POCs in Sci Fi and Fantasy!!

I am on the lookout for male and female characters who are people of color and are protagonists in science fiction and fantasy books and movies.  I actually prefer female characters (since the protagonists of all of my stories are female) but male characters will work too.  I have done enough research on the female protagonist (at least for now) and I want to deepen my research with female protagonists of color.  

If you know of any good books or movies with awesome POCs, let me know in the comments.  That would be incredibly generous of you. 

Mad Men: The Carousel

I’ve never really watched Mad Men, but I’ve heard it’s a really good television show. My communications teacher actually showed us this clip in class I was just overcome by how much emotion that came from this small piece of script writing…and I haven’t even seen the show. I felt so much for the character right then…even though I don’t know who he is! If I ever become a professional writer, I will make sure that I keep this small clip in mind. Because the writing of this clip is genius.

A Game of Thrones

Lately I have been reading:

Oh. My. Goodnesspants.  This is one awesome book.

Why is it awesome? Well, let’s start with the characters.  There’s some pretty awesome stuff present in the characterization.  George R.R. Martin does a good job of capturing each character so much that I’ve become attached to just about every single character.  My favorite character happens to be Arya, but that’s largely due to the fact that I really like female characters who take part in fighting.  I understand Sansa and feel a bit sad for her, but I still prefer Arya over Sansa.  I also like Jon…possibly out of pity but he seems to be a more down-to-earth character.  I definitely enjoy reading about Jon and Arya’s relationship.   Daenerys is also a character that I look forward to reading more about especially since she’s so young to be who she is.  Maybe not in the fantasy world, but in general.

I don’t know why I haven’t read this sooner.  I wish I had.  There some awesome world building going on accompanied with a detailed history.  Of all the houses.

After some thought I came to a conclusion that I definitely like reading high fantasy more than writing it, but it’s still great to try and create a world of my own.  It’s not easy.

This is also a great book for plot development.  I think that George R.R. Martin does an excellent job of showing the reader the story, not telling.   There’s a bit difference between the two.  I don’t feel like my intelligence is being insulted when I’m reading this book and that is a very, very good thing.

I can’t wait to finish the book and the rest of the series.  Maybe I’ll even write.  Who knows?

Favorite Words: Inscrutable

It’s a fancy way of saying that something is not understandable.  I probably wouldn’t use this  in an informal conversation, but I would probably use it when writing a paper or a short story, for example.

Example: “The expression on her face was inscrutable; I wasn’t able to tell if she was angry or unshaken.  I found out after she didn’t call me two months after the incident.”

Another word that I really like is enigmatic.  It basically has the same definition.

Bioshock Infinite. A Video game.

Yes, I’ve played Bioshock Infinite. I was quite obsessed with the game once I was able to get into it and I was actually really surprised. I heard that it was a good game and it is. It is. I’m still talking about it a week after I returned it (it was a rental) because of the ultimate ending that I will hold off on. It’s a deep spoiler (not that that isn’t surprising).

This is a trailer for the game, but of course playing the game is a must.  Not only for the gameplay but also for the storyline.  It was really clever if I may say so myself.  I’ve never played a game with such a twist that kept me thinking about the ending.  It may have taken me some time to figure out, but I haven’t regretted any minute of my attempt to figure it out.  One day I will play it again on a harder level.   When I have time  to get stuck on Command Deck level for a week instead of three days.

How it inspires me:

Storytelling.  I know it’s a video game, but I am instantly turned on to a game when it has a great story line.  My stories should also have good story lines and my prose should reflect excellent storytelling.  Simple as that.

A Novel in a Month

I’ve never finished a novel in a month BUT I did happen to write 50,000 words in a month.  Was it hard? Sometimes, but I like the challenge.  Each time I write all those words, I get closer to the finished draft of my story.  The one thing that I tend to do every time I take this challenge is rewrite something that I’ve already written so that I can get a better sense of what I want to put in my story and what should go.  Cramming in that many words in a month takes a bit of effort and the product may be crappy, but at least I’ve written something that gets me closer to the finished product.  I know that even though I’m never happy with the draft that I’ve written in a month, I always find myself looking back at the ideas that I came up with and incorporating them into an improved product.

I’m vaguely talking about NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month that takes place during November.  It’s quite a challenge, especially if you’re working, or in school or both.  I’ve managed to finish the goal three times out of six as long as I plan before hand.  What I haven’t done was actually finish the darn thing.  

But that’s okay.  A while back I wanted to finish the novel, have it polished and ready for publishing within a year.  But as I keep reading novels from veteran authors and thinking about my plot, my characters, and the different twists and turns that I can take, I like taking time to think things through.  Summer is the perfect time for me to do just that since I’m not taking any classes (although I shouldn’t speak too soon).  

I write, not necessarily for people but mainly for myself.  Writing is the only thing that knocked me from the pull of insanity. 

 

The Last Samurai

I’ve seen this movie many, many times but I love watching this movie.  For one, this is probably my favorite Tom Cruise movie along with Ghost Protocol, but that’s not why I like it so much.  The plot of the story is different than other movies that I’ve seen.  Now, I’m not a Japanese history expert, so I can’t vouch for the historical accuracy of it (I’ve heard various things about the historical components of the movie), but I can say that it’s a nice movie overall.  

I especially like the fact that Nathan Algren (the main character of the film), a former captain of the Civil War, is taken into captivity but isn’t tortured or struggling to survive.  He’s in a place that is completely foreign to him, but learns his enemy’s way of life and soon becomes the friend of his enemy.  I suppose that being held captive in a village home instead of being held in a prison gives him a different kind of freedom that most prisoners don’t have, but he’s still a captive, no less.  

In a way I’m kind of jealous because Nathan Algren is able to experience a completely different culture without any obstacles…

Did I mention the film score yet? The Last Samurai’s score is one of my all time favorite scores, completely memorable and excruciatingly beautiful.  

How it inspires me: 

Nathan Algren finds himself captured by a people that he does not know and, at the beginning, does not care about.  However, he discovers his place in a foreign world as well as discovering a purpose in his a life.  A few of my characters struggle to find a purpose after living a life that they didn’t want to live.  I want them to find their purpose, but not without the guidance and the care of a few good and unlikely friends.  Everything that they may have believed once in a lifetime turns out to be false, but for their own good.  

What am I reading?

I have a pile of books to read this summer, so I’m cranking out books every one to two weeks.  I don’t think I can go any faster since I’m studying two languages and catching up on video games that I haven’t played during the school year, but I’m still going to read as fast as I can.  

 American Gods by Neil Gaiman is the book that I’m currently reading.  

 

It’s different from the books that I usually read, but that’s a good thing.  I like changing things up one and a while.  Not to mention that I’ve always wanted to read a Neil Gaiman book.  Right now I think it’s very interesting from the main character, Shadow, and the mythology and fantasy that surrounds the plot.  I’m about 62 pages in (I need to pick up the pace), but I’ll be sure to write about it when I’m done.  

Since I’m very far behind on my book pile, I’m also reading Empress of the Seven Hills by Kate Quinn.  I might finish this one before American Gods, but I’m not too sure.   

Why won’t the words flow?!

Lately I’ve been having trouble punching out words.  Between working, reading, watching movies, and dealing with the heat, writing hasn’t really been a priority.  Which is strange because my goal is to finish my draft by the end of the summer.  I don’t have a lot of time to write during the school year because of the amount of credits I’m taking, so summer is the best time to write.  The only problem is the words tend to freeze up during the summer. Not a good thing. 

I’ve been thinking about my story for a really long time.  Everything is in my head, but I can’t seem to put the words on paper.  They always come out like a hibbly bobbly jumbo mess of words that don’t make any sense.  Everything goes too fast, my characters are confused on what to do…in fact my characters are complaining right now because I keep sending them back to the beginning of the book.  All things will sort out…eventually. Reading other books also helps me to get words going, but I can’t read either! I’m at the end of a book right now and yet I can’t seem to finish the end.  The end.  I’m right there and I can’t even pull through. 

What is my problem? Exhaustion? Laziness? Overwhelmed by an insurmountable pile of work? I don’t know, but whatever it is, it’s very vexing.  If I keep up with this pace I won’t be able finish.  And if I keep changing things I’ll never finish.  

Oh boy. 

The Crown of Embers

 

(The girl in the jewel doesn’t look anything like the main character…)

This book by Rae Carson is the second book in a trilogy.  I read the first one last summer after deciding to purchase it from Amazon.  I believe that this is the first set of books that I’ve read with a monarch as the protagonist.  I don’t read much YA fiction anymore (even though I’m technically not too old to read it), but I like the main character because she grew tremendously throughout the story.  I like characters that grow as they experience things because that makes an interesting character.

The first book is called The Girl of Fire and Thorns.

Elisa is the main character of both books; the prose is written in first person without POV alternations.  There’s quite a bit of action in both books with enough characterization for the main characters.  It’s a very easy read, but an interesting story nonetheless.  It was a quick, but suspenseful read.

Elisa is a sixteen year old princess who is married off to a foreign king.  She’s also a Bearer, or someone who is chosen by God.  They are marked with a jewel in their navel.  The jewel, or Godstone, possess magic that is used to fight magic (that is used by those whose purpose is to harm).  Naturally, there are people that want to kill her because she posses the stone that harnesses magical abilities.  Whoever bears the stone bears the magic.

How it inspires me: 

Elisa is a character that shows growth.  I love growing characters and I especially love the fact that she struggles with the duties of being a queen as well as a human being. I want my characters to grow and to be as strong as Elisa’s character, but I don’t want them to be perfect and vain.  I happen to have a character that rises to the role of monarch, so I think that Elisa is a good example of a main character who is also in a ruling position.  She makes mistakes.  A lot of them.  Not only that, but she struggles with mundane things such as love, friendship, betrayal, and forgiveness. Everything doesn’t work out for her even when she has power; she’s still a normal person even though she’s not in a a normal position.  Overall, I like the sincerity of the series.  I can’t wait for the third!