The Robin inspiration

So I'm actually writing this on the 4th, when I said I wanted to reference some inspiration I'd had - but if I did, it'd give away a major plot point.

Hopefully by the time you read this, you'll know all about the resolution of issue 20 and the Crossover arc (Hey, you're ahead of me, I haven't written it yet! Ah, the joys of projecting into the future) so now I can talk about my inspiration.

When it comes to impersonating Robin, well, there's probably been more than a few occasions over the years... but one that sticks in my head particularly because it was in the 1960s (the spiritual home of my SG series) and also because it featured a woman doing the impersonating, is Jill St. John as Molly, in only the second episode of the Batman TV show.

In case you haven't seen the episode in question, naturally it's illegally available on YouTube (here's Part One, in which the impersonation takes place; here's Part Two, in which you sort-of see Molly unmask). What makes the episode so fun for me is actually (believe it or not) Burt Ward's performance. When he's playing 'Molly as Robin' he really does camp it up in a few places, and boy if that ain't kinky.

Anyway, when I was writing the (SPOILER!) Betty-as-Robin scenes in issue 20, I needed reference to remember what the heck the 'classic Robin' costume looked like. So I went looking for visuals, and then I remembered that episode. One quick YouTube search later and I was delighting in that scene again. That gave me all the visual reference I needed, and also Molly's delicious play acting as Robin ("Riddler, you fiend!" she says when she first turns up, Robin mask in hand) really inspired me to ensure that Betty-as-Robin took the 'role' seriously.

Here's a few gratuitous pics of the scene when Molly turns up dressed as Robin. Sorry about the quality, but they're just screen-grabbed from YouTube:

Molly confronts the Riddler, costume ready, mask in hand...

A knowing glance to her partner in crime... time to transform...

Ta-da... out goes Jill, in comes Burt, and he's happy to 'play the girl'.

Great stuff. If you haven't seen it, be sure to check it out.

2012 Update: As this post still gets hits - most likely people looking for the same memories I had - here's a couple of bonuses. One, this entire episode is on YouTube now, who knows how long for:

Second, here's another screengrab - the moment after Molly unmasks herself (which frankly, is a terrible, terrible piece of fakery, but at least she's pictured here, mask in hand):

"Maybe you could put that back on and we'll have a little fun..."

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #20

The Chameleon has finally been caught; Betty's mission is at an end. Unfortunately for her, growing feelings for Barbara mean that leaving this dimension may not be as easy as she had hoped....

Issue #20: Legends of the Dark Knight

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The Chameleon's locked up. Betty's done what she came to do. So what could delay her? What could possibly keep her in Gotham? Perhaps the love of a good woman... or a man who looks like a woman...? There's still a few twists in this tale yet.

Every single plot line from this arc (that I could think of... I certainly hope I didn't miss any) is wrapped up in this issue, which does mean there's a fair bit of exposition, but also plenty of sexy stuff too. If you really want to immerse yourself in the entire arc, I'd recommend re-reading everything (yep, everything - from issue #14) and I'm pretty sure you'll start to see the connections. It was, believe it or not, pretty much all planned.

Issue #20 marks the end of the road for Betty Brant's 'crossover' into another dimension, and the end of this arc. It's also time for me to pause in the tale of Spider-Girl, but that doesn't mean the series is done - far from it, I hope. For now though, I expect I'll be working on something else for a while. What will that be? I'm not entirely sure myself. Things are cookin'. We'll see what comes to the boil first.

I'm afraid of course that does mean, you won't be getting served up 13-20K words a week of new material! I'll still be around though, so if you want to get in touch, leave a comment or drop me an email.

There may be a couple of posts exploring this arc, by the way; I found the process of writing this quite fascinating, as well as taxing, exciting and trying at times. So if you're interested, I'll waffle at some point.

Remember if you haven't read all the issues of this arc yet everything's available, both at Maskingwriter (membership required) and now via steekr (just click and get the issues). If you enjoy, please do leave a comment below, and click on an ad for me.

Update on 20

... so work came down "like an anvil" this week, as they say, so hard that I'm actually going to be in work this weekend, probably both days, probably most of each day. Don't cry for me, I don't mind doing it, but it means I won't have time to edit 20 (and haven't had much time this week, either).

So right now, don't expect 20 to be out this weekend. Sorry 'bout that. I will get it out as soon as I can.

As I've said before, the post-issue-20 future of the series (and my writing) is a little unclear. I'm not sure what I'm going to do next. I do have a variety of arcs, plotlines etc that I want to pursue with Betty. I also have ideas for non-SG stuff, including some unfinished M2F masking stories that I might go back to, or entirely new ideas.

I'd appreciate any thoughts you might have. While I know nearly all of you will just be thinking "I don't care, just write more stuff" it does influence my thinking if people really, really want to see 'X' or 'Y'.

Issue 20... is done!

About five minutes ago. Maybe not even that.

Right now - before editing, which could expand or contract this figure - 20,735 words, which I can barely believe, especially considering as far as I can tell, 13K of those words were written in the last week.

See what you can accomplish when the muse is with ya??

I've got a mix of feelings right now. It's been a big issue, but it's been a much bigger arc - I've been writing it for six or so months. Writing the last few scenes was kinda emotional. Don't worry though folks, I've left it on a suitable cliffhanger...!

All will be revealed... this weekend. Barring accident, injury, etc. Editing that many words will take some time, too!

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #19

The noose is finally closing in around the Chameleon; having set up a date with Bruce Wayne as 'Vicki Vale' he is about to discover that Vicki never existed. Meanwhile, Catwoman is out for revenge, and seeking Batgirl's help...

Issue #19: No Man's Land

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After last issue's rather giant plot twist... we come to a climax! The Chameleon cornered! Batman, Batgirl and Betty - none of whom are who they seem - team up together! There's a chase! A confrontation! A big old fight! This one, as they say, has got it all!!

To be honest I've thought for a while that this issue wasn't that good - but as I re-read and edited it today with fresh eyes, it read pretty well to me. Everything comes to a head this time out... but this ain't the ending, oh no, and the epilogue is a doozy. (Well, so far anyway.)

Remember if you haven't read all the issues of this arc yet everything's available, both at Maskingwriter (membership required) and now via steekr (just click and get the issues). If you enjoy, please do leave a comment below, and click on an ad for me.

Issue 20 - barring accidents - should finish off Crossover with a bang in about a week.

Houston, we have a very big issue

So I just looked and issue 20's over 16K words now, which is getting a little crazy... I'm in the last third, maybe the last quarter. Suffice to say there's some fun scenes in there which might, in some ways, be 'too much' - but I won't get to write this stuff again anytime soon, so what the heck.

I've actually moved two scenes from 20 across and into the end of 19, which means I have more of 19 to edit. That's about half-done. No promises but it might get released later today. Just have to get out of the writing groove on 20, really!

Er, 12K and rising

Looks like issue 20's turning into a bit of a big finale, with two of the many 'Bs' getting together at last. It's fun to write, and hence is progressing quick.

I wanted to post some reference that I was working with, but I just realised it'd give away a fairly major plot point, so I'll leave it for another time...!

19 will, I think it's safe to say, definitely debut this weekend. Which means it probably won't...!

Moving right along

As of right now (checks) issue 20 is 8,705 words long, and I haven't really gotten to the meat of it yet. As those of you who've read 18 will know by now, certain characters "have some 'splainin to do"... 19 mostly deals with the resolution of the main plotline, but 20 is where the soapy stuff is.

Which hopefully you'll like....

Anyway I still think I'll probably release 19 this weekend, even though I don't think 20 will be finished, the majority of it should be done. So look out for it.

If you've been thinking of ideas for where Spider-Girl as a series should go next, then now's the time to say. I have multiple storylines stacked up but if you have a brilliant idea, you never know, it might get incorporated.

Thanks for the clicks!

Hey all, just a quick note to say thank you if you've clicked on an ad over the last few months. I'm going to get my second payment from Google in about six weeks I expect (of $100).

In case you have any illusions that I'm 'rolling in clover' by the way, I'm not. Partially because of the incredibly weak dollar (great going to the US, crap when you're being paid in dollars) and partially to date, all that ad clicking = $200. So yeah, I won't be giving up the day job just yet!

However, it's more of a symbolic payment for me than anything else, and I really appreciate it on those terms. Please feel free to keep clicking, and I'll keep writing....

New way to get issues: steekR

I've been wondering for a while if there was a way I could share issues with everyone without making you sign up for the Maskingwriter Yahoo! Group.

While I think if you're interested in mask fiction you totally should sign up for Maskingwriter, especially as you get to read a whole load of other stories from other authors, I also realise there may be people out there who don't want to sign up for it - or frankly, just want to get the new issues now now goddammit now and can't be bothered to login to Yahoo! Groups to get it. (I myself would probably be one of those people, if I was you.)

So anyway, I think I may have found a solution. On the right hand bar under 'Latest Writing' there's now a link to a file sharing (and storage) service called steekR. Click here and you'll see a folder with all of the latest issues from the Crossover arc of Spider-Girl. Or should.

If you like this as an option of getting issues, let me know in comments, and I'll throw up a bunch of other stuff in there. Some of it might not even be Spider-Girl related... wink wink.

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #18

Her powers having returned, Betty is anxious to finish what she came to this dimension for: to find the Chameleon and put a stop to him, forever. The master of disguise has some plans of his own, however....

Issue #18: Two-Faced

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Alright, strictly speaking it's been more than a week, but it's still the weekend where I am - so don't complain!! The plot takes more twists and turns this issue with the Chameleon discovering he's going to have to work a lot harder to get what he wants, Betty pretty much realising the same thing and... well... I won't tell you any more, you should just read it. Hope you like.

SPOILER WARNING: There is a massive, massive plot development in the very last scene of this issue... indeed, the very last word. If I was you, I'd restrain yourself and read all the way through to come to it naturally. You'll enjoy it more that way, honest.

What I would ask, however, is that when you're talking about the issue in comments below, please don't explicitly mention that particular twist... it'll spoil it for those who haven't read it yet.

Although I'll happily receive emails saying "That was a surprise" or "I always expected that" in equal measure...!

Knocking on wood

Writing issue 20 is going really well, about 6,500 words in with the rest of it looking like smooth sailing. It's supposed to be a 'wrap up' issue but I'm having too much fun with it.

Assuming that stays on course, I'll be releasing 18 this weekend (probably, depending on the time I have) and then 19 the week after, and 20 the week after that. Should be do-able.

Of course whenever I make these proclamations it all goes horribly wrong, so...

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #17

Arriving in another dimension to hunt the Chameleon, Betty Brant found herself powerless... but luckily, she also found the protection of Gotham City's dynamic duo, Batman and Batgirl. The Chameleon is conducting an elaborate plan, impersonating Catwoman with Two-Face's help; however it is an uneasy alliance. Meanwhile. confined to Wayne Manor and frustrated with her inability to help, Betty is exploring new dimensions of her own - by dressing as Batman....

Issue #17: Batman, Confidential

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After - for at least some of you - what must seem like the longest wait ever, Betty is back! The Chameleon's plan starts to unfold as Betty gets closer to her partners in crimefighting... enjoy!

As you know it's been a rocky six months or so, but the good news is this; issue 18 and issue 19 are both done, and issue 20 is on the starting line, totally plotted. So right now I'm hoping you see a regular schedule of issues (possibly as fast as once a week...!!!) at least until the end of this arc (issue 20). After that... who knows?

I don't expect nearly as much enthusiasm over this issue as over the last one, but I hope you still enjoy it. If you have any comments feel free to leave them here or over at Maskingwriter, and if you haven't clicked on an ad for a while... why not do it today?

New issue this week

I'm back on issue 19 after various delays. It's moving; about 1,500 words yesterday. In an effort to keep myself moving I'm going to release 17 this week.

I hope. Unless I suddenly have a revelation that requires me to go back and rewrite, which has happened before....

And, yes - another update

I think I - or the writing - may be cursed. So I'll be careful what I say.

No sooner than I tell y'all that I'm moving along with Issue 19, just about all progress stops. I just checked and I actually have just under 7,000 words done, so it's moved further than I thought, but it hasn't moved that far. No particular reason - apart from possibly the curse.

I'm now certain I won't be releasing anything new until at least 19 is done, possibly 20.

Then the big (huge) question is what to do after that. I am wrestling with that near-daily. Until last weekend I would have told you that after 20, I'm finished. Then over the weekend a whole bunch of plotlines just burst forth in my brain, and I could see a whole lot more issues.

It's still the effort/time versus money/recognition thing. Sorry, there ain't much you can do about it.

I'm away this weekend and I'll try - try - to put in some time on 19. And I'll even try and update here more often about progress. I have resolved, if nothing else, to finish this damn arc. Then I say goodbye to Gotham City, at least...

Update

Issue 17 is done, but may need some polish. Issue 18 is also done, probably needs less polish. I'm just under 2,500 words into 19, which is supposed to be the end of the Crossover arc, but it will potentially be a big issue - might even stretch to Issue 20.

There's a lot going on in these issues and I want to get them right, so I may not release anything until 19's done... or I may change my mind. We'll see.

I have a feeling that after the arc is done I may take a break from this for a while; again, we'll see.

A quick update

Hello all... sorry it's been a while.

I've been insanely busy with work the past few weeks. When I last posted it was just starting to get crazy; a week after that I was working 12 and 15 hour days to get a very big project ready for an immovable deadline. With that done I spent the last week recovering.

Where I stand right now: still happy to work, still need to find time to do it, but the time thing is loosening. In about a week or so I'm off on holiday for almost two-and-a-half weeks, and while I'm taking the ol' laptop I can't guarantee I'll get any writing time.

So that's it, really. I haven't quit, although the points raised in my last post do stand... so gimme some time and hopefully something will emerge from that.

So here's what happens now

Over the last month or so, sometime after the last SG issue was released, I've been in something of a quandary. I'm going to try and not bore you with it but any of you who've 'known' me for a while won't be surprised by what I'm about to say.

Essentially I've been having one of my periodic internal struggles, where I question why I'm doing this (writing mask fiction) and why I'm not doing something else (writing mainstream fiction). As usual my internal responses went all over the emotional spectrum, from "Screw this, I'm quitting and never coming back" to "Why the hell shouldn't I do this" with "God, I hate myself for even having this sort of internal debate" stuck somewhere in the middle.

I think I've resolved the debate now, and I think you guys will be happy to hear I didn't let the extremely negative side win out. However, I've also decided to try something new.

The simple facts of the matter are these. Despite it driving me near-insane some days, I've resigned myself to the fact that no-one out there seems interested in potentially paying me for writing mask fiction. You, like every other bastard out there on the Internet, are almost certainly more interested in getting your rocks off for free, than in paying for it. To some degree I understand this - hey, everyone needs to budget - but at the same time, there's a part of me which becomes very angry about this, as basically I work my ass off and if I'm lucky, get the odd email and comment.

This is not, I will state clearly, either a request for more kiss-ass comments, or a plea for you to send money. I am, as I said, resigned to the fact.

However, I am not getting any younger, and the Ghostly Writer who sat down ten years ago (Yes, ten years) to write Beneath the Veil is now older, wiser and more cantankerous. What he (er, I) also knows is that there is a market for my mainstream writing, that I am capable of turning out good stuff that doesn't involve endless disguises and that perhaps... maybe... if I apply myself I might even see some financial gain, or even better career possibilities, if I pursue that path.

The internal debate, in case you're wondering, always centres around time. Do I have enough time to do both - keep writing mask fiction and try to write mainstream fiction too. And the answer I've come back with previously has always been 'no' because in my experience, I've found myself focused on either one thing or the other. There's never been room in my head for both.

Well, now I'm going to try and make room. As of today, I set my alarm 20 minutes earlier, got my ass out of bed and sat and wrote mask fiction. (Yes, I'm blogging this in the same time block. Eh, it's related.) Tonight after I get home from work, the gym, whatever - I'm going to sit down at some point and whatever I write, it won't be mask fiction. Tomorrow, I repeat.

Then we'll see how we go from there.

That's it for now. I know I have a tendency to ramble on about this so I didn't want to go on too long. However, I would be very happy to hear your views on this, especially regarding payment for services rendered... in other words giving me something back for endless hours spent at the keyboard.

Oh by the way? The first person who suggests that I should "write because I love it, and that should be reward enough" can (a) fuck right off my site and (b) try writing for themselves for a lifetime without anything to show for it apart from some occasional appreciative comments. Glad we're clear.

100th post.. yaay...

... I was imagining a bit more enthusiasm for that, to be honest. Reason why not? Ill.

A close colleague infected me yesterday with a cold (I don't say that maliciously; on Thursday he wasn't ill, on Friday he was, and here I am ill today), and on top of that, I have this eye infection that just doesn't want to go away. A trip to the Doc's will be in order next week I think.

Why tell you all this? No reason really, because I can't pretend it's affected my writing... nope, that's just been stalled all by itself. Issue 17 of Spider-Girl is at about 5,000 words, about half-way I hope, but it's hard to tell. I do intend to get a lot more done on it this weekend, but it depends on how I feel really. Yesterday I just had an eye infection, today I'm bunged up. Obviously I'm not going to make my self-imposed two-week deadline for a new release, so sorry about that.

Anyway; 100 posts, yay... maybe I'll summon up more enthusiasm later for ya.

EDIT: Bollocks. This is post no. 99. See what colds do to your mental arithmetic? And ability to read??

Three times thanks

I've been a bit 'out of sorts' over the last few days, and it's affected the writing; I've slowed down substantially. I tell you this as preamble to something positive; weirdly, it's at times like these that I'm most thankful to three sets of people.

All beginning with 'C'.

First are the Clickers. To those of you who've ever clicked on an ad, thank you. I finally got paid this month. It wasn't much, and it took about six months to accrue I think, but it was something - and it felt symbolic. So thank you. I know it doesn't cost you anything and it doesn't take any time, but still, you did it. Ta.

Second are the Commenters, even if my dictionary says that isn't a word. I honestly cannot tell you how helpful it is to get a positive comment on my writing, whether it's here on the blog, in email or over on Maskingwriter. It literally gives me a reason to keep writing.

I have heard the old, old argument from writers that 'you should write because you want to', and sure, that's true. It's a hell of a lot easier to motivate yourself to write when you know someone out there is going to appreciate it. So if you've ever written an email, left a comment or posted a message reply - thank you. (Oh, and feel free to do so again.)

Third and final are my Collaborators. This is a very small and select group of people - I'd actually say, realistically, it's a pair of people. These two are brilliant sounding boards, great inspirations, honest critics and genuine cheering squads when I need it. They get me.

I appreciate every minute they spend with me, every email they read and every honest critique they give me. They've dramatically improved writing I've done, they've given me ideas that I've been proud to showcase, and they're as close to 'real friends' in this community as anyone. So V and M - you know who you are - cheers for that lads. Maybe one day I'll buy both of you a real drink.

For now though, if you fall into any of those categories (and I hope you do), thank you.

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #16

Arriving in another dimension to hunt the Chameleon, Betty Brant found herself powerless... but luckily, she also found the protection of Gotham City's dynamic duo, Batman and Batgirl. After attending a charity ball as Bruce Wayne's date, Betty was seduced by Bruce when he appeared inside her bedroom, thanks to a secret passageway. Meanwhile, the Chameleon is working with Two-Face, by first impersonating Batgirl, and now Catwoman. Little does the Chameleon know, Two-Face intends to betray his partner in crime....

Issue #16: The Shadow of the Bat

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The Chameleon's nefarious plans start to become a little more apparent, as Betty and Barbara get close, and Betty and Batman get even closer...! As always, if you enjoy this issue - please click an ad in the right hand column, and keep me in the expensive frothy coffee that allows these things to happen!

So much for getting ahead of myself, eh? Not a word of issue 17 is written, thanks to various other commitments... but I wanted to keep my promise and release this on time. Hope you all enjoy, and as always, comments are welcome either here, in email, or on Maskingwriter. Enjoy!

Writing means no social life

... and conversely, a social life means no writing.

Monday, admittedly, I was home - but playing Xbox all night. Damn.

Tuesday, a trip to the theatre to see a fantastic version of Strangers on a Train.

Wednesday, a trip to the movies to see No Country for Old Men - not as good as Tuesday, but good.

As such, no writing since... Monday morning, maybe? As a result, a certain part of my brain's starting to get itchy through lack of use.

You see? I knew I wouldn't get that ahead of myself.

When you're in the groove...

... well, you're just in it, I guess.

Issue 16 is at 11,303 words right now, and I added 4,009 of them today. Even while I made time to go to the movies, hang out with friends and cook dinner. Woo! I rock! Ahem.

What's scary / cool is that every one of those 4,009 words is for one scene - one unfinished scene. You'll be glad to know it's a transformation scene. Although it's not what you're thinking... I expect.

So that's the good news. As soon as this scene is done, the issue is wrapped bar the editing, the fiddly document creating, the uploading etc etc yada yada. However, here's the bad news. I won't be posting it until next weekend at least.

Why? Because, despite the fact to my utter astonishment I seem to have finished an issue in five days, I want to keep to this bi-weekly schedule, roughly. If I keep motoring along like this (touch wood) then I'll have issue 17 practically done by the time I post 16. In other words, I want to keep on runnin' and get ahead of myself.

Am I being a tease? Possibly. Is this a sensible tactic from where I'm sitting? Probably. Anyway, for the record, I like this issue better than last... although I have a feeling 'your mileage may vary'.

Great way to finish the weekend, though.

Getting jiggly

The cold's not bad enough to keep me away from the keyboard, but it is bunging my head up and slowing the writing down.

It's also making it harder to plot, and that's unfortunate as I've been jiggling scenes around, adding a couple and generally playing fast 'n' loose with things. This means issue 16 has expanded (in outline, anyway) and I have this nagging feeling the whole of Crossover won't be done until issue 19, perhaps. We'll see.

Also this morning, with some new capturing software, I grabbed and edited a clip together that probably had about as big an impact on the young GW as Betty Brant-as-Spider-Girl did. Ladies and gents, Nicholas Hammond as Spider-Man....

Attack of the Killer Bs

I remember reading some 'advice for writers' somewhere which said that if at all possible, you should try and avoid giving characters the same name - which is generally easy enough to do - and preferably, don't even use the same initial. That's because as we read, we tend to skim names after a while, just recognising the 'shape' of the word. Two many characters with the same initial first letter and people get confused.

Heck, I'm writing the damn series and I get confused when I've got Bruce, Betty, Barbara, Batman and Batgirl to deal with. How are you handling it??

Thanks to each and every one of you who's commented about issue 15 - I really, really appreciate it. I didn't actually think that parts of it were my best (and that last scene I practically had to force myself to finish, for some reason) but I'm very glad you folks dug it.

Now back to issue 16 - about 3K in right now, and I just expanded it with a couple of new 'beats' which I think will be fun. Still hoping to bring it in under 10K, but we'll see. I don't want to make 13K sized issues a habit....

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #15

On the trail of the Chameleon, Betty Brant has travelled to another dimension and landed in Gotham City, home to the vigilante crimefighters, Batman and Batgirl. They too are seeking the master of disguise, although they know him as False Face. The Chameleon meanwhile has allied himself with former district attorney Harvey Dent, AKA Two-Face. None of this concerns Betty Brant right now though, as at Bruce Wayne's invitation, she has a ball to attend as his disguised guest...

Issue #15: The Brave and the Bold

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Betty's 'new life' in Gotham City continues to have some interesting twists and turns. What exactly does being Bruce Wayne's date feel like? What is the Chameleon's plan? What secrets does Wayne Manor hold? All these questions and more may be answered in this issue....

As always, if you have enjoyed this or any other issue of Spider-Girl, please click on an ad in the right-hand column for me. Who knows, one day I may even get paid for this gig!

On to a two-week schedule (just) with this issue - wish me luck to continue on it... this is actually the biggest ever issue of the series, although I didn't set out for that to be the case... guess I just got carried away especially at the end. So settle in, get your favourite beverage and enjoy the story... and of course, please let me know what you think of it in the comments below or via email.

Writing projects update... January

So I think I might do these semi-regularly from now on... the first two got a lot of traffic. Hopefully not just from people who are basically not at all interested in Spider-Girl and are looking for other stuff....

Anyway for anyone who's not read one of these before, here's what I'm either thinking about, plotting or possibly even writing at the moment that I'm not talking about extensively. Everything gets assigned a letter, just to confuse me. There's no guarantee anything here will ever see the light of day, but if something catches your imagination... let me know.

Project T hasn't been worked on for a while (bear in mind before I came back to Spider-Girl recently, I hadn't worked on anything since September), but just so you know, it's at just under 50,000 words... and I think could well be double that when it's done. I basically think it's a novel, now. I won't be releasing it until it is done, either - with the exception of serial stuff like Spider-Girl, that has no fixed ending, I'm trying not to release parts of things if they're not finished. Just FYI.

Anyway, the writing of that has been a lot of fun. I got past a major, major scene a while back which had been in my head forever, and when it was down on paper I felt so close to it I couldn't even tell if it was any good. I sent it to an 'independent adjudicator' and I'm happy to report he gave it a glowing report card. So hey, I know at least one part of it is good.

As I've said before, but just for the record, this is a male-to-female story involving bodysuits.

Other stuff I've actually written words for; several years ago Victor and I sort-of collaborated on a story I called Housesitting, which we never finished, although I have about 12,500 words of it done. Frankly I was never that happy with the plot that we came up with, and yesterday I finally re-plotted the whole thing (hence my post on plotting).

I'm a lot happier with the potential for it now; it seems a lot sturdier to me, with some interesting interactions I've never written before. (For 'interactions' you can also read 'sex' if you like.) I can see myself tapping away at this for a bit and seeing how it goes. This is another male-to-female story, but more traditional - a kid imitating his mother using a mask.

I mentioned Love Hotel before... I will finish this one day, but honestly I've got to be in the right mood. What's written of it was done in 2001 in a hotel on a business trip... perhaps the next time I'm alone in a foreign clime with time on my hands I'll get it done. (And I do have a potential trip in the first half of this year....) I'd like to tell you what it involves, but it'd spoil the surprises....

Father Knows Best, some of you will remember I'm sure. (Three parts were released a few years ago, but I never finished it - dammit.) I really want to finish this but I still don't know what the hell the ending is. It might just need a complete re-plotting session, like Housesitting... I'll try and do that, we'll see what I come up with.

Moving on to stuff that's plotted, or semi-plotted, but not written at all... I have a complete outline for what should in theory be a 'short' but knowing me it won't be! Lemme see... I guess that would be Project A, but I know that'll confuse me so let's just give it a working title - Anita. Believe it or not this is a female-to-male story, with some other stuff I won't spoil. Any interest?

What else, jeez... I guess there's Project TNG, which is long, has a very complex plot and would be a huge challenge to write, as previously mentioned. I still don't have an ending for that damn thing so it'll probably stay untouched until I figure that out. It's primarily female-to-female, but has female-to-male stuff in there too.

I mentioned something called Project B before, and just to allow you to connect the dots, that's actually The Babysitter (a working title) which I talked about the inspiration for a little while back. So re-read that post and imagine if you like. (Or even better, suggest your 'Holy cow, my babysitter is actually a masked hottie' fantasies to me and give me some material.)

Project TSL is my serial story, the one inspired by The Black Widow. I do want to do this, but plotting it is actually a lot harder than expected. I will get to it, but the plot needs to be totally done, and I'd be writing it in either 9 or 13 parts, so that's quite a lot of plot. Wait and see.

And finally... Project AC isn't dead, but it sure isn't very alive either. Frankly I can't see myself working on it until Spider-Girl is done... so that's a loooong way away. But never say never. Project G... uhh, we should probably forget about that. It'd be huge, and it's an idea without a story, really, and would need researching and... life's too short.

That's it. If you want to see any other post where I talk about these projects, then helpfully, they're all filed under 'projects'.

Hollywood messes with perfection - again

Why are you so damn arrogant, Hollywood? Why can't you see that sometimes, something is right, and you don't need to change it?

Something like - ooh, say - Black Canary's costume?


On the left: a fan-created costume by the brilliant cosplayers at Gotham Public Works. On the right, a changed-for-no-good-reason costume for the presumably big budget Smallville.

I mean seriously - if you say 'Black Canary' you think 'long blonde hair' (and if you're me, 'long blonde wig') and 'fishnets'. (Yes, I admit they got that bit right.) But you sure as hell don't think 'Stupid domino mask apparently applied using mascara' or 'Short blonde buzzcut'.

Why Hollywood, why? When you were so damn close? Sheesh.

More fugly pictures are at Comics Continuum, if you want to see - the episode, 'Siren', airs in the US on February 7th, and will be at your favourite 'torrent site shortly after.

Finished, and boy did that hurt.

Another issue done. Well, 'done' in the sense that all the words I wanted to put into it (13,059 of them, as it happens) are in it. That said, I haven't re-read it yet for sense or coherency. So sorry, faithful reader - no release today. But soon. By Tuesday, so I can say I'm on bi-weekly schedule, kind of.

As you might have guessed from the post title, this one took a while to finish. For some reason the last scene, a scene that would normally be gravy (a transformation) just took forever to do. I'm not entirely sure why. It might be because I was trying to give it a sense of importance that it didn't deserve. That's kind of hard to gauge though; after all, the transformation bits are generally why you're reading, so I'd imagine your reaction is probably "How could it not be important?"

Eh, I guess the point is when you feel like you've written this sort of thing every single different way you can think of, some days you just want to write "Then they got changed into a different outfit and went on their way". It's not as if I have actors or actresses in front of me giving me visual stimulation... instead it's all in my head, and I've got to make them do interesting things. Otherwise they just sit around with blank looks.

Anyway, it is done, and in the last few lines I threw a wrench in my own plot because I thought it'd be fun. We'll see... Future Ghostly might end up cursing my present self. (See what I meant about foreshadowing and plotting?)

Right. I feel like rambling on, so I think I'll go shoot some posts into the future to make it look like I never leave the keyboard. Thanks for all the recent comments by the way people; I appreciate it a hell of a lot, especially when I'm forcing myself to try and write one more line.

The problems with plotting

I like to plot, but simultaneously, I hate to plot. Let me try and explain.

Before I embark on any long piece of writing - erm, which will be all of them, I guess - I like to try and get some sort of plot written down. That way I have some sort of idea where things are going. Essentially, it's an insurance policy. If I'm sitting at the keyboard wondering where to go next, I can look at the plot and go "Okay, that's the objective - now I just have to get there".

This is especially important in serialised fiction (ie Spider-Girl), as if you have no idea where things might be going to, you can't throw in clues or foreshadowing - and believe me, I like to do that where I can. I also really, really want internal consistency in any series; the world needs to make sense, even if it's a fantastic one, and there needs to be continuity. (That I can later retcon. Joke for the comics fans.)

Having said this, in the process of writing, I frequently go off-plot. In other words, the plot changes as I write it, usually because I have some sort of brainwave that is just too good to ignore. When that happens I usually end up re-writing my plot notes to accommodate the idea, just so I can basically tell myself the story and make sure it all makes sense. (Believe me, it often doesn't. I've rewritten the plot for the Spider-Girl Crossover arc about five times since the first draft. Looking at those original notes, there are plot holes big enough to drive a truck through.)

So I like to have the roadmap, I like to have the plot written down. It can be nightmarish to actually create that plot though, hence my hating to plot, too. Sometimes I will just not have any idea where the plot needs to go, or worse, I have an idea but it just seems too lame for words. Even worse than that, sometimes I have a plot and it's written down and... it still sucks.

This is the worse situation a still-to-be-written story can find itself in, because honestly, once I have the skeleton of a plot down I find it hard to throw that away. Why? Because the process is so tough. Believe it or not, getting ideas is easy (Especially in this 'genre' where essentially all I'm doing is writing down fantasies...). It's having those ideas make sense, and putting them into a story where the characters act in a (reasonably) believable manner, that's the hard part.

Sometimes, the really damn hard part. This is what leads to having loads of half-finished stories, or stories that are plotted but aren't written. In the former case, I usually haven't plotted to the conclusion in a way I like. The latter, I don't like the plot enough to write it - or I haven't plotted to the end, either.

Like opposable thumbs being what separates man from animal, I think plotting is what separates 'erotic fiction' from just 'porn'. While I often jokingly refer to my writing as porn (Hey there, Mr. High Self-Esteem!) in reality it's just fiction... that happens to be erotic in a very specific way. Whereas your average porn movie has zero plot (unless you call 'will the studly handyman fix the broken appliance' a plot) I like to think that everything I write has a definite plot, hopefully with decent dramatic tension, some character development and yeah, plenty of eroticism.

And that, I hope, is why it's worth reading what I write. That and you getting off, naturally. (Just couldn't exit without a dick joke, could I....)

Rollin', rollin', rollin'

... rollin' rollin' rollin'... rollin' right along on Spider-Girl issue 15, which is juuuuust shy of 10,000 words in another window right now. I've got one more scene to write. It's a doozy (or should be), but I'm waiting for inspiration to strike.

Incidentally, I am very much of the school of thought these days that writing is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. However, when it comes to writing essentially the same thing over and over in slightly different ways, that 1% becomes pretty darn precious. That one thing being masking or unmasking scenes.

Don't get me wrong - I like doing them (and oddly enough, I like the challenge of trying to make 'em different) but still. It can be tough. This one will come, I just thought while I was sitting here in front of the keyboard, might as well say 'hi'. So - hi! G'wan, say hi back.

Cutting

I'm about 3,000 into Spider-Girl 15, but for the last couple of days I haven't been that happy with the way the current scene is playing out. I made a decision just a second ago to rewrite, but that means losing a fair chunk of it - and then I figured I'd just share a paragraph I'm cutting.

Looking around, she saw one of the guards coming back toward her as he made a circuit. Slowly, she crossed her legs, lifting them up so that her hemline slid down, revealing more of her stockings and even a touch of garter. Sure enough, the guard noticed, slowing down to look at her. With her mouth taped, Betty had to make her eyes do most of the work; she gave him her best come-hither stare, and come hither he did. He stopped right in front of her as she uncrossed her legs then re-crossed them, surprising herself at how good the stockings felt. The guard leaned down towards her, putting one hand on her leg, sliding it up the fabric.

Like I said, it's cut... don't worry, there will be plenty of stuff to compensate.

Bugger-all feedback on issue 14, by the way. What, did everyone hate the Dynamic Duo?

If we were casting...

... this would be my Gwen Stacy. I literally based my description of Betty-as-Gwen on imagery of this lovely woman, so if I had a billion dollars... she'd be on the casting couch. Ahem. Doubt she can act, but hey, she looks the part.

The image is a preview of www.only-secretaries.com, the latest site behind the guys who run OnlyTease.com, which I highly recommend if (in their words) you prefer erotic, not extreme. Well hey, we can't read all of our erotica, right....

New release: Spider-Girl, issue #14

When the master of disguise known as the Chameleon was judged to be the greatest threat to her double identity, Spider-Girl enlisted the Fantastic Four to banish him to another dimension. Now, having discovered the Chameleon is still causing havoc, Spider-Girl has crossed dimensions to track him down...

Issue #14: Gotham Nights

Download from Maskingwriter (Yahoo! Group)

At last... Crossover begins! Spider-Girl has arrived in Gotham City, and she doesn't exactly get a warm welcome from the natives... but there are crimefighters in this world, too.

As always, if you have enjoyed this or any other issue of Spider-Girl, please click on an ad in the right-hand column for me. You'll feel better, and I guarantee you'll go to masking heaven.

I know it's been a real long while between issues but please, do tell me what you think. I was considerably creaky starting this one, so don't expect my best work, but I do like the way it turned out. Anyway; comments are always welcome, especially speculation and your ideas for how the story might go in future!

Self-indulgent nostalgic rambling

Can you remember the earliest times you felt - ahem - stirred by the prospect of masks or disguises?

I'm sure we all have a story (unless you just wandered onto this page by accident, in which case, seeya later), and for a lot of us it might involve Mission: Impossible or similar. That's a common touchstone, but I bet all of us have our own unique memories. If you're anything like me, those memories haven't faded too badly over the years, even though your original source may have long disappeared.

One of my earliest ones was of course the primary inspiration behind the Spider-Girl series - a single panel, really, of Betty Brant pulling on her mask. Don't know why, but that sure as hell got me. I also carried with me, for years, another turn-on from about the same time. I could see the image as clearly as anything in my mind's eye, and I knew the story it came from. That'd be this image here:

That there is a corner of a front cover to Eagle comic, dated 22nd January 1983. I know this because I have a copy sitting next to me, lent to me by a friend (who, of course, has no idea that I asked to borrow his entire collection of vintage Eagle comics, in part, just so I could find this particular issue). Given that issue's cover date, I would have been 10 years old when that issue hit the stands.

Well, now I know about when adolescent hormones started for Young GW.

That image drove me crazy, particularly when I read the story inside. Invisible Boy was a series where the kid in question ('Tim', who looked quite a bit like how 10-year old Ghostly Writer saw himself) could, erm, turn invisible. So far so dull. But of course while the comic story dealt with 'interesting' situations like Tim helping out refugees and stopping crimes, in reality what hormone-plagued boys like me wanted to see was Invisible Boy doing what any normal kid would do... sneak around and see girls naked.

Any normal kid. I wasn't normal, as we all know by now.

What Young GW wanted to see was girls in disguises. I'd already developed strange feelings after watching Mission: Impossible's Lynda Day George... and we all know how that Betty Brant crush manifested itself (admittedly, about 17 years later). So when my eyes clapped on that image on the front of that issue, you'd better believe I flipped straight to the Invisible Boy story.

It's not like it's Shakespeare, and no, I won't send you scouring the Internet to find some obscure 'torrent file so we can all read it. (Although if I had a scanner and not a crappy iSight camera, I'd share.) Basically Tim's single scientist of a father gets a new housekeeper... and of course as we all know from that spoiler of an image, said housekeeper is actually a gorgeous blonde in disguise. Or as Tim puts it:

"She's like some Hollywood film star!"

Yeah, emphasis on the word 'like' there, Tim. Still, she was blonde and kinda cute - but more importantly, she had just pulled off a wig and glasses! For Young GW, this meant she was a mistress of disguise, and hence a sex goddess. I would not be argued with, even if we all went back in time and tried.

Over the next three weeks my little adolescent heart went pitter-patter as I picked up each issue, hoping to see 'Miss Martin' transform herself for some obscure reason. I didn't get my wish, although I did get these two panels:

"Tim could imagine it so clearly..."

... and fairly obviously, so could little ol' me. So much so in fact, that the image above of 'Miss Martin' pulling off her wig stuck in my brain for 24 years... and in case you were wondering, here's where all this becomes relevant to our supposed topic...

... that image has inspired the plot of a potential story called, right now, The Babysitter. I think you can imagine where it might go.

And that, my friends, is what you call a tease.

Finished an ish. Maybe.

Might have just finished Spider-Girl 14. Not sure. Gonna sleep on it. Unsure whether the scene break I just came to is a good issue break, or whether I should go on a little further... but then, it's over 10,000 words (just) and I'm thinking the next natural break is several thousand words away.

Hence: may have just finished the issue.

Had a lovely "Oh, wait, wait WAIT - this would be SO MUCH BETTER if I did it this way" moment earlier, right in the middle of a scene which I already had completed in my head. The change was so blindingly obvious, but at the same time led so naturally to some other stuff that I want to do, that I just had to make it. It's funny (Well, to me) but I was so excited I wrote the 'revelation' down underneath the text as I typed, as if I was going to forget it. Not likely. Still, three words can change a lot of stuff, especially when those words are '[CENSORED] AS [CENSORED]!!'

(You didn't think I was going to spoil it, did you? Especially when the payoff isn't going to happen until issue 15... at least. I'm not that cruel.)

I have to say, these are the bits you live for as a writer - or at least I do. Not the moments when the characters 'talk to you' (because I don't feel they do; wanky as it sounds, I feel like they just talk, I listen and transcribe) but when the character's actions suddenly skew the plot in a new and altogether better direction than the way you were already travelling. That's when you give thanks to The Muse.

Well, I am knackered, as we say in England; I think I've written over 7,000 words of this issue in the last couple of days. Don't get too excited yet but I think the groove may be back. Shhhh! I said don't get excited....

PS I am writing, honest

Yeah, been working on Spider-Girl issue 14 today.

It's going kind of slow - the plot's mutating, so I am re-plotting it on the fly, but it's mutated in good ways, I hope. Need to get back into the brain-space I was in when I was writing it steadily.

But it is going.

Tale of a torrent

I love the internet.

Since I last posted, the very helpful (and obviously, smarter than I am because he thought of this, and I didn't) Zam Wessel 69 posted to several Yahoo! Groups that would probably be 'in simpatico' with my desire to see the unexpurgated version of The Black Widow. He basically said the same thing as me - man your 'torrent clients.

While it'd be nice to say that overnight that resulted in the 1.69Gb of data I need whisking down my 'pipes', what it has done is set up a small group - an elite 'cadre' if you like - of peers, all of whom are patiently waiting to get that damn file. And as we all know, the more we share, the more we get.

Unfortunately as none of us has a complete copy of the file, for quite a while we all just sat there with 0% to show for our trouble. Then, randomly, someone somewhere starts seeding, and there's a flurry of downloads as we all share the new pieces. Then it stops. Then it'll start again.

Since this morning, when I started at 0% downloaded, we've moved up to... wait for it... 1.41%! Or 24.3Mb. About, ooh, 15% of one episode of this 13-chapter serial. So, we've got a way to go.

What I've found weirdly heartening though, is to look at my peers list and think "Hey, all the people I can see here want the same thing I do. I bet they're all masking fans." I bet you are, too, because yesterday before I posted it was just me and one other guy (apparently) in the world after the same file. Now there's 19 of us, on average.

So I say to you: hang in there, people. It'll be worth it. (I hope.) And it's lovely to be downloading beside you.

Oh, and considering when I searched for '"the black widow" republic serial torrent' on Google yesterday my posting came up on page 1, if you came here looking for the torrent, it's over here - and please, if you've got the file, seed.

Altogether now... torrent!

Hey guys and maybe even gals... remember these?



Those there are the only clips I've ever seen of The Black Widow, a very hard to find 1947 Republic serial which, in case you haven't bothered to watch the clips above, features quite a bit of female masking.

I've been jones-ing to write a 'serial style story' for quite a while now, with these clips inspiring me to do so. I've even gotten to the point of starting to plot it (harder than it looks, those cliffhangers every episode).

Anyway, all this time I've really, really wanted to see the original serial so I could get some more inspiration, and hopefully see a few more disguise or impersonation sequences! Unfortunately the serial wasn't exactly a landmark, so it's only been available on VHS and hasn't had a DVD release...

... but that doesn't stop the Internet. Some wonderful kind person, understanding my bizarre need to watch old serials that cater to my 'special' fetish, has encoded all 13 chapters of The Black Widow and made a 'torrent for them. You can grab it right here.

(Before I go any further, if you don't know what a 'torrent' is, or what BitTorrent is, go find out. Then come back.)

So why do I tell you all this? Well apart from the fact that you too could now see this serial, the simple fact is... if you download the 'torrent too, then we all get the serial faster. That's how it works. (Sort of.)

So help my inspiration! Download that torrent and let's seed this sucker!

Looking for: Grey Orchid

This'll be short and sweet. I'm trying to track down the Grey Orchid, a writer who's done some excellent mask-related fiction in the past.

I had some excellent conversations with him via email in 2007, but despite several 'Where are you?' emails I've not heard from him since last May.

If anyone knows where he is - or better, if he's reading - get in touch. Ghostly Writer at G mail dot com is the email, except written... you know... like an email address.

Happy New Year's Resolutions

For those of you following the Western calendar, anyway. First day of 2008. We're living in the future, I tell you. Flying cars just around the corner.

So I've been gone for a while again, but rest assured I've been thinking of you (and replying to the odd comment, and email). It's funny, I realised yesterday that while I scour YouTube and Yahoo! Groups for the occasional masking-related bit, then get all bitter and upset that no-one's doing anything, at the same time... I'm not doing much of anything myself. Which seems a bit two-faced, if you'll excuse the pun.

New Year's Day is a very good time to look at that sort of thing and wonder if you can't make a change. So here I am, looking at it.

In the past couple of days I've dug through Google Docs, and a few other spots on my hard drive, checking out unfinished work. I have a lot of it. (Not all of it has seen the light of day, either.) I'm sure a lot of writers have similar issues, and many more 'wannabe' writers (which I still classify myself as, really) but I doubt many of them have the same issue... which is that often these stories are left unfinished by me because they served their purpose. In other words, they got me excited, and that was that.

Bugs me, though.

Sure, there are some stories that haven't been finished because I can't figure out how to finish them, or more likely, I don't have an ending that I'm happy with. (Father Knows Best is a large, irksome example of this. Part 4 has an ending. I'm just not sure it's the one I want.) There are others which I abandoned because I just decided the idea wasn't worth spit anyway, or that basically I didn't want to write that any more.

Truth is though, if I get right down and look at it, many if not most of these things I could finish... I just choose not to. I was looking at a couple of particular things in the last couple of days thinking "Might be fun to finish that". So that's why my New Year's Resolution - as regards 'this field', anyway - is...

... finish more stuff.

Oh, and I think I might ask for your help in that. So stay tuned.