Reviews, loos and blogs

Book News:

I've just finished the second round of edits for gay erotic short story, Dating the Delaneys, which is due out from Amber Allure on Sunday 6 November. My editor, the lovely and extremely wise E.J., is a pure genius and I am very grateful indeed for her suggestions for improvements to the story - thank you! I think, as a result, there are a good couple of books to go in the series, rather than the original one I was intending, well gosh.

Much to my delight, gay thriller, A Dangerous Man, has reached Round Two in the Rainbow Awards Cover Contest 2011, and is even a jury finalist - so many thanks to the judges for that.

Meanwhile, it's all go at my new publisher, Riptide Publishing. For the first time ever, I'm becoming involved in pre-launch marketing, which is fabulous. So far, I've drafted one set of general interview questions and six blog posts for use in a blog tour. It's hugely exciting and I can't wait to see what happens next. And as they open for business on 30 October, it's certainly going to be a fabulous lead up to Christmas. You can find out more at a recent Riptide interview - enjoy the read.

And at Vulpes Libris, I remain in a state of deep disappointment at the standards of Anne O'Brien's Devil's Consort. Sigh. Will nobody rid the reading world of badly-written historical novels? I won't hold my breath, alas ...

Here are some recent meditation poems:




Meditation 580
To build his beloved temple
great King Solomon
puts all the foreigners to work

which proves beyond doubt
how wisdom is his
but justice eludes him.




Meditation 581
Every word we speak
seeps into our skin
like water

and covers our bones
with the oil
of our own invention.

Our words are a belt
keeping us whole
or constraining us

so we are clothed
in the variable colours
of thought.




Meditation 582
In the sacred temple,
of all the objects
to name

the two bronze columns
wouldn’t have been
my choice

but then again
to great Solomon’s
greater shame

this contemporary woman
wouldn’t have had
a voice.



Life News:

Annoyingly (look away now if you're squeamish - please!...), the cyst on my collarbone that I've had for a little while has decided to make itself more fully known, as it were, so I spent rather too much of last night waking up and going: ow, ow, ow while I tried to find a comfortable position again. It took a couple of Nurofen Plus this morning to beat it back into some kind of normality. I've stuck a plaster on the pesky beast but it's still giving me twinges when I laugh or ... um ... move my arms, dang it. Not a pretty situation all round really. I'd been saving up to have it removed privately with my usual clinic (cosmetic issue, blah, blah - doctor therefore can't refer, blah blah ...) but today I bit the proverbial bullet and booked an operation for next Thursday in the evening. They did offer me tonight, but K and I (well, K and I and Carlos the Cyst) are off to the theatre tonight to see Alan Ayckbourn's Season's Greetings, and Carlos is very keen to go ... Thank God I don't have to buy him his own seat, eh. Though, actually, if I laugh too much, it may well come to that, hey ho (sorry!) ...

Keeping to matters bodily for a while, I'm delighted to know that The Guardian is finally acknowledging the cultural importance of loo-reading. I come from a family of keen loo-readers (though K has never understood it) - heck, on the apple farm we had special loo books which had their own loo shelf. What could be nicer? One should always keep essential reading matter as well as a steady supply of crosswords and pens in both the guest room and the Smallest Room in the house - hospitality is all ...

Moving to higher matters (phew, I bet that's a relief - ha! - for you all), I've been keeping my poinsettia in the dark for 8 hours a day as the Internet advises me and, by gum, some of the leaves are indeed turning red. Will it be fully red by Christmas? I do hope so! Though, really, I'm astonished the plant has survived so long under my less than tender care as I've had it for nearly a year now. It even somehow bounced back when it lost all its leaves during the summer and we were considering throwing it out. How I do admire a hardy spirit.

During the week, I've enjoyed a session of Lectio Divina at the University Chaplaincy, which included a very nice soup and bread lunch. It's a new project for them, and I'm very keen to support it. The more meditations and times of silence there are, the merrier - though I did used to be oh so much better at them. I've also had a great time catching up with A at work over lunch in the Cathedral Refectory - I am hugely envious of her recent holiday in Spain and we really must revisit it one day. It's my favourite country.

Finally, I must sing the praises of James May's Man Lab on TV, and also the wonderful new and very quirky detective series, Death in Paradise. Really, you can't go wrong with Ben Miller. Whatever he does, he's just great, and surprising sexy too. Or is that really just me?... In any case Tuesday nights are television nights for the next few weeks, that's for sure.

Anne Brooke
The Thoughtful Corner