Tag Archives: These Fragile Things

Here in the UK, we had the driest July since 1935, and the draught has continued into the first two weeks of August. And we Brits do not do hot weather well. But as I type I can hear a scattering of rain on the glass of the conservatory roof. The last time we had…
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The Great Storm of 1987 was an unreal experience for me. It coincided with the last night of a holiday, a week during which I’d had no access to newspapers, television or radio. In South East England whirlwinds ravaged, but in Cornwall (two hundred and eighty miles due west), I was shaken awake. The house…
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Today I’m back in the hot seat as I’ve received a question from Frankie Rose of Lancashire who asks, “What’s the most challenging scene you’ve ever had to write?” It’s a tough question to answer without giving plot-lines away so, Frankie, if you don’t mind, I’m going to twist the question slightly and talk more…
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Today on Virtual Book Club, it’s my turn. Last week I was asked the question, ‘If you could have a relationship with any one of your characters, who would it be?’ It seems like a simple question, but it set me thinking. St Mary’s Church in Beddington is normally locked on a Thursday lunchtime, but…
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The January VAT hike for digital products has been tough. For writers, there was a stark choice: either take a 17% hit on income or pass the increase onto readers. In search of a way to redress the balance, I didn’t need to go any further than the aisles of my local supermarket – 3…
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Awesome Indies is the brainchild of Tahlia Newman, who says of the award, ‘My idea is to honour the Indie authors who produce a high quality product and to direct readers towards the Indie Gold that lies hidden amongst the avalanche of available books.’ And it is a challenge to strike gold. Readers are often…
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Without wading through the controversy surrounding the Guardian’s first two Self-Published Novel of the Month awards, how can readers discover the very best in independent publishing? This is where recently launched website Ascribe Novel Solutions steps in. All of the novels featured on Ascribe carry a recommendation from either a traditionally published author, a literary agent, a literary consultant…
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‘A beautiful object’ In his 2011 Man Booker acceptance speech, Julian Barnes was quick to praise the unsung hero in the publication process, his book cover designer, Suzanne Dean. But this was three years ago, and Barnes’s concern was the rise of the e-book which, as we all know, is no threat to the paperback. It is just another…
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