Writing is Fantastic!!

Do you guys remember how in my last holidays I set myself a challenge of writing a chapter a day?

Well guess what!

I've done it again! And it's fantastic! I'm still not going to tell any of you anything about the plot or let you read it (excluding the three of you I've shown this to, naturally) But I have decided that I will show you the chapter headings.

Because they're pretty okay. Each chapter also comes with a theme, but you don't have to listen to, but some of the songs are simply excellent and it's what I would've been listening to as I wrote the chapter.

Prologue – Theme: Wonderland by Ke$ha

Chapter One: Humble Beginnings – Theme: Our House by Madness

Chapter Two: Monday Mornings – Theme: Inside It’s Raining by Art Of Dying

Chapter Three: Family Reunion – Theme: The Reason by Hoobastank

Chapter Four: Regroup – Theme: Bleeding Out by Imagine Dragons

Chapter Five: Back In Business – Theme: You’re On Fire by They Might Be Giants

Chapter Six: No Turning Back – Theme: Until We Get Caught by Hit The Lights

Chapter Seven: Desolate – Theme: The Sky Is Falling by Bodhi Jones

And...

Chapter Ten: Awkward And Charming – Theme: Amaryllis by Shinedown

I'm writing chapter seven tomorrow, and I wrote chapter ten aaaaaaaages ago. Though its chapter number is liable to change at this point in time. It'll probably end up happening WAY later, now that I think about it.

Actually, I strongly recommend listening to Amaryllis simply because Miles was originally going to use it as a theme for a chapter of BFB, but when he showed it to me I listened to it twice and proceeded to write 2,626 words off of it.

Needless to say, it is an excellent song.

18,429 words, 35 pages, 80,683 characters (no spaces), 518 paragraphs, 1,662 lines.

And it's titled Strand #5.

Holy moley I feel grand.

It's Coming.

It's coming and I'm more excited than I think I should be.

Most of you would know that I was born in a little town in Northern California, but I'll tell you guys a nice little thing.

I am so Australian. I talk like one. All of my ridiculous contractions. Things like shouldn't've. I say that. That's not me being a lazy typer, I actually speak like this.

I say "yeah, no", I know the right amount of Vegemite to put on my toast, I yell "Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi" like there's no tomorrow.

It's sickening, how patriotic I've been feeling lately.

It isn't, actually, that'd defeat the purpose, but the point is that I only just figured it out.

I love this time of year in Australia. I love Sydney. I love it to pieces. It's beautiful. Jacaranda trees and eucalyptus on every street.

It's the last week of August and it always is.

Everything gets a little bit warmer, and a soft breeze blows through everything. It carries the smell everywhere.

It's gorgeous.

Admittedly, during summer when that same breeze blows through it makes everything feel ridiculously sticky, but I think I can deal with that.

The thing is, with this smell everywhere, I've learnt to adore this time of year. It happened last year, too. However, the year before didn't have any such feeling, and I have realised why.

The smell makes me think about my old friend, Frog. It makes me feel like walking through North Sydney in shorts and a t-shirt and sandals. It makes me feel like writing. It makes me feel like running on grass until I can't breath anymore. It makes me feel like reading Skulduggery Pleasant.

It was this time of year about four years ago that I started reading SP. It was this time two years ago that I started reading Derek's blog. October 21st of 2011 I first spoke on the blog. I first spoke to Val. November 13th I made this blog and put up my first piece of writing.

These days are closing in on me. And Australia smells like it did then.

But, to conclude.

It's coming, and I'm so excited.

Summer is on it's way.