How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World [Review]
Alexander with Cressida Cowell at the BFI (photo: James Kemp) I went with my family to see an advance preview of How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World at the BFI last Saturday. It was a good movie and the kids loved it, they also loved the Q&A afterwards with Cressida Cowell, Brad Lewis (the producer) and Dean DeBlois (the director of the whole trilogy). The Hidden World The Hidden World is the last in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy. The Q & A was pretty clear on that. The next movie night well be related to The Wizards of Once, which Alexander asked Cressida Cowell about during the Q&A. In The Hidden World the gang are searching for the legendary home of the dragons. It's set a couple of years after the previous movie and everyone…
Babylon Falls [Flash Fiction]
An abandoned warehouse in the US (photo: lburgan via pixabay) I wrote Babylon Falls as short story for the NYC Flash Fiction Challenge round 2 back in September. The prompt was to write a horror story set in a warehouse and including a kids lunch box in under a thousand words. The premise I went with was something strange happened in Babylon in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion. Ten years on some mysterious entity is getting its revenge on some of the US troops involved in thwarting it's nefarious activities. The title is a twin clue, Babylon Falls directly referring to the capture of the site of the ancient city. It also refers to the location of the warehouse. I wasn't entirely happy with Babylon Falls at the time, which is why I didn't post it sooner. I've had…
Is it Time for a Government of National Unity?
Parliament Square last night as the defeat of the EU Exit Withdrawal Agreement was announced (photo: James Kemp) In the UK we're living in divided times, so is it time we had a government of national unity? After last night's defeat of the government's proposed withdrawal agreement it may be time for something different. Labour have tabled a no confidence motion in the government. While it looks likely to fail. However, all it takes is a couple of Conservative or DUP MPs to abstain or rebel and our government will fall. We'll find out later today. Government of National Unity We last had a government of national unity from the early thirties until the end of the second world war. The government was formed of all parties, as was the loyal opposition. The original reason for forming the coalition was…
Destructive & Formidable by David Blackmore [Book Review]
Destructive and Formidable: British Infantry Firepower 1642 - 1765 by David John Blackmore My rating: 5 of 5 stars Destructive and Formidable is a quantitative look at British infantry doctrine using period sources from the British Civil Wars of the seventeenth century up to just before the American War of Independence. If anything you can see the constancy, which drove the success in battle of British forces, even when outnumbered. Destructive and Formidable This has got all the detail you need to model infantry battles in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. There are comparative weights and rates of fire. Measured hit rates based on range, and commentary on doctrine and how certain tactics worked in certain situations but not others. In short everything you need to design a game (although there's clearly a morale factor, which Destructive and Formidable covers…
How to Increase Your Amazon Marketability [guest post]
Laptop (image: ) How to Increase Your Amazon Marketability It’s no secret that Amazon is a great place to sell nearly anything. The platform alone accounts for nearly half of all e-commerce sales in the United States. But such a crowded marketplace also means that you’ll face stiff competition in nearly every sector. In 2014 alone, there were more than 2 billion items sold on the Amazon Marketplace. To succeed in such a tough environment, you need to take advantage of every possible opportunity. Writers have focused on everything from images to copy to marketing tactics, but it’s also important to capitalize in all situations. Just like Facebook advertising firms look to optimize campaigns and entice users through various strategies, so must Amazon vendors. These quick tips will give you an edge and have a significant impact on your bottom…