All quiet on the frontier

Life on the inside ain't what it used to be.

I'm still around folks, Untitled is still a thing that's happening. Haven't had as much time to work on it recently but I've slotted time in my schedule to work on it daily. The biggest bump in the road so far has been Episode 5, which I've recently realized is a gigantic pile of crap, and needs to be rewritten nearly entirely from scratch. So, I'm working on that right now.

On top of that I've got DECAU, Hillel, Doctors Without Borders, Intramural Dodgeball, Exec Interviews, and da gym 3x a week to worry about. There's also my education, but I guess I'll start paying attention to that when we finish gr.11 review and start learning new stuff.

I've also gotten big into the Bastion OST (google it) and it's whole theme of Frontier Trip-Hop and downtempo music in generation. Check Dat Shit out if you like chillin'.

The blog will probably be getting a name/image change soon, to reflect the changing season.

Untitled: Episode 6 Part 3

Yeah, I got tired waiting for my crack team of editors (read: my dad) and decided to post the exciting, action packed conclusion to Episode 6 now. Woohoo!

EPISODE 6: PART THREE

Together they walked the night streets of New Pallas City. Jay set a brisk pace and Cass could tell that unlike her he was not looking for a frivolous adventure this evening. Whoever Jay really was, he needed to find this mercenary Washington in a hurry.

                “Where are we going?” Cass asked, keeping up with him.

                “New Pallas Square. It’s open 24/7, and there’s bound to be a tourist booth nearby.

                New Pallas Square was the lifeblood of the city, its many shopping malls, theatres, and museums bringing in half the city’s income. All day and night New Pallas Square was alit with multi-storied video screens playing advertisements, trailer for local films, tourist information, and all other kinds of broadcasts. Neon signs permeated the square at street level, always proclaiming “OPEN” as these shops never closed. The tourism industry was spreading rapidly in New Pallas. As Jay had mentioned, the restaurant he and Cass had met at used to be a small local secret, but now attracted the wallets of both tourists and locals who could afford it. Crime, both small time petty theft and big time racketeering remained a constant, however. The city’s government was working hard to change that.

                Even at this hour the crowds in the square were impenetrable. It was an entirely pedestrian zone, surrounded by skyscrapers. Jay stopped on one of the sidewalks leading into the square, the flow of people moulding around him like a river around a rock. Cass stopped beside him. They could see into the square from where they were standing. Above the heads of the pedestrians they could see a fountain and statue dedicated to the first president of New Pallas, depicted in stone, dressed in a suit and top hat, leaning on a cane and staring wistfully off into the distance. Across the square from the statue stood a pole, attached to which was a sign adorned with a glowing “T”. Jay offered Cass his hand, and she accepted. The two of them waded into the crowd, salmon swimming upstream.

Hi

Update on Untitled:
Episode 6 Part 3 is done, I've currently finished proofreading episodes 1-4
The episode pages are done.
Extra scenes at the beginning are done.
Title page and formatting, as well as other misscelania (adding in maps, etc) is still in progress.
My crack team of proofreaders (aka my dad) is currently on episode 2, but if I finish all the other shit before they (he) is done then I'll just release it as is.

Numbers Stations

Oh man are these awesome, I have a new mini-obsession. Random radio stations on obscure shortband waves broadcasting series of numbers in many different languages. Tell me that ain't creepy. Here's a collection of a whole bunch of recordings.

http://soundcloud.com/the-conet-project/sets/the-conet-project

I am totally going to work this into Untitled somehow, just you wait.

Untitled: Episode 6 Part 2

Why did this get delayed?
It's because I tend to write scenes at the time of day during which they take place... so I try to write night scenes and night, and day scenes during the day, even if it means writing out of order. I find that being able to reference my surroundings for imagery and what not is extremely helpful. However, due to circumstances, I could only begin writing the night scenes in earnest yesterday at about 3:00 am, meaning my mental state was not ideal for writing the lengthy and somewhat complicated dialogue that this part contains. So I took my sweet time with it and got it out today. Here it is!

EPISODE 6: PART TWO

                The door: wooden and showing the first signs of rot whipped open, thin splinters flying off into the dusty tavern. Landover, Hierophant of the Wheel, entered. The few patrons were stirred from their drunken revelries by the sudden noise, looking on at the new arrival with a mixed bag of expressions, from mild bemusement to stunned silence. Landover, through narrowed eyes, glanced across the room. The stools, like the door, showed their age, the wallpaper peeling. Dust coated the more unused booths. It was a half hour before last call.

                The bartender, wearing the complete ensemble of white dress shirt with a black bow tie and suspenders, seemed the most disinterested of the bunch. He and his moustache gave Landover the most cursory of glances before going back to pouring drinks for the customers at the bar. A lack of respect to a Hierophant, one the highest ranks of the Wheel Army… But Landover had no time to deal with distractions. He had been sent here to kill a traitor, and that was what he’d do. He took two more steps into the bar. The eyes of the patrons followed him ; the bartender was not interested.

                “Where is the traitor?” Landover asked of the room. The words came out slowly, crawling out of his mouth a man not quite dead would crawl out of a grave. They floated away from him into the viscous atmosphere of the bar, mixing with the aroma of smoke and wet wood. The bartender cast lazy eyes towards Landover, now absent-mindedly wiping a shot glass.

Tovbistacular Travel Tour 2012

This post has absolutely nothing to do with the story.
Okay that's a lie.
Two weeks from today the Mama, Papa, and Daniel Tovbis are leaving for Prague, capital of the Czech Republic. Lil' Bro Tovbis sadly is not coming because there is fuck-all for an 11 year old to do in Prague. Seriously.

I'm going to be there from July 27th to August 8th, staying in some hotel that apparently used to be a medieval castle. My dad's childhood friend (who is now filthy stinking rich) is generously paying our hotel bills. What a guy!
During this trip we'll be hitting up Dresden across the border in Germany and Vienna down south in Austria. Also during this trip we'll be celebrating Papa Tovbis' and rich childhood friend's 50th birthdays, which happen to fall between this period. Vodka will be had by all.

During this time I'll finish up and release the episodes1-6 compilation, unless I get it done before then, which is really unlikely. I'll also get as many parts as I can out. I tend to write more while travelling since I'm inspired by what I see around me. It's much harder for artistic vision to strike while holed up in your room in a north thornhill suburb.

That's all there is to report. Episode 6 Part 2 is coming Soon™, as soon as I figure out a few more creative ways to kill somebody.

Untitled: Episode 6 Part 1

How I suffer for my art. Microsoft Word is a bitch to work with when you want to make things like tables of contents, or have certain pages have certain designs while leaving the others untouched. All in all, I would sum up my experience as being complete bullshit.

EPISODE 6: INTIMACY AND MURDER ACROSS THE GALAXY

                Junior Engineering Officer Katherin Alley of the DSCS-PRETORIA unlocked and entered her hotel room. She had just returned from a night out with some of her crewmates, all courtesy of the ship’s Captain, that handsome Stefan. Humming to herself, she set down her purse and hung her coat in the closet beside the door. New Pallas City certainly didn’t have the best of reputations when it came to safety, but the Captain had paid out of his own pocket to get the entire bridge crew hotel rooms in the safer parts of town. This hotel was far from the lap of luxury, but was comfortable and close to the tourist sector, so she didn’t mind. The rest of the Pretoria’s crew wasn’t so lucky, and had to sleep on the ship like they always did. Poor guys.

                Although the hotel room was dark, she didn’t bother flicking on the light, instead kicking off her heels and going straight into the washroom. As much as she kept up the clean and orderly look around her shipmates, Katherin in reality was somewhat of a slob. Tonight was fun but tiring, and she wanted to take a shower and fall straight into bed. She undressed in the crisp, white hotel washroom, leaving her skirt, blouse, and undergarments lying in a pile in the corner. She’d clean it up in the morning, she swore.

                Katherin showered and brushed her teeth, throwing on one of the hotel’s bathrobes. She walked out of the washroom and back into the hotel room, preparing to throw off the robe and collapse on the bed.

                Until, that is, she noticed the shining white teeth floating in the corner of her room.