Fixing my book: Thorn
Fittingly, just in time for November, last week while traveling for work I had an idea of how to rework my first novel. I wrote it a few years ago and I've just been sitting on it. The number of people who I've let read it can be counted on one hand. Because, simply, it's bad. I know it is. It's meant to be. It's my first novel.
But, last week, I had an idea which will require a great deal of work, but which has me excited for it. It might be the key to leveling up the story. Basically, I'm going to swap two characters in the book in the plot. Not just in name, but swap them in the plot an rewrite it around this swap.
It's going to make me basically rewrite significant portions of the book. But I truly think it will be better.
I'm going to try an finish this rewrite by the end of the year. I originally wrote the book as part of NaNoWriMo, but I won't lock myself in the 30 day cage for this.
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My To-Be-Reads
I literally partake in Tsundoku with my ereader, adding far more books than I consume. But doing so brings me immense joy to see my virtual library and know that there is always a large variety of books available for me when I'm ready. Above is a look at the most recently added books to my ereader.
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Did an hour of writing this morning. It felt like exercising for the first time in months. Slow at first, but gained speed and momentum as I went.
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Dunk tanks have a hugely racist origin
Discovered courtesy of a link from kottke, who in turn found it on bluesky.
The African dodger, also known as Hit the Coon, was a popular American carnival game from the late 19th century up to the mid-1940s. It involved an African-American man sticking his head out through a hole in a curtain and trying to dodge balls thrown at him. Hits were rewarded with prizes. People were seriously injured or reportedly even killed after being struck. In response to attempts to ban it, a less dangerous game was invented called the African dip, in which a person was dropped into a tank of water if a target was hit by a ball. Popular Mechanics noted in 1910 that African dodger had become "too old and commonplace" and was being replaced with dunk tanks, in which an African American would fall into a tank of water when a target was hit with a ball. The illustration accompanying the article shows a game labelled "Drop the Chocolate Drop" and is captioned "Amusing to All but the Victim".
Generally, the African Dip is recognized as overtly racist. One variant, at Chicago's Riverview amusement park, was named "Dunk the Nigger" until the early 1950s when it was renamed "African Dip". The NAACP protested the attraction in the 1940s, and it was eventually shut down in the mid-1950s.
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Automated Archives for October, 31st 2024
This post was automatically generated
Articles To Read
The following are articles that I saved today. Substance and quality will vary drastically.
- What is the “Cyclopean Cave” — and why are these guys hauling buckets of Colorado mud to find it?
- Should you feel guilty about using AI?
- Workers Say They Were Tricked and Threatened as Part of Elon Musk’s Get-Out-the-Vote Effort
Chess For the Day
Record: 1-0-3
Net Elo Change: -9
Games Played
Blog Posts On This Day
- 1 year ago (1 post)
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