Reading Diary A: Asura I

Asura: Tale of the Vanquished Pt. I

(Ravana)

Chapters 1-9
Chapter 1:

• "Tomorrow is my funeral"! What a great first line! As a writer, one can never forget the power of having a real hook of a first line!  I mean, right from the start I am wondering how Ravana got in this situation, and how he knows that his funeral will be tomorrow.
• Following is some great, graphic, violent details! It's so visceral. I tend to write dark stories with heavy violence and visceral themes, so this is great inspiration.
• Finally, I love how this chapter is called "The End". How beautifully unorthodox!

Chapter 2.

• Weather, something I forget to add into stories--but oh how it sets the mood!
• I love all of this internal monologue! It could become boring, but it's such strong and vivid writing that it continues to captivate me.
• Some brief backstory, no heavy info dumping--always good.

Chapter 3:

• Asuras are a casteless society.
• A roaming tribe that hunted and traded, settling along river banks and in cities. 
• Too much info dumping here. (Is my literature minor showing yet?
• The title "Purendara" means 'Slayer of Cities'.
• "A defeated race often uses its cultural supremacy to cover the shame of defeat."
• A LOT of backstory on Asuras, may need to come back to this. There is possibly too much to note of.

Chapter 4:

• The mightiest of Asura Kings.
• Finally dialogue and interactions. The first person is nice for a while but we need to get out of Ravana's head
• You know what this whole book reminds me of? It's like an Indian Paradise Lost, with Ravana and The Ramayana instead of Lucifer and the Bible.

Chapter 5:

• "He rambled on," what a great verbal tag.
• More history.
• "Nothing is more commendable than selfishness. A man who thinks of himself alone is the most unlucky person of all."
• Sometimes this book has some amazing lines.
• "Go Ravana, own the world!"
• "Jealousy is the driving force of progress, envy is the motivating force of life."
• "I do not believe in a heaven where you will be given all that you purposely denied yourself in this world."

Chapter 6:

• "I had been fighting this fool's war for the last few years..." Another great opening line.
• A character being honest in its thoughts is always good to do.
• Good description of a battle!

Chapter 7:

• "Lore of the Losers" what a great chapter title! 
• Huge funeral pyres
• "Drunk with succes  
• Battles

Chapter 8:
Chapter 9:  

• Importance of jewelry 
• Tiny flying tigers
• Blood caked on one's face
• Kubera, the money God.
• "The rich did not care who ruled, as long as they were allowed to be rich. The poor could not afford to care and nobody asked their opinion in any case. Only the middle class mattered and any half-witted ruler knows how to pamper them."