Friday, 19 October 2012

How I Became A Published Writer



I never wanted to be a comic book writer.  Yep, a bold statement for someone who’s only published work is in the comic book medium, but it’s the truth.  Despite the fact that I had been reading comics on and off for years, through the odd graphic novel purchase or book from the library, and began reading regular issues a few years ago it never once occurred to me to merge my love of writing with my passion for comic books.

Let’s go back to the beginning before I explain any further.  I wasn’t the best reader when I was a child.  I struggled with some of the most basic reading and writing and had to have help through primary school and into the start of my secondary education.  Despite this, I always loved stories.  I would find ways of loosing myself in fiction outside of reading.  I would watch television and films over and over again, create elaborate games with my friends and spent a great deal of time day dreaming.  It wasn’t until I was in my teens that my passion for reading took over and I expanded my horizons.

Then I met Anthony Nunan.  He was a new teacher at my secondary school who’d travelled to England for a year from Australia.  Despite the fact that he was teaching Mathematics I soon discovered that he was a published writer and I was lucky enough to be able to read his books.

The books of Anthony Nunan
I was impressed by Anthony’s work, he was the first author I’d ever met and my mind was racing with questions about how he did what he did, how he created such rounded characters and developed intricate plots.  I wanted to know how someone could create something that could bring people so much pleasure and entertainment.

Anthony was happy to answer as many of my questions as I could fire at him, and even began to encourage me to try my hand at writing myself.  With his help I took a basic idea for a plot and characters and developed it, advising me on structure of plot, character development and dialogue.  He took me under his wing and guided me towards the career I wanted, because of him I knew that I wanted to be a writer, that I wanted to tell stories.

Over the next few years I kept at my writing, with short stories, poetry and full length manuscripts, though none of them were ever published.  I wrote because I could, because I needed to, to get the stories out of my head and onto paper, even if there was none to read them.

Then I met Hal Laren.  Hal was an aspiring comic book artist and writer who had started his own publishing company, Reaper Comics.  Initially I met Hal through a friend, and after finding out we were both something of geeks we developed a friendship.  Over the next year I learnt of his comic work and read the first volume of his comic series ‘Bex’.

Hal Laren at London Film and Comic Con 2009

Hal, knowing that I wanted to become a writer came to me and asked me if I would like the chance of writing the second volume of the ‘Bex’ series.  Hal, you see, loved producing the art on the book, but no longer wanted to write the series.  He had a great idea for the sequel, but wanted to bring someone else onto the project who could bring a fresh perspective to the book.

After meeting with Hal and listening to his ideas for the sequel I jumped at the opportunity to write the book.  The plot was intriguing, and the hero of the book, Rebecca, had so much potential in her that I wanted to explore.  So with the basic idea of the plot in my mind I set to work in creating the book.

I broke down the main beats of the plot that Hal had given me and began expanding upon them, creating the ‘flesh’ of the story around the bare bones that I began with.  Over the course of the next month I would write and re-write the book, meeting with Hal and bouncing ideas off him.  Eventually the script was complete, handed over to Hal to produce the art for the book.

I wish I could say that the next step was smooth, that I just waited for the completed pages to come in, that they were all perfect and that everything was fine, but I can’t.  During the early days of the art on the book Hal and I butted heads a few times over the artistic direction of the book and certain designs.  I knew that this was Hal’s book, that these characters were his creations and as such he was completely in his right to want to do things a certain way, but as the writer of the book I had a certain vision in mind for what should end up on the page.

Several discussions were had between the two of us and compromises were made on both sides until the final product was produced.  With the first issue of volume two, ‘Bex: Remnants of Life’, in hand we proceeded to release the book at London Film and Comic Con in 2010.  We produced three covers for the show, including a convention exclusive that led to a great deal of publicity for Hal and myself by the organisers of the convention.

Hal at the new and improved Reaper Comics stand at London Film and Comic Con.

Our first convention went amazingly and we completely sold out of every copy of Bex we had.  I spent the weekend signing books, meeting celebrities, comic book fans and I even got to have a great talk about writing comics with Greg Rucka!  All in all it was a wonderful weekend that ended too soon.
                 
Since that first show Hal and myself have produced the other four issues of the comic and since the collected graphic novel.  Despite the ups and downs of the production of the book and the stress involved, the experience was amazing, and when Hal offered to let me continue the Bex series I snapped up the opportunity.  
The collected volume of 'Bex: Remnants of Life'

Reaper Comics are currently producing other titles, and as such I cannot say for certain when the third volume of Bex will be produced, though I can promise that the story is going to be worthy of the character and take the series in a whole new and interesting direction.  But before I had the chance to start working on the third volume of Bex Hal had me go back to the first volume that he produced and re-write it, to bring it into line with the rest of the series and my vision for its future.  But that’s a story for another blog…

Amy.
xx

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Wednesday, 10 October 2012

Resident Evil 6 Review



I’m a big fan of Resident Evil, the first game was literally the first game I played on the original Playstation, and Resident Evil 2 went straight in after I finished the first.  Since those first moments walking through the halls of the Spencer Estate I was hooked, and have since made the time and effort to play each of the other titles released since.

When Resident Evil 6 was announced at the start of the year I was over the moon with excitement, after all it had been almost three years since we’ve had a numbered instalment in the Resident Evil franchise.

As time progressed and more information was being teasingly released about the game my excitement grew and grew.  Chris Redfield and Leon Kennedy in a game together!  We’ve been used to having more than one playable character in a Resident Evil title, with only a few exceptions to this rule, but this was the first time the two iconic male leads of the series would be together in one place.  Add to the fact that two characters are at odds with each other and the excitement level just grew and grew!

Before I knew it the release date was upon me and I had the game in my hands.  I excitedly opened the cellophane and threw the disc into my Xbox and was shooting zombies in no time.  As the game progressed I found myself having a great time, and was wondering how it had received such mixed reviews.  But then I began to feel it, a small niggling feeling at the back of my mind that something wasn’t quite right with the game.

As I progressed further through Leon’s campaign, and moved onto Chris’s the feeling grew.  It began to feel like Capcom were trying to throw everything they have had before into one game.  One minute there would be tense horror, then all out action, then a quick time event.  So much happens to the characters that after a while I began to feel a little desensitised by the whole experience.  Hell, Leon experience a bus falling off a cliff, a jumbo jet crashing into a city, a train falling off a bridge and a helicopter crashing into a building.  And that’s without any of the zombies or monsters!



Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot in this game to enjoy, and I’m replaying it still even now and loving the experience, and Jake is a great addition to the series and his campaign the one I enjoyed the most.  I think that this game is very much worthy of its praise, but also just as deserving of it’s criticism.  It is a game that will enthral and infuriate, but at it’s heart it’s still a Resident Evil game, and embraces all of the aspects of its varies history from horror and suspense to action and awe.

A great game that is well worth the time it takes to sit down and play through all four of the scenarios, especially if you are a fan of the series.  And let’s be honest, even the worst Resident Evil game is better than the best Paul Anderson Resi movie!

Amy.
xx

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Friday, 28 September 2012

Hero 9 to 5 Review

It’s an interesting story as to how I came across reading this independent graphic novel ‘Hero 9 to 5’.  I have met the books writer, Ian Sharman, at a number of comic conventions over the last few years and spoken to him about his work, yet I never had the opportunity to actually pick up his books and read them. 

One of my close friends, who is also a friend of Ian’s quite often tells me of Ian political views and the fact that he is a feminist.  Then he shows me this image that Ian posted on his Facebook page:


I have to admit my initial reaction to this image was ‘what the f**k?!’  I thought, here is a man who is trying to improve the comics industry for women and he produces a piece of work that depicts women like that?  I was so astounded at this that I added Ian on Facebook and outlined how I felt about this image.  This led to a long discussion between Ian and myself, with him defending the content of his work and me trying to indicate how that image could be seen as offensive.  After going back and forth for a while Ian sent me a copy of Hero 9 to 5 so that I could read it and see the internal content for myself.

So I read the book, and here are my thoughts on the book.




Hero 9 to 5 follows the super hero Flame-O, who works for Heroes 4 Zeroes, a company that provides hero protection for people that cannot afford cover from more expensive and more competent heroes.  The four issues contained within the graphic novel follows Flame-O and his friends at Heroes 4 Zeroes as they go from men and women working a job to actual heroes who stand up for what they believe in because they choose to rather than because they’re being paid.

Whilst I like this initial setup, of a world where heroes are just another emergency service, and that if you don’t have insurance you get the crappy guys, the fact that it is written as a parody takes a lot away from the enjoyment for me.  I believe that if this concept was written as a straight book then it could have been much better.  As it is there are many silly jokes and comments that are supposed to make fun of super hero comics, but for me just come across as un-humorous and their for the sake of it.


The plot seems to jump all over the place too, with one of the characters flip-flopping between good and evil almost every issue, with almost no explanation and no consequences for the characters.  Characters say and do things for the ‘comedy’ of a scene rather than for the plot or to build upon the characters themselves.  Yes, the book may be intended as a parody, but even the silliest comedy stems from something more than just being their for the hell of it.



There are some very interesting moments in the book, and the basis for more stories about these character where they can be given room to grow and mature, however not on volume one.  The book could have benefited from a larger page count, not to add more action or story, but for more characterisation, which as it stands often feels rushed and unrealistic.

If you are a fan of satire and silly comedy then pick up Hero 9 to 5 and give it a read as I’m sure you will enjoy it.  If you are a fan of super hero comics then yes, you too should give it a read, though be prepared for the fact that you may not like it.  This is a book that I believe you will either love or find ‘okay’ (love or hate is too strong a phrase to be used here as I don’t believe that there is anything here to truly hate).

In conclusion Hero 9 to 5 has an interesting concept and is written with great passion, and whilst it may or may not set your world on fire it is definitely worth the time to sit and read it.

Amy.
xx

Saturday, 22 September 2012

Coming Out



When I first figured out that I was trans it sent my world spinning.  For those reading this that have gone through the same thing I think you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about, the realisation that this was going on was almost too much to bear.  To help make sense of it I had to tell someone, I needed to vocalise what was going through my mind, to have someone question it just so that I could try to understand it myself.

The first person I told was a close friend of mine that I knew was a very understanding and open minded person, I guess it was my ‘safest’ choice of people to tell as I knew that he wouldn’t immediately freak out about it.  Thankfully my instincts were correct and he sat down with me, listened to what I had to say and asked questions, comforted me when I cried and just treated me like a normal person.

After that came one of the hardest tasks I had, I needed to try and tell my family.  I spent the next weeks trying to psych myself up to telling them.  I ran through dozens of different scenarios in my head, different way that I could tell them, how they might react.  Every time I saw them I would try and bring myself to telling them, and each and every time I couldn’t go through with it. 

I felt so much fear and apprehension about what the outcome might be that I just couldn’t find the strength I needed.  I don’t think that it recall helped me that I’d been reading about other people’s coming out experiences, and whilst some of them were good, a large portion of them can best be described as ‘troubled’.

Luckily for me the choice of telling my family was taken out of my hand when my mother confronted me one Sunday afternoon.  She knew that there was something wrong with me, something that I wanted to tell them and I guess that she’d had enough of me getting so close to telling them and then backing out.

It wasn’t the way that I wanted to tell her, outside my house in a parked car wasn’t the bet location, but at least I’d told her.  Now it was time for the reaction.  She kept herself calm and collected, she asked me to go and see my doctor, to make sure that I was one hundred percent sure before I did anything or told anyone else.

I did as my mother asked, I kept it to my self, I went to my doctor and I explored every option before I did anything else.  Eventually, after a few months counselling, y initial self diagnosis was confirmed, I was transsexual.  With this confirmation came another hurdle that I would have to cross, telling the other members of my family.

Initially I wanted to hold off on telling them; after all I’m still waiting to start hormones so why tell them so early on?  However, yet again the option to wait felt like it was taken out of my hands.  Months before I had told the management team at work about my situation in order to get time off for appointments and to explain why some days I was massively depressed whilst at work.  Unfortunately it turns out that one of the members of the management team wasn’t to have been trusted, and proceeded to gossip about me behind my back and even told another of the employees that I was trans.

With the information seemingly spreading on its own out of my control I found that I had to tell the rest of my family now.  I didn’t know exactly who knew now, who had gone and told others, the one thing I did know for sure is that I didn’t want my family to find out through anyone but me.  So now I was faced with a situation where I would have to tell them.

A few weeks ago, on one of my regular visits to see my family, I was presented with the opportunity to tell them.  I was in the kitchen with my mum and dad and my dad asked me how things were going, which kicked started my conversation with him.  However, even though I knew I had to tell him there and then I just couldn’t find the words.  Trying to vocalise what needed to be said was so hard for me.

Never being one to miss an opportunity to talk my dad jumped straight in during this pause and bombarded me with a myriad of questions, ‘you’re moving back in with us?’  ‘You’ve got someone pregnant?’  ‘You’ve got a new job?’  ‘You’re gay?’

Finally managing to get him to stop talking I told him in as easy a way as I could manage.  ‘I’m transgendered.’  After a moment of confusion my mother jumped in and explained it to him by referencing a documentary they had seen the previous week (thank you channel 4) and my dad understood what that now meant.  Then came is reaction.  I was prepared for the worse, for him to shout and scream, to tell me that he hated me or didn’t want me in the family anymore.  However, his actual reaction was one that I hadn’t imagined hearing.  ‘Oh, okay then.’

That was it.  After months and months of building this moment up in my head and going through every conceivable reaction I never imagined he would just say ‘Oh, okay then.’ If anything it felt like something of an anti climax!

So from there he proceeded to ask me a few questions, which I answered the best I could, and he was still okay with it.  He told me that no matter what I did, no matter who I was on the inside or the outside, I was still a part of the family, and nothing would ever change that.

Luckily during all of this my sister was listening in on our conversation, and as such I no longer needed to tell her and had got out of another gruelling coming out.  So that was it, I was done.  My immediate family now knew and they accepted me despite it all.

I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, despite the fact that there are still some people in my life I need to tell the three most important know, and they still love me.  It might sound like I’m bragging by continually stating that my family are okay with me, as I know not everyone is as lucky, but I can’t help it.  I love my family so much, and to know that I can put them through something like this and they’ll stand by me no matter what is amazing. 

I hope that anyone else who reads this and is going through the same situation is as lucky as I am.  Good luck to you all.

Amy.

Sunday, 26 August 2012

'One small step for man...'


I was shocked and stunned today when I logged onto the internet to find news reports of the death of Neil Armstrong.  What’s more is that I was shocked to find just how deeply affected by this news I was.  Neil Armstrong was one of those people that I have known about all of my life, yet have never really taken the time to think about, but now I suddenly find myself doing just that.

The word hero is thrown around a lot, given to people who, whilst they have done great things in their respective fields, are not people that I would consider a hero.  Neil Armstrong, however, does deserve this title.


Serving in the navy during the Korean War, and going on to become a test pilot during the fifties Armstrong was already a hugely brave man, doing things that most would run from.  Then he joined the space programme. 

I am going to be honest, space travel terrifies me.  The idea of being so close to nothingness, of infinite emptiness sounds utterly horrifying.  So many things could go wrong, there is no guarantee of safety.  To choose to go in to space takes so much courage that it baffles the mind.


With the eyes of the world upon him Neil Armstrong went on to make history, to make his name one that will live on forever.  There will never be a time when people don’t know who Neil Armstrong is, or does not know the immortal phrase ‘one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind’. 

Neil Armstrong went from a man to a legend, a symbol of human courage and endeavour.  His example shows the entire world that anything can be accomplished, that no goal is out of your reach. 

Thank you for your courage and your dedication, you will never be forgotten.  Neil Armstrong, August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012.

Amy.
xx

Monday, 20 August 2012

Amazing Spider-Man: Coming Home Review


'Coming Home' is the first volume of J Michael Straczynski's acclaimed Spider-Man run, and begins with a Peter Parker who has had his life turned upside when his wife, Mary Jane, leaves him.  Through the first few issues of the book we see how Peter tries to deal with the loss of his wife, about the difficulty he faces at moving out on his own away from MJ and his Aunt May and his struggle to find a new career path in life as a science teacher at his old high school. 

Though these stories are interesting and give us a great insight into Peter’s life, it is not the main focus of the book; instead Straczynski introduces a plot thread that shakes the fundamental premise of Spider-Man’s history to its very core with the introduction of another spider powered individual called Ezekiel who asks Peter an earth shattering question.  ‘Did the radiation enable the spider to give you these powers?  Or was the spider trying to give you these powers before the radiation killed it?’

Ezekiel goes on to explain about the powers of the animal totems and their roles throughout history, even attempting to explain away all of Peters animal themed villains as being attracted to the power of his spider totem.  Peter barely has time to wrap his head around this concept before he is hunted by an immortal named Morlun, who feeds on the powers of the animal totems.  And that is the main drive of this first volume of Straczynski’s run, Peter fighting against this ancient, nigh unstoppable foe.

 
Having a foe that doesn’t play by the normal conventions of comic book villains is a refreshing change, especially as he literally pushes Spidey to the edge of his limits.  Forced to fight for hours on end against a foe that can barely even feel his punches we see our hero brutally beaten to with an inch of his life.  Yet through it all he refuses to give in, to allow Morlun to go unchecked in his relentless destruction.

And that is what makes this a great book, if you take away the character growth you see in Peters personal life, or the shock revelation about his origin as Spider-Man and what you have is a book about what makes someone a hero, about their unbreakable will to do what is right, to keep fighting for what is right no matter what the cost to them.  Never before have I seen the phrase ‘With great power must also come great responsibility’ better portrayed in a Spider-Man story.

‘Coming Home’ is a great read, with some beautiful art work by John Romita Jr., with a cliff-hanger ending that will have you desperate to read the next volume.

Tuesday, 14 August 2012

The Darkest Hour Review

The Darkest Hour is one of the latest in a long line of alien invasion/end of the world movies, but tries to do something more than many of the other films in this genre tend to do.  Shifting the focus of the story away from America to Moscow is a refreshing change, giving the audience a ravaged Russia, rather than the typically used New York or Los Angeles.

The alien invaders in The Darkest Hour are also something a little different.  It would have been easy for the film makers to create yet another reptilian alien or space robot from CGI, but instead choose to create an adversary that spends most of the film unseen. 

It is this element of an unseen foe that I feel the film does itself a disservice.  Whilst the survivors of the initial assault use the static given off by the aliens as an early warning system of their presence, illuminating bulbs and setting of mobile telephones, the potential for tense, creepy scenes feel oddly wasted.  The directors’ choice of action over suspense feels like an odd one, and the aliens’ uniqueness quickly looses its impact.



Following a group of survivors through the deserted streets of Moscow it quickly becomes a guessing game of what order the characters die in, and thanks to some very two dimensional characterisation it becomes easy to get it right. 

The latter half of the film changes pace and switches from survivors on the run into humanity fighting back against impossible odds.  I can’t help but feel that this happens too quickly to be credible, especially as the answer for survival comes from a crazy inventor who appears to have already been prepared for the surprise invasion of earth.  Along with an unconvincing romance subplot this creates an ending that feels overly rushed, and one that stick too close to Hollywood conventions to be considered original.

Despite this The Darkest Hour is an enjoyable enough film with an interesting alien menace and stunning death effects when the aliens attack.  With a running time of little over an hour and a half the film also doesn’t outstay its welcome.  So if you’re looking for a sci-fi film that doesn’t stray too far from convention, but has something new and interesting, The Darkest Hour is well worth a viewing.

Amy.

Friday, 10 August 2012

The Devil Inside Review


Found footage horror films seem to be all the rage at the moment, with almost every other horror film being a shaky, static-y hand held journey through dark corridors and nightmarish situations and The Devil Inside sticks pretty closely to this pre-established formula.

The story follows Isabella Rossi, young woman who’s mother killed three members of the church during an exorcism in nineteen eighty nine.  Fast forward twenty years later and Isabella, along with camera man Michael, embark on a journey to investigate the truth behind what happened with Isabella’s mother and investigate her claims of demonic possession.

Travelling to Rome Isabella and Michael team up with a pair of priests specialising in exorcisms, exorcisms that the Vatican does not approve of.  Together the four of them enter the mental institution where Isabella’s mother is being held to perform a sneaky exorcism, opening the door for all of the horrors to begin.


Whilst I initially found the film to be an interesting take on the found footage genre, with its documentary feel and investigation of demonic possession versus mental illness towards the end it quickly began to descend into a by-the-numbers horror affair, running around in the dark, shaking the camera and lots of screaming.

The Devil Inside had the potential to do things different and make an interesting and unique film, but instead chose to stick to a standard formula.  Whilst some may consider this playing safe I found that the film did not benefit from this.  Coupled with an ending that I am sure most people will find rushed and disappointing the film feels like a missed opportunity, one that will be quickly forgotten.

Wednesday, 8 August 2012

Transgender Struggle


When I first told my mother that I was transgendered the first thing she was ‘so you want to be a girl?’  This might not seem like much, it may even seem like a sensible question, especially from a mother whose child is proposing such a monumental change in their life.  But for me, this will always stick in my mind and stand out for one reason, one word, ‘want’.

My mother is not the only person to use this word, everyone else who knows about my situation has used it in one way or another, from repeating my mothers comment to variations on it such as ‘you want a sex change?’  Want, what I want. 

One of the things that infuriates me the most is that people believe that this is something that I want, that I want to transition from male to female.  But it’s not, it’s a need.  There is this strong, uncontrollable need inside of me to be female.  It is almost hard to put into  words what it feels like, but unlike a ‘want’ this need is something that cannot be ignored, that won’t take no for an answer and doesn’t give me a single moment of peace.

Every moment of every day there is the knowledge that there is something so fundamentally wrong with me that it has changed my entire life.  Many days I find it hard to find the strength to leave the house, to just be outside around other people, especially women.  When I am alone I can almost forget that my mind and my body are at odds with each other and can just be me.  However, when I am around women it becomes a blaring siren inside my head.  ‘I’m wrong’, ‘I’m not normal’, ‘I don’t get to have my real life’.

This is what the people who know me do not understand, it never stops.  My friends have told me that I should try to ignore it as much as possible, to just try and be happy and forget about it.  One friend even complained that I let it get me down too much.  But how do you ignore something that bombards your very being every single second.  Not even my dreams are an escape from this hurt.  How do you ignore it even when your subconscious mind is telling you that you should be female?

So I pretend.  I put on a smile and hold my head high and act like there’s nothing wrong.  I watch TV, chat with my friends and do those things that everyone else does, all the while hoping that no one can tell that I’m dieing inside.  That it feels like my heart is being ripped to pieces every moment of the day.

For me the struggle is not the journey to becoming a woman, I’m not scared of taking hormones or having operations or anything like that.  The struggle is the wait, the time where nothing is happening.  How to I cope living a life that is a lie, a complete fabrication whilst time keeps on slipping past me?

I know that I’m not old, that twenty five is still young and that I have many, many years ahead of me, but I can’t help but think of those things I’ve already missed out on so far for the very simple reason of being born in the wrong body.  Having those girls’ toys when I was younger, practicing make-up with friends, or getting into clubs before you’re old enough and partying late into the night.

There are some many of these female ‘right of passages’ that I feel I’ve lost out on, that I’ll never have a chance to experience, and I’m scared of loosing more.  For me, that’s  the struggle, that’s the pain I have to live with, the thought that I’ve lost so much of my true life already, and the fear that I may never get to have it.

Amy.

Tuesday, 7 August 2012

Gearing up for series 7!



Two words that are guaranteed to make me giddy with excitement, Doctor Who.  With series seven of Doctor Who only a few months away I’ve been finding myself increasingly excited about the prospect of returning to the Tardis.

Originally introduced to the quirky, mad and downright brilliant time travelling alien when just a kid by my grandmother I was quickly captivated by the sheer brilliance of the show.  An alien genius that travels through time and space fighting monsters and aliens and villains wherever they may appear, accompanied by a trusted companion or two.  Who wouldn’t fall in love with that concept?

With the show having ended many years before I was open to the whole world of Who, with seven Doctors to capture my imagination.  Despite this, timing, and my grandmother’s love of one particular Doctor, meant that the only Doctor I ever saw whilst growing up was Jon Pertwee.



Everyone has ‘their Doctor’ and Pertwee was mine.  Flamboyant clothing, mad vehicles, the U.N.I.T. family and a mean right hook made Pertwee one of the most over the top and engaging heroes I had when I was young.

So in 2005 when the BBC announced a new series of Doctor Who I was over the moon.  And that first episode didn’t disappoint.  It gave me everything that I wanted and more.  And this continued week after week, year after year as the show progressed.  Looking back now I realise that not every episode was as great as I thought it was upon first viewing, some were weaker, some were stronger, but as a whole the new series lived up to its predecessor.

Then Steven Moffat took over as show runner, and things just got better.  Dialling down many of the ‘childish’ elements that had begun to take over during the Russell T. Davis era of the show and began to tell complex, adult stories that unfolded across entire series.  Many of the stories introduced by Moffat two years ago are still playing out to this day.

And now series seven is upon us, and we’ve got loads to look forward to.  The continuing mystery surrounding Doctor Who’s new big bad The Silence, more of the Doctor’s new family in River Song and the Ponds, and the big question the show is gearing towards ‘Doctor Who?’

With the 50th anniversary of the show only around the corner I can’t help but feel that these massive story lines and intricate mysteries and vague portents of things to come are all geared towards making the 50th anniversary a spectacle the likes of which Doctor Who has never seen before.
 
 
Doctor Who has been a triumph of British television that has captured the hearts and minds of people around the world for five decades, and hopefully will continue to do so for many, many more.  And whilst I love watching the show and reading the books I would love more than anything to be able contribute to such an amazing legacy, to be able to write for one of the greatest fictional characters of all time and be able to inspire the next generation of fans the way I was inspired all those years ago.

Amy.
xx

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