Alchemy Ink

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, July 12-18, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Time to get your thoughty on.

Perfectionism is creativity’s wicked stepsister. Kaizen Muse Creativity Coaching.

LifeHack presents their list of 20 things only highly creative people would understand.

Want to know twelve type secrets to the INFP personality? Introvert, Dear.

The ten things you should expect to happen once you embrace being alone. Higher Perspective.

The science behind why we feel emotions in our chests. IFLS.

Trying to remember multiple things at the same time may be the best way to forget them. NPR. Read the post, or listen to the broadcast.

Molybdenum. Too much and you’ll die. Too little and you’ll die. Find out about this important element. i09.

Denmark produces 140% of its energy needs through renewable sources. We so need to do this. The Independent.

The earthquake that will devastate the west coast is coming. The question is, when? Kathryn Schulz for The New Yorker.

The big astronomy news of the week: The New Horizons spacecraft explores Pluto and its moons. i09.

Six things we learned about Pluto last week. IFLS.

Super massive black hole informs current theories of galaxy evolution. IFLS.

Dolphins riding whales off the coast of Hawaii. Just because. IFLS.

Any of this lovely stuff give you ideas? Good. Go write ‘em down.

Thoughty Thursday

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, July 12-18, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Wow. Kind of short of writerly goodness this week. I blame it on work 😛 I do that a lot, don’t I?

K.M. Weiland shares the secret to a satisfying character arc. Read the post, listen to the podcast, or both 🙂

Katie’s Wednesday vlog covers why even positive story events should have negative consequences.

What are the five dimensions of character personality? MJ Bush knows. Writingeekery.

The novelist’s dilemma is not really a dilemma at all. Kathryn Magendie.

Porter Anderson revisits the trolling furor on the interwebz and offers a suggestion for a way forward on Writer Unboxed.

Kameron Hurley writes about her struggles as a writer with anxiety. Self care is so important.

The flipside of diversity: What’s wrong with cultural appropriation? Every Day Feminism.

Here are fourteen science fiction short movies from Adobe Inspire.

Outlander news from Comic Con. Hypable.

Well that’s all I gots for you until next week.

Tipsday

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, July 5-11, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Anna Lovind shares the life-changing lessons chronic pain has taught her.

After an incident in which she received unwanted sexual attention, Elyse Anders posted this rant. The response to her rant was insane, so she elaborated further. MofoNation.

Why many rape victims don’t fight or yell. James W. Hopper, PhD, explains what happens when the fight or flight response short circuits. The Washington Post.

Emily Hart(ridge) on depression and anxiety:

Why one black man won’t discuss race with white people. Those People.

Africans tweet pictures of their real lives to combat “poverty porn.” Plaid Zebra. #TheAfricaMediaNeverShowsYou

Pulitzer prize-winning photojournalist Paul Watson quit The Toronto Star because they refused to publish his story. The subtlety of censorship in Canada. The Huffington Post.

Our economy grew, but our income did not keep pace. The Huffington Post.

In this article from The Globe and Mail, David Helfand reports that businesses say they want workers with a liberal arts background, with strong communication skills, and who are agile in their willingness to learn and adapt. Industry in general and the government are pushing young people into the trades. In both cases (in my experience, anyway) graduates from both programs are wandering, jobless, for years, with crippling debt-loads. There aren’t enough jobs for everyone and that is our biggest problem. Are we just waking up to this now?

When did we decide kids shouldn’t suffer? Renegade Mothering.

Dear parents: please raise boys who will respect my girls. The Huffington Post.

Empathy is a choice. The New York Times.

Creativity can be learned. Canva. I find that keeping a journal of random and weird associations was what helped me most, pre-interwebz. Now, I get all the thoughty, all the time! In these posts I share the things that set off that random pinball machine in my head. I hope they do that for you, too!

Lifehack offers 11 illustrations of the difference between busy and productive people.

Would you pass this grade eight examination from 1912? Boredom Therapy.

Who owns the moon? Vsauce.

Nikola Tesla predicted the ascendance of women through technology. Brainpickings.

IFLS lists ten things you may not know about Tesla.

Someone assigned email addresses to trees and people started writing to them. The Atlantic.

Fuck that. A guided meditation for today’s world:

Why Japanese bathrooms are awesome. Distractify.

This guy’s wife left him alone with the dog. He got bored. Click through to see what happened. BoredPanda.

And that’s a wrap.

On Saturday, I’ll have more Ad Astra reportage. We’ll be starting day three! Finally!

Thoughty Thursday

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, July 5-11, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 4 Comments

Okay. Several instances of trolling and cyberbullying against writers have come to the fore in recent weeks. Here are a few posts that seek to address the issue.

Anne R. Allen outlines the issues and offers some strategies you can use to avoid or address them without becoming a target.

Chuck Wendig posted Online is IRL (in response to the #AskELJames fiasco), and then, after a narsty Twitter attack, posted In which I learn to talk less and listen more.

This made Porter Anderson’s radar and he posted this analysis of the fallout.

In other, related news, there were discussions across Facebook and Google+ regarding the above (Delilah S. Dawson was caught in the fracas), and about a libellous review posted for Roz Morris. If it had merely been a poor review, meh. This review, however, accused Roz of plagiarism. How do you respond to these kinds of accusations without chumming the waters? We really have to learn to be kinder to one another online.

Agent Sarah Negovetich offered these thoughts on safely navigating social media.

Unit sales (of print books) inched up in the first half of 2015. Publishers Weekly.

Elending won’t put a big dent in books sales. The Guardian.

Court denies class action in Author Solutions case. Publishers Weekly.

Jane Friedman explains the profit and loss statement and how publishers use it to make purchasing decisions.

What happens if your story stakes aren’t high enough? K.M. Weiland answers in part 42 of her Most Common Writing Mistakes series.

Katie looked at Jurassic Park as an example of how to compound your conflict in your story. Think perfect storm 🙂

E.C. Ambrose offered these nine ways to use point of view to strengthen your characters. Helping Writers Become Authors.

Chris Winkle writes another great post for Mythcreants: Why social justice is intrinsic to storytelling.

Roz Morris writes about the importance of names. I love names, too.

Agent Carly Watters lists seven things that writers should stop wasting their time on.

Sarah Callender explores the practice of success for Writer Unboxed.

Anna Lovind writes about finding true support on your writing journey. Scoutiegirl.

Are we pandering to, or presuming, short attention spans? Publishers Weekly.

Grammarly presents eleven untranslatable words from other cultures and eleven words for the self-proclaimed smarty-pants.

Jane Ann McLachlan wrote this article on ethics and science fiction for SF Signal.

You should know about the Fermi Paradox before you read The Dark Forest. Chris Lough for Tor.com.

Ten things you may not know about Pride and Prejudice. Mental Floss.

BuzzFeed lists 35 Canadian bookstores you need to visit.

Check out the Con Man trailer. Entertainment Weekly.

A first look at the new MTV series, The Shannara Chronicles:

Here’s some news from the Doctor Who panel at Comic Con. i09.

Also at Comic Con, Joss Whedon expounds on the meaning of life and more. i09.

True Detective teaches how NOT to write dialogue. Electric Lit.

Y’all come back on Thoughty Thursday, now, ya hear?

Tipsday

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, June 28-July 4, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Canada’s creative industries can lead the economic charge. The Globe and Mail.

How seven things that have nothing to do with rape perfectly illustrate the concept of consent. Upworthy.

One woman creates a video documenting the vile comments she receives, both with and without makeup. It’s terrible what we do to each other online.

Delilah S. Dawson asks us to use our voices wisely. There’s this thing happening that getting blown out of all proportion on the interwebz. I’ve shared posts on this before. Please. Use your voice wisely and with discretion.

Believe it or not, this is the best time to be alive. Maclean’s.

Do you have these two things that lead to a happy life? Time.

Is depression a mental or a physical illness? IFLS.

Alzheimer’s may begin 20 years before symptoms begin to show. Time.

What are we doing to our precious little snowflakes? The Globe and Mail.

Amazing photos of New Zealand’s glow worm caves. The Smithsonian.

Just ‘cause it was Canada Day last Wednesday: Canada Day facts for Americans. The Huffington Post.

Also from The Huffington Post, this Canada Day playlist.

This week wasn’t heavy on the thoughty, but some of the issue made up for that.

See you Saturday for more Ad Astra convention reportage.

Thoughty Thursday

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, June 28-July 4, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Another bumper crop of Writerly Goodness. I guess you can tell where my head is these days, eh?

Will a newly consolidated Penguin Random House weaken or save Canadian publishing? The Globe and Mail.

Chapters Indigo to carry more lifestyle products. Is this a good thing for our national bookseller? The Province.

Russell Smith writes about how to publish a book in Canada. The Globe and Mail.

Apple loses its appeal and ebook decision is confirmed. Publishers Weekly.

K.M. Weiland shares three ways you can make writing your novel easier.

Level up your fiction with dramatic irony. Katie’s Wedneday post (what, no vlog? Nope, but the post is just as good).

Nina Munteanu writes on the topic of exposition.

How Veronica Sicoe brainstorms her story ideas into working concepts.

What are three signs that your novel has too many characters and what can you do about it? Roz Morris helps you Nail Your Novel.

Donald Maass contributed this piece on openings to Writer Unboxed. Intrigue vs. engagement? As usual, Don argues for a healthy balance of both 🙂

I may have posted this before, but it’s good advice, so here you go: How to know when to stop editing and move on. The Write Practice.

Chris Winkle posts about the differences between writing a short story and writing a novel. Mythcreants.

Steven Pressfield discusses the writer’s skill.

Ruth Harris writes about the care and feeding of your muse on Anne R. Allen’s blog.

Enough is a wretched concept. Delilah S. Dawson.

Are perfectly micromanaged worlds utopian or dystopian? Veronica Sicoe considers the question on her blog.

An interview with Douglas Smith. Fantasy Fiction Focus.

Charlie Gilkey interviews Ali Luke on The Creative Giant podcast.

Which books didn’t change your life? The Guardian.

What Zack Handlen learned from rereading The Stand. i09.

50 years on, how Dune changed the world. The Guardian.

Reading Canada with SFF legends, eh? Beauty in Ruins.

The Wizard of Oz and Age of Ultron mash up you didn’t know you needed. i09.

Advantageous is an insanely good movie that everyone should watch. Katherine Trendacosta for i09.

Check out theses fifteen TV series that reinvented science fiction in the past decade. i09.

Diana Gabaldon shared this two part interview from a few years back on Writer Unboxed. Good stuff 🙂 Here’s part 1 and part 2.

A first look at Outlander season two: Jamie and Claire in Paris. Entertainment Weekly.

Hang in there until Thoughty Thursday, peeps. I’ll be back with more curation for you then.

Tipsday

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, June 21-27, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 4 Comments

W00t! You wanted moar writerly goodness? Well, here it is!

In local publishing news, Latitude 46 moves into the void left by Your Scrivener Press. The Northern Life.

Listen to K.M. Weiland’s weekly podcast (and subscribe) or read her companion post. Last week’s offering: What every writer ought to know about omniscient point of view (POV).

How to make your secondary characters truly memorable. Katie’s Wednesday vlog.

Will readers find you protagonist worthy? Angela Ackerman on Writers Helping Writers.

The bigger the dream, the greater the resistance. When resistance pays you a compliment. Steven Pressfield.

The four dangers of writing and critique groups. The title says ‘hidden dangers,’ but they’re not really hidden. First-timers and eternal optimists might be blind to them, though. Jennie Nash on Jane Friedman’s blog.

How to write about guns without sounding like a doorknob. Benjamin Sobieck (who was much more polite about it that I was) guest posts on Jane Friedman’s blog.

The Listen Inside podcast from Readers in the Know features chapter 2 from Veronica Sicoe’s The Deep Link.

The ten best literary love songs brought to you by Quirk Books.

BuzzFeed compiles their list of the 53 best opening lines in literature.

Not to be outdone, Penguin Random House offered its list of captivating first lines.

In case you weren’t already crushed by the weight of your unread book stack, BuzzFeed compiles this list of ALL 339 books referenced in Gilmour Girls.

i09 lists its essential cyberpunk reads.

ZDNet shares their list of 26 essential science fiction novels that will help you prepare for the future.

Where Japanese science fiction has been and where it’s going. Japanese Times.

The 2015 Sunburst Awards finalists announced on the CBC.

And here’s Quill & Quire’s piece on the awards.

The brilliant ideas that didn’t make it into Pixar’s Inside Out. i09.

I must say that Phil and I are enjoying Sense8 quite a bit. Then again, we love well-developed character and story. The slow burn is just fine with us. Here’s Bram E. Geiben’s take on season 1 for i09.

Moar season 2 fodder for your Droughtlander jonesing. Carter Matt.

See you on Thoughty Thursday!

Tipsday

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, June 14-20, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 4 Comments

A couple of fraught issues to start you off today, and then we move through psych and science to some feel-good at the end.

Jon Stewart on the Charleston church shooting:

The RCMP report that there have been 1,118 missing or murdered aboriginal women since 1980. CTV News.

13 brave, indigenous women share their stories of how they almost joined the missing. McLean’s.

Delilah S. Dawson isn’t going to tear you down. She’s going to build you up. Whimsy Dark.

Can diet shape your mental health? Gives a whole new meeting to ‘you are what you eat’ 🙂 The Globe and Mail.

The genetic link between creativity and mental illness has been found. Collective Evolution.

Why Finland’s teachers are different. The Guardian.

They’ve discovered the compound responsible for ‘old person smell.’ Mental Floss.

The link between stress, creativity, and orgasm: Naomi Wolf writes about the vagina in her new book. BrainPickings.

Take a look at this adorable octopus. What are scientists thinking of naming it? Adorabilis 🙂 BoredPanda.

How jellyfish put themselves back together. The National Geographic.

How does a creature reproduce when it’s actually four creatures? On man o’ wars and other siphonophores. i09.

Kayakers have a close encounter with a whale 🙂

Dogs will snub people who are mean to their owners. IFLS.

Kangaroos are lefties (and why handedness is rare in animals). The National Geographic.

I shared a post a few weeks ago about how mice were shown to have inherited their parents’ fears. Well, here’s another article on the subject. Science Gymnasium.

NASA is one step closer to its mission to Europa. i09.

Dr. Michelle Thaller: We are all dead stars. The Atlantic.

Yes, androids do dream of electric sheep. The Guardian.

Darwin’s grandfather once thought up a plan that would destroy the world. i09.

The Barra McNeils and Ashley McIsaac in Windsor:

Hope you have lots of great ideas this week!

See you Saturday.

Thoughty Thursday

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, June 14-20, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila / 3 Comments

Another wonderful week for Writerly Goodness!

What’s the key event and how is it different from the inciting incident and the first plot point? I know I still forget the distinctions. K.M. Weiland’s Helping Writers Become Authors.

And here’s Katie’s Wednesday vlog: How to write a riveting characteristic moment.

Roz Morris shares her experience with repetitive stress injury (RSI).

Kassandra Lamb guests on Jami Gold’s blog: Nine psychology myths you need to avoid.

Tips on picking up the pace from Rebecca LuElla Miller.

Learn about the magic systems of Brandon Sanderson. Tor.com.

Five ways first contact could turn into an epic fail. Veronica Sicoe.

Neil Gaiman offers his thoughts on why stories last. (w/ Podcast) BrainPickings.

Liz Bourke ponders how we speak of strong female characters. This post refers to others I’ve shared in past weeks and takes it in a slightly different direction. Very interesting. Tor.com.

How can you keep readers from hating your characters? Jody Hedlund.

Beth Revis posts on Janice Hardy’s Fiction University: How do you know you’re ready to publish? Agent Carly Watters of P.S. Literary wrote on the same topic last week 🙂

Dave King explores our motivations for writing. Writer Unboxed.

Kameron Hurley asks, why are we self-publishing? Locus.

Porter Anderson takes a look at Hugh Howey’s promotion of self-publishing and what it really means in the context of the continually evolving publishing industry. Thought Catalog.

Related: Nielsen Book’s latest results indicate that self-publishing is more like traditional publishing. Publishing perspectives.

Amazon changes its terms for KDP select. The Digital Reader.

Why I teach diverse literature. The Toast.

What librarians wish we knew about how to use a library. i09.

Authors share the places that inspire them. FlavorWire.

Ten books you should read before you see the movie. The Huffington Post.

Mark Twain’s advice to little girls. BrainPickings.

This is fun 🙂 Classic novels with clickbait titles. BuzzFeed.

BuzzFeed shares 22 book-themed gifts for readers.

Watch the Scooby Doo crew’s fashion evolve through the last century. i09.

The first set photos of the new all-female Ghostbusters! i09.

Mike Hale states that Game of Thrones the series is going the way of Lost . . . What do you think? The New York Times.

Here are Charlie Jane Anders’s suggestions about how to fix Game of Thrones. Is it even possible? i09.

How Terry Dresbach’s costumes bring history to life on Outlander. Variety.

Orphan Black’s season finale: history yet to be written. It was awesome (IMO). The Wall Street Journal.

See you Thursday 🙂

Tipsday

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, June 7-13, 2015

/ Melanie Marttila

There’s a little bit of somethin’ somethin’ for everyone 🙂

Here was the thoughty controversy of the week: Tim Hunt doesn’t want women in the lab. Why? Because they fall in love with their male coworkers, they distract their male coworkers, and they cry (there’s no crying in science!).

So, of course, after making the statement, Hunt quit. That didn’t stop these ladies from taking it out of him with #distractifyinglysexy 🙂

Understanding the sensitive heart. The Elephant Journal.

This is for anyone who has had to watch a loved one die. There is something poetic about being there to witness the final struggle, even if the struggle is not a physical one. To sit with death. The Elephant Journal.

Sarah Knight left a job because happiness is more important to her than commitment. Quartz.

Which countries are the happiest? Find out in this article from 24/7 Wall St. Canada’s in there, but the Scandinavians rule (apparently)!

Indigenous cultures have less back pain. Why is that? NPR.

Baba Yaga’s House, a feminist alternative to seniors’ homes, opens in Paris. RFI.

Eight feminist lessons from Jane Austen. Bustle.

The psychology of inspirational women: Veronica Mars. Janina Scarlet for The Mary Sue.

Caitlyn Jenner got Vi Hart thinking about gender. Honest and awesome.

Sarah Jones delivers a sex talk from the future by way of six characters. Amazing TED Talk.

Margaret Atwood speaks out about Bill C-51. The National Observer.

The problem with patterns. The Creativity Post.

Find out more about the SEAL team that’s famous for taking out Osama Bin Laden. The New York Times.

The moon terminator illusion. Vsauce.

Did the dinosaurs really go extinct? It’s okay to be smart.

Eek! If a Boomslang bites you, you bleed to death (out of every orifice – ew). IFLS.

Here’s a little futuristic retro for you: This is what 1956 marketers thought 1976 roads would be like. Popular Mechanics.

13 rarely seen photos of Marilyn Monroe. Elle. She was such a beautiful woman.

This tribute to a beloved dog will have you bawling. But it is SO beautiful. Denali. Bustle.

So kawaii! A family of weasels scales a wall. The Telegraph.

And in case the song at the end of the Denali video got to you like it got to me:

Now go get that squishy grey thing of yours into gear 🙂

I’m off to get ready for the M.H. Callway workshop taking place in Sudbury this evening.

I will probably not post on Saturday this week because of Wordstock, but I’ll post Ad Astra and Wordstock reportage on Sunday. Ok? Ok. S’alright? S’alright!

Thoughty Thursday