Who needs to hear another ‘oh woe, I’m sick’ tale, I know, but as I’m still wandering around the brain fog that I’m calling “whatever the hell I’ve got” I’ve done a lot of internet consuming lately (without a whole lot of creating). Here’s some of what I’ve been reading/watching that I think is worthy of a share.
Flavorwire has a list of the 50 of the Greatest Characters in Literature. I liked it because for all the worthy usual suspects that such lists throw out (Jane Eye, Holden Caulfield, Humbert Humbert, Holly Golightly etc) it also features characters from novels/plays/books I’ve either always intended to read or never heard of before. It also has delightfully surprising inclusions, such as Beatrice from Much Ado About Nothing.
Speaking of Much Ado About Nothing, just this week I saw the 2012 Joss Whedon adaptation. It was an indie smash when first released, but I was reluctant to watch (Whedon fan that I am) because I hold the Kenneth Branagh version in such high esteem. I needn’t have feared – they are both excellent; Branagh’s is better in places, but Whedon’s is better in others. No-one can really compare to Emma Thompson’s Beatrice, although Acker does a fine job. The way she delivered her line “I would eat his heart in the marketplace” really shows – to get back to point – Beatrice’s ferocity of spirit.
‘How Your Mission Drives Your Strategy‘ on The Creativity Post is full of business-y jargon that I – frankly – skimmed, but no doubt will be of interest to the more strategically-minded, however I liked it for its simplicity of message in the title. Too often in blogging circles, I see people tie themselves up in to worry knots about how to content market with meaning and pizzazz, before first thinking through what it is they’re trying to say (or sell), before even that thinking what their mission is going to be. Sometimes that’s from a lack of clarity or refinement. If you need a hand in that area, I recommend this great video from Marie Forleo.
Movie fans will enjoy this video – the 100 Most Iconic Shots of All Time.
The Atlantic has a very popular piece ‘How Stephen King Teaches Writing‘. This quote about his take on short stories is interesting:
My rule of thumb is that a short story of 3,000 words should be rewritten down to 2,500. It’s not always true, but mostly it is. You need to take out the stuff that’s just sitting there and doing nothing. No slackers allowed! All meat, no filler!
And because my favourite book is Dracula, naturally I liked this:
Lahey: You warn writers not to “come lightly to the blank page.” How can teachers encourage kids to come the blank page with both gravity and enthusiasm?
King: It went best for me when I could communicate my own enthusiasm. I can remember teaching Dracula to sophomores and practically screaming, “Look at all the different voices in this book! Stoker’s a ventriloquist! I love that!” I don’t have much use for teachers who “perform,” like they’re onstage, but kids respond to enthusiasm. You can’t command a kid to have fun, but you can make the classroom a place that feels safe, where interesting things happen. I wanted every 50-minute class to feel like half an hour.
Have a good weekend! x
