Michael: it will help increase appreciation if you explain how you come up with this stuff. Is it fair and accurate to say that you read the original texts closely, that you then improvise based on phrases that trigger your fanciful extensions, far enough to be entertaining as satirical interpretation, but still close enough to what is implied in the text to resound deeply? You then find (how I cannot imagine) illustrations that illustrate your story. If yes, that's more or less what you are up to, then you have shown that you cannot make this stuff up.
This stuff IS so good, and part of me wants to just shut up and let you give me all the credit. But...Judges/Samuel/Kings is one of ancient literature's great works. I'm mostly just ruining the stories a little bit.
Maybe to illustrate, here's what the Bible (KJV) says after Samuel moves into the Temple:
"Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people."
That's all in the text. (The Hebrew is unclear, the women may have been temple employees of some kind. I chose the interpretation that makes these ladies more similar to Samuel's mom.)
The thing where they're dangling meat over their lovers bodies, OK, I made that part up.
But the main thing I had to ask myself is, should we hear that Eli confronts them like that? God certainly thinks he doesn't go far enough -- maybe we should leave that part out. And Eli seems like a decent enough guy; if he knows about this stuff, why does he want them to succeed him?
And -- no spoilers -- what happens next is truly grotesque, and involves the Philistines. I wasn't sure whether to plow through and make this story extra long...in the end, I decided Eli deserves to be the focus for now. But we have to remind everyone how the Philistines are involved.
I rewrote the first five paragraphs like a dozen times trying to figure out a way to put the pieces together.
So I'd say that I read the stories, try to figure out what people are doing and why, how to tell the story, rewrite it a million times, try to make it funny, and then the last thing I do is find the images -- that's the easiest part, because these scenes were painted by great artists for hundreds of years. I just google it.
Yes! Only problem is my high-pitched awful muppet voice, which is well-suited for getting the attention of children and nothing else. But maybe someone can play me as the narrator??
Ha! I have a similar issue. I think American Bystander should have a resident announcer, like Shadoe Stevens, who can do the audio versions of everything.
This stuff is so good.
Michael: it will help increase appreciation if you explain how you come up with this stuff. Is it fair and accurate to say that you read the original texts closely, that you then improvise based on phrases that trigger your fanciful extensions, far enough to be entertaining as satirical interpretation, but still close enough to what is implied in the text to resound deeply? You then find (how I cannot imagine) illustrations that illustrate your story. If yes, that's more or less what you are up to, then you have shown that you cannot make this stuff up.
This stuff IS so good, and part of me wants to just shut up and let you give me all the credit. But...Judges/Samuel/Kings is one of ancient literature's great works. I'm mostly just ruining the stories a little bit.
Maybe to illustrate, here's what the Bible (KJV) says after Samuel moves into the Temple:
"Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people."
That's all in the text. (The Hebrew is unclear, the women may have been temple employees of some kind. I chose the interpretation that makes these ladies more similar to Samuel's mom.)
The thing where they're dangling meat over their lovers bodies, OK, I made that part up.
But the main thing I had to ask myself is, should we hear that Eli confronts them like that? God certainly thinks he doesn't go far enough -- maybe we should leave that part out. And Eli seems like a decent enough guy; if he knows about this stuff, why does he want them to succeed him?
And -- no spoilers -- what happens next is truly grotesque, and involves the Philistines. I wasn't sure whether to plow through and make this story extra long...in the end, I decided Eli deserves to be the focus for now. But we have to remind everyone how the Philistines are involved.
I rewrote the first five paragraphs like a dozen times trying to figure out a way to put the pieces together.
So I'd say that I read the stories, try to figure out what people are doing and why, how to tell the story, rewrite it a million times, try to make it funny, and then the last thing I do is find the images -- that's the easiest part, because these scenes were painted by great artists for hundreds of years. I just google it.
I'm seeing these as a sketch TV series with you as the narrator. That's how I imagine them when I'm reading them and I'll bet that would work great.
Yes! Only problem is my high-pitched awful muppet voice, which is well-suited for getting the attention of children and nothing else. But maybe someone can play me as the narrator??
Ha! I have a similar issue. I think American Bystander should have a resident announcer, like Shadoe Stevens, who can do the audio versions of everything.
I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment!
Just like Eli!!
I am not a huge bible fan. But I have to say I LOVE LOVE LOVE the use of ART in this blog. So Kudos to your use of art.