Hello Everyone.

I know that I haven't been blogging and that it is unacceptable.

I'm sorry.

But now I'm back and for those of you who follow my twitter feed you'll kno that it isn't because I have been lazy. I have written a huge amount and am that I am simultaneously writing three characters. This is because the three interact alot and I need to get them all to a point where I can add a fourth character to their interactions. It's how I write. I write a character and only that character. where the character then starts to interact with another character, I write the two characters together. The reason I write like this is because the book is a multitude of small chapters that overall create a mosaic of the overall story. Each chapter is written from the relevant character's point of view. As I find it difficult to change character rapidly, I tend to stick with one character as long as I can.

I have taken almost all of the characters to a point where they are now interacting with each other one way or another. Some I have taken a lot further. One character has had virtually nothing written about him because he is a little special.

I have no idea how many words I have written since I last blogged back in February but I would hasard a guess at more than a hundred thousand. It is rough in places and the whole thing needs redrafting. One step at a time.

Looking forward to winter.

DR

OK

OK, I've made some changes. I hope it works.

JP

Has things to blog about.

This is actually going to be a test blog before I blog for real.

It's to test stuff.

DR

Update on the worlds.

Good Morning, afternoon, evening, night. Wherever you may be.

I should be writing as I am on the metro but I have nowhere to sit. Yes, I can write standing up, but I'm not going to. Instead, as you can see, I'm blogging. I have good news and news, neither good nor bad.

First the good news. I bought some new books. They are by paperblanks. Hardback, A5, but sadly not narrow ruled. They are being a spur to my current hardback, A4, 5mm squared book. A4 is too big. I wish I had taken my time or spent a little more on getting a book that I really like. I have those now. The best thing about these books that I have bought is that they are plural. Two identical books and both in sale with 75% off. Marvellous.

That was the good news. Other news involves the character Dravis. He was too nice and I liked him too much as a character so he has done something terrible. Something that shows him in a true light.

I hope you hate it.

DR


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Has the Miracle Happened.

I have spent a large amount of time over the last few weeks trying to get a proper integrated system between this blog, Twitter and Facebook.

I think that I have finally managed to do it.

On the book front, I am coming to the end of Dravis and Malakan and I think that I will probably be returning to Nulfaga. You know how it is, sometimes you just want to visit old friends. I should have written more than I did over the last few days. I overdid it on Wednesday night at rugby training. I think that I may have to tone it down, I can barely walk and my shin splints have flared up again. Still, every word I write is one less still to be done.

Things are moving in the murky waters.

DR

Shuffling off someone else's mortal coil

Well I have been writing whilst at the same time not writing. The character that I am currently working on has to face his own mortality. That's easy enough, except it isn't. It's turning out to be very difficult. His impressions of his own mortality are extremely different to mine and I have great difficulty expressing that on paper when it looks so papery thin to me as an author. If I was standing next to my character, I would ask him some severely pertinent questions.

I am not standing next to him. Instead I am hovering above him directing his internal monologue. It is a monologue that must stand up the blows and I must make sure of that.

Suggestions?

DR


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Notebooks

First of all, let me wish you all a happy Christmas if you celebrate it and a happy new year if you are celebrating that. If not, I simply wish you happiness. I have had some wonderful opportunities to do some writing of late and you will be please to know that I have not squandered them. However if anyone sees my pen, I'd be grateful. Currently I'm being forced to write with an ordinary bic and quite frankly I loathe them. I do have some extremely wonderful pens but I only write with them on holiday. The risk of losing them on public transport is too great. Anyhow, I suppose I should go and buy myself a new pen. No great task, I know. The reason I haven't is because I have been organising various notes into a more organised system. It is my great weakness. I have great ideas, write them down and then forget to integrate them. Anyone wishing to be a personal assistant and willing to work for free, please get in touch.

So note organising has been the order of the day. Again, no great task you would think. Well here below I give you a sample of some of the things that I have in my notes.



Run Moz - Run Moz is one of five systems in the Dumru controlled Num conglomeration in the Foraku Sector. It has five planets, the fourth of which has three inhabited moons. The planets are: Mozdin, No'uxdar, Aheldin, Farduhak and Nom'far. The moons of Farduhak are: Lukud, Or'ork and Han'amark.

Mozdin translates as 'fire hook', probably due to it's close proximity to it's star. A small outpost beneath the surface is the only civilization to be found. TH Class
No'uxdar tanslates as 'black earth', it has a particularly carbon rich atmosphere with almost zero visibility on the surface. OS Class
Aheldin translates as 'warm world', it is highly populated and is the principle planet in Run Moz. MK Class
Farduhak translates as 'big mental give', the origins of this name are lost but the story of the three moons are not. Farduhak is a gas giant and has no habitation. CO Class

Lukud is not a translation but is the name of one of three brother who apparently discovered the Run Moz system. The three moons of Farduhak are named after them
Or'ork is not a translation but is the name of one of three brother who apparently discovered the Run Moz system. The three moons of Farduhak are named after them
Han'amark is not a translation but is the name of one of three brother who apparently discovered the Run Moz system. The three moons of Farduhak are named after them

All three moons have scientific outposts used to observe Farduhak but otherwise are largely uninhabited. They are rocky with no atmosphere. ZL Class

Nom'far translates as 'grow', like Farduhak the reasons behind this names can be speculated on but not given conclusively. It is planet with a large amount of ice covering a rocky core. BS Class


I think I'll go and buy a pen.

Happiness one and all.

DR

BlogPress

I have been so remiss in blogging as I have had so much to do. So I have installed BlogPress on my iPhone to see if that lets me blog more effectively.

I have been writing sporadically due to a lack of travelling time. I am still writing Dravis and Malakan's story. It will involve Nulfaga and Yan Yee but for the time being it is the two of them, contacted occasionally by a very interesting character by the name of Kiro'iana. Exciting.

I have written about one fifth of the book. It might not sound like a huge amount but it is. I have done all the notes and preparation for the rest.

Now I just have to write it.

DR


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Three Fingers.

Well hello everybody.

I haven't been updating my blog as you may have noticed but that is because I have been unable to type for the last four weeks. At least not able to type enough for a blog. For those who are interested, I dislocated my knuckles on the middle and ring finger of my left hand. I also dislocated the first joint and the knuckle of my forefinger on my left hand. They are now free again to wiggle in all their glory.

However this only explains my delays in updating you with what is going on. This is not to say I haven't been writing. I have, of course. I have been flittering between two characters, namely Dravis and Malakan, and I have finished enough chapters for me to have to start to refer to my notes again.

I find that in the process of writing the characters take on a life of their own. For example Malakan started out as a well meaning character, a little cold perhaps but a good chap. Certainly a man you'd let your daughter date. Dravis was not his antithesis but a man for whom his morals were clear cut. Dravis makes ruthless decisions based on his own particular way of thinking. Nice enough to talk to in a bar but never someone you would call a friend.

However cold Malakan was at the start, he's definitely colder now. Bordering on frigid. Dravis on the other hand is starting to look like more rounded, a generous type with a taste for good cooking. Of the two characters, Dravis seems the much friendlier at the moment.

I wonder if subconsciously I have written it like this as a juxtaposition to their actions. To place the genial character of Dravis against his actions will maybe make them all the more chilling.

I hope so but as the soft spot continues to grow, somehow, I hope not too.

DR

Broken

Hello,

I have been writing but not editing nor blogging as I have damaged my hand and typing is difficult.

I will reblog in a couple of weeks with a genuine update.

DR

A chapter and a bit

Well I promised you a blog so here it is.

I have restarted writing and I think that the break has done me a power of good. Sadly, I don't have many long train journeys this week so in fact I will not write as much as I like. I don't write whilst at home, I find it too distracting. Last Friday, I wrote an entire chapter and started the next. It is getting to the point where the back story of the characters is very important.

I remember thinking that I had a lot to blog about but it seems I don't. Well, if anything happens, I'll be sure to let you know.

DR

Guess who's back?

Well hello everyone.

I'm back.

I have been away on holiday and the temperature has been hotter I have not been writing but September has come round again and I am back writing.

I paused whilst working on the character of Dravis and he will be once again the subject mater of my writing. I have not, however, been idle. I have been working a large amount on his back story and motivations and why he is doing what he is doing. It involves a character I may have mentioned before, Kiro'iana. I have also been putting a large number of my notes in a semblance of order, something that is an enormous task and that requires much checking and cross referencing. This is to ensure that the internal mechanics of the book remain consistent and to try and iron out fundamental errors before they creep into the book. It is the problem of every author, (or wannabe author in my case), that inconsistency in the book can ruin all the things that you have tried to construct. Simple things need not be explained thoroughly but they still have to work. If a character needs to go from A to B he has to do it and most importantly, there must be a reason for the character to do it. It is often a consistency lacking in many books.

So for now the plan is to continue thinking and working on Dravis' back story with a view to starting writing on Friday. Hopefully I will blog at some point over the weekend to let you all know how I got on.

DR

No blogging, no writing.

I am taking a break from writing and from blogging. What with holidays, guests and whatnot, I have not been able to write. When I start writing regularly again, I will start blogging again.

I will try and add notifications onto my Twitter feed.

Any questions will still be replied to either here or on Twitter.

I'm not dead, I'm just waiting.

DR

Hot hot heat.

The truth is, I haven't been writing.

I am a writer who finds many things a grand distraction. Overly hot, especially on the metro is one of those things. I had hoped that it would cool down but it has not. Nor is it likely to do so for several days. I did actually managed to get a few words down this morning but nothing like the number I should have done.

It doesn't help that I am on a little bit of a comedown. The last chapter I completed was one of the most important chapters in my book, Malakan makes some big decisions. Refinding the pace of the book is proving elusive.

These things combined leads me down the road of empty pages.

Let's hope it rains soon.

DR

What I have written.

I have a new notebook.

If you have been following my twitter feed you will have seen exclusive photos of my new book complete with some of the writing I have been doing in it.

One of the few discernible words on the text is 'Malakan' who is one of the principle characters. Some of his chapters, most notably the first three, were written some time ago but will need heavy editing. My style of writing is not what it was. What I have written now starts off badly and gets progressively better before plummeting again. In the chapter that I have finished Malakan is talking to another character, Dravis. (I will tell you more about Dravis when I write his part of the story) When I was writing it, I had in my mind the scene from the film 'Heat' by Michael Mann, in which the two principal characters sit and share a coffee. I doubt I will convey that sort of power in my text but I hope that my readers will enjoy that scene and recognize it's importance.

DR

Haramakion's House

This is a low quality map highlighting some of the more important features of the country of Prathin on the planet Humanisan.

Haramakion is the king of Prathin.

DR

*edit (12.06.13) For some reason the image in this blog post failed so I have put it back in again.

The story so far.

My book is made up of many interacting characters. Each chapter is about one character in particular but we are now getting to the point where these characters are beginning to interact.

It creates new problems for me as a writer. When I write, I write about one character and try to maintain a certain amount of flow and continuity between disparate chapters. Here I have to make sure that I write in order for things to maintain their rhythm, I have to make sure that things go in the right order. If not I will get continuity errors.

Here is my problem. I have three principle characters whose webs we now discover to be tangled together, these are Ronin, Haramakion and Malakan. I have got to a point where Ronin and Haramakion are interacting but now I need to get Malakan to the same point. This should pose no difficulties until they begin to interact.

At that point I have to maintain overall plot continuity and also individual character continuity. I imagine that I will get to this point in about six weeks. Watch this space.

Also I have finished my notebook. I started it on Friday March the 13th and finished it today. That means I have written in excess of forty-five thousand words in ninety-five days. That is less than 95 working days and even less if I take into account the fact that I have been on holiday and their are many days when for whatever reason, it is not possible to write.

I will try and update this blog more often.

Sorry.

DR

Secrets

From a comment by 'Sylvain'.

Do you keep "secrets" that we will discover reading your book ?

Yes, definitely and vice versa. Their are things that are on this blog that are not in the book. Some of the information on Prathin in my previous post for example. There are many many things in the book that will not be posted on the blog.

This blog is to give you a taster and to let you know how the book is being constructed as well as to provide some of the re-imagined physics and philosophy that underpin it.

Pictures, ideas, edits, character information can be found here.

For the plot, see my publisher. *lol*

DR

Update.

This is an update, hence the title; 'Update'.

I have been writing inconsistently most notable due to problems in the Parisien public transport system but I am getting along quite well. I have been playing sillies with the chapter construction too, cutting some out that I thought erroneous and blending others. As yet I haven't added any new chapters into the plan but I'm fairly sure that I will put one in later on in the story of Haramakion.

As noted I am writing about Haramakion at the moment. He is a human and a King, the King of the country of Prathin on the planet of Humanisan. Humanisan is one of the older human worlds and the original settlers wanted to show that this was a human only system and a safe haven from other problems. Humanisan was settled not long after the destruction of the human colonies of San Hedrin. The name shows this. Humanisan is literally 'Human system' as San Hedrin is the system of Hedrin. Humanisan is however only the name of the planet. The system in which it resides is called San Lhaw and is very cosmopolitan.

Haramakion is I think the oldest of all the major characters but by how much and why, I'm never sure. I imagine that he would be played but someone like Derek Jacobi.

DR

The Wonder of Net

Well well well...

Now here's a thing. Let me tell you a little story. I was on the train this morning and I was about to start a new character, Haramakion, in the place of Ronin. Mostly because the two of them have started to interact so I need to get Haramakion to the same point. It was a last minute decision, (as seen in my boo if you follow me on Twitter), and I realised that I had no idea when, how or where I had left him last time.

So I tweeted and booed to that effect before logging on to my Google docs to see if I had put anything on there. Indeed I had and although I didn't have all my typed up documents, I did have a plotlist. So I downloaded it onto my iphone and read it through and preceded to start doing some writing. It was in fact a slight rewrite but there you have it.

I am beginning to understand what people mean about Cloud computing. As a tool to help me write my book, I also use Evernote. During the day, if I have any notes, I write them in my iphone and they automatically update when I get home. This then syncs with my laptop so I have everything I need, when and where I need it.

Tonight I have downloaded and started to use DocList Uploader and I will put everything on Google Docs as a back up.

It's amazing how much data I can have flowing through the ether. I hope that I won't be disappointed by it all.

DR

Still 'Ronin' on.

I am still writing about Ronin, I'm keeping going and see where my mind takes me. I did well this morning, writing a lot on the train, almost missing my stop in fact, but less on the way home.

So now you know. What I wanted to tell you all was that I wander, I have very definite ideas of what I want a chapter to be about and ideas of how to get there but it never quite works out like that. For example, I need Ronin to discuss freedom and the complications therein but instead he ended up discussing predator/prey relationships and the future of the Harlequin race. I like what I wrote, don't get me wrong but it's just not what I wanted to write. I know that the author of a text is on a journey of discovery and things will happen in the books that were not foreseen but even so.

Oh well, I have more travelling to do later so I will try and writ his freedom later today.

DR

Started again.

If you have been following my twitter feed, you will know that things have been going very a-pickle over the last week or so.

However...

I am delighted to note that today I did writing, quite a bit and it wasn't so bad. I was writing a conversation between Ronin, I know, I said I would change but I may not, and Bast his chief intelligence officer. They are discussing possible futures for the ships under Ronin's command.

With interesting results.

It took me in a direction that I din't anticipate, but the other stuff will have to go in soon anyway.

I won't be writing tomorrow or Thursday but I'm definitely good for Friday. This just shows you the power of headphones. (See Twitter)

This post is bitty but I wanted you to be the first to know.

As ever, comments are welcome.

DR

I feel obliged to apologise for my complete failure to write today. Just so you know, we mow have public holidays in France so no work, no travel and thus no writing for the next few days.

Sorry.

DR

Well hello everybody.

I'm back from my sojourn in the big apple and i'm disappointed to report that in terms of writing, i have done precisely zero. I'm very sorry.

For those of you who also following my twitter feed you may also be aware that i left my headphones at home. It is the reason that i am blogging now as opposed to later. I will try to write but generally find myself distracted when i can't block everything out. I'm sending this from my phone instead of writing. It's something about coming back off holiday too. I often find, as has been previously noted, that holidays tend to knock me out of my rhythm. All part and parcel of being in France, where endless holidays are enshrined in law. I know one person who gets, wait for it, 57 days holiday a year. A little over eleven weeks. I do have other holidays coming up too although running counter to that is the knowledge that i have quite a bit of work over the next few weeks too. Generally i write on the train and lots of work means loys of train travel. Still, i imagine that alot of writers struggle for rhythm at times.

What will happen will happen.

DR

Well hello...

Hello everybody,

And a particularly warm welcome to Teresa who has left me a message. Her previous attempts had been thwarted by updates and problems. I am yet to go to work today so I am yet to do any writing.

I will blog again later, hopefully having written something.

DR

Well the exciting news is that i finished another chapter today. I have decided that i will change character on my return from New York. The next problem is my subject matter. I need to think about it more before i commit it to paper. Ronin is being introspective without getting to the heart of the problem. I hope that my readers will notice that he is trying to resolve an emotional issue but is treating it as a mental challenge. He cannot resolve it because he doesn't understand it.

My apologies that this blog is short but i'm sending from my phone.

DR

Twitter Feed

I have been doing lots of exciting things with my Twitter feed, something I wholeheartedly encourage you to follow. Not only you you get updates whenever I blog here but you will also get audio blogs and hopefully video blogs in the not too distant future. Pictures are also coming on the twitter feed but I intend to put those on the blog as well for future reference. I have had a busy week, with my cousin's daughter here in Paris and organising things for my holiday. Yes folks, another holiday is winging it's way towards me, I will not be blogging from 9th to 17th May inclusive as I will be in New York.

Nor will I be using the new found powers of my twitter feed. On the plus side, I hope to have written some more of my book to discuss on my return.

I, as I hope you are aware, have been writing about Ronin. He is currently having an in depth conversation with one of the other characters. I might leave it there for the time being and then come back to him. I might do the following chapter too, I don't know. I will then move to a different character for a while though I don't know who. I have a feeling it might be the Dumru; Thorbardin.

We shall see. Still, just as I depart on holiday again, my writing seems to have returned. I will try and get as much as I can done before I go.

I shall try to address the current intermittence on this blog too.

Get in touch, I would love to hear any comments.

DR

The state of play.

Hello everybody.

I haven't written anything recently. Here's why; Normally I write on the train and I haven't been working as much as normally over the last few days. Secondly, the creative juices seemed to have clogged shut. I'm not sure what it is that makes it come and go. If I did know, I would bottle it and be a millionaire by the end of the week. I have heard many people say that external stimulus can inspire it, I will go to New York and see what I make of that. On the other hand, that is an external stimulus and I am trying to stimulate myself internally. Surely I need internal stimulus. To that end, this blog may go a long way off topic in the next few weeks. Invariably, to stimulate myself internally I read, last time it was The Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant. Currently my bedtime book, which I'm rather enjoying, is The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. But that is my bedtime book. I think that this time I might pick up Nietzsche or Descartes and see what they have to say for themselves.

Reading texts such as these allows me to think about me more and as such, my book is just an extension of this. They are my ideas after all.

DR

I haven't been blogging because I haven't been writing. My cousin's daughter Rachael came to visit us and so my time has been otherwise invested.

DR

Hors de stilo

This weekend and to a lesser extent today, I have been hors de stilo. (Without pen) This is in fact a lie. I have been with pen but without fizzly brain. It gets this way sometimes. I think that I am a writer of habit. I have been on holiday and it seems to have clammed up my creative glands. To make it worse I'm about to go on holiday again. It may be some months before the creative juices really start to build up again. Probably around the end of August, just about when I'm due off in fact.

Ho hum.

I have also found out who my first mystery follower was, I'll leave that 'til next time though.

DR

I did, but not enough and not to a high standard.

I did write today but I don't like what I wrote. I also seem to have woken up dyslexic this morning. Words, letters and sentences have absolutely been a closed book to me today, bit of a handicap for an English teacher.

Today I was writing about some of the motivations of Ronin as we continue into his character. Suffice to say that I have introduced the character of Mémé who has a discussion with Ronin on possible responses to discrete prostitutes operating on board the Harlequin fleet. On the way to work I had a fizzly mind and it all went sparklingly, on my return, it was all a little flat. A disappointing day.

I fancy beer, anyone up for a night out on the streets of Paris?

DR

The words of Leo.

I was in a bar last night talking to my esteemed friend Leo and he asked me a very good question. He had been reading my blog, although is yet to leave a comment I note, and struck upon a thing.

"Who is Ronin?"

It's a good question. I don't want to reveal too much of course but Ronin is one of the principle characters of my book. He is a commander in the Harlequin fleet. I don't really know what else you want me to tell you. He is, naturally, a Harlequin and he is quite young. He is in an interesting position in his life and it has rather warped him. I like him as a character but I don't like him as a person. He would not be someone I consider a friend.

Ronin that is, not Leo.

Leo is lovely.

Today I have done some writing and prepared some groundwork for a tying together of several seemingly disparate statements. I started this yesterday but I didn't blog, I didn't feel that I had anything that I wanted to commit to screen. Tomorrow I have a long journey ahead of me, both there and back so I should have some more things to report. Maybe not of course...

DR

Shame on me.

I did very little today. I started again with Ronin on a new chapter which describes the Harlequin society in a little greater depth. I did a hundred words, two hundred maximum. But I'm quite happy with what I have written. it comes and goes I find. Some days I find I write two thousand words or more of complete and utter dross. On other days I write one tenth of that but I rate its quality.

Still, we're starting go get into the meat of Ronin as a character. He is, in fact, a bit of a cunt but we are starting to see some of the reasons for this. His upbringing and unique situation in the Harlequin fleet has made him overly ruthless I suppose. He is capable of making the right decision for all the right reasons when we, as readers, know he should make the wrong decision. He can be so charming and kind to one person and two breaths later have the very same person executed.

This is not to say that he is without emotion, but I think that all emotion can be displaced or at any moment be disregarded for those things he considers greater.

I'll leave you to make you own mind up as to his moral standpoints.

DR

Somethings and yet not others.

Today I have done no writing and only a little editing. I hope you will all forgive me. I have however done some thinking and have got further through various problems that I had. I still have other problems to resolve which will involve rewriting but each thing in it's own time.

I will try putting pen to paper again tomorrow.

On the plus side, I have discovered Tweetdeck.

I have got rid of Chirpr, for the time being.

DR

When things start to come apart at the seams.

Oh well.

Another day thinking things through having found more holes in my plot than a balloon in a pin shop. Missing planets, Ok, I can deal with that. Extra things, Ok, unforeseen but workroundable. (Perfectly cromulent that word) Missing character when you are hundreds of thousands of words in...

...A different sort of problem.

Still nothing that floods of tears and tantrums won't clear away.

Yes, I have edited out a vital character in the course of defattening, (leaning?), my plot. I have been going over things in my head and I think that I have found a way back in but we will see. Still a long way to go.

You know that fish thing I mentioned a few posts back. Wedll it turns out that it's more like a plague of frogs. Maybe like London Buses.

I am not a happy bunny.

DR

Comments

Hello Everyone.

Some people have had problems leaving comments and viewing my profile.

If you try again now, that should be working. They had foreseen an update but it ran over on time which is why it was out when it shouldn't have been.

Try again if you wish.

DR