Kitten Chantho dies

Sad cat-news today.... My kitten Chantho, who along with her brother Chan-ho turned up on the farm at the end of this last October, has died of unknown causes today.

She is survived by her brother Chan-ho and daddy Biwu. She will also be missed by her former owner who actually bought me 40 lbs. of cat food in gratitude for my giving the kittens a home.

Chantho was the shyer of the kittens and I only recently was able to catch and pet her. She was named after a character in Doctor Who--- Chantho was an insectlike alien female who began every sentence with 'chan' and ended it with 'tho'. She was an assistant to Professor Yana who turned out to really be The Master.

Chantho had not got round to becoming one of my favorite cats, but she did have a number of friends among the other cats. Her death is almost exactly one year after the death of my all-time favorite cat Claudius and his loyal buddy Germanicus. I hope Chantho's having fun in heaven pouncing on the saints.....

Mythbusters tests Star Trek Gorn cannon

In the original series of Star Trek, there was an episode called 'Arena' (based on a non-Trek short story) in which Kirk and an alien ship captain of the Gorn race have to fight each other, and Kirk improvises a cannon and shoots the Gorn (but refuses to kill him....)

Of course, the team at Mythbusters had to test that improvised cannon sooner or later. It's a pity I didn't find out about it until the episode was half-over! Even if it wasn't for the Star Trek connection I'd watch since their theory is that if an experiment doesn't work out, add more explosives. Works for me!

Of course the real flaw in the Mythbusters' test is that the Star Trek episode took place on an alien world and Kirk had to use alien materials for the cannon--- that bamboo-looking thing Kirk turned into a cannon was an alien thing which could have been as hard as steel--- though Kirk had no way of knowing that without testing it.....

Doctor Who: The End of Time part two....

This coming Saturday is the final Doctor Who episode featuring David Tennant as the Doctor. The first part of this episode, which aired last Saturday, was epic....

First off, it featured the resurrection of Lord Voldemort--- I mean The Master--- but they did seem to be using the same spell more-or-less, I hope they paid J. K. Rowling for it.

The Master in his new incarnation seems to be a cross between Nikolai Carpathia of the Left Behind movie, Hannibal Lector (without the nice table manners), and one of the Fantastic Four (the annoying one), in the guise of a street bum.

There is a rather funny bit of business where they are totally making fun of US President Barack Whats-His-Name, particularly the Messiah complex and the ears..... This kind of breaks an unwritten rule of Doctor Who in which no contemporary Prime Minister or foreign head of state is featured. But however much that old queen who runs Doctor Who meant to insult Americans, it was rather comforting to see Obama transformed into The Master. The Doctor knows how to defeat The Master, he's done it before.

From the promos for the second part of the episode, it looks like the Timelord race is coming back, which looks like fun. Does anyone else notice that the Timelords are a lot like the Vulcans of Star Trek who are in turn like the people from Superman's home planet of Krypton?

And--- on the topic of Star Trek and superheroes---- Mr. Spock's mom is named Amanda Grayson, and Batman's sidekick Robin is Dick Grayson in real life.... They've got to be related......

UPDATE: Bad Wolf One has a post about The End of Time, and he's heard that former companion Donna Noble may get killed off (after all the guy-in-charge of Doctor Who is the one who massacred Torchwood and it's his last episode as well as David Tennant's....) Of course, since she's kind of merged with Time Lord DNA maybe she can regenerate at some future date--- or maybe they are just messing with our minds--- assuming we haven't lost them with all this Doctorly excitement.....

Doctor Who: The End of Time part one...

This Saturday another new episode of Doctor Who will be premiering on BBC America. It probably will be the last featuring David Tennant as the Doctor; from the look of it, the Master has returned.

The previous episode of Doctor Who, The Waters of Mars, was very dismal and disturbing. The Doctor was 'out of control, mad with power'--- because he in the end decided to save some human lives. The dreadful solution one of the three people he saved resorted to--- suicide--- makes this episode unsuitable viewing for the under-21 set.

I was very disappointed in this episode. Yes, I know that the UK, like most of Europe, has gone a little farther down the wrong path towards such things as disrespecting human life and hating Christianity than we in the US have, but I don't really much care to be reminded of it in the course of a Doctor Who episode. It's just a little too much like it would be to watch Doctor Who episodes created in Nazi Germany.

Imagine, if you will, the Doctor arriving at a Nazi death camp and telling the condemned that they are going to die, and that he has the ability to save them, but because their deaths will have an effect on others in the future, he won't do so. I think some of us still understand that choice would be horrid.

Of course, part of the problem is that in any time travel story one has to at some point deal with why the time traveller is not spending all of his time rescuing people from the Titanic, from the Nazi death camps, and from the Soviet gulags.... The idea set forth in Doctor Who--- that some events in time are fixed--- makes some sense--- except for the fact that evidently the Doctor can ignore this rule when he wants to.

A better solution, I would think, would be that certain events in time just cannot be travelled to--- that to aim at these events would simply make one's time machine malfunction and go elsewhere/elsewhen.....

What the Catholic church really teaches....

Since I am new to being a Catholic, I'm often surprised at the amount of hostility that Catholicism brings forth. And often this is based on misunderstandings.

I've received a misspelled text which gave a number of complaints about the Church. For example, that it is wrong to call anyone 'father' so one shouldn't call a Catholic priest 'father' (but then what about one's male parent???)

And there are those who believe that Purgatory is just another hell--- a place for unsaved sinners--- and that people can buy their way out of Purgatory.

In correct Catholic teaching, Purgatory is actually just another Heaven--- a place for saved people only. It's a place to prepare for meeting God face to face in Heaven. The Protestant writer C. S. Lewis considered that something like Purgatory was probable.

After years of study on the theological issues involved, I find that there is often less difference between the Catholic and Protestant/Evangelical positions than one presumes, although differences are still there on a number of issues.

One of the things that the Catholic church does teach is that all persons saved by the blood of Jesus Christ are part of the same Body of Christ. This being the case I believe it might be wise for people to look up what some other form of Christianity--- Catholic or Protestant--- really teaches before you try to save folks from what you believe are their errors. Remember, strife among Christians is NOT the way to win over atheists, Buddhists and Muslims (among others) to Christ.

NEW Doctor Who episode premieres Tomorrow (Saturday, Dec 19th)

The new Doctor Who episode 'The Waters of Mars' is going to be on BBC America tomorrow, so check your TV schedule and prepare to enjoy! (If you don't get BBC America, now is the time to suck up to those of your friends that do.)

This is one of the last episodes with David Tennent as the Doctor.

New KBS-America Drama: Reversal of Fate

KBS America--- available on Dish Network--- has started a new drama in its 9:30 am time slot (Central Time, USA), called Reversal of Fate (다 줄거야 transliterated: Da Julgyeoya, literal meaning: Give All).

So far it is about Gang Yeonghui, a poor girl who works at the Gaeseong dumpling shop owned by her mom Yongsim, and about snotty rich girl Namju whose mom, Boyeong, owns the famous Gaeseong restaurant. The first episode was a great start and Yeonghui seems to be a likeable and brave heroine.

Here are two web site links about the drama:
Han Cinema: Reversal of Fate
AsianMediaWiki: Reversal of Fate

The Korean drama in the earlier 8am time slot, Landscape in My Heart, ended today and so tomorrow I will probably be posting something about the drama that replaces it.

Register Now for Catholic Writers Conference Online

Catholic Writers Conference Online Provides Practical Help


World Wide Web--This year's Catholic Writers’ Conference Online, which will be held February 26-March 5, 2010, will focus on the practical things the writer needs to succeed.

The conference is held via chats and forums at http://www.catholicwritersconference.com/. Sponsored by the Catholic Writer’s Guild, the online conference is free of charge and open to writers of all levels who register between October 1, 2009 and February 15, 2010.

"We've always concentrated on workshops and chats that teach the writer skills or provide information in the areas of crafting, publishing and marketing their works, but this year, we're adding critique workshops and some incredible opportunities to pitch to leading publishers," said organizer Karina Fabian.

This year, publishers hearing pitches include well known Catholic publishers like Pauline, large Christian publishers like Thomas Nelson, and smaller presses like White Rose. Thus far, eleven pitch sessions are scheduled, running the gamut from Christian romance to Catholic theology.

In a new program, at least fifty attendees will have the opportunity to have pieces of their work critiqued by successful editors and writers. In addition, there will be forum-based workshops and chat room presentations covering topics from dialogue to freelancing to how Catholic fiction differs from Christian fiction.

"Even in good economic times, it's hard for writers to attend live conferences," said Fabian, "but this year, we think it's even more important to help careers by utilizing an online format. We're so grateful that our presenters are willing to share their time and talent."

Early registration is recommended. Although the conference is offered free of charge, donations are accepted; proceeds will go toward future conferences. Non-Catholics may attend, as long as they respect Catholic beliefs and the conference's Catholic focus.

To register or for more information, go to http://www.catholicwritersconference.com/.

Magic, Mensa and Mayhem by Karina L. Fabian

I've always been a sucker for humorous fantasy. Piers Anthony, Terry Pratchett, Robert Asprin and now, Karina L. Fabian.

Karina L. Fabian's book, Magic, Mensa and Mayhem, is most similar to Robert Asprin's Myth-Adventures series.

The Myth-Adventures series features Skeeve, a wizard's apprentice, and Aahz, a demon--- that is, a traveller from another dimension. The story is told from Skeeve's point of view, in the first person.

Magic, Mensa and Mayhem features Vern, the dragon detective, and is told from Vern's first-person point of view. Vern and his sidekick, Sister Grace of the Faerie Catholic church, are from another dimension, called Faerie, into our world, which Vern calls the Mundane world.

The story begins as Vern and Sister Grace get their assignment--- to provide security for a Mensa convention. What is Mensa? It's actually a real thing--- an organization of people whose intelligence is in the top 2%. (I found out many years ago I was qualified to join Mensa but wasn't really interested and have since lost the paperwork which proved my intelligence level.)

This particular Mensa convention is problematic because the organizers have invited a number of folks from the Faerie world to the convention, and this is why Vern and Grace are needed--- just in case things--- magical things--- get out of hand. Which, of course, they do.

There are the brownies--- unseen beings which are going around cleaning stuff up. While this is the opposite of trashing folks' rooms, it's still annoying when the brownies helpfully complete a convention-goer's Sudoku book for him. Wrong. Or at least the fellow thinks it's wrong until Vern tells him it's actually just in a different base number system....

And the pixies, who during an airship ride sneak off to suck in some helium gas and get high. Vern must save them from as-pixie-ation. (Yes, it's that kind of book.)


the critique bit
I hate being a critic. Maybe because of all those newspaper critics out there who trashed great TV shows and movies not because of those shows-and-movies own flaws, but because they weren't Citizen Kane or whatever the critic felt we ought to be watching instead.

So I'm keeping my critique to a few areas of possible weakness in the book--- ones specific enough that I can mention a counter-measure for those writers who detect similar weaknesses in their own fictional works-in-progress.

1. The book seems rather slow-paced at the start. Admittedly, I was watching 'The Simpsons' also at the time--- what can I say, I read and watch TV at the same time. I believe the reason the story seemed so slow-paced is that Vern isn't thrown into a great amount of trouble at the beginning. He--- an immortal dragon who's saved the universes so often his detective agency has a special fee-scale for it--- is asked to provide security at a Mensa convention. Compare this to the start of Robert Asprin's Another Fine Myth, where Skeeve is faced with the murder of his mentor and the appearance of an uncontrolled demon. Writers should remember- throw a serious problem at your main character as soon as possible to keep up the pace--- and reader interest.

2. Vern is a dragon--- a dragon who's been captured by St. George and been a Pope's pet. Because the story is told from Vern's first-person point-of-view, Vern's voice can rather overwhelm the other characters. I didn't get a real handle on Vern's sidekick Sister Grace until late in the book. By contrast, the Myth-Adventures series has the prosaic Skeeve as the first-person viewpoint character and the more colorful Aazh is seen through his eyes. Karina Fabian does amazingly well with the Vernish point-of-view: however, writers using a similarly colorful first-person narrator might be well advised to plan some good scenes to bring out the other characters in the story.

3. Vern's got a lot of 'splainin' to do.... too much explaining. That's the curse of a first-person narration, there is always too much temptation to throw in tons of backstory and other explaination which can slow down the pace of the story. Explanations, when necessary, are best given in the course of a scene--- such as when Sister Grace explains to the fire department that when the pixie said it was 'Puck' that set off the fire alarm that 'Puck' is a title and not a name. More questionable is when the explanation comes when Vern just happens to be thinking the explanations at us. To avoid the problems of 'too much explaining' the writer might do well to look at how different writers handle first-person narration--- such as Robert Asprin in the Myth-Adventures series. If you have a book you don't mind marking up, draw a line in red pencil underneath all the explanations--- in dialogue, narration or whatever--- in the book, and compare it to the amount in your own manuscript. If your manuscript has a lot of red, for each piece of explanation ask yourself, what would happen if the reader is not told this? If the reader really does need that bit of information, is there a better way--- in a scene--- to convey it?

Conclusion: I found Magic, Mensa and Mayhem to be a very entertaining book. Though it is perhaps not up to the high standards of writing perfections exhibited by the best-selling humourous fantasy authors such as Terry Pratchett or Robert Asprin, it has certainly more than met the basic standards of writing skills one might expect from those published by a bigger publisher than Swimming Kangaroo press. Parental guidance--- there are no real swears or naughty bits, but there is explicit Catholicism that may cause conniption fits in sensitive readers. Or make them break out in hives.

Dragoneye P. I. website
And don't miss the comment section: I got a comment from Karina L. Fabian herself!

The Korean Names Post: Naming your Korean Character

updated Dec 15, 2009
Here is my long intended blog post about names in Korean. I hope it will be helpful for any writer who has Korean characters to name. Note that all I know about Korean names is what I've picked up watching Korean dramas on KBS America (available on Dish Network, channel 9850)--- please consult an actual Korean for more and better information. I don't know, for example, which names are now trendy and which are old-fashioned, or what the names mean (with a few exceptions.)

Since Korean names are normally written in the Korean alphabet (yes, Korean writing is an alphabet) the spelling can vary considerably--- Ban Ki-moon could possibly be spelled Pan Gi-mun! The spellings given are the ones used in the KBS English-language subtitles they so kindly provide for their dramas.

Korean family names come first--- in the name 'Ban Ki-moon', Ban is the family name and 'Kimoon' is the given name. Given names usually have 2 syllables/ 2 elements. As in Jeongok (Jeong-ok) or Duchil (Du-chil). Brothers tend to have one of the two elements in common--- as in Minho and Junho. It can be either the first or second element. Sometimes sisters also share the common element. An example of sisters' names is Inae, Inok and Insu, three sisters in the KBS series My Pitiful Sister.

Update: I am in the process of alphabetizing the names, and moving the male and female given names to their own blog posts which will be linked here. If you know about Korean names and naming customs, please share your wisdom--- and links to good resources--- in a comment.

Korean Surnames

Jeong
Hwangbo
Song
Shim
Kim (VERY common family name)
Chae
Choi
Go
Han
Na
Park (or Pak, Pack)
Wu
Yi (or Lee, Rhee) pronounced 'ee'

Korean Family names: Wikipedia
Korean Drama Wiki a good resource to find other Korean names.

Korean Male Names

Junseok
Uchan
Taejun
Muhyeok
Jaegwang
Youngchil
Youngbok
Giseop
Inho
Taesu
Hotae
Junho
Minho
Donggeon
Inpyo
Palbok
Cheolgi
Dongwoo
Chulhyung
Jungwoo
Panchul
Chulho
Minwoo
Hansoo
Jungjae
Sangwu
Kiwoong
Sukhyun
Myungsuk
Bongku
Deokwu
Deokbae
Juhyeong
Seongsu
Seungdae
Junpyo
Chanho
Chanwoo

Korean Female Names

Youngchae
Youngseon
Suryeon (Su-ryeon, means 'water lily')
Sunok
Geumhwa
Sarang (means 'love')
Suja
Yuran
Gisun
Onim
Minjeong
Mijo
Myeongja
Jeonghye
Okran
Jeongok
Bokja
Hyoju
Juri
Inae
Insu
Inok
Jungnim
Soonim
Okbun
Mijoo
Youngshil
Kehee
Boksun
Geumja
Jungja
Haekyong
Eunhee
Sukkyong
Songhee
Hwaja
Hyewon
Eunhye
Hwasoon
Gumsoon
Misook
Yejin
Jungah
Sundeok
Jongnam
Minsook
Jaeok
Haein
Mija
Kyungsook
Geumhee
Hyanggeum
Jeomrye
Yunkyong
Sunyeong
Gyeongsuk
Sungyeol
Sunja
Jandi
Rilla

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I continue to watch Korean dramas and make note of the names, so updates to this post may be expected. I'm trying to figure out an easy way to alphabetize the list.

Korean Names: Wikipedia

Upcoming Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy Blog Tour Schedule

* December 28-30 – Digital Dragon Magazine (online Christian sci fi/fantasy Webzine)



* January 18-20 – North! Or Be Eaten (WaterBrook) by Andrew Peterson (YA fantasy – book two of the Wingfeather Saga)


* February – Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter (HarperCollins Children's Books) by R.J. Anderson (general market middle grade fantasy)


* March – The Lost Mission (Howard Books) by Athol Dickson (adult magic realism – tentative)

I notice we have a lot of children's books ('YA' is Latin for 'children's book'), and I'm not sure what to expect from 'magic realism'. I also missed the deadline for getting a review copy of the January book by a couple of days, as per usual.  Since I can't really afford new books this month, and I'm not sure where I'll be in January, financially speaking, it'll be another month of trying to do a blog tour about a book I haven't had the chance to read.... 

Not that I'm very happy about doing all these children's books. I mean, when I was nine I pretty much quit reading fiction aimed at children except for the sort which is good enough for grown-ups to read and which might just as well have been published as such.  The only reason I can see for the existence of 'middle-grade' and 'YA' books is because the publishers have an excuse for limiting the filthy language and explicit sex--- and there are writers for adults who don't use that sort of thing in their work. In fact, in Christian fiction that's pretty much a given.

The Closer: When should Brenda tell Kitten Joel about her Job?

On last Monday's episode of The Closer, Brenda's husband What's-his-name had a surprise for her--- a little orange kitten named Joel. Of course at first Brenda insisted that What's-his-name take the kitten back but he didn't.

Later in the episode after Brenda had been gone all day because of work she phoned What's-his-name with a message for Joel--- she was saying to tell Joel she couldn't come home because of the murder of a twelve-year-old, and then two other murders, and a gang rape... At which point What's-his-name said 'I'm not telling Joel that, he's just a kitten.' Which was kind of the high point of the episode cause the crimes were all about Hispanic gang members, and I hate gang stories and I'm convinced that Hispanic people can murder (or get murdered) in lots more interesting ways than boring old gang killings.

But anyway, what would be the proper age for Brenda to start telling kitten Joel about her job? He (or she) IS just a kitten, but kittens don't necessarily lead sheltered lives. Here at my farm, a kitten Joel's age has probably seen grown-up cats mating, often with their sisters, usually on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. And one of my late lamented kittens, Spinelli, was eating a mouse when no bigger than Joel from The Closer. (I'm not sure if Spinelli caught the mouse or stole it from its rightful owner.)

But then again, if Joel is going to be a sheltered indoor cat like poor Kitty was, perhaps he needs to be sheltered from the more gruesome side of Brenda's job. Certainly she shouldn't take him to crime scenes, ever. Not that he would be shocked. It's just that he might lick up the blood evidence or something.

Keeping Up with the Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy Community

Sometimes it's hard to keep up with Christian Science Fiction and Christian Fantasy.  You do an internet search on the topic and you come up with loads of Christian fiction (mostly romances---ick!), secular science fiction and fantasy, and, in the case of 'Christian fantasy'--- loads of atheist hate speech.

So--- one thing I am doing, and it's taking some time, is adding ALL of the participants in the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy Blog Tour to the 'Blogs I Follow' feature on google. Since my Blogger blogs are a part of google I can read all the blogs I follow on my Blogger dashboard.

The one thing I wish is that Google would allow you to sort out the blogs you follow into categories. I follow a lot of Christian science fiction and fantasy blogs, some writer blogs, some sci-fi blogs, some political blogs, some farm blogs, and one blog, Operation Counterstrike, because I'm scared the author of the blog is gonna kill someone someday soon.

What I would really like is if there were some sort of blog aggregator for Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy blogs, so that one could provide a link to a blog reading page that would have the latest posts from all of the blogs. That would be a way to link the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy community together, to help spread the word about new publications, and so on.

What do I mean by 'Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy'? By 'Christian' I include those who have more-or-less traditional Christian values, whether Catholic, Protestant/Evangelical, or Mormon, and exclude those types of religious liberals who claim to be Christians, Buddhists and Hindus at the same time, or who pray to God the Mother or Sophia, the Goddess of Wisdom, in order to turn Christianity into something more feminist. By 'science fiction and fantasy' I use a broad definition that includes near future fiction (including 'End Times' and Rapture fiction), horror and vampire fiction, and so on.
I include Christians who write for Christian publishers or for secular ones, those with obvious Christian messages and those whose Christianity is subtle enough to be overlooked....

Alerts for Writers (and the beat goes on....)

Here I was, just looking up information on a new book called And the Beat goes On by Tracy Krauss, and I find that the book's publisher, Strategic Book Group, has rated an unfavorable mention in SFWA's 'ALERTS FOR WRITERS' page. (SFWA is 'Science Fiction Writers of America) There is a lawsuit for fraud against the owner of the company and its literary agency divisions are said to charge fees and get little results.

What does it mean for the book And the Beat Goes On and its author Tracy Krauss? The story, I am told, involves a pterodactyl and the Nephilim (Biblical giants), so it's certainly a promising premise. I'm wondering if the Strategic Publishing Group sends out review copies (without charging the author for it, it ought to go without saying). I wish I could get a review copy myself (the hardcover book being way out of my price range at market price.)

The problem about a literary agency or a publisher about whom questions have been raised is that it makes people reluctant to read works associated with the author in question. I remember reading a work, a few years back, published by iUniverse, a publisher who will print your novel if you pay for it. This particular novel purported to be a science fiction novel but was in fact a series of unconnected 'stories' which were actually a group of vignettes which constantly violated the 'show, don't tell' rule and which would never have gotten published by a legit publisher without a very extensive rewrite.

I don't get the impression that the Strategic Book Group's publishing enterprise is accused of being an out-and-out 'vanity press'--- a publisher which deceives writers into believing their self-publishing service is actually a traditional legit publisher which chooses works on merit. But the fact that the publisher is in legal trouble can hurt the reputation of writers associated with it, however unfair that may be.

I hope that bloggers with deeper pockets than mine will go out and buy a copy of 'And the Beat goes On' and give it a fair review on their blogs--- not to help the company out financially, but for the sake of the author whose work deserves a fair reading.

(Note: self-publishing is evidently a legit route to writing success for some people. There is a Catholic author recently interviewed on EWTN who self-published two Catholic romance novels, and an author, Vince Flynn, who self-published and went on to have best-selling books and be interviewed on Glenn Beck. But I would check things out carefully at SFWA's Writer Beware if you are going that route so that you can do so with correct information.)


And The Beat Goes On by Tracy Krauss at Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Beat-Goes-Tracy-Krauss/dp/1606931997/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260115062&sr=8-2

So You're Thinking of Writing a Vampire Novel....

If you've had the impulse to write a vampire novel, you want it to be better than those 'me, too' type of forgettable vampire romances. The key to that is building your vampire-world just as carefully as you would build an alien world for a science fiction novel.

Research and planning is the key. My best resource for vampiry research is The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead by J. Gordon Melton, which has vampire folklore from around the world, some cases of alleged real-world vampirism, and accounts of literary and film vampires.

Some points of interest I have discovered:
Nosferatu--- I had always assumed that German film director Murnau just made the word 'nosferatu' up in order to defraud the estate of Bram Stoker by filming 'Dracula' without mentioning Dracula by name.... But actually the term has history. It's derived from the Greek word 'nosophoros' which means 'plague-carrier'. So it relates to the illness model of vampirism, as in the New England vampire epidemic, caused by cases when a family died one by one from 'consumtion' (tuberculosis) and it was assumed that the earliest to die were preying on the others....

Undead--- I looked up the term 'undead' in the dictionary, and found that words like 'undeadly' and undeadliness' were obsolete terms for immortal and immortality.

I'm creating a vampire-world-creation checklist/form which will cover the various issues you as an author have to confront while building your vampire-containing fictional world.

Some sample questions: Can your vampires cross running water? Are your vampires able to be active in daylight? Do they need to return to their native soil, or their coffin, at night? Are your vampires demonic, or damned souls, or are they capable of being either good or evil? Do your vampires have to feed on blood, and what kind of blood does it have to be? What happens to them if they don't feed? Do they have to kill their victims or are they able to feed without harming anyone? How can vampires be killed? Which traditional anti-vampire methods (crucifix, holy water) work and which don't?

Eventually when I finish the checklist in its final form I will put up a copy on this blog. Do you have any ideas for further questions for the list? If you are working on vampire fiction (or might be) please leave a comment to tell me about it, make suggestions for the checklist, or to shamelessly promote your blog. ;) Or perhaps list the best vampire fiction you've read or your favorite vampire movies and TV shows.

Blog Revamp! no more irrelevant political rants.....

As part of my changes to this blog, I've decided that the occasional political rant that I've indulged in will no longer be a part of this blog, but will be posted on my new/old blog at: http://annakindt.blogspot.com/ There it will not be irrelevant as political and other ranting is what that blog is all about.

This blog will in the future be confined to the topic of writing science fiction and fantasy, particularly of the steampunk variety, as well as Christian sci-fi and fantasy, and will thus be of little interest to anyone, so I've decided to also allow cat updates and obituaries. (I understand a large number of internet-savvy cats are regular readers, but just for the obituaries.)

Kitten Chan-ho and Kitten Chantho: Origins (Updated)

I just found out the origins of the two orange kittens who turned up here at the farm at the end of October, that I named Chan-ho (after the Phillies pitcher) and Chantho (after an alien chick from Doctor Who).

The lady at the feed mill, who used to live near me before she broke up with her Significant Other, asked if two kittens turned up at my place. She described them and, yes, they were the ones I found.

She says that her ex stopped feeding the cats (country people often don't provide food for outdoor cats) and that the two half-grown kittens weren't there when she went to pick them up (she had found a person willing to take them in.)

The good news is that she doesn't seem to be able to take them herself and didn't ask for them back, so I get to keep them. Yay! Free cats! (Without Kitten Chan-ho and Kitten Chantho, I'd only have 25 barn cats.)

UPDATE: I forgot to mention the best part: it had already been established that one of my tomcats, Biwu, after impregnating all of MY cats, went down the street to live for awhile until the neighbor's cat got pregnant--- so Chan-ho and Chantho are Biwu's children and thus part of our extended cat family. Biwu seems very happy to have more of his kittens around and is very sweet to the newcomers. I'm hoping to get a picture of him cuddling with Chan-ho on the porch--- Chantho, who is very shy, is sticking to the barn for now (which is where the cats are fed--- I fear that if I feed them on the porch it will attract mice, and sometimes when we have mice in the house area the cats assume those particular mice are my pets and so don't eat them like they would field mice.)