Proud to present the first ebook trailer for the After the Fall series at Katarr Kanticles Press.
I used Vue to create some of the scenes, and Hexagon to create some of the props. The trailer was connected together via After Effects.
I’m still at a learning stage but it’s good to see progress here and there.
Took a two hour trip with my girl to see Taylor Swift, live, in the Newcastle Entertainment Centre (AU) last night. As soon as she arrived home from school, we both readied ourselves for action and made our getaway with a quick pit stop at McD’s for sustenance. I surprised myself with my sense of direction. I’ve never driven to Newcastle before but somehow I found my way through that dodgy old town. I say dodgy in a quaint way as Newcastle is slightly older than Sydney and the Central Coast, and sure looks it.
We arrived at the venue just after 5pm and already people were lining up to get in. The sun, at this time, was still a scorcher and the heat was becoming a pain in the backside as we sloooowly progressed up the line. Needless to say there were lots of teenagers trying to push their luck and cut further up in line, lots giggling and making a loud show of their importance, others dressed in off-cuts resembling roman slaves (seriously) hogged the shadows attempting the art of cool. My girl found the display of people her age amusing. I found the audience around me reveal my age. When you live a certain amount of days, you tend to forget the times you were young. Actually, I tend to purposely forget. Somethings are best left with the Gods.
I’m getting side-track.
When we finally entered the arena, I was mortified to find that we were destined for the “Mosh Pit” the whole entire night, which would equal three hours of standing, squished-squashed, amongst screaming fans who would bitch and moan between songs. Boy, I wasn’t far wrong.
You know what? Despite the humidity, pushing kids and having my body cramped up in places I never realised could be “cramped up” before. I actually found the experience one to remember. It brought back memories of The Big Day out and being amongst it all; the energy, pain and passion people are more than willing to spend on one person or a band who bring a certain amount of joy and meaning in their lives. Sure, I was frustrated at first. I mean who wouldn’t if they had elbows digging into their gut and jiggling bags seeking the crevice of their butt. As the night kicked in, I forgot about it. I could see my girl had felt the same way. She was lucky to have found an ideal spot at the front of the pit.
The opening act warmed us up nicely. I swear they had a Taylor look-a-like in there playing the banjo.
When Taylor burst on to the stage in her band-camp costume and tearing up the stage with her song “You Belong With Me”, the people became one ecstatic crowd, expending such energy that you forgot about your aches and pains and found a way to enjoy the show.
I never realised Taylor Swift was so energetic and flexible. The 180 degree bend she did at the piano, during her song “You Should’ve Said No”, left me gasping with awe. This chick could be a gymnast!
Her generosity showed as she played at all angles of the stadium and made her way from the back stage to front through the people; hugging fans along her way. One young girl was lucky to have scored Taylor’s tiara when she sung “Love Story”. Taylor had graciously removed her sparkling crown and royally placed it on the young girls head. The excitement on the young girl’s face was priceless. I felt happy for the girl and hoped it be a good motivator for her life.
My favourite part of the show was the last act “You Should’ve Said No” when she mashed it up with a JT mix, then turned it into a drum banging showdown and ended it with a timely sequenced rain pour; closing the concert on a memorable moment.
Taylor Swift Still for Fans
As far as the venue services go, I believe they could’ve been more proactive with their sale opportunities. We had waited in line, before the show, for a good two and half hours. It would’ve been an ideal time for them to get a few people walking around with merchandise people could buy or drinks and food. I don’t think kids under the age of ten should’ve been allowed to attend the concert. There were four little ones squashed up the front who almost dropped to the floor from being pushed against the rails and dehydration. Security was aware of them and kept giving them water; constantly checking to see they were okay.
Summing up. The title of this post asks “$200 Bucks to See Taylor Swift. Was It Worth It?”. When I drove home, I thought through this question and called up the entire experience; from the moment we had arrived to the time we had left. Personally, I found it was worth it. I had realised something new of myself. I have better tolerance of people than I first thought.
As far as the concert itself goes, the show was worth it. The venue facilities could be a bit better but to see Taylor Swift live was priceless.
Now I understand why she’s a superstar.
Okay so the title is a bit too much of a question. Truly, if a person so desperate turns to them for advice, perhaps they could if the advice was dark and/or generic. Where is this coming from? I saw a Tarot Reader/Psychic the other day for the hell of it. I was disturbed there after.
First I had to wait for the Tarot Reader to finish up with a client, and that was a good fifteen minute shuffle on a cheap plastic seat that made my bum itch up a storm. Of course, I couldn’t help but eaves drop on the reading. It seemed, from the jumble of cards laid out before the young hopeful woman who sat eager for “good news”, the goodness she waited for was something she’d have to wait for some time. Maybe in the second half of the new year she might find happiness with a new partner. For now, she would have to put up with her cheating man’s ways and see a lawyer about screwing him for everything he had. Put politely of course. Then she was told she might expect some news about her father regarding his health. It was here I glimpsed a feigned look of care in the Tarot Reader’s eyes as she said, “Oh dear. I’m afraid it doesn’t look good.”
Needless to say, the “client” was almost in tears as she shuffled away from the Reader with her woes.
I gulped and was almost about to shuffle away myself when the Tarot Reader greeted me and asked I sit.
“Sit – I tell you!”
“Okay Mistress Tarot Reader. Please don’t eat me.”
I sat before her new aged covered table. You know, the type with the purple felt table cloth, a collection of crystals (to ward off those pesky invisible demons) in one corner, tarot cards in the middle and small timer clock tucked, sneakily, in the back corner to kept a reality check on the situation about to be laid out before the Reader’s sucker – Me.
She outlined her fees with a yawn and an apology should she have appeared uninterested in her live money bag seated before her. At this point, I felt trapped by her powers and found my hard earned $30 dollars literally appear on her table like magic then disappear as quickly. The trap was sprung. Now, the Mistress Tarot Crow (as I had dubbed her) was going to tell me my destiny like a Lord of Rings novel, and all in thirty minutes I might add.
At this point, I was shaking at the knees and ready to bow my humble gratitude for shining her merciful wisdom on such a poor helpless soul such as I. Okay, not quite, but I was interested to see how much “doom” I had in my life.
Turns out I had a lot. I would face a very emotional year (duh) with many set backs and trials I had to overcome to be a winner. She said I should write down my woes and share them (okay, that might be viable). I would have to do this and that and fight this and that and so forth. The most jaw-breaking piece of insight she sold me about myself was the fact I was depressed. Depressed – me? Honestly Mistress Doom and Gloom, I wasn’t before but thank you for your enlightenment! She then went on to say that I will have to fight and convince people to be on my side for whatever I do. If I wanted people to listen to me, I would have to give them some friendly “bull shit”. Seriously, she said those words with an apology on the end.
Okay, at this point I was sitting on my hands so I couldn’t smack myself on the forehead and also be able to scratch a cheek should I need to relieve an itch (crude I know). I wasted $30 dollars on a nut-job and now I was questioning whether I was happy.
I sighed with relief when it was over and almost chocked on my sigh when she tried to sell me a $20 pendant. Seriously!
I was tempted to ask for my money back but afraid she’d put some sort of hex on me. Instead, I left quietly and gave some friendly advice to the next-in-line. They were quick to bolt right past me as I left a smelly trail of doom and gloom behind with the tarot reader. Of course, I pointed a finger her way to say “yes passing people, it’s from inside there.”
I think the lesson to learn here, is you can pay for someone to tell you what your destiny is and choose to believe it. Wouldn’t it be better to believe what you already know of yourself and try to make the destiny you want?
I felt so angry after the reading and it took me a while to realise why. I have always expected destiny to find me. I realised, I have to make my own destiny and fight the impossible battles to achieve it. With only a handful of trusted allies to make it possible. I also realised the world will be against me as I’m just one drop in the ocean. I would be up against traditional point of views, styles, and quite possibly pop-tarts. Yes, pop-tarts. Writing is especially traditional. If your style appears as sloppy and unreadable, so shall it be. Of course, I would flick the birdy at such an impression but there is something to gleam from it. In the same sense, It has taken me years to be comfortable with my style. Hell if I’m going to change it for any monkey; enhance and develop – yes.
I’m getting side-track.
Destiny. My advice to anyone seeking a Tarot Reading. Unless you feel confident the reader will tell you what is in your interest and not their’s, by all means. Honestly, I’d save the money for tools you can use to make your own destiny such as a subscription to Cleo perhaps, chill-laxing time out and that dress you have always wanted. Oh, and resources to help you get where you want to go.
Do it your way. Do it now.
It may be me, but there seems to be an ever increasing trend in returning and new blog fiction sites. Whether the chances of being traditionally published by corporate houses are slimmer each hour or writers find greater control in posting their stories online, blog fiction is booming. Of course, some will open only to last a few posts whilst others will stick around for a long time. Albeit, at inconsistent time slots such as moi.
I’ve had people ask me with gaping mouths, “why give it away on a blog?” And, have received the presumption that my story must not be worthy of being published, so the only option I have is a blog site.
The reason I post my story as a blog is that I have greater control on how it is posted and when I can “share it”. I’d rather have it out there for people to read than have it die in a slush pile. People can make up their own minds if they want to read it or not.
I suspect the answer for some blog fiction writers is the same answer with Open Source software; the power of feedback to develop the story. With software, a developer can only debug so much with the two pair of eyes he/she has. It’s far better to share the task of bug swatting than fry your own brain in doing it.
Still, blog fiction is questioned as a platform for some writers for many reasons. Yes, it gives you control over how you present your story and when it goes live. It also leaves you open for copyright violations and spam attacks. Although, we do have better tools to protect our works electronically these days. My Free Copyright offers blog writers a certain safeguard in the same way Numly does, and it emails you a special number to identify the work as yours.
Veering to the opinion of marketing, we can advertise the blog how we want and only have to hold ourselves responsible if nothing works out as expected. We don’t have to worry about complex contracts with third parties nor have to wait for others to catch up. Or course, the con is that you have to do all the leg work yourself, use your own resources and trust that your work is “polished” enough to gather a readership.
On the promising side, certain companies have offered non fiction bloggers money and recognition if their posts would attract a readership for them. Indeed, you could say, some writers can make a living being bloggers (non fiction sense). At least, Problogger promotes it so.
I’ve yet to see fiction blogs be so lucky. Of course, sites such as Createspace and Lulu offer writers the option of self publishing at a fee, and there a various independent publishing houses and network sites, which offer to pay writers for their stories and post them online; whether it be a prize as part of a competition or a submission/royalty payment. No fiction blog I’ve seen has actually made money per post on their own site. If one has, I’d love to hear about it.
I do hope blog fiction flourishes and more writers allow themselves to experience the option. The more out there, the better blog fiction will become as a reputed platform and not seen with the stigma of being a “desperate” or “last” option.
Actually, I’ve stumbled across quite a few quality fiction blogs with stories better than those in book stores. Clarity of night holds an all-you-can-eat banquet and the Mexican Year is consistently compelling (it should really add a “s” on the end of “years” as it has been going for a few now). There are new tales worthy of a look such as Refuge of Delayed Souls.
I suppose it comes down to what readers are willing to pay for and what they want to get at the moment and for free, and the exposure of blog fiction. It would be good if there was a dedicated search engine for it.
I watched an amazing movie today, produced right out of Hollywood. It was James Cameron’s Avatar. I know, a lot of you may think it’s just another billion dollar campaign and a way to show off to the world how fancy our technology has come.
You know, it also had some really good underlining elements there too. Something we can conscientiously take away with us for the better. Not like the over priced popcorn and sugary coke sipped from a non-eco friendly cup (I boycotted the gimmicky cups and choose sneak in my own cordial instead.) Still…
Back to the point.
As I watched the main character change from a man of war into a man of life, I also realised the resemblance of the “real” world around us.
Don’t we take for granted our every day technology? We wake up to the chimes of alarm clocks (either via dedicated units on our bed tables or a pre-programmed ringtone on our phones). Perhaps boil our electric kettles and make ourselves a cup of coffee (a product most of us have no idea how it’s made, only that it comes in a vaccum sealed jar). Then we gather our gadgets: phones, watches, laptops, pda’s etc., and go about our day. When we come home, we might watch a bit of television before calling it a night.
Through out the entire 24 hours, I reckon the average person is constantly surrounded by some mechanical device and, more than likely, dependent on it. Whilst it’s not necessarily a bad thing. If over one billion people are constantly reliant on energy drawn from earth resources, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That’s a lot of consumption. I believe, we are placing more and more stress on our planet for every second a person breathes on this earth. Each time a device is created, I believe, a piece of our Mother Earth dies. Whether it be a tree felled or an animal forced out of its bull-dozed home only to find its life end underneath the wheels of a speeding truck and a truck driver with only one focus in his/her mind; determination to met a deadline.
Each conscience decision we make is deciding the fate of the earth we truly depend on. And I honestly believe we have forgotten what ground we stand on. We have grown into a society where everything is made to make things “easier” but not necessarily better. War (aka blowing up landmarks, napalming nature for a sake of enemy targets) is a necessary evil to bring greater peace?
Of course, people are aware we need to change. Thank God there are groups who are making significant impacts to the leaders of our nation. Thank God for groups such as Greenpeace.
Still… In my native culture, I was taught one basic principle; what is taken from the earth – you return to the earth. There was a sense of respect for all things natural and the way we existed as a community. Nothing was taken beyond necessity and technology couldn’t be further from the minds our my elders. Of course, I was soon raised in the Western World and learned to appreciate the values of technology. I even became a support technician for IT. Talk about disrespecting my nature loving roots.
Now, there is a gradual change in the way we live our life with water restrictions and promotion of green energy. I still believe we have yet to take a conscience change in the way we value our world. Yes, the thinking is almost there but we still hold values toward technology. I think it’s going to take a ton of work to change, and definately something that will take years to do.
I remember a phrase one of my high school social science teachers had said, ” The Western World is so determined to advance the human race with technology, they are slowly forgetting how to be human.” She went on to joke that most humans would probably end up as androids by 2012 and the world resemble something out of an apocolyptic novel. Honestly, she might not be far from the truth.
In my honest observation, I see technology slowly destroying us. I take one look at the mess of cables behind my computer and I think of the tangled mess we have made in some places of our world. Iraq. Need I say more?
As I watched the magical world of Pandora, James Cameron had presented before us with Avatar. I could almost imagine such a world once existed on our earth. We may never see our earth as magical ever again? Can we change our conscience and way of living enough to see what beauty it has left?
Possibly.
