Chris James

You don't need to watch the whole video, it might make you sick. Just wanted everyone to see the kind of support Rick Perry has for his campaign. This is one of his major appologists who also happens to be the most bigoted man in America. I give you Bryan Fischer: http://youtu.be/-7i3JlZHsTk

I get pretty disgusted at homophobia, especially when it comes from what are supposed to be intelligent sources. I am not sure why a story like this is necessary in the first place, except perhaps to give idiots a chance to share bad jokes. Two penguins arrive at a new living place after who knows what kind of journey and trauma. They cling together in what is said to be a social friendship and they get labeled homosexual. Then the jokes start while the zoo caretakers sit back and observe. But read the article, they were quite wrong: http://news.yahoo.co...-004415568.html I am not up on the mating habits of penguins. In fact I am sure there are some rules in the condo association here against having them as neighbors. (they have rules for everything) But the experts seem to have been caught with their pants down and the males have taken girlfriends. Perhaps the story is over for now. A lesson learned? I doubt it. Nature is inconsistant, but science is not served well by quickly painting the habits of wild creatures with the same brush of homophobia we see in human society. All these quick to judge family values people have certainly turned our minds to mush. I did not find myself rooting for the penguins to go for it just because they might be gay. But it did allow me to see my fellow humans at their worst. Makes me wonder if we will ever evolve into some higher being. Not anytime soon it seems.

I see the story possibilities right there in what you say. Try this thought: He can't think of anything to write. Maybe he has a deadline and the words just don't come. He begins to type on the page when the phone rings, a distraction. It's his Mom wanting to know what he wants for Christmas when all he can think about is wanting a little peace and quiet to complete his task. Back and forth, he writes a few lines, there is a knock on the door, more distractions. This way you can write a short story about a guy trying to write something when you are really writing about the distractions, funny or otherwise. But then like most of us we get involved in the pain of this poor guy trying to write and we have no idea what he is about to say. Who is he, what is his assignment? And that is where you get to add your bang up ending. After the pages of distractions are noted, the incessant noise and bother of the world intruding on his thoughts are done, our writer character sits back with a sigh and begins to read what he has done. "My fellow Americans, as your President..." That is where it ends. The success of the surprise is that we have been given no clue as to what he has been writing. Maybe a word here and there that makes it look like a history assignment for school. Toss in the name of a foreign country here, the name of a foreign capital there. But all those clues are terminated abruptly by one of the distractions. We don't find out until the end that he is the President's speech writer. Cole is right, the idea is the thing. Start with that golden idea, with some concept of your ending, and allow the thoughts from your real world to fill in the middle. We all suffer distractions, the world intruding on our lives. Use that, make fun of it and put words on the page. Won't know if it is any good unless you try. And good luck, I have to go, the washer is overflowing......damn.

Aw, and I was expecting Ninja Turtles to the rescue. But why doesn't Jeffrey look good in a dress? Kidding aside, a good chapter that moves the story forward and ramps up the excitement another notch. Sweet!

Didn't take long for the response to Rick Perry to get posted. Funny as hell, oops, I don't believe in hell.

We expect a lot from the educators in our society. Teachers are supposed to be the ones who give children their first real glimpse at broader knowledge. Certainly more than they can glean from television and Sesame Street. Or maybe they can teach them something ignorant like this: http://www.huffingto..._n_1130333.html The amused reaction of young children to the word "gay" says a lot about how much they really know, or haven't been taught. For them to immediately assume that gay means homosexual precludes the origin of the word as used in this Christmas carol. This was a teachable moment tossed out the window by the ignorance of the teacher. It also says a lot about her ability to teach, or not. Do they give teachers detention? Perhaps a little punishment is in order.

Looks interesting, but Bi_Janus needs a good editor. It is fine to present a story with dialogue telling much of the plot, but the author needs to break things up a lot more. Paragraphs that include a dozen or more sentences looks like a block of words with no end, especially in the Nifty format, very hard on the eyes.

I think our favorie emu is out to get the Dudely Lama position. Lama Emu, goodness, that amost sounds Tibetian. :)

http://youtu.be/G7HkOaLFzGw It appears Jonah has passed his crisis with a lot of support. Like all of you, I can only wish him well.

So much for tea parties! Good job, GW, you have us enthralled.

I would urge anyone who reads this to contact whitehouse.gov and send a message that as a country the U.S. should cease all foreign aid to Nigeria...period.

You have to love the Mal-Wart employees, they make shopping so much fun...and the savings much greater than the management might like. I went to Mal-Wart the day after Thanksgiving, the so called Black Friday. Yes, I know, it should have been a foolish move, but it turned out well. I buy films on DVD there and enjoy browsing through the titles. But this was a special day because they had an entire box labeled "Promos," at least that's what the bright stickers said. There was no sign that indicated what "promo" meant...not a clue, and it seems that included the employees. I was sure there would be some discount off the normal list price and so I went through the titles. The new Spielberg/ J.J. Abrams film "Super 8" was just released at a list price of $19.79 on the regular shelves, so imagine my surprise when I found one in the large display box with a "Promo" sticker. Along with the "Dark Knight" and six other films that were all high priced releases. So I snagged them up and went to the cashier, who basically had no clue, just a scanner. She scanned the film, punched the "promo" button and lo and behold I got each film at $3.00. So just in case someone from that company is reading this, I did not purchase these films at Wal-Mart... I was in Mal-Wart, but thank you very much for your ignorance. Now back to my movie

Good going, GW...Chapter 10 really ramps up the tension. It had to be Alabama, didn't it? To hell with the Queen and her tea, where is Batman when you need him?

Mugabe...every time I hear that name I see a man standing in the fires of hell cheering for the devil. They must be related because he has certainly made Zimbabwe a living hell. http://www.google.co...96643487c74.1b1 Being gay in Africa can be a death sentence. The laws in Zimbabwe and other incredibly ignorant African countries deserve no support and the British government seems to get that. I am ashamed of the US for failing to take similar steps, but then American big business and oil would not stand for such a thing. I respect what the British Prime Minister is doing. Why should anyone give aid to such a destructive and self serving government owned by Mugabe? This is a man who has taken a fairly prosperous country and run it straight into poverty. There are entirely too many documented instances of human rights violations by Mugabe's government for any sane country to offer him a dime. I feel sorry for his citizens, but most of the smart ones have already fled the country. Mugabe just recently lost his best buddy on the continent when Libya revolted. Good going, Mr. Cameron, don't send them a single Euro. And don't worry about that "satanic" crack. Mugabe must have been looking in the mirror.

Imagine spending your whole life with a story to tell and being unable to do it. http://today.msnbc.m...thor/?GT1=43001 If you have just one book to write in your life then this is a pretty good one to finish. How amazing an accomplishment this is, he must feel wonderful.

I can't begin to tell you how many stories I have started and never finished...well I can now, I counted them this evening after GW's post. The miracle of computers is that nothing is lost, it can all be slid on a flash drive or a disk. Even a snippet of something from a good story idea years ago doesn't need to be tossed out. Save and backup are the writer's best friends. So ready for it? I have 234 pieces saved up and this doesn't included posted stories. I am probably more stunned than you are and I didn't do this to brag. In fact, this makes me sad. They are like orphans in my mind and I have the desire to see them find a good home. Some of these documents contain a single page or a dozen, but something didn't work so I set them aside. But...and this is the fun part...some of these pieces have become full blown stories. By now most of you have seen Warrior's Promise. That was a five page character study until I found an article about a standing stone in New York State and something in my mind clicked. So just because you have a great idea don't expect them all to bear fruit right away, but can them and set them on the shelf for later consumption. I agree with Cole, no author sees all the details right away, but a good writing session can produce thoughts you didn't know existed. Just remember that playing "what if I did this" isn't always productive, but it beats sitting there with a blank screen/page, so write it down. I am in the midst of writing another novella for the AD site and the original work done on this story began four years ago, and then languished. But I saw a news item the other day and a photograph, that was all it took to make the two pieces of the puzzle come together. I have a beginning and an end, not a bad way to start the creative process. So keep all your ideas in that amazing filing system on your shoulders and backup on disk. But characters once developed never leave their home in your gray matter and at some point you will find a place for them to live. You might be surprised when they start to build a story all by themselves.

Okay now here is someone who needs the softest tissue available...can you imagine this horror: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/22/8957008-botched-buttock-pumping-new-allegations-emerge

I always wondered about that term "Commonwealth." Perhaps it is a misnomer since not all Canadians are wealthy. Unless GW is hoarding all the gold for himself, sneaky fellow.

Okay Cole, I left out the part about you bringing the tablets down from the mountain. Now back to serious business, this would be a fine time for other authors to jump in.....

Yes, we are now well past the WTF feelings. I knew GW was going to end up preaching to the choir, but the lesson is well put. And only in a fictional story will we be able to accept that wisdom comes from the mouth of young people. Thanks GW, a fun ride...and it isn't over yet!

Years ago, when I was just getting started, I wrote a story I thought was compelling and exciting. It was, at least the readers told me so when it was finally posted. But there was a lot of change necessary, and in the end I think it said what I wanted in my voice. I mention this because right after it was posted I received a piece of mail from an author I had never heard of. He commented on the story and made some suggestions that eventually found their way into this story when I finally sat down to re-write it. I did not agree with every suggestion, but he challenged me to create a better story. He may not remember, but that author was Cole Parker. His critical eye poked holes in my story logic and made me think. That is what a well respected author can do for someone new, and as he says above, he was willing to share his knowledge to make me a better writer. We are all different in the way we see words on the page, our stories are hardly the same, but we share a common goal: a passion for writing. Thank you good sir!

Much has been discussed among the authors on this site about our readers, and now it seems time to bring in the two other categories of people who may be looking at these words...the readers and potential writers. The current list of authors includes a truly varied spectrum of personalities, and a great variety of styles because of that. One thing we can all agree upon is that knowing what the readers think, feel, understand and want is all a part of why we write. The best part is that we are not averse to competition because every new voice on the site makes us all look good. So, you want to write something? This is the best place to discuss story ideas, this forum right here. That means if you have the desire to write a story like those you read, or unlike those you see The Dude post, then let's talk about it. Every branch of entertainment thrives on new ideas, and just because you read Romeo and Juliet by someone else doesn't mean you can't write a differing viewpoint. Hm, Romeo and Mercutio...anyone? Sure, you've never written anything before except essays for a class at school. Perhaps you took a creative writing class in college. It doesn't matter if you took it in kindergarten, did it inspire thoughts of an interesting story? What does it take to write a story? I'll say it in one word: desire. Do you like telling stories to your friends around a campfire? Do you read a chapter for history class and tell yourself that if Newton had been diddling with a young man under that apple tree he never would have discovered gravity. Imagination is the first step to achieving that desire to entertain others. But this forum is the place to start that dialogue by accessing the authors on the site and asking them why they did this instead of that in a story. Validate your thoughts, get the encouragement to write your own true or fictional story. I assure you, no one will know the difference unless you tell them. Some of the best stories on the AD site come from personal observations or experiences. Can you write? These days all it takes is a word processing program and the time to do it. But there are places in the forum, or even here, to post a handful of paragraphs. No one will laugh at you, we all know that writing can be painful. But no one will coddle you either if you ask for an honest opinion of what you wrote. Every bit of praise or critical comment is educational, this is how you learn to please an audience of readers. Now having said that, authors enjoy feedback from readers. How else do we learn what you like or dislike? Believe me, we would rather write something everyone wants to read, but only you can tell us what that is. I have been reading books since I was knee high to an emu, and only began to read online about ten years ago. I read for years before deciding to post something on my own and my first efforts were awkward and the comments said just that. We all had to start somewhere. But you learn that there is a whole support structure available to the writers online. Editors and fact checkers that love to read new work and help the author make the story better. So...enough said? The rest is up to you. If a reader then read with an eye to the quality of what you see and don't be afraid to tell the author of that story what you think. If you think you might like to write then reach out here and say "Yeah, I want to write...and this is my idea for a story." Someone will respond, or if you favor an author try using their name to catch their attention. Turn off the television, put on some nice background music and write. Ideas for a story come at the strangest times of the day so keep a notepad on hand and write them down. It won't be easy, but it won't be difficult if you have that...desire.

You are all just too kind for words. I cannot say anything about this story as there is only one chapter posted, but I appologize to those who wanted to see the whole thing at one time. I need writing time for a few weeks and with the holidays fast approaching, and too many things on my plate, I hope you feel it is worth the wait. Besides, I am waiting for my new Christmas album to arrive so that I can have some inspiration behind my words. You can find these singing angels on Amazon:

Perhaps this isn't funny to you, but it is a sign of the times. I went to the market the other day and like most folks I had to purchase toilet tissue. I like to buy things that are environmentally friendly, but it is damn near impossible to find recycled toilet paper. Now wait, before that thought upsets your stomach, I don't mean used toilet paper being recycled but a product made from other kinds of paper. I know when I read about the nonsense in Congress these days I am tempted to wipe my rear end with the front page of the newspaper, and there is a way to do just that. I read some years ago about several cities in Japan where recycling provides a variety of products for home consumption. In a land of millions and very little space to toss the trash the Japanese take their recycling seriously. It seems these cities require the residents to separate the bottles and cans, but also the paper. Trucks come around and collect the material and whisk it off to modern processing plants. Okay, you say, many cities do that and we do it here. But in Japan the recycling trucks leave something important behind in each recycle bin, a fresh supply of toilet paper. This is made by processing the old newspaper and cardboard which is washed, pulped and run through the machines to make the thin sheets of toilet paper. Pretty damn clever and the residents get a return for their taxes. The recycled paper breaks down in sewage processing a lot better than manufactured new toilet paper does, two plusses for the environment . So here I am in the market and, damn, there are 28 different varieties of toilet paper offered, but none of them made with recycled paper. Perhaps the overly spoiled bottoms of capitalism demand softer, quilted or otherwise fluffed paper. Tell that to the trees we kill. When they are gone we will be back to wiping with...uh, what? Okay, not too funny, but I did get in my environmental rant for the day.

Goodness GW, I do hope the fish are doing well. My own experience with bad timing takes me back to the last year of high school. My dog decided to have her puppies at 2 am the night before I was scheduled to take the SAT exams. The result: six beautiful squeaking little bundles of joy and one zombie taking the test, everything went well.