Friday Mini Letter #3: Talking C.R.A.P.
Explaining a deep-cut stage combat Easter egg in That Self-Same Metal
Hey Y’all!
Happy Friday! Just about everyone who’s going back is back to school now. Congratulations or condolences, whichever you prefer for how you vibe with academia. But, I’m here to teach you something too because it’s Friday and that’s how we roll around here.
Ah, C.R.A.P.
When I learned stage combat from the wonderful team at RC-Annie, they taught us something to help us remember the sequence of events within our fake fights. That was Cue, Retreat, Advance, Parry, or CRAP. Lemme break that down it little further for y’all. Please indulge me, I’m a stage combat fanatic—if you couldn’t guess by my debut MC being a theatrical fight choreographer.
Cue - Make eye contact with your partner to show that you’re both ready. The aggressor also preps their move.
Retreat - The defender moves safely out of the way of the coming attack.
Attack - The aggressor makes the attack, aiming it for the space that the defender just vacated
Parry - The defender “blocks” the attack and prepares to move on to the next part of the sequence
I’ll let them show you.
Isn’t that boring?
Yeah, it’s not the most exciting sequence when it’s slowed down. The key—and this is where the acting part comes in—is to speed it up. If you shorten the time between each step in the CRAP system, you’ll end up with a fight that looks dangerous and exciting to the audience while being safe for the actors. When you take out those gaps you get something like this.
The Deep Cut Exposed
So, in Chapter 6 of That Self-Same Metal—which you can read for free here—Joan has to fight William Shakespeare and Richard Burbage after their practice session turns very real. Thus, they’ve thrown “CRAP Out the Window” and are trying to kill each other. Is it kinda corny? Yes. Do I love it with all my heart? Absolutely.
I’ll go through more book Easter eggs and break down the That Self-Same Metal chapter titles in a later email. Let me know which ones you peeped already or which are the biggest headscratchers.
Up Next
Next Friday’s drop is a quick timeline of when Shakespeare wrote his plays, how we know, and which ones he probably had co-writers for. Plus, expect an exciting Forge & Fracture Saga announcement on social media on Wednesday, 9/20. It’s a good one, too!
Love to you all!
Events
This party is hitting the road! Come through and talk books with me. Swing on by and say hey!
October 28: Louisiana Book Festival - Baton Rouge, LA
Schedule TBANovember 10-11: YALLFest - Charleston, SC
Schedule TBA
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