WHIMSICAL TUESDAY

You guys.

You guys. 

Did you go to see The Hunger Games yesterday?

Did you?

DID YOU?

I hope you did. Because it was fantastic.

Jennifer Lawrence was immaculate as Katniss. Most of the casting was spot-on, actually, which was a pleasant surprise, because I have a long long history of absolutely hating the casting in most of my favourite books-turned-movies (ike whose bright idea was it to have Dakota Blue Richards play Lyra, that's what I'd like to know). But everybody captured their characters, their eccentricities, their emotion. Rue, especially, was superbly cast, although I'm really disappointed she didn't get more screen time.

I'm not going to go into all the little details of the movie, all the things they left out and the things they added (which were lovely, by the way), because I want you to see it yourself and make up your own mind.

Also, I didn't realize I'd had the book memorized until I found myself noticing every time they left a word out of the dialogue. Huh.

Did you see it/ are you going to? What did you think? Let me know in the comments.

Have you ever heard of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch? No? Then you, my friend, are missing out.

Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch is the name of a small Welsh town; it has the longest name of any place in Europe. Roughly translated into English, the name means "St. Mary's church in the hollow of the white hazel near to the rapid whirlpool of llantysilio of the red cave", and some 3,000 people live there.


So the next time you hear from your agent, editor, beta reader, critique group, writing coach, mother, or that kid that reads over your shoulder on the subway in the mornings that your character's name or town's name or book's title or hell, even your favourite adjective is too long; take solace in this- there are at least 3,000 people in the world who will staunchly disagree.

I would like, also, to preface by saying I did not come up with the Whimsical Tuesday name entirely alone. It was fully and completely inspired by this comic:

Which I found in a newspaper some years ago, and loved and adored to the point where I clipped it out and placed it on my fridge. It's still there, significantly yellower and more crinkly than it had originally been, but it never fails to make me smile when it catches my eye, mostly while I'm cranking open the fridge door for some milk for my coffee.

I think it perfectly fits the necessary mindset for a writer. How many times have you heard (read) the words, "Kill your darlings"? Apparently, a quick Google informs me that the original version of this stems from a Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch quote, where he says, “Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it – whole-heartedly – and delete it before sending your manuscripts to press. Murder your darlings”. So this advice applies not only to characters, but to whole chunks of work, that you may love and cherish and be proud of, but will still have to behead and dismember at some point or another.

At times it's barbaric, and at times it's devastating, and at times it can even be fun. But at one point or another... and best if on a Whimsical Tuesday... we will have to kill our darlings.

So why not with a bowling ball?

Well, to be honest, no one has asked me any questions yet, so I'm going to have to make them up. Granted, this works better when you don't tell your readers that's what you're doing, but you guys are smart and would have figured it out anyway.

Q: Whatcha doin?

A: Oh, you know. The usual. Sitting at my computer, writing a fake blog post. You?

Q: Are you a real writer?

A: Come here please, I'm going to BITE YOUR FACE OFF HOW DARE YOU OF COURSE I AM. Oh, you mean have I published? The answer to that one is, technically, along the lines of "lolno", but you know there's a big difference between those two questions, right? Right? Don't mix them up. It's rude.

Q: What's your favourite food?

A: That would be coffee. Yes, coffee is a food. In my world, coffee is the food, the only food that matters. Also cheesecake.

Q: Carly, why are you so awesome?

A: Well now, that one's complicated. You see, it has about 90% to do with my personality, 90% to do with my stunning good looks, 90% to do with my above-average intellect and superior tastes, 75% to do with my modesty, and 30% to do with my math skills. Oh, and, let's round that off to an even number: it also has an estimated 97.32% to do with you, my future readers and friends, and your lovely influences and inspirations that you give me without asking for anything in return. It has a lot to do with that.