tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post6598262574968594834..comments2023-11-06T12:28:13.575-05:00Comments on A Million Monkeys: PersistenceJon VanZilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14026643422328853037noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-64050200881392275602009-02-20T15:07:00.000-05:002009-02-20T15:07:00.000-05:00Hmm... You know, I have no idea! I had only sister...Hmm... You know, I have no idea! I had only sisters growing up, and we all shared one bathroom. I imagine it's the same reason girls have separate shower stalls in gym class and there are separate stalls in women's bathrooms. There seems to be this societal mentality that women need more privacy than men. Weird, huh?L.C. Ganthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11079008223326433494noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-8441562897033039982009-02-19T09:54:00.000-05:002009-02-19T09:54:00.000-05:00L.C.,Good point! I have a bunch of sisters too, so...L.C.,<BR/><BR/>Good point! I have a bunch of sisters too, so I'm pretty intimately acquainted with the idea ... Maybe you can answer me a question, though: how come the girls always got their own bathroom?!Jon VanZilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14026643422328853037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-76565229322490650882009-02-18T21:44:00.000-05:002009-02-18T21:44:00.000-05:00I'd have to disagree about that game being just fo...I'd have to disagree about that game being just for boys! I come from a family of all girls--2 younger sisters and cousins for days--and I vaguely recall playing a game like the one you described.<BR/><BR/>I think we called it something weird like Ball Tag, but I remember a lot of running around, tackling, pulling hair and of course, plenty of crying. No boys in sight. I don't know whose idea it was; I just know that I jumped on board. So you see, girls can have pent-up aggression, too!L.C. Ganthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11079008223326433494noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-61116587749137506572009-02-17T19:08:00.000-05:002009-02-17T19:08:00.000-05:00Spy,LOL. Yes, that's exactly what it was. No goals...Spy,<BR/><BR/>LOL. Yes, that's exactly what it was. No goals. No objective. Only the glory of withstanding a full-on assault. Definitely a boy thing. As a side note, and as a firmly feminist guy, I find it endlessly amusing how mystified women often are by the strange rituals and byways of the burly gender.Jon VanZilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14026643422328853037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-85678283084409160692009-02-17T17:49:00.000-05:002009-02-17T17:49:00.000-05:00Okay, this might be a boy thing. Let me get this s...Okay, this might be a boy thing. Let me get this straight: if you got the ball, you got attacked. So, um... why would you want the ball? Did you win anything? Did they have to stop attacking if you made it past a certain "goal" or something?<BR/><BR/>Just sayin. The way you explain it makes me think it should be called <I>Kill the Sucker Who Grabbed the Ball</I>. :-)<BR/><BR/>My greatest problem is focusing on the next thing, when I'm impatient for the big picture. Like, right now I have a novella to write and one to end, and I'm antsing about my March novel. I have to focus on the next step, not the big picture, LOL.Spy Scribblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14299551957327543491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-31261439139561086232009-02-17T13:17:00.000-05:002009-02-17T13:17:00.000-05:00We just called it Kill the Man with the Ball. High...We just called it <I>Kill the Man with the Ball</I>. High concept.<BR/><BR/>When I asked Tess Gerritsen if she had any advice for aspiring writers, <I>persistence</I> was the first word out of her mouth. Good advice, I think.Jude Hardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09994813046526310594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-23814413536170013792009-02-17T10:45:00.000-05:002009-02-17T10:45:00.000-05:00Mark,Yep. That's what we called it too ... althoug...Mark,<BR/><BR/>Yep. That's what we called it too ... although there were a few other choice names also. <BR/><BR/>And I love that: scratch a successful writer, find a stubborn bastard. No doubt!Jon VanZilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14026643422328853037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7125214612971306615.post-19554739006540281342009-02-17T10:28:00.000-05:002009-02-17T10:28:00.000-05:00Y'know? We used to play dodgeball and, er... Smear...Y'know? We used to play dodgeball and, er... Smear the Queer (sound familiar?), with pretty similar rules, and we sometimes had kids of varying ages involved. I wonder if there's a connection to writers and these sorts of neighborhood games.<BR/><BR/>I sometimes call myself a "grinder." It applies to my writing and I've commented to my guitar teacher the same thing. Give me a goal and I'll just keep grinding away at it, day after day after day. I'll repeat the damned two measures a thousand times or I'll just keeping churning out pages and queries, whatever...<BR/><BR/>And in writing, not until I give up!, but until I accomplish whatever I'm trying to accomplish. Scratch a successful writer, find a stubborn bastard.Mark Terryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09410424046477699059noreply@blogger.com