Five for Friday #9: Dusking, comic craft and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe
Five things I loved and think you might, too!
Hello there!
I've had another week on the novel this week, taking me to 83,000 words. Slowly inching towards that goal of 100k!
I did manage some downtime, with a couple of local trips out which I blogged about — first to a stunning presentation of Lee Pullen’s astrophotography at Bristol Museum, and then to a fun event at Avon Valley Railway where they were commemorating the station's 1966 closure as part of the infamous Beeching Axe.
I also had fun setting the Early Bird quiz for Joe Sims’ Radio Bristol Breakfast Show. Every weekday, Joe reads out lyrics for a song and listeners guess the title and artist, plus the theme that links all five! I came up with the clues this week – taking me back to my days editing the BBC's Mindgames magazine.
If you fancy a play, you can find the clues here!
But for now, it's on with Friday's recommendations...
- NATURE: “All you need is a chair and a view. It’s cheap, easy and a nice thought exercise – we live on a planet, miracles are happening every day and we can witness them.” I found the idea of dusking — an old Dutch ritual of going outside to watch the coming of night — so appealing. I'm very tempted to give it a go.
- ART: Here’s a slice of joy I recently discovered on the NYT website — the ten-minute art challenge. Can you spend ten minutes doing nothing but looking at a famous work of art? And I mean really looking!
The picture that caught my attention was Gustav Klimt’s Woman in Gold, a painting I thought I knew but had never really spent any time with. Taking the challenge, I noticed all those eyes on her dress for the first time – which gave me an idea for a character! As always, art inspires art! Give it a go! - PODCAST: This was a feel-good listen I stumbled upon this week - the sweet story of a WWII evacuee who would go on to become the inspiration for one of the children in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.
- COMICS: It’s always inspiring watching a master at work, which definitely describes Mark Morales who inked much of my run on Marvel’s Star Wars: The High Republic.
Watch this video to see him in action! - WRITING: “We all run our own race.” Some absolute gems in this piece on comparing yourself to other writers by Tom Vaughn.
I especially like the prompt to define what success looks like for you, and you alone!
Let me know if any of those catch your eye — or reply in the comments with something I should be reading, watching, or listening to next. You can also just hit reply to the email.
OK, back to work I go – although I have an exciting afternoon today when I get to hang out with one of the original High Republic story architects here in Bristol!
Until next time, look after yourself and each other!
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