Taking a risk / freedom!

Hi Universe,

Well, it's been way too long. However, I have an excuse (don't I always?) My dear old (young, actually, but you get the picture) laptop decided it was going to stop charging at all. So I can't use it. It's been taken off by Dell to be repaired, thanks be to God, but I haven't heard from them since and it's been a while.

The desktop I'm sitting at, meanwhile, is the worst thing in the world, ever. Up until this morning, it refused to work with Blogger at all. It's just shut down the Internet Explorer and told me to deal with things myself. Evidently, I'm back, and taking a risk with this before it decides to explode.

Lots has happened in the few weeks I've been forced away from my precious blog. For one, I've finished all of my exams! I'm officially free from the stress! Can I get a Hallelujah?! (moving on...) I've also begun work on the book I mentioned earlier in the blog: How to Survive (etc) which is being renamed simply as Survive The Net (subtitle: How to Survive and Thrive on the Internet).

This project is changing everything already. I've written interviews for a few parties, and I have many more in mind. So far, the delightful girls from Lipstick Royalty graced my e-self with an interview, and YouTube's own Charlie McDonnell (AKA charlieissocoollike!!) has agreed to an interview and has been sent the questions! Hazzah! Also on my interview list, in the middle of confirming the details, are Lessthan7, a YouTube collab. channel from several countries, and Lucas Cruikshank, also from YouTube, who makes the Fred videos. He's been the most difficult to contact, and I'm yet to get a reply.

Others I'd like to interview are Wil Wheaton (yes, the Star Trek guy) for his success selling books via Lulu.com, as well as the doctor who wrote My Stroke of Insight, for her success in not only overcoming her health problem, but in getting accepted by a mainstream publisher! I'd also like to arrange a Q&A with staff from Twitter and AudioBoo, as they've become fascinatingly popular since their arrivals, though not always with the younger crowd.

Added to that will be surveys (mass participation appreciated). I'll be exploring the sites people use, the reasons they use them, and the reasons they don't. Busy stuff, lots of work involved, can't wait.

Moving on swiftly now, to item number three in this ridiculously long blog post (can't you just feel my deprivation?) Yesterday, as I walking to the cinema, I thought about a work friend, Sandra, and a recent phonecall I had with her over a post on this blog concerning Lauren Keech and the story I wrote. Well, I've decided that I'd very much like to expand on the story, but make it more fictional. I'd also like to introduce lots of other issues, but too many in one tale would essentially kill the characters over and over again. The solution? I'm thinking a series of short stories, one every two weeks (that's the plan, anyway), each sold on Lulu.com individually at a low price (revenue of €1) with all the money going to charity. The charities will be chosen based on the theme of the story. Take a cancer-story, for example. The money from that will be going to my favourite cancer charity, The Laura Crane Trust.

For the series, I'd like to also help promote lesser known charities, which is why I said LCT rather than a larger organisation. I want these smaller charities to get noticed, because they deserve it to. So I'm asking you, please, to submit ideas for charities. I want to know about them, what they do, who they benefit, so that I might be able to work a story around that idea. The more personal the charity is to you, the better.

I'm going to begin work on these stories ASAP, working on Survive The Net at the same time, as well as edits of Meet Sam. When I have about five-six written and the charities' logos and permission, I'll begin posting them online for the low fee. Any and all support would be appreciated.

So, I think I've bored you all enough. However, if you want to keep getting annoyed by me, just look for my Twitter and follow. Also, keep an eye out for the official Survive The Net blog, which will be arriving shortly. Baifornow.

Pop Culture Fashion Week

No, it's not official; it's my choice of clothing for the weekdays last week. I decided, not very quickly, to do this, if I had enough t-shirts. Evidently, I did.

On Monday, for DCG and Maths classes, I wore a stunning "Evil Monkey in My Closest" t-shirt from the Family Guy range of merchandise. This fabulous t-shirt was cheap, at a cost of 2 for €15 I think! I bought it alongside Tuesday's item of clothing, which I will get on to now. But first, the amateur photograph!

Tuesday, the day after graduation. This t-shirt was greatly enjoyed by Mr Tim O'Connor, as it proved he knew about teenage cartoons like Family Guy. The red top features a print of Stewie Griffin as the Devil with the words (translated to English, and by assumption) "The Devil Child" on top.

Wednesday, perhaps the best response to any of the items featured this week! Below is the picture of The Mighty Boosh Live Tour 2009 t-shirt, purchased last September for a handsome €25 at the Olympia Theatre. A second year in my school, a friend of my cousin Sarah I might add, saw the print and quite literally leaped at it, cheering "Mighty Boosh, I love them!" I've dealt with this guy before; his response to me was a thumbs up, so that's all he got in return. Still, fabulous t-shirt! (and the most comfortable of all the items on display)

Thursday followed The Mighty Boosh theme, except this one was a little less noticed, and merely just there. I was slightly disappointed, but alas, I can't expect everything I wear to attract attention. I'm not that much of an attention seeker!

This last item (below) came free in the Blue Harvest DVD set. Featuring Stewie Griffin as Darth Vadar, Chris Griffin as Luke Skywalker, Lois as Princess Leia and Quagmire as C3PO, this t-shirt brilliantly captures the satirical nature of the Star Wars parody. Second most comfortable to wear, mainly because it was a size too big.

So there you have it! That was last week's Pop Culture Fashion Week!! I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did; it was perhaps a little more creative than usual. If I've set myself a minimum standard of entertainment, let me know.

Surive The Internet Cover!

Well, I've just been "hard at work" putting the cover together. I thought I'd keep it simple. What do you think?

Feedback or suggestions to survive.the.net@gmail.com

Thanks!

How to Survive the Internet

Hey guys and gals,

I'm looking to start a project over the summer, "How to Survive the Internet (and Possibly Have a Bit of Fun at the Same Time)" but I need help researching. Well, by that I mean I need websites that can be discussed. Obviously I'm going down the social networking route (Bebo, Facebook and Myspace) and the communications route (blogging and Twitter) and the video route (youtube.... anymore of these?). But what else can I do? I mean, I have a few ideas, but that's it. I suppose I'd better tell you what I have in mind first....

- Okay, the pros and cons of social networking, and tips on how to survive them and such stuff.
- How to blog/what to blog about and how to make Twitter more interesting.
- What can be done with Youtube and other video sites
- A guide to google and other search engines (including safe search)
- Success stories from over the internet (Did someone make a living from Lulu.com; did anyone get recognised over the net as having great musical talent and other similar things)
- Guide to online forums (in general)
- Good places to get some reads
- What is PayPal and how do I use online banking
- Shopping online: eBay, Amazon and other shop fronts
- gaming websites: some of the best recommendations for free!

Also, throughout the book I want to be able to pinpoint that it is possible to get addicted to the internet, and that social activies in the "real world" need to be particiapted in too. Friends and family should not be avoided for the sake of a video series or an online book or free games - getting out there and having fun with other people is a good idea too! With that in mind I'll be telling people all about websites like Ticket Master (and I'll need some other ones, I think, if I'm to make my point quite clear - something cheaper than concerts, you know?)

Any tips and links? Please email them to survive.the.net@gmail.com

Cheers!

Love me some new fiction

Well, I've recently discovered a new author. Well, he's not new, but I only recently discovered him; it was last night, via Twitter. I used the Quick Search on my iPod, Twitterific. Jeremy C. Shipp, a fantastic American author.

I read two of his short stories and fell in love with them. Scratch and Camp, excellent reads, and very disturbing. I must recommend them to Andy Walker, a huge fan of horror!

In the mean time, I need to find more new fiction, and possibly invite Mr Shipp to the Den! I think he'd make an excellent addition to the crew!

Lulu.com's confusing calculators

Well, I've been examining the calculators at Lulu.com recently, only to find a large number of problems with them. The pricing from Euro to Pounds is weird, represented by this little ratio (approximately):

€3 = £1

Strange? I thought so! The pricing errors on Lulu.com are vast and wide. At one stage, books were cheaper when bought in Dollars than they were with Euros! I complained, and instead they just increased prices...

Then there's the revenue calculator. Apparently the manufacturing costs for a 200 page book are less than £5, yet over €12. It's an outrage! And unrealistic to what the costs work out to be in the end. I can guarantee that!

I have a project on Lulu.com; 98 pages, trade paperback, black and white, regular paper. the price? €9.18 or £8.22!

So the manufacturing costs are quite low, but the price, without me having marked it up (it's a private project, so I don't want to pay them extra for it!), is quite high. With this in mind, I'm launching a complaint.

The book should cost me £2.95 to print; somewhere along the line, I'm being ripped off!

Link(age) and more!

Hey all,

So, following my Bloody Heel blog and with this current one, I've officially blogged more this month than I did all last year! Hurray!

I'd also like to make everyone aware of a new link in the side bar there =>

You'll be brought to the Literary Den Campaign page at the Battlefront website. Worth a look (and a vote). Cheers!