Random Quote #315

Let us go forth with fear and courage and rage to save the world. 

Grace Paley

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Random Quote #314

Human minds are more full of mysteries than any written book and more changeable than the cloud shapes in the air. 

Louisa May Alcott

Random Quote #313

Always tell the truth. It's the easiest thing to remember. 

David Mamet

Random Quote #312

Books permit us to voyage through time, to tap the wisdom of our ancestors.

Carl Sagan

Til Next Year!

So NaNoWriMo 2016 has come to an end. All there is left for me to say is...


...there are now only

335 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2017! :P

Random Quote #311

What a curious power words have.

Tadeusz Borowski

Random Quote #310

Until we invent telepathy, books are our best choice for understanding the rest of humanity. 

Christopher Paolini

Random Quote #309

When you find yourself stressed, ask yourself one question: Will this matter in 5 years from now? If yes, then do something about the situation. If no, then let it go.

Catherine Pulsifer

Random Quote #308

There are no original ideas. There are only original people. 


Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

NaNoWriMo 2016 Has Begun!

Please turn over your papers, pick up your pens (or fire up your computers) and begin!

NaNoWriMo 2016 has officially begun... in Australia it began a few hours ago... and in the USA it starts in  a few hours.

But here in the UK it starts NOW! (Of course if you are reading this in a couple of months time, well it's all over and done with - 1st drafts are sat fermenting all over the world!)

I am not taking part this year as I'm still working on ideas and outlines at the moment - I'm not quite sure where the end of the story is going to be. And I've learnt from past experience that if I don't know where I'm heading with a story, I easily get lost or bogged down.

But good luck to all of you NaNoWriMoers out there who are taking part.

May the muses and the plot bunnies be with you. And may your pen never run out of ink or your computer out of power! :)

Random Quote #307

So many things are possible as long as you don't know they are impossible. 

Mildred D. Taylor

Creatively Speaking: Secret Projects

So Creatively Speaking has been absent for a few weeks now. And that is because I was making my sister's birthday present and I didn't want her to discover what it was.

But now I have given her the present I can now tell you what it is.

I made her two tealight things (I can't really call them holders as they sit over the tealight rather than the tealight sits in it).

This is one of them - as I said I made two, the other one is a lot creepier and darker looking. And when I say tealights, they are battery operated tealights as it is likely you would set this one fire if you used real tealights.

Anyway the point of this post is to direct you to my inspiration for this project.

I got this idea from a YouTuber called Drachenfang. The pumpkins he makes are a lot bigger and more waterproof as they are designed to go outside. The ones I have made are about the size of a large grapefruit, whereas the form Drachenfang made for his was about the size of a beach ball.


The videos take you all the way through the project from beginning to end - here is a link to the first one.

He goes in to a lot of detail, tells you exactly what you will need, gives a lot of advice and is entertaining too.

Due to the size difference I changed some of the materials slightly and tweaked some of the steps as my pumpkins didn't need to be quite so waterproof.

It's kind of late to make any for this Halloween, but you can always make preparations and start getting organised for Halloween 2017!

Random Quote #306

Fiction is life with the dull bits left out. 

Clive James

Random Quote #305

Unlike baked beans, loaves of breads or Fuji apples, books once consumed, do not disappear. 

John Sutherland

Random Quote #304

Ideas aren't magical; the only tricky part is holding on to one long enough to get it written down. 

Lynn Abbey

Random Quote #303

Everything I was I carry with me, everything I will be lies waiting on the road ahead. 

Ma Jian

NaNoWriMo Countdown

The clock is ticking... there are now only

31 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016 - are you going to take part?

Random Quote #302

If your writing doesn't keep you up at night, it won't keep anyone else up eithe.

James M. Cain

Creatively Speaking... Or Should That Be Writing?

Don't you just love those moments?

The ones where you've got several story ideas and suddenly a couple of them crash together to form one super story?

I love those moments.

I've been furiously scribbling down notes this week after such a moment happened to me.

I had one character, a character that I had had a crack at writing a story for but it just didn't seem to sit right.

And then on the other side of my brain I had a group of characters, or maybe more of a concept. I knew there was a group I wanted to write about but wasn't sure how their story would unfold.

But then the first character who was lost in their own story crashed in to the other group (in my head it was kind a like when to wrestlers propel themselves off of opposite sides of the ring into each other).

And lo and behold my character now has a story that suits them more. And I can see what the purpose of the other group of characters will be.

So know I'm writing down notes and trying to outline the story (hopefully that will be completed before the start of NaNoWriMo 2016).

I've already realised that the story and the characters are too big for one book (unless I was willing to write a 1000 pager like some authors do so I've already worked out how to split the story up in to a trilogy.

When was your last eureka moment when it came to writing?

Random Quote #301

When it rains look for rainbows, when it's dark look for stars.

Unknown

Random Quote #300

Stories make sense when so much around us is senseless, and perhaps what makes them most comforting is that while life goes on and pain goes on, stories do us the favor of ending. 

John Hodgman

Random Quote #299

May the forces of evil become confused on the way to your house. 

George Carlin

Creatively Speaking... Belated NaNoWriMo Countdown

I interrupt your regular scheduled post to bring you a belated NaNoWriMo countdown... it didn't occur until today that I had forgotten about the countdown... oops!

It might be something to do with the fact I haven't been at work for the last week so all the dates just sort of merged in to one... and even changing the calendar didn't stir any memories.

But better late than never...

So on the first of September there would have been

61 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016... doesn't sound like long does it? But seen as we are now past the first of the month as of today there are now only

58 Days

to go. (Two countdowns for the price of one - although I hopefully won't be making a habit of it!)

Random Quote #298

Deserve your dream.

Octavio Paz

Random Quote #297

Laugh loudly, laugh often, and most important, laugh at yourself. 

Chelsea Handler

Creatively Speaking: DramaticParrot

I recently decided to take up drawing again - well I'd got all the supplies just lying around so why not?

But another one of the reasons I decided to start drawing again was being subscribed to the YouTuber DramaticParrot who makes tutorials for art and crafts.

I've had a go at a few of her drawing tutorials and they haven't turned out half bad. She gives very clear instructions and breaks each sketch down in to basic shapes before starting on the details.

Here are just a couple that I've tried:

Til next time...

Random Quote #296

Each of us has a unique part to play in the healing of the world. 

Marianne Williamson

Random Quote #295

The moment you put a deadline on your dream,it becomes a goal. 

Harsha Bhogle

Creatively Speaking: So Much Sewing Needs Doing!

There is a YouTuber by the name of Annika Victoria and she has a series on her videos called The Style Pile.

And these focus on things she has taken out of the pile of sewing she has got waiting to be dealt with.

I too have such a pile and here it is...

I can almost hear O Fortuna ~ Carmina Burana playing when I look at that photo.

But I decided to try and tackle some of it and in about an hour I'd dealt with these pieces.

OK so it's not a lot but it's a start, right?

The items at the bottom of the photo are just bits that needed a hole sewing up in them (you know that the kind of stuff that I could have easily dealt with months ago... but just couldn't be bothered... I've mentioned before that I'm kind of lazy haven't I?).

The flowery thing at the top is something that I have started work on - it's a maxi dress I got from a charity shop.

And it is bang on the right length for me (strange as I am quite petite). But I find it a bit billowy (if that is a word) so I'm going to put slits up the sides, to the knee, to try and conquer that. Push comes to shove I'll just chop the bottom off and make it knee length.

So that's 4 items (ok 3 and a bit) down only another 400 million to go!

Til next time...

Random Quote #294

Excuse sound best to the person that's making 'em up.

Tyrese Gibson

NaNoWriMo Countdown

Tick tock... time is moving on. There are now only

92 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016!

Random Quote #293

Be you writer or reader, it is very pleasant to run away in a book. 

Jean Craighead George

Motivationally Speaking

Did you see what I did there with the title... cos usually these posts are called Creatively Speaking and... yeah ok I'll get on with it.

As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago I watch a lot of YouTube videos. More than is probably good for me... but anyway in my travels across YouTube I have come across various YouTubers/videos that are designed to motivate you.

And if you listen to them... I mean really listen to what is being said then, well in my experience they are the sort of videos that make you want to get stuff done. The sort of video that makes you feel like...

Random Quote #292

The human face has limited space. If you fill it with laughter there will be no room for crying. 

Rohinton Mistry

Random Quote #291

Minds are like parachutes - they only function when open.

Thomas Dewar

Creatively Speaking: The Art Sherpa

I watch a lot of YouTube videos... I usually have about 50 on my to watch list at any one time (it's less at the moment as one of the YouTubers I watch regularly is currently taking a break - time to catch up!).

But as I voyage through YouTube I do come across some very creative people who inspire me with my own artwork/crafting.

One such YouTuber I have more recently discovered is Cinnamon Cooney who is known as The Art Sherpa.

With Cinnamon's channel you can paint along with her because she live streams her tutorials with help from her husband John. And she sometimes goes off on a tangent (but don't we all?). And she has recently been seemingly obsessed with Kevin the Kraken.

I have not put a example of one of her full tutorial videos here as because they are live streams they usually last about 1-2 hours depending on the complexity (the Kevin The Kraken video linked above only lasts 30 minutes but that's because he's being added to a painting that took an hour to paint).

On The Art Sherpa channel there are videos on various subjects, some are just straight forward tutorials that you can follow along. Some videos are more about going in to certain aspects of art in more detail for example gesso or grayscale or how to paint fur.

I've got several of her videos earmarked to have a crack at but I can show you one that I have tried. I had a go at this Seascape painting and this is the result...

I didn't paint this during the live stream, I did this after that had ended... which is a good thing as it took me at least an hour longer than Cinnamon to complete.

Now this was my first experience with pallet knives and although I have my horizon line visibly running through my wave and I overworked my clouds (both problems arising out of the fact I was far too frugal with my paint) I'm quite proud of it - I like my wave, I like the spray coming off the top of it.

And I learnt things from doing this, not only to be less stingy with my paint but also how to use palette knives (on account of the fact I bought palette knives without much knowledge on how to use them!).

And I had fun doing it! This one was definitely a strike against my perfectionism as I know it is far from perfect but I knew when to stop and I like the result all the same.

So if you want to learn a little something about painting, and have some fun while you are at it then go forth and visit The Art Sherpa.

Random Quote #290

Chance is the first step you take, luck is what comes afterward. 

Amy Tan

NaNoWriMo Countdown

Well June has been and gone and it brought only the bare minimum of sunny weather in the UK. Let's hope July tries harder. There are now only

123 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016!

Not only that but today is the first day of the second 2016 session of Camp NaNoWriMo (so if you can't wait until November here's your chance!

Random Quote #289

I am not interested in being original. I am interested in being true. 

Agostinho da Silva

The Trials & Tribulations Of Making A Pair Of Goggles

So over a year ago I made a top hat for a steampunk event I was going to in the summer of 2015 (I completely started singing Summer of '69 then - didn't you?).

Well for the same event I also made some goggles, which I've been meaning to write a post about ever since (oh 'meaning to' what good intentions you do have).

So hopefully I can remember what I actually did to make these things, given it was so long ago.


1. Make a paper template. Unfortunately I do not appear to have a picture of my template - I think that's because I actually changed the shape once I started papier macheing so my template is now kind of irrelevant!. But anyway this is for the bit that goes on your face, like the 'surround' bit for the goggles (I don't know how else to subscribe it).
So it basically an egg shape with a circle cut out of it (the circle should be near the wide end of the egg shape), where the actually eye piece is going to be. And remember to mark where the slots will be to attach your fastenings (you need one at each end of the template - one to fasten acoss your nose and one to fasten around the back of your head). You only need one of these as you can use the same template for both sides. Measure it against your face to make sure it will fit.


2. Cut out 2 of the egg shapes in cardboard (if using corrugated cardboard try to cut the shapes out so the corrugated bits run vertically - it will make it easier to shape later on).

Plastic cup goggle... things

3. Put egg shapes to one side (you will notice I tend to jump back and forth between pieces on this project!). Chop off the bottom of two small plastic cups - to the depth you want your goggles to be (shape them to your face), and - only if you want a different coloured lense - cut the middle out of the very bottom of each cup.

 
4. If you are going to have different coloured lenses and have therefore cut out the middle of each of your goggle pieces then you now need to cut out a piece of coloured plastic to fit the end of your goggles (I used a plastic folder).


 *At this point I actually put a thin layer of papier mache on the plastic cups but I don't think it really matters whether you do this or wait until after you've attached the pieces together in the next step*


5. Bend cardboard to fit around the plastic cups (if you're using corrugated and you've cut so the corrugated bits run vertically this is where it comes in handy). Make sure you've got the the right way round, so the pointier end of the egg shape will be pointing towards your ear if you were wearing the goggles and tape the cardboard to the plastic cup. This can be a bit fiddly but perserve.

The purple ribbon is just a place holder

6. Start papier macheing! I just put a couple of thin layers of newspaper on the whole of the goggles, inside and out, to make sure the goggles and the surround are fully attached. Remember to keep the slots for the fastenings free - you could cut back through them later but they may be difficult to find. Then I went over with a layer of papier mache using kitchen roll/towel. You could also use toilet paper for this or just go straight to painting its up to you. This is the point that I realised that my surrounds was too big and trimmed them down (this was after the first layer of newspaper papier mache).

 
7. Paint your goggles. You can use whatever colours you want to use on your goggles. The way I did mine was I painted the inside of the goggles black. Then I painted the whole of the outside brown and then went over the actual goggle part in a copper paint. Then I used black paint to paint in the details - screw heads, stitching etc. There isn't any need for neatness as the messier it is the more worn it will look.

 
8. Stick the lenses in the end of the goggles - you might have to trim them down a little to get them to fit now due to the papier mache adding a bit of thickness to the goggles. I honestly cannot remember what type of glue I used - I think it might have been hot glue... but it could just as easily have been PVA.

 
9. Attach two pieces together at the nose. I used ribbon to attach my goggles together. When you have a pieces of ribbon that you think is long enough, thread it through both goggles and check that it fits across your nose - of course this doesn't matter if you don't intend to wear the goggles, I just had mine sat on my top hat for the entire event (mainly because the purple plastic I used made everything blurry).
I chose to sew my ribbon in place but hot glue should work just as well.


10. Use another two pieces of ribbon for the back fastening. Make sure you have enough ribbon so you can fasten the goggles round the back of your head and then sew/glue the ribbon in place.

Ta Dah!

And there you have it after over a year I have finally posted about how I made my goggles. If you have any questions about the goggles please leave them in the comments and I will see if I can answer them (I'm not all that grand at explaining things like this - but if you understood my explanation of the template you can probably understand anything I try to explain - well done!)

Random Quote #288

Every time you are tempted to react in the same old way, ask if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future. 

Deepak Chopra

Random Quote #287

Our finger prints don't fade from the lives we touch. 

Judy Blume

Previously On Creatively Speaking...

Creatively Speaking came about on my other blog - the Creative Life (which may or may not still exist when you read this).

Last year when I challenged myself to do something creative every day (which I managed - all except my birthday - but if you are going to take a day off!). From March last year until the end of the year I also included doing something writing related every day.

So each week I would have a recap of creative things I had done that week, even if one day it had just been painting my nails, colouring in a page in a colouring book or reading some of a writing reference book.

So with the decision to condense my two blogs in to one I also decided to move Creatively Speaking over to this blog.

It's taken me a while to get round to this since deciding to cease writing on my other blog (but I have mentioned that I can be quite a lazy blogger!)

So here's how I think Creatively Speaking will evolve now it has moved. I will continue posting about my recent (hopefully) creative output (hopefully every week) but will intersperse these posts with posts about other creative things - there's a whole world of creative YouTubers out there!

Speaking of YouTubers on my old creative blog I also occasionally posted links and videos that I had found motivational and/or helpful, something I plan to continue over here.

Til the next Creatively Speaking post (which, as this was a recap, will technically be the first).

Random Quote #286

Some things in life are out of your control. You can make it a party or a tragedy. 

Nora Roberts

NaNoWriMo Countdown

June is here! And hopefully with it some sunnier and warmer weather (especially here in the UK). But anyway there are now only

153 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016! :)

Random Quote #285

Ignorance killed the cat; curiosity was framed! 

C. J. Cherryh

Random Quote #284

Tomorrow's life is too late. Live today. 

 Marcus Valerius Martialis

Random Quote #283

What are men to rocks and mountains? 

Jane Austen

Random Quote #282

Never be afraid to sit awhile and think. 

Lorraine Hansberry

Happy Star Wars Day!!!

And to celebrate Star Wars Day 2016 I thought I'd take us back to the beginning (chronologically, when it comes to when the films were made, rather than numerically when it comes to episodes).

Happy Star Wars Day!

Random Quote #281

The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than our suffering. 

Ben Okri

NaNoWriMo Countdown

It seems like only 30 seconds since I last posted a countdown post. But without further ado there are now only

184 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016!!! :)

Random Quote #280

Be the flame, not the moth. 

Giacomo Casanova

Random Quote #279

Even when you have doubts, take that step. Take chances. Mistakes are never a failure—they can be turned into wisdom. 

Cat Cora

Random Quote #278

The truth is life is full of joy and full of great sorrow, but you can't have one without the other. 

Andre Dubus III

It's Tuesday! Intro & Teaser Time

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Books And A Beat.

Random Quote #277

You are not Atlas carrying the world on your shoulder. It is good to remember that the planet is carrying you.

Vandana Shiva

The Countdown Has Arrived!

So over on my other/old/previous blog that is, slowly but surely, being condensed/absorbed over in to this blog... what was I talking about? Oh yes - so over there I like to terrify people with talk of how long it is until NaNoWriMo begins for that year (regardless of whether or not I am taking part or not). And so I've decided to start doing that over here. And so here we are on 1st April and there are now only

214 Days

to go until the start of NaNoWriMo 2016!!! :) (No this is not an April Fool - that really is how many days there are to go!)

Random Quote #276

Fate is like a strange, unpopular restaurant filled with odd little waiters who bring you things you never asked for and don't always like. 

Lemony Snicket

Random Quote #275

We never know the quality of someone else's life, though we seldom resist the temptation to assume and pass judgement. 

Tami Hoag

Random Quote #274

Worse than not realizing the dreams of your youth would be to have been young and never dreamed at all. 

Jean Genet

Intro & Teaser Time

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Books And A Beat.

Random Quote #273

We are flawed creatures, all of us. Some of us think that means we should fix our flaws. But get rid of my flaws and there would be no one left. 

 Sarah Vowell

Random Quote #272

The mind once enlightened cannot again become dark. 

Thomas Paine

It's Time For Another Intro & Teaser

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by A Daily Rhythm.

Random Quote #271

My life amounts to no more than one drop in a limitless ocean. Yet what is any ocean, but a multitude of drops? 

David Mitchell

Random Quote #270

Don't take life too seriously. Punch it in the face when it needs a good hit. Laugh at it. 

Colleen Hoover

Intro & Teaser Time!

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by A Daily Rhythm.

Random Quote #269

There's nothing like deep breaths after laughing that hard. Nothing in the world like a sore stomach for the right reasons. 

Stephen Chbosky

Intro & Teaser - Yes It's Tuesday!

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by A Daily Rhythm.

Random Quote #268

Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days. 

Zig Ziglar

Random Quote #267

There are no wrong turnings. Only paths we had not known we were meant to walk. 

Guy Gavriel Kay

Intro & Teaser Time

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by A Daily Rhythm.

Random Quote #266

Years fly by, but the heart stays in the same place.

Harlan Coben

Tuesday Intros & Teasers

To take part in Tuesday Intros simply share the first paragraph of the first chapter of the book you are reading or are going to read. Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea.

To take part in Teaser Tuesday turn to a random page in the book you are reading, and share two teaser sentences from that page, without sharing spoilers. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by A Daily Rhythm.

Here's mine:

Tuesday Intro

A bell called in the priests for prayer, drowning out the worst of the screams. Through wooden shutters I squinted at the vivid brightness, peering down at the men in green robes as they rushed across the paving stones of the courtyard. They surged towards the steps of an impressive temple, which was carved out of the rock-face, crowned with a triangular pediment and covered in ornate symbols. In their haste, one of the priests lost his sandal on the way and paused in the sultry heat to slip it on again. Even out here it seemed everyone was in a rush.

Teaser Tuesday

The senator led the way; Leana and I followed him inside.
In the centre of the temple, laid on the floor, was a woman's body covered in blood.

Loc 873 (16%), Drakenfeld by Mark Charan Newton

This book counts towards my total for this year's New Authors Challenge hosted by Literary Escapism.

Random Quote #265

We all have our time machines, don't we. Those that take us back are memories...And those that carry us forward, are dreams. 

H. G. Wells

Random Quote #264

The nicest thing about feeling happy is that you think you'll never be unhappy again. 

Manuel Puig

Happy New Year 2016!

The Graphics Fairy