Back with the band

I'm back with the band! Or should I say that Kat's back with the band and I'm going to finish telling her story. I've been spending some time on it the last few days, wrote 7 pages and then realised I couldn't continue without knowing the ending. And I think, after much contemplation, I've worked out what I need to do. I was concentrating too much on the point I've reached, the end of the tour, and Kat's life beyond that. Thinking there's another 20,000 words before we come to a satisfactory conclusion. This was clouding my mind, obscuring the gaps that were already waiting to be filled in the middle of the story.

It's the gap that needs to be filled because there are a still a few things on Kat's list that need to be done during this time, plus she needs to sort out her deadbeat husband, and then Kat's story can end approximately a week after the tour -- at the airport when she farewells her rock god.

So the music is back on, nice and loud to get me back in the mood. And now I declare my goal for the next two weeks: finish it!

I signed up to the pre-launch of exlinks. Hope my ex's aren't really on it! Don't want to be bumping into them online. Not sure what it's all about but it is affiliated with BlogMad. If you want to sign up, here's a link: http://www.exlinks.net/?invite=bbf94b34eb32268ada57a3be5062fe7d

Characters will die!

This t-shirt sums up how I've been feeling over the past couple of weeks. Be warned! Characters will die! But none of my favourites - sometimes I wish I could just go and hang out with them.

Like the t-shirt? There are more like it at Real Writer. Check it out!


So, a question for the writers who read the blog: Have you done it? Killed someone off in a novel as method of making yourself feel better in real life? Aah! Revenge - it's even sweeter when there's no chance of going to jail.

When I was 15, I wrote a play about a mad scientist. I didn't know how to end it, so I just killed everyone off, including the mad scientist. Several years later, I rewrote it as an adult play. The second time, I must've had more compassion, as the android and the documentary maker were both still alive at the end. (Well, as alive as an android can be.)

But I must be crazy. I signed up for a First Draft workshop and haven't written anything. (Real life took over). But I have another week to go of the workshop(and I'm on holidays) so the aim is to finish the first draft of 'I'm with the Band'. I plan to do Nanowrimo again, and have no idea what I will be writing about. Maybe I'll come up with something by November. Or maybe I won't - and I'll just wing it. I'm still editing Making the Cut. I will be sending the Collage Diary to the printer this week. And I've been uploading more and more designs to the Chickollage shop. Have I bitten off more than I can chew? Well you know what they say about busy people? And I know if I tried to stay home and be a full-time writer, nothing would get written. The only way to do it is to put the pressure on myself through external motivation, cheer squads, publicly announced goals. It's the only way for me to produce the goods.

The loss of the legends

We lost four Australian legends in the past 10 days or so:

• first, the political legend - Don Chipp, founder of the Democrat party, 'to keep the bastards honest'
• the literary legend, Colin Thiele, author of Storm Boy,
• most recently, the racing legend, Peter Brock,
• and most famously, the Crocodile Hunter legend, Steve Irwin.

It is Steve Irwin's death that has affected everybody, because he was so well-known to both kids and adults the world over.

I started thinking about why the death of a person who I had never met, had affected me and others so much:

1. It is a reminder of our own mortality. Eventually we will all shuffle off the mortal coil, but it was never expected that Steve would shuffle off so soon. Not that he was ever expected to shuffle - he escaped so many deadly situations, and he moved so fast on land, he seemed invincible. But back to our own mortality. Many of us don't grapple with the concept of our own mortality too often. I've thought about it many times - first when I woke in intensive care after a major car accident at the age of 20, and again, about 9 years ago, when my mother passed away. We're not invincible and we need to make the most of every day which includes being kind to the people we love.

2. The Children. Steve Irwin left behind young children and this breaks my heart. Bindi lived for her father and to have a man of his energy and enthusiasm so suddenly ripped from her life, will leave a gaping hole behind. And as she grows older she will blame him, she will blame herself until she finally comes to term with it. And little Bob - what will he remember of his father? There'll probably be no real memories for him as he is so young, just a kaliedoscope of pieces of memory mixed with video footage, photos and anecdotes from those old enough to remember Steve. And in the end he won't be able to distinguish his own memories of his father from the video tape or anecdotes.

3. It drags our own grieving back to the surface. In the end, we are not grieving for a famous person that we never knew -- we are grieving for our own losses. We are grieving for the father we never had, we are grieving for the partner we lost or the partner we will lose in years to come. Steve Irwin's death becomes personal because our sub-conscious makes it personal. After all, we are human and none of us are immune to grief.

So, they are my reasons as to why I was so affected this week by Steve Irwin's death. I'm sure that these reasons are shared by many.

But apparently not Germaine Greer. Like a vulture picking over a corpse, she chose this moment to attack Steve Irwin, trying to grab some headlines for herself, unable to face the fact that she is becoming increasingly irrelevant as time goes on. What a sad old cow. John Birmingham wrote an article for The Australian in response to her words. It's worth a read.

The other annoying thing is all the people on ebay trying to cash in on Steve Irwin's death. Flogging the Aussie papers which cost $1 or $2 for $50. Flogging their autographed photos, shirts, merchandise etc for a cheap buck. One of my prized possessions is an autographed copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I met Douglas Adams at a literary luncheon in Sydney when he was promoting Long Time No See - his book about endangered species. He was very funny in person, and I will treasure that book always. Occasionally, I've cleared out my book shelves and offloaded them on Ebay, but that book will never be sold. His death was a loss to the humourous sci-fi world, and to the universe.

September already?

I'm being hassled by Hasslebot. (thanks to WriteStuff for the link) They keep sending me emails reminding me to Get Back to Bilby Creek and edit my novel. At least the emails make more sense to me than most of the spam I receive. If you want to set up our own hassles, visit the website.

But I cannot reply to the emails with an excuse. And yes, I do have one - until this week. I've been working on a Collage Poetry Diary for 2007 on behalf of the Nambucca Valley Writers' Group. The diary is called Ransom Notes, and includes 12 collage poems in full colour, plus flash fiction, haiku, quotations and, as the title gives away, ransom notes. I've spent the last two weeks compiling the diary, putting together all those finicky little calendars, holiday dates (thank god for the internet) and it is now ready for a prototype print, before we enter the production phase.

I have announced a competition to write ransom notes and win a copy of the diary on my other blog. Visit Chickollage for details.



So now that most of my work for the diary is complete, I can return to Bilby Creek. I can't believe it is September already!!! Less than 2 months to Nanowrimo. Where is this year going? I need to get moving if I'm going to finish editing this one, query it, and start writing another one in November.

On Saturday I will be taking a 'Writing Funny' workshop with author Bruno Bouchet. I'm looking forward to it - I find that most workshops I attend are inspiring and get me into the writing mood.

One drawback I have found to immersing myself in editing: I am reading with a critical eye, and I'm finding it difficult to turn off the internal editor. Perhaps I'm doomed to read like that forever, but I will need to send the editor on a vacation when I start Nanowrimo again. I don't want to fuss about which word is the right word when I am trying to write 50,000 in 30 days!

I have added a subscription option to my blog on the left hand side. Scroll down and enter your email address if you wish to subscribe through Feedblitz.

Back to the editing cave

I'm moving to Bilby Creek. Not literally, because I haven't been able to find it on the map, anywhere in the world, let alone in Australia. But my mind, heart and soul need to migrate to the town, to inhabit the place, to breathe the same air and drink from the same glasses and prop up the same bar as the Bilby Creek folk.

Party time in the real world is over. I have my mojo back after the Festival and a writing consultation last Thursday. I met with the head of a writer centre to discuss my writing, and he was impressed with my synopsis and sample pages, told me to edit it and send it off. So with that encouragement, I have to pack my laptop and pen and paper, and mosey on down to Bilby Creek to spend some time with Chloe and Luke.

If you see me hanging out at My Space or on Blog Explosion, tell me to git back to Bilby Creek. Hopefully there'll be cold drink waiting for me at the bar.

Tomorrow, I have to go back to the real world. Back to work, holiday is over. But I still want my head to be in Bilby Creek so during my teabreaks, at lunch, and after dinner, I can jump back in, and keep the editing momentum going. And yes, I haven't had a Coke now for 2 weeks. Yee, hah!

Fun items for writers

I've been spending a lot of time on cafepress.com - browsing the marketplace, window shopping so to speak. I've found some fabulous original designs for writers, so I shall be highlighting a few of these on Write on Track.

Write Side Out has combined the horror of the rejection slip with a stylistic B-grade movie poster: after all, it is every writer's nightmare.

For more original writers for items, check out the links in my sidebar, titled 'T-shirts for writers'. Whether you're churning out a bestseller, letting procrastination get the better of you, or your muse is out to lunch, you can find the merchandise to express your current writer state. Have fun browsing!

Byron Bay Writers Festival

I'm back from Byron Bay Writers Festival with writing mojo, and hopefully, editing mojo, ready to go!

The buzz is always fantastic, the writers are inspiring, and just the fact that I'm spending four days straight with my writing buddies is so stimulating.

The only thing I didn't enjoy this year was the weather. Friday was glorious but Saturday and Sunday, the wind roared and the rain poured. My Chickollage t-shirts were hidden under layers of clothing, desperately trying to stay warm, and not on display as planned. Oh well, spring and summer are still to come and I have some great new t-shirts to wear.

Each year, we share a cabin at the Byron Bay resort. In previous years, we've had eight gals in a two storey cabin with only one bathroom between us. With 9 gals going to the festival this year, we decided to have two cabins, which would've been fine, except it was completely open plan. One big room with beds, bunks, lounge and kitchen all in together and then a separate bathroom/closet with the toilet and shower in a tiny little alcove. So it was a good thing that we all like each other. But a bit harsh on the larks who wanted to sleep from 9pm while the owls were partying. Next year, if we have two cabins, we will separate the larks from the owls - it's just those pesky people in between who can't make up their mind whether they are larks or owls, will be the problem.

On Sunday afternoon, I captured this photo. I don't think I have ever seen the moon near a rainbow before. How cool!

Sunday afternoon, I spent in the bar with Roby, testing out the Vodka and Lime, while we wondered if there would be a party or not that evening. We then went to the last session, 10 years of the Byron Bay Writers Festival, where they honoured Jill Eddington for the amazing work she has done running the Festival. Then we saw them in the distance. At first we thought they were school kids in wild and zany feathered costumes with drums, jumping up and down, trying to keep warm. But the drums started beating, and the wobble boards wobbled, spinning their strange vibrations into the air, and they marched towards us, we realised it was a bunch of hyperactive adults, having a ball. And then the party really started...

Still coke free.

I am on Day 4 of being coke-free and surprisingly I haven't had a caffeine headache yet. Maybe it's because I'm not trying to do this while coping with customers, and team leaders and work. When I feel tired, I can just rest.

So I have tackled some of the 'to-do' list. The sample pages of my manuscript have been sent, I have printed off some gorgeous business cards, I have put together the main pages of the 2007 diary, and I have updated my blogs. I didn't win lotto - so, it looks like I will be back at work in two weeks time.

I have joined Quickflix. Living out in the country, I don't want to hire DVD's from the shops in town, and then have to drive for half an hour and back to return them if that's the sole reason I'm going to town for the day. So yesterday, I watched two episodes of Six Feet Under (season 4). Another one this morning, two more to go and I can post the discs back. I am amazed at the variety of DVD's Quickflix have - I have stuff in 'my queue' which I've been trying to get from local shops for years.

Only 2 days to Bryon Bay Writers Festival - how exciting! Looking forward to the great company, food and mental stimulation. How many new authors will I discover this year? Although my fundage is a bit tight this year, so much money has gone on medication - I could never have predicted this a year ago. Still, I keep telling my partner if he doesn't look after himself and eat properly while I'm away for four nights - I'll be shipping him home to his mum, and she can look after him.

Yesterday, I thought would be my first partner-free day of my holidays. Nope. Didn't happen. He didn't go to TAFE because he was feeling sick. I'm not sure he's ready for full-time study again at this point, although he doesn't want to admit it to himself. But he went today. It's so peaceful out here, lots of birds and the cat meowing, the occasional car. But that's it. Aah, feel the serenity!

On holidays

It feels so good to hang up the phone on Friday afternoon, walk out the door at work, and know you don't have to return for two whole weeks!

Yipee! And I've earned these two weeks.

But don't think I'm going to be sitting on my butt all day, stuffing my face and watching Ellen, Dr Phil and Oprah. I may spend some of it sitting on my butt, but I have much bigger goals to achieve.

• I have to polish 20 pages of my novel for an editorial consultation (that's due Monday but then the consultation is more than a week away, so I can spend some time on the rest of it).
• More collage poetry.
• Create some business cards for Chickollage and add some more designs (see above)
• Find some writing mojo at Byron Bay Writers' Festival - and eat, drink and have fun!
• Give up coke (the liquid, not the powder). This one was supposed to start today, but I weakened after several hours of shopping past the evil caffeine hour. But it's been 5 hours now. I wonder if there is a Coca-Cola Anonymous?
• write some more of Hold the Anchovies
• create a 2007 diary on Publisher
• take some scenic photos around the local area
• update all my blogs including the collage poetry blog, and Diary of a Mad Cat as Dorkus is feeling neglected
• learn the basics of Photoshop and Frontpage
• reconnect with some old friends and family

The other goal is to win lotto tonight, so I don't have to go back to work in two weeks, but I guess that one is completely out of my control!

Big creative weekend

Wow, what a huge weekend for thinking creatively.

On Friday night, eight of the NVWG members met to discuss and brainstorm our group novel. So far, nine chapters have been written over a period of two years. I have never worked in a collaboration on a novel before (although I have on performance pieces) so it is an interesting experience. And an interesting night - we ate and drank, and talked and laughed, and argued, and justified, and excused.

The problem at this point, is that the novel is too plot-driven without enough emphasis on character - each writer has added something dramatic to keep the drama going forward without enough attention to the present time of the novel, and its starting to resemble a soap opera. It will be interesting to see where it goes from here, and how long it takes to finish the story. I think we're signing up for the long haul.

Next morning, we held a workshop on how to conduct a workshop. I learned a lot of skills which I hope to put to good use some time.

And then we had the usual lunch at the pub, followed by the monthly meeting. We constructed some stories, with each word starting with a letter in alphabetical order. How hard is it when you get to XYZ? Maybe the trick is to start from the end of the alphabet, get those three tricky ones out of the way, and work your way back to it.

Here's my sad attempt:

After being crazy, David exhaled fast. God had invoked justice, Kingdom, loyalty. Madam, never overestimate piety! Quench real salty thirst. Ugly violent wicked xenophobes! Your zealot.

Doesn't make much sense but it was fun. So, what do you come up with?


This is one of my favourite collage poems so far - because we all know that there's no such thing, especially down at the local shop. This image is now available on T-shirts and stickers at my Chickollage store at cafepress. Can't wait to wear the T-shirt at the Byron Bay Writers Festival!!

No more free education

I went to a information session on a TAFE I.T. course with my partner the other day as he was enrolling. One of the teachers tried to persuade me to enrol as well - said they had husband and wife teams in the course before. I told him I had a full-time job so it wasn't appropriate but I had picked up a brochure about an Associate Degree in writing available externally through the Uni. The info session had made me think, and yearn to learn again. And for a couple of hours, I entertained the thought of enrolling in the degree. Until I checked it out on the uni website and saw the fees. It would cost just under $10,000 and that would take a long time to pay back.

There was a time once when Uni was free in Australia - there was no HECS, no HELP - whatever the heck they call it now - you only paid your compulsory student union fees. I marched in the demonstrations to keep university free but our voices were ignored. My final year of Uni cost me $2000 and was paid back years ago. Now an Arts degree is approx $4500 per year and the student union fees are voluntary?

So my idea of furthering my education won't involve any more university qualifications. I will stick to the day courses at the community college instead.

I was a bit peeved that I had to cough up the enrolment fee for TAFE for my partner, but when you compare it to the cost of the uni degree, it seems like a bargain. And then when I consider the fact that he will be at TAFE, while I have two weeks holiday in August, and will therefore have time to edit, compose collage poetry, and whatever, it is worth every cent!!

Running on empty

I drive a 22 year old car. I bought it this year and it was a bargain, one lady owner who probably only drove it to the shops and back, judging by the mileage. I do at least 300 kilometres a week, and that's just to work and back, more if I go into town on the weekend, or go to writers' group meetings. My fuel guage doesn't work, which is not an issue because I always note when I put in petrol. So last week I put $20 in the car with the odometer reading ...007. An easy number to remember? So why on Tuesday morning, on the way to work, did I run out of petrol, only 125 kilometres later? It doesn't add up. Unless the petrol was siphoned out of my car.

It's not the only thing being stolen in the area. Whole bunches of bananas are disappearing off trees overnight. They are hot commodity after Cyclone Larry wiped out much of the Australian banana industry in March.

It was lucky that I ran out of petrol on the way to work, and not on the way home after doing overtime. The road can be almost deserted at night. I was about 2 kilometres out of my village, and about 4 kilometres from home, but with no mobile signal. I flagged down a driver heading back towards my house, and scored a lift. Dragged my partner out of bed, took a gerry can of petrol to the car, and then took it back to the general store to fill it up. I missed about an hour of work, and admitted when I arrived that my car problems were as a result of running out of petrol. But I won't be taking any more chances. I'll be putting more petrol in every second day to make sure it doesn't happen again.

Chick Manifesto

I have launched my Chickollage store at Cafepress with this Chick Manifesto & The Bitch Club.

Serendipity

I had 45 minutes to kill this morning before my doctor's appointment, so I decided to drop into a charity store and find some more magazines to mutilate and turn into collage poetry.

Not only did I find several magazines, I found Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes, which I've been putting off buying, and a huge book on The Doors, which I'm sure will find a new and appreciative owner through ebay.

So, it was meant to be. Plus we scored a three piece cane lounge (frame only) for $25 from The Tender Center. We just need to get cushions for it and it's going to be fabulous for lazy days reading the paper on our back verandah. And the best news is, I didn't have to go to work. Love those rostered days off --it makes the 9 hour days worth it.

I really needed a laugh today. 9 hour day at work, and I think I did more talking than the customers, so at the end of it, I thought I'd lose my voice. And the 9 hours crawled...seemed more like 18 hours. So tonight, I decided to visit Miss Snark, and found her post on queries. Oh boy, I laughed! And for more amusement, I might pull out my manuscripts and read pages 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55 and 89. In that order. We had a collage poetry workshop on Saturday at my writers' group meeting. I didn't feel very inspired. I don't think I can do the group thing now when it comes to creating collage poems. I like to let the words and phrases sit together, and form interesting combinations - and for me, that has become a solitude activity, and one that my subconscious continues to work on while my thoughts are preoccupied with reality. Our homework for the meeting was to write a 50 word story. I wrote a story about reality TV on Sunday, and the first draft was 86 words. I had to cut more than a third of the story. ON Monday, I took it with me to work and slashed and rewrote, and slashed some more, until eventually I have a 50 word story. I may try some more between now and the next meeting - it is certainly good editing practice.

A hit - a palpable hit!

Sorry, bit of Shakespeare coming out. Must be the R&J post I just posted on Chickollage. Anyway, what did I hit? My manuscript. Today, during my lunch break, I plunged right in from the beginning and made a start on the edit, the revision, the rewrite, the second draft - whatever you want to call it. And I wrote more words. And crossed out many. And I got deeper into the scene, into the description, the setting, into Chloe's head. And I felt that I had accomplished something. I'm going to forget about the overall story edit at the moment, and just do some layering, scene by scene, chapter by chapter. The big structural stuff can come later when I have larger blocks of time to dedicate to it.

The Bitch Club

This image is now available as a T-shirt, mouse pad or tote bag at my new Chickollage store!

This is the collage poem I completed on the public holiday on Monday. I've known some 'crazy bitches in my time - this is dedicated to them. I quite like this one - black, dark and true. My partner finishes his TAFE course this week. Sigh of relief. He's not a writer and doesn't profess to be so each written assignment has been a source of renewed frustration. Much better at the practical stuff - the camera work, the filming. I'll be glad when it's over as well because my editing skills won't be called upon so much. I'm back at work again although a bit in limbo - may have to go back to the permanent position on Monday. Haven't been given the word as yet. Although my permanent team leader was preparing to put my stuff in storage today because he thought I'd be in the temp position a bit longer. I suppose I'll find out tomorrow. Don't particularly like limbo land.

Holiday is over

Well, I was right about the lack of holiday time to myself. I spent most of the week helping my partner with his DVD project on the Glenreagh Mountain Railway. Launch night was Saturday night, and just our luck, it poured all day Saturday. We haven't rain since we moved into this house. In fact, the situation had got so desperate, our rainwater tank ran out, and we had to fill it with town water. So we really, really wanted rain - just not on Saturday. But of course, it's a long weekend here -- and that usually guarantees rain. Part of the evening was to include a ride on the steam train, 'Steaming under the Stars', and that looked in jeopardy. Somehow the rain eased up, over a hundred people turned up to the launch, and enjoyed the film. The rain was light so Betty the steam train, was still able to do complete the planned outing. Sunday morning, we woke up to blue sky and it has been that way since. Murphy's Law! So now it's Monday of the long weekend, the last day of my 'holiday' - so I'm putting together some more collage poems, updating my blogs, and will tackle some of my editing. Then I'll have to work out an 'after work' structure to fulfill my writing goals and not spend all of my time on the net.

Holiday - NOT!

I have this week off work. It's supposed to be a holiday. And I had planned to spend the week editing my novel. As they say, all good plans... Saturday we spent the day running around town, trying to get the final cut for the doco that my partner is releasing next Saturday. Sunday I managed a day of general relaxation and watched the first disc of the Twin Peaks DVD set. Just love Kyle MacLachlan. Yesterday, I drove two hours to do my dad's accounts, a frustrating half hour or so trying to get through to the tax office, and two hours drive back. By 11pm last night, I was stuffed, and not prepared to play games with NBN Television, who for some crazy reason have decided to move the screening of Six Feet Under from 10.30 at night to 12.30 in the morning. As if 10. 30 is such a ratings giant anyway! Guess I'll have to wait for the DVD's of that one. Today, we went to see a diabetes educator, followed by a dietitian - at least I know I'm on the right track food wise. Tomorrow, we drive another hour so that my partner can sit a TAFE exam. Not sure how I will amuse myself while he's doing the exam but I'm sure I'll find something. On Friday, we have yet another doctor's appointment, but at least it's an early one, so then we'll come back home and finish off the work for the DVD release on Saturday. Saturday is the big launch. And then hopefully, Sunday and Monday, we will have some time at home - enjoying our garden, and sunshine. We'll see! So that's my holiday -- as you can tell, I'm getting plenty of R&R before I go back to work on Tuesday. Here's the BEAUTIFUL trophy I won! I remember when Anne first showed us the trophy (the day I took this picture) and we were all coveting it. I never imagined that I would be the one taking it home! Cool! Although I must say, I'm glad we don't have to write with quills anymore. Even typewriters - what tedium to have to type the whole manuscript again when you edit! Speaking of editing, I have to admit that I've been a naughty girl. All I've done so far is coloured in my manuscript - orange or yellow for dialogue (depending on which highlighter was working at the time), green for description or action, and pink for interior monologue. It sure looks purty! But I can also see pages of almost one colour, which immediately indicates that it needs work. I want a good solid block of time to sit down and read the whole thing from start to finish and do a good structural edit before I get into the nitty gritty, but that time is eluding me, and the internet has sucked me once again - oh well, at least I now have cute avatars of my main characters - Chloe and Luke, and their respective cats, Miss Lizzy and Snowball.

What do you mean I won?

Yesterday

Her brain was dead

Toast

- nothing unusual.

Today, the boss is yelling,

on the nose

out of control

A real tyrant

She's

haunted by

over-the-top

rumours

drama

secrets

the power clique

Everyone has had a say.

BLAH BLAH BLAH

She's a mess

hiding behind the nightmare

One mistake could ruin your life

but

after

a month of psychotherapy

she's brainwashed.

Exciting news! The writer's group ran a poetry competition and the winners were announced on Saturday at our AGM. I'm stunned! I won first prize with the poem above - Yesterday. And I won 2nd prize with Sex and the Single Girl. (see below) So I know I'm write on track. I will bring you a photo of the trophy shortly - it's a beautiful silver quill atop a wooden stand, donated by our life member, Anne.

It was strange because I had the digital camera out, ready to take a picture of the winner, and then my name was announced. I think they wished they'd had a camera pointing at me, because the look of my face was 'priceless.'

It inspired me because on Sunday not only did I design the DVD cover for my partner's documentary project, but I assembled another collage poem. My aim is now to have 50 collage poems collated and printed beautifully, ready for the Byron Bay Writers' Festival, because you just never know who you are going to run into.

Sex and the Single Girl 365 days of Men Oh my Lord! Serious Fun Throw Caution to the Wind and Shop Yourself Stupid Sussing out the bad boys/ wise guys / smooth-talkers / heartbreakers Mr Muscle Mr Right Now Mr Totally Wrong Too much mindless sex? Too much is never enough Guys with fear of commitment, inner demons, anxiety, paranoia Why worry? Just blow them away Laugh it off! Move on.