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There was a Nanowrimo write-in/workshop at work today. I listened, but the workshop part was super basic instructions. I encouraged the organizer lady to hit my boss up regarding starting a semi-regular writing group on Sundays, so we'll see.

Yep, I can definitely finish by tomorrow. I was off-schedule by two days, but I'll make it! Yay!

Hrrrrm, so, I got a question for you guys, if you don't mind I take the discussion away from NaNoWriMo. (I'm not going to meet the goal, but I'm still writing when I get the chance, and that's fine :3 )

So, its the holidays (Yay!) and I absolutely LOVE Christmas. My fondest childhood memories of santa (even the day I realized the awful truth)
Call this a general survey:

Anyone have any stories/movies that they enjoy that have to do with Christmas and Santa? And if so, why?

Obviously because I am a children's writer, it should come as no surprise that I absolutely want to write a holiday story. However, Polar Express has been the only movie/story I've ever read/watched that I felt captured the true essence. And better yet: been the only christmas movie I've ever watched that was not absolutely... tacky/awful. (Oh, ok, and that book the Night Before Christmas)

Anywho, call this just reference for me. I want to know what elements others have liked and enjoyed in Christmas stories. Meh, just any thing you can think of. What would you like to read/watch but have never seen?

And of course, if you just think they are all horrid, and you really just don't care tell me that too.

Thanks guys ^_^

I have very fond memories of Rudolph. I saw part of the Polar Express movie and it was really boring. Nothing like the book.

Anyone who doesn't cite the entirety of The Snowman as a possible source of inspiration for a Holiday Story is depraved! DEPRAVED

also.

I won NaNoWriMo a couple of days ago

The Snowman was awesome.

It's a Wonderful Life is one of my favorite movies ever. I always liked watching it, growing up, but one year it became real to me; I actually cried.

Spoiler, if for some depraved reason you haven't watched it:

[spoiler]

When George stands on the bridge and sobs, "I want to live again!" -- it was the worst year of my life, and I myself was suicidal and self-destructive. I felt such a deep twitch in my own heart; the heaviest sort of sadness... I can't even describe it accurately, what that moment was like, but now I can't watch that movie without getting a little misty-eyed.

[/spoiler]

Other than that I actually dislike Christmas. I always liked Easter and 4th of July better as holidays growing up, because they were more fun. Easter is still my favorite holiday because I get to be surrounded by my family, and I deeply love my family and consider family to be super important to me. The best part of Christmas is getting to see my mom's family. This year I'm looking forward to Christmas more than ever since I'm going home to visit.

In answer to your question;

I like when Christmas is just a background element. In It's a Wonderful Life, you could take the holiday out and the story still makes sense. It isn't the story of Christmas, but rather a strong story which just happens to take place around that time of year.

I also hate when Christmas is made out to be some sort of miraculous or special time of the year. If you're a dick 364 days of the year... yeah, you get the idea.

Again, I dislike the holiday, so that's just my biased take on it.

[s]Also fuck Jesus his birthday was celebrated for several hundred years in the Spring until they flipped it to match with Saturnalia -- I mean, seriously, why would you celebrate a death/resurrection story in the Spring and a Birth in the Winter otherwise? It doesn't make any sense. And fuck Santa Clause that shit was just made up by department stores in the 1800s to sell more shit to people[/s]

Never even heard of that movie.

get the fuck out

edit: what does it say that I can type and post so quickly that I constantly get the "You cannot make a post after blahbablah" message? WHAT DOES THAT SAY?!

I get it too.

but uh, I haven't seen many movies pre-1960

I'm shocked you found the movie Polar Express to be boring since there was something constantly going on at all times, noodles?

Hrrrrm, the idea I like about Christmas isn't that it's some magical time of year but that in particular to this country it seems to be the only fucking time of the year when Americans are actually open to the idea of OMG-magic.

For me, though, it's the idea of the Spirit of Christmas. That it's the one time we are expected to do a little genuflecting, whether it has to do with religion or an elflord. As much as you seem to think your idea, Kino, is out of the range of Christmas, your thoughts Kino are the probably the most intune with it. At no other time of year could that movie have taken place and been as impactful. It's because during Christmas that we have that element of past-meets-present.

Your "I hate Christmas" comment is also in the spirit. There are reasons I'm sure you hate it. I dunno, when the seasons just comes it's like the world just changes, for good or bad. It gets overly commercial but it tries to keep it light and fun for the kiddies. It's a time that we attempt to spoil others. Those who are growing up create powerful memories, both good or bad, and those that have grown up remember memories both good and bad.

I LOVED the movie Polar Express because it surrounded this idea. It was heavily coated with the idea of Santa and magic, but the themes in the story were about the "spirit" of christmas. Believing, learning something about yourself, improving yourself, growing up, and each of the children's different take on the season (the black girl could only love it because of her family coming around and all the excitement, while "Billy" could only feel self-conscious and disappointed, while the main character was trying to come to turns with himself and worried about the deceit of the world). Seriously, I just want to shake the hands of the creators of that movie. It's the sort of story that I want to write, I think.