Bills Posts

One of my readers, Clive, commented on yesterday’s post in response to my question regarding using real places in fictional writing. It was a good question. His response was a slight departure, suggesting writing fiction using models of real people. I have to say that I would stay well away from that. He was correct that would cause problems.

I’m not so sure about place names though, there is a very well known local crime writer who bases her books in and around the Portsmouth area. I read a comment of hers that she will only name a specific shop if she has their permission, and that can totally depend on the context, for example a waterfront shop or pub. May not wish to be associated with nefarious fictional activities.

Whilst I think there is less of a problem using town or street names, the closer you get to people the more difficult it gets.

Which leads me on to another question, what if I were to use, for example, the place names of Hardy’s Wessex, for example Casterbridge instead of Dorchester would that be plagiarism or something else?

Food for thought.

This is one grumpy cat, but only she knows why.

Just to finish off the box set thing. We ordered, for a quite reasonable price the DVD’S for seasons one to five from the great provider. They arrived today, and we’ve started watching – excellent.

I’ve set Elayne a mission; when she goes into a charity shop, she is to look for seasons 6, 7 & 8 – whilst we are watching 1 – 5, it doesn’t matter what order we buy them in just as long as we have them.

The question; if you are writing a book, let’s say a work of fiction, how does it work if you want to use real locations? Is the context important and should you seek the ok before using, say, a shop name? Just wondering.

Last night I told you about a boxset we had only just started watching (8 seasons, 96 episodes), we had got to around the 7th episode of 13 in season one when the streaming service flashed up a message saying that the whole series was coming to the end of its run and would be withdrawn. We worked out that would happen whilst were watching Episode 11.

Low and behold, when we had stayed up quite a bit later, and had reached the end of episode 11, and there it was – the whole series gone, withdrawn. The climax of the season was building, and things were getting really tense and there it was gone! We went to bed.

Luckily, if a tad expensive, I don’t subscribe to just one streaming service. I immediately jumped on the the other service, and the series was there, but we had to pay for it. Luckily we could pay per episode, now it was only two episodes to the end of the season so we decided to bite the bullet and bought the last two episodes! We breathed a sigh of relief as the hero saved the day.

Almost.

What about Seasons two to eight?

Can I spin this cliffhanger out to a third night?

Also, I am running out of time and need to post this before midnight, and it is now 23:57.

Earlier this week we found a new boxset to watch. Like all of the box sets, we wonder how it is going to develop. In this case, we were hooked by the third episode.

A couple of episodes later, we were slightly disturbed to see a message flash up on the screen saying that the series going to be withdrawn from the streaming service on the 15th.

Bear in mind; this is a Thursday, the 15th of the month, at 2330 we were on episode 11 of 13 for the first season. It was obvious we weren’t going to finish the season and we were just getting in to a huge cliff hanger.

Episode 11 finished at midnight 30 on the 16th. Was the service really going to withdraw the series when they must have known full well that we were watching it? Along comes 0030, the programme ending with a major cliff hanger building – and that was it, gone. No more episodes. The end finish!!!

Deep was our disgust. I’ll tell you what happens next tomorrow.

I went for a walk this morning. Not a long one, just around the cockle ponds. It wasn’t so much the walk, but what was going on around me.

It’s not spring time yet, still a few weeks to go, but there is definitely something in the air. Actually, it is the birds. The doves, they were making that deep throat noise when they have spring like thoughts on their mind.

There were a couple of gulls on the roof, they were making noises. To each other. The gulls on the ponds were just very noisy.

Next to starlings, the most impressive birds I see here are the geese. This morning there were three large wings of them flying and swooping over the creek, coming in to land – it was really beautiful to watch.

It’s worth talking about the morning chorus. When I did my early morning walks the morning chorus was one of the delights that I relished. I haven’t heard since I stopped. We have a bird, not sure, but it could be a blackbird. Either way, it is really tuneful, and it sounds like it’s right outside the window. Quite beautiful.

I kind ran out of time this morning. I was only able to take a quick walk around Walpole park, but at least I got out for a bit.

When Misty came in she was just very slightly damp, but there was no sign that it was raining. Luckily though I decided to put my raincoat on. Lucky that I did. I was about halfway through the walk when the rain started. It got quite heavy at one time, only for about a minute though before easing off.

The picture is from Mondays walk. The weather was quite different then. I’ll see what the morning is like.

The scene in the picture is the topic of tonight’s post. I say that because recently they’ve no connection.

The scene used to be the taxi stand and ferry pick up point. It was a most useful area, and it worked very well, being only a few yards from the ferry terminal. It is being changed, and will soon become the bus stop. It looks like there will be spaces for at least two, if not three busses.

The existing bus station is heading for demolition, to be honest, I don’t think people will miss the place. The building is looking very sad. What I am not sure about, is what is replacing it. I think there are a set of plans on show in the council offices. I really should make an effort to find out exactly what is happening.

It feels like an absolute age since I last walked down the high street. I meant to yesterday, but just didn’t get around to it. I meant to get around to it today, and as it happens I did, leaving the house at a much more sensible 0715.

I couldn’t find my flat cap, the cold of the morning wasn’t too bad, but it certainly was fresh and very bright. It was a lovely bright chilly day, just right for walking.

The development of the road that will cross the high street is progressing and is probably about a third done, but it looks very new. I carried on down to the waterfront. The taxi rank has gone, as have the few parking spaces that people used for ferry pick ups.

Knowing that the bus station is heading for demolition adds a sad, dilapidated air to the place, even in the bright sunlight of a chilled winter morning.

Through the fence at the back of Gilkicker.

Obviously, we didn’t really do nothing. Simply by existing, you are doing something. But, what I mean is I didn’t really do anything big like going for a walk which I had every intention of doing, but then never got around to it.

I suppose I spent a bit of time on the computer doing something reasonably constructive, we watched a bit of television – oh, and we did some ironing. Not much just a few T-shirts.

Even dinner didn’t require a lot of effort seeing as we had prepared it yesterday, all we had to do was stick it in the microwave for a few minutes. Even now, just before bed and just before I typed this, I must have spent 10 minutes watching youtube shorts. Hardly a productive activity. I guess, at least I’ve done this blog.

Fort Gilkicker is one of the Palmerston Forts built in the middle 1860’s. In 1898 the seaward side of the fort was completely reconfigured by covering it in mound of soil.

The fort stayed covered in soil for over a century. I found out late last year the soil had been removed and the seaward side works exposed. Today was the first opportunity to get a closeup view. I have to say that it was disappointing that the barrier is still in place.

I do hope that it is not re-covered because the structure was really quite graceful;

I was quite taken also, by a drone hovering over the fort. It was hovering and quite stable. It was a very interesting walk.