Writer.
So, no updates in a while. I moved! I’m settled in now. Back to writing.
Today I’m venturing into the scary awesome territory of Steam Punk; cogs and steam, goggles and clockwork guns, zepelins and gyrocopters. I’m writing about the Magnificent Floating Hospital, which gets hijacked.
In other news, I’m working out a ton, but am currently eating cheesies with chopsticks.
Today, I just wanted to say that I love the Oxford Comma.
I use it. I dont’ know why I wouldn’t.
In example:
And also, perhaps more usefully:
That is all.
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
Sooo… Not writing, waiting for it to stop raining so I can go get more boxes for packing…
And then there’s this…
So… cutting back on the coffee, methinks.
Distracted by moving. When no boxes pressent, go insane.
Safeway’s produce department is a gold mine. A gold mine that, instead of gold, yields boxes. Sturdy boxes, with lids, and handles.
And lo, it came to pass that many things around my apartment are being boxed up.
And for a time, it was good.
…Though I’ve already had an instance of “where is that book Sarah lent me” “oh god this stack of boxes could contain it”. Labeling is important; I’m on top of it, but you can only go so far with labels. Specific books and games are just in this flux state; they’re basically all quantum boxes, each one simultaneously holding everything that we’ve packed so far.
In other news, I’m sufficiently distracted by moving that writing has stalled out. I have a super good premis for a short story, but working on it has been like pulling teeth. I don’t think it’s possible to make tomorrow’s deadline. Though, it’s super strong, and if I work on it, I’m sure I can find a place for it to be published.
I watched Layer Cake with Aaron and a friend yesterday. It’s a British heist movie. My brain was screaming at the focus puller the entire movie. The music choice was weird, and whoever did their sound mix should be shot. Though, I did enjoy it, in no small part due to the cast. Colm Meaney (AKA Chief O’Brain from Star Trek), Danial Craig (AKA the latest James Bond), and Tom Hardy (from last year’s delightful Inception) made it all worthwhile. I watched it on Netflix, and was appalled that the only female character, who was completely gratuitous and in the film for all of five minutes as a sex object, is on the cover. I’m not too upset by it; just one of those extra things that makes me roll my eyes.
And seriously, Clive Prior, I don’t know if the focus was all your fault or what; you’ve done a lot of other work I like, so I’ll let it slide.
This time.
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
We signed our lease today!
We’re going to be in a nice 800 square foot one bedroom with hardwood floors.
It’s south-facing with a little balcony.
Echo and Simon can come too (as if we wouldn’t take them!).
Oh, and did I mention that it’s right across the street?
SOOOO GOOOOOD! We are still near three skytrain stations, all the cheap food on the Drive, and Aaron’s work!
Holy smokes, we’re so excited.
We’re going to have a ‘moving day’ where we just get as many fabulous and wonderful people as we can to help us run boxes from one place to the other. Early October. The first few days in October, we will just go and sit in the space and start mapping out where we think things should go. We have a few weeks for the transition, which we are really grateful for. Don’t know how people move in a day! :O
So, 1420 E 7th Ave, we will miss you. You were a good home, a social hub, an overnight stay to many. Scads of good memories were made here. We will always be grateful to Aaron’s family for letting us stay here while Aaron went to school and I paid off my student loans.
And we shall start making new memories in our new home. Hope you can join us.
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
I awoke this morning wondering if there were giraffes that were unusually taller than other giraffes.
Sure brain, this is an important thing to try and figure out as you’re waking up.
I kept a dream journal for a year solid. It took dedication; sometimes I wanted to relish waking up slowly, but I knew that doing so would cause the dreams of the night to waft into the ethers. I wrote down every dream. I have a book full of strangeness, which I bagan copying into a nice good copy, categorizing them (“Being Chased” and “Shopping” are the two most prevalent themes).
I think last night was my first dream about giraffes. That’s all.
Tonight, I embark upon my vacation; Aaron and I are going camping on wonderful Keats Island. Some friends are joining us. We muster in downtown Vancouver today, then head to Gibsons to get our gear in order. We’ll be catching a water taxi tomorrow morning to Plumpers Cove, a wonderful spot.
Games I’m hauling over there: our newly opened Harry Potter CCG, a deck of cards, Once Upon a Time (great storytelling game), possibly Race for the Galaxy, and Citadels. We’re all about games when we camp.
Also on the menu: a book about cracking the Northwest Passage, Sno Crash, my sketch book, and writing journal (going to return with a piece or two ready to type out and submit).
Yesterday I submitted two pieces to Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Flush Fiction: “Starship Engineers Make the Best of Friends” and “Zargnafs to Xebits”. Both were fun to write, and I think people would enjoy them whilst using the washroom. :}
So, I shall post again on Tuesday with news of Keats Island and Plumper Cove.
But for now, I shall go put all of my friend Ian’s belongings into a truck. Seems everyone is moving these days…
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
Today I mail off two flash fiction subs for Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader (Flush Fiction- hardy har har!).
I wrote two pieces for this, each under a thousand words. Both were good fun. One is a vignette from my space-western ‘verse, another is two alien kids documenting everything they found on a human female.
Snail mail subs only are silly; I suppose if someone prefers to only review material in a printed-on-paper format, they need to be sent a physical copy, but I think this is an unfortunate holdover from the age of print. I much prefer e-subs, for the ease of sending and communicating, and as the more ecologically friendly choice (not just printing on paper- also mailing stuff around the continent expands my carbon footprint, which I’m trying to keep to a minimum!).
We had a poker night last night. Nice night with nice friends. Made delicious pasta and Szechuan green beans (found a good recipe on youtube here: Show Me The Curry!).
Echo was her usual bitey, scratchy self.
On Thursday I had the great pleasure to attend a taping of the CBC Book Club for North by Northwest.
I’ve enjoyed listening to Sheryl MacKay host the Book Club for some time, and when my new friend Doris Ackerman on Saturna Island mentioned that her friend’s husband, the illustrious William Gibson, was going to be co-hosting a program, I decided to try and attend.
Then, a week after our trip to Saturna, Aaron shouted from the shower about something on the radio (we have a radio hooked to the lightswitch in the washroom, to provide CBC brand entreatment whenever the light is on). I went to CBC.ca/BC/BookClub and entered to win tickets. Days later, we were being escorted down into the thankfully air-conditioned CBC Studio One.
Admittedly, prior to her appearing on the Book Club, I was unfamiliar with Sarah Salway. I did some reading up on her before the taping, and was delighted to see that she writes both novels and short stories. I decided to ask her about her perspectives on writing them at the same time, and was delighted to hear both her and Mr. Gibson answer about their own writing process.
She was wonderful to hear, and I am going to get her book of short stories, Leading the Dance. She read some excerpts, and they were funny, charming, real, and well written. I enjoyed listening to her answer other questions from the audience as well.
I was on cloud nine for the whole night: real live authors, people who make money by writing! Listening to both Sarah Salway and William Gibson share their insights was a treat that will stay with me, and inspire me, as I continue this journey to become an author.
Tune into North by Northwest on CBC Radio One (690 AM in Vancouver, or right here online), Saturdays, September 3rd & 10th, between 8 and 9 am both days to hear this Book Club. You can hear her lovely readings, and me nervously asking my question!
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
Well folks, that time has finally come!
After seven great years in the apartment near Commercial and Broadway, we are moving house. We’re looking for a place for October 1st, but have until mid October to actually move.
We hope to find a place nearby; Aaron’s work is only two blocks away, afterall, and shopping here is so cheap! Also, our gym is seven blocks away! Makes going to it way easy.
So, apartment, we shall miss thee; you were a good place to live, home to many a good time and many a wonderful gathering. Lots of good memories here. We will make our new place just as awesome, if not AWESOMER (I know, almost impossible, right?)!
We will have a moving party some time near October 1st; maybe some of our fabulous friends could come and help us out? We’re going to have access to my Mom’s van (which my sisters and I call the Elijahwoodmobile, though our Mom claim’s its name is Beautiful Blue). My Mom is also generously giving us various furnitures and some dishes, which is great, because we actually don’t have everything we need; the apartment came almost fully furnished, and we intend to leave it as we found it.
It’s also a great opportunity to clean up and get rid of approximately 7 years worth of cruft that’s built up. We intend to get rid of things mercilessly, so our new place just has things we use and can’t part with in it.
It’s going to be a busy month. We’re beginning to look for places.
Wish us luck.
Also, briefly in literary news, Aaron and I are attending a taping of the CBC Book Club, hosted by the fantastic William Gibson. His guest is Sarah Salway, and I look forward to hearing about her writing life!
Also, in other, sadder news, I was very sorry to hear about Jack Layton passing away yesterday. He’ll be sorely missed.
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
A strange thing happens to me when I devote nearly the entirety of my brain to writing.
I cease to function normally.
Last week I didn’t know I worked on Friday… Came home in the evening to several phone calls about this. 😦
Then, this Thursday, I went to work. …I didn’t work that day. 😦
On the plus side, I saw both “The Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “Tree of Life”.
Apes was good, hard sci-fi. Some flaws for sure, but all in all, a good, tight film. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Tree of Life, on the other hand… I went in prepared to see a slow, methodical, sloooow film, and even with that preparation I was still bored to tears. I will say that it was good, just not something for most people.
Also, any time a filmmaker thinks that, to tell their story effectively, they must start from the beginning of time, there’s a problem. Don’t get me wrong; Parasaurolophus is my very favourite dinosaur, but that was just completely unneeded. Also, that theropod that was going to eat the baby Parasaurolophus, but didn’t, was completely unbelievable. Wouldn’t have happened. Was this another metaphor? Another symbol?
Anyway, Tree of Life… gets a pass because it was beautiful, and there are not enough slow films in wide release these days. But I don’t think I’d recommend it.
Onwards! Writing life: this weekend I have a final pass over “Trook Hunters” to format it, in preparation for sending it to a publisher… at their request. I am pretty stoked about that. This came about after a rejection of the two “Tinker” short stories. But they liked my style and asked if I had any longer work.
Escape Publishing Collective is new; they go live in the fall. Maybe I’m getting in on the ground floor of something awesome here, eh? I hope so.
But for now, I send off Trook Hunters, with the hopes that it can find a home, and start building a fan base for the fantasy world of the Spell Carriers.
Thanks for reading.
Heidi out.
H.G. Bells 
