tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post1661795657635589114..comments2023-08-14T16:10:38.074+02:00Comments on Adornments for Dreams: Romantic Friday Writers Challenge for February: Fanfiction - February 21st to 24th, 2013Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-87272772545761202002013-02-26T06:07:21.167+01:002013-02-26T06:07:21.167+01:00Hi, Anna,
What a fascinating history lesson. I do...Hi, Anna,<br /><br />What a fascinating history lesson. I do enjoy reading about people I am not familiar with in history.<br /><br />First, let me say, your opening paragraph was BEAUTIFUL! The description had me there with them. You know how much I believe setting the stage is an integral part in every story and you managed it effortlessly. You have come such a long way since I started reading your work. <br /><br />I WOULD BE HONORED to do a review when you are published.<br /><br />As the others have said, the Swedish and Italian prose do add authenticity and warmth to the story.<br /><br />You met the challenge ten fold Anna. Well done. Knowing how busy you are, this proves how passionate you are about your writing. Keep up the amazing work.Michael Di Gesuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17047267262428143113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-11111502518473678762013-02-25T21:54:58.065+01:002013-02-25T21:54:58.065+01:00A lot of thought has gone into this piece. It is a...A lot of thought has gone into this piece. It is a comforting picture and yet...But, the story unfold very well and I loved the ending and the letter was a classic touch. Do keep writing.Rek Seshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13484322426994645221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-13696564090795102562013-02-25T07:42:14.490+01:002013-02-25T07:42:14.490+01:00Great voice and use of language in this excerpt An...Great voice and use of language in this excerpt Anna. You stayed true to the reported sentiment and story concept. I liked how she wrote about him not drinking for so long, and how happy they seem in their own little world.<br /><br />Excellent writing and good use of the romance of the characters.<br /><br />Thank you for participating in this months RFW challenge Anna. I enjoyed your text very much.<br /><br />....dholedolorahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08715849844092553699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-17501325153419190402013-02-24T23:43:04.579+01:002013-02-24T23:43:04.579+01:00Hi Anna
Well written, I especially liked this line...Hi Anna<br />Well written, I especially liked this line: It was finally spring and Elisabet’s music had to compete with a huge choir of the tiny voices of nesting birds. I think you've found your voice. Two thumbs up.<br />NancyN. R. Williamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02174506528962095858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-37885776025679380142013-02-23T19:09:01.642+01:002013-02-23T19:09:01.642+01:00This was excellent, Anna. I thoroughly enjoyed all...This was excellent, Anna. I thoroughly enjoyed all the work that must have gone into this piece. Very enjoyable story and I also enjoyed the backstory. Scheherazadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08906467791904395295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-73773322632926152842013-02-23T10:56:21.005+01:002013-02-23T10:56:21.005+01:00Thank you, Denise, for your kind words. As with an...Thank you, Denise, for your kind words. As with any other skill, writing can improve with practice.<br />Best wishes,<br />AnnaAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-71934381722303654022013-02-23T10:53:56.008+01:002013-02-23T10:53:56.008+01:00Dear Yolanda,
There is always a risk involved when...Dear Yolanda,<br />There is always a risk involved when you translate a language, that you don't really know, with Google.<br /><br />If you are going to publish your story in a more permanent form, such as in a book or a printed magazine or newspaper, I would ask for the help of someone who really knows the language. I have people who can help me with my French, German and Spanish, but don't know anyone who knows Italian. On the other hand there are professional translators who can do this if you are willing to pay them.<br /><br />It might be worth it. I found a really bad mistake in a Swedish novel that neither the author or the publisher caught. The auther wrote a short line of dialogue in English in her otherwise Swedish language text, and thought she knew what she was doing. Really embarrassing for this author. Big mistake.<br /><br />So I am careful about how I use these other languages.<br /><br />Remember President Kennedy's speech at the Berlin Wall? He wanted to be cool and speak a little German and say that even he was at heart a citzen of Berlin? He used the article 'ein' and said 'I bin ein Berliner' instead of the correct form without the article 'Ich bin Berliner'. So what he actually said meant 'I am a coffee-bun' because these sweet rolls are called 'berliner'.<br />You would think that a world leader should have had someone with him to catch that.<br /><br />Something to think about.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-11766735743323039282013-02-22T02:54:17.031+01:002013-02-22T02:54:17.031+01:00Anna, this is a superb story! You have gone to gre...Anna, this is a superb story! You have gone to great pains to get it right. I LOVE it when foreign phrases are interspersed in text -- I do it all the time. Makes a story seem more honest somehow. I love the multi-generic touch with the embedded text of a letter, making this story richer. <br />I enjoyed reading the background to your story, but what a sweet 'ending' you have written. I loved the image of them making music together, made me all warm and fuzzy. You created great atmosphere.<br />Just think about it Anna? Could you have written this story so well twelve months ago? You have come a long way baby, as the Americans say.<br /><br />Happy Mother Tongue Day Anna! As an honorory Swede, it must be Mother Tongue Day for me too!!<br /><br />Keep safe, happy and well,<br /><br />DeniseDenise Covey https://www.blogger.com/profile/07106490051555233439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-12005511786545549282013-02-21T21:02:17.086+01:002013-02-21T21:02:17.086+01:00You did a masterful job of portraying her angst/fe...You did a masterful job of portraying her angst/fear of his picking up a drink and the idyllic life that she so wants with him. We all want that happiness to continue.<br /><br /> I did that once too, with language. Goggled phrases in French, to use in my novel. It's scary when you don't speak it yourself, but it adds so much to the story!<br /><br />Well done, and thanks for the detailed history.Yolanda Renéehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09085436784133103221noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-59397860467085401292013-02-21T17:23:46.850+01:002013-02-21T17:23:46.850+01:00Dear Sally,
I did a tiny bit of research, but I fi...Dear Sally,<br />I did a tiny bit of research, but I first read Göta Berlings Saga many years ago, together with my grandmother who was born in 1901.<br />I am forever grateful to her for taking the time to do that. It gives my rereading of it today an other dimension. I remember what she said of certain passages.<br /><br />I love Selma Lagerlöf's writing! <br />So read good books togther with someone you love!<br />Anna<br />oxAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-6908384001434016182013-02-21T17:16:18.268+01:002013-02-21T17:16:18.268+01:00Dear Sally,
Thank you for bringing this up. There ...Dear Sally,<br />Thank you for bringing this up. There is a lot of competition in the literary world. Those who write in a big language like English, have to compete with many good writers, but the rewards are great. (Look at the case of Rowling's Harry Potter.) But if you write in a language that is only spoken by 8 to 10 million people and you write in a poetic style that is not easy to translate into the larger languages, you risk remaining unknown and obscure.<br /><br />I do what I can to promote Swedish writers & poets, past and present. Selma Lagerlöf started her literary career writing verse. She was advised to write something in prose and wrote several chapters of Gösta Berlings Saga for a contest that a women's magazine, Idun, had.<br /> <br />So I think that, in our day, writing for blog hops like RFW, may make a difference. Maybe all this will help some of us 'to make it big'.<br /><br />Thanks for your thoughts.<br />Please check out the silent film!<br /><br />Anna<br />oxAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-89262777686884519552013-02-21T17:03:52.425+01:002013-02-21T17:03:52.425+01:00Dear Charmaine,
Thank you for your visit!
I lov...Dear Charmaine,<br /><br />Thank you for your visit! <br /><br />I love happy endings. <br /><br />I really wanted to give Gösta Berling a happy ending. I think he deserves it. He gets so much 'bad press' in the novel, that I wanted to show him as the nice fellow that he is. <br /><br />There is this beautiful scene in the silent film where, after he looses his position as a parson, he is an outcast, walking along this cold, dark, lonely and snowy road. He finds and picks up a tiny baby bird that has fallen out of its nest holds it gently and close to his heart as he walks on. He rescues the little bird! He who needs rescuing himself!<br /><br />If you haven't seen the film, it is worth the effort. There are English subtitles!<br />Anna<br />oxAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-89132632841424954952013-02-21T16:54:26.630+01:002013-02-21T16:54:26.630+01:00Dear Nilanjana,
Thanks so much for commenting.
Bu...Dear Nilanjana,<br />Thanks so much for commenting.<br /><br />But as far as this text goes, I'm afraid I must clear a slight misunderstanding. I know, I have used touches of the Swedish language in my January post before this one, but in this story, the main character, Elisabet, Gösta Berling's wife, is originally from Italy. So it is <i>her</i> mother tongue, Italian, that I am using in the text and not my own mother tongue, Swedish. <br /><br />This story is set in Sweden, so they would be speaking Swedish and the foreign language for them is Italian. Elisabet's background makes her something of an outsider. But it also gives her clearer vision. She loves Gösta Berling and is not at all disturbed by the fact that he has been a drunkard and is a clergyman removed from his parish. She loves him anyway and wants to help him any way she can. Even if it means playing the fiddle and always being with him to make sure he never drinks. <br /><br />I have given her a modern understanding of what it means to be an alcoholic. So my story is an anachronism. What happened at that time was that people drank themselves to death. Do to malnutrition they often caught contagious diseases such as tuberculosis and died. They did not have a clue why this happened. Alcoholic beverages were considered food at this time!<br /><br />As I explained in a tiny footnote, I went to Google to get these passages translated. I do not know the Italian language well enough to write freely in it, although I can imagine it might be fun to learn. Many years ago, I spent a week in Rome for a holiday looking at churches, Roman ruins and eating good food, so something along those lines would be a fun way to learn a language.<br /><br />Anna<br />oxAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17926688000745346961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-53896657049454714662013-02-21T16:04:30.384+01:002013-02-21T16:04:30.384+01:00I enjoyed reading your story, Anna and I loved the...I enjoyed reading your story, Anna and I loved the happy ending. You've done so much research and shared it so that everything made perfect sense as I'd never heard of this story before. Well done. Sallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14090018804016223955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-91051033763301921812013-02-21T11:48:50.937+01:002013-02-21T11:48:50.937+01:00Amazing job Anna! I love the mingling of cultures ...Amazing job Anna! I love the mingling of cultures and language in this piece. And what a happy ending! ;)Charmaine Clancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18059559142070140041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1712353207460785993.post-28736250172198580512013-02-21T08:17:59.561+01:002013-02-21T08:17:59.561+01:00Hello Anna,
I enjoyed your story very much. It p...Hello Anna,<br /><br />I enjoyed your story very much. It paints such an idyllic picture, and at the same time feels very honest too - children die, mothers die too. Liked the feather-touch humour - can't have too many fiddles. Indeed.<br /><br />And that you put some of the dialogue in your mother tongue,always makes the story feel more authentic. All the more today!<br /><br />Happy International Mother Language Day to you.<br /><br />Nilanjana Bosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08656370320322301943noreply@blogger.com