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Can anyone help me? I am looking for someone familiar with Asian culture, that may help me with a scene I am writing. The POV character is something like Asian royalty preparing for a very important ceremony.
I am having trouble with verbs and adjectives, as well as terminology regarding the kimono her handmaiden is helping her into. Can anyone suggest a link or offer any insight on kimono their, parts, symbolism, etc?
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I believe Jamie Ford is Japanese American. there's someone on Liberty Hall that is Asian-American, I think, who has talked about submitting to an Asian sci-fi magazine, but I don't remember that person's name. I'm sure Goatboy would know.
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It might not hurt to try reading MEMOIR OF A GEISHA by Arthur Golden (they made a movie of it recently). The book tells quite a lot about fancy Japanese clothing like kimonos and what goes with them.
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Thanks Kathleen. That link had a helpful key to what I need. "How to wear a kimono" which gave classical steps on how to put one on, which can be altered into someone else putting it on for her.
I feel compelled to make this scene seamless(No pun intended) it seems only right to give justice to such a beatiful ritual, I have imagined. I have read and seen the recomended "Memoir of a Geisha" fantastic! Thanks again.
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I'm actually 1/2 Chinese, but I've written a lot of Japanese characters. That link that Kathleen posted is a great resource.
Kimonos (and dress in general) are a great way to "show not tell" about a character's class, marital status, etc. She could be wearing a furisode kimono to indicate her status as a single woman, it could be purple/black to show she's a descendant of a Daimyo family (feudal lords), that kind of thing.
Women's kimonos can have a dozen or more components, not counting footwear. Even there, simple things like traditional geta shoes can come in different varieties, usually pertaining to geography and weather.
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The character is not an actual Asian. She is the matriarchal leader of a Tribe that has descended over the past few thousand years from a Japanese colony ship.
I have worked out most of the issues regarding terms and process of putting one on. I suppose now I am looking for details of her Kimono, which should be for the most important ceremony.
A ceremony of passage and Conception. Maybe colors and or patterns that may best represent that. I might be going overboard, but I want this to be great.
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I am thinking about a kamon (family crest) that I will turn into the tribe crest.(there are seven different tribes)
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