Happy New Year

So farewell 2009. A very good year. I got married, that was the main thing. From this year on, I’ll be checking my age, deducting 36, and adding one month to find out how long I’ve been married. To a marvellous, lovely girl, and I’ll shut up about it now.

I seem to have been working pretty much constantly. Doctor Who things, mainly. It’s kept me busy, and I think I’ve done some good work. I hope people aren’t getting sick of my name appearing on things; I suppose I could always use a pseudonym. Most of my things seem to have gone done very well, for which I am extremely grateful but not prepared to take an ounce of credit. 2009, the year of the Hothouse, Cannibalists, Company Of Friends, The Eternal Summer, The Glorious Revolution, The Mists Of Time, and Space Vikings!. And I’ve got, er, three or four or five things long-since written but due out next year, Deimos with Paul McGann, which I think is the strongest story I’ve written, certainly in terms of plotting at least, and a Peter Davison adventure which I also think is one of my more accomplished efforts. I get the feeling I’m improving; trying not to rely upon technique, trying to surprise myself, leave the comfort zone. I’m certainly getting faster.

Not so much other stuff, sadly. No time. Attempted another sitcom script but kind of lost interest half-way through. Had an idea for a film but, as films don’t seem to get made, left it to ‘mature’ in a bottom drawer.

I did write my own original, hour-long, family sci-fi drama, as a demo thing, and if I do say so myself it was a bloody good script, I certainly put a lot of effort into it, but trying to get people to bother to read the thing has proved to be a real bugger. I sent it to my agent earlier this year, and after three months it hadn’t even been read, so I decided to change agent. And try to take my career more into my own hands (as I seemed to get further that way). But if anyone out there wants to read my marvellous family sci-fi drama script, please get in touch. Cue: tumbleweed.

2010 looks promising. I’ve got a regular writing gig, fingers crossed, touch wood, that is if they don’t see sense and fire me. And I really should try writing another sitcom, as I’ve had another Idea So Good No Sane Commissioner Could Ever Turn It Down. And being married has turned out to be wonderful, but I said I’d shut up about that.

Oh, and 2009 was the year I did a daily blog. Except in November, but I’ll go back and fill in the blank days with stuff from my ‘rainy day blogs’ folder. It started out as being strictly under 300 words; now I don’t bother with a wordcount. Not sure if I’ll persevere into 2010. Probably not on a daily basis. It’s been fun, but my fingers are tired.

Birthday

Hooray. It’s my birthday. I am now approximately fifteen years older than I think I am. Still, on the plus side, I’m not dead, which means I am ‘for the win’ over Jesus, Jayne Mansfield and Mozart. Losers. If I can get through another year that means I will have lived more life than Princess Diana and Marilyn Monroe.

Am I doing anything exciting for my birthday? No. Not at my age. A nice evening in. I’ve enough goings-out and parties for the next month.

Speaking of which, the big day is now exactly one month away. Terrifying. You wouldn’t think there could be anything left to organise, but no, there is.

Today’s news. Out in all good newsagents is the latest issue of Doctor Who Magazine. A special edition in which they publish the results of a survey into which are the best and worst Doctor Who stories of all time. This sort of thing is exciting for Doctor Who fans. And so I’ve written the top twenty countdown thing and a two-page appreciation for one of the stories. I won’t say which one, or where it came.

The magazine also includes the news of my forthcoming Doctor Who Big Finish audio adventure, recorded last month, and not out for a good long while or so yet. It’s called Deimos, because it’s set on the Martian moon of that name, and features the villainous Ice Warriors (who occasionally imperilled the Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee Doctor Whos in tales written by the great Brian Hayles and Terrance Dicks). The cast includes Paul McGann, as the Doctor, a yet-to-be-announced actress as his new companion, plus David Warner (of Tron, Time Bandits and Shakespeare on stage fame), Tracy-Ann Oberman, Nicky Henson, Susan Brown, and Nick Briggs, amongst others.