Catching Up Is Hard To Do

Well, I’m finally back on track for the next chapter of Teratogenesis on Sunday.  We are firmly in the middle of the story now and will begin accelerating toward the conclusion over the next few months.

I decided to tie these other two posts together by the choice of music.  Each song in the four blog entries is by Mike Patton and span pretty much the length of his career.

I experienced some fun and games with my internet connection and it looked like this would be delayed even further, but a fair amount of jiggery and a little pokery managed to get it connected again.

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online Serial,Mike Patton,Internet,End Is Nigh.

Flinching

Sometimes events occur on the larger stage which give us cause to pause and reflect on what we are doing and how our deeds are perceived by others.

The first example I can think of is from the band, Machine Head.  Even if you don’t like heavy metal, I’m sure you can appreciate the sad irony of this, just watch with the sound turned off.  As Machine Head were preparing to launch their fourth album, they chose a song as the lead single and recorded a video for it:

 

This video was released in the first few days of September 2001.

Needless to say, it got canned and had a direct effect on Machine Head leaving their record label and spending an unfortunate amount of time in the wilderness.  The band, director and record label could have had no idea about September 11th but it still had a very negative consequence for all of them.

This is what I mean by flinching.

Sometimes the world is a horrid place and we just can’t bear to look, like the first sight of a bad wound or other unpleasant shock.  Just because something is vile, though, doesn’t mean we should turn away.  In fact, it is the worst elements of life that must bear the closest scrutiny, if we are to overcome them.  Humanity is a contradictory species:  for every Plato, there is a Pol Pot, for every Trent Reznor, there is a Simon Cowell, Leni Riefenstahl made a beautiful film about a venomous subject, we find great leaders like Richard the Lionheart and Saladin and then pitch them against each other.  To improve ourselves, we cannot blind ourselves to our failings.

So I will not censor Teratogenesis in light of recent events in Cumbria.

The dark heart of Teratogenesis is coming to pass and I will not flinch.  The story is about personal madness and to shy away from that now is shameful cowardice.

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online Serial,Machine Head,Plato,NiN,the Crusades,Flinching

Normal Service Is Resumed

It was bound to happen eventually, I've managed to miss an update.  Thankfully, there was nothing scheduled to happen, it was just an entry to show that our unreliable narrator does have a normal life as well.

The lesson learned?  "If you have email alerts to remind up of updates, check your email."  Or, build up a few chapters ahead of time.  That would be the sensible thing to do.


EDITED 2/5/10
“Or, build up a few chapters ahead of time.  That would be the sensible thing to do.”
Well, those are famous last words.
I, rather unprofessionally, disappeared to see friends this weekend and in doing so missed another two updates.
The irony is that the dominant arc this week revolves around black outs.  These are pretty important chapters, but can be reinserted with ease.  Indeed, they make the subject of tomorrow's update all the more interesting.  I’ve mentioned the importance of synchronicity and the need to stay flexible before, so I won’t bore with that again, but it is getting funny.

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online Serial,Epic Fail,Deadline,Coincidence,Enough Rope To Hang

Synchronicity

Completely by coincidence, tonight’s Teratogenesis update features the Crowded House song ‘Instinct’ as it’s soundtrack.  Not only is this a great song, but it’s title ties straight into the emerging theme of instincts and intuition.  And, as the update went up, Crowded House were playing ‘Later…’ on BBC 2.

Coincidence is playing a large part in Teratogenesis.  The updates are random points along each arc and yet, by keeping the specifics fairly loose, I allow for little interstices of current events and the plot I’ve had brewing for over three years.  Without allowing for this, I’d not be able to slide a few current affairs references into the background and the whole exercise loses it’s real time aspect.

I think this is a challenge even 24 hasn’t had to face.  Each episode of 24 represents one hour of Jack Bauer’s day, (or rather 45 minutes of his day plus ad breaks.)  Teratogenesis is a whole year in the life of Ru- He Who Chooses Not To Be Named.  In the last twelve hours alone, the UK has had a change in Prime Minister and a whole new government will be taking charge.  Frankly, it would have taken more than a week of déjà vu dreams for me to predict this election and if I had, I’d have made a fortune.  This means a lot of little changes and a change of tone across the nation, which Teratogenesis will be able to adapt to.

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online serial,Crowded House,Jools Holland,Coincidence,Instinct,UK Election,24

Act 2

Well, the first act of Teratogenesis is well and truly over now.

When we first met our protagonist, he was rotten with doubt and fear.  And now he’s starting fights with hooligans.  Not bad for four short months.

However, there is something of a problem with the soundtrack.

I’ve recently starting using the Firefox browser and found that its internal ad-blocker blanks out the music widgets.  Which it’s meant to do, considering that they are, technically, adverts.  However, this is the price of free.  Without those ads, you miss out on the soundtrack, which is used to express the character’s mindset.  It’s also my only revenue stream from Teratogenesis so far, but there are examples where the choice of song betrays more than the character is willing to say.

Still, it’s just a click away (to paraphrase “Gimme Shelter.”)

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online serial,Firefox,Let It Bleed,Adware

Long Time, No See

It looks like a quiet week for our nameless protagonist (who, incidentally, does have a name, he just doesn’t use it.)  Maybe he’s ashamed of his less than gallant behaviour this weekend.  Maybe something else has happened.  After all, it was the pub quiz last night.

We’re a third of the way through Teratogenesis now, and the momentum of the second arc is gathering.  I am also proud to say that I have not missed a single update.  Although, there were a couple that went up at ten to twelve at night, incredibly close to the deadline.  And I’ve probably cursed myself now.

Timing is incredibly important in Teratogenesis, not only as a story-telling device but also as a structural device.  I make no secret of my admiration of 24.  To me, it was the biggest thing to happen on TV since the X-Files and it baffles me that no one else has thought to use the “real-time” conceit for another programme.  When I decided to do an ongoing serial, this seemed an obvious choice to me;  not only is it part of the apparent form, but it would help to pace out the story.

And this is were it starts to become not just a consequence, but a cause as well.  The story of Teratogenesis is determined by a specific rhythm (which I’m sure everyone has guessed by now,) and this is what drives the actual action and tone of each entry.  The period between entries was determined randomly, but that doesn’t mean that nothing has happened in between.  Quite the opposite; I mean, who hasn’t been too busy to blog at some point?  Each entry is only a window, the world of Teratogenesis carries on regardless on the other side.

Also: promises, promises.  I know I keep promising to post more on The Xaeromancer Project, but I really am about to start editing up some short stories to go on there, as well as getting another Christmas ghost story ready for Scribd.  It is, after all, almost summer.

del.icio.us Tags: TeratogenesisUK,Online serial,24,I Want To Believe,Lunar Cycle,Christmas,Looking Glass

Life Imitating Art Imitating Life

Apart from the fact that it’s about a werewolf, Teratogenesis is essentially my autobiography.  There are differences between myself and the protagonist, but the similarities are overwhelming.  For example, I’ve never (knowingly) put my name on this blog.

And there are times when synchronicity is more than just an album by The Police.  For example, despite the fact that this chapter of Teratogenesis was originally plotted for 2007, I find myself in a very similar situation to our nameless protagonist.  Which is to say, I’m working and travelling to see my friends.

I plan on behaving much better…

Also, I’ve just received my first rejection letter.  Or rather, email.  Specifically, for a piece of writing.  I’ve had plenty for actual paying work.  Suffice to say, between t’internet and this landmark moment, I know feel much the same as Saturn (the titan, not the planet) about killing my darlings.  This was something that really bothered me, the old “sticking my neck on the line.”  And it also means that I now have a half-baked 500 word story I can develop into something useful.

From the people I’ve spoken to, Teratogenesis has been quite well received.  And that is ultimately the point.  I write what I want to read, what I hope my friends would like (but if they don’t, stuff ‘em, they can read something else instead, no hard feelings.)  Writing isn’t my job; I don’t expect it to feed me or shelter me, there’ll always have to be something else for that.  But writing is my calling, my duty, my dharma and, unfortunately, my one true love.

Unless you are intelligent, charming, gorgeous, and the heiress to a brewery; in which case, YOU are my one true love.

del.icio.us Tags: teratogenesisUK,online serial,The Police,Tall Poppy Syndrome,dharma,brewery

Gathering Pace

After last week’s “double episode,”  Teratogenesis is moving forwarded at pace.  Not only that, but I’ve signed up to Scribd and will be releasing some older material as PDFs to download.  Coupled with the fact that I am no longer an unemployment statistic, it’s all go for me right now.

The Scribd project is something I’ve been doing for a number of years now, where I write a ‘traditional’ Christmas ghost story on Christmas Eve.  The Victorian tradition of the Christmas ghost story has pretty much disappeared (although if you are maintaining it yourself, let me know,) and I think that’s a real shame.  The first story- Harbinger- went up last week and proved quite popular!  However, given that Harbinger is also on the Xaeromancer Project web page and isn’t so strong out of context, I’m currently re-editing the remaining two pieces for Scribd.

Given that Christmas is very much a family time, this project doesn’t allows yield a result but it is very satisfying working within the constraints of the genre and the one day, finish by midnight time frame.  MR James was very much the master of this form and it’s from his theory that I practice.  To quote U2, “every artist is a cannibal / every poet is a thief” and you really have to go back to the source to see why something emerged and how it has changed over the years.  For example, if you like Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire Mysteries, try Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla or Lost Souls by Poppy Z Brite.

The Scribd project is also me dipping my toes into the issue of eBooks.  Personally, I’m quite happy to read on my laptop, but I know some people who hate reading PDFs.  Don’t get me wrong, there is something magical about the concrete sensations of a new book, but frankly, it costs nothing to produce an eBook.  Let me say that again:

It costs nothing to produce an eBook.

You can save a file as a PDF with the free OpenOffice suite (other word processors are available, but OpenOffice is free, as is the Office PDF plugin.)  Admittedly, this means that you have to proof, format and edit the file yourself, but I was taught that in school over a decade ago, so the odds are:  if you can read this blog, you can type, format and save a file that has been proofed in accordance to the standards of your spell-checker (if that is enough for you.)  So, there you go, use that secret wisely.

Also, I’ve specifically chosen the Portable Document Format (.pdf) because it’s a reasonably open format and compatible with a number of different platforms: both of the major eBook readers, smart phones (even the iPhone,) laptops, desktops, palmtops and tank tops.  I appreciate that I don’t write populist fiction so it’s doubly important for me to reach everyone who might be interested in what I have to say and format is a definite consideration for this.

There will definitely be more in the way of eBooks later along the line (a collected Teratogenesis, for instance) but for now, the Scribd project is all about testing the waters and experimenting with the medium.

Finally, I chose “Come As You Are”  by Nirvana for today’s entry because I didn’t figure that our protagonist would have chosen my first choice, “Memories” by Public Image, Ltd.  Sometimes it’s difficult to chose the music at the end because what I think is a good choice might not be what the narrator thinks is appropriate.

del.icio.us Tags: teratogenesisUK,online serial,Christmas,ghost story,M.R. James,Achtung Baby,True Blood,Sheridan Le Fanu,Poppy Z. BriteZ. Brite,Scribd,ePublishing,Nirvana,PiL

Great.

The post that I’ve had waiting for two days, now doesn’t seem to want to publish.

I can’t be because of the new layout, because the post below (about the new layout) went up fine.

So, what does this mean?

It means fiddling and trial and error.

 

EDIT:

This has gone up fine, so what’s the beef?

That’s fixed that.

 

del.icio.us Tags: shenanigans,blog

Spring Clean

I’ve managed to update the blog’s layout with the new template designer.

This is a bit more what I had in mind originally, although the initial concept for the background was mist.  However, I’ve got used to the deep blue and would probably keep this palette now even if I figured out how to do my own CSS.

del.icio.us Tags: redesign,blog