Cryonite Cove

On Saturday I started my new blog about the online space game Pirate Galaxy. The name is Cryonite Cove, and it can be found at http://cryonitecove.blogspot.com/


The blog is driven by my writing ambition rather than my genuine fondness for the game. I’m not one of those people who are driven to gain status within a hobby. Some strive to the best, others to be the most famous. You can do this by having the biggest collection of x, be the best player of y, or being the most opinionated and vicious critic of the hobby they love (Comic Book Guy, I’m looking at you.) Desmond Morris opened my eyes to this sort of thing in the Naked Ape, and I’ve never looked at my fellow sci-fi and gaming nuts the same since.

Writing novels and short fiction is hard, I like what I write but it kills me to do it. Blogging is easy. How good it is I couldn’t say (not modesty, I just haven’t assessed my blogging ability yet), but motivation is not a problem. For now anyway, maybe the novelty will wear off.

Anyway, the blog is up and running. If all goes to plan I’ll write an entertaining and interesting blog which Pirate Galaxy fans will flock to, earning me vast sums of cash through advertising as they do. As I love the game and enjoy blogging, it shouldn’t be akin to pulling my own teeth.

Writing for fun

I do sometimes worry about spending time relaxing or having fun rather than writing. There are those, so I'm told, who relax and have fun by writing. I envy them. I like to think about writing, read about it, talk about it. I also like to look back at my work and show it off, or defend it as the case may be.

Unfortunately the writing itself is work, and not work that I look forward to. Once I'm underway it's not so bad. In fact when I'm in full flow I resent any reason to stop, such as eating, sleeping or the unreasonable desire of your family to communicate with you. It's getting started that's the real bugger. The exception is this blog, which I do enjoy. I think it's the bite-size nature, seeing my writing on the WWW, and discovering that someone from Moscow was last night reading about my bed-time stories.

There are books of advice on forcing yourself to write, and I'm sure all of it works for someone. There are tricks that work for me too, but it is still a challenge. So when I sit down to play Pirate Galaxy, or watch telly, or sit in the bath reading, there's always the nagging guilt that I should be writing.

Well I have hit upon a plan.

Why not start a Blog on my Pirate Galaxy adventures? People have found this blog looking for Pirate Galaxy information and comment, and there are forums and data bases run by fans all over the web. Maybe there's a market for an honest, independent, entertaining (hopefully) blog written by a non-obsessive, literate player.

As well as combining two fun things, there is the chance of making some cash from it too. I've decided to keep ads off this blog, but in a Pirate Galaxy blog they'd be welcome. Maybe I'll earn a fortune and be hired by every MMORPG game to play and blog in their universe and spread the word. PC sponsors will supply me with free equipment and broadband, while players fight to be in the clans of the famous blogger.

Why not, and did I mention the fun?

Update
The blog is now up and running. Have a look and see what you think.
http://cryonitecove.blogspot.com/

Kick Off

So at last my club, Birmingham City FC, have kicked off the new season. My family could tell straight away, because I got snappy when they asked me stuff while I was trying to listen to the match. The fact that we had just gone 2:0 down against 10 men didn't help.

For the record, we drew 2:2 with Sunderland via a last minute equaliser, which feels as good as a win. Last season we lost our opening match and the Sunderland away game, so whichever way you look at it we're a point better off already.

With the Blues back life gets that little bit more interesting. For a few hours each week all other problems disappear. Your horizon shrinks to the confines of the stadium around you (or the voices coming out of the radio). You have no control over events other than to shout, sing and applaud. Maybe that's the point, the attraction. You're not just allowed to broadcast your primal feelings of rage, joy, and despair, it's demanded. Thousands around you are doing the same, and if you all sing just that little bit harder, shout that little bit louder, and get under the skin of that opposing player, you might just tip the balance and turn frustration into victory.

Then there's the fun away from the games. Arguing with fans of your team and others, looking at the table and predicting results, checking injuries and form guides. Hope and worry are constant companions of the football fan and we wouldn't be without them.

Welcome back blues.

The Deep

I loved the first episode of The Deep, the BBC's new submarine drama. I liked it more than the first episode of Sherlock, though I think I'm in a minority.

BBC 'The Deep' Website

The mystery of the story pressed all the right buttons for me. The disappearance of the previous sub, panicked last messages about being swallowed up, the gigantic Nautilus-like vessel hovering overhead, unexplained bloody death, plus the good old submarine staples of claustrophobia and suffocation. Lovely. It could be international espionage, aliens, maybe the great-grandson of Captain Nemo making his presence felt. In fact with a few cosmetic changes this could be a script for Star Trek.

The second episode was disappointing. 90% of the mystery has been cleared up, with fairly mundane revelations. No aliens, no Nemo, no Atlantis, nothing supernatural, it's just the Russians with a big radar gun. Of course this could all be red herrings, and the Atlantian-Nemo-aliens are pulling all the strings in the background, the strange object in the glowing box gives me some hope.

More likely the Beeb are just teasing us Fan Boys, which is just plain nasty.

New Wolf Family Tattoo

Last week I got my fourth and so far largest tattoo, picture on the right. It was a birthday present, and I am extremely grateful to the giver.

The wolves represent my family, so the colouring of the fur and the eyes matches the person. I had it done at Tattoo Palace in Wolverhampton, and the artist was Corry. You can find them on Facebook.

I gave Corry the design brief, and showed her some examples of tattoo styles that I did and didn't like. I didn't want it to be one of those photograph-like tattoos or too dark. I like comic book style art so it is a little stylised. I gave her a drawing fee and two weeks later came back to see the finished design, which I loved.

It was done in one three and a half hour session, with a couple of ten minute breaks. The upper arm is one of the easiest places to get tattooed, but by the end I'd definitely had enough.

Now I just need to plan my next one.