Nightcrawler

I’ve just finished watching Nightcrawler, the movie with Jake Gylenhaal. Wow. I’d heard a lot of good things but what a great fuckin movie. It was fantastic, and it was proof positive that a character doesn’t have to be ‘likeable’ for a story to be good. It was very noir. The shots of LA were fantastic. You know what was likeable about the character of Louis Bloom? His work ethic. He had an admirable work ethic, albeit an incredibly amoral one. My favourite line in the film – ‘Maybe my problem isn’t that I don’t understand people, it’s that I don’t like them.’ Those kinds of misanthropic world views are the kind of thing that really turn me on. Don’t sugarcoat bullshit, just tell the fucking truth. There are people out there that hate other people, let’s tell a story about them where they’re the heroes. Not everything has to be sunshine and light, let’s have some darkness. My main gripe with writing has always been when you get a story rejected on the grounds the characters weren’t ‘likeable’. What the fuck have they been reading? I can’t remember the last time I read a book where the characters were ‘likeable’. Admirable maybe, but not necessarily likeable. I want to read about people the Nietzchean Will To Power, I want to read about the Ubermenschen of this world. I might not want to live entirely that way, but I sure as whit want to read about it. I admire the people that make their own way, that don’t compromise, that serve no masters but themselves. Isn’t that what we’re all striving for? Only by perfecting ourselves can we achieve unity with each other.

I think I’ve digressed. Anyway, it was a thoroughly awesome movie. I haven’t seen all of Jake Gylenhaal’s movies, but every one I have seen has been fantastic.

Heard this song today, it’s a couple of years old but it was my first time, it sounds pretty special, im loving it, something totally different.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrnq4SZ0luc

In writing news, I’m working on some novellas for the future, watch this space! I’m planning on stengthening my work ethic and pushing for new heights, a la Mr Bloom, although I do plan on sleeping.

Onwards!

Updates

I’m getting really bad at this. I’m still here! I haven’t forgotten about you, blog! I know I need to update, so here I am!

Still working hard in terms of stories. I might slack on the blog but I’m pretty reliable when it comes to fiction. Fiction takes precedence, without the fiction I would have no reason for this blog in the first place. When I’m at work all day then I get home and need to work out and eat etc it leaves little time late at night, so if it’s a choice between blogging and fiction the stories are going to win every time. I get little enough sleep as it is. I’ll try to get better though, for the handful of people that might occasionally find their way here. Hi. Go back a few posts, I write stories, there are links.

Anyway, how about a cultural check-in?

Despite what most reviews seem to be stating, I’ve really been enjoying the second season of True Detective. Colin Farrell has been amazing, Vince Vaughan has impressed, and Taylor Kitsch has gotten better as the show went on. To my mind Rachael McAdams had nothing to prove as she’s always been a strong talent. The shoutout at the end of episode four? Awesome. The sex party last episode? Again, awesome. What’s everyone’s problem with the show? McConneghey and Harrelson aren’t in this one, get over it, it was never gonna be the first season all over again. It’s been smart, it’s been dark, and it’s been interesting, what more do people want? If people want to bitch on they really need to stop and ask themselves – what’re the alternatives? Criminal Minds? CSI? There’re plenty of shitty procedurals out there, take your pick and good luck.

After a pretty ropy opening with the first few episodes of Hannibal season three it finally picked up and the last few have been spectacular. It’s regularly called stylish but the problem at the start of this season was way too much style and almost zero substance. See how it goes tonight with the three year leap and the introduction of the Tooth Fairy, who I understand is played by the king of the dwarves from The Hobbit trilogy. Shame it’s the last season, hopefully it comes to a satisfying conclusion.

Wayward Pines? I liked it. It was trashy, but it was fun. The final episode was fucking AMAZING – until the last few minutes. Put a bit of a downer on everything that came before, and it had HUGE holes in its logic.

But you know what’s blown me away with its third season? Banshee. Holy shit, what a fucking show. Check it out, that’s all I can say. It’s a brutal bloodbath of fun with some brilliantly colourful characters – Job is my favourite, bitch. If you watch the show, that ‘bitch’ will be relevant. I look forward to the new episode of Banshee every week.

Saw Ant Man on Monday, that was fun too. The more I think about it the more I like it, it had some great moments in it. Also, I feel it might have some relevance on the next Captain America, which actually looks more and more like another Avengers movie.

Finished reading Blood’s a Rover by James Ellroy. Just finished reading The Gospel Singer by Harry Crews last night, but it has another novella at the back called Asher Does One Go When There’s Nowhere Else To Go. After that, who knows? I’ve got plenty to choose from.

Onwards!

All Comers

I’ve got a new short story up today over at the Flash Fiction Offensive. It’s called ‘All Comers’. The titles not supposed to be rude, but I’m beginning to wonder if it maybe sounds it. Here’s a link:

http://www.outofthegutteronline.com/2015/07/all-comers.html

Im really proud of it. I’ll have to check my records but I think this might actually be my twentieth published short story, so that’s cool. It’s my second time at the FFO too, since Barbie was published there way back in I think March of 2013. The acceptance email for All Comers is probably my favourite for any I’ve recovered. It went ‘Well ain’t you a ray of sunshine. Sick fuck.’ Ha! Check it out and see why they thought so!

True Detective episode three tonight!

Onwards!

True Detective

this song. This song right here. It’s been stuck in my head. I had to come in out of the sunshine to listen to it.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Dbd4h1kaFlY

Anyway, True Detective season 2. I loved season one, it was my TV highlight of last year and I’ve since waited impatiently for season 2. I’ve really enjoyed the first two episodes. Know what I didn’t enjoy? The way people seemed prepared to shit all over it straight from the get go. Yeah, Matthew McConneaghey (spelling??) and Woody Harrelson aren’t in it anymore, and Cary Fukunaga isn’t directing every episode, and the theme tune is no longer The Handsome Family, but that’s no reason to jump all over it and try to kick the carcass before it’s even been born. A link circulated on Facebook the day after the first episode aired listing something like thirty one or fifty one things wrong with episode one. I never clicked the link, the title pissed me off enough. First episodes are exposition heavy, always, and judgement could perhaps be eased a little when bearing in mind this is an anthology show – new setting, new story, new characters – and I personally thought it did a damn find job of breaking us in to the rest of it. Colin Farrell has been the standout performance so far, I’m looking forward to see how the others fare, especially Vince Vaughan. My only qualm is if Taylor Kitsch’s characters big secret turns out to be he’s gay. In 2015 that really doesn’t seem such a big deal, but we’ll see.

Episode three tomorrow.

Onwards!

Radio Silence

I realised that, with it being July now (whuuuuuuuuut??) I made only one blog post during the month of June. That’s pretty poor going. I did keep busy, I’ve written every day so far this year and I finished something up which is (first draft) over 50,000 words, so it’s kind of novel length. That is of course providing when the time comes I read it and it’s any good. We’ll wait and see. Before I get back to anything else novel/novella length (and I have plenty of things planned) I’m looking to get through some short stories I can write up and send off etc.

And heads-up, The Motel Whore will be free for today, July fourth, and The Vampire is free for five days. And I’ve dropped the price of The Boy to 0.99 as, after much thought, 1.99 seemed too steep for a 20,000 word novella.

Okay, so, just a quick check-in, I’ll try and do another blog tomorrow, where I’ll talk about the new season of True Detective.

Onwards!

The Dancers

I had a new story published yesterday in issue 50 of Yellow Mama online, the link is below:

http://blackpetalsks.tripod.com/yellowmama/id1302.html

A while back I was watching BBC Breakfast news and they did a piece on the murder of a male Russian ballet dancer, and they delved into the murky underworld of Russian ballet. I remember it being fascinating stuff, but alas it was a very long time ago and I’ve since forgotten most of the details. The murder was unsolved at the time, but the theory was that he’d either been killed by a fellow dancer, or there was some kind of conspiracy going on as he was about to move to the west, and take his dancing skills with him. Like I say it was a long time ago and maybe the murder has since been solved, I don’t know, I didn’t keep up. It got the creative juices flowing though. I wrote a story about it, but I based it in America, and it’s about female strippers. It became The Dancers. If you click the link and read it through I really hope you enjoy it. Yellow Mama’s a great site and I’m honoured to be in issue 50, feels like a landmark and it’s great to be a part of it.

In other news, I got a book of e.e cummings poems today. Harry Crews had a quote from one of his poems tattooed on his arm, and it’s in this collection. How do you like your blue eyed boy Mr Death? I started reading Blood’s a Rover by James Ellroy yesterday, gonna finally finish the Underworld USA trilogy. I read the Cold Six Thousand about two years ago or something, I’m pretty terrible. I’ll finish this trilogy in time to start his new quartet.

Anyway.

Onwards!

Heads up!

The Motel Whore is on a free run for a few days, ends Sunday, here’s a link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00SIXQYJM/ref=s9_simh_gw_p351_d4_i2?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1GDNPJFEH0E3D68BYD58&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=455344027&pf_rd_i=468294

And just a reminder that The Boy is also now finally at long last worth the wait and all the editing available too! Link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Boy-Paul-Heatley-ebook/dp/B00XKIZ26Q/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_2

Comic Books

Since I finished The Incal last week I’ve gotten back into reading comic books in a big way. I’ve got quite a big pile of them to read, I’ve been building them up for a while but been trying to work my way through the to-read pile of novels I’ve got too (which I posted a picture of a while back, and which hasn’t really gone down, if anything it’s gotten bigger).

So lately I’ve read the first book in the Saga series by Brian K Vaughn and Fiona Staples, and I loved that. It was such an amazing head-fuck of space opera and sex and violence and monsters and it was really just awesome and I can’t say enough good about it, and I’ve got three more to read but I’ve put them to one side as I want to finish reading The Boys series by Garth Ennis. I love Garth Ennis. The man is royally fucked in the head, but at least he’s got a sense of humour about it. I read volume eight last night ‘Highland Laddie’. It dawned on me that the last time I would have read The Boys would have been back in 2010, so it’s been a long time coming. Got the last few books now, so I’m excited to see how it all ends.

Other than these two titles I’ve got a lot of Judge Dredd, some Tank Girl, Nemesis the Warlock, and some standalone titles to get through. Exciting stuff, like I said I love comic books, and though finding time to read in general is pretty difficult I’m glad I’m back at them.

The Boy

Ahoy!

There’s a girl I work with always uses that as a greeting, I felt like doing it myself. It sounds particularly jubilant, and I am in an especially jubilant mood – The Boy is available for purchase! Here’s the cover art:

Once again it was designed by the fantastic Ben Shanks of Ben Shanks Design (he can be found on Facebook, though I’m not sure how easily).

This is the third in the very loose trilogy that began with The Motel Whore and continued with The Vampire. As with the other two it is a standalone tale but features some familiar faces from the other stories. Here’s the link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Boy-Paul-Heatley-ebook/dp/B00XKIZ26Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431556055&sr=8-1&keywords=The+boy+paul+heatley

To anyone good enough to give it a purchase and, especially, a read, I really hope you enjoy it. It’s the longest of the three, clocking it at over 21,000 words, in contrast to The Motel Whore which was roughly 13,000. I’m really proud of all three of these stories, and now it’s time to move on to new things, and new doesn’t always have to be scary, in this case I’m certainly treating it as exciting. As always, I’ll update and keep everyone informed.

Apart from writing, I’ve just finished watching the first two episodes of The Affair which has just started on Sky Atlantic, and boy were they good. Looking forward to episode three next week, as well as the start of Wayward Pines tomorrow. It looks like it has something of a Twin Peaks vibe going on, and as the cover photo at the top of this page will attest I am a fucking huge fan of Twin Peaks, so here’s hoping. Back to the affair, it’s also nice to see McNulty of the Wire back in a quality drama, as well as Major Rawls (sp?) and the guy that played Tommy in Arrow.

Onwards!

Initiation

I’ve had a new story published today at Spelk fiction, my second time there:

http://spelkfiction.com

Check it out, it’s a great site, and my story The Dancing Girl is there too.

Initiation came to me one morning as I drove to work listening to Raekwon the Chef of the Wu Tang Clan, hence the main character being called Rae. It was the album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx. The idea germinated inside me head through the course of the day and that night I went home and wrote it, and nod it can be inside your head, too!

Enjoy!