Current Desktop Image

http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12479583/ Fri, 06 Apr 2007 17:16:57 PDT

Recent News

I like this new Journal… I’m not a CSS whore, like, but it is pretty and slightly… Hmmm… alternative?

Prose + Flexible Hours = PROSE!

Michael would fall asleep at unusual hours; often waking to find many words had appeared over his two glaring monitors. These words would occasionally produce a sentence, which made a thought, and sometimes they made stories. These were strange events that Michael disregarded as the fluffs to make his actual writing of something appear strange. But unbeknownst to Michael, he had stepped out of normal reality, and entered into the mysterious, but all too tangible…

…Proselit_e Zone!

Alternative Enlightnment

I'm working on a new story, currently around 5,000 words in; it follows the other side of Multiple Personality Disorder; Sometimes, Make-believe friends imagine Real Boys and Girls...

We follow Ashley Goddard, a Forensic Scientist and Criminal Psychologist. She is called in to evaluate a man who has committed inhuman murders. This is something she is trained to do; something she is good at. His streak is known to have spanned the entire country, leaving broken lives and imaginative crime scenes for investigators. It would be foolish, should we not say Ashley is excited...

But when he is finally apprehended, by chance, at the scene of the murder, police are shocked to find him wounded. They are puzzled at the apparent self harm this methodical killer had achieved. But they’re confusion is small compared to Ashley’s. Whilst delving deep into his mind, events beyond her control transpire. As her mental discipline wanes, she learns there is a dark secret that sets this man apart from typical cases. She learns that you don’t have to be the sane one to hide behind a façade…

Seven Days Project

I'm very interested in improving my prose. As a result I’ve joined =GunShyMartyr’s new project, located here.

The idea is that you’re put into a sort of ‘support group’, and send notes detailing how much you’ve written during the week, how much you had planned to write that week and what, if anything, stopped you writing.

Then, you also talk (to your not so AA support group) about what goals you’ll be setting for the next week, what exactly you plan to write the next week and where you anticipate on losing writing time from. All in all, it’s very motivational and quite sincere and there are a lot of discussions and general support and care between the groups.

I might try this with my AA meetings.

Since I’m working from Sunday onwards, I’ll show what I plan for next week. I’ll keep this updated each week and see how it all goes.

My Goal

I’m hoping to produce a first, solid draft of That Inner Voice, and finish with my third edit of Spirit Journey. The editing will be ‘as it comes’ really, but for the actual writing, I think about another 5k words is in order.

Losing Writing Time To...

I think mostly I’ll lose some time on Monday, since I’m working late and I have to bath the dogs early in the day. I’ll have a pop at getting up around 7ish, see if I can squeeze in some hours, but the reality is RadioOne just doesn’t wake me up…

<... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12445959/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12445959/ Tue, 03 Apr 2007 15:15:49 PDT Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists Seen Through A Window Series

1) I’m finding it difficult to write; my mind just can’t concentrate enough to even produce a low grade draft, let alone quality editing and proof reading. But then again, I’m no fool. A wise character once said “Writing is 10% talent, 90% hard work.” I know this, but the many distractions are putting me off my writing and work.

Despite this, I am determined to continue forward. Since writing at a whim isn’t enough anymore, I will start by forcing myself to sit down and hit these strange blocks with letters on for x amount of time. If something comes of it, then that’s good. If nothing does, at least I’ve stuck at the time slot and my mind will start to learn the little distractions are no longer dominant. This all starts tomorrow, which is my day off. I’m going to have to work schedules out a few days before my free days, since my schedule at work is done in shifts. I guess I’ll write in shifts.

2) In case you haven’t noticed, the Seen Through A Window series is back; I suggest you start here and end there. But don’t forget to stop over here, since it is my favourite. You could drop by here, or here, perhaps there as well. But don’t forget this one; it might feel left out otherwise.

Some of you who read these before I committed mass genocide on my gallery will notice there are only seven returning. That’s because I either haven’t edited the others yet, or simply hate them so much I’m going to write completely new ones. Also, the reason they are in my Scraps is because I’ve decided to use my Scraps for exercises I’ve picked up on over the years. They will be more of a gradual development than serious gallery.

3) I have plans to rejuvenate *The-United-Font. I think a book club on such an artistic site like dA is a good idea. To do so I need some people who are willing to help me out.

Frank says that this isn’t compulsory, but if you do accept responsibilities, you should carry them through. If not he says he’ll drop you in a heart beat. I shall be speaking to my accomplice in crime, ~LadyHathaway and her sweetheart as to ideas on how to kick start this. I’m hoping that people will see changes there soon.

4) I want a nifty CSS Journal. But to do that, I need a nifty dA Subscription. Stupid bank are hassling me about crap with this MasterCard. Yes, I have a job… Yes, it is full time and pretty secure… No, I don’t earn £400,000 a year…

PayPal is just too confusing to use. They sent me four pence once and I had no idea. Apparently they withdraw it at some point. Naturally, this sent me into a 2p overdraft which incurred a £28 charge; hence the phobia of using PayPal.

If I could use PayPal, I’d already own a signed copy of `alienhead’s book, A Life Transparent. Speaking of which, I highly suggest you give this read a good seeing too. Not only is it by an admirable writer, with some high talent (and an intimidating amount of hard work), it’s also for a good cause. Want to know what this cause is? Go explorer.

clepsydra • \KLEP-suh-druh\ • noun
: water clock.

This task is simple; of all the people you know and interact with each day, find out how many of them know what a Clepsydra is. Then, see if they can think of a word they know, but you don’t. The... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12249134/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12249134/ Thu, 22 Mar 2007 15:05:08 PDT Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists

Edit:

A conversation I've just had, that made me stich.

Woman: I wouldn't want to be a man, you just can't come enough times in a day.
Man: I've managed fourteen
Woman: I can do that in an hour.

1) It has been a long weekend. On Friday, I was off and started clearing out my room; I filled four bags of rubbish with junk I didn’t need (these being the big bags from work, big black bags). I decided I didn’t want to go out on Friday night, or if I did I can’t remember. Most likely I didn’t…

Saturday was… entertaining to say the least. I started the day by walking my two dogs, Shep and Lucky around Medlock Valley, following the river. I did this with Steph who lives with me. A female with great distracting qualities and I don’t mean tits. She has this ability to be annoying and cute at the same time. It’s rather entertaining. We entered the Valley through the fields’ way, where Lucky decided it was a good idea to go swimming in dirty water. Shep is too much of a cat to go in water, so we threw him into it instead.

We came to part where the river cuts across the path we wanted to take. Having no wellies, Steph went across the bridge and the dogs seemed to follow her. I’m just proud I conquered the river without getting too wet, although I did soak myself to just below me knees. But dam it, I conquered that river! We walked a little further and met some horses with people on their backs; Shep wasn’t too much of a cat to scare the hell out of one of the horses, almost throwing the person off his back. I think the horse thanked Shep for the attempt though. We turned around after two hours of trekking this walkway, and found a nice little make-out spot just beyond the river…

That night was St. Patrick’s; which is an excuse to celebrate a holiday which isn’t even British, by consuming lots and lots of Irish drinks… Carling is Irish, right? Apparently that was the night Frank popped out for a visit; we were doing rounds each, and when someone said “Your round,” I replied with “You’re ginger, I don’t belittle your defects,” and carried on regardless. Thankfully, the guy was pleasant enough (and good enough of a friend) to laugh that one off for what it was; me being daft

Saturday was so cool. I went up into town and met the Irish Las, who was staying at ~LadyHathaway’s house. It was oodles of fun, but I couldn’t stay long. For Mothers Day me and Steph took my Mum and Nan out (My Mum has adopted Steph as her daughter since her Mother died and she moved in with us). Well, it was interesting that my Nan, 79, thought it a good idea to try and chat up a waiter. She wanted to dance in this Italian restaurant but my Mum wouldn’t let her. Being blehhy to that, I got up and dance with her anyway! Steph made some remark about wanting a balloon, so I asked if we could grab a bunch. Now, when I say a bunch, I mean two or three… not 16! We kept three (one for each of the fine ladies) and gave the rest away to kids at nearby tables. The evening finished with my Nan, of all people, putting the desert spoons in her purse and walking out with them! The waiter said she could have at least done it when he wasn’t watching, and she replied with “At least I’m honest,” which he laughed off and let her go with them! I swear, people encourage her!

Today was dull, just finishing off my room; I’ve got my bed around near my computer stand so I can use the extra monitor to watch stuff online with ease from my bed. It’s got more room and when I get the shelves, I intend on using the built in recess as a sketching area. Look forwards to that now XD.

2) Apart from doing yet another revision of Spirit Journey, my writing hasn’t really been active lately. I’m trying to get into a routine of writing at specific times but its getting dam hard. Work is putting me on weirder hours and finding time is not only a drag, it’s a joke.

It’s also another point I’ve been thinking about lately. I do really want to try my hand at sending out queries to publishers and magazines. Short stories and poetry mainly, but I could try my dab hand at some articles. The only problem is, I’m not 100% sure about the copyright law of sending out Lit and posting it on dA. I need to k... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12158484/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/12158484/ Mon, 12 Mar 2007 15:37:20 PDT Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists


1) Hello!

2) I’ve just finished lots and lots of editing on Spirit Journey, as well as Inner Voice; both of which will be in my upcoming project which is still Untitled. I’m not going to tell you much about this project, except some of the storied besides the two above which are under construction. The titles may spark a thought or two.
• Veil of Perception
• Beyond Death
• Deadline Predictions
• Mistrustful Aftermath.

There are a few other titles in progress, but since I don’t think they sum up the work they are supposed to represent, there isn’t any point in teasing you. I am hoping for some decent cover art for this as I want it to be printed (even if it is for me). Vanity publishing or not, I will be putting effort into this and I want something to show for it.

3) I’ve been thinking of getting into Publishing; maybe looking for work with a Publishers House or something along those lines. As a child, I would always try to read the book from cover to cover, including the publishers information, even copyright and editorial pages. Writing has always interested me, but finding out how a single idea or spark of the imagination can get from the authors head to a bounded best seller on our shelves is defiantly intriguing.

4) Today’s word is;

boondoggle • \BOON-dah-gul\ • noun
1 : a braided cord worn by Boy Scouts as a neckerchief slide, hatband, or ornament
2 : a wasteful or impractical project or activity often involving graft

Go write an 8-lined verse with it in and lets see’em.

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11965656/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11965656/ Sun, 25 Feb 2007 18:41:03 PST Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists


1) Ok, so yes; I’ve been very lazy and irregular with my writing lately; it seems it’s just not being done at an acceptable pace. I’m not sure whether it’s because I’m tired from my new job, or I generally cannot be fussed about sitting down and writing. I hope it goes, I’ve sort of been banking ideas for when I decide to sit down and shuffle through an entire session without getting bored/distracted/torn away by precarious females that reside with me.

The new story is the centre of this struggle; it’s in two stages of being written. Those stages being on and off…

2) Filak (or as ~LadyHathaway likes to call him ‘My Heterosexual Life Partner’), has started his job at some new warehouse place. With our combined incomes and that of our third female friend, Steph-Who-Wants-To-Be-A-Cat, we hope to secure a domicile and become somewhat of an independent group… Hmmm.


Teaser for ‘Inner Voice’
Desires; those are the underlining drives that push mankind into dark recesses. A simple desire can make a sane man delusional, a loyal partner unfaithful and allow someone to discover that ‘scary’ trait. Why is it that some people claim base desires to belong to another personality within them? More so, what would happen when that personality becomes dominant, turning a simple desire into a macabre compulsion?

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11802737/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11802737/ Tue, 13 Feb 2007 17:44:47 PST Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists


‘Do you take this woman,
to be your wife;
To fuss and fight,
for the rest of your life,’

Wedding Boogie by Little Ester.

1) V-Day… I wish all you couples the best of luck on a day that stresses something you really should be doing all the time. I don’t get V-Day blues, it’s just with having 2 ‘all alone’ V-Days twice in a row, the last one I had with someone was horrid, it can add when you’re having a ‘don’t wanna be alone’ spell.

On the 14th of March, 2003, I bought flowers into college for my Girlfriend; why? Because I wanted too. V-Day should be a 364 day event. The extra day should be S-Day.

2) Finished the first draft of ‘Inside Voices’, the new story of mine. Then, naturally, I acidently shut down the laptop and lost a good few thousand words. Moral of the story? Don’t type up in the pub when you don’t have a spare battery. I’m attempting to recreate what I’ve written, generally speaking. The editing process will help with it.

Also, the secret project is underway. ~moyan has offered me a place in her ProjR, should the work be adequate. She wants me to write a short (assuming) piece based on this Deviation; Moyan’s The Hunters.. I’m hoping my contribution will be finished before Friday. I’ll use my three day weekend to edit the piece a little more.

3) Trust me… I was about to finish this Journal entry when I remembered a story seed I had a while back; I’m searching through the ancient and dusty coffers of my computer and I find it. It’s about my fictional Criminal Profiler, Alison Goodheart, as she enters a cat and mouse game with a Gentleman Killer. He sends her flowers, of a specific type and colour, and she must use them to find the victim, or have a deep hole on her conscious… When I checked the date it was written, I saw 14th February, 2006.

One last thing; remember that flowers wrinkle and die, and chocolates go off. It’s the love in your heart and what you do with it that lasts throughout the times.

Edit

Just need somewhere to put this. I normally make it into a graphics file and stick it on my desktop, but let’s face it; I have better pictures on there XD.

Weekend ‘To Do List’
A: Write ‘The Hunters’ for ~moyan’s ProjR;
B: Finish Assignments for CW course;
C: Finish DM-Fall_Factor for UT99 server;
D: Add more to ‘secret project’;
E: Music Jam Session with Filak on Guitar;
F: Clean room…

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11725737/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11725737/ Wed, 07 Feb 2007 17:22:34 PST Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists


1) Had my Birthday on the 5th, hence the reason I’ve been slow. It’s quite hard to do writing when you can’t even walk in a straight line. I am of 20 years old now. The party was attended by various close friends, including the wonderful ~LadyHathaway and the magnificent ~EternitysEnd. It seems my 20th, at a pub where everyone wants to buy me a pint, is not a good way to break into drinking again… before that, I hadn’t drunk for almost three years.

Lots of funnies; one included a guy randomly balancing a chair on another chair, so it was propped on its back legs. Naturally, I thought it was the funniest thing in the world and couldn’t stop laughing. Another was me telling a joke, and in the last hand gesture of the last word of the last line, I knocked over a pint and split it all over ~LadyHathaway… sowwie

The photography couple should have some pictures of it, but I’m not happy. Don’t like pictures of me when my hair is up, makes me look like a hooligan.

2) My writing is doing alright. I’m extensively editing all my long prose pieces, as well as trying to write two more. One is for my own ends; a story that highlights the alternative personality of an insane person isn’t always the psychotic one. The second is in a hope to make ~moyan’s ProjR. The idea is she produces a piece of artwork and asks a writer to think something up for it. I’ll keep you all informed of what happens and when.
3) I’m working on another page, like my dedication to the friends on. This one will point out all the pieces in my favourites gallery and why I’ve chosen then. I’ll be giving my technical thoughts as well as the ascetical as to why and how the piece is so good. Keep an eye open.

PS: ~LadyHathaway bought me a book on the techniques for writing comedy. It’s a handy little book which I’m reading at the moment. Stand-up is a sort of ambition of mine, sort of just below Astronaut and Pro Video Gamer. If it works out, I may be posting a few things that are different from my usual Prose/Poetry ensemble.

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11604003/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11604003/ Sun, 28 Jan 2007 19:29:34 PST 1) My updating of the gallery is taking a little longer than I expected. This is due to me acquiring a copy of MSWord, and having to replace all the old writings/files from OpenOffice to MSWord. It’s a short delay, but I’m updating as I go, so it should be a steady influx.

Poetry is going up first; simply because it’s easier to edit that long pieces of prose. As *Garnet-43 suggested, my poetry is alright as it was. I’ve only done small punctuation changes here and there. Prose will be much harder, as I’m doing a complete revision of all my major pieces.

I figured out that I’ll be using my scraps for my writing exercises; thinks like the Seen Through A Window and Chef’s Special projects, as well as any Assignments I finish for my Creative Writing Class. It will just help to keep everything tidy and in one place.

2) I’ve started to plot a solid storyline for Exodus so that I can start writing it. I’ll be doing it in Weekend stages, through lunch breaks and whatever time I can get in the evening. So far I’ve got a good foundation and am planning all the rigorous needs of a novel. I should start writing the actual piece in a week or two.

3) It’s been really uneventful since my last update; I’m actually getting bored. To past the time I’ve started playing my old classic, Rome: Total War. It’s a strategy game where you play as an ancient Faction in Roman times, having to build an empire and keep the hordes away from the gates.

This time I’m playing as Egypt, instead of my normal choice of the Juli Family of Romans. I’ve found them to be extremely good at defending walled cities in the early game, because they get good archers cheap and earlier than most other nations. As a result, when I get sieges onto my city, I can fend them off with some well placed, mass firing of arrows.

Their chariots are also very useful, and help in breaking enemy formations. If you can time it right, you can route an enemy that’s outnumbering 4-1. Charge the chariots into the enemy line, disrupting their organization; you should have a good, solid collection of Spearmen, phalanxes just behind your chariots. Send your chariots through the enemy lines, at the same time marching the phalanxes forward. This will create a sandwich situation, where the enemy are disorganized, low moral and caught between scythed wheels and long, ten foot spears!

Ave Rome!

I'll share some lyrics with you; this is Tom Waits, Emotional Weather Report. I'm in love with this song at the moment.

late night and early morning low clouds
with a chance of fog
chance of showers into the afternoon
with variable high cloudiness
and gusty winds, gusty winds
at times around the corner of
Sunset and Alvorado
things are tough all over
when the thunder storms start
increasing over the southeast
and south central portions
of my apartment, I get upset
and a line of thunderstorms was
developing in the early morning
ahead of a slow moving coldfront
cold blooded
with tornado watches issued shortly
before noon Sunday, for the areas
including, the western region
of my mental health
and the northern portions of my
ability to deal rationally with my
disconcerted precarious emotional
situation, it's cold out there
colder than a ticket taker's smile
at the Ivar Theatre, on a Saturday night
flash flood watches covered the
southern portion of my disposition
there was no severe weather well
into the afternoon, except for a lone gust of
wind in the bedroom
in a high pressure zone, covering the eastern
portion of a small suburban community
with a 103 and millibar high pressure zone
and a weak pressure ridge extending from
my eyes down to my cheeks cause since
you left me baby
and put the vice grips on my mental health
well the extended outlook for an
indefinite period of time until you
come back to me baby is high tonight
low tomorrow, and precipitation is
expected

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11542394/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11542394/ Tue, 23 Jan 2007 14:18:11 PST dA's journal feature as a blog... and I doubt I'll start now. It's awkward to try and describe what I mean when I say it's not a blog, but a journal. It's more a homepage for people to get to know you, with this space being for the people who do know you and are interested in keeping with the pace. But this is a random thought... that aside I have intent here.

1) I'm neurotically quixotic, but I plan on breaking this trend (Ok, that is now my quote...). My point is, I need to follow through with plans more often and actually see fruit from the seeds I lay. It's all fine and dandy sat around with friends, saying “wouldn't it be cool if X or Y happened?” I want to do something, I want to actually get X & Y to happen. This will be done in the following ways;

A: I will be rethinking *The-United-Font and redeveloping it's purpose and running. It has been very quiet lately, which is a bad thing. I will be speaking to people and finding out exactly what is happening with this idea. I'm determined to make it a pleasant community for something I haven't seen on dA before. To work I need people who are dedicated to the community. I don't mean they spend every second of every day there, but I do expect people to do things when they say they will. I'm guilty of my own accusation, but like I said, it will change.

B: I'm always saying I'll write more. Well, that's actually happening since my CW class. Not just with the stuff he's giving us to do but my own projects as well. Short and long stories, quality poetry and possible articles on subjects important to me. I said a while back that I'll be rethinking my gallery, but I might as well of been saying I'll steal the cap stone of the Pyramids. Now I am going to be working my gallery out better. This means taking all of it out, and making sure it's quality before it goes in. That means my gallery will be empty for a while... unless I decide to do them in parts. Stuff isn't going in the scraps, since I don't generally like the idea of scraps. I'm not sure what goes in there at all, to be honest...

C: I said I wanted to travel, and in a way that's going ahead as well. Me and some friends are planning a trip to Amsterdam (for the architecture...) which is awesome. As a country I heard it's really mellow. Lots of floating in canals, good agriculture and fine window shopping. What more could you ask from a country so close to 'The Nanny Nation'. I feel like Europe is a school, all the other countries are beating on England because we walk in the playground with our Mum's lipstick on.

But I don't want to just go to Amsterdam... I want to see other things as well. Will anyone take me?

D: I have one final idea, which is the epiphany of a great idea in the quixotic's hands... it's so neat and cool I've spoken (in the pub over pints, of course) to a friend in Film Studies about it. He doesn't know dA but he loves the idea. I do as well. I'm not saying anything else, so ha!

I would like to ask people, if they don't see me making changes, to beat me senseless with notes forcing me onwards.

2) I want to branch out more; right now the audience (you lovely people) are all great friends and readers. I don't want to sound ungrateful, but you're a small minority (I stress, I wouldn't be this far without you guys). If my dreams of becoming a successful novelist are to be made tangible, I need more people to read my writings (when it eventually becomes good, anyway...) which means expanding my base or branching out more.

I'm looking up on self publishing at the moment. Googling the sites Writers World, Lulu and others. I want to try my dab hand at it, but I'm still walking with one leg and no big toes. I was just wondering though, if I did manage to produce my own book (be it a novel, collection of shorts or even a book of poetry), who would consider buying it?

3) Heckle ~Sekai-kitai ... again. I happened to mention that I used to sketch a lil' and she convinced me to scan a drawing I've done onto the computer... naturally I use vectors and what not to neaten it up... but wait, what's this gradient fill? Texture colours, you say?

Surffice to say, I'm trying my hand at sketching/digital art again. It was never good in the first place, but as usual I'll let you all judge that. I said I'd never put photo's or drawings on my account... looks like I may have to break that plan.

Take care all, and have a happy... whatever day your on!

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11510590/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11510590/ Sat, 20 Jan 2007 20:51:47 PST Weavers of Art: Tribute to dA Arists


1) I started my Creative Writing Course last Monday, going back this Monday for another fix. I've completed my assignment of writing a piece about an Old man, White horse and a pair of Iron Gates... actually, I've completed two piece. One is more subtle and reminiscent, more sincere if you will. It also plays with what he wanted us to do, adding a rather interesting twist to what he wanted us to use. The second is, naturally, daft and full of puns with no build-up. I may even only get to read an extract from it since I may develop it into one of my 'Comic Religion' pieces. Who'd have thought a White Horse called Harold could talk...

The third assignment is proving to be a tough'en indeedy. Turns out Dostoyevsky has some rather big and intimidating books... I have The Brothers Karamazow and to say it's my first piece of Russian Lit. I'm not doing too bad... I made it past the acknowledgements...

2) I have officially started writing Exodus. It was a novel idea at first (no pun intended ) but now it's spiralling out of control and I would very much like to thank ~Sekai-kitai for allowing me to rant the intricacy's of the plot. I'm following a very decent guide to planning a novel, called the Eight Point Arc. I'm being methodical because I'm fond of this idea and don't want to bugger it up worse than a snitch in jail. I shall keep everyone updated, if you want to know, on it's progress.

3) A friend and I have been looking at places to rent around where I live. Flats, houses and anything else we can call our own. We want to move out and finally fly the nest, so to speak. I honestly refuse to end up like my brother, who failed to leave my parents house until he was 26! If I could have, I would have been out by 18.

Even though McDonald's is a means to an end, my determination to do well and advance in their mighty ranks will no doubt help with the house. This really is made easier by having great, friendly people to work with and having the smaller details explained and taught to me patently and carefully. A means to an end, aye, but that doesn't mean it can't be fun.

4) I think a quote is in order, and this guy seemed rather befitting of the circumstances.

“Neither man or nation can exist without a sublime idea.”
Fyodor Dostoevsky.

How fancy is it that a novelist would speak such words, but he is right. That which was once said in Dogma, “People die for beliefs because you can't change a belief without being wrong. The man was trying to preach an idea. People can change ideas...” An idea can lead to a good piece of literature, which in turn becomes a mirror; not only for ourselves to look and search in, but also for us to view the world and environment around us. An idea can lead to a great many things, some of which are Mankind and our endeavours...

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11464235/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11464235/ Tue, 16 Jan 2007 18:26:48 PST dA; I don't think anyone has lived until they've done a blog from their bed. It's awesome having a laptop.

So, what's new?

Well, I started that Creative Writing Course and it rocks hot socks. Mondays, 6-8.30pm is the time, creating works of flowing text is the job. That isn't even the weird part... I already have homework! How amazing is that? It feels weird and wonderful at the same time, going from two years lounger to full time employee of a Global Super Power and getting homework! The assignment is to write a story or piece of writing following any plot and style, as long as it includes an Old Man, White Horse and a Pair of Iron Gates. I recommend anyone to try this and should there be an underlining message, a deep lesson to be learnt, I'll share it when I find out

The other part of the assignment is to find an example of an opening line in any type of lit. that we think grabs the readers attention and makes them read on; after finding that we have to also write an opening liner...
“I'll rag her silly,
on a springy mattress...”

The <3 front is still quiet and non-existent; I don't want to force any type o potential partner, and I'm not getting angst. It's just sometimes I wake up having found out I've squeezed my pillow all night, or wishing I had someone to hug and hold with love when I was really down, and I wouldn't have to explain why, they'd just know. I guess if it's meant to happen it will, but if it doesn't happen soon I'm going to go to an all new special kinda crazy

I'm gonna have a pop at a book; since I lack the power to run through a community project, I'll do a Foster project. I've decided a collection of poems specifically written for a subject in a humour style would be my strongest point; I even came up with a title, 'The Big Book of Suspicious Line Breaks'. I'm also trying very hard to get some short stories out of my head and onto a hard drive, it's just a case of motivating myself to sit down and write the dam things. I won't sugar coat it, I know I can be lazy at times; all I need to do is learn and overcome it.

That's me out for now; if I manage to draft a piece for this assignment and get sufficiently far enough into it, I may post it (and other Creative Writing homework) on here, giving others the chance to try them and sharing my evolution.

The only problem with typing in bed from a laptop is you tend to spill the Yorkshire tea everywhere...

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11386138/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11386138/ Wed, 10 Jan 2007 12:20:23 PST
Fries stay in the vat for 30 seconds before Duty is called, that means you need to shake them up (gets any frozen fries stuck together apart) and then they're in for another 2:30 before removing, pouring into the fry holder and salting and boxing.

I can see a promising career with this McDonold's thing...

On a side note, the people are quite friendly. My boss, Rick, is an easy going guy when it's quiet and he has the sense to try and motivate us when it's busy. Mike is a decent guy as well, knows when to talk games and movies, books or other stuff, and when to stop to train me up. Jason, Claire and Luke, Eddy and Martin all have a laugh and that's what I like about the place.

However, if anyone asks if they could give me some advanced critique and I say yes, only for them to respond with 'Would you like fries with that,' I will hunt you down viciously...

I've started that creative writing course, officially now. I naturally missed the enrolment date, like the lazy lack-jawed artist I am; but the tutor says I can come to the first lesson and just fill out stuff at the end of it. Looking forward to the class, which happens to be an hour after my Monday shift... I get to create wonderful works of literature and smell of Big Macs and fries at the same time...

I'm still single, disappointingly. Out there is the perfect girl for me, I know that... it's just recently I can't help wondering if she takes cash or cheque...

As for my writing; well, it's not as quiet as I'd like everyone to believe. I'm exploring a variety of projects at the moment. One is a novel which is a sort of Science-Fantasy. A few more are short stories much like my Fairway to Heaven short, which I hope to make into a satirical collection of shorts, poking fun at religion whilst at the same time getting readers to step back and really question the little things of everything.

My attention span to movies has been disgusting lately; I haven't managed to watch an entire movie all the way through for some time. I do enjoy them, it's just I can't be bothered waiting until the end. This has happened before, and the movie that broke it made it to my rather 'hard to make Top Five' list, so when it does break, it'll be a blighter.

And why doesn't my .doc program recognise the word movie...

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11278053/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11278053/ Mon, 01 Jan 2007 16:49:25 PST .

This is intended as filler (but not a cheap one) for my journal until I start doing more stuff worthy of writing up. It's just somethign I wrote on New Years Eve (whilst alone, babysitting... someone has to do it) but after reading it I thought it would make a good send off to '06 and a humble summons to '07. Enjoy, and may it cause reflection.

The New Year, 2007 stuff.

When the clock struck 12, the top five people I wanted to be here, excluding family, are;
Steph
Filak
John
Becky
Las

My top five New Years resolutions... that will be broken before the 10th.
- Exercise more, at least 2 hours daily of physical activity to lose weight and tone body.
- Set time apart dedicated to quality writing.
- Be more expressive and speak my mind more. Be more Frank...
- Try out more of the 101 experiments...
- Be with someone.

In 2007, the top five things I want to do to better my emotional and mental wisdom.
- Discover the spiritualist within me, consolidate my believes.
- Be more active and interesting. Spend ever minute doing something fun and creative.
- Travel more, gain reputable experiences and remember them.
- Get closer with the people I'm already close too, find out more about them and learn the small things.
- Forgive all wrongs done on to me in the past. Everyone now starts with 0 Karma points, how they gain'em is through their choices towards me. (all those in credit keep the credit)

Some interesting things to try;
- Get serious with Dancing; ask Steph if she's really willing to be a partner. Learn a good variety of Ballroom steps and eventually create our own.
- Take random trips on buses and actually talk to random people. It would be good to see if anyone interesting can be met in this way.
- Write a novel of about 50K words, even if it is junk and never going to be edited. It'd be good practice for stamina.

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11236860/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11236860/ Fri, 29 Dec 2006 18:29:03 PST

It's been AGES! Man, I've missed this lil' corner of the web; and I see lots has changed here (pouts at new submission thing).

I got that creative writing course... to sound posh, it's actually a Creative and Formal Literature Course. It looks quite juicy and the tutor man said he's going to go through my gallery here on dA to see if I should do the beginners or advanced classes. I'm hoping to do both actually; you never know what new and interesting things you can learn.

But the bad news is my writing has pretty much ceased to exist in the last few weeks. I find it hard to sit and write with a pen and paper for long amounts of time so all I really have that's worth it are a few scribbles here and there. Hopefully these will develop into interesting seeds for plots and bang, we're as good as a Ground hog in a time machine.

I've put up a lil' something that I managed to do without a computer. I really need to sharpen my editing skills (another skill I'll hopefully pick up).

One last thing, I was wondering if anyone is still interested in carrying on with that Anthology. I know it's a lil' past Halloween but why the heck not I've actually lost my emails 'cos it when into a gay 'hibernation' period after 30 days on inactivity, so if you sent me something and you're still interested, send again.

Anyway, it's late and I've just put a second mattress on my bed so it's uber comfy... you get the jist.

Catch you all on the flip side. Adios.

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11229880/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/11229880/ Fri, 29 Dec 2006 03:04:28 PST
But I do have one word for all you Deviant Art people, the majority that mourned my computers death and wished me luck in getting back into cyber space and having the pleasure to continually meet and greet you all… hi.

I’M SO BACK!

That’s right. I’m back FOR GOOD! Turns out my continued running of por-games from my CPU burnt the lil’ thing out, but with my new laptop I can safely say that won’t happen again.

I’m just leaving this message up to stage my Ali-like return to the ring. Expect writing to come in swaths, and often. I’ll do a more detailed Journal entry when I’ve not made appointments to travel into town or when I’m working… which should be later today XD

PS, I demand instant updates on how everyone is. I have realised the number of missed messages and devWatch, and I’ll pour through’em quickly. I might not comment on everything, but I’ll at least take a look/read.

Good to be back guys…

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10459092/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10459092/ Tue, 14 Nov 2006 16:23:47 PST Weavers of Art and that Stuff



Just letting you know, I am still alive. My computer problems still isn't fixed but I'm working on it.

Quick note to the anthology people; everything is still going forward, I'm just asking you to be patiant. Keep the idea's going and we'll give it a jump start when I'm up and running .

Thanks guys, appreciate it.



1) For those of you who know, I’m trying to organise the start of an anthology, a moderately delightful one, if I do say so myself; it’s not entirely for the Halloween Season, but it is a reason I wanted to blow off the dust and cobwebs. Its main focus is horror and macabre poetry and prose; especially stuff that’s sinister and psychologically scary. It’s going to have a front cover and everything… juicy, aye?

I’ve already contacted people regarding this; however, should anyone else wish to participate please feel free to note me with said interest and a jam donut. Uber thanks.


2) You may not have noticed a lack of writing from me lately; I have no good excuse. I seem to have gone through a phase where I just couldn’t concentrate of focus enough to write; maybe it was that ‘Writers Block’ that’s been going around, very contagious stuff that. But I would put it down to a period of general apathy. This short halt did not interrupt my ideas, and I have a few to share;

Exodus; A story where humanity is threatened by a natural disaster, completely unavoidable. Set in the far future, the world is finally a collective, united as one. Plans are set into motion to save a small percentage of humanities best within a futuristic ‘Ark’, to avoid extinction. The only problem is, the general public knows not of this project, nor of the impending disaster…

The New Ones; From an ancient time, beings from another world have been suspected of governing global politics. What is not speculated is that these beings found Earth already occupied, by a loving race, thousands of years ago; and War ensued. Although the loving race was eventually defeated, they did not leave their children unarmed; present in the genes, is extraordinary abilities that will lead a small group of individuals to safety amongst the stars, and all before the Old One’s weapon destroys the world and the scourge of the enemy corrupts humanity.

The Goodheart Chronicles; Elizabeth Goodheart never dreamed she would make it into the highest ranks of a Professional Profiler; but here she is, deep within the most disturbing minds the criminal element has to offer. But when a new killer surfaces, leaving his victims in peaceful poses, in locations they could no doubt be found, Goodheart is called into do her job; discovering a secret desire behind the methodical murders.

I’d like to know which you think is the best idea… I have already thought of which I like and may start, but the floor is open, so to speak; plus I like hearing your thoughts and opinions.

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10436297/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10436297/ Wed, 18 Oct 2006 16:21:04 PDT
I’m working on an unusual treat, I am; a fresh story, that will most likely be my paramount project. It’s not going to be long, perchance 5K words or so, but it focuses on a stranger as he travels down memory lane…

I hope the characterisation of this piece will be it’s shining point; I read a story once, long ago, called ‘The Red Room’ which had the main matter along the lines of not judging people because of their appearances; I hope to follow a roughly similar theme to that, but converging more on the communities and cultures, rather than the individuals.

New layout shall be around eventually; I’m looking at a Friend’s page, which lists them and gives a small description of each and everyone of you wondrous people, as well as a Favourite’s page, with links to the deviations in my Favourite’s gallery and why I decided to keep them with me.

Until we correspond again…

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10365728/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10365728/ Thu, 12 Oct 2006 05:22:55 PDT
Give a loud, yet controlled shout to ~Sekai-kitai for allowing me to rant to her my ideas for the novel ‘Exodus’ and thusly collaborating my imagination into an organised conundrum of subtle chaos. I may post the chapters as I complete them for feedback, should anyone wish, but I doubt they will stay; if anyone wishes to offer their grey matter to pick apart the larger piece, allow me the pleasure of knowing and count yourselves among my esteemed editorial colleagues.

Stay tuned for more exciting updates from ‘Foster, Frank and Funnies Co.’

]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10233834/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10233834/ Thu, 05 Oct 2006 07:24:27 PDT Edit
At the moment, I’m working on redefining my journal a little more; I feel it’s too cramped, and I want to make it simpler, compact still, but simpler. I want to go for something of a header at the top, like a signature in forums and then to a collection of links which will direct you to certain bits and bobs around my dA page.

I’m looking to keep the features where they are, because I like them and I liked being able to add to it on a regular basis in the past. With a simpler layout I would be able to pace my updates and keep everything neat and… well, simple really.

I am thinking about dropping the icons of friends from the bottom of the page, maybe making a ‘Friends Dedication’ page in my journal (which will have a link) and a short line about what their art is and why I think you should go visit them, so no one will be forgotten in these edits.

I have absolutely no idea how long this will take, so I ask for patience, as usual… I shall still try to keep up to date with deviations and reply to comments as I do, and I will certainly keep up with the ‘Fifty Day Poem’ task. I might have to submit them half an hour or so over the deadline, but that’s to no fault of my own; the net connection is being temperamental, even though I’m on Broadband…

Until the next update; this will be fun filled and sparkly new!


Poem a Day for Fifty Days
New project by Michael ‘AxDude’ Foster.

This was suggested by *Garnet-43 when I was telling her I was having trouble writing poetry, and that I didn’t know what to do; put up older pieces from my scraps edited to my liking, or simply try to push out new ones. The advice was that I should mix them together, add new and edited pieces, over a period of fifty days.

Honestly, I’m not sure if she was being light hearted (hinting that 50 is a big number, to emphasize the difficulty) or being sincere, but either way she has given me the idea for this project, and I’m very thankful.

So, for the next fifty days I shall be posting poetry based on a variety of topics and themes, structures and meters. I’m hoping this will expand my skills; both in discovering a wider range of poetry styles, and in my editing abilities. Each poem will be followed by a more detailed Artist’s Commentary than usual so I can develop a sort of ‘Diary’ of this experience.

I hope you enjoy my weavings.



My Evolution.

So what am I doing, since I seem to have found the edge of the world and leaped off…

1. I’m working on the first draft of ‘Closed Due to Technical Issues’. I’m starting to see a sort of… series with these ‘Comic Relief’ stories… I feel the world of religion needs a great big wet wily, and if I have to force myself to deliver such a wet wily, I guess I shall . I have the next story in the works, but I need to think about some word play before I show you… the title is as important in the punch line as the story itself
2. Editing ‘Spirit Journey’ again, but taking this one a lil’ more slowly and detailed. I have uber amounts of info and feedback from you lovely dA critics; I’ll let you all know on the updated version when it’s all completely and finished.
3. Poetry is coming to me, a lil’ slowly. I have uber inspiration at the moment, and I am still writing a lot of stuff… but I haven’t seemed to put them up on dA… I may surprise you all with a sudden outburst of fifty or so pieces of poetry.
4. I’m also planning on working on a quick draft of a synopsis of a novel… so yeah


In Reality.

My parents are coming back in… 30… maybe 45 minutes; and all I can think about is that I miss my Dogs, Shep and Lucky… is that bad…

I’m getting a job at HMV… I am… yep… I enjoy HMV, electronics and entertainment industry, so I should be alright.

Upon some reflection… I realise I’ve not had a very eventful two weeks… *sigh*. Just either on the PC or downstairs watching movies (ooo, I got through the entire Lord of the Rings collection, HELL YEAH!).

http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10078044/ Sun, 17 Sep 2006 04:48:36 PDT Reading: Nothing but Blue Skies & For Two Nights Only – Tom Holt.
Listening to: Fun for Me - Portishead
Watching: The Boondock Saints

Edit: A lil' tease for those interested

Since time began, the Lord and his Holy Order of Angels have kept the universe in check. They have watched over humanity with love and care, careful that Judgement is passed fairly and without prejudice. That is, until Samael lost his pocket organiser…

Susanna Costa has been brought up as strict Catholic, and even thought of becoming a Nun at one point. She’s a shining example of the way religious people should be. Unfortunately she’s about to get a crash course in Divine Judgement, and that reading the translation isn’t always the best course of action.

And so it is that an Angel of Death and a strict Catholic girl come together to fix the biggest problem in existence; they must search and uncover a simple missing organiser, or the pearly gates will forever have the sign, Closed Due to Technical Issues.



My Evolution.

I’m starting to write again, although I never technically stopped. I’m working on a piece currently titled Closed Due to Technical Issues, and I do believe I’ll keep the name. It may be with you rather quickly; since the ideas are flooding and I feel the drafting and editing will be smooth and swift. I do think you could call this new piece the ‘second’ in a collection that will be similar to Fairway to Heaven; that is, comical and of religious/spiritual themes. I want to give a new spin on some of the old stories in the bible, and clash it with the brand new philosophies of modern thinkers.

My poetry writing is shot completely off course. I’m not getting the imagery I want, nor am I getting the style right. I’ve been continuously reading and actively studying poets like Tim Burton, Josie Armistice and a few others. In all honesty, to approach the style of rhythm and imagery that Burton approaches would be excellent.


In Reality.

My parents are leaving for Spain in… just over 12 hours. Since I’m still unemployed for the moment, it seems I’ll be in a free house for two weeks, stocked with food, high speed internet and many, oh so many, channels on a wide screen TV…

Despite that, I plan on using my time constructively since I won’t be working. I’ll keep the house tidy, that’s just the way I am; but I shall be writing at set, regular times and working on the server/3D mapping for UT99, my other great love. I hope to start a routine, and actually stand by it since I’m getting board and frustrated with not having things to do. If, in the future, I am to become a writer, I’ll need to live on a schedule to produce work on deadlines and to have some structure in my life.

For those of you who know me, it won’t be easy…


From The Vaults.

This isn’t so much a specific deviation awareness section this time. Instead, I’d like to draw everyone’s attention to two deviants on my list I feel deserve a massive shout out. At the moment, ~MalindaCrow and ~Sekai-kitai are away from dA, for whatever reasons. I think it would be a crumpet and tea idea if everyone was to visit fomentation deviants and floor their galleries with opinions and thoughts, especially the journals. Make their return to dA a blissful, yet surprising one.


The Project

I’ve decide to produce a project, an amateur eBook anthology with the theme being ‘Nightmares’. I would like to know if anyone would like to join in with this project; the more people, the better we can make it. It’s going including both poetry and prose, from a variety of writers (hopefully). So if anyone wishes to help compile this collection, please note me or email me with what style of writing you wish to produce. This will help me find some balance between poetry+prose


Great Minds. ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10024879/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/10024879/ Sun, 10 Sep 2006 06:14:09 PDT Reading: Nothing but Blue Skies & For Two Nights Only – Tom Holt.
Listening to: Come to me - Bűrk
Watching: Se7en
Mood: Solemn

Firstly, allow me to apologise if I haven’t left my mark or any advice on your art; the main reason being that I need to be in a certain mind frame when reading your pieces and having a half hope in hell of writing a decent piece of advice; I’ve not attempted to skip through the deviations being posted because I don’t want to do a half assed job of it. Thank you for your patience.

My Evolution.

I think I should address something; that is, I’ve had a various amount of reproaching as to why I include a lot of death in my Prose. I’m not complaining, I enjoy being asked as it allows me to think and define my writing more efficiently. So, if anyone is interested, this is why death… or Life After death is a reoccurring theme;

I’ve always been fascinated by death. Not in the ‘Goth clothing, sat on Graveyard’ sense, but more of a Philosophical sense. The idea that we, as a vastly immense consciousness, could continue sentience after our bodies decay is a romanticised and Logical one (Wrap your proverbial brains around that proverbial tree). It’s romanticised because it’s the belief that we carry on even after we’ve died. It gives us two things; A sense of inner peace that we won’t fade away and become nothing after so much effort on the world, the love and willpower that’s bee poured into so many concepts (Relationships, families and careers) and secondly it gives us a sense of immortality. If we do go somewhere when we die, that life after death will most likely be permanent (since you can’t die after you’re dead) and ‘heavenly’ (since that place will most likely be governed by the mind with the body being decayed).

So why do I use this concept in the stories I weave; because I find it as a symbolic ending that fits well. I don’t overcrowd the ‘Death’ concept with a grim morbid atmosphere. In Spirit Journey Ian’s death serves as a bridge onto the rest of his existence, a statement that no matter how downhill life gets, there will always be another chapter in your journey, even if that last downhill slope lead you into a Punji pit. In Fairway to Heaven the idea of life after death is needed ‘cos there wouldn’t be any putting on the green otherwise , but it’s also exploring the idea of freewill vs God’s Plan; emphasized by the many traps and events that confront him, but his ability to avoid them (instead of blindingly succumbing to God’s will). That especially (Freewill versus God’s Plan) is something that’s intrigued me for years, and I’d be happy to have further conversation about the delightful topic.


In Reality.

Call it what you will, but I’m having a sabbatical from writing for a while. It’s nothing too serious, just so I can have a fresh eye when it comes to redrafting and first drafts. I’m still collecting idea’s from my ether of a brain and writing them down, so I may write quick blurbs to keep the words coming, but I can’t see myself writing anything too huge for a few days (possible when I update the journal again, you’ll have a new piece).

I’ve got back into gaming. I mean really into it. I used to be a very very active gamer in the underground, but I stopped for no particular reason. Over the past few months I’ve been playing with a specific group and we’ve started a clan in Unreal Tournament ’99. We have our own server and everything! At the moment, the web page is in development, but if you like, I could post a link to it in the near future and you can gander at my amazing geekyness and gamer knowledge!

I think games are important; the relax you and allow you a portal for stress. Not in the “Grrrr, I’m soooo MAD! I’m going to BLAST SOME NEWBIS!” but in the “Yeah, I’ve had a rough day, maybe I’ll go take my mind off it for a while”. I firmly believe that the saying ‘Games Kill’ is a stupid and irresponsible one. Maybe I’ll write an essay one day about ‘Underground Gaming versus The Media’.

I’m a Pirate. Arrgggggggggggg!


The Experiments.
On hold


http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9934432/ Tue, 05 Sep 2006 19:41:15 PDT Reading: Nothing but Blue Skies – Tom Holt.
Listening to: Shadows – System of a Down
Watching: Girl Interrupted
Mood: Creative… finally.

It's up ladies and gentlegerms. Fairway to Heaven is now ready for you hungry eyes to feast upon.

:thumb39337058:

EDIT: Smelly thumbs...

My Evolution.

I’m writing again, in full and uncensored flow. Fairway to Heaven is a small piece I’ve been working on. It has comedy, golf and divine intervention (or is it?). Expect it to be posted soon.

“This Summer, coming to a cinema near you, Michael Foster is Frank Radcliff in this exciting portrayal of Nurses, Golfing and Divine Intervention. Fairway to Heaven hits a gallery near you in September, 2006.”

“Breath taking piece, we were utterly speechless.”
- National Asthma Association.

“Four Stars… no, Five Stars… that’s high right? How many is five again?”
- Dyslexia’s Today Magazine

“Mi’ and ma’ wife enjoy’d thi’ one. Mi’ know shi’ enjoy’d it ‘cos shi’ oink’d lots.”
- MSMS (Mixed Species Marriage Support)

In not so relate to writing news, ~The-United-Font is coming along rather nicely. If you enjoy reading, then perhaps you could check out the front page. We might not look impressive, or experience at the moment, but I assure you that you’ll be apart of something from the beginning if you check us out now.


In Reality.

“The Earth revolved around the Sun,
And the Moon revolved around the Earth.

Man revolved with the Earth
Woman stood and laughed.”

This week is World Female Appreciation Week, starting today (2nd). From mothers to sisters, daughters and girlfriends, even your Y chromosome buddies. Go tell them you love them, and give them a cracking big hug. ‘cos honestly guys, we all know women are the smarter half.

What’s new? Nothing much as I’m going through a sabbatical from ‘exciting and thrilling activities’ at the moment. I do believe that if it wasn’t for ~LadyHathaway, ~EternitysEnd and *Garnet-43, I’d be going completely and utterly sane. It would be devastating for me. It would ruin my writing and any chance of a future where I can get advanced arthritis in my fingers at the age of 39. I thank you all for grounding my insanity; I would be a normal person without you *tears up*

Anyway, I’d also like to thank someone else not on dA. I shan’t say who (one defiantly knows, maybe two…) but I would like you to quietly say ‘good on you’ to her for me. She’s a kind person, compassionate and lovely to know. ----> O <---- Inside that O is my appreciation. I know it’s not much, but it’s all hers.

I watched a few new films lately, most notably The Boondock Saints, Girl Interrupted and the tearful A walk to Remember. I suggest these movies to anyone. They will make you laugh, cry and say WTF. (I shan’t say which one, but a big fat Russian guy gets clobbered over the head with a toilet. Go find out).


The Experiments.
On hold


From The Vaults.

This isn’t so much a specific deviation awareness section this time. Instead, I’d like to draw everyone’s attention to two deviants on my list I feel deserve a massive shout out. At the moment, ~MalindaCrow and ~Sekai-kitai are away from dA, for whatever reasons. I think it would be a crumpet and tea idea if everyone was to visit fomentation deviants and floor their galleries with opinions and thoughts, especially the journals. Make their return to dA a blissful, yet surprising one.


... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9881427/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9881427/ Mon, 28 Aug 2006 06:43:10 PDT Reading: Nothing but Blue Skies – Tom Holt.
Listening to: Nasty Naughty Boy – Christina Aguilera
Watching: Last Holiday
Mood: WOOOOO!


My Evolution.

Well, I grew a few more fingers. And an opposable thumb…

In truth, I haven’t been absorbing myself in anything new lately. I’m planning a pretty big project, possible an experimental Novel. I want to get everything right, in its place, so to speak… for a rough guide, like. It’s going to be a hybrid of my two interests I have, so I can make it realistic and that I know what I’m talking about.

I’ve finished reading most of those two lil’ books, Creative Writing and How to Write a Novel. I’m going to take a small break from them and after a certain time that I feel ready, I’ll approach them as a course; study them, try to consciously absorb what they are saying and such.

I’m also hoping to go back to college and take a Creative Literary course; I feel that I can only learn so much on my own, sat with a folder trying to understand what a book is developing. With the course, I’ll have exposure to an expert, so to speak. I’ll also have other people in the course, who I could work with and develop from; learn how they think of something, and such. Don’t worry though… they could never take the place of the great dA community


In Reality.

I’m addicted. I used to play a game called Pirates of the Spanish Main, that involved having lil’ models of Pirate, English and Spanish ships that you popped out of a lil’ card and put together. You sail around and collect treasure with another player… I’m a geek… I’m addicted. Go check it out… I’m a shady promoter.

I want to do something. Not anything, but something… rich. Paraglide, base-jumping or Snow board on a Black course. I want to experience life… I want to cook. Food is a great analogy for life. You spend a long time preparing the meal; you take the time to add the right amount of seasoning, you roast the chicken at the perfect temperature and find the right plates and side orders that would compliment your hard work and preparation.

And in life you spend years seasoning your personality (arguable, you even add a lil’ salt or pepper when you’ve finished, at the table), defining yourself how you wish. You make sure that you’re cooked right, that you’re warm and take consideration at the temperatures, careful not to over do yourself or undercook the meat. And finally, you try to surround yourself with people; loving, caring people. Your friends and family are the carrots and onions by your side, the soft snip of parsley that finishes you off nicely. And of course, you have that one person, which frames you. They are the love of your life, someone who you hope to spend forever with. They are you plate.

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd that concludes the sentimental rant. Have a nice day


The Experiments.
On hold


From The Vaults.
On hold


The Project

I’ve decide to produce a project, an amateur eBook anthology with the theme being ‘Nightmares’. I would like to know if anyone would like to join in with this project; the more people, the better we can make it. It’s going including both poetry and prose, from a variety of writers (hopefully). So if anyone wishes to help compile this collection, please note me or email me with what style of writing you wish to produce. This will help me find some balance between poetry+prose


Great Minds.

Pretty Pictu... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9804491/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9804491/ Tue, 22 Aug 2006 12:14:51 PDT Reading: The Dice Man – Luke Rhineheart.
Listening to: 99 Red Balloons – Nena
Watching: The Bone Collector
Mood: Drifty


My Evolution.

Blah blah blah…ummm… blah blah and some more blah…

I’m starting the next draft of Spirit Journey. I’m collecting together all the comments and advice and using that to help me. I hope to have the updated version with you all soon.

Secondly, I’m writing another piece. Beyond, which should be equal in length to Spirit Journey. It’s about a Zebra who finds out it has a talent for being a stand up comic. He has a Hippo as an agent. They go on some crazy adventures together, getting into lots of trouble. Also, I’m not telling you what it’s about until I’ve done a blurb (I like writing blurbs). I’m unsure if I shall stay with the title Beyond.

I have other idea’s swimming around however. I’m writing them down as they come, and I might share with you, let you all vote on what tickles your fancy .


In Reality.

I was going through my past journals, and I found this. I forgot I did this (ages ago) whilst my Dr. Who obsession was at it's peek.

I was wondering, if any Time Lords could come and visit me. I really think your cause its awesome, and would very much enjoy to talk and discuss things with you. I wouldn't ask you to go out of your way, maybe if you’re in the decade or so, drop me a call.

I also understand you can't tell me about the future (although it would be great if you could talk about the very far future). I'd enjoy speaking to anyone from any time, so I hope this message reaches you fine. Er, not much to say, except I don't want to travel with you, if you think that’s one of my motives, I just know how much you like travelling and meeting new kinds of people, so feel free to come and visit me.

Chow.

PS, my name is Michael Foster, from the UK. That’s the United Kingdom, in 2005 Earth Year, about half a century from the World Wars on this planet, and 2005 years after the character known as Jesus (maybe you've heard of him) was around. I'm sure with your resourcefulness you could find me. Try to approach me after the 28 of May, 2005, as any sooner I may be in collage and unable to have that chat with you.

Chow again.
AxDude

I did the stand up at ~LadyHathaway. It went alright, in my opinion. I’ve decided to keep the set the same and work on it. Hopefully, I’ll be able to develop the initial ideas into a great comic routine.

Our new dog, Shep, is settling in quite well. Lucky loves him, and even the cats have shined to him quicker than expected. We think he’s a cross German Shepard, he has the fur and facial features.

Apart from that, it’s been rather uneventful… still looking for a job, and now I’ll settle for anything.

The Experiments.
On hold


From The Vaults.
On hold


The Project

I’ve decide to produce a project, an amateur eBook anthology with the theme being ‘Nightmares’. I would like to know if anyone want’s to join in with this project; the more people, the better we can make it. It’s going including both poetry and prose, from a variety of writers (hopefully). So if anyone wishes to help compile this collection, please note me or email me with what style of writing you wish to produce. This will help me find some balance between poetry+prose


Great Minds.

Pretty Picture People. http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9678864/ Sat, 12 Aug 2006 18:47:40 PDT Reading: 101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life – Roger-Pol Droit
Listening to: Love Street Excess - Wayriders
Watching: House. MD
Mood: Excited

Edit: I've decided to support *ProsePlease. This is a delightful place for all writers, and I suggest making your way to their chat session on the 19th August at 7pm (EST). Read more about it here ProsePlease: Ink Session

My Evolution.

‘Spirit Journal is finally finished!’

And I’m not just saying that. It’s really finished. Seriously, go check my gallery… actually, go check my feature deviation! I’m really, moderately, reasonably and relatively proud of it. I’m posting it now, after I’ve strengthen the plot and description so I can garner some feedback. I need a heap of feedback. I’m calling in my card that says ‘~AxDude has critiqued on loads of piece, now I want loads back’. I know that’s rude, and rather selfish, in a way, but I really, really and some more really want useful advice. I’d also accept praise, like… but methods of improving the important character development, atmosphere and theme of the piece, as well as your thoughts on how the subplot goes (that’s the part that will hopefully make you go ‘oooOOOOOooo, no way!’

In other news, I’ve finished the ‘Seen Through a Window’ series. Ten parts, still undergoing a quite edit occasionally, but overall, a series I’m quite happy with. I’ve explored (and improved, me thinks) the use of adjectives and emotions, as well as some interesting themes that one could imagine from looking through a window. Since this series ended, I’ve been writing a new collection of projects, this time in poetry. The idea is, to collect words from Merriam Online and use those words in an 8-lined poem, which places the word into a context and a rather amusing poem. Since they’re only short poems, and I really hate cluttering my gallery up with small pieces, I’ve taken the liberty to include ten words per submission. I’ve even figured out a lil’ pitch; I would visit a café, specifically the Vocabulary Café, and on the menu would be a Word of the Day (with a quick description of what the style of the Word of the Day actually is) followed by a lovely selection of dishes in poetry that you can choose form. Each one is quite fulfilling and I personally enjoyed digesting them all.

And it seems I am quite a busy bee, as I’ve just started writing a new short story (about the same length as Spirit Journey) which is about… well, it’s actually a secret so far. I guess Spirit Journey is the same; until you read it, you won’t get much from it. However, the new story was partly inspired by a conversation and unfinished story by ~LadyHathaway, who wrote a few small opening paragraphs, one of which tantalized my creative juices. I’ll try to keep you posted.


In Reality.

I’m going to a B-day bash soon, ~LadyHathaway’s, no less. She’s asked me to do a comedy set at her party (why not a clown like I had at my 18th, I’ll never know) and I’ve obliged. I’m actually quite nervous; as this will be the first time I’ve been Stage Funny and not Couch Funny… it’s all the same, right?

I… hmm… I don’t remember last night…

We have a new Dog. His name is Shep. If you remember the story of Lucky, you’ll realise he came to us as a stray; Shep, on the other hand, we rescued from Manchester Kennels. He was already being re-homed, but as we walked the kennels (looking for a dog for my Mum’s friend, no doubt…) Lucky just slumped down in front of this cage with six dogs. At first, we figured it was simple excitement, but as the dogs in the cage got bored and moved on to others coming in, this one dog, same cross breed as Lucky, lil’ more fur and completely filthy, sat by the cage next to him. Neither would move, so my Mum playfully suggested we let Lucky and Shep play for a bit, well next thing we know, Shep and Lucky are inseparable… curse out love of animals… current standing is…

Dogs: 2
Cats: 2 (Bella & Cinders)
Birds: 28 Budgies, 17 Canaries, 2 Cockateels* and 2 Kakreeka’s (Parrot) 4 Diamond Doves and 2 Quails…
Fish: 16 Koy Karp, 2 King Karp and 4 Cat fish
... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9543170/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9543170/ Sun, 30 Jul 2006 12:54:52 PDT Reading: 101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life – Roger-Pol Droit
Listening to: Biscuit – Portishead
Watching: Adult Swim
Mood: Tired


My Evolution.

‘Spirit Journal is finally finished!’

At least, that’s what I would be able to say if I hadn’t been asked to babysit for a friend last night as a favour. As such, it should be going up on dA either later today or on the 1st of the month, which one could ascribe as being symbolic. When it goes up, however, I’d like to ask all if they could give me some advice on the piece; character development, plot, dialogue and imagery/metaphors used and all that malarkey. After I’ve gained enough feedback from it, I’ll be taking it down and doing another draft to polish it again. After that draft, I’ll resubmit the piece fresher and shiner than ever!

I’m also in the mood for a community project… I have no idea what, just that my mind desires it. If people want to leave a suggestion with their comments, feel free.

~The-United-Font is finally up and running. This book club for dA promises to deliver an interesting place to meet and chat with people who love to read rather than write. If you haven’t already checked it out, I suggest you do, just as we’re going live on the 1st August, so join up today and receive a bumper sticker saying “I rocked at ~The-United-Font first!”.

No… really…


In Reality.

I had a job for six hours… I sent my CV to some place in the city centre, clerical account or something like that, apparently I was to file documents chronologically that explained the companies income/expense and annual turnover; it paid reasonably as well. I received the phone call saying I had been accepted for the job at around 11am Friday, but around 5pm, the phone call was to say that there had been an error and that my application wasn’t the one that had been originally put forward for interview, let alone acceptance of the job. Now that kids, is the definition of feeling crummy…

On a brighter note, I’ve got some Cadburys Mint Ice Cream in; that stuff is Oh So Delightful in the mouth, the little bits of chocolate and creamy texture as it slips down your cooled throat as the refreshing mint-savour experience is enough to make a grown fisherman cry with overwhelming joy… I soon forgot about the job incident after having a scoop or three of that stuff, and was only reminded when my dear ol’ mother asked how it had gone there.

I have finally completed The Suffering: Prison is Hell; PS2 game by Midway released in 2004. It’s based upon an island prison that the main character, played by (replace own name here) is trapped whilst a local, demonic ‘End of Days’ kicks off and you’re forced to traipse around the monster infested parts of the island fighting huge, bulky Hulk thinks with a variety of guns on their back (firing squad) or you crap yourself as corpse drop down from Hangman’s nooses and try to gorge your eyes… try playing that at 2 in the morning…

And guess what happened after I killed the last boss, and started dancing nak… just dancing. My friend popped by to say hello, and show me the new game… The Suffering 2: Ties that Bind. He’s an asshole.


The Experiments.

This is a fun lil’ blighter… I’ve had more fun imagining the many different scenarios than attaining a sense of relief, but you get the same effect… I think.

23. Dread the arrival of the bus.

Duration; 5 to 10 minutes
Props; a bus stop
Effect; relief

The act of waiting has two aspects. An opportunity for a bit of peace and contemplation on the one hand: you have nothing to do but wait until the expected moment arrives. This king of passivity can actually be a real source of pleasure. Time elapses, whatever happens, and that certainty has something reassuring about it. But waiting can also terrify – what will transpire is by definition never entirely controllable or predictable. Explore this king of fear, which has no explicit pretext; extend it, magnify it as if under a glass, increase its intensity and its duration. ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9456068/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9456068/ Sat, 22 Jul 2006 08:28:47 PDT Reading: 101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life – Roger-Pol Droit
Listening to: Naddaall – Noon EnPaticula
Watching: Adult Swim
Mood: Bored as hell


My Evolution.

In weaving in and out of various drafts on some piece which may soon be submitted, and thankfully, I’ve finished the draft of Spirit Journey, standing at 12,684 words. But before submit this for you peoples wonderful eyes, I’m going to give it one last quick skim and perhaps ask for one of my dear friends to read it as well.

I’m also coming to a close on the ‘Window’ series, working on the last piece which is dark and reflective. I fancied myself a stark contrast between the others, which are all based on a humans account of a quite pleasant thing. Not only is the viewpoint character unhuman, but you’ll never truly know what I intended him to be, only that its view is mystifying and disturbed.

Also, I’ve recently read a piece by `alienhead entitled Crucifying The Artist and it has said clearly something which I’ve thought about. It has occurred to me that these past few weeks, I’ve been trying to network more efficiently, reaching out to unknown Deviants for two reasons; the first is a sincere pleasure of meeting new people, the second most likely extends from the type of pride `alienhead speaks of… I can only wonder if that is such a bad thing…


In Reality.

Our dog looks like an old style Gramophone… he’s just had an operation to remove those tricky parts (he was getting way to protective of our cats when other dogs showed up… and yes, I’m trying to justify snipping the cute fellers balls off… in truth, I had no power over the decision) and he has one of those funky new fashion accessories all the pups are wearing. He’s catching on all the furniture and to our shame, we giggle at him slight… but only until he looks at us with those big brown eyes and floppy ears… then we shut up and remember he still has the sharp teeth…

I also got a lil’ phone call saying I wasn’t qualified for the job I was heading for, and that my details would be kept on record. Now I’m reduced to asking a friend to secure me a job at some telephone centre… I know, a sin in itself, but I’m desperate. So, for the time being, all my income is derived form formulating complicated mathematical equations and understanding subtle changes in a person’s demeanour… I’m playing Poker online, which is actually something I don’t want to be doing as a full time profession… I’d much prefer it if I was playing live.


The Experiments.

Last week, I included this in ’My Reality’ section, but I’ve decided, that since there are so many, I’m going to give it a section all on it’s own, so it can feel lonely and cold… man, I really need a girlfriend…

13. Drink while urinating.

Duration; 1 to 2 minutes
Props; toilet and glass of water
Effect; wide open

For hundreds of thousands of years, the vast majority of humans have lived and died without trying the following experiment. It is, however, both extremely straightforward and extremely interesting.

Like everyone else, you urinate. And at other moments you drink. What you do not know is what it feels like to do both at the same time. This experiment will show you.

So, you just have a large glass of water to hand. When you begin to urinate, start drinking. As far as possible, you should try to drink the water straight down, without pausing. You will feel quite bizarre sensations almost immediately. The water you evacuate seems to be synchronized with that entering your mouth. You will then visualize, and above all feel, your body to be organized in a way which until then you had never imagined possible. The water you are drinking seems to exit directly from your bladder. In a few seconds you will feel directly wired, from throat to urethra, from stomach to bladder – a physiology that is impossible, but which you intuit, directly and unquestionable to be real.

It has taken no more than a few moments for you to discover this wonderfully simple body, and you feel there can be no other. No more intestine, no kidneys, no filtration time, no waiting. Water pours through y... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9408330/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9408330/ Mon, 17 Jul 2006 17:40:27 PDT Reading: Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell
Listening to: A Little Respect – Erasure
Watching: Kingdom Hospital
Mood: Creative


My Evolution.

I’ve embarked upon a new writing project . I’m looking especially forward to this, as I haven’t had much opportunity to get mi’ creative muscles flexin' properly . I was going for a sort of Canterbury Tales style, with lots of characters being intertwined and each one having a definite plot (I blame ~MalindaCrow for her great Modern Fairy Tales story) but upon careful reflection and planning, I decided this to be inappropriate. Instead, I’m going for something else.

The main genre of the story is a Romantic Comedy , with interesting characters and a messed up love situation that will enter a truly unexpected twist (or so I hope… all I do these days is hope… No More!)

Below, I’ve included blurb for all those interested in this mammoth project.

Elizabeth Watson is in a state of grieve. Not only has her beloved father recently passed away, but it seems in his last act of parenting, he’s forbidden Elizabeth to inherent any of the fortune or property he’s amassed unless she can find a husband before her 24th Birthday. Should she fail, all the wealth of the Watson line will go into the village that Princely Estates is located.

With the help of a close family friend and her Butler, Jeffery Pound, she starts to invite all the young boys around to play. A rich, upper class socialite, an Earl’s son and even the Prince of some country she’s never heard of. But how far will Elizabeth need to look in order to find true love, or how much will she have to sacrifice for it?

I have also chosen to write this as a Novel piece… no, not a comedic one, although it is a Romantic Comedy… I meant, this will be the first one I shall consider a novel, with chapters and what not. I’m sure *LadyLincoln will be delighted to know this.

On a side note, my other project, Spirit Journey, is nearing completion at 13,000 words. I shall be doing another edit to get it compacted into 10,000 words and then I shall post it for the scrutinizing eyes of ye ol’ dA community, either sometime later this week or in the early hours of next. Keep your eyes open.


In Reality.

I’ve moved my bedroom about… my bed being closer to my monitor and computer stand so I may watch various DVD’s and shows in bed. Since I can basically get a hold of any channel we can get in the front room, that being, most of the Sky package, I won’t be needing the space a TV takes up and I shan’t be distracted by the noisy poison it produces (curseyoubigbrotheryoufreakandvoyuerspeci alist). Just thought you might like to know…

Oooo, something interesting, something . I recently found a book I bought ages ago… entitled ‘101 Experiments in the Philosophy of Everyday Life’ by Roger – Pol Droit. From now on, I shall quote one, and its full description, in my Journal. I do hope you try it, and if anyone does, let me know.

60. Fast for a While

Duration; 12 to 36 hours
Props; None
Effect; Emptiness

It’s no accident that every spiritual tradition everywhere in the world and in all ages has used fasting. Drugs apart, no method have more power to alter our relation to the world. To frighten or to soothe, to compel or cause indifference, to disturb or to calm – fasting is capable of provoking all these reactions, depending on time, intensity and circumstances. None of this should come as a surprise, incidentally – our most ancien... ]]> ~AxDude http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9356713/ http://AxDude.deviantart.com/journal/9356713/ Fri, 20 Oct 2006 15:19:33 PDT dA page; mainly because you’re all amazing people, with amazing talents and copyrights to the word ‘Amazing’. If you don’t keep up the fantastic stuff, I’m going to have you tied to a chair, with a copy of Britney Spear’s Album on repeat (I’ll make special substitutions for those you can tolerate that thing…)

If you’re not on this list, it’s possible one of two things occurred. Firstly, I may have forgotten; I tend to remove people who’ve been inactive for a while, simply lost track of styles or their galleries are actually empty! Secondly, I may feel you aren’t specific to this page; as Frank would say, ‘We like art for selfish reasons, not to be popular’. Send me a note regardless if you believe I’ve forgotten you and I’ll give it some thought.

Every person on this list is recommended personally by me for others to see; I doubt greatly you won’t be disappointed.


The List

~AellaWind - A very inspiring emotional poet with a gallery as rich as her heart. She doesn’t focus only on the angst of romance, taking time to attribute the wonderful feelings and emotions that settle with the sun.
Suggests: Frail Wrists.

:devlienhead: - There are simply no words to describe this dA legend; worthy to be titled as an Author. His writings are like sex; building you up with a tease of foreplay, only to deliver a powerful climax. His stories have an essence humour in parts, sincerity in others; but always imaginative.
Suggests: The Great Wall of Suburbia.

*bionic7 - Giger; that’s the name that rings when I see the mind of this man; his pieces are not only detailed, they are very invoking of various emotions. His art includes erotic and landscapes scenes all done with that ‘digital art stuff’ which is above and beyond me… I suggest you look carefully and with an open mind.
Suggests: Alien vs Machine.

~BlindShadowPenguins - I’m not sure where to put this deviant; She has a marvellous array of stunning visual graphics, of swirling colours and mesmerising patterns and the occasional spot of photography. But she also has literature around her gallery, be it creative stories, or poetry worthy of a rose.
Suggests: Sleeping World of Dreams.

~Bourko - I was utterly shocked when I realised the age of ma’am; for I didn’t think someone so young could produce such insightful writings. Thankfully, she has altered my opinion on this, and I respect that art can come from any age. She is a talented writer, with promise, and I shall personally continue to push for future pieces by her.
Suggests: Unity of the Worlds.

`Bringa - I’m surprised this tin of talent didn’t come with a disclaimer; Warning; Bringa may be hazardous to your health and contain nuts. His Writing is extremely insightful, humorous and well thought out; be it talking toilets, she subconscious’s or capered Cthulhu’s.
Suggests: The Importance of being Frank.

~Cheri-Baby – I met this lady through a friend, and got to know her on Live Journal; an avid fantasy writer with a pleasant degree of imagination. Although she doesn’t put her work up on dA, which I would like to see, I have read her writing, and it’s quite delightful.
Suggests: Walk a Mile in Another’s Shoe.

~cza24-9 – Following the poetry of this young writer is guaranteed to take you for a ride; where most would submit only their familiar styles of poetry, :deccza24-9: takes you on a journey as she develops and experiments with the media of the poetry world for all to see.
Suggests: ~AxDude