Getting personal

I haven't mentioned much of what I'm about on the personal front recently. My contract with the Open University comes to an end this week, but I am already set up with another contract in Sheffield starting from Monday.

I was particularly interested in the Sheffield job because it meant that I could live at home for a change. Something appreciated by all the family. It should be cheaper - unfortunately it isn't. From where I live to the job is less than 40 miles, a small journey by train - my favoured form of transport. But no. The Pennines are in the way and there's no easy way to do it. So I am forced to lease a car which eats up most of the money I would otherwise have had extra.

This is not to say that I'll be worse off or anything. It's just irritating. Plus the fact I will be wasting 3 hours of my day, every weekday, when I could be writing. Irritating.

Writing-related news

The work on Tec continues on target - dumped another two scenes I didn't much like and incorporated their plot-relevant content elsewhere in a much tighter format. As a general policy I cut back dialogue and action whenever I see something that could be expressed in less words - a by-product of my magazine editor experience where I was forever chopping out the deadwood from other people's prose - often turning complete paragraphs into a single short sentence.

Despite all this cutting back the script is the same length as it was before I started this process - which hopefully means it's getting packed with the good stuff.

The trailer for Monsters will hopefully be getting back on track after a short hiatus - with the producer being on holiday (and getting engaged) - and the director being so busy at work he couldn't do anything. Though he did watch Children of Earth and promises that he saw some neat tricks he's going to steal.

My search for a new illustrator for the Monsters OGN is not going very well at the moment, had a nibble but it didn't go anywhere. Trouble is my requirements are limiting - I'd really prefer an illustrator who knows Manchester.

In other news

The Daughter got her first "trial job" last weekend, at a country house hotel, serving at table like all good actresses. I would have said that they just did it to get some free staff, except they called her today for another event they're hosting on Friday. They'll pay her for that one. Still got a long way to go before she can afford to get to Borneo though. The other positive thing is that she can now put an actual job on her CV.

The Boy is gearing up for the CBBC Bamzooki TV show, they sent him the new software (as yet unreleased, and no you can't have it) the new format looks very exciting. He's been designing his new zooks and will be working with his team next week when they finish school. It also turns out that he's a rather good drummer (as well as playing sax and tenor horn) - I feign annoyance at how talented my kids are.

The Teacher is fine, and very pleased that she's steadily losing weight without dieting. Hope she doesn't go too far, I like my wenches cuddlesome.

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What's on the turntable? "I wasn't gonna fall in love" by Carole King from "Love makes the World"