Okay, in an attempt to consolidate some of my projects and other bits-and-pieces I will not be writing to this blog anymore. I have re-designed and re-launched my web page and it will also double as my blog, making things far easier for me in the long run. Check it out here. I will keep this blog here in the mean time, so you can continue to access my previous posts.
I saw Avatar yesterday (New Years Eve) and was really impressed. There was a lot there that reminded me of the film Aliens (am I really surprised? Not really.) There was also a lot there to game. I could see a beautiful RPG about a truly alien world, much like Sky Realms of Jorune or Blue Planet. I could also see a great skirmish-level wargame. Here are my thoughts on that;
The real challenge here would be getting the Na’Vi (I don’t think I got that right, but moving on…). They are very much unlike any alien figure range I am aware of, and tower over the typical man. However, a solution presented itslef to me, from the depth of my bits box. To me the Na’Vi are very feline and I think that Crocodile Games’ Basti range would make great stand-ins. Now, they aren’t perfect, but with the addition of a nice long tail, ponytail and a blue coat of paint, they will come up okay. There are heaps amred with bows, too.
Use your imagination (you know, suspend your dispbelief) and they work. I haven’t got the perfect answer for the flying creatures that the aliens ride, or all the other forest denizens, but here are my initial thoughts (yet to be properly checked out). For the flying creatures plastic pteradactyls would be a cheap option, but the Games Workshop Lizardmen Teradon would be really good;
The other lizardmen monsters, like the Stegadon, salamander and razordon would also be good. Actually, give the razordon a couple of tentacles and paint it black and it might make a great big-black-spikey-monster (I have no idea what that thing is called). A displacer beast would also be on the right track. The Dark Eldar (while we are talking about GW) warp beast would make a servicable hound (once again, paint it up black). The Na’Vi “horses”… I have no idea. With some heavy converting a horse might work. Maybe combined with some GW Steed of Slanesh.
Now, the Na’Vi are really tall, like 8+ feet. All the GW creatures would work and be in scale with them, but any hman figure would be completly too large. To represent the human forces I would use 20mm or 15mm figures for the humans. This would give a really good sense of the size of the aliens. I held some 20mm World War 2 figures up next to my Basti and they look alright together. Personally, I would use 15mm Ground Zero Games figures as they have a huge selection!
Perhaps when I have some time I might act upon all this. If anyone out there has a go, send me some pics!
- Nathan
Okay, 29 days, more than 35 hours and 50,000 words later and I am spent. Done. Finished. With the exception of a few loose ends that I will tie up tomorrow afternoon at the regular Monday Night Write In, my NaNoWriMo novel is done. It is possible one of the worst pieces of fiction you will never read (yes, I said never) but it is complete. I achieved the seemingly impossible and it taught me some things. It taught me that I can do anything – no matter how seemingly crazy, if I set my mind to it. This was further reinforced by the 12 and 13 year old students that I also encouraged to participate in the challenge – many wrote more than 10,000 words – can ou believe that? Awesome. That tells me, anyone can achieve anything, no matter their age, experience, life commitments or background.
NaNoWriMo also taught me about the process of novel writing. I went in with a solid starting point and a vague idea after that. As soon as I got past the start, I was pretty much lost and everytime I sat down at the computer I changed the direction in which the story was going. Luckily I am okay at improvising and was able to keep up. Un fortuneately, at least twice this month I reached a point where I thought to myself “Oh yeah, that would be a fantastic way to go, except it would require rewriting much of what I have already done.” As a consequence I have finished an “okay” story filled with dodgy dialogue and clished encounters, but also am in two minds about whether I should now edit, or re-write the entire thing. So I learnt that plotting the entire story is probably a good idea for me. It is something I attempted during October, but just couldn’t get to the end. So, for next year (dare I commit already?) and all future writing I will need to work on outlining my story.
Finally, I learnt a lot about the City in which my game Verge is set. My story started out being set in that city, but due to plot reasons and desperation it changed quite a bit as I wrote. Some of the changes are purely plot devices that will never become part of the game setting, but others were unexpected and I really liked. I was also able to flesh out much of the culture of the city, met police, underworld figures, visited the Under City, explored Down Town, rode on the Wire Car between the Grand Stations, learnt how the Sea Gates worked and saw first hand how the different classes and races in the city felt about and intereacted with each other. That was all very cool. I hope that one day I will have the energy to flesh out the city of Verge with all the detail it deserves.
I am exhausted now. So I will say goodbye. It was awesome.
NaNoWriMo has offcially begun and I have my first words on the page. Depsite struggling with what has to be the worst cold I have had in a long time, along with some horrible razer burn (I am clean shaven, in support of MOvember), I stayed up for the midnight kick-off and got 2,021 words done before I went to bed. My writing has been a tad slower today, but I have continued to make progress. My current word count is 5,277, which is just over three days quota of writing. I am hoping to build a really big buffer this week (maybe 15-20,000 words) so that it will take the pressure off as the month goes along.
For those lucky few that read this blog, here is an excerpt from the novel-in-progress. Please refrain from providing feedback that will crush my spirit – November is about first drafts and word counts, not perfect grammar, plotting or the like.
“He is right new to the City,” one of the policemen said. “Can’t even smell it.”
Smell what? Beyond the reek of the open sewers and the thick smoke of the great factories and the sick sweet smell of too many sweaty bodies, Tup couldn’t smell a thing.
Inspector Crox nudged the bundle of rags with his cane and it rolled over. Green-grey arms flopped out and Tup could now see the broad face and narrow nose of a glom staring up at him. His eyes were open, but lifeless like that of a fish that had been gutted and thrown into a basket. Tup gasped and took a step back. The policemen laughed, this time not trying to hide it. Inspector Crox didn’t laugh, he just watched Tup’s expression.
Inspector Crox peered down at him. “Do you know who I am?” Tup nodded. “You have heard these gentle officer’s of the law use my name?”
“Yes, sir. Mr Inspector, I mean.”
“Very good. I know who you are too, Mr Brewster. Slowfoot Cross is no place for good people to be making business.” He paused, as if to ensure Tup was taking it all in. He needn’t have. “I would suggest you make your way to the barrack house double time and find yourself some reputable work in the service of the city.” Tup nodded. “And should I find you skulking about the scene of a murder in the future, I will let these officers clap you in chains and toss you in the Vagries. Now go.”
Tup didn’t need asking twice and he ran down the alley toward the market as fast as he could. Behind him he could hear the policemen laughing again. This time there was another voice amongst them, a thin cackle that must have been the Inspectors.
Okay, after much percolating, stewing and the like, I have the vaguest of ideas on what I will write over the next month. I am calling my novel The Vigilant (changed from my previous working title of The Broken Tower). Here is the elevator pitch;
When Tup Brewster set foot in the City he was uncertain of his future, but nothing could have prepared him for his encounter with the enigmatic John Arkham and his sudden plunge into the dark underside of the metropolis. Now Tup must hunt down the killer of a seemingly lowly Glom worker, avoid the relentless Inspector Crox and try to stay alive – despite the constant danger that his association with John Arkham seems to drop him into.
It is a kind of thriller / detective / young adult story. I have a pretty good idea of the “setup” and first couple of chapters, a few “set piece” encounters/scenes that I wouldn’t mind seeing and a bunch of supporting characters ready to introduce. Beyond that, I am very excited to see where the story leads me!
Here is my concept for a cover. The very cool toph-hatted character is by XtwistedshellX, over at Deviant Art. Layout and other elements are all mine.
Okay, with only 13.5 hours before the start of NaNoWriMo, I thought I would share my writing space with you. It is a little corner of my lounge room, right next to the front entry (which can be a real distraction) and the front windows (to the left), which provide great natural light.
You can see to the left of the laptop my little red moleskin notebook (taken everywhere) and my favourite writing pen. It has a metal nib, a bit like a pen you might use with a well of ink and makes me feel all “writerly”. The folder is my “bible” – where I keep important details, pics etc, along with my plot outline, character notes etc. When I need a break from my computer I can sit down with that.
To the right of the computer are reference books, including No Plot? No Problem!, Writing the Private Eye Novel, The Writer’s Journey plus a couple of others to reference for punctuation, style etc. The book “shelf” is full of my older notebooks, half-written projects, bookmarks, notes and the like, and also has my digital voice recorder (great for taking notes while driving) and my printer (and yes, that is Darth Vader stuck to the front, like a bug on a windscreen).
On the wall to the left of my desk are notecards with ideas for events, set pieces, interesting characters and the like. The idea is that if I get stuck at any point I can just look up, pick one of these and chuck them into the novel!
Above my desk is my inspiration wall. I have been sticking pictures, notes, lists and maps to that all month, building a picture of my world as I go. A couple of times I wrote down random names as they came to me (like Inspector Crox and Tuppence Brewster) and slowly they grew into characters! You will also notice the “Do As I Command” poster – that is awesome guys!
So, that is where I will be slaving away for the next thirty days!
I have recieved lots of really great feedback about the NaNoWriMo calendars I created for this year’s event. I really appreciate all the wonderful things people have said, and I get a genuine thrill out of knowing that so many people are going to be looking at that wallpaper while they create their masterpiece! Heck, I keep minimising programs to look at it!
I also want to give credit to the great artists that provided the stock photos for this wallpaper. All images were taken from stock.xchng and the artists were (in no particular order);
You can enter these usernames into the advanced search engine (in the “by photographer” section) to find each gallery of images.
Inspired by all the coolness going on over at NaNoWriMo HQ, I have created for myself a desktop wallpaper to keep me inspired and on track throughout November. Check it out;
All the art comes from the fantastic creators over at stock.xchange. This wallpaper is 1280×800 and free for personal use.
50,000 word calendar here
75,000 word calendar here
100,000 word calendar here
I was also inspired to make a crime inspired one (50,000 words) here.
I am officially announcing my intention to participate in this year’s National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo for short).
This teaser uses images from the totally cool deviants at Deviant Art. I do not mean to infringe on anyone’s copyright.
