Happy Christmas…
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News
I have a nasty habit of becoming a bit (more) moody and introspective at this time of the year. Maybe it’s the cold weather, or the short days and long nights stopping me from exercising and keeping me inside vegetating and giving me lots of time to think. Or perhaps it’s natural to reflect on the year gone by and weigh it up with the 20/20 vision of retrospect. The problem (if it is one) isn’t helped by my natural “Grinchiness” about Christmas, stomping about complaining about the rampant commercialism and how it separates us from what is supposed to be important about this time of year. Why it’s only important for 12 days at the end of the year I’m not sure, surely we want to show goodwill to all and connect with family and friends throughout the year? But for me it seems that whatever Christmas is supposed to be about it was high-jacked long ago…anyway that’s another post entirely and in case anyone feels the need to defend Christmas I really don’t hate it or anything, it just seems all rather cynical these days. But I suppose it is what you make of it, and you can choose to have Christmas without all the rubbish that now comes with it.
Anyway, as the year comes to an end I’ve been thinking a lot about what this year has yielded, what I’ve achieved, what I didn’t and how I can change that in the new year. Looking back on it it’s actually been one hell of a year. I graduated from university as a mature student, then landed a great job out of the blue while many of my third year cohort are temping, signing on to the dole or struggling through PGCEs and the like. I’ve created (along with my amazing partner Kate) a new life that’ll be joining use kicking and screaming (hopefully not too much) in 2010, I can’t wait to meet her. I interviewed one of my favourite musicians, Kip Winger, who was an awesome dude and has just released an awesome album with the band. And there have been other minor things: getting my fiction out there, albeit to the free on-line markets; seeing my “adopted” grandma for the first time in about 8 years having said I would several times a years since my last visit and other things that aren’t of interest to you, but are to me.
And the bad?
Having stories rejected; feeling constantly knackered from May through to October thanks to the new job and all the stress that comes with it; beinig incredibly grouchy and moody because of said stress (sorry Kate x); not doing enough writing, of either fiction or my non-fiction book project; having the non-fiction book project rejected by a few publishers (in a really nice way, the book wasn’t for them but that is has potential and someone is bound to take it soon, so that wasn’t too bad); losing faith in the project because of my not-quite-thick-enough skin…and so on.
On balance it really has been a great year and as it comes to an end I’m determined to get my fiction out there, improve it and get it into some of the better markets. I’ve also got other projects that I’d like to investigate: a novel that was started and needs finishing; a story I’d like to adapt into a short film; more freelance writing for other magazines.
But the one I’m most looking forward to: my daughter. If nothing else goes right in 2010 I know she’ll be perfect!
I guess my point is that, even if this year hasn’t been great there were probably more good things than you instantly remember, and even if you’re as cynical and downbeat as me use this time to re-connect with friends, spend time with your family and think about how you can make 2010 the best year of your life (so far).
Happy Christmas!
Ben
Tags: acoustic magazine, writing
Setting trends…
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News, Reviews
I’ve always been cynical about the media, and how it tells Joe Public what to like, what to hate and what to think. Believe me I still am…
But, I just received this clipping from a PR company. I’d been asked to write an endorsement of one of their bands for Music Week, an industry magazine for the music world. Who knew I’d be setting trends and tastes from sunny ol’ Devon.
Of course, this doesn’t mean I’m the next Simon Cowell (because I have a modicum of taste and don’t wear my trousers hiked up around my nipples), but Chasing Pandora really are quite good if you like acoustic music. So if you feel like following my recommendation, then do. You’ll probably be better off than with the latest X-Factor rejects.
I’m Going To Be a Dad!
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News
Of course I’ve know this for a while now, but yesterday Kate and I went for the 12 week scan.
Over the last couple of months I’ve been on what I’m told is the normal emotional “rollercoaster” for expectant parents, and I know it’s been a hundred times worse for Kate. I’ve been constantly worrying about how things are going to work out. How will we afford to liev on just my salary? Where are we going to live, we can’t stay in our one bed flat anymore? What about all the expense of a baby? Nappies? Crib? Clothes that are redundant the next morning because they’ve grown out of them? I’ve been struggling to keep these things from my mind.
Then a funny thing happened. As I saw the image of my child, looking so much like the Starchild from 2001: A Space Odyssey, moving around (I never knew they were so active, so young) and heard his/her heart beating strongly I had a startling moment of clarity. Regardless of what happens in my life, whatever I may do in terms of my career, my writing or anything else I will never do anything as important or amazing as having a child.
Of course I may seem sentimental, and I know a whole raft of other worries and stresses are just around the corner, and no doubt there will be times where I’m far from the perfect parent, but I now feel that whatever the future brings I have a whole new purpose in life.
Am I going off sci fi?
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General
Blasphemy!
I don’t really think I’m going off sci-fi, but I have to say that of late I’m finding it very hard to become enthused about the genre.
Whenever I pick up a novel by one of the new(er) generation of SF, and by that I mean from the 80s onwards, I’m left cold. I read a hundred pages and struggle hard to get through what is often pretentious, self-consciously literary prose. Then I take a break. I leave it for a few days, maybe a week and nothing makes me want to finish said novel.
One of the criticisms leveled at SF (and many genres of fiction/music etc.) is that it hasn’t moved on, indeed that due to the inherent restrictions of genre conventions it cannot. That maybe (though I happen to disagree, and have good reasons for defending genre conventions and their use) but why doesn’t any of the new stuff I read grab me in the way Philip K. Dick’s work does. Dick was no stylist when it came to his writing, in fact he tended to write novels on amphetamine binges in a matter of weeks, but his books (even the lesser ones) are compulsively readable.
Authors like Dick, Clarke and Asimov were all story tellers with ideas. Their prose is generally plain, Dick’s verges on hard-boiled at times, and the narrative pushes forward. I feel it’s this narrative drive that is missing from a lot of modern SF. Who cares if the plot is a little cliché, the characters not quite three dimensional if it rattles along and entertains you? I’m not saying authors shouldn’t strive for the best quality prose, and wonderful characters…but sometimes it seems they get a little bit lost in their literariness.
Another thing that seems to have disappeared with narrative drive, and perhaps is intrinsically intertwined, is the concision of those “classic era” novels. When I look in the SF section of Waterstones or Smith’s all I see are brick sized books, 600 pages long or more, and quite often one of several in a series. Again, I’m not against length – a story is as long as you need to tell it, no? But I very rarely see those 200-300 page novels, unless they are re-prints of classics. Some would argue it’s the scope of the long novels, it requires so many pages. So are the novels of Dick, Clarke et al lacking in scope? I think not.
All this has been sparked by my flick through the latest copy of Interzone (223). Since subscribing to the magazine I’ve read very little short fiction that did it for me. There’s been a few but not much. And I’m in no way criticising the authors from a writers perspective, as I’m hardly a writer with a fine pedigree of published work. I’m simply stating that most of the fiction Interzone publishes leaves me cold, as a reader. I really wish it didn’t.
Anyway, that’s all for now. I’m just crabby because DHL still haven’t delivered my new notebook!
Later.
Photography
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News
Please check out Darren Newbery’s new photography website. Darren and I used to work in the hellhole that is Jessops (although the people who work in the Exeter branch are very nice). He has just returned from a round the world trip and is available as a freelance photographer. I’m sure you’ll agree his work is excellent.
Tags: Add new tag
Work, the final frontier.
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News
Well, I’ve finished university now. All I’m waiting on is my dissertation to be marked and then I’m done and dusted. Of course there’s the graduation ceremony but I’m not intending to attend that, I’ll just wait for my degree certificate to arrive in the post. I’m not the sentimental type and sitting around for three hours while the whole arts faculty lines up to collect theirs just doesn’t appeal.
But the point of this post is to pass on some good news. After all my worrying and agonising over the future and employment I’ve managed to land a great job. I am the new assistant editor of Acoustic Magazine. A series of events just happened to dovetail all at the same time and I start on Monday!
The job is a multi faceted one. It incorporates not only assisting in deciding what goes into the magazine but also feature/review/interview writing, sub-editing, proof reading, liaising with the graphic designers over layout, being the port of call for industry contacts, chasing up and arranging interviews and all kinds of other jobs. It looks like it’s going to be stressful but fun, the environment is great and the job sounds genuinely rewarding, with some nice perks.
Of course I’m wondering what effect this might have on my fledgling writing career. Although the job is a Monday-Friday one it’s obviously going to be busy and creative, and could leave me drained. On the other hand I’ll be doing a lot of writing for an internationally distributed magazine, which can only improve my skills. Hopefully, after an intial settling in period, I’ll not only have the time to write but also be inspired to.
Gareth Powell touched on the issue of job vs writing in this post.
Anyway, I’ll be sure to let you know how it all goes, and if you happen to play acoustic guitar/mandolin/banjo etc. or are just into the acoustic music scene please be sure to get the latest issue, which you can find in W H Smith’s and, from the next issue, Tescos too.
Ta ta for now
Tags: acoustic magazine, Gareth L. Powell, job, News, writing
And so, the end is near…
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News
Yup, my dissertation is all done. It just needs to be printed, bound and then handed in to face the cruel ministrations of university tutors!
It’s been a fun three years, not least because I’ve largely avoided work (of the remunerative sort) and so had a lot of time to play videogames, go to the cinema, hang out with friends…oh and read lots of fine works of literature and improve my analytical and critical thinking, as well as my writing.
Now of course I face the impending world of work which I have so skillfully avoided…oh well.
In truth, like many people of my generation (and I suspect of other generations, regardless of what grandparents like to say of a simpler time where men were men, and women were second class citizens: “But at least we all knew who we were, dear”) I’ve never really known what to do, and I think this is the root of my worries about the future.
Ah well, as the Romans used to say “Your problems sort themselves out by walking”. It worked for them, until a load of Goths come walking in the other direction!
PS I’ve posted a new link to a fellow aspiring writer, Leigh Barlow. It’s over on my side bar and in the weblinks page. Have a quick gander…go on…go on…go on…ahh you will…go on…
Poetry for my peeps
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, Poetry
Just posted a couple of little poems for your reading pleasure in the poetry page. They’re both SF themed haikus.
The haiku is a Japanese form of verse that found great popularity in the West, mainly America, from around the 1920s onwards. In English the traditional form is 3 lines of 5,7 and 5 syllables. Of course in its orignal Japanese the haiku is simply a column of characters running down the page, but with the 5,7,5 morae.
Ezra Pound was a big fan of the haiku (and other Easter forms of poetry) and the similarities between haiku and some of the Imagist poems is evident: the compression, the distilling of an image into as few words as possible. Pound also had a real thing for Japanese and Chinese ideograms because they mean the thing that they represent (this isn’t the place to start talking about language and the limits of representation, but he has a point).
It is taken almost for granted that Western haikus don’t compare favourably to the original Japanese ones. Indeed many Western haikus (my own ones included on the poetry page) don’t adhere to the Japanese “rules” such as nature imagery, a seasonal representation (e.g cherry blossoms = spring) and so on.
Nonetheless they are a fun form of poetry to write, and if taken seriously can be very hard to write well. I don’t claim that my own are anything special but I enjoy them anyway. Hope you do to.
Bye.
Great news!
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, News, Poetry
I received a wonderful email today from Iain Muir, the poetry editor from Aphelion. He has accepted my poem ‘Orion’s Belt’ for publication. It’s just going to miss the May issue so will feature in the June issue.
Poetry has not been my main focus in my creative writing but it feels great to have something accepted from a reputable on line sci-fi webzine. You can follow the link above or go from my weblinks page if you want to check the magazine out. It’s a good read and I’m delighted to be published in it.
Well, hopefully this will be the thin end of the wedge. I’ve got other poems and some ideas for stories to work on once I hand in this darned dissertation next week.
Onwards and upwards! To infinity and BEYOND!
I’ll shut up now 
Tags: submission
New fiction and poetry
Posted by bencooper | Filed under General, Poetry, Short Stories
Hi all!
I’ve posted a new flash fiction story on the fiction page and also added a poetry page with my first sci-fi poem on it. The poem was inspired by recent work I’ve done on the Imagist poetry movement, check out Ezra Pound et al for examples of proper Imagist poems.
As usual any comments on anything are welcome.
Later,
Ben