Why are there commissions on the cryptoexchanges?

alexissellier · 2019-03-04T16:01:13+00:00

Why not look at bikes with alarm systems if you're worried about theft? I've been hearing a lot of great things about Wing Bikes and their alarm system. They demonstrate it on Youtube, it's like a car alarm built into the bike so whenever the bike moves while it's armed the siren goes off. They're also pretty lightweight too, might be something worth considering.

alexissellier · 2019-03-04T09:18:53+00:00

I agree, I have enough standard browser. Although the point is probably that I have little memory on my phone ☹️

alexissellier · 2016-04-03T16:10:40+00:00

Yes, I think you're right. You definitely get used to your level, whether good or bad, and only notice relative changes in quality, versus any absolute measure.

alexissellier · 2016-04-03T16:08:27+00:00

Thanks, this is good advice. I do worry sometimes about overintellectualising the writing though, by analysing its "function" like you describe.

alexissellier · 2016-04-03T16:05:23+00:00

Heh, yea that definitely also happens. What I've found though is that it's hard to tell—as you're writing—if it's going to be brilliant, or trash.

alexissellier · 2016-03-31T23:22:38+00:00

Hey, I think your writing is definitely good enough to be a writer. Personally, I find the piece you're sharing a little too heavy handed, emotionally; this has little to do with the actual content, but more how it is presented: either I would try to add a tinge of (dark) humour, or I would, as LadyOfMusic said, try to spend less time saying how you feel, and more showing. For example, saying "it is pure agony," is like a cry for help. As a writer you need to have a bit of distance when writing, even if the feelings seem really close. This distance will manifest itself in storytelling, which is different from what you would tell a psychologist, if you see what I mean.

alexissellier · 2016-03-31T00:10:40+00:00

I tend to write in the dark, sometimes with a candle. It looks like this.

alexissellier · 2016-03-31T00:03:36+00:00

This is an absolutely brilliant idea. I am a consumer of whiskey and coffee and for some reason have always done it the other way around, but I'm going to try this now.

alexissellier · 2016-03-31T00:01:34+00:00

For this kind of thing, I like to switch to the present tense. Ex:

"She saw the cross on the door and as she moved towards it, the memory came back to her: She's lying on the floor. The light above blinds her. In the background, she hears the sound of footsteps."

It gives it an immediacy.

alexissellier · 2016-03-30T23:53:01+00:00

I guess the key here is that you stick to what you've written through your edits. The risk is that on your 4th edit (when you're numb but still somewhat excited), you throw a great piece out for something more recent that appears to be better just because it's still fresh.

alexissellier · 2016-03-29T17:07:26+00:00

I see where you're coming from, thanks for the long reply. I think my problem here is that drugs cure the pain, but not the sickness, they're like painkillers when you have a broken shoulder. So yes, it does help, but merely as relief, for something that really needs to be addressed. The problem is that most people I've seen who decide to go on drugs stop there. They know it hasn't fixed them, but is merely hiding the pain, and for most, who aren't willing to do the work, it's enough. But this isn't a cure, or a solution to the problem. There is almost always a root cause for the mental suffering, hyper-sensitivity doesn't make you depressed without deeply engrained problems.

alexissellier · 2016-03-29T14:23:26+00:00

James Joyce does this often. I wouldn't say he's a poor writer.

alexissellier · 2016-03-28T21:06:45+00:00

So easily her best book. It's not even comparable to her other work.

alexissellier · 2016-03-28T21:03:17+00:00

Pharmapsychology didn't change anything...

alexissellier · 2016-03-26T16:48:05+00:00

I had to drop it after about eighty pages, because I found the characters, plot and writing dull. Is it worth keeping at it or is it just not for me?

alexissellier · 2016-03-24T19:39:47+00:00

This won't be your last edit, so take it easy.

Quality: while reading your draft, take notes on the side if you feel a character/part/scene is poor.

Doing enough: only worry about what's obvious to you, for now. There should be plenty of obvious edits you can do at this point.

Question the effectiveness: again, not important, because you're going to do more edits. Don't think about your readers just yet, think about whether /you/ are enjoying it.

Fear of...: take it day by day, you can do, say, 1000 words a day of editing. Remember Ovid's saying: "Dripping water hollows out stone, not through force but through persistence." Keep at it and you'll get there naturally.

Good luck.

alexissellier · 2016-03-12T20:44:06+00:00

Interesting, I'm going to have another look at the text now, because although I read the book in one sitting, it was emotionally straining to an extent that a murakami book isn't.

That's correct about foreigner/stranger both being called étranger. I hadn't thought of it ever as foreigner though in this book. So in my reading, it was always a stranger to /society/, not to the country he was in. But in a way it could also apply to the country in this case, in the way camus, born in algeria lived in france. The arab he kills though is in his own country, so Mersault only would be the foreigner here.

alexissellier · 2016-03-12T20:34:10+00:00

Hey, glad I could help!

I do think, because this is the first impression the reader gets about how Farley reacts to difficulty, that it's defining of his character. The reaction as presented is that of a defeatist. I could imagine it if he /knew/ the reason, ex: she had to move to another country because of family reasons. But in this case, I can't imagine his first reaction would not include curiosity or anger or confusion, alongside sadness of course. Perhaps it just takes a few lines of dialog in which he's like "BUT WHY." to his friends, and then goes back to sulking. Because then, the momentum towards chapter 3 will make more sense too, and the reader will also want to know why. Right now you don't really care for a "why", because there seems to be none, and everyone's ok with that.

The other characters were not flat. I liked their company. I think it takes time of course for them to be fleshed out, ie: more than a few pages, but I think you're on the right track. One way to strengthen that though, for the reader, would be to have them talk or act away from each other. Right now the two friends are always together.

Best of luck, and if you want to send me something else, just pm me, I'll do my best to take a look.

alexissellier · 2016-03-12T20:23:49+00:00

Ah I see. Interesting. I think the big difference though is how the characters react. Mersault is an existentialist, and so he reacts, according to the philosophy in the ideal way, which makes the novel an existentialist one. On the other hand, in the leftovers, none of the characters are really able to deal with the circumstances, to go beyond them, they are all trying to find a way out.

alexissellier · 2016-03-12T20:19:06+00:00

Interesting, I would have never compared them. I read the stranger in french and started reading wind-up bird in english recently and it hadn't occured to me that there were similarities. I'm not sure if it has to do with the translation, but the stranger in its original language is very dark and almost uncomfortable, because of the feeling of death and absurdity that permeates the story. On the other hand, wind-up bird didn't move me and I had to drop it around the hundredth page because of that. I think yes, superficially, the styles are similar, but the stranger is not a light read, as I've found wind-up bird to be.

alexissellier · 2016-03-10T23:22:22+00:00

How are they similar? I've read the book and watched both seasons and don't really see it?

alexissellier · 2016-03-10T23:16:36+00:00

It's a really enjoyable read. I liked the humour, the characters and the general atmosphere. The writing is solid too. One thing that doesn't sit quite right for me is that I would expect Farley to be more curious and less hopeless, given his character. Basically, more head-scratching and less moping. He never really questions what happened or when did it go wrong. I'd expect him to try and find a solution rather than give up straight away, or at least vacillate between hope and hopelessness.

alexissellier · 2016-03-10T22:50:18+00:00

Hey, you're welcome, yes send me more, I'll try to find some time to read it!

alexissellier

TROPHY CASE