NaNoWriMo and Me

About 3 years ago I was introduced to NaNoWriMo, an event that has often been cause of many sleepless November nights as I balanced University projects and the challenge of writing 50,000 words of (often) incoherent mess. It’s great fun and I seriously recommend it to anyone with a bit of time on their hands or an idea they are itching to get onto paper – especially if you’ve never written before. Head over to the site now, sign up and get involved. Unfortunately this year I will not be joining in.

Driving Playlist

My Dad’s due to have an operation this week which means he’ll be unable to drive or work for a few weeks. Because of this my parents have decided to put me on their car insurance – mainly so I can run errands for them – but also so I can get back into the habit of driving again and regain a little independence. I haven’t driven in a while, not since my test actually, and so I am quite excited by the prospect. In order to celebrate I have constructed my first driving playlist, which I am hoping to try out tonight.

It’s a little more Rock-orientated than I would usually go for, but I’m fairly happy with it.

Playlist after the jump.

SPRAWL

I just finished reading SPRAWL by Danielle Dutton, an odd novel about suburbia. I say odd because it was unlike any book I had ever read. Narrated by a woman charting her life and the ongoing disintegration of her marriage, SPRAWL rarely stays on topic for long as moments rush by in quick succession. The effect is something like driving down a long motorway and catching glimpses of places and people along the way, yet through this act you somehow gain a fascinating insight into their lives. It helps that SPRAWL is so well observed – the every minutiae is recorded with the narrator frequently listing meals, or objects she has left on her table, which in turn help to place the story chronologically and also serve as interesting metaphors for her own life. But where SPRAWL really excelled was the way it exposes our own failings. Our ideas of security, love and success that have been warped by media and mass-production, for me, were shown in such clarity and as the narrator began to grow distant from her ‘perfect’ community I found myself wanting the same. However, the novel is no way cynical and is as much of a celebration of suburbia and it’s eccentricities as it is an exposure of its trappings.

Graduate Academy – The Aftermath

So my week at Graduate Academy is now over and I’ve spent the last couple of days recovering. The final day was great fun. Sure, the presentation was a little nerve-wracking (though I felt more at ease than at any of my university presentations) but after that there was a final Spring Project session, a panel discussion on the latest Becks AR campaign, free beer and a celebratory trip to the pub. I finally crashed around 11pm as the week’s exhaustion caught up with me.

I had a train back the following afternoon, so I spent some time wandering around Camden Market with two friends from University who had also been at Graduate Academy. We had been in separate groups during the week so it provided a good opportunity to catch up and chat about our own impressions of the week. Because I was a half hour tube journey from Camden I had decided to bring my stuff along with me, so was also having to navigate a busy Saturday Market whilst pulling a large suitcase behind me – much to the annoyance of many people around me I expect.

So what now? Well I’m back on the job hunt, though I should hear back from the D&AD in a couple of weeks so fingers crossed. Otherwise I have a couple of projects that should take up the rest of my time.

Graduate Academy – Cascading

Just one day remains of Graduate Academy and I’m surprised I haven’t yet collapsed into a heap. Tomorrow morning we take our ideas and concepts to Iris Nation and will be given ten minutes to pitch them to a panel of industry experts. It’s a daunting idea, though over the last few days we’ve spoken with some of the judges in a more informal setting so it might make it feel less intense, but I can’t help thinking I’m a contestant on a design version of The Apprentice. Of course it’s more realistic than the hit BBC show, our ideas are actually innovative and interesting, everyone is extremely talented and not one person seems to have clashed with anyone else. Apart from a roller-coaster couple of days this probably wouldn’t be considered edgy enough for a TV audience.

But then that is besides the point.

I am struck by two conflicting emotions at this point in time, relief that this mad week is almost over, but also disappointed that it seems to be over so soon. Whilst this has been incredibly intense (they weren’t joking when they said we would be tested to the limit) it has been extraordinary fun and I think I have developed and learned so much in the last few days both creatively and in my wider outlook. There is so much I want to talk about right now. So many ideas invading my imagination that I want to get out there, but the immediate focus is tomorrow morning.

I shall see you at the finish line.

Graduate Academy – One Twos

This week I am down in London at the Graduate Academy run by the D&AD. A few months ago my friends and I tackled a design brief set by HP that asked us to encourage more creative professionals to buy HP workstations. We decided to try to make users re-investigate their relationship with the computer by using surprising materials in the construction of the product and offer new ways of interaction so that the computer was seen as an integral part of the studio furniture rather than an anonymous box tucked away under a table. Our response was successful in gaining ourselves a place at the Academy for a week of intensive creative tasks and challenges, with the aim to ready us for employment and a possible work placement.

The first two days have been run by The Spring Project and have taken the form of a series of ice breakers (on the first day) and methods for improving confidence and ways to ensure we are performing to our best. Whilst at the end of the first day some things seemed more relevant than others it was with reflection, and also the knowledge gained from today’s session, that I began to realise how effective some of these practices could be in both my work and social life. In some ways the first two days have felt like I’m at a self help conference rather than a creative bootcamp, but it has been interesting to actually look at myself and my needs and find new ways to address these, whilst the exercises have also provided great ways to kickstart conversations with new people.

Of course this week is geared towards people looking to enter the creative industries and so today we received our briefing for the rest of the week. I won’t go into specifics, I’m unsure if I should really discuss the brief fully as the project is ongoing, but it seems fairly high concept and open to several interpretations. This is to be expected as we all come from different backgrounds, Graphics, Illustration, Product Design, Advertising and more, and it means that everyone has something to say and contribute to the task. It’s a little daunting, given that we have about two days to complete this brief, but it is also incredibly exciting.

I cannot wait.