Shorts, Case Notes, and Natty Clothes

Reading: The Civil Law Tradition: An Introduction to the Legal Systems of Europe and Latin America, John Henry Merryman and Rogelio Perez-Perdomo
Watching: Glutton for Punishment, Moetan, Chef At Large
Listening: Bird, Mikuni Shimokawa

I've heard of others for whom a whole story concept sprang full-grown from some dark recess of their mind's eye--much like Pallas Athena from Zeus' migraned noggin. Considering the amount of musing and forethought that normally accompanies anything I tend to write, I always harbored some doubts as to the veracity of those claims.

As of this past Thursday, I stand corrected.

I'm not even entirely sure how it came to be. I had just finished penning thank you letters to Judge and his staff and stepped into the shower when I began to reflect on the differences between the Anglo-American legal system--which could be dubbed "the common law"--and those of continental Europe and Latin America, dubbed by the authors of the above-mentioned book as "the civil law." Those thoughts brought me to a sidelong reflection on the War on Terror, the Cold War, and on war in general.

And then, the perfect idea for a short story sprang into my head. I blinked once, twice, in disbelief, then challenged myself, on the basis of this mere notion of a story, to compose the first line of the story, which normally, for me, is like using your fingernails to give yourself a haircut.

But in a matter of mere seconds, the opening line formed itself, and lo and behold: it was first-person unreliable, and in the present tense.

A small word on my writing style is, perhaps, incumbent at this juncture. I am firmly ensconced in the camp of third-person limited, and though I have ventured into first-person before, I was never quite comfortable with it. And I've never so much a penned a narrative line in the present tense.

I have, however, read numerous works of fiction (most of them in the contemporary genre) that thrive in first-person present tense. The short fiction of Jim Shepard (see Love and Hydrogen, a great anthology) is my prime example. As a result, I've come to recognize that for certain types of stories, first-person present tense is leagues superior than any other narrative form.

Though I've only managed to transcribe a page worth of narrative (along with a few quick jots of notes as to where I think the story will go), I'm certain such is the case here.

And then, here's the rub: I'm loathe to work on this short story any further at present, because I'm still in the midst of revising Book One. That story has too strong a grasp on me; and, like a jealous god, it will tolerate no false idols, at least until my prostrations have been performed to its satisfaction.

All this amounts to yet another reason for me to get off my duff, get the Book polished and as done as I can myself, and send it off to be read by others who can help me the rest of the way.

*

The orientation for Law Review was yesterday, and my biggest fear has been assuaged. Considering that only the top-eight students grade-wise, and up to the top-eight case notes from the write-on competition are invited to join (care to guess which one was my poison?), I had no doubt that the others would represent some (though certainly not all, or even, necessarily, the pinnacle) of the sharpest and most industrious members of our class; I did, however, have doubts as to whether any would possess equally sizable egos as well (which, considering that I would be spending a great deal of time among them for the remainder of my law school career, ranked up there with dining on crickets and cockroaches and bathing in industrial waste).

Given that our associate dean, when struggling to describe how our class had defined itself during the 1L year, did so by saying "you're all just really nice people," I should have known better.

A few individuals were a bit unfamiliar to me, though I did recognize them at least in passing. Others were more familiar, but their names escaped me (though, at least in one case, my name didn't escape them! Lucky for me I managed to divine her name before my virtually non-existent ability to retain names became embarrassing). But all were amicable, good-natured individuals who I can honestly say I look forward to working alongside, the 3L editorial board included.

Which leads me into a discovery I've made as I've ventured farther and farther down the career path of a lawyer. Though I'm sure the same can be said for virtually any profession under the sun, nothing seems to define the career and life of a lawyer more than smooth and amicable social interaction--the buzzword, of course, is "networking." While this can seem like a potential festering point for facetiousness to the jaded, my experience has been that the emphasis on such interaction results in the legal community being populated largely by some of the most friendly and friend-worthy individuals one is likely, in the course of every interaction, to meet.

Yes, the Editor-In-Chief (EIC hereafter) stressed what we all probably knew: Law Review is a hella lotta work, and it'll probably be the most work any of us will ever put into earning a single, solitary unit of credit (per semester, mind). He even said that we all will likely come to hate whatever topic we decide to write about (the previous EIC told that to him as a 2L, and though he thought things would be different, it eventually happened to him), and that tech editing is an arduous and mind-numbing pursuit. But one odd thing that I've learned about myself is that I tend to relish in the editing process--both with my own works, and those of others, as my time copyediting chapters of my Prof's book and editing and cite-checking student papers has shown me--more than any red-blooded human being should. If such grueling tasks will 1) make me a master of the stylistics and bluebooking (read: citation format) of the legal world, 2) a far more discerning and accurate editor of any piece of writing, including my fiction, and 3) allow me to get to know those fore-mentioned amicable individuals, and hopefully befriend them, then Law Review may be the best thing that will ever happen to me at law school.

In the meantime, it falls to me to ascertain the topic of my soon-to-be casenote. It's due, after all--being the first of many, many deadlines in my near future--on the 20th.

*

I went through 1L OCIs and Oral Argument wearing the same blue blazer and charcoal slacks that I wore to high school graduation, all the while surrounded by peers who had broken out their best single-tone suits for the occasion. I don't necessarily subscribe to the adage that the clothes make the man; but for someone as unsure of himself as I, wearing a suit that is at least as proportionally nice as those worn by my peers is a sizable contributor to my overall confidence--and in the lawyering world, confidence speaks bounds. I had, at the beginning of the summer, made it a goal to procure a suit that would serve me well in the (rapidly) upcoming 2L OCI session.

After looking around Macy's business attire department in vain, I ended up finding a proper-fitting black suit at Banana Republic (a store that has increasingly invaded my wardrobe over the past decade). Given my sore lack of vertical proportion, The coat and pants had to be hemmed and recut (by the same wonderful tailor/designer who helped to short the arms of my leather jacket). After an erstwhile fashion lesson from Judge, I recently went back and picked up a pair of french cuff shirts, along with my first pair of cuff links.

And along with a spiffy machined-stainless Seiko with gold markings (and a blue face!), and the most expensive pair of shoes I've ever owned, I'm now ready for OCIs. Because the true purpose of a properly tailored suit is not to attract attention to its wearer; its purpose is to keep the interviewer's attention focused on its wearer's credentials: his resume, his responses, his overall demeanor. The best suits are like the finest butlers--they tend to blend in with the walls, performing their duties flawlessly and without the notice of their masters (or those who hold their master's future in the palm of their hand).

*

On the subject of fashion, I've noticed that my own casual preferences have begun to shift as of late, away from single-tone t-shirts to plaid linen or seersucker short-sleeve collar shirts. I gravitate toward them because they are just as cool (if not cooler) than an ordinary t-shirt, appear slightly more presentable and, by their very fabric, obviate the need for ironing. Along with the fact that switching eyeglass shops has allowed me to get the rimless frames (and transition lens) that my previous purveyor had, for reason now inscrutable, long denied me.

The aggregate result is, along with my generally lower weight and slightly slimmer waistline, I'm feeling more comfortable with my appearance than I have in a very, very long time.

Next, Thursday, Potter Predictions, and Law Review

Reading: The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss; By Cunning and Craft, Peter Selgin
Watching: Manabi #1-3

*

As promised, I shall begin with a spoiler-free review of Thursday Next's latest, First Among Sequels. This is timely, I think, as tomorrow marks the book's publication in the U.S. (Yes . . . one of the simple pleasures of the electronic age is for a reader in the States to tap the UK stacks, and thereby read a long-awaited book nearly a month in advance.)

Fforde is in his usual form at the start of the book, and, though the feat would have seemed nigh improbable (if not impossible) to me before reading it, he manages to take the literary and metafictional satire to an all-new level. Without giving away any details from the book, I'll say that this is the first book of the series to stand up and demand a sequel, and that any dedicated fan of Thursday cannot afford to miss it! Newcomers to Ffordian space/time would probably do best to start with The Eyre Affair. In fact, given the opening paragraph of the last chapter, I insist upon it.

*

Having done my usual waltz into Barnes and Noble midday on 7/21, nonchalantly picking up the nearest copy of Deathly Hallows from the copious stacks and cracking it open to read as I waited to purchase it, and having closed the book with a sigh and a contented smile on the evening of 7/22, I can't help but feel that an era in my life as a reader--and indeed, in the lives of countless others--has shifted.

I happened across the Harry Potter books later than most, I think--pride, and my dubiousness of the true artistic worth of anything so popular as to constitute a cultural phenomena made me delay cracking open Philosopher's Stone (I don't care what the US calls it--Rowling wanted to keep it thus, and I would have wholeheartedly agreed!) until the fourth book had been penned and devoured by millions. From the moment I closed the first book, I knew that Rowling was more than a spectacle--she was a genuine storyteller.

And, like any true storyteller, she grew stronger with every outing. Looking back, I can see clearly that Deathly Hallows is in a completely different league from Philosopher's Stone--though both are inextricably bound, like Voldemort and Harry himself, and form a work far greater than the sum of its parts. I can say without equivocation, however, that Deathly Hallows is the cement that binds it all together.

I look back to my commentary of the sixth book, two years ago:

"One thing that has surprised and delighted me is how closely I have been able to anticipate the path along which Rowling's story unfolds (or, perhaps more aptly, how closely Rowling's proclivities in terms of plot, theme and storyline match my own). SPOILERS are forthcoming: from book one, I had hoped that Rowling would 1) depict Snape as a snide, flawed, but ultimately redeemable and noble character, most likely by having him aid Harry's quest to end the threat of the Dark Lord in some surprising or moving fashion, and 2), slowly mold Draco into a sympathetic and conflicted character. Books one through five showed hints of 1) being slowly undertaken, but 2) seemed to be a largely moot point. In the sixth installment (which, one learns by the end, essentially named "Harry Potter and Severus Snape") it is clear to me that Rowling intends to reveal Severus's nobility in some climactic fashion in the seventh and final book: she builds up the case for the reader to believe, as Harry does, that Severus is truly in the service of the Dark Lord, yet leaves sufficient wiggle room for his eventual reveal as a man worthy of Dumbledore's confidence. I reveled in the possibilities of making this initially and overtly antagonistic character transform from sulking menace to apparent adversary to unexpected ally, and it seems that Rowling intends to walk the same path in her books. My personal fascination with the themes of redemption and penance notwithstanding, on a philosophical and spiritual level, this feels like the right progression to make, and I am very pleased to surmise that Rowling--by virtue of her writing--seems to concur. Draco, the one-dimensional antagonist who serves as one of Harry's greatest adversaries in the early books, in the climax of this novel, takes (what I feel to be) his rightful place as a conflicted, rounded character, who has begun to feel his inherent proclivities begin to diverge from the facets of his upbringing.

"And, on the subject of things forseen (note: the SPOILERS continue hereon in this paragraph), I had sensed since the first novel that Dumbledore would, in the penultimate installment, or at least very early in the ultimate one, have to die, in order for the final confrontation between Harry and Voldemort to take place. In the intervening years, I have learned that this progression is an archetypal necessity (for the same reason that Yoda must pass on early in Return of the Jedi, in order for Luke to confront Vader and the Emperor): the protagonist's master must be removed, so that the principle character is forced to step up to the herculean task that awaits him. It is as inevitable as the cycle of life: the old must die, and give way to the young, that the next generation may hasten to mature in their absence, and fill-in the roles that the departed have left vacant. I did not look forward to the moment when Harry's beneficient mentor would have to bow and leave the stage, but I knew that, when that moment came, he would do so to fulfill a most dire need, and that his departure would, when the smoke fully clears, not be in vain. Dumbledore's demise is laced with the subtext which will power one of the most powerful plotlines of the seventh novel--the relationship between Harry and Snape--and provides the necessary impetus for Harry to head down the path of his story's inevitable conclusion. Rowling, with the clarity of a truly gifted storyteller, has netted two birds with one stroke of her pen.

"Though I can claim to foresee the path upon which Rowling's splendid story must travel to its conclusion, I cannot, with any degree of certainty or candor, claim to know the steps that will be taken along that road. Rowling's work is her own, and no one but she can bring her tale to its true resolution, whether that resolution be for good or ill, as far as the strength of the Harry Potter series is concerned.

"But if her current six books are any indication--and I largely suspect that they are--I'd say that the fate of this tale, beloved by millions, could be in no better hands."

I can say now that Rowling did not meet my lofty expectations--she exceeded them. She worked literally every element from her previous books into the seventh, in a way that rang true for the story at that stage, and yet also gave her most dedicated readers a nostalgic trip down memory lane. The result was that the Harry/Snape relationship did not take center stage, as I had predicted, but it did captivate a great many pages. The true surprise for me was the way in which Rowling chose to develop the background of Albus Dumbledore posthumously in this book, and the great cathartic effect it had on the story as a whole. If my master work were to be a story in seven parts, I could only hope that I would wrap it up as well as Rowling has her beloved Harry Potter septalogy. She does what every storyteller should do, but only the deftest manage with consistency: She spins a web of lies that tell a fundamental truth, and that truth reverberates from every decision, every action and reaction, that her characters make. As others like Fitzgerald and Tolkien, hers is a feat that will not soon be forgotten. I can only hope that the Harry Potter series will not be her last--that, like many others, once she has begun the path of the storyteller, she will continue to walk it until her dying day. The world, the publishing industry, and the reading public could only benefit from such an eventuality.

Bravo, Mistress Storyteller. Bravo.

*

At last, I turn to personal events. After months of waiting, with bated breath, I received an invitation to join the Law Review.

I find it hard to put into words the heft of the weight that has been lifted from my shoulders. (Nor does it matter that the same hand which lifted that one weight has replaced it with another--named responsiblity--of at least commensurate mass.)

Next time, a review of what may be the best book I have read in this already stellar year. Until then, gentle readers: Adieu.

Dereliction of Duties, Stupidity Surpluses, and Can You Speak English?

Reading: First Among Sequels, Jasper Fforde; The Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss; By Cunning & Craft: Sound Advice and Practical Wisdom for Fiction Writers, Peter Selgin

Read: The Scene Book: A Primer for the Fiction Writer, Sandra Scofield; Hooked: Grab Readers at Page One, Les Edgerton; The Princess and the Hound, Mette Ivie Harrison

Listening to: Sayonara Mo Ienakatta Natsu, Mikuni Shimokawa

Watching: Cool Japan, Eigo De Shabera Naito, Salaryman Neo, Jamie At Home, Glutton For Punishment, Chef At Large

*

Yes, I realize that despite my previous vow to post as often as possible, it has been two months since my last post. Moreover, I notice that I set the lofty goal of having my first set of substantive revisions to Book One by July 1st--to which I say, as I am embroiled in the process of rewriting chapter 1 for the fourth time, "Hah!" My recent writerly readings have opened my eyes to the weaknesses in my previous writing, and so the task falls to me now, with roughly five weeks of my summer remaining, to get as much revision as possible done before the Fall semester. Those who I asked to be first readers: your patience is greatly appreciated! I hope you'll still be willing to read the polished product when it finally leaves the assembly line.

A lot has happened since the last post, so perhaps some can be forgiven. I'm still waiting to learn whether or not I made law review or the Asian law journal; and at the eleventh hour, I managed to swap out my plan to take two courses at the law school for a summer externship with a judge at the First Circuit courthouse. Working in a criminal court has opened my eyes to both the litigation process and the role of the judiciary in dispensing with criminal offenders. And the fact that I'll be getting four juicy credits to shave off of my dreaded 2L Spring semester only sweetens the deal.

*

As was the case with Something Rotten, I enlisted the help of Amazon.co.uk to get the British printing of First Among Sequels roughly half a month earlier than its US release--and with the vastly superior UK cover art to boot! My only regret is that I had to purchase the book at a time where the British Pound was at an all-time high against the US dollar--7 quid and 78 p plus shipping ended up costing me nearly $29! But dear old Jasper appears to be at his usual game in Sequels (or so the first few pages would have me believe), so all's well that ends well, I suppose. I'll give a spoiler-free review when it's finished.

Jasper has managed to waylay my progress on the monstrous tomb entitled The Name of the Wind, a book highly recommended by OSC, and, given the quality of the opening pages, rightfully so. As long as the book is, I'm seriously concerned that the moment I start investing concerted amounts of time into reading it, it will take hold and not let go until I've finished it--a dangerous prospect, when I have court-related duties, ELP projects, and my own rewrites to perform. I'll use Thursday Next to test the waters; if I can manage to go through Sequels without compromising my other responsibilities, then I'll feel more confident about taking on this behemoth.

Mette Ivie Harrison--the author behind the delightful Mira, Mirror--showcases her strong grasp of the storytelling art in The Princess and the Hound, a splendid first book for what appears to be, at least at the moment, a duology. I was deeply interested in reading the book as OSC described it as having an unexpected ending that was nonetheless completely true to the characters and events in the story, a feat that I hope to achieve in my own writing. And the best method of learning a skill--be it cooking, litigating, or fiction writing--is by observation and rote practice. In this regard, The Princess and the Hound is not only a fine example of well-crafted fantasy, but a signpost for the growing writer, reading "This way: the proper way to conduct an ending." Utterly accessible and extremely addictive--this was a book with the fore-mentioned can't-put-down quality--it is highly recommended.

*

My online sources have directed me toward three pieces of Japanese television (all from NHK) that have become weekly indulgences of mine: Cool Japan, Eigo De Shabera Naito, and Salaryman Neo.

Cool Japan has something of a conceited premise to it: it seeks out to discover "cool" aspects of Japanese culture as viewed by foreigners. Each week a multinational panel is assembled to discuss their findings on the weekly theme ("communication," "lunch time," and "Owarai" have been three recent themes). The common language between the foreigners is English, while the hosts and others speak in Japanese, so it's a bit easier to follow than a purely Japanese-speaking talk show, and occasionally it has something truly cool to show for itself. Other times, I can see quite clearly that the conscripted foreigners apply the "cool" label to a particular finding only under a certain level of friendly Japanese duress.

Eigo De Shabera Naito works under the premise of helping viewers to learn English, so I suppose it is ironic that I'm watching it to brush up my Japanese! Hosted by a number of Japanese personalities and one American transplant (who, interestingly enough, forms one half of the Japanese comedy team Pakkun and Makkun), the mixed language format of the show helps immensely for Japanese-challenged viewers like myself to understand the exchanges.

Finally, Salaryman Neo is the most ambitious of my NHK lineup, since it is completely in Japanese. Neo is a kind of Saturday Night Live, Japanese salaryman style, transfixingly watchable (and, surprisingly, understandable) even if half of what is said flies right over my head.

(In case anyone was curious, Jamie at Home, Glutton for Punishment, and Chef at Large are not Japanese TV shows; they're from Food Network Canada. Jamie at Home is Jamie Oliver's take on the Chef at Home concept; Glutton for Punishment is a new series by the "Surreal Gourmet," Bob Blumer; and Chef at Large is Canadian chef Michael Smith's flagship TV show, where he goes about North America and present a particular place or event in each episode. I'm just as addicted to cooking shows as I am Anime and Japanese culture!)

*

Well, that's it for this post. I might take the time to adapt some of my externship journal entries for future posts. As always--stay tuned!

Three Down, Fiction For July

Reread: Something Rotten, Jasper Fforde
Watched: Cook Like A Chef - Georges Laurier - Vegetarian Mains
Exams: 3/4

Three exams down (the in-class ones). Only the Civ Pro take-home--the veritable grudge match--remains. Then I attempt to write on to law review (emphasis on attempt), and then--and only then--does summer truly begin.

Oh, I really should get off my duff and find and secure a pro-bono op pronto, but I'm waiting till after the last exam.

*

Earlier last week I realized that both Jasper Fforde's First Among Sequels (I actually preferred War of the Words as a title myself, though I'm sure the new one more closely reflects the plot) and J K Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows are both due within a week of each other in the U.S.: the 21st for Potter and the 24th for Sequels. I'm tempted to do the same thing I did for Something Rotten--bypass the U.S. lead time and grab the UK version (available July 5th!), but only wish that Rowling's seventh was due out earlier in her home country too (that would make the shipping go down smoother).

And, to give myself some motivation, I've decided to deadline my 1st round of substantive revisions to the novel to July 1st. I'm thinking a total of three substantive rewrites, and at least as many general run-throughs before I knock on my first-readers' doors for a once-over. (Those I've asked in advance--お楽しみに。。。かも。)

~TJN

April Anime

Watching: Darker Than Black, Hayate no Goroku, Heroic Age, Rocket Girls, Romeo x Juliet, Toward the Terra
Considering: Claymore, Nodame Cantabile

April is the start of the new anime season in Japan, and thus is the time of year when I scrutinize the first episode of any new series that catches my eye. Last year, the most noteworthy newcomer was Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu. There's no such frontrunner this season from what I've seen thus far . . . but that could change in a hurry.

Darker Than Black (Sci-Fi / Action). The usual catalysmic-event-changes-the-world-and-creates-superpowered-people storyline with the characteristically obtuse milieu explication and introduction that I've come to learn is intrinsic to most Japanese entertainment (or at least, the animated kind). In a more heated April lineup, I'd see myself forgetting about this one rather quickly. C-.

Hayate no Goroku (Comedy). Utter nonsense plot. Crazy characters. The epitome of the anime equivalent of a nasty trainwreck - nothing really good comes of watching it, but you can't help but look anyway. D-.

Heroic Age (Sci-Fi /Action). Is it just me, but has the character designer who I first noticed in Infinite Ryvius--and who has left his strong mark on the anime world through the Gundam SEED series--largely run out of new ideas? Virtually every character in this series gives me flashbacks to SEED/Fafner/Ryvius/etc. This sci-fi series has some interest concepts, but they too are plagued by the "haven't I seen you somewhere before?" problem. (Arching laser weapons from Vandread and modular gun pods from Gundam top my list.) A weak series, but in its current company, above average. C+.

Rocket Girls (drama/comedy/slice of life). A slice-of-life plus a small dose of utter nonsensical justification for putting teenage girls into space via light-weight rockets comprises the storyline for what is at the moment my favorite of the season. It's lighthearted, and not very deep, but has the requisite simplistic charm for its genre. A solid B.


Toward the Terra (Sci-Fi / Action). In some ways, this adapted series (originally a series of novels) could be seen as the plotspawn of Darker and Heroic: persecuted superpowered humans + ultra-futuristic milieu. Might amount to something in the end, but at this point its future is uncertain. B-.

*

I looked into Claymore after reading a blurb about it on dannychoo.com. It leans a bit too much toward the horror genre than my usual liking, but it has a compelling main. B-.

I've heard good things about Nodame Cantabile, but I haven't been able to bring myself to watch it just yet (as usually happens when I have an issue with the character designs). Nothing like anime to bring out the most superficial qualities in yours truly. NYR.

*

More substantial updates on life and career after I massacre my last two final exams. Until then, jaa.

~TJN

Settling In

After five years with the old Xanga site, I've finally decided to move on to new surroundings. Hopefully the move will accompany a more consistent flow of postings. Only time will tell.

~TJN