So, how many weeks is average for first class post? I've been waiting over a week now for a replacement toner cartridge for my laser printer. It was posted the week before last, yet it is still not here. To boot, an LP ordered off Amazon at the same time is also not here. Just how bad is Royal Fail these days?
I think next time I ought to be ordering the cartridge at the first signs of running low on toner, rather than continually shaking the cartridge to get a few more pages out until shaking gets me no further. I've been pretty much twiddling my thumbs for the last week because I just can't print off anything. Normally I work in a paperless office, but alas it seems most agents do not share my environmental views and demand hard copy double spaced and single sided of everything (hence why my paperless office does still have a printer).
Bah!
Monday, 21 September 2009
Thursday, 17 September 2009
Four wheels good, three wheels bad.
Yesterday whilst I had my car on the jack to change a tyre, the jack broke. Badly. Very badly. It is held up by a metal screw that goes through a plastic threaded block, and it was this block which sheared off. Ever seen a car drop suddenly to the tarmac? You find out what the air freshener hanging on the rear view mirror is all about when you think "my hand was around that hub seconds ago".
When a spare jack was eventually found, I found that the backing plate behind the brake disk was bent. I've levered it back with the tyre iron, and the wheel went back on okay. I drove around a couple of miles to check nothing was damaged, and there are no strange noises and the brakes work okay. Still, that was not an experience I feel like repeating. Now I need to get a replacement jack. There are quite a few on Ebay that I have my eye on. Still, it goes to show why you never go underneath a vehicle supported only by a jack.
When a spare jack was eventually found, I found that the backing plate behind the brake disk was bent. I've levered it back with the tyre iron, and the wheel went back on okay. I drove around a couple of miles to check nothing was damaged, and there are no strange noises and the brakes work okay. Still, that was not an experience I feel like repeating. Now I need to get a replacement jack. There are quite a few on Ebay that I have my eye on. Still, it goes to show why you never go underneath a vehicle supported only by a jack.
Tuesday, 15 September 2009
Jenny on Lily
Lily Allen is an artist that I wanted to not like from the start. I disliked her image, and disliked the shallow nature of her songs. I also really disliked the way she seemed to refuse to correctly pronounce the letter 't' in words.
It has to be said that her early stuff really did bolster my thoughts to this effect. Shallow, materialistic and - dare I say it - chavvy. It embodied everything I thought had gone wrong with young people in Britain (gosh, I sound like an old fart saying that).
However, there came a single called "the fear" that I discovered on the radio and actually really liked. As is the way with these things, I checked first to make sure that this single wasn't just a cover of a better artist's song. But is wasn't. So I bought a 7" picture disk copy of it, and have to say that I still liked it. What was more, I heard first another then yet another good Lily Allen song off the same album it seems. So today, I have finally bitten the bullet and ordered on vinyl LP a copy of the "It's not me, it's you" album.
It only goes to show that whilst first impressions might be powerful, they aren't always the ones that persist. I'm also quite open to giving groups and artists a second chance. Marilyn Manson is just such an artist, who I detested until "Mechanical Animals" appeared. It goes to show that music is an ever-changing medium that certainly does throw up a few surprises.
I await the LP with interest, and only hope that some day Lily Allen discovers that mispronouncing the letter 't' does not make you sound cool, but rather, a prat.
It has to be said that her early stuff really did bolster my thoughts to this effect. Shallow, materialistic and - dare I say it - chavvy. It embodied everything I thought had gone wrong with young people in Britain (gosh, I sound like an old fart saying that).
However, there came a single called "the fear" that I discovered on the radio and actually really liked. As is the way with these things, I checked first to make sure that this single wasn't just a cover of a better artist's song. But is wasn't. So I bought a 7" picture disk copy of it, and have to say that I still liked it. What was more, I heard first another then yet another good Lily Allen song off the same album it seems. So today, I have finally bitten the bullet and ordered on vinyl LP a copy of the "It's not me, it's you" album.
It only goes to show that whilst first impressions might be powerful, they aren't always the ones that persist. I'm also quite open to giving groups and artists a second chance. Marilyn Manson is just such an artist, who I detested until "Mechanical Animals" appeared. It goes to show that music is an ever-changing medium that certainly does throw up a few surprises.
I await the LP with interest, and only hope that some day Lily Allen discovers that mispronouncing the letter 't' does not make you sound cool, but rather, a prat.
Sunday, 13 September 2009
Captain's log, additional.
Incidentally, if anyone might have going dirt cheap a Bosun sailing dinghy, complete or just a hull (I have access to all the spare parts including the woodwork) I'm interested. :)
What does a cynic do on her weekend?
Today was spent up at the lake working on boats. There weren't enough cadets to warrent sailing boats, so it was a lazier day running the Viking motorboat and letting cadets use the canoe that normally gets used for getting out to the buoy the Viking is moored to. We also brought in the ASC to check in its cover. It's done its job remarkably well, keeping Seagull poo out of the insides, as well as shielding any water that has leaked in from the sun so that slime and algae doesn't appear in it. Consequently the boat's interior looks like it was renovated yesterday rather than at the beginning of the season. So that means that that is one less boat needing work doing to it for a change. Next year will see all our efforts able to be channelled into getting boats on the water earlier in the season and getting more boats renovated for use.
Zoë recorded the Italian grand prix for me whilst I was out, so I had the luxurious task of watching that on my return. It was quite pleasent downing a few beers whilst it was on. I rarely drink beers these days, except when a grand prix is on. I could not believe that Hamilton threw it all away on the final lap. What was he thinking of? I bet he is gutted tonight.
Zoë's birthday present arrived on Saturday. I've got her Guitar hero 5 - don't worry; she knows all about it already. She is hooked on the Rock Band/Guitar hero franchises, and we have studiously been buying them on the venerable PS2 since Guitar hero one was out. So far all keep coming out for the PS2, with the exception of the Beatles one, so we have no desire to change the console (at any rate, we have a Wii but aren't in the mood to buy duplicate instruments for it). The PS2 is the console that just keeps on giving - I really like it. That's a lot more than I could say for the PS3 which is an overpriced lump of crap. If we did buy another console eventually, I suspect it would be the Xbox 360. That won't be for a while yet though.
Tomorrow is a busy day. I have a lot of agents to approach, but as they are mostly all still stuck in the past, they won't accept emails. So that means I need to get a new toner cartridge for the laser printer. I'm going to be printing a lot of pages, so it makes sense compared to taxing Zoë's inkjet. I also have cheques and cash to pay in from the sale of some childhood toys. My Father and I have been disposing some of the duplicates from our old Horby Dublo collection. Last week I finally finished the negotiations on the sale of three locomotives. Who would have thought that these three small items could liberate a full £440! I was going to put my half towards a sailing boat, but a bidding war broke out at the last minute on ebay and it went for silly money. That seems to happen far too often; I suspect shill bidding. Call me a cynic, because I am.
Zoë recorded the Italian grand prix for me whilst I was out, so I had the luxurious task of watching that on my return. It was quite pleasent downing a few beers whilst it was on. I rarely drink beers these days, except when a grand prix is on. I could not believe that Hamilton threw it all away on the final lap. What was he thinking of? I bet he is gutted tonight.
Zoë's birthday present arrived on Saturday. I've got her Guitar hero 5 - don't worry; she knows all about it already. She is hooked on the Rock Band/Guitar hero franchises, and we have studiously been buying them on the venerable PS2 since Guitar hero one was out. So far all keep coming out for the PS2, with the exception of the Beatles one, so we have no desire to change the console (at any rate, we have a Wii but aren't in the mood to buy duplicate instruments for it). The PS2 is the console that just keeps on giving - I really like it. That's a lot more than I could say for the PS3 which is an overpriced lump of crap. If we did buy another console eventually, I suspect it would be the Xbox 360. That won't be for a while yet though.
Tomorrow is a busy day. I have a lot of agents to approach, but as they are mostly all still stuck in the past, they won't accept emails. So that means I need to get a new toner cartridge for the laser printer. I'm going to be printing a lot of pages, so it makes sense compared to taxing Zoë's inkjet. I also have cheques and cash to pay in from the sale of some childhood toys. My Father and I have been disposing some of the duplicates from our old Horby Dublo collection. Last week I finally finished the negotiations on the sale of three locomotives. Who would have thought that these three small items could liberate a full £440! I was going to put my half towards a sailing boat, but a bidding war broke out at the last minute on ebay and it went for silly money. That seems to happen far too often; I suspect shill bidding. Call me a cynic, because I am.
Thursday, 10 September 2009
Final draft of the synopsis
WARNING: MORE SPOILERS!!!
Right. Final version of the synopsis for tonight. I'm going to bite the bullet tomorrow morning and send it I think after one last glance through.
Bringing home the stars – short synopsis
Dezza is a salvager aboard a deep space tug along with Tubs and Zoë. They find an ancient and derelict Starliner – the Cerberus – after the ship’s drive malfunctions. Onboard the Starliner, something kills Tubs. At the same time some of the Starliner’s secrets are revealed, indicating that an unknown creature has colonised the ship. Dezza and Zoë escape, and the Starliner disappears as its engines reactivate. Back on Earth, mistakes Dezza made aboard the Cerberus and the loss of Tubs haunt him. His reputation is ruined. Whilst he becomes a drunk, Zoë signs up with another crew and heads back out into space trying to put the experience behind her.
Five years later a man called West from the military offers Dezza the option to return to the Cerberus, which has reappeared in deep space, as an advisor for a military crew as a chance of regaining his standing. Ignoring his fears and the fact that another salvage crew has disappeared searching the Starliner, Dezza signs on after learning that Zoë was on that crew.
Aboard the Starliner, events occur just as they did when Dezza was here five years ago, revealing an entity that can change between matter and energy and roams through the electrical systems of the derelict Cerberus. It picks off the military crew, infiltrating their own ship resulting in its destruction so that Dezza and the survivors must try to reactivate the previous salvage crew’s dead ship in order that they might escape.
The creature grows stronger, manifesting as those it has killed before. They realise as the creature reveals itself that the only way to defeat it is to destroy the Cerberus. If they don’t, the creature will continue to consume the crews of salvage ships that would risk everything for the ultimate prize of recovering the ancient vessel and towing it back for the salvage value.
Long range scans from the salvage craft’s systems indicate that the Cerberus risks grazing a meteor swarm. There is only a chance that it will be destroyed, but they will almost certainly die if they remain because the creature is relentless. One of the surviving military crew – Tracker - provides a distraction, luring the creature after himself, allowing Dezza to recover essential components that the abandoned salvage ship needs to be reactivated. The diversion is a success and Dezza flees with the last of the military crew – Toze.
Tracker stays to ensure the creature’s destruction and prevent it from regaining control of the Cerberus. The creature attempts to fight Tracker, manifesting first as his dead comrades, then as elements of the original Starliner’s crew. Only by facing up to the creature’s attack is Tracker able to keep the Cerberus on course long enough that the creature cannot undo the collision course with the meteor swarm. Dezza and Toze make it back to Earth having witnessed the end of the Cerberus and the creature.
‘Bringing Home The Stars’ is sci-fi and horror where the sci-fi takes a back seat to keep the story accessible to all readers, including those who do not normally consider sci-fi their thing. It has elements of ‘Aliens’ and ‘Ghost ship’, taking care to build the suspense by focussing on the psychological interaction of the main character Dezza and how his experiences on the Cerberus have become a turning point for his life. As the story progresses he is forced to face up to his past and fight and in the process reinvents himself as the man he used to be, facing up to the errors of his past.
Right. Final version of the synopsis for tonight. I'm going to bite the bullet tomorrow morning and send it I think after one last glance through.
Bringing home the stars – short synopsis
Dezza is a salvager aboard a deep space tug along with Tubs and Zoë. They find an ancient and derelict Starliner – the Cerberus – after the ship’s drive malfunctions. Onboard the Starliner, something kills Tubs. At the same time some of the Starliner’s secrets are revealed, indicating that an unknown creature has colonised the ship. Dezza and Zoë escape, and the Starliner disappears as its engines reactivate. Back on Earth, mistakes Dezza made aboard the Cerberus and the loss of Tubs haunt him. His reputation is ruined. Whilst he becomes a drunk, Zoë signs up with another crew and heads back out into space trying to put the experience behind her.
Five years later a man called West from the military offers Dezza the option to return to the Cerberus, which has reappeared in deep space, as an advisor for a military crew as a chance of regaining his standing. Ignoring his fears and the fact that another salvage crew has disappeared searching the Starliner, Dezza signs on after learning that Zoë was on that crew.
Aboard the Starliner, events occur just as they did when Dezza was here five years ago, revealing an entity that can change between matter and energy and roams through the electrical systems of the derelict Cerberus. It picks off the military crew, infiltrating their own ship resulting in its destruction so that Dezza and the survivors must try to reactivate the previous salvage crew’s dead ship in order that they might escape.
The creature grows stronger, manifesting as those it has killed before. They realise as the creature reveals itself that the only way to defeat it is to destroy the Cerberus. If they don’t, the creature will continue to consume the crews of salvage ships that would risk everything for the ultimate prize of recovering the ancient vessel and towing it back for the salvage value.
Long range scans from the salvage craft’s systems indicate that the Cerberus risks grazing a meteor swarm. There is only a chance that it will be destroyed, but they will almost certainly die if they remain because the creature is relentless. One of the surviving military crew – Tracker - provides a distraction, luring the creature after himself, allowing Dezza to recover essential components that the abandoned salvage ship needs to be reactivated. The diversion is a success and Dezza flees with the last of the military crew – Toze.
Tracker stays to ensure the creature’s destruction and prevent it from regaining control of the Cerberus. The creature attempts to fight Tracker, manifesting first as his dead comrades, then as elements of the original Starliner’s crew. Only by facing up to the creature’s attack is Tracker able to keep the Cerberus on course long enough that the creature cannot undo the collision course with the meteor swarm. Dezza and Toze make it back to Earth having witnessed the end of the Cerberus and the creature.
‘Bringing Home The Stars’ is sci-fi and horror where the sci-fi takes a back seat to keep the story accessible to all readers, including those who do not normally consider sci-fi their thing. It has elements of ‘Aliens’ and ‘Ghost ship’, taking care to build the suspense by focussing on the psychological interaction of the main character Dezza and how his experiences on the Cerberus have become a turning point for his life. As the story progresses he is forced to face up to his past and fight and in the process reinvents himself as the man he used to be, facing up to the errors of his past.
That dreaded synopsis thing.
I've spent the last few days working on a short synopsis for 'Bringing home the stars' in preparation for sending out material to more agents. There aren't that many agents who specialise or accept sci-fi, so I wanted it to be excellent and a good sell right from the start. The trouble is that synopses are one of the most difficult things to write, especially if they are for a book that you have written yourself.
I've reposted what I've got so far below. WARNING: SPOILERS!
Bringing home the stars – short synopsis
Dezza is a gritty salvager aboard a deep space tug along with Tubs and Zoë. They find a derelict Starliner – the Cerberus - in uncharted space after their tug’s drive core fails leaving them marooned. Onboard the Starliner, something kills Tubs. At the same time some of the Starliner’s secrets are revealed, indicating that an unknown creature has colonised the ship. Dezza and Zoë escape, and the Starliner disappears as its engines reactivate. Back on Earth, mistakes Dezza made aboard the Cerberus and the loss of Tubs haunt him. His reputation is ruined, he spirals downward labelled as a man who lost his crewmate to a space myth. Whilst he becomes a drunk, Zoë signs up with another crew and disappears back out into space trying to put the experience behind her.
Five years later a man called West from the military offers Dezza a chance for redemption. Return to the Cerberus, which has reappeared in deep space, as an advisor for a military crew and stand a chance of regaining his reputation is West’s offer. Despite his fears and the fact that another salvage crew has disappeared searching for the Starliner, Dezza signs on after West explains that Zoë was one of the last salvage crew who have disappeared aboard the ’Cerberus’.
Slowly what Dezza faced all those years ago begins to manifest again aboard the Starliner, revealing an entity that can change between matter and energy and roams through the electrical systems of the derelict Cerberus. It picks off the military crew, infiltrating their own ship resulting in its destruction so that Dezza and the survivors must try to reactivate the previous salvage crew’s dead ship in order that they might escape.
The creature grows stronger; feeding off their fears and manifesting as those it has killed before. It becomes clear as the creature reveals itself and its past that the only way to defeat it is to destroy the Cerberus. If they don’t, the creature will continue to devour the crews of salvage ships that would risk everything for the ultimate prize of recovering the ancient vessel and towing it back for the salvage money and risk contaminating an entire planet with it. Greed and the physical value of the Starliner, regardless of consequences would almost certainly lure other salvage crews. Long range scans from the salvage craft’s systems indicate that the Cerberus risks grazing a meteor swarm. There is only a chance that it will be destroyed, but they will almost certainly die if they remain because the creature is relentless in its attacks.
In a co-ordinated plan, one of the surviving military crew – Tracker - provides a distraction, luring the creature after himself, allowing Dezza to recover essential components that the abandoned salvage ship needs to be reactivated fully to be able to escape. The diversion is a success and Dezza is able to flee with the last of the military crew – Toze - at the expense of Tracker. He instead stays to ensure the creature’s destruction and prevent it from regaining control of the Cerberus and making another escape by activating the main engines. The creature attempts to regain control and destroy Tracker, manifesting first as his dead comrades, then as elements of the original Starliner’s crew. Only by facing up to the creature’s attack is Tracker able to keep the Cerberus on course long enough that the creature cannot undo the collision course with the meteor swarm.
Dezza and Toze make it back to Earth, knowing that whatever fate awaits them, they have both faced the dangers and have done what they felt was right.
’Bringing home the stars’ is the updating of the classic 'haunted house' formula set in deep space. It uses the setting to provide the opportunity for the maximum amount of suspense and tension through the unusual isolation that being marooned in deep space can offer. It is sci-fi and horror where the sci-fi takes a back seat to keep the story accessible to all readers, including those who do not normally consider sci-fi their normal reading genre. It has elements of ‘Aliens’ and ‘Ghost ship’, but takes care to build the suspense in the most subtle of ways by focussing on the psychological interaction of the main character Dezza and how his experiences on the Cerberus have become a turning point for his life. As the story progresses he is forced to face up to his past and fight instead of turning and hiding and in the process reinvents himself as the man he used to be, and faces up to the errors of his past.
I've reposted what I've got so far below. WARNING: SPOILERS!
Bringing home the stars – short synopsis
Dezza is a gritty salvager aboard a deep space tug along with Tubs and Zoë. They find a derelict Starliner – the Cerberus - in uncharted space after their tug’s drive core fails leaving them marooned. Onboard the Starliner, something kills Tubs. At the same time some of the Starliner’s secrets are revealed, indicating that an unknown creature has colonised the ship. Dezza and Zoë escape, and the Starliner disappears as its engines reactivate. Back on Earth, mistakes Dezza made aboard the Cerberus and the loss of Tubs haunt him. His reputation is ruined, he spirals downward labelled as a man who lost his crewmate to a space myth. Whilst he becomes a drunk, Zoë signs up with another crew and disappears back out into space trying to put the experience behind her.
Five years later a man called West from the military offers Dezza a chance for redemption. Return to the Cerberus, which has reappeared in deep space, as an advisor for a military crew and stand a chance of regaining his reputation is West’s offer. Despite his fears and the fact that another salvage crew has disappeared searching for the Starliner, Dezza signs on after West explains that Zoë was one of the last salvage crew who have disappeared aboard the ’Cerberus’.
Slowly what Dezza faced all those years ago begins to manifest again aboard the Starliner, revealing an entity that can change between matter and energy and roams through the electrical systems of the derelict Cerberus. It picks off the military crew, infiltrating their own ship resulting in its destruction so that Dezza and the survivors must try to reactivate the previous salvage crew’s dead ship in order that they might escape.
The creature grows stronger; feeding off their fears and manifesting as those it has killed before. It becomes clear as the creature reveals itself and its past that the only way to defeat it is to destroy the Cerberus. If they don’t, the creature will continue to devour the crews of salvage ships that would risk everything for the ultimate prize of recovering the ancient vessel and towing it back for the salvage money and risk contaminating an entire planet with it. Greed and the physical value of the Starliner, regardless of consequences would almost certainly lure other salvage crews. Long range scans from the salvage craft’s systems indicate that the Cerberus risks grazing a meteor swarm. There is only a chance that it will be destroyed, but they will almost certainly die if they remain because the creature is relentless in its attacks.
In a co-ordinated plan, one of the surviving military crew – Tracker - provides a distraction, luring the creature after himself, allowing Dezza to recover essential components that the abandoned salvage ship needs to be reactivated fully to be able to escape. The diversion is a success and Dezza is able to flee with the last of the military crew – Toze - at the expense of Tracker. He instead stays to ensure the creature’s destruction and prevent it from regaining control of the Cerberus and making another escape by activating the main engines. The creature attempts to regain control and destroy Tracker, manifesting first as his dead comrades, then as elements of the original Starliner’s crew. Only by facing up to the creature’s attack is Tracker able to keep the Cerberus on course long enough that the creature cannot undo the collision course with the meteor swarm.
Dezza and Toze make it back to Earth, knowing that whatever fate awaits them, they have both faced the dangers and have done what they felt was right.
’Bringing home the stars’ is the updating of the classic 'haunted house' formula set in deep space. It uses the setting to provide the opportunity for the maximum amount of suspense and tension through the unusual isolation that being marooned in deep space can offer. It is sci-fi and horror where the sci-fi takes a back seat to keep the story accessible to all readers, including those who do not normally consider sci-fi their normal reading genre. It has elements of ‘Aliens’ and ‘Ghost ship’, but takes care to build the suspense in the most subtle of ways by focussing on the psychological interaction of the main character Dezza and how his experiences on the Cerberus have become a turning point for his life. As the story progresses he is forced to face up to his past and fight instead of turning and hiding and in the process reinvents himself as the man he used to be, and faces up to the errors of his past.
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