Voices of the 7 Billion staff writer

Late in 2011, I joined the writers of a new website called "Voices of the 7 Billion", dedicated to "Culture, Politics, Opinion, Comment, Analysis, Giving a platform to the voices of the world." It is an exciting project, and today it published my first article: "How to escape from the North Korean prison state: Part 1". Part 2 will follow in publication soon, but in the meantime, click here to read the first of many articles!

Top music for writing - 我給的愛

Sometimes, when I write, I just have to get into the right frame of mind by having the right music to write along with. I like to occasionally share a YouTube feed of the song (subject to it being available from YouTube, with the caveat of I am not responsible for the link not working, etc.).

Today we have 我給的愛 (The Love that I gave), as sung by 楊乃文 (Faith Yang), a top singer from Taiwan.

It's quite a moving song, full of sadness and loss, and meant a lot to me a long time ago when I first heard it 13 years ago, but focusing purely on the writing, it works for a piece I'm working on at the moment, helping me get into the character's feelings.

Here are the lyrics (if you can read Chinese; they're in the traditional script):

深夜的風 冷冷無情 覺得夜昏暗
腳邊煙蒂 散落一地 像是我的心
被風吹起 吹到那裡 我在那裡 沒有目的
我給的愛 要不回來
你說過的話 我不曾忘記
你卻離開
And on to the video itself!

Lines dedicated to the theft of cheese and wine by a celebrity chef

The headline news today is about the theft of products from a supermarket, believed to be wine and cheese, by the celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson. I was moved by the plight of this man, who is obviously facing personal issues, to pen a few lines this evening.

Lines dedicated to the theft of cheese and wine by a celebrity chef
© Damon Lord 2012

A quick trip to Tesco was all that it took.
The coppers, they nabbed me, and brought me to book.
What was I doing? What was I thinking?
I pilfered vin blanc, and the bishop was stinking!
“Let’s look in the bag,” the policeman then said.
“Cheese theft ain’t mature.” I quickly turned red.
Floyd had his fish; Delia’s egg in Norwich.
Jamie untwizzled turkeys; and I’m doing porridge! *
Oh I was so wrong! Why did I do it?
I swiped cheese and bottles; I had to go through it.
I’ve been a bad boy, but at least I give thanks.
They didn’t find the crab sticks, down in my pants.

* (Note: Antony Worrall Thompson was actually let off with a caution)

Review of the year 2011

All in all, it’s been a rather good year for me with the writing. With further eyesight issues, it has become even more difficult for me to write much at length for extended periods of time, but I persevere. This post on the site has taken a couple of days, for example, to write. Recently I have had to write long letters about something non-writing related, and this wiped me out for days. I suppose it will be like marathon running for me: regular training and practice will allow me to ultimately build up enough tolerance to eventually write longer pieces, but in the meantime I’ve had to stick to working on short pieces.

I particularly enjoyed the news that my short story “A Christmas Kiss” was published in an anthology in November 2011, which will bring my work to a wider section of the reading public.

Wonderful opportunities in 2011 allowed me to add performing my work to the focuses of my creativity, and my work was also featured on local BBC radio, at various events in Worcestershire and the West Midlands, and of course as part of the Worcestershire Literary Festival. Performing has been a most welcome outlet for my work, as I have been able to make many new friends and get feedback on my work, as well as presenting my writing and comedy to a wider audience. I am truly grateful to the many friends who have made this possible, and the audiences who have been so receptive.

One fundamental thing in my life which has made the literary world much more accessible to me is the acquisition of an Amazon Kindle 3 (3G Keyboard). Getting this has meant for the first time my reading speed is almost what it was before eyesight issues struck me. It has the facility to enlarge text, and there is with most Kindle format books the Text-to-Speech facility which reads out the book like an audio book. This is a Godsend, particularly when my eyes inevitably get tired of reading (how quickly that happens); rather than abandoning the book, I can just close my eyes and continue enjoying the book by listening to it instead.

So what does the future hold for me? It’s time to lay out my New Year’s Resolutions (in no particular order) and personal goals, and not all of them are writing related:

• Write daily (something I don’t do at the moment).
• Write something of novel length.
• Continue studying Cornish to complete the Kernewek dre Lyther Gradh 1 (Cornish through the post Grade 1) course.
• Compile a few of my older works into an small e-book to showcase my work online.
• Read more. Much more. I can do this easily now I’ve got the Kindle.

And off we go, into 2012! Next year, Ill be working on the above goals, and also looking to add a shop facility to my site to purchase some of my works. Wish me luck!

Happy Hallowe'en!

On the morning of the 31st October 2011, on BBC Radio Hereford & Worcester on the breakfast show (6am - 9am), one of my stories, a Lovecraftian tale entitled "The Latent Shadows", will be read out by the amazingly talented Fergus McGonigal on air (this is, of course, subject to air-time, producer approval, etc.), as part of a Hallowe'en feature on 42 Events (which I regularly perform at) and will feature the work of other great 42 writers too! Listen in!

I apologise this really is last-moment info, but I only found out about it myself on Sunday morning! In media, sometimes things move very quickly, and I'm quite excited about presenting my work to a wider audience like this!

‘42’ is Worcester’s first and only Gothic, Horror, Sci-Fi and Fantasy Open Mic Night for all those who love the genres and everything in between. Let your voice be heard! There will also be a barnstorming horrific and entertaining night for 42 Open Mic Night fans, as Hallowe'en comes to Worcester with a special Hallowe'en edition of 42! I sadly won't be there due to family commitments, but you have no excuse not to go! Check out their Facebook event page here!

Hollybush, Cradley Heath: More poetry, prose and performance!

The next event I'll be attending will be on 4th November in Cradley Heath (8:30pm start), for the 43rd Spoken Word and Music event. I've had confirmation that I've got a slot for presenting more of my writing to a hopefully receptive audience! I've heard good things about this gig, and I look forward to attending! The address:

The Hollybush
Newtown Lane
Cradley Heath
B64 5EA

Hope to see you there!