Friday 21 May 2010

Friday Flash - Strictly No Digging

Today's Friday Flash is actually inspired by a bizarre sign I spotted near Leicester Square in London. Normally I wouldn't have dreamed of digging up the public highway, but of course the very second you're told not to, you can't help but want to!

Strictly No Digging 

Davey pointed out the sign the first time we ever cut through Perdition Square. The black oblong of metal was screwed to a bollard near old man Jenkins' cafe. Big white handpainted letters spelled out 'Strictly No Digging'.

"Why, man? What don't they want us to find?" said Dave. He pointed at the sign, a goofy look of conspiracy plastered on his face.I simply shrugged.

"Could be anything. Water pipes, maybe?"

"Nah, man. There's got to be something they're hiding there. That's why they don't want us to dig." He gesticulated wildly with spindly fingers. Dozens of bracelets made of wooden beads knocked together on his skinny arms.

"Bollocks. Jenkins probably doesn't want people taking up the cobbles."

"I'm tellin' you, man. It's got to be parliament." Davey's eyes were wide. They were also bloodshot, and I wondered for the umpteenth time what he'd been smoking this time.

"I doubt it."

"Look, they're telling us not to dig. So, I gotta dig now. I wouldn't have thought of it before, but now...I gotta know what they're hidin' under this place." I thought I caught a whiff of stale moonshine on Davey's breath as he leaned close.

"Do whatever you want."

I left him standing in the square, contemplating the sign.


Eleven hours later, I found myself standing in the square again. Thick clouds blotted out the moonlight, and shadows clustered in doorways. I looked around at the silent buildings, feeling the heavy weight of the windows' stare. Davey jabbed his dad's spade between the cobbles around the bollard. The grate of metal on stone set my teeth on edge.

"Do you HAVE to do this?" I hissed. "You've already broken my shovel and that one isn't looking too healthy. My dad's gonna kill me!"

"I'm nearly there," replied Davey. He tossed aside his own shovel, ignoring the large crack that ran the length of the wooden handle. He dropped to his knees, and clawed at the loose cobbles. I looked around the square. A shiver ran down my spine as I looked at the windows. I wondered if anyone sat beyond the glass, watching us from a darkened room.

"I don't believe it."

I looked down at Davey. A small pile of cobbles sat on the ground beside him. He still clutched one, dirt clinging to his fingers. I peered down into the hole he'd made. A single piece of white card lay at the bottom.
I fished it out and held it up, brushing crumbs of soil from the card. A breath of wind drove the clouds from the moon, and I could read the black script.

Come to O'Nally's, for all your hardware needs! Shovels, 
gardening equipment, pick axes - if you need it, we have it!

Tuesday 18 May 2010

Procrastination Blues

Dear friends...I am procrastinating. Again. It's amazing that I'm even writing this entry, and not finding other things to do instead (while simultaneously complaining about not writing enough blog posts). Despite the introduction of a writing schedule, I find that I'm still not getting enough done. Oh, I'm managing to write my Friday flashes, I'm keeping up with my serial, and I'm even working on my Fowlis Westerby novel, but I keep finding that I have more and more things that I want to do with my waking hours that aren't spent chained to an office desk. They're not even always writing related - I have several drawing projects and knitting endeavours that I want to start (let alone finish).

So what do I do? Since I bought a Netbook last week and can now type to my heart's content on the way to and from work, I'm finding it a lot easier to find the time and the space to write (especially since I seem to work better when I'm not at home). But what do I do about the other projects? None of them are 'important' to my goals as a writer, but they're important to me in other areas of my life, and when I neglect those, my writing suffers. Besides, some of the knitting projects are going to be for sale, as I have a very very special trip to save up for, and could really use the extra funds.

So please. Help a struggling 'artist' out. How do you combat procrastination, and find enough hours in the day to do everything?

Sunday 16 May 2010

Immortalised in Comic Form

Fame beckons!!

If everyone goes to have a look at the Alone In A Crowd strip for May 14 2010, they'll get to see me! I'm the black-haired girl!!

I'm very, very chuffed about this for various reasons. One, it's not every day that you make an appearance in one of your favourite comics, and two, I think Tom's made me look pretty awesome!!

I really do recommend that everyone take some time out, go over to Alone In A Crowd, and start reading from the beginning. I can't stress enough how good it is, or how lovely its creator Tom is. He's a fellow member of Jimmy Misanthrope's Below the Fold collective - you can check out the other members by clicking the links down the side of my blog. I'll be introducing you to everyone over the coming weeks, so start swotting!