Rebecca's LJournal

Mistborn and Gurren Lagann, yes, RANDOM

2009-06-23T10:28:22Z

I now have Utah license plates and a Utah drivers license. ehwahh.

I have passed 50 pages on my comic "Together" on Moon and Star Stories. YAY!!! It's more than half-way done.

Last Airbender teaser trailer....I just...don't like the font. I do like his tattoo.

After having read 4 of them, I can authoritatively say that Brandon Sanderson's fantasy novels are teh awesome. All of them. Elantris, Warbreaker, Alcatraz vs The Evil Librarians 1, and Mistborn 1 = fantabulousness.

However, the biggest thing on my mind after having finished Mistborn 1 at 7:30 am (*cough*) yesterday, was wanting to call my little brother and say:

"OMG, JEFFREY!!! It's GURRAN LAGGAN, season 1!!!!"

(When I did call him, waking him up at 9:30am, he forestalled me with "Don't tell me anything, I haven't read it yet." Which is why I'm frustrated and typing this here instead.)

The plot structures of the 2006 novel Mistborn: The Final Empire, and the first season of 2007 fanboy-adored Gainax anime Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann are REMARKABLY SIMILAR. Don't tell me you haven't noticed. lol

Since they were developed independently and on the other side of the world from each other, I'm going to assume there was no actual cross-pollination on the stories, but just a case of creative minds thinking alike.

Let me outline:

After having been oppressed for a millennia by the Evil Overlord (the Spiral King/the Lord Ruler) and his superpowered favored followers (the beastmen/the nobility), humanity finally gets the willpower to overthrow him. An underdog leader of remarkable charisma emerges (Kamina/Kelsier), gathers followers, and when he dies tragically and heroically he inspires almost-divine faith and determination in his followers, leading them to rise up and defeat their oppressors. His successor and the actual protagonist (Simon/Vin) is able to defeat the evil bigbad through the force of his/her will. As the evil ruler is dying however, he reveals that he has actually been protecting mankind from something much worse (the Anti-Spirals/the Deepness), and now that he is gone, it will come and destroy them. The heroes are left to set up a new government and wait for this forewarned evil to appear. End Season 1/Book 1.

There is also the idealistic love interest born from the enemy (Nia/Elend-whom-I-love), characters having to dig through the caves and dirt for their lives (the Hathsin Pit slaves could have used some drills), oppression of reproduction, and creatures with faces where they shouldn't be (the mechas/mistwraiths). (Gainax didn't seem to understand that machines with faces on their torsos are actually REALLY CREEPY.)

As soon as Kelsier was killed in Mistborn, I was "Ah! It's Gurren Lagann!!!", but with, you know, a power system that makes much more sense and is much cooler, a fantastic female main character, and without the mecha, the phallic symbology (SPIRAL POWER!), and the Gainax bounce. Thank you, Brandon, I appreciate that.

I'm now on to Mistborn 2 & 3, and if the trilogy ends with the love-interest dead and the hero(ine) wandering off to be useless and alone for the rest of their lives like in Gurran Lagann, I'm going to hit something. (After all that focus on Spiral Power--i.e. evolution and progress, i.e., the power of life, i.e. having children that are stronger and better every generation--the main heroes who have the best genes, Simon and Nia, don't end up having children and passing on their SPIRAL POWER! Garrrgh. Therein lies my main annoyance with Garren Lagann. You know, past the fanservice and the mechas running on faith and hot blooded determination.

If you can't tell, tvtropes.org has taken over my brain. I love it.(And I have just overused the parenthese.) (a lot)

Vin had better not wield Galaxy Shirikans at the end of Book 3.

"Drawing Humanoids" at Conduit

2009-05-21T06:17:40Z

Yay!

I'm going to be teaching a class at Conduit, the Salt Lake City Scifi Con, this Saturday.

The class is "Drawing Humanoids", and I'm going to be going over the proportions of the human body (elves, Vulcans...), and how to draw them. :)

This is the first time I will have taught this, and I'm excited. Have to get my handouts done.

Have Job, Life good

2009-05-13T06:03:31Z

Things are going so much better for me right now than they were, so I need to update, yes?

I got a good, solid, fabulous job at the end of March working with some weekly newspapers, doing layout and ad design. The environment is wonderful, very family-business, and my manager is a Trekkie, lol. ^_^ It's only 30 hours a week, though, so I'm still doing the movie popcorn job on the weekends. eh. (free movies good, right?)

After 5 months of unemployment, I finally have regular paychecks coming in and am getting back on my feet. No more depression and much less frustration, hallelujah.

I turned 29 on March 20th. Ah, twenty-nine. Still single.

I did my taxes! (I felt so proud and accomplished with myself, hahaha)

With my tax return, on May 4th I purchased a NEW HARDDRIVE. YAY! After having been without one since mid-January. And it's one terabyte. Yes baby. Couldn't get Windows to accept my (legal!) codes, so I'm on Ubuntu still, and it's so snazzy, if I can get Indesign to work on it though Wine, then I may become a total Linux Babee.

I posted the 40th page of my comic "Together" today. I've been going strong on the comic updates, though I've gone through my backlog and am currently posting page-on-the-deadline, which is a precarious and exhausting way to do it. I need to sit down and really work on getting a backlog built up again.

I just changed my update schedule to fit my work schedule better (I have Thursdays off)--I'm posting every Tuesday and Friday from now on. http://purple.mytica.net/stories

Now I'm working on fixing car problems, and getting my license and registration stuff switched over to Utah. WAHHH! I don't wanna have a Utah drivers license and license plates!! I'm Texan! I just happen to live in Utah! /whine

Life is definitely looking up. I have work, and goals to work towards, audiobooks to keep me happy, and some cash to live comfortably with. I have most of my siblings living really close to me, and we hang out all the time, and are loving and wonderful. They make me so happy. ^_^

New Trek

2009-05-13T05:11:00Z

I just have to say....

SQUEEEEEEEEE NEW STAR TREK!!!!!!!!!!1!!!1!!!!ONE

Oh, so-totally, you can call me a Trekkie from now on. A NoobTrekkie, or whatever classic fandom's going to call peeps who are only fans of the new series. And tell me there is going to be a new series, please, right? Give me eps, I's wants it.

And I shall be a Spock fangirl and ship S/U.

But wasn't that an awesome way to reset the series? They can start from the beginning, with the familiar loved characters of yesteryear, and still be completely new, fresh, and original. I'm loving it.
While watching I kept expecting them to, like, go back and try to fix the past, prevent genocide and such, and bring it back to where the original series was. But this is better for a continued series. I'm totally excited.

And I may have to actually break down and watch the original series now. haha.

Though what's with the current reimaginings of old scifi series all annihalating major character's home planets? Dr. Who, now Trek....we just love the survivor guilt angst of genocide, don't we, modern writer people.

Yes, the new Trek movie is completely awesome. The plot was tight, and brought out a lot of emotional responses from me (which is why I LOVED it), the pacing was a great fast clip, and the special effects were all smooth enough not to jar me out of the story, which was awesome.

Word of mouth/internet spread it, people! This is a great movie! Everyone one go see it, because I want more. XDDD

Dead, Jim, Dead

2009-03-09T23:59:24Z

Status Update:

So, finding a job...has been ridiculously hard. I've managed to land a part-time, minimum wage deal selling popcorn at a movie theater (oh, joy), and nothing else yet has panned out.

On the strength of the part-time job, I have gotten myself a room to rent with some lovely ladies in the ward I wanted, and that is wonderful. So glad to have my own space again.

Last month my harddrive died a horrible death, and I can't afford to fix it, so my computer is currently running on RAM and a Linux Ubuntu CD. I am very very grateful for the Ubuntu CD, as it allows me internet access and the GIMP, but not having a harddrive is still very painful, especially since I have likely lost a year's worth of work. The backup dvds I did do, I can't find right now, but anyways...

My ipod has also died and my flashdrive in on the fritz. ....Technology? Why do you abandon me when I can least afford to fix you? I could cry. (and have)

In other news, I've watched all seasons of the new Dr. Who with my friend Unicorn Emily and it was WONDERFUL and I love it OhEmGee, LTUE last month was fabulous, I'm in the middle of developing a new webcomic co-written by Emily, and am thinking of starting to teach art classes (that focus on drawing figures and proportions).

So, I have lots of big dreams and ideas, and zero money. Sounds like the rest of the world.

Dogwood Ch4: Stories, p6-10

2009-01-07T00:47:47Z

Dogwood Blossoms
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Dogwood Ch4: Stories, p6-10

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I've been waiting, like, three years to crack that last joke. heheh

----------------------------
Acknowledgments and Disclaimer: Inuyasha-tachi belong to Takahashi Rumiko and everyone she has sold them to. This is a mostly nonprofit fan work that I'm slowly putting too much work into. Many thanks to the beta group for their help and suggestions.
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Dogwood Blossoms
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New Comic: Together

2009-01-05T20:25:11Z

My first comic for my original comics site "Moon and Star Stories" was recently completed, so if you'd like to read the entirety of Earth-Rooted online, click! - Moon and Star Stories

My next story, Together, has just started. 'Together' is a romantic scifi about a young woman struggling to survive in a war-torn, besieged city. It will be updating with a new page every Monday and Thursday, so please stop by and check it out! :)

In other news, I've almost finished with the commissions I got last week (yay!), the next section of Dogwood should be up soon, I'm still looking for a job, and goodness gracious, I'm living in Provo.

Christmas Art and Quick Commissions

2008-12-27T22:24:16Z

Hope y'all had a lovely Christmas!!
Mine was.

Just posted new art on dA, I'll get it up on my website later. My computer is in another state and ftping from a different computer is obnoxious.

Austen: Jane and Elizabeth by ~purplerebecca on deviantART

Decor: Pink Flowers by ~purplerebecca on deviantART

Decor: Poppies by ~purplerebecca on deviantART

Comm: ShinoHana by ~purplerebecca on deviantART

I'm offering quick commissions for this week only!
Watercolored single character for $18 and couple pics for $32. If you're interested, head to this dA journal entry for details. :)

Avatar White-ness

2008-12-15T03:46:55Z

I haven't had much net access in the last 2 weeks. So I heard about Shyamalan's live-action Avatar: the Last Airbender movie cast that was announced this week from my brother.

Cellphone Conversation:

Bro: So, Jasper is Sokka.

Me: Eh what?

He then informed me that the entire main cast of Avatar is white kids, and I got upset. Raged for 15 minutes. I'm still incredibly irritated.

ARG!!! REALLY!!!!! They should be ASIAN!!!!! GAHH!

At LEAST, at least, Zuko (and his entire completely awesome family, including Uncle and Azula) should be Asian.

I would love, also, for Katara and Sokka to be Inuit, or American Indian, or South American or Pacific Islander, or Indian or SOMETHING.

And an adorable Asian kid with excellent martial arts would be wonderful for Aang.

Or Zuko could be Filipino! (In support of my crush on Dante Basco. Love him.)

I was really, actually, looking forward to Shyamalan's casting, and seeing really awesome unknown actors of different races as the kids in these movies. I was going to enjoy it SO MUCH!! You've taken the joy and interesting-ness out of it, Paramount. I am sad.

As for the kids themselves: the girl playing Katara looks lovely, I'm glad the kid doing Aang at least does martial arts, but a blond Zac Efron-looking songster as Zuko?? Can he do rage and a shaved head????

And Jackson Rathbone as Sokka...can he do goofy slapstick? Physical humor and lame puns? In all the interviews I've seen with him, he comes off as Mr. Cool, with a wry sense of humor. Not goofy.

Being in two cult/obsessed-fan movie franchises is a really good move for his career, though. Props. If he does a good job. If the comic relief falls flat, however, we are going to be extremely upset.

The water tribe had BETTER have dark makeup. At LEAST!!!

RARG!!

Twilight article recc

2008-12-05T18:50:44Z

Gorgeous analytical article about Twilight and teenage-girlhood from The Atlantic:

What Girls Want by Caitlin Flanagan

In other news...I barely have access to my computer right now. Back to trying to work!

Twilight Movie: First take

2008-11-21T20:01:26Z

My quick first take on the Twilight movie (from midnight screening, last night, yay.)

I actually....rather....loved it.

XD

YAY!

I was grinning most of the entire time. I loved the indie, intimate feel, and the wacky camera angles and movements. I loved the quick jumps from the real to the supernatural, back to the real--the OMG!Prom! moments that kept us grounded in a mundane world that just happened to have vampires in it. I think that that is one of the total strengths of the books, and I loved seeing it in the movie.

And I loved Kristen Stewart's Bella: she's awkward and stumbling and real.

The editing is tight and keeps moving at a fast clip.

Bella and Charlie's awkward but completely loving relationship was wonderful, I adored it.

I did, however, find Robert Pattinson's Edward to be way too spazzy. Awkward and jerking (and definitely in pain, which works), but which doesn't work as well, I think, as stillness would have. Stephenie's vampires should go still, especially when feeling threatened. I wanted a bit more elegance in movement in my Edward, I suppose. (I still love you, RPattz! But you are spazzy.) :)

I loved the normalness of the Cullens, especially Esme. She was friendly and welcoming and "clean that up!" and Carlisle's "I think that went well". As much as I prefer Nikki Reed as a brunette, I think her grasp of Rosalie's attitude toward Bella was completely spot-on and worked well in the movie.

I went in expecting really horrible special effects (by all review reports), and...I didn't find them that bad!! There were several points were the wire work was way too obvious--put weight on your hands when scaling trees, Pattz! Then you'll look less like you are being hauled up it with ropes--and the running with Bella on Edward's back was way too smooth (ie, looked cheezy), though that actually matched the book (though that description never made sense according to the laws of physics and body movements anyway). I actually found the baseball sequence to be really fun!
And there is one sequence in the treetops where Edward and Bella are circling each other around the tree limbs that is GORGEOUS and extremely sexy and I LOVE that scene.

The sparking effects...weren't that bad! I know they worked really hard on them, and they were really hard to do. I really liked how they staged the lighting on that scene, too. He was still half in shadow, so he was tortured and hollow-eyed on one side, and glittering and bright on the other. I would have probably put more lens flares in that scene. hahahah.

So in general, I just enjoyed the movie all over.

For an interesting sample of the viewing population, however:

My sister and two of her friends, all fans who loved the books, didn't like the movie--it didn't work for them, was too awkward and unconvincing.
My sister-in-law and myself, book lovers both, really enjoyed it and thought it rather wonderful.
And one of my sister's friends, who had never read the books, found it fantastic!! She was gasping and hyperventilating and being emotionally effected throughout the entire thing like she had been a pre-devoted preteen. XD lol She's totally going to read the books now.

So that's encouraging. If the girls and women who haven't read the books yet (and are of the romantic bent that's needed to love this stuff) find it wonderful, then the movie really did it's job.

I totally need to see it again. Like, today, matinee showing.

Page 4

2008-10-23T16:35:20Z

Page 4 of Earth-Rooted is one of my favorites.... page 4

Moon and Star Stories

2008-10-20T04:05:24Z

I have just started a new webcomic site, Moon and Star Stories.

I'm going to be posting original short comics there, two pages a week, Mondays and Thursdays.

The first comic is "Earth-Rooted", a romantic sci-fi drama in 21 pages.

Cover of my short comic, Earth-Rooted. all photoshop

I've already begun penciling the second story, which will be a romantic sci-fi set in a war-torn city, and I have more stories outlined for after that one, so I hope webcomic readers will add my site to their lists! :)

Moon and Star Stories, short comics by Rebecca Jensen.

Texan in Utah. Again.

2008-10-09T20:13:35Z

Guess where I am?

UTAH!

Yes, I know.

And I'm here permanently. I packed as much of my life as I could fit into my car, flew my sister down to Texas to drive with me, and drove on up on the 27th.

I'm currently hopping around relative's houses and looking for a graphic design job.

Somebody really ought to hire me. I'm a solid designer and a hard worker with 1.5 years of experience in print. :D Yes, yes, hire me!

I'm currently at my brother Tim's place, keeping him fed as his wife just flew to Mali (as in Africa!) for a month with her job, a charitable organization. She's their main French translator, so I wish her luck and safety.

I've been able to help one of my aunts with my deceased grandfather's Family History book. It's almost ready for publication. I'm sure that book is one of the reasons I'm here, but hopefully there are more reasons. :)

I've been feeling the need to move out of my hometown for a while now, but I never felt very sure about any of the places I thought about going to. Then in late August I got the impression that I needed to get back to Utah. "But, but, I've been avoiding Utah for three years!"

Once I was going, I didn't let anything stop me. :) Hurricane Ike, pahshah! I felt I needed to be here by October 1st, and I was.

Course, now I'm rocking back and forth on my heels going, "Now what?"

First I need a job, and than I can find an apartment and hopefully a roommate or two. I'm focusing on the areas between Salt Lake and Provo, but am pretty flexible.

So, yep, Utah.

Dogwood Ch4: Stories, p1-5

2008-10-09T18:57:41Z

Dogwood Blossoms
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Dogwood Ch4: Stories, p1-5

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Back to modern day, and OMG, a smattering of plot!

The Inuyasha manga had it's final chapter printed in Japan in June (Spoilers! in case you missed it earlier), and Dogwood is now officially AU, but not too far AU (at least for Sess/Rin, mwahahaha). Thank you, Takahashi-sensei, for such a wonderful cast of characters and fascinating mythology.

So for the Dogwood version of the final chapter, lets say Kagome and Inuyasha were separated for a year. Kagome and Inuyasha's desire for each other brings him through the well after that year, and they settle on the modern side. Inuyasha lives and helps out at the shrine, and Kagome continues her highschool schooling. A year later, Kagome has an interesting haafu American helping out in her highschool English class, and they discover that youkai and Sesshoumaru are still around, but are just better hidden then in the past.

Got it? Good. :)

----------------------------
Acknowledgments and Disclaimer: Inuyasha-tachi belong to Takahashi Rumiko and everyone she has sold them to. This is a mostly nonprofit fan work that I'm slowly putting too much work into. Many thanks to the beta group for their help and suggestions.
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Dogwood Blossoms
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The Ike Experience and Aftermath

2008-09-15T02:16:58Z

We're up, we're back!

My family and I survived Hurricane Ike quite nicely, with some damage but nothing too major, and now that we have power back, we're feeling great.

The ~~gory~~ details, WITH PHOTOS, if you're curious.

We put the boards up over the windows, got supplies and bottled water, and I put my books at least a foot off the ground, and considered that to be about all the prep work we could do. We were going to weather in place, but we started hearing about possible 20 ft sea surges in our area--Baytown, which is east of Houston across the Houston Ship Channel--and so we left and went to our cousin's home in Spring, which is in Northwest Houston. Our cousins are lovely and have adorable children that are fun to hang out with. We edgily waited for the storm to start all Friday, but it didn't really hit there till 2:00 am. The power went out abruptly around 8pm Friday night, and never came back. I spent an interesting night sleeping in a very windowed room, waking up every few minutes to a new sound in the howling wind. There was rain, wind, and lightning flashes, but I never heard any thunder. I kept expecting to hear the sound of breaking glass and for the babies, suddenly covered in sharp shards and rain, to start screaming, but thankfully I never did.

The next morning, there were branches down everywhere, but not too much damage. The most damage was that the top of a fur tree had broken off and landed on our van. The van still runs, but the roof is dented and the back and side doors don't seal. Water has leaked all inside, and the interior is going to start reeking of mildew very soon. I'm trying to convince my mom that she no longer needs a Mormon Mother Power Van, and that we should give this one up for scrap and get her a nice little sedan. :)

The Van

What's left of the pine tree that snapped and fell on our van

We spent a muggy, lazy Saturday with our cousins. Every surface felt damp and icky in the humidity. Skin felt sticky and disgusting with sweat. I really have no idea how mankind managed to reproduce in areas like Houston before the advent of the air conditioner. :P I didn't want to touch anybody else, let alone get closer.

In the afternoon, hearing that the power was out but that our house was undamaged, we decided we could be hot and sticky in our own home just as well as we could be hot and sticky in someone else's, and we headed back. The roads were clear until we got entangled with flood debris on I-10. My dad couldn't avoid a thick beam of wood in time and it got stuck under our car. We dragged it until he made it to the shoulder, and in the dark, with traffic dangerously avoiding debris all around me, I got out to try to find a way to get the tree-trunk/thick tree branch unstuck. In a random and happy blessing, a man from our church I haven't seen in a long time stopped in his truck and directed Dad to back up. That got it loose, and we got home alright after that.

We removed most of the boards over the windows in the dark, opened up everything we could, and went to bed, since there is not much else to do at night with no electricity.

Our back fence, which backs a busy main artery, has completely blown down. A panel of fence was blown so far that it was leaning against our large back window. If it hadn't have been boarded up, the fence would have gone through it. The big back pecan tree looks like someone methodically snapped downwards on the branches. Our metal tool shed is unrecognizable. But that's all the damage. Our house was tightly protected and came through very well.

That white stuff used to be our tool shed. Love our new panoramic view of the busy street behind us.

The pecan and it's hanging branches.

Our water and gas happily still worked, so today, Sunday, we cooked up all the food that was going to go bad, fed some of the neighbors, and went driving around Baytown in our dented but air-conditioned van, surveying the damage.

Some of the damage around Baytown, Texas

Lots of trees snapped or uprooted, some across streets

Powerlines snapped too, lovely!

In our neighborhood, lots of trees are down, but only a few houses got hit by them. It is amazing how many trees blew down AWAY from the houses. Such major, major blessings.

This tree landed on the house

Other neighborhoods didn't fair so well.

This made us all laugh. This poor house!

The only houses that flooded in Baytown were the ones that were low and right next to the Ship Channel.

This house got 4ft of sea water, with waves.

Our power came back on around 5pm (YAY!!), likely because we are along the same street as the hospital. The rest of our neighborhood hasn't been restored yet.

Now all we have to do is clean up and replace the fence (we're feeling a little exposed with it down). :)

It's IKE! IKE! He's about to STRIKE! STRIKE!

2008-09-10T23:39:07Z

Wai HALLO THAR ~~Edouard~~ ~~Gustav~~ Ike!
Wai do I feel like we've met before?

This is getting tiresome, y'all. If I have to evacuate, that's annoying because you're stuck on the road for hours on end in a sweltering automobile. If I don't have to evacuate, that means I still have to go to work. I end up inching down the road in my car through torrential rain, and risk getting stuck there because of flooding/power outages, etc. I'd much rather get stuck at home, where I'm quite comfortable, thank you very much. As long as the roof holds and the creek doesn't overflow.

So I need to wish for: a hurricane not strong enough for me to bother evacuating, but strong enough to keep me from having to go to work that morning. What is that, about a Cat. 2?

lol
:P

Note to self: keep ipod fully charged.

Twilight Hunting Sketches

2008-08-29T16:13:26Z

Breaking Dawn Spoilers

In the fandom/media blitz after Breaking Dawn, I sketched some of our favorite monsters hunting. All ink, no color.

Bella and Edward, Alice (who apparently likes to hunt in designer dresses), and grownup!Nessie

Jake and Nessie have totally caught me. Perhaps it's 'cause I love drawing curly hair...

TwiEsPlode Number 1 thousand 5 hundred and 2

2008-08-29T06:04:07Z

*sigh* Well, my fandom keeps ESPLODING.

August 2008, the month Twilight fandom went crazy at least once each week.

Stephenie Meyer has just posted the first Twelve Chapters of Midnight Sun (Twilight from Edward's perspective) onto her website for everyone to read. (and it's playlist.)

I'm rather amazed, but actually:

Thank you, Stephenie, for these chapters. They are lovely to have, and fantastic to read. I hope after you've gone and worked on music videos and other novels and feel better about everything, that you'll feel up to writing the rest of it. Because there is a whole lot of awesomeness in these 264 pages.

Truly, y'all, much wonderfulness going on in Midnight Sun, go save the pdf onto your harddrive (as long as her site can handle the traffic) and enjoy it!

"Cannonball!", Stalker!Edward, and telepathic-vampire matchmaking! YAY! XD

Rosenberg on mid-Breaking Dawn

2008-08-20T04:09:04Z

In a Shocktillyoudrop interview, Melissa Rosenberg, screenwriter/adapter for the Twilight movie, just said the about the coolest thing about Breaking Dawn that I've heard yet.

"I'm right in the middle of Breaking Dawn... So far I'm loving it. Every time I turn the page I'm like, Wow, she is really going there?! She just took the reins off. It's like the first three books were restraint, restraint, restraint and suddenly she's going hog wild. It's such a bold thing to do, for a writer of a beloved series to go This is my world and I'm taking it here. I'm pulling the doors back and letting everyone look in. It's incredibly satisfying after these books full of mystery."

The longer I go, thinking about Breaking Dawn, the more I'm liking it. That doesn't mean I didn't freak out for a week, but, yes, I'm really liking it. Respect.

Breaking Dawn Review/Response

2008-08-17T04:42:01Z

I've been tinkering with this Breaking Dawn review for almost two weeks now. I've read many responses to Breaking Dawn, and read/listened to everything Stephenie Meyer has said about it since it was released. I have a lot to talk about, and despite the length, I don't talk about everything I could. :)

My basic experience reading Breaking Dawn:

Total shock that she took the story where she did through Books 1 & 2, and then finally, really enjoying Book 3, when she got the story to the place where I wanted to be. And then the end was Extremely, Idyllically Happy (on the side of too happy, but,) HAPPY.

On my ~~second~~ third read-through (listen-through, audiobooks are love), I'm really enjoying it. Now that I'm used to the ideas brought out.

I understand why so many disliked it. I also understand why Stephenie did it.

This series has always been Wish Fulfillment. The Ultimate Untouchable Guy falls in love with Ordinary Girl, and after lots of trials, they have the Happiest Ending Possible. A complete fairytale.

So why did we react so badly? I think one reason is because the statement and theme Stephenie seemed to be developing in the earlier three books was not actually what she was going for.

SPOILERS!!

The concept I thought Stephenie was supporting with Twilight to Eclipse was that True Eternal Love is worth the sacrifice of all other things--including parents (Charlie & Renee), future children, best friend Jacob, and a normal human body for one that it is almost impossible to be a good person in because of it's needs. By the end of Eclipse, Bella is fully informed and aware of the sacrifice she is making with her choice. With that sacrifice, she will gain Edward forever (and his wonderful family).

I had thought this statement was an odd one for an LDS mother to be making, but I was willing to go with it, because I thought Edward was worth it. I know that if/when I find a true eternal love, if he turns out to be infertile, I'll say to my love what Bella said in chapter 2: "We'll adopt."

Instead, with Breaking Dawn, we discover that Stephenie was actually going for the theme of (as Sasha_Birch said in her review) Abraham. And also of Job: That if you are willing to sacrifice all things for something greater, that you will be blessed with more then you ever dreamt to ask for.

In the end, Bella has gained Edward and his family, and a miracle daughter. She has been able to keep her best friend as a family member (as she had always wanted), and has kept her father Charlie, plus the wolves as close friends. She has gained an immortal body she has amazing control over, and an awesome power that protects her loved ones. She has everything she could have ever wanted, and more than she had asked for.
And everything she gained, Edward has gained as well--everything he had wanted and thought he could never have because he was a 'cursed and soulless' vampire.

This ending and theme is much more true to who Stephenie Meyer is as a person. Everything and all for the characters she loves.

So why did we have such a negative reaction to Bella becoming pregnant? Because I did too, and I'm an LDS woman who loves and wants children. It goes against my personal grain for me to dislike this scenario, and it is very frustrating to me.

One reason we reacted with aversion is because we thought it had been firmly established as impossible in Stephenie's world. She had set up her world and made her hero a frozen vampire. When answering questions before about vampires and pregnancy, Stephenie had been careful to sidestep and focus on female vampires. I think she had been TOO careful, to the point of being misleading. Lex Personal Correspondence #1 In her answers, there does not seem to be any way that male vampires could be fertile. Sperm are living cells, and male bodies constantly renew them. Why would her frozen and solid vampires who produce no other living cells, as far as we are aware, produce viable sperm? Especially since they are a parasitic race who reproduce through their prey?

I'm still waiting for that full, detailed explanation about vampire physiology, Stephenie. Because, yes, it IS IMPORTANT. World-Building is VITALLY important. Readers of a fantasy will follow an author wherever they wish to go, as long as they set up their rules and abide by them. Authors MUST NOT break their own rules. And when they're bending them, they have to provide very good reasons why it's possible.

Because of rules previously set, I was staring at Breaking Dawn in shock and dismay from Bella's first baby dream, yelling "Oh NO, you did not just go there, Stephenie!!" O.O!!!

On that note, however, I'd like to address all the teens and non-maternal people who find it completely out of character for Bella to suddenly want a baby. I realize it is hard to understand that sudden emotion when you've never felt it, but it was COMPLETELY in-character for Bella to react that way. Bella has always been maternal.
She mothered her mother, she took care of Charlie, she rushed foolishly into danger to protect those she loved in every book. She goes crazy with anxiety at the thought of her werewolves fighting vampires--something they were designed to do. She loves Edward irrationally and passionately, never caring for her own personal safety. She truly has always been maternal, but because a baby was never a possibility in her mind, she never interpreted her feelings in that way. As soon as that possibility becomes a surprising reality, she wants that baby passionately, and does ANYTHING and EVERYTHING to protect it. Yes, it is completely in character, and yes, it does work.

I'd like to focus on the scene in Book 3 where Bella and Renesmee first meet: Everyone circles around Bella and Renesmee, touching, ensuring that the baby will stay safe from Bella's expected newborn irrationality. During this scene, I see an overhead camera angle looking down at the maneuvering of the players, with all their different tensions and yearnings. It's a beautiful scene. It's also a good representation of the entire book--everything circling around Bella and Renesmee.
....Wherein is found the basic reason why so many fans were really disappointed with Breaking Dawn. We weren't wanting a Bella and Baby book, we were wanting a Bella and EDWARD book. Edward really was pushed to the sidelines by all the changes that were happening in Bella's body with Baby and Vamping.

But for Stephenie, Bella and Edward's baby was vital to her happy ending for them. She's been fighting for Renesmee's life since 2003, y'all, and fighting hard. And nothing makes a mother more determined then to fight for a child's life. I really have to respect that, and respect her courage, to brave the un-understanding of teenagers and the scorn of the un-maternal, and fight for the story she wanted. I just wish there was SOME WAY to have better foreshadowed this in earlier books (have the Immortal Children story be told earlier? Have a baby appear randomly in an unremembered dream Bella had in Eclipse?) and to have the vampire physiology questions answered.

I still love you, Stephenie Meyer, and I'll ~~continue to read~~ happily devour everything you write. You've brought a lot of joy to my life. Thank you for your stories. :)

Things I loved in Breaking Dawn:

The first night and morning of the Honeymoon - YES! Gorgeous leadup scene, totally spot-on after. "No broken bones—that equals a victory?" - yes, Edward love, that's exactly what we are saying. You did good! *thumbs up!* XD

Jake's POV - Jake has always been fantastic, and I'm glad everyone is seeing that now. Plus I really didn't want to be in Bella's body at this part. Yeek.

The Birth - Yes, it was horrible and horrifying. But what a POWERFUL scene. Wow. This was the true battle of the book, y'all.

Book 3 - I loved book 3. Vampire Bella!!! YAY! Her transformation, her evaluation of all her new senses, the light and shadows on the dust motes in the air---fabulous.

All the Sex - It cracks me up that there are people complaining about this. I thought it was FABulous. That's what you want married life to be like, people! (If you were married to Edward Cullen, you'd be sex-obsessed too.) lulz. But here is another reason why it feels like Edward is sidelined in Breaking Dawn--before, every interaction between Edward and Bella was fully explored, every visceral response in Bella's body fully detailed. And we loved it. We felt immersed and involved in their love. Now, the most powerful scenes that are happening between Edward and Bella are scenes Stephenie Meyer can't/won't write. She can only allude to them, and so a lot of the power of our involvement in their love is lost. Also Stephenie had a whole lot of plot to get through, so many lingering moments weren't written (yes, I'd like a gorgeous Edward and Nessie interaction scene, too). :(

JJenks - I adored this part. It was just FUN! And fun for Bella to interact with humans as a vampire. :)

Bella's Power - was awesome and was what I had ~~predicted~~ hoped it would be. Yay. =D

The Witnesses - Fascinating characters, sketched very quickly. I really enjoyed meeting them. Garrett/Kate FTW! (and the Romanians)

The Showdown- I liked the court drama. It was like two nuclear powers facing each other--they knew if anything started too much would be lost, so it was all in the maneuvering. I wanted some real smackdown venom-shed as much as the next girl, but I think it worked.

The End - Bella finally able to let Edward a bit into her head. That was a beautiful, beautiful scene. Happiness!

Yes, Bella got EVERYTHING. She got to keep her cake and eat it too. None of her sacrifices were lasting. This is the happiest of Edward and Bella's happy endings. This is their eternity, their Heaven. Stephenie gave them everything she could.

She also gave Renesmee everything she could. Jacob is the most fantastic love a girl could ask for, and she has him for her very long life. (My fangirly mind has latched onto the idea of Renesmee choosing Jacob from the womb. It makes the scenario work better for me. =] And I want some good Jake/Nessie fanfic, 'cause she is too perfect right now, and needs some humanity. The image of them running together in the woods, wild and free, has taken root in my mind and made me like them.)

A few review reccs:
Whether you loved or hated BD, Cleolinda's Play-by-Play is FTW!
(Positive): Candy-003's Review: Breaking Dawn about Protecting Love, and Bella becoming an adult
(More Negative)The Sydney Morning Herald Review
(Positive)Nerdworld Blog (Time Magazine) Review

Breaking Dawn Countdown Full Post - 0 Days - Edward/Bella Fanart

2008-08-02T02:34:15Z

PurpleRebecca's "Breaking Dawn" Fanart Countdown

0 Days! Edward/Bella
Plus all the countdown art, posted at once. (image heavy)

Only a few short hours till Breaking Dawn is in our eager little hands. I'm very excited and nervous! But I've decided....I trust Stephenie Meyer. :)

pen, photoshop, textures from ShadyMedusa_stock and egg9700
Uploaded to deviantart: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/art/0-Days-Breaking-Dawn-Nights-93529275

Artwork posted throughout the week--

The full Cullen portrait series:

watercolor, colored pencils, and white acrylic on watercolor paper

The Wolf Pack:

ink & photoshop, textures cobbled from all over

A few sketches:

Edward, Alice, Jasper
I drew a happy Edward! (gasp!)

Scary depressive New Moon Bella

I hope y'all have enjoyed my fanart countdown!
Do me a favor, and keep the comments here Spoiler Free, especially for those out of the US who won't be getting the book for a few more days/weeks/months. :(
(I'm sorry it'll be taking so long for y'all.)

All of my Twilight fanart can be found most easily on dA: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/gallery/#Twilight
My main website: http://purple.mytica.net

Usage: PurpleRebecca's Twilight art is a-okay for making icons, banners, layouts, and the occasional Youtube vid. Please don't claim the art as your own work. Link-backs, credits, acknowledgments, and comments appreciated.

Breaking Dawn Countdown - 1 Day! - Esme/Carlisle Fanart

2008-08-01T05:20:49Z

PurpleRebecca's "Breaking Dawn" Fanart Countdown

1 Day! Esme and Carlisle and the whole Cullen portrait series combined.

Midnight Release Party, here I come!

watercolor, colored pencils, and white acrylic on watercolor paper
Uploaded to deviantart: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/art/1-Day-Breaking-Dawn-EsmCarl-93441801

The Cullen portrait series

This is really how I designed it to be viewed. :)

I'll post one more pic tomorrow!

Uploaded to deviantart:http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/art/The-Cullens-Portrait-Series-93442645
All of my Twilight fanart can be found most easily on dA: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/gallery/#Twilight
My main website: http://purple.mytica.net

Usage: PurpleRebecca's Twilight art is a-okay for making icons, banners, layouts, and the occasional Youtube vid. Please don't claim the art as your own work. Link-backs, credits, acknowledgments, and comments appreciated.

Breaking Dawn Countdown - 2 Days! - Alice/Jasper Fanart

2008-07-31T05:53:27Z

PurpleRebecca's "Breaking Dawn" Fanart Countdown

2 Days! Alice and Jasper and some additional sketches

Or 1 day, & 23 hours....Whoohoo!! Why isn't it Friday yet?

watercolor, colored pencils, and white acrylic on watercolor paper

Additional sketches:

Edward, Alice, Jasper profile
I drew a happy Edward! (gasp!)

Scary depressive New Moon Bella

All of my Twilight fanart can be found most easily on dA: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/gallery/#Twilight
My main website: http://purple.mytica.net

Usage: PurpleRebecca's Twilight art is a-okay for making icons, banners, layouts, and the occasional Youtube vid. Please don't claim the art as your own work. Link-backs, credits, acknowledgments, and comments appreciated.

Breaking Dawn Countdown - 3 Days! - Wolf Pack Fanart

2008-07-30T07:56:43Z

PurpleRebecca's "Breaking Dawn" Fanart Countdown

3 Days! The Wolf Pack

Or 2 days, & 21 hours....which is really 3 days.

ink & photoshop, textures cobbled from all over

I had a lot of fun on this one. YAY, WEREWOLVES!! I love the pack. So much.
Leah, Sam, and Jacob, with wolves Seth, Quil, and Embry. (Except that I didn't have time to didn't look up their coloring, so maybe they aren't Quil & Embry...is Quil supposed to be mottled? drat.)

Also posted on deviantart: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/art/3-Days-Breaking-Dawn-Wolves-93231407
All of my Twilight fanart can be found most easily on dA: http://purplerebecca.deviantart.com/gallery/#Twilight
My main website: http://purple.mytica.net

Usage: PurpleRebecca's Twilight art is a-okay for making icons, banners, layouts, and the occasional Youtube vid. Please don't claim the art as your own work. Link-backs, credits, acknowledgments, and comments appreciated.