jadesfire: Bright yellow flower (Text - Research)
[personal profile] jadesfire
I love getting my teeth into research for a new story. As promised to [livejournal.com profile] apiphile, 2009 is the year of the subplot, and I'm doing my best to construct one for my Big Bang. So far, I'm up to my ears in Arthurian legend, dragons, sedimentary rocks, Welsh poetry, Geoffrey of Monmouth, physics and the geography of North Wales. It's great! I also had one of those moments where you read something in research that you're pretty sure was put there just for you. Oh yes. Subplots, here I come...

When I'm not doing that, I've been clearing out some of my delicious links that I thought you might like.

My pick of the bunch:

Truly beautiful kinetic sculptures. I could watch them all day, and his own website could prove addictive.

And the rest:


100 foot Dalek!

Dooblet. This is an interesting version of a search engine, offering you alternatives to your search term, rather than actual results.

Latin is alive and well and living in California

Dewey Decimal Rap. The internet is a strange, strange place…

Interesting piece by Mary Beard on the feminising (or not) of history.

Listen to all the Nebula short-listed stories from 2008

The Internet Monoculture. I need to get to grips with the maths in this, but it's an interesting piece about the nature of influence on and offline.

Time vs The Pundits. Time generally wins.

Fantastic pictures from last week's Earth Hour

Find your local library with a text message! (US only)

Inside your mobile and other gadgets. They're kind of pretty without their clothes on.

Courtoons. Breaking news: both lawyers and librarians have senses of humour. More later.

Costuming: UR DOIN IT RONG

Guesstimations. Raising vagueness to an art form. Or possibly a science.

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 02:35 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] phoenix64.livejournal.com
I came across the Dalek randomly while elsewhere on the BBC News site - so neat! Now we need a TARDIS crop circle.

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:20 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
Isn't it awesome? The effort required must have been huge, which reminds me. I must find the Sheepdog art link...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:10 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] aeshna_uk
Ah, [livejournal.com profile] tardis_bigbang. I'm up to my eyeballs in the terminology of WWII Allied Forces in 1944, castles in the Rhine Valley, and I've not even started on the Gestapo yet. Have the (current day) introductory section done, and a lot of random bits and pieces as scenes push to the front of the brain, but I can see that it's going to be a challenge hitting that deadline.... ;)

(and in a little while, I have to shove all of this onto the baby Acer and dash off to Bradford for Eastercon - I foresee a lot of tapping away at the back of panels in my immediate future)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:21 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*g* I swear, I prefer the research to the writing. I haven't written a thing yet, although that's par for the course for me. The aim will be 20k in 14 days, which sounds reasonably do-able, I hope.

(netbooks are so handy for that kind of thing, though! Have fun :D)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:38 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] aeshna_uk
The aim will be 20k in 14 days, which sounds reasonably do-able

Hahahahahahaha *sobs* I wish I could write that fast! I'm only about halfway to the draft length and this is already the second-longest thing I've written in this fandom....

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*soothes* I do not recommend my writing method to anyone. It generally consists of three months of stewing, a few days of frantic research, a few more days of manic writing and complete burn-out afterwards.

Pacing: I lack it ;)

Even if you don't make the deadline, at least you'll get an epic out of it, right? That's what I keep telling myself, anyway...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:32 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] apiphile.livejournal.com
I am *deeply* pleased by the news on the subplot front!

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:34 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
Yeah, well just expect the blame when it turns out not to be a carefully woven tapestry so much as an unholy mess ;D

Still, I have at least three ideas at the same time, which is more than I've had in a while, so we'll see what happens...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:39 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] apiphile.livejournal.com
Nothing's perfect the first time. :P And it will be an adventure!

(Hooray! That definitely sounds like it merits an AWESOME sticker to me)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 05:50 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aeron-lanart.livejournal.com
I've bowed out of TARDIS Big Bang so am More Than Happy to squee about northern Welsh geography and sedimentary rocks at you as I love rocks, to the extent that I've even done an OU geology module! Plus North Wales is kind of my stomping ground, Liverpool sometimes being looked on as the 'capital' of North Wales (or the coast anyway). I haz piccytures too! Somewhere.

Oh and I'll quite happily squee about Merlin, Arthur and Geoffrey of Monmouth while I'm at it. I may even be some use.

The dalek is cool and there's one bit that makes me both squee and go 'oops'...
Last year, nine out of ten children in a National Trust survey were able to identify a Dalek correctly.
Only 47% of the children surveyed by the heritage charity were able to identify a barn owl.

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 05:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*grabby hands* Seriously? Can I email you? Please? Because I have all these THOUGHTS and don't know what to do with them at the moment. Admittedly I probably won't know for a few days, but could I add you to my plot-brain-storming list, please? That would be all kinds of awesome :D Thanks!

Hee, I missed that bit. Er...yay? *snort*

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 06:03 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aeron-lanart.livejournal.com
email me anytime! I'm on nights atm so I'm accessing mail and stuff at strange times and not for long (it's 'breakfast' right now), can't remember if you have my addy - aeronlanart (at) gmail (dot) com.

Oh and I'll squee about Cadbury Castle being 'the' Camelot too - brilliant place, loved it to bits.

Time to dig my Arthur and Merlin books out...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 02:35 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] phoenix64.livejournal.com
I came across the Dalek randomly while elsewhere on the BBC News site - so neat! Now we need a TARDIS crop circle.

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:20 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
Isn't it awesome? The effort required must have been huge, which reminds me. I must find the Sheepdog art link...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:10 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] aeshna_uk
Ah, [livejournal.com profile] tardis_bigbang. I'm up to my eyeballs in the terminology of WWII Allied Forces in 1944, castles in the Rhine Valley, and I've not even started on the Gestapo yet. Have the (current day) introductory section done, and a lot of random bits and pieces as scenes push to the front of the brain, but I can see that it's going to be a challenge hitting that deadline.... ;)

(and in a little while, I have to shove all of this onto the baby Acer and dash off to Bradford for Eastercon - I foresee a lot of tapping away at the back of panels in my immediate future)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:21 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*g* I swear, I prefer the research to the writing. I haven't written a thing yet, although that's par for the course for me. The aim will be 20k in 14 days, which sounds reasonably do-able, I hope.

(netbooks are so handy for that kind of thing, though! Have fun :D)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:38 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] aeshna_uk
The aim will be 20k in 14 days, which sounds reasonably do-able

Hahahahahahaha *sobs* I wish I could write that fast! I'm only about halfway to the draft length and this is already the second-longest thing I've written in this fandom....

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*soothes* I do not recommend my writing method to anyone. It generally consists of three months of stewing, a few days of frantic research, a few more days of manic writing and complete burn-out afterwards.

Pacing: I lack it ;)

Even if you don't make the deadline, at least you'll get an epic out of it, right? That's what I keep telling myself, anyway...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:32 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] apiphile.livejournal.com
I am *deeply* pleased by the news on the subplot front!

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:34 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
Yeah, well just expect the blame when it turns out not to be a carefully woven tapestry so much as an unholy mess ;D

Still, I have at least three ideas at the same time, which is more than I've had in a while, so we'll see what happens...

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 03:39 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] apiphile.livejournal.com
Nothing's perfect the first time. :P And it will be an adventure!

(Hooray! That definitely sounds like it merits an AWESOME sticker to me)

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 05:50 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aeron-lanart.livejournal.com
I've bowed out of TARDIS Big Bang so am More Than Happy to squee about northern Welsh geography and sedimentary rocks at you as I love rocks, to the extent that I've even done an OU geology module! Plus North Wales is kind of my stomping ground, Liverpool sometimes being looked on as the 'capital' of North Wales (or the coast anyway). I haz piccytures too! Somewhere.

Oh and I'll quite happily squee about Merlin, Arthur and Geoffrey of Monmouth while I'm at it. I may even be some use.

The dalek is cool and there's one bit that makes me both squee and go 'oops'...
Last year, nine out of ten children in a National Trust survey were able to identify a Dalek correctly.
Only 47% of the children surveyed by the heritage charity were able to identify a barn owl.

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 05:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jadesfire2808.livejournal.com
*grabby hands* Seriously? Can I email you? Please? Because I have all these THOUGHTS and don't know what to do with them at the moment. Admittedly I probably won't know for a few days, but could I add you to my plot-brain-storming list, please? That would be all kinds of awesome :D Thanks!

Hee, I missed that bit. Er...yay? *snort*

(no subject)

Date: 2009-04-09 06:03 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aeron-lanart.livejournal.com
email me anytime! I'm on nights atm so I'm accessing mail and stuff at strange times and not for long (it's 'breakfast' right now), can't remember if you have my addy - aeronlanart (at) gmail (dot) com.

Oh and I'll squee about Cadbury Castle being 'the' Camelot too - brilliant place, loved it to bits.

Time to dig my Arthur and Merlin books out...