Time May Change Me

I think my calendar is broken. It's telling me November but that can't possibly be right can it? Hmm. Seems my phone is broken too. And my laptop. And my watch. Oh hang on, I don't wear a watch...

Hello and welcome to a new update on my blog.

Despite the acceleration of 2009 (I suspect we may have skipped September altogether) the year continues to go well. I am almost completely treatmented up and ready to write the first draft of my new script. It's intended as a pilot and has the working title of "The Preservationists", in fact I like that title so much it may stick. I've booked Friday off and my intention is to write like a bastard for three days before collapsing onto the sofa on Sunday night with a glass of wine to have my pants scared off by The Waters of Mars. If all goes well this project will be the long awaited (by no one in particular apart from me) follow up to BBC writersroom's request to see my next work.

Once the first draft of The Preservationists is completed I'm going to forget all about it for a month or so while I do a full rewrite on my horror feature, The Quiet Night Inn. That should take us up to December when I'll have a tinker with The Preservationists before resurrecting a long dormant feature film script and starting it from scratch over Christmas. I'll probably be after some power of three action around then too, so let me know if you're interested - I'll return the favour naturally.

Exciting stuff which will take me up to the new year - hopefully with three decent scripts and a fair bit of momentum. In the new year I have some new projects to start, including a strong idea for another horror feature (something more... urban this time), a sitcom and various other half formed ideas. Most of all I want to start with a clear desk. Hence the frantic work in the next couple of months.

"So how come you're so enthusiastic about your work again?" You're probably not asking. I'm glad you asked. It's because there's something I haven't told you, dear reader. A couple of months ago I left my employer of some ten years for a job that allows me more flexibility, a shorter commute, and some hope of having the energy to work when I come home of an evening. I was sad to leave the old firm, they've been good to me and I will always be fond of them, but there are changes on the way and it was a prudent move. Happily my new job has been a terrific success. I'm home much earlier in the evening and writing most evenings.

I'm feeling positive about the future for a lot of reasons, but particularly because I've worked on my writing more, and harder, for the last few months than for a long time. There have been a lot of changes over the last couple of years; leaving Cardiff, Emma becoming a teacher, buying a house, and so on. My change in jobs feels like the last piece slotting into place. Finally I can commit all my energies to making it as a screenwriter.

As long as nothing else comes along and demands all my attention...

Like Turning On a Tap...

I have had an excellent few days. Nearly done on the first draft of my current project, working on a treatment for a Brand New Thing (which could become a Red Planet Entry - even though I'd decided not to enter this year), another treatment taking shape in my mindtank and enough momentum to finally finish Hitman and a short I started ages ago (just after watching The Arnopp's inspiring Look At Me). I just want to clear the decks and work on the new stuff. In fact that's all I've wanted for about six months.

I'm feeling damn good about writing today. Which is nice. I've just spent an hour storylining but now I have to shower and clean the house as we have a friend visiting tonight.

It's funny, in my last post I said "Every day that I don't work is a tiny kick in the teeth to me" and that was a very accurate description of how I often feel. The contrast with my mood now is incredible. I haven't cured cancer or written a masterpiece, all I did was do a couple of hours work every day and I feel like a million bucks. God bless writing, the cheapest drug in the world.

Happy times and places!

Grindstone time

I didn’t come here to blog, if blog really is a verb now, but to work. It’s difficult to settle down to work after so long a break though. The mind wanders...

Emma and I have finally moved into our new home in Sedgley. I have some lovely photos to post but there’s a USB lead with a tiny little connector somewhere in this house and until I can locate it no more of my stunning photies will be appearing on these pages. Of course I could google ‘house’ for images and post a picture of someone else’s house, it would probably be similar after all.

Actually it would be even easier for me if you could just look out of your nearest window, go on. See a house? No? Ok, nip out of your front door and look over your shoulder. House? Bingo (pun intended, and really quite witty I think). My house looks a bit like that (unless you live in a mansion, a motor home, a flat, under a rock, in a castle, cave, hole in the ground, canal barge, hollowed-out tree, caravan, forest, space station, Lada, tree house, farm house, hen house, poor house or outhouse).

The no pictures scenario is quite a bummer as my favourite bit of my house is the writey room. I used to have a desk (illustrated here) in my old house in Cardiff but have been sans surface since last August. Now I have a whole room. Wow. Actually it does also contain all my – shall we say – geeky stuff. Most of it anyhoo. But you’ll see when I find that pesky lead.

Due to the house moving process and major upheavals of last year I haven’t done any proper work for quite some time now, I have a few projects to get straight on with or finish off and then the rest of this year is going to be devoted to building my portfolio. I’ve got an ace short film script I’m halfway through, a script for a challenge that I think may turn out to be good enough to form the long awaited (by no-one but me really) BBC Writers Room follow up, and of course Hitman, which I got into a pickle with and now just need to kiss off, so to speak.

Step one, though, is getting into a routine. I’d say back into a routine but I’m not a liar. I’ve always been a binge writer but I can’t work that way anymore, got to do the Rocky thing now (cue music), train up, work hard and get fit – only in a writing sense.

So I’d best crack on…

It's an update...

I've dumped Opera. I don't feel very good about myself and I'll always be friends with it but I've been seeing another browser for a while now and it's serious...

Anyway, I've finally come round to Firefox, and more significantly Thunderbird and I think you probably should as well. Too many visitors to this site are still using Internet Explorer and they really should know better. I can tell, you know. I can see everything you're doing right now. Yuck.

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Hit a bit of a snag as far as SWF '08 goes. No day tickets this year and a ticket for three days will set me back three monkeys (or something). Bum. The wallet just won't stretch that far when I'm buying a house this month.

But that's ok. I still feel my energies should be going into generating spec scripts and developing my skills. I can always go next year, with a years-worth more work behind me. Hell, I'll be 33 in a couple of months - it's not like I'm against the clock.

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I'm on leave this week so it's binge-writing time, in between bouts of packing and appointments with solicitors. Actually today wasn't a great start. Sat in front of the laptop for ages trying to make something work to no joy before moving on to a different problem. Amusingly the answer came to me hours later while I was doing the dishes.

I'm hoping to get one big project finished this week. It's been hanging around for ages and I really want to clear the decks before moving to our new home - and my new office.

Over at the Jobbing Screenwriter the Barron has been showing off his (very) shiny new desks. I won't be starting off with anything so flash but I'm very excited about having a space to write again. It's six months since I had a desk - never mind an office. I have stolen his notice board system though, don't tell him.

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Elsewhere in the Scribosphere the redoubtable M. Arnopp will be enjoying a screening of his short film what he wrote, Look At Me, in a seedy Soho kinema tomorrow evening. The Island of Dreams is transmitting big blog love in the direction of ole London town and hopes the event is a smashing success. Good show Jase.

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I know the Writers Strike is all sorted now, but does that mean I have to get rid of my little blog badge? I'm pretty fond of it. Maybe I can keep it as a warning to anyone else who fancies playing tough with writers?

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Well, that's it for now. I'll probably chip in later this week with some thoughts on Ashes to Ashes (précis - Started poorly but improving), Being Human (Bring us more of this genre television of which you speak), and of course Torchwood (They don't have any torches, but they've all got wood).

Until then then... then.

Red Planet, Emily Bell and Daleks

Thanks to the courtesy of Mr Stack we all know whether or not we made it through to round two of the Red Planet Productions competition now. I didn't. If you did then bloody well done to you. If you didn't there are some tips for dealing with the rejection here and here - but basically get on with it!


For my part I'm going to take a break from competitions until Red Planet 2008. I think they've distracted me from building up a portfolio rather than helped. In fact 2007 has been a mixed bag for me as far as writing goes. I've undoubtedly worked harder on it but seem to have little to show for my efforts - hence the decision to concentrate on those projects that have been 'pending' for way too long now.


The last twelve months have seen Emma and I take actions that are all designed to improve our situation. Some have worked, some haven't and some we won't see the benefit of for another year at least. My change in career has brought unexpected complications but has certainly given me more opportunity to concentrate on writing. It's essential now that I devise and adhere to a routine that sees me write daily and follow projects through to completion.


Chief among these is the script I'm preparing for Writers Room (you may remember they invited me to send my next script when they returned Riks Records). I completed the draft some months ago but finally read it through again last night. In my mind I'd convinced myself it was rubbish (as we tend to) but found I still like it very much. It needs a lot of work but I'm confident I have a good script in the making. I think, after a few drafts, I'll offer it up for some 'Power of Three' action as I've never tried that and it seems to work for other Scribobloggers.


So it's write-write-write until next years Cheltenham Screenwriter's Festival.


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Most British writers must have been following developments concerning the WGA strike and it's effects. Most but not all. Notably not Emily Bell, the director of digital content for Guardian News and Media, who saw fit to author an article for Broadcast magazine called Striking writers are wrong to think they should be paid more.

For a breakdown of exactly what is wrong with Bell's piece take a look at James Moran's letter to her. I've followed his example and sent a brief note to the editor expressing my feeling of disappointment that Broadcast Magazine has not only felt justified in printing an article so poorly researched but one that seems to spit in the eye of our American peers.


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I'm currently enjoying the Doctor Who Series Three Box Set and have just watched Evolution of the Daleks for only the second time. I watched both episodes together which I think improved the experience markedly. I was quite forthright in my dissatisfaction with this story when it was broadcast (see here) and while I'm not about to recant I do think I took it a little personally.

Looking back on what is, to my mind, the best series of Doctor Who ever I feel the Dalek story to be a minor blip. It's greatest fault is perhaps that it is too imaginative - who could complain about that?

Shoe the goose

Work has been a bit crazy since my week off hence no updates and very little writing. I have got two different ideas brewing for the Red Planet Competition - just need to develop both a little and see which is the best runner.

No more work done on 'Hitman', I'll probably read through it on Sunday and start a second draft next week.

The cause of the delay has been a combination of a lot of extra pressure at work due to sickness and also an interview for a new job on Monday. The interview went well. So well in fact that I start my new job on August 13th. I'm still with the same company but from now on when people ask me what I do I'll be able to say I work in IT. In the Midlands.

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In 2000AD 'Mutants in Mega City One' is turning out to be the best Dredd story I've read in years. John Wagner is taking old stoney face into very new moral territory and the repercussions are likely to have huge consequences for him and his city. He's even had to get new boots and we all know what that means.

Defoe continues to be extraordinarily good. What seemed initially to be just a bit of fun zombie hacking is turning into an ingenious re-imagining of English seventeenth century history. This has the potential to run and run.

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BBC2 start running the excellent Heroes next Wednesday. Do not miss it or you'll feel a right lemon. Crayon it into your diary. In the meantime you could pick up the latest issue of the Radio Times to find out what all the fuss is about.

Save the cheerleader, save the world.

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Steven Moffat's Jekyll has been fantastic. The reinterpretation of the original story has been imaginative and surprising. James Nesbitt has delivered two excellent performances both as Tom Jackman and his malevolent alter ego while Gina Bellman, as his confused wife, is captivating. A fantastic effort all round. A full review will follow after the series has finished.

Likewise reviews for The Sound of Drums and Last of the Time Lords and Blink are on the way.

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Finally, I'm now available for poking on facebook, it's like MySpace but with class. In fact, I've probably got a greater online presence than a lot of successful writers. Somehow that doesn't seem like a good thing.

Laters.

Merces Letifer

So we draw to the end of Writey Week 2, as I always intended to take Sunday off (at the moment we're planning a jaunt to Bristol Zoo and lunch with a friend). I've worked for a at least three or four hours every day this week and I'm thrilled to be able to say that I have something tangible to show for it.

On Monday I wrote a new scene breakdown for the script I've been planning to write and send to the BBC for about six months. On Tuesday I began writing the first draft. I have just, a few short moments ago, written Run End Credits at the end of page 52. Impressive considering that it took me about six months to write the first draft of Rik's Records, and probably another six to revise it until I was happy enough with (or sick enough of) it to send it to Writers Room.

This new script is a pilot for a potential series I'm calling 'Hitman'. It is the darkly comic tale of an unlikely killer. The pilot is titled 'Secret Origins'.

The deadline I set myself, to have posted it by September, looks likely to be beaten comfortably. I'll leave it for a week now while I work on other projects (Yes I'm looking at you 2000AD Future Shock script, Interzone short Story and Red Planet Productions Prize). In the mean time the harshest of my critics (and greatest of my supporters) will take a first look at the script and see what she thinks.

This is a happy, happy day for me and the end of a great week that has seen me do little but write and watch great telly. I've enjoyed the first episode of Jekyll, series one of Coupling, all of The Thick of It, a wee bit of Spooks, part one of The Singing Detective and the pilot episode of Steptoe and Son. No wonder I felt motivated.

I'll leave you, in the tradition of Russell T Davies' DWM Production Notes, with three words from the script; 'mincer', 'hamster' and 'Greyskull'.

This is the news... happy now?

It isn't often you wake to great news so it's worth marking the occasion when you do. More often than not the seven o'clock news is full of sadness and woe. Here's a run down of what's bloody marvellous and what's not...

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Alan Johnston has been released after almost four months in the hands of the 'Army of Islam'. After the recent video of him wearing an vest covered in explosives it had seemed less likely than ever that he might be returned safe and sound. Read the full story here. The very best of luck to Mr Johnston, his family and everyone involved in his release.

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At the Harry Potter premiere JK Rowling was asked what her plans for the future were and responded that she was looking forward to a holiday. BBC Radio 2 also reported her as having mentioned that she'd been invited to write an episode of Doctor Who and was looking forward to that.There doesn't seem to be any other mention of it on the inertweb at the moment so it's unclear if they've got the wrong end of the stick or if it's actually going to happen now.


I for one took it a little personally when she declined to write for the first series so I hope it is true.


Of course this week has also seen an end to speculation that Kylie Minogue might be guest starring in the Doctor Who Christmas Special, Voyage of the Damned (brilliant title). It's not known what role she will play but it seems likely she will be the Doctor's one off companion. You know, like Donna as played by Catherine Tate in The Runaway Bride.


Oh, but wait a minute... in breaking news it seems that Catherine Tate is to return to Doctor Who for the duration of the fourth series as Donna Noble rejoins the Doctor on his adventures.


It's not April Fools is it..?


Okay then, the bright side is it's a different dynamic in the Tardis, Donna is a bit older than Martha and has a very different personality. The down side is that she wasn't great in The Runaway Bride, though she did settle in by the end of the episode. Catherine Tate is too big a name in her own right. Stunt casting is all very well for Christmas specials but thirteen episodes with a novelty companion? Finally and most significantly - we lost Martha for this?


As ever I'm sure the production team know what they're doing and I know they wouldn't cast her if they didn't believe she was suitable for the series. I'm sure it'll turn out fine. I just thought we'd get something different this time, a bloke, someone from the past, even the Doctor on his own for a bit. Instead of something different we get an old one - off. I didn't expect that.

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Writey Week 2 is going well. When they returned Rik's Records last year the BBC Writers Room asked me to send them my next script. I have finally started on a new project and it's only taken me ten months. They did tell me not to rush. It's much darker and less conventional than Riks, or at least that's the idea. I'll keep you posted on progress but at the moment I'd hope to be posting it by the end of September.