I have put a lot of pressure on myself over a long to prove I am a writer, and to improve and to hone my craft while I sweat blood over the merest detail of a finely tuned short story. As my recent week full of rejected submissions demonstrates, this job is never done. Even … Continue reading Ipso facto NaNoWriMo
writing
Doctor Who: Identity Stakes
Some writing groups I'm in often return to ideas about anthropomorphism and what it means for writers. Almost all aliens we see are humans with traits removed or magnified. Vulcans of Star Trek: basically human + heightened rationality. Daleks: remove empathy + hate & shove in metal box. Cybers: remove emotion and personal identifiers + … Continue reading Doctor Who: Identity Stakes
NaNo Prep Info
I am in the midst of NaNoWriMo preparations. Tis probably ridiculous that a non-novelist is about to write a novel of 50,000 words in November. I don't mind though, there's nothing quite so freeing as being ridiculous and I have a cunning plan to ease myself into this new identity. However, I am not so … Continue reading NaNo Prep Info
Doctor Who: Hybrid History
Some of the appeal of Doctor Who is that a single episode can unfold in unexpected directions. A straight Vikings vs Aliens episode was made more frustrating and then heart-felt by its twists. I know it's a family show, and I know it's story, not history, but if programs are going to have a play … Continue reading Doctor Who: Hybrid History
Say it aint so, going totally NaNoWriMo
Uh oh Can't say I'm too much of a bandwagonny joiner type, but I've just gone and signed up to write a novel in a month. Given it took the best part of a year for me to write a novella as part of a thesis, I'm a lil bit worried. But at least I don't … Continue reading Say it aint so, going totally NaNoWriMo
Doctor Who: Listening Tour
'Hear' be spoilers... I like a bit of writing like this. It bats you around the head with its cleverness, it's self-referential, and even didactic. That's not a bad idea sometimes, as it means we get a lesson in time travel, and we know what's at stake, because we've dealt with The Doctor messing about … Continue reading Doctor Who: Listening Tour
Changing spaces
I'm going to a writing retreat. I won a place, which is nice, and I'm looking forward to it. Not sure of what to expect, or what I'll gain from it, but I hope something a bit writing related. It shouldn't matter where we write, but it sometimes it might. Sometimes, the household is full of … Continue reading Changing spaces
Equivocating, writing and a review of The Heretics
I've just finished Will Storr's The Heretics: Adventures with the Enemies of Science. Mainly because the medication and the agony of my swollen face with sinusitis won't let me sleep, but that's a digression. I think the book is an exploration of how humans come by opinions and beliefs using contrasted interviews of climate denialists and scientists, creationists … Continue reading Equivocating, writing and a review of The Heretics
How a story is a horse, of course
Writing has been hard work. I've had trouble getting from the end of the middle of one story, to its conclusion, which I've worked out. And, with my novella, I've begun fixing everything I've realised is wrong with it, but it takes a while to warm up. I'm not feeling the mojo, in other words, … Continue reading How a story is a horse, of course
Eeekphrasis
It's easy for me to review stuff. I like it, and I think I bring something to each work, or play or film or whatever. However, it's not the only thing I'm on about, or that this site was meant to be about. It's time to go back to first principles. Instead of reviewing works, I'm … Continue reading Eeekphrasis
Writing Bec 