A Note on New Stuff Coming

Hello isopods,

(If you haven't seen an isopod before I would recommend not looking them up if you're currently eating lunch.)

How's everything? I'll do a spot of housekeeping first, insult you a bit, then make some recommendations if that's alright.

Right, apologies for going quiet for a few months. The short version is: a mini burnout occurred. The long version is: aaaa miiinnniii buuurrrnnnooouuuttt ooooccuuurrrreeedd. After having tried to lecture the internet on how not to burnout, it was only inevitable I'd walk into the thing myself shortly after. Without going on about it, the last book did a number on me. I didn't really want to admit it to myself, but it did. I thought I could make up for a lack of narrative direction by just doubling my efforts and that's not how stories get written. Nothing was much fun to work on for a while after that, just permutations of stuff I'd done before, or weird stuff for the sake of being weird and it was all terrible.

Anyway, all better now I hope. There are a few finished scripts in the pipeline at the moment (one in particular about mutiny aboard a starship that I hope you'll enjoy) and I'd  like to work with animators and artists this time around because it's been five years and I still have zero visual talent and it might be time to just give that side of things to people who actually know what they're doing. Your support would be much appreciated for that. So, if it's quite alright, I'd like to take your kind patronage a few days from now. I thought it might be polite to provide some warning in advance there, and if you don't want to get behind that, as always, totally understood and thank you ever so much for the support so far of course.

Have you seen The French Dispatch? If you haven't seen The French Dispatch I'd recommend seeing The French Dispatch. I've been following Wes Anderson ever since Fantastic Mr. Fox (that one's great too), but I hadn't acquired the kind of religious fervour his fans seem to follow him with. The French Dispatch was something quite different. If you're of an artsy disposition, or get creatively stuck from time to time, this is probably the love letter to craft that you're after—it damn sure was for me anyway. It's beautiful, odd, and has such a heart. Big recommend.

Dune 2021 finally came out of course. I've been meaning to make a video review of the thing, but there really wasn't anything new to say. If you've been waiting for it too, I hope you loved it as much as I did. One of your favourite books being adapted by one of your favourite directors is a bit of a harrowing one, and I walked into the cinema fairly scared that nothing could ever live up to the insane level of expectation we've heaped on the thing—hype is the mindkiller etc. But it did live up to it. Somehow it did. I think so anyway. I can't even imagine how terrifying it is trying to write a screenplay that keeps the fans happy, and simultaneously doesn't get so bogged down in the lore of the story that it draws a new audience in too. I saw it twice, both times with friends who'd never read the book/s and they seemed just as enthralled as I was. Yeah, the mentats kind of got left out, and I wish we could've seen more of what the average people of Caladan and Arrakis actually get up to on a daily basis, but it's a film and time is limited. If you still haven't seen it and would like to: please do so in Imax. Please. It's a drug experience.

Random unrelated news then. The feline is well and finally beginning to chonk out in her teenage years. She kept me sane through the rather unpleasant burnout period. I wish I could tell her that.

Are you following the muon g-2 fiasco? The thing only seems to be getting weirder. It probably won't destroy the Standard Model, but it's a doozy and here's a great summary if you're curious.

Convinced writing would be done forever after the last book, in the way these things predictably go (oh, I'll never love again, wah wah etc) I went for a walk last month and bumped into a story I suspect might be doable. That's what I work on in the mornings anyway. I'll let you know if something comes of it. Actually that reminds me, there's very little out there about proper writing practices, so I'll give you my best attempt.

For whatever reason I sleep better closer to the floor, so when I moved into my empty new place I bought a mattress and no bedframe and that seems to work just great. You get weird looks from your friends when they visit, but who cares. For optimal results with writing I can recommend getting up early and staying in bed to drink at least two-to-three cups of strong coffee if you have the day free. (If you live with a cat or dog invite them onto the end of the bed as a visual aid or moral support. Treats will facilitate this.) The trick is to stay in bed until lunchtime with a laptop or notepad and wait for something to turn up. Reading in the meantime will work, especially something boring so your mind will wander. Keeping some paintings at the end of the bed works too for some reason. If nothing turns up that morning, that's okay, it will the next time or the time after that. The bed part is just incidental really. The real secret, I think, is just to work somewhere self-doubt can't catch you for a few hours, and I hope you find or have already found that place. (Public libraries are very good too.)

A patch of insomnia hit a few months ago. I'm sure you know the feeling when you're too tired to work or read but not tired enough to sleep, and on one of those nights I discovered Sea of Thieves. As with all previous video game recommendations this one is obviously recommended, but I'd advise against it. Because it will consume your life. It's essentially everything ever desired in a pirate game: sword fights, sea battles, and griefing other players by stealing their loot after they've been diligently acquiring it for two hours. (I am usually that other player.) I went through a period of staying up with a friend online and playing it until sunrise (living alone is fun) and it was honestly one of the most powerful bonding experiences I've ever had. The AI is clever enough, but the real horror is going up against other human players. They are sneaky and tactical and will nautically outwit you so humiliatingly you can't help admire it. You can use vomit as a weapon. You can literally use vomit as a weapon. Anyway it's very good and see you on the waves.

Two book recommendations if you'd like them. The first I might've mentioned before, but I listened to it again recently and it's still just so, so fucking good—Children of Ruin by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It's hard not to spoil, but think deep future scifi with sentient spiders and sentient octopuses. I've been following scifi for most of my reading life (what a flex bro) and there are hundreds of tropes in this one I've just never seen before. It's odd and I hope you like it.

The second one might sound weird but please bear with me. If you're having creative problems or are finding yourself stuck with arting, please read Directing Actors by Judith Weston. Better still give it a listen. This book almost single-handedly got me out of the last stuck patch. I know acting direction doesn't seem like it would have much to say about creativity, but this is a creative hug in disguise. It's the kind voice you need to hear when you've convinced yourself you're shit and useless and out of ideas. It's also full of just the kind of weird approaches to solving yourself that are usually impossible to self-generate. Judith Weston is the saint of unstuckness, far as I'm concerned. And if you're stuck this may well unstick you because it sure as hell did me. I promise it's fantastic.

Righto then. As of now there are five scripts I'd quite like to make real, finally, and I'd be ever so grateful for your support with that. Thank you very, very, very much for bearing with me during the quieter months and sticking around here. I still have no idea why you're doing that, but again, I'm just more grateful than I can say. It took a bit of thinking and worrying, but new stuff coming soon, promise.

I hope you're doing all right covid-wise, because this is getting quite ridiculous now. It's sort of Schrödinger's pandemic in Bulgaria at the moment. Our case numbers aren't great, but somehow life has sort of resumed. If you're able to spend Christmas with your family, I hope it's lovely—I'll try to write before then anyway, but just, yes—I hope everything's okay and that you and your favourite humans are doing well.

Again, a huge thank you for sticking around and new stuff is in the works.

All the best as ever,

Ex.

(Oh, the print version of Geometry for Ocelots should be out by Christmas—if not, just after, and the audiobook is finally done and god-willing will be out around then too. Plus feline photos attached as always.)