cuttlefish

Back, new and improved, with Poppets

2009-03-02T15:32:00.003Z

What We Know About Poppets

Because Poppets improve everything.

Splodey Thing

2008-07-02T22:53:00.005+01:00

What happens if a bunch of fast-motion camera science geeks from Imperial College give you a water balloon and tell you to hold your hand just there while they count to three?

It 'splodes on the count of two, and you get a bit wet. And then they give you a copy on disk so all your friends can see! "Your hand moved really fast when it went," the guy on the camera said.

Also there were nematodes, having their neurons analysed, with the aid of glow-in-the-dark jellyfish genes engineered in - poke the worm and the neuron which responds to poking will glow, how cool is that? (That's only a tiny tiny bit simplified. And they had live nematodes under a microscope to demonstrate with!) Apparently nematodes, by virtue of not having very many neurons, and also being transparent, make ideal test subjects...

I love the Royal Society science fair.

SciFi London Update

2008-05-06T14:45:00.002+01:00

Great films, weird films, and films you'd never get to see anywhere else - for me, the highlight was seeing Wizard of Oz on the big screen! And apparently I still have no trouble staying up all night, especially when watching films is involved...

Some recommendations:

Dragon Hunters is really good - it's French, 3-D modelled animation, but the plot and characters are like something from Studio Ghibli. I loved everything about this film, but especially the part where, instead of putting in jokes for the adults in the audience, they'd put in something kids would laugh at where you'd expect the adult joke - for me, this made it even funnier. My inner ten-year-old is never that far from the surface, though!

If you liked Shaun of the Dead, then Wasting Away is even funnier, and the first film to show what it's like being a zombie from the zombie's point of view. It's a new genre - Zombie Comedy Romance. Is that ZomRomCom? To go along with that, there's Netherbeast, which is VampRomCom, with a touch of The Office. Recommended as a double feature!

Also hilarious was Dai Nipponjin, not likely to be coming to a theatre near you, but you never know - it's a Japanese fake documentary about "Big Man Japan", a monster-fighting superhero who can grow to Godzilla-size with the application of electricity - except he's not very popular (due to all the incidental property damage, and not being a very good fighter, and so on) and kind of a loser, and he's got this interviewer with a camera following him around. It's the weirdest Japanese film I've ever seen, and believe me, that's weird. See it if you can, but brace for weirdness!

On the anime front, I missed the new Appleseed (kind of on purpose, since I really love the old traditionally-drawn version). Girl Who Leaped Through Time is what I think of as traditional, but a good story - the sort of thing I'd get the DVD of for my just-gone-teenage nieces. Tekkon Kinkreet I had to miss half of due to desk duty, which means I'll have to get the DVD myself when it comes out to see how it ends, though I think I would anyway. It was a bit of a strange choice for the third film of an all-nighter, since it's very slow-moving, and the story is convoluted, but the artwork is interesting and sometimes beautiful, and really, I can't wait to see it all the way through. Vexille is gorgeous, with the most doom-laden (for Japan, anyway) plot I've yet encountered, in the tradition of doomed-Japan storylines. And it has sand-worms made of junk. What more could you want?

And to complete my screening list: La Antena is atmospheric and strange, though not what I was expecting from the billing, which was Metropolis-meets-Tim-Burton; for me it was more a collision of early fantasy, like Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast, Surrealist films like Le Chien Andalou, and film noir. Chrysalis was also not what I expected - the trailer, screened with an earlier film, made it look more like Hollywood's interpretation of Philip K. Dick, whereas it's actually a French future-noir.

There were also some most excellent shorts screened - they show one for every film, which I really like. One of these was a surprise screening of a Joker-altered Dark Knight trailer, and all I can say is I can't wait!

I Can Haz Posse

2008-04-26T16:28:00.003+01:00

You know how it goes. When you're doing loads of interesting stuff, there's no time to blog. And when there's finally time, there's a backlog. So I haven't blogged about New York, or the gig in Madrid, in fact, I haven't even had time to look at my own photos.

For now, here's one of me from yesterday, hanging out with some new friends. If you happen to be in London next week, check out the SciFi London Film Festival. I'm volunteering (hence the t-shirt), so you might see me there!

Meanwhile, from the department of you-can't-make-this-stuff-up, Wednesday evening, on my way home from work, I passed a woman walking the breed of dog I think is called a pug (sort of a brick in cream fur, pushed-in face, cute in an ugly sort of way). Nothing unusual there, except the dog had on a pearl necklace. Really. I am not making this up.

A Different Kind of Pole Dancing

2008-02-14T12:50:00.006Z

Starts a bit slow, but keep watching!

This was part of the real Chinese New Year celebrations, on the 7th, in London Chinatown. I'd seen it done in a Jackie Chan film, but never for real. They did have crash mats underneath! At the end, the lion is going for the bok choi tied to the pillar just underneath the little tiny platform it's standing on.

And now I feel the year has started. I think the Year of the Rat is going to be a lot of fun, though filled with big changes - but good ones!

Burns Night

2008-01-28T15:15:00.001Z

Burns Night
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid

Outside the White Horse pub, last Friday. I conclude the pub had hired him, as he looked quite fed up, and didn't have a hat out for change.

Too dark to photograph without standing in the road (though plenty of people did, much to the annoyance of passing traffic) so I've gone for an antique sort of effect... guy in the door with the phone sort of spoils it though.

Photographic evidence

2008-01-14T15:02:00.001Z

L1040276
Originally uploaded by FREYSnap

That's me on the right. That's a raspberry martini I'm drinking. Do not ask how many that was.

Sweeney Todd

2008-01-11T15:59:00.000Z

Really, go see this. It's good.

I was lucky enough to be at the Leicester Square premiere last night, though I had already seen it over Christmas, and it's just as good the second time round, except for the part where you know it's about to end, and you don't want it to.

Yes, there were meat pies at the party afterward.

Yes, I met Johnny Depp. And he was charming, and smiled, and I managed not to say anything stupid. (The first time I met Tim Burton, I did say something stupid, but he claims not to remember.)

And I met Alan Rickman, but did not quite dare say "By Grabthor's Hammer". And Timothy Spall is not at all villainous in person, despite being so good at playing them. And the raspberry martinis were perhaps a little too tasty, in that I really shouldn't have had quite so many of them...

Aliens invade Regent Street

2007-12-18T10:24:00.001Z

Aliens invade Regent Street Pink
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid

This year, Regent Street has been settled by aliens disguised, perhaps not altogether convincingly, as Christmas lights.

And they change colour.

Covent Garden Extravaganza pt 1

2007-12-10T15:08:00.001Z

acrobat
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid

I only managed to catch one of the acts at Covent Garden this weekend, hence the part 1.

They've gone all out for Christmas, with rows of those icicle chandeliers, and professional acrobats.

Small child in front of me "I bet she hung the lights."

Halloween 2007

2007-11-06T14:10:00.000Z

Much more laid-back than last year. No costumes, no gig, just excellent food, friends, and some pumpkin carving. Mine is the one on the left.

world take-over a success, then

2007-05-04T14:29:00.000+01:00

Hm. I know it's been a while since I last blogged. And honestly, I have been meaning to. I didn't mean to leave you alone for so long. Still, it's disconcerting to return and find Google has taken over Blogger in my absence.

Not that I don't use Google every day, for other things.

Lots of other things.

Hm.

One Hundred and Fifty Seven Thousand Words

2006-12-05T14:47:00.000Z

And a bit.

In case anyone wondered how much I wrote in November, or where I was, or anything.

Snakes on a Hat

2006-11-11T16:37:00.000Z

Some close-ups for you.

And The One In The Middle Is

2006-10-30T14:43:00.000Z

Tim Burton.

And yes, those are snakes on my head.

It's Been How Long?

2006-10-30T14:29:00.000Z

Eight years, we figure. Since the last time Witching Hour appeared live.

But not any more! Now, should anyone ask, we can say 'Why, we played just last Friday. At the best Halloween party ever. And the photos are up, right here.'

I'm not going to tell you who everyone is, because even I don't know - I only found out yesterday who that was in the shark costumes... Those ones on stage with the two people playing red guitars, that's us.

Da Boots

2006-10-26T14:34:00.000+01:00

I've been trying to post a photo of these since I bought them, about a month ago. Ha, finally, it worked!

I love my new boots.

Arvon

2006-09-05T14:23:00.000+01:00

arvon 2
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I've just been on a week-long residential writing course run by the Arvon Foundation. This is the scenery, or some of it - for more, click the photo to go to my flickr stream. It's a little embarassing, but I was so enamoured of the surroundings, I forgot to take pictures of any of the other participants. Well, I live in London, I can see people any time. Some of the same ones, I hope, since many of them are from London too.

I found a story out in the woods and brought it home with me. (Actually, I thought it was going to be a nice little well-behaved short story. But when I got it back to the house, it turned out to be more of a novella, and I'm not at all sure it won't be a novel in the end. You have to watch what you feed these things.)

And I know how to fix the book I was revising back in June, and what's wrong with one of my short stories.

The tutors were Adam Roberts and Justina Robson, whose books I highly recommend.

They're Here

2006-08-16T15:33:00.000+01:00

The Poppets have arrived. I didn't tell Trev they were coming, or anything about them, so his reactions are amusing...

When he came in, they had just emerged onto the ironing board.

"What are those? They're cute," he said.

What Are They Looking At?

2006-08-16T15:26:00.000+01:00

They moved over here to watch Trev program the new sequencer/drum machine/digital recorder. He noticed, after a bit.

"What are they up to? I don't trust them," he said.

A Tiny Invasion

2006-08-16T15:09:00.000+01:00

They moved over here to look at the toys and the hamster. Trev noticed.

"It's some sort of miniature invasion. Why do I get the feeling they're scouts for a larger force?" he said.

"Exactly." I said.

Happy Birthday To Me

2006-08-01T12:32:00.000+01:00

And happy DS Lite, with the game that made me want one, Electroplankton. Thank you Trev!

nowIwishI'dtakenthedayoffwork

Peter F. Hamilton

2006-07-27T14:44:00.000+01:00

Another post about writing.

Last night's BSFA interviewee was Peter F. Hamilton. I ought to confess, up front, that I've never read any of his books. The reason for this is that the ones my local library has are the three-inch-thick space opera series. (Which, according to Peter, required special new book-binding technologies to be invented in order not to have to cut them in half, or even smaller parts, as has happened in the US and Italy.) Since the majority of my reading time occurs on public transport on the way to and from work, and those books would have my arm off at the shoulder if I tried to carry them in my bag, I haven't read them.

But I now know that he has other books out, which are of a more practical size. (And if I like those, I can buy the space opera in smaller volumes next time I'm in the US...) So I'm looking forward to trying them.

Meanwhile, a piece of advice Peter was kind enough to say I could post here. According to Peter (who was only drinking ice-water at the time) there are three things you need in order to be a writer:

1. The ability to tell a story.
2. The ability to write prose.
3. The dedication to spend hours every day writing. "Even in weather like this."

Some of you may be aware that London (and indeed all of England) has been experiencing a record-breaking heatwave this month. But it's a good point - and the only reason I'm not working on a book now is that I've just finished the second draft of one - during the afore-mentioned heatwave. So now I'm doing research for the next one.

The thing I'm having trouble with is number 1. The story is all there in my head, it's just getting enough of it down on the page. I can do number 2, except when the story is giving me grief. If this heat keeps up, I know where I can find an air-conditioned library to write in. So watch this space.

Where did June go?

2006-07-05T12:48:00.000+01:00

I haven't blogged much about writing here, but I may have to start. June disappeared into the black hole of me trying to write the ending of novel #2, draft #2. The monthly re-cap goes something like this:

June 1st: I've got it!
June 3rd: No I haven't.
June 7th: Yes I have, and it's bloody clever, too.
June 12th: No I haven't, it means making Jay act stupid on purpose.
June 15th: Well, back to the simple ending. At least it's finished.
June 20th: Noooooo! The simple ending sucks. I can't let anyone see it like this.
June 21st: But wait! If I just reverse what everybody does, the clever ending works after all!
June 23rd: Muahahahaha! It is written. Now to type it all in, carefully rearranging everything else so it fits.
June 30th: Phew! It's all typed in. It's done, I tell you, done!! Oh, except for the missing bits in the middle where I still haven't put real changes in, instead of notes to self.

I've left out all the moaning and beating my head against the desk. And I'm still doing those last little bits. And every week, I tell you, every week, I sat there thinking 'this week I'll finish it.'

So this week, I really will. Really.

Chrononauts

2006-05-07T11:53:00.000+01:00

the elephant stands
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

On Friday, I went to see The Sultan's Elephant. Pictures can in no way tell you what it's really like to stand next to a 40 foot high mechanical elephant, but click on the image to see the rest of mine on flickr!

Truly, an amazing thing. When I arrived, the elephant was in Horse Guards Parade, and part of Whitehall was closed to traffic. As I went in, I passed a man asking as to why. It's not every day you get to hear a policeman say "They've got a 40 ton elephant in there."

I also highly recommend Pat Cadigan's photo sets for more. She's got some fantastic pictures up.

The Traditional Gift for your 15th Anniversary Is

2006-04-27T15:05:00.000+01:00

Crystal.

We got each other (well, OK, Trev did the actual shopping) The Dark Crystal on DVD, and Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles. We haven't got round to watching the DVD yet, because Trev couldn't find Crystal Chronicles anywhere on the 19th (which was our actual anniversary, I'm just blogging about it a week late, as usual) so he bought us Lego Star Wars on the day and Crystal Chronicles on Saturday. Need I say more?

My only possible complaint is that Crystal Chronicles has that lovely, soporific background music that all of Square's games have, which renders it hazardous for playing if you're the tiniest bit sleepy. Otherwise, it's gorgeous.

Easter Lobster

2006-04-21T14:02:00.000+01:00

As a surprise for Trev, I made him his very own Kiwa Hirsuta, using the Mediatinker's pattern . Thank you Mediatinker! He came out really cute.

He looks like a bit of a hippy, so we named him Floyd.

All of the other lobsters are red, so I made Floyd red as well, in order to avoid awkward questions. And also because the Aladdin's Cave of fabric in the shopping centre near where I work only had the long fun fur in red or yellow.

After eating some chocolate eggs, we introduced everyone.

Finished!

2006-04-08T15:06:00.000+01:00

It's been a while since I've posted here. Sorry about that! I've been knitting. But it's all finished now, and it even fits! And the weather is just about still cool enough for me to wear it...

I Heart Katamari

2006-03-13T12:42:00.000Z

Some of you lucky people will have gotten to play the original Katamari Damacy, but they never released it over here in the UK, so we've had to wait for the sequel to come out. So I've actually been waiting over a year to play this game. It does not disappoint. In fact, it's my new favourite game. The surreal dialogue! The trippy graphics! The weird sense of satisfaction when you get big enough to pick up the elephant with the apple on its back!

Also, Trev went out and searched half the game stores in London for it on Saturday as a surprise, because he thought I needed cheering up. I have the best husband in the world.

Have Spaceman Will Travel

2006-03-08T17:37:00.000Z

Steve Cockayne
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Steve Cockayne was February's guest at the BSFA night. He brought along some of the marionettes from the show his family used to run. Some of his characters are based on the marionettes, but not this particular one, which he just brought to show us 'cause it's cool.

It really is cool. The head moves around independently inside the helmet, and he can do a quick-draw on the laser pistol. And there used to be a set of little flying saucers which went with him, but there's only one left now.

Steve also knows a lot about scaffolding, from his days working as a BBC photographer. He worked, among other things, on Dr. Who, including some of my favourite episodes - late Tom Baker stuff, and early Peter Davison. (Though he says he was junior enough then for his memories of it to be mainly crawling around repairing cables.)

He also writes pretty cool books. (Seriously - good enough that I actually read the third book of a trilogy first, because that was all the library had. And I never do that, but I couldn't put it down.)

Before

2006-02-23T17:41:00.000Z

As part of China in London month, Selfridges commissioned the building of an entire biscuit city in their basement. I went to see it under construction on Saturday, when the Imperial Palace bit was finished, and the rest was still being built. I wish I had been able to get down there to see the finished city and photograph it for myself, but the Erudite Baboon has done a really excellent job. Check it out.

After

2006-02-23T17:34:00.000Z

biscuit frenzy
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I got there too late to see the finished city, but just in time to bag a few souvenir biscuts.

Loot

2006-02-23T17:33:00.000Z

loot
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Some people filled entire shopping bags. I just took a few home for tea. The chocolate wafer ones turned out to be very stale, almost inedible (nothing chocolate is ever entirely inedible, right?) but the caramel-sided ones were yummy.

Gobsmacked

2006-02-14T15:10:00.000Z

You have no idea how much I want one of these .

Really. Go look. Click the play button. Remind yourself to close your mouth.

Only One Stuck Around To Be Photographed

2006-02-06T14:37:00.000Z

fox on garage
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Very early Friday morning, I kept hearing unhappy fox-noises. It woke me up twice - in case you've never heard foxes, they sound like a cross between a siamese cat yowling and a baby being tortured. This sounded even worse; seemed like something had really upset the fox.

Then, when it had gotten light out, I heard them again. Yes, not one but two foxes, snarling at one another on the roof of the garages out back. One of them jumped down and lit out across the neighbours' back garden as I got to the window, but the other stuck around long enough to pose for photos.

I have no idea how they got up there.

And I Only Took These In December

2006-01-30T20:54:00.000Z

tower morning
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

On a mostly chilly, somewhat grey, but very changeable day in late December, Trev and I went to see the Chihuly glass sculptures at Kew Gardens. I've finally got the photos all up on flickr. Start with the one above for the full tour.

Vladmaster 3D

2006-01-30T14:03:00.000Z

On Saturday night, we went to see a performance by Vladmaster . The Viewmaster was one of my favourite toys as a child, and I have to admit, still is. I'd bought the Italo Calvino set last year, and loved them. Nonetheless, I went feeling a little trepidation. A night spent viewing Viewmaster reels in a room full of people doing the same had the potential either to be seriously cool, or the lamest thing ever.

It was seriously cool. The stories are creepy and poignant, the use of the medium is more inventive than I had imagined it could be, and doing it in a room full of people and hearing them laugh, go 'ew!' and change frames along with you makes it even better. If you get a chance to go to one of these performances, do.

The only thing I wonder is, what do Customs think of you, when you come through carrying an entire suitcase full of Viewmasters?

Blog this Conversation

2006-01-26T13:13:00.000Z

We, especially in Britain, most especially in London, live in a surveillance state.

Last night, I was discussing this with Pat Cadigan (who I mention because she is famous, and therefore all over the net anyway), Al (who I mention because he is convinced no one will be able to find him on the net from just the name 'Al') and several other people. Someone mentioned there's a statistic for the number of CCTV cameras per person in London, and it's very high. And then Pat's husband said (not an exact quote) "yes, but it's not the cameras we need to worry about. I'll bet you at least five people at this table are blogging this conversation. Or at least some aspect of the evening."

And you know, he was right.

And I couldn't find an exact statistic for London, but Britain as a whole has apparently one camera for every 14 people.

This Week I Have Been Mostly Editing

2006-01-23T12:19:00.000Z

Done this week: Synopsis (the one I'll now work from, not the one I'll send out) for novel A. Working on the missing middle scenes for novel B. One short story ready to send out.

Also, I'm still vacuuming pine needles out of the carpet. They seem to have migrated all over the flat now.

Nose In A Book

2006-01-16T13:10:00.000Z

Mine, in fact. The first new MS of the year, or the first few chapters thereof. I had hoped to get roughly twice as much done on it this past week, but it does now have most of a plot, and some sub-plots, and the secondary characters are sorting themselves out and beginning to insist on larger parts.

I'm also revising two other novel drafts, and have a newly-revised short story all ready to send out as soon as I get around to buying some envelopes.

I hope I can keep this level of industry up all year. It's all the more amazing for being January, a month I usually spend attempting to hibernate...

The D Word

2006-01-06T16:29:00.000Z

Yesterday, my resolve finally broke, and I went shopping in the sales. At some point in the wee hours of the morning, when I couldn't sleep, I suddenly remembered having seen a blue velvet jacket while out doing my Christmas shopping, and thinking to myself at the time 'must remember to see if that's cheaper in the sales.' After that, I had even more trouble getting back to sleep.

So I went looking for it. And it was on sale, but the only one left was a size too small. I could get into it, but it was just that bit too tight across the shoulders, and it was also not as flattering as I had hoped. But never mind, for I found several other things, all of them irresistible and cheap. And they're also things I needed more, for the reason I did not buy the blue velvet jacket earlier was that I had just bought, as a present from my mother, the Perfect Jacket, which is black and piratey-looking and very flattering indeed. So now I own several new tops, one of which is going to be the perfect thing to wear underneath the Perfect Jacket.

There's only one problem. The Perfect Top also came only in one size too small. (Or in my size in cream. I don't do cream, and it's stretch lace, so no chance of dyeing it.) So I did something I haven't done since I was a teenager, and thought 'yes, but it will fit if I lose a bit of weight.' And not only will it fit, but so will my favourite skirt that didn't fit last summer due to the dress-size or so I gained last winter.

There go years of successfully avoiding the New Year's Resolution to Diet.

A Small Moment Of Thankfulness

2006-01-03T15:09:00.000Z

We didn't go visit my family for the holidays this year. We went last year, we'll go next year, we skip the alternate years. As is usual when we don't go, I spent Christmas day feeling homesick, especially after the family phone calls, and Boxing Day feeling only a little less so.

The small moment of thankfulness came yesterday afternoon, when I realised that if we'd gone, we would, at that very moment, be in a plane somewhere over Canada. Or perhaps, even worse, still waiting in an airport.

Today, actually, I'm feeling even more thankful, at being spared the jet-lag.

Resolutions

2006-01-01T17:28:00.000Z

Hm. It's that time of year again. New Year's Eve, despite the fireworks, always depresses me - I find it more of a time for guilt, for thinking of all the things I ought to have gotten done, but didn't, over the past year. (I should point out that this feeling happens even when I've had a very productive year. Maybe some year I'll be so productive that I'll be happy on December 31st, but it hasn't happened yet.)

New Year's Day, I like. Today is a day for planning, for grandiose ideas, for telling myself this is the year I will get enough done. So this year, I will:

1. Post more often to my blog *
2. Get more exercise
3. Watch less TV **
4. Actually revise and send out some of the dozen or so short stories I've written over the past year, had friends critique, and left in the drawer untouched ***

*(does anyone who blogs not do this one?)

**(I should point out that 2 & 3 ought to be easy, given how little of the first and how much of the second, I spend my time on.)

***(This is the one which was biting me hardest last night. I have no real excuse for not having gotten around to it months ago.)

Shopping. And then more shopping.

2005-12-21T13:19:00.000Z

In case you were wondering why I've been too busy to post lately.

I managed to find the last few things for Trev yesterday. If I hadn't been so exhausted, I'd've opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate.

For some reason, I've found the shopping especially difficult this year. Usually, I pretty much know what I want, and go get it. This year, I've found myself wandering around numerous large shops in agonies of indecision, unable to find what I wanted, and equally unable to think of something else that would do instead. I've been to Forbidden Planet three times, when usually one trip will suffice. And I've been to Oxford Street, two local high streets, and Brent Cross (a large shopping mall in north London).

Never mind the time off work. I need time off from the shopping!

All NaNover For Another Year

2005-12-05T14:05:00.000Z

For those of you wondering how NaNo went - very well, thank you! I had so much fun I did it twice.

I finished the first one, albeit with a slight problem in the middle which I plan to solve by dint of research which will consist of reading more techno-thrillers and perhaps watching a few bad movies, eight days early. So I wrote another. Think Gerry Anderson meets H.P. Lovecraft, with a splash of Star Trek. It seems to me this second one better embodies the true spirit of NaNo, having been thought up completely at the last minute. And it contains Giant Space Squid.

My thanks to Theresa Nielsen-Hayden for the Evil Overlord Plot Generator which allowed me to come up with a plot in an afternoon, and Seventh Sanctum for providing all the names.

Wanted: Tiara

2005-11-16T12:03:00.000Z

Knew there was something else I meant to post yesterday.

Monday was another of Pat Cadigan's Borders nights - the guests were Farah Mendelsohn and Justina Robson.

Justina says, and others corroborate, that writing goes much better when wearing a tiara.

Must get one.

A NaNo-ing We Go

2005-11-15T14:21:00.000Z

This week, I have been mostly writing.

Some of you may know that November is National Novel Writing Month. This isn't strictly accurate - it's international. If you haven't heard of it before, the idea is to write a 50K word novel draft (or more) during the month of November. I think mine will be a complete draft at about 60-ish, which isn't bad for something destined to come out finshed around 90K, considering the draft is almost entirely plot and conversation, with very little description. (This is partially the result of fast drafting, and also partly because it's set in San Francisco, and I need to find out what the locations look like before I can describe them. At the moment, it's all a bit vague.) I'm about 40K in.

Toasty for Typing

2005-11-07T14:05:00.000Z

mitt
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

The finished product. Actually, there are a pair, but I needed the other hand to hold the camera. I'm really pleased with how they came out, especially as I had never done the double-pointed tubular knitting before. They fit! My hands will be toasty warm when I'm typing this winter.

Day Of The Dead

2005-11-01T22:29:00.000Z

Day
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I made this in 1999 for the London Quilters millenium show. It's based on the Aztec calendar (whose millenium has yet to come) and Mexican folk-art, including a candy-coloured Day of the Dead skull.

It's called "Significant Days". Not everyone has the same ones.

Jack, By Himself

2005-10-31T14:20:00.000Z

jack
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Halloween Activities

2005-10-31T14:18:00.000Z

cookies
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I don't usually like cooking, but this year I did something I've always wanted to do and made iced sugar-cookies for Halloween. Boy, are they sweet. So sweet they make your cheeks hurt when you bite into one. Maybe that's why Mom was never into icing them when I was a kid.

The icing was fun though. To get the black, I thought I could just mix some of each of the four food-colours in my set - blue, red, green, yellow - well I did the white, then made the rest orange, then thought it would be easy to add a bit of green and get brown. What I got, no matter how I tried, were various shades of vile green which would have been ideal if I'd been making iced zombies. Then I had the genius idea (if I do say so myself) of adding cocoa powder. Result: perfect colour. And the black cookies will make you even more hyper than the other ones!

They are presided over by Jack, who I carved earlier. The Cyberman is just always there though.

Worship the Knitting

2005-10-24T14:20:00.000+01:00

they're awed
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

See how the little fluffy creatures worship their idol. If they are good, one day they too will get to be knitting...

This week, I have been learning to knit on double-pointed needles. I'd never tried it before, but in the bundle of knitting needles passed on from my grandmother to my mother to me there are several sizes of double-point sets. And I'm still feeling bitten by the knitting bug. So I searched around on-line until I found some advice on knitty.com and socknitters.com and found a pattern for fingerless gloves, which the onset of fall weather has reminded me that I need, and set to.

I believe the interesting spiral-effect in the towering idol is due to my having got the stitches twisted when arranging them after casting on. It's pretty cool how the knitting stands up all on its own.

Knitting and Stiching

2005-10-15T12:11:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I went to the Knitting and Stitching show at Alexandra Palace. It was very hot inside. I ran into another quilter I know, and she said to me "why do we do this every year?" And I found it difficult to answer, except that last year I didn't go, and really felt like I'd missed something. This year it felt more like a trade-show than an art exhibition. In addition to the main trade-hall, half or more of the exhibition hall was occupied by people selling things. I came out feeling as though I'd been on an airplane - something was wrong with the air pressure in there.

Notwithstanding all of the above, I came out psyched to do more art. I saw beautiful and inspirational objects, and spent far too much money, some of it on what I am convinced is the perfect knitting pattern for all that wool I bought back when I worked in a haberdashery* shop and could get it at a discount. (The pattern I bought for it two years ago having turned out not to be the perfect one after all.) I got it home and discovered I'm missing the two sizes of needles I need to knit it on. These are probably the only sizes in the world I don't actually own.

I really liked mariko tagawa's little creatures. I also spent ages drooling over Claire Johnson Knight's sketchbooks, but a quick google hasn't revealed any of her art or embroidery on the net.

*For those of you in the States, haberdashery here is not menswear, but fabric and sewing-related items.

Vomit and Ooze

2005-10-11T12:46:00.000+01:00

Last night, I finally made it to one of Pat Cadigan's readings at Borders. The guests were Cory Doctorow and John Courtnay Grimwood. It was all interesting, but for me the high point was the bit where Pat admitted to projectile vomiting her novels onto an unsuspecting world, while Cory claimed his just oozed out from under his door.

This was during a discussion of how Cory likes to publish beta versions of his novels in serial form on the net, whereas neither Pat nor John could ever imagine doing such a thing. Later, down the pub, I wanted to make a profound point about how this may not be so much a difference in willingness to let unfinished drafts be read as a difference in perception of the net, but the woman next to me spilled her drink all over the table, and by the time it got mopped up, the conversation had turned to other things.

It seems to me that some people (Cory, for instance) regard the net as a community of largely like-minded people, most (though spectacularly not all) of whom are well-intentioned and intelligent. So that for him, putting writing on the net is not all that different from showing it to his friends. He just has a lot of friends. Whereas others (Pat and John) regard the net as a thing used by people who are mostly strangers, of the sort one wants only to see one's best work, lest they judge you by something you yourself are not yet happy with. I haven't yet figured out where I stand on this.

In other news, it's a good thing I remembered my camera the other day. This morning, walking across the Heath, I found they had taken the table down and were about to go to work dismantling the chair, with a large crane and a camera crew in attendance.

Photoshop Is Not Involved

2005-10-01T12:27:00.000+01:00

sculpture
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

This appeared last spring. (I've been meaning to blog about it for ages but have only just got round to taking a picture.)It sits just past the steep bit of Parliament Hill, on Hampstead Heath. For scale, there is a person (who just handily happened to be standing there) at the right of the photo - you may need to click and look at the full-size version to see.

Teenagers are reputed to have been caught having sex on the table-top. What I want to know is: how did they get up there?

Also, it looks OK, in a surreal sort of way, in my photographs. In person, it's hideous, and spoils one of my favourite views. I believe it's not a permanent addition, though.

A Little Friend

2005-09-24T15:40:00.000+01:00

moth
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

We have a big hanging paper lampshade in the front room. It's wide in the middle, but narrow top and bottom, which generally prevents moths this size from getting in. It does not, however, prevent them from braining themselves in the attempt.

This little guy kept landing on me for a rest between attempts. After much dodging about trying to photograph my own shoulder, I persuaded him to sit on my hand instead.

Anthea and Carrie-Anne

2005-09-17T15:47:00.000+01:00

Anthea and Carrie-Anne
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

That's Anthea on the left. She's bubbly and outgoing, and always lets everyone know exactly what she thinks. On the right is her cousin Carrie-Anne, who is one of those quiet ones you have to watch out for.

They're not best friends yet, but they will be.

In case you wondered if I'm writing a story about them, the answer is yes. Only I'd quite like it to be a graphic novel.

That's Sprat in the background, keeping an eye on them for me. (And they're standing on the ironing board, hence the strange green flower under Anthea's feet.)

Spreading the Love

2005-09-13T19:01:00.000+01:00

Maureen's heart
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

The hearts I swapped for have all arrived. Here they are for you to admire. I had a little trouble with the colours on this one - some of the fabrics are shot silk, which is hard to photograph, it turns out.

This is addictive. Must make more hearts!

Rosemary's heart

2005-09-13T18:55:00.000+01:00

Rosemary's heart
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Rosemary and Maureen's hearts arrived the same day. I got home from an unusually long, hard day at work to find them waiting on the ironing board ready to cheer me up.

(Doesn't everyone put un-opened mail on the ironing board? No? I keep my ironing board set up behind the sofa, where it makes a handy repository for far too much junk.)

Sandie's heart

2005-09-13T18:51:00.000+01:00

Sandie's heart
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I've received these three beautiful hearts, in return for mine. You can see the kind of workmanship I'm trying to live up to!

Pieces of lace and fabric came with them. I'm thinking of making an album of the hearts, with quilted fabric pages, so I'll probably use as many of these bits as I can on the cover.

I Heart Crazy Patchwork

2005-08-31T17:25:00.000+01:00

lavender heart
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Another Heart

2005-08-31T17:23:00.000+01:00

purple heart 1
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

This was the first one I made.

Heart 3

2005-08-31T17:20:00.000+01:00

purple heart 2
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I haven't put up any crafty posts for some time, so here's what I've been working on since getting back from Scotland. While goofing off at work web-surfing, I stumbled across Chains Of Hearts on Yahoo. It's a group for swapping 6" crazy hearts. I'd never done crazy patchwork before, but I had all the materials and embroidery threads, so I couldn't resist joining.

These are the first three I've made. The embroidery toys are happy to be played with again!

One Last Post About Worldcon

2005-08-29T13:22:00.000+01:00

xerps
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Because, after all, I shouldn't leave out the parties. The above was taken at the Xerps party, easily the best I went to. Also the only one not held in a large, brightly-lit function room. I don't know, I find it hard to get into a party mood in bright light.

They've got my vote for 2010!

And Then The Convention

2005-08-22T14:46:00.000+01:00

Right, enough about the sightseeing. What we really went to Glasgow for was Worldcon (the World Science Fiction Convention, for those who don't know) after all. It was fantastic, and huge, and exhausting, and for the whole week afterwards, I kept checking my watch every hour, wondering where I had to be now.

I probably did too much. I know I tried to, but Trev did (mostly) succeed in making me pause for things like food. I am awed, and informed, and inspired, most especially to actually send more stories out. I do have a confession to make. I went with the intention of trying to meet editors. There were certainly enough of them present. I chickened out.

I can think of two reasons for this. One is that I get very shy among large crowds of strangers - and there were about 4,000 people at this thing. Of whom I knew, oh, maybe a dozen, at a generous estimate. But that's not the main reason. Really, it's the fear that if I go up to an editor (most of whom seem to be men my father's age) and say "Hi, I've written a book" they'll give me a slightly disbelieving look and say something along the lines of "Have you? That's nice dear."

I know I'm not giving them a fair chance here. It's just that when I used to tell people I was Chair of London Quilters (which I was for two years, stepping down a year or so ago) I'd get such looks of astonishment and disbelief that I've been forced to conclude that I look a) far too young to be/have done any such thing, and/or b) too flaky.

I'm reminded of when my mother, at around this same age, ran for City Council or some such thing, and failed to get taken at all seriously, for much the same reasons. Of course, looking flaky might not be so detrimental to a writer.

Music Room

2005-08-19T17:08:00.000+01:00

music room
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I walked in here and was instantly nine years old again. Don't go bringing any little girls in here. You'll never pry them out.

What you're looking at is the piano, incidentally.

Dining Room

2005-08-19T17:05:00.000+01:00

dining room
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

This was Trev's favourite room at House for an Art Lover. It's impressive, but I prefer the dining room at Mackintosh's own house, with its more subdued colour scheme. The end wall, seen at the right in the photo, has a large painting of pink roses on a bright blue, to my eye clashing, background. I couldn't help wondering a teeny bit if it was really what Mackintosh had intended.

It has the same inhabited feeling as the Mackintosh House. I kept expecting someone in period costume to walk in and be startled at our outlandish appearance.

House for an Art Lover

2005-08-19T16:58:00.000+01:00

House for an Art Lover
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

House for an Art Lover was designed by Mackintosh, but not built until the 1990s. If the Mackintosh House is a dimension-warp, this one is a time-warp. This is my favourite view of the exterior, looking towards the front entrance.

I Want To Live Here

2005-08-19T16:53:00.000+01:00

Mackintosh house
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Looks pretty surreal, doesn't it? This is the outside of the Mackintosh's own house, which has materialised inside the Hunterian Museum in such a way that bits (such as the front door and windows) stick out.

Despite being interdimensionally entwined with an art museum, the place feels lived-in. You expect the Mackintoshes to walk in at any moment.

Once again, I have no interior photos, but the Hunterian Museum has a virtual tour .

I mean it about wanting to live here.

Art School

2005-08-19T16:45:00.000+01:00

window
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Our Mackintosh Feast began with the Glasgow School of Art. Most of my photos of the outside didn't come out very well - this one is the best. The GSA's website has a virtual tour with some good pictures of the inside.

Have I mentioned yet that I have a new favourite architect? You have to take a guided tour here, which turns out to be a very good thing, or at least it does if your guide is as good as ours was.

Trev and I both agreed that it must be inspirational to study here. I mentioned to my boss (who is from Glasgow) that we'd been, and he said that in fact, he has taken classes there, and it was. You can imagine my envy!

The Same Machine But With Motion-Blur

2005-08-16T12:34:00.000+01:00

machine blur
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Marbles Wanted

2005-08-16T12:33:00.000+01:00

machine
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

This giant marble machine was my favourite thing at the Science Museum. For an idea of scale, the balls are about six inches in diameter.

I want one.

science museum

2005-08-16T12:30:00.000+01:00

science museum
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

This is probably the best photo of the whole trip. We went to the science museum on our first day in Glasgow. It's pretty much geared for children, so we had fun being ten again.

We also saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on the Imax screen. I am now forever spoiled for watching movies in normal cinemas.

*spoiler alert*

Neil Gaiman says on his journal that the new Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is really Willy Wonka's story, not Charlie's. He's right. It's also a fantastic movie. (The real show-stealer is Deep Roy, as the oompa-loompas.)

Gallivantations

2005-08-13T16:18:00.000+01:00

As some of you may know, the reason for the long break in posts is that I've been up in Glasgow, at the 63rd World Science Fiction Convention. The con was terrific, and we managed to fit in some sight-seeing as well, including lots of Charles Rennie Mackintosh architecture. The detail above is from the back wall of the Scotland Street School.

There won't be as many pictures up here as I would have liked - I'm still getting to know the digital camera, so while many things came out better than I would have expected, pretty much all of the low-light ones came out too blurry for even Photoshop to rescue. Clearly, I need to experiment more with the manual settings.

With Unflattering Promptness

2005-07-28T09:27:00.000+01:00

My rejection letter from Tor has arrived. It's the short form one, so of course, I'm left wondering why it's not what they're looking for. I mean, it could really not be something they have an opening for at this time. It could be that the writing is atrocious. If the latter, I'm sure that's not something any publisher ever says in a rejection letter.

I'm going with the assumption that it's just not their cup of tea, and sending it on to the next publisher on my list.

It's Never Too Small To Use

2005-07-26T14:29:00.000+01:00

scrap balls
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

These are made from the bits too small to use for patchwork, mostly seams and hems.

They're fairly decorative. And you could use them to practice juggling, I suppose. (I can't. I suck at juggling, so the chances of me accidentally throwing one of these rather solid balls at, say, the TV are just that little bit too high.)

The truth is, I can't stand not to use the whole shirt.

Raw Materials

2005-07-26T14:24:00.000+01:00

fabric
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Here's what I've been doing over the weekend: cutting up old shirts. These are cotton, not flannel, though you may notice a certain colour theme! I've actually been collecting them for a couple of years. I have enough now, and also, I need a new hand-sewing project.

The quilt they're destined for will be a large feathered star, with lone stars in between the points, and bits of lemoyne stars here and there.

It will have applique in the centre and around the edges, but I haven't designed that bit yet.

News from the Book Front

2005-07-22T13:35:00.000+01:00

I've just gotten back the postcard I enclosed with my submission to Tor. It says my synop + 3 arrived on July 14th. As I sent it back in March, I take it this means they aren't kidding about it taking 4-6 months to reply. It's taken them pretty much exactly 4 months to open it. Which is what I expected, given they also say not to query to see if they got it until 4 months after you've sent it.

So now I get to start worrying about whether they'll actually like it or not.

Tiny Stories

2005-07-19T11:28:00.000+01:00

I've just submitted a story for Bob Podrasky's Tiny Stories collection. It's exactly 101 words long, including the title, and contains psychedelic mice. I'm pleased with it.

You too can play - they'll take submissions until August 5th. Rules are here. And here's one I wrote earlier with gorgeous illustration by Lisa Snellings Clark. Be sure to read the other ones while you're there!

And now I can go back to reading Lisa's blog without feeling guilty for not having done my story yet.

Flannel Star

2005-07-18T14:14:00.000+01:00

flannel star
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

I told you I'm obsessed with these. This one is made of flannel, mostly old shirts, one bathrobe, and a few nightgowns. I asked my parents for all of their worn-out flannel shirts and got this amazingly colour-coordinated lot. The bit in the centre is from my favourite shirt from when I was ten, which I never would let my mother throw out. See? It came in handy.

I pieced this over thin fabric, instead of paper, which will stay as a permanent part of the quilt. It worked pretty well. Flannel is a lot more slippery and difficult to work with than I would have guessed, and I think pulling off papers would have caused too much unravelling of the seam allowances.

The star measures a metre or so across, and will form the centre of a larger quilt. I'll put a border of the red flannel around it, and then more strip-pieced strips, like the ones used for the corners.

It's already unbelievably soft and cuddly, without even being quilted yet.

What It's About

2005-07-14T16:13:00.000+01:00

At last night's Zokutou meeting, I somewhat disastrously attempted to explain what the novel currently nestling in Tor's slushpile is about. This is in preparation for Worldcon, in case I should happen to find myself talking to someone who wants to know. I may be in trouble here. If I can't explain it to people I'm used to babbling on about writing to, how am I going to cope with people I've only just met?

It might, of course, have helped if it hadn't been far too hot last night to consume alcohol...

The Stars Are Ours

2005-07-12T15:44:00.000+01:00

purplestarsmall
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Today I thought I'd put up a quilt photo. I made this last winter for my mom & stepfather. Trev really hated to see it go, so I'm working on a similar one for us now.

The stars are 12" square, string-pieced on freezer paper. Variations on this pattern seem to have been really popular mid-20th c. I'm finding it a bit addictive myself.

About sums it up really

2005-07-11T11:37:00.000+01:00

londoncantakeit
Originally uploaded by Flyingsquid.

Seeing as I live in London, I was pondering what to post about Thursday. I myself was writing all morning, and didn't even know anything was happening until I noticed how bad the traffic was, halfway to work on the bus.

On Saturday, because Trev is into military history, we went down to see the MOD's Living Museum in St. James's Park. Down Pall Mall, they had a row of vintage vehicles on display. Many of them bore this same slogan. Sometimes I'm really proud I live here.