power cuts and a writing meme

[erastes]

Only not a power cut. the idiots digging up the road did it, or something – TWO HOURS of sitting in the dark.  The main problem with having ONLY electricity in the house, is that when you have a power cut, you are buggered. You can’t even light your candles from the gas. You can’t heat fud.  Hate power cuts.  Went to use the laptop, and of course – as it’s wireless  i couldn’t even connect to the net. ARGHLE.  Note to self. Buy a lot of candles and matches. All right?

Drove to Clacton today. Had a lovely time. I love LOVE love driving. I didn’t learn until my 30s – and I just love it.  I could have gone down the motorway – such as it is  - but I hate major roads, so I cruised down the A12/A14/A12 which is treelined, village filled, alternating speed limits.  It keeps things interesting and is pretty. 

Ok – that’s it, very dull, yes. Sorry. 

Quick meme stolen from Gehayi – but it looks like fun

Give me the title of a story I've never written, and feedback telling me what you liked best about it, and I will tell you any of the following: the first sentence, the last sentence, the thing that made me want to write it, the biggest problem I had while writing it, why it almost never got posted, the scene that hit the cutting room floor but that I wish I'd been able to salvage, or something else that I want readers to know.

Comments

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's obnoxious. We have a #@@!%%! electric stove and I bought a bag of charcoal for our camp grill, just in case that happens in the winter. I miss my gas stove.

As for your book The Northern Lights Have Seen Strange Sights, I was almost in tears at the scene where the were-penguin, trapped in his bird-form by the musher's curse, brings his human lover a herring. I was also surprised and delighted when you managed to bring this to a happy ending. And as usual, your secondary character, Rolf the Malemute, stole the show. I have to wonder if he's a shape-changer too.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I do go into more detail in the sequel, but that's consigned to entire secrecy. Last book was spoiled by the BBC running that documentary of course. But I do explain how Penguin Pete ends up at the North Pole, so far away from his birthplace.

As for Rolf, you'll have to wait and see. I will only say, keep your eyes on the bears.

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

The hint about Pete was clear enough, I thought--that he had never Changed anywhere further north than the Falklands. Poor guy must have expected he was safe at the far end of the world.

Bears. Well, it figures, doesn`t it!

[chris-smith-atr.livejournal.com]

Oh Lee! I found that scene EXTREMELY touching as well.

[chris-smith-atr.livejournal.com]

Personally Erastes, I've always found your 200k paranormal paramilitary paradise paradigm novel "Perchance a trouser-ferret too far" about the deployment of psuedo-mythical ferret-fairies in the Vietnam War (with out-takes in a Joycean style to the anti-hero's blissful childhood shagging marmosets in Fiji).

My particular favourite was the scene in which the fairie-ferrets grasped the hero and heroine between their teeny-tiny teeth and flew them over the demilitarised zone so they could have hot heterosexual sex while flying in the air. Grasped in ferret teeth. Just the hottest thing I've ever read!

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

However the whole deconstruction of A Whole New World from the Aladdin film was not spotted by anyone, and I rather wonder if it was worth the research and the three years of poetry lessons.

[chris-smith-atr.livejournal.com]

You know, I thought there was an underlying metaphor with those flying ferrets. And the fact you named one Abu should have been a dead giveaway.

I am so ashamed. This has brought a whole new dimension to the story.

[gehayi.livejournal.com]

Personally, my favourite of your works has to be that ingeniously crafted bit of magical realism, Guilty Splendour. I never imagined that you would write a gay Regency from the point of view of the maiden aunt of one of the lovers, or that you would make the antagonist of the tale an evil sorcerer who dwelt on a houseboat in the Lake District, or that the aunt's visit to the Ottoman Empire would become key to the story. Somehow I had never envisioned a Regency road trip, but in this story, it works.

And the flying green-eyed candle was simply chilling.

Brilliantly done. I salute you.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

It was a hard slog -- I was actually given the idea by seeing a blancmange falling from a plate onto the floor, and I thought that the theme would be impossible to maintain, but it worked well, I think. The maiden aunt's squint was difficult to research, but of course led to the final denouement, so it was all worth it.

[aunty_marion]

Your SF story, Where have all the flowers gone?, about the disappearing rivers, was enjoyable for the incredible puns and wordplay (note the title, in particular!); and to find that the arch-villain was the Times' crossword compiler (I was surprised to find they still had crosswords in the 23rd century!) was the crowning glory.

(We used to go on holiday to Clacton. I have fond memories of crab-fishing off the groynes.)

[chris-quinton.livejournal.com]

I don't know why, but after giggling myself silly over the replies so far, your last line just finished me off - which is ridiculous, because crab-fishing off the groynes is a perfectly normal - and pleasant - exercise...

I will now go and drink More Tea.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I hope you realise that it was all a rotating dream in the mind of the fourth cabbage butterfly? Some have called it work of steaming genius - others use steaming, but not in the same manner.

The crossword theme was fun to do. Dan Brown helped me with that part. I don't think it shows.

Jaywick is pretty much a no-go zone these days, sadly.

[chris-quinton.livejournal.com]

Your epic novel 'Salacious at Sarasota' had me on the edge of my seat. The clipper 'Salacious' was a character in its/her/his own right, and what the figurehead got up to in the tavern was. Just. well, amazing. Though I do wonder that the deliciously heroic Salvador Smith was able to walk afterward... The plot twist in the last chapter was inspired--that Sir Simon Sudely, surely the ultimate in villainy, was the twin sister of Sinclair, the boy who modelled for the 'Salacious' figurehead--a true masterstroke.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I had a lot of trouble working out how transexual operations would have taken place in the 18th century, but I think that it's quite possible that my solution of catgut, a salami and some lychees in calfskin worked pretty well. It certainly seemed to fool Melynda the gold-hearted prostitute didn't it?

[nagasvoice.livejournal.com]

We had some years where the power was up and down all the time when there were storms or it stayed too hot for too long. (triple digits for six weeks with no break, infrastructure things start to fail.) We did find some powerful fluorescent lanterns which are battery powered, with the big box-shaped batteries in the base. (don't know what you'd call thse over there.) Have never had them go out on us, and one is good enough to light a whole room quite well.
It's hard to handle lit candles ad kerosene lanterns with cats jumping about all spooked because the routine is upset.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I'll certainly have to get something for emergencies, that's for sure. The cats don't seem to care of course. typical.

[penelopefriday.livejournal.com]

Ah. There is a reason for my otherwise incomprehensible habit of carrying a cigarette lighter around with me. It might, some day, make me Useful In An Emergency. (As I don't smoke, it serves no other purpose.)

By the way, I really loved your story The Dingbats of Bongaloon: I felt there was some most impressive world-building going on in the text.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

i've had a powercut before but luckily always during the day, it's horrid sitting in the dark. Reminds me of the 60's when we had the 3 day week and power cuts every day.

I'm so happy you liked the Dingbats - it started with the first line: "Bongaloon had been invaded," and I went on from there.

[crawling-angel.livejournal.com]

Your long-awaited novel, Meermortal Cats, had me in stitches. The extraordinary journey of Alexsandr the Alcoholic from ale house to wine bar was a page-turner if ever I read one. I particularly loved the scene where Alexsandr meets up with his own image in the mirror of a backstreet urinal was a particularly poignant moment. 'Immortality never looked so good!" ... a classic line!

I wonder if there is a sequel on the horizon...

[erastes.livejournal.com]

i hope that no-one noticed it was a reworking of Dorian Gray, I thought that I made Alexsandr suitably and aggressively heterosexual (which was hard to do for me!) to get people off the scent!

I think the character is too good to waste, I have something planned where he makes a journey home, but is delayed by circumstance, evil witches and the gods. I'm going to call it The Meerdyssey .