Now live on Youtube...give it a look :)
It's been three months in the making (!), but I am really proud of it...and I did have help from a certain obliging husband of mine....(read, a LOT!)
Sunday, 28 September 2014
Wednesday, 10 September 2014
There is always one.....
Hi all :)
Well, the book talk went well, in the sense that I didn't trip over my own shoes or stumble my words, and and even my APPALLING Scottish accent didn't draw any laughs! However, there were a few, shall we say, random questions asked. For example;
"Does your blog have any readers, or is it just you talking to yourself?" (??????)
"Did you get any complaints about the swearing in your book? Couldn't you replace it with something else?" (I then started to defend the ONE use of a swear word as being integral to the plot, and the questioner then completely changed tack: "If there was no swearing in young adult novels, there would be no grit!" (So why ask?!)
"Did none of the agents you approached ever question you writing a book set in a place you had never been to?" (A derisive look followed.) "I think you need to go there."
All the above. among other such questions, were asked by the same individual. Their crossed arms and staring fixedly at the floor throughout the talk made it very clear they didn't want to be there, and they seemed to have it in for me at question time, despite not even having read the book! It begs the question, why come at all? But there's none so queer as folk, I suppose....
Anyhow, the last question in particular has raised a debate in my mind. Plenty of writers set books in places they have heavily researched, but not been to; I know for a fact I'm not the only one. So is it an appropriate thing to do?
In my opinion it depends on the circumstances of the book; whether you are writing about an urban or rural landscape, whether the book is rooted in a particular town that really exists, or a fictional town within a general region. I think that, in the latter two examples, you can get away with it, but I'd be interested to hear other's takes on this.
Please do comment on this post with any ideas/opinions etc, or jot something on Facebook.
Ta :)
Well, the book talk went well, in the sense that I didn't trip over my own shoes or stumble my words, and and even my APPALLING Scottish accent didn't draw any laughs! However, there were a few, shall we say, random questions asked. For example;
"Does your blog have any readers, or is it just you talking to yourself?" (??????)
"Did you get any complaints about the swearing in your book? Couldn't you replace it with something else?" (I then started to defend the ONE use of a swear word as being integral to the plot, and the questioner then completely changed tack: "If there was no swearing in young adult novels, there would be no grit!" (So why ask?!)
"Did none of the agents you approached ever question you writing a book set in a place you had never been to?" (A derisive look followed.) "I think you need to go there."
All the above. among other such questions, were asked by the same individual. Their crossed arms and staring fixedly at the floor throughout the talk made it very clear they didn't want to be there, and they seemed to have it in for me at question time, despite not even having read the book! It begs the question, why come at all? But there's none so queer as folk, I suppose....
Anyhow, the last question in particular has raised a debate in my mind. Plenty of writers set books in places they have heavily researched, but not been to; I know for a fact I'm not the only one. So is it an appropriate thing to do?
In my opinion it depends on the circumstances of the book; whether you are writing about an urban or rural landscape, whether the book is rooted in a particular town that really exists, or a fictional town within a general region. I think that, in the latter two examples, you can get away with it, but I'd be interested to hear other's takes on this.
Please do comment on this post with any ideas/opinions etc, or jot something on Facebook.
Ta :)
Wednesday, 20 August 2014
The unmitigated joys of writing a book talk...
Hi everyone,
Long time no write...well, not on The Ink Splat at least, which is good in a way, because it means I've been getting lots of writing done elsewhere, which after all is my raison d'etre.
I have now completed six and a bit chapters of the sequel to Spiral;The Finding. It's going like the clappers, after a hiatus of almost two years between this book and the first, while I worked on another unaffiliated book (watch this space!), but it feels really good to get involved with the MacBain sisters again. To hear them speaking to me as they once did. It seems a strange thing to say, but it feels as if I know them. Whenever I sit down to write, I silently tap into them, and say "Take me where ever you want." And they do. They speak to me so clearly, that in fact, me being of a spiritual bent, sometimes on a dark night, I wonder if their voices didn't come from me....
Slight creepiness aside, however, I am giving a book talk at my local library about the first Spiral novel on 5th September. I have prepared what I want to say about the book, decided on an extract to read, prepared for a few potential questions that might be asked, and rehearsed it a few times of times....but I'm still absolutely terrified. For three reasons;
1.) It's public speaking. 'Nuff said.
2.) It's the first time I've ever given a talk about a book of mine. To anyone. I know it's only a book group at a local library, but it's still laying yourself bare to comment and criticism, which is always scary.
3.)What if I get some self-important nutter ("I've read all the Richard and Judy book club books, therefore I am ever so erudite", you know the type...) who asks me some waffly question I can't answer?! It never looks good, not being able to answer a question about your own book....
Oh well, I suppose I've done everything I can do...I can't prepare for every possible question on the planet when I don't know what's going to be asked. I have found, however, through the writing of the talk, that it is actually harder to describe the book's message in speech, than it is to show it in your creative prose. That old adage "show, don't tell", which every writer worth their salt tries to follow, has never actually been a problem for me. I can paint a picture with written words really well. (Toot, toot.) However, ask me to talk about said picture, and I'll go and hide under my duvet.
It's a hurdle that has to be jumped though. As a self-published author, we all know we're supposed to be able to talk about our own books, etc etc.....I only hope it's something that gets easier with practice!
In other news: I am gearing up for autumn and the sending of me lovely wee man to school (trying not to dance a jig here, it's only afternoons...) and looking forward to the leaves turning. I love autumn, it's my absolute favourite season! My birthday, little man's birthday, Hallowe'en, Bonfire Night, and all the anticipation of Christmas to come. No other time of year makes me want to huddle up at my computer, start-of-the-new-school-year style, with all my new stationary and a pumpkin spice latte, in a preppy jumper, and get cracking.
I know, I am regressing to my university days. It's quite sad.
By the way, I actually wore thigh-socks, like the ones in Clueless.....
That's all for now, folks...stay tuned :)
Long time no write...well, not on The Ink Splat at least, which is good in a way, because it means I've been getting lots of writing done elsewhere, which after all is my raison d'etre.
I have now completed six and a bit chapters of the sequel to Spiral;The Finding. It's going like the clappers, after a hiatus of almost two years between this book and the first, while I worked on another unaffiliated book (watch this space!), but it feels really good to get involved with the MacBain sisters again. To hear them speaking to me as they once did. It seems a strange thing to say, but it feels as if I know them. Whenever I sit down to write, I silently tap into them, and say "Take me where ever you want." And they do. They speak to me so clearly, that in fact, me being of a spiritual bent, sometimes on a dark night, I wonder if their voices didn't come from me....
Slight creepiness aside, however, I am giving a book talk at my local library about the first Spiral novel on 5th September. I have prepared what I want to say about the book, decided on an extract to read, prepared for a few potential questions that might be asked, and rehearsed it a few times of times....but I'm still absolutely terrified. For three reasons;
1.) It's public speaking. 'Nuff said.
2.) It's the first time I've ever given a talk about a book of mine. To anyone. I know it's only a book group at a local library, but it's still laying yourself bare to comment and criticism, which is always scary.
3.)What if I get some self-important nutter ("I've read all the Richard and Judy book club books, therefore I am ever so erudite", you know the type...) who asks me some waffly question I can't answer?! It never looks good, not being able to answer a question about your own book....
Oh well, I suppose I've done everything I can do...I can't prepare for every possible question on the planet when I don't know what's going to be asked. I have found, however, through the writing of the talk, that it is actually harder to describe the book's message in speech, than it is to show it in your creative prose. That old adage "show, don't tell", which every writer worth their salt tries to follow, has never actually been a problem for me. I can paint a picture with written words really well. (Toot, toot.) However, ask me to talk about said picture, and I'll go and hide under my duvet.
It's a hurdle that has to be jumped though. As a self-published author, we all know we're supposed to be able to talk about our own books, etc etc.....I only hope it's something that gets easier with practice!
In other news: I am gearing up for autumn and the sending of me lovely wee man to school (trying not to dance a jig here, it's only afternoons...) and looking forward to the leaves turning. I love autumn, it's my absolute favourite season! My birthday, little man's birthday, Hallowe'en, Bonfire Night, and all the anticipation of Christmas to come. No other time of year makes me want to huddle up at my computer, start-of-the-new-school-year style, with all my new stationary and a pumpkin spice latte, in a preppy jumper, and get cracking.
I know, I am regressing to my university days. It's quite sad.
By the way, I actually wore thigh-socks, like the ones in Clueless.....
That's all for now, folks...stay tuned :)
Wednesday, 25 June 2014
A blow by blow account of yon bonnie research trip to "Embra...."
Friday Night:
After a very sweaty and stressful rush to Bristol Airport during rush hour, getting beeped at the body scanner (this always happens...I swear I don't have adamantium bones, not the last time I checked, anyway), lots of hanging around waiting, and a sickness-inducing flight north, I find myself sweeping down over the Solway Firth. I have never been in this situation before. About to arrive in a strange city, everything I have to my name in a backpack, nobody meeting me at the airport, and not really any certainty as to where I'm going. I didn't get to do the whole Gap Year thing, for various reasons, despite wanting to, and I suddenly feel very alone.
Before long, I find myself in the back of a taxi whizzing through the streets of Edinburgh, and I'm starting to wonder if all Scottish taxi drivers are a wee bit nuts...certainly every time I've been to Scotland and ridden in a taxi they've scared the wits out of me...driving in the middle of the road and way too fast, claiming they're watching out for "deer." Really? Deer, in Edinburgh? Come on, what is this, Haze The English Tourist Week or something? Not unless "deer" is a euphemism for a rabid Edinburgh University student on a pub crawl.....anyway, I make it to my little single room in the guest house in one piece...then can't get to sleep until 2AM because there's a party in the garden, it's too hot to shut the window (!!!) and I've forgotten my earplugs. Great.
Saturday:
After breakfast (including copious amounts of coffee) I make my way into the city with my backpack, stopping to buy earplugs on the way. I catch my first glimpse of the castle when I'm still just round the corner from the guest house...between two modern office blocks. Quite a juxtaposition, but I can't take a picture because there's too many buses going past.
Before long, I'm crossing George IV Bridge and find myself on the Royal Mile, surrounded by Japanese tourists and grinning like an idiot. I have done it. I have got myself here, alone. It may not be Cambodia or Sydney, but it feels good nonetheless.
First stop, St Giles Cathedral, dating from the 13th century. I take loads of pictures (despite the fact that you're apparently not supposed to without purchasing a £2 photography permit) which I find out a little too late when I accidentally set off the fill flash on my camera (I'm not a techno-bod by any stretch of the imagination), fill the cathedral with bright blue light, earn myself some very dirty looks, and decide it's probably time to leave.
Round the back of the cathedral, at the Mercat Cross, I sit and soak up the atmosphere while I wait for my first tour. Across the street a guy dressed as Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean is standing on a box looking the part doing his little camp hand-waving thing in return for coins. (?!) Before long, I am off down the Blair Street Vaults with Mercat Tours. The vaults date from the 18th century, so they wouldn't have actually been there at the time I'm writing (15th century) but it gave me a chance to get some very atmospheric footage which will be useful for this film I'm making to promote Spiral; The Finding. I tell you what though, there was one room in the vaults I didn't want to go in. The Double-Height room gave me the absolute willies, and after hearing some of the ghost stories from Jason the guide, now I know why....apparently a nasty man the guides have nick-named Mr Boots hangs out in there. Nobody's really sure what he did when he was alive, but he's not a nice character by all accounts.
Back up in daylight, and I'm off the the National Museum of Scotland. After a quick whizz round the Scottish History bit, making notes on anything 15th century and prior I can find, I'm for my lunch. The Villager, a cocktail lounge on George IV Bridge, does stonking food. It's old fashioned favourites that have been spiced up with flavours of the world. I had the sweet potato, chickpea and spinach curry with chickpea fritters. I highly recommend :)
In the afternoon, there was still time before my next tour, so I popped down the Royal Mile to see a chunk of the original Mercat Cross in the Museum of Edinburgh. It was a lot smaller than I expected, but it gave me an idea of what it would have looked like in medieval times. Afterwards, I joined a free tour, with Sandemans Free Tours. Lots of interesting history to be had, with guide Sabela. It gave me a real chance to walk around Edinburgh and get a feel for the place, what can be got to from where, and get a feel for the different levels of streets. Edinburgh is one of the those places where the city seems to exist on multiple different levels because it's built up the two sides of what is essentially a massive drumlin. So there are bridges over streets and funny little closes and wynds that come out where you least expect. It's easy to get lost if you don't know the place. And I was able to pick up loads of interesting stuff about how people lived in medieval Edinburgh, which is what I was looking for.
After the tour, it was off to the Princes Street Gardens, to see where the Nor' Loch would have once been...a man-made body of water created for defence of the city, and used as a source of drinking water...as well as a sewage dumping ground and a place to duck witches. Apparently, when it was drained in the 18th and 19th centuries, they found the bones of all the innocent "witches" who had been drowned in it. Ick.
Dinner was fish and chips in the Gardens, listening to someone playing the bagpipes up by the Scottish National Gallery and watching locals playing football on the sunken lawns below, enjoying the thoroughly un-Scottish weather. A lovely end to the first day.
Sunday:
Today I set off up to the Royal Mile again, then all the way down to Holyrood Palace at the bottom. The Abbey was a point of interest for me, but it costs £20 to get into the Palace, which you have to pay for to access the Abbey. As the Palace holds no interest for me, I decided to research the Abbey online, and headed up Arthur's Seat instead. It's the wrong side of the city for what I'm writing about. But I wanted to get an idea of what you could see from a high vantage point, looking down into the city below.
Now, it's only 251 metres high. And I'm very fit, but no mountain-climber. Anyone out there who has climbed Kilimajaro or something is probably going to laugh their ars* off at me when I say this, but it's a pretty punishing climb for the untrained. Very steep and rocky in places, and I had to keep stopping for a breather. I was thankful for my dirty old hiking boots by this point. The last bit of the climb, certainly, is nothing short of a scramble, looking for hand and foot holds. But I made it. And here is a city shot and a selfie to prove it....
The way back down was almost worse. I was practically running, tripping over rocks, sliding on scree, and landing on my knees and bum more often than staying upright. By the time I got back to the ground and the Royal Mile, I was done in. I hit a coffee shop for lunch, even though it was only 11:30, because I had no energy left at all.
After a sandwich and a coffee, I was ready to head back to the museum to take some pictures of the surrounding city from the roof terrace (looking across at Arthur's Seat, rising up in the distance, and thinking "I can't believe I just climbed that!), and do some bumbling about. Because that was all I was good for at this point...bumbling about! I took some pictures of the view in different directions from the site of the old Mercat Cross, and the Heart of Midlothian, where the old Tolbooth used to stand, and did a wee bit of souvenir shopping. Then I headed back to the Mercat Cross to wait for the next tour.
While I was sat there catching breather, a big, shaggy haired man with a piece of tartan wrapped round his waist stomped up the mile dragging a bag behind him. He stops about twenty feet from where I'm sitting, drops his bag, and starts taking swords and knives out of it! I very quickly realised this guy is supposed to be William Wallace, or some such bod, and take a few sneaky pics as he proceeds to get his bits and pieces arranged, pick up his claymore, and strike a pose with it, much to the annoyance of Jack Sparrow across the street. After a while I get bored of watching him, and it is only when a gaggle of teenagers wander past him that things start to get interesting.
Well, this guy lunges into the group with a roar, scattering teenage girls across the road. Even the boys abandon their swaggering facade and look like they're about to wet themselves. I crack up, and when Wallace turns round and catches me laughing, he makes a very suggestive gesture at me with his tongue and several fingers. Yeah right. In your dreams, mate.
The afternoon tour contained some repeated bits of the history tour from the previous day, but a lot of it was more in depth and a bit more medieval-oriented. It also included the castle, the perfect end to my trip. I made a point of focusing on the older parts of the castle (St Margaret's Chapel, Mon's Meg, what's left of David's Tower, the banqueting hall, and the Stone of Destiny.) I got more excellent shots of the city, and was very surprised to walk past Mon's Meg, the huge cannon, only to see some guy pull his mate out of it! The mate (about 5.10" and 11st) was bodily and completely obscured inside the thing, which gives you an idea of how big it is...and even gave me a few writing ideas as well :)
Dinner at a wee pub on the mile. The enormous plate of lamb shank, neeps and tatties that was put in front of me didn't last five minutes. I think I disturbed the next table slightly by picking up the bone, cracking the joint with my bare hands, and sucking the meat off. As if the Scots needed any more reason to think the English are barbarians. The barkeep who took my plate was gob-smacked "Well, you really are finished, aren't you?!" I don't even like to think of the amount of calories I burned on this trip. And then I still had to walk all the way back to the guest house! Sore feet like you wouldn't believe.....
Monday Morning:
Up at 5AM to vacate the room and get another scary taxi ride to the airport. After a misunderstanding at the duty free over a bottle of whiskey and a quick doze on the plane, I negotiated Bristol traffic again, only to get home and collapse, stiff-legged and sun-burned, into the shower and the most comfy cotton dress I own. I mean honestly...sun-burn in Scotland? Doesn't seem right somehow. I won't be wearing closed-in shoes for a while either, my feet are an absolute state from all the trekking. But I learned so much, got some great pictures, and some fantastic ideas, which is what I went for. Now...back to the drawing board.....watch this space for Spiral 2 !
Thanks for reading everyone :)
After a very sweaty and stressful rush to Bristol Airport during rush hour, getting beeped at the body scanner (this always happens...I swear I don't have adamantium bones, not the last time I checked, anyway), lots of hanging around waiting, and a sickness-inducing flight north, I find myself sweeping down over the Solway Firth. I have never been in this situation before. About to arrive in a strange city, everything I have to my name in a backpack, nobody meeting me at the airport, and not really any certainty as to where I'm going. I didn't get to do the whole Gap Year thing, for various reasons, despite wanting to, and I suddenly feel very alone.
Before long, I find myself in the back of a taxi whizzing through the streets of Edinburgh, and I'm starting to wonder if all Scottish taxi drivers are a wee bit nuts...certainly every time I've been to Scotland and ridden in a taxi they've scared the wits out of me...driving in the middle of the road and way too fast, claiming they're watching out for "deer." Really? Deer, in Edinburgh? Come on, what is this, Haze The English Tourist Week or something? Not unless "deer" is a euphemism for a rabid Edinburgh University student on a pub crawl.....anyway, I make it to my little single room in the guest house in one piece...then can't get to sleep until 2AM because there's a party in the garden, it's too hot to shut the window (!!!) and I've forgotten my earplugs. Great.
Saturday:
After breakfast (including copious amounts of coffee) I make my way into the city with my backpack, stopping to buy earplugs on the way. I catch my first glimpse of the castle when I'm still just round the corner from the guest house...between two modern office blocks. Quite a juxtaposition, but I can't take a picture because there's too many buses going past.
Before long, I'm crossing George IV Bridge and find myself on the Royal Mile, surrounded by Japanese tourists and grinning like an idiot. I have done it. I have got myself here, alone. It may not be Cambodia or Sydney, but it feels good nonetheless.
First stop, St Giles Cathedral, dating from the 13th century. I take loads of pictures (despite the fact that you're apparently not supposed to without purchasing a £2 photography permit) which I find out a little too late when I accidentally set off the fill flash on my camera (I'm not a techno-bod by any stretch of the imagination), fill the cathedral with bright blue light, earn myself some very dirty looks, and decide it's probably time to leave.
Round the back of the cathedral, at the Mercat Cross, I sit and soak up the atmosphere while I wait for my first tour. Across the street a guy dressed as Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean is standing on a box looking the part doing his little camp hand-waving thing in return for coins. (?!) Before long, I am off down the Blair Street Vaults with Mercat Tours. The vaults date from the 18th century, so they wouldn't have actually been there at the time I'm writing (15th century) but it gave me a chance to get some very atmospheric footage which will be useful for this film I'm making to promote Spiral; The Finding. I tell you what though, there was one room in the vaults I didn't want to go in. The Double-Height room gave me the absolute willies, and after hearing some of the ghost stories from Jason the guide, now I know why....apparently a nasty man the guides have nick-named Mr Boots hangs out in there. Nobody's really sure what he did when he was alive, but he's not a nice character by all accounts.
Back up in daylight, and I'm off the the National Museum of Scotland. After a quick whizz round the Scottish History bit, making notes on anything 15th century and prior I can find, I'm for my lunch. The Villager, a cocktail lounge on George IV Bridge, does stonking food. It's old fashioned favourites that have been spiced up with flavours of the world. I had the sweet potato, chickpea and spinach curry with chickpea fritters. I highly recommend :)
In the afternoon, there was still time before my next tour, so I popped down the Royal Mile to see a chunk of the original Mercat Cross in the Museum of Edinburgh. It was a lot smaller than I expected, but it gave me an idea of what it would have looked like in medieval times. Afterwards, I joined a free tour, with Sandemans Free Tours. Lots of interesting history to be had, with guide Sabela. It gave me a real chance to walk around Edinburgh and get a feel for the place, what can be got to from where, and get a feel for the different levels of streets. Edinburgh is one of the those places where the city seems to exist on multiple different levels because it's built up the two sides of what is essentially a massive drumlin. So there are bridges over streets and funny little closes and wynds that come out where you least expect. It's easy to get lost if you don't know the place. And I was able to pick up loads of interesting stuff about how people lived in medieval Edinburgh, which is what I was looking for.
After the tour, it was off to the Princes Street Gardens, to see where the Nor' Loch would have once been...a man-made body of water created for defence of the city, and used as a source of drinking water...as well as a sewage dumping ground and a place to duck witches. Apparently, when it was drained in the 18th and 19th centuries, they found the bones of all the innocent "witches" who had been drowned in it. Ick.
Dinner was fish and chips in the Gardens, listening to someone playing the bagpipes up by the Scottish National Gallery and watching locals playing football on the sunken lawns below, enjoying the thoroughly un-Scottish weather. A lovely end to the first day.
Sunday:
Today I set off up to the Royal Mile again, then all the way down to Holyrood Palace at the bottom. The Abbey was a point of interest for me, but it costs £20 to get into the Palace, which you have to pay for to access the Abbey. As the Palace holds no interest for me, I decided to research the Abbey online, and headed up Arthur's Seat instead. It's the wrong side of the city for what I'm writing about. But I wanted to get an idea of what you could see from a high vantage point, looking down into the city below.
Now, it's only 251 metres high. And I'm very fit, but no mountain-climber. Anyone out there who has climbed Kilimajaro or something is probably going to laugh their ars* off at me when I say this, but it's a pretty punishing climb for the untrained. Very steep and rocky in places, and I had to keep stopping for a breather. I was thankful for my dirty old hiking boots by this point. The last bit of the climb, certainly, is nothing short of a scramble, looking for hand and foot holds. But I made it. And here is a city shot and a selfie to prove it....
The way back down was almost worse. I was practically running, tripping over rocks, sliding on scree, and landing on my knees and bum more often than staying upright. By the time I got back to the ground and the Royal Mile, I was done in. I hit a coffee shop for lunch, even though it was only 11:30, because I had no energy left at all.
After a sandwich and a coffee, I was ready to head back to the museum to take some pictures of the surrounding city from the roof terrace (looking across at Arthur's Seat, rising up in the distance, and thinking "I can't believe I just climbed that!), and do some bumbling about. Because that was all I was good for at this point...bumbling about! I took some pictures of the view in different directions from the site of the old Mercat Cross, and the Heart of Midlothian, where the old Tolbooth used to stand, and did a wee bit of souvenir shopping. Then I headed back to the Mercat Cross to wait for the next tour.
While I was sat there catching breather, a big, shaggy haired man with a piece of tartan wrapped round his waist stomped up the mile dragging a bag behind him. He stops about twenty feet from where I'm sitting, drops his bag, and starts taking swords and knives out of it! I very quickly realised this guy is supposed to be William Wallace, or some such bod, and take a few sneaky pics as he proceeds to get his bits and pieces arranged, pick up his claymore, and strike a pose with it, much to the annoyance of Jack Sparrow across the street. After a while I get bored of watching him, and it is only when a gaggle of teenagers wander past him that things start to get interesting.
Well, this guy lunges into the group with a roar, scattering teenage girls across the road. Even the boys abandon their swaggering facade and look like they're about to wet themselves. I crack up, and when Wallace turns round and catches me laughing, he makes a very suggestive gesture at me with his tongue and several fingers. Yeah right. In your dreams, mate.
The afternoon tour contained some repeated bits of the history tour from the previous day, but a lot of it was more in depth and a bit more medieval-oriented. It also included the castle, the perfect end to my trip. I made a point of focusing on the older parts of the castle (St Margaret's Chapel, Mon's Meg, what's left of David's Tower, the banqueting hall, and the Stone of Destiny.) I got more excellent shots of the city, and was very surprised to walk past Mon's Meg, the huge cannon, only to see some guy pull his mate out of it! The mate (about 5.10" and 11st) was bodily and completely obscured inside the thing, which gives you an idea of how big it is...and even gave me a few writing ideas as well :)
Dinner at a wee pub on the mile. The enormous plate of lamb shank, neeps and tatties that was put in front of me didn't last five minutes. I think I disturbed the next table slightly by picking up the bone, cracking the joint with my bare hands, and sucking the meat off. As if the Scots needed any more reason to think the English are barbarians. The barkeep who took my plate was gob-smacked "Well, you really are finished, aren't you?!" I don't even like to think of the amount of calories I burned on this trip. And then I still had to walk all the way back to the guest house! Sore feet like you wouldn't believe.....
Monday Morning:
Up at 5AM to vacate the room and get another scary taxi ride to the airport. After a misunderstanding at the duty free over a bottle of whiskey and a quick doze on the plane, I negotiated Bristol traffic again, only to get home and collapse, stiff-legged and sun-burned, into the shower and the most comfy cotton dress I own. I mean honestly...sun-burn in Scotland? Doesn't seem right somehow. I won't be wearing closed-in shoes for a while either, my feet are an absolute state from all the trekking. But I learned so much, got some great pictures, and some fantastic ideas, which is what I went for. Now...back to the drawing board.....watch this space for Spiral 2 !
Thanks for reading everyone :)
Thursday, 12 June 2014
Bonnie Scotland !!!
Hello everyone,
The writing thing has been on hold for a while now. I have spent the last few days crawling about in the eaves storage of my house, clearing out a load of junk, so I've got space to store a load of stuff for my business. I am quite sure I've got dust, spiders and paper cuts in places I didn't even know I had.....
But despite that, I am really excited, because next weekend (Friday 20th) I am off to Edinburgh! It's somewhere I've never been before, and I'm really excited, but it's not a pleasure trip, oh no. There's no rest for us wicked sorts. I'm going on a research trip :)
Which all sounds incredibly glamorous and wonderful, but it has a practical element. A couple of weeks ago, I picked up the sequel to Spiral; The Finding again, and started cracking on with it. However, I very soon realised (small spoiler here) that when, ahem, certain characters, arrive in Edinburgh (shh, don't tell anyone!) that I didn't have the foggiest clue what the place was like.
Now, it's all very well rummaging around on the internet and trying to find out what was there in the 15th century (of which not a lot of info exists, take it from one who knows!) but without actually going to a place, getting a feel for the atmosphere, and what landmarks you can see from other landmarks, it's a bit difficult to actually write anything convincing. So, I am going straight to the source. Edinburgh itself...for a bit of 15th century history and landmark spotting, some photography, and a bit of filming for the viral film I am currently making to get the word about Spiral; The Finding out there to a bigger slice of the world.
One thing that does make me a bit nervous, however...I am going to be descending into the depths of the Blair Street Vaults while I'm there. If my recent experience in the eaves storage is anything to go by...crawling around whimpering with a torch in my mouth, whilst trying to avoid the spider webs and drag heavy boxes into the daylight....I'm not that keen on small, dark, musty spaces. A trip to the Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam when I was fifteen ended on a bit of an anti-climax, because I absolutely refused to go down them. My (at the time) twelve year old sister, who was made of braver stuff, did it...and then gleefully reported that she had crawled across a board covering a hole full of sharpened stakes.....said board then falling away just as she removed her feet. Not my cup of tea.
So I think I'll have to get dosed up on Kalms before I go entering the vaults. But I should get some fantastic footage down there :)
I'm also going to see the castle (obviously) and do a couple of history tours and pick the brains of the guides, take loads of pictures of St Giles and the Mercat cross, try and get to the Edinburgh Museum to see a chunk of the original cross to get an idea for what it would have been like in the 15th century, and just generally walk around with my camera round my neck and notebook in hand like a complete nerd and make a general touristic nuisance of myself. It'll be great :)
Scotland, here I come !
The writing thing has been on hold for a while now. I have spent the last few days crawling about in the eaves storage of my house, clearing out a load of junk, so I've got space to store a load of stuff for my business. I am quite sure I've got dust, spiders and paper cuts in places I didn't even know I had.....
But despite that, I am really excited, because next weekend (Friday 20th) I am off to Edinburgh! It's somewhere I've never been before, and I'm really excited, but it's not a pleasure trip, oh no. There's no rest for us wicked sorts. I'm going on a research trip :)
Which all sounds incredibly glamorous and wonderful, but it has a practical element. A couple of weeks ago, I picked up the sequel to Spiral; The Finding again, and started cracking on with it. However, I very soon realised (small spoiler here) that when, ahem, certain characters, arrive in Edinburgh (shh, don't tell anyone!) that I didn't have the foggiest clue what the place was like.
Now, it's all very well rummaging around on the internet and trying to find out what was there in the 15th century (of which not a lot of info exists, take it from one who knows!) but without actually going to a place, getting a feel for the atmosphere, and what landmarks you can see from other landmarks, it's a bit difficult to actually write anything convincing. So, I am going straight to the source. Edinburgh itself...for a bit of 15th century history and landmark spotting, some photography, and a bit of filming for the viral film I am currently making to get the word about Spiral; The Finding out there to a bigger slice of the world.
One thing that does make me a bit nervous, however...I am going to be descending into the depths of the Blair Street Vaults while I'm there. If my recent experience in the eaves storage is anything to go by...crawling around whimpering with a torch in my mouth, whilst trying to avoid the spider webs and drag heavy boxes into the daylight....I'm not that keen on small, dark, musty spaces. A trip to the Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam when I was fifteen ended on a bit of an anti-climax, because I absolutely refused to go down them. My (at the time) twelve year old sister, who was made of braver stuff, did it...and then gleefully reported that she had crawled across a board covering a hole full of sharpened stakes.....said board then falling away just as she removed her feet. Not my cup of tea.
So I think I'll have to get dosed up on Kalms before I go entering the vaults. But I should get some fantastic footage down there :)
I'm also going to see the castle (obviously) and do a couple of history tours and pick the brains of the guides, take loads of pictures of St Giles and the Mercat cross, try and get to the Edinburgh Museum to see a chunk of the original cross to get an idea for what it would have been like in the 15th century, and just generally walk around with my camera round my neck and notebook in hand like a complete nerd and make a general touristic nuisance of myself. It'll be great :)
Scotland, here I come !
Thursday, 29 May 2014
Film Locations
Hi all,
I am back from my hols (Nerja, Spain...warm sun, cold sea) with what (for me) passes for a tan. I am straight back into the whole book-marketing thing, and I am seeking local knowledge from anyone who lives in Oxfordshire or surrounding counties...
I am starting the process of creating a short film, maybe 15-45 seconds long, as a trailer for "Spiral; The Finding." I am looking for two particular locations, and wonder if anyone knows any places that are like this?
Location 1: a bleak, windswept, hilly landscape with a body of water in or near it.
Location: 2 an underground corridor/tunnel with stone walls...the older the better.
Obviously these would need to be places where they are happy to have people film royalty-free.
If anyone knows, do drop me a line, I really appreciate it :)
I am back from my hols (Nerja, Spain...warm sun, cold sea) with what (for me) passes for a tan. I am straight back into the whole book-marketing thing, and I am seeking local knowledge from anyone who lives in Oxfordshire or surrounding counties...
I am starting the process of creating a short film, maybe 15-45 seconds long, as a trailer for "Spiral; The Finding." I am looking for two particular locations, and wonder if anyone knows any places that are like this?
Location 1: a bleak, windswept, hilly landscape with a body of water in or near it.
Location: 2 an underground corridor/tunnel with stone walls...the older the better.
Obviously these would need to be places where they are happy to have people film royalty-free.
If anyone knows, do drop me a line, I really appreciate it :)
Tuesday, 6 May 2014
Hello again peeps,
Another day, another dollar...pound, that is, on this side of the Atlantic. My debut novel Spiral;The Finding is selling on Amazon Kindle !!!! Ok, I'm not a millionaire yet, but the fact remains that I put three years of my (and my son's) life into this book, and to see it actually being purchased, something I never thought would happen, is a real boost. Thanks to Ankit Parekh for another five star review.
I'm starting to get my game head on with the sequel to Spiral now. I started it a while back, and then just left it, in the face of everything else going on (another novel, various poetry, plays and other joys). Now, I'm picking it up again, with the MacBain sisters, getting back inside their skins again the way I had to do for the first time back in 2011. It's easier this time; I feel I know the characters so well. But it's also more difficult in the sense that I'm having to revisit characters who have grown and changed, not just in my own mind with the passage of time, but with the events that befell them in the first book; anyone who has read it will know you cannot witness what these girls have and come out the other side of it unscathed. The cracks in their relationship that started to appear in the first book are widening in the second, as survival becomes even harder for them, and life even more fraught with difficulty. But they still manage to pull together; even while pulling apart; as they leave the island of their childhood and forge their way forward into a strange world they have never seen, in search of a new life....haunted by old foes.
I'm pretty passionate about this, as you can tell, so I'm hoping this next book will all fall out of my head in the space of a few months like the first one did...and not take two years, like my unaffiliated novel, ahem....
Watch this space for regular update, not to mention rants ! Cheers for reading :)
Another day, another dollar...pound, that is, on this side of the Atlantic. My debut novel Spiral;The Finding is selling on Amazon Kindle !!!! Ok, I'm not a millionaire yet, but the fact remains that I put three years of my (and my son's) life into this book, and to see it actually being purchased, something I never thought would happen, is a real boost. Thanks to Ankit Parekh for another five star review.
I'm starting to get my game head on with the sequel to Spiral now. I started it a while back, and then just left it, in the face of everything else going on (another novel, various poetry, plays and other joys). Now, I'm picking it up again, with the MacBain sisters, getting back inside their skins again the way I had to do for the first time back in 2011. It's easier this time; I feel I know the characters so well. But it's also more difficult in the sense that I'm having to revisit characters who have grown and changed, not just in my own mind with the passage of time, but with the events that befell them in the first book; anyone who has read it will know you cannot witness what these girls have and come out the other side of it unscathed. The cracks in their relationship that started to appear in the first book are widening in the second, as survival becomes even harder for them, and life even more fraught with difficulty. But they still manage to pull together; even while pulling apart; as they leave the island of their childhood and forge their way forward into a strange world they have never seen, in search of a new life....haunted by old foes.
I'm pretty passionate about this, as you can tell, so I'm hoping this next book will all fall out of my head in the space of a few months like the first one did...and not take two years, like my unaffiliated novel, ahem....
Watch this space for regular update, not to mention rants ! Cheers for reading :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)