Christopher Fowler's Blog, page 450

Writing With Hooks

A recent conversation with a friend who's writing her first novel raised a couple of interesting points.

She was looking to produce a novella, but worried that the length would mitigate publishers' interest. Many of my favourite 20th century novels are short – notably Virginia Woolf, George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh's satires, but also the [...]

Why This Store Needs London's Help

The Big Green Bookshop is special even among other indie bookstores. It's as much a community drop-in as a shop. Its owners are known throughout North London's Wood Green, and go out of their way to make customers welcome, with regular readings and events. I've appeared there, and the atmosphere was wonderful. This is the [...]

Kill Me Now

Just in case you've finished Winston Churchill's or Nelson Mandela's biographies, you might like to pick up this hefty tome which tells the inspiring life story of a man who has meant so much to so many people for so many years.

(Actually this is Volume 2, the first, 'Justin: The Unborn Months' is still available.)

Don't Upset The Religioners

So, Iran may boycott the 2012 Olympics unless the logo is changed because it spells 'Zion' and is part of a pro-Israeli lobby. Actually, that idea has been knocking about on the interweb for ages and there are videos showing the 'letters' rearranged accordingly, but it's just a representation of '2012′.

Now, if somebody wanted to [...]

Soundtracking 3: Remixed

Pogo, the Perth remixer, was around when I first started this site. I remember stumbling across his 'Alice In Wonderland' remix (still on this site somewhere, maybe in the hall cupboard or under a sofa cushion) and being utterly entranced.

Few people who do this sort of thing manage to pull it off. For a [...]

Oscar Sends A Message

And the message is 'When times are bad, run a warm bath and fall asleep in it.'

It's a message they regularly send out, but it was particularly pointed last night. How else to explain the flatly directed 'The King's Speech' winning Best Director? The Oscars are never a very interesting or accurate barometer of [...]

Black Comedy Primer 2:

Great black comedy manages to take uncomfortable subject matter and reimagine it with wit. Early black comedy tackled sexuality and race taboos. Comedies like 'The Producers' and 'La Cage Aux Folles' recognised that the best way to defuse prejudices was to confront them with laughter. The UK countered racism with a series of shows that [...]

Re:View – 'Winter's Bone'

Of the Oscar contenders this year, I'd felt 'The Social Network' was the best film on offer until I saw 'Winter's Bone'. Not very fashionable subject matter – a poverty-stricken Missouri family – an unknown cast, an atmosphere of relentless servitude to the grim landscape. But within this setting, something genuinely haunting and memorable occurs.

For [...]

Soundtracking 2: Orchestral

As picked up by my ever-astute commentators on the previous soundtrack post, soundtrack slowdowns are big right now. Here's the soundtrack to 'Jurassic Park' slowed down a thousand times. I need to play this whenever I'm overly worked up.

Now, some more soundtrack composer favourites who perfectly accompany the writing of novels. Laurie Johnson is best [...]

Soundtracking 2

As picked up by my ever-astute commentators on the previous soundtrack post, soundtrack slowdowns are big right now. Here's the soundtrack to 'Jurassic Park' slowed down a thousand times. I need to play this whenever I'm overly worked up.

Now, some more soundtrack composer favourites who perfectly accompany the writing of novels. Laurie Johnson is best [...]