Time Difference: -14 hours (from Brisbane)
Soundtrack: Muse (before they were shit), Bluegrass Student Union, still getting into Amy Winehouse (she suits NY), and early in the week I even listened to a bit of Vanja's jazz, voluntarily. Not for long though. :-)
Celebrities Spotted so far: Alec Baldwin, Michelle Obama, Carson Kressley
Celebrities Spotted so far: Alec Baldwin, Michelle Obama, Carson Kressley
Currently Inspired by: Re-reading Lord of the Rings for what has to be the fiftieth time at least as a wee celebration for finishing my novel. For finishing anything actually - I'm such a great starter. Thanks for your help Professor Tolkien, I knew going on that pilgrimage to your pub in Oxford and asking for it was a good idea! Did it really need to take seven years though?
Words written: 94,473. FIRST DRAFT COMPLETE! Damn that feels good.
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| Madhattan itself |
So Manhattan in the rain goes from merely maniacally
eccentric to strap-em-in, hold-em-down batshit crazy, as umbrella-less folks
push for space under awnings, fashionistas slip and slide around on their
Manolos and suicidal pedestrians decide that the three inch gap between two
speeding taxis is sufficient space for them to dash across the oily roads
against the lights. The oncoming vehicles deal with this in the same manner
that they deal with any kind of annoyance on the roads, which is to continue
hurtling towards said annoyance at high speeds, but with one hand pressed
firmly down on the horn. Traffic in the city is about as calm and orderly as
the maximum security wing of a mental hospital for armed and violent sociopaths
on the day when the meds run out, but with less compassion and common sense.
War Horse. Never heard of it? Nor had I, but it's a Broadway
production and one I wouldn't have seen if it were not for a barbershop friend from
Australia who was here for a few days after international and wanted to go.
What a shame it would have been if I had missed out on this experience. My
understanding is it is coming to Australia at the end of the year and I highly
recommend it to anyone who likes plays / musicals. (It has some music in it,
but it's more of a background thing).
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| Inside a Broadway Theatre |
The production contains none of the lighthearted cheese of
Mamma Mia, or that particular brand of Broadway flash and humour that you find
even in so called dramas, but it is by no means understated or unimpressive.
Quite the opposite in fact: it is loud and full of throbbing theatricality,
visual and auditory stimulation and incredible staging. With comparatively
little set and few props, it may be a scaled down set up but it is by no means
simple, with loads of talented actors, sound engineers and puppeteers packing a
huge punch with everything they do have. If I have one criticism (and I do) the
lead actor either gave an annoying performance of the main human character or
the character himself is actually annoying. Either way, I found myself having
to fight to stay on his whiny little side. Incredible theatre however, and were
it not for the production of The Tempest I saw in Stratford which was much plainer
but was, after all, Shakespeare and the most beautifully acted Shakespeare I've
ever experienced, it would be the best play I've ever seen. I jumped, cringed,
cried (several times) and gasped. It's an emotional rollercoaster, and an
intense one at that! Not for the young 'uns or faint of heart.
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| Chicago promo ladies |
I have rather arbitrarily anointed Wednesday as
"Broadway Day" here. Why not? If I make myself stick to one show per
week then I can't go too crazy or broke, and I'll still get to see everything I
want to see in plus a couple of extras, hopefully hidden gems. “Chicago” is finishing up its run at the end
of July so I am going to try to see it this week, and I’m very much looking
forward to the return trip to Times Square to get the tickets. No book or other entertainment device is required
to wait in line in that ridiculous place, all you need to do is stand back and
watch the Freak Parade. There’s an
almost nude Gandhi type character who wears little white short shorts and a Statue of
Liberty crown, the Naked Cowboy of course, who most people have heard of, the
Weed Head who is a guy with a cardboard box on his head and a sign begging for
money for ganja (honesty! How refreshing) and actual real life strong men with bulging
muscles who will lift you over their heads for five dollars. I’m Home.
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| Group sing with my new chorus + others. I'm way on the left! |
I have a chorus, hurrah hurrah! On Thursday evening I went along to a Voices
of Gotham rehearsal, a male barbershop chorus who recently performed in
Portland, and did well too. I think they’re
just fabulous and I met a couple of the guys at contest, so I rocked up for a
fantastic evening of singing and got more than I bargained for. A new prospective Sweet Adelines (the female
bbs organisation) chorus called the Sirens of Gotham actually rehearses on the
same night in the same building, downstairs, and they were there. I learned a song and sang with them on the
night, and they said I was welcome to join them each week for the next eight
weeks that I am here, which I jumped at, obviously! There is also a Brooklyn Chorus for women,
some members of which were also there on the night, and they invited me to
their rehearsal on Monday and also offered me a place to stay over afterwards because
getting from Brooklyn to Jersey is a pain in the butt, particularly late at
night. I swear to god I’ve met many of
the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life here. I can’t reiterate this enough – NYC people do
not deserve their pushy, aggressive reputation!
They’re absolutely lovely, and I don’t want to leave! Particularly now I’m officially a Siren… oh
yeah baby. Can you hear my Siren call?
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| Zed with the two beasts |
I have made another really cool friend in Jersey who actually
has two dogs, which is fabulous because now I have pet cuddles as well! I had been missing my cats a lot, more so
lately since I won’t be seeing either of them when I return. As you may remember, Marius was killed by a
hit and run driver in January, and I found out a little over a week ago that
Louis died also from an infection at the end of June. My family didn’t want to tell me while I was
having such a good time in Portland, which is sweet. I’ve just kind of been dealing with it, which
is why I haven’t said anything until now.
But if you remember and loved my beautiful little boys, please take a
second to think about them at some time will you? In the meantime I am soaking up lots of furry
puppy love from naughty-as-hell Logan and Annabella. This place has become like home to me really
quickly. I guess the Big Apple is used
to integrating new folks - It’s a shame I don’t qualify to stay. I am
certainly approaching poor, and I’m
definitely tired. I could huddle,
but there is only one of me so I guess it’s on the masses part that my suitability falls down. Particularly lately. I’ve been losing weight which is pretty
amazing, considering the amount of delectable pizza, veggie burgers, tea shops and
cupcakes on offer here!
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| Sunset on Manhattan from Jersey |
Jersey is cool. People who live in the city hang shit on Jersey for some reason, I guess because it isn't Manhattan and everyone who lives in Manhattan thinks it is the centre of the universe. I can kind of see their point, but who would want to live in the centre of the universe? Too damn noisy. I'm very happy with my decision to stay out of it and just visit, and I have actually spent more of my days hanging around Jersey than I have in the city. I haven't even done the major touristy stuff yet, apart from a couple of Museums and Times Square. Perhaps next week, although I'm in no rush. I've been swimming, writing, Skyping, going for walks, going out for lunch with friends, playing with dogs, shopping and checking out the absolutely incredible view from here over the Hudson. I am feeling blessed and utterly content, with the occasional rush of pure happiness thrown in for good measure.
Agent hunting has begun.
Sort of. I have looked up
publishers here and have found only one that is currently accepting unsolicited
fantasy manuscripts directly from writers.
As a result I began to look at agents instead since I’ll obviously have
to get one before I can do anything, and the first agency website I looked at
said “Not currently accepting anything more
in the science fiction / fantasy genre” and I had a mini anxiety attack and
had to go lie down for a bit. I have
found a website called the Literary Marketplace which gives information
regarding agents, so I guess it’s just going to be a suck it up, sift and
research job this week, as I wait for feedback on my first draft. I’m sure the market can’t be so glutted with
fantasy that ALL agents are currently not accepting. Even writing that sentence makes me feel a
little faint! I clearly need to toughen
up a lot!
You can click here to see my latest lot of photos from around Manhattan and Jersey.
Whoever would like to give me feedback on the second draft
when it’s ready, please let me know.
Til Next We Speak
*LOVE*
N
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