And people tell me I'm scary

(peoples' usernames changed)
From twitter:

someperson: is really worried about @missiondistrict guys tweet and let us know you're okay please! xo
Retweeted by aslightlyscaryfan

The band hadn't tweeted for 5 hours. They're playing a gig today in a different country.
So, it;s currently 4pm.

What they are most likely to be doing:
- Sitting in a place with no wifi access
- Soundchecking
- Travelling through a place with no wifi
- On the ferry... with no wifi
- Being busy

What they probably aren't doing:
- Drowning in the Irish ocean
- Ignoring you
- Thinking about obsessive fangirls

Before you start getting OMG THEY'RE GONNA DIE, just think first...

60K

I have finally reached 60K in my NaNoWriMo document.

As a celebration, I bought myself a Jac Vanek bracelet. And 4 others as Xmas presents.

Dammit, just realised I shoulda bought another one while I was there.

NaNoWriMo day 28: coffeecoffeecoffeecoffeecoffeecoffeecoffee

I was at another write in today. Just me and Zoe (Sailor-girl on NaNoWriMo forums) for the third time out of the last 3 write ins I've been to.

Yet again I was reminded of my love of coffee and cookies. Lattes with two sugars, and a soft chocolate cookie, with a fellow insane writer and a laptop. Total bliss.

Clearly by the time I am in university, I will be caffiene dependant. I am never touching an espresso until I know how to drive.

Last piece of not-really-news: I was the first NaNoWriMo winner in Hertfordshire. Nice or what?

INTERNET PARANOIAAAA

Things happening today reminded me of my old Internet Paranoia.

It's as it sounds. If someone didn't reply to me on msn for a while, i got paranoid they'd left and hadn't told me.
If everyone's talking about something and nobody will tell me what, i get paranoid it's about me.
If i got the wrong end of the stick, i got paranoid everyone is laughing at me.

Various other things, but those are the main ones.
Of course, nobody reads this so nobody gives a shit.

And now to jump on the flamingly obvious bandwagon

Despite the fact I still have at a guess 20,000 words of plot left to write, I'mma procrastinate and do a quiz.
(Yes, i know I was born on National Fight Procrastination day. I'm a nonconformist... or just lazy.)

What was the last concert you attended?
The Blackout instore in Kingston.

What bands have you seen in concert the most, and how many times?
Uh well my top two are local bands, so my number 3 is The Mission District (6 times) and number 4 is The Blackout (5 times)

Do you have any setlists? From what bands?
None, sadly.

Are there any CDs in close proximity to you? Which ones?
No, none nearby.

What band are you in the mood to see live right this second?
The Blackout, because I miss those WELSH BAAAASTARDS, and Lostprophets, because they blew my mind the last two times.

Have you ever been on a tour bus?
What does a van count as?

Have you ever partied with a band?
I reckon so.

How many states/provinces have you been to concerts in?
London (various boroughs), Essex (Colchester), Cambridgeshire (Cambridge), Hertfordshire (St Albans, Hitchin), Bedfordshire (Luton)... so five.

What bands did you see live the month of May?
Pioneer gig (can't remember who), then Madina Lake/The Audition/Yashin/Flood Of Red, The Audition again, then My Passion

What CD are you addicted to at the moment?
Bleed American by Jimmy Eat World

Who is one band that you used to like, but now you can’t stand?
Fall Out Boy. Oh and Paramore.

Have you ever been on anyones guest list? Whose?
Not technically. Though I might be on Lostprophets' in Edinburgh due to awesome friends and their connections. Fingers crossed.

Last band person that you got a picture with?
Oh dear, mine was Gavin Butler too.

Do you consider yourself a groupie?
stfu.

How old were you when you went to your first concert?
14

Who was it?
Enter Shikari at the Alban Arena.

Which artists havent you seen yet that you want to see?
blink-182, Jimmy Eat World, My Chemical Romance

Are you wearing a band shirt right now?
Yes, The Mission District.

What band do you own the most merch of?
Probably The Mission District.

Do you ever do anything crazy at shows?
You mean other than queuing all day, refusing to leave the barrier on pain of death, singing so loud you can't speak afterwards, winding up various band members and trying/failing to stage invade?

What are your favourite venues to go to shows at?
Camden Barfly and Islington Academy 1+2, HMV Forum for a bigger venue

What band do you have the most performance pictures of?
Probably My Passion or The Mission District

Would you ever get a tattoo representing a band?
If I could make up my mind on one thing.

How many concerts do you average a year?
Think I got 27 from October 8th-October 8th, looks like it'll be more this year

Upcoming shows?
Maybe Gallows, 17th December
Maybe Heaven's Basement, 18th December
Kerrang! tour 5th/6th February
Lostprophets, 11th/18th, maybe 15th and 17th too



Now for an experiment. If you read this, tweet me (@VTheWriMo) the name of someone Welsh.
I'm expecting maybe 2 tweets?

Celebrating getting out of a deep blue funk.

First, you get an overexcited blog announcing various bits of news that nobody else cares about.

The good:

I OFFICIALLY WON NANOWRIMO. 56,000 words (a 50,000 word document and a 6,000 word document... which may or may not be lost) in 25 days. Get in there.

The bad:

FRENCH ORAL MOCKS ON TUESDAY. The limit of my spoken French is pretty much "Parlez-vous l'anglais? Non? Merde."

The (hopefully not) ugly:

MY COUSIN IS EXPECTING IDENTICAL TWINS. Or twins, which apparently in the early scans looked identical.

Hell yeah.

Oh the joys....

Pretty sure I have reached the point where anything could fuck me up pretty badly.

If you would like to try it out, feel free to say something blatantly offensive to me and I'll let you know my reaction.

Tired...

I was planning on being on 57500 words today.

I'm on 50,800. I've barely written anything since breaking 50K. FMN (F my novel).

In other news, I am becoming addicted to Where We Belong, the new 'Prophets track.

HOLD ON, HOLD ON, WHERE WE BELONG, MY HEART, MY SOUL, WE STILL BELONG...

Welsh Weekend: The Highlights...

Fuck my NaNoWriMo, I'm doing a highlights blog.

20th November: Acoustic gig

- Finding Belgian Chocolate Blackout Cupcakes in Marks and Spencer... and buying them

- Being in the third row through Egyptian Hiphop (they were odd)

- Still in the third row for The King Blues (and being one of only about ten people singing along)

- Sneaking into the first row for The Blackout

- Sean admitting to being utterly terrified

- Rhys playing an acoustic bass for the first time in years

- Snoz's tambouriiiiine!

- Silent (When We Speak) making me burst out in silent tears

- Matthew grinning at me ridiculous amounts for singing along

- Seeing Mike and Jay on the balcony, and getting Jay to wave at me

- Dragging Vikki down the front for Lostprophets and sitting on her lap

- Eternal weird looks from Ian Watkins... his expression was something along the line of "wtf? Why?"

- Ian having a sparkly belt buckle and the eternal must...not...stare...at...it...

- Lostprophets being absolutely mindblowing

- Hearing two new songs which Lostprophets had never played live before... ever.

- The chats with Ian Watkins! He chatted/told off/made fun of pretty much everyone in the front row. Including:
Ian calling my hat a "mouse hat" and then saying "that's debatable" after Vikki and I screamed it was a cat
Telling Ian his collar was up at the back and he insisting it was "like Usher", then telling me off after I called him sweetie ("what are we? Three?") and accepting my apology with a "you'd better be sorry!"
Ian telling me off for laughing so much at what Vikki said and "devaluating all my other jokes!"
Someone pointing out there was a glowing badge and not a bag, and Ian saying "Oh well done, you have successfully identified a badge".
Ian making fun of a guy who had to go to the loo and so holding up playing the last song until he got back.

- A mens' voice choir appearing onstage for about the second half of the set

- Being about the only person who knew all the words to Where We Belong and not just the chorus.

- Calling Sam in It's Not The End Of The World... and bloody hell. Ian singing so high Vikki and I were wondering who had grabbed his balls.

- Lee and I having a nodding match

- Afterwards, seeing Sean (who didn;t hug me but instead stroked my hat) and Rhys (who insisted it was lovely to see me, and gave me lots of hugs)

- Finding Jay outside smoking and sharing odd Star Wars quotes with him


21st November: The Blackout Instore

- Oversleeping and managing not to get out of bed till past 8

- Getting on the same train to Kingston as Laura did

- My Handywork on four of us, drawing Blackout lyrics/song names on our hands (THIS IS A BLACKOUT/WE ARE THE DYNAMITE/I'M A RIOT/TIWWCHNT)

- Running around Kingston trying to find Banquet Records with Laura

- Running around Kingston trying to stalk The Blackout with Vikki, Annie, Caz and a girl I can't remember the name of

- Getting back to McCluskys in time to chat to them... except Rhys and Gav who were nursing killer hangovers

- Snoz signing my hands to announce he liked them

- Sean running his hands through my really short hair to work out how short it was, and pretty much hair raping me

- Photos in the queue!

- Managing to sneak the blackout cupcakes in and working out there were 6400 calories in the box

- An amazing ten song set from TBO

- The hat song! In which Bob grabbed my hat and Sean proclaimed "we don't want that shitty hat!"

- Singing "rhys" in place of the words to the chorus of TIWWCHNT

- Bob managing to trap my hand between the barrier and the guitar... Ow.

- Being asked if I wanted to meet TBO first because I had an injured hand. I declined.

- Fashioning my scarf into a sling

- Gav's face when I gave him the cupcakes. He looked like I had given him the stars. And he gave me an enormous cutch <3

- Having to explain to each member of The Blackout how I'd hurt my wrist

- Bob's expression when I told him. He kept on hugging me and exclaiming how sorry he was and how bad he felt

- Bob apologising to me on twitter too

- Chats with them afterwards, with Rhys agreeing to answer any questions I facebook message him about being in a band, for help with my novel

- Gav agreeing not to

- Matthew thinking that TIWWCHNT was Welsh, until we pointed out otherwise

- Matthew throwing my hat in a puddle (grrr)

- Sean insisting there was nothing wrong with my hand

- Waving goodbye to the van so Snoz and Sean kept on waving, stopping, seeing we were still waving, and started waving again


I miss Lostprophets and TBO already. And especially my wifey Vikki. I'm seeing them all in February, and I cannot bloody wait <3

Grrrr... and NaNo: day 19

So many gig tickets are on sale tomorrow.

Well, two. Muse and 30STM.

My dad failed at the Muse presale this morning, so fingers crossed he can get me a ticket as an early late birthday present tomorrow (the gig is 5 days after I turn 16. Schweet).

Then there's 30STM... I only know Frances and Vikki who'd be going, so i'd probably be kinda screwed, but I missed them at Koko so I want to see them asap.

So far my wordcount hasn;t changed. I'm tempted not to do any till Sunday so Susie can experience the big moment of 50K with me, but that's unlikely. I'm on 47,696 words. If I don't make 50,000 today I will make it at 2am, staying up till the wee hours to novel for the third time in 3 days.

Yeah, I'm totally insane.

I feel compelled to say...

As much as I complain about my novel...
As much as I whine that it gives me sleepless nights and uses up most of my free time...
As much as I sometimes wish that I had never started it...
As much as I wish that I was one of those people to whom the idea of writing a novel in thirty days is completely insane...
As much as I moan about sore fingers or writers' block...

... my novel has become the only thing that is keeping me sane. I haven't seen most of my friends since October 24th. That's three weeks and four days. I miss them, and I hope they miss me just a little bit too. I haven't had them to talk to (probably a good thing - it's a bad idea to talk to me in November) and somehow my novel has filled up that gap in my life.

NaNoWriMo means a lot to me. It's given me new friends, new perspectives, new ideas. Thanks to NaNoWriMo I have discovered a lovely coffee shop in Welwyn Garden City, a love of lattes and the fact that yes, I can write 5,000 words in one day if I really put my mind to it.

It's a weird journey of self-discovery, and somehow this year has effected me more than my past two has. I'll revisit this in December (cue groaning) but I know that I need to email the guy who started this, Chris Baty, just to let him know that NaNoWriMo really has changed my life for the better. I know it'll be one of a flood of emails he receives every day about the same thing, but I really do need to get in contact with him and say thank you. Even if he only glances at it, I know what it feels like to be genuinely thanked and I really hope that I can give someone else the honour of feeling like that.

EXCUSES TIME... and NaNo: Day 18

Raaawr.

So Bee challenged all her read her blog to put an embarrassing pre-teen photo of themselves in their own blog.

Now, as the hard drive of our old computer, containing 6,000 words of my novel and about five years' worth of familt photos, is currently incapacited, this is impossible.

So I will... once I have access to all the old pictures of me.

And have done my NaNoWriMo.
And my Latin.
And my flute practise.

... shiiiiiiit.

NaNo: Day 17

I'm very bad at getting my word count during the day.

2am novelling it is!

A Lyrics Post - NaNo: Day 16

Today's blog is dedicated to some lyrics which sum me up. They also all happen to be bands I'm seeing this Friday.

THE KING BLUES

I Got Love
I'm gonna dance like nobody's watching
I'm gonna sing like nobody's listening
I'm gonna kiss you like we are all alone
'Cos this world is ours
We're the have not's but the have all's
At twice the speed of lightning I travel
Through the universe I will run to write
Your name in the stars
'Cos some truths will last forever
Music can bring the world together
I got life man I will use it till they lay me down to rest
So lets party in the supermarkets
Move to the rhythm of my heartbeats
I'll take my tie right off my neck and wear it
Tied up round my head

What If Punk Never Happened?
There's a lesson to be learned, one that I will take home,
When I return to my normal reality zone,
Punk rock has the power to change the world,
It lies in every single punk rock boy and girl,
So don't let anyone tell you you're not worth the earth,
These streets are your streets, this turf is your turf,
Don't let anyone tell you that you've got to give in,
Cos you can make a difference, you can change everything,
Just let your dreams be your pilot, your imagination your fuel,
Tear up the book and write your own damn rules,
Use all that heart, hope and soul that you've got,
And the love and the rage that you feel in your gut,
And realise that the other world that you're always looking for,
Lies right here in front of us, just outside this door,
And it's up to you to go out there and paint the canvas,
After all, you were put on the earth to do this,
So shine your light so bright that all can see,
Take pride in being whoever the fuck you want to be,
Throw your fist in the air in solidarity,
And shout "Viva la punk, just one life, anarchy!"


THE BLACKOUT

I Love Myself And I Wanna Live
You think, you think out loud
Speaking tones you cant speak under control
With what you got you should be proud
You taken you life and filled it with hurt
Stop now and save us all
Because i know you'll be gone by the end of the day
You paint your brains all over the wall
Because i'm tired of waiting

Those were his days
Now he's blown them away

I love myself and I wanna live
I just wanna be awake for your kiss
I love myself and I wanna live
I'll do anything, I'll do anything


LOSTPROPHETS

... Hell, there are too many LP lyrics.


Bring on Friday and Saturday, seeing my friends. It feels like it's been too long. I wonder if any of them have missed me that much.

Will do some NaNo after homework is finished.

NaNo: Day 12/13/14

Target of 36,000 has yet to be realised... hence why I am up on my half broken laptop at 2.41am trying to type. I didn't do much on days 12 and 13 due to being at gigs. I'll do a highlights blog about them later when I have some photos up.

Some people are crazy for bands. Some peole are crazy for coffee or chocolate. Some people are crazy for their wordcount.

Me, I'm crazy for all four.

You know you're addicted to Twitter when...

... you write a chapter in your novel entirely through the format of tweets.

If my novel ever gets published, I will have to create all of these twitter accounts... Oh god, that'll be a nightmare.

Holler back if you read this

Tweet me if you've read this - @VTheWriMo

Basically I'm kinda sad and I figure I can pour out all my depressed thoughts into my blog because nobody reads it. I always feel a bit sad but I don't really want to tell my friends. I'm sure they'd care, but at the same time I'm worried they'd just think it's me whinging to get attention.

Hell, I just think it's me whining to get attention.

So, tweet me and let me know what a douche I am. I feel like I kind of need it...

NaNo Day 11

I've hit a writing slump.

It's affected me big time - I feel pretty depressed today. Tomorrow is The Mission District though... I hope they manage to cheer me up.

But somehow I think having characters starting to get depressed has rubbed off on me, and as a result I can't write them back into happiness.

I only managed 1,000 words in 2 hours. That's how bad it is. Doing some more writing now, determined to try and claw my way back into 2nd place in Hertfordshire (I dropped to 3rd)

Might sneak up again at night. It's tempting.

When Writing Grinds To A Halt: NaNoWriMo, Day 10

So this is my current problem.

I'm mid way through the twenty thousand words and I'm just running out of fuel. I know what happens next, but I know that I can't put in most of the plot points until 30K, which leaves me another six thousands words of waffle.

And romantic scenes.

I can't write romantic scenes.

The Insanity Increases: NaNo Day 9

I reached 20,000 words.

20K. Also known as THE POINT WHERE IT ALL GETS MUCH HARDER.

I've now reached about 22,000 which put me in the top 3 in Hertfordshire - might put me into 2nd place, I'm not sure.

I plan on more sneaking-out-of-bed in a few hours. I must write. That's what NaNo does to you - it changes oxgen into writing, writing into coffee and coffee into air. Did that make sense? Hell no, it's 00.20 and I've had 4 hours' sleep. Not gonna get much more tonight.

NaNoWriMo: Day 8

I reached 18K today. Tomorrow will be 20K. 20K to 30K is universally considered to be the hardest part of any NaNo novel. Not looking forward to this week. Got to do all my homework for Friday before Thursday, and got to write 4K a day so I can be on 30K before I go and see The Mission District.

On a happier note, I now have a fauxhawk. I think I'll keep for a few weeks, until I next have to wear a hat.

NaNoWriMo: Day 7

These are the things I learnt at the write-in:

- One of the WriMos works in the same place as Kelly
- One of the WriMos goes to the same school as Bee and is in the year above her
- One of the WriMos goes to the same school as me and is a girl I am somewhat friends with
- Lattes with two sugars are heaven
- Mochachino's is an awesome coffee shop
- Double chocolate chip cookies taste lovely dipped in the foamy bit of the latte
- One of the WriMos wrote her first novel entirely by hand
- If I buy six coffees at Mochachino's I get the seventh one for free

And now I am hoing to try and write my way to 15,000 words from 12,000. Wish me good luck.

Right now... and NaNo: Day 6

- I want my computer to work
- I want my 6K novel back
- I want to start a band with Mary
- I want to get 2,000 words of my novel written
- I want to sleep until midday tomorrow
- I want Minus IQ and Don Broco to play the Pioneer in May
- I want to see Young Guns, All Time Low, The Blackout and My Passion
- I want money
- I want more cheerios
- I want to see my friends and laugh and have a good time and know that at least a few people in this world are mad enough to love me just the way I am.

So far I haven't written any NaNo. I'm at about day 7 in my wordcount but I need more as I'm having days when I can't write.


Oh, and I'm freaking out about the Pioneer gig in April. I have December, March, and then April. In April, Mary and I will be doing ALL the work. Two rooms, the main room and an acoustic set. With us two doing all the sound, all the lighting, all the stage management and sorting out all the problems. Our bosses are there if anything goes wrong, but as it is we will be responsible for any errors that go on.
I am, to steal Bee's phrase, bricking it.

People I Miss. And NaNo: Day 5

I miss Jack. He's a nutter and so effeminate it makes me laugh. And he gives lovely warm hugs.

I miss Emma. The last time I saw her we realised we were basically in exactly the same clothes. It feels like too long since I've seen her.

I miss Suzie. I've only actually met her twice but our twitter conversations about gigs and bands always make me laugh and smile.

I miss Tally. She lives in Australia and I haven't seen her since last July.

I miss Georgina. There's something about her which makes me laugh so much - I guess she just has that effect on people.

I miss Sarah. I don't know when I'm gonna see her again, which sucks because she doesn't live far away.

I miss Clara. I miss our mutual hair rape-age xD

I miss Roma. It's funny how people you only meet once have such an effect on you, and I hope I'll see her again soon.

I miss Sam. And I'm sure she misses my lovely warm black coat.

I miss Laura. I miss the way people mistake us for being sisters when we clearly aren't.

I miss Frances. I see her at gigs all the time but it's usually really fleeting.

I miss Vikki. I hate that she lives in Kent because it's so far to go and visit.

I miss Panda, Ashleigh and Bee. Two weeks on Saturday until I see them again, and Vikki, and Frances (I dunno why this writing has gone weird).


Roll on 21/11.

NaNo update: computer with my first 6,000 words is still broken. Typing on my laptop. I've written about 1,000 words today, which is awful compared to my target of 2,500. Hoping to write another 500-1,000 before bed tonight. Current wordcount: 10,426.

NaNo day 5: update

Despite writing on my laptop rather than my normal computer, I managed 3,160 words. I was aiming for 2,000.

This means that today's personal target of 8,500 has been smashed and replaced with a rather impressive 9,411 words. Tomorrow's target was 10,000. Looks like it might be substantially more thanks to this boost.

Also, my hands sum up my feelings today:

Across my knuckles: BITE THIS
Back of my right hand: Hello there, the angel from my nightmare
Palm of my left hand: Goddamn motherfuckers always wasting my time

Good times. Goodnight Internet, I need to go sort out my drama costume(s) and then collapse into bed.

Things that make me sad... and NaNoWriMo: Day 4

Things that make me sad:

- I Miss You by blink-182. One of my favourite songs. The lyrics are so simple but they get me every time.
- The computer I am doing my writing on is broken. So I can't see it, and I was planning on backing it up today... so I have so guess where I got to, continue from there, and pray m computer gets fixed.
- GCSEs. I don't want to grow up and think about university and a job. I want to be a kid forever and stay how I am right now.
- I miss my friends. It's only been a couple of weeks since I've seen them, but it's another couple of weeks until I see them again. I dunno if they miss me too. I kind of hope they do, but they've never mentioned it.

And now the NaNoWriMo update: um, I haven't written anything yet today. Time to correct that...

In other news - good luck to Bee with her Maths GCSE tomorrow. If she doesn't ace it then there is no hope of the thickos like me getting a good mark, so I am hoping/praying/considering a deal with the devil to make sure she gets at least an A*.

NaNoWriMo: Days 2 and 3

NaNoWriMo 2:
Saw Michael McIntyre. Got home at midnight, wrote about a thousand words before bed.

NaNoWriMo 3:
Ouch, it starts to get hard today. Managed nearly 2,000 words, so I am about 400 words over my target for today.

Now, in other news: I saw Michael McIntyre. We had shit seats, which McIntyre made fun of. A lot. But he was hilarious, and hopefully if I ever see him again, it will be in a smaller place and hopefully with a better seat :)

And so the insanity begins - NaNo, day 1

Right, quick recap of yesterday for all those who were wondering around London wearing fake blood and may be vaguely interested:

- Sneaking into a strictly 18+ pub and using the toilets with the blessing of the barmaid
- Queuing in the wrong place for an hour
- Putting a genuine cloak in the cloakroom. A proper badass, red-silk-lined CLOAK.
- Getting lots of happy looks from Zombie Young Guns for singing along to their songs
- Getting a lot of jealous looks for having Zombie Gus staring at me xD
- Z0mbie Saving Aimee all being hilariously drunk and so awfully cheesy they were funny
- Catching the lead singer's fake-bloodstained shirt on a reflex. It stinks of mayonaise.
- Fightstar coming on stage in skeleton suits - Charlie's was clearly too small. It was funny.
- Fighting to front row
- The security guard giving me £4.50 off the floor which wasn't mine. Well, waste not want not...
- Hanging out with Zombie Young Guns afterwards for about an hour and getting very warm Zombie Johnny and Zombie Gus hugs
- Zombie Gus, who had previously told us to "keep our eyes open for shows in January" (K! tour), telling me to "keep my eyes open for more shows before the end of the year... maybe..."

And now that's recapped, I've started writing my NaNoWriMo. I'm going for short chapters so I get more little boosts every time I finish one. Wrote for about half an hour when I got home and managed about a quarter of today's target in 25 mins. Not bad going. Now for the other three quarters...