Tuesday 6 March 2012

Life Update.

Tuesday, 6th March.

           So the day is ending and I'm already feeling tired at 7:43pm. This is a good sign, a sign that (finally) my sleeping pattern is returning to normal. I spent the summer holidays being nocturnal and it's good that I've just recuperated as exam period is starting/time where I shall be solely focusing on my studies.

          Speaking of studies, I've just organised all my files. This gives me more motivation.
~~sidenote~~
          Motivation. I've just received feedback from a university where I "did not reply to their correspondence". I mentioned this in my previous blog post, but I had in fact sent off my work 3 days prior to the deadline. I shall be calling the university up tomorrow in order to get this sorted out. I confess, my first reaction was complete shock; I did nothing. I read the letter a few times, no emotions flowing at all. Then I burst into tears and snot and sobbing and then called up my friend whom I thought knew most about university who you guys may know from my other blog: Ben.

         I find it unnerving how much influence he has over me because we've known each other for such a short time. Anyway, he told me to calm down, call them tomorrow and be direct about it and show them the evidence (I have printscreened evidence of dates). And that's exactly what I'll do.

         Apparently, all I do in these blog posts is moan about my life. Here are some happy things;
- I've come across a man (thanks to @Virini on Twitter) that talks about fantasy, magic, and how to build a good plot for novels involving them. Here are the links:

Brandon Sanderson's First Law:
http://www.brandonsanderson.com/article/40/Sandersons-First-Law

Brandon Sanderson's Second Law:
http://brandonsanderson.com/article/100/Sandersons-Second-Law

       After exams, I shall finish any half-read books and read his works. His essays regarding fantasy & magic are written so eloquently and I love that we have read many of the same books (from R. Jordan's The Wheel Of Time, to G. R. R. Martin's A Song Of Ice And Fire). Furthermore on the books that he's read, he gives many examples from Tolkien to Rowling which I think helps a lot of new writers enter the genre of writing in fantasy which is a lot more difficult than it seems.
      Blablablabla nerd stuff, etc., etc., definitely give the links above a read, as I clearly agree with 90-95% of what is written there.

     And for those that have read it, I class myself as writing 'Hard Magic'. It's more engaging for the writer (and reader) and if I'm anything, I'm a self-indulgent writer. I write for me. If you'll like the books I write, it's not just because you like my style, it's because we have the same taste in (fantasy) literature. That being said, I would not shut myself away from 'Soft Magic' either, it seems rather whimsical but I'd like to write a short novel that includes fantasy features yet focuses on human interaction and mystery. Just like Sanderson, I do love mystery. Unlike Sanderson, I prefer mysticism over mystery. Sorry I'm not sorry.

That's all for now, talk to you lovelies soon. Tomorrow I have a Chemistry exam and I plan to ace it. It's 8:02pm. This took quite long to write, although I'm pretty sure I covered everything I wanted to. I hope your life is going well.

Love always,
        Andrew.

Thursday 1 March 2012

University Post.

Hey guys.
       So I've just finished a whole tub of "millionaire's strawberry cheesecake" icecream and the most accurate word to describe how I feel is "blobby". I feel like a blob. This is what my evening has become.

Right, so whilst eating the copious amounts of ice-cream I was editing my final draft of this English piece that I've just sent off. It was stressful.
The email was sent 03/02/2012. British dating: 3rd of February.
It said in the email that I had FOUR weeks to reply with a piece of work under 1,500 words.

Fine. 1,500 words. It's the 01/03/2012. I should be clear, right? Did they include the leap day? Did they mean American dating? I'm just worrying over it all and it's stressing me out.
Furthermore, towards the end of the email they said they would respond, by latest, at the end of February.

It's March. No response. Regardless of me not sending off my piece, there should be at least some communication right? UGH OK I'LL JUST SIT HERE NOT KNOWING ANYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING.

Hope your life is great. xoxo Gossip Drew.

P.S I tried to keep this short because it's basically me moaning.

P.P.S I'm applying for English Lit & Creative Writing (If you're interested)

P.P.P.S Applying at Nottingham, Hull, Royal Holloway, Aberystwyth, and Middlesex.

Love always,
          Andrew.