The Strive For Perfection

As I know my readers aren't exactly numerous, I think it is safe to say that you all know that I enjoy drawing as well as writing. Recently I have been trying to adjust my style, and it made me wonder: will I ever be pleased with my artwork? With my writing? Will anyone ever be truly satisfied with their own work? Whatever it is that I do, whatever kind of work I produce, however wonderful I think it is at the time, you can guarantee that a year, a month, even a day later, I will gag at the sight of it. I don't think it's a bad thing: the constant strive for perfection is mostly what keeps me going. If I have no other ideas on what life's meaning is, then I can guess that it is trying to get as close to perfection as possible, even if it isn't attainable.

About a year ago I claimed I was satisfied and comfortable with my art style. I was half right: I was definitely comfortable with it, but several months later I decided I needed a change, then later still I wanted to change it again, and again, and only this week I gave it another tweak to try and push it in a new direction. Then today I was looking at some artwork and realised yet another thing I could do to improve my style ('improve' being used rather loosely). Despite all this, I am actually taking it as a good thing that I understand that I will never be fully happy with my work, and that it hasn't discouraged me from continuing.

Another thing that got me thinking was that when I posted a sample of my new style on DeviantArt, I said "This is not definite... the style I currently use isn't particularly expressive and I'm having less fun drawing in that style... Be very honest with your opinions. If you don't like it, do let me know... if enough people prefer the old one I might go back". It made me wonder whether I was really drawing for me anymore. I always used to draw just for me and close friends, as I only saw it as a hobby, and I was never particularly well-known on DeviantArt. But recently I have been getting more attention there and I am becoming more conscious about what other people will like about my work, whether or not they will enjoy it, whether or not they will appreciate it, or 'get it', whether or not they will find my comics funny. If I really think about it, I do still want to draw for myself: I don't see myself drawing for a living, so I think for now I will continue on the road I am setting out for myself and see where it leads from there. Maybe in the future it will be more than a hobby, I just don't know, but for now, I draw for me, so I'm going to stick with what makes me happy.

Until tomorrow, my most likely now less adoring public.

Apologies For Brevity

My Theatre Studies exam is in two days. I can't think of anything interesting to write about, if I'm completely honest. I don't think I even have it in me to write about nothing as I usually would in this situation. Unfortunately this is a miniature entry. I hope I will be forgiven for this abysmal post.

Until tomorrow, my minions.

I Only Dislike One of These Songs

I was wondering yesterday which is the most common song sung by choirs. On my list is From a Distance, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Tears in Heaven, Hallelujah and possibly God Only Knows (that last one I think probably would be sang in choirs a lot, but I personally haven't heard it sung by more than one choir, so maybe not. One song I would personally love to sing is Zombie Jamboree, but I just love a cappella and fun upbeat, comical songs... and zombies.

Then again, I am singing Chattanooga Choo Choo which is so much fun to sing in a choir, we're also singing an a cappella version, which makes it even more fun. However, as an alto, I have the difficult job of singing one of the more difficult harmonies. The sopranos are lucky enough to sing the tune, while we altos are stuck singing the complicated parts. Although sopranos can sing much higher than me without sounding like strangled cats so I do have a certain level of respect for them...

I'm afraid this entry is somewhat lacking, and unfortunately it is particularly uninteresting if you're not as into music as I am. Maybe tomorrow will bear more interesting material. Only one way to find out, I am in such suspense.

Until tomorrow, you little angels.

Unobservant... in HD

We bought a new television today and I've only just realised now that I have no idea when the old one was moved away and where it is now being kept. It honestly never crossed my mind. I was at home when they brought it in, I remember because I came home to an empty house, went to my bedroom and when I came out, people were home and there was a new television. Yes this also means that I was unaware of their return. I never realised just how unobservant and out of touch I really was.

Also it just reminded me that I will only be living where I am for a few more months now (three or four, if I'm not mistaken) simply because I made an offhand comment about only enjoying the new TV for a few months because I will be going to University in September. Hopefully. I've gone through it a thousand times in my head and I'm fairly sure there is not much of a chance that I won't at least be able to go to my insurance choice.

Well, thinking about the future is both exciting and frightening, but I would have to say it's mostly exciting, but I'm jumping the gun. First exams, then riotous student life.

Until tomorrow, you dudes and dudettes.

On Writer's Block

Writer's block has been plaguing me the last few weeks. Not just in getting my thoughts down, but in forming thoughts and ideas to begin with. For example, I'm planning to enter a script writing contest, and I have gone through several like-minded concepts and I haven't been happy with any of them, or at least I haven't felt that I could truly win with them. If I want to even have a chance at getting even a runner-up prize, I can't do the same bland scripts that everyone else will be doing. I suppose the main problem I'm having is that it needs to be short: it has to be a one act play, so I can't allow the usual amount of build-up that I'm used to.

I know this is starting to sound like a self-pitying 'I can't do anything' post that you would expect to see on LiveJournal or something, but I honestly can't even think of a decent topic to write about here, so I thought I would try to write about not being able to write. If it wasn't such a tired, overused concept, I would use that for my script. Unfortunately, well I already said why I can't really use that. It just screams 'look at me, I'm trying to be clever, original and ironic!' when there will be about a hundred more just like it.

At least this allows me to spend more time thinking about my exams and preparing, as it doesn't require the same kind of thought process. I already know the kinds of things I will be writing about, I know exactly what the material will be, it won't be nearly as difficult to come up with ideas, but I suppose the execution itself is the really daunting part when it comes to exams. Yes, many of my blogs for the past three weeks will mention examinations. There is nothing you can do to stop it.

Until tomorrow, you crazy diamond.

The Movie That Could Have Been

WARNING: This post contains spoilers for The Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (film).

Yes, I watched the Prince of Persia film to see what it would be like. I was well aware of the fact that there was a good chance that it would be bad, but I decided to give it a chance, after all, they were given some fairly good material. Unfortunately, the film wasn't really bad so much as it was disappointing. They had an opportunity to make something really great and instead they made something passable. It just wasn't anything special, and I think it really had the potential to be.

Think about it. Had this film incorporated the original source material more appropriately they would have essentially had a Persian zombie movie with time-travel and free-running with the saucy prince and the sexy Maharajah's daughter fighting side-by-side and shooting sarcastic quips at one another. If that isn't a recipe for an awesome film then I don't know what is. Honestly, it was practically served to filmmakers on a silver platter. Unfortunately, they completely removed the zombies (technically 'sand demons' but they are essentially zombies), severely downplayed the time-travelling aspect (they rewound time roughly four times throughout the entire film), and took away the leading lady's bow. Plus they kept spouting lines about destiny roughly every five minutes, even giving the main character (previously a nameless prince) the very unsubtle name Dastan (destin, anyone?). I won't even get into how much they loved to title-drop.

It's true that games aren't particularly renowned for their excellent stories, so it makes sense that they would alter the plot, add some characters here and there, etc. but I would have thought it would be obvious to keep in the sand demons, as that is, apart from being the entire premise of the game's storyline, just undeniably cool. Not to mention it's one of those things that gives you free reign to have the hero waste a lot of baddies without any kind of moral issue: they are monsters, they aren't human, they will eat your face if you don't kill them first and technically they are already dead. Plus they could get away with a lot of impressive violence because they only bleed sand. A sinfully wasted opportunity, people.

One thing I will say I liked is that, although the actor wasn't really right for the part in my opinion, at least the character was still written as being fairly close to the character from the game: arrogant, obsessed with proving himself, convinced that he is always right, and the leading lady was written with the same sarcastic, feisty attitude she had in the game, although for some reason her name was changed to Tamina. What was wrong with the name Farah? She's obviously meant to be the same character, so why change her name? Who knows, or cares? So let's move on.

Overall I think the film would have been okay as a standalone film, supposing the Prince of Persia games didn't exist and this was the first take on the idea, but for a film that claims to be based on the Sands of Time game, I just don't see it. It has the characters (somewhat) and it has the mystical dagger, but that's about it. They changed the story of the prince trying to reach the hourglass to turn back time and undo essentially causing the apocalypse, to the story of the prince being framed for killing his father, then fleeing his home while trying to stop his traitorous uncle from going back in time to undo saving his father's life so that he would never have sons, so the uncle could assume the throne... is it just me or is this sounding like the Lion King with swords, time-travelling and wall-running? So that's just it: it could have been an excellent film, but instead it was a poorly-executed impersonation of the lion king. With magical swords. D- See me.

Until tomorrow, you little ragamuffins.

The Near and Not So Near Future

Examinations are just around the corner, so I must say that it's difficult to fully enjoy my half term. It's just a good thing that I don't have many plans outside revision. I also have a fool-proof plan for getting through my first exam, for one half of it, at least. If I write an essay on how I would portray all four main characters from Lady Windemere's Fan then I won't get caught out and I'll have lots to say on each one. That way, the only way I wouldn't know what to do would be if they asked about a more minor character, which is very unlikely for two reasons:
1) We're the first year to do this exam board, so it is unlikely they will go for less conventional questions.
2) The exam board isn't cruel enough to throw a curveball like that. There wouldn't be enough character exposure to write a decent essay on a bit part like Parker, for example, who has roughly five lines throughout the entire play.

To change the subject wildly, I know I don't exactly have a huge following here, but if anyone is interested, I have an idea for a small project I plan to start shortly after I finish my exams. I'm thinking of writing bite-sized comical summaries of well-known (or perhaps not so well-known) books. So you can look forward to, or remember to avoid, that in the future.

Until tomorrow, you loveable rascals.

And Then There Were Updates

Apologies for the severe lack of posts for the past week. Illness greatly affected my will to write, and then general business prevented me further. Poor excuses, I know, but what can I do about it now?

I may continue with the Rapture work, but I have started to notice that I'm writing very much the same things for all of them, and I don't feel like it's helping me as much as I hoped it might. As I said, I may continue, I may not.

Rehearsals have begun to eat the beginning of my half-term and revision is devouring the rest. Luckily I have some revision sessions organised with friends, so it won't be completely unbearable. After all, what does misery love?

After the three of us finish our work on Thursday, we're going to watch the Prince of Persia film, as we are all fans of the original game and are curious to see how they pulled it off. I have had many warnings that fans of the game will be disappointed, so I've decided to have my Playstation 2 ready for me at home so I can play for a while as a kind of 'spiritual cleansing' as it were, should the film make a mockery, much like how Dragonball Evolution required me and my sister to watch old episodes of Dragonball to wash away the taste of that horrendous film.

Well, my first exam, Theatre Studies, is next Wednesday, so I should still have seven posts before that day. If there is no post on the 9th of June, you'll know it's because I performed horribly in the exam and subsequently killed myself.

Until tomorrow, you crazy kids.

Analysing Rapture: World, Hand, Rapture and Elegy

World
World focuses further on separation or, more specifically, the pain of separation. The obsessive nature of the speaker is approached once more, as the idea of the speaker thinking constantly of the lover, even when they are on opposite sides of the world. The poem begins to introduce the notion that, to the speaker, the universe revolves around the lover. This poem contains imagery that implies the couple is a man and a woman, as the first stanza has the words 'sun' and 'moon', masculine and feminine symbols respectively. The use of opposites is very apparent in the last stanza as well, which speaks of 'shade' and 'the bud of a star'. This not only denotes a man and a woman, but also a sense of inequality between the two characters, as 'shade' has dark, cold connotations, whereas a 'star' represents hope and warmth. The poem also suggests a heterosexual relationship in the second stanza, whose last two lines read "You have scattered the stars towards me here, like seeds in the earth", which implies fertility and reproduction, something which is only possible naturally in a relationship between a man and a woman. This poem may signify the speaker's desire for children, therefore taking on a passive, feminine role, and indicating that the speaker still longs for a conventional relationship.


Hand
Despite the intimacy of the poem Hand, there are constant word choices which emphasise how alone the speaker is, such as 'imagined', 'air' and 'Far away'. The juxtaposition of loneliness and passion emphasises the solitude and despair that the speaker feels without the lover's presence. Again, despite the lover not being present, the speaker still seems to take a passive role, listening, while it is the lover who is the active one, "your hand reach[ing] out and strok[ing] my hair" and "your hand is holding mine". This further describes the imbalance in the relationship.


Rapture
The eponymous poem Rapture has religious connotations in the title alone, as the rapture is believed by Christians to be the end of the world, when Jesus will return and gather the 'true Christians' to send them to heaven. Rapture may also refer to extreme pleasure, happiness or excitement. The use of this word 'rapture', which has such different meanings, could implicate the beginning and end of a relationship; that the beginning evokes great joy, while the end could feel like the end of the world. Rapture explores great despair and unhappiness at the beginning, using rain as a pathetic fallacy, and using negative words and phrases such as "not paradise", "nowhere endlessly" and "queuing for death". However, as the poem continues, more hopeful and positive imagery is used, like "a sudden flight of birds", "from earth to heaven" and "your kiss... like pearls" showing the elevating power of love. This poem combines negative and positive imagery such that it gives the message of love changing the way one sees things, that in times of great sorrow, love can bring joy, much like the end of the world being turned into the positive feeling of intense happiness.


Elegy
Elegy describes the speaker's dependence on the lover, through imagining their life without them, and how incomplete life would be without them. The image of unity comes up in the first stanza, reinforcing the typical romantic notion that two people were made for each other, by use of phrases like "this, which perfectly fits the scoop of my palm". The poem also further demonstrates the inequality in the relationship; although the description of the lover's bones as "brittle things" implies a shift in power, that the lover now has soft, frail, feminine qualities, at the end of the poem, the speaker describes lying on the lover's grave "above your bones till I mirrored your pose", showing subservience and obedience even in the event of the lover's death.

Analysing Rapture: Swing, Rain, Absence and If I Was Dead

(WEDNESDAY, 19 MAY 2010)


Swing
Swing makes references to childhood memories and youth in general, just as the idea of their love is shown as being both young literally, in that is has just begun, and somewhat childish. The image of the two characters walking side-by-side along the river to a swing hanging from a tree branch conveys a sense of childish delight in their relationship. However, the youthful imagery is juxtaposed by the mention of weddings, commitment and certainty. As marriage is something that conforms to the traditional, patriarchal society, this could be the speaker revealing that they want a 'normal' relationship, by society's standards as, from a religious standpoint, sex is sinful unless two people are married. However, since the poem was written in the 21st century, and pre-marital sex is more accepted, as are homosexual relationships, the poem could be a comment on the way in which marriage and sex is viewed in a more modern context. Overall, the juxtaposition of a childish image and marriage may indicate a sense of immature optimism, that it is foolish for the speaker to think of marriage so early in a relationship. Although the characters do not have definitive genders, this poem makes the speaker seem very feminine, as it is a typical characteristic of a little girl to dream of one's wedding day.


Rain
Rain is an intensely passionate poem, with Duffy making great use of passionate imagery, using words like 'hot', 'burned', 'flame', 'burned' and 'sun', and changing to cooler, water imagery in the last two stanzas to signify relief, of either an emotional or sexual nature. The poem expresses great desire and loneliness, and perhaps even anger and pain, which the fire imagery could also indicate. In this poem, sex is presented as being passionate and also natural and comforting, as Duffy uses warm imagery such as 'orange', 'rose' and 'sun', perhaps implying that all love is natural, regardless of gender, or whether or not they are married.


Absence
The structure of Absence appears broken and incomplete, with only two lines to each stanza, the second line of which is shorter than the first, making it seem unfinished. Each stanza begins with 'Then', implying a sense of routine; perhaps the speaker feels as though their life is fixed and uninteresting when the lover is not there. This is also shown by the way in which the poem seems to span an entire day, starting at "the birds stitching the dawn with their song" and ending at "the stars between us", showing the speaker's entire day without the lover. The poem also brings back the recurring theme of obsession, as the poet sees the lover in everything around them. In this poem, it is implied that both the speaker and the lover are women, as there are very few male phallic symbols used, but there is yonic symbolism such as "a bee in a rose", "your opening hand", "the fruit from the cherry tree" and "the sun", implying a lesbian relationship, which the reader could infer, as the poet Carol Ann Duffy is a lesbian herself.


If I Was Dead
There is a great deal of religious references in If I Was Dead, beginning with the main message of the poem, which speaks of the story of Lazarus being resurrected by Jesus, with the speaker referring to themselves as Lazarus and the lover as Jesus, comparing the lover to a god and therefore putting them on a pedestal. The poem also conveys despair and solitude, with Duffy using imagery that denote one being carelessly abandoned and forgotten, such as "my bones adrift like dropped oars", "my skull... on the dark ocean bed" and "my eyes... at the roots of flowers". The idea that the speaker feels alone and unloved further indicates unbalance in the relationship as, despite these feelings, the speaker still compares the lover to Jesus, claiming that "your love would raise me out of my grave". Also the fact that the poem is one long sentence shows the focus on one single thought, as opposed to each stanza exploring a different theme or idea. This use of enjambment throughout the poem suggests a long passage of time, perhaps indicating a long period of separation, thus explaining the feeling of being alone.

Analysing Rapture: Forest, River, Haworth and Hour

Forest
The title Forest alone carries connotations of madness, confusion and secrecy, therefore the reader can see that the speaker is not in a public relationship with the lover, but the poem implicitly states that their relationship has reached a sexual level. The repetition of 'we' in the second stanza reinforces the fact that they feel together as one, as opposed to being 'you' and 'I' separately. Duffy's use of common innuendo with the phrase "you rise again and go deeper into the woods", instead of more romantic imagery, indicates that the relationship may not be romantic, loving or even emotional, but only sexual. Duffy uses very passive words and phrases like 'follow', 'shrank', 'knelt' and 'pulling me in', suggesting the desire for a passive role in the relationship, much like a traditional heterosexual relationship, with the speaker taking up the role of the woman. As Duffy is a lesbian, this could be a way of expressing that a homosexual relationship still has one partner as the more dominant, or, conversely, perhaps it indicates that the speaker hopes to conform to society's expectations and be in a more conventional relationship.


River
River juxtaposes Forest in that it is much more emotional and less sexual, but also by the way in which the speaker begins as more of a dominant, powerful presence, which Duffy achieves by using the phrase "love waits for me", showing that the speaker is no longer the one waiting, but the one being waited for. Also, the image of the heron bowing its head implies a sense of god-like grandeur, that the speaker is being worshipped. However, as the poem continues, the speaker becomes more passive, even though the lover comes to the speaker, Duffy describes love as "cover[ing] my mouth", which could be construed as forceful, even violent behaviour on the lover's part.


Haworth
The poem 'Haworth' has a sinister, uncomfortable undertone as the obsessive nature of the speaker is almost depicted as stalking the lover, visiting the places "here now where you were", while they are apparently unaware. Although it could be considered romantic that the speaker wishes to know everything about the lover, and sees them in all of the surroundings, the description of the lover's hand as a "ridged stone" indicates a cold, hard, unfeeling presence coming from the lover, conveying a sense of inequality and imbalance in their relationship.


Hour
Hour is a fairly simple poem in structure and in overall meaning. It is a classic sonnet, a traditional love poem, perhaps indicating the desire to conform to a conventional relationship, and the general message from the poem is that even the poorest of people can find spiritual wealth and richness through love. The use of juxtaposition between the materialistic, man-made words such as 'coin', 'treasure' and 'gold' with more natural imagery like 'sky', 'grass' and 'straw' suggests a struggle between literal and spiritual wealth. Perhaps the speaker is conflicted between gaining the materialistic objects, much like a traditional woman would be expected to receive from a typical male partner, and true love, that is spiritual richness.

Analysing Rapture: You, Text and Name

For the next few days (or weeks, more likely) I will be briefly outlining and analysing the poems from Carol Ann Duffy's Rapture, as it is the main text I am focusing on in my English Literature exam and I want to make sure I can say something about every poem. They won't be very in-depth and I am not focusing particularly on written style, I'm just trying to get as many basic ideas down as I can on each poem.

I will issue a warning now, to those of you who are unfamiliar with this text: in her poetry there are a lot of sexual themes, sometimes bordering on erotic, and I won't be holding back on my interpretations. If this kind of material offends you, you should probably wait until my blog posts no longer begin with 'Analysing Rapture'.

Another note: for the purposes of these analyses, as the poems are not supposed to depict characters of specific genders, but rather love and relationship as a whole, I will be referring to the two characters as 'the speaker' and 'the lover'.


You
You pinpoints the very first stage of a relationship: the longing, the fantasising, the mystery and excitement of a new possible love. The poem signifies the speaker's obsession over this currently unknown character, that the lover is always in the speaker's mind, be it on a conscious level or a subconscious level. The poem also introduces lust and desire towards the lover. The isolation of the word 'you' and its separation from the word 'I', as well as the absence of the word 'we' shows that these two characters are not together, and the speaker is merely imagining being with the lover, who remains unattainable, out of reach.


Text
The poem Text gives the impression of a young relationship, as it shows the speaker and the lover communicating early in the relationship through text messaging, touching the modern, young audience on a personal level, as many can relate to the pain of waiting for the next message and "look[ing] for your small xx". The poem continues the idea of obsession over the lover, re-reading each text sent, but it also touches upon the ambiguity of written language: without the aid of inflection, the meaning of a message can be lost or misinterpreted, and the speaker shows a desire for 'real' communication, face to face, as it is heavily implied that the two characters haven't even met at this point. The alternate mono rhyme throughout this poem signifies the desire for a conventional relationship, as the poem is written in a more conventional style, if slightly broken.


Name
Name takes the theme of obsession to a new level, where the speaker focuses on every detail of the lover, down to the vowels and consonants of their name. The fantastic elements of the relationship are still present, indicating that they still have not met in person. As the reader never finds out the name of the lover, it appears as much more personal and private to the speaker, that they know and love this person's name, but it is too precious to announce it. It could also be said that to give something a definitive name would take away the beauty and wonder from it, therefore it is kept a secret from the reader. The constant change between personal, emotional words such as 'kiss', 'love' and 'wish' and technical terms like 'proper noun', 'vowels' and 'alphabet' imply uncertainty on the speaker's part and a sense of formality between the characters, that their relationship has not quite reached an emotional level yet.

The Blog Post in Which Nothing Happens

I have nothing of interest to write about.

But I have to write every day, so this is a bit of a dilemma.

I hope you like the little widgets I put in the sidebar of my blog. Now you can see what I'm tweeting about and listen to some of my favourite independent music from Jamendo. I'm thinking of adding some more tracks to it, once I find more music I like.

The weather over here in the unspecified region of England in which I live doesn't seem to be able to make up its mind whether it will be sunny or rainy, warm or cold. It's just juggling all four at once, really. It's not easy living in an area with schizophrenic weather. At any rate, I certainly can't deny that I don't get bored with the same predictable weather, even if unpredictable weather is less than convenient.

Unfortunately this is a very short entry because, as I mentioned at the beginning, which you probably remember because it isn't that far back, I have nothing to write about today.

Global Warming and Exam Anxiety (Or Lack Thereof, For the Most Part)

(SATURDAY, 15 MAY 2010)


Apologies for the late entry once again. I don't really have an excuse this time, I just forgot.

Today was fairly average if rather busy. At least it was a nice day, the first nice day we've had this summer, not including the beautiful days we experienced in March, which mysteriously disappeared. If this is global warming, then you could say I'm getting quite nervous.

Well, with my A Level exams mere weeks away, with only one week of scheduled lessons left, the panic still has yet to sink in. I'm usually one of those people who remains fairly calm until I'm literally sitting in the desk with the paper in front of me and the invigilator says we can begin. I have a brief moment of panic, then my head clears and I'm fine. I think it's much more efficient than fretting for months before the exam, to just have a quick burst of panic and then just get on with it.

I certainly hope I will be able to write for longer than this in my actual exams. If I wrote an answer this short, I would be lucky to get an E.

Post-Compulsory Education Is Just That

(FRIDAY, 14 MAY 2010)


Apologies for the late post, I know it isn't the 14th anymore, but I went out this evening and only just returned.

I was at the Royal Albert Hall watching Filmharmonic 2010, a professional orchestra performing various famous movie scores. There were some obvious choices like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, then some more unexpected numbers including Ghost Busters! I never imagined it would sound so impressive with an orchestra.

Onto my main topic, earlier today, in my English lesson, exactly four people turned up, including the teacher. I find it a little bit disturbing that, this close to exam time, people are still skipping out of lessons. I find it strange that people who choose to be in sixth form skip lessons. Why not just not bother coming to school at all? I suppose I shouldn't worry over it, since it doesn't affect my grades in any way, but these happen to be the same people who whine about not getting the results they wanted and claim that their teachers didn't teach them properly. How are they supposed to teach you when you're not there? If you can't be bothered to turn up, why should they have to chase you? As sixth formers, our education is our own responsibility.

I didn't mean to go on a tangent, but it really does bother me. Again, as it doesn't directly affect me, I suppose it shouldn't bother me, but when I have to hear people blaming their failures on the teachers, it takes a lot not to start ranting at them. Believe me, I know that some teachers really are unqualified, I understand that it is a real problem sometimes, but before blaming the teachers, we should really look at ourselves and ask ourselves if we could be putting in more effort.

Everyone Already Did Everything

When thinking of storylines, characters, possible plots for episodes and things of that nature, I'm sometimes frequently constantly met with the road block: it's been done. How many times have you thought of an idea, only to be immediately reminded that 'The Simpsons did it' or 'Friends did it'? Well, it happens to me a lot.

The truth is, anything you can think of has been done, even if we aren't aware of it. Whatever original idea I may have come up with, I can bet that someone, somewhere, in some far corner of the planet, has already thought of it. It doesn't necessarily mean I'm unoriginal, it just means that most everything has already been executed in at least one form of media.

Having come to terms with this fact, I don't let the 'it's been done' roadblock get in my way anymore. So what if an idea has already been done? You can always put a fresh spin on it. Even if that fresh spin has already been done, it will still be different in some way if you let it be. Don't let the fact that your idea isn't as original as you thought it was compromise your creativity.

If all else fails, you can always use an idea that has been used so many times, people would never expect anyone to touch it with a ten-foot pole, and claim that you are using it ironically.

Egos and Contests

I had a confidence boost, if a slightly embarrassing one, at school today. In English, my teacher used an essay I wrote as an example of 'how to get it right' which was very flattering, considering I didn't think it was anything special. Although it was embarrassing for her to read it out like that, it did make me feel better about my abilities in essay writing to know that she felt it was good enough to use as an example.

In other news, I have decided to enter a script writing contest for students of my age and I recently altered the main concept of my play. Instead of having a cast of three friends, I have changed it to a cast of three strangers who meet and get to know one another as the play progresses. I think that would be more interesting to watch than just a group of friends chatting. Either way, I want to keep my original idea of a largely dialogue and character-driven storyline, instead of relying on grand, dramatic events to hold viewer interest.

Whether I win the contest or not, you can't deny the experience, and it would mean one more creative piece in my portfolio, which is always a step in the right direction.

Our Country's Good Directing Choices

Today was severely dull, so unfortunately so will my blog. I am totally sincere when I say that the main highlight of the day was buying new school trousers and a set of spectacle screwdrivers. I had home study, so not a lot of time was spent at school today, not that anything interesting happened at school.

As I have nothing else to say on the subject of my day, I will comment on a few of my personal directing choices for Our Country's Good in preparation for my Drama and Theatre Studies exam. I am afraid that if you unfamiliar with the text, not a lot of this will make sense

In the first scene, much like a performance I saw, I would have the convicts sitting and lying on a lower level of the stage, with Lt. Ralph Clarke on a raised platform, to show that he is of a higher class and social status than the convicts. In order to give the audience an idea of the conditions the convicts were in, I would have them all within very close proximity, leaning against one another to show their restricted space. I would stage Ralph, Sideway and the flogger such that the latter two would be off-stage and unseen, so the audience can only hear the punishment and discover for themselves what is going on.

In the first scene with Harry Brewer and Duckling Smith, I would remove all props which can be moved from the stage and place Harry and Duckling centre stage in order to show their isolation. In order to maintain a minimalist set, I would not use a real rowing-boat, but instead direct the characters to sit very close to one another, facing opposite ways, with Harry miming a rowing action to provide the illusion that they are in a boat. While Duckling sulks, I would have her constantly looking out to the water, away from Harry to show not only her anger towards Harry, but also her desire for freedom. To begin with, she would only look up at Harry when she says the line "I don't want to be watched all the time" to show that she finally has something real to say to him, but otherwise not looking him in the eye even when he is accusing her of infidelity.

You can expect a lot of posts like this for the next month or so, as the exam period is rapidly approaching and I want to be as prepared as possible when the time comes.

The Importance of Writing Daily

Considering I am sitting three A Levels next month, all three of them containing at least one essay question (one of which is in French), and I eventually hope to make a career out of writing, I thought it would be ideal to write something vaguely structured every day. I was told that writing every day, about anything at all, can greatly improve your writing skill and I don't doubt that for a second. The only thing I'm contemplating is why I didn't start this sooner.

That's the basic premise of this blog. It won't necessarily be interesting or well-written, but something new will be posted every day when I can. Obviously not every day I will be able to, if I lose internet connection or am away from my computer, but even then I should still be writing on paper, the old-fashioned way, which many people seem to have forgotten about.

So concludes the first entry, boring though it may be. I'll see you tomorrow.