MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 928 Topics covered in this issue include: 1) Re: Shakespeare (rather long, total non-Misty) by "JAIME HATHAWAY" 2) Re: Braiding (yes again) by "JAIME HATHAWAY" 3) language by "JAIME HATHAWAY" 4) Bdays/weiqi/languages/stuff by Clarissa Smith/Claris Boii 5) Re: Singing solos/Languages by Lynne Markova 6) Re: Reply to: Serious Braiding Action! by DawnRain 7) Re: One book/Pronounciation/Language/Craters by Kat 8) re: professors/precalc/languages by Kat 9) Re: Elspeth/music/booted by Disney 10) Re: Bdays/weiqi/languages/stuff by Ken Hyde 11) Everything by Celia Marsh 12) Hi everyone/Dr. Seuss/lurking by Jefferson or Rain 13) hello everyone by CDPC Lab Station 14) Re: languages by "Emily L Cartier" 15) Reply to: Altra by Rozanna McNeer 16) Reply to: Spanish Braid. (As opposed to French, which I don't speak) by Rozanna McNeer 17) Re: Reply to: Altra by Chris & Sean Talbot 18) Fluffy but readab;e/ by Jaiook Park 19) Truly inspired by GRAYMT-+AT+-centum.utulsa.edu 20) Andre Norton by undine 21) Reply to: language by Rozanna McNeer 22) Re: languages by Rozanna McNeer 23) prayer/movie/Romeo and Juliet by "Hth." 24) Re: Truly inspired by Kat 25) Official greetings/big ol'braid/fluff by Shadra ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 11:46:55 CST From: "JAIME HATHAWAY" To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Shakespeare (rather long, total non-Misty) Message-ID: <495BEA0E86-+AT+-future.judson.edu> I'm sorry that this is off topic, but I can't help it, as an English teacher and a Shakespeare-obsessed, Hamlet-obsessed, etc. Hamlet was at LEAST 30 years old at the time of the play, even though he was at school in Wittenburg. Now, Shakespeare gives nothing more than a passing whimsy to time at best in his plays, but Hamlet wasn't a relatively young adolescent getting out of college like we see it today. You can figure out his age by the gravesite scene with the clown and Yorick's skull. ObMisty....hmmmm.....oh, about the pre-industrial Valdemar. I, too, was concerned when reading the Storms books that valdemar was indeed going to have it's own industrial revoultion..at which point, I would give up on it altogether. What I love most about Valdemar is the fact that its people are still in the "medieval" type of world. Misty doesn't have to give it an industrialized society. This is fantasy, not reality. and while it does have to be believable, I see no reason why it can't continue as it is. Jacquelle Oh, very clever, Worf. Eat any good books lately? --Q ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 11:51:23 CST From: "JAIME HATHAWAY" To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Braiding (yes again) Message-ID: <496EE90D89-+AT+-future.judson.edu> Firecats being previous Sons of the Sun is the same as Companions being previous Heralds. I belive the question was about COMPANIONS reincarnating into heralds, not herald reinc into companions. (not quite aone liner ) Jacquelle Oh, very clever, Worf. Eat any good books lately? --Q ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 11:56:25 CST From: "JAIME HATHAWAY" To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: language Message-ID: <4984BB6386-+AT+-future.judson.edu> Do Companions ever have problems communicating with their Chosen, or others, who are from OutKingdom? Do they just get the ability to understand any language when they get reincarnated, or Grove-born? Jacquelle Oh, very clever, Worf. Eat any good books lately? --Q ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 12:12:49 -0600 (CST) From: Clarissa Smith/Claris Boii To: Mercedes Lackey fanlist Subject: Bdays/weiqi/languages/stuff Message-ID: Hm, things have been way out of hand here...and my two lists are really talkative today! First, zhu nimen shengri kwaile (happy birthday, everyone)! I neglected to be timely with that, so consider yourselves all birthingday-gifted with the best dreams possible to refresh you while you sleep and make you awaken with a smile in your heart. And hi to the new people. and a big AROOOOOO! to Mel the Redcap. ;) Lady Wintersong (right?)--good luck! And I thought I was the only weiqi player out there... Make sure to tell us how you do!!! One last gasp at the languages thing...Cen's absolutely right. Memorizing words in another language will get you nowhere fast. And in fantasy, the European viewpoint is so pervasive that no one really considers languages that might have, say, tones, such as the language I'm learning, 'Mandarin' Chinese. =) Wheee, what a trip!!!! And it's true that the language center of the brain begins to close at a VERY young age. Unfortunately, American schools systems (by and large) do not support this at least. Luckily, my mom spoke Spanish and German to me when I was little, and that seems to be the reason why I seem to be picking up Chinese so quickly, even though it's certainly not related to Spanish, French or German. I have one of the highest grades in my Chinese class, despite a third of the class having fluent parents and/or prior knowledge. My next task will be to brush up my Spanish. I hope to talk the university into allowing Japanese as a doctoral language. It's *stupid* to require German, French, Latin, or Greek of an Asian Studies major. I may even tackle Cantonese someday! Er...anyway, it seems to me that even if a Talented person could "pick up" a language, he/she (Ack! I miss genderless Chinese!!!) wouldn't really understand it, but would be carrying out a mental function equivalent to a computer translation program. Um, I guess that's it...( I'm falling in love on a MUSH. I have no spare time anymore! ) ****************************************************************************** Claris/Clarissa Smith (ccsmith-+AT+-comp.uark.edu) On-campus .sig file Art/History Major * Blow the stars home, Wind, Sf/fantasy/graphic artist * blow the stars home, GM & game writer * Ere morning drowns them with golden foam. http://comp.uark.edu/~ccsmith/ ****************************************************************************** ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 10:18:17 -0800 (PST) From: Lynne Markova To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Singing solos/Languages Message-ID: Lady Sophia turns off the radio long enough to reply: The Goddess of Music and Song will be very, very, very cross indeed if Her acolyte, Lady Woodlark does not receive the solo part in Faure's Requiem. However, should Lady Woodlark *not* receive the solo part, she should remember that the Goddess of Music and Song Herself was rejected for the very same solo part in the very same work not once, not twice, but three times. (That part is especially tricky - they want to hear you, but they want you to sound like a boy soprano!). (perhaps I should change my name to the Goddess of Music, Song and Rejection!) RE: Languages I agree with whoever suggested that Karse probably has a different root structure than Valdarmaran or Hardonen - but once a student develops a routine for acquiring a language, it is much easier to learn the second one. One thing that made me laugh about Karse, though, was that Alberich is a distinct German-sounding name (and so is Ulrich!), but the *culture* of Karse seems to very Middle Eastern. RE: Future Works I hope Misty can really enjoy writing the fairy tales - the Storm series was okay, but I really think she needs a break from Velgarth for a while. I would really like to have a Solaris trilogy - how a young priestess could attain such prominence, without coming to the attention of the corrupt Son of the Sun would make some fascinating reading. RE: Complaint I was re-reading Bardic Voices again last week, and it occurs to me that Misty has a really annoying (to me, anyway) habit of introducing some very interesting characters, and dropping them as soon as the main character moves on. Take The Lark and the Wren (one of my favorites): she deals with: Stara, Jeb, whoever the innkeeper is, the evil men who beat her up, the unpleasant girls who mock her, the Skull Hill Ghost, the nice innkeeper in Nolton, Tonno, Amber, Carly, the "ladies", and so on, and on, and on.... also, one of those "mid-chapter" character changes really annoyed me to death - Carly goes from wanting to be a highly-paid "lady" to being a religious fanatic? Huh-uh, don't think so. Oh, well. RE: An'desha/Firesong This struck me as one of those relationships that had its basis in An'desha's recovery - and once he mastered his magic, and began healing from his traumas, Firesong felt like An'desha didn't "need" him anymore. An'desha found things, ideas, people that interested him, but didn't interest Firesong - and Firesong found that very threatening. He wanted An'desha to be more self-sufficient - but he also wanted him to be who and what HE wanted him to be. That's a problem with "recovery relationships" - you never know who you will get when the trauma is healed! Bright blessings, everyone! Lady Sophia, trilling away Goddess of Song and Music ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 13:51:35 -0700 From: DawnRain To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Reply to: Serious Braiding Action! Message-ID: <32824BD7.37B1-+AT+-geocities.com> deniz wrote: > Well, it could be sub-conscious (spelling?). Have you read... er, either Get > Off the Unicorn or Pegasus in Flight by McCaffrey? One of those has a > character who speaks upwards of 7 languages fluently because of such a > sub-whatever utilization of her psi talent. It was one of the Pegasus, and yes, I've read all of the above. She was one of my favorite characters for a while but just now I can't for the life of me remember her name or anything. I shouldn't even be reading my e-mail--I don't really have time and I KNOW I haven't got the brainpower. Too many papers and tests. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 12:56:45 -0800 (PST) From: Kat To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: One book/Pronounciation/Language/Craters Message-ID: > Re: One book > > Any Misty book meaning one of *her* books, or do anthologies count? *If* > they do, I'd keep S&S III. No question. All the other books I can replace. > If it's only books, I'd keep MPawn. I love that book. Need I say more? Well, I would keep Storm Breaking, seeing as I haven't finished it yet and I just bought it and I couldn't resist it's call from across the bookstore even though i am a very poor college student and really can't afford books other than the ones I'm studying from.. Wow.. What a rant. > Pronounciation. > How do you pronounce 'Lores'? I always said LOR-ez, personally. Kat ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 13:04:41 -0800 (PST) From: Kat To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: re: professors/precalc/languages Message-ID: > In high school we were required to participate in the National > History Day competions, so I am very fond of books that can lead me > to more sources for my research. I have learned that you get a very > biased project if you consult too many (generally means more than > three) books by the same author. You have serious problems if you > can't find any primary source material too. > All this talk about my horrible religion class is depressing > (especially since the ordeal is almost over). I can understand your lament. I have a Professor who cannot get his book published anywhere. (And when reading it, you can tell why. His grammar is horrible, he uses the worst possible analogies and he can't spell with a spell checker.) Then he says it is the best text on East Asian Studies around and sells it to us for $4 a week for four chapters.. (Say that four times fast.) > Of course I need precalculus (and Calc I, Calc II and Calc III, and > probably at least one more for good measure ). I'm studying Electrical > Engineering and there are things that you simply can't do without > calculus, so calculus is a wonderful thing (but that doesn't mean it > is easy!). Thank electrical engineers for the fact that you have your > lovely computer toy to send email to people with. The difficulty of I am glad I do not have to take anymore Math. Happy happy happy. I filled my math rquirement and now I shall wander off happily to my secondary English education classes. Kat ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 15:09:47 -0500 (CDT) From: Disney To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Elspeth/music/booted Message-ID: <01IBKHIV04IA0053D9-+AT+-ACAD.DRAKE.EDU> -->>>One thing about the grudge line has bothered me for a while. On my >last round of rereads, I came across a line in either Arrows or BTS >calling Elspeth something like, "a sweet, intelligent girl. She >was the type who would never hold a grudge." I know it's there, >I just can't rememeber where it was. It struck a chord when I read It was in _Arrow's Fall_ when Talia had the big fight with Elspeth, and went off to Selenay to tell her what a goofball she was. Selenay said basically that Elspeth was a good hearted person, and once she cooled down she didn't hold a grudge. I was wondering about that too, since in the Winds books she's like the complete opposite... Oh, Goddess of Sensitivity, I heard your lonely cry and was driven to respond. I would endeavor to be your Priestess or whatever you feel I am worthy of in your worship. And I even have qualifications, slight though they may be... I am always listening to my friends' problems, even if my own world is falling apart (which lately is pretty often :>). I play on a mud called Fiery, and while there have councelled people of all ages on all matter of things... Broken hearts, unrequited love, abusive relationships, you name it i've probablygotten my shoulder soggy (figurativly speaking, of course) on the subject. Even if I have never encountered the problem, i can empathize with the tormentedsoul--It is one of my Gifts. If one of my friends is in need, i can sense it and sit them down and have a nice long talk with them. Plus, while in high school, I was often woke up at ungodly hours by a friend with an alcoholic problem, and I semi councelled him on that. As proof of my sinserity in serving you, Great One, I offer you a Life Size Mickey Mouse doll..Whenever you are in need, hug him and tell him all your problems. The next morning you will feel good as new and have answers to all of your problems. You will feel loved just by holding him. After all, even Goddesses of Sensitivity need to feel loved and cared for sometimes. Do I qualify? Do you accept my gift, unworthy though it may be? :) I await you command, Jen <<<<<<<>>>>>>> "All Haill The Mouse!!" "Disneyworld" worshipper of the Mouse All HAIL the MOUSE! ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 16:39:47 -0500 (EST) From: Ken Hyde To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Bdays/weiqi/languages/stuff Message-ID: On Thu, 7 Nov 1996, Clarissa Smith/Claris Boii wrote: > And in fantasy, the > European viewpoint is so pervasive that no one really considers languages > that might have, say, tones, such as the language I'm learning, 'Mandarin' > Chinese. =) Oh, let's really complicate things and say that even fantasy writers who do acknowledge the possibility of tone (Dave Duncan's "Reluctant Hero" series is set in a world where the dominant language is a tone language) don't acknowledge that there are different distinct types of tone languages: contour (the "Chinese" type) and register (the "Japanese" and "Nupe" type). My personal feeling is that Shin'a'in and its related languages should be register tone languages. Then I could do all kinds of fun things with tone spreading, down-drift, and stuff like that. Woooeee! Big fun! Incidentally, to make this just a bit more interesting, did you know that English has both contour and register tones? We just don't use them as distinctive categories in speech. But, for example, "love" and other one syllable words tend to have contour tones, while "paper" and multi-syllable words have register-type tones. > And it's true that the language center > of the brain begins to close at a VERY young age. Unfortunately, American > schools systems (by and large) do not support this at least. Luckily, my > mom spoke Spanish and German to me when I was little, and that seems to be > the reason why I seem to be picking up Chinese so quickly, even though > it's certainly not related to Spanish, French or German. two quick points: First, there is increasing evidence that the old theory that there is a "critical age" for learning languages (usually given as "up to age 5" or "up to 13" depending on your source) is fallacious. While it is true that there are some physical changes in the brain during the first years of life, it is unclear how they relate to LangAcq (Language Acquisition). The differences in the situations of an adult language learner and a child language learner are so great that it is very difficult to make any claims about which of many possible variables is the key (if it isn't an entire complex). Second point: it seems very unlikely that exposure to an Indo-European language like Spanish or German would have any significant effect on a persons ability to acquire Chinese (a Sino-Tibetan language). It seems more likely that Claris is simply a gifted language learner. I have a hypothesis (uncomfirmed by any empirical evidence) that people who are extremely language and literature oriented and have a high degree of creative ability in their first language will have a greater aptitude for learning other languages. (Now, how would that apply to Karal and Talia, I wonder? =) ) > he/she (Ack! I miss genderless Chinese!!!) wouldn't really > understand it, but would be carrying out a mental function equivalent to a > computer translation program. Not really. The character in "Pegasus in Flight" is supposedly capable of subconciously tapping into another persons mental grammar and lexicon. In other words, they are using the other person's language skills, rather than their own. If current linguistic theory is correct (btw, I think that Anne knows heaps more about language than Misty, and this book is very strong supporting evidence), then the Doodit (I can't remember her name) would be able to interpret the "foreign" language, since the terms would be represented/composed of the same universal semantic features, just in slightly different patterns and combinations. Does that make sense? It does to me, but then I know what I am trying to say. =) May the seas be your solace and the forests a refuge for your spirit, Cennydd, Kenneth Allen Hyde | No matter how subtle the wizard, a knife Univ. of Delaware | between the shoulder blades will seriously Dept. of Linguistics | cramp his style -- Old Jhereg proverb kenny-+AT+-Udel.Edu | A mind is a terrible toy to waste! -- Me **http://www.udel.edu/kenny/ken.html or .../kenny/green.silences.html** ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 96 17:09:37 EST From: Celia Marsh To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk (Mercedes Lackey List) Subject: Everything Message-ID: <199611072210.RAA16827-+AT+-hobbes.kzoo.edu> First, I'd like to thank my boss, Wintershard for the weather celebration that seems to be taking place in honor of my appointment. It's lovely, but, maybe a tad dramatic. Next i'd like to say that I used to like the Xanth series, but since it's begining it's gotten really stupid and I only read it because I liked it (that's a present tense read). I much prefer the Incarnations. Then, gradually building towards a ObMisty, I have to say that I think that a reasonable movie could be made from at least some of the SERRAed-edge books. I mean, they're set here and now, and the most they'd need would be some special effects and makeup, nothing too hard. If movies were made from LHM, Wof*, etc, I'd rather see some nice animation. Then atleast everybody could look right, and the Companions would look reasonable. I'd like to take this time to say that yes, I delete the circle posts w/o reading them or just skim the posts, but that's because I have no trouble with the image, understand at least what she seemed to mean, and don't really need to know all the details. I can't contribute to the disscussion because all I know about Physics evaporated after graduation. I also can't contribute to the pronunciation disscussion cause I never learned my phonics and so have a horrible time prononcing things. And, well, that about winds it up. Thanks for reading my message of fluff, and my favorite musics are Green Linnet(I would by the catalog if I had the money), Alternative/Pop(Radiohead, James, Better Than Ezra, etc), some classical, though I don't own anything other than the Nutcracker, but I do have three copies of it, if that counts for anything., and my new favorite is Semisonic, an alternative/pop group. Love and kisses, Cele ---------------------------------------------------------------------- May we kiss those we please and please those we kiss ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Cecelia Ann Marsh |"You've been reading | Box 444 Hicks Center |too much meaning from | Kalamazoo MI 49006 |existence" | E-mail: k95cm02-+AT+-kzoo.edu | | http://www.kzoo.edu/~k95cm02/ | -James _Lullaby_ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 01:09:50 -0800 From: Jefferson or Rain To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Hi everyone/Dr. Seuss/lurking Message-ID: <3281A75E.9F9-+AT+-earthlink.net> Heyla! Well, this is most assuredly the most e-mail I have ever encountered. We got the computer upgraded and a new modem (finally! Old Betsy got that Drive Augmentation surgery she wanted) and I couldn't get online for 2 days. Then I got wretchedly sick, and I am still really miserable so I'm going to lurk for a few more days - but. . . If you asked for Dr. Seuss, fear not! The new modem means I can maybe get my mail sent without getting disconnected and when I am up to the Herculean task of forwarding Dr. Seuss 97 times, I will most assuredly do so. Old question, really old, but hey, it's obMisty time - If I could keep any single ML book, it would have to be _Black Gryphon_, but followed closely by AoQ. Which is one of the most delightful books I've ever been priviledged to read. Bright the Day, and bright was my naturopath's face when I paid her bill and limped home this morning. . . BWAHHHHH! Peace, Rainwood, soon-to-be (i hope) Goddess of Sushi Bars (and I can't have any raw fish until I get better, either, which means I am a most Wretched and Starved Prospective Deity.) http://home.earthlink.net/~macstager ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 17:18:19 -0800 From: CDPC Lab Station To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: hello everyone Message-ID: <32828A5B.4ADE-+AT+-ra.msstate.edu> Hello everyone. I have been reading the mailing list for about a week or two now. I have never recieved so much email in my life. Just wanted everyone to know how much I enjoy reading all of the questions and answers. I can't wait to read Storm Breaking. My bookstore doesn't have it yet. If anyone gets a chance, run by my page at www.geocities.com/area51/1740 and tell what you think. I just started it and I need some tips. Thanks Herald-trainee Rex Aigle ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 18:25:28 -0500 From: "Emily L Cartier" To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: languages Message-ID: <9611072327.AA29616-+AT+-udecc.engr.udayton.edu> Cynnedd (the linguist) said: >First, there is increasing evidence that the old theory that there is a >"critical age" for learning languages (usually given as "up to age 5" >or "up to 13" depending on your source) is fallacious. That is very interesting. Antonia and I could never figure out why we (the 18 and 17 year old French I students) picked up French faster than the 15 year olds. We both are really good with things like vocabulary and grammar (just don't ask us to EXPLAIN it ). Cynnedd goes on to say: >I have a hypothesis (uncomfirmed by any empirical evidence) that >people who are extremely language and literature oriented and have >a high degree of creative ability in their first language will have >a greater aptitude for learning other languages. Hmm... That sure sounds like me. One of the first things I can remember is wanting books. My mom claims that I was reading at 4, but I can remember learning to read in kindergarden and I can't remember reading before then. Of course we could both be right because the biggest thing I remember about reading in kindergarden was sounding out words that were pretty tough (like magnificent). I know that I learned about "silent e" in the summer after kindergarden because my mom taught me. I have always read several years above grade level (I read _Dolphin Island_ by Arthur C. Clarke in third grade, my first science fiction). I've always attributed my picking up languages painlessly to the fact that I have an immense vocabulary in English and I was exposed to Latin from the age of 9. I also have never tackled a non Romance language, and I started learning languages with Latin. I dunno if I'm evidence supporting your theory or not, but it makes more sense to me than the idea that your language centers start closing off young. I have absolutely no idea how this relates to languages in Velgarth though. It seems to me that someone could write a program that would build a language with a grammar and a vocabulary and a way to add new words. I don't think it would have a very big market but it would be really useful for authors who don't have a linguistic background to build a language on. I know Diane Duane wrote a vocabulary generator in BASIC that someone ported to C, and maybe you could build this hypothetical program off of that... Then we could give Misty a copy and she could set it up to generate various languages for us (like Karsite and Imperial and Valdemaran)... Maybe then Cynnedd would be happy with her linguistic model. Emily the invisible ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 17:20:18 -0500 From: Rozanna McNeer To: "mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk" Subject: Reply to: Altra Message-ID: <199611071828_MC1-BBE-2D88-+AT+-compuserve.com> hmm. . . I thought Karal was reading the diary of Hansa, who is Solaris's Fire-cat. We never did find out what Altra does. Firemist ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 16:24:37 -0500 From: Rozanna McNeer To: "mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk" Subject: Reply to: Spanish Braid. (As opposed to French, which I don't speak) Message-ID: <199611071829_MC1-BBD-CC5F-+AT+-compuserve.com> ke'leecha was wondering about interspecies bonding in misty books one title : THE EAGLE AND THE NIGHTENGALE!!!! s p o i l e r s p a c e you know, where Nightengale and T'fyrr get together. . . . . Firemist ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 18:48:32 -0500 From: Chris & Sean Talbot To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Reply to: Altra Message-ID: <199611072348.SAA01360-+AT+-nemesis.idirect.com> At 11:46 PM 11/7/96 GMT, you wrote: > > >hmm. . . I thought Karal was reading the diary of Hansa, who is Solaris's >Fire-cat. We never did find out what Altra does. > >Firemist > I always figured Altra was just one of the old Suns of the Son that was sent to help Karal since he was in a particularly fragile area where any wrong move could mean war with any number of countries. Ithought that was why he was sent there. Aistes ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 8 Nov 1996 09:56:13 +1000 From: Jaiook Park To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Fluffy but readab;e/ Message-ID: <199611072356.JAA13537-+AT+-gateway.mgs.schnet.edu.au> > >Yes, that was and this still is deniz. Macs are NOT True Computers I'll > >have > >you know! > OK. I won't go into this. I WON'T. You mean someone's using a MAC???!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Um, I was wondering if someone could send me a copy of the B-Day List??? I'd just like to have a look at it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I was also wondering how to become a god of something or another, do I have to rise up in the ranks, suck up to The Almighty god of Procrastination or somethin'? 'cuase I'd like to be the God of the Super Ego For whoever read the whole archives (I can't remmeber the name but I should 'cause its a marvellous achievement) HOW THE SMEG DID YOU DO IT???!!! There's like about a BILLION things to read through, must have taken you about a year or so!!! Well congrats on your achievment. Also I was wondering 'cause I'm in school, over the holidays I was wondering how I could postpone my mail so I don't receive the (estimated) 2000 messages on my computer??? I read something about a POSTPONE MAIL command but I just don't understand it. ObMisty:....Um.....Okay, feeble question, what's you're favorite race in Velgarth? Ooh, not very good is it. Jaiook "You mean I put down my sword, you put down your rock and we try to kill each other like civilised people?" Wesly, Princess Bride. Jpark-+AT+-mgs.schnet.edu.au ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 18:34:28 -0600 (CST) From: GRAYMT-+AT+-centum.utulsa.edu To: MERCEDES-LACKEY-+AT+-HERALD.CO.UK Subject: Truly inspired Message-ID: <961107183428.22b70b76-+AT+-centum.utulsa.edu> Celia Marsh : >I have to say that I think that a reasonable movie could be made from >at least some of the SERRAed-edge books. I mean, they're set here >and now, and the most they'd need would be some special effects and >makeup, nothing too hard. If movies were made from LHM, Wof*, etc, >I'd rather see some nice animation. Then atleast everybody could look >right, and the Companions would look reasonable. Ooo, I like that idea. But the SERRAted-Edge books and Bedlam Bardz would do great as animations as well. (Think Speed Racer and The Last Unicorn). Although, in Legend they did a good job on elves and unicorns. Emily the invisible, an early Happy Birthday, and I gift you with a guardian unicorn to watch over you so that no one runs over you or bumps into when you're invisible. I have been INSPIRED... I am going to download the archives and read them all...Somebody help! Don't let me do this! I can't swim in that much archival material! My fav race? toss up between Taladrays and Kyree. Dax the Eternal, Lady of the Unicorns (wishing Lady Thessaly would come back so I could become Goddess of Elves, Advice and all things Equine) "Canst thou bind the Unicorn with his band in the furrow?" - Book of Job ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 20:01:36 -0500 (EST) From: undine To: list lackey Subject: Andre Norton Message-ID: Heyla all, I heard some sad news today. Andre Norton ( a fave author of mine) had to cancel an author appearance due to poor health. She was actually admitted to a hospital. Not a good sign anytime but especially not when you're 84! Anyway, I hope that you'll remember her in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks! Undine who is sorry that she never wrote that letter telling Ms. Norton how much entertainment her books brought. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 20:46:02 -0500 From: Rozanna McNeer To: "mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk" Subject: Reply to: language Message-ID: <199611072046_MC1-BCB-C5B2-+AT+-compuserve.com> Mindspeakers can evidently communicate with anyone even if they don't speak the same language. I whip out my version of HorseFantastic, turn to the last page of Stolen Silver (p 24) and cite textevd (ta-wa ta-wa!) > He let himself slide down into their hands, hearing nothing he could >understand, only a babble of strange syllables. > Then, in his mind -- > :Can you hear me?: > :I -- what?: he replied, without thinking. > :Taver says his name's ALberich,: came a second voice in his head. . . So, yes, Mindspeakers can communicate without a common language. Rather interesting implications on philosophy of language and language learning, no? Assumes we do not think in words but in images/symbols/ abstract notions etc. I would have thought that in order to communicate mind-to-mind, one has to focus and organize one's thoughts into actual sentence structure, otherwise it would be hard to tell the thought that should be communicated from the rest of the surface 'clutter' . Comments? Firemist ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 20:56:20 -0500 From: Rozanna McNeer To: "mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk" Subject: Re: languages Message-ID: <199611072057_MC1-BD1-3034-+AT+-compuserve.com> i'm not so sure about the hypothesis concerning creativity in one's own language being causally linked with foreign language acquisition. I know that I am really bad at learning new languages -- it took me seven years to learn Dutch and i lived in the country at the time! AND i attended a Dutch high school, so no one can say I wasn't exposed to the language. . . And I would like to think i'm creative. And yes, memorizing words will get you nowhere in hurry if you have to translate in your head from one language to another, you are not fluent in it. you are only fluent when you can *think* in the language. Memorizing the rules doesn't help all that much either -- if you have to stop and think how to conjugate the verb you want to use, well, that's not very good . . .. (btw, i'm guilty of doing all of the above, so TINAF, just sharing of opinion) OTOH, it's my personal pet theory that people good at math are usually abyssmal at learning new languages. Of course, this is just me scrabbling for a reason to explain my lack of foreign language acquistional capability Firemist ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 16:36:54 CST From: "Hth." To: Subject: prayer/movie/Romeo and Juliet Message-ID: <07NOV96.17944332.0167.MUSIC-+AT+-ACADEMIC.TRUMAN.EDU> That praying thing kind of bugged me, too. Now, granted, I'm in sympathy, because I feel the same way -- asking a god to help you kick the living hell out of the people next door seems somehow...inappropriate. I'd probably stick to praying that the whole thing ended with as many people safe and happy as possible, and let the Higher Powers sort it out. *However.* I would strongly object to being told by Benevolent Queen Whoever on her white horse that I *can't* pray to whomever I like for whatever the heck I want. Isn't that sort of my business, between me and whatever gods I follow? What was that about No One True Way? That irked me to no end. I don't like governments who make pronouncements on how people should or should not view religion, even when I happen to agree with the pronouncement. Governments should forbid *actions,* not thoughts and speech, especially private speech between two beings. In my opinion, at least. I think Oathbreakers would make a good movie. It has lots of action and a nice Mistyesque fantasy flavor. Best of all, you don't have to read 2-8 other books to be able to appreciate it. Much as I love LHM, I think it's a huge mistake to separate the books; they are all one story, and you lose so much by ignoring two-thirds of it, or even one-third. And it's really too long in its entirety to make a movie out of, especially with those "time passes" breaks. Sorry, I'm not much good at this song game. Too much brain-space taken up by my *own* characters. Barbara and I have developed to a fine art the skill of hearing half of the first verse of a song on the radio and yelping out, "Korovich and Jordan!" or "Goolida, singing to Jonna about Rayferer!" But other books, not so much (ayk! Mad About You Finally Just Gets It Over With and Takes Over Heather's Brain Completely) I used to really dislike Romeo and Juliet, too, when I read it in, err, ninth grade, I guess (oh, Christ, sorry, I forgot the translation game -- I would have been fourteen, 'most everyone else was fifteen). I read it again a few years later when I got the mega-volume of everything Shakespeare ever wrote, and I felt a lot differently. It's such a *fierce* story. I was spoiled, I think, by innumerable sitcom riffs on the balcony scene, delivered by languid, draping Juliets to cow-eyed Romeos in affected accents. The real play is much more passionate, angrier, courageous. That's why I'm so excited to death about a movie version that will, I think, finally do it justice. You really have to get the rebel aspect in there, the youth gone wild thing. And Juliet is just one of my favorite characters anywhere. She is *not* a sap. She's magnificent. I still am not much on the suicide thing. Jeez, they only knew each other for three days. But that's why it's a tragedy. In some ways, it reminds me of (and this is a jump) Poppy Brite's work (only without vampires and psychopaths). The idea of kids who feel dispossessed and disassociated from their world, jumping at anything that gives them half a chance to participate in something, to feel something -- even if what they choose is ultimately sad and destructive. I can almost hear Lost Souls? playing in the background: "We are not afraid -- let the night come." Once you make the jump from "Oh, how romantic, they just can't live without each other," to "This is how much they wanted to believe in something, and how little the rest of the world gave them to believe in," it becomes a whole different story. Anyway, if you haven't read it in a while, or only in English class, or whatever, I'd recommend reading it again. It's really not just an icky, sugared love story, anymore than Hamlet is a murder mystery. HTH r618-+AT+-academic.truman.edu "You never know what goes on inside a giant badger." --Third Rock from the Sun ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 18:46:04 -0800 (PST) From: Kat To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Re: Truly inspired Message-ID: > Ooo, I like that idea. But the SERRAted-Edge books and Bedlam Bardz > would do great as animations as well. (Think Speed Racer and The Last > Unicorn). Although, in Legend they did a good job on elves and unicorns. > Hmmm.. I've been thinking. What about a Diana Tregarde novel as a movie? The idea has merit... but.. Hmmmm... It could be done well, but Hollywood does like to over do "magic" and the like. I shudder to remember The Craft. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 07 Nov 1996 20:50:14 -0600 (CST) From: Shadra To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk Subject: Official greetings/big ol'braid/fluff Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19961107205017.22bf6e7a-+AT+-BrandonU.CA> I believe I should start this time with a formal introduction... Greetings and salutations one and all. I have been eyeballing this list for a while now and finally think I have a beginner's feel for how things here work. As Deniz was kind enough to point out, my name is Pam (aka Shadra) and I'm a fellow denizen of the Great White North. I work at a bookstore by day, teach music lessons at night, and in between try to find time to compile "The Collegium News" a Misty-related newsletter. Feel free to ask me any bookstore/music related questions (although I don't want to step on the toes of Lady Sophia...I do have a B.Mus with a major in flute and a minor in celtic harp to add to your worship services, Goddess, if you will have me). I guess with an intro like that I should answer the fave music question: Loreena McKennitt, The Wyrd Sisters, Clannad and Enya, Capercaille, The Police, Journey, Free Flight, Moxy Fruvous. Classical-wise I tend to the romantic end of the scale, one of my fave works is "The Moldeau" by Smetana. ******************************************************************************** Korendil said: "But even this summer wasn't anything compared to last year...back then forgetting to check you mail for 12 hours caused major backlog;> Braiding has helped a lot, tho...heh. I remember my aol days, when I checked my mail once a week...took me around 5 hours to answer all my misty mail...offline, of course;>" I have to say hats of to all of you who keep up with this list on such a regular basis! I can only check my mail every couple of days...what a job! I hope that will excuse me if I seem to enter a discussion late in the game. And Mel--going through the archives! (For that I'll send you the next primary feather my cat manages to snatch from the bondbird that lives upstairs from me!) A thought to all of you Worshippers of Procrastination--does your religion conflict with keeping up with this mailing list? It's not something to be easily "put off" ;-) ******************************************************************************** Mat the Cat Said: "It's funny. Guess what book I'm reading for English now? _Do Androids Dream of Electronic Sheep_. :) And no, I'm not kidding. It's the book that the movie "Blade Runner" with Harrison Ford was based on." Sheep aside, that was one of the most thought-provoking books I've read in a while. I hope you'll enjoy it, Mat. Oh, and on the subject of books, the one book I'd have to have is BTS. I wish I had the guts to take life head-on like Kero does. ******************************************************************************** Nina said, "I was just wondering if Misty is deliberately moving Valdemar into a (pre-)industrial age, and if she is, how will this affect the Heraldic circle." Jaquelle replied, "I, too, was concerned when reading the Storms books that valdemar was indeed going to have it's own industrial revoultion..at which point, I would give up on it altogether. What I love most about Valdemar is the fact that its people are still in the "medieval" type of world. Misty doesn't have to give it an industrialized society. This is fantasy, not reality. and while it does have to be believable, I see no reason why it can't continue as it is." My two cents on the subject is this: I think I would enjoy reading a book where medieval-at-heart characters suddenly have to cope with the soul-wrenching change, excitement, and chaos industrialization would bring. On the other hand, I don't want to see it happen to the Valdemar characters. It's too hard for me to envision a steam train chugging across the Dhorshia Plains. And think of all the opposition there would be from the Tayledras! In the real world, I believe all of our modernization is as big a threat to humanity as is a disease like AIDS. I couldn't wish a plague like that to descend on some of my most loved characters. **************************************************************************** **** Glithoniel wrote: "(sorry, R & J is one Shakespeare play I really hate. Its just too, too much. Sickly sweet and idiotic. Those two were real idiots. I much prefer King Lear or Hamlet or Othello. At least they had something to be tragic about!!)" I must agree that R & J is quite sappy (I'm a MacBeth person myself), but I did see a performance by the Royal Winnipeg Ballet where, in the last scene, Juliette wakes up after Romeo has taken the poison, but the poison is slow to act. Romeo sees Juliette wake and realizes his horrible mistake at the same moment as Juliette realizes what Romeo has done...painful and beautifully tragic. It had me in tears. ******************************************************************************** To bring up the discussion of the distinctions between SciFi and Fantasy as a literary genre, here is a quote from a "Realms of Fantasy" magazine: "L.W. Currey, the noted rare bookseller of SF and Fantasy said (to paraphrase): 'Science fiction deals with what one day might be possible, fantasy with what could never be possible'" BTW, does anyone know if that magazine still exists? ******************************************************************************** Spoiler space for Storm Breaking # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Mat the Cat said: "You know, if the Tayledras still have to move Vales, there's going to be a bunch of problems. For one, the bound ones are probably Healing Adepts, since they have the earth-sense. Two, no more Heartstones, no more Veils and such." I always viewed the Hawkbother's lands as one big chunk, not as seperate individual Vales. That would suggest the Vales' borders touch eachother, is that the case? I thought there was a bunch of wild-land in between. ******************************************************************************** Hey Deniz... Just what did you mean by "Shadra is a really interesting character who definitely tithes regularly to Mat, mine God." hmmm? ******************************************************************************** I think I've put enough fluff in here to warrant one of these-- ObMisty: What sort of recreational games can you see Misty's characters getting involved in? Capture the flag with gryphons? Until a few days from now, Shadra There's a path that will take you anywhere your heart will let you go/It can lead you to the edge of grace and hold you 'til you know/That there's always more than what you're seeing/Look though the dark to what will free you/And feel the long, lost love of living/--The Wyrd Sisters There's a path that will take you anywhere your heart will let you go/It can lead you to the edge of grace and hold you 'til you know/That there's always more than what you're seeing/Look though the dark to what will free you/And feel the long, lost love of living/--The Wyrd Sisters ------------------------------ End of MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 928 *********************************