side. Even if the page disables right-clicking, there are ways to get around it. (And it also makes page navigation a hindrance, grr.) On the human nature side, people like to collect beautiful things.

And really, there's no good prevention of fraud and theft on the web. A lot of utilities and programs are actually designed for the downloader in mind, and prevent other people from seeing the real download. There is a Chinese saying "Boundaries higher by a feet, Lawlessness higher by a yard". I believe that we have to take good preparation to protect ourselves, and then trust the rest.

As for Love&Peace, I'm ambivalent. It's true that websites shouldn't scan and publish her doujinshi, but then, it's so difficult for us out of Japan to get our hands on her work that I can't help but cherish websites like Herya. (warning: explicit art.)

Is there a middle ground? I'm not sure.

Her new book that I'd love to get to read:

Goau

I'd like to incorporate Gaou and Varie as part of the storyline puzzle, but working with Goau has been more difficult than Varie. Perhaps partly it's because of the lack of father figures in Esca: Goau dies young, Balgus dies in ep2, Aston is more a king than a family presence, Dryden has no respect for Meiden, Leon left his family behind, and Hitomi's father was hardly mentioned--all except Freid.

Although Goau and Varie's deaths have more impact on Van's upbringing and motivations than Merle losing her entire family, in Van's memories, we only see Varie weeping at Goau's deathbed and his gravestone--never any interaction between father and son. Folken and Balgus took Goau's place in teaching and playing with Van since he was 3. So it's difficult to say what Van remember of Goau or expect him to be.

But despite all this, the most significant pressure from Goau is actually his lack of presence. As tantamount as Van's royal position and his Draconian heritage is being an orphan with all the expectancy carried over from the absent Varie and Goau. So even if I do not carry him over to DS, it's important to answer questions about Goau in order to understand Van. Two main issues: who was Goau, and how does his life and death impact Van?

I think of Goau as an older version of Van, had Van been more well adjusted. He was obviously a person with great distinction and inspiration--he was revered enough for someone like Balgus to follow into battles, generous enough to allow Balgus a training leave, and respected enough for Balgus to rush back to Fanelia in loyalty. His legacy prompted Balgus to take over Van's training and life for 10 years.

Yet he was more than leadership to his men, he was of emotions. By the time he met Varie, he was already 30, so he must have been rejecting other potential matches until he fell in love immediately with Varie at the lake. His love completely disregarded all caution, logic, and any other voices of conventional wisdom. He was a man of immediate action and reaction--and Van, at the very least in this respect, turned out to be just like his father. (Though, I must say, Goau was more charming. Sorry, Van.)

But the question remains: how did he die? There were a few clues, but none absolutely telling in its clarity: (1) It must have been a private matter--if it was death from battle or political trouble, Fanelia must have been in an uproar, and Van and Balgus would have vowed vengeance. But instead his death was lightly carried over, with only the leadership of the crown laid heavily on Folken's shoulders. (2) He died at the age of 48, hardly old, as Balgus was 70 at the start of Esca. (3) When Balgus rushed back, he had said "I was too late"--so the manner of Goau's death must have been relatively long, at least enough for Balgus to hear the news from a messenger or rumors and then transverse back from wherever he was training. (4) In opposition to #3, Goau's death must have been relatively sudden, as there is no memory of a bedridden Goau, nor did he look sick at all on his deathbed.

So many diseases and ways to die to still choose from. An acute illness, perhaps, or a severe accident. I'm undecided whether I should make it terribly shocking or romantic.

Making plans for a modified remake of this scene :3a

Mistakes

Ch6 will have to be rewritten.

Although Leal as the narrator gives an interesting perspective on Van, beyond that, there's nothing else to gain. It's wrong to allow more than Van and Hitomi as narrators, at this point. The experience of the events would be better told by Van, so we can once more look into his feelings without the usual distance he requires. Besides, I'm sure the readers will enjoy the political matters more if Van is giving the running dialogue ;3

I really value Jossi and other readers' input on here and as comments directly on ff. They always remind me the importance of a "story". DS isn't just an exercise in writing, it's a medium for readers to experience V+H's feelings.

Ironically, I seem to be busier without a job than with a job. I need to start scheduling writing time again.

Tsubasa no Kami has in-depth information about the Esca movie. And I had mentioned in my first posts that she hosts the only known map of Gaea. A total help for me :D This is from her program gallery page:

Character Profile

The most common mistake I see on ff is treating character profile as a list of physical markings. In addition to smearing the writing into lower class with simplified descriptions of a tall and brown haired man, authors are missing out on the most vital and powerful aspect of fiction: characterization.

There must be overwhelming background evidence to tell how characters will act in a certain situation. (Not all presented to the readers, of course.) And then it's the author's craft to connect the dots to make the experience pleasurable by the confirmation or surprise.

Of course, physical descriptions are important to bringing the characters alive in imaginations. But even in our first impressions with a stranger, there are numerous details we consciously and intuitively receive. Is he in good shape? How clean and stylish are her clothes? Does she wear flashy jewelry with flip-flops? Is he hunching to appear less noticeable? Does she hold her coffee cup with her little finger out or cradle it in both hands? Doe she look elegant but destroy the picture by saying insensible things? All of these are physical things, but they give so much more character information than sky blue eyes.

The best part to me in the film Stranger than Fiction was the part when Harold Crick says his favorite word is "integer." I had loled, because it's a word that completely defines his personality and behaviors.

As an exercise today I wrote the Esca characters' words. They're not their favorite, really, but words that I think exemplify them. So here's the list of their Esca-timeline words, though I've still to define (and keep secret from you, mwhaha) their DS words. And let me know if I've hit or missed the mark!

Van - trust
Hitomi - hope
Merle - Van
Allen - companionship
Millerna - love
Dryden - power
Aston - country
Eries - propriety
Chid - filial duty
Celena - emptiness

As for doing complete character profiles, I must admit I haven't finished them yet either. I think at this point I'd better concentrate on the next ch, rather than filling out the list to its entirety. But I do consider many of the following points as I work through scenes, and here's a partial list. For in-depth strategies and examples, pick up the book The Plot Thickens.

outward appearance. posture.
mode of dress. fabrics. expense. style. colors.
words. phrases. sentence to live by.
favorite colors, animals, foods, smells, places. reading material. music. art. decoration style.
family situation and relationship
history. jobs. education. occupation.
outlook on life. future plans.
personality. quirks.
distinguishing characteristic.
likes and dislikes.
recreation. hobbies. vacations.
circle of friends. types of enemies. past lovers.
perception vs. reality

One of my favorite pictures of Van is him in ending credits. It seems to say so many different things. And why is it? It's not his excuse of a shirt, or his hair, or his long lashes. The mystery comes from his closed eyes, that highlight on the bridge of his nose and his lips, his self-hug. Is it expectation, acceptance, waiting, or loneliess? Only Van knows.

Deadline

My new goal for DS is to finish ch6 by end of February. I've been avoiding definite deadlines because writing is for fun, not work, but I think it's gotten to the point that I need to get off my butt and let stress motivate me to higher performance. Readers need new chs, and I need to start writing again.

Still, my plans for the latter part of DS have been more exciting than ever. The last chs of V+H's story will be roomfuls of effervescent bubbles ;D I rub hands in anticipation just thinking about it. It's been really hard to restrain myself from writing those scenes out already, even though I know those will change by the time I get there in the storytelling.

Now off to continue my consideration of Fanelia's budget for airships.

Lack of Updates

Had a few more ideas about the last few chs of DS. The events surrounding their romance is going to be awesome. V+H will be true to character down to the last bits.

Which, of course, is totally useless for anything I can publish for ch6 on ff.net ; ; In my only defense, I can only say that when pressed with looming thunder overhead, I tend to become an ostrich and bury my sight as far underground as it would go.

But seriously, I've been mired in fixing my computer and thinking really hard about the last two years to write interview responses. I'm contemplating a job making cappuccinos, so I can at least have an income while I look for something more career-while.

To celebrate my 100th post on DS, I opened a random thoughts blog, Jomiel Says. It's just for fun and giggles.

Progress Update 14

I'm having trouble thinking about and finishing ch6. This makes me wonder if it's because I'm subconsciously sensing failure even if I work it to completion. But there's nothing obviously wrong. Hitomi meets Van in the library and they have a conversation. Am I intimidated by their dialogue, the subject, or perhaps what might happen if I let them speak freely? I'm not sure.

I do, however, think a lot about the middle and the end of DS. This week has been very cold, and fitting cold into Hitomi's capture would especially highlight the whole miserable experience. You fist your hands to spark some feeling into them, your toes tingle with hurt when they're in tepid water, the feeling that your hands would never be warm even if they burrow underneath your arms because your whole body has become cold--but of course I have to careful, because descriptions are just words. Actions elicit feelings.

Although, I suppose cold is sort of a strange thing for me to put in, considering that the Esca crew traveled from Fanelia to Zaibach to Asgard, and they never seem to feel cold. In particular, Van and Hitomi regularly traveled at airship altitudes but never seem to feel the subzero temperature. *shiver* (Ironically, the only one with enough sense to wear a coat was Leon, the labeled madman.)


Chibi Hitomi and Van:

Dryden

One idea of mine for a long time is to make Asturia the Gaean equivalent of "the West". Its power amid the Alliance countries, its foreign policy attitude that influences country relationships with each other, possible colonialization, its reception as threat and obstacle among other countries, etc.

Of course, to make that happen, King Grava Aston cannot remain ruler of Asturia. His actions during the Gaea War was self-preservation. But if Dryden becomes king...

Dryden is certainly my favorite secondary character. His brash confidence, his understanding of wealth as a powerful tool, his charismatic and decisive leadership, his bookish nature--all these make him an appealing, complex character.

And I think given the opportunity, he could become someone who'd understand Hitomi the best (after Van, of course--and Van's case is evident in ep24 when he answered where Hitomi went).

I'm going to have a lot of fun with Dryden :D

Goong

From Sapphirefly's post and link, this weekend I read Goong up to vol 10. It is surprisingly romantic, despite the gender inequality. (Even though the manhwa explained the women's lack of independence and power as court culture, inequality is much more prevalent in East Asia, as can be seen from the public censure of Hyo-Rin and Chae-Gyeong's feelings of inadequacy when Shin is absent.) Some page had said Goong was made in the wake of Hana Yori Dango's popularity (which spawned anime, movies, tv series, as well as Taiwan drama series Meteor Garden), but I see Goong as a cross between manhwa and traditional twists on Cinderella like My Fair Lady--the transformation into a swan is just the beginning, and Chae-Gyeong doesn't change things by reversing traditions and values, but by following them in her own way.

Since Goong is now licensed for the US and fan translations hard to get, I tried out the drama in an effort to finish the story, but seeing Shin change from SoHee Park's beautiful art into a real boy is a total crush of hopes. I find her art similar in style to Kaori Yuki's Angel Sanctuary and Godchild--elaborate hair, beautiful men, women with a gothic romance feel. Now that I'm back in the Bay Area, perhaps I'll go to the rental manga store again and finish the series in Chinese.

As for how this all relates to Esca... It does give me shivers on a new AU story (just imagining Van dressed up in the fashionable male ideal of East Asia like Shin makes me excited), but most of all, the romance in Goong is fantastically self-deprived and slow. And then when it does come, the romance blooms into this dramatic satisfaction. Gives me ideas.

Almost all of my favorite authors updated during the holiday break. I should get going, too.

New Year

During vacation, I read The Name of the Rose--it was brilliant in its languages, not only in its English construction (originally written in Italian), but also its Middle Ages structure and its use of foreign languages (mostly Latin, but also Greek, French, German, dialects of Italian, and references to Arabic). The PS section from the author was also interesting. Eco talked about how he conceived the idea and how he worked to its completion. I should find Poe's "Philosophy of Composition" again and reread it.

Again, no updates on DS; I'm sorry ._. I'm trying to find a job and live as much free time as possible, as contradictory as the two sound...