Well, it was actually yesterday (the 12th), but today a box of books arrived on my doorstep, so it feels like today!
You can now purchase the third story in the Chronicles of Issraya series from any good physical or digital bookshop, or contact me if you'd like a signed copy.
Oh...and of course every newly published author coordinates their clothes to their book cover, don't they...?
No?
Just me, then?
OK... *winky face*
Tilda #3 has a cover!
And publication looks like being the 12th October, so keep your eyes peeled if you want to get your hands on a copy!
Tilda and the other mages of Ring Isle have a problem. What exactly did you do with dark power tainted silviron? It wasn’t a situation that any mage in the long line of Issrayan powermages had ever had to face before.
The mages decide to bury the small metal box in the turbulent waters of the Merjan Straits between the inner and outer seas of Merjan and Kradlock. Tilda accompanies Kamen, the aging Mage of Kradlock to fulfil the task and to help him decide his successor.
As Tilda soon discovers, the famous Hanging Rock, the city of cliffs full of cavern homes markets, the honeycomb tunnels full of bones, and the mortal remains of Kradlock’s powermages will test her abilities and her right to be called the Mage of Merjan.
I might have seemed a bit quiet on the Scribbles recently, but that doesn't mean that things aren't busy behind the scenes!
To give you an idea of what's been going on;
* I've been working with the lovely Chris at The House Agency, because he's creating a new website for me which will enable me to have the Scribbles, book info, sales links, anthology links etc all in one place. Sneaky little preview...
* I've also been working on Tilda #4 and finally have the shape of the whole story under my belt, though there's still work to do to build it up.
* I've knitted myself a top which included lace and knitting-in-the-round (something I've not done before and which made a change from socks!)
And...
* I've been preparing for the Middleway Words online Book Festival!
This has included creating short videos about my books, which you can view on the festival YouTube channel; getting to know my 'Tete-a-tete' author, Marilyn L Rice; researching other book people because I'm hosting them in the closing panel; and organising a 'Creative Writing for Children' session.
The festival exists to promote authors and other book-related industries to book lovers in the Midlands, so there's lots to sink your teeth into - and it's all FREE. You just need to book a ticket via Eventbrite to allow you access to any of the programmed sessions.
Here's the timing of each session in the programme, but there are lots more details and information to be found as to who is appearing when on the Middleway Words facebook page and YouTube channel - including the videos many authors have created to tell you about themselves and/or their books.
Writing for Children. 4pm on Monday 6th - note, it's an interactive 45 minute session for children (and other budding authors) to find out about me and have a go at plotting out their own story using one of my favourite prompts, not a 'How to Write Children's Stories' session, which you might think from the title. All Scribblers welcome!
Tete-a-tete. 2pm on Wednesday 8th, with Marilyn L Rice. 45 mins of us chatting to each other about books and life for you to be a fly on the wall for! (And ask questions if you have any). There are all sorts of people in the other tete-a-tetes, so do check the information links above to see which take your fancy.
Closing panel. 11am on Saturday 11th. I am so excited about this - I get to ask questions of some of the people who aren't necessarily authors but who help to bring books alive; a storyteller (which is a totally different skill to writing a story. I know, I've tried it!), an illustrator and a translator.
Other sessions include an opening by Kit de Waal; information about all aspects of writing; libraries; writing session for adults; and a poetry showcase from students at Wolverhampton University.
SO - the festival starts tomorrow and runs until the 11th. It's completely free, so what are you waiting for? Hope to see at least some of you Scribblers there - and if not, I believe you'll be able to access the sessions afterwards!
This is likely to be a long post - I've been rather busy of late, so grab a cuppa and settle yourself down for a long overdue update.
First, I went to my first ever book festival!
I've never been to one before, but as it was the Newark Book Festival, and relatively close to home - plus I'd had the offer to share a stall in the Festival Literature Village with a fellow SoA author, Marilyn Pemberton - I decided to give it a shot.
I made a few investments especially for this event...I bought a repurposed standing banner which had been painted in blackboard paint, and spent a pleasant afternoon setting out the lettering to list my name and all my books.
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| The lettering is in different coloured chalks, but it doesn't show up too well on the photo |
I bought a SumUp contactless card reader, because I wasn't sure how comfortable people would be dealing with cash in these covid times. (As it happened, the card reader paid for itself over the weekend, and most of my sales were card, not cash)
The final thing I did was get some postcards printed - I managed to mess it up several times, but with the help of the lovely staff at the Printroom in town, I got sorted.
Newark itself is a lovely place, and we (Marilyn and I) were on a stall in the marketplace for both days. We were really proud of how the stall looked, and received several compliments about it.
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| The banner certainly showed up in situ! |
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| Our shared first day stall |
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| My side of it! |
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| Day 2 stall - different spot in the marketplace |
The weirdest thing was being able to talk to so many people, after steering clear of busy places for so long. And yet it was lovely to chat to fellow authors, to readers, to passers-by who were just having a mooch, and then to boogie along to the music provided by The Business. (Lots of 80's covers - I was in my element!)
These kind of events aren't solely about sales though - yes, I sold some books, but it was the conversations and contacts made that are almost more important. On the Sunday, our stall backed onto that of a lovely lady, Shagufta Khan, who was selling the most exquisite book of poetry. We had quite a chat about life and writing, and she went away from the day feeling inspired after a time of writer's block.
So after two days standing on a market stall, you'd think I was ready for a rest...nope.
The day after, I was in Walsall, at the Joseph Leckie Academy, where I'd been invited to give a workshop to a class of Year 7's. I was nervous, mainly because there were a lot of covid cases in schools at that time, but with mask at the ready and a safe distance between moi and pupils, it didn't feel too bad when I was there. And here's a laugh for you; a lot of schools now have an electronic signing-in system, which takes your photo on the day. Now, I'm not tall - you know that. But when this is your third attempt, even standing on tiptoe...!
I took along my paint chips and what's in the bottle story activities, and the students worked really hard at coming up with story ideas. There were some corkers...
In the bottle were: butterfly wings (who would be so cruel?!), dragon's breath, captured as fire that fell from the sky; shadows of people that travelled through time; phoenix tears; an amulat that held the heart of both fae and human worlds; a magic flower, which, when someone sang its song, it glowed and healed whoever touched it.
Had a bit of trouble getting out of the school at the end of the session though, because I didn't realise that the staff were used to double parking, so I'd been blocked in. Felt awful having to drag a member of staff out of her lesson - I did apologise profusely!
To finish off the visit, I met up with an old university friend, who lives in Walsall, and we had lunch together. In a pub! With no masks! Again, it felt very strange after being used to taking so many precautions, but it was lovely to spend a couple of hours catching up and setting the world to rights.
I was cream-crackered on Tuesday after three busy days, a fact my body made me all too aware of by landing me with a migraine as soon as I woke up. Spent most of the day in bed...Ugh.
And then, Squidge's Guide to Super Stories was published on the Wednesday! Woo-hoo! So if you know any budding young author who'd like a fun yet informative read which will help them with their own writing, do point them in my direction.
I've also been working hard on Tilda #4, trying to twist that one into shape. What's interesting is that for a long time I was really struggling to make headway with it, because I'd written myself - and Tilda - into a corner and couldn't see a way out of it. After lots of thinking and working out, I'm glad to say I not only have a much better direction for Tilda #4, I also have a strong outline for Tilda #5 which gives - I hope - an absolutely amazing twist to the Chronicles of Issraya series and finishes it off rather well. I'll keep you posted on that front - #5 is having to sit and stew while I polish up #4.
I'm also going to be involved in the Middleway Words - The Midlands Book Festival, an online festival taking place the first full week of September, which is going to showcase authors from the Midlands, and will include sessions for writers and readers. There will be interviews with authors and videos of authors introducing themselves and their books. There's such a wealth of talent in the Midlands, so if you want to get involved or attend the festival, keep an eye on their facebook page.
You know how much I love my competitions!
Well, if you come to see me in The Literature Village at the Newark Book Festival on the 10th or 11th July, there will be a chance to win an e-version of Super Stories if you find a gold pencil in my Pick-a-Pencil game (50p to have a go!)
But if you're not going to be anywhere near Newark that weekend, then here's another competition anyone can enter.
As Super Stories is all about...writing Super Stories...then to enter, I'd like you to write a very short story (between 500 and 1000 words long) using one of my favourite and most-used prompts - Three Things.
If you'd like to enter, simply pick three of the following objects, and write them into a story. Interpret them as you wish - for example, the police car could be a toy, like the one shown in the photo, or real; it's entirely up to you.
Once you've written your story, email it to me as an attachment with a message title 'Super Stories Competition Entry'. Only put your name and age (if under 18) in the body of the message, and please tell me which three objects you chose. I'll then print out the stories and judge them anonymously. Closing date - midnight 31st July.
The winner will receive a signed copy of Super Stories and some of my favourite writing prompts. Two runner-uppers will receive a signed copy of the book. Fingers crossed, they will be announced - and maybe even read out - when I hold an online launch for Super Stories, most likely in August.
So get scribbling! And spread the word to other writers or budding authors you know...
It looks as though Super Stories is going to be published a little later than we hoped, sometime in July instead of June...but...
We have a cover! Ta-dah!
This is my first non-fiction book, and although the cover has been designed for me, the artwork it uses is mine!
To celebrate the upcoming publication, I'm launching a competition, too, but more of that over the weekend...
And if you know any budding authors who'd like a fun read that will also help to improve their writing, Super Stories will be available to pre-order soon.
