Fictitional

I "learned" a new word today. I was watching a video and the guy in it said, as he tried to sound eloquent and all-knowledgeable, and I quote: 'whether real or fictitional.'

Fictitional. Hmmm.  I almost choked on my drink. When I researched it, it seems that it was first coined by Nicholas Wright, a British dramatist. There are many renowned writers who coined words, so maybe fictitional will make an appearance in a dictionary someday soon.

Also, did you know that the definition of 'fortuitous' is simply 'happening by accident or chance,' and doesn't really mean 'by fortunate accident or chance'. However, since it has been "misused" since the 1920s, surely by now it has assumed a new definition?

Summer Solstice

I feels odd, it being the 21st June already. The longest daylight of the year, and it seems as though it should be the middle of summer when it arrives. Normally it feels that way, but not this year. Have you seen the smart TV ad where they put screens over the windows of the train? The song in it is beautiful and having discovered the artist, have been listening to her music over the past few days. There seem to be a lot of "fan snobs" who get really annoyed at people for discovering new musicians from commercials. That is how I have found almost all of my favourite singers and bands though. I think anything that gets the artist known to more people is a good thing.



Anyway, I give you a lovely little song by the same artist, Vashti Bunyan, perfect for today.

I'm Back

I am just beginning to relax into the warm bath of summer. Finally free of exam stress and worries, and my creativity is blooming again at long last. Last Friday I threw out (by that I mean recycled) three years' worth of copies and pages and school-related things I no longer require. It was wonderfully liberating. Best of all, I found amongst them so many scribbled pages of words and ideas I had long forgotten. It was a little sad to see how much I used to write, how often I used to just let the ideas flow and forget about making sense and having a plot. But then, now I have so much free time to fill with writing.
Slovenia was absolutely amazing. I only spent about two days there (one full day and two halves), but we did so much, I had such a great time. I cannot express how brilliant it was. Well, I suppose I could try. We ate at a farmhouse and the food was the best I had ever had, and home-made apple juice and meat reared there and lettuce grown there and tomatoes that tasted of sun. And the caves we visited in the only other karst region of the world besides Ireland. And flying over the Adriatic so clear, even from 30,000 feet, and the Alps dappled in snow and wind farms in the Channel and English farmhouses and stepping out into London sunshine (sort of). And driving through Italy and weather so warm while storms raged at home and sitting out under a balcony draped in vines sipping cold water. And the music festival where they played traditional songs and even the teenagers waltzed. Wow. I cannot wait until we go back (sometime...)

Wonderful News

Cuisle is a word I mention a lot on this blog. The Limerick Poetry Competition in which I won first prize in October 2010. One of my favourite competitions to enter, because I love the award ceremony venue, the illusion of intimacy while still being aware it is high-profile.
Well, just guess what I found out last night. I am going to be reading my poem again next weekend (Saturday I think). In Slovenia!

Now I don't know all the details just yet, but we (MM and I) will likely be flying into Italy and then crossing the border to Slovenia. I will post pictures when I return. I've only been to three countries in my life, two I've lived in and the third, Canada, I walked across the border to (through the relevant security). So this is a wonderful experience that I'm really excited about.

Me and my poetry in Slovenia...

Blog Changes

As you'll have noticed, I have been making some changes to the blog. I felt it was getting stale and out-dated, and so I gave it a bit of a facelift, hoping to refresh and revive it. The biggest change is the background colour of course, it was black and is now white. I used to be quite enamoured with dark backgrounds but I now feel simpler is better as it is clearer and easier to read.
I also changed the header photo and shuffled the sidebar around a little. There will be some more small changes soon, but I couldn't say what they'll be.

As of late I have been listening to Pagan chants and melodies, something that I have been interested in for a long time. When I was around eleven I had friend who was a Pagan, and Ireland being the way it is, full of Neolithic sites, it makes sense. Of the many worships I have touched the surface of, the worship of nature and her bounty has always felt the most true and natural for me. Not to say that that is Paganism, or that it isn't, just that Pagan music is nice, and I like it.

Don't you sometimes wish there was a hotline to the muse?

Do you ever notice that sometimes you wait for inspiration and it strikes you at exactly the wrong moment? Sometimes though, it is the perfect moment.
I often find that when I am writing for a competition, I cannot think of anything until right before the deadline. Occasionally this occurs directly after the deadline. I don't have a lot of stories to choose from to enter into competitions so I normally have to write something new.
Lately I have been waiting for inspiration for a certain competition. I had known about it for months and it has three themes. I eventually chose one and brainstormed. After a few weeks, I knew exactly what I wanted to say. I just couldn't see how to frame it. Then suddenly last week as I rode home on the bus in the scorching heat with no ventilation, it hit me. I knew exactly how I would begin it.
On Thursday I wrote the first 300 words. I stopped at a point I knew I could continue from. This morning I finished it. I am very proud of it. It is the first time I have written this way, with a plan and an idea of how things would go already set down. It was an interesting experience, and one that I liked.
Now I have just over 30 hours to edit it. :)

Incidentally I entered the competition last year also and my entry then was absolutely horrid. At the time I liked it but now I can see that it was nothing to be proud of. I directly contradicted myself in it. I think, or at least hope, that this one is different. The winner gets a net-book, second place a kindle e-reader, third place an MP3 player. Not bad, eh?
It's actually an article, not a short story, that you have to write but it's open globally to all ages so if you are interested, here is the link.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

I went to the Parade in Galway today with my friends. If you were watching it in Eyre Square and were one of the many people who weren't cheering, shame on you. If you heard a few girls screaming and cheering for every bit of the parade, that was probably us.
This was the first time I was actually in town on St Paddy's Day. It was very festive and there were lots of Italian, French, and American people. Good fun but exhausting.