The Dark Tower movie

screenshot_2016-11-01-20-41-16

The Dark Tower is an upcoming American science fantasy, western action horror film. It is based on Stephen King’s novel series of the same name, the film stars Idris Elba as Roland Deschain, a gunslinger on a quest to protect the Dark Tower – a mythical structure which supports all realities. The Dark Tower is one of my favorite book series so I am really looking forward to this movie. But, this upcoming movie made me think. Why are the books almost always better than the movies?

The movie gets lost in translation
Without the actual writers sitting by their side, the filmmakers are left to their own imagination. They perceive the author’s writing and spin it into their own take. There are many different ways to interpret a book. This can be a good thing, but most of the time it is bad.

“That’s Not How I Pictured It!”
Once a filmmaker decides upon settings and characters, we’re limited to seeing those characters and settings through their eyes. However, 500 different readers of the same book may have 500 different ideas of a character’s appearance. And if an actor doesn’t measure up to what you imagined when reading the book, there’s some disappointment.

Limited story telling time
Most movies do their thing in 1.5–3 hours. A book is edited and crafted, but the writer is still working within an unlimited time canvas. This condensing of books into movies leads to deleted parts from the book or abbreviation of developments within the book.

Scripts do not always do the Story justice
While a movie is afforded the power of visual stimulation, it’s limited in terms of having to tell a story primarily through dialogue. Making that transition from words to visual representation plus dialogue is not as simple as it seems, particularly when you’re dealing with a book that has a lot of inner dialogue, or that gives the reader insight into a character’s mind.

Books allow the reader to use their imagination
Without the power of visuals, books allow readers to put together the story and elements in their mind. Sometimes movies overdo the visuals.

Reading the Books first
If you read the book first, it just sticks with you.

So fingers crossed for this movie.

New Story

skull
Coming soon

ULTRA: Anarchy is a SF, futuristic, cyberpunk, post apocalyptic story that takes place after a Third World War has decimated the Earth. Out of the ashes a new world emerged. A time of peace spread throughout the world, but it would not last for long.
Old resentments and new dangerous ideas bubbled up from the graves of the dead.
Follow the Crisis Assault Team NEON on their missions to keep the world and its mighty city Imperium secure.

© Mary and Freedom Novel Writing, 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary and Freedom Novel Writing with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book review: Halo Ghost of Onyx

haloonyxcover

The spartan-II program has gone public. Tales of super- soldiers fending off tousands of covenant attacks have become the stuff of legends.

While the Master Chief defends a besieged Earth, and the myriad factions of the Covenant contiue their crusade to eliminate humanity, an ultrasecret cell of the Office of Navel Intellignce knwon as “Section Three” devises a plan to buy the INSC vital time. They’re going to need hundreds of willing soldiers, though… and one more spartan to get the job done.

The planet Onyx is virtually abandoned and the perfect place to set this new plan in motion. But when the Master Chief destroys Halo, something is triggered deep within Onyx: Ancient Forerunner technology stirs, and fleets of UNSC and Covenant race to claim it to change the course of the Human Covenant War/

But this reawakend and ancient force may have plans of its own…

Halo: Ghosts of Onyx written by Eric Nylund is a great book for true Halo fans. This story does not focus mutch on the main character of the game Master Chief, but more on  SPARTAN-II supersoldier Lieutenant Commander Kurt Ambrose formerly known as SPARTAN-051 and the SPARTAN-III program. It was a very intresting book that allowed you to see diffrent sides of every character.

The book starts immediately in a battle setting the tone for a true action adventure story. Then it goes on with introducing the main character Kurt Ambrose. I have to say that this was a very well written character and it showed the more human side of the Spartans. The story goes on to show the audience how much power ONI (The Office of Naval Intelligence, the intelligence service of the UNSC Navy)has and how corrupt it is. Then the Spartan-III get introduced, from here on the story takes on more form and things become more clear. The story really start to get intreesting when the Covenant get introduced in the form of a splinter faction of the Covenant: Joyous Exultation Covenant.

There were some part in the story that were a little to long and took the passe out of the story. People who have played Halo 1,2,3 will get certain reference to the game. Overall it was a great book not my favorite Hallo story but definitely one  to check out. especially if you have played Halo: Reach. I would not recomed this book to anybody, because a lot of things will not make sense if you have not played the games of any of the other books.

 

 

Appleseed

Appleseed is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masamune Shirow. The series follows the adventures of ESWAT members Deunan Knute and Briareos Hecatonchires in Olympus.
Appleseed merges elements of the cyberpunk and mecha genres with a heavy dose of politics, philosophy, and sociology.
It has been adapted into an OVA, three feature films, a 13 episode TV series, and two video games.

Appleseed takes place in the 22nd Century, after the non-nuclear Third World War has decimated the Earth. The main characters are Deunan Knute and Briareos Hecatonchires, former SWAT members of the LAPD. They are found in the desolated city and invited to join the prestigious ESWAT (Extra Special Weapons And Tactics) organization in the utopian city of Olympus, the new world’s most powerful state. Roughly one half of Olympus’s population are bionically augmented.

The series follows Deunan and Briareos as they protect their new home from both foreign and domestic threats to its security.

The movies that I have seen are Appleseed, Appleseed Ex Machina and Appleseed Alpha.
I really loved Appleseed Alpha it looked really great and I would recommend the Manga and this movie to anyone who loves good well developed stories. You can watch Appleseed Alpha on Netflix.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Cyber & Steampunk

I just love Cyber and Steampunk. The style is just amazing, so much detail.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Writing Tips

Tip1: Read. Read everything you can.

Tip 2: Introduce your main characters and themes in the first third of your novel.

Tip 3: In the planning stage of a book, don’t plan the ending. Let it just happen.

Tip 4: Always carry a note-book.

Tip 5: Interesting verbs are not always  interesting.

Tip 6: Read it aloud to yourself.

Tip 7: Don’t tell but show.

Tip 8: Listen to the criticisms and preferences of your first readers.

Tip 9: “Fiction that isn’t an author’s personal adventure into the frightening or the unknown isn’t worth writing.

Tip 10: “Be your own editor/critic.

 

 

The Werewolf of Bedburg

Prologue 

I feel my muscles scream as the change begins. My pain will be nothing, compared to hers.
Her scent fills my nostrils, I start to tremble, my blood is boiling, her taste, I can’t wait.
I first saw her yesterday, in my human form, her scent sets me off, an emotional storm is set loose in me. I want to love her, feel her, touch her. But the wolf in me only sees her as prey and wants to rip her apart. Her sweet flesh and blood, the hunger and thirst in me grows stronger.
I kill with a throat bite, to silence her screams I could decapitate her, in my powerful jaws.
My human side in me is losing the battle to natures laws the transformation is almost complete.
A person, a monster, a wolf, but also a man. Love her or devour her, kill her or make her on off my own The wolf growls disdain, at my human side. Death is all it desires.
Closer she comes, hiking through the dark forest Secretions of woman scent, carried on the breeze.
Inflamed with passion and hunger, in both man and beast, I see her now, as the wolf readies to feast.
The sight, the smell, I am losing all control, A blood lust unfolds.
Closer, closer, closer… no chance now to flee, the smell of her femaleness, drives me insane.
Are these my thoughts or the wolf? I am trembling, from both pleasure and pain. She sees me, she’s running, like she can escape, time for the kill. I bite into her warm flesh, the smell, the taste, the sight.
Fear overwhelms her, she passes out from the pain and blood loss.
Lustful yearnings still boiling, in me. Death, blood, hunger. Yes, this is defiantly the wolf talking.
And when I wake up I will no longer remember what I have done and the woman will be dead or became another of my sins. I am a monster, forever to be cursed That is just how nature works.

-The werewolf of Bedburg on natures laws

This is the story of a monster that terrorized a German village for years with unspeakably cruel crimes and murders. In the late 16th century the town of Bedburg, Germany was terrorized by a diabolical creature that slaughtered its cattle and snatched away its women and children, killing them with unspeakable morbidity. The shocked and horrified townspeople feared that they were being victimized by a raving, bloodthirsty werewolf who lived among them. This is the story of Peter Stubbe, the werewolf of Bedburg whose crimes plunged a German town into an unimaginable bloody nightmare that no one could escape but what is the truth? What really happened? Was he a monster? Or was he set up for a greater cost.
It wasn’t easy being a farmer in 16th-century Germany. It was hard enough just to get anything to grow in a time before pest control and fertilizers. Then there was the constant threat of roving brigands who had no qualms about stealing your livestock or burning your crops and the religious war between the Protestantism and the Roman Catholics was raining on. But for farmer Peter Stubbe, life was even tougher. He had just become a widow and was left with 2 children, a son and a daughter take care of. His wife had died suddenly, he was broken by this. He loved his wife she was his support and strength. His neighbours and friends supported him through the harsh times, but they also could see he was a broken man. His daughter did everything to cheer him up and his son tried not to bother him as much. Being a father was all ready hard for Peter but the fact that his fellow farmers from the village were pushing him to re-marry did not really help. All he wanted was to be left alone, but he knew that he could not live forever like this. Some people said that this was the turning point for Stubbe that this was the moment he became a monster. Others say he was always a monster from the moment he was born and that he had killed his own wife. That he had sold his soul to the devil to become a raging monster, a demon, a hungry wolf ready to kill anybody how was unlucky enough to cross his path.
A man without a soul, a man bound to kill and stalk the defenceless and the weak. They say only one creature kills out of pure pleasure and that is the werewolf. They are raving monsters with a never ending trust for tearing everything to pieces.
The truth is, if a werewolf behaves like a monster, a murdering psychopath it wouldn’t be because it is a beast, but because there is still a part human in his left, because only humans kill for sport.
Nonetheless a wolf does not concern himself with the opinions of the sheep. Maybe people are just monsters who can tell. Even a man who is pure of heart and says his prayers by night may become a wolf when the wolfs bane blooms and the autumn moon is bright.

© Mary and Freedom Novel Writing, 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary and Freedom Novel Writing with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.