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more music to write words by

Here’s another wordless playlist. I’m chuffed by how many people liked the first one, and I hope you like this one too. I use it to write to, but you can listen to it whenever you like. I’m nice like that. It’s about 45 minutes long, tracklisting below. As usual, if you can’t see the player it’s probably cos you’re reading this on an Apple gizmo which doesn’t like Flash – you can click here to listen on the 8tracks site instead.

I’m feeling kinda wordless myself today – ooh, sudden Heathers flashback –

Christian Slater feeling kinda superior in Heathers

"I'm feeling kinda superior tonight". If you don't get the reference you need to watch Heathers more. In fact, even if you do you probably still need to watch Heathers more. Make it so.

Um, distracted by psycho-Slater handsomeness, where was I – oh yes. I have no words left. Used ’em all up. I spent the weekend prettying up the beginning of my novel for a deadline this Thursday, and it’s sucked out all my nouns and adjectives and doing words ’til all I have left is ‘yes’ and ‘no’ and ‘gin, please’. I love how it’s reading now, though – I have a beginning I’m proud of, now I just have to gussy up the rest of the ‘script to match. It’s such a rush to read things back and be pleased with them – even/especially the stuff I thought would be rubbish. Dear Future Me, please remember that and keep going even when you’re sure it sucks.

Right, must go rewatch Heathers 😉

Tracklisting

You Give Me Problems About My Business – The Mercury Program

Auto Rock – Mogwai

E-Musik – Neu!

Memphis Emphasis – Tristeza

Blue Turning Gray – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!

Memorial – Explosions in the Sky

Within Dreams – The Album Leaf

Year of The Dragon – Sufjan Stevens

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Yonder: Writing, Edible Clone Troopers, and Nicholas Brendon wet

By Rhian Bowley on in writing, yonder

Found lots to like on the internet this week, despite a demanding writing/social life/Sims schedule and an allergic reaction to something currently mysterious that wiped out most of yesterday. Bleurgh. Probably not a reaction to Kindles, chocolate, laptops or Twitter, though, so I’ll soldier on.

I read this post by Trent Jamieson, that kinda made me tingle –

Devour the world…Write what you don’t know…Dream that you can write the best stories and that, even when people tell you you can’t, you do, because you dreamt them.

Read it in full here.

Kristin Cashore wrote honestly, and helpfully, about writers block here, which basically says that writing is hard and when the going is tough it doesn’t mean you’re blocked, it mean’s you’re working. Which is good to hear cos it means she’s got the right sensibility to finish Bitterblue – Graceling gave me shivers.

I’ve finished the punk cookies I mentioned last time (and made a second batch), now I want me some Star Wars food. Click the image to read the Instructable.

And finally, I’m aware that I will alienate some readers here, but others of you are going to LOVE me for this – a photo of a wet-shirted Nicholas Brendon. Yes. Ahem. I was always Angel’s girl, but I might go back and re-watch with new, invigorating intentions. Click the image for more wet photos (no, not a phrase I thought I’d ever type). (Psst, if you like this you might also like this)

He's wet but he looks happy, right?

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Quick Quick Slow

By Rhian Bowley on in music, words, writing

I’ve not yet finished the draft I thought I’d be done with last month, but I have had some great ‘ping!’s about what this middle section needs. Insights that help change it from ‘and then, after The Beginning, they decide to go Slay The Baddies, uncovering (and solving) a Mystery in the process, which leads nicely to The End‘ to something with more substance – less of a service-station stop en route to the end, more of a village in its own right.

I wonder if I’d have got those pings if I’d hurtled through the draft at the pace I’d intended? Yes, I probably would. Going slower got my brain composting some stuff and working on some neat revelations, but had I gone faster and – crucially – worked every day, I’d have been so submerged in the story that the same revelations would have come and probably been signposted more clearly. No justification for slackening the pace, sadly, but good to know that both speeds still get me the same story.

My reading’s going much more swiftly, what a surprise, eh? I loved A Long Long Sleep, by Anna Sheehan, despite a slow start, and stayed up late to finish it. Review for the BFS to come. I was angry and disappointed by The Magician King; Fillory sounded like my kind of place til I realised that all Grossman’s strong female characters meet terrible ends (or are, like Janet, left on P.27 and never seen again). Audra at Unabridged Chick puts it well –

‘I don’t mind darker themes and I don’t mind a harder edge to my fantasy — but I want it doled out in equal part. Sparing all the male magicians while making the women all victims is frustrating, and whatever pay out comes at the end never feels enough to make the violence okay. It’s disappointing and frustrating and frankly, feels cheap.

Her review is here and my review for the British Fantasy Society is linked to here.

Talking of the BFS – it’s FantasyCon this month! It’s the first one I’m attending, and I’m very excited. Thank you to Lou Morgan for writing a newbie A-Z – check it out on her blog here.

Right, must get back to The Sims – oops, no, I mean work. Honest, guv.

Things I’m doing this week:

Watching: Lost Girl, Season 1 on Syfy (great so far!)

Reading: Roil, by Trent Jamieson (also great so far)

Eating: punk rock vegan cookies. If they’re vegan I can eat as many as I want, right?

Listening to: Pot Kettle Black, Tilly and The Wall

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The Magician King by Lev Grossman

By Rhian Bowley on in reviews, words

cover of magician king lev grossman

Reviewed for The British Fantasy Society

Somewhere in these pages was a story I could have loved, with characters I cared about. But both got lost amidst the relentless world-hopping and cumulative misogyny. What a shame.

I really liked The Magicians. Still do. It took the childhood stories that shaped me, added clever, modern writing and created a new classic. In this sequel we’re back with the same characters, now kings and queens of Fillory. But Quentin’s a bit bored, and fancies some adventure…

Before long he’s messed things up and ends up back in the real world. He and Julia get a road trip across the globe while they try to return to Fillory, crossing through Julia’s old haunts to a beautifully described, magical Venice. For a while the book was great…

Read full review

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