Crikey...

Steve Irwin is dead.

Some have said hoo-fucking-ray.

Personally, I've watched enough of Irwin's shows to realise that at least 95% of what he did was nowhere near as sensationalistic as people think. I suspect most, especially Australians, haven't actually watched his show terribly much, and thus based their preconceptions on the stereotypical perceptions of the man, especially the South Park parody. "Oi'm gonna creep up behind 'im... and shove me thumb up 'is butt-hole! Aw yeah, he's really pissed now!".

I have to admit, I used to be in this camp too. It's knee-jerk cultural cringe, hard-wired into the Australian psyche. But since being in the UK, I've watched quite a few of the Crocodile Hunter Diaries shows, and perhaps he's calmed down in more recent years, but these shows were very respectful of nature, albeit in Irwin's own inimitable (ie, manic and over-enthusiastic) style. That, combined with his amazing interview on Andrew Denton's ABC show "Enough Rope" (to be repeated this week as a tribute, all nay sayers should watch it), greatly increased my respect for the man. Sure, he had his Michael Jackson moment, but I think that's just a sign of passion, not stupidity.

The man was many things, but he wasn't stupid. And, while some are gloating that he died the way he deserved, I say he died doing what he loved. And that brings a whole different smile to my face.

Skinsongs progress...

Well, the word count hasn't gone up, but I HAVE entered in four chapter outlines, so that should make writing them easier. Theoretically. I'm sick of using the Stephen King "just write without planning ahead, that'll make it spontaneous" method, all it's creating is waffle. Time to get the plot back on course. I can see that the whole book is awfully paced and structured, but I'll fix that in later edits. Right now, I just want to get the plot out and done, so I have something to show the Australia Council for my year here. I'm feeling like a fraud. :(

So, going by my original schedule:

Skinsongs

Projected word count for 04-09-06:
56500

Actual word count for 08-08-06:
43000

Current word status:
13500 words behind

Oh dear...

Skinsongs... another major change in the air?

Well, I've been going over what I've done and having a good hard think (oo-er!). I've been thinking of going through the entire novel and upgrading the technology, to make it more sci-fi. Until now, I've basically set it in, as MST3K say, Next Sunday AD. And I liked that. Everything fit there, except for one plot point, the one that opens the whole novel, the plastech autosurgeon. It's just too advanced for the rest of the book. So, my writerly brain says, upgrade the rest of the tech to suit it.

Except...

Well, except it's not hugely necessary for the plot. It was just one more twist amongst many, and has stood out like a sore thumb. I loved the idea behind it, but the more I think, the more I suspect it doesn't belong in this book. So I'm giving serious consideration to just taking it out altogether, rather than rewriting the whole thing as more skiffy-ish.

Who was the canny bastard that said you have to kill your darlings? Sigh...

A great review for benpeek...

Here's a great review for a benpeek story from Tangent Online...

"Under the Red Sun" by Ben Peek is the longest story of the issue. It's also my favorite. Peek paints a world where sicknesses are rife and take anyone without warning. But people can live forever if they want to: all they have to do is go to a Surgeon, and they'll have their sick, corrupted body replaced with a new one, a body partly moved by metal and electricity. They become the Returned. Of course, there is now a growing trade for unspoiled bodies to feed the Surgeons' cliniques. The narrator has just buried his sister Fiona at his mother's request. But before they can get back to the tomb and burn the body, Fiona's corpse is stolen.

There is much to loved her. The world is perfectly drawn—creepy, hopeless, grimy. The Surgeons, barely hinted at in the beginning, begin to take on shape as we grow to understand how the society keeps itself from falling apart, one day at at a time. The characters are vivid, well fleshed out, hints of their relationships enough to make them deep without losing too much time in backstory. And the mystery draws to a satisfying yet surprising conclusion, leaving the narrator face-to-face with a credible dilemma. I cannot recommend this enough. Yes, it's long, but well worth the time.

Thanks to oldcharliebrown for the heads-up... and nice one, Ben!