2012 - Serious Writing Year

I have a New Year's Resolutions list a page and a half long, so many things I want to do this year. But most importantly, I want to take care of myself. Often when striving to achieve this or that, we neglect ourselves. I want to make sure I have some 'me time' - some time to myself, to relax, unwind, and follow my dreams. I have dabbled more with my fiction writing and art goals this last year, but never for very long. I want to become a serious fantasy & science fiction artist and writer.

The big thing I need to do this year? Practice my skills. To actually sit down to write and draw daily. The only way to actually improve my skills is to sit down and use them, often. I often get all excited when Nanowrimo comes up, and the same with scriptfrenzy. But if I don't actually get much writing done that month, and don't complete my novel or script by the end of the month, then I stop writing. Why? There is no rule that says you must only attempt to write a novel in November. The amazing thing Nanowrimo has taught me, is to actually sit down and write. I learn so much simply by doing that. Personally I struggle to reach my word count targets each and every day, but I do manage to hit half my word count targets each day quite successfully. So I should be able to write a 50,000 word novel quite easily in 2 months.

I want to spend this year honing my craft, writing scenes and practicing writing challenging scenes. Scenes with action in them, description, dialogue, drama, suspense, everything. I want to improve and write something I am really proud of. Only then can I reach the stage of writing something worthy of publication. And that is my ultimate aim. Probably next year, or the year after, depending on how I get on. I want to be able to call myself a writer at the end of this year, knowing that I have improved my skills and made progress. These are my main writing goals/tasks this year:

• Write daily, 15 minutes one day, 60 minutes the next.


• Write 100 word Drabble's (as part of the Writeaholic's Blog's weekly Drabble challenges).


• Write short scenes from movies and tv (practicing writing prose).


• Learn new vocabulary - a new word from the dictionary each week.


• Research Science and History, for use in novels and short stories (for Space Opera and Time Travel fiction).


• Plan a short story / Write a short story.


• Plan a novel / Write a 50,000 word first draft of a novel.


• Learn how to edit and rewrite a novel (and short story).


• Read 10 novels from start to finish this year.

Here's hoping for a productive and well written 2012!

Living with the Amish

I've just finished watching the first episode of the new Channel 4 series, Living with the Amish. I loved it. I expected it to be an interesting insight to how the Amish live, with perhaps a little amusement at how the teenagers manage to live without their mobile phones and personal music players (MP3's and iPods). It had all this and more, and I was so surprised by how emotional and moving it became.


On first sight, when meeting James, one of the British teenagers trying living with the Amish for six weeks, I found out he was 17, unemployed and a college dropout. I thought lazy bum, can't be bothered to work or study. But then I got a surprise. I learnt about how his mum was arrested for arson when he was 14, his younger sibling went to live with his nan, and he went into foster care. After that, he went into a hostel. He now misses living in foster care because it was nice living with people, now he lives on his own in a tiny, dingy looking hostel, with nothing but a tv and video games console for company. He actually appears lonely. And after he got to know Jonathan, the kind young Amish man he was staying with, he actually seemed to wish he was his father.


All the teenagers were moved by the people they met, even Urma, an older Amish woman who had been brought up in the Amish community, and later spent 18 years living "in the world" (away from the Amish community), got married and had children. She now lives back with the Amish community after realising she missed the community and the feeling that if anything happened to her, the Amish community as a group would all come to help her.


Urma was speaking with Siana, the young girl originally born in Sierra Leone and moved to England when she was 2, and runs a Fashion Blog, amongst many others. Siana seemed to find the Amish clothing to be the hardest lifestyle changes so far, as she felt she was losing her identity. And this made me think, I often believe the clothes I wear express my personality, almost without different and striking clothes, I wouldn't be me. Now I think the Amish lesson here is that clothes do not make who you are inside. Change your clothes, you are still the same person. The Amish accept you for who you are, and Charlotte said to Jonathan's wife (Maryetta I think her name was), that she wished her own community was more accepting like that.


In British society, we make so many judgments of other people based on what they wear. So we feel we have to dress a certain way, either to meet expectations, or to stand out from the crowd. We cannot accept ourselves and have peace with ourselves in plainer clothes.


Charlotte freely admitted that back home in England, she would sit outside sunning herself, while her mother painted her nails and brought her cups of tea and coffee. She had never done washing up in her life, her parents never nagged her, and it seems she doesn't do any housework at all. So it was quite a shock to her to learn to tidy her room, do the laundry and washing up. Yet surprisingly, she loved it! She got on very well with Jonathan's wife, and in the short space of a week, they grew very close. As did James with Jonathan. It became a very emotional farewell at the end of the week, with a eat-out, and the British teenagers tearfully giving heartfelt thanks to Jonathan and his wife, with not a dry eye amogst them. It was beautiful.

I think the Amish have a lot to teach us, and I am looking forward to the next three episodes of this series.

New Music: Il Divo - Regresa a mi (Unbreak My Heart)

Today I got an email from Muzu.tv letting me know about some new music videos Il Divo had uploaded, about some of the songs from their new album (they sound really good by the way), and then I stumbled across another music video they had uploaded. 'Regresa a mi' which means 'Unbreak My Heart' - which if I remember correctly, was originally a song by Toni Braxton, many years ago? Anyway, this is a beautiful and emotional version of the song, which somehow they've managed to make amazing in the way they arrange the song with their harmonious vocals. I fell in love with this, not only an amazing song the way they sing it, but also a lovely video, with an old-world feel to it. Is it set in the 1930s, or somewhere around there? I just love it. And I hope you do to...

Il Divo - Regresa A Mi (Unbreak My Heart)

on MUZU.

Nanowrimo 2011 Here I Come!

Nanowrimo 2011 is fast approaching, and I have decided to have another go at it. The challenge is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. It is a Big, Fun, Scary Challenge, but it's addictive and I love it. I am spending the last couple of weeks of October planning it, and hope to have a blast writing it next month. Here is the synopsis so far, it's called "Urban Sci-fi" (working title):

Urban Sci-fi

Earth, the fabled long lost homeworld of the human race has been found. There are billions of primitive humans living on the planet, blissfully unaware of the many extraterrestrial species eager to explore and exploit them and their little planet. In it's defence, an interplanetary Union despatches a covert team of human and non-human specialists to find and protect this planet from extraterrestrial exploitation. For some it is an exciting voyage of discovery, for others, an emotional journey to their homeworld, and discover the secret origin of their own species.

Yet just as they begin to uncover the mysteries of this planet, on the verge of discovering how the human race miraculously crossed over into space with no knowledge of their home planet, extraterrestrial enemies start crawling out of the asteroid belt, and prepare to wage war on them and their long lost planet.

You can follow my progress on the Nanowrimo website, my username is Green_Raven.

Wish Me Luck!

Hitch (A Short Writing Piece)

Here's a short piece I tried to keep down to 100 words, but landed on 116 instead. It's inspired by the move Hitch starring Will Smith. I recently rewatched it and loved it. So here's a little Drabble Day style writing based on the main character...

Tall, dark, and handsome. That was how they’d described him. The description fit pretty good. A pretty generic description, although Alex Hitchens was anything but generic. With a suave style all his own, a walk and a smile that exuded confidence with every sway of his well built shoulders. One wink and a lopsided grin from him, and every woman he aimed it at, would gladly fall to her knees. No woman could resist him. Except the one woman who stole his heart. All the while he was busy teaching others how to win the woman of their dreams - it was the woman of his dreams that finally taught him how to fall in love.

Autumn Cigar Box - 1/24th Scale!

Here is a new Cigar Box miniature scene I have just done, in 1/24th scale! I usually collect 1/12th scale doll house miniatures, so this was quite a challenge working with items half the size - especially with tiny apples! Hope you like what I've done, and everyone have a happy Autumnal Equinox! :)

Tree Landscape Complete!

I finally completed my landscape! It's been difficult working on this one, but I am so glad I finally completed it. It was worth finishing as now I am proud of it! There are still areas I need to improve on, I am a fledgling landscape artist, I do need to improve the contrast and make the picture darker in some areas. But this is a good start I think with a difficult reference image (see previous post). Thanks so much to Retha for offering me so much help and support - without you and would not have completed it!

It just goes to show that it is worth finishing your pictures, no matter how badly you think they are going - they do improve once completed, and you have something to be proud of!