I felt shattered, to the point of almost falling asleep at 7.45 pm, so I was beginning to doubt I'd get anything written.
So I opted for a random piece, weirdly enough what I wrote then came to be quite fitting for a chapter of my Skins fic 'In This Life'. It'll probably be revised and I've technically only written a couple of hundred words, but I've written! That's the main thing, especially considering the struggle I had getting that down.
Tomorrow I should have a day of freedom in which I can write!
Friday, 14 January 2011
Read: Jan 14th - The Postmistress (4)
I've always wanted to have the ability to write something with such grace, such imagery that captures hearts and minds in mere seconds.
The Postmistress captures that, it captures what I myself would love to create and it does it all with the character of Frankie Bard. She doesn't write things down but speaks them across the airwaves to America, to her home.
An example of what I'm talking about, Frankie spent an hour or so with some men who shoot blindly into the dark sky above London during the Blitz, they're at risk, they could die, they could be caught and yet there they are, as they are every night, attempting to bring down the bombers.
"It's mad, Ed. These boys firing round after round into the sky---you can't see anything, and after a while the noise and the guns and the slam bam, boom, over and over---well, you start to ride it, like skiing, down down down into the white, mindless, given up to it."
There's something quite poetic about the language she uses and the structure of her sentences that really amazes me. That is the kind of writer I want to be and well, it's always nice to read that too!
On the other side of the coin, and the Atlantic, and my opinions - one of the American characters suggested that the British couldn't handle the Second World War all by themselves. Maybe they needed help, but it was the suggestion that the USA were the only people who could possible save the war for them made me want to throw the book down. Excuse me United States of America, but you can't expect me to be okay with the suggestion that "little old Britain" can't handle a war.
Thankfully the book has been hooked and the character of Frankie is so intriguing, or I would be entirely put off right now.
The Postmistress captures that, it captures what I myself would love to create and it does it all with the character of Frankie Bard. She doesn't write things down but speaks them across the airwaves to America, to her home.
An example of what I'm talking about, Frankie spent an hour or so with some men who shoot blindly into the dark sky above London during the Blitz, they're at risk, they could die, they could be caught and yet there they are, as they are every night, attempting to bring down the bombers.
"It's mad, Ed. These boys firing round after round into the sky---you can't see anything, and after a while the noise and the guns and the slam bam, boom, over and over---well, you start to ride it, like skiing, down down down into the white, mindless, given up to it."
There's something quite poetic about the language she uses and the structure of her sentences that really amazes me. That is the kind of writer I want to be and well, it's always nice to read that too!
On the other side of the coin, and the Atlantic, and my opinions - one of the American characters suggested that the British couldn't handle the Second World War all by themselves. Maybe they needed help, but it was the suggestion that the USA were the only people who could possible save the war for them made me want to throw the book down. Excuse me United States of America, but you can't expect me to be okay with the suggestion that "little old Britain" can't handle a war.
Thankfully the book has been hooked and the character of Frankie is so intriguing, or I would be entirely put off right now.
Thursday, 13 January 2011
Write: Jan 13th
I started something new, again. Only this time it wasn't a new Naomily story, or even Skins. It's going to be a piece of original fiction. I'm hoping it'll be of novel length when it's completed.
A couple of days ago I said that if I have no job after March (which I'm expecting not to due to funding issues) then I will write a novel. Somehow today an idea came to me. So far it's a basic premise for the story, the character set up, families, that sort of thing. I need to work out a complete character profile for my main characters and some of the significant lesser characters. Then I can flesh out the story idea.
I'll keep you updated.
Tonight I wrote from the quote "life's a show and we all play a part" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the musical episode), it worked relatively well with my main character who will be a confident, bitchy girl on the surface.
I hope this story will progress nicely.
A couple of days ago I said that if I have no job after March (which I'm expecting not to due to funding issues) then I will write a novel. Somehow today an idea came to me. So far it's a basic premise for the story, the character set up, families, that sort of thing. I need to work out a complete character profile for my main characters and some of the significant lesser characters. Then I can flesh out the story idea.
I'll keep you updated.
Tonight I wrote from the quote "life's a show and we all play a part" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the musical episode), it worked relatively well with my main character who will be a confident, bitchy girl on the surface.
I hope this story will progress nicely.
Read: Jan 13th - The Postmistress (2)
I've continued reading the book I've been reading since yesterday. The story is really beginning to take hold and I'm more than intrigued as to what will happen in the story.
I was particularly surprised by a paragraph on the Jews. The Holocaust is something we continue to hear about, the history of it and there's museums and such which give a lot of information. This is the first time, from what I recall, where I have read a book about the Second World War that isn't about the Holocaust, but has referred to it.
It's almost like gaining an insight into what it was like for a British person hearing stories of a wall being built around a city. We usually read about it as something that happened a long time ago or something that is occurring for the character we're focused on.
This story has shown the other side, the blind lack of knowledge that people in Britain had about what the Nazis were doing. They didn't know. They hoped it was just containing the Jews in an area, the way they discuss it suggests that the Jews being gassed is something they not only had no idea about but I imagine it would have made them feel just as sick as it makes me feel considering the torture that went on.
I was particularly surprised by a paragraph on the Jews. The Holocaust is something we continue to hear about, the history of it and there's museums and such which give a lot of information. This is the first time, from what I recall, where I have read a book about the Second World War that isn't about the Holocaust, but has referred to it.
It's almost like gaining an insight into what it was like for a British person hearing stories of a wall being built around a city. We usually read about it as something that happened a long time ago or something that is occurring for the character we're focused on.
This story has shown the other side, the blind lack of knowledge that people in Britain had about what the Nazis were doing. They didn't know. They hoped it was just containing the Jews in an area, the way they discuss it suggests that the Jews being gassed is something they not only had no idea about but I imagine it would have made them feel just as sick as it makes me feel considering the torture that went on.
Write: Jan 12th - In This Life chapter 22
I wrote chapter twenty-two of my Skins story, 'In This Life' and really...that's all I need to say!
Unless you'd rather I bore you with stories of Anna Karenina and a postmistress again, haha.
Busy day tomorrow, not looking forward to it really. It'll be over soon, in about 14 hours I'll be able to relax and continue to read and write.
Twelve days in a row, for someone who's struggled lately with writing, this feels so unbelievably good.
Despite having a ton of Naomily fanfics to continue writing, after January 27th, I will also have the new Skins characters to write about. After all, I can't let someone else have all the fun! ;P
Unless you'd rather I bore you with stories of Anna Karenina and a postmistress again, haha.
Busy day tomorrow, not looking forward to it really. It'll be over soon, in about 14 hours I'll be able to relax and continue to read and write.
Twelve days in a row, for someone who's struggled lately with writing, this feels so unbelievably good.
Despite having a ton of Naomily fanfics to continue writing, after January 27th, I will also have the new Skins characters to write about. After all, I can't let someone else have all the fun! ;P
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
Read: Jan 12th - The Postmistress/Anna Karenina
I bought a book, I do believe I mentioned doing so yesterday, since it happened yesterday.
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake (who is apparently married to the poet Josh Weiner, I shall have to Google him later and read some of his work).
This morning as I sat on my bus to work I decided to begin reading.
Now the first chapter wasn't really a chapter and it instantly reminded me of some blogs I read of late relating to 'Prologues' and how they are useless, pointless additions to stories that nobody really wants, nor reads. Well I'm sorry, whoever said that, you're wrong.
Some may dislike prologues, but I actually love them. I didn't find this specific prologue useless, or pointless. It made sense and quite frankly it set the story up nicely for me.
I'm not quite sure what I make of the book just yet but it is early days - I'm on page 17 of 326, so exceptionally early days.
However, in this book I was met with a rather unusual section about a Leo Tolstoy book. With The Postmistress bring set during the Second World War, is it any surprise that a young woman would be shocked at the use of the words "Vronsky was making love to Anna"?!
Said line made me curious and when I get curious I have to do a little research. My curiosity was not about the line itself, but more about exactly how 'proper' and 'classic' is Anna Karenina, I assume that to be the book in question as Anna was mentioned. I often find classics quite, well, difficult. I prefer a story where I don't have to hold a dictionary beside me whilst reading. I found Wuthering Heights particularly difficult to read in college. So my curiosity was there and I remembered the wonderful invention of the iBooks app on my iPod. Within that application there are a large number of free books - all of which are classics.
And so I spent a short time (about 15 minutes probably) reading the first chapter of Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina.
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake (who is apparently married to the poet Josh Weiner, I shall have to Google him later and read some of his work).
This morning as I sat on my bus to work I decided to begin reading.
Now the first chapter wasn't really a chapter and it instantly reminded me of some blogs I read of late relating to 'Prologues' and how they are useless, pointless additions to stories that nobody really wants, nor reads. Well I'm sorry, whoever said that, you're wrong.
Some may dislike prologues, but I actually love them. I didn't find this specific prologue useless, or pointless. It made sense and quite frankly it set the story up nicely for me.
I'm not quite sure what I make of the book just yet but it is early days - I'm on page 17 of 326, so exceptionally early days.
However, in this book I was met with a rather unusual section about a Leo Tolstoy book. With The Postmistress bring set during the Second World War, is it any surprise that a young woman would be shocked at the use of the words "Vronsky was making love to Anna"?!
Said line made me curious and when I get curious I have to do a little research. My curiosity was not about the line itself, but more about exactly how 'proper' and 'classic' is Anna Karenina, I assume that to be the book in question as Anna was mentioned. I often find classics quite, well, difficult. I prefer a story where I don't have to hold a dictionary beside me whilst reading. I found Wuthering Heights particularly difficult to read in college. So my curiosity was there and I remembered the wonderful invention of the iBooks app on my iPod. Within that application there are a large number of free books - all of which are classics.
And so I spent a short time (about 15 minutes probably) reading the first chapter of Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina.
Read: Jan 11th - The Perfect Holiday (3)
I've finally finished this 'short read' and I'm now wondering the point. I can sit and read 4000 words about Skins and the story actually be wonderful, purposeful but this story just seemed odd.
It's all very well spending three chapters introducing three different sets of characters then another three or so chapters with all characters featured, but what was the point if the story? I suppose you could say the message of living life to the fullest is a good one, but per-lease, tired of it.
Overall, I actually enjoyed reading the book. I look forward to starting something new tomorrow! :)
It's all very well spending three chapters introducing three different sets of characters then another three or so chapters with all characters featured, but what was the point if the story? I suppose you could say the message of living life to the fullest is a good one, but per-lease, tired of it.
Overall, I actually enjoyed reading the book. I look forward to starting something new tomorrow! :)
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