Otaku Links: Geek valentines and gunpla

Otaku Links

trek_valentine

  • Speaking of tacky, I just discovered Fashion It So, a Tumblr dedicated to the questionable style choices exhibited on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Wittiest quote so far:

“So let’s just break things down for a moment. It’s the 24th Century. There is a device that will literally make ANYTHING you want out of MAGIC. Food. Gifts. Clothes. I’m assuming that somewhere there is an algorithm that will create that perfect pair of jeans that just makes your ass look real good. Let’s see what our traitor comes up with. Count Chocula, and not in a good way.”

  • Charles of Christian anime blog Beneath the Tangles has provided a resource for finding parental ratings for anime. Reminds me of when I was much younger and anime for kids was grouped right next to fanservicey anime at the video store, as if it were all the same genre. Things aren’t as bad today, but I can see how parents could still get confused.
  • Organization for Anti-Social Geniuses did an interview with Tony Yao, the blogger behind Manga Therapy. I’ve been reading Tony’s blog for almost as long as I’ve been blogging, but I still learned a lot about him.
  • A Japanese idol from the group AKB48 spent the night at a guy’s apartment and all hell broke loose. Despite years of work, she was demoted from senior member to trainee and then shaved her head as an apology to fans for her “sex scandal.” It’s very telling that her gentleman friend, also an idol, is not being blamed in the slightest.
  • In last week’s links, I revealed my Reddit username, JaceTheMindsculptor. You’re welcome to friend me. The subreddit where I’ve been spending too much time lately? r/gunpla, gunpla being the Japanese word for Gundam modeling. Browse the top links of all time to see some seriously gorgeous Gundam construction and photography.

(Photo via Dingbat Press on Etsy.) 

Introducing my latest workbook: Generating story ideas

Journalism

Late last night, I sent my third workbook, Generating story ideas, out into the world. You can pick it up in the store right now, or you can read on about the internal struggle I’ve been having about, you know, writing pages of work that might never get read.

Generating story ideas is the result of four years of practicing journalism and two weeks of library-cloistered typing sessions. Spanning 21 pages, the workbook includes seven topics on manifesting quality story ideas, plus two worksheets for putting the techniques into action.

Readers will learn:

  • How to squelch writer’s block quickly and efficiently by learning to identify the story ideas right in front of your face,
  • How to differentiate between bad ideas and ideas that lead to quality stories any blog would want to publish—before you even start writing,
  • To identify the seven most popular story scripts you see in news articles and learn how to mimic their success,
  • And the four story generation techniques I’ve used to develop hundreds of stories.

All peppered with geeky and modern examples that make it easier to follow than the stuffy, dated journalism textbooks I had to read in school. Priced at just $5 for any student’s budget.

A few people have asked me, “If you’re not interested in making a living off of selling these workbooks, why are you charging at all?”

The reason is, I want people who download these guides to be invested enough to read them, and to absorb the advice I’ve put into them. I download free ebooks all the time and never get around to them, or if I do, discredit the information as low quality since I got it for free.

I don’t think (and my early reviewers don’t seem to think) that I’m ripping people off by charging. I was especially moved when Steven Savage told me the Building a beat workbook completely changed his outlook on writing.

So putting it as transparently as I can, that’s my thinking on the matter. And as I continue to work on Effective interview techniques in these upcoming weeks, I’ll focus on making a product I would have paid a good $50 for when I was becoming what I am now.

Thanks for listening. I’d love to hear your best counter-arguments on ebooks, value, and economics in the comments.

Gundam Modeling 102

Figures and Toys

Like Gunpla? Click the image below to visit my new blog, Gunpla 101. 

gunpla101

chibi_unicorn1

Meet Chibi Gundam Unicorn. I put him here next to my Nenderoids for size comparison. It took me less than an hour to assemble this tiny transplant from Japantown—less than half the time it took me to fly him back from San Francisco.

I’m mentioning this because he’s very similar to the first Gundam model I ever built, also a chibi. But that one took me an entire afternoon. Three years later, I think I’m finally getting the hang of this Gundam building thing.

I bring this up because, after all this time, my Sept. 7, 2011 blog post, Gundam Modeling 101, is still the most popular post on Otaku Journalist. Is Gundam modeling getting more popular?

If it is, it isn’t getting more accessible. The instructions are still always in Japanese. I still make a lot of mistakes. In the years I’ve been building Gundams, I’ve learned there’s a damned steep learning curve.

The most important lesson I’ve learned though, is not to be such a perfectionist. I’m not trying to compete with the eight-year-old girl who won the Gundam Builder’s World Cup. My goal is just to get off the computer for a while and remember what it’s like to create something with my hands.

Here are some of the Gundams I’ve build recently and what I learned in the process:

exia1

 “SWAG.”

This is Gundam Exia, a 1/100 High Grade model. High Grade  means he’s the second easiest type to put together after chibis; the fraction means he’s 1/100 the size of a figurative “life size” Gundam.

I hadn’t seen Gundam 00 when I bought him; I just liked the pearl pink color. I was surprised to find out he is piloted by a guy! But I don’t put him in these wide-stanced, imposing poses because of gender. It’s more like, he’ll fall over if I put his legs too close together.

exia2

Now you see why. Just look at that rear view. Gundam Exia has no less than SIX swords on his person. I think this is why I have such a tough time keeping him balanced. Still, every time I move him to take photos, a part falls off.

Gundam Exia taught me:

  • There’s no shame in using a little superglue. Sure, Gundams are supposed to snap together, but my High Grades aren’t always the finest quality. It may make the pros cringe, but gluing a few pieces on keeps me from having to reassemble him completely every time I want to pick him up.
  • A larger scale means it’s harder, not easier, to build. I had only built 1/144 models before Exia, and I thought this one’s larger size would mean bigger, simpler parts. Wrong! It just has a lot more detail. This is why it’s so hard to find High Grade models that are 1/100 scale in the first place, and why I can’t even find a link to this particular model.

acguy1

This is Acguy, here placed next to a Clementine for size comparison. An HG model, he came in a three-pack of amphibious suits along with Char’s Z’gok and a Gogg. I bought it at Otakon 2012 exclusively for the Acguy (come on, does ANYONE like the Gogg?) and just got around to building it.

acguy2

John ended up building the other two because I sure wasn’t going to. They’re not nearly as cute! The Z’gok is okay, but I hate the Gogg. Sometimes to mess with me, John puts it on my nightstand while I’m asleep.

Acguy taught me:

  • Three-packs are not exactly a bargain. I bought all three of these guys for the same price as Gundam Exia. Even though both kits are High Grades, the Exia is significantly higher quality and had a lot more parts. You can tell just looking at him that Acguy’s torso is just two or three parts snapped together.
  • If you break it, you’re SOL. I’m not posing Acguy’s claw closed because I want to. It’s more like, I was a little rough with one of the talons and it bent. Now it doesn’t open anymore, so I can’t pose him with an open claw. Gundam kits don’t come with extra parts, so there’s nothing I can do now except buy a new Acguy, and it’s not worth doing that.

In sum, you’re not going to get any tips from me about smoothing out imperfections with sandpaper or using fancy, overpriced tools to assemble your Gundam. My philsophy to Gundam building is a leisurely one—if it’s not fun and takes too long, it’s not worth it for me.

Have you built any new Gundam models lately? I encourage you to brag!

Like Gunpla? Click the image below to visit my new blog, Gunpla 101. 

gunpla101

Otaku Links: Getting schooled by Reddit, 12-year-olds, etc.

Otaku Links

simicguildgatebig

  • I admit I’ve spent a good part of this week thinking about and trying to learn from last week’s failure. I actually made a Reddit thread about it and the advice I got was pretty humbling. (I’m a little embarrassed to even be sharing it!)
  • On the same topic, one article that really resonated with me was Steven Savage’s post on the importance of marketing yourself in geek career fields, Are You A Fact?
  • Tomorrow I’m heading to my local card shop to play in the Magic: The Gathering Gatecrash prerelease tournament. There’s a young crowd which means I always end up losing to a lot of twelve-year-olds who insist they’re “going easy on me.” This time though, I’m boning up on Prerelease survival articles in advance. Wish me luck!
  • Sweet, more Genshiken anime! I bet Viga, the East Coast’s biggest Genshiken fan, is freaking out right about now. (And if you ever get a chance to see one of her panels on the series, they’re fantastic.)
  • Speaking of talented panelists, I’ve been lucky enough to attend Charles Dunbar‘s lecture on Yokai more than once, and he always mentions a Yokai-heavy anime called Natsume’s Book of Friends. I never realized the show is on Crunchyroll now. Guess I know how I’ll be spending my free time for the next few weeks.

(Simic guild gate image via Wizards of the Coast.)

Anime Trope Bingo!

Anime

[HorribleSubs]_Cuticle_Detective_Inaba_-_01_[1080p].mkv_001346.770_1

Glomping chibis, people with animal ears, and a host of perverted characters—at first glance, it’s hard to tell what makes Cuticle Detective Inaba at all offensive. After all, it’s all of the same stuff anime producers have been dishing out at us since I was twelve and watching my first anime show, The Slayers. Exaggerated faces and emotional responses, hapless villains and slapstick violence; over the years these tropes have become indiscernible from anime as a genre.

And that’s when it hit me—this stuff has been going on for decades. In every season—in nearly every title—you can expect to see a handful of the same old tropes. Some series are good at putting their own spin on tropes, or at least elbowing the viewer in acknowledgement, like Nichibros or Sergeant Frog. What makes Cuticle Detective Inaba so obnoxious is that it wholeheartedly embraces so many tropes without irony or comment.

Luckily, I’ve thought of a way to spice up this otherwise uncreative show. Last night with the help of Twitter, I brainstormed some of anime’s most tired tropes to create an anime trope bingo card.

Feel free to print it out and try your luck. I’m going for a blackout with Cuticle Detective Inaba.

What are you watching from the Winter 2013 anime season? I’d appreciate your recommendations for a show that doesn’t make my eyes roll so much.

Update: the talented NightMiles created a randomizing HTML/JavaScript version of my bingo card. Check it out!