http://www.bluejester.com For those too lazy to type a URL en-ie x86-install-service http://www.bluejester.com/images/icon.png http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2021/09/07/six-seconds/ 07-09-2021:

It was the fastest six seconds of our lives. First she was there, then blink and she's one. By the time we catch our breath we blink and Nugget is two, then three...four...five.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2021/02/17/third-round-two/ 17-02-2021:

I've noticed that this blog has basically become a 'birthday posting' blog - and that's fine if I'm being honest.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2020/09/07/year-five/ 07-09-2020:

At this point I'm fairly sure I only keep this place online still to make these posts about the kids birthdays. But sure what's the harm in having an eccentric hobby in my old age? I could have much worse ones.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2020/05/09/ideas/ 09-05-2020:

Ah the grand declarations that I would post more content on this site at the start of the year. To be fair, I have been posting content. Just not here.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2020/02/17/second-second/ 17-02-2020:

Today the little man turned two. The big 2. Officially entertaining that wonderful phase of life that all the parenting books and blogs refer to as the terrible twos.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2020/01/22/nearly-christmas/ 22-01-2020:

No I am not after losing my mind, nor have I put the Christmas tree up again to try and reclaim some of the magic lost since the Holiday season ended. Rather, "Nearly Christmas" is the working title of my fifth <i>Filthy Henry</i> novel.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2020/01/04/new-year-new-book/ 04-01-2020:

Now that the dust has settled, the festive season is over, and most of our humdrum lives are kicking back in, I'm finally getting some down time to write. At least I think I am, I'm not too sure if 'down time' is actually a thing anymore, particularly when you've to be a parent as well.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/12/21/holiday-season-finally/ 21-12-2019:

I generally keep enough Holiday Days in work so that I get a nice long break over Christmas. It is something I've always done, even before having kids. It just feels like the right time of year for me, mentally, to get a big long break. Two weeks, with the days that are given to workers because it is Christmas, in total.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/11/24/story/ 24-11-2019:

Been a while. Well I suppose it actually hasn't been all that long, but it has definitely been longer than I intended.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/11/03/mental-movember/ 03-11-2019:

I haven't posted anything in a while because I've not really had anything to say.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/09/07/now-she-is-four/ 07-09-2019:

It's that time of year again, Olivia has turned another year older and another year cuter.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/08/03/duplex-tempus---draft-5/ 03-08-2019:

I'm not even going to bother lying, I've just been too busy and lazy to post any content on the site over the last while. Which in turn means that I've put up no content on the social media platforms either.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/06/29/baby-brain---the-quiz-show/ 29-06-2019:

They say that we are currently in a ‘Golden Age’ of television. Which is a fair statement I reckon. I remember growing up and the types of shows that I liked to watch (sci-fi, spy, fantasy) were few and far between because nobody really watched them. Then along came reality t.v., cheap brainless crap that took a shoestring budget to make and catapulted idiots into the limelight for fifteen seconds. But in recent years we’re getting some really good shows to watch. Even if the last season of these shows tends to be utter garbage (I’m looking at you Game of Thrones).

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/06/01/cant-win-them-all/ 01-06-2019:

For the past few years I've been attending Dublin Comic Con not as a comicbook nerd, but as a comicbook nerd who is there selling their wares. Mainly Filthy Henry novels, since I don't exactly create anything else that would sell at the convention. It has been a permanent fixture on my calendar for the last four summers.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/05/17/crazy-crazy-golf/ 17-05-2019:

This week we've been on holiday. Our first family holiday abroad with the two nippers. Given how we were illness magnets for most of Jellybean's first year, last summer we did a stay-cation. In that we stayed in our own house, took time off work, and did loads of little day trips instead.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/04/25/an-open-letter-to-regina/ 25-04-2019:

I’m having a rant. I haven’t had one in a while and I feel that this topic justifies a good, old-fashioned, honest to jester style rant.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/04/15/captain-kirk-draft/ 15-04-2019:

I'm currently working my way through draft five of <i>Duplex Tempus</i>, or as I suppose refer to this draft: the Captain Kirk draft.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/04/06/typical/ 06-04-2019:

Isn't it just bloody typical, the second you get a chance to sleep in your body doesn't want to.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/04/03/cut-cut-cut/ 03-04-2019:

I've been working away on the latest draft of <i>Duplex Tempus</i> and it's been something of a slog. I made the rookie mistake of putting dates into sections of the book, so for this draft I had to go through and make sure that the dates all line up with the plot.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/02/17/second-first-birthday/ 17-02-2019:

It happened again!

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/01/28/daddy-daughter-doo-doo/ 28-01-2019:

Being a dad who likes to actual parent his kids, I find that the world is a strange and somewhat gender biased place. As if public toilets were designed everywhere with a view that only the mother would ever take their kid to the loo out in the real world.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2019/01/19/radio-silence/ 19-01-2019:

Back online, finally, after a month of hassle with my hosting company. Not that I have anything particularly wonderful to say and I am sure my rants go out to an audience of none these days. Still, it's good to be back.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/10/15/since-the-con/ 15-10-2018:

Ask anyone that creates some sort of medium which is consumed, such as a comic or book, and they will always say the same question is asked: When's the next one coming out.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/09/07/the-thir/ 07-09-2018:

At the end of the last Birthday Post for Nugget I made the joke that by the time the I finished posting that rant it would be her third birthday.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/08/29/whine-and-cheese-part-2/ 29-08-2018:

I posted a rant a while ago that one of my friends described as lots 'whine with no cheese'. It was a rant that told the tale of all the crap that had happened since Jellybean's arrival. There was a lot of shit had gone on. While the rant was not meant as a 'pity me' sort of entry, the joke from the friend was apt. It was just a lot of complaining, other folk have things much worse in the grand scheme of things. The main purpose of the rant was so, in years to come, when the two kids were complaining about how tough their life was, I could call it up and show the ingrates what had happened.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/08/12/dublin-comic-con-2018---day-2/ 12-08-2018:

That's an end to another Dublin Comic Con and it turns out this year was my best one ever. Four years going to the con as an exhibitor and this was definitely the most enjoyable of them. In my first year I sold out of all stock before the end of the second day. By all counts that is a great first con and no mistake. Except I brought only twenty-five books along :)

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/08/11/dublin-comic-con-2018---day-1/ 11-08-2018:

Another day, another Dublin Comic Con opening day over and done with. This weekend is Dublin Comic Con 2018 and as I mentioned before I was one of the lucky ones to be selected as an Artist Alley exhibitor. In I rocked this morning, looking at the costumes and the setups, to my table.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/06/02/another-filthy-update/ 02-06-2018:

Two Filthy Henry related updates for this post. One minor, compared to the second.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/05/11/and-the-fifth-horseman-was-called-kaos/ 11-05-2018:

Before anybody goes throwing The Book of Revelations at me, that's a reference to a Terry Pratchett story in the title.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/04/04/filthy-update/ 04-04-2018:

If that title isn't the very definition of a click bait title I don't know what is.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/02/25/it-expands/ 25-02-2018:

Now that the dust has settled I've finally got some time to post an entry.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2018/01/28/giraffe-four-done/ 28-01-2018:

I've no idea why I am using that title really. I think I might be a little sleep deprived or something. Just as I was working on the latest draft during the week the title for this rant popped into my head and I chuckled away to myself.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/11/16/year-of-fruit/ 16-11-2017:

Many moons ago, more than I care to count, I stumbled upon wonderful websites that printed your images onto clothes.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/10/21/stolen-stories---draft-3/ 21-10-2017:

I have literally, as in five minutes ago at the time of writing this rant, just finished draft number three of Stolen Stories.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/10/02/manners/ 02-10-2017:

I'm one of those 'old fashioned' sort of fellas. Never really thought much about it growing up, to be honest. Mammy Jester would instill into us manners using 'The Fear Approach' which basically came down to fear of being clapped up the side of the head or publicly embarrassed for not displaying basic manners.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/09/23/small-stolen-update/ 23-09-2017:

Nothing much to report sadly on the progress of book four in the Filthy Henry series. I'm still on draft number three, currently working on chapter twenty, and my little notebook of work doesn't seem to be getting any smaller.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/09/16/habits/ 16-09-2017:

I've spoken before about how when I am writing I like to get into the habit of doing it daily. The five hundred words a day, minimum, limit to hit or one full page, again at the minimum, edited so that little by little the book gets done.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/09/07/blinked-twice/ 07-09-2017:

I've never been good with time. Never have been, never will be. I understand the way we use it to measure duration but that's it. If you asked me about 'when' a thing happened you will get a response along the lines of "Sure that was only last week."

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/08/13/another-con-bites-the-dust/ 13-08-2017:

Another year, another Dublin Comic Con done and dusted. This year was an absolute blast, it has to be said. Stock wise I sold more than I ever had, close to thirty books left my table to go to new homes with people willing to take a punt on my mad stories. I even had a few people come back who had just bought the first book last year. They had enjoyed it so much that they wanted the follow ups. One person even dropped by to just say hi and that he couldn't wait for the fourth one to be released.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/07/01/stolen-updates/ 01-07-2017:

The problem with writing books is they take time. That's one of those "duh" statements for a person to make, but it's true. The problem with Time is you cannot store it up and use it as you see fit. Life takes Time, slicing it up. The trick to writing is to find Time.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2017/05/01/hello-online-my-old-friend/ 01-05-2017:

...I've come to troll with you again!

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/10/16/by-half/ 16-10-2016:

Life is busy, that's just a fact of...well...life.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/09/07/one-year-on-2/ 07-09-2016:

Having no concept of time is one of my defining character traits. Not being able to keep track of the passage without major events to bookmark specific points. The birth of Nugget, myself and the ladyfriend's first child, was one of the most important fixed points in time for me. But it seems that noticing a full year had passed from that amazing day is still not in my wheelhouse of skills.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/08/07/thats-con-folks/ 07-08-2016:

Another year, another con (another rant as well, been a while ;)).

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/06/27/accidental-stories/ 27-06-2016:

I've just put the latest Filthy Henry novel, 'Accidental Legend', to bed. It is done. Finished. Completed. Ready for people to read or ignore as they see fit. What's funny, at least from my perspective, about this book is its origins.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/04/19/polish-a-third-draft/ 19-04-2016:

Draft Three has finally been put to bed. It was a bit of a slog to get through to be honest. Life has a wonderful habit of getting insanely busy at the times you could use for writing. Plus I had some interesting fun during the month with migraines and night terrors, basically writing off two days due to being tired.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/03/19/draft-2---that-was-long/ 19-03-2016:

That was a long rewrite if I do say so myself. I mean seriously. I don't remember a rewrite taking me so long before.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2016/02/04/first-draft-again/ 04-02-2016:

I've been off the blogging grid for a bit lately. Mainly because when I get stuck into writing a new story I find that I don't have the mental juices to blog as well. But now that I've finished the first draft of my third book I figured it was time for a little post.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2015/12/05/return-to-the-con/ 05-12-2015:

Roughly this time last year, in fact more or less this exact week, I foolishly signed up to Dublin Comic Con to sell my books.

Read On...]]> http://www.bluejester.com http://www.bluejester.com/rants/2015/11/29/christmas-karam/ 29-11-2015:

Now that we have Nugget in our lives myself and the lady friend are getting into a few new Christmas related traditions. One of those is bringing the little bundle of joy out and about on cold winter nights so we can have pictures taken. The better to build memories my dear.

Read On...]]>