Timewaster's Guide Archive

First of all, thanks for sharing!

The thanks are flowing in the wrong direction here. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment on it.

Quote from: Shasta on March 19, 2009, 03:05:24 AM

hey Bastille you can re-site more then the entire first chapter and the prologue along with randome quotes; you can recite the whole book and the letter from Shasta in the second book along with the alternate ending and random quotes.
i have really spent too much time around Bastille, i know too much about you.
-Shasta

Shasta, were extended family. Of coarse you know me to much and I know you to much. Stop telling them things!!! I don't want people here thinking I'm weird like everyone else!! 

It's a bit late for that now. 

I've already found some good stuff. Thanks for the suggestions, guys!

My turn again: Dave Beegle - Beyond the Desert. This is one of my favorite CDs. It's sort of a fusion of classical guitar and modern acoustic rock, with a side of Flamenco. All 7 tracks are instrumental, and I love them all.

Also, check out Meese. They just have a 4-song EP out for now, but all four songs are great.

Hey Silk - how do you go about marking up documents for people?

In my case it should be pretty easy, since I'm an incredibly huge nerd. I write in Markdown format using a plain text editor. When "marking up" my stuff, feel free to just make whatever changes you want, without care for marking what you changed. I can then diff your version against mine and see exactly what you changed very quickly.

However, I recognize that few people work the way I do. So, if I were to do a line edit on someone else's stuff, what's the best way to go about that?

Skeptic: I won't bother to rebut most of your post. I get the feeling you're not here for a doctrinal discussion, and trying to engage you in one would just waste everyone's time. I will, therefore, attempt to address what appears to be your purpose in posting, as nearly as I can discern: I'll attempt to assuage your stated concerns about Brandon being Mormon and how it might affect his writing.

It is disingenuous to argue that Mormon preaching and practice as directed by the leaders of its church wasn't racist until quite recently (after 1978).

It's equally disingenuous to argue that a policy that was discontinued in 1978 has any bearing on the contemporary church or its members.

What is particularly disturbing about the Mormon faith, though, is its monolithic nature, and the lack of any real dissent within its church. When it comes to matters of faith, its followers march in lock-step unison. They are literalists when it comes to the interpretation of scripture (Sanderson has explained matters of faith here with the apparently self-sufficient explanation, "It's in the Scripture.").

You say that like it's a bad thing. In a religion, that's a strength.

Scientists benefit greatly from a healthy dose of skepticism, because they don't have an absolute source of truth and must operate under the assumption that everything they know might be wrong. Dissension in such a context is healthy and serves ultimately to shore up the body of scientific knowledge.

Believers in a religion, on the other hand, can go straight to a source of truth that they know to be reliable: God. Mormons are strongly encouraged to verify that some truths come from God, and which those are (this is called a personal testimony). We do this simply by asking him, following the instructions laid out in Moroni 10:3-5.

It should be obvious that arguing and disputing truth that comes from an unchanging god is unproductive and pointless: either it's true and you know it, or it isn't. We are thus commanded to be united (one heart and one mind), and not to engage in fruitless doctrinal disputations.

Let me close with a general admonition not to judge people based on what you think you know about their religion. You seem to think that Mormons are all horrible people because of a few things you read in some anti-Mormon literature. How many Mormons have you actually known? I'm not going to pretend that we're all perfect saints (that's just ridiculous - of course every barrel has a few bad apples), but I feel confident that if you were to actually give us a chance we'd surprise you with how non-murderous, non-racist, and how generally good we are.

First, no way is that a man. Definitely feminine. Second, she looks too old to be Bastille. Remember that she's only 13-14. That chick looks closer to 18, and could be as old as mid-twenties.

All writers put their worldview into their works. They don't do it intentionally or deliberately - it's an unavoidable consequence of being human. As a reader, you can't avoid it unless you want to stop reading.

There are a lot of things in Mistborn that resonate positively with me, as a Mormon. I can clearly see the influence of the LDS perspective; it's one I share, and I like that. Elantris - actually, it was the Mormon view on courtship, family, and love that came through strongest in that one for me.

As a counterexample, I've read a few books by Holly Lisle. They're great stories, and I have nothing against her skill as a writer. However, she has very strong liberal and libertarian political views and a vehement anti-religious bent, and it shows in her writing. I don't hold it against her; it is, as I said above, not only natural, but inevitable. Nevertheless, it lessened my enjoyment of the books enough for me to stop reading.

Can you enjoy an author's work whose worldviews you don't agree with? That's the question you've got to ask yourself. In my case, it depends on the author, and on the views.

Now, let me ask you something.

I'm interested in how others feel about how Sanderson's faith has influenced his novels, with examples given from his writing, and also any portions of his novels that reveal a break with Mormon teachings. If I'd been aware of Sanderson's beliefs at the time I'd read his books, I'd have had a keen eye on which characters if any imbibed coffee or smoked tobacco.

Why do you care about things that reveal a break with Mormon teachings? Are you looking for fuel to call the author a hypocrite? Or are you just trying to feel better about reading a book written by a Mormon?

I don't remember any mention of either coffee or tobacco in any of Sanderson's works. As far as I can tell, they don't exist in his fantasy worlds. Tea exists in Mistborn, and is drunk by characters both good and bad. Same with alcohol. What does this say about Sanderson, or his books?

Actually, not a whole lot. So he portrays characters doing things he would not himself do. News flash: that's what authors of fiction do. Again, I'm not sure why you even care.