Sounisian Meetup!

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

Amid the insanity that ensued after aspecabund's recent post (though I'm not sure many people noticed--there was, as I said, alot of insanity going on, as usual) kilerkki and I realized that we go to the same university (Go Cougars!) and we decided to meet up today for crazy booktalk. Checkers requested a report on how it went and what we talked about so, here I am, writing up a quick report.

We decided to meet in the library. I found kilerkki very easily--she was standing near the entrance reading Queen of Attolia. (We decided that we'd each carry a copy of an Attolia book so we'd recognize each other.) I'll admit that it was a bit awkward at first--"Um, hi, I don't know you... I like books!"--but we chatted as we went to get lunch and I think we were both feeling considerably more comfortable after a short time.

What did we talk about? Books, mostly. (What else?)
We shared our stories of how we found the Attolia books.
I was reminded, again, that I need to read Rosemary Sutcliff's books, The Last Unicorn, and more DWJ.
We decided that we like young adult fiction because it isn't trying too hard to be deep/philosophical/whatever, it just has to have a plot that keeps you interested.
We decided that happy endings are nice, and bittersweet endings are good only if the bad things happen for a good reason.

Hmm, what else, what else... (Rosie has a bad short-term memory, it seems.)

I shared something that has always bothered me about fantasy--intelligent, talking animals/non-humans. It's always bothered me, just the tiniest bit, when there are different intelligent species that interact with humans in books... what if members of two different species ended up falling in love with each other? They could love and respect the mind and character of the other individual, but the relationship could never be romantic.
(((And I wouldn't really want to read the book if it was.)))

I can't think of much else... kilerkki will have to get on and remind me and correct anything I may have reported wrongly.

Comments

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Talking animals harks back to my dislike of that comic-relief animals they stick in animated films all the time. Drives me right up the wall. Er, not quite the same thing, but still. XD

I wish I could meet random people (who I suspect will not maul me) over the internet and meet RL. It'd be interesting!

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

We decided that we like young adult fiction because it isn't trying too hard to be deep/philosophical/whatever, it just has to have a plot that keeps you interested.

Word. YA makes me so happy. Although I feel just the slightest bit uncultured around my fellow English majors because they've all read the classics and I'm sitting there reading Garth Nix.

What if members of two different species ended up falling in love with each other?

FURRIES, that's what.

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Your response OUGHT to be "Garth Nix destroys all your fancy-pants authors that are popping veins in an attempt to be important," or simply "Garth Nix pwns n00bs." XD

Have you read his Keys to the Kingdom series? Are you a Sabriel, Lireal and Abhorsen fan?

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

Yes and YES!!!!! Mogget is possibly the greatest god-cat ever, and have I mentioned how much I adore Sabriel? No? Well, I AM COMPLETELY GAY FOR SABIREL. FOR SRS. Best Keys book was Sir Thursday. The Architect/Will (I think they're the same) scares the PANTS off of me.

[alineadrklrdsis.livejournal.com]

*Loved Sir Thursday* I'm not the only one who thinks that the Architect and the Will are one and the same!!!

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

jfowiejfewoiew Did you see that the cover and teaser summary for Superior Saturday are out?

[alineadrklrdsis.livejournal.com]

No, I haven't. Would this be the British or American edition? 'Cause I'm fairly sure that the cover art is different. Can you post a link to it for me? Pretty please? :)

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

American edition. Here! (http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/n/garth-nix/superior-saturday.htm)

[alineadrklrdsis.livejournal.com]

Thank-you! =)

[aspectabund.livejournal.com]

Lol that reminds me of this:

<img="http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/54/039_11930~gene-kelly-posters.jpg">

Is he holding a ruler or something? Either way, yay, sneak peeks! Thursday's my favourite too, I think.

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

That's kind of how it looks, doesn't it? I have no idea, though.

[empmai.livejournal.com]

What if members of two different species ended up falling in love with each other?

FURRIES, that's what.

Lol, yes. When I was younger I used to play Furry Muds, but it wasn't until a few years after I stopped playing them that I learned they weren't exactly 'prudish' genre.

[hikari-cyhan.livejournal.com]

I have never heard of Furry Muds, and I'm not sure I want to.

[empmai.livejournal.com]

Wait to clarify - when we played them as kids we just ran around being cats, bears and monkeys - we didn't do the un-prduish furry activities. :)

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

Oh, we did that too--at least the, "I'm a mountain lion and you're a deer! I eat you up!" type game. I'd never heard of Furry Muds. (What is a mud?) I thought it was just a game kids play, another variant of Let's Pretend.

[empmai.livejournal.com]

Mud is a really geeky old fashioned computer game it stands for Mulit-User-Dungeon I think. It's basically a made up world (usually fantasy or sci-fi, or based on a book or movie - i.e. a Star Wars MUD is where people pretend their in the Star Wars universe). I don't know if they still have MUDS around - though i think technically Eve, that battle game everyone seems to play Sims, Neopets and Webkinz are MUDS??

Furry Muds are basically were take on animal characters - but grown-ups used them to play-out relationships with, and us kids just used them as "Let's Pretend" play. We must have been a pain for all the grown-ups who wanted to be serious and we just wanted to talk in monkey talk.

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

I want to see that To-Be-Read list someday. I can always use more ideas of books I should read. ;D

We talked about art, too, and careers--mostly, I think, whatever we could come up with to fill the awkward pauses. I should have come with a prepared Discussion List. Only I'm fairly sure that would have been even weirder.

I'm still wondering about the intelligent animals question. I have to admit that I've used intelligent non-humans in at least two stories (though I think they may be ruthlessly eliminated from one of those). For one thing, I imagine it would be pretty hard to get past the ingrained sense that members of species other than one's own aren't physically attractive, at least not in the sexual sense (and at least not for most people). If there was such a bond formed, I think in the vast majority of the cases it would be a purely platonic bond of the kind you'd have with your best friend, who finishes your thoughts simply because he or she knows you so well.

In the small minority of the cases... Well, those would be the stories I would tend to avoid. >.>

[empmai.livejournal.com]

Talking about inter species love reminds me of Robin Hobb's 'Fool' serious.


SPOILER ALERT



She used interspecious as the reason why two characters couldn't get together and could only have platonic love but I found it hard to get around that the relationship was interspecies, since she didn't introduce the interspecies idea until will into the series.

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

So...you run around thinking that both these characters are human, until you find out, WHOOPS, he's actually a Little Green Man (or whatever that world's equivalent of LGM are)?

That sounds like kind of shoddy plotting.

[empmai.livejournal.com]

Yea it seemed like shaddy plotting to me too. It was really more of a cop-out so she didn't ever have to say with the one character was male or female. I used to love her books but after that shaddy cop-out I haven't read her new series.

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

I can always use more ideas of books I should read. ;D

And While She Knits doesn't help with that? ;D

[kilerkki.livejournal.com]

More ideas being the key word there. :D

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing, guys. You've added to the growing body of evidence that Sounisians are the smartest, nicest people ever.

(RANDOM OF-TOPIC-NESS!)

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

(YEAH TROGDOR! :D Best SB E-mails are Dragon and Japanese Cartoon. If anyone cares.)

Re: (RANDOM OF-TOPIC-NESS!)

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

BURNINATING THE COUNTRYSIDE!

[traboule.livejournal.com]

That's really rather cool. Now I'm wondering if there are Sounisians around me, disguised and secret.

The animal thing used to bother me, but then I read this book by Mary Brown (Pigs Might Fly? Something like that...the heroine's name is Summer) which has a fairly successful "girl in love with dragon" romance. I remember it foggily as being slightly silly but hugely enjoyable. And it put me at peace with cross-species romance because the hero comes off as ridiculously attractive. And if it's a magic animal, you can play the shape-changing game; Mercedes Lackey's Firebird book is really fun.

[sclerotia.livejournal.com]

I read that! It was pretty good, but I didn't like the sequel as much.

[bookaddict88.livejournal.com]

I wish I could meet random (un-creepy) people off the internet in RL. I met a few of my college friends online first, but that's not the same because we found each other because of the fact that we were going to go the same college.

Re: Human/non-human romantic relationships. As long as I can ignore what that would involve physically, I'm fine. If one or both has the ability to shape-change, or if the non-human is at least humanoid, I'm even more ok with it.

[(Anonymous)]

True. I'm thinking of Val/Ravus from VALIANT...
Or there's this book by Vivian Vande Velde--the one where the guy turns from cat into human. Totally blanking on the title at the moment.
~Feir Dearig

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

Could you be thinking of Vande Velde's Dragon's Bait? He can change back and forth from dragon to human and it's verraa sexyyy. Excellent book, though I usually shun her because she hated The Thief.

[emerald-happy.livejournal.com]

Do I detect ogling?

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

Um, no. Not me.

[emerald-happy.livejournal.com]

haha. your icon. brilliant

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

No idea what you mean.

[empmai.livejournal.com]

She hated The Thief? Noooooooooooooooooo! :( Now I'm sad, as she was one of my favourite authors, but since she hated the thief I can't tout her author horn anymore :(

I think the cat book is Hidden Magic. Most of Velde's book have other worldly romance.

Oh my

[seachild930.livejournal.com]

Hey, fellow Cougars! No way! Aw, it's nice to know that other Attolia fans go to this same university :)

Rise and Shout! The Cougars are out...

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

Wait, another Cougar? Really? How many of us ARE there?? Come out, come out, wherever you are!

Re: Rise and Shout! The Cougars are out...

[filkferengi]

You'd have to specify *which* cougars, as there're lots out there. Given the subject line, it sounds like BYU. If so, let me know; there's a nifty version of the fight song I could upload for you. I was there back in the day when we had our very own sf/f librarian & the 9th largest sf collection in the nation. I got a minor in English from taking sf classes. The YA class also ruled.

Re: Rise and Shout! The Cougars are out...

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

I was hoping that the subject line would help specify, which it seems it did. :D

Re: Rise and Shout! The Cougars are out...

[filkferengi]

As promised, here's the song and the information about ordering the cd. I have both his cds, & they're hilarious.

Robert Lund--Workin' The Glory 15 Rise And Shout
http://download.yousendit.com/0770AE4760F0AD76

http://www.spaff.com/workintheglory/index.html

To keep this marginally on-topic, we should talk about Life, The Universe, & Everything, BYU's excellent sf symposium every March. They've had excellent authors there in the past, like Lois McMaster Bujold & Patricia McKillip. Maybe y'all should talk to them about asking mwt.

:)

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

OH MY GOODNESS THAT SONG IS AMAZING.

[filkferengi]

[weg]

I'm glad you liked it. The others on the album are equally excellent. I can upload some samples for you, if you'd like.

Let's talk about getting mwt to BYU. Then we can talk about getting us front row seats.

:)

[rosaleeluann.livejournal.com]

Getting MWT to BYU? I'm totally liking that idea!!

...but how do we make this dream a reality? ;)

[filkferengi]

Talk to the fine folks who run the "Life, The Universe, & Everything" [LTUE] symposium. It's typically in March. It's like an sf con on campus, only Thursday to Saturday, rather than Friday to Sunday.

[seachild930.livejournal.com]

DUDE. SERIOUSLY. I would totally have a heart attack and die if she came to campus. That would be A. MAZE. ING. HOLY COW.

[filkferengi]

You're the one who's on-site. Talk to them; you'll be amazed what happens. [Like the books of mwt, BYU is a place where amazing things happen.]