It’s May, and feeling pretty summery over here! Of course, the moment I post this, it’ll probably start raining again – but that’s just British weather and Sod’s law for you.
Actually, it’s been May for a while now, and that means I’m rather late posting this. The thing is, up until this week, I’ve had a rather boring month as far as things to talk about. I’ve been doing stuff, hanging out with friends, drawing, tidying the house, planning decorating projects, but nothing major to report.
The only really exciting thing is on the pyrography front. I’ve spent a good part of the last month or two collecting odd bits of wood to burn on. From wooden spoons, to raw chunks of tree, I’ve amassed quite a selection of pieces with potential. Hopefully you’ll start to see a few more interesting things popping up here, since I’m still well and truly bitten by this pyrography bug.
Still, hold onto your seats, because this month is just getting exciting.
theWrittenRevolution’s Fiction Critique Workshop: Week 3 is in full flow, and it’s been really great stuff so far. akrasiel has been the most amazing host any such event could wish for!
Speaking of critique, CRLiterature have a critique chat scheduled for this weekend – click here to vote in the poll to choose between Friday or Saturday. I hope to see some of you there! (Looks likely this will be on Saturday, 3pm PST – that’s 10pm for me in GMT)
EDIT: the time has been confirmed, see you Saturday!
<da:thumb id="681371162"/>
Did I mention that critique is a wonderful thing? WriteRoomies are going to be hosting a critique circle in June, and need more participants! Go on, you know you want to! June Critique Circle
What else? Oh yes – about a month ago, I was sitting in a hotel by the river Thames, in a hailstorm, trying to connect to some form of internet in order to post a story I called To Catch a Star . Fortunately, I managed to find a little slice of internet, since that story placed second in theWrittenRevolution’s tWR's Fairytale Contest!
Here’s the other entries that placed, with many congratulations in order for Dakoa in first place, and VKA3 and OneWithTheStars in joint third place!
Finally, I’ve just got to direct your attention to this particular stunning example of what the literature community can produce when we work together, directed by the wonderful BeccaJS. I bring you, the one, the only: Exquisite Corpse 2017!
That’s it for news for this month, and plenty of good stuff to catch up on or prepare for in the next few weeks. Now, before we get on to this month’s random article, I’d like to dedicate a bit of space to a couple of people who deserve some more of your love!
As well as very kindly topping up my core membership about a month ago, Zara-Arletis has recently started posting a new story. If you like historical settings with a spooky twist, then you can check out A Cursed Town below. She also runs regular literature critique chats through theWrittenRevolution, and is an all round wonderful member of our little lit community!
Jacobite1 is one of the first people I remember really connecting with way back when I first joined DeviantArt. Since then, we’ve both had our absences – some longer than others – but Jacobite1 is now back, and working on both his stories again!
If you want a bit of 18th century Scotland tangled up with folklore and fairy stories, then check out The Low Road; if you’d prefer something a little more modern with some sci-fi elements, then A Small Place in the Sun is for you.
Well, first off, I’ve got to apologise for my lack of a tie-in here. The ISS may not seem an entirely topical subject, but recently a few of my colleagues have been trying to photograph this unusual satellite. This drove me to realise how little I actually know about the ISS, and so I’ve been doing a bit of research. Feel free to share any of cool facts of your own!
So, the ISS was apparently launched into orbit in 1998, and has been up there ever since. Of course, what was launched in 1998 wasn’t anything like what’s up there now – it’s been built up, piece by piece, from parts shipped up there like a monthly subscription to a lego magazine.
It’s crewed by six people, who have a habitable space of approximately 388 cubic meters – which (even more approximately) seems to be roughly equitable to a medium sized passenger plane. That’s my approximation, based on other approximations for other sized spaces, and could be totally wrong! Of course, the property comes with a very spacious garden, but the commute might be a bit of a challenge.
As the name suggests, it’s international – and that means everything; the crew, the modules, the ground control, and the supply vessels. The research carried out up there covers an equally diverse spectrum of topics, even as far as swapping plants with some schools back on earth to see what we might be able to grow in space. There’s far more going on than I have space for here, so I’ll just leave you with a few of my favourite links:
Plants in space
3D Printing in Zero-G
Fire!
Unfortunately the colleague I mentioned earlier isn’t on dA, but here’s a few other people’s attempts.
Finally, for those wanting to try their hand at getting their own photographs, here’s just one of several ‘ISS Trackers’ to find out when it’ll next be visible for you: ISS Tracker</b>
Actually, it’s been May for a while now, and that means I’m rather late posting this. The thing is, up until this week, I’ve had a rather boring month as far as things to talk about. I’ve been doing stuff, hanging out with friends, drawing, tidying the house, planning decorating projects, but nothing major to report.
The only really exciting thing is on the pyrography front. I’ve spent a good part of the last month or two collecting odd bits of wood to burn on. From wooden spoons, to raw chunks of tree, I’ve amassed quite a selection of pieces with potential. Hopefully you’ll start to see a few more interesting things popping up here, since I’m still well and truly bitten by this pyrography bug.
Still, hold onto your seats, because this month is just getting exciting.
theWrittenRevolution’s Fiction Critique Workshop: Week 3 is in full flow, and it’s been really great stuff so far. akrasiel has been the most amazing host any such event could wish for! Speaking of critique, CRLiterature have a critique chat scheduled for this weekend – click here to vote in the poll to choose between Friday or Saturday. I hope to see some of you there! (Looks likely this will be on Saturday, 3pm PST – that’s 10pm for me in GMT)EDIT: the time has been confirmed, see you Saturday!
<da:thumb id="681371162"/>
Did I mention that critique is a wonderful thing? WriteRoomies are going to be hosting a critique circle in June, and need more participants! Go on, you know you want to! June Critique Circle What else? Oh yes – about a month ago, I was sitting in a hotel by the river Thames, in a hailstorm, trying to connect to some form of internet in order to post a story I called To Catch a Star . Fortunately, I managed to find a little slice of internet, since that story placed second in theWrittenRevolution’s tWR's Fairytale Contest!Here’s the other entries that placed, with many congratulations in order for Dakoa in first place, and VKA3 and OneWithTheStars in joint third place!
Faith
The Bridgekeeper sat and waited, his feet pulled up under him, a blanket draped over his knees to help ward off the chilly mountain air. Across his lap lay a long knobbly staff, upon which he rested his wrinkled knuckles, the palms of his hands turned up as if in supplication. His eyes were closed, his breathing steady, and his aged heart beat almost coyly in his chest, his pulse inconceivably slow.
The pose was one he’d adopted for decades, identical to that of his predecessor, and each that had come before. The groove he nestled into, the concave bowl of smooth rock, was testament to the diligent service of his kind, the scraping robes of countless Bridgekeepers shaping the mountain itself as they manned their post, their long-kept seat a pinnacle perched beside a gaping chasm.
From where he sat his view spanned the great forest spread out below, the rolling woodland laid out like a thick carpet of rich green and dusky brown, interspersed sporadically by lakes, meadows, and out
The Dragons EggFinrod was a blacksmith's son and that is true
He wasn't a strong man that much he knew
He knew that he didn't have a smith's strength
And he very much preferred writing in ink
His father was very disappointed in him
He was very sad that his son had weak limbs
His father was mournful that he was so weak
How he became infirm was not so unique
He was weak of body but sound of mind
He was gentle as can be and very kind
He had learned a couple of simple spells
He wanted to make his spell-list swell
His father did banish him for being infirm
He was out on his own and what did he learn
A few little spells to clean the hearth
He thought how little they were worth
He was on the road and he wrenched his leg
He had unfortunately tripped over a dragon's egg
He took the poor egg and headed for cover
For he knew the dragon egg was stolen by another
Soon the dragon egg thieves were looking for it
He vowed to save the egg he would never submit
They traveled up a
Where the Heart Lies Not so long ago, there lived a man of unremarkable birth. He never viewed himself as handsome or particularly outgoing; he let the ways of society pass him by while he pursued his passions—knowledge and creativity. Hard-working and carving out a life of sufficient financial means, he enjoyed the little things in life that most people took for granted—blue skies, thunderstorms that turned into rainbows, evenings spent in the country stargazing at the field of lights blanketing the night sky—the conventional enjoyments never really brought him much pleasure.
His uniqueness earned him few friends, but they were close ones, usually sharing in the same things he enjoyed, whether it was working alongside fellow coworkers during their research into quantum physics or “jam sessions” with other creative and intellectual types, appreciating various arts or pursuits of knowledge for the pure excitement of it.
Finally, I’ve just got to direct your attention to this particular stunning example of what the literature community can produce when we work together, directed by the wonderful BeccaJS. I bring you, the one, the only: Exquisite Corpse 2017!
Features
That’s it for news for this month, and plenty of good stuff to catch up on or prepare for in the next few weeks. Now, before we get on to this month’s random article, I’d like to dedicate a bit of space to a couple of people who deserve some more of your love!
As well as very kindly topping up my core membership about a month ago, Zara-Arletis has recently started posting a new story. If you like historical settings with a spooky twist, then you can check out A Cursed Town below. She also runs regular literature critique chats through theWrittenRevolution, and is an all round wonderful member of our little lit community!
A Cursed Town Ch. 1A Secrets of Marfath Story
"While I am reluctant to send you to this cursed town, there are few other options. No matter what may come, keep faith burning in your heart. Like a fire, it will keep the beasts at bay."
The carriage shook with every stone and dip in the road, making the words on the page jump. Josef barely noticed, his attention riveted on the last lines of the letter as he read them once more. What had the old priest meant? Surely the town wasn't cursed. It was just remote; a small town full of uneducated, small minded people. Father Josef had been to many places like that.
Villages on the dark continent where haggard women danced naked in the moonlight, trying to work their will against neighbors. Hamlets in icy mountain ranges where people hung garlic above their door to ward off the dead. City districts where the forgotten poor made idols of their most wicked denizens and worshipped them in foul rites beneath city s
Little Sisters Are StrangePart One
Alan was a Perfectly Normal Boy. He made just the right amount of mess, and was just the right amount of rowdy. His grades were all exactly where they should be, none too high nor low. Mother said he was the spitting image of his father, and Father said he looked just like mum. All in all, he had a perfectly normal life with just one, small exception. His sister Essie, or Messy Essie as mum liked to say.
Essie had brown hair, a color neither parent sported with their blonde locks. It was straight too. Wet or dry, her hair hung just so and wouldn't budge no matter how mum tried to curl it. His sister's eyes were dark, almost black, and always brimming with mischief. Nothing like Alan's own gentle shade of common brown.
Worse, no matter where Essie went, she was into something. Poking this, messing about with that. If it could be spilt or broke, Messy Essie did it. At school, she got all U's. Unsatisfactory, except in art where the teacher loved her pict
Jacobite1 is one of the first people I remember really connecting with way back when I first joined DeviantArt. Since then, we’ve both had our absences – some longer than others – but Jacobite1 is now back, and working on both his stories again!
If you want a bit of 18th century Scotland tangled up with folklore and fairy stories, then check out The Low Road; if you’d prefer something a little more modern with some sci-fi elements, then A Small Place in the Sun is for you.
The Low Road Second edition Chapter 1 Part 1 The Low Road
By Brian Crabtree
Chapter One
Looking back through the Mists
It was cold, the morning sun was hidden behind gray clouds. Just a thin light shone out here and there from several small breaks in the clouds to brighten small patches of the mist that swirled above the moor. Brian Crawford had been one of the last to return from the night ma
The original opening to A Small Place in the Sun
A small place in the Sun
Chapter one.
Mr. Lucky
George Grant sighed as he sat in his command chair in the pilot house of his ship, the Antelope. He idly scanned the various screens in front of him. His GPS, the two radar screens, and then checked the instruments reading out the engine temperature, the oil, and the fuel levels. It was late into his night shift , and he was alone. He wasn't tired, just lonely up there looking out into the darkness of the night on a fairly calm sea. Four hours on and eight hours off. He envied his four companions, at least they took their watches in pairs of two. Still, it was quiet and he could think about what was awaiting them at the end of this strange voyage. “Strange is putting it mildly.” He said aloud to himself as the thought struck him. He shook his head, took another sip of the now cold coffee in his cup and starte
International Spaaace Station
Well, first off, I’ve got to apologise for my lack of a tie-in here. The ISS may not seem an entirely topical subject, but recently a few of my colleagues have been trying to photograph this unusual satellite. This drove me to realise how little I actually know about the ISS, and so I’ve been doing a bit of research. Feel free to share any of cool facts of your own!
So, the ISS was apparently launched into orbit in 1998, and has been up there ever since. Of course, what was launched in 1998 wasn’t anything like what’s up there now – it’s been built up, piece by piece, from parts shipped up there like a monthly subscription to a lego magazine.
It’s crewed by six people, who have a habitable space of approximately 388 cubic meters – which (even more approximately) seems to be roughly equitable to a medium sized passenger plane. That’s my approximation, based on other approximations for other sized spaces, and could be totally wrong! Of course, the property comes with a very spacious garden, but the commute might be a bit of a challenge.
As the name suggests, it’s international – and that means everything; the crew, the modules, the ground control, and the supply vessels. The research carried out up there covers an equally diverse spectrum of topics, even as far as swapping plants with some schools back on earth to see what we might be able to grow in space. There’s far more going on than I have space for here, so I’ll just leave you with a few of my favourite links:
Plants in space 3D Printing in Zero-G Fire!Unfortunately the colleague I mentioned earlier isn’t on dA, but here’s a few other people’s attempts.
<da:thumb id="618071386"/>
Finally, for those wanting to try their hand at getting their own photographs, here’s just one of several ‘ISS Trackers’ to find out when it’ll next be visible for you: ISS Tracker</b>
