Check out my new work on my @Behance portfolio: "Chinese Calligraphy"
http://be.net/gallery/Chinese-Calligraphy/9664841
This is a collection of calligraphy work I did a while back. All of the characters were painted on 3x5 canvas boards with red and gold acrylic paint. My zazzle store will feature these in cards and other items. Look for them in the next few days!
I also added new images to another Behance.net project:
"Digital Drawings with Made with Paper" http://be.net/gallery/Digital-Drawings-with-Made-with-Paper/9090437
All original writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2013
Showing posts with label character. Show all posts
Showing posts with label character. Show all posts
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
5 Alternate Lives
An exercise from The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron
Directions: Write about 5 alternate lives you might lead if you decided to go in a certain creative direction. Name your alter ego and describe what they've achieved and what they want to achieve.
1) Kelly the Cook: Cooking is her passion. She went to Culinary School and graduated at the top of her class. She has done internships in Paris, Rome and Tokyo. Currently, she runs a chic restaurant in London, and plans to open another one in Manhattan. Presidents, prime ministers and celebrities rave about her restaurants. She is friends with cooks like Emeril Lagasse and Giada de Laurentiis. Kelly is restless and always stretches for new ideas in the culinary world.
2) Sherilyn the ambassador: She lives in the future on board the International Space Station. More people live and work there, both Earth-born and not. Sherilyn negotiates treaties and welcomes dignitaries. She speaks several languages and is well versed in customs and protocol.
3) Tamlie the violinist: Tamlie is a concert violinist with the London Symphony. She also teaches music and composes her own songs. Tamlie strives for the best in her performances and encourages her students to do the same.
4) Sophia the editor: Sophia works in New York for a major publishing house. She is brisk and organized and has connections in the US, Europe and Asia. She has the knack of picking out good manuscripts that turn out to be bestsellers. Although she has a quiet elegance, her power is felt throughout the literary world.
5) Wanda the cinematographer: Wanda runs her own production company, but she has worked on the film crews of movies like "Star Wars", "Star Trek", "Avatar" and "Lord of the Rings". She plans and stages special effects shots. Wanda is laid back and always ready to try new ideas and new technologies. Her first question isn't, "That's impossible, right?" It's "How can we do this?"
All original writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2010
Directions: Write about 5 alternate lives you might lead if you decided to go in a certain creative direction. Name your alter ego and describe what they've achieved and what they want to achieve.
1) Kelly the Cook: Cooking is her passion. She went to Culinary School and graduated at the top of her class. She has done internships in Paris, Rome and Tokyo. Currently, she runs a chic restaurant in London, and plans to open another one in Manhattan. Presidents, prime ministers and celebrities rave about her restaurants. She is friends with cooks like Emeril Lagasse and Giada de Laurentiis. Kelly is restless and always stretches for new ideas in the culinary world.
2) Sherilyn the ambassador: She lives in the future on board the International Space Station. More people live and work there, both Earth-born and not. Sherilyn negotiates treaties and welcomes dignitaries. She speaks several languages and is well versed in customs and protocol.
3) Tamlie the violinist: Tamlie is a concert violinist with the London Symphony. She also teaches music and composes her own songs. Tamlie strives for the best in her performances and encourages her students to do the same.
4) Sophia the editor: Sophia works in New York for a major publishing house. She is brisk and organized and has connections in the US, Europe and Asia. She has the knack of picking out good manuscripts that turn out to be bestsellers. Although she has a quiet elegance, her power is felt throughout the literary world.
5) Wanda the cinematographer: Wanda runs her own production company, but she has worked on the film crews of movies like "Star Wars", "Star Trek", "Avatar" and "Lord of the Rings". She plans and stages special effects shots. Wanda is laid back and always ready to try new ideas and new technologies. Her first question isn't, "That's impossible, right?" It's "How can we do this?"
All original writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Strong Female Role Models
For the record, I didn't grow up with strong female role models. I had a "stereotypical" Asian daughter's upbringing. According to my mother, my goal in life was "to go to school, get a good job and help the family." It was implied that I would follow the desired paths of law or medical school. My mother had been a nurse' she had hopes I would follow in her footsteps.
Being a writer wasn't encouraged. I knew I had no real desire to enter the medical profession, although I admired people who had the courage (and determination) to become doctors. Being a lawyer wasn't too appealing to me, either. When I told Mom that I was thinking about majoring in journalism, she had visions of CNN dancing in her head.
"Oh, that's so dangerous!" she gasped. Or she wanted me to take her on overseas assignments so she could travel. On the whole, she didn't approve of my dreams or ambitions. They were not part of her plan.
As a result, my writing had very few strong female characters. Most of them were submissive and suffering, or domineering and meddling. I didn't know better at the time. One of my friends at the time commented, "Do you really hate us that much?" I guess I had a subconscious scorn and disdain for women, whom I considered weak. I must have spewed a lot of venom in those early days. In one way, it cleared a lot of emotional garbage that was happening at the time. It allowed me to reconcile my feelings of an independent person breaking free of her mother's shadow.
I began looking at others for role models: teachers, acquaintances, friends. What kind of qualities appealed to me? What kind of traits do I want? Honesty, courage, strength, patience, enducrace, love, honor and respect. To be treated, and treat others, equally, instead of assuming control over others and forcing them to do your will.
I also turned to books, mainly science fiction and fantasy. Authors like Marion Zimmer Bradley (The Mists of Avalon) and Mercedes Lackey (the Heralds of Valdemar series) included powerfu characters in their stories. To my delight, I found David Weber's Honor Harrington series. Honor's character has been described as "a female Horatio Hornblower or Lord Admiral Nelson".
Although these women embody sterling qualities, they are far from infallible. Morgaine Le Fey is a priestess of the Old Celtic Ways, and tries to stem the tide of a new religion in Britain: Christianity. Talia Sensdaughter struggles to deal with strange powers. Honor Harrington deals with politics that interfere with her military career, as well as her personal life. They must overcome their struggles in a very human-like manner.
Anime cartoons for young girls featured a strong central female character. Most of the time, it centered on a normal girl who had been granted magical powers to do some good in the world. The more mature films showed women in positions of power: military leaders, pilots, and heads of business corporations. Even the villains possessed a delicious ruthlessness that was unique. Women held their own beside the men (and even had somewhat believable sex lives!) It was an eye opener for me.
All this influenced my writing in a positive way. Gone was the passive geisha girl, the teary-eyed Victorian heroine. I began to unlock a new treasure chest of characters. They spoke with new confidence and new life and enriched my literary world a thousand-fold.
All original writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2010
Being a writer wasn't encouraged. I knew I had no real desire to enter the medical profession, although I admired people who had the courage (and determination) to become doctors. Being a lawyer wasn't too appealing to me, either. When I told Mom that I was thinking about majoring in journalism, she had visions of CNN dancing in her head.
"Oh, that's so dangerous!" she gasped. Or she wanted me to take her on overseas assignments so she could travel. On the whole, she didn't approve of my dreams or ambitions. They were not part of her plan.
As a result, my writing had very few strong female characters. Most of them were submissive and suffering, or domineering and meddling. I didn't know better at the time. One of my friends at the time commented, "Do you really hate us that much?" I guess I had a subconscious scorn and disdain for women, whom I considered weak. I must have spewed a lot of venom in those early days. In one way, it cleared a lot of emotional garbage that was happening at the time. It allowed me to reconcile my feelings of an independent person breaking free of her mother's shadow.
I began looking at others for role models: teachers, acquaintances, friends. What kind of qualities appealed to me? What kind of traits do I want? Honesty, courage, strength, patience, enducrace, love, honor and respect. To be treated, and treat others, equally, instead of assuming control over others and forcing them to do your will.
I also turned to books, mainly science fiction and fantasy. Authors like Marion Zimmer Bradley (The Mists of Avalon) and Mercedes Lackey (the Heralds of Valdemar series) included powerfu characters in their stories. To my delight, I found David Weber's Honor Harrington series. Honor's character has been described as "a female Horatio Hornblower or Lord Admiral Nelson".
Although these women embody sterling qualities, they are far from infallible. Morgaine Le Fey is a priestess of the Old Celtic Ways, and tries to stem the tide of a new religion in Britain: Christianity. Talia Sensdaughter struggles to deal with strange powers. Honor Harrington deals with politics that interfere with her military career, as well as her personal life. They must overcome their struggles in a very human-like manner.
Anime cartoons for young girls featured a strong central female character. Most of the time, it centered on a normal girl who had been granted magical powers to do some good in the world. The more mature films showed women in positions of power: military leaders, pilots, and heads of business corporations. Even the villains possessed a delicious ruthlessness that was unique. Women held their own beside the men (and even had somewhat believable sex lives!) It was an eye opener for me.
All this influenced my writing in a positive way. Gone was the passive geisha girl, the teary-eyed Victorian heroine. I began to unlock a new treasure chest of characters. They spoke with new confidence and new life and enriched my literary world a thousand-fold.
All original writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Decoding Baby Babble--Language in Motion
My younger daughter has been babbling up a storm. It's amazing to hear her, especially since my older two are autistic and non-verbal. I was trained as a languages/linguistics person, so this is something new for me.
"She's loud," my sister commented yesterday, trying to raise her voice over Sarah telling her about her day.
"Yeah," I agreed.
"She sounds like Mom."
"Mom babbles?"
"No. Well, yeah. I mean, she *sounds* like Mom. You know, how she talks. With everything, like her face and her hands."
Mom does talk loudly and fast with the occasional back slap to make her point. It's the Spanish side of the family (Filipino/Spanish/Chinese), the enthusiasm for life. And until Dee pointed it out, I didn't realize that Sarah had inherited that quality. It can be annoying or endearing, depending on whether or not you're in striking range.
A person's mannerisms can be a definite clue to their personality. If you watch someone in a coffee shop, you can pick up clues about their lives. Are they on a cell phone with their boss? Taking their toddler's hand out of the candy jar? Wanting their coffee *yesterday*, hurry up, they're on the clock? Flirting with the barista? Typing away on a laptop, oblivious to the rest of the world? Do they talk with a slow drawl, quickly, with an accent? Watch and listen, and you can learn a lot about character.
Today, I can tell Sarah is going to be just like my mom: loud, chatty and expressive. She'll definitely be quite a character.
"She's loud," my sister commented yesterday, trying to raise her voice over Sarah telling her about her day.
"Yeah," I agreed.
"She sounds like Mom."
"Mom babbles?"
"No. Well, yeah. I mean, she *sounds* like Mom. You know, how she talks. With everything, like her face and her hands."
Mom does talk loudly and fast with the occasional back slap to make her point. It's the Spanish side of the family (Filipino/Spanish/Chinese), the enthusiasm for life. And until Dee pointed it out, I didn't realize that Sarah had inherited that quality. It can be annoying or endearing, depending on whether or not you're in striking range.
A person's mannerisms can be a definite clue to their personality. If you watch someone in a coffee shop, you can pick up clues about their lives. Are they on a cell phone with their boss? Taking their toddler's hand out of the candy jar? Wanting their coffee *yesterday*, hurry up, they're on the clock? Flirting with the barista? Typing away on a laptop, oblivious to the rest of the world? Do they talk with a slow drawl, quickly, with an accent? Watch and listen, and you can learn a lot about character.
Today, I can tell Sarah is going to be just like my mom: loud, chatty and expressive. She'll definitely be quite a character.
All writing and art copyright A. Dameron 2000-2010
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