Countdown to #NorCon #cosplay

Nor-con is fast approaching - this coming weekend in fact, though we're only going on the Sunday - and one wall plus various corners of my front room currently look like a costume department.

For 13yo's Witch-king, I still need to find a way to attach the newly completed scabbard to his belt - the sword and rather terrifying flail were both built by my husband after he took on the non-fabric sections of the cosplay leaving me free to tackle modifying the cloak and making the sword belt. I've given up with making the gauntlets now.

I've also still got youngest's Mark II Luigi to finish as he outgrew the original. Eep.
In the meantime, I thought I'd take my Anakin cosplay up a notch with a wig, being as I didn't get time to make myself a new cosplay this year. But I think I'll have to stick with my blond spikes and padawan braid...

Hubs is actually dressing up too this year but I won't tell you as who. I'll post pictures after the con and maybe offer a little prize for the first person to get it. :P


Status Update
Unexpected is getting some final tweaks. Although it's scheduled for release as part of an anthology, the thought of not releasing a new title this year is making me twitchy. I haven't gone a year without publishing something new since 2011! So I may do a limited time run of it this month just because..


Chook Update
Fizzgig is finally regrowing her feathers, thought she's still showing a lot of blue pins rather than brown feathers. Here are my girls enjoying the very nice sunshine on my patio just moments ago (I'm also enjoying the sun as I type this, coffee in hand and back door open. I may have to take my hoodie off!

Chick Update
Marvel and Firefly are now a month old and adorably scruffy as they shed the last of their fluff for much needed feathers. This is probably our last chick adventure - we've discussed buying one day old sexed chicks and placing them under expert mama Effie but this relies on some being available at the right time ie when she's broody. Timing is everything. It's more likely we'll buy young hens in the spring once our new coop and run are done and egg laying season is upon us, and possibly a different breed from our usual Pekins.

A Faster Than Light Update #chooks #books #cosplay

This is Pippa Jay reporting for duty...


Some of you may have noted my absence from social media despite the end of the summer holidays. Some personal issues plus my new job (even though it's only a couple of shifts a week), the extra time and effort I've had to devote to the chooks, and a general despondency (probably a touch of SAD as the weather took a very definite autumnal turn just as the monsters went back to school after a very hectic and occasionally stressful last two weeks) led me to deactivate my Facebook account temporarily (maybe) and to avoid my traditional venue to chat on Twitter. While the scary health issues have been resolved, I'm still finding social media too 'noisy'.
But I know many of you have loved the chook updates and some were super concerned about the first batch of chicks that you've followed along from the arrival of the eggs to their early adulthood, especially as it turned out they were all male, throwing their future into doubt.
I'm happy to say that this weekend, my five beautiful boys went to a new (if possibly temporary) home on a ten acre site with assorted other fluffy and feathered friends. Potentially temporary because the new owner will continue to try finding even better forever homes but the boys will always have a place with him if not. It would be nice if they could end up with some hens of their own somewhere. I'm following them still so will let you know if they move on elsewhere.

Marvel and Firefly are now coming up to four weeks old and have been happy to move into the newly vacated nursery coop now my boys have gone. Just in time as they were starting to flutter out of their enclosure in our summer house! Unfortunately it looks like Marvel is a cockerel - after the last batch we know a bit more of what to look for. He's a fraction bigger than Firefly, has a more pronounced comb emerging, and is bullying his sibling. It's especially heartbreaking after almost losing him to hatching issues and bringing him back from the edge, but that's the reality of animal ownership. At least now we have somewhere we know is a good place to take him.

Plans are afoot for us to demolish our current set up of two wooden coops and run in preference for a single larger plastic coop (the wooden ones are prone to red mite infestations, and these little buggers suck blood and can seriously harm the health of chickens) with a larger run. This will improve the chooks' health, and give them better security and more space, as well as making life easier for us. The run will be a walk in version - at the moment we have to crawl around in the current run as it's only three foot in height. We'll also have a better view of the chickens from the house to keep an eye on them. This will happen over the winter, and we hope to buy a couple of new hens, possibly of a different bantam breed , as our hatching adventures have only given us one hen out of 12 eggs!
Our older girls have now stopped laying and stopped being broody ready for winter. It looks as though Kyru - our second oldest at three years - may have reached the end of her egg laying years like Scoop (now five and eggless for the past two). They're still our pets though, but this is why we need some new blood - Pitch, Effie and Fizzgig may well stop laying after the next season if two years productivity is typical for the breed. The girls are also moulting but my poor Fizzgig apparently decided to do it en masse and spent a few days horribly half naked. She currently looks like a cyborg chicken - the blue pins that will become new feathers look scarily like circuitry! But I'm happy to see the new growth - I was on the verge of making her a jumper to keep her warm. Apologies for the shaky photos - she's a fidget and won't keep still for a second!

Nor-Con is in less than two weeks though my post on that will be slightly delayed due to the release of Pets in Space 2 featuring crew member Laurie (check out her recent posts for more info on that). Currently I'm rushing to remake youngest's Luigi cosplay because he's outgrown the previous one (damn growth spurts!), while my newly turned 13yo (yes, I now have TWO teens in the house and boy do I know it) still needs a belt and scabbard for his Witch-king. Must get back to it. Meanwhile, Unexpected is still with the proofreader with no news on a release date as yet.
Transmission ends...

Sith-ing Pretty at Nor-Con 2016 #scifi #cosplay

Me in my Anakin cosplay in the Iron Throne.
The idea of a Sith queen certainly gave me plot bunnies!

This weekend my family and I got to geek out at Nor-Con in Norfolk. It was the first convention for my youngest, and only the second for my older two after they got to visit the Star Wars Celebration Europe with me in July. This year has seen me get back to conventioneering after...gosh, some 25 years, and to be able to share it with my family. I'm happy to say even hard-to-impress 12yo straight out said he enjoyed it - a rare admission!

Nor-Con was a fairly last minute decision with BristolCon already booked for the end of October. I'd looked at going the past couple of years, though more to check it out as a potential venue for me as an author selling my books than simply as a visitor. But hubs kind of pushed me a little, and with it so close (relatively) it seemed just plain silly not to go... Of course, we went in cosplay, although hubs settled for just a geek tee (spoilsport). I wore my newly completed Anakin outfit, 12yo was once more Hux, youngest had a Mace Windu outfit (a bought one because I haven't got around to making him one yet), and eldest in tribute to Connor Temple.

"Welcome to NOR-CON, the Norfolk TV, Film & Comic Convention organised by NOR-CON Events Limited and described in Sci Fi Now magazine as "The friendliest convention on Earth", we are quite proud of that you know......." 

Nor-Con 6 took place at the Norfolk Showground, their first time at this venue, and I thought it was fab. A single massive enclosed space with dealers, guests, exhibits, a stage and a photo shoot zone, and still plenty of space to move around. Unlike the London ComicCon in May, the handful of guests were far more accessible to visitors, sitting at tables with a price list for autographs and photos, proper photo shoots booked, and set chats on stage. Although not as big as the London conventions, that was actually an advantage and we spent the entire day there without getting bored. Eldest and I got a couple of selfies, while she got to chat to her two favourite actors from Primeval (Hannah Spearritt who played Abby Maitland, and Andrew Lee Potts, who played Connor Temple), and had a photo shoot with them both. 

The very lovely Norman Lovett (Holly) from Red Dwarf

Eldest and I with Danny John Jules aka Cat from Red Dwarf
(the second time I've met him - lucky me!)

Peter Davison (the 5th Doctor) and Ian McNeice (Churchill) - both from Doctor Who, though they've both done far more than that - were also present.

A rag tag, fugitive fleet... or models of anyway.

The Norfolk Star Wars club had some awesome sets!

There were two R2 droids and a Dalek trundling around, as well as lots of other awesome cosplay. The merch was varied and unlike the London cons the prices weren't hiked up. Everything was so relaxed and well set out, and it was just a lovely experience overall. We will definitely be going back next year! I highly recommend going to check out their gallery of photos from this year's event by going HERE to see what y'all missed. There's also some video footage (the sharp of eye might even spot me in the queue in the first few seconds).

Status Update

Not much is happening on the book front right now. My cosplay is pretty much done for the year aside from a second Rey outfit for a friend, and painting up the NERF Rey blaster for eldest's cosplay for BristolCon. You can see a round up of all my cosplay creations at my Tumblr blog HERE, and a post on the repaint will go up next Wednesday. With Nor-Con done my attention is now completely on BristolCon at the end of this month. Eeeep!

Chook Update

My girls are all well but not impressed by the sudden drop in temperature and are quite reluctant to emerge each morning now that autumn is well and truly upon us. Frankly I don't blame them - I'd quite happily stay in bed!

I won't be posting next week as the crew of Spacefreighters Lounge have been doing some swapping around (in case you hadn't already noticed I'm posting on a Friday and Laurie posted on the Tuesday). I'll be back on the 25th with a special announcement!