All of a sudden, I keep reading, seemingly out of nowhere, the word quirk or quirked to describe how people smile or even lift an eyebrow. I *think* these writers mean a small, quick, half smile, but the word quirk doesn't give me a physical reference, so I am making this up. I should add, … Continue reading Quirks of language
Random Short Thoughts
Gap of incongruity
On knowing when something is finished, and ultimately, where it comes from.
Persistence is utile
Another selection from the Spam Files.
The spam files
Yes, it is Friday night / Saturday morning and I am required by public health decree to have no where else to be, so it's time for another look in the old spam files. I mean, just because there is a pandemic and my city is in lock down, doesn't mean the bots and the … Continue reading The spam files
The year of big perhapses
Every now and again I'm overwhelmed by a feeling 2020 diverged into an alternate dystopian universe. This 2020 is what it is, meanwhile, the 'real' 2020 is out there, nothing globally cataclysmic happening, just days going by as they were meant to. Then, this feeling subsides and while 2020 may become the year we use … Continue reading The year of big perhapses
Some enchanted telling
I was going to review the Tolkien biopic I saw the other day. And I will: it was solid story telling, took some minor appropriate liberties with the source material to heighten the drama, yet didn't compromise much. I enjoyed it. Basically, it was another thoughtful narrative mostly around the effects of a difficult childhood … Continue reading Some enchanted telling
May 2020 and all the months before
I keep having to redraft this first paragraph as what I originally wrote is now years old, and time marches on from the day I visited the place I'm about to describe. This minute and for the ones preceding, it has been a golden afternoon in May. The autumnal sunshine is magicking up the world … Continue reading May 2020 and all the months before
Writing things in motion
This is a quick note to mention writing things are in motion. I have an article for the Submittable blog coming out this week, and a tiny morsel of flash fiction has been accepted for publication in issue 20 of Speculative 66 which is out the week after. These events are very welcome. These are … Continue reading Writing things in motion
Posting poetry
I'm taking part in a month long Post-it Note Poetry exercise (#PINP19) on Instagram over February (organised by @Soullyrical). I'm taking part because too often I'm a bystander. Also, after all this time, I know inspiration works better with restraints, and a bunch of discipline, rather than the panic that infinite space induces. A Post-it … Continue reading Posting poetry
Challenge detected
Ages ago I signed up for a local library writing group run by Sian Prior (author of Shy). Since it was over subscribed I consistently missed each meeting, except the last one, which I did attend. It turns out this writing group delivered nothing I hadn't already heard, however some of the resources and handouts … Continue reading Challenge detected