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Welcome to my Jottings - a place for random thoughts about this, that, and anything else that catches my attention. Come in, sit down, and make yourself at home. What would you like - tea, coffee, cake? And if you have a blog of your own, don't forget to leave the address in the comments so I can return the visit. |
 Have you ever learned poetry by heart? Was it a pleasure, or a pain?
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 A very belated Happy New Year to you! Yes, I know I should have posted this nearly a whole month ago but I’ve had lots of other demands on my time - mostly good, exciting things I’m happy to report. In the real world, husband and I have been busy ticking off items on our ideal home and garden wish list. So far we’ve got a lovely, new kitchen, have redecorated some of the other rooms, put lots of shelves in the garage for ‘his’ workshop, added a small greenhouse and shed to ‘my’ back garden, and re-designed the front garden. Still lots to do but we aren’t giving ourselves any deadlines. It hasn’t been all work. We’ve also allowed ourselves plenty of days off to explore some of the towns, villages and beautiful countryside in this part of the world. In my writing life, I decided to have a go at NaNoWriMo in November after giving it a miss for the past three years. As expected, I didn’t manage anything near the magic 50,000 words target but I did end up with some interesting new characters and a very rough outline of a story that might have the makings of a novella, so I’m hoping it wasn’t a completely wasted month of frantically scribbling nonsense. 2018 ended on an encouraging note with one of my short stories being long-listed for the Bedford Writing Competition. It’s one I’m particularly fond of so I gave it a few little tweaks and sent it straight off to another competition. Fingers crossed again! I’ve also dusted off an abandoned children’s novel, decided it’s not all as bad as I thought, and have nearly finished a revised first draft. It still needs some ruthless editing before I even think of showing it to anyone, but I’m quietly pleased with it – so far. And this year? Lots of things I would like to do but my only firm New Year resolution is not to have an impossibly long to-do list. It's too stressful! Instead, I’ve adopted a new motto: Let’s just see what happens, shall we? How do you write a book cover blurb? When I needed one for Fashion Circles I made the mistake of looking through my bookshelves for inspiration - and cringed at some of the exaggerated claims I found there. This book will make you laugh and cry, one novel promised. Really? I remembered some amusing scenes that might have raised a smile but I hadn’t shed a single tear. A crime story assured me it would keep me guessing right to the last devious twist, so how had I managed to work out whodunnit by the end of the third chapter? Historical sagas would sweep me away (they didn’t), every thriller was terrifying (nope), and as for the sensational masterpiece by a famous author - well, I’d found it so boring that I gave up halfway through. Of course I want people to read my little book, but how to attract readers without actually lying to them? My first attempt at an honest blurb went something like this:
That’s not going to sell many copies, is it? In the end I decided not to make any claims - false or modest - about the quality of the book. Instead, I tried to give a rough idea of what the stories are about so potential readers can decide if they're the kind of tales they might like.  All I have to do now is wait and see if it works. What’s the most outrageous book blurb you’ve ever read? After a nail-biting week of wondering if our buyer was deliberately holding up the exchange of contracts because he was going to pull out of the deal, we finally got a firm moving date - 30th April. Yes, at last! But after waiting so long, unable to do anything, we’re suddenly racing to pack and organise everything in time. Oh, no, we’ve only got seven ... six ... five days!  One thing that is being put on hold for a while is the launch of Fashion Circles. The ebook will be on sale at all good ebook retailers from today as planned, but I’m very pleased that Alfie Dog Fiction is delaying publication of the paperback version until 16th May. I’m hoping I’ll be able to stop for a breath by then, and perhaps even celebrate with a glass of champagne!  What do you think of the cover for Fashion Circles, my first collection of short stories? The ebook version is going to be published by the lovely Alfie Dog Fiction on 25thApril, but you can already sneak a look – and pre-order it – from Smashwords, iBooks, Amazon and most other popular ebook retailers’ websites. If you prefer 'real' books, the paperback edition will be available from 16th May. |
My labelsHuman, writer, reader, dreamer, paint-dabbler, wildlife watcher, walker, gardener, slow cyclist, optimist, lover of life, etc. etc.
Polite noticeI wouldn't dream of stealing your words or pictures so please don't take mine. *** But I'm happy to share if you ask first! Categories
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