Thursday 20 December 2012

The Apocalypse? Or just another Christmas?


Will it? Won’t it? Will we even notice?

This isn’t going the be the first time we’ve lived through the end of the world – the Millennium – the eclipse – not to mention the various prophesies that come and go.

So enjoy your mince pies and mulled wine. Have a great Christmas everyone and (if we’re still here) I’ll see you all on the other side.

Tuesday 11 December 2012

Reflections


It was calm down by the marshes and I spotted this heron, standing so still that there wasn’t even a ripple in the water around him.

 

It is a time to reflect as the year draws to a close, and for me 2012 has been momentous – I got a book deal! And next year I will see my book in print!

I have also been reflecting on the direction of this blog. When I started it was simply going to be a writing blog, on which I would chronicle my journey to publication. But I’ve found myself blogging about other things along the way, and, since there are so many writers out there chronicling their journeys, I find myself wondering if I should change focus here.

So I thought I would ask you, my blog readers, what sort of things you would like to see more of.

Do you want to see more about writing in general and the process of publication?

Do you prefer my more general posts on the natural history and strange and quirky things I encounter in the countryside around where I live?

Would you like to hear about the science behind the themes that inspired Red Rock?

A combination of all three?

Or something else?

Monday 3 December 2012

Review: Ferney by James Long


Now this is an interesting book.

I met the author at a Literary event in Yeovil back in October and bought it, partly for that reason, and partly because the subject matter looked fascinating. This is a new edition of a book which was first published some 16 or so years ago. It is one of those books that took off through word of mouth.

And having read it I can see why.

Ferney is a love story, but it is also so much more. It is a story of old love, reborn and rekindled, generation after generation. The landscape of Somerset is beautifully drawn, and is as interwoven with history as Gally and Ferney’s love for one another also is.

But in this incarnation Ferney is an old man, nearing his end, and Gally is young and married to someone else. And as Ferney awakens dormant memories this is bound to cause conflict.

This is a powerful book that will resonate with you long after you have finished the last page. A time-slip love story that I strongly recommend.