Journal exercise 1 and 2

Adjective: Drab, grey, dark, chill, damp

Noun: Table, TV, orchid, hula hoop, towel

Verb: May, might, should, shall, can

Adverb: Slowly, angrily, sweetly, soon, very

The damp towel might fall off the TV slowly.
The drab room should be warm and light very soon.

Murica

It's day three of our trip to America. I'm unfortunately not tech savvy enough to upload photos from my SLR. They are also things you've all seen anyway. The Washington Monument, the World War Two memorial, the Arlington cemetery and tomb of the unknown soldiers. They are all spectacular and moving, in the tone of the general way America does things. There is above all the overwhelming sense of space to do these things in. Nothing is overly grandiose - it is grand in a way that is necessary to fill the vast amount of room available, and create a fitting salute to the country's history.

Clean, vast columns and stretches of grass serviced by sprinklers will be my main memory of Washington. We were also caught by a fantastic thunderstorm while at the top of the cemetery's long hill. As rain thrummed on the bus shelter we hid under and the thunder and lightning promised that this wouldn't be over soon, I realised it was the first time I had broken out into a huge smile that week.

Tube 2

The most amazing punk is stood over there. His mohican is about 8 inches high and bleached an incredible yellowy white to match his pale skin and almost melanin-free eyes. To contrast this, he is listening to music on bright red earphones. He looks tired and I worry about how his complexion will fare in the scorching summer sun that is finally beating down upon us.

Tube

There is a fella with flannel shirt and mauve rucksack. His lips are pursed in concentration as he fiddles with his phone. It must be urgent.

I wanna be a doormat

What do you do when you seem not to have what it takes to be the only thing you ever wanted to be? Can you learn? Do you fight? Is there a fast track route to 'the best'?

I'm not referring to becoming a rock star. I know that whatever you do in whatever industry, there are only so many who can shine the brightest. But what if you don't seem to have a spark, at all? What then - what powers you through the long cold night of the soul?

Some days I think, I would be happy doing a mediocre job, if I could just write the rest of the time. Like Kafka, working in a meaningless office job while he sculpted out tortuous masterpieces overnight. But I strive for meaning also. If I'm sitting at a desk every single day, I want it to make a difference in someone's life. Why exist if your existence doesn't improve the lives of others?

There are songs in my head so constantly I barely have time to write them down. In fact the only time I don't hear music in my head is when I am writing. But when I write, I listen to music, so does that count?

Well anyway, here is a soothing Friday video and song for you.

Watch "Beach House - Zebra (OFFICIAL VIDEO)" on YouTube

I want the moon on a stick

I realised yesterday that I cannot wait for fully integrated content on our media.

There was a time not so long ago when all posters were just that; now they are video screens and I'm sure if it wouldn't mess with peoples minds we would have sound blaring from them. I even saw one that was some kind of cooking infomercial, Commuters' Kitchen or some such kitsch.

I remember thinking that these 'live' posters were inevitable, before they were suddenly everywhere, like Harry Potter come true. The next step is obviously living magazines and print media. Interactive books are a big thing for kids, as they always have been really, except that previously your interaction was a fuzzy piece of felt and not a touch screen.

What I'm looking forward to is the magazines. Obviously blogs have this mixed media aspect already, but I really want to have a magazine on my ereader with the experiences embedded. You are reading a review - it plays the song in question to you. Tired eyes? Just listen to the article instead. Maybe this is a lot to ask of free print mags. All I do know is that reading a review the other day made me want to hear the music, immediately. This must be the next step: or something like it.

Kindle or kindling?

Advantages of kindle/tablet:
All the books, all the time
Lighter than books in your suitcase
Cheaper than print editions
And many free classics available from sites like
Saves the trees!
Backlit (some tablets)

Disadvantages:
Low battery on a three hour journey? Shame
Not so hot on graphic novels
Many books unavailable - mostly those produced in the last 50 years. Anything published after the event of the Kindle, bad publisher, pull your thumb out

Its a bit of a tie in my mind. Graphic novels and art and coffee table books need to be physically had. But any other novels, especially reference books, journals and academic tomes save the trees, your wallet and back when all in one handy device. And of course the trash you don't want people to notice you are reading is disguised. I would campaign for an extension of rights on digital editions - my favourite thing about books by a long way is being able to press a novel you loved into someone else's' hands.

To review or not to review?

It's been a while blog, and I've missed you.

I've been working harder and harder lately, it feels, and to little avail. At what point does 'feeling experienced' kick in? Here are some of the things my brain has actually remembered lately:

Editorial is worth three times that of advertorial. Even though getting a journalist to write about a thing would often cost the company less than buying an advert for it. I.e. a typical half page ad might cost £500 but asking a journalist to review your restaurant, hotel or spa for one night would typically cost £300 on the very outside. This is assuming their normal service is in no way disrupted, in which case you might be a bum on a seat that wouldn't have been paid for anyway, as reviews are usually relegated to week nights to protect establishments' busiest times.

The reasponing behind the relative value is that an advert is an advert: it is designed to bring a brand or product to front-of-mind but can only have a limited impact based on whether the item is something you would consider buying, can afford, etc.

A review or editorial piece starts a conversation with you about the product. This is obviously far more engaging, especially from an authority figure (editor of the magazine or well-known critic), a writer you are familiar with and so trust, or even a celebrity figure. After hearing a personable voice espousing the good aspects of a product, instead of seeing them in the sales pitch of an advert, you are far more likely to remember the brand and of course spend your all-important money.

This is a great advantage if you are a writer and want to swan off to four-star hotels all the live-long day (except  Fridays and Saturdays, see above). Less good if you don't want to appear a total sell-out who does nothing but whore yourself out for reviews, with which your magazine will become so stuffed that there is no other content.

Don't get me wrong, I love reviews: film, music, theatre, dance, food, art - written well, there are very few things of which I won't read a review. And magazines like Shortlist runs its reputation on providing reviews and mentions of engaging, interesting and wide-reaching content. But it has established a reputation first.

This is the balancing act; where you don't review, you might be able to pass someone interested in coverage along to sales, where they will buy advertising, thus actually supporting your publication. This is what Shortlist, for instance, need to happen.

So what appeared to be some glamourous perk at the beginning of my career becomes a delicate balancing act: how do I employ a company that simply wants me to visit its venue, at the least expense to the company, so that it actually benefits my magazine instead?