tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3301624011074931762024-03-13T19:50:16.381+00:00Sarwat Chadda's BlogI write. I blog. I write some more.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.comBlogger237125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-11013387929381177922014-10-14T09:21:00.000+01:002014-10-14T09:21:18.688+01:00My new project, the mega-epic 18 DAYS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hnMmk4_qPKI/VDzYs4U7P8I/AAAAAAAAAtY/mesJunOrDI8/s1600/18daysart1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hnMmk4_qPKI/VDzYs4U7P8I/AAAAAAAAAtY/mesJunOrDI8/s1600/18daysart1.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
Every now and then you get offered something that, in your wildest dreams, you'd never have thought possible.<br />
<br />
I'm going to be writing the comic series 18 DAYS.<br />
<br />
18 DAYS is the sci-fi retelling of the Indian epic, the Mahabharata. It's about a war that will end one age and bring in ours, the Age of Kali. It's as apocalyptic techno-punk as you can possibly imagine where gods and monsters rub shoulders and make war besides and against a breed of super-warriors. With nuke-level weaponry.<br />
<br />
I've been working with the multi-media company <a href="http://graphicindia.com/">GraphicIndia</a> for about a year. They've brought in some extra-ordinary talent (Stan Lee, no less!) to give the West a flavour of the incredible fantasy worlds being created in India.<br />
<br />
For 18 DAYS they've got <a href="http://www.grant-morrison.com/">GRANT MORRISON</a> himself. Yes, The God of Comics. Grant's work speaks for itself but he's given us arguably the definitive Superman story (All-star Superman) and one of the greatest Batman stories ever, Arkham Asylum. Grant understands the world of mythology like no other writer and it's rather awesome (and somewhat frightening) to be working on a project created by him. I'm going to have to raise my game to the utmost.<br />
<br />
Still, I get to write about bio-engineered super-elephants. Which is nice.<br />
<br />
Grant's done the story bible and it's a thing of beauty. The picture above is taken from it and tells you all you need to know. It's the god Krishna and the hero Arjuna, but unlike you've ever seen them.<br />
<br />
I'm writing the last few issues of Vol 3 and will be writing all of Vol 4. They'll be produced in graphic novel format but are also available as webisodes on Youtube right <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU_5WFb2oUk&list=PLVQ-5tGttzR_xHhyncpEUSzurHEMspobo">here</a>. Check them out.<br />
<br />
And on the subject of comics I will be making another announcement or two soon.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-54039434932265357972014-09-08T11:20:00.001+01:002014-09-08T11:20:46.083+01:00Why DC Comics ROCK<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2YXPHLBCMm8/VA1-80Q675I/AAAAAAAAAs4/5n6eI-QZgEU/s1600/ZOE_0055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2YXPHLBCMm8/VA1-80Q675I/AAAAAAAAAs4/5n6eI-QZgEU/s1600/ZOE_0055.jpg" height="361" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
I know it's cool and fashionable to be a MARVEL fan and, let me get this straight, there are many MANY things I love about Marvel.<br />
<br />
But this is a blog about DC Comics.<br />
<br />
Right, where to begin? At the beginning.<br />
<br />
First, there was SUPERMAN.<br />
<br />
You cannot knock the guy in the cape. He started it all. The Man of Steel. The Big Blue. The Last Son of Krypton. He has it all. The suit, the cape, the x-ray vision and, most importantly, the MORAL CENTRE.<br />
<br />
Superman DOES NOT KILL. I enjoyed the latest version, THE MAN OF STEEL but there was a mis-directed heart here. First look at the demolition of Metropolis. Look at the buildings wrecked. What was the body count? It would have been in the thousands, don't you think? The same applies to the AVENGERS movie. All of New York wrecked.<br />
<br />
Neither movie makes any reference to the trauma and the devastation the supers have brought in on their cities.<br />
<br />
Superman's respect for human life is what makes him great. It's what makes him, er... SUPER. There was a Grant Morrison interview on YouTube (which will be another blog) where he discusses heroes killing. He says they shouldn't do it for the most simple reasons: It's immoral and illegal. And heroes don't do it.<br />
<br />
That applies DOUBLE for Superman. It may not be fashionable, in this 'modern' world of pragmatism where the good guys torture and the bad guys are YouTube sensations, but I think that's all the more reason for heroes to show what we are capable of, our best natures. Superman epitomises that.<br />
<br />
Then there was BATMAN.<br />
<br />
Do I even need to explain this guy? He's got the moves, the cave and the gadgets. If Superman is heart then Batman is the brains. While his origins are as grim as can be there's also a light in the centre of Batman's soul, his compassion, though well-hidden. He's got no reason to have it, he should be bitter and vindictive through and through but his soul is saved by the family he has, surrogates that replace what he lost. Alfred, Batgirl, the Robins. They're his family through and through and for all the lone avenger of the night he's been a mentor and inspiration to them and others.<br />
<br />
Batman gives us our fantasy. With training, with dedication, with oodles of cash we could be just like him. Superman is beyond human (which allows him to reflect what it is to be human) but Bats is one of us. And he does have the best villain of all time, The one and only Joker. If Batman is iron-clad sanity, almost too rigid for its own good, then the Joker is pure chaos. Their dance is what makes the world go round.<br />
<br />
And then we have Wonder Woman. Her star shines and dims but as a creation she is flawless, bringing in Greek Mythology into the world of comics and what were the Greek heroes but the superheroes of their age?<br />
<br />
Well, that's just my opinion.<br />
<br />
What do you think?SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-30047059617155791202014-08-11T10:22:00.004+01:002014-08-11T11:31:35.228+01:00Six years of writing and it ain't any easier...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LJtEhkbc_FU/U-h-ycFLknI/AAAAAAAAAso/_lk5RPTe_3c/s1600/plot+image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LJtEhkbc_FU/U-h-ycFLknI/AAAAAAAAAso/_lk5RPTe_3c/s1600/plot+image.jpg" height="362" width="640" /></a></div>
I gave up my day job on 15th August 2008. If you look through this blog you'll find the entry I made on that day.<br />
Ah, how young and foolish I was, back in those days when I still had hair and some of it was black.<br />
So, how's it all been? If you're interested in being a writer, or just plain nosey, here's a rough outline of my career so far.<br />
<br />
There have been ups and there have been downs.<br />
<br />
Much like life in general.<br />
<br />
These are a few moments that stick in my mind.<br />
<br />
1. Taking my youngest to school on their first day. I wouldn't have been able to do that if I hadn't had this job. I'd have been at the office, letting someone else take part on my kid's life. This is CLEARLY the best thing about my life as a writer, this huge opportunity to participate in my children's upbringing. Whether they like it or not.<br />
<br />
2. School visits. There have been so many but one of the earliest was at a school in the US. I'd been signing my debut, DEVIL'S KISS, and this huge boy lumbered up. HUGE. Now high school kids are a lot bigger than me, on the whole, and this guy would have made the Terminator gulp. I sat there, slightly shaking, when he put the book down on the desk and told me this was the first book he'd ever read cover to cover and he loved it.<br />
<br />
There are few moments in my career that have ever come close to that moment. I made a reader.<br />
<br />
3. My first book deal. That was for DEVIL'S KISS and kicked off not just my career, but also that of my agency, GREENHOUSE LITERARY AGENCY. Now Sarah Davies is an awesome agent and I thoroughly recommend her to everyone but back then it was just her and me and neither had any idea whether this was going anywhere. My wife and I were about to order our Friday night curry when the call came in that DISNEY-HYPERION had made an offer on DEVIL'S KISS. No-one forgets their first book deal.<br />
<br />
4. Bursting into tears at the Puffin marketing meeting. In front of about 100 people from all aspects of the industry. Booksellers, journalists, bloggers and the heads of the whole company. That was not a good day.<br />
<br />
5. Making my audience burst into tears at a small bookshop in New Jersey. I'd written a blood-soaked, nihilistic YA horror story and the audience was a bunch of six year old girls in fairy costumes. Don't ask.<br />
<br />
Made lots and lots of new friends but there are times when I miss my old job as an engineer.<br />
<br />
Engineering is maths. You can only be right or wrong in maths. In writing there is no such thing. It's utterly subjective. I've written five books but still feel I know nothing. I read books that are awesome and don't sell and then pick up books written hideously badly that are best-sellers. And everything in between.<br />
<br />
The above piccie is my latest project. Here's how it's been.<br />
<br />
1. May 2013. Have this idea for an EPIC high fantasy. Start writing it.<br />
2. November 2013. It's finished, about 80,000 words. I love it. Everyone else hates it.<br />
3. I chuck it ALL in the bin and start again.<br />
4. May 2014 I've a new story. Very different from anything else I've ever written. It's a feminist high fantasy centred around the bad guys (and gals). It's very, VERY different. It's also 86,000 words long.<br />
5. July 2014 send it to my agent after cutting it to 74,000 words. She has comments, all positive so I do a big redraft.<br />
6. What you see in the piccie is my revising of the plot. I don't lay it out in much detail at the beginning because I want it to be fluid. But once I know I have the bones of the story I stick it up on the wall, chapter by chapter to see how it flows. Have I repeated myself? What scenes work, what scenes can be cut or combined together. WHAT IS THE STORY? This is different from a series of semi-connected events.<br />
7. August 2014. Down from 74,000 to 68,000 words. I now park it.<br />
8. September 2014. The plan is, but by letting it rest for three weeks, you gain an objective distance. I'll give it another going over, check spellings and grammar and then it's back to the agent. Then we shall see what we shall see.<br />
<br />
Anyway, that's how it is for me.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-17852643287044847812014-08-04T09:37:00.000+01:002014-08-04T09:37:20.862+01:00HOC (Heroes of Colour) who KICK ASS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hs-pUhHuH24/U987UlXgmZI/AAAAAAAAAsY/-UbRXabI_Pc/s1600/Ash+Mistry+FINAL.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hs-pUhHuH24/U987UlXgmZI/AAAAAAAAAsY/-UbRXabI_Pc/s1600/Ash+Mistry+FINAL.JPG" height="640" width="416" /></a></div>
<br />
When I first created Ash Mistry, there was a lot of thought given to the other heroes of colour that were already out there. Like I said in last week's post, there are universal themes at work, and the ones I focused on were sacrifice (the essential quality of heroism) and doubt.<br />
<br />
Doubt is weird, but critical. How do you know you're doing the right think? It's easy being a hero in a black and white world, where the bad guys have easy plans and twirl their curly moustaches and the heroes have white hats and no doubt over the righteousness of their cause. But I wanted to bring a bit of 'real world' issues into it. Just look at the newspapers or put on the news for five minutes and you'll see how confused the idea of 'good and evil' really are.<br />
<br />
Now I'm an old fart, so my list has grey hairs in it, but I thought I'd present it to you, but first, a little explanation.<br />
<br />
This is not about the 'Asian/African/Eskimo experience'. This is not autobiographical. This is about the HUMAN experience. First proves my point, as it's a HOC written by the GREATEST WRITER OF ALL TIME.<br />
<br />
All bow to William Shakespeare...<br />
<br />
1. OTHELLO. So good that Shakespeare named a play after him. He's black, and a general of the Venitian army and totally BADASS. He's risen in power despite a culture of racism, only further proving how much more BADASS he is compared to everyone else.<br />
<br />
The story is one of misplaced loyalty, betrayal and jealousy. In the end Othello harbours self-doubt, perhaps fed by the racism all around him, is he truly worthy of Desdemona or has he being punching above his weight? Deep down he doesn't believe he's good enough for her, and her true desires are elsewhere. It's how many of us might feel, that we have rewards and blessings we don't deserve and will travel down the path of self-destruction to prove we are unworthy.<br />
<br />
Simply put, it's Shakespeare. Go watch it.<br />
<br />
2. MOWGLI. Come on, I have to put him in. He is my favourite HOC and why I wrote Ash in the first place. The Mowgli of the Jungle Book (the books rather than the Disney cartoon though I love that too and quite immensely) is BADASS. He's a proto-Tarzan. Powerful, mischievous, surly like all kids and mystical. I won't talk so much about him this time (beound telling you to read him and you'll see how much Ash Mistry is descended from him) around but will mention his creator, Kipling.<br />
<br />
I LOVE Kipling. I know he was an old Imperialist but that doesn't take away the fact he was a great, GREAT writer.<br />
<br />
I think he knew the flaws of the Empire, even though he was part of it during its' greatest greatness. Read 'The Man who would be King'.<br />
<br />
It's the flipside of the 'White Messiah' trope. For those who are unfamiliar about it it's the cliche that non-whites can't look after themselves and need a white person to sort out their problems. It's a left-over baggage from our colonial past where Western powers liked to believe they were bringing 'civilization' to the ignorant darker races. So it made conquering another country and slavery a moral virtue. Think Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, think Daenarys Stormborn in Game of Thrones, Hawkeye in Last of the Mohicans, Mississippi Burning and so on.<br />
<br />
'The Man who would be King' is about two army rogues who head off into Kaffiristan (in the Pakistan/Afghanistan borders) to become rulers. They have no qualifications except a sense of their natural (white) superiority and at the beginning it all goes well. They conquer the backward tribes and become rulers until one bunch of natives realise they've been perfectly happy ruling themselves and throw our two heroes into a deep, deep ravine.<br />
<br />
Read Kipling. He's brilliant.<br />
<br />
3. SINBAD. I've noticed that there are a lot of HOC at the younger end of the publishing world. That's mainly down to fairy tales and 1001 Arabian Nights. We've Sinbad, Aladdin, Ali Baba and Scheherazade. Tales of pure magic with demons, genies and rocs and heroes and heroines who survive just as much by their wits as they do by their sword arms.<br />
<br />
So, despite having these great HOC when we're young, they steadily vanish as we get older. Why so? Shouldn't they be standing right beside Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood? There are plenty of Grimm fairytale adaptations aimed at older readers, isn't it natural that these Arabian heroes should be there too?<br />
<br />
Moving to modern now...<br />
<br />
4. Khalid out of Guantanamo Boy. If you're a fan of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' (and frankly, who isn't?) then this is a book for you. It's grim, I warn you that. Khalid is your average British teen who ends up being in the wrong place at the wrong time and is taken to Gauntanamo Bay, accused of being a terrorist. His pain, his sense of himself and the bizzare world he's dropped into are all brilliantly revealed by the author, Anna Perera.<br />
<br />
5. Sunny out of Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor. I was given this book by an editor friend of mine after a LONG conversation about HOC. Then it was recommended (completely by chance) by Rick Riordan so basically I had to read it. It brings in a whole new mythology (for me, anyway) out of Africa and that's reason enough to be added to the list.<br />
<br />
6. Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon. Now we look at another heroine out of a mythology I'm not that familiar wit, China. Cindy's written a story with a BADASS heroine who definitely is all about wits, not brawn. To do her story justice, check out my interview with her, <a href="http://sarwatchadda.blogspot.co.uk/2011/01/kiss-me-kill-me-part-2-with-cindy-pon.html">here</a>.<br />
<br />
That's all, folks. I'd like to thank all of you who've taken an interest in what's going on with promoting greater diversity within children's publishing. There's more to come so until next time...<br />
<br />
FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-55838124377717494592014-07-30T12:05:00.002+01:002014-07-30T12:05:48.629+01:00Diversity, why we fight the good fight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SgkZM8HCjCM/U9jOY7mTCWI/AAAAAAAAArs/QwEjWwedotU/s1600/Savage_Fortress_Low.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SgkZM8HCjCM/U9jOY7mTCWI/AAAAAAAAArs/QwEjWwedotU/s1600/Savage_Fortress_Low.jpg" /></a></div>
I'm incredibly proud of the Ash Mistry books, they were a story that had been brewing since I was pretty young and went to see The Jungle Book and saw a hero up on the screen that was brown, for once.<br />
Heroes are heroes. Their qualities are universal. Loyalty, sacrifice and capacity for love is what defines them.<br />
<br />
It also helps, when fighting demon hordes, to be pretty BADASS.<br />
<br />
They've had a lot of support from the great and the good. Fans, there are a few. The mythmaster himself, RICK RIORDAN (I hope he doesn't mind the name dropping), loved SAVAGE FORTRESS and if it's good enough for him, well, I think there might be something in it for you to enjoy too.<br />
<br />
Which brings me to a sad, but true, story. Which might explain why these books sometimes, sometimes, don't get into your hands. Because no-one tells you about them.<br />
<br />
When Ash was first launched here in the UK, I went to a 'meet and greet' with a large selection of booksellers. Now these were invited to HarperCollins HQ, so were the chosen few.<br />
I waltzed around the room, telling them how excited I was that Ash was coming out, how it delved into mythology, history and just EPIC heroicness.<br />
Then I met a bookseller who nodded politely then said:<br />
<br />
"I can't see the point stocking it. We've no Indians in our town."<br />
<br />
Well, I doubt she had any hobbits either but I bet she sold a few copies of The Hobbit and Lord of The Rings in her shop.<br />
<br />
It's a shame that it should be judged on that, rather than the contents of the book which deal with self-sacrifice, loyalty and the true, universal nature of heroism, which is fighting the good fight when all is stacked against you.<br />
<br />
So, I'm incredibly proud of all the great writers, publishers, librarians and booksellers and READERS that do support the push to make books dealing in diversity JUST MORE OUT THERE. I'm not sure we need more books on diversity, there are plenty out there already, maybe just a bit hard to find in some sad cases?<br />
<br />
SPREAD THE WORD.<br />
<br />
<br />SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-54327005403117648032014-06-23T00:37:00.002+01:002014-06-23T00:39:47.286+01:00What's Next<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dSeyxQMqtyc/U6dl2QjfUbI/AAAAAAAAArQ/UF5CPfHXoI4/s1600/lottery__black.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dSeyxQMqtyc/U6dl2QjfUbI/AAAAAAAAArQ/UF5CPfHXoI4/s1600/lottery__black.jpg" height="106" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Hello. It's been AGES since I've been on this blog but frankly, it's time I was back.<br />
<br />
There's a LOT, and I do mean a LOT, of changes coming up.<br />
<br />
Firstly, the trip to New York was rather great, thanks for asking. You'll be finding out HOW GREAT very, very soon.<br />
<br />
Secondly, there are some new writing projects on the horizon, hence the ARTS COUNCIL logo up there.<br />
<br />
As you know, there's been a lot of talk about diversity, or the lack of, in children's publishing. If you know anything about my books you'll know that I've been bringing you diverse heroes from Day One, Page One.<br />
<br />
In case you needed reminding:<br />
<br />
<u>The Devil's Kiss series</u><br />
Billi SanGreal. Half-English half-Pakistani kickass heroine with Muslim Mother, Christian Father and Jewish Godmother.<br />
<br />
<u>The Ash Mistry series</u><br />
Ash Mistry. British-born Indian demon slayer and divine superweapon of the goddess of death and destruction, Kali.<br />
<br />
If you feel you are lacking in badass reading material, check out those two series.<br />
<br />
This will continue, but in new and VERY special ways. The Arts Council are funding my next two projects. The first is with the rather wonderful Sarah Davies of Greenhouse Literary Agency. Now you must know Sarah. Basically she is the most rocking literary agent out there. By a long way. The plan is some polishes on the first project over the summer and then out into the big wide publishing world soon after.<br />
<br />
The second project is super-early days but will have a Eastern angle to it. It will rock. It will be BADASS. I would deliver nothing less.<br />
<br />
So, stay tuned. Prepare for a tidal wave of badassness.<br />
<br />
Sarwat 'Dr. Badass' ChaddaSarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-80809942754492235192012-03-05T17:58:00.003+00:002012-03-05T18:01:19.399+00:00Ash Mistry Website<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5AcRmB8bBp4/T1T-_F76zeI/AAAAAAAAAqE/VgUZ1vbBTl8/s1600/Ash%2BMistry%2BFINAL.JPG"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 208px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716474186918710754" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5AcRmB8bBp4/T1T-_F76zeI/AAAAAAAAAqE/VgUZ1vbBTl8/s320/Ash%2BMistry%2BFINAL.JPG" /></a> Dear Chums,<br />There comes a time to move on and put the past behind. SO THIS BLOG IS OFFICIALLY DEAD!<br />All the action is now at <a href="http://www.ashmistry.com/">www.ashmistry.com</a>.<br />See you there!<br />SarwatSarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-65238180278526390402012-02-05T20:11:00.005+00:002012-02-07T22:31:54.101+00:00Hello from Ash Mistry (aged 13.5)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2RyvKVDS_9E/TzGmNoIStbI/AAAAAAAAAp4/HP3Y9bnDcW8/s1600/James%2BMurphy.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706524955895838130" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2RyvKVDS_9E/TzGmNoIStbI/AAAAAAAAAp4/HP3Y9bnDcW8/s320/James%2BMurphy.jpg" /></a>Ash Mistry, age 13 (but almost 14!)<br /><em>Appearance</em><br />Well, that’s a bit difficult. Until the summer hols I would say I was slightly above average in weight, slightly below average in physical coordination, courage and in general acts of extreme and suicidal heroism.<br />THEN after the summer hols (which you will be able to read about <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ash-Mistry-Chronicles-Savage-Fortress/dp/0007447329/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328472846&sr=8-1">VERY SOON</a>) and following a strict diet of violence, absolute terror and basically being hunted by demons I’ve acquired, what can be only described as ‘gaunt and frightening to look upon’ aspect. My colour has gone from a healthy and hearty brown to ‘gore-splattered.’<br /><em>A bit about myself</em><br />I’m at West Dulwich High School and (unofficial) leader of the Nerd Herd. I’m a non-sporty, bookish ‘stay indoors even when the sun is shining’ kind of guy. You’ve probably stolen my lunch money at some point.<br /><em>My favourite things (and not so much)</em><br />The greatest moment of my life has to be when I was the first person in our school to find the secret machine-gun armoury in the latest Assassin’s Creed game. Oh, yeah, I did also save the world from the greatest evil the universe has ever known. If you’re alive right now, that’s because of me. You can thank me later.<br />Sort of makes up for me being voted ‘least likely to survive a zombie apocalypse’ three years running.<br />My fav Dr. Who is, and forever will be, David Tennant. Now you know everything important about me.<br /><em>Quote </em><br />“Is now a bad time to mention I’m risk intolerant?”<br /><br />art by Mr. Murphy (great, isn't it)SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-72554519811668884542012-01-29T18:41:00.003+00:002012-01-29T18:43:35.943+00:00Sarwat's Guide to the Gods Part One- KALI<img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 217px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5703126149134527314" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RXUX7m2RXSs/TyWTBCRnq1I/AAAAAAAAApI/13J1SLVmw3E/s320/Kali01.jpg" />The Black One. Goddess of death and destruction. She haunts the graveyards and dances in the ashes of the funereal pyres.<br />Appearance<br />Black-skinned and almost skeletal gaunt. She has blazing eyes, a long red tongue (all the better to lap up blood with) fangs and claws. Kali has six arms and carries weapons, a noose and the severed head of a demon. She wears a necklace of skulls and her skirt is made of severed limbs. You do not want to bump into her in an alley on a dark night.<br />What You Need to Know<br />Kali is mad, bad and oh so very dangerous to know. She is the demon killer and there are plenty of stories of all the other gods fleeing the battle-field and leaving Kali to kill absolutely everyone. Then she usually eats them. He victory dance once threatened to destroy the universe.<br />Her hideous appearance is all part of her charm. She is the one thing that terrifies demons so she is also the last hope for humanity. When all else has failed, you turn to Kali. But be careful, she’s as likely to destroy the world as save it.<br />STRENGTHS all the arts of death<br />WEAKNESSES completely lacking in social skills<br />WEAPONS all of them<br />ATTITUDE totally bad<br />RELATIONSHIPS Married to Shiva. Often depicted dancing on his corpse. Nice.<br />If you like Kali you’ll also like: Wearing black, jewellery made from bones, goth music.<br />Other Goddesses like Kali : Baba Yaga (Russian), Hecate (Greek), Morrigan (Celtic), Hel (Norse)SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-33883168891800118142012-01-04T00:53:00.002+00:002012-01-04T01:17:20.461+00:00Badass of the Year<img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 153px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693573898144697106" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fUjbCPOxUos/TwOjS2VZyxI/AAAAAAAAAn8/Vurs87XLRAc/s320/x-men_first_class_36.jpg" />There were many cinematic delights in 2011. Following up from my last blog on Alpha Males heading your way in 2012 I feel the need, nay, the <em>duty</em>, to expand on this list, and diversify. It's not exclusively male, as any follower of my blog will know, BADASS embraces all creeds, sexes and nationalities.<br />So, my review of what was BADASS in 2011.<br />1. Hanna. Young girl skilled in all the arts of death by a psycho father. I'm not so sure that Tom Holland with a bad dye job was exactly the sort of elite assassin I'd send against Eric Bana since, lets be honest, he looked like he'd struggle up a flight of stairs while Eric Bana apparently swam the Atlantic ocean but if Billi had a sister by another mister, it would be Hanna. And we LOVE the soundtrack. Those Chemical Brothers do get around (and seem to follow Tom Holland, being in the latest Tron too. Not good.).<br />2. Ryan Gosling in the Driver. Ryan seems to have become a fan-girl fav of late and with those abs, why not? Have we already wearied of Taylor Lautner's wash-board stomach already? How fickle is the teen girl devotions! But deep down you know Ryan would kick Jacob's arse, don't you? Then he'd drive over him. Road-kill.<br />3. Conan the Barbarian. Okay, I admit it, the new movie sucked BUT it was Conan and it's a brave man who follows in the sandalled footsteps of Arnie. So, kudos to Jason Momoa for giving us brooding muscle-bound barbarian when it mattered.<br />4. Peter Mensah as Oenemaus out of the Spartacus series. The elegance, the wounded honour, the physique on the man who's so nearing fifty! I'm going to the gym first thing next week! Spartacus Blood and Sand and the prequel Gods of the Arena have been my guilty pleasure this year. Oh how it rocked. If my Latin lessons had been half as good as this I'd be teaching it at Oxford by now. Certainly not suitable for kids. Or nuns. Well, maybe nuns.<br />5. Michael Fassbender. As Magneto in X-Men First Class and in Centurion. This guy is BADASS. C'mon, that scene in the Argentinian bar? Yes, I completely agree it was a screen test for Bond. The mind salivates at the idea. Then him running bare-chested through the Hibernian snows in Centurion. It looked bloody freezing and it was (see the extras on the dvd). The man's dedicated and ripped like nothing on earth. Another reason to take up Latin, methinks.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-84488337653433773412011-12-19T09:40:00.005+00:002011-12-19T10:21:08.837+00:00Predictions for 2012. The return of the Alpha Male.<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RG6CbMstFzg/Tu8G1oL_orI/AAAAAAAAAnw/tzAPODNyK3Q/s1600/Daniel-Craig.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 255px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5687772372782785202" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RG6CbMstFzg/Tu8G1oL_orI/AAAAAAAAAnw/tzAPODNyK3Q/s320/Daniel-Craig.jpg" /></a>There's always a reason for Daniel in those blue trunks. So, that's 2011 more or less wrapped up. Phew! What a year, eh? Revolutions throughout the arab world with dictators toppling like dominoes, the EU of the verge of meltdown, the royal wedding, the UK in riot mode and Minx winning X-Factor.<br /><br /><div>Where will it all end?</div><br /><div>No idea, but I know I'll be spending a lot of it in the company of alpha males. And so will you.</div><br /><div>After years of the metrosexual, of the 'new-age caring sharing happy to change nappies and cries at girly-flicks' type of man-boy, I smell testosterone in the air. Times, they are a-changin'.</div><br /><div>Of course, we'll always have Bond, the very paragon of alpha-ness, but look at Driver. Ryan Gosling is rapidly becoming a fan-girl fav, but why? He's an alpha. Hardly speaks, certainly doesn't share his emotions, handy with his hands and ruthlessly brutal, and a loner. These are not qualifications for a long term relationship!</div><br /><div>But, my oh my, we do love him. Pwerhaps in a confusing world we all hanker for someone to come along and 'sort s**t out' with his bare hands. Simple and direct. Perhaps we're weary of negotiating, trying to do the right thing, taking charge for our own destinies. </div><br /><div>For me, the defining alpha moment was watching the opening scene of Dr. No, when Sean Connery says the immortal 'Bond...James Bond' with an almost sneer as he lights up. Now, Sean was 28 at that time but frankly, so manly he was prehistoric. It was as if billions of years of what it is to be a man had been purified down to that defining moment, that casino and those words. Come on, you still get a little thrill when he does it, don't you?</div><br /><div>What defines an alpha male? On the most simple level, who would you like on your side in a fight? That's the ultimate role of the alpha, to protect the group, society, pack. He accepts his role as a warrior and has no real qualms about it. He doesn't do angst.</div><br /><div>Sex appeal. His mere presence make the other males cower and the females blush. Again, this is his function, to have many strong sons to further protect the group down the generations. Chaste he is not.</div><br /><div>A certain elequence. He says what he means and means what he says.</div><br /><div>He is the ultimate male-wish fulfillment fantasy, as simple as that. Since the moment one big hairy ape with good hair swung down and thwacked the tiger on the head and saved the female ape in distress and the other male apes sat around thinking 'I wish I'd been ape enough to do that'. Always was, always will be. So, my list of alpha males for 2012:</div><br /><div>1. Daniel Craig. The new Bond movie. 'Nuff said. They say it often, but they mean it here, the best Bond since Connery. Please oh please let the next movie be like Casino Royale and not Quantum of Solace.</div><br /><div>2. Sean Bean. Ned Stark. I know it came out this year but I still haven't seen it and this is my blog. Sean's been great for years and years and years and age has only man him more so.</div><br /><div>3. Jon Hamm. The new series of Mad Men. Certainly at the front of the queue when God handed out 'ridiculously good-lookin''.</div><br /><div>4. Christian Bale. He will lead the superhero brigade which is frankly gigantic in the year of Avengers. Honourable mentions to Robert Downey Junior, Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth.</div><br /><div>5. Karl Urban as Judge Dredd. Karl is usually the best thing in whatever he does (Priest, anyone?) and he won't be taking off the helmet. Respect to the Law!</div><br /><div></div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-86845862344935148722011-12-14T10:18:00.002+00:002011-12-14T10:40:04.901+00:00This blog is NOT about religion. It's about Marmite. Honestly.<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8FbeTQW2vJc/Tuh4QioYLAI/AAAAAAAAAnk/nYFsVAaIIcE/s1600/frank-millers-holy-terror-600x308.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 164px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685926755124653058" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8FbeTQW2vJc/Tuh4QioYLAI/AAAAAAAAAnk/nYFsVAaIIcE/s320/frank-millers-holy-terror-600x308.jpg" /></a>Alas, I couldn't find an image of a bottle of Marmite ANYWHERE, so, completely BY RANDOM, I found this action-packed image by one of my favourite comic heroes, Frank Miller. I've NO IDEA what it is about, but I'm sure it's an intelligent, thoughtful and non-bigotted and even-handed debate about the so-called 'clash of civilization' we've been hearing so much about since, oh, September 2001.<br />But I'm here today to talk about Marmite. For those of you who don't know what it is, I can't be bothered to explain it to you, because explaining and understanding takes too long and is hard, but all you need to know is it's VILE and I HATE it.<br />Okay, if you must know, its a vegetable yeast extract. Vegetarians love it. Now I'm not prejudiced against vegetarians, and some of my best friends are vegetarians, but, I just want to say do you know who else was a vegetarian?<br />Adolf Hitler.<br />Just sayin'.<br />But this is not a rant about vegetarians, it's a rant about Marmite.<br />But millions of people in the world love Marmite. They have it as their favourite thing EVAH. They have it in the morning, the moment they get up. They snack on it during the day and even at night. My gosh, like FIVE times a day, easy. You kind of wonder what else they can be doing with their lives, wasting so much of it on Marmite.<br />I don't know who invented it, maybe some guy out in the middle of the desert because that's where all the crazy ideas come from, don't you agree? Anyway, it gets invented. I bet even his wife thought it a bit odd, but she came on board and soon there were a handful of other Marmaite lovers.<br />Now, can you believe it, it's GLOBAL.<br />How can so many people be so INSANE? Marmite is disgusting! It's been banned in some countries, but that just drives it underground (I myslef, so my shame, have smuggled in pots for friends abroad who've been converted to the stuff, but because I love them, I do it). Governments are waking up to the evil of Marmite, but I don't think it's a war that can ever be one. If only there was a way of recognising Marmite lovers, then it might be easier. You know, we could get them to wear special badges, or round them up and get them to live in certain areas so we could keep an eye on them and make sure they don't spread their vile Marmite love. Surely we have a duty to protect our children from Marmite?<br />I say this as a concerned parent who, sadly, has lost his own two young ones to Marmite. I married a Marmite lover. I admit it. I thought she would keep her Marmite love to herself, but she INDOCTRINATED them into loving Marmite when they were very small and impressionable. How evil is that, feeding Marmite to defenceless babies! Now, it's too late. But, it made me realise, that Marmite lovers aren't that different from me, afterall. I know my kids, they're just like everyone elses kids (though by far more talented and pretty and all that and they sure tidy their rooms in the morning. Not.).<br />It's made me realise that I shouldn't fear Marmite. It's out there. It appeals to millions. Some good, some bad. It's certianly not to everyone's taste, but then what is?SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-72035082522175971312011-11-29T18:48:00.007+00:002020-09-21T16:01:34.132+01:00Well, that was an adventure!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kV3oAU4j_gA/TtUsMHNHBkI/AAAAAAAAAnY/aRyD9XMmpc4/s1600/IMAG0467.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680495091601835586" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kV3oAU4j_gA/TtUsMHNHBkI/AAAAAAAAAnY/aRyD9XMmpc4/s320/IMAG0467.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 192px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px;" /></a>Just back from a trip to Pakistan, the ancient family homeland, and had a jolly fine time. It's amazing the bargains you can find in the local bazaars near the Afghan border.
<div>It's been a long, long time since I was last there, 24 years in fac<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-obunn8bdf9Q/TtUrz6fG_rI/AAAAAAAAAnM/fy-eMW1VxLk/s1600/IMAG0468.jpg"></a>t. It was an emotional trip in more ways than one. </div>
<div>Firstly, catching up with a vastly extended family. I met cousins who, back in 1987, where newly married with babes in their arms. Now, those babies have their own babes in their arms. Time has marked on and when I was the teen youngest, now I'm the aged uncle. A generation has come and gone and it stared me starkly as I saw once vigourous men now old, and how their sons had become their fathers.</div>
<div>Pakistan is both terribly ancient and terribly new. As a country, it's just over 50 years old, but as a culture, it's one of the oldest in the world.</div>
<div>As some of you may know, Ash Mistry is based, inspired by, the great ancient Harappan civilization. This existed over 5,000 years ago, and the city of Harappa is in Pakistan itself. I visited the site and will report on that seperately. But there's something profoundly moving about walking streets that were teeming with people and had merchants and products from all over the civilized world of Mesopotamia and Sumer and Old Kingdom Eygpt when Rome didn't even exist and the Trojan War hadn't yet been fought. We're talking about way way back, back when myth and history were one of the same.</div>Then, there is the current Pakistan, with all the bad press attached. It's (sort of) the basis on my new project. I've my hands full with Ash Mistry but think it's high time I wrote something straight, adult and historical. No magic, no vampires, but lots of intense action and my version of the game of thrones, back when Britain was playing it in the Indian Subcontinent. It forged the modern world, for better or worse, and much (but certainly not all) of the trouble we have over there now is merely a modern replay of the trouble we've always had over there. If more politicans were historians instead of lawyers, we might not be in the shambles were are right now. Lets put it this way, even Alexander the Great couldn't get out of Afghanistan quickly enough.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-73850464294127905992011-11-17T10:03:00.004+00:002011-11-17T10:17:42.126+00:00News on the Devil's Kiss tv series<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yrrGE0xAG8A/TsTcE3NtIZI/AAAAAAAAAm0/8jvF_kvI5UQ/s1600/DK_Hyperion%2Bfinal%2Bcover.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 214px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675903406492688786" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yrrGE0xAG8A/TsTcE3NtIZI/AAAAAAAAAm0/8jvF_kvI5UQ/s320/DK_Hyperion%2Bfinal%2Bcover.jpg" /></a> I often wonder if there is only a certain amount of luck in the world. I do believe there are different <em>types</em> of luck. One type is the old 'the more I practice the luckier I get' type, which is the only luck you can control. Then there's the 'OMG, look, someone's dropped a walletful of CASH. Dinner's on me!' which is the right place at the right time sort of luck. Then there's 'the stars aligning, the sheer forces of the cosmos coming to your aid ably assisted by quite a few battalions of archangels' type of luck. Basically the sort of luck which, in an ordered universe, really shouldn't be allowed.<br />So, it was in that order of things I received this email yesterday.<br /><br /><strong>Gaumont embraces Devil's Kiss<br /></strong><br />Gaumont International Television (GIT), the new Los Angeles-based scripted TV arm of the French movie studio, has teamed up with The Walking Dead's exec producer Gale Anne Hurd for its latest project.<br />GIT, which launched in September under former NBC Entertainment executive VP of drama programming Katie O'Connell, has acquired rights to Devil's Kiss, a series of young adult novels by Sarwat Chadda from the UK.<br />Hurd will exec-produce a miniseries based on the books, together with Stephen Gallagher (The Eleventh Hour), who will pen the adaptation.<br />Devil's Kiss tells the story of a modern teenage girl raised by her father to become a member of an ancient order of knights, drawing on the mythology of the Knights Templar and the Crusades. Beatrice Springborn, who joined Hurd's Valhalla Entertainment as executive VP of production and development last year, picked up the project. The books and TV series will appeal to fans of Twilight and True Blood, according to GIT CEO O'Connell.<br />"We wanted to work with the incredible Gale Ann Hurd and were so happy that she presented us this novel. We read it and fell in love with the story's scope and emotional resonance," said O'Connell. "I had worked with Stephen Gallagher in the past and he had such a fresh and wonderful take on how to transition this to a television show."<br />GIT, which brought former Power executive Erik Pack onboard to head international sales and coproductions, will be pitching Devil's Kiss to broadcasters in the UK in the coming weeks.<br />Hurd (Terminator, Aliens), who is also currently developing a series based on the novels of former UK MP Jeffrey Archer - as reported by C21 recently - said of her latest project: "I couldn't be more excited to work with the Gaumont team on Devil's Kiss. We share the same vision for Sarwat Chadda's books. Bili, the central character, is a unique heroine, and her epic adventures make her ideal for a television series."<br />Devil's Kiss will be the third project that GIT has put into development after announcing its arrival on the scene ahead of Mipcom, where it debuted Hannibal, a one-hour drama based on Thomas Harris's Dr Hannibal Lector novels, which was picked up by NBC earlier this months.<br />Also in the works at GIT is Madame Tussaud, a six-hour miniseries about the famous artist and business woman who survived the French Revolution. Michael Hirst (The Tudors) will executive-produce with Alan Gasmer and Sherry Marsh.<br /><br />I mean, HOLEY MOLEY, right? It's still got a few hurdles (and big ones) to jump before we have Billi on the screen but, sheesh, I never, ever thought it would get this far. Remember, I thought we'd be lucky to be able to buy a new carpet with my first book deal (which we did too, very nice, from John Lewis but, blimey, it was a chore and a half to get it fitted).<br />So, there are MANY people who have moved heaven and earth to get the celestial bodies in the right place to make this happen. I mean Sarah Davies (of course), Jerry Kalajian, Gale Anne Hurd (big fan-boy moment when I met her!), Beatrice Springborn and the GIT crew. You're all invited around mine for Christmas lunch. We're having the traditional Murgh Mussallam.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-29038649950312252912011-11-14T19:57:00.003+00:002011-11-14T20:04:59.343+00:00Guest review from my mate Cameron!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UQdJdaBChpU/TsFzIPxGKrI/AAAAAAAAAmo/iD5JrgrEJv0/s1600/duneBG.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 258px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674943590972140210" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UQdJdaBChpU/TsFzIPxGKrI/AAAAAAAAAmo/iD5JrgrEJv0/s320/duneBG.jpg" /></a>Dune. Arrakis. Desert world. Either these terms will rock your very existence or you're sitting there going 'was that the movie with Sting is silver-winged underpants?' <br /><div>Well, yes it was.</div><br /><div>I'm one of those who wished he knew the weirding way, that his eyes were blue in blue and, god-damnit, wanted to be a Fremen.</div><br /><div>But... some time ago I got into a twitter chat with LdySkyfire and recommended she read Dune, and watch the movie. The review below is teh result. Just for fun, folks!</div><br />Cameron’s Review of Dune by Frank Herbert<br />From the Blog Whatthecatread.wordpress.com<br /><br />Book description by Goodreads<br /><br />This Hugo & Nebula Award winner tells a sweeping tale of the desert planet Arrakis, the focus of an intricate power struggle in a byzantine interstellar empire. Arrakis is the sole source of Melange, "spice of spices". Melange is necessary for interstellar travel & grants psi powers & longevity. Whoever controls it wields great influence. Troubles begin when stewardship of Arrakis is transferred by the Emperor from the Harkonnen Noble House to House Atreides. The Harkonnens don't want to give up their privilege. Thru sabotage & treachery they cast young Duke Paul Atreides out into the planet's harsh environment to die. There he joins the Fremen, a desert dwelling tribe, the basis of the army with which he reclaims what's rightfully his. Paul is more than just a usurped duke. He might be the end product of a long-term genetic experiment to breed a superhuman. He might be a messiah. His struggle is at the center of a nexus of powerful people & events. Repercussions will be felt throughout the Imperium.<br /><br />Review<br /><br />I will be honest; I’ve known about this book’s existence for years, but never had any interest in reading it. In fact, I have gone out of my way not to read it because I’m generally not a big fan of straight science fiction. However, when author Sarwat Chadda told me in a tongue in cheek way to read this book else our friendship would be in jeopardy, I decided to give it a try. Generally when I get a challenge like that, I follow through on it.<br /><br />So what were my thoughts on this book upon finishing it? Well it was an interesting read. While I liked various parts of it, other parts were just boring. And yes, perhaps my dislike of straight science fiction clouded my feelings and made it impossible to read with an unbiased eye, but in the long run, the book just simply didn’t do much for me.<br /><br />The ideas behind the Bene Gesserit teachings and the Fremen way of life I found immensely intriguing. The Litany against Fear especially caught my eye and left me thinking. In truth it was the thoughtful, intellectual moments in the book that were the most enjoyable for me. Herbert poses some truly deep philosophical ideas within this novel and those ideas held my interest far more than the actual plot of the story. Try as I might, I just didn’t care what happened to the characters or the power struggle between political houses. And once Paul became the “messiah”, I lost what little respect I felt towards him.<br /><br />At the same time, I struggled with Herbert’s writing style. To me it was dry and extremely confusing. The general pacing of events took far to long and often times I found myself wanting to scream, “Get on with it already!” Not that that would have done much good. In fact, by the time I finished with the story itself, I chose to completely skip the appendices and glossary. Plus, the inner monologues just killed me. Almost all of Herbert’s characters engage in inner contemplation to the point where it was overkill.<br /><br />Yes, Herbert created a world that truly was unique, however the actual story just didn’t work for me. I’ve heard that it has been compared to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, but if I had to choose between the two, I’d go with Tolkien long before I’d ever choose Herbert.<br /><br />Cameron’s Review of Dune (1984 Movie) directed by David Lynch<br />From the Blog Whatthecatread.wordpress.com<br /><br />Thank heaven’s I listened to the folks who told me to read the book before I watched this movie. Had I gone the other way around, I fear I would have been completely lost. Never in my life have I seen a movie more disjointed in its telling then this one. It felt like there were no transitions between major events, and the few transitions that were there were flat and poorly explained.<br /><br />The use of the inner monologues, which run throughout the novel, were poorly dubbed and did little to enhance the plot. And the portrayal of the Harkonnen Baron was disturbing to say the least. In truth, the first time he appears in the movie, I had to fight the overwhelming desire to turn the TV off. True, the actual character in the book is not entirely mentally stable, but to physically see that instability depicted in a movie is just beyond creepy. At least with Sting’s character it was more a matter of physical appearance then actions. Sting has a truly wonderful psychotic facial expression through the movie.<br /><br />For a movie that was produced in 1984, the special effects were well done. Nowadays most folks would consider the quality of the effects cheesy, but the depiction of the shield-filters worked well with what I had envisioned them to look like when I read the book. I will admit that the space creature who was responsible for folding time and space made absolutely no sense to me. I couldn’t figure out what it was suppose to be and at this point, I don’t think I want anyone to try and explain it because it will more than likely just make my brain hurt.<br /><br />The best bit of casting, besides Sting as the deranged Feyd-Rautha, was Patrick Stewart as Gurney. I only wish there had been more of him as I really liked his portrayal of the character.<br /><br />So, if you are considering watching this movie but don’t know anything about Dune in general, I will offer the same advice that folks gave me, read the book first. Trust me, it will make more sense in the long run if you do.<br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-88232593100448192992011-10-07T15:49:00.004+01:002011-10-07T15:53:58.290+01:00Sorry for the break in service!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6TKwasYoP-I/To8RkcpBjQI/AAAAAAAAAmM/AGiLqsz3Vtc/s1600/Billi%2Bby%2BSarwat.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 176px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5660762574489226498" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6TKwasYoP-I/To8RkcpBjQI/AAAAAAAAAmM/AGiLqsz3Vtc/s320/Billi%2Bby%2BSarwat.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div>Okay, have to be brief today, I've got to cook supper for the kids. What to tell you?</div><br /><div>1. Working on FINAL edits of Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress. Gosh, this has been a saga and a half.</div><br /><div>2. The website's going to have a MAJOR revamp in the new year. Gothic is out, Indian is in. As part of the revamp there'll be a new gallery with portraits (by me!) of all the main characters in the Billi and Ash books. Here's the first work in progress, Billi herself. It's been a long time since I dusted off the old ink brushes but it makes a pleasant change to writing, I think it's the old left side v. right side brain function balancing itself out.</div><br /><div>More later! Bye!!</div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-21260954732751476992011-09-20T18:25:00.004+01:002011-09-20T18:45:49.724+01:00Rakshasas, not your average demon<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MzGLZuUM-vA/TnjMqmcjgaI/AAAAAAAAAmE/PkDeaQPD4X8/s1600/crocodile%2Brakshasa.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 229px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5654494364410544546" border="0" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MzGLZuUM-vA/TnjMqmcjgaI/AAAAAAAAAmE/PkDeaQPD4X8/s320/crocodile%2Brakshasa.jpg" /></a>Vampires. Yeah, been there, done that bought the teeshirt. Werewolves. Stock up on the silver bullets and they're TOAST. Fairies? Big problems with iron (kind of a bummer when the world's built of it). Zombies? Run fast and have a chainsaw handy.<br /><br /><div>The problem is that with most of the big bads we just know too much about them. Sure, they are scary but now come in easy to manage packages. With instruction manuals.</div><br /><div>The fundamental attribute of any monster must be its unknown quantity. Think about the first ever Alien. Just one monster, creeping around the dark and scaring the bejeesus out of everyone. JUST ONE.</div><br /><div>When a bad-guy is BADASS, you don't need more than one of them.</div><br /><div>That's why I'm so excited about the new series, I'll bring you a new level of fear. The demons out of Indian mythology don't fit in boxes. They take many forms. Some haunt graveyards, others search the battlefields at night, feeding on teh dead, others are heroes in their own right and some, a few, challenge the gods. The Indian mythology doesn't play by Western ideas of good and evil. Look at Kali, the goddess of killers and the most bloodthirsty being in all creation whose dance of frenzy almost destroyed the universe. BUT she's the greatest defence we have against the forces of darkness because she's BADDER than the rest.</div><br /><div>The same applies to rakshasas. By bringing in a 'new' mythos I can scrap all the things we know and love but (lets face it) have become blase. Can you honestly say that you don't roll your eyes a little when you see another vampire book? Be honest. Thought so.</div><br /><div>The unknown. It's the source of all our fears. Lets have it back, shall we?</div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-27818271840114135402011-09-11T23:53:00.003+01:002011-09-12T00:21:54.120+01:00FIGHT!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gclq1-HVNmg/Tm08vdlNY2I/AAAAAAAAAl8/tMsJ8N3CreA/s1600/Achilles.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 214px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5651239893512053602" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Gclq1-HVNmg/Tm08vdlNY2I/AAAAAAAAAl8/tMsJ8N3CreA/s320/Achilles.jpg" /></a>Continuing the theme I've been developing over the last few months (the nature of bad-assness) I'd like to take this opportunity to educate you on what are the GREATEST FIGHTS ever. We'll keep ourselves to those of the cinematic variety because, if you've ever been in a real fight you know that they're scrappy and relatively unartistic. <br /><div>Lets see how badasses fight.</div><br /><div>1. Achilles v Hector in Troy. Awesome movie and awesome fight. The whole movie comes down to this point and the rage Achilles has for the defender of Troy, Prince Hector. I know that snobs and purists complain that liberties were taken with the origianl text but, seriously, who wants the List of Ships on the screen? This was a battle between gods.</div><br /><div>2. Bond v Red Grant in From Russia with Love. I think this was probably the first 'modern' fight scene. Cramped, desperate and brutal it had Bond fighting for his life like he never has before or since against a man who is in all ways his equal. Connery was the baddest of all Bonds and I defy anyone to disagree after watching this scene.</div><br /><div>3. Martin Blank v. Hitman in corridor in Grosse Point Blank. Clearly inspired by our No.2 choice what's interesting is that the actor, John Cusack, is a notable martial artist and the guy he was fighting was a top kick-boxer (and, I think, John's tutor). Lots of fients, kicks, brawling and excellent proof that the pen is indeed mighter than the sword.</div><br /><div>4. Bruce Lee v. the henchmen in Enter the Dragon. Unarmed, jo sticks. Bo stick and finally the iconic nunchakus. I don't care how much of a pacifist you are, even the Dalai Lama dreams of being Bruce Lee.</div><br /><div>5. Superman v. General Zod and his cronies in Superman II. Hey, they throw a bus at him! I love this because it's supers fight as supers would; lots of flying, being hurled through buildings and THROWING BUSES.</div><br /><div>6. Maximus taking on the gang of gladiators in Gladiator. Are you not entertained? We sure are. </div><br /><div>7. Spiderman v. Doctor Octopus in Spiderman 2. Full 3D battlefield and the train duel was rather terrific. Again, supers taking to the other level.</div><br /><div>8. The Bride and the Crazy 88 in Kill Bill Vol. 1. So over the top and utterly ridiculous you have to love it. What is it about katanas?</div><br /><div>9. Tavern brawl in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. That was the moment I fell in love with Zhang Ziyi.</div><br /><div>10. Opening fight in The Brotherhood of the Wolf. The torrential rain, the mysterious men in long coats, the bad guys in dresses. Too cool and probably the most brilliant costume drama ever. And it had Monica Bellucci in it with not many clothes on.</div><br /><div>Do check them out on YouTube.</div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-70968231273235798952011-09-06T19:09:00.002+01:002011-09-06T19:36:11.058+01:00Beards. Why men have them. Why men NEED them.<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e3lygwCC0C0/TmZiId2jRwI/AAAAAAAAAl0/KtQKtxYPhTA/s1600/man%2Bwith%2Bbeard.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 254px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5649310680174774018" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-e3lygwCC0C0/TmZiId2jRwI/AAAAAAAAAl0/KtQKtxYPhTA/s320/man%2Bwith%2Bbeard.jpg" /></a>I've just finished Giles Kristian's RAVEN, a book that's got loads of Vikings in it. More Vikings that a festival of Vikings during the Viking month of Viking, in Vikingland. It's so Viking even the women have beards. <br /><div>Now, Vikings liked beards. Plaits too and small bones knotted within them as they brawled and sought out glory and weak-kneed churchmen.</div><br /><div>It's the mark of a man, isn't it? At least publically and far less likely to get you arrested.</div><br /><div>Then I thought (so rare nowadays). Templars. Beards. Spartans. Beards. Blackbeard. Beard. Santa. Beard. When you look at the stats, nine out of ten bad-asses had beards.</div><br /><div>It says "hey, I'm not a woman." Infact, young samurai worried about such a issue used to grow moustaches so if they were ever decapitated (head-taking an honourable tradition in that culture) their killer wouldn't have his reputation blemished by anyone thinking he'd killed a girl. Now that's manly when you're working about your own severed head.</div><br /><div>So I'm introducing a 'Beard Rating'. It's to establish how manly a thing is. Now we're not talking about just your DNA, but MANLY. Like don't do the washing up and 'hey, I've only worn this underwear five days and it's fine.' That sort of 'out-on-the-ledge' manliness which is so rare nowadays since we've given up existing in a hunter-gather society. And they say all progress is good.</div><br /><div>So, Raven by Giles Kristian. <em>Beardy down to your knees</em> it's that manly. Sorry, MANLY.</div><br /><div>Ironclad the movie, starring James Purefoy as a Knight Templar. Ankle-length beard. He's a Templar. 'Nuff said.</div><br /><div>Conan the Barbarian. Hmm, maybe waist length beard. Yes, he lives, loves and slays, but there's a certain lack of true barbarism. Would the new Conan expect to hear the lamentation of his enemies women? Not so sure.</div><br /><div>Conan the Barbarian as written by R.E Howard, knee-length beard.</div><br /><div>So, next time you read something and feel the urge to tear off your shirt and run screaming in the woods wrestling trees, that's because that book has BEARD.</div><br /><div>Till next time, folks.</div><br /><div>Oh, in case you were wondering about Twilight? Clean-shaven.</div><br /><div></div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-73836415749639346592011-08-30T11:18:00.005+01:002011-08-30T11:48:20.764+01:00Acts of Faith (or how Sarwat went to Hollywood)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qko7KCZFQ7U/Tly5AAh7vpI/AAAAAAAAAlk/koAHstuZWxU/s1600/hollywood%2Bsign.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646591442609225362" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qko7KCZFQ7U/Tly5AAh7vpI/AAAAAAAAAlk/koAHstuZWxU/s320/hollywood%2Bsign.jpg" /></a>As some of you may know my background isn't in writing, but engineering. I point this out to remind everyone who's trying to become a writer that degrees in English Lit or a MA in Creative Writing or years as a journalist are TOTALLY UNNECESSARY in becoming a writer. Hey, you don't even need to have had an exciting life (but having one of some sort does help).
<br />I'm not even quite sure how much talent you need, either. We've all read some truly appalling books that have been best-sellers, haven't we?
<br />But what you need is FAITH. Now I'm not venturing into Richard Dawkins/Phillip Pullman territory here with the nature of God and all that, but more belief in what you're doing. The years, the reams of paper and the endless fustration at rejections do not matter if you have faith. If others have faith too. You'll be amazed how far such passion will get you.
<br />You've heard much about my agent, Sarah Davies. She is first and foremost in The Faithful. If you're agent doesn't have faith in your ability, find another agent. Simple as.
<br />But today I'm talking about Jerry Kalajian, my film agent.
<br />Jerry read Devil's Kiss back when it was just a bundle of loose A4 sheets. Now that seems like ancient history but it was just 4 years ago. Surprising how much can happen in that time. Since then he's had faith and HUGE passion that this is a story he could sell. We had a few near misses and most people would have given up. Hollywood turns quickly and things can become old very quickly. Just look at Megan Fox's career (just joking, Megan. Dropping out of Transformers 3 was a GOOD CALL).
<br />But Jerry had faith and believed in Devil's Kiss and Billi SanGreal.
<br />Then, Gale Anne Hurd came on board.
<br />Gale's the producer of The Walking Dead series, and also The Terminator and Aliens. She was married to James Cameron and is an Arsenal fan. I'm not sure how all these facts are related but she was looking for a new female action hero and Jerry sent her Devil's Kiss.
<br />Beatrice, the VP of Gale's production company, Valhalla Motion Pictures (cool or what?) read it and then a meeting was arranged, as I happened to be heading out to LA for the book tour anyway.
<br />So, one morning in March Jerry and I were sitting in the lobby of Gale's office. The wall is covered with posters from her career. We've got The Punisher, Terminator, Aliens, Aeon Flux, we've got the Hulk.
<br />Remember, a few years earlier my career was based on designs of central heating systems. The only posters I saw were the layouts of kitchen units.
<br />The world turns on faith. We need to believe in what's possible more than what's already out there. Jerry has been an amazing example of that and I pity anyone with an agent who's not even half as dedicated. Then with Beatrice and Gale championing Billi the books have now been optioned by Gaumont Pictures. There's talk of a Billi SanGreal tv series, which is insanely cool because now Buffy's retired we need a new kick-ass vampire/demon/werewolf-slaying heroine, don't we? I'll keep you totally informed should such an event happen but, hey, a trip out to Hollywood is nice and there's always the next book.
<br />This isn't about me boasting but telling you, whatever you're doing, you have no idea where it can lead. With writing, there is no reason you can't be as big as anyone already out there. Yes, that includes JK Rowlings. Why not? I really, REALLY do believe that faith will get you further than you imagine. Yes, it must be backed up with work and more work, but believing that you can succeed and be as good as anyone else out there on the shelves is fundamental. There's an awful lot of bad fiction selling by the truckload (most of it involving vampires I'm afraid). You can write better then them, can't you? Look at it this way, even if you do only as half as well as JK, that's £250 million in the bank, isn't it?
<br />Now, where did I put that Aston Martin catalogue..?
<br />
<br />
<br />SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-4873278775464348342011-08-23T19:47:00.002+01:002011-08-23T20:01:11.995+01:00Because Ninjas are COOL!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UmlMBjp5gk0/TlP2EViM0BI/AAAAAAAAAlc/6cbbXAz8XdA/s1600/Ninja.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 246px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5644125312385863698" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UmlMBjp5gk0/TlP2EViM0BI/AAAAAAAAAlc/6cbbXAz8XdA/s320/Ninja.jpg" /></a>Do you remember when you first came across a ninja? I do. Eric Van Lustbader's book, the Ninja, was being passed around the class (thanks, Robert!) and we were agog at the sheer coolness on ninjas, that they could make poison out of dandelions (or something) and there were scenes with lots of exclaimation marks that, as 12 year olds, we didn't quite understand and wouldn't for quite some time (and for some of us, it would be <em>quite</em> some time).
<br /><div>Anyway, needless to say, I wanted to be one. That didn't happen but I did go through a phase of knocking myself silly trying to use a pair of nunchuks and loosing my shuriken over the fence into the neighbour's garden and upsetting his dog.</div>
<br /><div>And I wrote ninja stories. There wasn't a tale that couldn't be improved by adding a ninja. How MacBeth would have been much happeir if he'd used ninjas to kill Duncan rather than do the job himself. How Romeo and Juliet was like two warring ninja clans (Kyushu and Iga, if I remember correctly) and (my masterpeice, titled 'Dressed to Kill') where James Bond fights a ninja while he's getting dressed for a party (metaphorically dressed to kill) then throws the ninja out the window but stabs himself on poisoned caltrops left on the sill by the ninja (who's literally dressed to kill). My old English teacher, Ms. Masters, despaired a little. I like to think she's forgiven me now.</div>
<br /><div>Yes, but Sarwat, is there a point to this?</div>
<br /><div>Well, it's about writing what you love, no matter what everyone else thinks. I still have a fond spot for ninjas and I recently found a copy of Lustbader's book and reread those chapters I didn't understand the first time around and now completely get why my parents confiscated the book.</div>
<br />SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-19072538788553585442011-08-18T22:12:00.003+01:002011-08-18T22:21:15.082+01:00Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uVEnkYs5W6k/Tk2AUOAPd0I/AAAAAAAAAlU/xB88b-yIQE0/s1600/Front%2Bcover%2Bonly.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 263px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642306993009948482" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uVEnkYs5W6k/Tk2AUOAPd0I/AAAAAAAAAlU/xB88b-yIQE0/s400/Front%2Bcover%2Bonly.jpg" /></a>Please note the following, as they may help later:
<br /><div>1. We have a young boy (Ash Mistry, aged 13).</div>
<br /><div>2. We have a demon king (Ravana, who's age is his own business).</div>
<br /><div>3. We have an Indian setting (glorious, ancient, insanely cool, at least six thousand years old)</div>
<br /><div>4. We have a bad-ass punch dagger (called a katar) because, as all bad-asses know, samurai swords are for wimps.</div>
<br /><div>Oh, and a golden arrowhead. Now that'll be <em>really</em> important.</div>
<br /><div>I'm just back from a jolly nice visit to HarperCollins HQ and have a few spare copies of the arc of this here book. ONE (and only one, alas) copy will be given away this year. So, if you want to read it first and be envied throughout the land, please stay tuned. BUT (big clue) it'll help if you follow me here or on Twitter. Chums on my newsletter will score extra points. Just sayin'.</div>
<br /><div>There are a few minor tweaks still to be sorted but the book's pretty ready to go, though it won't be relased until March 2012 in the UK and Fall 2012 in the US.</div>
<br /><div>I know it's AGES AWAY but some things are worth the wait! </div>
<br />SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-19426421979491732582011-08-07T00:53:00.002+01:002011-08-07T01:37:34.351+01:00Exactly how BAD ASS are you?<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3aNfNQnA0wI/Tj3UMKrz7DI/AAAAAAAAAlM/GTvYIJityLg/s1600/conan-the-barbarian_l.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5637895614029360178" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3aNfNQnA0wI/Tj3UMKrz7DI/AAAAAAAAAlM/GTvYIJityLg/s320/conan-the-barbarian_l.jpg" /></a>There comes a time in every kid's life when they contemplate the BIG questions. Now I'm not talking religion or who's going to win X-Factor and whether Justin Beiber will have a career after puberty, but the BIG BIG <strong>BIG</strong> questions. <br /><div>It struck me, yesterday, when daughter No.1 came out of the garden with half the skin scrapped off her forehead from a swing/ground interface incident. Now that's after a week of falling into a lake (surfing) and, if I remember correctly, falling out of a tree. </div><br /><div>Memo to self: get that girl's inner ear checked.</div><br /><div>But, as the kind man on security (don't ask) said: it proves you've had a childhood. Scar-tissue, that it.</div><br /><div>But it's more fundamental than that. It's when you scrap your knee or get a cricket ball in the face (my particular speciality) or a fist in the mouth (long story, maybe another time) and your lower lip quivers and the tears form when you decide:</div><br /><div>Am I BAD-ASS or not?</div><br /><div>With my new series on the horizon (oooh, look at the gorgeous cover, soon my pretties, soon!) I've been contemplating what exactly is my book about? What are any of my books about?</div><br /><div>They're about BAD ASSES.</div><br /><div>Now, I've not wondered into the genre of BAD-ASSNESS by accident. I've studied it long and hard for many, many years. I like to think of myself as someone, like a alchemist, who's trying to filter through the pages of his books tales of pure, untainted and undiluted BAD ASS. Not fantasy. Not urban fantasy or gothic horror or supernatural suspense and certainly NOT paranormal romance but BAD ASS storytellling. Books about heroes who swear and bleed and suffer and never, ever, EVER give up. They would die before surrender.</div><br /><div>Are we all clear?</div><br /><div>Good. Especially you at the back, thought I saw you nodding off a bit earlier.</div><br /><div>Think of this as re-establishing my writing credo. Books of bad-asses. Nothing more, nothing less.</div><br /><div>But how do you recognise a bad-ass? Are you a bad-ass? Is your sister? So, to help you work out if you are, indeed, a member of the SOBA (the Society of Bad Assess) I've put together a questionnaire for you. Let's begin:</div><br /><div>1. Every bad-ass has some scar. How did you get yours?</div><br /><div>a) scrapped your knee when you fell off your bike when you were six.</div><br /><div>b) picked at those acne spots when you were told to leave them alone.</div><br /><div>c) got those scars on your cheeks when a spear was thrown straight through YOUR FACE.</div><br /><div>2. Your surrounded and outnumbered a hundred to one AT LEAST. The enemy commander tells you to lay down your weapons. Do you:</div><br /><div>a) think 'fair enough. Wasn't my fight anyway' and go home for a dish of cowardly custard.</div><br /><div>b) Ignore him and wait for someone to have a go.</div><br /><div>c) yell back 'Come and get them!'.</div><br /><div>3. Bad-asses like to PARTAY. Now, you've been invitred to teh house of a handsome Russian prince with plenty of wine, food and fun. How does REAL bad-ass party end?</div><br /><div>a) A game of charades and an early bed. After all it is a school night.</div><br /><div>b) blinding hangover and waking up somewhere on the end of the Northern line.</div><br /><div>c) with being shot, poisoned, stabbed and thrown in a icy river?</div><br /><div>4. What are the best things in life?</div><br /><div>a) A new highest score on your X-box, a slice of pizza and a marathon Harry Potter session, dressed up?</div><br /><div>b) A swift horse, a falcon at your wrist and the wind in your hair?</div><br /><div>c) To crush your enemies, to see they driven before you and to hear the lamentation of their women?</div><br /><div>5. Bad-asses don't stay at home, watching the goggle-box. They're out there, fighting the good fight. They see things. Tell me, what have you seen?</div><br /><div>a) Well, she was across the road and it was crowded BUT you think you spotted Paris Hilton down at the supermarket.</div><br /><div>b) Your true love standing on the beach, lit by the setting sun. Aah.</div><br /><div>c) Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate.</div><br /><div>6. The Romans have taken over your kingdom, raped your children and whipped the skin off your back Do you ..?</div><br /><div>a) curl up in a ball in the corner and cry and cry your little heart out?</div><br /><div>b) find someone to complain to and take your complaint to their commanding officer?</div><br /><div>c) stick a pair of scythes to your chariot, burn Londonium to the ground and massacre its entire inhabitants?</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>ANSWERS</div><br /><div>You answered c) right? Your are wise to the ways of the bad-ass, my young apprentice. Anything else and you'd best stay in bed on days where the weather's a bit clement, we wouldn't want you getting a cold now, would we? Each of the c) answers are based on a epic bad-ass from history or fiction. Anyone of them a worthy mentor to any prespective bad-asses-in-training. If you don't know them, you'll have to wait 'till next week.</div><br /><div></div>SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-55677190174906846452011-07-17T22:44:00.007+01:002011-07-18T00:16:13.482+01:00Two fine gentlemen<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WGQ6hOaEnEE/TiNYB7KoR9I/AAAAAAAAAlE/lfiGxhOSmp0/s1600/IMAG0294.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 192px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630440749228640210" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WGQ6hOaEnEE/TiNYB7KoR9I/AAAAAAAAAlE/lfiGxhOSmp0/s320/IMAG0294.jpg" /></a>Wouldn't it just be so much cooler if we could wear stuff like this rather than jeans and teeshirts?<br />These are soldiers of the Horse Artillery from the Peninsula Wars as anyone familiar with Sharpe would know.<br />That's back in the days when men were men, women were women and food had no additives. Yes, the week before last.<br />We're all just back from the Festival of History in sunny (and fequently rainy) Kelmarsh. If you're remotely interested in British military history it's seriously the place to go. Starting off with the Imperial Romans there were displays and battles galore from Normans, Crusaders (I'm sooo Team Saladin), Napoleonics, War of the Roses (and Team Richard III), tent-pegging from Prince Malik's Lancers (cannot believe the speed these guys galloped and hit their targets) WW1 and WW2. The WW2 re-enactment included an aireal dogfight and a few victory roles from the legendary Spitfire, honestly I had a lump in my throat. Awesome and incredibly moving.<br />Which neatly brings me to my birthday present. I'd really, really like a suit of armour please. Or a Spitfire.<br />Which also brings me to outline my action list, so you and my editors don't think I'm just sitting at home watching the Wire. Which I am, but that's research.<br />1. Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress is DONE. I've seen the draft of the UK cover, it's violent, gloriously so, and (IMHO) will offer those in search for kick-ass action a whole new standard of inappropriate behaviour.<br />2. Ash #2 is almost done. We're still in Draft 1 territory so a lot of work still ahead, but hey, moving forward. Plan to have that wrapped up by September, then let it stew for a few months before hitting the second draft. That should got off to the publishers end of the year.<br />3. NEW novel. I'm a big fan of historical fiction and what to give that a go. There's two projects, one joint with a very cool writer friend of mine where we'll be delving into a period right after the Norman invasions and a second, lone project which will be about mid-nineteeth century Punjabi politics, which, I'm sure you'll agree, the world is in desperate need of. Not a week goes by when I'm asked by some fan or editor, "Sarwat, we're in desperate need of a book about mid-nineteenth century Punjabi politics, they're the next big thing after vampires and dystopia and (insert trend of your choice)!"<br />4. NO Billi SanGreal book. At least not for now. There may be some interesting Billi news sometime soon though. Stay tuned.<br /><br />So, remember. Mid-nineteenth century Punjabi political novels. They're the next big thing and you heard it here first.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330162401107493176.post-59523359785735997432011-07-10T20:43:00.004+01:002011-07-10T20:56:57.765+01:00My agent, Sarah Davies<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W1AWr-XXihY/ThoA446BhAI/AAAAAAAAAk8/ggZ2EtKQTH0/s1600/gh%2Bpeople.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5627811661701284866" border="0" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W1AWr-XXihY/ThoA446BhAI/AAAAAAAAAk8/ggZ2EtKQTH0/s320/gh%2Bpeople.jpg" /></a>Now as much as I'd like to to claim my literary success is all down to ME, ME, ME!!! I'm afraid that would be a bloody, big, fat LIE!<br />So, let's discuss the woman behind me getting a few books on the shelves, Sarah Davies (strips on the left, the one in leopard print is Julia, her right hand woman).<br />Sarah and I met through a writing competition (Undiscovered Voices). She was one of the judges and I one of the fortunate winners. That was back in the day when 'Devil's Kiss' was still called 'God's Killer'. We met and chatted and soon after I joined <a href="http://www.greenhouseliterary.com/">Greenhouse Literary Agency</a>. At that point the Greenhouse comprised me and Sarah and her dog.<br />Sarah took my manuscript by the throat and tore it apart, pointing out a <em>looong</em> series of swordfights do not a novel make. Now, Sarah knew what she was doing. Before she was an agent she'd worked long and hard as a publisher and her editing skills remain second to none. She will make your book better, much much better.<br />She'll be blunt when she needs to be, comforting those moments when you wonder why on earth you decided to choose this career over, say, being a bomb disposal expert. She's be the first with the good news (you have a book deal!) and first with the whip (rewrite it until it SHINES!) and pretty much everything in between.<br />She will make you walk the hard road but will walk it with you.<br />Though it's my name on the cover the books I've written have a large amount of Sarah's DNA entwined into every page. I kinda feel bad it is only my name but hey, I'm needy.SarwatChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09577624202222845929noreply@blogger.com0