Week 8 Progress

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I am at the end of week 8 assignments and at 250 points (before submitting this) takes me to around week 9 point wise for an A or a C at week 12 - but I plan on getting an A in this class. I have had a good routine that got me ahead, but I am taking it down a notch and changing it a little.

I still am sticking with M-readings A/B, W-comments/stories-or-lab, and F-project/project feedback. The thing that is different now is that starting week 7 I stopped doing the comments and feedback ahead of time and started waiting to do them till the week they are due. While I am writing my stories a week ahead, I am not posting them till the week they're due. I decided to work during the class schedule for feedback because it was sort of weird commenting ahead on others posts - and also, most people didn't have projects up and running a week early. So while I am at the end of week 8 for most assignments, I wont be doing week 8 feedback until next Friday when I am at the end of week 9.

With these changes, and before them, I have a good routine. I owe a lot of my ability to complete these assignments to my agenda (taking time Sunday to plan the following weeks assignments). This class forces me away from the brutality of physics and organic chemistry and while I love microbiology it's nice to take a step back from that too.

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Week 8 Comments and Feedback

Feedback in is usually pretty great and thought provoking. If there isn't already an option for this, I think a good extra credit assignment would be to revise a story on the blog based on some of the comments. While I want to revise my stories on my own, my course load is so full this semester it's hard to want to spend time on anything that doesn't count towards the grade. I find comments where they give me alternate ideas are the most helpful, as well as comments where they ask questions on why a character did something.

I think the feedback I give is decent, sometimes more helpful than others based on the story I read. A story less than 500 words is hard to provide feedback on that isn't just asking for them to make a longer story and elaborate on parts. Longer stories are easier to comment on. I tend to focus my feedback on any part of the story that I have questions about or if a character was flat I ask the writer to broaden their backstory.

I don't feel like the blog comments are as connecting as they could be, I would rather reply directly to a comment than to start a new one on their blog - but the downside is they won't get my response as a notification.  I think that would really help the communication in this class if there were a way to get notified on comment responses to your comment instead of comments on a post.

I actually just changed my comment wall to create more of an interest in my story. As far as my introduction goes, I think it still sums me up well.  So far, I have only received one comment on my story and just based on that and Laura's email there are a lot of ways I can make my story better. If that's just based on two revision comments (well, one comment and an email) then I can't imagine how helpful it will be once I get more comments on my story.

I chose this image from the Feedback Cats because I often feel bad and get a little stressed whenever I see comments that are not negative, but aren't good - like when something I wrote was confusing, or all of the grammar mistakes I make. However, I know to remind myself this is more or less a stress free class that's just about creativity, and also - everyone makes grammar mistakes.

Week 8: Reading and Writing

PART ONE: Blog and Website Check-Up.

I liked my original layout, but one classmate pointed out the bright blue colored text was very contrasted against the black screen so I switched to black text and a soft blue/teal background. This isn't the aesthetic I was going for in my blog, since I try to write sad or scary stories but teal is my favorite color. Maybe when I get bored Ill try something darker that still isn't an eye strain.

I love my project website, the only thing is I can't figure out how to make a black background for the text - but I don't want to cause a case of eye strain again so I'm happy with just creating banners and adding images to adjust the mood of the story. I am less in-love with my project title, but I can't really think of anything other than Making a Murderer; although, it might be confusing to some. I have never watched that show, but I am borrowing the title because it basically sums up what happens - the witches (subjectively) make Lady Macbeth a murderer.

PART TWO. Reading and Stories.

My reading notes have definitely gotten less descriptive as the class has gone on - that something I'll need to work on if I want to write better stories. The reason I chose to write my most recent story on a Russian reading notes instead of that weeks Asian/Indian notes was because I didn't like the stories I read; however, it could have also been because I didn't take detailed notes or ask myself questions. The headless princess story prompted a lot of questions that inspired me to write the story I did. So if I don't like the story or it isn't long enough to write detailed notes, I need to make sure I ask questions that I could write answers to.

PART THREE: Blog Post.

I'm happier with my website than my blog, but I think that's because it is one project verses many stories mixed with posts about the class or assignments. My biggest accomplishment is a tie between Shuffle in the Night and the storybook project.

Shuffle in the Night was a hard story to write that I got very frustrated with because it didn't end how I wanted it too. It was also my first story, so I was a little embarrassed and didn't want to post it. But the story came out better than my original idea, teaching me it's okay to go off course. And just like with my paintings, although I do them for myself, it's nice to show the world something I created.

My storybook is something I'm proud of because I was really scared to commit to something and didn't think I was a good enough writer to work on a large story all semester long. But here I am, two stories in and they were both written in single sittings. I am also excited to write the last two stories, which I already have a million ideas for. Although I am writing it like a Shakespeare play, I am considering switching it up to a normal book-type narrative (if I ever have the free time to do that, that is).

The photo above is from my second set of reading notes over Macbeth. I chose this because while it represents a part of the story where a gate keeper is babbling about being the gate keeper of hell instead of the kingdom, it found it's way into my storybook project; the witches receive a message in the introduction from Satan telling them soon the veil will be thin enough to open his inferno doors. 

As I said, I am really looking forward to writing the last two stories and I hope they aren't so long that they deter anyone from reading. For my reading notes, I need to ask more questions and engage myself in the stories - something that is very important when it comes to stories I am not very interested in.

Reading Notes: Horse's Head or Silkworm Goddess, Part A

I decided to give Chinese Fairy Tales a try this week for extra credit. I usually read Russian stories as extra credit, but I have been reading this book called The Poppy Wars by author R. F. Kuang who studies Chinese history and wrote the fantasy fiction in a very similar light to Chinese history (it's an awesome book so far FYI). Off topic - this is the first book I have read where the author is younger than me (she's only 22!)

China: The Girl with the Horse’s Head or the Silkworm Goddess

The Chinese Fairy Book, ed. by R. Wilhelm and translated by Frederick H. Martens (1921).

An old man went away leaving behind his daughter and white horse, who fed the horse everyday in his absence. One day she told the horse if it brought back her father she would marry the horse. As soon as she uttered the words, the horse ran and brought back her father. 

During the travel back, the father thought something was wrong to be seeing the horse. He tried feeding the horse but it would not eat. When the horse returned, it tried to bite the girl. Confused, the father asked why and the girl explained what she had asked of the horse. She was very embarrassed so the father killed the horse and went back on his journey. 

Another day after all this happened, the daughter was out walking with a friend and scolded what was left of the horse for wanting to marry a human. As she taunted the dead hide, the horse hide wrapped around the girl and ran away with her. Her friend was horrified and ran home to tell her father what had happened. The neighbors all looked for the girl but never found her. 

One day, they found her hanging from a tree branch still wrapped in horse hide and she turned into a silkworm, weaving herself a cocoon. Her friend took her off of the tree and helped her out of the cocoon and took the silk for profit. 

The girl's relatives missed her so much. The girl rode through the sky in the clouds and told her family she was assigned the duty of watching over the silkworms, and that they should not miss her anymore. 

Her family built a temple to her and every year sacrificed and made offerings in her name asking for protection. She is known as the silkworm goddess but also the girl with a horses head. 

After Thoughts

Okay - weird origin story. So she turns down the idea of bestiality, only to be kidnapped and then turned into a goddess of silk but she has a horse face. Why does this remind me of BoJack Horseman?

BoJack

Week 7 Story: Careful Wording

“Why am I so ugly?” the princess asked her self. She was wealthy and smart, but ugly as sin. One day she became so upset by her appearance that she broke her mirror and stormed out the house. She walked the woods much farther than she had ever ventured before and came upon a witch.

“Oh enchantress, can you help make me beautiful? Will you replace my terrible looks with something better?”

The princess knew the risk of asking a witch for help, but she was willing to take any chance to become something pretty.

“I can give you a new face, a new head, to crown your body with that shall match the crown you already wear”.

Her crown was quite a site to see, and she was so delighted she immediately asked for the witch to change her.

“Here, drink this and your head shall match your crown.” Without a second thought the girl downed the whole bottle, and suddenly - everything went black! She could not speak, she could not see, she could not hear a thing! Frantic she started panicking until suddenly felt a weight on her neck.

“There - a head as beautiful as your crown.” The witch gave the girl a mirror - and it was true! Her skin was smooth, her teeth were straight, her hair shined.

“Oh thank you so much!” The princess started to turn, but as she did the witch laughed.

“You vain idiot, you forgot the glue!”

The princess was confused, “what glue?” she asked.

“Why, to keep your new head on of course. Your crown is beautiful but it is not apart of you, just like this head is beautiful but not apart of you. And as you must shine a crown every day to keep it pristine, you must take off and clean your head every day - otherwise it will become infected and explode.”

The princess was appalled and angry by the witches actions. “I asked to be beautiful, and you have cursed me!”

“You asked for me to replace your terrible looks with something better, I have done exactly that!” said the witch - and to it the princess replied with a knife. She lunged at the witch and stabbed her to death.

As she died, the witch's body glowed a sickly green. The light that surrounded her rose into the air. The princess was so struck by the sudden oddity she couldn’t do anything but stare. As she gazed, the light suddenly plunged into her heart. Now the princess was not just cursed, but also a witch.

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Authors Note:

When I read the original Russian story it was about a headless princess who was also a witch. A young boy passed by her window and saw her washing her head, and when she died she basically haunted him as revenge when he told everyone what he saw. The Russian stories always leave me with questions as they’re wild and all over the place. This one made me want to write a story about how a princess would end up as a witch with a removable head.

Reading Notes: The Three Evils, Part B.

The Chinese Fairy Book, ed. by R. Wilhelm and translated by Frederick H. Martens (1921).

A young man was kind of a brat, and he was a strong brat that no one would discipline. He dressed of wealth, gambled and drank, stole from others, and overall was just a real jerk.

One day, a new guy came to town and heard all the peoples' complaints, of which were the three evils. He dressed as a poor man and sat in front of the young man's house - crying. When the young man found him at his doorstep he made fun of him, and said there was nothing to cry about.

The new guy told him of the three evils. 1 a  dragon that lives in a river making it flow very high and drowns everyone near it 2 a tiger 3 the young man.

The young man was ashamed and set out to make life better. He slayed the tiger and pulled the dragon from the water after killing it.

To deal with the final evil, he left his village and became a soldier. He won a great reputation in battle and after he could no longer fight, fell upon his sword to atone for his sinful life.

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Reading Notes: Why Dog and Cat are Enemies, Part A

The Chinese Fairy Book, ed. by R. Wilhelm and translated by Frederick H. Martens (1921).

There once lived a couple that did not know the ring they had was what gave them wealth, and so they pawned it. After it was gone, things became very bad and they could not feed themselves or their animals. The dog formed a plan that the cat would threaten a mouse to chew a hole in the chest where the ring now laid. The cat did so, but needed help getting to the mouse by crossing the river. The dog helped without a second thought. On the way home, the dog took longer because he could not jump over houses like the cat could. Once home, the dog found the owners praising the cat and then it was beaten for not having helped the cat. Now dogs always hate cats for their selfish ways. 

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Reading Notes: The Headless Princess, Part B

This week I chose, surprise, Russian myths. I think I am probably going to keep reading them as my extra credit until the stories run out, as I am really enjoying them.

Russian Fairy Tales by W. R. S. Ralston (1887).

A king had a daughter who was a witch, nearby a priest lived and had a son of 10 years old who was learning how to read and write. One day he passed by the window of a princess, and he saw her dressing and noticed that she took off her head! She cleaned it and put it back on. He told anyone who would listen about what he saw.

One day, the headless witch became sick. She demanded if she died that the priest’s son reads something called a psalter over her three nights in a row. When she died, the king ordered the son to do as the princess had wished. The boy was unhappy, and when he told his teacher about it she gave him a knife for protection to trace a circle around him. She warned him he should do his work, but not to look up from the reading no matter what happened.

When he started reading, the princess rose from her grave, furious he had been a peeping tom and a gossip. She rushed the boy, but the circle protected him. She made all kinds of horrible hallucinations happen, but he never looked up. Once the sun came up, she went back to her coffin. The second night the same thing happened. The third night though, the teacher gave him a hammer and four nails, to nail the coffin shut and to hold the hammer when he started reading.

When the princess tried to leave, she found she couldnt and was furious. She made him think the church was on fire, but he did not look and when the day came the church was fine. As the princess rushed her coffin.-The king found her inside the coffin the next day, lid open and her body face down. The king found out from the boy what had happened, and a stake was driven through her chest. He rewarded the boy for his bravery with money and land. 

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End Thoughts

I love how at a loss I always am for these stories. Was the reading causing her to rise, or did she know she would rise and wanted him to be there to torment him, and the reading was a distraction for him? Why was she headless? Why did she die? Why punish a boy in the wrong place, wrong time? Why did the teacher have all the answers - was she a witch too? Maybe she had cursed the princess for some wrongdoing? Who knows, but this gives me an idea for a story.

And About My Image Choice 

I love the movie Mars Attacks! and when I searched for "female headless horseman" on google, the image results made me think of this scene in the movie where a lady whose obsessed with her dog gets a little switch-a-roony during one of the alien's experiments. If you are in the mood to watch a crazy weird and funny 90's movie, this would be a good start!

Week 6 Story: What You Give is What You Get

There once was a girl named Coral so beautiful that all the men in the land wished to take her hand in marriage. The king was distraught, as he felt no man was good enough for her; however, there were three brothers who were the son of a rival kingdom that wished to wed her. Seeking to form an alliance and to make peace, he allowed his daughter to pick one of them.

The girl was as kind as she was pretty, so she was herself distraught by the choice; she did not wish to hurt two of the three men's feelings, so she delayed the decision spending time with each of them. One brother was a priest, the other a smith, and the third a gardener. The men all loved talking with her, they took any chance they could to boast about why they would make the best husband.

But the decision would never be made, as one day she became ill and died.

All three men were grief stricken, they had spent so much time courting her they had not thought of the possibility of none of them getting her.

The priest was so struck with sadness he lost all faith and revoked his dedication to God. The smith was so depressed sailed out alone to sea. The gardener was so miserable he surrounded his house in rose thorns so no one would try to visit him.

One day at sea, the smith heard of a spell that could bring the dead back to life. Finding this prospect of having the chance at wedding that beautiful girl again he rushed back home to tell his brothers. He needed the priest to perform the ritual and he needed the gardener to collect the herbs for it.

They set about performing the ritual, and as they gathered around her grave they bickered on what would happen once she was back.

"Well obviously I should have her, as I am the one able to perform this ceremony." said the priest

"You may perform it, but I supply it with the needed ingredients. I should be her husband." said the gardener.

"None of this would be possible if I had not found the ritual. I am the one she should be with." said the smith.

They argued throughout the entire ceremony, and their selfish, vain bickering turned the herbs sour. The earth quaked, the sky darkened, and from her grave she rose; Coral came back to life, but she was a beautiful girl no more.

"Oh all that is holy, what menace is upon is!" said the priest

Coral was now a hideous shell of her former self. Her hair, before beautiful golden locks, now was slimy dreads filled with electric charge and pulsating leafs. Her skin, once a white porcelain canvas, now a rocky field of craters and protruding rocks of purples, yellows, reds, and many other unnatural colors.

The men were so horrified, they immediately threw her off of the nearest cliff they could find. She didn't even have time to comprehend what had happened in the time she rose to the time they rejected her so heinously.

The smith went back to the person from whom he received the spell, and asked why Coral was brought back so terrible looking.

"You had the ingredients, and you had a holy - or once holy man - to perform the spell. But what you did not have was genuine love for who you wished to return to the land of the living. Your shallow affection brought her back, but brought her back only as you deserved - hideous and untouchable."

The brothers' bad karma was not over yet, as the king had found out what they had done. 

"You disrupted my daughter's eternal resting place and may have dammed her soul from heavenly grounds. There is no alliance to be had with a king who raised you three!" The king waged war, decimating the opposing kingdom and banishing the sons to live lives of nomads.

While Coral was brought back from the dead as a multicolored monster, some beauty came from her sad story. As her body fell into the water from the cliff she had been cast from, she melted into the waters and became home to millions of others who appreciated all she had to offer. She became a new kind of beauty, she became the coral reef.

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Authors Note:

I was really inspired to write this story after reading the original, so I decided to write a story instead of doing the story-lab this week.

I took some of the things the men did and turned it into their jobs in this story. One man became a monk after the girl died, so I made him a priest. Another dipped her bones into the sea, so the only thing I could think of was a smith (someone who dips hot weapons into water) and made him the one travel to travel and find the spell to bring her back. The last I made a gardener, as he was the one to build a hut and sleep on her ashes. In the original story it was all focused on how pretty she was, so I made the point that the men had no real love for her, only her appearance; and in the end, none of them got her. I didn't want to end it as a happy-ever-after story, but I didn't want her to end up as just a prospect for some other guy to marry. So I gave her a sad spin, coming back hideous instead of pretty and her name in the original story gave me an idea to make this a creation story of how the coral reef was made. From that I was also inspired by Medusa's story, she was so hideous her gaze even turned sand to stone (or a coral reef, in the greek creation story).

Reading Notes: Goblins: The Snake's Poison, Part B

Story source: Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur W. Ryder, with illustrations by Perham W. Nahl (1917).

A prince wakes to see his wife has been taken, unknowingly to him by a fairy named Love-Speed. He is very distraught and his family tries to console him to no avail. He gave all he had to the Brahmans and set off to search holy places for his wife. He roamed through dreaded heat. The wife of Brahmans felt bad for him, seeing him starving she gave him food to take to eat near their pond. Right as he was about to eat, a passing hawk with a snake in it's claws died and dripped poison onto his dish without him seeing it. He thought the wife of Brahmans poisoned him, and as she searched for a doctor he died. Brahmans did not believe her, and thought she poisoned him on purpose. 

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The goblin tells this story to the king, and asks who killed the man - the hawk, snake, or wife. The king said none of them were to blame, as the man was to blame for accusing the woman of poisoning him. 

Reading Notes: Goblins: The Three Lovers, Part A

Story source: Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur W. Ryder, with illustrations by Perham W. Nahl (1917).

A girl was very pretty, and she attracted the attention of three brothers. For fear of hurting the feelings of two of the three, she waited to decide who she would marry. However, one day she died. Her body was burned to ashes that one brother slept on and got food by begging, another took her bones to dip in sacred rivers, and the third traveled the world as a monk.
The monk brother found a woman who threw her child in the fire, but she brought him back to life within seconds. The monk stole the book she had used, in hopes of bringing the girl - Coral - back to life as beautiful as ever. They fought over who should have her, and went to the king to decide.
The king knew who should have her, and if he did not say he was cursed so that his head would explode. The king decided the monk did what a father would do, so he could not be the husband. The one who kept her bones did what a son should do, so he could not be the husband. The one who slept with her ashes however, did what a lover would do - so he should be the husband.

Coral is like a phoenix, from the ashes she rose. 

Reading Notes: The Three Copecks, Part A

I really loved the Dead Mother story when I was just exploring the UnTextbook, so I thought I would do some reading notes over another Russian Fairy Tale. I chose this one because I had no idea what Copecks were (Russian currency, the more you know).

The Three Copecks

A poor orphan didn't have a penny to his name, so he offered to work for one copeck a year for a rich moujik. When he was paid, he through it down a well thinking if it floated he could keep it and if it sank then he did not deserve it. The next year the same thing happened. The third year, the moujik gave him a rouble instead of a copeck. The orphan demanded a copeck and once it was recieved he threw it down the well. To his surprise, not one but three copecks were floating. He took them and went to town. In town, he saw three horrible children hurting a kitten, and gave his three copecks for it. To earn (money?) again he started working for a merchant. When the business became successful, the merchant asked the boy for his kitten to keep his goods safe from mice out at sea. The orphan agreed, warning him if he lost the cat there would be hell to pay. The merchant then went to a land far away that had never heard of cats. When the landlord offering a room to him was hoping he would die from the rat infestation, he was surprised the little cat kept him safe and killed all the rats. The landlord asked the merchant for the cat, the merchant accepted the offer of a trifle of gold, enough of it to hide the cat with. On his way home, the merchant thought to keep the gold to himself and share none with the orphan. Suddenly, a storm threatened to sink their ship. The merchant realized this was the hell to pay the orphan spoke of, and swore he would pay him back. When he arrived to shore, he gave the orphan all the gold. The orphan used it to buy incense and burn it for God. An old man appeared and asked if he wanted riches or women, and the boy said he didn't know. The old man said to ask three brothers plowing what they thought he should do. The orphan did, and the boys said to ask the eldest brother - somehow, a three year old was the oldest and he told the orphan to ask for a good wife. The orphan did, and then became a husband.

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What an odd story! The cat part got me sad - I adore animals and feel terrible just seeing roadkill. I though there would be a moral to the story... maybe it is that if you are honest and good you will be rewarded? I'm not sure, but I love the bizarre world of Russian fairy tales. 

Week 5 Story: The Crocodile's Side

It was nothing before, I do not remember where I came from and that I am only here now, looking up at this man. He is angry, he is sad. I want to help make his heart whole again. I need to help make him smile again. 

"Bring me the youth who has defiled my wife". He shows me a painting on the wall of the woman who has been tainted. 

Having a task to do for him, I eagerly dive into the water. I dive deep, and swim until I see something odd. Four wildly moving sticks, or maybe a plant of some kind, penetrate the surface and into these waters. I swim closer, but not close enough that the sun can reflect off of me. As I close the distance, I see the woman from the painting and realize these are not sticks or plants but the legs of two people. One is his wife, so the other must be the youth. With a speed I did not know I had, I strike the youth's legs and drag him to the depths. How I should make him suffer, for the suffering of my master must have revenge - but he did not say to harm him, only to bring him. So bring him I shall. 

Out of the water I crawl, and spit out this vermin to my king. He is glad to see I have accomplished what he asked, but the smile dose not reach his eyes. I am tasked with taking the youth back into the water, somewhere so deep no one will ever find him again. He bids me farewell, and commands me live a life like a natural creature would when I am done. 

After abandoning the youth in a deep cave under the water, I swim back towards the surface. I hope to see the man again, I hope him knowing that youth is forever gone will bring him peace. I break the surface just enough so that my eyes can see, as I see other creatures like me do. Off in the distance, I see a crowd and the man. They tie the wife to a pole, I assume so that no other youths will touch her again. My assumption is almost right, as no youth or anyone can touch her now that she is on fire. I cannot understand why he would do such harm to this woman, since he asked me to do so much harm to the man who courted her. If he loved her so much to hate this man enough to banish the youth to an abyss, why banish her in flames? 

I watch until the crowd disperses, leaving only the man on his knees looking up at the flames. It is very quiet now, and he is more melancholy than when we first met. He stays at the fire, until the fire is no more, and the woman is no more. In his despair, he turns to look across the water and sees me. He approaches the distance, I am so thrilled at the idea of another task that might make him happy. 

"I know no feelings other than heartache, as revenge has not snuffed out the fire in my heart like the flames that have snuffed out that harlot's existence. Do me one last task, and take me to the bottom of the lake". 

As his wish is my command, and as I only hope this will ease his pain, I do as he wishes. It takes me several moments to reach the bottom of the lake, and upon my last look at this man, he seems to have found peace in these deep waters. 

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Author's Note

I wrote this story from the crocodiles point of view. I have pretty strong feelings about cheating, but I don't agree with what the husband did so to avoid being biased I wrote the point of view from the crocodile. I wrote an extended ending of the original story, to illustrate that for most situations revenge does not fix what was broken. In the story I gave the crocodile a duckling like attachment to the scribe - he is the person who brought him to life and the first person he saw so this is my reasoning for him doing whatever he commands. He also is so new to the world, I decided to make him a little naive so he doesn't understand death, only understanding emotion and having some what of an object permanence issue (the wife is there and then the wife is gone to him - banished, not killed). I decided that if the man was so enraged by the affair to kill both the youth and his wife, it isn't such a crazy notion that he might kill himself once the dust settles. Original story.