Wednesday 22 August 2007

Today

I got invited to a Word 100 group on facebook where stories are written in exactly 100 words as a form of writing practice. An old friend of mine from school started it up so why not add something myself. Oh, here it is by the way...

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'Today'
This story applies today. Whether you’re reading it on the today it was written i.e. today or on it’s first birthday [again: today]. Never forgot that today is today, right now, in the moment. A today to do nothing. A today to do everything. A today to turn it all around. To begin again. To complete. To start. To make a difference. For we die a little every today so be aware of your mortality today. For today is another today like all the today’s of your life. Be undeniably sure that one today will be your last ever today.

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Check out his, and others Word 100's click here

Wednesday 15 August 2007

Online Interview

My first online interview went up this week WriteWords... check it out here

A review of my novel Spritz will also be going on the site over the next week or so. Fingers crossed for positivity. I have to admit that so far feedback has been overwhelmingly good. After a bizarre report from 'The Literary Consultancy' in which Mr Richard Skinner states...

"Perhaps you didn't intend for your treatment of character and story and event to be believable, that you actually intended for these things to be drawn with such broad strokes so as to be unbelievable, but I wasn't sure of your reasons for this, because I couldn't detect any satire, social commentary or parody behind you intentions."

...I was a little disillusioned.

Those you that have read Spritz may well laugh at this, as I did reading it back later, for Spritz is entirely that which he does not connect with. Initially I thought that perhaps he was right. Perhaps it wasn't obvious enough that this was a book that parodies scenes and dialogue from film and TV in the mouths and actions of the hopeless. In the end I took some of it out as it was too obvious in places. Perhaps Mr Skinner is not a fan of film, TV, popular culture, irony, sarcasm and comedy. Who knows. Perhaps I'll send him a copy...

Thursday 9 August 2007

I Love Sam

I know I really should post all messages about my friend Sam on the 23rd of the month. Possibly at 23 minutes past 11pm but that (as is the obsession with the number 23) a little crazy. Oh, did I mention it, Sam loves 23. At least, I think it's love or perhaps it's just a number that follows him around like a stray fox after you stupidly decide to give him some left over meat from the BBQ because you thought he was cute. Nonetheless, Sam is awesome.

We've ventured into a routine of reading and critiquing each others work each month (guess which day) in the endeavor to spot deadlines for ourselves and increase productivity. This is not to say that we are, in essence, lazy creatures. To be honest, we're both workaholics but some considered perspective is always welcomed. Our writing styles and content are quite different so I'm looking forward to reading the next installment.

Oh, I think Nadine Baggot has some bizarre shareholder scheme with the Sci-Fi channel on Sky as she seems to crop up every advert break during Angel and stress the life out of me. Either that or the producers of the 'Sam & Neil' show know how much this annoys he and continue to torture me with her face and pointless beauty tips.

Been writing a fair bit of my second novel 'The Madison Chronicles' this week, although I may change the name to 'Paths of the Forgotten' but that sounds a little too D&D. I want a trilogy title (as the book is in three parts) along the lines of 'His Dark Materials'. No doubt something will pop up. This is becoming a taxing affair, can you tell?