Deborah Kelty

In my very first post I ever wrote when starting this blog, I mentioned a lot on the matter of what makes a story really succeed. 
Though looking back, I only wrote on the basis of three words and then adding in unnecessary poetic dialogue for the sake of it. I'll admit, my inexperience from starting only just last year still leaves me uncomfortable. Anyways......I think we can all agree that, in one way or another, every story we make will have some sort of theme, message or lesson inside. Whether it be a subtle one or not. But even if a writer didn't intend to, it's going to appear anyway. But that leaves the question in place: do stories with meaning matter?
And if so, how should they be told successfully?


Of course, the obvious question would be, obviously that's how it's done, and then I'd finish the post there. 
But I think it goes a lot deeper, and perhaps, a lot more important than that. 
And yes, I'm one of those kinds of writers who thinks complexity i…

I feel a bit stupid over this....why?....because my last actual film review (which was on Black Panther, by the way) was earlier this year, and while I have seen a few others since, the idea of actually making a post on what I thought of them completely left my head. 
Not exactly the right way to be consist, at all. Part of this was 'cause I wasn't really that bothered and also too busy to discuss on them, but also due to these movies being mostly terrible and kind of forgettable. For those interested, here's a quick look at what I did see, and what I thought of them:

The Maze Runner: The Death Cure - Pretty good ending to a meh trilogy.
(Note: This was before I saw Black Panther)

Avengers:Infinity War - Awesome!

The Incredibles 2 - Decent.

Johnny English Strikes Again - Bleh, nothing like the previous two.

Ralph Breaks The Internet - Alright.

And there you go. Now let's head to my review from what I saw last week....of another superhero movie: that's actually a lot of fun…

Creating posts of writing advice and tips hasn't been as easy for me lately.
Not when you've got so much else going to occupy yourself with that trying to think of what to say on specific questions is harder because you're already tired from everything else. That said, one thing that has become more on my mind as of late is this: what happens when a certain idea doesn't fully work out. Of course, you've probably heard this many times, and that's okay. Rather, what I'm going to look at here is the symptoms, if you will, of when this occurs and how you could guess it during your writing process.



Symptom 1: Your Mind Wanders Off



Well, kind of. But in most ways, yes it does. Usually, in this case, you might not have that same adrenaline feel when writing your other stories. And instead, you're more interesting in having more of that chocolate in your cupboard or finish that episode of that favorite tv show or movie on Netflix. Of course, if you think it's …

There are many classic action and adventure movies out there. Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, Robin Hood (to some extent). But some examples, which few remember, have effected the ones we know now.
One of them is Zorro, a masked vigilante who fought for freedom, written by an American pulp writer named Johnston McCulley in the early 1900's. Since then, he has appeared in many stories, and even said to inspired the creation of superheroes like Batman. 
However, not many adaptations of the hero have been made, though one of them is particularly underrated.





The Mask of Zorro, like Ever After, was also released in 1998, and is an action adventure film based on what I mentioned above. 
A half-origin, and almost a sequel but not really, the story is mainly about Alejandro Antonio Banderas) a man who after losing his brother by the hands of an evil captain, encounters Diego de la Vega (Anthony Hopkins), the first Zorro. However, Diego has long been in hiding after Rafael Montero (St…

Last week was the release of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindlewald, the sequel to Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them and a continuation of the new prequel series based on one of the biggest franchises of the 21st century, Harry Potter. 
Or, The Wizarding World, according to the updated title. And while I myself didn't go to see it, since college life and other big priorities took up my time, I did hear of friends going to see it themselves. And from what I heard, it was a meh, along with all the bad reviews that came in, and the backlash which followed. With such a development occurring not just now, but also in the past, and 2018 being a mostly crappy year of movies, it makes perfect sense to bring the subject up, here and now. This will of course focus on prequel films in particular, though prequel books exist also, so this can go out to both mediums. And sequels too:



#1:Some ideas are not entirely necessary, or could contradict the later stories.
One of the main reaso…

For those who didn't get the update on Twitter, I was unfortunately unable to do last week, after having a busy day doing the usual studies and so on. And it is because of this that I also bring a bit of bad news; that being, there will be no indie-book reviews this month. 
I know, I know, I am just as disappointed in myself too ('cause I can be) but due to other, more important projects taking up my time, and money required for it, I'm not quite there to get more books on my shelf just yet. But don't panic. 
I do plan to start again next month when the holidays come along, so not too long to wait! In the mean time, here is another playlist I've made for your writerly inspirations: this time on calm and peaceful scenes. Enjoy!





1. The Northerner Diaries (Original Fantasy Score)

Composer: Jeremy Soule



Example Tracks: Njol; Draumr; Himinbjorg; Utanlands

2. Stranger Things Seasons 1 -2 (TV Show Score) 

Composer: Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein 




Example Tracks: Kids; Eleven; Eulog…

For every great movie that is near to perfection, there's also that movie you may like which no one else does.
Sometimes it's the ones with negative opinions (which is the usual case), or those that got positive reception but then later everyone changed their minds and said, "Okay, this actually kind of sucks." or "Eh, it's fine."
However, while most of these criticisms can be accurate, that isn't to say some find a form of enjoyment out of such movies, and also having those opinions in mind. So, in no particular order, here are my Top 5 Guilty Pleasure Movies! 
Plus tagging five others (which you can do also)!

Also, remember these are guilty pleasure movies, not personal greatest films of all time. 
So don't take it too much to heart.



1. Nim's Island (2008)



You've probably never heard of this movie, but it came out just over ten years ago and kind of went forgotten after it's release, despite having some big name actors playing the main ro…