Wednesday, November 30, 2011

NaNoWriMo 2011

      If you have been on my facebook page at any stage you probably know by now that NaNoWriMo which stands for National November Writing Month and it is a challenge whereby if you accept it, you are challenged to write a story in excess of 50,000 words in just one month and obviously being the month of November.

       Ever since I have been a kid I have been writing short stories, but unfortunately over the years I have lost so much of what I have written, so a few years back I decided to start typing up what stories I still had a well as stories I could remember, and of course I continued writing new stories too. I have also been posting these stories on-line.

      Even though I love to write short stories I have always wanted to write a real long story but until now I have not been motivated to do so, therefore I took up the NaNoWriMo challenge. The story I decided to write is called THE PATHFINDER MISSION, basically it is about a starship by the name of THE PATHFINDER, it is the end of the world and planet Earth is being evacuated, so The Pathfinder is charged with finding a new home for the human race.

      So for 30 days and 30 nights even though I have existed on Planet Earth I have been living aboard The Pathfinder. Unfortunately right from the start of the month I was behind on the daily word targets but I had always been fairly confident that I could catch up but when I got up on the morning of November 29th I still had 13,400 words to reach the 50,000 target. Up to this day I had only 3 days where I had written more than 2000 in one day, 2,500 twice and 2,300 once and with a 14 hour effort I got through over 7,500 words.

      I ended the story before the 50,000 word mark as I felt I that by going any further I was only dragging out the story, however I still had time to go so I wrote an introduction to the story to bring the word count up, and my validated effort reached 50,055 words therefore I am a NaNoWriMo winner.

      So many of you kept me motivated all month long even when I thought it was beyond my reach, so me being a winner makes all you guys a winner too. Thank you all so much for helping me reach a personal goal, and who knows Maybe I might just get to try this again next year.

      I have been posting the story in 15 parts on-line at short-fiction.co.uk where I post under the name 'actung'.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

PLEASE READ THIS

      November may the month of NaNoWriMo, a month of writing that I am currently taking part in, but November is also the month of Movember, a month when men all over the place don weird and wonderful moustaches or facial hair in general for charity. This year I am taking part but since I already have facial hair I will give Movember a bit of a twist.
       Now I have been able to grow facial hair since I was 12, so when I was 18 I had a pain in me back side shaving so around about this time of the year in the year 1992 I began to grow a full beard. After about two weeks it began to itch and itch so bad that I shaved.  I started with shaving the cheeks and when I got to the chin I noticed that this part of the beard had never itched so I kept what was left and it has been there now for nineteen years which is more than half my life.
        So what I will do for Movember is give what facial hair I have a new designer look but only if I raise at least 150 for Irish cancer society. So the deal is that if I raise over 150 euro by midnight November 22nd I will go get the designer look the following morning, have photo's taken, post them to my facebook and use one as my profile pick.
       If you want me to give my facial hair a designer look then do what is said in the film 'Jerry Maguire' and SHOW ME THE MONEY. Come on people, who is gonna sponsor me.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

NaNoWriMo

      NaNoWriMo stands for National November Writing Month, bu the National part should be replaced by Worldwide, for I am sure that it is something that does take place worldwide.
      If you write seriously or just for fun, you are more than likely aware of what the whole NaNoWriMo thingy is. It is a challange more than anything else that challenges writers who take it up to begin and complete a novel length story of at least 50,000 words in just one month.
      I have been writing short stories for as long as I can remember but I would like to write at least one Novel length story, just for the sake of being able to say I have actually written one, so this year I am going to take the challenge.
      I have never come close to writing so many words in one month, so it will be some challenge for me to not only see if I can come close to writing 50,000 words in one month but to also have all those words in just one story. I have never taken myself seriously and write for fun, but I may as well give this a go.
      As for the story I will aim to write,I have a basic Idea for it already. I won't start writing it until Novembere 1st. I may as well go all in on the challenge and give it a real go. However prior to November 1st I can organise and plan the story. Within the month itself the concern is with quantity more than quality. After the month has ended if I have completed over 50,000 word, I could alway begin to edit and attempt to improve the story.
      In the weeks to come I can hopefully plan well enough to give this a real go, and if I do complete it I will post the whole thing, in parts of course, at my regular posting spot  short-fiction.co.uk. Posting this blog entry will also, I hope, inspire me to complete this challenge and not abandon it, as I am sure there will be moments where I will feel like giving up.
      I know I have said before that I know all that confident in what I write, but it is better to have what I have already written and will continue to write in a place where it can be read rather than on pieces of paper, or in a computer file or in an out of reach spot in the back of my mind. So the challenge is on, can I complete it? Well time will tell. :)

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

A Second Story Published.

      First of all I haven't quite got around to completing what I had set out for myself in my last blog entry but I will get to that in a bit. But before I do I would like to announce that I have been fortunate enough to have a second story published.

      Almost 11 months after intrest was shown in a story I wrote entitled TORTURE by US magazine Horrotica I get an e-mail informing me that my story SCENT  is to be published in the Autumn edition of 221b magazine. The magazines accepts entries through competition where the winning entries will feature in the next issue so I entered one story more out of intrest than anything else, and I have been informed it will feature from September 23rd.

      The story SCENT  came out of a friendship between myself and someone I have got to know through short-fiction.co.uk. I began to write SCENT and periodically e-mailed what I had written and got opinions back on it and continued writing accordingly until the story was completed. Then came across the competition and entered the story. So Rei :) thank you.

      Now in my last blog entry I said it was time to really get going on my writing due to the sheer amount of thoughts and ideas I want to get through. Unfortunately my laptop went down not long after that post and I have lost a bit of what I had begun to work on, but I will eventually get there on what I want to get through.

      I am still working on continuing my vampire series only the next part will have a different title than what I have said it would be and that will probably be my next entry at short-fiction.co.uk. Since my last blog entry I also had an idea for a story I hadn't previously mentioned is a story called ALTER-EGO which I have posted at short-fiction in two parts. It is a story I had a little bit of fun with since I have an alter-ego of my own and it gave me good cause to mix in elements to this story of stories I have written in the past.

      Anyway People are still reading what I write, and comments are quite good and nice so I'll keep on writing, so until next time :) .....

Friday, June 17, 2011

TIME TO REALLY GET STUCK INTO MY WRITINGS.

      Usually when I write, what I write is usually whatever takes my fancy at that moment in time wheter it be an old story I want to type up or something new that I want to get through but for most of the time over recent months I have been trying to get through a back log of ideas and stories with which I'd like to post online.

      In the blog I posted back in March I listed a number of stoires I wanted to get through and I have completed all of what I listed bar one. There is a story I began writing  a couple of years ago now that when I completed what I origionally began with I thought there is quite a bit more I can do and would like to do with that particular story. That story is BROTHERS OF THE VILLAGE . It went up @short-fiction.co.uk back in August 2009. I then wrote a prequel to this story which went up in three parts which went up in July and August 2010 simply with the title BROTHERS OF THE VILLAGE - THE BEGINING. Then back in November 2010 it continued with two more parts BROTHERS OF THE VILLAGE - HEROES, VILLAINS AND GHOSTS. So I plan to bring this story to it's conclusion soon.

     Some thing else I'd like to bring to a conclusion is the Vampire series of stories I started last October. There had been so many Vampire stories out there that I thought I'd try write one of my own. I came up with a vampire character named Gabriel Grimmel and the story just seemed to write itself. The origional story turned out to be a couple of pages longer than I thought it would leaving me with another character to which I could continue writing with and that would be Seth in SON OF A VAMPIRE. I was left with do many ideas after that to continue writing the series but it wasn't until April the the third in the series went up WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO GABRIEL GRIMMEL?  Which was followed in May with three parts to the fourth in the vampire series DARK SHADOW. I had thought that I would be able to end the story there but there is still more to go yet so hopefully I will get through the fifth installment OTHER VOICES soon.

      But before I get through any of that there is a series or really short stories I am currently writing NIGHTMARES OF THE DEAD with three parts already post with two more to follow shortly.

      Another story I spoke about in the recent March Blog was a story called BEAST. It is a story which went up in three parts and one which I really enjoyed writing. There is more I would like to add to this one too so BEAST 2 is something else which will be coming soon.

      One more tale I would like to get around too soon is one which is inspired by a recent trip to an old closed down jail in Dublin called Kilmainham jail. But my story KILMAINHAMS GHOSTS will be a fictional story based on my visit there and the tour I took of the place.

      There are a few more stories I'd like to get through before I consider wheter my online writing should continue or come to an end, but for the moment I am enjoying writing as much as I ever have and feedback has been so possitive, so as I have mentioned before since people are reading what I write, for the moment I'll continue to write. So till next time :)

Friday, May 13, 2011

30 songs in 30 days

      I had been look around the web and had noticed that there was this 30 songs in 30 days thing going around where people were posting a link to a song a day. This ran by using the favorite song for day 1, their least favorite in day 2 and a reasoning for each song as the list went on. I liked this and want to do it myself but I decided to change the rules. I did have my favorite song at number 1 but as for the rest I made a list of songs which were of general popularity. I also thought that it might be fun to ask those on my facebook friends list to choose a number between 2 and 30. One song would go up each day according to the number with those who chose a number not knowing what song they got until their turn came around.

     Now I was really unsure as to how it would be received. As it turned out it got a great response with plenty of you choosing a number. Many also commented and used the like button. It was amazing how much fun I had with it, so much so that I may just do it again sometime soon. So thank you all who joined in. As for the list of songs, the numbers they had, the day they went up and who chose what, well that is as follows :

DAY     NUMBER    CHOOSEN BY      SONG

   1                1                    ME                 PRIDE – U2
   2               15             AMANDA           EBINEEZER GOODE – THE SHAMEN
   3               24               BECKS              EVERY CAR YOU CHASE – THE POLICE
                                                                                      VRS SNOW PATROL
   4               19               DONDA             KOKOMO – THE BEACH BOYS
   5               13               EILEEN             99 RED BALLONS – NENA
   6                4                CELINE             ATOMIC – BLONDIE
   7               22                  TOM                SNOW – RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS
   8                3                CRIENA             LETS GET ROCKED – DEF LEPPARD
   9               11                  ROSS              SPIRIT IN THE SKY – DOCTOR AND THE
                                                                                                           MEDICS
  10               5               GEORGE            HARD ROCK HALLELUJAH – LORDI
  11              28                 GARY              OUR HOUSE – MADNESS
  12              10              TRACEY            BREAK EVEN – THE SCRIPT
  13               7              ME MUM            STAY – THE HOLLIES
  14              16               GERRI               ORINOCO FLOW – ENYA
  15              26             HARRY R           EVERYBODY HURTS – REM
  16               8              HARRY C           YOU CAN’T TOUCH THIS – MC HAMMER
                                       & KIDS
  17              30                 LIZ                   JUMP AROUND – HOUSE OF PAIN
  18              18                 REI                 SMOOTH CRIMINAL – MICHAEL JACKSON
  19               2              STUART             500 MILES – THE PROCLAIMERS
  20              21             KERRIE              TAKE ON ME – A HA
  21               9                SOFIA               DON’T UPSET THE RHYTHM – NOISETTES
  22              29              KEVIN               LAND OF CONFUSION – GENESIS
  23              17            AISLING              JESSIE – JOSHUA KADISON
  24              23               MARK              YELLOW – COLDPLAY
  25              12                 AL                   USE SOMEBODY – KINGS OF LEON
  26               6                                          THE KEY, THE SECRET – URBAN COOKIE
                                                                                                                  COLLECTIVE
  27              14                                         CRAZY WORLD – ASLAN
  28              20                                         GLORY OF LOVE – PETER CETERA
  29              25                                         THE WAY I ARE – TIMBERLAND
  30              27                                         RIGHT HERE WAITING – RICHARD MARX

Once again Thanks to all who joined in.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

THE TRUTH ABOUT GEORGE

      Right, for anyone reading this who doesn't know me, my name is Karl O'Connor. For as long as I can remember I have had an alter ego named George. If I was arriving anywhere and anyone asked who is that? I would answer George. It has even got to the point where I have seperated personalities. Where Karl would be kinda shy, quiet and keeps to himself (myself), George would be out going and while being a good guy he basically does whatever he wants.

       Now being Karl I am not one for getting up at gatherings to give speeches or the likes, but whenever I have done so I have attributed that to George as he has no problem getting up at all. Don't worry though, I am not schizophrenic. It is all just a bit of fun. I recently made a facebook post and commented on it twice before anyone else did, and was then accused of talking to myself, so as a joke I thought I should create a facebook page for George so I could really talk to myself without actually talking to myself.

      Now George has been around for a long time, I can't actually remember when he was brought into existance, but it doesn't stop there. There is a third ego or personality or whatever it can be called. I have been using the name 'Actung' since 1995. Now that name came from the U2 album 'Achtung Baby' as I am a huge U2 fan. Now I have used the name Actung for email, chat and also for my online writing.

      Actung has even been on the radio. I used to regularly go on a radio show back in 1999 with the name Actung. Actung is basically Karl and George on the loose at the same time. As I said being Karl I am not one for speeches and the likes but I really wanted to go on this radio show so George combined with Karl and Actung was born. Actung was the last person on that radio show on it's final night and that last show had an estimated listenership of 70,000. Now there was no way Karl would do anything like that but through George Actung was born.

       While the radio show was still running I went into a shop to get something to drink having been on radio the night before when someone I did not recognize came into the store saying 'ah there you are Actung, I heard you on the radio last night', radio being radio and not tv and me not having said anything I was extremely surprised to have been recognised. Also, nine months after that show ended I went into a store to get 'Actung 00' on the back of a jersey. 00 for it being the year 2000. I spelt out the name Actung for the guys behind the counter, they smiled and laughed as they also knew who Actung was.

       Anyway so this is why George has his own facebook page, I think it may be taking it a step too far to create a facebook page for Actung too, but then again .....

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Upcoming Stories

      Time to step it up for a while with my stories. During March and April they will be going up online a little quicker than they have been over the last 18 months or so. I have a lot I want to get through and once they are up then I will decide if I will slow down or keep going at my regular pace. People are still reading what I write and leaving positive comment and I am very grateful for that.

      Amoungst what is coming up in March and April are 'DEXTER'S HOUSE', a story with which I got the idea for while on a recent trip to the cinema with my sister Kerrie. We had a bit of time to kill before the film was to start so we went into a nearby hotel for a coffee. I was intrigued by that hotel, it's layout and layed back atmosphere that it had me day dreaming and the basic idea for Dexter's house came about. It also leaves a possibility for more DEXTER'S HOUSE stories that I may get to write later in the year.

      Now the site 'short-fiction.co.uk' is primarily more of a site for adult and erotic stories, more so than of anything for other genres but of course does include many other genres. I don't write nor am I interested in reading erotica but I do have a slightly more adult tale coming up. It is called TEASE. I have had the idea for this for quite some time now so I guess I may as well get it out of my system. It is neither rude nor explicit but more along the kind of games played where love or maybe even lust are invloved. Hopefully I done a decent enough job with that one.

      Also coming up is a story called THE HEALER. A story based on the idea of the seventh son of seventh son, someone because of the nature of his birth has certain gifts, one of which is obviously the gift of being able to perform miracle healing. Being the eldest of 7 (not all of whom are male) also gives me added interest in writing this tale. It is another story that could lead to future parts, who knows.

      Another story coming up is that of JUDY"S STORY, the story of a girl in her late teens who has a fixation on a character from a series of stories that she has been following that Judy herself becomes part of the story she has been following. Sometimes when I write I like to imagine either being in the story or having it run in my mind as if I am watching a movie, so JUDY'S STORY is something that was alway going to happen.

      Now I am not an agressive or violent person so when I wrote a story called TORTURE a couple of years ago now at this stage I was a little cautious of what anyone who reads it may think of it. A few months after writing it I posted it at short-fiction.co.uk and I was very surprised by the possitive reaction it got. It was was so possitive it lead me to continue adding to it. The reaction was so possitive that even a magazine in the U.S wanted to publish it. TORTURE was also one of the most enjoyable stories for me to actually write, so it is only natural I guess for me to sit down and write another agressive and violent story. BEAST is about a monster of a young man, raised on anger and ready to destroy anything in his way on an island designed for that very purpose. BEAST is also coming soon.

      Something else that has my attension is a what if story. What if you found yourself alone on a long, dark winding road, with no memory of who you are or how you got there, what would you do? DARKNESS is another story coming soon.

      Along with all this, I have also mentioned before that I want to get other stories up online such as the third and fourth tales in my VAMPIRE series, WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO GABRIEL GRIMMEL, and DARK SHADOW are also coming soon as is more on THE BROTHERS OF THE VILLAGE, another series of stories with which I would like to complete. So in the next couple of months or so, I'll be kept more than busy with what I write.

      I am still not confident with my writing abilities, but what I write is being read and people are genuinely leaving me possitive comments, so as long as they are being read I will keep posting more. Thanks for reading.   KARL.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Actung: Billy and Barney are 20 years old.

Actung: Billy and Barney are 20 years old.: " Early in 1991 I was at home minding my youngest three siblings, one of whom had just turned 8, while the the ..."

Billy and Barney are 20 years old.

      Early in 1991 I was at home minding my youngest three siblings, one of whom had just turned 8, while the the other two were aproaching 7 and 4 years old. Kids being kids, there was trouble, noise, fighting and crying. Nothing I was doing was calming things down, well that was until I dived behind a chair, taking off my shoes and socks.

      Diving behind the chair confused my siblings into silence. At last I had a bit of peace, and this is where the fun began. I put a sock over each hand creating sock puppets and raised them up to peer over the top of the seat. Calling the puppets Billy and Barney, a series of kids stories were born. Safe to say that my youngest brother and two youngest sisters began laughing, and I promised them that if they were good, that we would have a Billy and Barney story at bedtime.

      The first Billy and Barney story began on that day twenty years ago. Over the next eighteen months or so another seven stories became part of bed time. The first five of those stories are up @ short-ficiton.com. I f i ever remember how the other three stories went I will add them too, but how time flies. However it its only in recent years that I began a second series of childrens stories, and they would be 'the Liggle Turkle' stories which I also have @ short-fiction.com. Being an uncle of eight (well soon to be of 8, with litttle Harry due any day now) I guess I have childrens stories for two generations. :)

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

2011

      The reponse I have been getting to what I write has been really great, so I may as well continue posting my stories in 2011. In 2010 I had no real plan of what I was going to write and post. I still had plenty of old stories to type up and had no problems coming up with new stories. So it was whatever caught my fancy and whenever I had the time to type them up is how and when my writings went up. However for 2011 i have more of a plan and hopefully I will stick to it.

      There are still more old stories to go up, and I have plenty of ideas for some new stories too. I also want to complete the stories that I have a series of, such as the 'Brothers Of The Village' series which I will be bringing to an end, and my series of vampire stories will also continue. The Vampire series started with 'Vampire Weekend' and continued with 'Son of a Vampire' which is a follow on to Vampire Weekend. The third story will concentrate on the main character from Vampire Weekend and will be titled 'What Happened To Gabriel Grimmel' which follows what happens to him in the years after that Vampire Weekend and why he abandoned his son Seth who is obviously the son in Son Of A Vampire. The fourth story in the series will concentrate on Seth and the friendships he has made in School.

      So for anyone who does follow what I write I hope that you'll enjoy what goes up in 2011.