As of November 5, 2007, drivebyshooter.net will no longer be updated. For posts on photography, you can now go to LightChasers Photography. For the author's personal site, head over to the Dark Corner.
DBS posted this entry at 4:12 PM on Saturday, the 12th of May 2007. He may have also posted related entries in the following categories: blogging; link love.
As of November 5, 2007, drivebyshooter.net will no longer be updated. For posts on photography, you can now go to LightChasers Photography. For the author's personal site, head over to the Dark Corner.
People have often asked me why I have such a cynical view on the Philippine political scene - and I’ve always been stumped by the question. They’ve often followed this up by asking me why I don’t just leave the country - and I’ve responded by saying I’m still hopeful somehow. A hopeful cynic - isn’t that an oxymoron? Doesn’t that make me a moron? I don’t know - and frankly, I don’t give a damn.
Why am I (mis)quoting movie lines? I’m not really sure. I guess the subject just has such a debilitating effect on me that I become almost totally inarticulate. I guess my mind shuts off when the topic comes up - at least the part responsible for language and expression. “If you don’t have anything good to say,” the saying goes, ” don’t say anything at all.” It seems like I really took that to heart.
Fortunately, this affliction doesn’t affect everybody. If I can’t share my thoughts on the subject of Philippine politics, at least I can borrow the words of others. The Sassy Lawyer’s words, in particular, struck a chord with me. In the Philippines, she says, “all political parties have the same ideology—get elected.” That statement, I guess, explains my cynicism. This is why I couldn’t care less who runs for office. Every personality is the same - and I haven’t seen much to prove me wrong.
With the lack of bright lights on the horizon for Philippine politics, what give me hope? I’m not too sure, but I know this much - knowing that other people still care keeps me from totally losing hope. Vague? I can’t really argue against that. The point is now I can explain my cynicism. I might not be able to explain why I’m still hopeful, but I don’t mind.
DBS posted this entry at 11:52 PM on Thursday, the 15th of February 2007. He may have also posted related entries in the following categories: rants; this beautiful country.
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As of November 5, 2007, drivebyshooter.net will no longer be updated. For posts on photography, you can now go to LightChasers Photography. For the author's personal site, head over to the Dark Corner.
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drive by shooter posted this entry at 12:19 PM on Wednesday, the 10th of January 2007. He may have also posted related entries in the following categories: ramblings.
As of November 5, 2007, drivebyshooter.net will no longer be updated. For posts on photography, you can now go to LightChasers Photography. For the author's personal site, head over to the Dark Corner.
On one of my regular visits toThe Sassy Lawyer’s Journal, I came across an entry on J. K. Rowling and her latest book. In her first paragraph, Sassy made a distinction between a writer and a storyteller.
Someone (a big shot book editor doing a review in a major U.S. paper, no less) once said that J. K. Rowling was not a writer; she was a storyteller. I beg to disagree. Granted that she may have been just a storyteller when she wrote the first Harry Potter book, she is much, much more today. She is both a gifted writer and a gifted storyteller. While a good storyteller merely writes events in their correct sequence, a better story teller writes events in their correct sequence in an enticing manner. But a gifted writer and storyteller will not only write events in their correct sequence in an exciting manner but will also imbue the story with personal touches that add depth and substance into the plainness of the words. That is what sets the excellent apart from the mediocre. And J. K. Rowling is by no means mediocre.
For some strange but compelling reason, I had to react.
This might turn into a battle of words, or rather, a battle of semantics, but I just have to react to your definitions of storyteller and writer. I’m not sure what the ‘big shot book editor’ meant by calling J.K. Rowling a storyteller, but to me, that is higher praise than being called a writer.”A writer only makes the pen weep. A storyteller makes a woman shed tears.” This is one of the lines in a play I was in a few months back, and it has stuck with me since. I guess this is part of the reason I’m reacting now… but let’s go to something more basic. What, in my opinion, is a writer? What is a storyteller?
A writer is basically somebody who writes for a living - somebody whose job it is to commit words to paper. A storyteller is somebody who can weave different ideas and events together into… I don’t know… something magical. Ok… a writer knows how to put words together; a storyteller knows how to move people. Hmm… didn’t I just paraphrase the line I just quoted earlier? Oh well…
I guess that’s a sign I’m rambling already. I can’t seem to get my own words together; and on that note, I will end this.
I also had to comment a second time… probably because I felt the need to cover my ass.
I’m not trying to refute anything you said here. In fact, I myself love reading the Harry Potter books, and I believe that J. K. Rowling is a fantastic… umm… my pickiness with words is going to do me in someday. I believe that J. K. Rowling is a fantastic author. She has a way of luring her audience into her stories and making them forget just how long her books are.There. Oh, and on another note, Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite in the series. I’ve only read Order once though, so that might change if I get a chance to read it again. For now though… ok, enough rambling.
I’m crazy. I obviously have this penchant for blurting out the thoughts in my head before they are fully formed. Oh well…
driver ng bayan posted this entry at 8:41 AM on Tuesday, the 8th of March 2005. He may have also posted related entries in the following categories: ramblings; media; links & plugs.
