hmmm... maybe I should try to finish NaNoWriMo after all...

[miriam_e]

It is not the critic who counts -- not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done better. The credit belongs to the one who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood... Who strives valiantly... who errs and comes short again and again... who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause -- and who, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.

Theodore Roosevelt's "Man in the Arena" Speech (April 23, 1910)

Comments

[jrosestar.livejournal.com]

I've been out of touch with pretty much everyone recently. How close are you? (to NaNo)

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

I've done very little since the first few days. It would be nice to finish it. Only 2 chapters are online, with a third mostly written.

I got put off by a few sneering remarks from some people, figured I was wasting my time and should be working... not that I get paid, but it's a project that may eventually deliver a very nice income doing what I like to do. Unfortunately I'm the greatest of procrastinators and I probably should've continued with the writing... at least I'd have something done.
[sigh]

Been doing a little writing apart from the NaNo thing...
I feel a bit antsy that I haven't done any artwork for ages...
Oh dear, I think need a cup of tea.

How about you?

[gothxxangel.livejournal.com]

Disregard the peanut gallery. They're just frustrated at their own failings and seeing the success of another is galling. /extrapolation

Plus, it's the weekend! Yay! I'm sorry I haven't been around a lot, but work and NaNo have been kicking my butt. Still, things are going sort-of well. Don't give up Miriam! The world's quota of fiction (particularly that of the lesbian kind, hehe!) is still far under target.

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Heheh :) Actually my story has no lesbian stuff in it at the moment. The fact that the main character is lesbian seems to have little or no bearing on the story. :( I haven't even mentioned it yet. All the way into the dim, distant reaches of the pre-plotted story she doesn't even get laid or get a crush on anyone. Darn.

Even worse, I wrote a very short story the other day, completely unrelated to NaNo which has stuff I swore I'd never write: a story where the lesbian has unhappily-ever-after stuff happen. Dammit! Hollywood and the book publishers have already done way more of that crap than we need.

I intend to finish the NaNo story... but I won't make the deadline. :(

Man in the Arena

[(Anonymous)]

TR was once described as "... a steam engine in trousers" His cousin FDR called him "...the most remarkable man I ever met. (Don't know if this was before meeting Churchhill, MacArthur, Stalin etc.). I don't totally agree with him. Daring strong men have done a lot of terrible things & there is a place for what Socrates called himself - "... a gadfly" Or to put it another way, "They also serve, who only stand and *r*ate" - spyder.king

Re: Man in the Arena

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

David!! Wow! You found your way to LJ. Yay!

True. Gadflies are needed to act as a brake upon some of the worst excesses of those who rush in and brashly get things done.

It just particularly bugs me that sometimes criticism is made not to fix things, but in order to appear "cool". Film and art critics, especially, often fall into this trap. Someone will have spent a couple of years working their heart out on something which, if it appeals to vast numbers of people, you can almost guarantee the critics will airily dismiss as crap. There's Something About Mary copped a lambasting from the critics, but it lasted longer at the cinemas than anything else I've seen.

Re: Man in the Arena

[grumpleskin.livejournal.com]

Yes the proportions are probably wrong. When your car won't start you only need one person to steer & more to push - but sitting there getting a ride & steering or advising is easier. I'll likely get back to the motives topic some place another time.

Can I get you on my friends list without RTFM?

Re: Man in the Arena

[miriam-e.livejournal.com]

Yep, click on this (http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=miriam_e) which takes you to my info page (same as going to my main LJ page and clicking on the "my info" link.

Now you'll see a heap of useless info. There will be 6 little buttons in the middle of the page. The first one has a tiny cartoon of a person's head and shoulders with a red "+". Clicking on that will add me to you friends (also called flist or f-list).

Great to see you here David. :)

Eeek! Just about to get logged off my ISP -- 4hrs almost up.