I used to think I would one day write a great novel, but these days I feel I’m probably not creative enough.
Then again, maybe that’s the burnout talking. Who knows what the coming years will bring?
Finished reading: Man Down by Matt Rudd 📚
This book helped. I feel a little less lost, though I’m not yet certain of my next steps.
Definitely worth a read if, like me, you feel like life in your 40s isn’t what you hoped or expected it to be.
Finished reading: A Darkness at Sethanon (The Riftwar Saga, Book 3) by Raymond E. Feist 📚
Finished reading: Silverthorn by Raymond E. Feist 📚
Finished reading: Magician by Raymond E. Feist — have read this a few times, but I still really enjoy it. Now on to the next one! 📚
It took about a month, but I’ve finally got our new bookshelf. It’s massive. Now I just need to put our books in there..
So I turned 29 last week, and one of the presents my lovely wife gave me to celebrate my slow and deliberate approach to retirement was a copy of the graphic novel Watchmen. You know: the one they’re making a movie of.
Now despite my slightly geeky disposition, I never really threw myself headfirst into comics. When I was a teenager I did start collecting X-Files comics, but that was more an obsession with the X-Files than with comics themselves. Don’t get me wrong – I’ve always been a fan of Superman, Batman, Spiderman and their superhero kindred, but more their on-screen and merchandising aspects than the comics from which they are based.
So it was with some surprise (to me, at least) that I initially found reading the graphic novel format a bit… well, a bit weird. For someone who reads as much as I do, the notion of actually taking time to take in each comic square - both pictures and text - took some getting used to. But the end result is one of fascination - not only did I absolutely love Watchmen, but it has become something of an obsession - I find myself constantly thinking of the characters, the imagery, the awesomeness that is Dr. Manhattan…
It’s also gotten me very excited about the movie. I’ve probably watched the trailer half a dozen times since finishing the book. And pretty much every scene in the trailer, I can picture the illustrated frame in the book. Considering how bad movies based on novels tend to turn out, I’m hoping that the opposite happens for this graphic novel.
I’m also hoping to read even more graphic novels, although I am a little bit lost for somewhere to start. Any suggestions for me, people of the Internet?
And if you’re a bit like me at the moment and can’t get enough of the Watchmen trailer, click through to watch it again… :)
[youtube=www.youtube.com/watch
Stephen King has teamed up with Marvel to create a webcomic of one of his short stories. The result is awesome. There's a new episode every weekday until August 29 – at the momnet we're up to episode 14, and it's a bit of a cliffhanger.
I love it when traditional outlets like books and film harness the web for good. Like Dr Horrible's Singalong Blog, this one looks like it's on the "must buy" list. Check it out here.
