LINEMA Are books or movies better? How do you make the perfect story? How can you battle the lack of diversity in film? What is the best format to read books?
Find out here!
The opinions of:
SHAKIRA BARRERA Actress from “GLOW” and “Lethal Weapon”
Exclusive interview with:
TRICIA HOOVER Author of bestselling books like Solstice, The Emerald Tablet, and Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life.
Includes an interview with:
DANNY TREJO Actor from “Spy Kids”, “Machete”, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”, and “The Flash”!
Graph ic
s by Ro naldo M oreno Albola y
graphic by Emma McBride
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 3 7 9
13 15
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Meet the Contributors!
Get to know the people that brought Linema to life
Battle of the Adaptations Comparing movies and books
Best Book-to-Movie Remakes, Ranked
A survey of one-hundred people says that these movies are the best remakes.
The Diversity and Adversity of Television A look into the lack of diversity in film, and how actors are trying to fix the issue
A Guide to the Marvel Cinematic Universe Dive into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with this infographic
Ebooks, Libraries, Bookstores, Oh My! Looking through facts to decide the best way to read a book
Movies Just Around the Bend New movies to look for in 2019 and beyond
Exclusive Interview with Tricia Hoover, Author Our conversation with the author of Tut: the Story of My Immortal Life and the Emerald Tablet series
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A Tablespoon of Plot, A Pinch of Character, and a Bunch of Rough Drafts
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Star Wars, Chronological and Order of Release: A Timeline
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How to craft the perfect story, as told by teachers and writers alike
A timeline of all Star Wars movies, prequels and all
All You Want to Know About Disney Fun facts, net worth, and a lot of princesses
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Ainsley Freeman is a 14-year-old who enjoys anything geeky. She loves to play video games and read comic books, as well as write her own fantasy novels. In her free time, you could find her reading in her favorite library, writing a story, or listening to podcasts. She thinks of herself as a fun person who loves to meet new people and geek out with them. Anastasia Martinez is a 14-year-old that wants to live up her high school experience. She enjoys reading, playing with her many pets and watching horror movies. When she has free time you can find her either doing absolutely nothing, as she never has plans, or harassing her siblings. Beyond that, she is mostly a kind person who enjoys cracking jokes and making people laugh. Emma McBride is a 15-year-old who loves baking, singing, and all things artsy. She enjoys watching her favorite show, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine�, with her dog, Bobby. In her free time she makes cookies and watches movies with her friends. She has had so much fun creating this Ezine, and she hopes you enjoy it as much as she does! Ronaldo Moreno Albolay is a 14-yearold who loves anything mythological, supernatural, and geeky. He loves to play fighting games, watch anime, read books, watch martial arts movies and movies with a lot of action. In his free he listens to music and draws.
photos by Mary Martinez
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Graphic by Emma McBride
From Left to Right- Ainsley Freeman, Emma McBride, Ronaldo Moreno Albolay, and Anastasia Martinez. photo by Mary Martinez
Dear Reader, Since you are reading this, we can only assume you have come to read about books and film. We would first love to thank you so very much for reading our magazine. This took us so long to complete, and we hope you enjoy reading it as much as we loved making it. This journey would not be completed without you, dear Reader. Without further ado, all of us from the Linema team is honored to present: Linema, Fall 2018. Thank you for making this journey with us, Ainsley, Anastasia, Emma and Ronaldo
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Battle of the Adaptations Comparing Movies and Books By Ronaldo Moreno Albolay Movies based on books has been one of the most popular forms of entertainment. From the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Harry Potter, nobody can deny the success of these book adaptations.
“With a good comic book movie, almost all the MCU movies, you can absolutely watch and enjoy the movie without knowing the comic,” Rucker said. “Iron Man was the first movie I saw that reproduced my love of the comics while creating Lots of fans are torn between a great movie experience for my whether the book or the movie is friends who had not read the comic.” better. Some are partial to books because they grew up reading them and some don’t even bother to watch the movies. Even when the movie is good, those who did watch it often think that the movie did some things better than the book and vice versa. Dan Rucker, an English teacher at Leander High School and comic book fan, said that comic book movies are a good place to start for new fans. “Having read ongoing storylines since the 1970’s, I’m partial to the comics,” Rucker said. “But the movies are an excellent place to start, and I think for many new fans, that first experience with the movies will be even better for them.” Rucker 4
courtesy of Marvel
Matt Rios, a staff member of also said good comic the Austin Film Society, said book movies can appeal there are movies better than to non comic book fans. the books they were based on.
“It is my personal opinion that in many cases, the film is in fact better than the book,” Rios said. “When we think about films adapted from books it’s important to look to directors who were passionate readers. Directors like Stanley Kubrick and Francois Truffaut who were obsessed with reading and who in both cases spent their careers almost exclusively making films based on books. These films are love letters, but more so they are pieces of art in their own right.” Rios said that people should not think of movies based on books and books as the same thing. “Of course you can watch the movie before reading the book. It is important to drop this notion that we should marry a film to the book from which it is adapted in all cases. Of course it is inevitable not to associate the two in some circumstances. For instance, when major studios use a books popularity in order to create a multimedia franchise. This has sparked the 21st century cliche ‘the book is much better than the movie.,’ In fact for the most part people will watch a film
without even realizing that it’s based Rucker also said what movies on a novel or some work of prose.” work better asovies and which work better as books. Rios also said to clear your mind when going to see the movie. “Now, ‘Men in Black’ ... started out as a comic book and the movie is “When going into a movie you much better,” Rucker said. “G.I. Joe must drop all preconceived ideas would not be as cool of a toy/cartoon you might have about it, including without the Marvel comic book.” and especially its basis., If you are unable to disassociate a movie from Heather Rowan, a children’s the book then you take away the programming technician and movie’s own merit, and you will librarian, said that there are better
“When going into a movie you must drop all preconceived ideas you might have about it, including and especially its basis. If you are unable to disassociate a movie from the book then you take away the movie’s own merit, and you will prejudge the work based on the expectations you had from having previously read book” -Matt Rios
prejudge the work based on the expectations you had from having previously read book,” Rios said. “So if anything, I would recommend seeing the movie before the book almost every time so as not to view the movie as a mere supplement.” Rucker mentioned two of the comic book movies he was very satisfied with. “As a Dr. Strange fan, I was very satisfied with the movie version. ‘Winter Soldier’ was very good too,” Rucker said. “‘Dr. Strange’ drew on several storylines and art styles from years of the comics. ‘Winter Soldier’ really made me believe the friendship between Cap and Bucky, more so than just the sidekick status from earlier comics.”
think you will find in many cases when the movie is vastly better, the source material is a short story. For instance, Call Me By Your Name, Brokeback Mountain, The
courtesy of HBO
Invisible Man, It’s a Wonderful Life, Rear Window, etc., because the movie develops aspects left out of the story.” Rowan also said it’s not such a good idea to read the book before watching the movie.
movies than the books they were based. “There are definitely movies, or TV series, that are better than the books they are based on,” Rowan said. “‘Annihilation’ jumps to mind, as the movie cuts out many of the nonsensical Lovecraftian elements and poor character development of the book. The TV series of Game of Thrones, The Magicians, and Outlander are also substantially better than the novels, because the TV writers fix some of the authors’ issues with having a burdensome number of characters and just generally poor organization. Average books can become great movies. Excellent books have far more of an uphill climb to be adapted into something equally excellent. I
5 courtesy of Columbia Pictures
“In my personal opinion, it’s not great to read the book right before watching the movie because it will really amplify your dissatisfaction with the differences between the two—especially parts the film might leave out,” Rowan said. “My advice if you want to see a movie based on a book you are also planning on reading—watch the movie first, then read the book at least a month later, when some of the details of the film have begun to get fuzzy. This way you’ll picture the book characters as the actors in the film and be excited about all the additional detail the book has to offer. I find if you read the book first, you need to give it an even longer wait to watch the movie so you don’t feel betrayed by how different the characters look and behave from what you have imagined.” Rios said Ascent” is movie because gives the
that “The his favorite adaptation the film story life.
“The film gives the story life,” Rios said. “‘The Ascent’ takes place in soviet villages and forests in the dead of winter. It is your classic man vs nature story as well as man vs man. Visually the film is stunning -- a masterpiece of cinematography. A bleak white landscape utilizing negative space in a way that 6 only someone like [director]
Carl Theodor Dreyer ... could hope to achieve. You can imagine a forest in Siberia for your entire life, but it won’t come close to the manufactured beauty married with the natural beauty captured by Sheptiko.” Rios went into further detail on
attention through movement and flashes, but rather by the utilization of what I’d like to think of as lyrical.” Rios said some movies worked better as books even if other books worked better as movies.
“Sure the classic example of a film that is better as a book is David Lynch’s Dune,” Rios said. Dune is one of the most beloved science fiction novels written in the latter half of the 21st century and the movie adaptation made in 1984 is easily considered one of the biggest sci-fi flops of all time. Critics all agree that is Lynch’s worst film and many believe that it is impossible to successfully adapt the novel into a film. The film that has surpassed the film that has been based on in terms of critical acclimation is Tokyo Story by Yasujiro Ozu. This film is considered one of the greatest ever made and is consistently on the top 5 of “greatest movies ever made” lists across the board. Tokyo Story works so well that it actually surpassed the film that it is a remake of, Make Way courtesy of Moss Film what he else he liked about the movie. For Tomorrow (which has been described by Orson Welles as so sad “Additionally the dialogue is pure “it would make a stone cry”.) Make poiesis,” Rios said. “The way that Way For Tomorrow was based on two characters speak to one another the novel The Years Are So Long by is remarkable and drives the story Josephine Lawrence and was then by not relying on cuts and editing techniques that keep people’s
as weird as possible. In addition to those mentioned earlier, Like Water for Chocolate does a bit better as a film than a book, simply due to the strength of the acting, but they’re very, very similar. Jurassic Park and I am Legend are also a bit better as movies because of how they maintain narrative tension. A Clockwork Orange is just far more accessible as a movie thanks to how tough to read the made-up language of the book is for most people. I also think Dr. Zhivago (film) is better than the
I think longer literary novels have more potential to do terribly as films—for instance Anna Karenina and The Golden Compass have never translated at all well into film.” While some movies are based on books, that doesn’t mean people should think of them as the same thing. The movie will have differences, but that doesn’t mean it’s automatically bad, it’s just different.
courtesy of Marvel
remade
into
Tokyo
Story.”
Rowan said her favorite film adaption was the Princess Bride because the movie captured the book’s humor. “[The Princess Bride] captures so much of the humor of the book and the sense of how the book is filled with asides and footnotes that drag you away from the story and break the 4th wall with the reader/viewer.” Rowan said. Rowan said what movies and books she thought worked better as each other. “I don’t know this is the greatest example of a movie later turned into a book because it was released in both formats fairly simultaneously (although the screenplay came first from what I understand), but I think 2001: A Space Odyssey works much better as a book than as a movie (It was based on an Arthur C. Clarke short story, but I haven’t read that, so I couldn’t say if the short story is even better),” Rowan said. “The book has a plot, whereas the movie courtesy of Marvel is a collage of scenes that in many novel, because the novel is full of cases seem to just be aiming to be absolutely atrocious poetry. Overall,
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Top-10 Book-to
Wonder (2017) 30% 28%
Harry Potter: The Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
27%
27%
17%
16% Love, Simon (2018) Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
8
15%
courtesy of Warner Brothers
Based off of J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendary Lord of the Rings series, the trilogy kicks off with a quest to save Middle Earth, with an unlikely hero at its center: A Hobbit named Frodo.
courtesy of New Line Cinema
IT (2017)
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
9%
When Harry Potter’s name is spit out of the Goblet of Fire, he is thrown into a competition against three other wizarding schools, where death is a side-effect and Lord Voldemort is rising again.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
11%
For as long as Auggie can remember, he has been treated differently because of his condition, which causes major deformations to the face. Facing his first year in public school, courtesy of Lionsgate Auggie must learn to face hate because of his condition.
9%
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003)
In the breathtaking finale of the Lord of the Rings saga, the Fellowship frantically fights off waves of orcs in hope to save Middle Earth once and for all, no matter the cost. courtesy of New Line Cinema
-Movie Remakes courtesy of Warner Brothers
In the astonishing finale of the worldwide phenomenon, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 Harry Potter faces Lord Voldemort for an intense final battle, and the fate of the Wizarding World
The fifth installment of the Harry Potter franchise, Harry, Ron and Hermione must both save their school from the Ministry of Magic while convincing everyone that Lord Voldemort is back, and ready to kill. courtesy of Warner Brothers
Rachel Chu goes to the homeland of her longtime boyfriend, Nick, only to find that his family is wealthy and there are other women who are vying for Nick’s heart. courtesy of 20th Century Fox
courtesy of Warner Brothers
courtesy of Warner Brothers
Derry is a normal town until Georgie goes missing. His brother, Bill is now set on finding his brother with a group of six other outcasts. They must all face their worst nightmares brought to life by a monster from the sewers.
courtesy of New Line Cinema
17-year-old Simon Spier’s love story is a little more complicated than the average boy. He hasn’t told his parents that he is gay, or that he has fallen for an anonymous classmate online. When Simon finally solves the identity of his classmate, it changes his life The second movie in the Lord of the Rings trilogy has the Fellowship of the Ring split apart, with Frodo and Sam still travelling to Mount Dooom, and Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas moving to save Rohan from the orcs.
Books and movies have long lived hand-in-hand, with movies being adapted into books, and viceversa. For this page, we ranked book-to-movie remakes by how well they stayed to the plot ovf the book, how well the movies understood and stayed true to the character of the original book. All people surveyed had read both the book and watched the movie of each story, and ranked them according to the above criteria. Here are some honerable mentions:
courtesy of Lionsgate
courtesy of Universal Studios
courtesy of Warner Brothers
courtesy of 20th Century Fox
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Shakira Barrera (top) wrestling in Netflix's GLOW. photo courtesy of IMDb.
The Diversity and Adversity of Television 10
By Emma McBride
courtesy of Shakira Barrera
I
t is said that variety is the spice of life, which is a mindset that can be applied to film cast diversity as well. Film cast diversity often doesn’t match the diversity of the audience, which is something that actors find troubling. It is improving, seeing as the Academy Awards nominated an all white selection of actors and actresses, and this year they had been specifically praised for their diversity in nominations. Danny Trejo, a Mexican-American actor, well known for roles in “Machete,” “Spy Kids” and “Heat,” believes that in order for there to be more people of color in television, peo
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ple have to carry on and pursue their intentions. “I think that more people need to have to show up, and say ‘I want to be in the movies,’” Trejo said. “It’s perseverance. Just because you say you want to be in, [that] doesn’t mean you’re going to get in. It’s hard to get in, [and] once you get in, it’s hard to stay in.” Monica West, an actress and producer who is known for roles in “Blood, Sand and Gold”, “Consommé” and “Best Thing You’ll Ever Do” focuses on the impact that more women leads in television has on the way that females see
t h e ms e l ve s , and how that has changed since she was a kid. “We have a long way to come until we find eqaliity in particular roles in film and television,” West said. “Especially with directors. We need more women directors because . . . most stories, maybe even now, most stories are written and directed by men. The way that we perceive ourselves, as women, while we were watching those [films] was filtered. It had a man’s filter . . . And there’s nothing wrong with that- we need men’s voices . . . we need women’s voice’s. But the fact that almost everything we watchedexcept for maybe Nora Ephron films- didn’t give us a clear vision of what it is to be a woman, and not to have it through a male gaze.” Shakira Barrera, a NicaraguanAmerican actress who has most well known for roles like “GLOW,” “Lethal Weapon” and 12 “Queen of the South”.
“I feel like 2018 has been a great year for women so far,” said Barrera. “Especially with what’s been going on with the #MeToo movement. And equal pay. And women of color coming in and demanding that we deserve to be on
by the environments they work in. “As far as color, I think we a l l see
color at first, and I think we’re moving towards inclusion, more towards who deserves the part, due to talents and merit, and hard work,” said Barrera. “And that’s what I think that’s what we are moving towards, and starting to understand.” graphic by Emma West referred to herself as trying McBride to be a lot of different people in her earlier years of her acting screen, has career, which is something she been a really great year believes to be due to how other for that. But, we still have people comment on her features. a long ways to go. I feel like “As an actress, my managers and it’s almost 70-to-30 on male agents are often men. I think that leads compared to female Hollywood is like a factory town, if leads. But you will. And if people don’t know we are doing exactly how you fit on the a good job of assembly line, then it’s splitting that hard to place you. When . . . I think I was in my early twenties we still have they were like ‘Are you the a really long young hot girl?’ ‘Are you ways to go.” the ugly smart girl?” I mean, Barrera said that’s how gross it was. And so people of now, we see that it’s changing color are because I was a nontraditional attractive affected girl who had this s m a r t quality to her.”
courtesy of Lance Kaplan
West approached the question of which steps you take to get to a certain stage in your career with more of a focus towards her mentality at certain points in her life. “When I stopped trying to get myself into these different categories, I trusted who I am and [kept] cultivating that voice and that energy” West said. “When I started as an actress they said ‘Don’t let anybody know that you can do anything else other than acting because they’ll push you towards that.’ Later in my life I found out I can write, I can produce, I can direct. Maybe if I had done those things sooner I would have played the roles that I wanted to play, that I started playing in my thirties, that I didn’t get to play in my twenties because they weren’t available.” Trejo’s view on the subject came more from his past and his experiences early on in his career with casting. “I came in never having had an acting lesson,” Trejo said. “I just kind of showed up. I had been in trouble a lot, I had been in prison a lot, so,
when I got here I played a lot of inmates. They’re doing a documentary on my life right now called ‘Inmate #1’. And you just
should accept that as best as they can. I thought about it and I said ‘I am the mean Chicago dude who’s that douche,’” Trejo said. “So now, I’ve learned how to act, I just do whatever they ask me to do.” Barrera had a “I don’t know if there is any right very different approached this or wrong but I do know that idea differently. moving in a direction where I She said that there am playing roles that empower are no blueprints women of color is exactly where I or guidelines want to be” for acting. The -Shakira Barrera steps she takes are completely different from e v e r y o n e go with what you got. I remember around her, not just white men. people kept saying ‘aren’t you “I don’t know if there is any right or afraid of being stereotyped?’ and wrong but I do know that moving I said ‘what?’ and they said ‘well, in a direction where I am playing you’re always playing the mean roles that empower women of Chicago dude, just that douche.’” color is exactly where I want to Trejo said that he is fully be,” Barrera said. “I love that I’m in aware of the various a position where I can be directly biases that occur in across from a white male lead and casting for film and be in a position of power . . . Giving television. But he the equal opportunity, that’s what also thinks that I think is most exciting… feel like part of the biases [the steps I’ve taken]have been to be made are part of his respected in the same way and given identity and the same opportunity as a white p e o p l e male. All I feel like I can push for is having those opportunities and trying to open the same doors for people who are coming after me.” These actors have all come from very different places, and they all have unique mindsets when it comes to sexism and racism in film and television. But at the end of the day, there’s really only one thing people should care about. “We do see color, but you just want to see some good acting,” Barrera said. “And I think that that’s hopefully the world that we’re moving towards.” 13
courtesy of Wizard World
Marvel Cinem Top Box Office Hits Infinity War: $2.046 Billion The Avengers: $1.519 Billion Avengers Age Of Ultron: $1.405 Billion
Black Panther: $1.344 Billion
Upcoming Movies Captain Marvel: March 8, 2019 Avengers: Endgame: May 3, 2019 Spider-Man: Far From Home: July 5, 2019
Doctor Strange 2: (TBD) Black Panther 2: (TBD)
2011 Thor 2013 2008 Captain America: The First Avenger Iron Man 3 Iron Man Thor: The Dark World The Incredible Hulk
2010 Iron Man 2
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Graphics by Anastasia Martinez
Ave
2014 Captain America: The Guardians of th
2012 Marvel’s The Avengers
matic Universe Most Popular MCU Characters Spider-Man
Iron Man
Captain America
The Hulk
Loki
Thor
Doctor Strange
Black Panther
Thanos
Black Widow
Groot
Ant-Man
Hawkeye
Deadpool
Winter Soldier
Nick Fury
Movie Ratings: Lowest to Higest 20.
Thor: The Dark World
19.
The Incredible Hulk
10.
Ant-Man and the Wasp
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Iron Man 2
8.
Doctor Strange
17. Avengers: Age of Ultron
7.
Guardians of the Galaxy
16.
Thor
6.
Captain America: Civil War
15. Captain America: The First Avenger
5.
Spider-Man: Homecoming
14.
Iron Man 3
4.
Marvel’s The Avengers
13.
Ant-Man
3.
Thor: Ragnaork
12. Guardians of the Galaxy 12. Vol. 2
2.
Iron Man
11. Avengers: Infinity War
1.
Black Panther
18.
Ratings From Rotten Tomatoes
2017 Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 2019 Spider-Man: Homecoming 2015 Captain Marvel Thor: Ragnarok engers: Age of Ultron Avengers: Endgame Ant-Man Spider-Man: Far From Home
Winter Soldier he Galaxy
2016 Captain America: Civil War Doctor Strange
2018 Black Panther Avengers: Infinity War Ant-Man and the Wasp
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Ebooks, Libraries, Bookstores, Oh My! Solving what book format is best for reading, once and for all. By Ainsley Freeman
A
vid readers can find escape in books, or use them to better understand something that is happening in their own life. The average person reads about four books a year, according to Iris Reading. There are three major ways to read books: using an e-book, buying a book from 16 a bookstore, and borrowing from
a library, and it can be hard to figure out which is the best to use. Reading books has been done for thousands of years. People who read are more likely to be better learners, studies by the National Education Association say. Reading is important for children, explained Rachel Lee, a fourthgrade teacher at the Girls’ School of Austin. “From an educator’s perspective, there is a very strong connection between reading and writing,” Lee said. “Reading helps you build your vocabulary, improves your ability to write creatively, and, of course, reading allows you to escape reality.” In a survey of 46 freshman, conducted by Linema, over half said they preferred to read
books bought from a bookstore. Twentysix percent of people said they preferred borrowing from a library, and 19 percent said they preferred e-books. Books can be very important to people, according to Dean Smith, a librarian at the Austin Public Library. “Reading makes you think, it expands your brain, and it makes you a better person.” Smith said. “I mostly borrow books from the library and I read e-books sometimes, but it just takes your attention away way too much. And I buy probably 10 or 12 a year.” To Lee, the lack of a price tag on library books is a big selling point. Simply getting a card grants access to so many different books, which is important to lots of people.
photo by Ainsley Freeman “The great thing about libraries is that you can borrow as many books as you like,” Lee said. “There’s no pressure on how much the book costs, so you are more likely to pick things you might not normally consider. If you really like a book then it’s a nice idea to buy it so that you can keep it on your bookshelf and re-read it.” Booksellers may have different points of view, though. Elizabeth Jordan, CEO of Book People, said instead of focusing on the ease of libraries, sellers focus on the nostalgia and feel of owning a book. However, even booksellers use libraries. “As a bookseller, I’m partial to folks who want to own books but even I can’t
own every book I want to read,” Jordan said. “I’m a heavy user of the library... I believe that it’s important that people have access to as many books as possible. Libraries fill that need, plus they provide a space for the community to gather. The world needs both bookstore and libraries - both book owners and book borrowers.” Reading books is not all about what people prefer, though.A study by Pew Research in 2014 has shown that e-books can be less beneficial than hard-copy books. In the study, it was shown that people who read on an e-reader have a harder time remembering the plot of the story they are currently reading. Not only that, but the same study showed
that the majority of Americans still read hard-copy books, with 65 percent reading paper books instead of e-books in 2016. “Any time away from electronics is beneficial,” Lee said. “Also, reading at night with an e-book has proven to disrupt good quality sleep.” The study also showed that the percent of print book readers has dropped six points since 2011. Sally Edwards, a freshman at the Liberal Arts and Science Academy, considers herself an avid reader. “I love the feel and smell of books. Nothing can replace that,” Edwards said. “I feel like it’s more personal, like, 17 it’s your book. You can write in it
The feeling of ownership of a hard-copy book is a love that many people share, as well as the texture and feel of the paper. In the survey Linema conducted, 17 percent of people said that they liked to read physical books because of the feel of the paper or just the personality that comes with it. “It is also more of a physical process because you have to turn the pages,� Lee said. “I very rarely buy books and I have never read an e-book.� A study by Penguin Random House, a major publishing company, shows some interesting differences about readers. According to the study, women read more e-books than men, a majority of e-book readers are under 45 years old, and people who read history books tend
do find time to read, I mostly read physical books that I have purchased or were given to my by publishers,� Jordan said. “However, I’ve recently started borrowing e-books from the Austin library which means that, even if I leave home without a book, as long as I’ve got my phone I’ve always got something to read.� The accessibility of e-books is a draw for many readers. In Linema’s survey, 10 percent of people said that the main reason that they preferred e-books was because of portability and easy access. “I think they’re kind of helpful because you can have a lot of books on a flight in one small kindle,� Edwards said. Jordan, while she said that she loves working at BookPeople, there is a lot more
“I love the feel and smell of books. Nothing can replace that.� -Sally Edwards, Freshman
18
graphics by Ainsley Freeman
to read print books, while people who read fiction genres tend to read e-books. “I would imagine that it is something to do with the formatting of the books,� Lee said. “Literature and fiction are usually heavily textbased, and therefore lend themselves better to Kindles, etc, whereas non-fiction can sometimes include lots of graphics which present themselves better in paper format.� Jordan said previously when she took the time to read, she read hard-copy books. Recently, this has begun to change for her. “When I
to bookselling than just talking about books. “There’s no greater joy to me than getting to spend time on the sales floor telling customers about my favorite books and hearing about theirs,� Jordan said. “But, it’s hard work. There are books to shelve and inventory counts to run. There are times when we are so backed up in receiving that we have as many people back there as possible slinging 40 pound boxes of books around.� Buying from bookstores is helpful to the companies, as it supports them and allows them to obtain new, recently-published works. In a study by Brandon Gaille, a marketing company for small businesses, it showed that bookstores sell over 2.7 billion books a year. It also said that a quarter of people say that they read e-books on a daily basis, and 36 percent say that they like to buy books as a holiday gift. “I think that books are a wonderful holiday gift,
especially if you write a message inside the front cover to personalize it.� said Lee. “Holidays are also a time when you most need books to read as you usually have a lot of free time. The downside is that books are very expensive. One option would be to go to discount bookstores such
photo by Ainsley Freeman
as Half Price Books or Recycled Reads.” Reading is important to many, from people who read books to escape the harshness of reality, or to learn about history, or to just take time off of work. The format of the book matters as little as the color of the book’s jacket or an e-reader
cover. It is all about preference, whether us heroes that just show us the best parts someone likes to read from an e-book of ourselves. So we can feel good about because it is light and portable, or have a ourselves as well as escape dull, daily life.” hardcover book they bought from a store. “I feel like books can transport us to 19 another world, and just give us this feeling of freedom,” Edwards said. “They give
Movies Just Aro
New movies to look fo
Dark Ph June 7,
Dumbo March 29, 2019 How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World Feburary 22, 2019
Justice Leau June 14
Shazam April 5, 2019
Captain Marvel March 8, 2019
Toy Sto June 21
Avengers: Endgame May 3, 2019
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The Lio June 24
ound The Bend
or in 2019 and beyond
heonix , 2019
Spider-Man: Far From Home July 5, 2019
uge: Part 2 4, 2019
Frozen 2 November 27, 2019
It: Chapter Two Spetember 6, 2019
ory 4 1, 2019
on King 4, 2019
Avatar 2 December 18, 2020
Wonder Woman 1984 November 1, 2019
graphic by Anastasia
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An Exclusive Interview With Tricia Hoover Tricia Hoover, better known as her pseudonym PJ Hoover, is the author of bestselling books like Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life, Solstice, and the Forgotten Worlds series. Hoover lives in Austin, Texas. She visits schools to talk about her writing career and has inspired many to become authors. photo courtesy of Tricia Hoover.
Linema- So tell me a little bit about yourself. What
inspired you to become a writer? Tricia Hoover- Oh, well, I used to be an engineer before I was a writer. I always liked math and science and stuff like that and it was kind of like one of those, more like, I think I always loved being creative. I always loved tackling big projects, an I’d been a huge reader, and so I thought, you know, it would be a really fun thing to start creating books of my own, worlds of my own, and come up with my own plot 22 ideas, and characters and stuff like that. And so,
By Ainsley Freeman I just figured I’d give it a shot, and I wrote for a while and at the same time as I was doing engineering. In 2008 I started writing full-time. L- Have you learned any valuable lessons as an author? TH- Well, yes, one very valuable lesson is that you have to be very, very patient, because you can work really, really hard and a lot of the time you’re waiting on other people to finish reading your manuscript, or get edits back and stuff like that. You just have to be very patient with other people but you also have to check in and make sure people are staying connected and everything like that. So, I’d say that’s one valuable lesson. The other one- I think another one I would say is always know that that the final product, the final book that comes out is going to be your book, and so you need to make changes that you are comfortable with, and not make changes that you don’t feel comfortable with doing. You don’t have to- if your editor tells you- suggests some changes that you have to make, you don’t have to make all of those. You can kind of pick and choose which ones you think are going to fall in line with your vision for the book. So, yeah, just be true to yourself, work hard, be very, very patient, and always keep busy with something. L- How do you come up with ideas for your books? TH- I’m a big mythology fan, and so a lot of my ideas come from mythology, like my original trilogy, The Emerald Tablet, and it has a lot of really big connections to mythology, and then there was Solstice, my young adult novel, which is mythology based, and so, like my King Tut books, so really one of the first places I started was with things that interest me, one of those things being mythology, and I kind of play around with story ideas, play around with plot ideas, and see what story speaks to me the most, and I think that the thing is, when you’re writing, you think you have an idea for a book and you start writing the
first draft, or whatever, and you’re going to get more ideas and different ideas, and stuff like that, and just kind of going back through in revisions, and adding yours in and changing them and kind of letting the creativity take on a life of its own. So, yeah, always keep your mind open for ideas everywhere, you just never know who’s going to say something funny that sparks a really cool idea, if you’re going to watch a TV show that you’re going to get an idea from, or play a video game, or whatever it is, there are definitely ideas everywhere. L- What do you enjoy most about your life as an author? TH- Well, I get to spend all day with my dogs, in my office writing, so that’s really fun! I love being creative, I love books being published, I love- there are so many of the aspects of being an author, a lot of people think it’s just writing, but there’s so many things, there’s working with other people, there’s going to conferences, there’s author visits like when I came to the Girls School [of Austin], and stuff like that. I love connecting with people who are readers, and I love connecting with other writers, sharing in other people’s good news, yeah. And truly, I think what I love most is being busy, and feeling productive, and being creative, and there’s so many ways you can do that as an author. L- Have books that you’ve read influenced your life in any way? TH- I would say yeah, for starters, I love the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit especially, I think that those are some of my favorites, and it wasn’t so much the overall everything, it was more the world-building, behind the books I really loved, the storytelling in the Hobbit, I really love the choose your own adventure books, I think those have definitely influenced my writing. I laugh, but I think that Nancy Drew books influenced it as far a mysteries, and I always put secret tunnels in every book I write, and I think the thing is, one of the best things you can do as an author is just read widely, read all sorts of different books, I read lots on nonfiction, and I read lots of fiction, but different ideas come from everywhere, nonfiction is a great way to get lot of cool, interesting facts, that you might not otherwise get, and so those always make for interesting story ideas, I think pretty much everything I read influences me in some way or another, and, so, just keep reading all the time, every day. L- What do you like to do when you’re not writing? TH- When I’m not writing, I do kung-fu, I just tested for my fourth-degree black belt, so that’s awesome. I exercise every day, I like hanging out with my kids. I like
doing stuff around the house, like projects around the house, I recently made curtains. I like going to movies, I think movies are really fun, especially at Alamo Drafthouse, that’s my favorite place to go, because they have the best popcorn. I always like to be doing something. Whatever it is, cleaning out a closet, or hanging out and watching Star Trek, or whatever it is, it’s fun to always be doing something and have other side projects. You don’t want to write all the time, I mean you could easily find something to do and have other interests to kind of keep your mind from worrying about being patient when you’re waiting for other people. L-What do you find is the hardest thing for you to write? Specific types of characters? Specific types of scenes? TH- I think that what I would say is the hardest thing to write is, when you’re writing a story, you’re and you know how the story starts and you’re really excited to start writing the start of the story, and then you kind of get fifty pages in and all of the sudden you’re not quite sure where your plot is going, you’re not quite sure what’s going to happen, you’re kind of not as in love with your story idea as you were before, so I think it’s about the middle of the story that’s very hard to write. I think one of the best things to do when you hit that point is to kind of take a step back and go through the plot again, and really think about what you are trying to write and make sure to take time to think it out again, because that will help you. It’s easy to write when you know what you need to write. It’s hard to write when you aren’t quite sure what you want people to do, or what’s supposed to happen next, or what the next plot point is supposed to be, or anything like that. Just, taking the time to think that through, even if it means that you take a break from the actual writing while you do that. L- Do you have any advice for any aspiring writers? TH- Stick to it. You’re going to get a lot of rejection, a lot of people are going to tell you “no,” it’s a hard path to get a book published, especially traditionally published. Be very flexible, look into all kinds of publishing options whether it’s small publishers or big publishers, or whatever it is, just be flexible, keep up with the times, keep current with what is being published and what’s no longer being published right now. Everything comes back around, but believe in yourself and also be willing to look into advice from other people, and learn from other people. Constantly be learning about the business, about your writing, whatever it is, just keep 23 your mind open to that.
Inspirations
Plot & Characters
Basic Story Process
Settings Graphic by Anastasia Martinez
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Themes
A Tablespoon of Plot, A Pinch of Character, And A Bunch of Rough Drafts Crafting The Perfect Story By Anastasia Martinez
new. Whether writing fiction or around them and then find a nonfiction there will always be the resolution somehow.” oming up with an challenge of crafting a perfect story. Gaines also said how going about idea for a story and Developing a detailed plot and starting a story should be, and that elements to best suit characters is a huge part in the knowing the audience needs to it is difficult. The writing process, as without these understand the story is a huge part world is filled with steps, you cannot get to the final in the writing process. many different stories already so product. Published author “What’s wonderful about the theater it’s sometimes a struggle to come Elizabeth Gaines said writers is that you don’t have to have up with something original and need to be inspired to start five hundred pages a story. to tell the story,” “That’s how I start Gaines said. “you everything is to say only have two hours why am I inspired and so every word has to sit down and to matter and every write right now, action has to matter and what am I trying every interaction between to say, what is characters has to matter it that’s in my so if you can start with that soul,” said if you can start with what is Gaines. “Once the essentials and what has to I’ve identified that I say Graphic happen then you can expand by Anastasia okay now what’s that best Martinez it into a five hundred page way to invent a bunch of book and put all the other Elizabeth Gaines. courtesy of people who can then talk about stuff around it.” Elizabeth Gaines that from different perspectives and Gaines said how making come together and have obstacles sure the story matters to 25
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important to it mattering to the reader. “You have to understand essentially what is the story and what am I trying to say, what is my voice and why is this story important to tell now in this time and how will this story age and it’s a how do I want to tell it from my perspective in a way that matters to me and in a way that will matter to my audience, said Gaines. Developing a story before you start is such an important thing you must do, every interviewee had something to say on the topic of crafting your idea before you start a final product. Rough drafts are part of the process you must take to get to that final draft, they help you create ideas and rework things in your story that do not work. Gaines’s opinions on rough drafts are that they are amazing and much needed to achieve the final product. “I love rough drafts,” Gaines said. “Nothing springs from your head perfect, we don’t give birth to thirty year olds, we give birth to babies, and they grow through a process of iteration, and it’s the same in
as well as many other platforms. might serve as their first draft and Her outlook their on drafts are that they are a helping hand in the writing process. “A lot of times its hard its a struggle it is work to figure out how you get across to the audience, how you fit everything in and what you take out your doing a lot of that initial struggle in the Jessica Luther. Taken by Janelle Renne. courtesy rough drafts,” of Jessica Luther Luther said. “Sometimes it will just flow and actual first draft might serve you’ll be like ‘oh writing is the best as their second draft.” thing ever,’ but most of the time it Rough drafts serve the basis for can be a pain.” all stories, there will be difficulty Ivonne Rodriguez is a fourth writing a final draft without them, grade writing teacher at Graham but what happens when you come Elementary in Austin, Texas and her across a writing block you can’t get whole curriculum around? Gaines’s advice on what she revolves around does is simple. the writing process “So what I would do is when I’m which takes you to “Nothing springs from your head your perfect, we don’t give birth to thirty final year olds, we give birth to babies, draft. and they grow through a process of Graphic by Ainsley “We go Freeman iteration, and it’s the same in writthrough a different stuck on one particular ing.”- Elizabeth Gaines, Author model of the scene I move onto the writing process first next, if I take the walk around the we brainstorm and neighborhood and it’s still not fixed gather our ideas,” I move on, and it’s okay if I write Rodriguez said. garbage the first time I write that writing.” “Then we give the students a graphic scene because I can go back and Jessica Luther is a sports reporter and organizer and I want them to use the rewrite it,” Gaines said. “At least published author, her works graphic organizer to organize their there is architecture there that I can have appeared on the Austin thoughts and sometimes depending work from, just keep doing it don’t 26 Chronicle and Vice Sports on the student the graphic organizer let perfection be the killer of done.”
of feedback is to give you insight on what you can do to make your story better. Rodriguez’s take on feedback ties in with the students, she has to be careful as with children you cannot go straight out and tell them it is all wrong. “It depends on the students...” Rodriguez said. “With some students I have to be a little more mindful of what I say, because they’ll take it to heart, and I understand your writing can sometimes be very personal and to have someone critique Ivonne Rodriguez. courtesy of Ivonne it is hard, it can Rodriguez be difficult. So Luther’s advice on blocks is a little what I try to different. She sometimes forces do is praise herself to push through blocks. them first “One of my things that I do to try and ease to make it a bit easier, [is that] I into the handwrite when I get stuck in order to force myself to pay attention,” Luther said. “There is a sort of you just force yourself but there is other stuff you can do, I’m a big outliner and again Graphic by Anastasia I do it by hand and I will outline Martinez again and again and it will get more detailed, I’ll move stuff around and I’ll try to see if I can get a different criticism. I’m trying to put myself in their shoes i f someone were criticizing my writing and I didn’t like it I guess I’d say that the goal of the feedback is not to bring you down the goal of the feedback is the help you grow and learn as nobody’s perfect we’re all in pattern down. Sometimes that will the same place to learn.” help, and sometimes it is just the pain How Gaines’s sees feedback is based of sitting down and making yourself upon you knowing your writing write through it, but sometimes needs critique and how to except it. you just have to walk away, go do “I think it’s important that we get something else and give your brain feedback on our writing, but here’s a rest from the thing that your stuck the thing and this is something that on.” I didn’t know and struggled with,” Feedback is something we all need on said Gaines I didn’t know how to our writing no matter how much we love myself, so I had a big hole in my believe it is not needed. The purpose self identity and when I wrote and I
gave it to others for critique, what I really wanted was for them to tell me that it was good so that I could know that I was good so that I could love myself,” Gaines said. “That is not a place to write from, that is not a place to be an artist from, only if we can accept that the structure of your story is wrong or that I don’t understand what you’re actually trying to say or that I don’t feel aligned with your characters only if we can take that kind of critique and not be crushed by it would I say go out and show it to other people.” Crafting a story is hard work, there is no easy way around the final product you must go through a process of events to make your story as perfect as it can be. Even if you would like to dive in and write that final copy the first time, challenges will appear around you and you will be faced with the consequences of your choice. Over the experiences you come across throughout the process you will learn more and retain greater information that will help you become a better writer. “People are always going to have an opinion about our writing and it’s not always going to be good that doesn’t mean that it’s wrong and that doesn’t mean that it should be changed it’s just something that you should keep in the back of your mind … and say does that have value or does it not,” said Gaines. 27
Star Wars Universe Timeline (1977)
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In Chronological Order (2002)
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In Order (2005)
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of
Release
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Graphics by Emma McBride
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Disney Net Worth
All
Source: Forbes
About
$152.2 Billion
Disney was founded in October of 1923. Mulan was the first Disney Princess to not be a princess by birth or marriage.
Disney By Ainsley Freeman
The first Disney movie was Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, made in 1937.
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1937
Mickey Mouse was first created in 1928.
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Top-5 Disney Princesses Source: IMDb
Elsa (Frozen, $400.7M)
Moana (Moana, $248.7M) graphics by Ainsley Freeman
Merida (Brave, $237M)
Belle (Beauty and the Beast, $218.9M)
Jasmine (Aladdin, $217.35M)
Unsurprisingly, Frozen (2013) is the highest grossing Disney film of all time.
photos courtesy of Disney 2010
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Thank you, from Ainsley, Anastasia, Emma and Ronaldo!
graphic by Anastasia Martinez