And Now, for Something Completely Different: Animated Octopuses - Octopods - Octopi - More Than One Animated Octopus

"Octopus Dance"

adnamameww, YouTube (May 16, 2007)
video, 0:46

"My final project for my electronic imaging 4 class, as well as my first 3D animation."

It's not likely to win an Emmy or an Oscar - but it's a fun way to spend 46 seconds.

"Awesome Octopus Animation"

TheBestVideos2227, YouTube (September 29, 2008)
video, 2:26

"that is some talent... after the video please visit http://www.tylergram.com to send real mail to loved ones and friends Thanks!"

I know: With the word "awesome" in the title, I was prepared to see something that was anything-but.

But, as #1 daughter said, "that is seriously cool!" There's pretty high-quality 3D animation here, a well-paced story - and fairly decent character development, considering the tight time constraints.

Writers Take Note: 'And It Was All A Dream' Not Necessarily Welcome

"Stories We've Seen Too Often"
Strange Horizons (last updated March 26, 2009)

"For information about what we're looking for and how to submit, see our main fiction guidelines page.

"The following list is an attempt at classifying the kinds of non-horror plots and themes that we receive too frequently. We have a separate page for horror stories we've seen too often.

"Main plot types are numbered; subspecies and variants receive letters.

"This is not a canonical list of bad stories or story cliches. This is a list of types of stories that we at SH have seen too often; it's not intended to be a complete list of all types of bad stories, nor are all the items on the list necessarily bad...."

The list of 37 to-be-avoided story lines starts with:

"Person is (metaphorically) at point A, wants to be at point B. Looks at point B, says 'I want to be at point B.' Walks to point B, encountering no meaningful obstacles or difficulties. The end. (A.k.a. the linear plot.)..."

I think that calling a conflict-free narrative like that "the linear plot" is a bit off-base, but I'll agree that a collection of words like that is not what I'd call an interesting story. In some respects, it isn't a story at all: more of an account.

The same might be said of #8: "# A place is described, with no plot or characters." Doyle got away with something like that, as a part of Hound of the Baskervilles - but to submit a description, with nothing else, and expect it to be published?

I'm glad to see that the editors didn't say that this set of 'don't submit' ideas was a sort of universal rule.

On the other hand, I think wannabe story tellers, myself included, would be well-advised to look over the list. For example, if you were going write a story that could be summarized as "Teen's family doesn't understand them" (#34) - think long and hard if there's something new and fresh you could bring to the idea.

Quite a few of the no-no story lines hinge on the author (rather injudiciously) assuming that not only the characters, but the readers, are incapable of seeing the 'surprise ending' ahead of time. Way ahead of time.

All in all, a pretty good resource for fiction writers.

The Story of the Other Jason

"The myth of Jason, the Argonauts and the Golden Fleece."
Mythweb (1997)

"The Early Years

"Jason was the son of the lawful king of Iolcus, but his uncle Pelias had usurped the throne. Pelias lived in constant fear of losing what he had taken so unjustly. He kept Jason's father...."

Sounds like a rather ordinary retelling of the old story about Jason and the Argonauts.

Mythweb's version of the story follows the ancient Greek line, but Joel Skidmore had a some fun here and there with the telling of the tale:

"...Oh, and there was one trifling detail of which Jason should be aware. These bulls were a bit unusual in that their feet were made of brass sharp enough to rip open a man from gullet to gizzard. And then of course there was the matter of their bad breath...."

You might like Mark Fiore's illustrations, too.

I wouldn't use this was a reference for your term paper, but it's fun to read (IMO), and far from the most painful way of getting acquainted with Jason and company.

A Sort of Lyric Challenge

"Lyric Challenge"
Manictastic (July 30, 2008)

"A new assignment for myself and my readers. Since intertextuality and references to pop culture are hot these days I dare you and myself to write a short story, poem, novel, whatever with the following lyrics from some of the hottest songs of today. You can leave a link to your story in the comment section. I'll be posting my attempt in the following weeks...."

Sounds interesting. And no, I haven't made up my mind yet, whether to try.

Happy Birthday, Beatrix Potter

Peter Rabbit is very much a part of American culture today - and possibly British, too. Today is the birthday of Beatrix Potter, creator of that mischievous rabbit. I thought posting a few links would be appropriate:

• "Beatrix Potter's Birthday is July 28; A Woman 'Ahead of Her Time' "
  Associated Content (July 28, 2008)
  Peter Rabbit Creator is 142
  • "Today is the birthday of iconic writer Beatrix Potter, InEntertainment reports. The author of the famous book, 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit,' was born on July 28, 1866, and died December 22, 1943.
  • "According to the article, Potter was born into a privileged family, but was very sad because she was kept isolated by her family. In seeing that she wrote 23 books and further, that she also was an illustrator, mycologist and conservationist, it seemed to me it made sense to find out a little more about her, especially since Peter Rabbit was such a big part of my life...."
• "Happy Birthday Beatrix Potter"
  UVA - Univeristy of Virginia (July 28, 2008)
  • "Celebrating a posthumous birthday today, the author and illustrator of the famed Peter Rabbit series would have been 142-years-old.
  • "She cultivated a career in a time when the cultural climate and her family discouraged it...."
• "Beatrix Potter in Cumbria"
  VisitCumbria
  • "Beatrix Potter was born on 28 July 1866 in South Kensington, London. She lived a lonely life at home, being educated by a governess and having little contact with other people. She had many animals which she kept as pets, studying them and making drawings.
  • "Her parents took her on three month summer holidays to Scotland, but when the house they rented became unavailable, they rented Wray Castle near Ambleside in the Lake District. Beatrix was 16 when they first stayed here. Her parents entertained many eminent guests, including Hardwicke Rawnsley vicar of Wray Church, who in 1895 was to become one of the founders of the National Trust.
  • "His views on the need to preserve the natural beauty of Lakeland had a lasting effect on the young Beatrix, who had fallen in love with the unspoilt beauty surrounding the holiday home...."

Funny: Everyone seems to see their own interests in Beatrix Potter. And here I thought was a gifted storyteller and artist, who published a story about a rabbit that became a cultural icon.

Come to think of it, I'm interested in art and literature.

Dear Dad Letter: "There are Worse Things..."

"Dear Dad Letter"
Avolites Online

"A father passing by his son's bedroom, was astonished to see the bed was nicely made, and that everything was picked up and tidy. Then, he saw an envelope, propped up prominently on the pillow. It was addressed...."

That's one smart son.

I think most parents - and most who are in, or have survived, the teen years - will appreciate this page.

Rude Passenger, Professional Gate Attendant, Laughing Crowd

"A lesson for all employees who work with rude customers!"
That's A Bloke (undated)

"An award should go to the Virgin Airlines gate attendant in Sydney for being customer focused, while making her point when confronted with a passenger who probably deserved to fly as cargo....

This is one of the better-written versions of a story I've read several times: always unauthenticated. Most of them, including this one, ring true, but are probably apocryphal. There's a pretty good discussion of this sort of story at: "Obnoxious Passengers" (Snopes.com)

Random Concept Generator - a Writer's Resource, or a Weird Recreation

"The Random Concept Generator"
Weird
Starting a story and stuck for an idea? There are worse places to go on the Web.

Here are my first three results.

The concept is this:

• a group of accident prone Romantic circus performers with strange visions in a neverending battle with the System.
• a group of wealthy ancient detectives with a vessel fighting a parallel universe.
• a group of friendly surreal avians with grim resolutions collecting artifacts in Skull Island.

I rather like that last one.

Have fun.

A Heartwarming Story

"Information, please" is a touching story.

I think I've read this before. If anyone knows the origin of this story, I'd appreciate a comment.