Oh...wait. Do you put anything in the skillet with the paste while waiting for the oil to ooze out, like a little olive oil or coconut oil or something to keep it from sticking or scorching, or do you just plop the paste in there by it's lonesome?

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind. :)

So I guess what I'm kind of looking for is something along the lines of: Protagonist discovers such and such. Or, Protagonist does such and such because of reasons. Written from the perspective of: Character 1 Character 2 Character 3 Character 4 Character 5 Or, y'know, just one fun idea for a type of character that might be fun to write about. Or something. Anything...lol.... But really, I think I'll have some time in the next day or two that I can sit down and poke at it. I'm taking a break from my manuscript before I go back and look at it one more time with fresh eyes and then send it back to the agent. And I made more progress on my friend's manuscript today than I thought I would. And I've just decided I'm too burnt out to work on the short story, and the deadline on that one is totally self-imposed anyway, so I can just give my self an extension. So there may be a break in the brain clouds up ahead. But I did think it would be fun to see what ideas this crowd came up with. We have such original thinkers around here. :)

No, I think that's kind of what it's meant to be, though they didn't explain it super well. One of the previous assignments involved making various adjustments to a list of ideas from an exercise before that. Some of the assigned adjustments were things like combining two ideas into one story, and changing the genre of the story idea (instead of epic fantasy, use the same idea, but make it a western, or a mystery, etc.). That sort of thing. One of the assigned adjustments was to change the age and gender of everyone in the story to see how that changed things, and if it sparked anything new and interesting. So, take the young white male psychotic serial killer, and swap him out for an elderly Asian lady. That sort of thing. I think this new assignment is kind of an extension of that. You take an idea for a story, and write a little of the story with one character, and then swap the character out for another kind of person in the same role. So you have a story in which a protagonist does X, and you just try out different people in the protagonist role and see how it affects the story. It's meant as an exercise in discovering your story as you go along, I think. But I'm much more of a planner, and this puts me outside my normal mode of operation--which, as I say, is probably good for me as an exercise, I'm just having a hard time figuring out what my basic idea is, and what kinds of people should "try out" for the role of protagonist. So...like...the story idea of Goldilocks is that a little girl goes into the woods and snoops around in the house of the Three bears. But what if Goldilocks wasn't a little girl, but a middle-aged Italian plumber? Or an elderly middle-eastern cab driver? Or a ferret? I'm pretty sure I'm intended to be writing a scene from the story with each potential protagonist to see which presents the most interesting opportunity for telling an entertaining and original story. Kind of like actors reading a scene at an audition for the same part. It's intended to get "students" thinking outside the box by making them try out several things beyond the immediately obvious.

I confess myself surprised at the lack of people who want to play my game....ahem...I mean help me with my homework. I guess I'll just pout and go try to do it myself. :sad: :001_unsure: <_< :wacko: :crying:

And actually, trying to wrap my head around it well enough to try to explain what I need to do is helping some...lol. My previous homework is on my blog, if that helps. https://amy-beatty.squarespace.com/config#/metrics|/blog/

Sort of like that, yeah. Only, I'd need something specific for them to be doing, too. I think. I have never "auditioned" characters, or thought of the idea development process in that way, so I'm kind of winging it with this homework assignment. The January episodes have been focusing on generating and developing ideas for stories. They had us brainstorm ideas from 5 specific sources for episode 1's homework, then twist those same ideas in specific ways for episode 2, to show how you can adjust your initial ideas to make them more interesting, or less cliche' or whatever. Episode 3 was a "wildcard" episode about Lovecraftian horror, and the homework assignment was to pick a character, and from that character's point of view write about their reaction to something horrible without actually describing the horrible thing. It was a good brain-stretcher. But this thing about auditioning characters...I don't know. I could use one of the ideas I came up with for the other homework assignments, but I'm not really excited about any of them. I'm wondering about maybe just using the same scenario as I used last week for the Lovecraftian horror thing, and basically put other kinds of characters in the same situation and kind of just free-write. The basic scenario I used last week was that a suburban mom was reacting to changes in her house, first a smell, then sounds, then ooze that started weeping from the walls (at which point I ran out of time). So I could generalize that and say [Character X] reacts to changes in his/her [type of building], smell, then sound, then ooze, and then think up other people to stick in there. So...farmer reacts to changes in his barn. Little kid reacts to changes in his bedroom. Teacher reacts to changes happening in the school building. Prison guard, prison. Whatever. Or, I guess I could keep the same scenario, and tell the same story from the point of view of a different character...the woman's husband, maybe. Or her mother. Or the inspector who comes to test the ooze on the walls. Or whatever Lovecraftian entity is causing the smell/sound/ooze... I don't know. I'm kind of not loving this assignment, because it feels like a lot of work for not much result--but that probably means it'll be "good for me"...lol. Last week's was, and I wasn't excited about that assignment either.

The short version: I need a scene I can audition 5 characters in, and 5 different characters to audition. Go! The long version: So, I'm in the process of trying to learn "writing" as a craft, not just as a means to basic communication (and it's been quite the adventure so far, too...lol). One of the things I've been doing to learn about it is listening to a podcast called "Writing Excuses," in which four authors discuss various aspects of the craft of writing. They've just started Season 10, and are structuring this season as a "master class" in writing. Each week they give a writing exercise, or a writing prompt as "homework," and I've decided that in the interest of learning as much as I can, I'm going to at least try to do the homework each week. So far, so good, except my brain is busted this week. Last week, I had dinner with my agent (it still makes me giggle to say that) and we discussed a few adjustments I need to make to my book manuscript before we start pitching it to publishers. So I've been working out how best to adjust. And then an author friend asked me to read through her new book manuscript and give feedback, and a) she was nice enough to read mine for me, and b) I need to cultivate those kinds of relationships in the "writing community," so of course I said yes. But her publisher is waiting impatiently for the manuscript, so I'm trying to hurry. And if that's not enough, I'm also smack in the middle of writing a short story to be published in the bonus materials section on my web site, which is in serious need of beefing up (and which will also act as an additional writing sample for potential publishers, since I'm a complete unknown). Anyway, the upshot of all this is that my brain space is seriously cluttered up with these stories I'm actively (if not furiously) working on this week (and homeschool, and dishes, and laundry....eek), but I still want to get the homework done if I can. I think I can do the writing part, but I don't seem to be able to sit down and clear my mind enough to do the brainstorming part. Especially since this exercise is very much not how I tend to work. But I have seen you people in action, and I'm betting some of you would have a really fun time playing this particular brainstorming game. Here's what I'm supposed to do: "Take one of the ideas you're excited about, and then audition five different characters for the lead role in that story. Make sure they're all different from each other." So what I'm looking for is a scenario (I'm not going to make a whole story out of this, I don't have time. It's just for the exercise.), and five different kinds of people I could cast in the lead role in the scenario. The scenario can be as ordinary or outlandish as you want--I'm just looking for ideas. For the characters, think about giving them different ages, genders, occupations, hobbies, disabilities, competencies, neuroses, etc. I'm hoping if I can see other people play around and have fun with it, it'll help me get started. I'll post a link to my finished homework for anyone who's interested. And if anyone else wants to do the whole assignment by writing out the audition bits, and not just the brainstorming part, I would love to see what you come up with. Thanks. :)

Good to know about the fish sauce. I'm willing to give it a shot, but it's nice to know I can just salt it if I don't like it or can't find it. Dh would probably do just fine with a little cayenne. It's his go-to when he wants a little fire. That, or jalapenos, which I don't think would go well in curry. Hmmm..... Thanks. :)

Wow, thanks. That makes it sound so much simpler than some of the internet recipes I was looking at. Fish sauce, you say. I'll look for some, but I sincerely hope it doesn't taste like fish. ;) What seasoning do you use to adjust spiciness? If you want it super spicy, do you just add more curry paste, or is there some kind of pepper I should be looking into as well? Also, dh is the only one who likes super spicy--is that something that can be adjusted last minute if I want to take everyone else's out of the pan and then add in more spice to some for him, or is it the sort of thing that needs to simmer in to taste right?

What would you do if he did, and it was a group you didn't like or agree with for whatever reason?

I want to learn to make it because my husband really likes it when we eat out. But I have to keep the cookery fairly basic and straightforward just now. So...can of coconut milk, dollop of red curry paste, meat of choice, assortment of chopped up veggies, and....? Help a sister out?

Well, we had our IEP meeting today, and they've decided that the latest round of test results are such that she no longer qualifies for an IEP. She's not up to grade level, but she's no longer failing badly enough to qualify for extra help. (Wow! Look at that kid run! I guess she doesn't need that prosthetic leg anymore.) She'll only be doing drama, art, and orchestra at school, and she doesn't need accommodations for those, so no big deal, really, for now. And if we decide to put her back in for more academic classes later on, we all agree that she would most likely qualify for a 504 plan, even if she can no longer be on an IEP. So...I guess good news that she's made some measurable progress, and I guess we decided to pull her from her other classes at just the right time.

Oh, no worries, it's all good. I didn't think you were really being mean anymore than I really meant I was a cruel mama in my first post. Just that kids are sometimes dramatic when they have to do something they don't like...lol. I am glad to hear about different approaches, it gives me more tools to choose from when each seems appropriate to the situation, and I appreciate your input. :)

First off, I'm loving all the suggestions, thanks ladies. Secondly: There is clearly something about reading that is hard for her. When we had her evaluated, the verdict was that she did not have dyslexia, but that she does have a "specific learning disability in the area of written expression". Her eye doctor (specialist) says her eyes are fine, and the audiologist says her auditory processing is normal--or at least, she passes the tests just fine with the cross-brain functioning and all that. But the audiologist also said she could see why I had wanted to get her tested, I wasn't just being paranoid, and she agreed that there may be something a little different going on there that just doesn't register on the tests. But she had no concrete suggestions, as dd's hearing and auditory processing don't seem to be the problem. The special ed lady at the school who holds dd's file agrees that there are some quirky learning things going on, but her position is that dd is very bright, and seems to be able to compensate well for whatever it is that's going on, other than being a little behind with reading and fairly hopeless with spelling. The only phonics instruction she's had that I'm aware of was during 2nd and 3rd grade when I had her at home before. (I asked her 5th grade teacher, who was gushing about what a fantastic spelling program they used, if they were going to be learning any phonograms or syllabication, and I might as well have been speaking French.) We worked through part of level one of All About Spelling, and both her reading and spelling improved. I really think that more phonics instruction will be to her benefit, and I plan on going through AAS with her again, starting with a review of what she learned back then, and moving forward--as soon as I figure out where I've put the dang AAS materials...lol. In the meantime, I did locate my copy of Phonics Pathways (or whatever that book is called), and if I don't find the AAS in the next few days, I'll start with PP. I'm definitely not going to approach this ONLY by having her read to me while I cook, and I really am not going to be mean about the mistakes. I probably won't even point them all out--probably mostly when she sounds like the error has gotten her confused about what's going on in the story, to begin with. I just thought a laid-back fun read-aloud would make for some good mother-daughter time and maybe help her discover that reading can actually be fun, and give her some reading practice in an environment where there was support if she needed it, and she wasn't just cut loose on her own to fend for herself. I will also be sitting with her and reading together during our actual "English class time." For that, we'll be working through the Medieval packet from Homeschool in the Woods, with some supplementary materials. She's interested in learning about medieval history, and that packet includes reading, listening, and a good amount of creative writing (stealthily disguised as history). And we'll do some finding of main points and sub-info, and all that good stuff too. But it's the read-alouds I'm feeling a bit stuck on, so I really appreciate the suggestions. :)

I've come to the conclusion over the years that whatever works IS the right way for that child. It's about the child, not the methodology. IMO.

I am learning about writing, and about how the book publishing industry works. :) Actually, this is taking up a LOT of my time recently. Just when I get one stage sort of figured out, I find myself smacked in the face by the next one...lol. Along those lines, I am currently: * blogging about what I learned last year about basic story structure * learning about different narrative formats for telling stories--currently learning about epistolary short fiction, and have recently written a short story in a "frame story" format. * just finished (yesterday) the latest round of edits on my first novel, and sent it back (this morning) to my agent. Am waiting for instructions on the next stage, which I think involves writing a charming synopsis of the thing, but I'm not starting on that until she tells me I have to...lol. *waiting for my new author business cards to arrive (so I can appear more professional...heh...). According to Fed Ex, they're currently touring California. I am watching their progress along with the progress of the MUS workbook I just ordered for dd, which is having a similar tour of PA. Must be a lot of holiday deliveries still happening out there. Anyway, it's been a very educational pursuit so far, and I can tell I'm just hitting the fringes. Much, much left to learn, and I'm finding I don't have a lot of time for other self-educational stuff right now. I even find myself evaluating the structure and dialog of the TV shows and movies I watch for fun and relaxation. Poor dh has been a very good sport about it. :)

We read Guardians of Gahoole for family story time before bed a couple of years back on the recommendation of my niece, who is a few years older than dd. When we got to the end I asked everyone if they'd like me to get the second book, and the unanimous and emphatic vote was NO! We also read the first book of the Warrior Cats series, and while that story was better received, nobody wanted to continue that either. But maybe dd would like it better now that she's a little older. I'll keep that in mind. She's big into wolves right now, if that sparks anything.

I'm not sure she'd follow all the back and forth in time business...but I'd be there to point it out...hmmm....

Because I'm just mean like that! Dd12 is coming home from ps part-time next week. We really need to work on her reading skills, as she tends to do things like skip big words, or substitute a random word that starts with the same letter. I want something she can read aloud to me while I cook dinner so I can help her focus and correct. (Vicious, vicious mama!) We also need to fix the fact that she thinks she doesn't like to read. The only books I can think of that she's said she actually liked are "Michael Vey" (read aloud to the class by her teacher the year before last, and then she asked me to buy her a copy of her own to read, and she actually did read it--I about fell over) and its sequels (which she read to herself last year, though she said there were parts that didn't make sense because she didn't know what the words were, and she didn't want to stop reading to ask). Also "Janitors", which I cruelly forced her to read during the first quarter of this year because she had to do a book report. She says she likes books where there's always something happening, without draggy boring parts. Also, she gets offended when I ask her to read books that are too "thin" because these are apparently for "little kids". So basically, I need recommendations for books that are written for a 7th grade audience at about a 5th grade level, which have a riveting plot and compelling characters, and which are not super long, but use a biggish font so it makes the book look fatter...lol. What say you?

Haha! Yeah, I thought the same thing. But then, I've known vegans who were willing to eat all sorts of things that I think are gross. Okra for instance. Shudder. So I figured my own tastes weren't a good guide for whether vegans would be willing to eat it. ;)

Thanks for the link. It was interesting. I have to admit I got a little confused when this one said that that it would be not only animal-free but also GMO-free, because I thought the other link explained that animal DNA was being used to genetically modify the yeast. But in honesty, I have to also admit that I read quickly, but not deeply, because I'm fitting it into snippets of time between other things, so maybe there's something I missed. Anyway, I thought it was interesting. :)

Thanks. :) Anyone else?

That's what I thought. Am I also right in guessing that your "no" is based on more than just the taste and appearance of the stuff?

(Cheese made with milk proteins grown in yeast that have been modified with DNA from mammals.) I'm really, truly not trying to start anything hostile, it's just that my cousin and I, neither of whom are remotely Vegan, have a difference of opinion on the subject, and I thought I'd see if I could get input from an actual Vegan. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/offbeat/milk-free-cheese-made-using-human-dna-strands/ar-AA2QyMS