Guess what ?

Yes - I changed my mind again. I spent a couple of hours in The Maritime Museum library on Saturday researching the history of Thomas Pellow, captured when 11 years old by Moorish privateers in 1715, and forced to serve as a slave for the next 23 years.

That bit was fine, only while I was there I also took a look at the books covering 'The First Fleet', when the first female convicts were transported to Australia on the 'Lady Penrhyn.'

I got a bit of a roasting for always tending to take the easy option in that first term, and it was tempting to follow that line and work on polishing 'Long Journey Home'. I even submitted the first 35 pages, all neat and tidy, only to change my mind again. I'm resurrecting the First Fleet story I did for Nanowrimo in 2007, though I haven't really worked on it since.

So if I needed a challenge, there it is. I'll print off the first 35 pages, present it to Derek tomorrow and wait for the explosion. Watch this space!
















We also had the Bloc launch on Friday evening, the short story contest relaunched along with the Profwriting.com website. Networking they call it, though I did get the chance to snatch a few shots of my fellow students, Samantha, Tom and Ben this time.

Well, time to go. Doctor's in the morning and then up to Tremough to see what Derek makes of my decision.

Oz.

Goldilocks 2...

...the bitch is back!

We shared a great three days with the second year students on the Digital Animation BA (Honours) course. Split into five groups, we each had three days to write and produce a two minute animatic to help improve the public perception of NUFSED (National Union of Fairies, Sprites, Elves and Druids).

Our group chose the tragic reunion of Goldilocks and The Three Bears, in which both parties come to a sticky end, while others did the same to stories such as Rumpelstiltskin.
















It might sound crazy, but as you can see above, things did get a little tense in that final hour or so as each group patched things together, matching the animations to the sound.

































Three days wasn't really long enough, but even if they'd given us longer who's to say it would have added anything to the course? We all learnt a lot about working on joint projects, and I think that was the point of the exercise. Writing can be a lonely profession, so learning to work with others is another unexpected bonus I've gained from this year.

Oz.

LONG JOURNEY HOME.

Well, I've decided on the project... now all I have to do is write/rewrite the story of Caittlin Kirby O'Connor. The tale of a late twenties Irish folk rock singer and her battle to escape not only an abusive relationship, but also the cocaine habit which together threaten ruin her life.

It's a sort of hard edged romance I guess, written in the first person from Cate's POV which probably seems a strange decision for a guy in his mid sixties. All I can say is that this is the way the story worked out, just like the main settings for the story turned out to be Galway in Ireland, and Chalon sur Saone in Burgundy.

Wish me luck.

Oz

The decision is made...

... This morning I spent a couple of hours in the Stannary up at the University. It was crowded but I found myself a table tucked away in the corner close to a plug point, loaded up and started writing - well editing really. I worked on 'Long Journey Home' and for those two hours the story flowed sweet and strong. I cut and edited like you wouldn't believe and it felt so damn good.

Tonight I switched targets and tried to do the same with the 'Lady Penrhyn,' only it wasn't the same - so the approach didn't work and yet it worked perfectly. It made my decision easy and now I'm going to write the story I came to Falmouth to write in the first place. It's there, I can feel it talking to me, hear it whispering into my ear 'Write me... write me...'

How can anyone resist a request like that?

Chris (Oz)

Blue skies to grey...

... sunshine to snow in only two days, but hey, this is England remember. We should be opening up for the second term tomorrow but the forecast is for more bad weather. Still I remain positive, sitting here working away on the novel as I listen to the likes of Dylan (Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts), Rod Stewart (Mandolin Wind), and Eva Cassidy's brilliant 'Fields of Gold'.

Been without my music far too long, we couldn't fit it in the car when we first came down to Falmouth :o(, so the Cd's will be taking a real battering for a while.

The writing is going okay, a lot of amendments of course but I can live with that, the good stories always evolve when they begin to draw breath. I still reckon it will be 'Long Journey' in the end though the final decision still has to be made. Talk about cutting things fine, maybe I should take up the script writing option after all - BAD JOKE !!!

Take care,
Oz.

Blue skies...

... and bottle ice. That's Falmouth today, sunny and biting cold as my fellow students begin to gather again in this beautiful part of the country. There seems an element of panic in some of the messages I'm getting, which is no great surprise - it's a feeling that's been growing inside me as well.

I still haven't decided which of two stories to concentrate on for this coming term - the long term novel 'Long Journey Home', or 'Lady of The First Fleet'. The former tells the story of Cate, a twenty something Irish folk rock singer as she tries to escape both a cocaine habit and an abusive relationship. The latter is a fictional story based around the voyage of 'Lady Penrhyn', the transport vessel that took the first female convicts to Australia in 1789.

I finally dropped the Fantasy Humour novel 'Peter Parmesan'. It was too similar in style to the writings of Terry Pratchett, only nowhere near as good of course. Still, it's always there in the background - I never throw anything away.

New Year, New Determination.

Chris.

A New Year begins...

... actually it began a few days ago, but things have been pretty hectic here since we got back to Cornwall. The country seems blanketed in snow and here we are covered in blue sky and sunshine. I've just taken a walk round the headland and now I'm watching Lord of the Rings - Fellowship of The Ring - Disc 2. Still reading Joolz Denby's book 'Billie Morgan', and trying to decide just what story to submit for the start of this second term.

Now for something different, a photo of my grandkids, Lewis and Evie Rosie. How my daughter got them to sit together and smile long enough to take the photo I'll never know.



Life is strange. I'm sure I've said that before, many times probably, but I still can't decide which story to submit. 'Long Journey Home', the story of Cate, an Irish rock chick trying to escape both a cocaine habit and an abusive relationship. Then there's 'Lady of The First Fleet,' a story based around the voyage of the Lady Penrhyn, the vessel that transported the first women convicts to Australia in 1787. Finally there's 'The Story of Peter Parmesan,' a kind of fantasy story that pays a passing tribute to Douglas Adams 'Hitch Hiker's Guide...'

You'd think I'd have something more definite for you by this time, but I'm afraid that's not the way things are going to work out. This is going to be a tightrope walk right up to the very last day - but since when has my life been any different. I wouldn't want it to be any other way.

Happy New Year to you all.

Chris (Oz)