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  • Aditus

    These are no Christmas Prompts

    By Aditus

    Sorry to disappoint Steve; we need the man with the fur-trimmed red hat next week to deliver our prezzies. What you guys do with the prompts is out of my hands, though. If you slip in something gift-wrapped, a sleigh, or a long white beard, that’s your decision. # 257 First line: There’s something down there.   #258 List of words: Use at least ten variations, synonyms, or compound words of loose and lose.   Please include the prompt number either in
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blog post

A Holding Space but in A Different Place

I first came across Wicked when I read the novel, in the early 2000s. I enjoyed the book’s story and themes, questioning whether are people born evil, made evil or just painted as evil. Isn’t it so easy just to have a villain? We saw the original London West End production of the musical, back in 2006. And last month we saw the first film, in the two film version of it. I enjoyed the film as much as the book and musical, though they are all different, and found myself swept along with the story,
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in blog post

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blog post

Good Mental Health Day, Just Not Today

In October, the British government announced plans to help people with mental health problems to get back into work. This would see “employment advisers” visiting people in hospital, who have been admitted with mental health problems, and giving them CV and interview advice. It was piloted at hospitals in Leicester and at the Maudsley Hospital in Camberwell, London, with “dramatic results”, though the results haven’t been published yet. This isn’t a hundred percent altruistic, it is al
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in blog post

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Review

'The Mars house' by Natasha Pulley

The Mars house by Natasha Pulley. My rating: 5 (out of 5) stars Like other recent novels, this is both a great story and a shrewd commentary on current times. Western exceptionalism turned on its head, refugees, language barriers, how to start a new life, gender issues, and politics are all woven into this engaging, engrossing sci-fi/fantasy/romance. Life on Mars is difficult. Those who have adapted over generations can cope with the cold, the long, long winters, and the reduced g
northie

northie in Review

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Esaay

Another Man Called Drew

He was the first Englishman I met who was also called Drew. I had met several men called Drew when I visited America, but he was the first other English Drew I met. Growing up, I hated my first name, and the very common abbreviation of it, which people frequently called me by. I felt trapped by my first name and dreamed of when I could be old enough to change it, though I had no idea what to, my choice of name would change almost month from month. Then, in my middle teens, I read an America
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in Esaay

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Review

'Project Hail Mary' by Andy Weir

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir My rating: 5 (out of 5) stars What an amazing novel! Hard science, suspense, so many emotions, shocks and surprises, and a most human of tales. Andy Weir does a fantastic job of marrying (astro)physics, gentle humour, and a very real, fallible hero into a story that caught hold of me right from the off and only increased its grip as the tension and emotions racked up. A man wakes up in what he deduces to be a spaceship. He doesn't know who he is, whe
northie

northie in Review

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blog post

With Pride: The Unwelcome Bigots at the Parade

"Everyone's happy, everyone's just joyous to be here," Pumper, club member of Sapphic Riders, at this year’s London Pride March. The sun was bright and hot, the crash barriers were all in place and the pavements were filled with spectators, as the 2024 London Pride march slowly but brightly moved through the capital. Yet, at the beginning of the march, was a small but noisy group of bigots trying to shout down the parade. Eight Christian protesters, stood at the beginning of this year’
blog post

The Tactics of Voting

On social media, I have made no secret of the fact that I dislike this Conservation government, they are the worst government in my memory, and I lived through Margaret Thatcher. I want a change, I want a Labour government, and I am not alone in this. The polls show that Labour is well ahead of the Tories and are on track to be elected as our next government. But can we be sure of this? We elect our governments under the First Past The Post system and this does not mean that a political par
blog post

Genuine Proof of Person

My government doesn’t trust me at my word. Before 2023, all I had to do to vote was take my polling card to the polling station, have one of the election officials check my name off against their list of registered voters and then I would vote. Now I have to show photo ID to vote, but not any photo ID, only one of the nineteen legally approved photo IDs. Why the change in the law? There’s been no voter fraud scandal. There has been no large-scale electoral fraud in Britain, and since 2
blog post

My Vote Doesn’t Count

In this coming General Election, there is no point in me casting my vote because it will not change anything. I don’t mean that all politicians are the same, and all those simplistic arguments against voting. I mean that because I live in a safe Labour constituency, it doesn’t matter which party I vote for, my constituency will return a Labour MP (Member of Parliament). In the 2019 election, my local MP kept her seat with a 32,000 majority. She received 70.1% of the constituency votes. The
Book review

Book Review: Sleep No More (Six Murderous Tales) by P.D. James

This was the second collection of short stories published posthumously after PD James’s death. Not known for her short story, this collection gives a very different view of James’s writing. She’s known for her very well written novels, where the handsome and cultured Commander Dalgliesh steps in and meticulously takes apart a vicious crime. Instead, these stories present murder where the guilty aren’t punished, and some are even rewarded. In several of these short stories the central charac
Blog Post I

A Matter of Professional Opinions....

As I start this, I've got a slight caffeine withdrawal headache.  Normally, I drink about a liter of Dr Pepper a day to keep my cluster headaches in check; however, I wasn't in the mood for anything sugary yesterday, so I'm paying the price for it.  I did have an energy drink with my pills, and I'm about to have some kefir (drinkable, probiotic yogurt), so we'll see how that plays out. May fucking sucked.  There were more downs than ups, and if I were still inclined to delete myself from ce
My Story

The Church Door Closed in My Face

Winter 1985 So much of my life, until then, had revolved around Evangelical Christianity and suddenly it was all gone, leaving an empty void of time and friendships. All of my social life had gone, over ninety percent of the people who called me friend had disowned me, I was on my own and I was nineteen years old. What was I to do? I wasn’t thrown out of that church’s congregation, no one spoke the words and told me to leave, but they expressly made it clear I wasn’t welcome because I
My Story

To Be a Friend

Summer 1985 “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Lynne said and wrapped her arms around me in a hug. We were sat together in my parents’ kitchen, while my parents were in the living room, watching television. Lynne and I were members of the Young People’s Fellowship (YPF), which was the young people’s group at our Evangelical Anglian church. We were also friends. I really admired her singing voice, which was one of those voice’s that could claim the attention of a whole room with its purit
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in My Story

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Book review

Book Review: Injury Time by Beryl Bainbridge

It’s 1970s North London. Middle class and conservative accountant Edward is married to Helen, but he is also having an affair with Binny. But single mother Binny is tired of being the other woman and wants a social life with Edward, a part of one anyway, more than just occasional meals in restaurants were Edward is sure no one will recognise him. To this end Binny wants to host a dinner party for Edward and his friends George and Muriel Simpson. The two couples duly sit down for their dinner par
Review

'The Murderbot Diaries' by Martha Wells

Martha Wells The Murderbot Diaries My rating for the series: 4.5 (out of 5 stars); individual stories vary from 3 to 5 stars I went through a phase of reading sci-fi in my teens but very little since. When one of my Goodread's acquaintances posted a rave review of the latest instalment of The Murderbot Diaries, I read the review, shrugged, and passed on. Then someone else did the same. This time, I both read the review and wandered off to see what all the fuss was about.  Martha W
northie

northie in Review

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Book review

Book Review: The Use of Reason by Colm Tóibín

A small time Dublin thief (we’re never told his name) suddenly finds himself out of his depth. Used to stealing cash and jewels, which he can easily fence and sell on, he now finds that the paintings he stole, from a country house, are a Rembrandt, a Gainborough and two Guardis. How does he sell them, for a good profit, without alerting the police? And the police are becoming more and more interested in him because his alcoholic mother has been loose-lipped around her new friend. This story
writing tips

Tell, don't recount

Most of you will probably be familiar with the rule/advice "show, don't tell". (Actually, this advice is a little flawed in itself, as outlined in "Bad Character Intros vs Good Character Intros (Writing Advice)" by the YouTube channel "Writer Brandon McNulty", but that would be a whole over topic for another day ). What we are focussing on today, will be the telling aspect. Because, even though, there can be good "tell", when "show" wouldn't work, and then, there's bad "tell", which I
Zuri

Zuri in writing tips

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Book review

Book Review: The People V. O.J. Simpson by Jeffrey Toobin

At the time it was called “The Trial of the Century,” though many people have forgotten it now, and others question that title.  There have been higher-profile trials since then, but Simpson’s trial did deliver shocks and forced questions about the American justice system. On 12 June 1994, Nicole Brown Simpson, Simpson’s ex-wife, and her friend, Ron Goldman, were brutally stabbed to death on the doorstep of her home. A mountain of evidence pointed to Simpson as their killer but, over
John Henry's Blogs

Beyond Thicker Than Water....

I know I started this blog as a means to give greater context into Thicker Than Water and my writing process, which hasn't been well received (oh well), so I thought I'd turn this more into a discussion forum instead.  The first thing I'd like to discuss is to quote a Chicago song, "Where do we go from here?" I'm not yet done with Thicker Than Water, as I know how the story will end but not quite there yet.  I will be continuing the adventures of the characters in the story over on Nifty in
My Story

When Denial Was My Only Option

(This is part of a continuing series about how I tried to come out as gay in an Evangelical Christian environment. If you haven’t read my other essays in this series, please find them here, they will put this essay into context)   Spring 1985 “I don’t believe you’re homosexual,” he said. “I believe you’re bisexual, mostly heterosexual, and this is a phase you are going through.” I just nodded my agreement, what else could I do? We were sat together in the tiny study of h
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in My Story

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Book review

Book Review: Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood

It is 1930s Berlin and “Christopher Isherwood” is enjoying the notorious nightlife and culture of the city. Isherwood is an upper-class Englishman, surviving by teaching English to different citizens of the city, as he explores a life very different to his previous one, that opens him up to a diverse cast of characters. This book has become a modern classic, the basis of the musical and film Cabaret, but don’t expect a novelization of Cabaret here. The musical was inspired by this novel but
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in Book review

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Esaay

I Forgot My Mother’s Birthday

Last month I forgot my mother’s birthday. I was writing on my computer, glanced down at the bottom right corner of the screen, and saw the date. It was my mother’s birthday, or it would have been. My mother died twenty-three years ago. At first, after her death, I used the date of her birthday as a time to remember her. Using the date of her death for this was too much, too morbid and too negative. Her birthday was in January, in the cold winter after Christmas, and was always celebrat
Drew Payne

Drew Payne in Esaay

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Life and Writing

Look, it's a blog post. Crazy.

Writing: New rule: don’t start posting a new book in the fall right before the busiest season for retail. Just don’t. There will be tears. Mine, specifically.  New rule #2: Listen to your heart when it tells you that a story you’ve written is best read in a single go. Or, at least, that it should be available in its entirety from day one for those to wish to absorb it that way.  Keeper of the Rituals was never meant to be posted a chapter at a time. I think I mentioned that at the
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