#1, written 5/24/2014 - A Tribute to the Graduates

Hey, hey all~  I'm baaack from a (I shouldn't say this, but I lost my backside during the school year because I worked it off, so I'll say it - "deserved") vacation to Florida.

YES.  BE JEALOUS.

Like I said, during the vacation, I managed to write a blog post...every...single...bloody...day...and, needless to say, the experience of having an obligation during vacation was terrible.  I don't care how little I blog in the future; the tired, ineloquent, cwazy version of me refuses to stay up until 1 o'clock in the morning writing for you all on vacation.

...but, hey, I did indeed follow through with my obligations and wrote one entry for each of the seven days of my vacation.  Therefore, today, I shall post the first of those entries, and, in the following six days, I shall post the rest of the entries, sound good?
Cool.  Here you go:

~ ~ ~

Separation hurts.

Graduation is supposed to be a lovely time of freedom, a coming-of-age celebration, and a noble, honorable introduction to the real world.  For those who are graduating, I'm certain it must be exactly that because graduates are jumping in the air, laughing, dancing.  I, however, am left behind, caught in between two worlds, neither of which I am truly a part.  Today, one of those worlds walked away, garbed in blue and strung in gold...

CALEB - has been a childhood friend, a boy I've known my whole life with sandy-blond hair and a cheeky grin constantly present on his teasing face.  He had never been really close to me when we were young, but, recently, because he's been trying to join an RP blog of which I am part and has been working on a podcast with my older brother, I've seen him more often, and I've learned to appreciate him, his wry humor, and the way he jokes at me like an older brother.  Expert video game player, skilled craftsman, and educationally sound, Caleb has blown into my life and, now, out of it like a whirlwind.  When I saw him tonight at the reception to the graduation, I wanted to beg him to slow down...slow down and stay and laugh and brighten the world with your jesting and indomitable spirit of cheer...

...but you must leave...you must go far away...

KENDAL - Shakira blond hair, tall, and strong, is the older version of me: boyish, chill, and an absolute boss in basketball.  (Okay, well, maybe that last one doesn't count; I haven't played basketball in a very long, shameful period of time.)  However, sometimes, the rampant life I run suffocates me, the stress drags me under, and everyone knows it...

...but not Kendal...

I've never seen her frown, though I've tried hard to recall one time, anytime, when she displayed frustration or fear.

Life sucks?  She grins back.

School stealing her life?  She smirks.

Public school friends destroying themselves?  She shrugs and entrusts all to God.

Even though she admits her failures and difficulties openly, Kendal has very nearly mastered the secret to remaining joyful in pain, trusting in havoc, and firm in her faith.  I don't know anyone who is more at peace in trials than Kendal, and, being much more naive than her, I want her to remain a part of my life - always reminding me of the bright side of things and properly dealing with my darkness, a steady rational approach behind her easy smile.

Why must you too leave?  Why must you go far away?

MICHAEL - is yin if I am yang.

When I'm insane and raging over the injustices of the world, he's gentle and level-headed.  When I can't take myself any more seriously, he's a natural comedian, arriving in time to make me smirk and lighten up a little.  While I'm awkward and stubborn, he makes my worst, most-intentional mistakes into acceptable accidents and melts my severe pertinaciousness into willing submission.

Throughout my life, ever since I was five, he's been right next to me: boyishly kicking at a vending machine in hopes of getting a soda out by force, evading my wild competition and sprint race challenges because of his preteen "chivalry", and sharing second-born, grade-skipping woes with me.  Now, though, I know that I have just lost my constant companion to the massive gap that is between high school and college.  He's far too elusive, far too high up - just like he is when he climbs three-story tall trees - for me to even dream of reaching him, far too ahead of me...

...he has left...he has gone far away...

CHARISSA - oh...where to begin my tribute to the sweetest, purest, most godly young woman I know?  Maybe to say that I aspire to be like her would paint a few images in the imagination's picture.  Maybe to note, with a wink, that she cannot write realistic antagonists because she has kept herself from the lies of the world would bring about an inkling of an idea as to who Charissa is in my own dirty, deceitful life.  Maybe I could merely write down a description paragraph on how miserable I feel to know that she'll be departing from local lodging to a foreign place...

...but those things would only scratch the surface of my emotions...

What about how diligent she is in checking up with me and my crazy, monstrous dimensions?  What about the natural aura of control, calmness, and beauty that she brings to the most chaotic of situations?  What about her hidden competition and aggressive fire for victory?  What about her charm and intelligence and academic focus?  What about her love of God?

How encouraged I always am by the slightest comfort she gives me...she loves God so dearly, and I want her to be near me so that I might continue to feel her love for God and her humility, so that I could mimic her, so that I might reach her level of righteousness, if only she would stay here with her organized room, her gentle brown eyes, and her silky, waved brown hair...

...but she must leave...she must go far away, intangible and yet still in her own definition of perfection.

I hate separation.

~ ~ ~

Write on!
Clove
P.S. Favorite part of day 1 on vacation: we went to a sushi place called Mr. Fuji's, and...have I ever told you how much I love sushi?  I love sushi.  (っ˘ڡ˘ς)  Worst part of day 1 on vacation: the rest stop that we ate lunch at was infested with red and black ants, to which I am freakishly allergic.

Lifical - An Update

Freshman year?

Check.

Sophomore year?

Check.

Was this year any better than last year?

Nope.

Unfortunately, because I have glasses and am Asian, I'm instantly stereotyped in my real life school as a nerd who sets the bar high for "normal people", aka. my classmates.  Most of the time, if I try to talk to other teens, they say I'm "superior-complexing" them or am just "basic"...so I'm more often found alone with my notebook for writing and headphones for music than with the typical crowd of giggling, happy high-schoolers.

Does that suit me?

Heck, yes.

However, that doesn't suit this blog very much.  If you guys haven't noticed, I've been a bit sloppy with my production rate of posts recently, and that's all generally because life has decided to vomit all over me with the above case of pseudo-bullying...oh, and finals...oh, and I was busy orchestrating a party for some of my friends (which I didn't, alas, even end up attending)...and, plus, you know, like, my one and only best friend and older brother is graduating tomorrow.  .·´¯`(>▂<)´¯`·.  Without him, I think I'm going to die...

Regardless, the busyness of life does not pardon my lack of blogging.  Therefore, as an apology, I've decided that starting tomorrow (the 23rd of May) to next Saturday (the 31st of May), I'm going to write a small bit about something or another to post up here.  That'll be eight consecutive posts of my writing...quite an apology, if I say so myself.  x)  Now, due to a vacation during seven of those days, I will not have internet, though, so you can expect the eight consecutive posts to be up starting on the first of June.  ^_^

Meanwhile, I hope you, dear readers, haven't been slacking off on your own writing.  :)  Tell me about which projects you've got going in the comment box below and, of course...

Write on!
Clove

WHY ARE WE SCREAMING?!!!

I've a pet peeve rant.

About SCREAMING.

While SCREAMING.

And why all the SCREAMING, you ask?

Because of SCREAMING.

In writing.

Guys, !!! are meant for when your characters are LITERALLY YELLING, okay?  Raising your voice is not considered screaming, and the number of !!! is not going to change how loud I hear your character's voice in my head.  If you use !!! anywhere other than where it's practical, youuu...get this:

(Enjoy your daily laugh and a short respite from the raging monotony of this post.)

Now, I understand, sometimes, you have strange situations where suddenness is required and yelling seems to be in place.  For example, let's pretend that Eriana has a fatal peanut allergy and her best friend Julia invited her out to Five Guys (which, for those of you who don't know, is the Southern In-and-Out wanna-be with complimentary peanuts, peanut, peanuts ebereeware).  The scene might look like this:

     Walking the street with her best friend, Julia folded her hands behind her neck in the afternoon heat and asked, "So, you want to grab a burger at Five Guys with me?"
     Eriana replied, "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

…

(⊙.☉)

...

(╬ Ò ‸ Ó)

...

(/-o-)/ ⌒ ┤

…

…aaand, I quit my job as an editor.

DO THIS, AND I'LL FLAY YOU ALIVE…or…I mean…if you give me writing with that many !!! in that context…I'll…er…flay your writing…alive?

You get my point.
Just don't do it.

"But I don't know how else to say this, CloooOOOooove," you argue.

Well, I'm SOOO GLAD YOU ASKED.  *mumbles inaudibly*



Edit 1.) For Pete's sake, get rid of all those bloody exclamation marks, okay?  One is good enough, and anymore than one is immature and unprofessional.

Edit 2.) Lengthen, lengthen, LENGTHEN.  Contrary to common instinct, you DON'T want to be sudden suddenly.  You want to be DETAILED and LENGTHY instead.  For example:

     Walking the street with her best friend, Julia folded her hands behind her neck in the afternoon heat and asked, "So, you want to grab a burger at Five Guys with me?"
     Eriana, who had been smiling and pacing side by side with Julia, suddenly stopped and felt her jaunty grin fade away.  As terrible as an earthquake and as consuming as a tsunami, one memory came upon her of the time when Julia had fed her peanut butter cookies without realizing that she was deathly allergic to the small legume.  Standing under the baking sun, Eriana could remember feeling her throat swell, her tongue balloon, and her only source of air squeeze away, further, distant…until...no matter what she did, she couldn't get oxygen.
     She had been seconds from death…mere seconds…
     Instinctively, Eriana recoiled, her back tingling with sweat, and snapped, "NO!"

LENGTHEEEN, get it?  Julia's question is setting the reader to expect a relaxing evening over delicious, greasy food.  Suddenly throwing in a "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" directly after her suggestion would be to nab your reader's expectations and leave him/her standing in the dust of Confusion Land, hopelessly scrambling to figure out where he/she went wrong.
Instead, by lengthening your suddenness and adding more detail (that occurs over a second of time, at most), you're leading your reader along by the hand and gently saying, "No, no, what you thought was going to happen isn't going to happen.  Do you want to know what will happen?  Let me show you what will happen.  Ooo, yes, things look bad, don't they?  Aren't you excited to see what will happen next?"

Edit 3.) As a less-desirable option, (though I'm still calling it an option because sometimes it's too awkward to do anything else), LENGTHEN AFTERWARDS.

     Walking the street with her best friend, Julia folded her hands behind her neck in the afternoon heat and asked, "So, you want to grab a burger at Five Guys with me?"
     Instinctively recoiling, Eriana scowled and snapped, "No!  Oh my gosh, what the heck, Julia?  I'm allergic to peanuts.  You almost killed me the last time you tried to feed me peanut butter cookies, remember?"

Okay?  Okay.

All right?  All right.

We're good?  We're good.

Write on!  (<--- NOTE: the single exclamation mark.)
Clove

Individualism, a twenty-first century epidemic

...my younger brother - curious, little engineer that he is - popped out the right arrow key on our keyboard, and now it won't go back in.  o.o

...  *clear throat*  ...

Well, hi, guys.

I've another serious post for you all.  Ready?

Worldview digestion and practical literary application (here, have a dictionary) begins now~!

I've noticed that just about everyone I know is also talking about "independency", "forging their own path", and "making their own truths".  "Haters will hate," they say, "and I can live how I want without regret."  The strongest and most courageous of our current world are - let's face it - those who can defy their consciences and abort their babies, marry the same gender, or claim outright that they don't believe in God.
Many are blindly pushing towards some illusive ideal called "individualism", but so many hordes are pushing that "individualism" means practically nothing now.  Really, in an effort to be "different", everyone is bunched into similar communities where they are made to run the same life under the same authority with the blurry illusion that we're all really headed to self-change.

...but...wait a second.  Why on earth were people even pressing for "individualism" in the first place?  Even if they were, how did they know to mesh into these "communities"?  Did everyone just get the idea to do the same thing all at once?

Enter:
Media.

Specifically:
Writing.

As much as out-of-the-box thinking is high on my priority list, I also think that the ability to take an idea from someone else, twist it until its unrecognizable from its original source, then use that and claim it your own is a beautiful (and totally legitimate) thing.  In fact, many other authors do too.  Some writing instruction books even teach you to do that.  Consequently, when a star hit comes out, Billy Bob Joe is racing to take that hit, break it down into pieces, and mush those already-developed, already-successful pieces into his own brilliant ideas.  (Want an example of this?  The Hunger Games.  Hoooooooow many books have come out that are birthed from the Hunger Games in the last decade?  Philosophy books, lookalike books, commentary books, all about/like the Hunger Games.)

Now, before I go on, disclaimer:
I'm not saying that this technique is at all bad for the writing world, guys.
Ideas must be built on ideas that have been given to you from somewhere else.
Do it.

However, BE DISCERNING WITH WHAT YOU IMITATE.

If you're tempted to remake someone else's concept because it's a "good" concept, think about WHY you think the concept is "good".  Sure, your writing, birthed from a certain concept, might be excellent.  But, if that certain concept isn't Biblical, you'll still have to owe up to the fact that you're helping outline the worlds of backwood masculine/dominant girls, vampire seducers, or whatever other community or fanbase you're helping create.  On the other hand, if the concepts you take from are modified to be entirely original, full of integrity, or helpful in anyway that could make the world a more Biblical place, yes yes yes and a hundred times yes.

Write on!
Clove

Characters and Consistent Back-Story

Hey guyses!

I can't deny it: I'm on a role-playing binge of sorts.  Currently, I'm working on seven projects, and three of them are RP projects with groups of other people.  (Two are miniature self-written works, one is an editing job, and the last is my story, which is still plodding along at the pace of an earthworm on molasses in January due to my extraordinary inclination towards perfection.)  For one of these RP groups, I was working on the profile of a minor character when I got to considering some other profiles that I've seen.  That got me to thinking even further (hey, I'm thoughtful, okay?) about the most elementary mistakes of character creation, a mistake that even I still fall into sometimes.

To explain this literary blunder, I'll work a miniature character profile for you guys:

NAME_: Eriana Esdras
AGE_: 21
HAIR COLOR_: Dark brown, almost black
EYE COLOR_: Ebony brown
CHARACTER IMBALANCE_: Eriana was marked by the twelve Eaue'ni', dark spirits who are able to influence her negatively in hopes of corrupting her rule over I'ayat'' E'rion'.
PERSONALITY_: Eriana is outgoing and free-spirited.  She loves parties and ball gowns and visiting princes, and she's known for having an indomitable, adventurous soul with slightly superficial ideals.  Despite her high-class education, nothing seems to stop her from escaping at night for a ride on her horse, and, even when faced with danger, Eriana shows a face of bold confidence.
BACKSTORY_: Eriana's mother put her in an orphanage just after she was born, so her ancestors are unknown.  Being slighter in size, Eriana was often bullied at the orphanage until an inspector found her and noticed her Elven tendencies.  The inspector informed his higher-ups, and word eventually reached King Fymorn that Eriana was a half-blood Light Elf.  The King adopted her, but, later on in the story, he was not able to rescue her before the Eaue'ni captured here and marked her.  A few years after her marking, Fymorn then died and bequeathed the entire realm onto Eriana's shoulders.

Okay.
Simple enough, right?
She seems like a pretty dynamic character with enough blood to get her breathing and realistic...right?

Mmm, I'd say...breathing?  Yeah, sure.
Realistic?
Not. at. all.

Take a look at the personality category again and watch for the discrepancies between her backstory and her characteristics.  First of all, she has no family (and thus no identity), then she was abused for most of her childhood, then she meets up with creepy dark spirits who put a target on her heart, and finally the closest thing she had to a father ups and dies.  Obviously, this happens over a lengthy period of time, so it's not like - even if Eriana is naturally prone to cheerfulness - she'd be able to recover quickly after the trauma.  The poor girl is suffering.  Therefore, why on earth is her personality still "adventurous"?  How on earth can she still have "a face of bold confidence"?  What on earth would induce her to escape "at night for a ride on her horse"?

Now, disclaimer: I hope you know that I exaggerated this profile for the sake of my point.  Also, Eriana, the character of an actual story I wrote, is in no way outgoing and free-spirited.
However, tiny, illogical disparities like this will exist if you're not careful to stomp them out.  The next time you make a character profile, be wary of inconsistencies!

Write on!
Clove

Introducing...your authors!

Wow, guyses, I'm so happy.  Today is this blog's first anniversary~!  Yay for all the baby blogs in the world~!  To think, it's been an entire year, and I'm only about a third of the way to publishing my story that I introduced here (and changed a million times since).  What's even more crazy is that my dad wants me to finish my unnamed story by the time I'm out of eleventh grade.  Whee~!  …  (help)

Anyway, as I've gone along, you might have had noticed that I haven't done very much in terms of introducing or explaining who I am, who this mysterious Jace Dracon is, or why on earth somebody named Eriana Esdras keeps popping in and out of my writing examples.  Well, today, for fun, I thought I'd properly introduce you guys to who I am and who my fellow characters are - on casual terms.

INTRODUCING ~ CLOVE
   First off, no, my real name isn't Clove; it's Megan.  Clove is just a blogging name that I made to keep in theme with The True Spice of Life, an old blog that has recently gone just-about inoperative due to the busy schedules of two-thirds of the participating authors, one of whom is mwah.  ;)
   Outside of writing, I work like a madman at the violin, and, as it is, violin and writing are always vying for my attention.  I like to compose and record songs on the piano.  I like to draw anime, watch a particular genre of anime (at a snail's pace, averaging about an episode per two weeks), follow Sherlock (the TV show), dance and listen to K-pop (Big Bang, VIXX, and Nu'est~!), read, philosophize, and spend time amongst my ridiculously large social circles.  Despite what it may seem, school actually does take up a good bit of my life, though I try not to rant about it too much since I enjoy the busywork.
   You've probably heard me say that I'm Asian before, and, if you're curious as to where I'm "from", I'm "from" the South of the United States of America.  *pointed glare*  My ancestors, on the other hand, make me 1/2 North Korean, 1/2 South Korean.  As for how that affects me…well…I'm sure you guys have noticed my geekiness.  (I mean, I did just say that "I enjoy the busywork" of school.  o.o)
   If you've have been here long enough, you can probably see that I'm something of a stranger to emotional stability.  Being a rebel, the black sheep of the family, and a second-born (which means I'm not "Megan"; rather, I'm "Joshua's younger sister", who must live up to the expectations of his scholarly, effortless perfection, even though I'm average in innate intelligence), I'm generally either bursting at the seams happy or prostrate with grief, both of which work wonders for writing inspiration.
   Fortunately, I've been saved by a glorious God who died on a cross to supernaturally, unexplainably take the eternal death and instantaneous wrath that I deserve.  Therefore, while not perfect, the Holy Spirit has made me not what I once was, and I am constantly growing in spiritual likeness to my beautiful Lord, which means that my mood swings aren't ruling my life.  Yeah, I still feel more grim and more gleeful than most girls my age, and a good bit of that comes out in my writing, but I'm not a person to consider suicide in a bout of desperation, and I don't party life up when I'm feeling good either.  Normality and peace are my goals.

INTRODUCING ~ JACE DRACON
   Jace is a character that I made for this blog.  Because he is a role-played character, he sneaks into my brain a good deal more than my other characters do, and he has a significant amount of sway over how I write him.

   Since I like his voice so much, you might see him guest starring for some of my posts.  Prepare for sarcasm and grimness all around.  Jace is tactless, creative in both his innuendoes and insults, and haughty, plus, he's not very fond of me.  (Obviously, when I'm in my happy moods, Jace is always in his more stern moods, and, thus, we clash.  Several times in the past, I've had to wring him to get him to cooperate, so...yeah, he's not so fond of me.  ^_^)

   In terms of physical appearances, Jace, though a Dark Elf on his father's side, had a mortal on his mother's side, who messed with the normal genes of Elvendom.  Had he been a pureblood Dark Elf, he would've had dark, slate skin and white hair with red eyes, but Jace has deathly pallid skin and black hair with eyes that can be maple brown with flecks of gold in proper sunlight or steel black, the color of a gun, in darkness.  He's young, sinewy, and engaged to a pretty Light Elf girl, not the kind of guy who is tempted to do much unless if he wants to and also not the guy you'd want to meet in an alley at night.

INTRODUCING ~ ERIANA ESDRAS
   If I was in a dramatized story, I would be Eriana.  To tell the truth, a few years ago, I actually did write a more exciting version of my life, with Eriana starring as the main character.  Basically, the story was a journal, only way more cool, because it was set in medieval times in a large expanse of land called Good Hope, Eriana had a horse, and she was queen.
   Fantasy at its finest.
   Unlike me, Eriana is always several years older of whatever age I am, and thus, she's consequently much more level-headed than me, though she tends to be deeply scarred by circumstances.  (A group of baddies are constantly trying to trick her into ruining her kingdom and losing "good hope"…and they've very nearly succeeded at times.)  Because she has a ready made backstory and because I wrote her story when I was twelve and my writing was inferior to a toddler's, she works well for examples of bad writing.  All I have to do is copy-paste illustrations straight into the text.
   Also unlike me, Eriana has chestnut brown hair and light brown eyes with pale skin that is often slit with cuts or healing from past wounds (which could be her own work or the work of her enemies).  She's tall and feminine, not like those warrior princesses in modern day Disney, and she often dresses like those in Lothlorien from the LOTR.
   Yeah, like I said, fantasy at its finest.

So, yup!  That's the crew.

*pulls out pie and matches and lights first-anniversary candle*  *gets a reluctant, annoyed Jace and a serene Eriana to blow out the candles with me*  *slices pie and serves to readers*

Also, while you're eating, kudos to those who have been with me this whole year and welcome to those who joined and will join this year!  May we all have another full 365 days of words and punctuation and red ink.

Write on!
Clove

The best of the bad

Hey fellow readers,

Long time no blog, eh?
For reasons common to man, I've been on a social networking binge for the greater part of the last fortnight, listlessly scrolling down posts for something satisfying that I will never find.  Taking a break from my many international friends should hopefully provide more time for my fictional friends (and enemies…and this blog…and…you know, life and stuff).  Also, finals are looming closer, and this Asian chick has already started studying.


•_•)
( •_•)>⌐■-■
(⌐■_■)

Now, there is one story that I have ready to be published...just as sooooon as I figure out how to get the good guys to win.  Apparently, I've gotten so good at keeping my villains villainous that I, literally, have no idea how to make a happy ending.  (Basically, what happened is...a baddie named Tariq is threatening a guy named Keary, demanding that Keary erase some criminal records or face his own death, along with the death of his wife and his only daughter.  Evidently, Tariq is more successful at threatening than Keary is at evading threats.  Any ideas?)  Regardless of my current problems, when all is said and done, I'll publish the thing for you guys to read and enjoy.  To be honest, I'm very proud of the sheer prettiness of my words, which is good since the whole purpose of writing such a small, simple story was to practice my description.

"In her white realm, the room full of bags and boxes, lights and flashing dots, Rose slept, ignorant of her pain.  Meanwhile, the stars danced from blazing intimacy to a dramatic fade-away as the majority of Praetoria city got on its feet and marched to the sounds of dawn -- car honks, calls, and music.  It was bustling out there, full to the brim with beggars and monopolies.  A heavy smog curled up into the clouds like pores released from a deadly mushroom, and smaller mimics of the dirty air rose from the smoking ends of cigarettes and exhaust pipes.  Noisy and quick, the breathing of the city was ritualistic, traditional, and alive.  Without it was death, the extra silence that barged into Rose’s room, saying she was late to her meeting with the angels of God.  You’re late.  You’re late.  You’re late.  Wake up…"

Ahhh…heh.  x)  Yeah, I've worked hard on this one.  x)

Now, all this antagonist contemplation got me thinking about my favorite type of darkie.  Obviously, we all have our favorite picks for baddy personalities: some prefer the insane over the brutish or perverted or ingenious and classy, others prefer internal conflicts to outer circumstances.  You best bet that I know which bad guys are my favorite, because, not at all to my shame, I had a geek-out moment the other day and literally wrote a three-point persuasive essay to a friend as to why Loki is - to me, personally -  a better bad guy than the Joker.  (You know…aside from Tom Hiddleston).

So, just for fun, here's a summary of those three points, rewritten slightly to speak about all baddies, not just Loki or the Joker:
   1.) My villains must not be predictable or stereotyped.  They must be as skilled at instigation as an alpha wolf, and they must be as reactive to negative situations as a motion detonator.  If a baddie is categorized as the type of villain who is willing to do anything for the sake of being slippery, outgoing, destructive, or anything else, I know that my reader will be able to guesstimate said villain's next movements, thus creating a wretchedly boring tale.
   2.) My bad guy must be classy enough to balance out the destructive genius and perversion.  I'd say, to get a good ratio, add 10 parts classy to 8 parts manipulative killer to 1 part immoral to 1 part sadist.  "But why all this work to make a baddie stylish?" you ask.  Well, take the Joker for example; upon watching the Joker's gross mass killing streaks, I just want to roll my eyes and say, "Someone please just shoot the child," simply because he's so bad that there aren't any redeeming qualities in him to fascinate me or make me want to see him live to get dominated by the baddies in the end.  You need an exterior trait to break up the monotony, otherwise your character isn't even worth life…or my attention as an individual in the audience.
   3.) As evil as my antagonist is, I want to be able to empathize to a small extent with him and have some reason to half-way cheer him on.  Instead of just mindlessly trying to rule the world without a real reason for doing what he does (other than that he woke up one day and said, "You know, I think I'll rule the world and kill a bunch of people while I'm at it"), my bad guy must work for a purpose.  Consequently, when he commits evil, I could potentially praise his dedication to his goals and understand to a certain point what he's going through when his plans are thwarted.

Now, again, these are my opinions.  I'm not pressing these upon anyone or demanding that to be politically correct you must make baddies this way, though, hey, if you make your bad guys like I make mine…  *starry eyes*  …we should meet up sometime.  :P

On another note, how do you like your bad guys?  Do you agree with my points?  Argue for your own case in the comment box below!

Muahahaha, write on!
Clove

Copyright Information

So, wow.

You want to copy some of the material I've posted?

Awww...I'm flattered.

However, most all of the work that I've posted is originally mine, and, according to plagiarism.org, the act of stealing original ideas is a crime.  Lucky for you, I believe that all of my ideas were certainly at least thought of by someone else before me (thus the ridiculous paradox of "original" ideas), so, if you'd like to take from any INSTRUCTIONAL BLOG POSTS (where I tell you how to write) or OPINIONATED BLOG POSTS (where I make a case for a certain method of writing, where I do a review, or where I explain what I personally like when it comes to writing), feel free!  Just make sure you cite me or mention me in the footnotes.

All STORIES, PIECES OF POETRY, "TEXT FROM"'s, "WHAT I HEAR"'s, AUTHOR INTERVIEWS, or OTHER WRITING PROJECTS that I have posted are off limits.  Please don't forget that I have put work into these projects, and, if you are to take that work and post/publish it as your own, you are stealing, which, again, is a crime.

Now, I know that feeling that you get when you accidentally plagiarize, and everyone wrecks Heaven and Hell about it even though you, owning no malicious motives, were just trying to find resources for your own work.  Therefore, if you're not sure whether a blog post falls under a certain category, leave a comment below, and I'll tell you.  Also, if you want to use a phrase or just a description paragraph from my story that you liked in your own writing, also leave a comment.  Depending on which phrase, I don't think it'd be a big deal if you want to share the creativity.

Write on…without thievery!
Clove