Review: "The Pursuit of Mary Bennet"

I recently won an advanced reading copy of Pamela Mingle's book "The Pursuit of Mary Bennet" (a "Pride and Prejudice" spin-off) through a Goodreads giveaway. I decided to post my review here as well as on the site.) But first, a synopsis, courtesy of Goodreads:

For most of her life Mary Bennet has been an object of ridicule. With a notable absence of the social graces, she has been an embarrassment to her family on more than one occasion. But lately, Mary has changed. She's matured and attained a respectable, if somewhat unpolished, decorum. But her peace and contentment are shattered when her sister Lydia turns up-very pregnant and separated from Wickham. Mary and Kitty are bustled off to stay with Jane and her husband. It is there that Mary meets Henry Walsh, whose attentions confound her. Unschooled in the game of love, her heart and her future are at risk. Is she worthy of love or should she take the safer path? In her journey of self-acceptance, she discovers the answer

I received a copy of The Pursuit of Mary Bennet through a Goodreads giveaway. I was excited to read it as a big Jane Austen fan. Pride and Prejudice might be my favorite of her novels, and I’ve seen several adaptations and other works based on it. However, before this, I’d only read one spin-off (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, which I could never get into.) I stayed away from stories about Lizzy and Darcy as I felt they couldn’t do Austen justice. However, I hoped this book would be different. This was somewhat true.

I enjoyed this book partly because it explored Mary, a character not done justice in Pride and Prejudice or most adaptations. As I began reading, I liked Mary’s character and found her relatable, and enjoyed the portrayals of my other favorite characters. Lydia was unpleasant, but I felt believably so. I liked Mingle’s consideration of the characters’ relationships (for example, Mary’s undecidedness about Darcy’s character – Pride and Prejudice readers might love him, but Mary doesn’t know him like Lizzy does.)

Despite this, I began to like Mary’s character less around the middle of the book. Her actions begin to reveal character flaws, which make her arguably more realistic but less likable. I also became annoyed with her for not recognizing the truth about a certain character when it was plain to me as a reader.

I also became less enamored with the book because (1) I felt it didn’t quite meet my expectations in that it dealt more with childcare and less with light-hearted romance than expected, and (2) Mary’s love interest’s… well, interest… is also established early on, and he and Mary spend a bit of time together. This allowed a faster pace (and therefore faster reading), but I also missed the romantic tension and build-up of Austen’s novels.

tl;dr: The Pursuit of Mary Bennet isn’t perfect, but makes for an enjoyable look at a neglected Pride and Prejudice character.

"Levels of Life" FirstReads Review

I recently won an advanced reading copy of Julian Barnes' new book "Levels of Life" through a Goodreads giveaway. I decided to post my review here as well as on the site.) But first, the book's back cover description:

Part history, part fiction, part memoir, Levels of Life is a powerfully personal and unforgettable book, and an immediate classic on the subject of grief.Levels of Life opens in the nineteenth century with balloonists, photographers, and Sarah Bernhardt, whose adventures lead seamlessly into an entirely personal account of the author's own great loss.  

"You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed..." Julian Barnes's new book is about ballooning, photography, love and grief; about putting two things, and two people, together, and about tearing them apart.

I received an ARC of "Levels of Life" through a Goodreads giveaway. I was excited to read the book due to positive reviews I'd read of Barnes' other works, especially "The Sense of an Ending" (on my to-read list.) The book was split into 3 parts, which I'll break down my impressions of here:

I, "The Sin of Height": This part didn't meet my expectations. It included various historical details about ballooning which I found curious but ultimately pointless. 

II, "On the Level": This part was an improvement from the first, as it read more like a biography in its focus on Fred Burnaby's brief romance with Sarah Bernhardt. However, though I wanted to enjoy reading Part II, I still couldn't understand the point Barnes was attempting to make in his portrait of Burnaby. I know that he intended ballooning as a metaphor for love, but it never quite worked for me.

III, "The Loss of Depth": I immediately liked Part III, which reads like a memoir, as Barnes discusses coping with the death of his wife. Some of his observations and reflections on grief struck me in their eloquence and truthfulness. As I read, I even underlined several quotes.

Overall, I'm glad I read "Levels of Life." Though I struggled through Parts I and II, "The Loss of Depth" made up for them. I would rate the individual sections:

"The Sin of Height": 1/5
"On the Level": 2/5
"The Loss of Depth": 4.5/5

"She's Still Alive?!"

Well, it's been a while... by which I mean over two months.

Believe me, I'm not happy about the break. However, I've been busy in the past month. If you follow me on Tumblr or Twitter, you'll know I graduated from a school I attended for 5 years, said goodbye to good friends, had to put down a dog I've had for 10 y
ears, and dealt with various anxieties and family issues.

Did I mention that I also flew to Boston to attend Harvard University for the summer? It's now been a week since classes started, and I've had to make several adjustments. Due to my educational history, I'm unused to being surrounded by so many people. In the past two weeks, since beginning the program, I've met as many people as I did for four years.

My courses are also very different. My first one, on Mondays and Wednesdays, is an English class focusing on tragedies. We've been reading Sophocles' Theban plays and will cover Shakespeare, Ibsen, Beckett, and Tennessee Williams. My second class, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, is a Creative Writing course focusing on short stories. We've been reading and analyzing stories from The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction, and our first story is due on Tuesday.

In this post, I thought I'd discuss my experiences in the CREA class.

So far, classes have consisted of some writing and some discussion. Discussion has focused on stories vs. anecdotes (and how stories include a central conflict) and flat vs. round characters. I haven't found the discussions to be especially illuminating yet, as it's covered devices I'm already familiar with, but they'd probably make a good introduction for someone who doesn't read writers' blogs for fun.

Lamont Library

Writing exercises, meanwhile, have been more rewarding. In the first exercise, the class was given 15 minutes to write a story beginning with the words "once upon a time." The results were interesting. About half the class wrote fairy tale-like stories, others wrote about past societies (I wrote about a boy surviving the destruction of a Makah village in the 1500s), and a few students came up with various other topics. In a few cases, it was obvious that classmates deliberately tried to avoid cliche in their subjects, to varying degrees of success. The fellow high school students especially preferred the last approach, writing stories about dystopias, anthropomorphic rocks, and the old "I was given a writing prompt in class when..." premise.

In the second writing exercise, our instructor gave the class about 30-45 minutes to begin a story which we'll complete in class (with revisions following.) I definitely didn't prefer writing in class (due largely to a lack of inspiration.) However, it did force me to write when I normally wouldn't choose to, which I think is a positive experience for any writer. Unless you're very lucky, it's important to learn how to write in less-than-ideal conditions, or you'll never write regularly. Most nights during the school year, I'm exhausted from homework, extracurriculars, and life in general, but I need to learn to quit using tiredness as an excuse. I can't if I want to be a writer. Hopefully by the end of the course, I'll have built more self-discipline!

A note: it's definitely much easier to write by finding your personal ideal environment. Mine is a desk in the back corner of Harvard's Lamont Library. Desks are very private and are located next to wall outlets. I can set up my laptop, turn on some indie music (I've recently been loving this mix), and write. I used to never write with music, but found that it's actually best for me. If I'm familiar with the lyrics (so don't feel the need to listen and analyze them), the sound allows me to block out critical thoughts.

Over the next few weeks, I'll conference with my CREA instructor re: two of my short stories and have another workshopped. I'll blog again then (I promise!)

I thought I'd end this post with a little nerd humor, captured on an MIT visit today:

P.S.: I recently became much more active on my weheartit account. If you use the site, feel free to check out my profile! I heart pretty places and art, interesting characters and ideas, and anything else that strikes my fancy. 

How was your Fourth?

TCWT: Ultimate Goals

Sorry for posting this so late. I arrived home late and was busy with homework until 10.

This month, I decided to participate in Teens Can Write, Too!'s blog chain.

The prompt was: What is your ultimate goal as a writer?

The most common answer to this question is probably getting published. Others might include fame, awards, or financial success. I've definitely dreamt of each of these over the years, and even developed detailed interview responses. (It's good to prepare, right?)

As I've gotten older, my dreams of grandeur have definitely decreased. Lately, I've even begun to fear sharing my work with others. I'm my toughest critic, and my inner editor sometimes questions whether writing's for me at all.

It's a topic I've discussed before. Are the sacrifices I make for writing really worth it? But time and time again, I've discovered that they are. Writing is my tool to make sense of the world. For that reason - because I write for myself - it isn't important to me to become published.

That's not to say becoming published isn't a goal. I'd love to make money off my writing someday. However, I'm certainly not going to rely on luck (which seems to be a large component of success as a writer.) I don't need my mother's weekly reminders to realize that writing isn't a reliable career path.

I'm reminded now of an incident several weeks ago. My mother and I were in Seattle, visiting my sister at a robotics competition. We left soon, so decided to give our parking ticket to a family which had just arrived. The father, who was driving, thanked us with a copy of his CD.

As we drove home, I listened to the CD. It was a collection of piano pieces, most classical. A biography of the artist was featured on the back cover. As it happened, he had loved music all his life. He was born to a musical family in Lebanon, and has performed with his brothers several times since they moved to the US. Though he's most likely profited little financially, his passion for music is as strong as ever.

I share the story first because I find the musician's pursuit of his dreams inspiring. I'm also hoping for a similar outcome - the eventual distribution of my work, with a well-paid job as support.

The last topic I'd like to address is the question of audience. That is, what type of story I want to write, and which readers I'd like to attract.

My stories tend to be realistic, but not edgy, and deal with young people. Usually that means young adults (actual ones.) However, my most recent protagonist has been a teen, and her story is one of my favorites I've written. Though I'd hate to classify myself as a strictly YA writer, it's a genre I'd like to explore more.

(Labels make me feel cramped, so I'm envisioning pulling off a John Green-type literary position: as a YA writer whose books are popular with many adults, and are as critically acknowledged as general fiction.)

My ideal reader is a young person who's interested not just entertainment, but in considering stories on a deeper level. That's not to say I'd want too much time dedicated to my works' themes/message; subtlety is generally a much better approach. Message shouldn't interfere with the enjoyment of a story - for example, think The Hunger Games. The novel is exciting and engaging, but also includes lots of serious discussion material. (This applies to books 2 and 3 as well.)

A while ago, I read a quote (I believe) by Joss Whedon, the creator of one of my favorite TV shows: "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." He didn't care if the series was necessarily widely viewed, but wanted it to be loved by its fans. I'd hope the same for anything I publish. (Critics' love wouldn't hurt either.)

Thoughts?

If you'd like to follow the blog chain:
April 5th – http://miriamjoywrites.wordpress.com/
April 6th – http://www.inklinedwriters.blogspot.com/
April 7th – http://www.paulinaczarnecki.wordpress.com/
April 8th – http://insatiablebeforedeath.wordpress.com/
April 9th – http://musingsfromnevillesnavel.wordpress.com/
April 10th – http://avonsbabbles.wordpress.com/
April 11th – http://theloonyteenwriter.wordpress.com/
April 12th – http://insideliamsbrain.wordpress.com/
April 13th – http://kirstenwrites.wordpress.com/
April 14th – http://creatingtherenaissance.wordpress.com/
April 15th – http://charactercentral.wordpress.com/
April 16th – http://realityisimaginary.blogspot.com/
April 17th – http://www.novelexemplar.wordpress.com/
April 18th – http://charlieeatmybook.blogspot.co.uk/
April 19th – http://zarahoffman.tumblr.com/
April 20th – http://thelittleenginethatcouldnt.wordpress.com/
April 21st – http://theangelicauburn.wordpress.com/
April 22nd – http://eatwritedie.blogspot.com/
April 24th – http://veewhoa.wordpress.com/
April 25th – http://www.alwaysweavingwords.blogspot.com/
April 26th – http://anqiyu.wordpress.com/
April 27th – http://bloodoverithaca.wordpress.com/ 
April 28th - http://incessantdroningofaboredwriter.wordpress.com/

Inspired by the Wiser

I meant to write a post on Sunday, but didn't get around to it. This whole week's been plagued by fatigue, the result of studying for a difficult Biology test and an attenuated version of the flu.

I also spent some time creating a 7" album cover design for HAIM's song "Better Off." Though I consider myself a writer, I love visual art and music, so submitted a design. Additionally, I liked the cause: to support Art Against Knives, a youth-led initiative against violence, via Secret 7". You can view my submission here.

In other news: last night, I had a major revelation as to the format of one of my current projects (the Ines story, set in Brazil.) As you'll remember from this post, I've been struggling to write the story for knowledge/research reasons. However, I think my new format, inspired by Sandra Cisernos' "The House on Mango Street" (one of my favorite books, a collection of poetic vignettes) better fits the story's character and is more readable.

Between the two projects - "Better Off" and Ines' story - I've noticed a pattern. In both cases, I struggled for weeks to create a work .I spent hours researching and creating drafts, but for each, I was eventually inspired by works I already loved and admired. (In the visual art case, I was inspired by the cover of Gregory Alan Isakov's album "This Empty Northern Hemisphere.")

So what have my experiences taught me? That a new artist of any sort - whether her medium of choice be written, visual, audiovisual, you name it - must enthusiastically study her craft and seek inspiration in the work of artists older and wiser than herself.

Think "kung fu flick" - pretend you're the young hero of a martial arts movie, trying to become great through a master's tutelage:

Or maybe not.

TCWT Book Review: Torched

For fun, I decided to participate in Teens Can Write, Too!'s February blog chain. This month's topic is:
“Choose one self-published book to read, then briefly review it or talk about your experiences reading it.”

I found this topic interesting because, in my experience, I haven't heard much good about self-published books. It's sometimes been said books are self-published because the writing is bad, so self-pubbed authors can't find representation. However, I found this to be totally untrue for my pick, Torched by Andrea Lynn Colt. 

A little more about Torched, via Goodreads:

Cheerleader Rose Whitfield's senior year goes up in smoke when she's framed for arson. Sure that the culprit is her neighbor Paxton, with whom she's been feuding since middle school, she sets out to clear her name and take Paxton down hard--not necessarily in that order.

To some, Torched might sound like a load of fluff. I was dubious for the book's first few pages, too, but quickly began to enjoy the plot and admire Rose. I found her character refreshingly intelligent and willful, determined to prove her innocence despite obstacles. I also liked her first-person perspective, and the fact that she was flawed. For example: I did feel Rose sometimes jumped to (and held onto) conclusions too quickly, but her actions didn't hurt the story. 

One of Torched's highlights is its combination of mystery and romance. The story kept me guessing, and I loved every scene featuring  Rose's love interest. (I won't spoil but I'm sure you can guess who from the summary.) 

I also like Torched's minor characters. Though I did hate some, I understood their motivations. They weren't two-dimensional like some characters you'll find in light mysteries. 

My verdict: 4/5 stars.* Though I did have my criticisms, I enjoyed Torched more than expected (especially as teen mystery/romances aren't my usual type.) I picked the book because it sounded and looked like a fun, quick read, and it delivered perfectly. 

*Edit: Though bear in mind, I'm not grading as hard as I might if I read mysteries more often (as I rate books by comparison, and what their writers aim for.) If you're turned off by shallow characters, "Torched" also might not be for you.

Follow the blog chain:
February 5th – The Writing Junkie
February 6th – Miriam Joy Writes
February 7th – Musings From Neville's Navel
February 8th – A Poetic Spirit Named Fida
February 9th – Sarah Hudson Scribbles 
February 10th - Avon's Babbles 
February 11th - Notebook Sisters 
February 12th - Mirror Made of Words 
February 13th - Lily's Blog
February 14th - Writer Bewildered 
February 15th - Real Teen Reader
February 16th - Epistolary Girl
February 17th - Incessant Droning of A Bored Author
February 18th - Teens Can Write, Too! (We’ll announce the topic for next month’s chain)

On Purpose

Today, I'd like to talk about purpose. That is, why do writers write? Why does anyone do anything, actually? Should our actions profit ourselves or help others, teach or entertain?

I began mulling over these questions on Monday, when my World History/Humanities teacher presented a video in class. It was interview of a surgeon at Johns Hopkins who'd helped in an Iraq vet's recent double arm transplant.

As the interviewed doctor spoke, his knowledge and experience were obvious. But what moved me was the surgery's effects. Though incredibly expensive and rare, the procedure was completely life-altering: it was allowing a man's life back. I was struck by how worthy this doctor's work was. In fact, I was so impressed, I almost wanted to become a surgeon myself for a second - before remembering I feel ill at the sight of blood.

Besides, I'm a writer, I insisted to myself. But that introduced another question: What's my purpose? My work certainly isn't saving lives - so why do I write? Why should I, when my chances of financial and critical success are so low? I'm not certain of being published, let alone being remembered or making an impact. Writing can only result in personal sleep loss and emotional strain. So why should I write, when I could become a lawyer or scientist or professor?

It may have occurred to you, if you're not a writer, that writing is easier than pursuing those other careers. Anyone can tell a story, but earning the knowledge and experience to become a lawyer/scientist/professor requires a huge amount of hard work and determination. And lots of student loans. Yet for whatever reason, I often feel that any profession must be happier than writing.

As much I love to write, I'm afraid to. I doubt my own abilities. Often I don't write for days/weeks and subsequently feel as useless as a sea sponge. (No offense to sea sponges.) Anyway: the fact is, writing is hardly ever rewarding. It's only when the finished product lies before me that I gain any satisfaction from it; first and second drafts are usually hell. My stress may be a result of my sky-high self-expectations, or the difficult topics I write about.

Yet no matter how bleak my outlook, I can't give up. I write for a purpose - to express to others how I view the world - and that drives me. I need to share my personal views and experiences with others, by necessity in an entertaining way. Plus, I love language. I love the rush of satisfaction when my words reflect my meaning, when the right words arrive. I love to imagine my characters and their adventures, I love the endless possibilities each new draft presents. Writing excites me, engages me, allows me to express myself more truly than speech. I write for a purpose - a fact which I need to remind myself of more often. Otherwise, I'll become lost in hopeless self-criticism, forgetting why I've set on such an insane mission in the first place.

Hmm. Maybe I'll have to reread this post next week, by which time I'll have forgotten my sense of purpose again.

Should You "Write What You Know"?

Hemingway, Unimpressed

Hemingway once said, rather famously: "Write what you know." The quote has always been the subject of some controversy among writers.

Is it really necessary for a writer to only write what she knows? What does that mean, anyway? One could argue that the average human knows very little. So should we be limited to writing about our own experiences? The problem with this argument, of course, is that most writers' lives aren't interesting at all. That's why we write fiction!

(I won't even go into the argument that humans know basically nothing, as everything we believe we know is distorted by imperfect perception.)

Some writers have gotten fairly riled up in the past about this, but my interpretation of Hemingway's quote has always been thus: what a writer "knows" doesn't refer to actual facts and details or even events, but emotions.

For example: my latest two projects (pieces of which you may read here and here) both take place in foreign  locales (Rio de Janeiro and St. Petersburg, Russia, respectively.) As a result of their locations and subjects, I've had to do a great deal of research for both stories. However, I don't think a lack of details will ultimately hurt either. Simple bad writing will be the cause. (I say "will" with fair certainty.)

The fact is, I know my characters well. I understand their dreams, fears, and relationships. I've got the emotional framework for my plots; I only need to fill in the details.

Of course, as they say, the devil is in the details.

Anyway. My point stands: I don't consider knowledge as necessary to a story's success as skill. Of course, some knowledge is necessary, especially if a writer isn't familiar with a setting. I'm more certain of Irina's story than Ines', because Irina's socioeconomic position is more similar to mine, and I've been to St. Petersburg once. Though most big cities are fairly similar, I'm hesitant to write about Rio; I don't want to make too many assumptions. To make my story more accurate, therefore, I've spent some time viewing Rio using Google Earth's Street View and reading about the city on actual Cariocas' blogs.

A good point to make here is that the Internet has really redefined the average person's access to information. Nearly all of my research I do online. I could certainly rent out films or books, but find the web to be a more convenient knowledge source.

One last point: some have questioned the application of Hemingway's quote to science fiction/fantasy. They argue that he excludes these genres - which he does, if you interpret his words literally. However, I'd argue that one ought to interpret "knowing" a setting as "strong worldbuilding."

Do you agree with Hemingway? How do you interpret his advice?

P.S. - Here is a great article on this subject. It includes some commentary from the wonderful Nathan Englander, who (brag alert) I've met! Yes, he's also lovely in real life. (This is especially refreshing for the writer who feels their creatively-dry younger years were wasted.)

On Web Series

vlog (ˈvlɒɡ) — n

a video journal uploaded to the internet

Vlogs (video blogs) are one of the cooler products of YouTube's popularity, allowing random strangers insight to other random strangers' lives. Among my favorite vloggers are the brothers Green (creators of educational channels CrashCourse and SciShow; John is also a #1 New York Times-bestselling author.) I've followed the duo online for about 3 years, and attended an awesome event they held last year at a local indie book store in celebration of John's new novel The Fault in Our Stars.

As it happens, I also follow John on Twitter. Last April 9^th, he linked to a video which sounded interesting, a new project of his brother Hank’s. It was called the “Lizzie Bennet Diaries” – a modern version of Jane Austen’s classic “Pride and Prejudice.” I was familiar with the story, so watched the video with interest. But what caught my attention was its format.

It was a vlog. A fictional one, that is. Videos were released regularly, and soon other characters in the story universe began their own vlogs. Characters created Twitter and Tumblr accounts, too, creating an interactive experience.

As I later learned, the "LBD" isn't the first of its kind. According to Wikipedia:

A web series is a series of videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet or also by mobile or cellular phone, and part of t he newly emerging medium called web television… While the popularity of web series is continuing to rise, the concept itself isn't entirely new. Scott Zakarin created the first advertiser supported web series in 1995, The Spot.

There are a thousand media through which to tell a story. I deal with written forms: novels, short stories, poems, et cetera.  Other popular media include musicals, films, and television. As a storyteller, I feel it’s important to have an understanding of each of these forms.

So, it came as a surprise when I discovered web series. Curious, I looked into the classics, including lonelygirl15 and The Guild. I searched through list, like this one from Flavorwire.

Poster for Submissions Only, one of my favorite web series.

Web series are curious to me. Though their budgets are generally small (H+ is one exception), they’re often of surprisingly high quality. For example, I enjoyed seasons 1 and 2 of “Submissions Only” much more than many popular television shows I’ve seen. I was also impressed by “Burning Love” and “Dirty Work” (just a note: “BL” includes blurred nudity, “DW” language.) Other great shows include “Squaresville” and “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” which is actually a musical of Joss Whedon’s. (When I heard about “Dr. Horrible”, I had a little heart attack. A Whedon musical featuring Felicia Day, Neil Patrick Harris, and Nathan Fillion? The music is fantastic, and the story is powerful. Watch till the end and you’ll understand what I mean.)

Web series come in all shapes and sizes (or lengths, that is.) Just a few examples:

1. “The Lydia Bennet”, a tie-in series with the “Lizzie Bennet Diaries.” Installments last only two or three minutes. Both fictional vlogs are designed to be interactive (discussed at 25:00 in this podcast), and have gained a strong fan base, or “fandom.” Viewers are mostly women, though the age range is wide. The series is sometimes comedic, sometimes dramatic, but always engaging. This series could easily have turned out badly, but luckily both its writers and actors are quite talented. In fact, watching this latest video of Lydia’s prompted me to write a paragraph-length comment on Lydia’s psychology. 
2. “Dirty Work”, a dark comedy from Rides.tv. Episodes last 20 minutes each but are split into three acts. The show provides some fun bonus content, including additional video clips and optional messages to your phone or desktop (sent by the characters, so that the viewer becomes a part of the story.) The show depicts the misadventures of three Los Angelenos working in the crime scene clean up business.
3. “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”, a tragicomedic musical from the wonderful Joss Whedon. It’s split into three 14-minute acts. From Wikipedia: The show tells the story of Dr. Horrible (played by Neil Patrick Harris), an aspiring supervillain; Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion), his nemesis; and Penny (Felicia Day), their shared love interest.

Whatever your interests, whichever experience type you prefer, there’s a web series for you.

Probably, that is. It might just be me, but most web series seem to fit into more specific niches than television shows. For example, though I found “GeekTherapy” to be cute, I found the show dull. (This is mostly because I didn't understand its geeky references.)

If you've never watched a web series, I’d encourage you to look into the media. It has a lot to offer, and can only grow more diverse and engaging with time.

Update: The Lizzie Bennet Diaries eventually went on to win an Emmy, and I fell in love with sequel series Emma Approved as well as Freddy Wong's creation Video Game High School. The 1st season might need some video game knowledge to appreciate, but even clueless me loved season 2.