Scribe's Realm

Happy news! The Castle is now officially open to visitors! I would like to invite all to come visit the website, where I will be putting up stories and photos. I hope to bring more in time, so make sure you keep updated on it all by going there...  Onward, to the Castle !

The Throne Room (or Contact Me) photo manipulation for The Castle is complete ( see it here )! I like seeing how my abilities increase just a little every time I work on something new. I am definitely faster and more at ease to create certain moods and effects. My only issue is that I am not sure about how to create different effects. I got the photos for this photo manipulation here: Background Carpet Knight Statue Ivy 1 Ivy 2 Mural Stars Let me know what you think of this!

This is the image for The Castle's Main Hall | About Me page. It took around one and a half full work shift to finish and it is definitely the biggest photo manipulation I have attempted. Once again, this is not how I envisioned the result, but I am proud of it nonetheless. Why This? Considering that this image is meant to be of the Main Hall of The Castle, it is quite strange that it is an outside view. All the images of the Castle so far has been of the inside (or the map of the Kingdom). In order to give all Castle Dwellers a better idea of their home, there needs to be a better view of everything around them. Therefore, by choosing an outside image, I hope that everyone can better imagine what the Castle is like both inside and outside. Further, I also felt the need to work on a fantasy landscape. For that reason, I chose to create a view from the Main Hall balcony instead. Resources Used Background   Clouds Balcony   Deer   Waterfall   Left Mo...

The Grand Gallery photo manipulation image for The Castle is finally completed! This is literally the biggest photo manipulation task I have taken on. If you would like to try your own hand at something like this, I used these images: Background   Chandelier   Horse Statue   Angel Statues   Curtains   Carpet The two images used as the gallery artwork can be found here and here . I made this using Gimp and my mouse. My next one is an even bigger one and will hopefully be even better! I'm still struggling to get the effect exactly as I want it, but I can't complain about the end result. Let me know your thoughts on this photo manipulation below!

Well, as the name of this post suggests, we are moving... again, and we are not happy about it. This is a complete mess-up with plenty of lies from our agent. But this is not meant to be a rant, so rather look at this: I made this specially for you and I hope you like it. It was fun playing around with different effects on Gimp to see what it will do to the artwork. I had a specific result in mind, but as usual this ended up different than anticipated. If there is one thing I have learnt so far, it is that you will never get it exactly perfect, but it doesn't mean you won't be happy with it. But back to the move. Since I must move and therefore also move my internet, I might be offline at some point. The internet might be moved within the same week I move or it might take weeks (but they told us it will take a week only). Heads up. You are not forgotten and I didn't suddenly become lazy or sick. I hope you have a fantastic day and if you would like, tell me about y...

Hmm, is it dreamt or dreamed ? This is once again one of those cases where people can't help but get confused. My spellchecker for one, tells me that dreamt is a spelling mistake. Yet, many of you have heard of both these forms. Both are after all the past tense of dream.  Of Dreams I Dreamt Dreamt  is just as acceptable as dreamed . Merriam Webster has both these forms under dream.  This can be considered as a little strange, as few words have two past tenses. But, even when it is acceptable, dreamt isn't used as much as dreamed . Dreamt  is used about 7 times less in American English than dreamed , whereas dreamt  in British English is used only 2.5 times less than dreamed . See it  here  and  here  on an ngram graph. Still, the point stands that dreamt  drew the short end of the straw. It is clear that it is used more in British English than in American English. Does this make dreamt the British version? I Dreamed...

Hmm, is it awhile  or a while ? I can't remember now. Even the best language heroes get a little confused every once in a while. If you get stuck like that sometimes, this might help you remember which word to use in which situation. Is There Such a Thing as Awhile ? Awhile  is considered as old English. More often than not people write awhile  as a while , as is the more modern practice. Some people, who are comfortable with the correct usage of awhile , will use it as it should be. Using either awhile  or a while  is acceptable in certain situations, but it's not recommended.  Awhile is an adverb and therefore needs to take that role (and that role only) in a sentence. While , however, can take different forms. While on Its Own When while  stands alone, it can have a different meaning than when it stands in a cluster of words. Think about these two sentences: I will stand in the rain for a while . I will stand in the rain while I wait ...

This Final Fantasy XV glitch proves that Ignis is a fantastic driver. It also shows that the four friends can keep calm (and unhurt) in almost any situation...

Since last week's post was on believe or belief , I decided to ask whether it's believe in , believe on  or believe that . All of these are correct and do get used. The questions are when, where, why and how. Here it is in what I hope is the simplest way to explain it and the easiest way to remember it. Believe In and Believe That Correlation A certain professor, H. H. Price , came to the conclusion that there is a difference between believe in  and believe that . To him, it came down to this, “Surely belief-in is an attitude to a person, whether human or divine, while belief-that is just an attitude to a proposition?” This makes perfect sense considering the words in and that . Personally, in  sounds a lot more involved and personal, whereas that  seems distant. Get that  away from me. Come on in . That might just be me though. However, this view might make things easier. What if this thinking was indeed the correct manner? To believe in someone is ...

This beautiful Burnet moth made it as our photo of the week purely because of it's character and colour. It refused to move away and my wife happily placed it out of the dog's reach. We believe this is a Burnet moth. These moths are actually active in the day, unlike most other moths. Luckily, they are common and not endangered.

Should I use believe  or belief ? This question can keep you from writing that last sentence for the day. It can be so irritating when you're tired and almost done with your work, but that one word is making your head spin. From now on, you should never need to wonder whether you should use believe or belief ever again. To Believe I believe that at the end of this post, you will have a better understanding of the word believe . Look at the next sentence: I believe in aliens. If you believe in something, you are doing an action. When a word takes on the role of describing an action, that word is a verb . This means that believe  is a verb. Change believe in  in the above sentence to a different verb, such as chase. I chase aliens. All you need to do is substitute a verb in a sentence with believe  or belief. If the sentence sounds strange to you, you probably used the wrong one. For example: I belief in aliens. That hardly makes any sense, right...

This photo was meant to be a typical flower close-up, but instead a innocent bug got caught in the spotlight. We chose this photo because of the timely chance of getting a little insect in on the fun. The flower's beauty is definitely a bonus too.

Last week's post was the reveal of the Castle , my new website. Today, is the grand reveal of my Queen. Queen Lazaria the 7th, as she is called, is the strength behind everything I do. She is also the only person between the two of us who has a story ready for you (but now she is waiting for me to finish the artwork and cover...). Here she is: If you wondered why I am missing most of the time, it is because this image alone took me around two working shifts (8 hours each) to complete. I am slow and can't really draw. I had to trace to get the proportions right. However, I am working on learning proper proportions! I will reveal more images soon!

Have you ever wondered what life would be like if you were an orange? It would be pretty much like this photo. It's colourful, bright, beautiful. but short. Underneath this tree was an army of rotten oranges. Plenty of them were decorated with stab wounds from hungry birds. Do you still wonder about life as an orange?

Since I missed last week's "photo of the week" post, I decided to post one today. Our photo of the week is "Tower in the Sky". This beautiful architectural tower is actually a church bell. On our recent trip to Estepona, we spent the day roaming the streets. We came across this church in a courtyard. The pigeons regard it as their home and people regards it as a place of peace.

Hi guys! I do apologise for the lack of Photo of the Week this week. The past two days were a panic as fires ravaged South Africa. My mind was not exactly on my photography. There are a few deaths, two of which were children and one a pregnant woman. This is the photo that appears on The New York Times.  The above photo, which appears on The New York Times , is accompanied with a video, showing the struggle and devastation the fire caused. It is therefore not a surprise at all when Knysna was classed as a disaster area. The Storm-Driven Winds Winds did not help the firefighters in their battle against the fires. These winds are from a result of a massive storm that hit Cape Town only a few days ago (a storm that also claimed lives). It was only once the wind died down they could hope to bring out the helicopters to help. Plenty of calls for prayers and messages explaining the problems flooded Whatsapp. These were terrifying to hear, as they mentioned Knysna inhabitants ...

I recently mentioned that I am working on my Castle. The Castle is my new website. I am still building it, but I want to tell you what I am doing with it and what exactly you can expect from it. Get to It! What is The Castle? The Castle is a place where we all can express ourselves artistically. You are able to comment and send your items in for review. If it is accepted, I will put it onto the website for others to view. There is plenty of ideas and plans for the website. All of these ideas are explained on the website itself, which you can view here .  The reason I am telling you about it now, before the website is complete, is because of two reasons: Suggestions This website is for all of us. I don't want to build this Castle and the only person really happy with it is me. We should all enjoy it and feel part of it. This is why I say that the Castle is our place of creativity. I want you to tell me what you would like and don't like.  Remember: Just...

Our chosen photo of the week is The Blue Arrow . This flower radiates calm colours, yet its harsh, sharp design contradicts the softness. We chose this photo because of the interesting lines and colours. Nature knows best when it comes to design and contrast. If anyone knows what kind of flower this is, please let us know in the comments below! Check back next week for our next photo of the week. If you want to keep up to date without any of the manual hassles, we have set up a feed for you. Feel free to subscribe to email updates (on top) or our feed (on the side). Or you can follow us here: Pinterest Twitter Google+ Instagram DeviantArt

Today's grammar-focused question is: Should I use further or farther ? As writers, we want people to enjoy our books. Even though readers would not necessarily care whether you use further  or farther , it might affect readability if used incorrectly. This is why I thought it is best to help you decide on which one to use. Does "further" or "farther" tell you about distance? There has been plenty of discussions about these two words. They are often regarded as equals, which can be used interchangeably. Yet there are a few posts I have come across in my research who can easily say how they differ. As always, it is best we know much before we come to a decision. Further and Farther in UK English It's well-known that US and UK English differs. There is no exception with the use of further  and farther . The Oxford Dictionary has this to say: Both words share the same roots. [T]here is no difference in meaning, and both are equally correct. Furth...

The Rock of Gibraltar is something to admire, and has made it as our photo of the week pick. This photo shows the beauty of not only the British Territory, but also of Spain. Spain is known for its large, seemingly never-ending beaches. This picture captures that beach, as it winds its way to the Rock. The Rock of Gibraltar made it as our photo of the week. It has a beautiful Spanish beach stretching to reach it.  Other versions of this photo can also be viewed on Instagram ( here , here  and  here ), Pinterest  and DeviantArt ( here , here and here ). Follow us if you don't want to miss a photo of the week! See you again next week for the next photo of the week.