So… pretty much done with work on the flat and finished my MA dissertation, which I got in on deadline day, with about an hour to spare. With all that out of the way, I can finally get back to working on the book. It's proving a little difficult to get back into the flow of it again. Been almost two months since I last did any work on it and I seem to have forgotten where I was in terms of some of the ideas I had back then. Still, reading back through the rough draft pages and notes, I'm getting new ideas. I just need to keep working at it and I should find my way back into the story.
As a little reward for finishing the MA and getting the dissertation done, I sat myself down and finally watched the whole of the first season of 'The Wire'. Great stuff. Now I just need to start hitting my 1000 words a day target again and I'll allow myself to begin season two.
On the book front, I've bought a few more books recently - even though most of my existing books are still boxed up from the move and spread between the old place and the new. I've got so much to read, I'm really looking forward to finally having time to indulge myself. Once the book's done though.
For the moment, I'm re-reading stuff. Who would have thought that with so much new stuff to read, that I'd be going back to books I've already read. But, there you go. Some things are so good that you find yourself wanting to go back and re-experience them. My recent Elmore Leonard spree being a case in point, although I did intersperse some of the old ones with new ones that I hadn't read before.
Just now I'm re-reading 'Prince of Thieves' by Chuck Hogan, which I mentioned before. Loving it second time around too. When I finish that, I'm planning on reading 'Point Blank' by Richard Stark once more. After that… well, I don't know. I'll have a rummage and pick something. Heard good things about 'The Twelve' by Stuart Neville, so may well give that a go.
Wednesday 13 October 2010
Wednesday 22 September 2010
One Year Later…
…Almost a whole year since I last got round to updating my blog. It's been a busy year. Unfortunately, I still haven't managed to finish work on the novel - although I am very close to finishing my first complete draft.
Work was put on hold for the last month or so, as we moved and I had to spend all my time fixing up the new flat. Now that the work on the flat is pretty much complete, I've had to jump straight on to finishing of my MA dissertation. Only once that's done and out of the way will I be able to get back to work on the book. Watch this space, I guess. Anyone that's interested that is.
On a different note, I saw trailer for a heist movie called 'The Town' which looked pretty good. When I read a synopsis of the plot, I thought, wait a minute, that storyline sounds familiar. Being a bit of a geek about books and films, I checked the credit block at the end of the online trailer and found that, yes, it was indeed based on a book I read some time ago.
The book was called 'Prince of Theives' by Chuck Hogan. The title change was probably made because some people might have got it confused with the Kevin Costner movie 'Robin Hood: Prince of Theives' I guess. Anyway, the book was ace. So much so, that I have hunted around in the various boxes housing my books and dug up my copy of it to read again. So good, I'm gonna have to read it again.
If the film has stuck to the story of the book, it should be fantastic. I was torn between whether to go see the film or read the book again. It's been a while since I read it, so I wouldn't really be comparing the two, which is lucky, as films of books usually aren't as good. I remember going to see 'LA Confidential' at the cinema just a couple of weeks after I'd read the book. I steeled myself for it not to be exactly the same but I was still very disappointed in the film version – AT THAT TIME. I saw it again, six months or so later, without the book fresh in my mind and I absolutely loved it. So that's the dilemma I am sort of having with 'The Town'.
I liked the book so much though, I've decided to treat myself and read it again. Maybe I'll give the film six months and watch it then.
Work was put on hold for the last month or so, as we moved and I had to spend all my time fixing up the new flat. Now that the work on the flat is pretty much complete, I've had to jump straight on to finishing of my MA dissertation. Only once that's done and out of the way will I be able to get back to work on the book. Watch this space, I guess. Anyone that's interested that is.
On a different note, I saw trailer for a heist movie called 'The Town' which looked pretty good. When I read a synopsis of the plot, I thought, wait a minute, that storyline sounds familiar. Being a bit of a geek about books and films, I checked the credit block at the end of the online trailer and found that, yes, it was indeed based on a book I read some time ago.
The book was called 'Prince of Theives' by Chuck Hogan. The title change was probably made because some people might have got it confused with the Kevin Costner movie 'Robin Hood: Prince of Theives' I guess. Anyway, the book was ace. So much so, that I have hunted around in the various boxes housing my books and dug up my copy of it to read again. So good, I'm gonna have to read it again.
If the film has stuck to the story of the book, it should be fantastic. I was torn between whether to go see the film or read the book again. It's been a while since I read it, so I wouldn't really be comparing the two, which is lucky, as films of books usually aren't as good. I remember going to see 'LA Confidential' at the cinema just a couple of weeks after I'd read the book. I steeled myself for it not to be exactly the same but I was still very disappointed in the film version – AT THAT TIME. I saw it again, six months or so later, without the book fresh in my mind and I absolutely loved it. So that's the dilemma I am sort of having with 'The Town'.
I liked the book so much though, I've decided to treat myself and read it again. Maybe I'll give the film six months and watch it then.
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