Embedded Files
July 2026
July 2026
18 | 07 | 26
18 | 07 | 26
Bonjour! Comment allez-vous?
Désolé. I haven’t made an appearance for a while. Life can be rather tumultuous at times. In the months leading to now I have stood on unstable ground, but not just myself, my family too. If you are close to me, you know I can be honest, but it is never my strong suit, however mental health is something I am not shy to discuss.
Earlier this year, my wife lost her father to cancer. He was a brilliant man, very intelligent and incredibly kind. We all miss him dearly, and our emotions are still very raw. We are all still trying to process everything. He declined so quickly, and left us too quickly. We saw some signs of his illness toward the end of last year, but we didn’t piece things together until early February. We got to say goodbye to him, but the world is not the same without his presence.
I’ve had a chaotic few months battling a mixed bipolar episode. Very impulsive and energetic. Disruptive sleep and I felt alive, but severely depressed. I’ll be honest, during these times, I can be messy. I can either be my best or my worst. Sadly, this was the worst of me.
I also had a very large sequestered disk (L5) causing unbearable nerve pain (S1). I collapsed when I lost the ability to walk and was hospitalised. I spent four days in bed, but I had an incredible neurosurgeon who locked me in for a late night op. The morning after, I was eating breakfast on the chair by the bed, then standing by the window, looking out over the rooftops toward the Illawarra Escarpment. I am incredibly grateful for them.
I am incredibly grateful for my wife. It would be hell at times; living with me, tolerating me, being patient with me. I’m complicated and incredibly flawed, I understand that. But even though I can completely dissolve, even break away entirely. Though destructive, you weather the storms with me. You love me through it all. You help me find my way back.
Merci, ma amour. Je t’aime, ma belle. Toujours.
I’m still here and I intend to keep it that way. But I need the smell of earthy forest. To hear the static of the cascading falls. Watch the sunlight beam through the gaps in the canopy. The lyrebirds shuffle through the decaying leaves. To just sit by the falls, breathe and relax … only ten weeks of healing to go.
__________
Writing? – Not a chance
No progress on the Inversion front. I haven’t been able to think about it since February. I have the time, but not the headspace. Of course now I am moving into that territory, so who knows. Maybe I’ll have a progress update in the next post.
I have started writing a short story titled ‘Betelgeuse’. It has come from a concept I had a couple of years ago, and leans into dealing with grief and finding acceptance. It’s on par with themes throughout my shorts and novels, but this one is very personal to me, and I maybe to all of us. Processing grief is a part of accepting our mortality. Life is beautiful, but it’s incredibly fragile. A fleeting moment on a possibly endless scale. We take it for granted, until time is unkind. Appreciate what you have. Appreciate yourself, your family and friends. You don’t know how kind time will be.
Extract from Betelgeuse:
The flickering amber glow of the campfire splashed across the side of the swag. Inside it was warm, but a little tight.
Mara couldn’t sleep. She was lying in between the warm layers of her sleeping bag, staring up through the fly guard to the stars above.
Her thoughts raced, the stars flickered through the grey mesh. She stretched upward and positioned her hands in a circle, surrounding the star Betelgeuse.
“It’s a nice feeling.” She spoke with a husk in her voice. She cleared her throat.
“Just looking up at the stars like this. It’s a luxury these days. People have no idea.”
The light from Betelgeuse had faded, vanishing into the void. Mara tilted her head, then lowered her arms.
“The dying star they call it. A supergiant. You know it’s over six hundred and forty light-years from us? Well, the distance is difficult to narrow down, but it’s still a long way.”
She smiled, her hair floating across her pillow.
“I studied it a lot, Betelgeuse. My research led me down very interesting paths. I was always fascinated by the great dimming. I mean, that’s why I’m here right? Not just for you, but for the great dim. What better way to spend the time with things we both love.”
She watched the spot of light appear once more, and she exhaled.
“But it’s abnormal. The star doesn’t just fizzle out the way it is now. There is a surface ejection that shoots material into space. The material cooled and dimmed the star’s brightness, but it would never completely fade. That’s why I’m here. To understand what’s really going on.”
She pulled up the sleeping bag, and it met her chin. She wriggled into it and felt the warmth engulf her body.
She sighed, staring into the void.
“There might be a day when the beautiful star disappears forever. A supernova. As it collapses, a neutrino surge bursts into space, passing through matter and bodies at nearly the speed of light.”
The star reappeared, flashing brighter than it had before. Mara’s lips curled, and she smiled.
“See, this is what I’m talking about. This stuff – it's not normal, Clara.”
She turned her head to the open locket, then gazed into her eyes.
“Whatever is going on up there, my research helps me to understand it.”
The firelight leaked through the swag, splashing against the locket and over Clara’s face. Mara turned, rolling onto her side, keeping her eyes fixed on Clara.
“I can’t help thinking that I am running from the truth, you know? The reality that everything is gone; my home, husband, even my daughter. Everything. My life is gone. But here I am, just fighting it. Day after day. An uphill battle. It would be much easier to give in to it, just let it happen. But then I’m letting go. I want to hold onto this as much as I can. Do you understand? It hurts so much, baby.”
Clara was locking eyes with her mother. Mara took comfort in her gaze.
“So, I keep climbing. Keep pushing. I wanted this after all, so let’s keep going. I want to see Betelgeuse from the peak, that’s all I want. We’re halfway, so if we turn back now, we may as well have kept going.” She chuckled and rolled onto her back. Staring up into the night sky again. Betelgeuse’s glow was bright and radiant. Her eyelids closed.
“Goodnight, Clara. Sleep well.”
__________
My plans going forward
I would like to be realistic with you; Inversion is a while off. I could be optimistic and tell you a final draft is expected by year’s end, but that wouldn’t be truthful. It is still unpolished and under-seasoned for me to push some deadline. I’m thankful I have no publisher or they’d have dropped me by now. I want it to be perfect and for it to be perfect, it needs time to brew in my wonderful mind. My hope is next year, but I can never be certain. Désolé.
I aim to have Betelgeuse written and published this year. Following that, Hum moving into next year. I want to study if I am honest. As you can tell, I am learning some French for self interest. I would also like to dig into neuroscience in a broader sense with everything being surface level right now. I have so many things with so little time. It’s exhausting.
Here is a little something I wrote for Inversion right before I carried out my step back. It delves a little into my mental state at the time, though with a brief display of Josie’s whimsy and smarts. It’s a fascinating idea, perhaps I’ll try it one day 😉
Extract from Inversion:
She pushed aside some papers, pulling toward her a bundle of paper. They were stacked and bound by a foldback clip in the corner.
“You were saying?” Michelle’s voice cut through the computer’s crackling speakers. Her bright, smiling face filled the screen.
“D’accord.” Josie held up the bundle in front of her camera.
Michelle leaned forward, squinting. Her smile narrowed to a thin line.
“Meditation-induced psychosis? Really?”
Josie nodded and placed the bundle down. She stood, then wheeled over a whiteboard scribbled with jagged lines.
“It’s really quite simple. I gradually ease myself into a routine. Three one-hundred-and-ten-minute cycles for me seems to be just enough to wake right when REM has ended. When I’m most alert and focused. So a light five and a half hours over two weeks, while gradually increasing meditation to cheat the cognitive deficit.”
Removing the lid of the red marker, she circled a point on the red line — today’s date — where intensity had begun to spike.
Her voice was bellowing, her speech rapid.
“This dot marks today’s date. The x-axis is time and tracks my progress over the last five weeks. The y-axis, on the other hand, marks the scale of the episodes. We have two lines, a red and a blue. Red is the intensity, so how frequent and vivid the hallucinations are. Blue is severity; docile to hostile. As you can see, patterns were non-existent within the first few weeks. But as we move into the fifth week, things start to take a turn.”
She followed the trend line with the marker, sloping upward.
“It’s obvious, but with the decreased step – a drop from three cycles to just two – from five point five to three point six hours, I am seeing significant changes in my neural data, according to the EEG logs I’ll send to you separately. The intensity increases, that’s a given, but the severity may fluctuate, depending on how I am feeling.”
“And how are you feeling?” Michelle asked carefully.
“On top of the world.”
À plus! Until next time!
January 2026
January 2026
31 | 01 | 26
31 | 01 | 26
Happy New Year!
(Too late? I'm just going to claim this was written in early January).
I hope things are well for you, your family and friends. Time is precious. Appreciate simplicity.
This year, my goal is to focus less on the material, and more so on connection. Connection to nature and knowledge. Love and life. To live in the moment, and to take a breath every once in a while. Every little moment counts on this beautiful planet, embrace it and cherish it.
Well, my writing? Well … it was stagnate, at least for a while. It infuriated me knowing I'd hit true writer's block, yet I preserved. Direction in sight! (for now). The section of narrative I'm writing teeters subtly into the profound, while trying to stay grounded in science. It's a complex mash-up of quantum physics and neuroscience; or quantum neuroscience, which is conceptually rooted back to the 1960s. For those who don't know, it is the way quantum phenomena, things such as superposition and entanglement, plays a functional role on neuro processes beyond standard mechanisms in the brain, even the generation of consciousness. But trying to understand how these tie together in my narrative, particularly in the realm of quantum physics is challenging. Neuroscience is complex enough, right? So the issue is keeping my novel as close to the science as possible. However, this area is newly researched and ongoing, but certainly interesting, even though widely dismissed and controversial. So, what ever I delve into here is just highly speculative. The words from the wise father-in-law ring true:
'It's science fiction, not science fact.'
- P. Flynn, circa. 2024
I think, as always, he is right.
__________
I thought I'd share insight today. Delve into who we are as human beings in the 3rd millennium of the 21st century, and now into the 26th year. Oh boy, how time flies.
Our focus should be less on material things. It's not complicated these days to pull out a smartphone and scroll, even spend lengthy hours on a computer (guilty), and disregard the world around us. We've forgotten how precious family is, and how face-to-face connection is so important, even connection generally. So, I propose a 4 step challenge for you. It takes minimal effort and is carried out twice a day for at least a month. You can do this next time you take public transport, or sitting at home in front of the television. Maybe even when you are at work, or lunch. Even if you a doing nothing.
Step 1:
Stop what you are doing. If you have a phone, smart device, or laptop, put it away.
Step 2
Take a look around and answer these questions:
1- What do you see?
2- Is it day or night?
3- Are there any people?
3.1- Are they glued to their screens?
3.1.1- How many are glued to their screens?
Step 3
Look out a window yourself, if you have one nearby. If not, just take a look around. Spot something interesting and study it. Really think about it for a moment.
1- What is it?
2- Is it interesting enough?
3- What is its most interesting feature?
3- What does it remind you of?
Step 4
Take a deep breath through your nose. Now hold it for 4 seconds, then breath out through your mouth.
Conclusions
What did you find most interesting about this routine?
Did you feel most relaxed before or after you ran through it?
My findings were shocking, but also expected. I understand how much our society relies on technology to fit into social routines and societal norms. It's unsurprising how little attention we give to the world around us, and how hyper fixated we are. It's wild we live in such a place. A place where endless scrolling gives us such comfort and satisfaction. The truth is, we need to ground with reality. Learn to be human again, with a side of compassion, connection and understanding. Let's move away from hatred and misinformation delivered through social media online generally, and cease the endless doom scrolling and disassociate from content fed to us by algorithms.
Last year, I undertook a tech detox. I deleted my social media accounts, keeping only Instagram for my author account. I deleted most of the applications off my Google Pixel, and yes, even a weather app. I have a few 'critical' ones now, which includes music (you know how much I love music!). I now spend my 4 hour commutes gazing out the window, watching the Illawarra rainforests pass by, before staring over the ocean, blasting prog metal. I won't lie, I do pull out my laptop every now and then, but my novel won't write itself.
Life is less complex. Blissful even. Some order amongst the chaos that is the realty of things.
__________
Top 6 listens (Last couple of months)?
I've found myself down a very interesting path of new discoveries. I've stumbled onto some INCREDIBLE artists, both local and international. The bands Feather Mountain, nightdive and Lucid Planet are spectacular and deserve an honourable mention. Most are progressive of course, but there are a few surprises. There are two bands below that are more well known, but that didn't stop them making the cut.
Here they are in no particular order:
Worlds On Fire, The Butterfly Effect
Reminds me of Muse. Punchy, prog rock. AUS based.
Passing, Leprous
Prog metal. Impressively, clean vocals. Classic Leprous!
Organic Hard Drive, Lucid Planet
Progressive psych metal with elements of psytrance? Yes, really. It's quite something.. AUS Based.
Sigil, Feather Mountain
Heavy hitting prog metal with elements of HEAVY vocals. Refreshing as hell.
These guys are incredible. Please check them out. Try Sunder and August Mantra.
Occulent, nightdive
Alternative metal Heavy as hell, vocals and all. Just what you need. Beautifully crafted. AUS based.
What release are you most pumped for in 2026?
In Verses, Karnivool. Need I say more?
November 2025
November 2025
18 | 11 | 25
18 | 11 | 25
The end of the year is fast approaching, so are we all ready for another revolution around the sun? Have you achieved what you wanted in 2025? There is still time.
My plan is to have Inversion finalised by the end of the year, ready for first stage edits. There's quite a lot to process, and I am lagging behind. It's a journey, always will be, and it's always the road less travelled. I have been on the hunt for some inspiration to help bring out that creative energy, and I have been spending some time in some local places which I've been inspired by. Once I am in these places, I find myself immersed in the elements, and with it, a level of connectedness to my characters and their world. I want to share with you a special moment I encountered, but before I do, I want you to have a peek at the below extracts.
__________
Extract 1:
Josie stood in the monochrome outside the heritage pub. Its white façade was well kept, and pale blooms sat in pots along the second-storey balustrade. She crossed the street to the narrow red door and peered through the window. Inside, the bar’s mirrored splashback was smeared, like mist on glass. The pub was empty, just fragments and dust. Silent, eerie and dull, and it made the loneliness harder. Over the mute was an unnerving hum, like the motor of an old AC unit. Josie stepped through the red door, passed the bar and slipped a narrow door, before taking a booth seat along the side. She sighed, leaning back against the glass that overlooked the beer garden below. Tucking her hair behind her ear, she tried to collect her thoughts. In front of her, apparitions flickered into view, jittering and tearing. Then echoed a voice.
“Soon, my queen. You’ll be amongst the stars.”
Extract 2:
The dining area fell quiet, and the music returned; Fly Me to the Moon drifting through the cold. Frost crept along the windows, and Josie’s breath steamed in the air. She folded her arms, tucking in her hands for warmth, then moved into the bar. Bottles lined the shelves behind the polished counter. Her gaze settled on the mirror beneath them. Her reflection was hollow. A dark smudge, distorting and shifting with every flick of her hand.
The special moment
My wife and I try to get a a family outing in at least one a month (Mother, Father and Japanese Spitz). Let's be honest, sometimes life gets in the way and it's always about finding the right balance, so these times are incredibly important. When we go out, it is usually preceded with the drive from A to B. Most of the time, we pick somewhere familiar that we can walk around with the dog, get some food, and just have a great day together. Well, when my wife and I moved to the Illawarra back in 2020, we once drove through a lovely suburb nestled in the escarpment, surrounded by forest. We soon discovered the towns charm, beauty, and rich heritage, but is shadowed by a tragic history; the mining disaster of 1902 where 96 people lost their lives. Within the town, is also the oldest weatherboard hotel in the Illawarra, established in the late 1800s.
The extracts above were a descriptor of the Mount Kembla Village Hotel (MKVH), and is my inspiration for this scene. In this scene, Josie is in a dreamlike version of her hometown in the Illawarra, searching for something. That something you won't know until the book is released, so I'll keep that secret. Her hometown is based on the quiet suburb of Mount Kembla, but with denser forests and more mysteriousness. In saying that, whenever I visit this place, I feel right at home. I love it there, and take the chance to visit whenever I can.
Is this the special moment?
What I experienced was warm, cold, colourful, unnerving, and beautiful all at the same time. Something almost the inverse of 'author's bleed'. A spill over between reality and fiction. Elements of their world spilling over into our own. Perhaps coincidentally or spiritually, it depends how you look at it.
So … what happened?
It was my dog's third birthday and we love to spoil him, so we decided to take him to lunch at MKVH. On arrival, we sat down in the courtyard at the back and settled, before I went to get some drinks. (We don't drink alcohol, so it's usually coke). When I stepped into the room, I approached the bar, and there was some music playing over the radio. But when I looked at the narrow, mirrored splashback behind the bar, the music suddenly changed. I didn't recognise the song at first, but then it hit me. It was Fly Me to the Moon; or at least a modernised, lesser known version of it, (and no, not the one from Squid Game - and yes, it was coincidentally a part of an R&B mash up). But the song was playing the moment I stepped up to the bar. It was surreal, uncanny even. It was as close to my narrative world as I could possibly get. Then a warmth sparked inside and I gave a half smile, and as I left the bar with the drinks, the music shifted away to the original R&B song. It was well timed. At that moment, I was in Josie's hometown, at her local pub, ordering a drink while listening to a song that shares a crucial element in her story.
Once I sat back down, I handed my wife her coke. I just smiled. She gave me a strange look and turned back to the dog. I placed down my drink, then watched as a butterfly flew gracefully past my face, tap on my cheek and kept moving. My wife then told me the butterfly reminded her of Inversion. I said, I understood.
What is the significance of the butterfly?
I can't give much away, but they play a big role in Josie's narrative arch.
__________
What do you have in the works / planning?
I have a few short stories and novellas, and an unnamed novel.
Short Story
Echo Trail; A lone camper in the snowy pines experiences strange phenomenon
Hum; The hum persists. It taunts Mira to the point of insanity. Is it in her head, or is there something much bigger at play?
Novella
Intrusia - Novella 1 of the Agent Young series (An inversion spin-off); Can you pass Intrusia's Game?
Prosperity; This is most distant from my usual themes. Set on the scout ship Sirius X, on the reaches of the Alpha Centuri. A psychological thriller about Captain Marissa Everly, dealing with the aftermath of an significant EMP titled 'Nova'.
Novel
Veil (Working Title)
__________
What's on repeat right now?
I have two songs on repeat. One is Hospital for Souls, Bring Me The Horizon. This song cuts deep, musically and emotionally. I can relate to it in a way. The song is about moving past immense struggle and embracing positive change and renewal. Though the song is focused on the lead singers addiction, it reminds me a lot of my times coping with bipolar depression; heavy hitting, deep, and lonely.
The second is I Am Just One, EsOterica. Interesting song, with some heavier elements toward the end. I think the lyrics can be interpreted many ways, but the common consensus is that we are a slave to our own minds. Free your mind, the rest will follow.
Mount Kembla Village Hotel (MKVH)
4 | 11 | 25
4 | 11 | 25
Almost a month later. I am really not great with this, though I don't think I have spilt my time effectively. Writing has decreased, and pointless tinkering has increased.
I'll begin with Inversion. It's safe to say my manuscript is just below 120,000 words now, and well on it's way to completion. For context, it had been completed in part months ago, but the narrative has expanded into something … a little unique. I now have multiple angles, making significant impact on the overarching narrative. You're in for a real treat (I hope!). I am working my way through the 'Inversion' part of the narrative. It's a little wild and obscure, but also haunting in a sense. Somewhere between a waking state and an uncomfortable dream.
Below is a small extract that captures this environment well:
At times, the environment flickered and tore, and digital artifacts jumped across her view. Josie took a deep breath, then glanced up into the forest canopy. Every fragment she had experienced—pain, joy or frustration— it was all deeply familiar. A lost history relived. Had she created a place where reality itself had inverted? Could she be reaching into something at the quantum level?
No. That couldn’t be possible. Then what is it? She looked downstream.
The white beech and coachwood stretched out over the water, their branches meeting the moss-covered rocks on the opposite side. The water defied gravity, floating upwards until it rippled metres above the ground. Behind her, the falls were cascading upwards, dissolving into a faded white sky. The world stuttered around her, glitching and faltering. The vine-covered trees vanished, replaced with a scatter of rocks. The falls inverted, settling above her like a mirrored world.
It's corrupting, she thought.
On to tinkering
I have spent a number of hours in my free time putting together what I am labelling as PyParty. Titled appropriately may I add (RaspberryPi and Python Programming) and as you may expect from its title, it knows how to entertain. It is a very bare bones thingy that consists of numerous coloured LEDs, a microphone, and an analogue-digital converter (ADC). It was great fun to make, and not the most pointless thing I have put together, but it is up there. Below is the snippet of code if you are looking for your Pi to host a party. Don't mind the comments, they are my references.
In Python
import smbus
from gpiozero import LED
from time import sleep
from random import choice
threshold = 30 #reactivity level
chip = smbus.SMBus(1) # 1 corresponds with default SDA/SCL (pin 3 and 5)
channel = 0x4b #Confirm channel with sudo i2cdetect -y 1
yled, yled2 = LED(14), LED(25) #LEDs at their corresponding position (GPIO14 and GPIO25)
rled, rled2 = LED(4), LED(24)
gled, gled2 = LED(17), LED(10)
bled, bled2 = LED(18), LED(23)
leds = [yled, yled2, rled, rled2, gled, gled2, bled, bled2] #lists all LEDs for ease of access
while True:
chip.write_byte(channel, 0x84) #RPi and ADC communication initiate
pickup_value = chip.read_byte(channel) #reading from microphone
if pickup_value >= threshold:
led = choice(leds)
led.on()
sleep(0.05)
led.off()
else:
None
And to see it in action, check out the video below! The song is Trash Classic, Frankie and the Witch Fingers. 😁
__________
Pineapple on pizza?
Mixed bag. Lately, no, and now I'm not so sure it belongs. #teamnopineapple
What is something you regret learning about?
Regret is a strong word, but delving in astronomy. I went through a phase where I would not put down the books. I'd be watching content in the early hours, even so that I went out and bought myself a telescope. I fell in love with it very quickly. Late nights, taking notes. Really just observing. Very therapeutic. Generic, maybe, but I was mesmerised by the Orion Nebula in the constellation of - you guessed it - Orion, and located right on Orion's sword. In dark skies you can see it with the naked eye, a faint smudge among an endless black sea. And that is where my fear crept in. The cosmos is so vast … so incomprehensibly vast … it's terrifying. Not a fear of the unknown, but of impermanence. Knowing that we are just a tiny little dot, rotating around a giant ball of mostly hydrogen and helium, in our home, a solar system of 8 planets (sorry, Pluto). You know the saying 'It's astronomical', well, this is the origin. The distance between us and everything else is … astronomical. It's insane! The sun is around 150 million km (93 million miles) away from earth, which is 1 AU (Astronomical Unit). The nearest star (excluding our beautiful sun), Proxima Centauri is 4.24 light years away, so it has taken the light it emits 4.24 years to get here. And when you gaze at Proxima Centauri, you are observing how it looked over 4 years ago.
Cool, right?
Why is this a regret? It sounds fantastic.
What astronomy taught me was we have a timer, and that timer is unpredictable and embedded into us. It made me realise that death is inevitable. It would keep me up at night. I'd think about how one day, I'll be gone and trace memory of me will too fade eventually. My name will be spoken one last time at some point. Pictures of me may be digitised, but eventually trashed. A forgotten blip in time, having lived on this planet for what I thought was a long, long time but in reality, it was a drop in a cosmic ocean. What is it all for? I'd think. Why are we here? I knew the answer. A hot molten rock (Earth), orbiting a hot mass (our sun), in a sweet spot (habitable zone), cooled and eventually thawed and wonderfully, life emerged. At a baseline anyway. Eventually, I came around to accepting that we are on a journey. All of us, together. And we are special in our own right. Each of us unique, but much the same. We are born from the stuff of stars onto this great planet, we breath the same air, experience life, and eventually pass on, to rejoin the cosmos once more. I am not religious. I don't think I could be. But I appreciate it, and respect those who practice. Though, more recently, I explored Buddhism which is incredibly beautiful. Understanding impermanence, that every moment we experience is temporary, reminded me of the how I once thought so deeply about the cosmos. And interdependence, that we are all interconnected. We are here because our mothers gave us life. We are here because a cell system's self-replication and variation which led to evolution. We are here due to the cause and conditions given by our sun that made earth habitable. Nothing exists independently. Now, this is a secular approach, so please take this as it is.
But in the end, the negative lagged behind the positive. I was stuck in a pessimistic loop for a while before I discovered reason. And it was such a special moment when I realised just how fragile we truly are, and just how much we should appreciate being here on this wonderful planet. So let's care of it, appreciate it, and each other.
__________
Well, I hope you enjoyed a little bit of science and philosophy. Until my next post. 🙌
The setup ...
PyParty in action!
October 2025
October 2025
11 | 10 | 25
11 | 10 | 25
So, it has been a couple of weeks, and honestly, not much has changed and still very busy with writing. Inversion is certainly taking hold with the current manuscript sitting around 115k. Little improvement from last time I wrote, which is a shame. But it takes as long as it takes I suppose. But once I'm done, I'll jump onto a Novella I've had in the works for some time. Never stops with me 😐
Inversion draws a lot of inspiration from the area where I live - the Illawarra - particularly the suburbs around the edge, and on the escarpment. The forests, and notably those within Macquarie Pass National Park, are the lifeblood of certain sections of the Novel. The orchid, Sarcochilus Falcatus, is a gorgeous native Australian epiphyte and is a common element of the story. Though it's not endemic to the Illawarra, it can be found in some elevated parts of the escarpment.
Below is a small extract that captures their beauty:
Josie studied the hanging orchid. The blooms were small and pristine. Their white petals curved around the yellow centre, streaked with orange and red. The tip brushed faintly in a shade of violet.
She read the tag and looked at her aunt.
“Why does this one have my name?” She shouted at Elena from across the greenhouse.
Elena smiled and as she approached pulled off the gardening gloves.
“That was supposed to be a surprise. A gift from your uncle and me.”
“They’re pretty. Orchids, right?”
“Sarcochilus Falcatus.”
“What?” Josie’s brow creased.
“Orange blossom orchids.” Elena chuckled. “This particular one we collected from a red cedar tree.”
Elena's eyes sparkled. She continued.
“Orchids are very special to me. They remind me of the rainforest. They remind me of nature's resilience. Its delicate tension between chaos and order to survive. Just how important our planet is, and every ecosystem on it. The fragility of nature itself. So, that’s why I am so passionate. They are such beautiful things, but so fragile. Unpredictable. They thrive with chaos, but with the right order, something neutral emerges. You find silent, beautiful stillness. You find balance."
Elena grinned, pointing at the petals.
“White for purity and new beginnings.”
She cupped her hand around the bloom.
“Strength and resilience. Grace and elegance.”
She gently turned the hanging orchids, then pointed out the irregular spike, closer to the root.
“This one in particular, uniqueness and individuality. It’s a perfect fit for you, don’t you think?”
“I guess,” Josie smiled. “Thanks, El. I love it.”
“You’re most welcome.”
I guess that leads me to my next paragraph...
My wife and I recently purchased a few orchids of our own. Initially, my wife got some cymbidiums. Recently, we picked up a beallara. I had been on the lookout for a sarc. falcatus for some time. Eventually, I managed to source one. It is a younger sarc and is starting to spread across it's cork, but the blooms were gorgeous. I remember my wife and I debating about the smell. It was very strong. Something like vanilla. She disagreed. To her it was closer to honey (I think). It's exciting how perception of scent can very between individuals. (olfactory receptors ... am I right?)
(pictures below)
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Your go to chocolate?
Usually plain. (Boring, I know) However, I do like hazelnut or coconut, depends on how I'm feeling.
What is your favourite prog album?
This is a really tough question and I am going to struggle to answer this. I think it really depends on what can be defined as 'prog'. There are a lot of djent / metalcore albums that are prog infused too, which I enjoy. I think my favourite at the moment (these change regularly) is Tsunami Sea by Spirit Box. A really unique album that packs punch.
And if I was to select a more traditional approach to 'prog rock' or 'prog metal', it would likely go to Bloom by Caligula's Horse. A very beautiful album with incredible depth, following themes of loss, growth, and renewal. It helped me through some pretty bleak times if I'm honest. My top three tracks in no particular order; Marigold, Rust, Dragonfly
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Well, that pretty well wraps it up. Until my next post. 🙌
Cymbidium (Sleepy Sharon)
Beallara (Snowblind 'Sweet Spots')
Sarcochilus Falcatus (Orange Blossom Orchid)
September 2025
September 2025
26 | 09 | 25
26 | 09 | 25
Never thought I'd start a blog here, but what the hell. It's Friday and I'm in a good mood.
I am about to embark on a journey. I wish I could say it was an exciting journey, but not quite. I work in Sydney and commute just under two hours to the southern end of the Illawarra. The trips are usually filled with music or writing, it depends on how I feel on the day. Today is the latter, and so it should be.
I have been putting off writing Inversion for a while now. I've found myself somewhat at a creative crossroads. Do I cram as much in as possible and end up with a mega novel? Do I tone it back and try find order within the current chaos? You can never truly get what you want. Another reason, which I have been told, is maybe I don't want to finish it. I have created this world that I am (very much) connected to. Finishing this novel means I have to say goodbye to something beautiful I have poured my personality into for over four years. It's not easy. Never is. Either way, this novel has to wrap up. I am one hundred and ten thousand words in, with a fair chunk to go, so we'll see where it leads me.
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This will be fun. Every entry, I'm going to be asked a few questions by an anonymous source (I promise it's not me - or is it 🤔). This is a little entertainment for you, the reader. So, here goes, I guess.
What are you reading?
Ah, I knew I'd ask myself that. I am currently reading Abandon by Blake Crouch. Though, not so much reading, more procrastinating. I find it hard to choose my hobbies at the moment. In between music, writing and reading.
A western supernatural is how I'd describe this book. In the 1800s, a town mysteriously disappears and in modern day, a unique group of people go to investigate. I'm about halfway though, and like a lot of Crouch's works, I quite enjoy them so looking forward to getting it together so I can read again.
What three tracks are stuck on repeat?
Right now, Aozora by Karnivool takes the top spot. It's a new release, and they haven't released one album in over twelve years so they are always on my radar.
Uh, second. That goes to Hypnosis by Sleep Token. I don't know what it is about this song, it just hits different. It's the atmosphere? Let me just say that Sleep Token is not my thing and I don't quite understand the hype. It's just pop / R&B branded as Metal. Hypnosis is the closest thing to progressive metal they have ever made and that is the only song that I found was decent enough to qualify to make my playlist #notsorry
Third is Unravelling by Muse. I am not the biggest fan of Muse, if I'm honest. Though I do like the Album Absolution. However, Unravelling hits hard. I didn't think Muse could get that heavy, and the mix with synth is incredible.
It's a Friday, so what are your weekend plans?
Honestly, I'm not sure. It's hard to keep up these days. I'll probably walk out to the falls early tomorrow morning, might see if I can spot any orchids. I've been hanging out to see them for quite some time. (How long is a year again? It has really been that long). Sunday, my wife and I will go to lunch with our Japanese Spitz at the Mount Kembla Village Hotel. Lovely spot, and the food is beautiful. 😋 Other than that, try get some writing done, but will that happen? Doubt.
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Well, that pretty well wraps it up. Until my next post. I'll leave you with a little joke I wrote, pulled from Inversion.
“I’m telling you, Joel. She's apeshit insane.”
“That’s bananas.”
Writing on the commute (Sutherland Station)
Wollongong Lighthouse
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