April PAD (Poem-a-Day) Challenge: Day 17 “To Boldly Go”

Continuing the catch up game…

Here is Tuesday’s prompt or prompts, as it were. “Two for Tuesday prompt day. Here they are:

Write a science fiction poem.
Write a fantasy poem.”

So it’s science fiction you’re after. Well I’ll give you a sociopolitical/grammatical commentary a la Star Trek.

“To Boldly Go”

is a split infinitive.
An archaic rule, a carryover from Latin
along with arrogance
and empire.

10 National Poetry Month Activities
April PAD Challenge: Day 1 “Scenes Shot in Super 8″
April PAD Challenge: Day 2 “Adobe Café”
April PAD Challenge: Day 3 “Confession Booth”
April PAD Challenge: Day 4 “100% Juice”
April PAD Challenge: Day 5 “Uncle Harry”
April PAD Challenge: Day 6 “Hide ‘n’ Seek”
April PAD Challenge: Day 7 “Political Discourse”
April PAD Challenge: Day 8 “Heart 2.0″
April PAD Challenge: Day 9 “Yoga Class”
April PAD Challenge: Day 10 “Holly Bushes”
April PAD Challenge: Day 11 “Spring”
April PAD Challenge: Day 12 “Something Wrong”
April PAD Challenge: Day 13 “Tough Luck”
April PAD Challenge: Day 14 “Sundays in Oklahoma”
April PAD Challenge: Day 15 “Persona”
April PAD Challenge: Day 16 “There’s Been a Mistake”

Method Monday–Building Character, with a little help from Star Trek

My wife and I have been watching Star Trek: The Next Generation on Netflix. I saw most episodes during the original run, but it’s nice to visit old friends. My friends, mostly StarFleet officers serving aboard the Enterprise, are the crux of the show. If you watch the show often enough, you’ll notice that there are only about a dozen different mission types. If the missions were the primary pull, the show would not have lasted seven seasons.

I mention Star Trek when discussing character building, because the methods it uses for this purpose are transferable to writing. Star Trek characters emerge throughout the series based on how they react in a variety of circumstances. When writing, that is how we create/showcase/explore characters.

Unfortunately, I often see authors take a different approach–painful explanations about who the characters are. Few things bore me as much. Let your characters experience their world. Your readers (or viewers) will appreciate getting to know your characters for themselves.

Make it so.