Mike Dean
Location Berlin, Germany
Activity
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Mike Dean made a comment
He'd started the Writing Fiction course twice before but never completed it. Something always happened: The first time, a spaceman had appeared at his door and whisked him off to Mars for a couple of months. The second, he'd been lured into the sea by a beautiful mermaid with whom he'd spent six glorious months in the ocean. He hoped that this time, his new...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Hi everyone, I'm originally from the UK but now live in Berlin, via Padova and Rome, Italy. I have to confess to having started this course before, but not finished it. This time I hope to complete to the end.
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Thank you!
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Mike Dean made a comment
John got up early, showered, breakfasted, and sat at the table in the lounge. It was 6am and still dark outside. The only sound in the house was the incessant ticking of the desktop clock he used for timing private English lessons. He lifted the lid of his macbook and opened a new document. Today would be different, he thought, no more writers' block. Ten...
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Mike Dean made a comment
It was morning, a glorious sunshiny morning. Breakfast had been served at the usual time, but I had no interest in eating breakfast. In spite of the beautiful morning, I couldn't relax, so chose to hide. I didn't know what to make of the situation, but one thing was for sure – nothing would ever be the same now I was no longer the only feline in the...
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Mike Dean made a comment
I live in Berlin with 2 cats: Treacle, is five, from Italy (I lived there for 8 years), and has been with me for 4 of those years. Dasha, they tell me, is Polish - she's three and a half years old and joined our household yesterday. She has a bullet lodged somewhere inside her, but I have yet to see the x-rays confirming this. I was born in Paisley and am...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Currently living in Berlin (just over 2 years), having spent 8 years in Italy (Padova and Rome), after escaping the rat race in the UK. Interested in learning more about critical thinking
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Mike Dean made a comment
She often came here to be alone. The sun was shining and the sky was almost clear blue. On her way she had experienced the sun's warmth. Inside, where she was now, it was darker although the glass-roofed ceiling did allow some sunlight to penetrate, and cooler, she could hear the whirring of the air conditioning. The artificial lighting was, of course, on as...
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Mike Dean made a comment
This is always a nice little exercise. I often use it as a "filler" in English classes, or as an ice-breaker for new groups. Two truths and a lie about themselves shared with the others. Everyone is allowed to ask a question before deciding which is the lie. It's amazing how creative people can be - and how often the facts are stranger than the fiction.
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Mike Dean made a comment
Pain had been his constant companion for at least the last six weeks. Admittedly there had been two periods of relief - trial separations, if you like, the first lasted four days, and the second six - but she kept coming back for more. The usual painkillers were no longer working, but heat, cold and the physio still played their part in keeping things under...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Hello! I am somewhat embarrassed to be introducing myself here again. This will be the third time I have started this course. I have lived in Berlin, Germany for two years now. Before that, I lived in Italy - first in Padova (six years) and then Roma (two years). I am originally from Scotland but, from the age of 7, grew up in Scarborough in the north of...
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*he'd* x2... typos.
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Mike Dean made a comment
Snatching a moment here and a moment there, Gregory wrote down his thoughts whenever he could between lessons. Sometimes he'd write about his fellow travellers on the U-bahn, other times he'd be in the school kitchen fleshing out a character summary, and yet others he'd be waiting in line at the checkout. Fleeting moments and fleeting thoughts, but sometimes,...
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Thanks for the comments and feedback, Christopher, much appreciated!
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Mike Dean made a comment
I have a hardback notebook and some smaller ring-bound notebooks that fit in my pocket. The only problem is I haven't made use of them. And this is really where my problems started when I did this course the first time around. I know I need to keep a journal with ideas, and this time around I will do just that. If you need to do anything correctly on this...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Probably the most difficult of the two exercises was writing three facts and only ONE fiction. Once the imagination is open to writing fictions, the temptation is to let it flow... ;)
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Mike Dean made a comment
Treacle grew up on a farm. Her earliest memories are of playing with her siblings around the barns capturing small animals. At the age of only two she was taken away from her biological mother and adopted. She didn't like her new home in the city very much and was so disruptive that her new "mother" kept her closed in the bathroom most of the day where she...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Good morning!
I'm a Scot who grew up and lived mainly in England before moving to Italy for 8 years. After 6 years in Padova and 2 years in Rome, I now live in Berlin, Germany. I live with my two cats, Boris and Treacle. I am a photographer, journalist (I write non-fiction for a magazine), translator (IT>EN) and English teacher.
I have attempted this...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Finally got into this week's tasks...
... so far I haven't really used my notebook. I know I should have been, but carrying it with me all the time is a habit I have to cultivate. -
Mike Dean made a comment
Two reviews so far . thanks to Sheila and Tina - one negative, one positive. One who wouldn't want to read on, one who would. I had deliberately set this up to create suspense and Sheila quite rightly pointed out that it is difficult to connect to the main character as she doesn't even remember her own name in the opening paragraph, but quite obviously...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Thanks for explaining the process you used - interesting. I still (in agreement with others below) think that Hilary looking up was somehow significant. I guess we didn't know enough about the subsequent action to decide that.
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Mike Dean made a comment
I like the shorter version. It has more impact than my version:
"It was rush hour and it was about to rain, yet everyone seemed oblivious to it: everyone except Hilary. Hilary, with her loaded snub-nosed gun concealed inside her coat, was looking skyward."
I edited my version a few times before settling on the above. My first version read something like:...
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Mike Dean made a comment
It was rush hour and it was about to rain, yet everyone seemed oblivious to it: everyone except Hilary. Hilary, with her loaded snub-nosed gun concealed inside her coat, was looking skyward.
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Could be, I don't know. I just took the line from the programme and turned it off. I wasn't really interested to find out more as I didn't want that to influence what I wrote next.
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Thanks Patricia! Also a nice suggestion! :D
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Mike Dean made a comment
Part 4/3... oops.. 4 parts...
He got up. His knees were weak and he was shaking. He somehow managed to thank the panel and shake hands before exiting. He hit the nearest bar – work or no work tomorrow morning, he needed a drink - even though one drink would lead to another and it would be unlikely he would hit the sack until 5 or 6am he would somehow...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Part 3/3
He didn't know how long he'd been lost in his thoughts, but obviously long enough for the interview panel to notice.
“Yes, yes, sorry,” he replied “I just needed a moment to think. Sorry!”
He took a deep breath, he was sweating now, his heart was racing, and he hoped that his nervousness wasn't obvious to the panel.
“My greatest...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Part 2/3
He'd graduated from the space academy with flying colours and his career had seemed to be going very well all those years ago, but that was when he was still with Martha. She had supported him through all his trials and tribulations, she'd been the one who kept him going, given him encouragement and kept him sane. And then she left. He hadn't seen...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Part 1/3
Jack's biggest weakness as a pilot was not being very good at flying. It was a wonder that he still had a job - he had had two near misses in one month and had only narrowly missed crash landing last week because his co-pilot, George, had had the good sense to take over: had he not done so, it would undoubtedly have resulted in disaster and death...
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Mike Dean replied to Anthony Anderson
I agree Anthony. I find the current way of recording comments completely inadequate for the purpose. It's a shame, because I know I am missing many interesting things, but have no time to go through every comment on every thread - and as a consequence hardly look at anything at all...
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Thanks for the input! :D
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Mike Dean made a comment
I remember
I met Debbie at the University Beer Festival. It had been in full swing for a couple of hours when Debbie came up on stage. There had already been a number of performances but when Debbie got up to sing, in spite of the continuing noise around me, it was as if the whole hall had suddenly gone quiet. Of course, in reality, her performance wasn't... -
Mike Dean made a comment
Emma said that
She was going along for the ride, she had decided. She hadn't been asked, and none of the others wanted her to come, but once she had made up her mind there was no amount of persuasion or cajoling that would change her mind and the others would just have to grin and bear it. She wasn't dull or uninteresting to be with, nor was she arrogant or... -
Mike Dean replied to Linda Matthews
Cat story = win! ^..^
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Thanks, Mary... perhaps I could replace "drifted" with something like "barged its way in uninvited" ... what do you think?
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Mike Dean made a comment
He'd never said it before even though we'd been seeing each other for a month or two now, and those three little words hit me like a brick flying through a window shattering the framework of our relationship. It was so unexpected: as was my reaction. I had been perfectly clear from the outset that we were just friends and that the sex was merely an added...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Hmm... not as easy as it sounds - at least not to me. This was my first attempt, but I can't see any particularly familiar words coming out which are in unfamiliar places. Fail. :(
As the sinewy tendrils of smoke meandered their way skywards past the open door to the balcony, and the sickly smell of searing flesh drifted into the flat on what had previously...
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Yeah, I got a scratch this morning from Treacle while trying to write this. She wasn't comfortable in the space I allocated her on my knee - she jumped off and dug her back claws in at the same time. I think writing, for me, will have to be when the cats are sleeping - preferably not ON me or the desk! ;)
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Indeed they do!!!
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Mike Dean made a comment
Part 2/2
He washed his hands and walked back to his desk ready to get started once more. Just as he was about to type, the sound of a cat retching called him to investigate. Typically, Boris, the black cat, had eaten too quickly and vomited his food all over the carpet. Another trip to the kitchen to fetch cleaning materials and provide more food for the... -
Mike Dean made a comment
Part 1/2
The quiet sanctuary of his own private space was something he had always dreamed of. In this new flat, which they had moved into only one month before, he finally had it. He had his computer, his musical instruments, his camera equipment, his books, his CDs and his DVDs all here around him just an arm's length away. It was evening: everyone else was... -
Mike Dean made a comment
Part 2/2
He washed his hands and walked back to his desk ready to get started once more. Just as he was about to type, the sound of a cat retching called him to investigate. Typically, Boris, the black cat, had eaten too quickly and vomited his food all over the carpet. Another trip to the kitchen to fetch cleaning materials and provide more food for the... -
Mike Dean made a comment
Part 1/2
The quiet sanctuary of his own private space was something he had always dreamed of. In this new flat, which they had moved into only one month before, he finally had it. He had his computer, his musical instruments, his camera equipment, his books, his CDs and his DVDs all here around him just an arm's length away. It was evening: everyone else was... -
Mike Dean made a comment
This is a difficult task to "complete" now - but I like the idea of experimenting and reflecting on what works and what doesn't. I will add this to my "To Do" list and make notes of when and where I am able to write something down.
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Mike Dean made a comment
I haven't read all the comments, but there seems to be a trend: that most already DO write at specific times or have the ability to write whenever they feel like it. I have to stick my hand up and say that's not me. I know from reading that I should write something every day - even if it is just about writers' block as Michèle Roberts mentioned - but I don't...
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Thanks Kara.... what was in the envelope remains to be revealed! ;)
(always leave your reader hungry for more!)
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Mike Dean made a comment
An interesting exercise, indeed. I will go back later and re-read all of the submissions properly. I guess the thing to be noted is how easy it is to start something from real life facts and progress it from there. Nice one.
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Mike Dean replied to Amanda McGrath
I'm not sure that's necessarily true. Perhaps most just simply thought something up here on the spot. Don't be discouraged! ;)
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Mike Dean made a comment
Just as he did every Monday morning, he first fed the cats, made breakfast and a pot of Earl Grey tea before sitting down in front of the computer to see if any of his friends' Facebook updates revealed that they had done something more interesting than he had. The answer was, of course, no – as it was every Monday morning and, indeed, every morning. The sound...
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Mike Dean made a comment
Hi. I haven't written any fiction since schooldays - and what I did there wasn't much good, I'm sure. I have had some ideas in the past and have "started" various pieces of fiction writing but never progressed them. I currently write for an international magazine about charitable works around the world, but it is completely different from writing fiction. I...
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Hi. I currently live in Berlin, Germany and spent 8 years before this living in Italy. I am originally from the UK, though. I am interested in this course because I already write for a world-wide distributed magazine but have never had any formal training in journalism. The idea of community journalism appeals to me, as I believe that it is the only true way...
