Monday, February 24, 2014

Farewell to Con-G

            I know I write about conventions a lot, but that’s because they’re so awesome! Besides, this one was special.

            One year ago, we of Ringcrafts were vendors at our first ever convention, Con-G. It was a wonderful show for us and gave us great hopes for the future of our business. We were welcomed with open arms by the other vendors and artists and we even became friends with a number of them.

            Most of those friends we ran into again at other shows we attended throughout the year, at the same time as meeting new friends. As I've mentioned before, there’s a truly wonderful community of people on the selling side of the tables – although some of the friends are regular convention attendees as well (my wife and I seem to have accidentally acquired a daughter who is, somehow, around the same age as us).

            So, the year went by and we've just come full circle, this past weekend being Con-G once again. Since was our first second year vending at a show, I was astonished by how many attendees I recognised! Some were even wearing jewellery or carrying dragons that they bought from us last year (I got to meet the person who ordered the first custom dragon I sold online and one of the people who won a dragon in one of my Facebook draws). Even though I’d only seen most of them once before, it was like getting back together with old friends.

            Part of what made this show so great for us was that the convention’s mascot was a dragon that I’d been able to design a chainmaille version of. Last year, I’d only made one – since I had no idea how well any of the dragons would sell. It sold on the first day. This time I wanted to have five along, but there was a mistake made on my materials shipment and I could only make three. Luckily, after the first three sold, I was able to modify other dragons to make two more. Even that wasn't enough – I even have one ordered for the next show I'm at.

            Of course, part of the reason those dragons sold so well is the sad news that this was Con-G’s last year. The same people have been running it every year and they don’t have the time to continue with it any more. Everyone’s very sad, but it helped make this an event to remember. With any luck, someone will pick up the torch in the future and resurrect this wonderful show.


            So here’s to Con-G, the first show, the first second year show, and the first last show I (and Ringcrafts) have sold chainmaille at. Thanks, Con-G team, for six great years (well, okay, so I can only say two great years, but I'm sure the first four were just as good).






Click here to find the charity anthology containing a couple of my short stories.






If there's any subject you'd like to see me ramble on about, feel free to leave a comment asking me to do so.

Monday, February 17, 2014

The Deer-ostrich

             I saw a deer today. Well, it may have been part ostrich, as all I saw was a body with some legs and a neck disappearing into the snow. I've never actually seen a deer in the wild before. All my life, my parents have said “There’s a deer!” and by the time I looked, there were no deer anywhere.

            I have no idea where I'm going with this; that just seemed like a good way to start. After all, who doesn't love a deer-ostrich story? Now, of course, I have to write one.

            Once, there was a deer-ostrich. He was a beautiful fellow with a fine coat of fur and a long feathered neck. Life was good for him, since he could reach up high to eat from trees, or down to the ground to eat grass, if he pleased.

His only trouble was that he didn't know how to handle his fear. Two sets of instincts told him, simultaneously, that at the first sign of trouble, he should bury his head in the ground and run. As you can imagine, this resulted in some ungainly flights, often leaving deep trenches right up to trees.

            Now, the deer-ostrich was one of a kind, so he had no one to teach him what he should do if a predator were to spot him. So he decided to ask a deer for some advice.

            “If you see a wolf, run!” the deer insisted. “Don’t mind the lions, they prefer ostriches.”

            “Oh deer, but I am a deer-ostrich!” the deer-ostrich replied. “What if the lion prefers me?”

            “Ask an ostrich,” the deer said with a shrug.

            That’s just what the deer-ostrich did.

            “If you see a lion, just bury your head in the ground,” the ostrich said. “The lion will think you’re an odd type of bush and leave you alone. Wolves prefer to eat deer.”

             At that point in time, a lion happened upon them. Fighting his instinct to run, the deer-ostrich followed the ostrich’s lead and buried his head in the ground.

            The lion wasn't fooled, as the ostrich had claimed he’d be. What he saw was a tasty feathery meal next to a silly deer with its head in the ground.

            When the deer-ostrich emerged, he found himself safe and alone. Satisfied that he now knew how to survive when he was afraid, he went about his life, running from the wolves and burying his head around lions.

            The system worked for years, until he chanced upon a lion and a wolf at the same time. In a panic, the deer-ostrich had to choose one of his defences. Since the lion was closer, he buried his head.

            The lion went about its business, but the wolf was delighted to come across a deer who, with its head in the ground, couldn't see him coming. It was the easiest dinner the wolf had ever gotten, although upon telling others of his luck, he did have something to say.

            “But, my, did that deer taste fowl!”


            The moral of the story is: Don’t make up stories on the spot at midnight.





Click here to find the charity anthology containing a couple of my short stories.


Monday, February 10, 2014

The Effectiveness of Suspense

            One of the most important tools in a writer’s arsenal is suspense. It is what keeps the readers turning the page, the viewers watching and the gamers playing. The desire to know what happens next – or for an explanation about why something happened – compels us to come back for more.

            Can it be over-used, though? I never really thought about it until tonight, after watching the season three finale of Sherlock. The season, on the whole, was excellent (although I felt it wasn't quite as good as the first two seasons) and the ending left me asking many of the questions. But, it wasn't as many questions as the previous seasons and I didn't feel the same driving need to know more. I was happy with what I knew and content to wait the year or two until the next season to find out what happens next.

            A similar thing happened with the Assassins’ Creed series. At the end of all three of the first three games, I was left staring at the screen, jaw on the floor, demanding: “What!? What!?!? What!?!?!?” (No, really – ask my wife; she was there, I was really demanding that the game tell me what happened next). The following three games, however, didn't have that effect on me. I still wanted to play the next games, but, again, the driving need to know what happened next wasn't there.

            At first, I thought it was because the cliff-hangers weren't as good. I guess that’s still possible, but I think that it may also be that I've been de-sensitised to the style of suspense. It makes sense, now that I started thinking about it. Humans are known for their adaptability; we can adjust to anything. If we’re fed enough cliff-hangers and suspenseful endings, we start to expect them. Then they become normal and, like everything else that’s normal, they blend into the background.

            It was a bit of an eye-opener for me and I think it’s something all writers can learn from. Moderation is the key in everything; change it up. If the same tricks and tools are used all the time, they lose their effectiveness. What good is suspense if...


            Find out next week, on: J.C. Rutledge and his inane ramblings!




Click here to find the charity anthology containing a couple of my short stories.






If there's any subject you'd like to see me ramble on about, feel free to leave a comment asking me to do so.

Monday, February 03, 2014

A Few Steps Behind

            I've never really been one for being up-to-date on the newest and latest. My parents somehow managed to teach me that if you wait for something, you find out if you really want it. Combine that with my (almost) infinite patience and you've got someone who is quite happy to wait for what he wants. Sometimes it’s worked for me, sometimes against.

            I think the first example of this would be Pogs. Do you remember those? They were little pieces of cardboard with pictures on them that you collected, traded and wagered in games involving flipping them with plastic (sometimes metal) Slammers. They became a huge thing when I was a kid, but I didn't get into them until just months before they were banned throughout the schools (because it was gambling, plus it was causing loads of fights and bullying).

            Next would have been Pokemon – the video game; I was never interested in the cards foe some reason. When the Pokemon games first came out, it was released on the Gameboy. Newer versions were released on the next handheld system, the Gameboy Color. I didn't get my own copy of the game until the Gameboy Advance came out, at which point I got a used Gameboy Color and Pokemon Gold Version (I wanted Yellow, but it was no longer made). It was also no longer “cool” to play Pokemon, though I didn't care about that one bit.

            Harry Potter was something that I wasn't quite as late to the party for. I believe the third book was released within a year of my parents giving me the first one for my birthday. Over the next year I read that book ten times, the later times being followed by the second book, then the second and third. That was the first time I was ever riding the crest of the wave, waiting for books four through seven to come out.

            The better side has revealed itself in more recent years. Dr Who is the perfect example. I only started watching the show last year. My reward? I haven’t had to wait for any of it! I was able to buy all seven seasons (I haven’t gotten into the older stuff yet) and watch at my leisure. The same went for The Big Bang Theory – when I started watching it, I had plenty of seasons ready and waiting for me to watch.

            On the flip side, of course, are the few interests I have gained that have (along with my wife’s less-patient influence) managed to get me waiting on the edge of my seat. The video game, Portal was so amazing that Portal 2 was the first thing I ever pre-ordered. Also, the Assassins’ Creed series that has me chomping at the bit as I wait for each new instalment. And we mustn't forget BBC’s Sherlock, which I just watched the first two episodes of the third season tonight and must now wait for the third episode to become available.

            Weighing these two styles of obtaining entertainment, I find that I prefer being late to the party. That way I save money (because prices drop the more you wait), I get larger portions of my chosen entertainment at once and I don’t already own everything so it isn't redundant when I get extended and collector’s editions of things. All I get for keeping up to date on the latest thing is I can talk about it with other people who keep up to date on it. Besides needing to avoid spoilers while cruising the internet, living a few steps in the past is much nicer.


            Better late than never is a very common saying. Perhaps it’s actually better to be late than on time.




Click here to find the charity anthology containing a couple of my short stories.






If there's any subject you'd like to see me ramble on about, feel free to leave a comment asking me to do so.