Oct
15
2009
Round 8 Video – Frogs and Torture
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Rhae has been eliminated. This round I asked each reader to assign a challenge to any contestant. This means one contestant may get numerous challenges and another not get any. The contestants have received the challenges by email. You’ll be able to see what they are as they post their entries. The first part of the video includes footage from the frog exhibit and animal displays in the Museum of Natural History . The second half includes footage of Don Delillo, Paul Auster, Eve Ensler, Art Spiegelman, George Saunders and Jonathan Ames.
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October 15th, 2009 at 6:14 am
Very sorry that Rhae’s demise was the beginning of my rise to stardom.
Seriously though, very disappointed that the brains of fourth fiction are out… at least we still have the testicles of fourth fiction (only one man standing).
October 15th, 2009 at 7:01 am
What kind of challenges these are you email me Host! In 600 words to do all this? Haha I can’t wait to see what others have…
Video was very good. I like how Anna Bones open letter like it have contamination! Change from frog and animal to torture was strange. Many people here they don’t know their are Americans like that who speak against goverment.
I’m sorry for you Rhae. Maybe to much brain (and not enough of body) for some readers.
October 15th, 2009 at 7:09 am
Anna!!!! How can you be both smart AND pretty?? It’s not fair!
That is all.
(going to check out PEN and ACLU immediately – the images of those coloured-in handprints will be stuck in my mind for some time now…)
October 15th, 2009 at 7:21 am
I felt it really moving the end bit … the Byron Bay Festival which I’ve been to the past two years has an empty chair practise via InternationalPEN whereby those in attendance are told the story of a writer who is unable to attend because they have been detained, torture, are missing or murdered. It really hammers home how lucky we all are in the West to live without fear of Government terror of speaking our mind openly and honestly.
Interestingly enough until the mid to late 60’s the definition of terrorism was fear perpetrated on people by their Government!
October 15th, 2009 at 8:12 am
lol, thanks littlestar for the compliment
who knows maybe next time you can be in the video? Host is easy, just be really nice to him.
October 17th, 2009 at 4:05 am
I soooo don’t think so, Anna. I don’t have a cute kid or a cool job. I’m just a writer-procrastinator (c:
October 15th, 2009 at 7:14 am
I am with Anna full heartedly this time. The voters are showing their aiming for the lowest denominator in writing. *shaking head* Especially when Rhae showed us all this week that she was willing to take on board what the readers were asking for and stay authentic to her story at the same time.
And Anna – we felt the same last week with Dylan announcing the demise of Omar. It’s a cruel way to get your 15 seconds of fame.
Host: Thank’s so much for turning my challenge for Rhae back onto all of us outside participants. I’m so glad I didn’t go with the rosary beads now
October 15th, 2009 at 8:46 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Karen James, Fourth Fiction. Fourth Fiction said: Round 8 Video – Frogs and Torture http://bit.ly/4CoYDn #4thfiction [...]
October 15th, 2009 at 11:08 am
Thank you, Jodi and Annasbones. However, considering both the restrictions on the word count as well as my resistance to bending my writing to accommodate the wants of most of the readers, I never thought I would have survived as many voting rounds as I did. Therefore, the outcome was no shock or disappointment.
I appreciate the Memoriam, Fourth Night. If that footage was included solely because I was the one who was eliminated, then I can say that some good indeed came out of this round’s elimination. I am, however, curious about something. This event took place on the night of the 13th, before the poll closed. So did you film this with the expectation I was going to get voted off?
October 15th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
Rhae, I would have gone to the Torture Memos reading and filmed there regardless of whether or not you were voted off. I can see the poll results so I knew you had the most votes at that point, but it was close. The gap actually narrowed just before midnight.
October 15th, 2009 at 7:29 pm
The exhibits from the museum were marvelous and the frogs delightful, but I was not as charmed as the rest of the readers and writers by the political pitch at the end. I thought an effort was made to keep politics out of Fourth Fiction. Aside from that, I cannot for the life of me understand what benefit it serves to drudge up a troubled past when instead we might focus our energies on the present and on looking forward. I may not agree with our president on every count but I do stand with him on that point.
October 15th, 2009 at 7:31 pm
Why are you guys commenting outside your own posts?
October 15th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
In the email with the challenges, Host told us it was fine to respond to the videos directly on those posts to make it easier on all of us. What we are to avoid is bickering between one another on each other’s posts. This seems sensible to me. Nicely done on the video, by the way. But why such a solemn delivery? It was very femme fatale.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:28 am
From Dylan on the video: I like the groovy music playing during the plastic animals. And the blue frog.
From Jodi: he kept wanting to know if it was going to be scary when Anna was on – not that he thought you were scary Anna … he just picked up on the mood!
October 16th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Lol! I played my part right it seems. I was indeed going for the solemn and slightly scary
I actually had to redo it a bunch of times because it was coming across too cheerful which quite looked strange against the sterile background.
I agree with Dylan, the frogs were a very colourful addition! I vote for more animal themed fourth fiction videos
PS: in case anyone wants to know, the bone I was holding in the vid was a scapula (a shoulder bone) and non-human! it’s from a seal, and I found it on a beach.
October 17th, 2009 at 4:09 am
Seals have SHOULDERS under all that slippery seal-blubber??
Anna, did you find a seal shoulder on the beach, or an entire dead seal? Either way…ew! You know most people go to the beach to dip their feet in the water and make sandcastles, right? Not haul dead stuff home? (c:
October 19th, 2009 at 5:18 pm
Oh yes
And they have baculums too (I promise you, you *will* want to look this one up)
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:19 pm
I did!!
Hope you don’t go around picking those up at the beach… (c;
October 16th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
I’m speaking on Tuesday morning at a Twitter Conference in Brooklyn (Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts) about Fourth Fiction: “Launching the First Blog-Based Reality Show: Reinventing Literature for the Interactive, Real-Time Reader” http://bit.ly/ZWTZH
If you’re interested in the event, email me and I’ll send you a promotional code for 20 percent discount.
October 16th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
poop, i’ve got a class on tuesday ;( (don’t worry host I won’t say what or where
i remember what happened to omar when he gave too many details!) maybe i can get out of it. hmmmmm
October 16th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
I’m betting its always scary when Annasbones is “on”, Jodi. She is clearly cold and calculating more than warm and fuzzy; to whit- a brit. whatever. probably she knows how to shoot guns, if the movies have any truth.
host- good for you big boy, on the speech. its not harvard again, but good enough.
Nora- well, damnit, well said. i didn’t care much for the video myself. in fact, i would qualify it as the weakest one yet. i mean, if I can’t figure out what it means, how will you? whats the take on it in the trailor park?
host, i appreciate the wonderful footage as long as it means something. maybe you can enlighten me?
littlestar- take it easy honey.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
You’ll have to look to the Buddha for enlightenment. Watch that bad karma. The way you’re going, you’re due for an ugly reincarnation.
October 17th, 2009 at 4:03 am
Just a thought, Seldom – with comments like these, perhaps you should try and live up to your screen name a little more?
October 17th, 2009 at 8:50 am
“Seldom Seen,” you’re no enfant terrible. You’re just an infant. Go back to your crib.
October 17th, 2009 at 9:19 am
By the way, if you don’t know what an enfant terrible is, try your local trailEr park. I’m sure someone there will know. Perhaps you might borrow a spelling dictionary while you’re at it.
October 17th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
SS, maybe you should go ask some of the innocent civilians who were illegally detained and tortured for years by policies which I have no doubt you did nothing to prevent and lost no sleep over. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. You’ve got one too many letters on your name, seldom seen: the “n.” At least your initials suit you
It’s a myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand. The same can’t be said for you.
October 18th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
Rhae,
it may be possible, even likely, that my comments have come across as offensive and insensitive. while my intent was to rile people up and get them thinking, and not just kissing ass, i hardly think i deserve to be compared to nazi germany. in fact, you should be ashamed of bringing up such deplorable thing. maybe you’d like to rethink that comment.
as far as where my head is buried, its in my work. i am not in the fortunate position to be up on my moral high horse for every waking hour. while i’d like to be a crusader for the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to breath free, my lamp shines for all those in need right here at home.
October 19th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Seldom Seen,
You have stooped just as low with your classist remarks about trailer parks. You clearly have nothing but contempt for the working class. Although I respect pacifists, I don’t practice Gandhian non-violence or Christian turn-the-other-cheek humilities. I find Hammurabic eye for an eye far more realistic for real political change. Hence my remarks. So if you feel an injustice has been done to you, perhaps you should consider whether you have done others injustice.
As for your purported shining lamp, if you really did hold it up, you would see that your tacit acceptance – assuming you are an American citizen – of your government’s international aggression and your failure to not only dissent but even offer marginal support to your fellow citizens who help to provide the crucial domestic turbulence that the victims of our policies rely upon for survival suggests you are no crusader for the tired, poor and huddled masses. As for your concern for those right here at home, perhaps you should visit a trailer park and see if that might awaken some compassion within you.
October 19th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
uh…what?
October 19th, 2009 at 9:43 pm
From now on, eliminated contestants have until the next video to post their farewell statements. Rhae, that means you have until the night of October 24th.
October 20th, 2009 at 10:48 am
I’ll be presenting on Fourth Fiction at a Twitter conference in 10 mins or so. It will be streaming live at http://liveamerica.com
October 20th, 2009 at 11:44 am
My apologies for those who tried to stream the talk to no avail. The live streaming was only for the first presentation.
October 20th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
I’m going to be out tonight so I’l be posting the poll slightly later than the usual midnight hour. Coco, your post must still be submitted by midnight EST.
October 23rd, 2009 at 2:33 am
Host, must say I love the video. You seem to be taking me to all the place I have always longed to go. I really like how you were able to pick up the frog song. If you don’t mind I am going to make a digital recording of it to help me make it throw the long winter…lol. As for the segment at the end, it always amazes me the pain humans can bring to one another without bating an eye. Thank you for giving an added voice to the reality of these crimes. Anna you are very photogenic and it’s a shame that you had to hide that smile. Little star all people are smart and beautiful just in different ways. Most just tend not to permit their inner light to shine throw. Love, Eros
October 23rd, 2009 at 10:20 pm
Aww – thanks Eros!
October 24th, 2009 at 8:57 pm
I sure don’t mind and I have no doubt the frogs don’t either. There were microphones inside with the frogs that picked up their sounds and amplified them. It took me a while to figure out that it wasn’t a recording…