Don't See Sinister Please.

Running Spy

Four high halls,

A wondering eye.

Seven breaths later,

She left me to die.

Revenge

You wronged me.

And now you lay there cold and breathless,

Because if you wrong me-

I leave you cold and breathless.

A sickly frail sneaking,

Murder on the stairs, a short half sketch,

Across alabaster skin drawing lines of fire.

Our hands hold justice, a blade of ice.

Because if you wrong us,

We leave you cold and breathless.

Blame

Battle a dance, a clash of tides,

Thundered in smoke a wise man hides,

Run boy run, his screams made pain,

The boy looked back, the boy was slain.

Confusion

I saw the earth made diamond,

A cloud at the bottom of the door,

There are feet running circles on the pavement,

There's a body, hanging from the floor.

I saw a horse pulled backwards,

I saw a dagger in the law,

There are five small hearts on this harp string,

There's a body, hanging from the floor.

I saw the bed sheets darken,

Past the window, a shadow on the moor,

There's a man sat laughing underneath me,

My body, hanging from the floor.

*  *  *

I wrote these yesterday, they're not the best but they were fun, it was a nice change. I don't do much poetry and I never have a craving to write it, so this was an unexpected twist to my day *haha* - I am not as morbid as they may sound, today I am actually quite happy! I have started reading Warbreaker and I must say, it is devilishly intriguing. The magic system really annoyed me at first because it was so alien and I just couldn't get my head around it... BUT! I think that this is a good thing, it's how I'd react if I was introduced to a real magic system - if one were to exist. 

Also, my initial inability to accept it only proves to me that it is an original concept, if I understood it straight away and recognised its rules and conventions then it would mean that I had, in some form, seen it previously. I have to say, this seems to be the case with a lot of high fantasy novels I have read, their magic systems have been done and it gets boring. Warbreaker has brought something new and I'm really enjoying it. The review won't be up tomorrow but I will definitely have it finished by Wednesday - I've been busy what with all the Christmas madness! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

Crazy Crazy "Book Of The Week" Mishap!

So, as it turns out, foolish foolish me left Brandon Sanderson's book 'Alloy Of Law' back at my university flat. This is great seeing as I posted it to the book of the week page and promised myself I would finish reading it by Christmas - that this will happen is looking very very unlikely. But Jacob [you say] why don't you just read another book, or wait until after Christmas to read and review Sanderson's? Ah, [I respond] that would be an excellent plan, had I not already tweeted Sanderson and told him I was doing it this week (not that he cares in the slightest - seeing as he is finishing up Memory Of Light - he's a busy man, I understand * haha*) so instead I've been down to the shops and I bought Warbreaker, another one of his books (just released although not officially published until January 2012 as the kind Waterstones lady informed me). 

I will read and review this book instead and then do 'Alloy Of Law' next week, possibly the week after. Now that that is all cleared up, have a look at the Warbreaker cover, it's shexy!

And no, by that I do not mean SHE is sexy...

Time To Write.

It's time for me to prepare to get my life in order, yeah I have to prepare for this, you know - mentally. There's a lot I want to do with my life and most of what I want to do requires me to start doing it now. As you may know if you've checked out my twitter, I consider myself much the writer type. I follow a lot of authors I respect and admire and have even had the honour of a few of them tweeting me personally - you have no idea how excited I was when N. K. Jemisin tweeted me! Google her. That'll be it for the name dropping... Anyway, I know that no one gets anywhere in the publishing industry without putting in the work - it's not about who you know (although it helps), it's about what you do, say and write.

So it's time for me to really start writing - up until now I've been writing disjointed irrelevant notes, tatty pieces of partial plots that mean nothing to no one - nice double negative there if I do say so myself! With all of that in mind, I have decided to set myself daily and weekly writing tasks. Starting from tomorrow, I aim to write at least two hundred words a day based around a particular theme, event or genre. The subject will change each week and so hopefully every seven days I will produce one short but cohesive piece of work that can be added to my - currently empty - personal writing portfolio. 

I will post each piece of work here and at my writers forum for critique. I expect it to sting a little at first, but that is the point, if I am ever to improve, I have to know where I am going wrong. I want to start writing my main novel series by the time I hit twenty and it just wouldn't be possible with the level of skill I have - or lack - right now. Not putting myself down, just being realistic; I think it's good to acknowledge that we can and should improve ourselves in any area we feel personally lacking. I am going to appeal to my friends and twitter followers for theme ideas for this week - feel free to leave a comment if you have any ideas for this or any future themes! Thanks for reading!

Counting Down The Days...

Christmas is in six days, it's less than a week away! I didn't ask for anything in particular, because I don't feel that I need anything in particular and anything I do really want is far too expensive (iPad2) or not even out yet (iPad3). With that said, there are a few little items I know I will definitely be purchasing with the funds I will hopefully acquire over the Christmas period. I won't go into too much detail but I'm going to make a little list of links and comment on some of them, you know, for the giggles - here it is:

• Kyoku - Pore Reducing Serum (£35.00) - this stuff looks great, I've seen a good few reviews over the Tube of the You and people rave about it. It's a little expensive to say it's only 50ml but it's supposed to last a good long while and can you really put a price on tiny pores? Maybe you can! So can I, and that price is thirty five pounds. I originally spotted it on Jim Chapman's Youtube channel, I always watch him, he has some really useful tutorials and reviews!

• 'Born To Die' - Lana Del Rey (£12.99) - this girl really has me excited, so far out of all of the songs from her I have heard there have been none I've disliked. She has a really hypnotic voice, and her music is just so relaxed but at the same time it can be quite dark and fiery. The music video for the title track is just unreal (to me) and a link to it can be seen in my previous post. I'm really happy that I started listening to her because I was getting a little tired of uppity pop and dance music seeing as it's all I've listened to since starting university. The album is out 30/01/2012 and I can't wait!

• Hugo Boss Bottled (£30.00) - this is my all time favourite men's fragrance. It is really light but quite masculine and it lasts for hours. According to Boots, "Boss Bottled is the encapsulation of Boss in a fragrance," and it's made up of apple, citrus and a whole load of wood based scents.

• Apple iPad 2 (£399-£659) - I've been dying to get my hands on an iPad of my own for such a long time but with Apple's annual product renewal cycle it's never seemed worth it because whatever you buy one year will be outdated the next. That being said, I decided earlier this month that I could put up with my device being succeeded by a faster model after just one year. So as the link might suggest, I've been seriously considering purchasing the iPad 2. That was until the rumours started flying about a February iPad 3 release, so.... I'm going to hold out a little while and see what happens - either way, by March I'll have an iPad, that is decided.

• Multi Colour Wingcap Shoes (£40.00) - haven't been on Asos for too long but these look snazzy! Yeah, I said snazzy! I love brogue-style shoes and these are just that little bit modern but still retain much of the classic brogue look - me wants.

• Elantris - Brandon Sanderson (£8.99) - Brandon Sanderson is one of my all time favourite authors, I think that the man is a genius! Elantris is actually the first book he had published and it's been in and out of circulation the last few years in the UK which is why I think I've never seen it on the shelf. It always receives great reviews and it has even been praised by my good friend Martin, so I know it must be good *winks*.

• Dr Dre Beats [Pro White] (£281.00) - I tried a pair of these on in HMV and I have to say, they are amazing. They're a bit ostentatious (huge, white, giant B logo) but I can get past that, they are just crystal clear. Plus, if there's only one iPod about you can daisy chain them with other headphones so everyone can listen in!

I think that's it, obviously I can't afford all of it *sobs* but I should be able to get my hands on a good few of the items I've posted - this will please me! Anyway that's it for my post-Xmas wish list, hope you've seen something you like too! If anyone has a similar list, share it in the comments section! 

It Begins.

So, this is my first post. Hopefully this will be a really good place to write about all of the things I find interesting, plus it's a useful way to eat up all of my free time!! I spend a lot of time on YouTube and Stumbled Upon so expect a lot of video links, pictures and articles that have caught my eye. Sometimes you're gonna see a post and think, "Why am I here..." but that's OK *smiles* judge away - I don't care, much. I'll try and keep my posts ranged and interesting so they don't get samey!

I don't have much to add today because it's really late, but I'll leave you with the video for 'Born To Die,' the newest single from Lana Del Rey - she's my favorite artist at the moment, I urge you to search for her other stuff, it's all great! I think the video is stunning, it's so well made and the final scene is so powerful and cinematic, I could watch it over and over - plus, there are tigers!