Steampunk Music

I was looking up Seattle today and found this link to Abney Park. I'm really liking this genre.

Reading Frenzy

I've got to get this proposal out of the way, so I'm reading like crazy. This week I finished off China Mieville's Perdido Street Station which is a veritable feast and one book (along with The Scar and probably King Rat) that I'm going to refer to a lot in my PhD essay. Also read K.W. Jeter's Morlock Nights which is one of the first (or maybe THE first) Steampunk novel. I found this really useful in deciding which themes I want to pursue when I write about Mieville's work because it's by far less complex and easier to critique. Now I'm halfway through Gibson & Stirling's The Difference Engine which I hope to finish tomorrow. I love the writing in this book and I keep trying to figure out which bits Stirling wrote and which bits Gibson wrote, but that's not what I'm supposed to be looking for. Once that's read, I'm going to knuckle down to some proposal writing and also try and get through Tim Powers' Anubis Gates and something by Moorecock and Sean McMullen and maybe Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age. Busy times ahead.

Hint: If your having trouble with pantry moths (which I am right now), Perdido Street Station is probably only going to make matters worse!!!

Why Seattle

A friend asked me yesterday why I chose to apply to Clarion West, Seattle over San Diego and Brisbane. I've got to say, it was a difficult choice. All three Clarions have an excellent line up of tutors this year and I've heard excellent reports about all three from past students. If I'd had to base my decision on that alone, I would have ended up just pulling a straw out of a hat. Even when I sat down and thought hard about it, there were pros and cons on all three sides.

Brisbane Clarion, unfortunately is bad timing for me. January is Aussie summer and school holidays and the only time of the year all five of us are operating on the same wavelength. I'd hate to miss out on that. San Diego and Seattle Clarions, however, are right in the middle of Aussie winter. The kids have a 2 week break and Phil can take time off work to spend time with them. That leaves only 2 1/2 weeks of school either side of school hols. My 16 year old has end of semester exams, but my plan is to harass her into studying a few weeks before so she's at least a bit better prepared than she would have been if I were there. My 18 year old will be on uni break and my 13 year old will be simply cruising, as usual. So hopefully, when the time comes, I won't feel too guilty about leaving them. Next deciding factor was climate. Seattle is mild, San Diego is hot. I'll take mild over hot anytime. Also, I visited San Diego about 20 years ago, but not Seattle. Plus, Seattle has an enormous volcano (Mt Rainier) which might have some snow on top while I'm there, and will definitely have some walking tracks and spectacular woodland around it, so that's where I'm heading after the workshop: Mt Rainier for a day walk (or two).

I still can't believe I'm actually going!!!!

Edit: Another reason why it's better for me to do Clarion in June rather than January is that I'd be doing it early in my PhD rather than a third of the way through. That gives me more time to use what I learned, I reckon.

Still Flabbergasted About Clarion

Today I really want to get my 500 words done, plus make headway on my PhD proposal, which of course, means lots of reading and thinking and 15 pages of theoretical writing. The trouble is, I want to do it all at once. And now I want to write a short story or two as practice for Clarion. I've been working on this novel for months, planning, writing, experimenting. I think I'm finally getting a good idea about what I want to do (Steampunk fantasy! who would have thought!). The world building has come together nicely. I have six very troubled characters and a tangled plot, which is possibly a reflection of my mental state at the moment (in a good way).

I also have an idea for a short story set in the world of my novel. I'm wondering if I should just let it ferment a bit in my head, then write it at Clarion in week one, to get me started. Last time I did that, with the 'Bridal Bier' -- a story I pretty much wrote over a week when I was supposed to be writing an English Essay on 'Why is Frankenstein' more than a gothic novel' -- I ended up with a pretty neat story, which ended up in Eidolon 1 and a couple of shortlists. At the time, it felt like a fluke, but now I think it was more the product of a few months of fermenting in my head.

This blog entry seems a bit stream-of-consciousness unfocussed, I know. But that's how my head's operating at the moment. Tomorrow, I'm booking my flight: most likely Seattle via Tokyo. Plus I'm back on hunter-gatherer food again, trying to keep the migraines at bay. Haven't had one in two weeks, so I guess it's working, probably because I'm not getting any refined sugar or msg (or basically, anything processed). Last time I did the hunter-gatherer thing, I remained migraine free for 8 weeks. It's hard on the will power, but worth it. Well worth it! And once you get the hang of it, it's easy to do: fresh fruit, veges and good, natural protein like eggs, fish, meat, nuts.