C.H. Clepitt's Blog, page 41

On Genre

I was recently talking to one of my writer

Warning! May or may not contain Overt Feminism

friends about writing, different genres and the trials of marketing.  He commented on the fact that I had taken a break from writing and that he was pleased that I was coming back with my new Sci Fi serial, which will shortly be released on Kindle.  I admitted that I had become a bit disillusioned after publishing The Book of Abisan, at the lack of response to the work.  I am my biggest critic, and I know that this book is some of my best work, and I can’t seem to get people to read it.  He went on to tell me that he enjoyed the story, and he has given me permission to quote him as he went on to say:

The only crit I could find was that it had an overtly feminist angle. I like that, I grew up in a feminist household, but it may have limited the readership.

I had deliberately created strong female characters as I feel that the Fantasy Genre as a whole is incredibly male dominated, and at first I felt quite pleased that this was the only criticism he could come up with.  After having time to mull it over I thought, ‘how is that actually a criticism’?

People aren’t put off from reading Lord of the Rings because Bilbo and Frodo have “bromance” which makes it hard for women to understand, do they?

Female authors are breaking through into the Genre, after all, The Hunger Games was written by a female author, and featured a very strong female lead.  The thing that ruined the series for me though, was the ending.  I had been unable to put it down, took the trilogy on holiday and finished it in a week.  But why did she have to conform?  Why did she have to choose one of her men to be with at the end?  It was never a question of will they won’t they, just which man will she choose?  I felt a sense of disappointment that after fighting for her life on multiple occasions, leading a revolution and instating a coup, in the end all she wanted was to get married and have children.  Surely there had to be a different kind of ending?

I suppose that’s the problem with endings.  If you enjoy it then you don’t want it to end, so any ending is disappointing, but somehow I expected more.

The problem with genre is it’s all about ticking boxes.  You are forced to choose a special pigeon hole to put your writing into.  You call it “Fantasy” and people say, “oh, I don’t read fantasy, I don’t like it”.  So you’ve read one book, probably not all the way through, and therefore you know you won’t like mine?  Heaven forbid that you label your work “Feminist”, then you’re putting it into a niche that no-one will touch with a barge pole.  Even women are afraid to be labelled feminist today, forgetting that what feminism means is equality.  No matter how we like to pretend we live in an advanced society we still aren’t equal, no matter how you paint it, and the only way we will change this is if people start speaking out for equality.  Equality for everyone or no-one is truly free.

It is for this reason that I try to avoid staying within one genre when I write, and probably why I find it so hard to market.  Because when you pick one you instantly shut yourself off to all the people who like other genres.  One reviewer said of The Book of Abisan

I found this book to be rather more like a crime thriller with some sorcery thrown in for good measure rather than out and out fantasy.

I think that if in general we stopped trying to label things and just took everything on face value, deciding whether we liked things on an individual basis the world would be a happier place.

When I was promoting A Reason To Stay on a writing forum I was bombarded by comments telling me that “Chick Lit” was not their cup of tea, so no offence, but they weren’t going to read it.  Well, I took offence, not because they didn’t want to read my book, but by the term “Chick Lit”.  It is incredibly patronising and automatically belittles whatever you’ve written into some sort of “only suitable for women, as their brains are not as big as those of men”.  It also puts men off from reading it.  Society is still so interested in putting people into niches (not just books, everyone needs a label, man/woman/gay/straight/him/her) that a man who chooses to read “chick lit” must have something wrong with him, surely?!

A Reason to Stay is comedy.  Men like it, women like it and a number of dogs on Twitter like it:

@BadgersTweetToo A reason to Stay is a great book

— Issac, Bobo n Harry (@RealJoannek) June 7, 2015

Unfortunately we are not going to see a miraculous change any time soon.  People will still look to label each other, and still want to put books, films and TV shows into categories, it’s just easier.

You can be the change though, try not asking someone a personal question just because you’re curious, instead think “is it relevant, actually?” And pick a genre that you wouldn’t normally read.  Go on, give it a go!!

You can find C H Clepitt on Facebook.

A Voice to Dai For

In 2011 Dai Robs’ Single, “Waiting for You” was BBC Radio Wales’ single of the week.  Since then he’s been gigging and coaching rugby, but now he’s back with a brand new album, set to be released at the end of the year.  We caught up with him to find out a bit more.
1. Tell us a bit about your forthcoming album.

Well this is my first full length studio album. I have released a live album and an EP previously but this is the record I’ve been waiting to put out. I hope that everybody likes it but am finally writing for myself and not trying to be a pop star so if I like it and my Mum likes it then I’ll be happy enough. It definitely fits in the singer/songwriter genre. I hope it isn’t easily comparable to anybody but I’m listening to a lot of Ryan Adams and William Elliot Whitmore at the moment.

2. For people who have never heard of you, describe your sound in one sentence.

This is the hardest thing ever to do along with come up with band names and change duvet covers. Heartfelt, acoustic, country/soul!

3. “Waiting for You” was single of the week on BBC Radio Wales, were you expecting the sort of reception you received for it?

Not at all. I was really happy with it but never expected that. As a Welshman I was super proud when it was suddenly played on Bethan Elfyn’s show and picked as single of the week. Regretably all my efforts went into that track and the rest of the EP wasn’t as strong. Not a mistake I’ll be making this time.

4. Who do you admire?

I’m full of admiration for a lot of people. As I’ve got older I’ve become far less self centred and see a lot more good in the world. It’s amazing what you see when you open your eyes. I’m a part time rugby coach as well as musician and have a lot of respect for all the volunteers around that give up their time to help young people have things to enjoy.

5. Which three people out of history would you invite to a dinner party, and why? – Yes, we went there.

Never considered this before. A toughy indeed. Ummmm. I’m gonna go with Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and Sam Cooke. A proper boys night in!

6. Where do you stand on the topic of Pet Couture?

I have a beagle who is currently shedding hair at an incredible rate so I’d be in favour of a 3 piece beagle suit that would keep all the hair in that I could empty once a day. Really though, I can honestly say that I have never thought of investing in a winter coat for her.

7. When are we likely to hear more from you?

Well the album is due for release on December 21st which as well as been the shortest day of the year is also my 34th birthday. There won’t be many shows this year as everything is going into the record but a UK and European tour is currently being put together for 2016 to promote the new record.

8. Music and Rugby, what’s the connection and how do they combine?

I love coaching rugby having played since I was a kid. I also love singing. Takes both to make me tick to be honest. I’m holding out for the job of singing the Welsh national anthem before an international at Cardiff! Perfect combination!

9. Anything you’d like to add.

Thank you for the interview and for making me address my feelings towards dinner parties with dead people and coats for cats. It’s really helped me!

Badger’s Eurovision Round Up, Part Deux

Well, we said if you asked we would, and we are true to our word.  Amadeus said the following:

Hello Badger,

I liked the songs of Italy and Belguim too. Please let me know what you thought of those songs?

And what about Australia to enter the competition?

Thanks big berenknuffel

Amadeus

So…

Australia

Well there is a reason I didn’t touch on this one in the first roundup, and that’s because I was trying to pretend it didn’t happen, but you did ask.

There seems to be a growing fashion amongst younger men to wear trousers with elasticated bottoms, and what appears to be deck shoes?  The sooner those of you with a Y chromosome realise that this is totally unacceptable and move on, the less traumatised the rest of us will be.  Men should wear socks, fact.  Why have I digressed into fashion when that is clearly Annie’s area of expertise?  Well, Australian entry, first impressions count I’m afraid, and those trousers certainly made an impression.  Cream coloured and tight around the calves and ankles, but with a low hanging crotch, the nearest caparison I can make is with a badly fitted pair of jodhpurs.  With the navy suit jacket and tie combo he looked like he was ready to enter a dressage competition, where the judge would have told him to tuck his shirt in and sort his tie out.  But it’s fashion, what do I know?  That’s Annie’s area, so I has asked if she would like to do a Eurovision fashion report.

The problem was of course, that this outfit, along with the hotpants that I haven’t touched on distracted from the song, and made it very difficult to give a fair review!  So, having closed my eyes the nearest comparison I can make is to 911’s early work.  You remember 911 don’t you? ’90s diminutive boy band? Sure you do.  So, for a 90’s boy band impression the song was fine I guess.  Did not really touch on the building bridges theme, but Australia is so far away they probably don’t know about the troubles in Europe.  Also they obviously spent a lot of time and effort choosing their outfits, so well done for that, chaps.  For a first try it was OK.  Form your own opinion below.

Belgium

With more strobes than a bad horror movie I am surprised half the audience didn’t end up fitting during the Belgium entry.  Opening on what looked like an interpretive dance troop all in white, the singer was contrasted in a black suit, which did serve to make him stand out.  There was a backing beat, but the backing music came from the people in white, which was a very clever idea, and the song itself was entirely unique and very clever.  The choreography was interesting, there was a point when he was stroking his own face, presumably he forgot his comforter, and another point where he was randomly lying on the floor.  I did worry that the strobes had got him, but it seems he was supposed to be down there.

So, a clever song, and using voices as a backing track was both innovative and different from anything I’ve heard in a long time.  Sort out the strobes and the slightly weird gyrating (don’t get me wrong, I’m sure lots of people liked the gyrating, just not really my cup of tea) and this would have had more votes I think.  It’s hard to pick up the phone and vote if you are trying to avoid severe over strobing (if this isn’t a thing it is now).

Video posted below, but be warned, it contains flashing images, strobe lights and what appears to be interpretive dance.  You click at your own risk.

Italy

Last but not least the Italian entry. Rather like the three tenors (because there were three of them, and they were tenors) this entry was rather good.  Classical voices singing in Italian, in the classical style.  They are classically handsome in classic suits too, which was obviously going to help.  Someone obviously told them to make love to the camera too, which led to them trying a bit too hard in my view, and I did have to contain a shudder.  You’ll spot it now I’ve mentioned it.  Have a look below.

Have we missed something you would like us to touch on? Or perhaps there is something you feel would really benefit from a Newsnibbles review?  Post a comment below and we will do our best to accommodate you.

Obhoyaronno – Protecting The Dogs of Bangladesh

Founded in 2009  by Rubaiya Ahmed,  Obhoyaronno is the first (and to date the only) animal welfare charity in Bangladesh.  As rabies is still rife in India dog culling is not uncommon, and the culling of her own dog inspired Rubaiya to set up the charity and advocate for animals in Bangladesh.

We caught up with Manita Swati to find out more.

What made you decide to become involved in Obhoyaronno?

 

– I have always been an avid animal lover and have worked with organizations such as WWF (World Wildlife Fund) however I was not aware of the widespread dog culling practiced in Bangladesh until I joined Obhoyaronno. Obhoyaronno is the only animal welfare organisation, not just in the main city of Dhaka, but also in all of Bangladesh! When I discovered the important work they were doing, my next thought was -advocacy! While many in Bangladesh know of Obhoyaronno, few in the western world have heard of them. We live in a very digital world, so advocating our cause through social media became a very important tool for us.

 

What does Obhoyaronno mean?

 

– Obhoyaronno is a Bengali word that closely translates to ‘Sanctuary’.

 

What are the organisation’s goals for the next 5 years?

 

– Since we began, the cause of animal welfare has witnessed a slow but steady growth in Bangladesh. We hope to continue this expansion in numerous ways:

 

Establishing a second clinic in Dhaka to continue with our mass CNVR (Catch-Neuter-Vaccinate-Release) program for street dogs;
Introduce pet merchandises by partnering up with Jatra, a local Fair Trade franchise specialising in sustainably sourced fashion, lifestyle and arts and crafts products. This will enable the organisation to become more financially independent;
Modernise the rather outdated Cruelty to Animals Act 1920 of Bangladesh by working with lawyers, legislators and the Government and infiltrate animal welfare awareness at the policy level of the country;
Work with Bangladesh’s City Corporations to introduce similar programs across the country’s major cities.

 

What would you say was the organisation’s most significant achievement to date?

 

– While it is hard to pinpoint one specific achievement, there are few deserving mention:

Secured Dhaka City Corporation’s commitment to end dog killing in Dhaka. Obhoyaronno signed an MOU with Dhaka City Corporation (North) and Dhaka City Corporation (South) to manage the city’s dog population on behalf of DCC;

b. Set up the country’s first CNVR clinic in Boshila, Mohammapur to sterilise, vaccinate and treat street dogs;

c. Secured partnerships with government and international development agencies;

d. Secured partnerships with local academies and schools to deliver humane education for children;

e. First Bangladeshi team of vets and paravets trained from India on modern sterilization and humane dog catching.

 

How is it funded?

We are funded largely through the Humane Society International and FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations). Though we are also supported by Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) who practised dog culling before 2012. However through continuous advocacy programs and relentless activism, we managed to get them on board and partner with us to introduce a humane dog population management program. Conversely, a great bulk of our funds comes directly from individual patrons who donate both monetarily and in-kind to support our cause and activities.

 

If you could give one piece of advice to pet owners what would it be and why?

 

– It would be to adopt (not shop!) wisely and be reminded that pet ownership is a lifelong commitment that requires investment of time, resources and compassion. To consider pets as members of the family and be considerate of their needs, accordingly. Too often in Bangladesh, we see pet owners getting pets based on breed or “cuteness”, but abandoning them to fend for themselves once they get old, sick or difficult to care for. This is especially hard for foreign breeds that are not suited to the local environment and climate. Sadly, the fascination for foreign breeds as a fashion trend exists in our culture and this problem needs widespread attention. One should not discriminate when loving an animal. A local street dog deserves just as much love as a carpet dog!

 

What can the international community do to help support your efforts?

 

– While we primarily serve the function of a clinic, there is a common misconception out there that Obhoyaronno is a shelter and as such we often have to care for unwanted animals. As such our facilities are always full, our resources often exhausted and our staff overworked. This means that our supplies and finances can often get scarce. Hence, donations are always appreciated whether monetarily or in-kind. Currently, we are working to create an international donation channel online. Once that has been set up, we hope this will make things easier for both potential donors and ourselves.

 

Anything you would like to add?

We have an Obhoyaronno Facebook and Twitter account.

You can find out more about the project by clicking here

 

 

The Sperm is Coming!!

Nibblers, this is a public service

We don’t have any sperm pictures, but this one is kind of spermy, right?

announcement.  Today, on Twitter, Badger made a disturbing discover.  Sperm is out to get you.  According to a random MEME (is that what you call words that are turned into pictures? Who cares) all sperm that you have ever come into contact with burrows into your brain, body spinal column, eyebrows etc and lives with you forever.  Essentially you are taking on part of any sperm contact you have ever had.  It lives forever!! If your eyebrows seem to take on a life of their own, it could be sperm trying to get out.  You know you can get pregnant from the swimming pool, too, right?

Here is the original tweet:

Eeek, right? Suppose if you aren’t an “independent female” you only have your husband’s sperm escaping through your ears?  Marriage means accepting sperm ears. Fact. Being a hard hitting news reporting organisation, and getting almost as excited by this piece of breaking news as we were by  the whole Badger/Ramsey Lookalike Sex Scandal  of 2012 we decided to do some research. According to The Mayo Clinic (not like Mayonnaise, hopefully)

The life span of sperm after ejaculation depends on the circumstances. Ejaculated sperm remain viable for several days within a woman’s reproductive tract or in nutritive liquid (culture medium) in a lab setting. Fertilization is possible as long as the sperm remain alive — at least five days. Sperm also can be preserved for years when semen is frozen.

It says absolutely nothing about it working its way into your brain and staying with you for the rest of your life, interesting, we must dig deeper.  Surely this meme was based on some sort of scientific fact? It can’t just have been made up to scare gullible people, can it? We sought another expert to see if they could verify the factual accuracy of the meme… Our newly appointed last minute science correspondent, @TheWallStreetBull told us.

@BadgersTweetToo Sweetheart, sweetheart, sweetheart. There is nothing even vaguely resembling science involved in this screed, so let it go. — The Wall Street Bull (@TheWallStBull) May 31, 2015

He went on to say:

That post sounded as if someone read some herpetology reproduction texts, then took LSD, then watched MST3000, then dissociative-tweeted.

Immortal burrowing sperm? “Um hmm, yes, I see. Tell me more about accidentally catching your parents have sex when you were 4 years old.”

So, there you have it, folks. You have nothing to fear but fear itself, and possibly getting lost in trying to research crazy Twitter memes for any kind of logic.  Don’t worry though, that’s what we’re here for. You want your meme explained, contact the newsdesk.  If we care enough to open your email we may well do a report on it.  Or not.

Badger’s Eurovision Round Up

Well despite Badger’s slightly ironic Twitter commentary (you know you love it even if you pretend to ignore it or not know its happening) this year’s special 60th Anniversary addition of the contest was very good.  This was not least due to the excellent hosting of Austria.  The theme of the contest was “Building Bridges” – which was achieved incredibly well by the open and accepting format.  This Eurovision really managed to put politics to one side and unite Europe, demonstrating we can do it.  If only every night was Eurovision night.

So we can’t possibly talk about every act, there were twenty of them in the final, and we know what a short concentration span you have, so instead we’re going to break it down into a few of the favourites.

The Winner

Sweden won, with a song called Heroes, which had fantastic special effects, which must have greatly contributed to the vote, as although the song was very catchy, and Måns Zelmerlöw really knew how to work the crowd, the song itself did not even hit my radar as a contender initially.  

See what you think. Try listening first without watching, then watch, see if your opinion changes.

 

The Runner Up

Russia’s A Million Voices came second, and when the first part of the voting was over it looked a lot like it was destined to be the winner.  Political issues aside it was a fantastic song, passionately performed, and would have been a deserving winner.  It certainly met the brief of “building bridges” and the lyrics spoke of peace and unity.  Coming second shows solid support for a good song, but does save the rest of Europe any concerns about the moral implications of having to stage next year’s contest in Russia.  After all, any gay contestants practising openly gay “propaganda” (presumably being a woman with a beard counts) would have stood a solid chance of being arrested, which is inconvenient if they are commentating.  Still, putting that aside and the slight wondering why Pussy Riot wasn’t asked to be Russia’s Eurovision entry, the song was fabulous, really.  See for yourselves.

The Overlooked Song

This year’s Polish entry entry was brilliant, not least because she wore actual clothing and did not molest a butter churn, a fact for which I will remain eternally grateful.  It was very surprising that this song did not do better, although it would have helped if either her microphone was louder, or the backing music was quieter (you see Youtube commenters, there are ways around things without being patronising or “making allowances”- just sayin’).  Whilst Sweden was not really on my radar, I thought Poland was a dead cert for the top three, but apparently the voting public did not appreciate the lack of a milk churn, or the sexual innuendos one can achieve whilst making butter, and the votes certainly did not reflect my views of the song.

See what you think.

The Wild Card

Georgia’s Entry, “Warrior” was different from anything else in this year’s contest, and for this reason if no other deserves a nod from Newsnibbles.  Whilst Nina Sublatti’s costume made her look like an angry crow, her voice is very powerful and the song itself was very good.  Maybe I have spent too much time reviewing theme metal bands (more classic Rockonnection reviews will be added here soon) but actually I thought the whole thing was rather good, but perhaps not “poppy” enough for Eurovision?  See what you think.

The Results

Whilst the multiple losses of contact with several countries made me think that Austria might be better off using Skype to retrieve their results (I know right?) this portion of the evening was as entertaining as ever, with the different presenters trying to make their thirty seconds of fame as memorable as possible, with desperate attempts at humour and outfits that certainly were memorable.  The highlight of the results was when Friend of Newsnibbles (this may be putting it a little strongly) Valentina Monetta delivered San Marino’s results.  Next year is your year Valentina, we can feel it.  Despite thinking that the use of Nigela Lawson to deliver our results was simply rubbing Toriness in the faces of us and Europe, Nigela did a pretty good job.  She did not attempt to be funny, was not wearing any dead animals and spoke in multiple languages, which is quite respectful of Eurovision, so well done Nigela, not just a soufflé rock star, eh?

Think we haven’t touched on a song you would like given the Newsnibbles treatment? Post a comment below and we will review it, just for you.

If you haven’t heard of The Eurovision Song Contest please visit our “Eurovision for Americans” informative article for more information.

Share your thoughts on the Eurovision, post a comment below.  Don’t be rude though, rude will not be published.

Happy Eurovision, Nibblers.

An Energy Drink with a Difference

If you thought it was disturbing when we

Cute Image Cutesy of @Destructo_Dog on Twitter, in an attempt to soften the blow of this story.

shared the information about breast milk ice cream with you, then stop reading now.

A woman from Swindon has had a court order banning her from using raw placenta to make smoothies.  Really.

According to the BBC Report the woman cannot afford to fight the ban, which was a relief to us here in the Newsnibbles office, as it is bad enough the stuff the interns leave in the fridge at the moment.

According to the report the woman, who we are choosing not to name as it would involve remembering her name or flicking from tab to tab, which would ruin the creative flow of this report stated that:

“It’s full of iron and other nutrients that are very good for new mums who have just been through a very energy-expending experience.”  Well, so is spinach.  She also stated, response to the concern that Staphylococcus aureus bacteria is present in human placenta that “I personally have seen scientific evidence that makes me believe the risk is not there.”

This evidence, however apparently did not convince the court, and since the BBC report did not go on to show said evidence, we can’t tell you what is is, as that would involve doing actual research and life is too short.

Apparently the argument that practically every other mammal does it also did not hold up in court, which is also a relief to us as we have genuine concerns as to the kind of precedent this would set should it be a winning argument.

Not done our hard hitting political quiz yet?  Why not scroll back a post and give it a go?

Badger’s Serious Political Quiz

Not really.  We think where we’ve been going wrong with the quizzes lately is we’ve been making them far too hard, so this one really is just for a bit of fun.  We were going to ask you all sorts of hard questions like “In the Leader’s Debate, which leader was named after a fish,” and “Which one was it that only had one stock answer, something about immigration” and “which one rhymes with egg”.  But we know you struggle with these sorts of intellectual quizzes, so instead we have a picture quiz for you.  Below are two seemingly identical pictures, what we want you to do is spot the difference.  No need to email in, just answer in a comment below.  This one’s just for fun.

Good luck Nibblers.

Nibblets

Well it’s been a while, so we thought we should hit you up with some more Nibblets.  Badger has stopped eating crisps and watching Youtube videos long enough to throw this together for you.

What the Spok?!

After the death of actor Leonard Nimoy, most famous for his portrayal of Spok in the SciFi series Star Trek, Canadian fans have been “Spokking” (Spelling made up based on what we learned in nursery so please feel free to correct) their five dollar bills.  According to dangerousminds.net “the five dollar bill {…} features a portrait of Canada’s seventh prime minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier”, who, it has to be said does bear a certain resemblance to the recently deceased actor, more so now that he sports a Sharpie Vulcan wig and pointy ears.  According to the site the practice of “Spokking” ones money is not illegal but could cause problems in the future, rather like binge drinking.  The simple solution here we would like to suggest is that Canada gives Spok his own bank note.  Do they have a $2 bill yet?

More Spokky articles on Newsnibbles.

Do NOT Rile a Badger

As if you didn’t already know that.  However your experience with Badger on Twitter may have lead you to the mistaken belief that all badgers are able to use their words to sarcastically express frustration over things like being culled, the amount of news coverage the bloody BBC gives to UKIP and hardly any to the Greens and general small mindedness (for the love of Pete someone give her a biscuit).  However, this is not the case for all in the Meles Meles family.  Much like people some badgers express their frustrations through holding visitors to a Stockholm hotel hostage for approximately 40 minutes.  According to Jezebel  the badger prevented guests from entering or leaving the building until wildlife services came to remove it.  If that badger would like to talk to us here at Newsnibbles and give its side, we would listen.  It is unclear as to whether the guests or staff of said Stockholm hotel left feeling an affinity/wanting to marry the badger, but if they did someone should come up with a name for that… Maybe Badger Syndrome?

Princess Rap Battles!!

Well, Badger spending far too much time on YouTube actually paid off this week when she discovered Princess Rap Battles!! Possibly the best thing ever, famous princesses from films including Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and Disney films rap off against each other to discover who’s the ultimate Rap champion.  There are not enough for an album yet, but when there are, release it, with a related DVD, PLEASE, they are totes amaze (we are hip and down with the kids).  The most recent addition features actress Sarah Michelle Gellar as Cinderella rapping off against Belle, played by Whitney Avalon, who appears to be the genius behind this awesome piece of parody.  We have embedded it for you below, but be warned, they are highly addictive and you can’t watch just one, so be prepared to get nothing done.