Jeremy Benson is a young talented writer and blogger in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
One of his posted writings is this one: Contemplating Dreams
He is also very knowledgeable in the area of promotion which, as aspiring writers, is something we cannot get enough good advice on. His competence extends beyond this, as he also gives technical help in the way of posting and doing videos, such as:
Tutorial, Any Video Converter
Make Blog Followable
Author Marketing Club - Resource Site for Self-Publishing Authors
To find more, look under the labels Tools, Resources, or FAQs.
Jeremy has an open-minded consideration of other people’s writing, even though it may not be his personal preference. He even takes the time to do Honorable Mention pages of persons whose work he finds interesting or feels others might like.
On a personal note, a few times we’ve pointed out some things we thought might be helpful, and Jeremy has always shown a willingness to accept constructive criticism. And to his credit, his character as a kind man is clearly seen in his handling of particularly rude remarks that were once directed toward him, rather unfairly it should be noted. His response showed restraint and thoughtfulness. Indeed, it could be viewed as a model on how to keep a situation from escalating (and notice that Jeremy did not even tell us the name of the man who was so rude). He gave us good suggestions on ways to act, reminding us of the Golden Rule: “All things, therefore, that you want men to do to you, you also must likewise do to them; this, in fact, is what the Law and the Prophets mean.” - Matthew 7:12
Even though we may not all have the same tastes in things, we can still learn something from each other, and certainly should treat one another with respect. We encourage you to take a look at Jeremy’s site for all the many things you can find there.
Thursday
Pride and Prejudice movies, part 5
The little known 1967 version
The Bible says “pride is before a crash”, and as proof of the truthfulness of this inspired saying, I submit myself.
☺☺
I have proudly declared knowing about every English production of P&P, and lo and behold, here is one I never knew about! In my defense, though, there seems to be no way of seeing this entire movie. There are only bits of it on YouTube, and those are of very poor quality. Nevertheless, as we are writing about the various adaptations here on our blog, it would be remiss of me not to mention this one. (Sorry it is out of date order, but we just found it) From the segments I have seen, I can say they seem to go along by the book for awhile very nicely, and then all of sudden they change things drastically. To read more about this version, check Movies MSN.
And so, like Elizabeth, who fancied herself safe in her assertions about Mr. Darcy, only to have to take it all back when she realized she was wrong... well, here I am, having to do the same about my knowledge of English-speaking P&P versions. With confidence I will quote any thought from the Bible, such as the one above**, as being absolutely true. And now as someone who loves to read - and I should say, watch - all things Jane Austen, I can also say Pride comes before Prejudice.
**Proverbs 16:1
The Bible says “pride is before a crash”, and as proof of the truthfulness of this inspired saying, I submit myself.
☺☺
I have proudly declared knowing about every English production of P&P, and lo and behold, here is one I never knew about! In my defense, though, there seems to be no way of seeing this entire movie. There are only bits of it on YouTube, and those are of very poor quality. Nevertheless, as we are writing about the various adaptations here on our blog, it would be remiss of me not to mention this one. (Sorry it is out of date order, but we just found it) From the segments I have seen, I can say they seem to go along by the book for awhile very nicely, and then all of sudden they change things drastically. To read more about this version, check Movies MSN.
And so, like Elizabeth, who fancied herself safe in her assertions about Mr. Darcy, only to have to take it all back when she realized she was wrong... well, here I am, having to do the same about my knowledge of English-speaking P&P versions. With confidence I will quote any thought from the Bible, such as the one above**, as being absolutely true. And now as someone who loves to read - and I should say, watch - all things Jane Austen, I can also say Pride comes before Prejudice.
**Proverbs 16:1
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Tuesday
The Juan book is published!
We're happy to let you know we have published our book on Amazon Kindle!
If you've been reading the segments here on the blog, you're familiar with Juan and Increda, as well as the other characters mentioned in the book. But you were left hanging, so to find out how the story ends, please "pick up" your copy soon ~
If you don't have a Kindle device, no problem ... as long as you have a computer, a tablet or a smartphone, there's an app for that! Click here to get your free Amazon Kindle apps
Wednesday
Pride and Prejudice movies, part 4
Our last post on P&P movies was on the 1995 mini-series, thought of by many as the quintessential version. Both of us really like this set and have watched it many times. And as previously noted, Noe will be doing future posts that get into detail about characters and persons who played each part, as well as favorite scenes and that sort of thing.
But we recently found this interview from 2006 to be very entertaining. Some of the cast and crew members are looking back at the success of their movie, and give us insight into a lot of things about it. For instance, did you know the scene at the beginning, when the Bennets are coming home from church, was shot much later, after the cast had gotten to know each other a lot better? No wonder that's such a nice "family" scene -- they really had become like a family by then. It wasn't necessarily planned that way, but that's how it happened. I just love that kind of trivia.
Sadly, the whole cast was not in this; as a matter of fact, I'm still looking for interviews with Jennifer Ehle or Colin Firth about this movie. But this has Mr. Bennet (Benjamin Whitrow), Mrs. Bennet (Alison Steadman), Mary Bennet (Lucy Briers), Mr. Bingley (Crispin Bonham-Carter), Mr. Collins (David Bamber), and Mr. Wickham (Adrian Lukis) along with Sue Birtwistle (Producer) and Carl Davis (Composer).
But we recently found this interview from 2006 to be very entertaining. Some of the cast and crew members are looking back at the success of their movie, and give us insight into a lot of things about it. For instance, did you know the scene at the beginning, when the Bennets are coming home from church, was shot much later, after the cast had gotten to know each other a lot better? No wonder that's such a nice "family" scene -- they really had become like a family by then. It wasn't necessarily planned that way, but that's how it happened. I just love that kind of trivia.
Sadly, the whole cast was not in this; as a matter of fact, I'm still looking for interviews with Jennifer Ehle or Colin Firth about this movie. But this has Mr. Bennet (Benjamin Whitrow), Mrs. Bennet (Alison Steadman), Mary Bennet (Lucy Briers), Mr. Bingley (Crispin Bonham-Carter), Mr. Collins (David Bamber), and Mr. Wickham (Adrian Lukis) along with Sue Birtwistle (Producer) and Carl Davis (Composer).
I'm sure you'll enjoy it:
Thank you for reading what noeandcindy.write !
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Friday
The Juan, Scene 13
The World’s Most Famous Mexican Detective
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
Episode title: The Stakeout
Every episode has its own links to various things.
Here are the ones for this scene:
WikiHow: How to conduct a stakeout
Increda's book for her niece
Air mattresses, air chairs,
tent, night vision binoculars
Crime prevention products in the U.K.
And here's an extra: The (Really) Long Goodbye
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
*****Find out:*****
Did the stakeout work?
Does Juan catch the thief?
Two more episodes were never posted on the blog.
Look for our book soon on Amazon!
Did the stakeout work?
Does Juan catch the thief?
Two more episodes were never posted on the blog.
Look for our book soon on Amazon!
(This is a totally fictional character and humorous story)
Every episode has its own links to various things.
Here are the ones for this scene:
Increda's book for her niece
Air mattresses, air chairs,
tent, night vision binocularsCrime prevention products in the U.K.
And here's an extra: The (Really) Long Goodbye
Get your free Amazon Kindle apps
Wednesday
Pride and Prejudice movies, part 3
1995 BBC, A&E version
This is actually a six-episode BBC production television drama which aired in 1995 in Britain and then aired on A&E Network as a mini-series in early 1996. Starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennet, this version is considered by many as the quintessential adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. For instance, when Masterpiece Classic was remaking Austen’s other works from 2007-2009 -- Emma, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Northanger, and Mansfield Park -- they did not see fit to remake P&P, but chose simply to air this version.
To be sure, more was done in the production of it: instead of having sets as was done in the 1980 version, it was shot on location, and there are many beautiful country scenes and exquisite homes to see. This always lends a sense of class to any movie. The lighting and editing is also much better than its 1980 predecessor (and other things that I’m sure have names for them if you’re in the movie-making business, but for those of us who aren’t, we just say it looks a whole lot better).
For me, though, the more often I have seen this one, the more fault I find in it. In my opinion, this version doesn’t get good until Episode 4
, which takes up after Mr. Darcy has proposed to Elizabeth. When I get to particulars of characters and scenes on our future posts, I will be specific as to what I think should have been done differently.
That being said, it is nonetheless five hours of Pride and Prejudice, and that alone is reason enough to see it! If you are not smitten with the brilliance of Jane Austen, you may well consider that a reason not to watch it, in which case you’re not reading this post anyway.
But for the rest of us, even that short amount of time just isn’t enough . . . which is why we are glad there are other adaptations, and why we own all of them we can, so we are able to watch them again and again.
Links to PBS on the movies mentioned:
Emma
Mansfield Park
Sense & Sensibility
Northanger Abbey
Persuasion
Pride & Prejudice
Other links in the post:
BBC production television drama
IMDb: Colin Firth
IMDb: Jennifer Ehle
Amazon instant video: the third episode
 |
| Mr. & Mrs. Bennet and their five daughters |
To be sure, more was done in the production of it: instead of having sets as was done in the 1980 version, it was shot on location, and there are many beautiful country scenes and exquisite homes to see. This always lends a sense of class to any movie. The lighting and editing is also much better than its 1980 predecessor (and other things that I’m sure have names for them if you’re in the movie-making business, but for those of us who aren’t, we just say it looks a whole lot better).
For me, though, the more often I have seen this one, the more fault I find in it. In my opinion, this version doesn’t get good until Episode 4
, which takes up after Mr. Darcy has proposed to Elizabeth. When I get to particulars of characters and scenes on our future posts, I will be specific as to what I think should have been done differently.That being said, it is nonetheless five hours of Pride and Prejudice, and that alone is reason enough to see it! If you are not smitten with the brilliance of Jane Austen, you may well consider that a reason not to watch it, in which case you’re not reading this post anyway.
But for the rest of us, even that short amount of time just isn’t enough . . . which is why we are glad there are other adaptations, and why we own all of them we can, so we are able to watch them again and again.
Links to PBS on the movies mentioned:
Emma
Mansfield Park
Sense & Sensibility
Northanger Abbey
Persuasion
Pride & Prejudice
Other links in the post:
BBC production television drama
IMDb: Colin Firth
IMDb: Jennifer Ehle
Amazon instant video: the third episode
Friday
The Juan, Chapter 12
The World’s Most Famous Mexican Detective
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
An Introduction to Mexico City
Translate Ruido Fuerte
Mexico -- History and Culture
Siesta? What Siesta? Mexicans work longest hours in the world
How stuff works: How can someone lie on a bed of nails without getting hurt?
And just for the fun of it -- Grammar Girl: Lay versus Lie
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
Episode title: Did you hear about Ruido Fuerte?
*****Be sure to rate the book on Amazon*****
(This is a totally fictional character and humorous story)
Every episode has its own links to various things.
Here are the ones for this chapter, along with one more:
Wikipedia explains the SiestaAn Introduction to Mexico City
Translate Ruido Fuerte
Mexico -- History and Culture
Siesta? What Siesta? Mexicans work longest hours in the world
How stuff works: How can someone lie on a bed of nails without getting hurt?
And just for the fun of it -- Grammar Girl: Lay versus Lie
Get your free Amazon Kindle apps
Wednesday
Pride and Prejudice movies, part 2
1980 BBC Version (265 min)
2013 = 200 years of Pride & Prejudice
Listed on IMDb as a TV mini-series, this five-part version of Pride & Prejudice stars Elizabeth Garvie as Eliza Bennet and David Rintoul as Mr. Darcy. Our first impression of this version left something to be desired. It seems poetic, then, that upon closer examination it improved -- or more accurately said, the more often I have seen it, the more I have come to enjoy watching this one.
You might wonder, though, why we would bother to see it again if we didn’t think so much of it the first time. Well, we all know about First Impressions! And Cindy and I have often found that seeing movies a second time has changed our initial impression, and that certainly happened for me with this version.
There are many things to separate this adaptation from the others, some being things that would recommend it, others would be up to the individual. First thing you notice is the look: it has the appearance of a live performance, except for the outside scenes (why there’s a difference, I don’t know, but it’s definitely noticeable). And the acting has that sense of a live theater production, that sort of tone and cadence associated with a play. So for those who like the idea of P&P done in that manner, this will be appealing; for others it might come across as cheaply done, although the sets and costumes are nice.
It has more scenes taken from Jane Austen’s book than any of the others. For example: the day after Lizzy was slighted by Darcy about only being tolerable and not handsome enough to dance with, all the girls, including Charlotte Lucas, are talking about it at the Bennet home, and it’s enjoyable to see that conversation. Another I like is when Charlotte asks Lizzy to play the piano, and Darcy hears her play and sing for the first time. There are many other such scenes that give viewers who have not read the book a more complete picture of this treasured novel.
Something else that is very charming is the interaction between all the Bennet sisters in various settings, which one would expect from a family of five girls not greatly separated in age. Things like having a mother whose sole purpose is to get all five girls married, and of course, their love of balls. This really highlights what living at that time in a close-knit family must have been like. And we should mention, all the actresses are cute, as all the Bennet girls are reputed to be.
Hence, if you haven’t seen this one, I recommend you give it a good look.
2013 = 200 years of Pride & Prejudice
Listed on IMDb as a TV mini-series, this five-part version of Pride & Prejudice stars Elizabeth Garvie as Eliza Bennet and David Rintoul as Mr. Darcy. Our first impression of this version left something to be desired. It seems poetic, then, that upon closer examination it improved -- or more accurately said, the more often I have seen it, the more I have come to enjoy watching this one.
You might wonder, though, why we would bother to see it again if we didn’t think so much of it the first time. Well, we all know about First Impressions! And Cindy and I have often found that seeing movies a second time has changed our initial impression, and that certainly happened for me with this version.
There are many things to separate this adaptation from the others, some being things that would recommend it, others would be up to the individual. First thing you notice is the look: it has the appearance of a live performance, except for the outside scenes (why there’s a difference, I don’t know, but it’s definitely noticeable). And the acting has that sense of a live theater production, that sort of tone and cadence associated with a play. So for those who like the idea of P&P done in that manner, this will be appealing; for others it might come across as cheaply done, although the sets and costumes are nice.
Here are some aspects of this version that separate it from the others and make it worth watching:
It has more scenes taken from Jane Austen’s book than any of the others. For example: the day after Lizzy was slighted by Darcy about only being tolerable and not handsome enough to dance with, all the girls, including Charlotte Lucas, are talking about it at the Bennet home, and it’s enjoyable to see that conversation. Another I like is when Charlotte asks Lizzy to play the piano, and Darcy hears her play and sing for the first time. There are many other such scenes that give viewers who have not read the book a more complete picture of this treasured novel.
Something else that is very charming is the interaction between all the Bennet sisters in various settings, which one would expect from a family of five girls not greatly separated in age. Things like having a mother whose sole purpose is to get all five girls married, and of course, their love of balls. This really highlights what living at that time in a close-knit family must have been like. And we should mention, all the actresses are cute, as all the Bennet girls are reputed to be.
Hence, if you haven’t seen this one, I recommend you give it a good look.
Friday
The Juan, Part 11
The World’s Most Famous Mexican Detective
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
Every episode has its own links to various things.
Here are the ones for this chapter:
This book is now available in the Amazon Kindle Store ♥
The Juan: The World's Greatest, Most Famous Mexican Detective
(Who's taking my tacos?... and where's my Zippychew?)
Episode title: We lost the scent - now what?
*****Be sure to rate the book on Amazon*****
*****Be sure to rate the book on Amazon*****
(This is a totally fictional character and humorous story)
Every episode has its own links to various things.
Dogsey site for dog lovers, on Bloodhounds
The Kennel Club, on Bloodhounds
H&H Bloodhound breeders, Bloodhound facts
Forensics4Fiction, "How to Conduct a Bloodhound Line-up"
Get your free Amazon Kindle apps
Wednesday
Let's talk about Pride and Prejudice movies
This being the 200 year anniversary of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, we will be joining in the conversations about this great book and some of the movies that have been made of it. We have scheduled a systematic approach, beginning with discussing the movies in general, one at a time. After that, the posts will take a look at the individual characters of the book, which actor played them, and our opinion of how good the portrayal was. We will also take a look at various scenes from the movies in comparison to how the scene is portrayed in the book.
We have chosen to start with the 1940 movie version, starring Greer Garson as Elizabeth and Laurence Olivier as Darcy. Now, when deciding to write about the movies, we determined not to rate them from best to worst. The reason for that is, we think there are major flaws in all of them, except this one! Yes, this version deviates wildly from the book, and there are probably only four scenes in the movie that are actually from the book... so maybe that is a flaw -- LOL
But what we love about this movie is that it actually captures the feel of the book better than the others do. Lizzy is funny and independent, the acting is strong from all the players, the costumes are wonderful, and most of all -- yes I know I’m repeating myself -- this movie has that light-hearted sense of humor that the book has.
P&P is certainly not written like a drama, even though it has the stuff of drama: broken hearts, ruined reputations, slander. But this is the genius of Jane Austen in her book, Pride and Prejudice. She sees the sense of humor in life’s episodes, and by means of Mr. Bennet’s sarcastic humor and Lizzy’s clever wit (not to mention Mrs. Bennet’s silliness), Ms. Austen keeps P&P from having the same dramatic feel as her books Persuasion or Sense and Sensibility.
I don’t think the term dramady quite fits it, because that word suggests more drama than comedy. I would suggest a whole new word: comed-ra, or for those who like bigger words, comdramady. Whatever it’s called, it is our opinion that this version is more true to the spirit of the book.
Cindy's note: Here’s a scene that not only shows a wild deviation from the book, but at the same time captures the light-heartedness of this version. I wish I could have gotten the whole scene that comes before this part, but maybe you can watch the whole movie sometime. By the way, we did see the colorized version of this once, and it's really beautiful. Just never have been able to find it to buy.
We have chosen to start with the 1940 movie version, starring Greer Garson as Elizabeth and Laurence Olivier as Darcy. Now, when deciding to write about the movies, we determined not to rate them from best to worst. The reason for that is, we think there are major flaws in all of them, except this one! Yes, this version deviates wildly from the book, and there are probably only four scenes in the movie that are actually from the book... so maybe that is a flaw -- LOL
But what we love about this movie is that it actually captures the feel of the book better than the others do. Lizzy is funny and independent, the acting is strong from all the players, the costumes are wonderful, and most of all -- yes I know I’m repeating myself -- this movie has that light-hearted sense of humor that the book has.
P&P is certainly not written like a drama, even though it has the stuff of drama: broken hearts, ruined reputations, slander. But this is the genius of Jane Austen in her book, Pride and Prejudice. She sees the sense of humor in life’s episodes, and by means of Mr. Bennet’s sarcastic humor and Lizzy’s clever wit (not to mention Mrs. Bennet’s silliness), Ms. Austen keeps P&P from having the same dramatic feel as her books Persuasion or Sense and Sensibility.
I don’t think the term dramady quite fits it, because that word suggests more drama than comedy. I would suggest a whole new word: comed-ra, or for those who like bigger words, comdramady. Whatever it’s called, it is our opinion that this version is more true to the spirit of the book.
Cindy's note: Here’s a scene that not only shows a wild deviation from the book, but at the same time captures the light-heartedness of this version. I wish I could have gotten the whole scene that comes before this part, but maybe you can watch the whole movie sometime. By the way, we did see the colorized version of this once, and it's really beautiful. Just never have been able to find it to buy.
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