Blog moved

Just a brief note to say this blog will no longer be updated here. I've moved all the posts over to my website where I will continue to post at random intervals. The new blog is at http://www.nielbushnell.com/newsblog/. Thanks.

John Christopher emails

A couple of weeks ago I posted about the passing of children's author Sam Youd, AKA John Christopher. I'd emailed Sam back in 2002, we'd chatted for a while and he had agreed to sign two of his books for me. You can read the original blog post here.

I'd thought our emails had been lost forever, but just after I published the blog post Sam's daughter, Rose got in touch. She'd searched through her father's computer and found our correspondence there, filed away for a decade. Rose forwarded the emails to me and has agreed for me to publish them here, for which I am very grateful.

Its a fascinating insight into the later years of a mature and successful writer. Even with a list of best selling novels under various pseudonyms his frustrations at certain aspects of his career are evident. I started by asking him why so many of his books were now out of print.

I'm afraid you need to address your question to the publishers! Currently I have nothing in print in the UK, just the Tripods series in the US, but something like ten titles in Farsi. Unfortunately Iran does not recognize international copyright, but I did have some visitors recently from Tehran who brought me a carpet, several enamelled boxes, and a load of pistachio nuts (which two of my daughters took back to Bath to feed their pampered local badgers). I suppose things may change if Disney actually make their projected multi-movie epic based on the Tripods: my American publisher is bringing out a special 35th anniversary edition in hope of that. I'd like to use it to get some others back into print -- notably the Sword (Prince in Waiting) trilogy, which were my personal favourites. Might even get Death of Grass back in print, nearly fifty years on.

And somewhat surprisingly, I have a new (adult) title coming out next year. When I say new, I wrote it about six years ago and have only now found a publisher. He approached me in recollection of a book his father gave him as a boy, which he's now handed on to his son. Title was Malleson at Melbourne, under another pen-name, a fictionalized account of an Australian Test tour. Life is odd at times. (The new one is not about cricket, I should say, but a near-future speculation on Virtual Reality and our European destiny)

A decade on and the proposed Tripod feature films have yet to be made. The last mention seems to be in 2009, when Alex Proyas signed on to develop it. [Source: Digital Spy]
The Death of Grass did make it back into print and is now available widely, but few of Sam's other books are in general circulation in the UK today.
The virtual reality book Sam mentions was called Bad Dream, published in 2003.


Talk of Disney's Tripod's deal raised the ghost of the expensive mid-eighties BBC adaptation of the Tripods. Famously the BBC made only two series, adapting the first two books of the trilogy. The third was never made, leaving fans to speculate as to why it had not returned.

The BBC eventually decided they would like to complete their series, but by that time Disney had taken over and of course they take everything, throughout the known and alternate universes, over a time period stretching from before the Big Bang until after Entropic Death. Whether they will ever make the movie (or movies -- they talked about it as "our Lord of the Rings" at one time -- is more doubtful.  I have a feeling they've stalled on the very expensive screenplay they commissioned from Terry Hayes.

But who knows?  Maybe they will;  and maybe it will even be a good movie.

Other TV adaptions of Sam's work did see the light of day in Germany.

Empty World did reach the small screen once. A German company, Bavaria (Das Boot) did a 6-part TV serial of The Guardians and followed with a 90-minute teleplay of Empty World. Both in German. A German girl wrote to me saying they'd done the book in school, and she was shocked by the "kitsch-horror" Bavaria came up with. I asked to see the video, but they refused. Das ist das Leben.

[There are] no Prince in Waiting adaptations. I was told a few years back that some anonymous but famous star had a project in mind, but he presumably changed it; or couldn't raise the money -- a perpetual problem. The notion I did like goes back about twenty years when a musician who had read the books as a boy told me he'd like to write an opera trilogy, based on them. I told him I'd reserve operatic rights, but it never came into question. About a year ago there was an American who wanted to make a movie based on Lotus Caves. He seemed to have interesting ideas, but my (NY, NY) agent blew him out of the water. He lived in Plains View, NY, and my agent said that ruled him out as a serious contender: he'd grown up there.

I asked Sam about his working practices. Did he work on a computer? Had he consigned his typewriter to history, or was he a pen-and-paper man?

I've used PC since 1984 (first one, Olivetti, had no floppy and all of 10 MB memory) -- used to use a typewriter. Even when young my own handwriting defeated me.

I asked him how he felt about the internet - after all here we were happily exchanging emails. He seemed to have taken to a relatively new technology in his 70's. Did he have any plans for a larger presence on the web, an author's website perhaps?

Several decades ago it used to be said that the rare Edward Heath books were the unsigned ones. Since then things have escalated and not for the better. I had a publisher here a few months ago and we talked about a book called Spike Island, the history of a military hospital (where my parents probably met), near Southampton (where she was born). A few weeks later she sent me a copy, having retained other copies for herself and her brother. All signed. When I think of the sweat the poor sod of a writer put into that signing... only to have maybe hundreds of signed copies piled up awaiting remaindering...

It's getting the same with websites. OK if you're Nelson de Mille or Arthur Clarke, but otherwise verging on the feebly pretentious: photos of the writer's dog/cat, lunatic CVs, favourite recipes ..... Altogether a bit squirm-making. Indeed I've always had some difficulty with "interviews", which invariably wind up embarrassing me -- though I do succumb from time to time, God help me. And there is another negative point. A few years ago a chap called Terry Jenkins did me a website -- the John Christopher Cavern -- which was unauthorized (though to be fair to him not actually disapproved). He spent a lot of time and effort on this -- scanned in jackets of dozens of books, and stuff. Last year he understandably got bored or fed up with poor response, and dropped it. That was fine by me, especially since I hadn't sanctioned it in the first place. But while appreciating the favour I'm not inclined to encourage someone else to do the same, incurring mutual embarrassment when the same result ensued.

Finally I asked if he still had a passion for science-fiction, and was he working on anything at the moment?

I used to enjoy SF, but that's a long way back. It's changed a great deal since Gernsback and John W.C.

No, I'm not working on anything at the moment.

So our brief conversation drew to a close. Sam dutifully signed and returned the books, which I cherish to this day. Its sad to see Sam's published work in decline over the last decade, and its a sobering reminder that even the most popular writers can fall off the public radar in later years. How a writer deals with a shrinking readership is probably an even greater challenge than getting published in the first place.
  

Dare to Page Jump!

Page Jump!

I've never been an adrenaline junky.  I like the ground under my feet and the sky above me.

Years ago, when I had the opportunity to do a bungee jump I considered it for about three seconds, then decided it wasn't for me. The thought of two weeks of anxiety in the run up to doing the jump followed by sixty seconds of euphoric relief didn't seem to add up. Why? Because I could imagine how what it might be like, hear the rush of wind through my ears, feel the uncomfortable build up of pressure behind my eyes.

Yes, the actual event wouldn't be quite the same as I imagined it, but anyone who writes, or draws, or does something creative will have one thing in common - a fertile imagination. So I could also imagine my feet ripping from my ankle sockets, the rope snapping and my skull compressing into the soft matter that was once my brain as I hit the ground below me.

Too many variables, too much imagination. Or maybe you'd call it cowardice. Either way it means I'm not the sort who seeks out thrills, puts my body in harms way to get the blood pumping through it.

But that's not entirely true. My brain does seek those thrills, especially when I'm writing. I've noticed a growing obsession, a self-destructive streak in my storytelling that I've called 'Page Jumping'.

The first time it happened I had two characters from my début novel, Sorrowline, trapped in a room at the top of a hotel. My original plan was that they would sneak out of an unlocked door and make good their escape. But as I started writing it down the door became locked! Then the characters barricaded the door and set fire to the room. What were my characters doing? What was I doing? There was no way out, not that I could see, not that I had planned. I'd page jumped. I'd thrown myself off the edge of my planned narrative and didn't know what I was going to do next - didn't know where or how I'd land.

I could have deleted the few pages of chaos, gone back to my plan, but I chose to run with it and see if a parachute would open. During the night my sub-concious (who I believe knows exactly what he's doing, and likes to mess with me) offered up a solution that had been foreshadowed a few chapters earlier. Spookily it all fitted into place. My narrative parachute had opened, but not before everyone, including me, had bricked themselves wondering what was going to happen next. And if the writer doesn't know how to get out of a situation there's a good chance the reader won't see it coming either.

And its not just me that seeks the creative thrills of page jumping. Tony Jordan, creator of Hustle and co-creator of Life on Mars, discusses this very point:

The more I've page jumped the more addicted to it I've become. Its not always worked out, but in most cases its added an unexpected richness to my work. Its not for the faint hearted or the obsessive planners, but if you've not tried it yet - go for it! Page jump!

Sam Youd AKA John Christopher (16 April 1922 – 3 February 2012)

I have only just heard of the death of author, Sam Youd, known to most as John Christopher. He passed away on February 3rd.

When I was a brand new teenager John Christopher's books were the hot ticket in the school library. His mix of future dystopia, science fiction and boys own adventure made his books required reading. He's best known for his Tripods Trilogy, which was made into an ambitious but incomplete BBC sci-fi series. But he produced a great number of books on a wide range of subjects, including the Lotus Caves, about two young boys mischievous adventures on the moon, and the Prince in Waiting Trilogy (also know as The Sword of the Spirits Trilogy), a brilliant mix of post-apocalyptic sci-fi and Arthurian Medieval sword play. This trilogy is less well known, but is as least as good as his Tripod books. And those covers! Yes, they're very 70's, but they're so evocative! They just begged to be read.

Towards the end of 2002 I discovered Sam's email address on a web forum. Don't ask me how it got there - I think he might have posted on the forum at some point in response to a reader's question. I decided to throw caution to the wind and email him. I wanted to tell him how much I enjoyed his books as a child, and had re-read many of them as an adult and found them equally enjoyable.

To my surprise and delight Sam replied, and we began a brief email dialogue. I found him to be very open and engaging. We talked about how so many of his books were now out of print, and he told me that some illegal foreign prints still surfaced from time to time, for which he received no royalties. He once received an expensive Persian rug from a foreign publisher of one of his titles in compensation!

I really wish I still had those emails but they are lost on a dead hard drive somewhere in silicone heaven.

Towards the end of our email dialogue I asked if he would mind signing a couple of his books for me. He agreed, even giving me, a complete stranger, his home address so that I could post my books to him. I sent him The Prince in Waiting Trilogy and a stand-alone novel called Empty World.

Empty World has to be one of the bleakest children's novels I have ever read, and it has stayed with me for almost 30 years. Its a story about a plague, an ageing virus that affects adults, killing them in days. Then the virus mutates and children are affected as well, ageing rapidly, leaving only a few rare survivors - all of them children. The story is told from the point of view of Neil (you can see its appeal to me immediately), a boy who has already suffered tragedy in his life: his family were killed in a car accident. Neil soon finds himself in an empty world, wondering why he isn't dead as well. The novel doesn't shy away from the consequences its premise, touching on suicide, domestic violence and consumerism. And there is no real happy ending, no neat conclusion to Neil's story. Empty World was first published in 1977, but its story is as relevant today as it was when I was a child. Its the sort of book that should still be in print, and I hope one day it will find its audience again. 

So, I posted my two books off to Sam, and just over a week later they were returned to me, signed.
The Prince in Waiting Trilogy reads: Niel - Always happy to sign the Swords Trilogy, my own favourites - John Christopher.
Empty Word reads: Niel - I wrote this in Winchester, in the first months of a very happy marriage. John Christopher (Sam)

I was very grateful to Sam for his generosity and his time, especially for a gentleman in this late 70's, at that time. He has been an inspiration to my own work, and his books have brought pleasure to countless others. My thoughts and wishes go to his family.



If, like me, you're a fan of Stephen Lavis's beautiful paintings on the Prince in Waiting books you can see some of his covers here: http://cloud-109.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/narnia-covers-of-steve-lavis.html
And here: http://cloud-109.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/more-of-fantastical-art-of-steve-lavis.html

Pre-Order listing

 Sorrowline pre-order on Amazon.co.ukToday I discovered my debut novel, Sorrowline, listed on Amazon's UK site, thanks to a nod from Curtis Jobling. It's really exciting to see it 'out there' for pre-order.

This is quite a surreal moment in my adventure to eventual publication, all the more strange as I'm still editing the final manuscript, and the book cover is only in the very early design stages. And yet, if you really want to, you can place an order for the book now, a full nine months before its official publication date - which appears to be the 3rd of January.

So, like many other excitable authors before me, I hit the purchase button! Yes, it makes no sense. I'll get some complimentary copies eventually, but it was something I just had to do. And when the wintery day comes that I see a physical copy in a bookstore I'll do exactly the same again and walk out of the shop a very happy man, like a slightly younger, less successful version of this well known writer:

"My name? Yes, its N M Bushnell."

Getting Published - part 1

So, I promised I'd do some blog posts about how I got published. Well, ok, but this could take a while.

I've always wanted to write a novel. I think everyone does. Its one of those things that, if we just had the time, if we could just focus, we could get that brilliant idea down and get it done. That's how it was for me.

I'd tried a few times before, only ever getting as far as 30 pages before self-doubt caught up with me. I couldn't write a novel and it was silly of me to think I could. I had a grade B 'O' Level in English, and a CSE grade 1 in English Literature. I'd never been to University, I didn't know any authors and there was no way I could ever hope to be one.

But the dream persisted.

For years I did nothing about it, but gradually I started to write more and more. At first it was TV and radio scripts: the length was less daunting, only 30 pages for a half hour script. I could manage that, just about. Doing a few of those gave me confidence, and I hammered out a couple of 60 minute scripts for TV pilots that no one has yet to pick up. But the lack of success didn't seem to matter, I was enjoying learning, trying to get better.

But I still thought I'd never manage to focus on writing a book. I decided I needed help, and I turned to Stephen King. At this stage I'd never even read one of his books, (I know!). When I grew up I was into comics and heavy sci-fi. Horror didn't really appear on my radar. But for whatever reason I picked up a copy of his book, 'On Writing'. I took it on holiday with me to Scotland and devoured its contents.

Suddenly I saw what I was doing wrong, I understood why every attempt to write a book had stalled and died. It came down to one fundamental secret that King understood: fear and self-doubt dog us all, writers even more so. Once you've started a book you cannot look back for a moment or the Devil of Doubt will catch up with you and whisper thoughts of despair into your ears.

King taught me this: write every day, read every day. Like the best scientific formula its elegantly simple.

I came back from the Highlands fired up, determined to try again. I committed to writing every day, and reading every day, and I swore I would not look over my shoulder at my work-in-progress. I would keep ahead of the devil.

The next day I began to write up an idea I'd started about 6 months before. As usual I'd done a few brief chapters and lost my way. I took this germ of the idea and started again.

To be continued...

Announcing Sorrowline

Finally, after a busy, brief few months that have felt like an eternity I can finally shout about my brilliant two book deal with Andersen Press. Here is the press release:

Andersen Press Have Bought Rights In Two Children's Novels, Sorrowline And Timesmith, By Debut Writer Niel Bushnell

Andersen Press have bought rights in two children's novels, SORROWLINE and TIMESMITH, by debut writer Niel Bushnell. Both are about Jack Morrow, a boy who discovers that he can time travel through the 'sorrowlines' - lines that connect every grave to the day of that person's death.Editorial director Charlie Sheppard bought UK & Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) from Juliet Mushens at Peters Fraser & Dunlop.
Charlie Sheppard said, 'I'm thrilled to be publishing these books. I haven't read anything so original in quite some time and Niel is a great addition to the growing Andersen Fiction list.'
Juliet Mushens said, 'The books are incredibly atmospheric and exciting - Niel Bushnell is a brilliant new writer and SORROWLINE is just the start of a great career.'
German language rights have already sold to Heyne in a two-book pre-empt.
Andersen Press plan to publish SORROWLINE in 2013.

And here is a little bit of blurb:

The past is not a frozen place. Graveyards are not dead ends. And if the Sorrowline lets you in there is a hidden world of adventure waiting behind every gravestone.  

Just when 12-year-old Jack Morrow’s life is falling apart he discovers his natural ability to travel through Sorrowlines: channels that connect every gravestone with the date of the person’s death.  Confused and alone Jack finds himself in 1940. He embarks on an adventure through London during the Blitz with Davy, his teenage grandfather, to find a mystical Rose that might just save his mother’s life, a mother who he has already seen die. But the terrible power of the Rose of Annwn, is sought by many, and the forces of a secret world are determined to find it first. With a league of Undead Knights of his trail, commanded by the immortal Rouland, can Jack decipher the dark secret hidden at the heart of his family? Can he change his own destiny and save his mother?  

Prophecy and history collide in this epic new children’s fantasy adventure series.

Its great to finally see this out there. Sorrowline is no longer something that exists just inside my shinny head. Soon it will be on someones bookshelf, (at least that's the hope. I have visions of an Alan Partridge style visit to the pulpers.)

I'll be back shortly with more updates - and a bit more on the process that got me from the slush pile to publication.

Life on the Farm

A long time ago I created a comic strip with Gordon Fraser about talking animals and the Farm that time forgot.

Gordon and I had met at school and soon became firm friends. During College we went everywhere together and when the real world beckoned we stepped into it together. We both harboured dreams of a life as comic artists and we collaborated on several projects. The one that has endured over the intervening years is a comic strip, originally called The Funny Farm, now known as Farmageddon.


Farmageddon ran for two years in our home town newspaper, appearing six times a week. When a new Editor came on board and didn't find the strip to his taste Farmageddon came to an abrupt end. But, over the years, we've never been able to completely stay away from the old Farm. I've dabbled in animated versions of the characters and now the original strips are getting a regular dusting down and a digital reprint courtesy of the Birmingham Mail's website.

It’s great to see the old strips again, after so long. I've redone the lettering and, with the help of Editor Paul Birch, corrected the spelling and grammar mistakes, (there were many).

Paul is overseeing the strips weekly return, and the hope is that once it has completed its run we'll collect the cleaned up strips into book form. But that’s something for another day - there are still a lot of strips waiting to be seen.

You can follow the weekly exploits of Tom, Rufus, Bernie, Dalton and Cool Bob on the Birmingham Mail's website here: http://blogs.birminghammail.net/speechballoon/

And Farmageddon has its own website and blog here: http://www.farmageddon.tv/

How the Multiplex is killing Cinema

I love the cinema. Don't we all?

I remember the excitement of going there as a child, sitting in the darkness, watching the swirling cigarette smoke create shafts of dancing light in the projector beam, the red dots of fire as a match was lit, the boiled sweets being thrown from the balcony, the torn and broken seats, the snogging couple, the usherette, the interval!

Oh yeah, and the film.

Going to the cinema was always an event. Something to look forward to. Something special. In some ways the film itself was irrelevant, it was more about the anticipation, the wonder at seeing something new. But of course I saw some amazing films there. Star Wars came to town when I was seven and expanded my tiny world like a celluloid fueled big bang.

I remember queuing to see Grease, buying a program for Moonraker, (still my favourite Bond film because of the heady nostalgia it provokes), and taking my friends to see Mission Galactica: The Cylon Attack on my birthday.

Then the 1980's came along and the last cinema in my home town closed its doors forever. I grew up with two cinemas to choose from, the Odeon or the Fairworld. I am reliably told that thirty years earlier the town sustained over a dozen cinemas. Hard to imagine.

When the cinema closed I missed out on a whole slew of 80's classics, only discovering them years later on VHS. Raiders of the Lost Arc, Back to the Future, ET, all missed.

So when, in the late 1990's a multiplex opened its shinny plastic doors right on my doorstep it was a day of giddy rejoicing.

But its not what we were promised, is it? We have less choice than ever, and I'm tired of recounting my too-numerous anecdotes about incorrect aspect ratios, missing sound, or spools in the wrong order. I've bored myself with how many times I've had to walk back to the popcorn drenched foyer and tell someone to fix their film!

So this summer I gave up and started driving miles away to go to a slightly less bad cinema chain. They at least project their film in the correct ratio, and the pictures have sound. My pre-film anxiety is beginning to wane.

But I worry for the future. If the cinema experience stops being that  - an experience - and becomes an endurance instead then cinema will die. We'll be stuck at home with our huge plasma screens and surround sound speakers wishing someone would light up a cigarette and throw boiled sweets on our heads.

The Children's Media Conference 2011

A busy week meant that I could only make one day of this year's Children's Media Conference in sunny Sheffield, (what is it about that place? Its been glorious every time I've been there!)

With only one day to take it all in, and meet up with some people, I knew it was going to be a whirlwind. And so it was. I arrived just after 9, registered, realised I was too hot, decided there was nothing I could do to fix that (unless I wanted to get arrested) and set off for the first session.

This was a lighthearted look at some interesting market research, neatly wrapped up in a 'Family Fortunes' style gameshow, hosted by CBBC's Ed Petrie. I'll admit I was not familiar with Ed before, but he turned out to be a more than capable host, and a very funny ad-libber.

Next up was a masterclass by Jamie Rix, someone who has a really interesting and varied pedigree. He was a comedy producer for radio and TV, including Radio Active, Smith and Jones and Not Going Out. He also writes children’s books, and set up his own production company (initially Elephant Productions and now Little Brother Productions) so that he could produce adaptations of his own books for television. His successes include Grizzly Tales and The Revenge Files of Alistair Fury. Jamie proved to be an engaging speaker, honest and entertaining.

Lunch was an uninspiring sandwich (with very grey looking salmon) in a building that was the love-child of a greenhouse and a school gym. If it was hot outside it was nothing compared to the heat inside. I was supposed to be meeting someone there, but spent ten minutes looking for him only to discover he'd had to go into another session. Another few meetings and a chocolate cookie later it was time for the next session: a chance to meet the decision makers from the cultural sector and find out what sort of thing they buy in, and what they are looking for.

After a few more hasty meetings it was time for 'Sell Out': Can television brands be effectively exported to the the live space? Are the resulting shows shallow, cynical, money making exercises or might the worlds of commercial and artistic theatre ever collaborate? Sound a bit dull? Not a bit of it. This was perhaps the most engaging and stimulating session of the day, with the panel of speakers, ably guided by Will Brenton, telling it like it is.

The day ended with the obligatory gathering in the bar, where a gaggle of friends, old and new, raised glasses to the day. The mood was full of optimism, something that has been in short supply in the animation business in the last few years. The numbers were up considerably this year, and it was encouraging to see some meaty delegations from overseas, broadening what can sometimes be a bit of a British-centric event into something far more global.

I was sorry to leave, and really wished I was there for three days instead of one. Next year, next year!

A stab at Ricky

Something else from the sketchbook - my attempt at Ricky Gervais, drawn last September while watching him being interviewed.

Forgotten sketch

Just discovered this sketch I did for a project in 2009. It never happened in the end, so I thought I'd share it here.

Draft 6 finished!

So is the draft 5 or 6? Or maybe 4 or 7? I've lost track, whatever number it is its been quite the overhaul. The first 80 pages have been beaten mercilessly into shape, and the rest has had some weighty re-tuning. The word count has dropped from 71k to just under 62k, but I don't think I've lost anything essential. I hope it all still hangs together.

This is the Readability Stats from Word. It puts the readership level at grade 4, which is 8-10 year olds. This is pretty much spot on for where I wanted to be. I think its a book for 9 and over, with plenty of overspill into the teen and YA market.

Half a Matt

Doctor Who returned on Saturday night - and a belter it was too! Here is a half-hearted sketch of Matt Smith I did before I got completely distracted.

Northern Writers Awards - application posted

I've sent in an application to the Northern Writers' Awards 2011. I've put Sorrowline in for the Northern Promise Awards.

NORTHERN PROMISE AWARDS
These awards aim to provide support for new writers whose work shows particular promise. Writers awarded support under this category may also be offered mentoring to develop their work, detailed manuscript appraisal and feedback alongside a financial award.

Birmingham Talk

I had a really good night in Birmingham last
Tuesday giving a talk on the my experiences setting up an animation studio in the North East.

The event, held in The Studio, Birmingham, was organised by the lovely people from Animation Forum West Midlands and BSeen.

It was free to attend, and open to animators and designers of all levels. I was thrilled to see over 70 people turn up. There was a vigorous Q & A at the end that lasted about 45 minutes, followed by the same again when people came to speak to me individually at the end.

Batman!

A quick sketch of a rather robust Batman. I enjoyed the old 60's Batman, which was repeated eternally when I was growing up. It didn't take itself seriously, and neither does this sketch.

Animex Festival

Last week I had a great time - as ever - at the Animex Festival. From humble beginnings 11 years ago the event has grown to cover two locations in the North East of England, (Middlesbrough and Newcastle), and includes talks on film, TV, game animation, workshops, screenings and parties.

Its a chance to catch up with some old friends, and make a few new ones too. This year I gave a talk at the Animex Pro event on the subject of setting up a studio in the North. It was a chance to pull out some really old cine films from when I was a naive boy who believed he could be the first man on Mars.

The event was well organised, and well attended with delegates from across the UK.

Next week sees me in Birmingham for another talk - http://www.animationforumwm.co.uk/news-display.aspx?id=212

The event is free to attend, and open to animators and designers of all levels, or indeed anyone interested in establishing a studio-based business, and includes free drinks.

There'll be opportunity to ask questions at the end of the talk, plus the chance to chat with fellow animators in the fantastic surroundings of the The Studio's city centre bar and restaurant. Directions to the venue can be found here.

The event, assembled by AFWM and BSeen – an entrepreneurship programme for Birmingham-based final year students and graduates – is the second of two joint events in early 2011 looking to help young animators on their way into their career.

Hope to see you there.

Jesting About launch

Monday night saw me crammed into the Live Theatre in Newcastle for the launch of Jesting About, a new BBC initiative to find new comedy talent in the North East. The event was supported by no less than Bob Mortimer, and several key producers and commissioners from the Beeb.

It sounds like a really interesting project, with several different opportunities on offer. Info here, and here.

Bob gave some insights from his side of the desk as a producer at his indi, Pett Productions, on how he likes to see submissions - he prefers a visual sample as close as possible to how the end product would appear. Seems like a lot of work but it probably jumps a lot of hurdles do that.

The Possibility of Impossible Dreams

When I'm not animating, or running a business, I like to write. Its a great way for me to unwind from the stresses of the day and let my brain explore other creative avenues.

So far I've written a sitcom for radio, (which was commission by Radio 4, but didn't quite get as far as going into production), a couple of drama series projects, and a few shorts. But whats' really got me by the throat over the last year is trying to write a novel.

When I was young I used to dream of writing a book. In fact I remember, at about the age of ten, writing a big list of things I was going to do when I grew up. The first thing was writing a novel at the age of 13, which lead to me eventually buying WH Smiths, and ultimately being the first man on Mars. I dreamed big! I gave little thought to how I might actually achieve all of this, but that's why childhood is so brilliant; reality hasn't yet crept in.

Over the years the plans for domination of the stationary world has been abandoned, as have any hopes of planting by boots into the red soil of another planet, but the thought of writing my own novel has persisted.

I've tried once or twice over the years, but the furthest I ever got was about 30 or 40 pages. Then I'd lose confidence, I'd put it aside of a while, and when I came back to it I'd want to start all over again. It became a cycle of failure.

Then last year, while on holiday in Scotland, I read Stephen King's 'On Writing'. King gave me the confidence, and advice, to try again. So on September 1st 2009 I picked up my latest attempt at a novel, a story called 'Yard Boy' which was a mere 10 pages at that time, and I started writing. I worked on it every day and didn't look back. One thing King taught me was how the fear of failure dogs every writer, and its usually only a day or two behind you. So I worked on it every day, even when I wasn't sure where I was going. I put my faith in the story and the writing process, and didn't dare look over my shoulder.

Three months later I had completed the first draft, a staggering (for me) 333 pages that had taken me by the scruff of my neck on an uncharted adventure into unplanned corners, unexpected places with characters who seemed to write themselves. Yes, its an old cliche that the story writes itself, but that's how it felt to me. I was a chronicler, along for the ride, but never truly in control.

Almost a year later I've recently finished a fourth draft, and have plans for two sequels. The title changed recently, thanks to an insightful observation , two pints of beer and a curry, with friend and author Curtis Jobling. Its now called 'Sorrowline', book one of the Timesmith Chronicles.

I'm still amazed that something that I did in my spare time is now - to me - a complete world populated by people I know. The process has changed me, its made me realise that sometimes the mad dreams of a 10-year-old boy are possible.

Perhaps there is still hope for that trip to Mars after all.