Monica Valentinelli
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Into Week 3 With Vigor
Hello friends, I am now in Week 3 of the Clarion Write-A-Thon! Phew. I'm pretty much "head down" these days and focused on my career reboot. Part of that effort is figuring out what knowledge I have to share and what'll be useful for you long-term. No matter what happens with my career in gaming going forward, I still have almost 20 years' worth of experiences to draw from. I'm even teaching a new class this Sunday called Adapting Your Novel Into a Game!
I also spent some time rebuilding my routines. COVID-19 has hit our city hard, and they just (like yesterday) made masks mandatory. I am both happy and sad this is the case, because there's been a lot of politicization behind basic health practices that, quite frankly, I do not understand. (Nor want to.) I managed to knock off my COVID-19 journal and send it to our local historical society. If you haven't considered doing this, it's something that I do recommend for a few reasons. Namely, it's good to create artifacts that aren't news pieces for future historians to analyze going forward.
I'm firmly back on Habitica as well and that has been super helpful. Other than a fresh attempt at planting, the flavor of my life is vanilla at the moment. (Though, the ice cream has melted in this ridiculous heat plus humidity.) Adding some classes, scheduling plans, and making progress. Just one day at a time.
Next time I'll share some cat pictures. Captain Whinypants has been ridiculous. He's been sitting ON the air conditioner which isn't helpful for us, but apparently he's cool? Lord Lardbottom has demanded more cuddles than usual; he's getting up there and his eyesight isn't great. Still spoiled, though. Still, very keen on catnip when he can get it.
Hope you're doing all right yourselves!
- Monica
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In the 07/09/2020 edition:
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Excerpts:
Clarion Write-a-Thon: Week 3 The Fine Greenbird
A short progress report this week! I recently watched The Alienist and that series touches upon some of the issues I mentioned previously with respect to the historical treatment of Italian-Americans. (We’re now watching Doom Patrol. It’s VERY different!) Also: I miss sitting at a coffee shop to write. I stumbled across Coffitivity.com which gives […]
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Clarion Write-a-Thon: Week 3 The Fine Greenbird
By Monica Valentinelli on Jul 09, 2020 01:03 pm
A short progress report this week!
I recently watched The Alienist and that series touches upon some of the issues I mentioned previously with respect to the historical treatment of Italian-Americans. (We’re now watching Doom Patrol. It’s VERY different!) Also: I miss sitting at a coffee shop to write. I stumbled across Coffitivity.com which gives me the benefit of “sounding” like I’m sitting there. Huzzah! I’m also slowly taking Italian again, and that’s been super fun.
Yep, it’s Thursday and I’m still noodling over how I want to retell “Liombruno.” It’s a traditional fairy tale that has two components to present a hero who’s worthy of being saved. My gut is telling me to “get weird” and I’m cuing off of the region’s mountains, forests, and streams. I could imagine a villager telling this story while gesturing to a grand palace atop the mountains.
I picked a new short story for week three. It’s called: “The Fine Greenbird” and it’s from Florenza, the capital of the Tuscany region in central Italy. This is a folktale with a strong theme of jealousy; it also resonates with the number three: three sisters, three offspring, three quests, and three judged. One aspect that stood out to me was the outdated belief that women have control over our bodies to determine the sex of a child. Mind you, the children are characters themselves, so I’ll have to mull over how I want to tackle this harmful and antiquated notion after retelling “Liombruno.”
Other Clarion Write-A-Thon Posts
About this Post: In exchange for sponsor support, I promised to highlight how I’m processing my identity as an Italian-American and daughter of an immigrant through brainstorming, story selection, and first drafts. If you’re keen on following my progress, warts and all, I encourage you to become my sponsor and .
Recent Articles:
Clarion Write-A-Thon Week 2: Draft Done! On to Liombruno
Clarion Write-A-Thon Week 2: Getting More Out of Habitica
Clarion Write-A-Thon: More on Retelling Catarina the Wise
Clarion Write-A-Thon: Initial Brainstorming and Selecting the First Italian Fairy Tale
My Clarion Write-A-Thon Project