Starting off with a BANG!

I wonder if my title is a little redundant. Let me explain. In close knit computer circles, the exclamation mark is also known as(AKA) the bang. I don't know why and nor will I be spending hours researching the history of it either. Just let it be known.

I just moved a portable heater down here so expect less typos. It's freaking cold you know. Ok, enough with the boring dribble. Lets get to the good stuff!

Lately, I've been reading a book about the plot of a good portion of stories that have a hero element. The book is called The Writer's Journey. The author, one Christopher Vogel, basically takes another book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell, and rehashes it. Actually he takes the contents and applies them to the screenplay. I haven't read the second book, but I will someday.

In any event, both books go about telling each point of the journey of the hero. It would seem that many a movie use this format. From Beverly Hills Cop, to, my favorite, Star Wars. Good ol George L. read the second book many moons ago and applied the hero structure to the first Star Wars film. It was interesting to see how closely the movie followed the hero structure. I should say that this wasn't any ol hero structure. It was the basic backbone found in most myths, as you all probably knew because of the numerous documentaries you have seen on Star Wars.

But now, if you've gotten this far, you're wondering why I read this book. Well, as some of you know, I want to become a game programmer/designer. One day while reading a blog from some guy in the game industry (which will remain nameless, but can be found at the bottom of list of links) I stumbled across a list of books he recommended reading if you want to get in to game design. I saw it and decided that I would read it. I found a copy in the WSU library network of great libraries (it came from George Fox University in Newell, OR) and I started reading it. These past couple days of school cancellations helped in the speed of finishing it. I am nearly done with one chapter left. It has been an eye opener to say the least. Before, the subject of theme, motivation, metaphor, motif, insert your favorite literary tool here, were just the subject of high school english. NO MORE!! It is painfully apparent that I need to learn some more before I go about creating the next best seller!

Oh yeah, for those of you who keep up with my Seattle Seahawks craziness, they loss last weekend in a close one. A really good game. The only turnover made by either team resulted in the touchdown that won it for Green Bay. So another year goes by with Seattle needing another year to think about things. Lets all hope for a successful season next year.

So, until next time...