Home For Fiction – Blog

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An Iambic Pentameter Checker in JavaScript

January 15, 2024

My iambic pentameter generator has been one of the most popular posts of the blog. To be honest, I’m not sure if that’s still the case or not. Since I completely revamped the blog (actually even earlier), I removed Google and Jetpack analytics. In any case, today we’ll be looking at, essentially, the reverse scenario: We’re making a very simple iambic pentameter checker.

Just in case you need a reminder, an iambic pentameter line consists of ten syllables, of which every other is stressed. For instance, “And you, my sinews, grow not instant old” (from Hamlet).

So, how can we create a JavaScript iambic pentameter checker that tells us if a line is an iambic pentameter or not?

iambic pentameter checker, AI render of Shakespeare using a computer
I couldn’t resist using AI to generate this image of Shakespeare using a laptop. Like all tools, AI tools can be fun and useful, if one understands their limitations…
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Anger as Motivation: Revamping the Home for Fiction Blog

January 8, 2024

You might recall that some time ago I completely revamped the main site of Home for Fiction. In the same post I mentioned how one day, if I’d only find the motivation and energy, I’d completely redo the blog, too. Turns out, anger is great motivation. You’re reading a brand new Home for Fiction blog.

Where the anger (and motivation) came from? Before I tell you, know this: The whole process took about a week. It would’ve likely taken even less if it hadn’t happened during the holidays. That’s right; it took me about a week to go from “fuck this shit!” to coding my blog from scratch. Here’s how – and why anger, with certain constraints, can be useful.

anger as motivation; painting of people sitting at  a table outside
This is the image that greets you on the front page of the Home for Fiction blog. Albert Camus’s quotation below it is also relevant to a discussion on anger and motivation: “The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”
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Writing Flash Fiction on the Fly

January 1, 2024

Today’s post is the result of a challenge I decided to give myself: What would happen if I gave myself a writing prompt and 15 minutes’ time to produce something? The task is even more challenging considering writing flash fiction is something I discovered relatively recently.

I’ve of course written tons of text in general – including short stories and even a similar kind of challenge – but this is a rather unique situation. As I said, writing flash fiction is something I’ve done less – and certainly not under pressure. But it’s important to get out of our comfort zone and try new things.

Here’s the methodology I decided to follow for this flash fiction challenge:

  • Prepare the post structure and metadata (headings, post category, etc.)
  • Write the introduction to this post (what you’re reading right now).
  • Use my Storytelling Dice to give myself a writing prompt. Note: At first I thought I’d just use the first generated image, but I then decided to generate a few, until I’d get something intriguing.
  • Start the clock, and start writing a flash fiction story!
  • Check for/correct minor typos.
  • Add a concluding section with the “how it felt” part.

I’m about to start “rolling the dice” and then I’ll start writing. The story begins under the image below – which is the writing prompt I got from the storytelling dice (I plan to add it after I finish writing). Let’s see how this goes!

writing flash fiction
If you want to try Storytelling Dice yourself, feel free
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