Archive for the ‘inspirations’ Category

Those who know me, know I used to review horror movies. B-grade ones. I have, therefore, a love of special effects done with gaffa tape and a pair of leftover polystyrene coffee cups. I’ve always had a spot in my heart preserved just for those mutant movies. CHUD. Basketcase. Brilliant stuff. Therefore, this videoclip made [...]

I’m in the process of pretty much upgrading the character’s world, so i needed some music which would give me an adequate swagger to the text. This is what’s helping me edit: New Kind of Kick – The Cramps (still buzzin’ my brains out) Nothing Dies Easy – New Model Army The One Who Got [...]

The site belongs to a Mister Kasey Klein and he’s got a bit of advice on his site which is of interest. I love the philosophy on what to cut, and what to chop out of a sentence to really make it pop, and it brings to mind a great deal of advice written on writing pulp fiction, or hardboiled crime. I love these styles of writing. They’re like old friends which you have to ring up now and then to be reminded of what you’ve left behind.

I’m really loving this album. I play it at work all the time, but it just does no justice to it. I hear this song, and each time I have to stop and listen, because the song Basket is just amazing. Without doubt one of those songs which makes your soul shake just to hear [...]

It is almost as if Tolkien created a history book from which fantasy could refer to in the same way Gemmell referred to Roman or British history books. Not quite stealing, but more adapting and moving a few things around. That way you keep the basic feel and elements, but you create your own world which is both distinctive and easy for the reader to relate to because, thanks to the viral effects of Tolkien, they know everything they need to about Elves and Dwarves now. You don’t need to provide endless history, language and extreme depths to these characters because Tolkien already did it for us.

Tolkien had his game face on when he penned his epics. I mean, he pulled those languages so far out of his backside that not only must it have hurt, but it meant he was able to speak those languages like a native. Me, I don’t have that kind of dedication. Besides, inventing languages is kind of like inventing numbers. You think you’re so original, but really it’s just silly and everyone secretly thinks you’re a bit of a prat.

I try to keep positive thoughts about people. Even the worst customers I will only smile or joke about. I won’t let rage fuel my emotions. To let that happen is to feed that part of yourself which rages against the little things. Like a slightly smudged glass delivered to you in a restaurant.

Or when your bookstore manager refuses to give you a discount because the book has a grubby mark he just wipes off with his thumb, but you can still “see” it there and deserve a discount. So you rage at him in hope it will change everything. Storm out with a big rage-on and probably spit and spite yourself down the street. Me, I’ve already forgotten you. Sorry about that.

You see, it seems these days there’s a great emphasis on fantasy being a minimum of 120,000 words. Ideally, a fantasy novel should be begging the better side of 1000 pages, and more is better. I admit to being a bit like this. I feel that paying $25 for a book of 3000 pages is better than paying $25 for something only 180 or so. That’s just how I think. But, now I’m beginning to think I’m wrong.

You see, that’s capitalism thinking. That’s not me thinking the book is better because it’s longer. That’s me thinking I want more pages for my buck. I want more trees to die.

I personally prefer a lot of pumped up music, though I’n inclined to make small soundtracks which I can change depending on the mood of the piece I’m writing. For example, when writing fight, action, or just the plot, I listen to a lot of punk. The Cramps is fantastic for this. When writing moody self-reflections, monologues, or emotional moments, I go with something a little more electro. A personal favourite is Snog, or Black Lung. Industrial, such as Laibach, Lard or Pigface is great for writing badguy descriptions, and when trying to work on landscape descriptions, I love to go with classics, like Led Zepp, the Rolling Stones, or Black Sabbath. The key is to keep soundtracks with similar tempos. This causes less interruption and feels like I’m writing scenes to a movie in my head complete with the most appropriate soundtrack. I adapt the song to suit my purpose, and I’m always looking for songs whose lyrics match what I’m trying to achieve, too. Just to keep the spirit of the scene.

I’m not a fan of westerns as such. I never liked the John Wayne style of western. I was more into the Spaghettis. The gritty sweaty feel with an over-abundance of violence and a distinct lack of squeaky clean heroes. Bookwise, they’re not as common as you’d think – heroes like that. They’re usually twice [...]