Joel's Place

2006-10-03T09:06:00.000-07:00

I PASSED!!!!!!

I passed my theory test for driving today! Didn't think I would, but I have!!!

Yay!

So there.

:)

Joel

2006-10-01T13:46:00.000-07:00

List of Books Read - September

Ok, so a very quick post before bed of the books read this month:

The Pillars of Creation - Terry Goodkind
Naked Empire - Terry Goodkind
The Elizabethan Secret Service - ? Hansen
Rage - Jonathan Kellerman
Darwin's Children - Greg Bear
The High Lord - Trudi Canavan
Of Saints and of Sinners - Christopher Golden
Gormenghast - Melvyn Peake

So a grand total of 8. Not a great total but some interesting books. I might post a little about my favourites, but for now bed!!!

Joel

2006-09-30T13:26:00.000-07:00

City of Dreams

Okay, so last night, I couldn't be bothered to work on Barmoor's Story, current work in progressso I decided to start typing up an older story from the beginning of the year that started well and kind of petered out. And obviously, I'm now all excited about it again.

Doesn't mean I'm not going to carry on working on the current work in progress for nano since this one has already started and I can't do anything with it during that time without cheating. But still, I think it has some good ideas in it. Young adult, started with an image of a boy lying on the ground with a Nightmare (which looks like a goblin) sat on his chest, feeding on fear, and a girl who comes in with a pen to stop him.

The World of the Dream Hunters!!!! Dum dum dum! :)

So anyway, last night, I had a serious case of insomnia, helped along by our delightful ground floor neighbours making noise until 1h20 in the morning. As generally happens, I start thinking about books at that point which of course just makes the insomnia worse... :) So, I think I'm going to change the world for the City of Dreams. My current picture is of a river that separates the dreaming world, of unreality and legend, from the real world. There is a city that sits in the middle of this river, the City of Dreams. Normal travel between the two is allowed by reality locks that stop the dreams from escaping.

At first, only Nightmares were kept out but in the past century or so the current government has started to stop even dreams getting through, thus stunting creativity, imagination, the whole kaboozle.

So that's where I'm at now. Don't know if I'll start working on it again now, or just leave it til after nano... too many ideas, too little time!!!

In other news, Lidwine finished her auxiliary pioneering today, so she is shattered. She also had a very polite go at the aforementioned neighbours, which I was very proud of her for.

Current reading:
Angel Souls and Devil Hearts, by Christopher Golden - my pocket read.
Christopher Marlowe, Poet and Spy - my home read and also research!!!

I'll try and post my last month's reading list tomorow.

C ya,

Joel

2006-09-27T10:46:00.000-07:00

Works in Progress
So I thought I'd kick off this blog with what I'm working on at the moment.
I'm gearing myself up for nanowrimo (the national novel writing month for those not in the know...:) )and preparing for something a bit different.
I've taken part in nano twice before - the first year I wrote a semi-historical, semi-literary novel called the Jazz Man. I 'won' in that I finished my 50,000 words, but I lost in that I didn't finish the novel.
Last year, I wrote a children's fantasy called the Kingdom Postbox, and this time I won in both senses of the word, although the book is seriously raw and I haven't really gone back to it since.
So... this year. I'm looking to write a fantasy espionage novel. I don't think it's ever been done before, but I may (and very probably am) wrong. It's about a playwright, actor, gentleman spy named Lucan Barmoor who has been out of the spying game for years. Now, his country - a city-state republic - is ruled by a religious fanatic group dead set against magic while the majority of the rest of the world is magical. Think Protestant England up against a mainly Catholic Europe.
Anyway, I'm doing my own weird way of worldbuilding at the moment, but more about that in a future post.
So... That's it for now folks.
Joel

2006-09-22T23:43:00.000-07:00

So... Does anyone else ever feel as stupid as me when they write these things? No? Right, just me then...

As you can see, this is Joel's Place. What can you find here? General musings on 42, ie Life, the Universe and Everything. Hopefully an interesting look at the life of a normal joe trying to break into writing, any kind of writing. I'll write the back of a milk carton if needs be!! :)

So, what are my 'claims to fame' so far? Not much, unfortunately. Two short stories published on a now defunct ezine called Deep Magic, all a few years ago. My main problem is I can't seem to finish anything!!!! Rule number two of how to be a writer, isn't it? :)

Currently, I'm developing a new story for the National Novel Writing Month, or nanowrimo, and thinking over a couple of other things.

Well, that's all for now. Hopefully, and I won't promise anything, I'll be back to update this. Sometime...