I Rock!

It's true. The Nintendo Wii told me so.

I watched an episode of South Park the other week, where they were playing this game called Guitar Hero. I never thought anything of it until in town the other day when I was in a shop selling it. I read the box and it looked like it may be fun. It was bonus month at work (not a big one but better than a kick up the arse), so I bought it.

Now, I'm 33 - no scratch that, 34 (there proof I'm getting old), but prancing around the room attempting to play a pathetic plastic guitar type thing, made me feel like a kid again.

I highly recommend it :)

Regards

Chris

Script Frenzy 2008

Almost too late I've found out about Script Frenzy when reading Lianne's blog.

I don't usually have the time for things like this, but this time I thought "Why not?"

Now, I don't have an outline ready, and I feel using one of the drafts I have on the go would be cheating, so I've got two days to come up with one. I have no idea if I'll be able to finish, but I only have to manage 3.333 (recurring) pages a night.

Three and a third pages a night doesn't sound much, but when you're dragging a script kicking an screaming through the doldrums of act two, it can be as painful as pulling your own teeth with a pair of rusty pliers and no anesthetic.

Is anyone else out there having a go?

Chris

Earth Hour

So I turned on my Macbook this morning to take a trip around the good old interwebnet, and Firefox informed me it was installing a new version and would start in a moment or two.

It did.

google.co.uk came up (I've got it set as my home page), and I was presented with a negative version of the search engine (white text on black).

"Oh Bugger!" I thought. Firefox has screwed up. Then I realised I was being a bit slow (I'm ill and it was 06:30), and Google had put it that way for a reason. On closer inspection I found the following link:

Earth Hour

Now I know tree hugging has become a bit 'main stream' nowadays, and stuff like this may be considered a little 'passé' by some, but I think it's a good idea.

If you can't be bothered to follow the link, the idea is to turn off all the lights in your house between 20:00 and 21:00 tonight in a collective bid to save energy (doesn't matter about time zones, just flick the switches wherever you are when the clock ticks 8).

Come on, join in. Don't worry about the dark, the light from your 57 inch LCD TV should provide more than enough illumination ;)

Later

C

Why do we do it?

When I say 'it' I mean write.

I can't speak for you, but for me it's a desire to get lost in a world that isn't reality, or at least my reality. It's a desire to create what I don't have, to live out those 'what if' moments. Maybe that's why very few of my ideas exist in the realm of science fiction or horror. They are all situations that could happen to the every day Joe when he walks out of his front door tomorrow morning. I want to write those stories that, when the credits start to roll, leave you with that 'nice' feeling inside. The feeling where the credits snap you back into the real world, the corner of your mouth curls up and you feel pleasantly warm and fuzzy inside. You're sad that your brief journey into another existence is over, but it was worth it.

Now, don't misunderstand me. I am very happy with the life I have. I wouldn't change a bit of it. Well, perhaps a bit more money in the bank, but who would say no to that (probably some rich person)?

When I ask myself if I write for the right reasons, I know I do. I often stumble across posts on writing forums where naïve newbies want to sell their killer idea for six figures. Those are the wrong reasons. If all you are writing for is the money then I'd say there are easier ways to earn the stuff. Oh I'm sure once in a while someone will fluke it and make it big, but that's the exception rather than the rule.

Maybe one day the credits will roll on a film I have written and someone will smile, feeling warm and fuzzy inside. Or maybe not. Who knows?

I'm just happy writing as a hobby. If one day I experience the side effect of a sale, then so be it ;)

I'm sure I'll write another pointless post soon.

Later

C

Be Kind Rewind? Be Kind PRESS STOP!

I had several options at the cinema the other night, but the only one that would get me back to the hotel in time for the football was 'Be Kind Rewind'.

I read a couple of reviews that painted it in a good light, so I thought I'd go and see it. After the film I started wondering if I had found the ONLY two reviews in existence that painted it in a good light, because what I saw was dull, dull, dull. I don't even recall laughing once.

What they have taken is an interesting idea, but it is quite clear that the execution of it was way off the mark. I can imagine the pitch, the meetings where ideas flew back and forth, and how everyone thought it couldn't fail, but when the script came along the project should have been taken out to the shed and put down without hesitation. The end product just didn't live up to what could have been.

I think the director realised this as I'm quite sure he tried to get a little 'arty' (and failed miserably), by doing some sort of silent movie thing towards the end. Or maybe I'm just not getting it. Some people may like it for bringing back a little nostalgia when they recall parts of the movie the characters are re-shooting, but nostalgia isn't enough to carry a movie (although I'm sure people will quote examples).

It was just silly in places: The whole neighbourhood liking these crappy remakes and then being taken in saying they have to buy this little chip to view them as a DVD (or whatever excuse they used)? Come on! That just isn't plausible.

2 stars out of 10 for me (it would be too harsh to give only one as I managed to stay awake).

Later

C

The Big ?????

So, if New York is 'The Big Apple', is London 'The Big Avacado'?

Does London even have a nick-name?

Anyway, that's where I'm off to as I type this, sharing a very slow (but free), wifi connection with about (I'm guessing) 100 other people on the train. Major project slippage to deal with today, people to interview in order to save the project tomorrow.

I'm staying in the Holiday Inn Express on Finchley Road. It's clean and tidy, but very basic. I don't mind that at all, however in the summer it seems to become a youth hostel with teenagers keeping you awake until the eraly hours of the morning (hey, I'm getting older - deal with it!). We have an order at work that you must try to get the cheapest hotel. This on is number one on the list at £85 per night. I'm always happy during summer when it is full and I get to stay at the Marriott.

Anyway, on my last trip I found out that you get loads more sushi for your money if you get take out from Yo! Sushi, rather than eating in, so I may load up and retreat to my hotel room and do some writing. Projects that are kind of avtice at the moment (I'll update the progress bars later):

1) An untitled fiction book that I'm writing for my daughter (yes, I'm branching out).

2) The next draft of Only in Dreams.

Anyway, I'd better answer some emails as I guess I am supposed to be working, but before I do, and for no aparent reason, I'll leave you with this question:

Why?

Answers on a postcard.

Later

Chris

The Big ?????

So, if Ney York is 'The Big Apple', is London 'The Big