It's too damn quiet in here.

In case you've been wondering, the reason this blog has been so quiet is very simple: I'm up to my armpits in manuscript revisions and editing... and its not going quietly into the night.


It is instead rather like an out-of-tune brass band, with each instrument needing careful tuning. Hundreds of once pristine pages turned to little more than ash and rubble with the simple slashing motion of a red pen. 


Such is the writers folly, to think that a story will stay written as initially conceived.


Chapters that made sense where they were during the initial composition seem destined to be not the great preludes they were wrought to be but instead interludes to acts unfathomed at the time of their creation.


Scenes, so artfully constructed, now little more than hazy backgrounds in the clarity of the new world arising from the ashes.


And characters, once thought destined to be the MC's of the story are instead finding themselves in the supporting cast, supplanted by voices that crept surprisingly out of the chorus to rise above the rest.


And such is the writers joy; 


To find new life beneath the rubble, a phoenix amongst the ashes of despair.  

Ah, Nostalgia

There has been a question making the rounds of discussion groups on the internet which goes: 


Which would you choose? Computer or Typewriter?


Back in the bad old days of banging out our chapters, daily copy, or itemised expense reports on our trusty Underwood, the writer had to choose words carefully. Composition was performed, not on the page but in the head, with the help of a pad of paper or the back of an envelope or dinner napkin, long before a word was ever typed on a page.

When the desktop computer came into being and potential customers were asking 'Why' they should replace their typewriters with computers... 


Vendors and consultants used to explain that 'the computer was essentially nothing more than an electric typewriter with a built-in dictionary, calculator and filing cabinet.'

Despite all of the years and advances in technology, how many people still use a computer, be it on the desktop, laptop or even portable devices like the Apple iPad or even a cellular telephone... (and Yes, you too, Twitterers) primarily for those same basic functions?

Dear fellow writers;


    Set aside your pencils and dessert napkins, and Raise Your Hands.

We Don't Need No Stinking Resolutions

We don't make resolutions, for we have The Plan!


It is subject to constant revision, as most plans are, according to the whims of clients and vagaries of the real world. It also goes-to-hell-in-a-handbasket when you least expect it... as most plans do.


Thankfully, we also have The Rules!


Rule Number One: Follow The Plan! 


If something goes wrong it must be someones fault. When this occurs, the person whose fault it is goes on THE LIST!


Rule Number Two: In cases of failure, refer to Rule Number One!


May wisdom be your guide and fortune be the path you follow.


Here's wishing all of us a wise and fortunate year.