Altivo

*blush*
A compliment from a fellow writer is always much appreciated. I've been swatting occasional typos when I look back at things. But really this is looking more and more like an outline that will have to be fleshed out farther. Glad you like it so far.

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pioneer11.livejournal.com

When this is all over, you have to get this thing published.

*asks for a hoofprinted first edition*

^_^

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I doubt it has any commercial possibilities, but I admit I'm having thoughts about self publishing a limited edition.

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calydor.livejournal.com

When it comes to self-publishing for a relatively small target audience, the internet is wonderful. You have almost no publishing costs, can make a few pennies selling an electronic version, and it's not like it'd increase the risk of piracy much anyway. Give it some consideration.

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Electronic publishing isn't ready for prime time yet. Not enough people are willing to deal with it.

No, I'm thinking of real paper. I find you can have paperback books printed and bound virtually on demand now, and the costs are quite reasonable. It looks as if a hundred copies of a 150 page book would run about $500. I can do that. It's not like there'd be any big market for it.

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C'mon man, really...whenever I get low about ever being published
I just go to the 24 hour supermarket on a day off (I work third) and
peruse this or that computer generated romance novel and I feel all
revived like a refreshing wind has touched my very innermost soul.

If that can get in print...

^.~

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Heh... could have told you about Areion (Arion) if you had asked. :) There are varying stories throught out mythology about him, most say he is a jet black stallion of speed and power. He was with Heracles there during the 12 Labors for Eurystheus, and was later given to King Adrastus. I think I remember something about him helping the king escape his city, but I don't have the reference books handy. He was reputed to have had human feet rather than hooves, but the location varies by author. The texts I have read said both his front hooves were actually human feet, and another one refers to his back right hoof being a human foot.

I've been accused of being Areion in human form by a few weirder minded friends. ROFL I always have to remind them that I am bay colored ... :)

For humor, there is an airline company named after him at http://www.areioncorp.com

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In case anyone is wondering ... yeah, I was in Junior Classical League in high school and took Latin as my foreign language requirement for ALL 4 years. *g* I was the mythology geek for our region. *bowing*

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Heh, some of that sounds like Roman accretions onto the original Greek legend. The Greeks weren't too fond of chimeras, and tended to treat them as major villains (the harpies, the gorgons, etc.)

The quick reference I keep by the computer while writing this is G M Kirkwood's Short Guide to Classical Mythology which is far from definitive, but at least it's small enough to pick up one-handed. He tosses off Arion in a single sentence, aside from the mention in the long article about Thebes.

Gerald Hausman brings up Arion at greater length in The Mythology of Horses but describes him as snowy white and makes him the ancestor of the Lipizzaners. I haven't looked at Wikipedia yet, but sometimes that brings in useful references.

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The beauty of mythology is that no one knows for sure. LOL. All of it is based on translations from those who long ago left this plane of existence and are probably somewhere laughing their butts off about all of the confusion they left behind. *nods* The Romans loves to "tweak" the Greek legends a lot, so it wouldnt surprise me. Edith Hamilton has a decent reference book on mythology out, I cant remember the name of the larger one I have at home. It's in a box somewhere...

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I have Hamilton but it's a paperback that won't lie open and I hate using those for reference. :)

Another great one, very entertaining, is just called The Greeks by H.D.F. Kitto. My copy of that is also one of those irritating little paperbacks, but it's a great read. Kitto's commentary on the classical Greek language alone is worth looking it up.

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I *HAD* a Hamilton that wouldn't lie open, but after finding its way into a photocopier, it does it quite well now. :)

I often find myself wishing I could visit Greece and Italy, I think I would very much like it there. But alas, this horsie is bound more tightly to the U.S. than ever these days. *pouts*

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I'd definitely enjoy a visit to classical sites, but I hate flying so much that I probably never will actually get there.

(Unless I can fly by pegasus...)

It just occurs to me that all these books we've been discussing came from one place in my case. They were required texts for a college course on "Classical Myths in Literature". Now there's a memory. It was an 8 am class, taught by a lady who probably should have retired about when Julius Caesar was assassinated but she was still around. She used to lock the classroom door at 8 am sharp and then take attendance, so if you were late, you missed the class and lost points. We all hated her teaching style, but I at least still loved the course material and obviously it has stayed with me ever since. Clara Laidlaw. That was her name, gods rest her in the Elysian fields or Tartarus or wherever she ended up.

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Mrs. Hinkle .. she taught Latin I and II (III and IV were self study for anyone stupid enough to want to learn it). She was very old, and passed away right after I left high school. Great woman though, I still remember hearing her tiny voice ask me why I wrote "Do Mihi Caput" on a note to a fellow classmate. She asked "Why does this say 'give to me head'?". The class nearly died laughing. She actually stood their patiently and explained to me the correct tense, since she "knew" I really had meant "give the head to me".
ROFL

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I'm trying to decide what the chances are that an ancient Roman would have interpreted that in the way it was apparently intended... Or whether we have any way of knowing. Well, maybe. Catullus at least hints in some of his more dubious verse that these expressions really are as old as we might think.

The classics are truly dying in America, at least. When I was an undergraduate at a state university in the 60s and 70s, one that had once been proud of its classical studies department too, the entire department had dwindled to three very elderly and shaky professors, tenured all of course, and undoubtedly was eliminated the minute they were all dead or retired.

Nonetheless, Greek was one of the most enjoyed courses of my college career. Right up there with Anglo-Saxon, Chaucer, and (yes) astronomy.

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When you print the book I definitely want a copy.

"By the hooves of immortal Arion!" sounds like a good battle call for a horsey superhero :)

Light and laughter,
SongCoyote

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*eeps*
I didn't know you were following along all this. Hi. :)

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Heh... you didn't? That's interesting considering I gave you some strokes for the first bit you posted (which I liked).

Shall I pout for forgotten praise? Maybe... but only because it's funny :)

Keep up the good work, and know that it is being enjoyed.

Light and laughter,
SongCoyote

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No, don't pout. I'm flattered that you're still with me some 18000 words later. I've not been hearing a lot, so I wasn't sure who was still reading.

And then there's the sleep deprivation... yeah, that's it. ;)

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Mmmmm... sleepy, inattentive horses can look tasty to coyotes. Better distract 'em with more writing ;) Unless you want to be devoured... but that's a subject for another topic.

May good fortune and multiple backups of your work be with you :)

Light and laughter,
SongCoyote

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Uh... vore? Oops.

*goes looking for the coffee pot so as not to appear sleepy*

Sleepy inattentive horses are good for snuggling, however.

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Erm, well, vore wasn't quite where I was going with that - just being playful with the whole predator/prey thing combined with a bit of potentially lascivious flirting. "Devoured" wasn't meant to be taken quite so literally ;)

Snuggling is an excellent treat whether sleepy or awake (though too much coffee can make the brain and/or bladder interrupt more often than one might prefer...).

Light and laughter,
SongCoyote

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