Just a quick note to say all is well. I'm writing this from a library computer in Dorset, England. One of my parents had a mishap and I had to come over and help out. I'm still helping out as mishaps with the elderly tend to linger. However, it's nothing serious, and I'm doing all the things that need to be done for them.

Anyway, my wife comes over soon, so we'll all be together for a jolly Chistmas.
So, here's hoping that you all have a great Christmas too, and a very happy new year.
Cheers
Mike

Hall of Mirrors on Hiatus

Unfortunately some health issues have arisen in my family (nothing life-threatening) and it's necessary for me to go back to the UK to help out. This means that Hall of Mirrors has to go on hiatus, most likely until the new year, as I can't see me getting back before Christmas.

Hall of Mirrors 10: A Lovely Pair of Browns

Like all the HoM stories, this was penned before 'One Among the Sleepless' and as is often the case - at least for me - themes can be seen emerging. In this story we see some definite Sleepless precursor themes. But what are they? Ahh, to know that, you must listen. And to do that, click this... Hall of Mirrors 10

Christmas Story Update

Well, I got an episode written, but there were things I didn't like, so I re-wrote it and it was a lot better. But as I go over the story again and again in my mind, I feel that it's not ultimately going to satisfy me. It's dramatic and I daresay it'll be very entertaining, but I've decided to abort it. I don't feel bad about it; the writing was good, the characters were good, the plot was good... just not good enough for me right now.

This means that all the stories in the Hall of Mirrors will be from my original story collection, written between ten and seven years ago. I have 2, maybe three more tales to go into the Hall, then it's a wrap. I'm going to get to work on recording the next episode later today.

I just got back from a walk into Dun Laoghaire. It was cold and windy out, but it was nice to get out and about with my wife and poke around in second hand and charity shops. I didn't buy anything though, nothing took my fancy. I saw a nice copy of The Ring (novel), but it was overpriced so I let it go. I hate it when shops mark books or CDs up simply because they know they can ask money for a particular title. I think books and CDs in charity shops should be sold according to their condition and nothing more. Sometimes you can actally get the book / cd cheaper NEW! That's how much shops like Oxfam and Bernado's are charging. Still, sometimes you find something that's underground hip and the wise guys with the price guns aren't cool enough to know what they've got, so they undercharge for it. That's when I laugh my arse off, walking away with a nearly new copy of Joe Dolce's Greatest Hits for only €3.00. Ha ha! The fools!

Christmas Story

So I'm currently doing three things: re-writing and editing the text of the next Hall of Mirrors story; filling in an application form for a course I want to go on (so many damn details - I can barely remember my name, let alone my the addresses and whatnot of various employers and institutions I've attended) and also, I'm trying to write a story for the HoM for Christmas.

However, this is proving tricky, as the characters keep rebelling against my plans for them. Writing wisdom dictates that when this happens, you have to give up trying to control the characters and let them go where they go, say what they say and do what they want to do. But writing wisdom doesn't have a Christmas deadline banging on its door. If I'm to get this story podcast by Christmas, I have to start it next week. So right now, it's looking like it's going to be a 2008 offering. Drat! Still, I'll do my best, listeners.

Hall of Mirrors 9 Posted

Hall of Mirrors 9 (Hair and Skin 4) is finally live at podshow. It's a big one (50 minutes). So it should keep you busy for, well... 50 minutes.

Final Edits - Live Tomorrow

Urgh! I've been doing final edits on Hair and Skin 4 and writing and recording the bumpers - the chatty bits at either end of the show - all day. I thought I had it more or less finished, then a moment ago I realised I'd left something out. Arse biscuits! I'm just too damn tired to do any more tonight, so it'll have to wait until tomorrow. Hopefully up before midday our time. And IMHO, it's gonna be a good one ;-)

Fitness Regime

Huff, puff, just back jog around the block, yoga, press ups, cold shower. Feel knackered but exhilarated. This is my new fitness regime. I've given up work, so I sit around on my arse all day doing nothing but typing and sound editing. I felt I had to do something to keep myself healthy, other than imbibing that great health drink, red wine every evening (that has to stop too).
Anyway, slightly wheezy and with the neighbours doing some annoyingly erratic hammering, my work day begins.

I've given up work... for about 7 weeks.

I started my new 'job' today. My new job is writing and editing and recording and editing and podcasting all the things that I scribble, write, edit etc.
I told my boss I needed time off to do some work on the podcast and he said that would be fine. Needless to say, I'm not getting paid, but that's not an issue. Although, saying that, part of me panics when I think about not getting paid - the part of me that likes having a roof over my head.

I spent today working on the text for Hair and Skin part 4. It's the conclusion and covers 10 pages of Word document. I've now edited it about four times. I'm sure by the time it gets to the finished podcast, I'll have made some further amendments to it as well. But for now, I'm going to say, that's it: done. You can go around and around with this sort of thing, constantly fiddling and fussing. Ultimately, it's never going to be perfect, and after 100 revisions, what sounds good today sounds crap tomorrow. You wind up going back to the original document and being amazed at how good you got it first time around.

I'll record it tomorrow.

Finally, After a Week of Madness...
30 Minutes of Hair and Skin 3

Yes, it's been hard work, juggling loads of little files, finding bits I don't like and going back to do them again, changing a word, losing a file, watching shit crash, going slightly mad and a diet of peanut butter and rice cakes washed down with Tesco's Chilean Red, Hair and Skin #3 is finally done. What makes me laugh (and sit in the corner eating insects that only I can see) is that the bloody thing is only 30 minutes long. When you listen to it, it's like, bing! Finished. I know one of my problems is - and this is hitherto secret - I make multiple takes of almost every line, every word spoken in the podcast. I listen to all of them again and again before deciding on which one sounds best, or if the first part of that take should be spliced together with the end of that one. My wife thinks I'm a nut, she says there's no difference. But as I sit in the corner, giggling and feeling invisible insects scampering over my tongue, I know she's wrong... there's a biiiiiiiig difference.

Here's a direct link to the file: Hall of Mirrors 8

Bon Apetit

Eight Bottles of the Good Stuff Later...

It's been a good week for Hall of Mirrors in the USA, Listeners. HoM has held in the top ten all week. Its highest point has been number 7, which was a thrill (well, at least I was thrilled, I doubt your aura so much as even wobbled, but still...) Many, many thanks to Listeners in the US for making that happen. Falling is inevitable, but it's been really nice to have a run at the high end of things. You are, to coin a popular term, awesome.

In other news, Hair and Skin part three is recorded in its raw state and I'm going to spend today editing it together. Each voice has its own track and has to be edited into the main narrative track. This will take some time. I also have to record my bumpers (the intro at the start and chatty bit at the back) so that too will take a bit of time. But once those things are done, Part 3 can hopefully be online faster than a rat out of an aqueduct. I say this as we just got a proper phone line connected, so no more Ethernet blues (a network cable has been unplugged... the signal was reset automatically... etc).

H and S #3 won't be the conclusion however. I realised as I was doing the re-write that there was more to it than the skinny yoke I'd anticipated: it's chunky. Expect part 4 - and that really will be the end of it.

Also, there's now a Listener Group on Facebook; here you can hang out with other MB Podcast Listeners and share thoughts on such exciting topics as who should play whom in the film of OAtS. So far only I have commented on that, and frankly it's getting embarrassing: if someone doesn't say something soon I'm going to have to delete for fear of looking like Martin in the Simpsons trying to get the attention of Bart or whoever. For God's sake, don't Martin me, Listeners! I beg you!

Oh, and talking of low Listener response, look left. See that? That's the voice recording thing that's going to put you in The Hall of Mirrors, forever. Leave a message, I'll copy it and put it on an episode of HoM in the outgoing bumpers. This podcast is an Internet artifact in the making, when it's done, it'll be here for as long as the Internet exists - and you can be part of it. An installation in the Hall of Mirrors, as sure as Charles and deVere, Lucky Jim Haslet, Jack and Dave or Martin and the Trolls. So come on, Listeners, say something about the Hall of Mirrors. You can say something about the show, the stories or the Hall itself, after all, you're going to be in it: talk about the decor, the fact that the step needs cleaning, the smell of fear that lingers on your clothes even after you've left and gone home... Brrrr, that's chilly, man.

Today: iTunes USA


Oh, yeah. I'm opening a bottle of the good stuff tonight.

Happy Halloween: Hair and Skin 2

I remember the original tag line for the film 'Phantasm', it was: 'If this one doesn't scare you, you're already dead.'

Er, well I wouldn't go that far (and neither should Phantasm's producers), but I will go out on a limb and say, if this one doesn't entertain you, you've got your earbuds in the wrong holes.

Direct link to media file

Hair and Skin Part 2: Update

Hello Listeners

I’ve been working on Hair and Skin Part 2 for three days now and I’m still not even half way through. I can honestly say it’s the toughest podcast I’ve ever done. Rich in character voices, lengthy and featuring strange vocal effects; it’s big, it’s bad and it should be completed in the next few days. Thanks for your patience and I apologise for the delay.

Hall of Mirrors Now on Podiobooks

Hall of Mirrors is now available from Podiobooks.com, so now you can get it from there as well as from Podshow.com

This means that you can go to Podiobooks and give me a nice bunch of fives - five stars that is - across the board. Of course, you could give me less than that, but as I say on Hair and Skin #1, you could also plunge a rusty knife through my heart. To me, it'd feel the same. So be a buddy and gimme 5s. Thanks.

p.s. A few kind words would also be greatly appreciated. I need this stuff like a rose bush needs a good heap of horse manure once in a while if it's to flourish. Just don't get confused - the roses want the manure, I want the kind words. Same goes for iTunes reviews. Thankee kindly, guvnors.

Cheerful Man with a Minor Headache

Oooooh! My Head is giving me the dull throb that comes after a night out with visiting chums from England. Went to pub, drank too much, then went to burger restaurant to scoff junk food a-plenty. After a night of indigestion, I wake to mosey around the web while the head aches merrily. Then, something to put the headache out of, or at least to the back of my head, as an impromptu celebration breaks out. One Among the Sleepless has entered the Australian iTunes top ten lit podcasts.

This is the first time I know of that I've risen above The Classic Tales Podcast, which always seems to be at the top of everything, everywhere (so well done, B.J. Harrison). If you haven't listened to that yet, do, it's well worth a listen. Among others, he's done the The Monkey's Paw, which is a wonderfully creepy yarn.

In addition, to Sleepless's charting in Oz, Hall of Mirrors: Tales of Horror and the Grotesque has also entered Australian chart at number 68... which is fab.

So, many thanks to listeners down under. Since the chaps are over for another night, we'll raise a glass of the amber nectar, or more likely the black nectar, to you this evening. Cheers.

Hair and Skin - Part 1

After nearly three weeks (and literally 24 hours of failed upload attempts using my home Internet connection with Irish f****** Broadband), the latest episode of Hall of Mirrors is now live at Podshow. In the end I had to come down to my local library and use their wi-fi connection. Bingo! Uploaded in 30 minutes. This morning I was uploading for an hour and a half and it still wasn't uploaded when I had to go to work; I left it running, and when I got back, sure enough, the connection had broken and the episode had gone nowhere.

Anyway, I got it up (ho ho) eventually and now it's there for you to retrieve and have a listen to. The story is Hair and Skin, originally written in 1997 and extensively re-written for this podcast airing. It's going to be a multiple episode affair; maybe as many as three (or even four!!) installments. The 'horror' content of the story really starts to roll later in the story, so if you find yourself un-horrified, don't despair - it's coming ;-)

Hall of Mirrors' Highest iTunes USA Position to Date

OK, so number 23 isn't exactly number 1, but it made my day. I'm sitting here re-writing Hair and Skin (again) and getting sick to death of the damn thing. I'm thinking of trashing it and moving to another story. But then I think, but what about the really great bits that come once the tale gets going? And I return to persevere with it... because the great bits, really are great bits. Click this link to see H.o.M.'s position in relation to its peers. Nice one!

New Series of 'Down the Line' on Radio 4

The new series of Down the Line started last night on BBC Radio 4. It's a bogus call-in show from the makers of the Fast Show, it's very funny and you can check out the site here:

Down the Line

Then click the 'listen to the latest edition' button near the top of the page.

"That's political correctness gone mad!"

Hair and Skin - Delayed by Re-Writes

Unhappy with the original 1997 text, I re-wrote the next entry into the Hall of Mirrors, Hair and Skin, while on holiday. Now however, I feel I've lost some of the rich vein of 'sick and twisted' that the original had, so I'm re-writing the re-write. This wouldn't be a problem if I didn't have to get up early and go to work (I know, I know, so do you) only to come home and nod-off over the keyboard every day.

What I'm saying here is: don't bust my chops. It's coming, it might just be a little delayed... But then, I did say this podcast was going to be 'irregular' time-wise. So expect it when it comes. Sign up for the mailing list at www.oneamongthesleepless.com and get the heads-up when my head is up - off the keyboard and uploading the finished product.

As for the story itself, it's one of my personal favourites. I can only say that when it hits your earbuds, I hope you'll agree. I also hope you like this other cover I knocked up over the weekend. I'm not sure of whether or not to use it on any potential book releases or not. Any feedback welcomed. And if you've got any ideas for cover art, I'd love to see them. I can't promise I'll use them, but I will put them on the website.
Cheers
M

Hey, Hey, Back from Holiday.

And so, lightly tanned and with a headful of sick and unpleasant ideas for stories, novellas and even a novel (it's amazing what your head can get done lying still on a beach and staring at the sand under your nose for hours on end), I got back from the holliers this afternoon.
We had a nice time (a few pics available here)and I'm all set to get back to work on Hall of Mirrors. The next story will be 'Hair and Skin', written 7 years back and currently being tarted up for podcast. In fact, it's being largely re-written as its original form is... well, let's just say it's a bit strong.

The Haslet Technique

After ten years of rotting in a tatty file under my bed, The Haslet Technique (the third story I ever wrote) is now online and available for the world to hear. Written back when I was riding dustcarts and mowing the road verges of Brighton, Burgess Hill and Hayward's Heath. It's a document of its - and my time, though precisely of what in that time, I cannot say: I'm not there any more. However, I release it as I originally wrote it, with only the necessary edits. Bon appetit.

As I say on the podcast, I'm off to Spain again for a couple of weeks, so if i don't respond to email, forgive me - I'm not around.

Return of the Zazzle panel

I had some trouble with my Zazzle products. I published a typo 'One Among the Sleepeless' that I didn't notice. Then when I did notice I screamed, Homer Simpson-like, and quickly took the panel offline to prevent anyone buying anything (as the typo was pretty hard to see coz your eye is caught up in the design and doesn't expect to see errors, etc).
Anyway, errors are now fixed and One Among the Sleepless merchandise is back online - the ideal gift for the one you REALLY love... yourself, you suave devil. Now, with you wearing this fiendishly attractive gear, all the ladies - or the lads - will run to your house for some funky cold medina. Or some tea and biscuits ... if you're out of medina.

The Grave: Part Two

Find out just what 'wrong boy' Dave did next, in the conclusion of 'The Grave', online now.

No other news. Went out today with a friend and his son to Eddie Rockets, a Dublin 'American Diner' chain and had burgers and fries and thick shakes. Lovely to indulge occasionally. The young fellow's 15. Eats like a horse, doesn't bat an eyelid. He's growing so fast you can almost see it happening as the food goes into him.

As for my own physique, I see it happening alright - in all the wrong places. I Felt fat as a Zeppelin leaving, but going out with youngsters gives you the perfect excuse. Er,... I think.

MB interviewed in strange other-worldly circumstances

I was interviewed recently by the fantasy author, Jennifer Rahn. Now, you'd think that one interview is pretty much like another, wouldn't you? Well, think again, ladies and gentlemen. Strange stuff was going on all around me that I, being the Earthbound clod that I am, couldn't even begin to perceive. Intrigued? Go here to read it for yourself:
Jennifer Rahn Interview
Fans of the fantasy genre may be interested to know that Jen's book, The Longevity Thesis is published by Dragon Moon Press in just 4 days.

Sick

I came down with a fever on Friday night and on Saturday managed to control it by exceeding the safe amount of paracetemol you're supposed to take in a day. However, yesterday, having got my episode up, I allowed myself to succumb to the unpleasantness this mystery virus. It feels like flu, but without the sore-throat, coughing and nose-blowing. I limited myself to safe amounts of the heavy duty pain killers prescribed by the surgeon and just sat around being hot-cold-hot-cold all day before eventualy throwing in the towel and going to bed at 5pm. I slept through till about 5 this morning and now I'm up and about again, dosed up on pills and feeling - I'm happy to say - a bit better.

The Grave

The stories in the Hall of Mirrors were all written about nine or ten years ago. At that time I was doing various temp jobs in and around the Brighton area: dustman, hotel porter, gardener etc. At one stage I was mowing the grass in cemeteries, and occasionally I'd help out digging graves. No one I worked with bore any resemblance to Jack though... thank heavens.

Ma! Look what that they done to ya beautiful boy!

Look, I'm out, and this is my stomach this afternoon. As you can see, they drew an arrow on me just to make sure they went to work on the right bit. And there's a bit of blood on that little wound covering thingy there, that'll be all the struggling out of bed and trying to go pee. I couldn't pee properly for ages, apparently a common problem when you get the full knockout anasthesia, which I did. Another symptom is that you puke, which I nearly did, but didn't because I got an injection in the butt cheek to stop me. Then I had to get pills for the pain, not in my guts but in my butt. Owwww!
How do I feel today? Like I've been shot, that's how. I read this dumb web site that said I could be out on the same day as the op and ride home on a bike. Ha! Don't believe it people. If you're getting this done, your ass is in overnight (and it'll smart too). On the bright side, it's done and dusted and they've given me a ticket to a week off work to lie on my back and think up sick tales.
Which is nice.

Hospital

I go into hospital tomorrow for that hernia op. They were supposed to send me a date for a pre-op consultation, but that hasn't happened. I checked if things were still on and they are, so I guess it wasn't too important (famous last words). Anyway, I'm not too worried, everyone tells me it's pretty routine and I've got nothing to worry about. They're going to keep me in overnight, so I can't do any work on the podcast for 24 hours or so. However, I'll be back in the saddle on Friday afternoon.

Like Trolls, The Grave (Hall of Mirrors episodes 3 and 4) is a two-parter. But this time I'm going to try to get them up back-to-back, so both parts will go online at the same time. This way you can listen to the first bit on the commute in to work (or whatever) and the second bit on the commute home again. Or, of course, you can just do the whole thing at the same time.

It's not a horror thing, but it has its horrible moments (how could it not?).

Hall of Mirrors - Trolls Part 2

Phew! That was a close one. Just when I thought I was all set to upload, I listened through to make sure there were no mistakes... and there was one - and it almost slipped through. At one stage Martin was talking to Janice and Janice answered a question... that Martin hadn't asked!! I checked the manuscript and there it was - Martin's question. Somehow I'd managed to edit it out, so I had to go and record it and drop it in and re-tag and everything else all over again. So, hopefully now all answers have questions and all questions have answers.
It took a long time to make it, but I think the end result was worth it. I hope you'll agree.

Trolls: Part One

So, episode one of Hall of Mirrors is now live at podshow. It features the first part of my short story, Trolls. The story concerns an elderly woman, Edith, who lives alone in a dark and brooding high rise estate. Edith is being terrorised by a group of children... and they are children... aren't they?

I've also put up a Bonus Track that introduces the series in the Bonus Track feed.

So, all in all, yesterday was a busy day.

Parsec Award Nominee / Hall of Mirrors Promo

Now I hate to blow my own trumpet, but from time to time I just have to purse my lips and toot away like Herb Alpert, and today is just such an occasion. I just received some stuff from the Parsec Awards people which will allow me to walk around the award ceremony with a 'candidate' badge on. I was thrilled. I've been nominated for an award; I may not win it, but I've been nominated. One Among the Sleepless is up for Best Non-Speculative Fiction Award 2007. Isn't that great?

The other news is that the Hall of Mirrors promo is now available for your listening pleasure here: Hall of Mirrors promo
I hope to have the first episode - part one of a two parter called 'Trolls' up by Sunday night. If you're on the mailing list, you'll be notified immediately. If you're not, join here:
Mike Bennett Mailing List

Hall of Mirrors

Hello. This is the artwork for the first episode of my short story podcast, Hall of Mirrors'. I've recorded the first story (it's an hour long, so I'm going to cut into 2 episodes). As you know, it was my intention to include the stories as part of The Bonus Track, however, the size of the story recordings (they're all quite large) means that they would dominate that show to the extent that it wouldn't be that show anymore, it would effectively be the Hall of Mirrors podcast in a feed called The Bonus Track. It would be confusing for everyone, especially new listeners. So I'm going to start a new show altogether - new feed, new music, specific H.o.M. intros and outros, and of course, new stories.
It's a varied collection: tales of horror, tales of the grotesque and tales of... er, people getting into situations that they'd really rather avoid.
I hope to get it going by the end of the week, keep an eye on the Bonus Track feed for a H.o.M pre-launch Bonus Track.
Cheers for now
M

Back in Dublin
So I got back last Thursday. I took a couple of days off the book because I'd kind of ground to a halt with it and felt that a few days away would either send me running back with re-kindled enthusiasm, or see me dropping the project altogether.

The latter happened. It just doesn't light my fire, float my boat, get my mojo working or any of the other things that a writing project should do. Bottom line: I've got too much going on. The plot is simply too big, too complex. It's Dickensian in its size, but, er, not Dickensian in any other respect. So, sadly, it's going in the 'drawer' for now. Instead, I'm turning my attention to Hall of Mirrors, the short story podcast that will begin very shortly in The Bonus Track feed.

I spent yesterday - a wet bank holiday Monday here in Dublin - working on 'Trolls'. This is the third story I've groomed for the podcast, having decided that the first two choices were ultimately not right for a first episode. But 'Trolls' is. It's going to be a big one - bigger than average, but then, start big, get small. Which is like a family motto in our house.

Will I come back to my abandoned second novel? No, not this one. But I have some ideas for something less complicated also set in Spain. And the idea floats my boat too... which is nice.

In the meantime, we have Hall of Mirrors, so keep an eye on your Bonus Track feed, dudes and dudettes.

BFN

Here's that Diary Update, Amigos.


Tuesday: uploaded Baby Bonus 1 from bar in town. Had a couple of drinks, came home, Lost, bed.

Wednesday: Woke to serious building destruction / construction, clouds of dust everywhere. Hammers, cement mixers, etc. These things finding their way into the story. Wrote 2000 words, went out to internet cafe to mail P and check mail etc. Came home. Wrote more. Had break, wrote more. All in all, a 4000 word day. Delighted with self. Weather getting hotter, sweat pours as one sits in sun. Tried to irradiate self – instead got covered in sweat and came inside.
Waited for guy to come and place electric meter outside, decided to keep busy. Washed filthy wall I recently scraped lose paint from. Made matters worse, more paint coming off, wall no cleaner. Hernia pain as the lad popped out for a look around. Pushed him back in. Carried on washing wall. Hernia popped out again, definitely trying to tell me something. Chatted with neighbours about walls and hernias. Watched DVDs, drank vino, went to bed, had amusing idea for Bonus track, wrote it down, went to bed again.

Thursday; one week to go. Woke up, wrote massive treatise on The One for possible future podcast. However, doubt I ever will because I feel it’s for people to interpret for themselves rather than be told. Kind of spoils it. Especially look forward to one day getting thoughtful letters from people who have ideas to see if they concur with my own ideas. Had a few already: one guy was expecting extraterrestrials. Didn’t anticipate that interpretation, but interesting nevertheless.
Got up and went out to fill all the cracks in the wall, sun was soon upon me and the sweat was spurting out of me. Put on Panama hat, feeling vaguely ridiculous, Noel Coward’s Mad Dogs and Englishmen in my head. Hernia popped out; stopped work and came in for lunch. Spoke to Spanish friend, student of mine. She’s broken her toe. Still, she’s coming to classes tonight.
Had lunch, sat down to write first quota of the day. Difficult to settle into routine as always something that needs doing. Guy coming tomorrow to move leccy meter outside at 8.30. Lot of bother no doubt, but necessary. Sitting here, sweating as I write. Will get fan later, but for now, just sweat and write: somehow more appropriate.

Friday: woke early, man coming to put leccy meter outside. Used low sun advantage to paint external wall. Sweat like a racehorse. Man came, made hole in wall, put in plastic box, had to go. Said he’d be back on Monday when it had dried and stuff. Carried on painting till all paint gone. Came in, had lunch. Wrote – rubbish. Had nap, woke up, wrote again. Much better, wrote for hours until started making mistakes (about 2000 words). Went to internet bar to upload stuff, collect mail, check stats. Baby Bonus done great numbers. Happy. Came home, ate. Then, drinking wine, eating big oily tasting crisps and watching pirate copy of Fantastic Four 2 (which I quite enjoyed) became plagued with doubts over Extrañeros. Wonder if I should even continue, or maybe continue but release under pseudonym. Wonder if best to just keep going; finish the first draught and re-write it and re-write it until I do like it. Seems like the best plan. C called. Spoke about stuff. Went to bed, tipsy.

Saturday: woke up late, day already too hot to do much. Sat down and worked on The Grave for the next Bonus Track. Kind of story that makes me smile; black humour, uncomfortable, compelling. I enjoyed it and look forward to reading it on BT3. Expect complaints though (as always) (and as always, doubt if any will come).
Try to sit in sun – too hot.

Then went on to write 2000 words on Extrañeros. Good stuff, different from OAtS and my short stories, but still, good. I enjoyed writing it. I have to accept that some people won’t like it, some people may be offended. But then I always think this. People generally aren’t, and even if they are, isn’t that sort of what books are supposed to do anyway? Stir things up, make people look at things in different ways? I have to go on. It’s like, not an option. This story demands to be told, the characters demand it.

Sunday: woke early and read on the terrace. Morning is the best time of day; sunny and yet shade is available. Nice temperature. Came in, did more work on The Grave. Still finding ticks and bugs, not cases of wrong words or grammar so much as just ‘could be better’. There’s also the page formatting problems in updating documents from that old Samsung notebook thing I used to own or earlier versions of Word. Bugs galore.
Time now 11.am and sitting here I can really feel the heat. My blood pressure is starting to rise; I can feel it in my extremities, like I’m cooking in a microwave. I must get some aspirin to thin my blood or whatever.
Happy as I am here, in some ways I’m ready to go home. I now like the idea of cold. The idea of a grey day, the hint of a chill in the air, appeals after two weeks of ever-rising heat. Also, I guess, because home is where P is, and so this just isn’t home without her.

Later I worked on poems like Bunty and Once a Flock, bringing them to podcastable standard (finishing them, basically).
K came around for a chat and a tour of my podcast world and we discussed my travel arrangements for Thursday. Seems I need to contact L pronto about doing an airport drop as he’s a busy bee. I called in at K and A’s too to see if K fancied doing it, but he was kind of ‘hmmm’, so I had a tour of their place (from which I was able to see plastic bottle on our roof, as thrown by local kids – which explains odd bits and pieces I see on K and E’s roof too). They’ve done a lot of work over there with plasterboard walls – making rooms were there was only one previously, and lots of electrical upgrading. Apparently the previous occupants tried to take out everything – including the kitchen sink when they left and the woman who lived there, even though she wanted to leave, got a bit hysterical when it came to actually going.
Anyway, I came back and made a lentil curry
Watched a bootleg copy of ‘Grindhouse’; too long, exhausting even.
And as you can see: no work Extrañeros today, this is because I spent much of Sunday doubting it: doubting it as a novel, as a podcast, Just doubting it.

Monday: woke up and came up with thread idea for Sleepless 2. Very strong idea: definite sequel material. Kind of six years later stuff (which it would be).
Went to shops, bought more paint and a vegetable peeler, plus a bunch of shopping at Mercadona. Temperatures are just silly at the moment. Yesterday it was 100 degrees F in the shade (another reason why writing comes reluctantly). Came back, wrote this.

Just wrote today’s first instalment, 1, 800 words, which officially almost makes up for yesterday’s poor output. The text was great, I liked it a lot. It’s obviously rough, just vomited from my head onto the page with as much order and organisation as that delightful substance, however, I can do all the organising and improvements later. Right now, get it out, that’s the main task.
I was shocked to learn that I’ve produced just over 20,000 words. That means I’m 30,000 short of the word-count designation of a novel. I’m delighted. I feel like I’ve actually achieved something here. A novella is 15 – 30,000 words, so I can safely say I’ve entered into that territory, and story wise, I am realistically, only still in the first act of a three-act drama. It would be nice to wrap the novel at 90,000 words or under, if only for podcasting’s sake: I don’t want to go over twenty episodes on this one, simply because over the twenty episode mark I start to get tired.

The big problem now is the heat. I’m sweltering here, I’m sweating as I write; my blood pressure is up - my feet and hands feel like they’re being inflated with poison gas. I want to get into a cold bath, and I would, if that guy wasn’t coming at some stage (whenever between now and midnight) to finish the leccy box out front.

OK. Lunchtime
Man hasn’t come. This whole mañana thing is a pain in the arse, ‘sometime whenever’ would be a better phrase. Anyway, wrote another 1, 700 words. It’s 8.30 and I’m sitting here sweating, taking aspirin to try and keep my blood thin. I tried to run a cold foot bath but got tired of waiting for the cold tap to stop running hot and start running cold. Seriously, this is insane: books warp in the heat – I’ve seen them warp with cold and damp, but not from the heat. You leave a book for an hour in direct sun and come back an hour later - it looks like you’ve been carrying it in the back pocket of your jeans for six months.
I tried to sunbathe again, but the sweat was dripping off my like I had a tap on my head and I’d forgotten to shut it off properly, drip, drip, drip. I came inside and went downstairs for some Rainbow Six and my head was throbbing like a cartoon. It didn’t hurt; it was just throbbing, pulsating. I was only in the sun for about six minutes. Upstairs a few moments ago – I keep trying to have normal holiday moments – and it’s like sitting in an oven. The tiles are too hot to walk on, the arms of the chair are hot enough to take skin off and the sun itself (at 8.30 pm) still has the power to burn. I had to come in again.
I’m going to open a bottle and watch Lost and some dumb movies. I fancy They Live tonight. Oh, and yes, I know that wine mightn’t be so great for my blood pressure, but fuck it. I feel like Alec Guinness going into the hot box in Bridge Over the River Kwai. But with wine and nibbles – and a fan.

Tuesday:
Up at seven, another night roasting under the fan, which pushes the hot air around the room. Late night last night: forced by noisy pack kids to watch all of ‘In the Mouth of Madness’. I hate that film, I’ve watched it about 3 times now, and I always end up thinking, ‘well that was pants.’ Then a year later, I can’t remember what it is I didn’t like about it. Let me now state what it is, so as to remind myself next year... It’s stupid, the plot – which thinks it’s clever – is just dumb. By the half way mark I’ve lost interest (as I always do) and I’m watching it and thinking of things like Extrañeros or painting my wall.
Quick note on noisy pack kids for possible inclusion in book: probably because the daytime is so damn hot and the kids have to stay cooped all day long, then the dictates of the Spanish dining timetable means dinner at about 10 pm, which then means that all that trapped energy in the local kids gets released onto the streets at 11p.m. So from 11 pm to about 1 am, it’s time for about 15 kids to charge around, screaming at the top of their lungs and getting all worn out and ready for bed. Obviously the local Spanish folk don’t even notice this, but some of the local English have mentioned it with exasperation: get kept up till 1am by kids, get woken at 7am by builders smashing houses to bits. What do you do? Well, when in Rome... You take a siesta like everyone else does, that’s how they live here, and if you want to get enough sleep, that’s what you have to do too. Either that or be sure and drink enough vino the night before to keep you sedated through the construction work of the morning.
Anyway, today: got up early to take advantage of the baker’s van leaving the parking space in front of the only bit of wall yet to painted outside. Of course, some bastard had already gone and snagged the spec. However, he’d left about a foot between his car and the wall though, and so, knowing that tomorrow I may not be so lucky, I got my tin of paint and went out to squash myself into the gap and do the job. For some reason his car was attracting wasps, so at least I had company while I was working.
Then (praise be) the man came to do the leccy. He brought with him a seemingly mute kid that stood around being bored and hammering nails into random surfaces, like the pavement, while his boss did the work.
I had hoped that once that work was done I’d be free to leave the house and do other stuff, but no; seemingly (and it’s always ‘seemingly’ with my comprehension of what’s being said to me) the electric company are going to come and do something in order to finish the job. Until then I’m fucked.
When will this be?
Shrug of shoulders.
Today?
Maybe.
Great. The only time of day you can be sure they won’t come is siesta, the long midday when no-one does anything. This is when I can safely leave the house and... achieve nothing whatsoever, because everything is shut.

Just done my first writing of the day and book now stands at approx 23,000 words.

Book Going Well; Not Going Mad

Quick note from Internet Cafe in Spain. Book going well; characters coming to life and doing their own thing. On chapter four, though it's a mess and will need a lot of work when I get home.
Weather getting hotter. Done some decorating to house exterior, have to do it when sun is low in the morning.
Just got groceries in for weekend as I know that shops closed from tomorrow afternoon till Monday and I don't want to get up early tomorrow.
Message ends. Hasta luego, amigos
M

The Baby Bonus - Live(ish) from Spain.

Just a quick one. The Baby Bonus Track, a diary from Spain on the writing of novel #2 is now live at Podshow (and only at Podshow).

Here's a link: The Baby Bonus Track

The show also features music from Fruitcake Superbeing and Blahfishend.

Today (the day of the writing, not the posting) is the 22nd of July.

Hello there
This is my first blog entry from Spain and the writing of my second novel, provisionally titled, ‘Extraneros’ which in Spanish means ‘Foreigners / Strangers’. It’s the double significance that makes it the right title for this book, though for reasons that you’ll just have to wait to learn more of.
The process so far has gone pretty well. My wife and I came out here last week to a house in a white village in Andalucia. I wanted to be

a) In Spain
b) Hot
c) Isolated - with absolutely nothing else to do but write.

For the first week, my wife and I had a nice relaxing time, doing nothing much other than chilling out and trying to tan our deathly white skins to healthier, pinker hues.
The first thing I learned when I arrived was that I had neglected to pack my notes on the plot of the novel. So I had to re-write them all out from memory. This wasn’t altogether a bad thing as it meant I had to thoroughly re-examine the story and the people in it.
Then, on Saturday, my wife went back to Dublin, leaving me here on my own. In theory, this was my great idea. That theory being I’d write and therefore I’d wind up with a novel at the end of it all. However, I have to admit, I’m finding it a bit difficult. Not the writing, that’s coming along well enough. I finished my first draught of Chapters One and two today. It’s rough – and it needs a lot of refinement, but it’s out of my head and onto the page (ten pages of Windows A4 to be precise). So, that’s great.
The first part of writing a story, for me at least, is the hardest. Setting up the world and populating it with people. People who are, at the beginning, as strange to me as they are to readers when they begin the book: I know who the characters are and what they’re doing, but that’s all. But then, by Chapter 3, the characters begin to come to life, creating their own dialogue, doing the things they want to do and eschewing the things they don’t - whether or not I want them done or not.
This happened this evening, as I was closing Chapter 2 and starting Chapter 3, I suddenly fell through the screen and into the world of the story. The characters were doing and saying their own things. The people I had envisaged started to become the people they are and I simply found myself tagging along, writing down the things they say and do and hoping they don’t see me and get all self-conscious and start doing what they think I want them to again. It’s weird, fun and sort of exciting – especially since I’ve got two weeks of undisturbed solitude to work in. But that’s also the problem.
The difficult bit is the being alone. Solitude, isolation: think about that for a moment. When was the last time you were really, completely, alone? No spouse, no kids, no mates, no work colleagues: just you, alone. Weird isn’t it? I haven’t gone mad yet, but it does feel mighty strange.
I’ll leave you today with that thought. I’m alone in a foreign country, and I’m feeling mighty strange. A book is coming out of me, and although I’ve got a plot to work to, I get the feeling that over the course of the next few weeks, ‘plot’ is something I’ll probably be losing – and maybe in more ways than one.

Bonus #2 - Update
OK, due to problems people have had subscribing to Podshow, I've decided to drop the Bonus Track 2 into the Libsyn feed after all.
I can't say for sure if this will always be the case; I do want to keep the Bonus Track separate, but too many people got shut out in the early days of the Bonus Track's being on Podshow before I had the iTunes link on there. I thought the Podshow navigation was going to be fairly well-known to most podcast listeners (this being the age of Sigler, Dawn and Drew, Keith and The Girl etc), however, it wasn't - which means it isn't just me that finds the podshow set-up akin to Chinese alegebra.

So this Bonus Track at least will be in the Libsyn feed, if only for a limited period, until I can get the podshow site established.
So if you are subscribed to Podshow and you've already got it and you see your Sleepless feed whirring away - cancel it: coz it's The Bonus Track coming at ya (again).

Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)
Walt Whitman, "Song of Myself"
US poet (1819 - 1892)

Mike Bennett's Bonus Track #2
Hello Listeners
Just a quick note to say that Mike Bennett's Bonus Track #2 is now available from podshow.com / OneAmongTheSleepless.com/bonustrack / podcast alley and directly from here.

It features music, poems and the second part of the interview with Seth Harwood (better quality sound this time). I also spill a few beans on the location of my second novel, which I'm due to start writing... Well, just download the podcast and find out.

I'm going on my holidays (sort of - listen to the show) tomorrow and I'll be fairly offline for three weeks, so if you contact me and I'm slow to respond, that's why. Be patient, I will get back to you.

Cheers
Mike

Download "Bloodhounds On My Trail" (mp3)
from "Passover"
by The Black Angels
Light In The Attic

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More On This Album



Oh yes, and I messed up when I said that Death Cab for Cutie, 'Title and Registration' is on Ioda Promonet (I downloaded it ages ago and forgot where I got it from - Doh!) Anyway, DCfC can be found on the Podshow Podsafe Music Network. Sorry for any confusion.

Also on Podshow: Played All the Wrong Games and 'The Chocolate Box'.

Compare and Contrast... Sex, Death and Noisy ?

Hello Mateys,
I'm just taking a break from the re-writing of my 2001 short story, 'The Grave', which I'll be podcasting as part of The Bonus Track #2, to drop a brain teaser into the blog.

A listener in Australia (who I shan't name in case she'd prefer me not to) has come to me with a puzzler, I quote:

"I have to compare a book (which will obviously be One Among The Sleepless ...with either another book, or a movie, for English (class). It's just a simple essay, nothing too serious. I get to form the question the essay revolves around, and would like do make it something to do with the variety of characters - there's the psychotic one, the jock and his cronies, the sex symbol, the two nice ones who get together in the end, etc - or the way their lives all intertwine. I've done a lot of research, and haven't been able to come up with another book or movie with a similar 'character structure' - if you will - to that of your book. I was wondering if maybe you had any ideas?"

And the truth is, listeners, I don't have any idea. Call me Mr Not-Widely-Read or Mr Not-Movie-Hip, but I just can't. And I don't want my chum down in Aus to be put off doing some class-A work on my novel just because I'm too much of a cultural dunce to help. So I though I'd ask you lot. Does anyone have any ideas that might be of use? You can send them to me via email, or just slap them in the comments on this blog entry.

Many thanks.

Oh, and that Bonus Track shouldn't be too long now. Though saying that, I'm going away for the weekend and I'm working overtime and (fill in your additional excuse here ______________ ).

And another thing, looks like that spell out in Spain may well be on again for the writing of novel #2. Hot dog, it's all go!

Episode 33: Mission Accomplished

Episode 33 brings One Among the Sleepless to a close. It took ages to record, my sound files were so big they kept crashing during the recording and editing process as they ate up more and more drive space. The finished thing, though only about 45 minutes in length, took absolutely forever to record. And of course, it isn't perfect, but then could it ever be? Some little bit would always be not-quite-right, and if I went on tweaking it over and over again, I'd never get it up (pun unintentional but nevertheless making me smile).

I hope you enjoy it and that you'll keep in touch with my ongoing output. As I say on #33, that future output - for the time being at least, will be via The Bonus Track. I have many plans for this show, including - most importantly - my short story collection. So if you aren't subscribed to The Bonus Track yet, you can do so right here, right now, just click the iTunes icon if you have iTunes, if not copy the RSS feed into your podcatcher gizmo:



Of course there's always Podshow's own device 'get it', but I've had some emails from people who've been finding that a tad confusing. Basically, you need to start a Podshow profile for yourself and then click 'get it'.

If you go to my own Bonus Track page there's also a Podcast Alley option you might want to try.

I have no plans to do a 'Q and A' episode as some podcasters do. I prefer to live things as they are and not interfere with the reader / listener's perception of things. But if you have a non plot-related question about OAtS you'd like to ask me, please send it in to me via my homepage and I'll try and answer it on The Bonus Track.

For now though, I have to go. A man is coming to repair the toilet in our new flat (and not because of anything we put down it).

Cheers
Mike

P.S. Don't stop checking in on this blog, I will write more about OAtS #33 soon (post-plumbing problem) and of course, I'll be writing about what I'm doing with The Bonus Track.

Oh Joy! I've Got A Hernia!

Hey, you remember the Friends episode where Joey gets a hernia lifting weights? Funny wasn't it. Well, I just recorded episode 33 - and I wasn't laughing anymore. Can you remember recently - I moved flat? You remember I mentioned that the lift broke down? I didn't go into details, but I had to lug heavy boxes and a TV set down 8 flights of stairs. At the time I just thought: 'Fucking elevator! Fucking building management! Fucking hot day! Fuck!' Little did I know that all the time I was giving myself a hernia!!

First sign was the other weekend as we were walking around town: Ooooouch! My guts hurt like hell. I thought: 'Fucking wine last night! Fucking fried breakfast!' etc. and just got on with the day. Then it happened again. 'Fucking ???' I was stumped. Then again. I thought, 'Oh fuck! This isn't a fried breakfast gurgling unpleasantly; it isn't a hangover, and isn't too much black coffee! - oh bollocks! I'm ill!'

I went to the doctor. It cost me €50 to see her (ker-ching). She checked me out and said it was most likely a hernia. I was relieved that it wasn't cancer or Chron's disease or something and figured if I just take it easy I'll be fine.

Anyway, all that flap out of the way, today I got on with recording episode 33 - my last installment of One Among the Sleepless. I set up the microphone in the front room (less boxy than the spare room; I wasn't mad about the sound on last week's episode). And so there I am, giving it 100% when I feel this pain in my guts. I check it out - and it's just like the doctor said it would be: a little lump poking out of my guts. She told me to push it back in again and come back and see her for another appointment so she can set me up to see the surgeon. Then it'll be off to the hospital to have an operation. Oh joy.

Needless to say, push the offending protrusion back in I did. Then for the remainder of the episode, every time I had to shout or make wild gestures, I did so with my hand pressed onto my guts to stop my hernia popping out again.

Now you may say that I should've gone and had a lie down and left recording until some time after I've had my operation and I'm completely recovered... but of course, that could be weeks, or even months. So I carried on regardless and got it done (don't worry, it wasn't that painful - I held it in just fine). Tomorrow I start editing the episode down to a sensible length. Right now it's absolutely gigantic at 2.5 hours long. I'll hopefully cut that down to an hour, but I can't see it being much less than that.

So forgive me ladies and gentlemen, but it may take a while. I'm not going back to the doctors until #33 is finished and One Among the Sleepless is complete. So don't panic: it may not be until the weekend, but it's coming... just so long as my hernia doesn't come too, eh? ;-) Oooooooh

Episode 32 - Completed and Uploading Tomorrow afternoon (UK / Ireland Time)

Yes, 32 is done and dusted, unfortunately I can't upload from home because my connection is prone to cutting out. Therefore I'll have to take the laptop into work and upload from there tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully there'll be no problems with their connection (like there were today)(Gulp!)

Episode 32 - Update

When I started this project, Tuesday night was Upload Night. Then, as time and deadlines moved on, Tuesdays increasingly became Excuses on the Blog Night and Wednesday became Upload Night. Sometimes Thursday had the honour of being Upload Morning.
So, tonight must be Excuses on the Blog Night, right? Right.

This week, as some of you may be aware, has been my week of moving house and all associated hassles. It’s also been my week of learning that I now have limited Internet access as our new flat is partially at basement level and, therefore, out of wireless broadband range. Consequently, all bets are off as to when Episode 32 is going to find its upload slot.

So, what’s been happening in my world since #31? Well, Thursday was moving day and a right nightmare it was too. We managed to get a van to take our stuff from one place to the other, but the lift (elevator)in our old building – the bastard - decided to break down on us, and so I had to lug our boxes, TV etc. down the stairwell. Oh, the muscle building that I endured. We went to bed early on Thursday, knackered, but thrilled by the fact that for the first time in 14 months, we were sleeping without the aid of ear plugs. Temple Bar (where we were) was convenient for our jobs, the city and all that it holds... but it’s a seriously noisy neighbourhood.

Saturday and Sunday were spent organising our stuff (still not finished doing that). Sunday afternoon was spent editing and re-writing the text of Episode 32. I could have just read what I wrote back in 2002 – the original text – but there were things I wanted to change, and so change them I did.

Then on Monday I recorded half of the episode only to realise that I didn’t like my changes and I needed to re-re-write them. This process has continued into today, and now, I’ve finally finished my first version of Episode 32.

So is it finished? Oh no: now I have to edit it for fluffs and gaffes and listen back to it and realise, yet again, that something doesn’t quite sit right with me and so I’ll do it again, and again and again until I like it.

Then I’ll record the intro / outro (and re-record it a few times too, no doubt), and then, finally, I’ll try to upload it – only to learn that my limited broadband access is making the upload impossible, and so I’ll need to bring the laptop into work and use their wi-fi connection.

By this reckoning, it’ll probably be Friday by the time I get the episode posted.

This is – I hasten to add – a worst case scenario. I want to post it ASAP, so keep an eye on your podcatchers, or whatever, for the buzzing download progress meter that brings my little bundle of goodness into your life.

Alternatively, you could just send a blank email (or even better, write something in it) to my mailing list. That way I’ll send you an email as soon as #32 goes live. Here’s the link, click it: Add Me to The Mike Bennett Mailing List

That way, even after One Among the Sleepless ends, you’ll still get updates from me about The Bonus Track which, post OAtS, will feature my short story collection, and also updates on my second podcast novel – which I just know you’re gonna love.

Episode 31: Uploaded

OK, Episode 31 is uploaded, click here for a direct hit. Now I really have to start packing boxes - the removal van gets here at 6pm and it's now 11.30 am. Good job we don't have much stuff.

Links from #31
I run a promo for the podcast novel Resurrecting Randi by David Shepherd
and talk about the Big O's Techno Fodder podcast

Episode 31: Done, Upload Tomorrow Morning.

How good am I? Honest to goodness, it's a good job I have a rich vein of stupidity running through me or I'd be busy packing boxes and getting ready for the move tomorrow. Instead I've spent some twenty-odd hours (8 today alone) putting together Episode 31. It would be uploaded too, but something mysterious went wrong with the process and it's now 12.23am and I'm shagged. I'm going to bed, but first thing in the morning I'll upload... And then I'll get on with moving apartment.

Episode 31: Delay Expected Due to Apartment Move

First of all, I'm going to try not to be late. But at the same time, I see a delay as unavoidable due to the fact that we're moving out of our apartment this week. Yes, we leave the city centre to move out to a quieter neighbourhood. I hadn't forgotten about this when I recorded Episode 30; the reason I didn't mention it was because I didn't think that moving house was going to be a problem. Of course, what I had forgotten is that moving house is nothing but problems. It's hard to record when you're packing up boxes and what have you.

As I say, I'll do my best to get episode 31 recorded and posted this week, but don't hold your breath: I don't even know if our new flat has wireless broadband reception yet. Gulp!

Still, let me leave you with a look at the lighter side of moving house with a PG Tips tea ad from 1971. Go, Mr Shifter!

Dr Who
I just watched the second part of the Doctor Who 2-parter, and as a life-long addict (excepting the 80's - that wasn't Dr Who, that was shite in a TARDIS), I can honestly say that I think it was the best story they've ever made. Congratulations to writer, Phil Cornell. I wanted to run behind the sofa for the first time since I was a kid for the most part, and blubbed like a sap for the rest. Admit it tough guy - you did too. If you missed it it's repeated on BBC3 tomorrow (I think).

Episode 30 and Detox(ish)

First of all, no, it's not over. Some listeners expressed shock and concern that Episode 29 was the end of the novel. Not so; Episode 30 begins the final part of the book and, as happened with previous parts of the book, we begin quietly following the climax of the previous part. Next week (31) things rack-up a notch. Episode 32 tightens the nuts a little more. Then Episode 33 is... ahhh, now that would be telling.

In other news, I've been detoxing this week. No, nothing like what you read about in those mad books that tell you eat millet for a month. Mine's a simple affair: no alcohol, lots of water, cold showers, early nights, plenty of fruit and veg, no crap food like chocolate, frozen pizzas etc. I'm now on day five of this not-too-stressful regime and I feel... fine: nothing to wig-out over, just fine, thanks. I do notice my memory is quicker to respond though. So if you sometimes feel like you're starting to go prematurely senile. Try a light detox, it may help. It...

Er...

What was I saying?

Promo on the episode is for The Big O's Technofodder Podcast.