erastes

Good luck to everyone who's taking off with NANO today! You are all mad, but I hope you make it. I look forward to reading your progress.

OK - how funny is this? I'm pretty sure that my ex-boss, who I've mentioned a few times, was trolling the Speak Its Name chat last night. *incredulous blinking* The email address she used was her initials which I should have spotted when she applied, but didn't - and when I approved her I just approved everyone in one lump (bad moderating...). I didn't even notice until that email unsubscribed this morning. Her application said "The prospect of participating promises to be stimulating" which again, might have rung alarm bells (In conjunction with the email address) if I hadn't been hopped up on cake because everyone one else mentioned the historical fiction or where they'd learned of the group. God knows what she expected to find.

How very sad. And incredibly funny. You'd think that someone in her position would have better things to do than pathetically spying on a group of readers and writers having a fun chat. So if it was you? Imagine me laughing my arse off at you right now. I hope I'm wrong, though, because... creepy!

I had a great birthday, thanks mostly, to all of you. Thank you ALL. I still haven't managed to thank everyone for all the good wishes, virtual gifts, cards etc - or to read through all the posts on the Chat yet - had 500 emails in 10 hours.... The Speak Its Name chat was hugely successful and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. We had hundreds of posts, some great giveaways, and about 100 members by the end of the night. I think it will be a good group to help promote the genre of gay historical fiction.

I went out for dinner with Kerry and went to watch the James Bond film.( Read more... )Well, better get some lunch! And Tadzio had better wipe the blood from his mouth and stop being evil.

First off - Charity Auction: Handwritten story by Emma Collingwood (author of the lovely "Lieutenant Samuel Blackwood, deceased") which is to benefit the Morpeth Lions Club Flood Fund - a club once patronised by Captain Collingwood himself and a good cause.



There is also an original picture by the illustrator of "Samuel Blackwood" - Amandine De Villeneuve



Click on the links to take you to the Ebay (UK) auctions.

As for Cinema night:  Well, it was DEATH RACE starring the delectable Jason Statham.  I'm old enough to have seen the original, but I'm afraid I never did. Was that the one where the drivers got points for each person they hit? I could go and look it up but I'm too lazy, but there were a lot of jokes about "ten points for the old lady" when I was driving with boys as a teenager. Perhaps it'll be on the TV one day.

Anyway, this one was really bloody enjoyable, and it was a bit of a surprise. We booked it because it had Jason Statham in it, and both canarieschick and I really like him and love his hotness.  I never thought I'd be impressed by a film that had little to draw me in other than hot cars, hot men and hot chicks (which frankly were a bit superfluous) but I was - the storyline was not convoluted; one knew pretty much what would happen to the bad people, but all the same it handled it in a way that was entirely satisfying.  There's even a very hot black gay guy. "Everyone has a woman navigator, apart from Joe.  That's because he's gay."  "No, it's because he gets through them too fast and the network got squeamish." "yeah - he gets through them - through the arse."  I think there must be a law now that any film CC and I go to see has to have major gay elements.

There's not a lot to the film. Cars. Explosions. Revs. Rivalry. A Wronged Hero doing what he has to. But it works in all the right places for the right reasons. And the most interesting fact about it - and the reason I wanted to see it (other than Mr S getting his vest off, AGAIN) was that they deliberately didn't use any CGI in the film at all. When you know that - the story suddenly gets a lot more interesting, and you sit there, like a child, thinking "fuck! how did they DO that!" which is how it should be, imo.  Loved it.  Who knew I was such a petrol head, eh?

I'd been to see a few of Ritchie's films and frankly wasn't really looking forward to this one -Revolver for god's sake - does someone want to explain that one to me?  I'm still baffled.

However - it was great!  Funny, wonderful characters (without -in my opinion having them completely over the top for a change) Tom Wilkinson (at bloody LAST) given a big meaty tough guy role.  In fact the performances were all so bloody good that Gerald Butler almost got swallowed up - he certainly didn't stand out -not because he wasn't good, because he was - but because everyone else was too.

I would think that some non-Brits might need subtitles, but I do really really recommend this: It's like Ritchie is poking gentle fun at himself and it works really well. It's not as bloody as some of his work, and that builds the tension because he makes you care for the characters even the pretty awful ones - and you just know that someone is going to get it and I know that there was one or two that I really really didn't want to die.

The only quibble I have is the fate of the painting, so when anyone else goes to see it, please let me know your ideas - that was just left hanging.

I was wracking my brain throughout as to where I'd seen "Archie" before, and when the titles came up I realised that he was Mark Strong and had played Septimus in "Stardust" (phwoar) and was just as hot in this in quite a different way. Thandie Newton? Excellent. A role worthy of her.

Oh - and did I mention the gay?  No?  *innocent face*  Oh well, you'll just have to go and see it won't you?  Let's just say that you see Gerald Butler's arse,and it's worth seeing, too. There aren't many films that make me really laugh out loud but this one did it. Well done, Mr Ritchie, well done.

I loved it! Better than Indiana Jones, better than the Mummy 2 (that's for sure) - the car chase with the golem horses? Possibly one of the best action sequences I've seen - ever? There were bits when I was sitting there thinking "I know this is mostly CGI but hot-dayum!" Jet Li was fabulous as usual, and great to see so many kick-ass women characters. So much nicer to see than the wilting Wilheminas like Pepper wosserface and Mary Jane.

Loved it loved it. Of course a complete dog's dinner of the actual story of the first emperor, but who goes to these films to be educated?

I wrote more today than I've written for YEARS.  Don't know why, perhaps, as alex_beecroft said yesterday my sub-concious was up to something and I was percolating the story in my head.  I don't know. I rather felt I was being lazy... :D  However!  instead of trying to force through from where I was in the middle and breaking my mind I jumped forward and did what I usually do, wrote the end - or rather a large chunk of leading up to the end and PING!!!!! something unblocked - the character that I thought was Mostly Filler turned out to have a rather vital use after all and I had FUN writing something for the first time since I started Hard & Fast and that was over a year ago. I had to make myself stop in the end for two reasons : 1. I had to go to the cinema and 2. the next section is the HEA... and I need to think that over without melting into utter candy-floss vomitorium sweetness.  I'm forcing myself to try and write an ending for a change, and not a "cheat"....

But it was 3241 words, and I haven't written that much since Standish, I think!  Thank you all for brainstorming with me.  Not that I don't miss my mother 99 percent of the time, but I really do miss her for being able to chat person to person whenever I had a writing problem. I miss having someone I can chat to voice to voice.  Dad's a darling but 1. he don't really get the process and 2. He forgets what I said five minutes ago.

film Night: Kung Fu Panda.  Perfection.  There's no other word for it.  If you like animated CGI's you'll love this. If you like Kung Fu films and know the genre, then you'll love this.  If you love Dustin Hoffman, you'll love this.  I loved every second of it, from the classic animated graphic novel style beginning to the inevitable ending. The humour is laugh out loud funny (and for an English person to say this, believe me, you'll be rolling in the aisles if you aren't English) the action pretty much relentless, characters GREAT but the animation Rules.  Really.  Really and truly. It's SO beautiful that it's almost distracting.  You want to sit there and wonder and marvel at the movement of the hairs in an eyelash, or the random waving of a flag, the blowing of peach blossom or the movement of water and you CAN'T because there are animals Kung Fu-ing themselves into oblivion!!

My tip?  Don't sit too close to the screen. Sit at the back or you'll find it all blurry and it will ruin it.  But don't miss this one. It's amazing.

Jumper:  Visually very stunning (although a bit too much "wobbly camera" for me at time which I was sick of five minutes after the first director used it) and logistically it must have been a NIGHTMARE to film as it jumped from the north pole to London to New York to Cairo to Tokyo to Ann Arbor all in the space of ten seconds of screen time.

Jamie Bell acted Hayden Christensen off the stage, but even his diction failed at times and it took me about half the film before I realised that they were saying "Paladin" - And w00t!  Samuel L Jackson as a very convincing bad guy! Hayden was more of the Sith-same, really. Instead of grabbing the girl and getting the hell out of dodge, it was all "Let me explain...." when the very bad guys were just about to bash the doors down! Less yak, more escape for gawds sake!!

However, what was really wrong with it was completely unnecessary Girl (and that has nothing to do with any slash, but she was utterly pointless) without whom they could have managed more of what was really missing, e.g. any plot at all.  The whole thing seemed like a set-up to the sequel, really, which was a shame.  Has anyone read the book? Is that better?  I liked the idea of it, and I had a feeling that it was probably a lot more deep than the film gave it credit for.

On a more sombre note and found on ruth_sims' LJ - Please go and sign this petition and try and stop Mahdi from being extradited back to Iran where he will most certainly be exected for homosexuality.

(Mahdi) came to England on a student visa to study, his boyfriend in Iran was caught out and executed, and under torture gave Madhis name. Mahdi has already been refused asylum in the UK and shall certainly face horrific torture and most likely execution if the British government is allowed to send him back to Iran .  A campaign must be started to prevent this from happening, especially as the young lad had already suffered and is now going on a hunger strike.

OK - I've found my true home. Gay Sci Fi Nerds

Due to the Haworth sell-off, I don't think my gay space opera will be finding an anthology in the near future, I've heard nothing from the editor, and nothing from the company. It wasn't contracted, and Greg said that he was planning to put it into "Distant Horizons 2" so we are talking a long long time in the future - if ever. So... I thought - as I've already written another short story with the same characters - I might do a novel with them, perhaps a short story adventure per chapter - vaguely moving along an underlining plot - but each story standing in its own right. Kind of like a television series, I suppose. Could be an interesting project to do. Means also that I won't get mired into a novel, and I can dip in and out of it. And when it comes to Erastes and sci-fi, we are talking space opera, so there's less Sci and more Fi if you get me. I don't do maths, or physics and according to Heinlein, that makes me nothing better than a simian who has learned not to mess in the house. Anyway, that's for a future project. *G*

Film Night: No Reservations - Catherine Zeta Jones. AVOID. Truly bad. Rom-com with no Rom and no Com. Chick flick to make you sick. So so AWFUL. CZJ - i've yet to see you in a film that I like. Come back here and learn your trade properly, perhaps.

Film Night: Gothieman.

( Film in a nutshell - MAJOR spoilers )

tagged from gehayi

1. Grab the nearest book
2. Open the book to page 23.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next three sentences in your journal along with these instructions.
5. Don't dig for your favourite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.
6. Tag five other people to do the same.
( Read more... )

Homosexuality in History by Colin Spencer

I don't usually like to tag people, because I think they think I'm a pest, but I'll do it. Im picking people who have rarely, if ever commented, because I wonder sometimes what people are here for.  1st_corinthian, annesible, elanorgardner, rimpig, paintedponyxox

YUK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh why oh why oh why didn't I go and check the reviews before I went to see it?  This week was MY CHOICE and rather than go and see Blades of Glory (which canaries_chick really wanted to go and see) I thought I'd be safe - seeing as how it smashed all records in the first weekend in America.

What was I thinking?   Just awful awful awful awful awful.  Unwitty script, dreadful performances, hideous stereotypes (it didn't even do what sometimes the Americans are good at doing, taking the piss out of themselves), the only jokes seemed to be gay-bashing jokes which had me on edge from the word go.  What was Macy thinking?

*shudder*

We walked out after 45 mins, and we've only ever walked out on one film before (New World) - we didn't even walk out on Lost in Translation.

You Are Corona

You don't drink for the love of beer. You drink to get drunk. You prefer a very light, very smooth beer. A beer that's hardly a beer at all. And while you might not like the taste of beer, you like the feeling of being drunk. You drink early and often. Sometimes with friends. Sometimes alone. All the party needs is you!

This is scarily accurate. However - I do like the taste of beer, and Corona/Sol (with lime) is my favourite tipple. I wish it was stronger, though.... *G*

( Film Night: The Number 23 )

( And I thought I didn't like Alan Bennett )

Rating: Highly Recommended.