Lost in the Weeds - again!

 Hi Guys,

Just a brief note to let you know where I am these days and why I haven't posted anything for a while. And I think the title about sums it up. As you know I recently put out Freaksville, and was extremely happy to have finally got it finished after more than a year of procrastination. But after that I found myself losing focus for a time and ended up watching masses of Youtube and various telly shows. Some old ones but also some brand new.

By the way for those of you into quirky and sort of detectivy, I can't recommend the shows Deadlock and Population 11 highly enough. I don't know what is happening on the other side of the ditch, but the Australians really seem to be excelling with their offbeat characters and plots. Damn, I just wish I could write characters that completely and so hilariously off the wall! I mean years ago they put out films like Malcolm, Strictly Ballroom and Garbo, but lately they've been taking things to a whole new level. I love it!

Other than that, I've been sort of blocked in my writing, sitting at my desk and wondering how the orange trees outside the window can be fruiting when we're just starting winter, and the overnight temperature drops to damn near freezing. Most people keep telling me that oranges shouldn't grow in this climate at all! But I figure since I've also got lemons and grapefruit in my back yard, my back yard must be some sort of tropical micro-climate. Or magical!

The good news is that I'm nearly through the first draft of an urban sci fi - Good Neighbours - the story of a typical New Zealand Vet beset by aliens. The bad news is that I'm blocked again. For some reason this whole book has been like that. I write a chapter or two and then can't think where I go from there. It's like pulling teeth as they say and a lot of coffee has been drunk, a lot of swear words muttered! On the positive side I can't pull my hair out since I got stuck in with the trimmer a few weeks ago and there isn't anything long enough left to get a good solid grip on!

Anyway, that's been my life lately, that and trying to explain to the cat that no she wasn't born in a glass factory and I can't see through her when she decides to deposit herself in front of the monitor, and the reason it's been a while since I've posted. But I hope to have some better news by the next post. And in the meantime, enjoy the alien duck!

Cheers, Greg.