Writing: Mental Library: Accents

Happy Halloween, Friends!

Today, we are taking a break from our Postmodernism series.

Instead, we will be talking about accents and personal mannerisms.

Everyone has an accent. It's usually based on many factors, but the most prominent one is where you live. The reason for that is fairly complicated, so we're not going to deal with it. :)

I'm going to use my accent as an example. I am a Minnesotan. Minnesotans have an interesting habit of saying "cool" all the time. This is part of my accent, but also, Minnesotans always say "cool" in two syllables. We can't really say it in one. If you're from Minnesota, or live around Minnesota, you might know what I mean. If you're not, I'll try my best to explain. Basically, we say "coo-uh-l." It doesn't sound exactly like this. . . there aren't really words to describe it. Anyways, this is an example of an accent.

Now, we are going to talk about personal mannerisms, or how each individual person talks. An example of one of my personal mannerisms is: I say "in any case" a lot. However, my mom says "at any rate." They both mean the same thing, but are different personal mannerisms. Other types of personal mannerisms are: volume (Do they start talking softly and get louder, etc.), stuttering, etc.

You might be wondering how this relates to writing by now. Well, characters are people (or. . . living creatures) too, so they also need accents and personal mannerisms. If you are writing a historical novel, or novel that takes place in our world, you can use the language we use now or look up language used in the past. However, fantasy writers can use this too. Do different regions speak differently? Do certain groups tend to have similar mannerisms?

Post about your writing or accent in the comments!

Also, sorry if my posts have been really short or late recently. I have not had time to pre-schedule a lot of posts at once, and I have a lot of homework. Sorry!

By the way, have fun trick-or-treating (or passing out candy. :) ).

Spruce Nogard

Attributions: https://pixabay.com/en/earth-globe-map-maps-north-america-1567610/

Genre of the Month: Picture Books

Hello, Friends.

This month, the genre is picture books. I was thinking about picture books, because of Adam Gidwitz's article on what picture books reveal about one's personality, and then, lo and behold, Lands Uncharted wrote about their top three favorite picture books. (To access Adam Gidwitz's article, click here, and to access Laura's top three picture books, click here. To access Erin's top three picture books, click here.)

What are some of your favorite childhood picture books? What are some more recent ones you like?

My favorite childhood ones are: The Runaway Bunny, and Goodnight, Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, My Dream Bed, by Lauren Child, Sometimes, I Like to Curl Up in a Ball, by Charles Fuge and Vicki Churchill, Tell Me What We Did Today, by Rick Kupchella, What Do You Do With a Kangaroo, by Mercer Mayer, and Today, I Feel Silly, and Other Moods that Make My Day by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Some picture books that have come out recently that I really like are: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, by William Joyce, Day Dreamers: A Journey of Imagination, by Emily Winfield Martin, How to Find a Fairy Tale, by Libby Hamilton, and Mirror Mirror, Marilyn Singer. (I talk about this book here.)

There are tons of other picture books I love, but it would take forever to mention all of them. :)

Post about picture books in the comments below!

Spruce Nogard

Attributions:
https://www.amazon.com/Fantastic-Flying-Books-Morris-Lessmore/dp/1442457023 
https://www.amazon.com/Day-Dreamers-Emily-Winfield-Martin/dp/1101935227
https://www.amazon.com/How-Find-Fairytale-Libby-Hamilton/dp/1848777418
https://www.amazon.com/Mirror-Book-Reverso-Poems/dp/0525479015
https://www.amazon.com/Runaway-Bunny-Margaret-Wise-Brown/dp/0064430189
https://www.amazon.com/Goodnight-Moon-Margaret-Wise-Brown/dp/0064430170
https://www.amazon.com/My-Dream-Bed-Lauren-Child/dp/0340779136
https://www.amazon.com/What-Do-You-Kangaroo/dp/0590448501/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1477711759&sr=1-1&keywords=what+do+you+do+with+a+kangaroo
https://www.amazon.com/Tell-Me-What-Did-Today/dp/0972650407
https://www.amazon.com/Sometimes-Like-Curl-Up-Ball/dp/140270870X
https://www.amazon.com/Today-Feel-Silly-Other-Moods/dp/0060245603

Creative Complex: Character Constructing: You Are Falling

Good Day, Friends!

Today's Creative Complex is, well, you are falling. You are falling, and you have no idea how long you will continue to fall for or what will happen when, if, you stop falling.

Feel free to finish the prompt, but the Character Constructing comes in when we get inside your head. Is the "you" you? What would be going through your head in this situation? What would any other of your characters be thinking if they were falling?

Spruce Nogard

Attributions: https://pixabay.com/en/skydiving-jump-falling-parachuting-658405/

On My Mind: Walking

Hello, Friends.

Sorry for another late post.

I was just thinking about walking. Walking in the fall. Walking where your feet lead you. Talking to your dog. Thinking. Speculating. Getting slightly chilled in the tips of your fingertips.

Do you like to walk?

Spruce Nogard

Attributions: https://pixabay.com/en/trees-street-autumn-fall-leaves-178659/

Recipes: Fresh Pumpkin

Hello, Harvesters!

Fall is the harvest season, so today's topic makes sense. This post could also be titled: How to make pumpkin puree from a pumpkin.

Before we start, though, wouldn't it be so wonderful to grow pumpkins in your garden? If you already do, you are so lucky. I love pumpkin so much. :)

First, cut your pie pumpkin in half and scoop the seeds out. You can save these to roast later. Also, make sure to get most of the stringy stuff.

Then, spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray. Cover it in tinfoil, and put half of the pumpkin on the cookie sheet. Make sure the flat side is touching the tinfoil. Poke the pumpkin skin with a fork three or four times.

After this, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook the pumpkin for 45 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on the size of a pumpkin. The pumpkin is done when you can easily poke it with a fork.

Next, scrape all the pumpkin flesh off the skin, and put it in a cooking bowl. Use a hand mixer (or a stand mixer, if you have one), and mix the pumpkin until it is all the same consistency.

Finally, put it in bags, (I recommend deciding on a specific amount per bag), put it in the freezer, and use when needed.

The pumpkin will last six to eight months technically speaking, but it will probably be fine for up to a year. :) We've done this before, but unfortunately, I don't have pictures of when I've done it. People in my house already complain that I take too many pictures of things now. :)

With your pumpkin, you can make: pumpkin soup, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin everything!

Spruce Nogard

Attributions: https://pixabay.com/en/pumpkin-orange-fall-autumn-harvest-1683635/

Writing: Creative Complex: A Riddling Tale

Hello, Angels.

Sorry--reference to a book. (I'm not telling you which book on purpose. Hee hee. :))

Last week, we started a series of Creative Complexes called the "Family Tree." However, I decided to do this series differently. Instead of having a post in the series every week until it is done, whenever we have a post that falls under the "Family Tree" category, we will add it to that series.

Today, we are solving a riddle. The riddle, actually, comes from a very excellent source. It comes from Grimm's Fairy Tales. It goes like this:

"Three women were transformed into flowers which stood in a field. However, one of them was allowed to be in her own house at night. One time when day was approaching, and she would have to go back to her companions in the field and become a flower again, she said to her husband, "If you will come this morning and pick me, I shall be set free and stay with you from then on."
And that is what happened.
Now the question is, how did her husband recognize her, for the flowers were exactly alike, and without any difference?"

The Creative Complex for today is:
1) Solve the riddle.
2) Make up a story/context for the riddle.

Clarification/Example:
 -The women were transformed into flowers because . . .
-She became free for one night because. . .
-And etcetera!

I know the answer, because I was too impatient to figure it out on my own. If you are like that, I challenge you to be creative, and more patient than I was. :)

Let your imagination run away with you, at least, a little bit!

Post in the comments!

Spruce Nogard

Source: http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm160.html
Attribution: https://pixabay.com/en/mack-flowers-flowers-of-the-field-198240/

Writing: Creative Complex: Family Tree Part 1

Hello, Generations.

Today's Creative Complex is something my Spanish teacher actually had us do. We'll keep it simple, so it won't be overwhelming. Basically, we are making a family tree. Today, we'll start with just getting the idea into your heads.

• What type of family are they?
• Are they big or small?
• Are they fantastical, futuristic, realistic, etc?
• Are there pets?

Good luck!

Spruce Nogard

Attributions: https://pixabay.com/en/family-children-woman-man-happy-591581/