A question of identity

I'm pleased to say that Queer Magazine has just published my short article on GLBT fiction: a question of identity, which takes a look at the prejudices surrounding gay fiction and the women who write some of it. I'd love to know what you think - either through the comments section under the article or indeed here. Let me know.

Meanwhile, A Stranger's Touch has received its first official review which you can find at the Jessewave Review Site. I'm thrilled with the in-depth look Jen has given it - thanks, Jen! - and also by the 4.5 rating, well gosh.

However, at the same time, I'm struggling to place my GLBT fantasy romance short story, Angels and Airheads. It's not what Dreamspinner Press want for their angels anthology (um, again - I'm obviously just not doing it for Dreamspinner at the moment, sigh ...) and it's too short at just under 5000 words for Amber Allure. It's a quirky comedy tale, so if anyone has any ideas about who might like such a beast, I'll be over the moon to hear any suggestions. Thank you.

Turning back to reviews, I'm delighted to say that my review of Lynda Louise Mangoro's inspirational YA novel, Awakening of the Dream Riders, is now at Vulpes Libris so do have a read. It's a great book.

Finally, in the wonderful world of fiction, I've uploaded the latest chapter of The Prayer Seeker's Blog, in which Michael remembers his first experiences of meditation. Not as calming as you might imagine, and certainly not as fictional. But at least it does go to show that God can be quite overwhelmingly scary too, which is something I've always tried to convey, but not many people take notice. Ah well.

And this week's poetry is this:

Iridescence

Red for passion, white
for purity,
black for

possibility.
Take these colours,
blend them

with your own
and wait
for your skies to expand.


While this week's haiku is:

The day dawns with clouds
and birdsong. We make coffee,
promise to begin.

Anne's website - puzzling over its identity again
The Prayer Seeker's Blog - just when you thought God might be safe, he's ... um ... not

Goodbye 2009, hello 2010

Mixed feelings today at the last gasp of 2009. I've been rather upset about yet another rejection of The Gifting, this time from an e-publisher with quite a high profile. Bummer, really. They loved the writing, but hated the multiple viewpoints. Sigh. If anyone out there is keeping count (apart from me, and I have the score lines engraved on my heart like Calais, dammit), that's been a full two years of rejections for that novel, including: 11 mainstream publishers who have never had the simple decency to respond at all, not even to my ex-agent; 24 actual rejections; 3 waiting rejections. Understandably, I am now gearing up to go with Lulu as a self-publishing option next year. I just can't take the knocks. It's too damn agonising. And for that reason, I'm certainly not submitting any of the Gathandrian series to anyone else. Ever again. Best stay in a literary no-go area, self-publish quietly and have done with the damn thing. Ah well.

Anyway, thank God (who I'm not really talking to at the moment, in case anyone - or even the Good Lord himself - is interested), it's not all been weeping and wailing and OCD chocolate eating here in downtown Surrey. There has been some nice book news too this week, hurrah. The Bones of Summer was awarded Mystery Book of the Year 2009 at the Well Read Book Blog. It was also, along with A Dangerous Man, mentioned in the Guest Reviewers' 2009 choices at the Jessewave Book Blog - so many thanks, everyone, for that. In addition, Maloney's Law briefly hit the dizzy heights of Number 18 in the Amazon UK gay fiction charts - well, gosh! - and also gained a very kind 4-star review at the Goodreads site from Feliz. Thank you, Feliz - much appreciated.

And, on the birding front, we've reached the grand total of 159 birds this year - which is one more than we spotted for 2008, hurrah. I'm pleased to be able to say that our last bird spotted was the glorious Red Crested Pochard - which gave me a big thrill as, of course, you can always rely on a redhead to up the ante. Every time.

Anyway, I hope you all have a Happy New Year, and that 2010 brings as many good things to you as it possibly can. Hell, I think we all deserve it.

Anne's website - hoping 2010 will be more of a gifting (ho ho) than 2009 has been

Holiday delights and sandpiper porn

The holiday was great - the weather was kind and I loved it. The only slight problem was that for some reason I was sick as a dog the first night so was up for most of it. Unfamiliar bathrooms are never pleasant when you're ill. Still, at least I got a lot of the puzzles in my Puzzler magazine done. How I love puzzles.

We also managed to see several new birds including a glorious great white egret which was absolutely stunning, twite, Dartford warblers (which we've been chasing for a while) and bearded tits (firsts for this year only). Ooh, and today we popped over to Staines and caught a brief glimpse of the brown shrike currently staying there, so that was fun. Less fun was the appalling amounts of mud there is all over the place - thank the Lord for Wellington boots, eh ...

Quirky thing of the week: Lord H was reading through the latest copy of one of the birding magazines, who are having a big focus on encouraging sandpipers to breed more effectively. Husband is therefore now musing on what, exactly, sandpiper porn might be. Best not to go there really.

And on my return, I see that my short story, Speaking Her Mind, has been accepted for publication by the Chick Lit Review, and new e-publisher, Untreed Reads, is very interested in my literary short, How to Eat Fruit. So that all looks hopeful. Less hopeful is I've had my first rejection for the much-revised version of The Hit List, from a publisher who says my hero Jamie isn't terribly nice at the start. Well, he's a hell of a lot nicer than he was in the original, I can tell you, and with the amount of personal stress he's under at the beginning, I'm rather surprised he hasn't lost his temper with a lot more people, really. Is it just me or are GLBT heroes getting way too wimpy for words these days?? Anyone who'd like a kick-ass but basically kind-hearted GLBT hero with balls (as it were), please apply here. In the meantime, I've submitted it to a couple of other places, and we wait and see.

Anne

Condescending publishers and Freshers galore

Goodness me, but what an exhausting and severely draining day. Here's today's poem though, which I just had time for this morning:

Meditation 228

Offering money
for the gift of salvation

is lambasted
to oblivion

by the sainted
Peter and John

but has in fact
been in common use

for centuries since
in the church.


Really, the more I do these meditation poems, the more cynical I become, I fear. Church is all too debilitating these days. One wonders what it's all for.

Anyway, I've been severely peed off by some pesky small-time publisher who emailed me to say, in a very high-handed and condescending tone, how extremely hard to read The Gifting is but of course they were sure I would find someone to take it on one day. Ignorant t*****s. They're obviously unable to read words of more than one syllable anyway, so no wonder nobody's heard of them. And I would like to advise all publishers here and now that if they do reject a piece of work, then the sentence they need to send out is simply: Thank you, but this does not fit our lists. Really, that's all they need to say - any other ridiculous and ill-thought out statement is likely only to cause offence. And it keeps the syllables down to only one per word, which is surely doable for most of them ... One would hope.

For a large part of the day, I have been smiling and smiling like a villain while we greet Freshers onto campus and settle them into their rooms. Not a job for which I am remotely suited, but I think I managed to fool them into thinking I was a nice normal human being, rather than a severely pissed-off furious and failing would-be fantasy writer whose books no publisher will apparently touch with a proverbial bargepole. Whilst sending snippety emails and putting the boot in at the same time. And on the whole my smile remained mostly on. Which is a bloody miracle indeed.

But, Lordy, our new students think they've got problems. Really, they have no idea how very lucky they are - must be great to be at the very beginning of one's career and have it still all to play for. Rather than being somewhere in the middle of life, with mid-life droop and have really not much to play for at all - and what little there is, so few people seem to actually want. Which is what it feels like, precisely here and precisely now. I can guarantee to you that in twenty years' time, I'll still be in the same literary position I am in today: that is, struggling along at the bottom, being told by well-meaning and of course totally lovely people that I have to keep going, but selling no more than 50-100 or so copies of each book (not counting the poetry books, where I sell about 10 and then give the rest away). Honestly, sometimes this business is like being back at primary school - I don't think there's anything wrong with me and indeed I'm no worse than anyone else (as my new strapline says!), but still nobody wants to be friends. It's a mystery. I do think the sense of hope I had nine years ago when I first started writing fiction is all but vanquished. Cynicism reigns supreme. And maybe indeed the solution is not to try so hard? I do think that my decision to go back to the self-publishing process is definitely the best way forward - I'm much happier, mental health-wise, if I don't even have to enter the submissions arena at all. Yes, I will try with the small GLBT press as and when I produce GLBT fiction, but for the rest, I simply don't want to put myself through the horror and terrible depression of it all. Publishing is not in any sense of the phrase a pleasant business: I don't think I could ever encourage anyone now to try to be a professional writer - it's like suggesting that they walk through fire in order to reach a distant and probably imaginary oasis. Probably not worth the burning.

Oh, but I must say that halfway through my "smiling at Freshers and being nice when I just feel like weeping" ordeal, Lord H turned up with two Starbucks cappuccinos, one for me and one for Clare, who was staffing our table with me - so we leapt upon him with great cries of glee and swore undying adoration. I think he was pleased ... But really - what a superhero!

So, after all that, thank goodness for the joys of Strictly Come Dancing tonight - I am currently rooting for both Ricky and Phil, but can't make up my mind which one I prefer. I'll see how they do in the Latin dances later on, and then decide who gets my vote!

Oh, and I've finished Adam Thorpe's short story collection, Is This The Way You Said? - which I'm hoping to review for Vulpes Libris at some point (though at the moment don't wait up ...). A very interesting collection and well worth a read, though a couple of the stories (including the long title story) didn't really quite work for me. I also read the list in the front of all the wonderful novels and poetry collections he's published over the last few years and felt like spitting and sticking a pitchfork into his ruddy successful bottom, but I shall endeavour not to let my extreme bitterness and overwhelming deal-envy get the better of me when I write the review. Hmm, we'll see, eh ...

Today's nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Being bitchy about pesky publishers who, frankly, deserve it
3. Cappuccinos from Lord H
4. TV
5. Books (even though, today, I hate all authors who appear in bookshops on principle).

Anne Brooke - bitter, twisted, but with a jolly nice smile, ho ho
The Gifting - totally unpublishable and very hard to read, apparently ...

Holidays and publishing news

Italy was kind of fun, I must say - the best thing was just getting away and not having to think about all the other stuff, to be honest. Such a treat. I wouldn't say it was our favourite ever holiday, probably not by a long chalk, but there were some great (and some not so great ...) highlights, including:

1. Assisi. It's fabulous - I really loved it, far more than I thought I would. I'd go back tomorrow if asked.
2. Spotting a Common Redstart - a lifetime first, hurrah!
3. Spotting hosts of glorious Swallowtail butterflies on a walk through an olive tree grove, double hurrah.
4. My digital camera refusing to function, so I had to borrow Lord H's if I saw something I liked.
5. And guess what? Yes, you're right, my replacement CoolReader broke on the 2nd day, in the same way as it did before. No, I won't be getting another. I'll replace it myself with a Sony Reader (of which more later). I do feel we should have at least some of Lord H's CoolReader money back though, but I suspect the company aren't going to make it easy for us, deep deep sigh ... Either way, the CoolReader has not in any way covered itself with glory.

Meanwhile at home, the following has occurred, some good and some bad:

1. Meditation Poem 13 is now published here.
2. Toes do furnish a man (another poem) is also published here.
3. My short story, Two Christmases, has been accepted for Dreamspinner Press's upcoming anthology, Mistletoe Madness.
4. Despite sending the final version of Hallsfoot's Battle to the agent before I went on holiday, there's been no acknowledgement. Of any sort. Is he dead or terribly terribly sick, we ask??...
5. The Gifting has now been rejected by every single publisher, both large and small, in the known universe and possibly some in the Delta Quadrant also (but I haven't had their emails yet). So I am planning to self-publish it either later this year or early 2010. Sod the lot of the ruddy publishing world, I say. I am really seriously fed up with them - except of course those lovely small publishers who have seen some kind of merit in what I have previously written, Gawd bless 'em.
6. I have therefore asked my agent to bring our business relationship to an end, as there's no point having a fantasy novel agent if I'm going to self-publish the whole trilogy on my own without bothering the crumbling ivory towers of the so-called mainstream (and not so mainstream) fantasy press - I don't want them to get their hands dirty with good literature, eh, do I, ho ho. As I've had no response to that message from the agent either, I've gone ahead and started the process of getting an independent editor/proofreader for The Gifting anyway. After all, what's the point of waiting for answers that never appear? Plus I've made initial enquiries with a suitable self-publishing company. So, watch this space for a rollicking good adventure read to come ...
7. Lord H has bought me a Sony Reader - which I hope will last longer than the rather more than feeble Coolreader - and I am busy charging it up right now. Again, watch this space.
8. We've spent a very pleasant day at Pulborough Brooks and spotted a wood sandpiper (another lifetime first!), two buzzards, a kestrel and a chiff-chaff, amongst the usual suspects. It's been a relief to get away from the pains of my stumbling literary career (ho ho).
9. I have thoroughly depressed myself by looking at my work emails, of which there are many, most of which are urgent and I will have to do the moment I return to work on Monday. Honestly, I swear that one of the main reasons for me trying to become a successful (pause for rampant laughter) novelist was the stalking fear of being swallowed up whole by meaningless administration, but I see it is likely to happen anyway. Really, work is sometimes so overwhelmingly depressing, and the business of writing is sometimes so shot through with inevitable failure that I just feel like bursting into tears and running away onto a desert island as far away as possible from both of them. With Lord H of course (well, he doesn't like work either). If only one were allowed to be successful in the career one actually wants to have, then life would be so much less dark, I feel. As it is, I am only relatively successful in a field that means almost nothing to me, so it's all something of a bugger really. Ah well. Only another ten years to go and I might be allowed to think about retirement, eh.
10. Sorry about the moaning, but going on holiday only makes things a thousand times worse when you come back. I think that, as I get older, it also gets harder to settle down into the daily round again. I'm dreading Monday already, double sigh.

Anne Brooke - she tried to be a novelist once, you know ...
The Gifting - the novel nobody wants: coming soon to an online provider near you (but don't wait up)

Happy (nearly) Anniversary, holidays and a raft of book news ...

Heck, where do I start? What a supremely busy day it's been today. First off I must say happy 16th wedding anniversary to us as of tomorrow, hurrah! Well gosh and it's astonishing that Lord H hasn't sent me back to the Wife Shop yet. We're celebrating today though as tomorrow we're off to Italy at some ungodly hour and there'll be no time for anything but packing and panicking. Bring on that champagne and make it snappy ...

And here's today's meditation:

Meditation 222

In the storm
of harsh words,
accusation and hate,

one clear voice
tells us what we know
in the blood:

that God is eternal
but the work of man
must die.


My, how jolly I am. No, really ... Meanwhile, what a lot of writing news there is today, most good but some bad, ah well. You'll be pleased to hear that I finally finished the edits for Hallsfoot's Battle and have sent the book off to the agent for his delectation. Or otherwise. It's such a relief to have done it, I must say. Just in time for the holiday too, hurrah.

Set against that is the bad news that my final (or almost final - see a few sentences on ...) potential publisher for The Gifting has just rejected it, so my faint commercial hopes for it are alas all but over. That said, I've had a surprising request for the first three chapters from a small independent fantasy press, so I've sent that off, as I'd be foolish not to, really. I should hear by October apparently, so at least the pain will be swift. And then I can, with a bit of luck and if the wind is in the right direction, get on with self-publishing it for early 2010.

And the writing news is not over yet. I'm pleased to say that my review of Ian Kelly's biography of Casanova is now up at Vulpes Libris and I can thoroughly recommend the book. It's stylish, sexy and beguiling - what more can you want?

Keeping on the subject of Vulpes Libris, I'm thrilled to report that the Vulpes review of The Bones of Summer has been syndicated by the Chicago Sun-Times so now appears there also. Well, gosh, and well done to Moira and me! Vulpes rocks, naturally ...

Not only that, but I'm also happy to say that Maloney's Law has been given a 5 star review at Jessewave Reviews, and the same review also appears today at Jenre's Reviews. Thank you so much, Jenre!

In the middle of all this excitement, I'm completed my review of Sarah Stonich's The Ice Chorus, and that should be uploaded onto the Vulpes site on 9 October. It's a lyrical and rich read indeed, but not without its faults. Then again, who isn't?

I've also packed, chatted to the neighbour and played around with my website for a while. As you do. Oh and I've also downloaded a suitable number of eBooks onto my eReader for the hols - here's hoping it doesn't break down again, eh. As, for the next week, Lord H and I will be taking what I think is a hugely well-earned break, and we will be sunning ourselves here, whilst eating an enormous amount of ice-cream and admiring an enormous amount of history and art. I can't wait. I'll be back late on 18 September, so probably back online on 19th, I imagine.

Until then, I hope you all have a glorious week, and please don't work too hard. I don't intend to.

Today's nice things:

1. 16 years of marriage, hurrah!
2. Poetry
3. Completing the Hallsfoot edit
4. Casanova on Vulpes
5. The syndication of the Vulpes Bones review
6. The Maloney review
7. Books
8. Ebooks
9. Holidays!

Anne Brooke - getting ready for sunshine and happiness
Vulpes Libris: enjoying some 18th century sex and style with Mr Newhouse (ho ho)

Disasters and Miracles

A very up and down kind of day today - again! Though really, it's been that kind of week. Here's today's poem anyway:

Meditation 217

Throughout Peter’s long
and I have to say

dull explanation
of his first miracle

it’s striking to note
that what astonishes

the listeners
most of all

is the fact
that the healed man

is over forty.
Obviously no hope

of any cure
for me then.


And I'm very pleased to say that the lovely Jilly has given her thoughts on Disasters and Miracles not once but twice - thank you hugely, Jilly! You can find her initial opinion here and also in more detail at Amazon UK.

Set against that good news however is the rejection of The Gifting by one of my remaining two small publishers who still have it (I'm not counting the big guys who are simply too rude to respond - sorry, but it's true ...). So, as I like to think of it now, it's one rejection, equals one more publisher to hear from, equals one step nearer self-publishing. I'm beginning to think now as to which company I might like to self-publish with. At the moment, the two current favourites are Iuniverse and Yorkshire Publishing Group. But I'll see how I feel about it when I get to that point.

Anyway, today, Lord H and I have had a very pleasant time wandering around Pagham Harbour where we managed to spot some beautiful grey plovers in summer plumage. Totally stunning. And new for this year, hurrah. I'm so glad we saw them, especially as we got totally lost actually trying to find Pagham Harbour. We've been slightly lost before when visiting it but, as Lord H said, we're obviously getting better at the lost part of the equation. It just seems to vanish as you drive south of Chichester - do they move it perhaps in between visits? Really, it's the only explanation ...

Today's nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Jilly's reviews of Disasters and Miracles
3. Birds.

Anne Brooke - making plans to return to her self-publishing roots
Disasters and Miracles - the perfect anthology for all the family

Disasters, Miracles and strange Connections

I’m very pleased to be able to tell you that Disasters and Miracles, the new Bible Stories anthology, is now available for purchase at Amazon UK. One of the stories in it is my own The Voyage, based on St Paul’s journey to Rome and his shipwreck in Malta and is told from the point of view of the centurion who took him there. Other stories in the anthology include an animal’s eye view of Noah’s ark, what it might have been like for the people in Jericho when the walls came down, and what really happened to the boy with the loaves and the fishes. More information can be found at my website.

Which is good news for me, as since last night I’ve been caught up in a small but rather vicious wave of depression, goddammit. It hasn’t been nice. And this morning I woke up to the news that Dreamspinner Press aren’t going to use my story in their upcoming Games in the Dark anthology, even though they thought it was good. I don’t know – I felt utterly winded by that and really quite tearful. They suggested I send it in as a stand-alone story, but I don’t feel strong enough for that, to be honest. So I’ve sent it off to another publisher who have a similar style anthology in the offing, to see if I have any more luck. And I’m trying to not think about it too much.

Anyway, what with all that, I didn’t have the heart to open my Bible this morning, so I apologise for the lack of poem, but there it is. But thank goodness work has been busy so I’ve been able to keep the doldrums at bay by throwing myself into writing up yesterday’s minutes, creating a draft presentation for the wardens, forming a To Do list for Freshers' Week, and all that whilst maintaining a reasonably calm exterior and not bursting into tears and rushing to the loo every five minutes. Lordy, but I’m good.

I’ve even taken my Coolreader – which is working, hurrah! – on my lunchtime stroll with me and sat reading it by the lake. The book I’m reading on it is utter chick-lit tripe (of which more when I’ve finished it) but at least it’s working. Though it did take us a while last night to realise we had to authorise the machine first before it would open anything. Sigh. We should have remembered from discovering this the time before. And on the way back to the office after lunch, I nipped in for a quick Starbucks – bliss, as ever.

At home, however, I've been hugely cheered by the fact that my erotic flash fiction piece, Connections, is now up at Babel Fruit Journal. This is a significant milestone for me as it was the very negative (and actually very hurtful) reaction from my former writers' group to this story that made me leave it and, eventually, the self-publishing company attached to it. Nice to know they might have been wrong. Sorry if that seems bitchy, but that's how it was. And I've never pretended to be perfect. Besides of which I don't think I would ever have reacted in a similar way to a piece brought to a writing group for comment. It was quite devastating at the time, but looking back I'm glad it made me take the decision I did. So I suppose it worked out for the best for all in the end, and thank you, Ren, for publishing it now!

Tonight I might stare for a while at my current short story and wonder what the heck it’s all about, so thank goodness for Who Do You Think You Are? Sometimes TV is a veritable lifesaver.

Today’s nice things:

1. Disasters and Miracles being published
2. A working Coolreader
3. Starbucks
4. Connections being published
5. TV.

Anne Brooke – fighting back disaster even as it strikes
Disasters and Miracles: a summer read for all the family

Unholy Affairs and nonsense verse

I have to say that last night's Rusalka was absolutely superb. I loved every minute of it. Wonderful singing, wonderful scenery and utterly astonishing costumes. A tour-de-force indeed. You can always tell how successful the Glyndebourne operas are by how lively the queue for the ladies' loos is in the interval. Dahhlings, they were buzzing. So much so that some of us forgot we were there to go to the loo at all and just kept talking excitedly about it all even when cubicles were free. Marvellous!

Anyway, despite being a tad over-tired today, here's this morning's poem for you:

Meditation 189

Worn-out sacks, patched-up
wineskins, ragged clothes,
old sandals, mouldy bread
and more than a dash
of good old-fashioned deceit

save the Gibeonites
from destruction,
making an eternity
of cutting wood
and carrying water

for the conquering
but foolish Israelites
a small price to pay
for life.


Other good writing news is that my short story, An Unholy Affair, is now up at Cynic Magazine and is of course ideal Sunday reading, ho ho. I'm also pleased to say that my rather more than off-the-wall poem, Blutherbung, is published by Every Day Poets. Enjoy!

Today, we pew-dwellers have nobly rebelled against ridiculous church Heath & Safety orders and we all shook hands at the Peace anyway, aha! We in the Shires are obviously not going to be mollycoddled by anything that comes out of Canterbury, my dears. The vicar said we were all a bunch of wild rebels, but in admiring tones, I have to admit. The revolution starts here ...

Lord H and I have spent most of the afternoon having a glorious lunch with our middle neighbour, who is a wow at Indonesian food, and insists we drink buckets of wine. Ah, it's a tough life, eh. And I've got to grips with the engine and tyres of my new car, and now know roughly where the oil and water containers might be, and what my tyre pressures are. Always good to have some kind of control over one's transport.

Meanwhile, Dreamspinner Press are having a month-long Summer Fun Sale for August, so if there's something you wanted to buy, now is most definitely the time! And today's Rainbow Extravaganza focuses on Lara Zielinsky who is a fellow PD Publishing author, so feel free to pop in and see what she has to say about her award-winning work. Great stuff.

Oh and I've had a short story rejection (sigh ...) and have therefore sent it out again into the great unknown. We battle on, eh.

This week's haiku is slightly Shakespearian and more than bizarre:

Days of quietness,
but in my dreams I'm pursued
by trains and wild bears.


Really, I do have a strange dream-life at times, I can tell you.

Today's nice things:

1. Opera memories
2. Poetry
3. Short story publication
4. Poetry publication
5. Church rebellion
6. Boozy lunches with the neighbour
7. Dreamspinner sale
8. Haikus.

Anne Brooke - living a purely unholy Sunday - again ...
Vulpes Libris: have a roaring time with a fabulous chic lit ghost

Feet, Ice and Bubbles

Here’s this morning’s poem. It’s certainly not my idea of a good party, but there it is.

Meditation 183

You celebrate your arrival
into the land
you’ve waited forty years
to enter

with a mass circumcision.
Really, if it were me,
I’d have stuck
to champagne and roses.


Must admit to having a wave of Monday gloom today, groan. I could happily spend all day sleeping, but I suspect that won’t be the case. Ah well. Instead I’ve spent most of the time sorting out emails and fiddling around with minutes. That indeed is my great skill. Hey ho.

So thank goodness for reflexology at lunchtime – an hour of bliss in a world of greyness. Or maybe that’s to do with the rain? I’m not really sure. However, I was much cheered by the arrival of Polish chocolates from the Deputy Dean – they’re a combination between marshmallow and jelly surrounded by chocolate –and far nice than I’m making them sound, I must say.

This afternoon also cheered up somewhat as Student Advice had a tea party and a new IT package presentation, so I went along for scones, grapes and tea. Bliss! The package looked pretty good too, if it’s taken on – though the amount I really know about what goes on outside my own office could be written on a postage stamp and still have room for a rewrite of War and Peace. Anyway, after work, I popped in to see Gladys after work – it’s her birthday on Friday so I took a card and some non-Polish chocolates (she’s a real chocoholic) but I’m not convinced she really knew what was happening. Still, at least she was livelier than usual which is something.

Meanwhile the lovely people at Alma Books are going to send me Sarah Stonich’s The Ice Chorus as I’m keen to review it for Vulpes Libris, so I shall look forward to that. I’ve also written the first draft of my Vulpes review of Vanessa Gebbie’s Words from a Glass Bubble, and it’s been fascinating to see what’s come out of that: an interesting writer indeed. Keeping to the subject of literature, I’ve written a poem about childhood and apples. As you do. And tonight, I’m looking forward to the programme on TV about Byron. That should be fun – especially as Rupert Everett is presenting it. The ideal combination, in my opinion. Oh, and I’ve had another short story rejection, sigh – so I’ll try and send that back out somewhere before it all gets too disheartening. Lordy, but I do really need to get some sleep.

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Reflexology
3. Tea parties
4. Chocolates
5. Books
6. Working on the Vulpes review
7. TV.

Anne Brooke - reviewing for Britain
Vulpes Libris - a foxy look at books

Reviews, Desperate Romantics and the big city

Was very happy to have received this five-star review of The Bones of Summer from Rosy on Goodreads:

“This was a great read. Told from the viewpoint of a new character - Craig Robertson - it also features Paul Maloney, the lead character in a previous book by Anne called Maloney's Law. It is definitely not necessary to have read Maloney's Law to enjoy this story though, (this stands up completely on its own as an independent tale) but I'm glad that I did. Mainly because Paul felt like an old friend to me from the beginning, I felt like I knew him, in a way that Craig obviously couldn't as he'd only just met him. Also whenever Paul talked of his past, his 'friend' or his 'ex', I knew who, and what, he was referring to. I knew what had brought Paul to this point in his life. Although, as I've said, it's not necessary to do so, as this story rips along at its own fast pace! (I actually did imagine sometimes when I was reading that it would be equally nice to learn about Paul at the same time as Craig does ... so it's good either way!). Craig was a very endearing character and I loved his Gay Rules. This is a good mystery AND a good love story. I'm just glad these two men found each other ... I enjoyed this book very much.”

Thanks, Rosy – I’m hugely grateful for that!

Oh, and I must say I actually really enjoyed Desperate Romantics on TV last night – it’s surprisingly charming and witty. Totally unrealistic of course, but that doesn’t matter. Heck, it’s fiction. Lord H and I particularly enjoyed the ripple of shock that went through the supposedly avant-garde group when they found out that one of them had actually had sex. All wonderfully Victorian, and very funny. I also hugely sympathised with (a) their desperate struggle for recognition; (b) the shock when someone said something nice about their art; (c) the blaming something – anything! - else (ie the model) when a painting didn’t work; (d) the terror of networking; and (e) the relief and pure gratitude when someone else came along and networked on their behalf – very successfully (oh lordy, how I wish I had someone like that on a full-time basis, believe me!). I also liked the fact that they had to lie, cheat and deceive in order to get noticed at all. I’ll definitely be watching again.

Meanwhile, at work, I’m struggling away on my second set of minutes – I managed to get the first set out for checking yesterday, hurrah. I’m hoping I might get a first draft of these ones done today too, but we’ll see. Mind you, the Mentoring team came back with homemade cake from one of their meetings, so that went down well, mmmm … One thing about our new office in Senate House is that there’s a heck of a lot more cake being offered around the place, which can only be a good thing, hurrah.

Anyway, it was nice to get out of the office at lunchtime and take a stroll round campus. Although half of it seemed to be blocked off as they do improvements over the summer so I had to take a strange route. And you know how much I hate a change in my routine. Still, I did finally find a bench I knew so sat on it and gazed at the lake for a while. I’ve even remembered to bring my ereader with me so I’m reading the rest of the stories in the upcoming Disasters and Miracles anthology. There’s some very good stuff in there, I must say, and I’m very pleased to be included in it.

Tonight I’m up in London to see Jane W (hello, Jane!) – so I’m looking forward to that. I can feel a curry coming on, as it were. Maybe. Again, we’ll see. And my ereader is perfect for train travel too.

Oh and one of the sets of poetry submissions I resent out yesterday has once again already come back as a rejection. Honestly, some people have absolutely no sense at all. Idiots! I obviously need to try a publisher with more intelligence and taste then, ho ho. And deep sighing. However, to balance the poetic universe, I’ve written a poem about toes. As you do. That’ll show ’em, eh …

Today’s nice things:

1. The five-star review for Bones
2. TV
3. Cake
4. Lunchtime walks
5. The Bible stories anthology
6. Seeing Jane in London
7. Poetry.

Anne Brooke - desperately seeking a poetry publisher ...

Rejections, writers and a bestseller status

Here’s today’s meditation. Joshua isn’t quite in the Promised Land yet, but he’s thinking about it. Sort of.

Meditation 178

So it begins,
that final part

of your journey:
and at the moment

of greatest trepidation
a glimmer of light:

generous words; the hope
of a future, love.

At work, I’m attempting to get the minutes from yesterday’s two meetings written, though I have to admit my enthusiasm quotas are low. Heck, aren’t they always? It would be nice to get one of them out of the way, but I’m not holding my breath. It’s a bit of a tricky morning though, as I’ve had not one, but two, rejections of poetry submissions in the email. Groan. What was even more humiliating was that one of them I’d only sent out late last night so they must have really really hated them. The other was worse though – as it told me I was a near miss with what I’d sent them. Deep sigh. I do wish publishers wouldn’t say that – it’s so patronising and doesn’t help anyone at all (after the first near miss rejection, which is I admit nice-ish, the experience quickly loses its charm, believe me). A simple “no” is the easiest way. Why on earth don’t they stick to it?

Anyway, at lunch, I took the last writers’ group meeting of the academic year. Today’s game was to make something of words and phrases I’d cut out of our selection of magazines on Sunday night – I think they enjoyed it. I know I did – I’ve started a comic piece set in the Garden of Eden with a rather irritated Gabriel. As you do. So I’ll have to see how that goes.

After work, I popped in to Tesco to get a few essentials, though I must admit Lord H was a hero yesterday and did a barrel-load of shopping even though it wasn’t his week for it. Talking of heroes, our work list for this week is James Anderson (something to do with cricket, I think, but I can’t rightly remember), the campus Transport Team (for doing a brilliant job with the current roadworks on site so we get through them relatively painlessly), Ruth’s dentist (for doing an equally brilliant job in his profession) and … um … me (for getting the boss a cheaper deal on his airport car parking that he hadn’t realised he could get, hurrah!).

And tonight it’s the new series of arty lurve, pain and angst – Desperate Romantics. I’m in two minds about it, I must be honest, but I’ll give it a chance and watch the first episode. I’m just not sure about these programmes that stuff as many famous, stressed-out young men in them and then expect that to be a plot. We’ll see.

Ooh, and The Bones of Summer is a Silver Star Bestseller at All Romance Ebooks. Well gosh indeed, and thank you!

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Writers’ group
3. New short story ideas
4. Heroes – including me!
5. TV – possibly
6. The Bones of Summer bestseller status.

Anne Brooke - a poetry reject but an eBook bestseller

Disasters and Miracles

Here’s this morning’s meditation:

Meditation 171

Every seventh year
let the words

speak through you:
from the gut

to the throat,
from the mouth

to the air,
releasing strange light

that glistens the skin
of all who hear.


I took the courtesy car into work today and managed to get a 3 day temporary pass for it as I don’t really know when I’ll be seeing Rupert again, sigh. UPDATE - looks like I'll be able to pick it up first thing tomorrow, so that's a relief anyway. Meanwhile at work, I’m messing around with meeting papers and diary maintenance. Feels like a very muddled Monday today really.

Mind you, the nice news is that the upcoming Bible Stories Anthology, Disasters and Miracles, now has its family-friendly cover art. It’s the first time I’ve ever been in anything remotely family-friendly, so that’s a new thing for me. Best not get too used to it though …

Thank goodness for reflexology at lunchtime – such a treat. It set me up for a meeting straight afterwards about Freshers’ Week. I’m running one of the information point tables again this year so best gird my proverbial loins up pretty darn soon. It all starts now. The worst thing is there’s a new regime this year (groan …) and I have to come in the Sunday before Freshers’ Week as well – for six hours!!! Lordy, but I can see it’s going to be even more of a nightmare week than usual, deep deep sighing … The very thought of it is making me feel quite tearful, even now.

Tonight, I will pop into see Gladys on my way home, and then I’m anticipating an evening of quiet editing and maybe a spot of TV. You never know. Oh and there’s been yet another rejection of my comic fantasy short story, Creative Accountancy for Beginners, double sigh. And there's about one hour left (at the time of typing) of the Maloney's Law Diabetes Charity auction bid and the sum total of my bids is zero. Ye gods, that's not something I'll be doing again in the future, I can tell you that now!! So, not a first-class day then, all in all. The fed-up factor is about 10. Out of 5. Is the weekend soon???

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Cover art for Disasters and Miracles
3. Reflexology
4. Editing
5. TV.

Anne Brooke - hoping the day will be over soon ...

Slow starts and stories

A gloriously slow start to the day today. And Lordy but that doesn't happen often. Didn't actually get up till gone 9am, which is about a three hour lie-in compared to a University day and two to a non-University one, hurrah! Total bliss really. So here's this morning's meditation (which was nearly an afternoon one):

Meditation 170

All those years
and years of travel

and when the destination’s
finally in sight,

just there over the hill,
all you can do

is gaze and gaze
at untouched beauty,

knowing you will never
enter it.


Talking of literary matters, I'm pleased to say that my short story, The Last Morning, is now published at The Foundling Review and two of my earlier meditation poems can be found at Pens On Fire webzine.

It certainly makes up for the two or three rejections (boo! hiss!) I've had this week - I'm storing them up for the moment as I can't raise the energy to resend stuff out while I'm seriously getting into the novel edit for Hallsfoot's Battle. The beginning is actually going fairly smoothly and I'm now as far into it as Chapter Four (which is further than you might think as Ralph's sections of the story don't count as chapters but as part of the Lammas Chronicles, and I've had two of those already). So far my most amusing changes have been to do with Annyeke's house which I appear to have completely redecorated in the two days' gap between the ending of The Gifting and the start of this novel. Hell, no wonder she's tired! I suspect there will be a lot more changes to come, and deeper ones too, however.

Tonight, I must ring Mother and try to sound relatively normal (ho ho) and I must also try to glean some manner of television out of this evening's sparse programming. At least we have last week's video of Mock the Week still to watch, plus a fair amount of DVD Spaced episodes, hurrah.

This week's haiku is:

Each word hooks meaning
into my skin; their temple
rises to the skies.

Today's nice thing:

1. A lie-in
2. Poetry
3. Short story and poetry publications
4. The Hallsfoot edit
5. Videos/DVDs
6. Haiku.

Anne Brooke - relishing slowness

Brokeback article and editing notes

Here's today's meditation for you - and I'm now onto the story about Lazarus, as you can probably tell:

Meditation 163

The slow disappearing
into the dark cave,

solidity weighting the skin,
impression of night

velvet-rich on the tongue.
It is hard

when the eyes
no longer open:

when will he come
when will he come

when will he
come.


How very jolly I am, eh. Anyway I've had a fun time this morning typing up my article about Brokeback Mountain for Vulpes Libris - goodness me, what a lot I had to say indeed. It feels great now I've got it all onto the page. Or rather screen. Adaptation Week will be the week of 20 July and will include lots of hugely exciting pieces too, so don't forget to look out for that.

I've popped into Godalming to get my essential weekly fix of the local news, and I'm also thrilled to see that a short article about my books is included in this month's Writers' News magazine. Well, gosh. On the other hand, I am hugely annoyed by some ridiculous article in the accompanying Writing Magazine about how self-publishing isn't "real" publishing and we shouldn't do it. Ye gods, how old fashioned can you get?? Really, authors who've been lucky enough to land deals every time they so much as venture into the outside world or who simply don't know the first thing about how the real writing world is should learn to keep their mouths firmly closed and give the rest of us a chance to do whatever we damn well wish to. It's very condescending to think that self-publishing is a lesser relative in the publishing world - these days, sensible writers (such as myself - ho ho) take advantage of it whenever we need to. Harrumph, I say. Speech over.

This afternoon I've finished taking notes about The Gifting and now all I have to do is type them up. Hey ho. That's just over 20 sides of scrawl so it could take some time. Only after that can I really get onto the actual editing of Hallsfoot's Battle. I hope Annyeke and the gang aren't fretting too much at my curious absence ... I'll be back - as they say.

I've also had a much-needed Alexander Technique lesson but was ten minutes late as the traffic in and around Guildford is at the moment a Living Hell. Apparently some lorry has overturned and the whole of the south-east has ground to a halt. I felt much more chilled after the lesson though, thank goodness. I needed it for the long journey home ...

Oh, and I've just received a rejection (groan) from the second publisher I sent my long poem too. I still like it, but I don't think I have the heart to send it out anywhere else. Too much effort. I don't think I'll be writing another one of that length either. But, talking of poetry, I'm making plans to self-publish my first forty meditations and am thinking of using I-universe this time round, as Lulu seems very ponderous sometimes, not least when you approach them as someone attempting to buy one of their books. Or maybe I'm just unlucky when I try to buy?? So if anyone has any pressing warnings about I-universe that I need to take into account, I'd be hugely grateful for the benefit of your wisdom. Thank you!

Tonight, I must catch the last of the Torchwood radio plays on the i-player. So far they've been great fun. And later, Eight out Ten Cats is on TV, so that should give me my essential Friday night comedy quota. Ooh, and there's pizza and ice cream for dinner too. What bliss.

Today's nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Brokeback article
3. An article about me in Writers' News
4. Finishing the notes for The Gifting
5. Alexander Technique lesson
6. Thinking about my next poetry collection
7. Torchwood
8. TV
9. Food.

Anne Brooke
Anne Brooke - puzzling over poetry

Breaks, birds and post-holiday blues

We had a really, really fantastic time in Wales. The countryside was grand, the weather was mainly hot and sunny (except for one day), the hotel was wonderful, and the owners Ian and Alan made us feel completely at home. Not to mention Ian being an utterly superb chef. We'll definitely go back at some point, and I can't recommend it highly enough. I fell totally and utterly in love with this view too, which we came across mid-week:



Honestly, looking at it now is making me feel quite tearful as we're not there any more. It was so peaceful, we were the only ones around to enjoy it and I could have stayed much longer than we did. The birds were lovely too - new birds for this year (plus some lifetime firsts) were: red-breasted mergansers, wheatears, great black-backed gulls, ravens, choughs, puffins (hurrah - and really close up too!), fulmars, kittiwakes, guillemots, bullfinches, razorbills (a wonderful bird and my new favourite), crossbills (amazing and probably my joint new favourite ...), redstarts, tree pipits, a wood warbler, and - last but not least - a rather large jellyfish. Astonishing really.

I also had the pleasure of reading V.B. Russell's new children's book, The Adventures of Granny Destross and CeeCee. A very enjoyable, imaginative and fun read which should suit children in the 8-10yrs old bracket (though I'm not an expert - but am guessing this as CeeCee is ten!). Definitely one for your young person's list.

Back now to the washing and ironing, and catching up on email correspondence too - what a lot of spam there's been this week, I see. Here's this morning's meditation:

Meditation 152

There’s so much punishment
for sin deemed

to be sexual
that it’s astonishing

to find anyone left unharmed
at all.

Crouch low
over the earth,

write unknown words
into sand

and let the woman
go free.

While I've been away, there's also been good and very bad news on the literary front. The good news is this:

1. Two of my poems, Chicken-man and Dustward, appear in the inaugural edition of Apparatus Magazine and can be found here. Thanks so much for including them, Adam!

2. My interview about gay fiction and other matters appears here - and thank you so much to Margaret West for including it in her Author Spotlight series.

3. My biblical short story, A Small Betrayal, has been accepted by historical fiction magazine, Lacuna Journal, for their inaugural edition in October.

4. My flash fiction piece, Turning Point (which is actually based on real-life), has been accepted for publication in the University of Maine Ultra-Short Fiction competition anthology.

Always good to have something nice to look forward to indeed, though sadly I've been rather punched in the gut (well, it's exactly what it feels like) to discover that the small US publisher who had expressed strong interest in The Gifting has now ceased trading and didn't even have the courtesy to tell me. I found out yesterday by popping into their website and discovering the announcement. Honestly, I felt quite sick then and still feel totally winded by it now. The nagging headache and broken night's sleep hasn't helped either. If only I were back in glorious Wales and still ignorant about it, eh! I wish. Anyway, taking a deep and very shaky breath, I've sent the novel off again to my last port of call - and it will be the last, as I really can't take any more rejection of that particular book - and if they decide against it, then I'll self-publish and move on. In the meantime, I'm taking the happy pills and I've tried to cheer myself up by thinking of the publication date of The Bones of Summer this coming Monday and uploading the book trailer. Enjoy!

Today's nice things:

1. Holidays
2. Books
3. Birds
4. Poetry
5. Poetry publication
6. Interview
7. Two acceptances
8. The Bones of Summer book trailer

Anne Brooke - somewhere between happy and sad - again!...

Is there honey still for tea?...

Am delighted to say that my review of Jill Dawson's novel about Rupert Brooke, The Great Lover is now up at the Vulpes Libris review site. Additional extras are the brief appearance of my grandfather, Justin, and the strange facts of honey, teabags and soft fruit. Go on - how can you resist?...

Still on matters literary (and once again it's been a very literary day), here's today's meditation:

Meditation 149

On the most important day
water pours through air

and sweeps all the dust
away. See the streets,

houses, shops, gardens
glisten and how sunlight

repaints the morning
so your eye

can barely contain it.
Hold this in your memory;

feed on it
when night comes.


Oh and I had a super-speedy rejection from yesterday's poetry submission. Ye gods, they could barely have had time to open the file and obviously don't know class when they see it, sigh. Anyway, I've turned the whole thing round again and send the poetry back out to somewhere else a little more discerning. Ha! I hope. Mind you, I am mollified by the fact that my short story, Speaking Her Mind, is now up at the Pens On Fire site - so I hope you enjoy that. If only they could have spelt my name right, eh! Ah well ...

For the rest of today, I've written an article on the importance of setting and environment in fiction for my upcoming guest blog at the You Gotta Read review site so I hope they're okay with that. And I've written another review, this time of Elise Valmorbida's novel, The Winding Stick, for Vulpes. So a tiring but very satisfying day. Really, I could talk about books and writing until the cows started rampaging or just gave up on me entirely and went to the pub.

Tonight, I've got the second bible study looking at the Book of James (the power of speech! Equality! Fire!) at the rectory, and I've even done my reading homework, triple hurrahs for me. No guarantee I'll remember any of it by the time I get there though.

And, once I'm back, there's the last episode of Springwatch (sob!) - will the swallows fledge? And what the hell is happening to those linnets?? Plus there's a new comedy fantasy series starting out - called, bizarrely, Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire. Gosh. A title to die for indeed.

Today's nice things:

1. The Vulpes Libris review
2. Poetry
3. Short story publication
4. Article writing
5. Review writing
6. Doing battle with James
7. TV.

Anne Brooke - reviewing for Britain and wondering about the honey

Poetry success, reflexology and the joy of vacation hours

Welcome to June – my birthday month, don’t you know. Sadly, it’s started with a rejection of my comedy fantasy story, so that’s something of a bummer. I shall try to send it out to a more deserving place very soon … However, the universe has been kind to me nonetheless and two of my poems, Bookshops and Kitchen lion, are published today at The Battered Suitcase webzine, so I hope both of those raise a smile for you.

In the meantime, here’s today’s meditation:

Meditation 139

You always live
on land
you do not own,

the great compensation
being the knowledge
of the secrets

of God.
Corn, wine, wool
slip through your fingers

and you wonder
how another life
might be.

We have a new lady in the office today – Clare – who’ll be dealing with new students and their settling in process. So we’re growing apace here in the twilight world of care. Apart from saying hello and making sure Clare has a desk (more Ruth’s job than mine, to be honest), I’ve been catching up with emails and attempting to sort out the plethora of meetings I appear to have on in June. All with the same people but discussing slightly different things – so I foresee a month of bewilderment and déjà vu ahead. No change there then.

Still, I was incredibly pleased to have managed to book a reflexology appointment today – haven’t been able to go for ages so it was lovely to lie down at lunchtime and have my feet rubbed. Bliss indeed. And the other joy is the University is back on vacation hours so I can leave at 5pm instead of 5.30pm. Wonderful! Funny how that extra half-hour of me-time makes all the different. On the way back I popped into see Gladys and the two of us were as quiet as ever for 15 minutes. She can only really stand me for that long – but heck who can blame her?

Tonight, it’s Springwatch and Ashes to Ashes, so an evening of slumping beckons. Just what I need. I’m also working on the latest book review for Vulpes Libris, so that’s proving a lot of fun.

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry publication
2. Reflexology
3. Vacation hours
4. TV
5. Book reviews.

Anne Brooke - slumping for Britain, as ever ...
Cancer Research Race for Life - only 5 days to go!

Worthwhile books, ducks and the mysteries of Twitter

What a bright and Haydn-y morning today. Just to start us off, here’s today’s meditation:

Meditation 127

The dead
do not need
your blood
or the scatterings
of your skin.

Ask instead
where the life is
and follow it.


Thinking of poems, I’m pleased to say that Pens on Fire webzine will be publishing two of my meditation poems in July, hurrah! Naturally enough, the universe hates imbalance so at the same time a piece of flash fiction has been rejected (sigh – the idjits …), so I’ll try to turn that round and get it back out of the virtual door soonest. But the really good literary news for today is that the coffee-table book of photographs and poems/stories in support of The Alzheimer’s Society is now available, and includes one of my own haikus attached to a gorgeous photograph of water. The official press release is as below:

“Photographer Katherine Elizabeth Lewis has collaborated with author Nik Perring and 18 other writers to produce a beautiful limited edition book to raise money for the East Cheshire Branch of the Alzheimer’s Society – and it was put together, from start to finish, in just four weeks! The high quality book features 20 of Katherine’s photographs along with 20 stories, poems and haiku inspired by them. These stories and poems have come from a terrific mix of contributors; you’ll find work from local writers alongside more established ones, including three former Cheshire poet laureates, short story writer Tania Hershman (who received a special mention in this year’s Orange Prize), best-selling novelist Caroline Smailes, and award winning short story writer Vanessa Gebbie. The book is priced at £14 and is available from the photographer and from Nik Perring. And every penny of profit it makes will be donated to the East Cheshire Branch of The Alzheimer’s Society, who support people with any type of dementia, their carers and families. If you have or care for someone with memory problems please get in touch with your local branch, who can be found by clicking here.”

I do feel this is a very worthwhile cause and the book itself is a classy production with some marvellous little vignettes, so worth every penny. Thanks for putting this together, Nik & Katherine, and it’s a pleasure to be included in it indeed.

Meanwhile, on Twitter, I’ve been tweeting the initial extract of Maloney’s Law for a good few weeks now, to which the response has been … um … none. Ah well. Now that Painting from Life is available in paperback and eBook, I’ll start tweeting that instead. It’s so hard to know whether this sort of marketing attempt is worth it or not – probably not, on balance, but hey at least it gives me something to put in that empty slot on the Twitter board.

Meanwhile at work, we’re trying to sort out agendas for a raft of upcoming meetings but the goalposts keep changing. The moment we think we’ve got them sorted, something else comes up. By the time we get there, my agendas will be so long they could probably wallpaper the meeting rooms, sigh.

Oh but we’re all greatly cheered in the office today by this item of charming news about a man in the States saving a brood of ducklings. You absolutely must watch the video – it’s fabulous! Joel Armstrong, Duck-Man Extraordinare, is definitely my Hero of the Month. In fact I was so moved that I wrote a tanka (Japanese-style verse with 31 syllables divided into lines of 5/7/5/7/7 – and yes I did have to look it up too) about them. I quite like tankas. So much so that I then wrote another one about a moorhen (it’s obviously a day with a strong bird focus …). Might even try to write more of them as and when (though I suspect that’s the limit for today) – there’s certainly extra room to breathe compared to a haiku, that’s for sure.

Tonight, I shall pop into see Gladys on the way home, and then I’m planning to watch the poetry programme on television tonight. Even though it has Simon Armitage in it, and really I can’t stand his stuff. Hopefully there won’t be much of it (bitch, bitch ...).

And I’ve very much enjoyed Kate Williams’ biography of Emma Hamilton, entitled England’s Mistress. It’s lively, fascinating and well worth the read. I loved Williams’ very human writing style and she paints an in-depth picture of the woman and the age she lived in. Emma’s like a historical version of Posh, but with a barrel-load of wit and compassion. Great stuff.

In the meantime, if you haven't already donated to my attempt to raise money for Cancer Research, the link is here. And many thanks indeed to those who've already given. Not long now till the race on 6 June!!

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry, of all shapes and sizes
2. The Alzheimer’s coffee-table book
3. The duck-man
4. Poetry on TV
5. Books.

Anne Brooke - something of a charity case herself
Cancer Research Race for Life - please give generously!

Surviving murder and a little writing success

Must say the murder mystery weekend was certainly an experience. I'm not sure that the hotel, the actors or the other guests were quite ready for the combined and barely contained lunacy of the Egypt Group (as that set of friends has been named), but we all muddled through relatively unscathed. I suspect it's one of the those things you just have to do once. If you know what I mean! However, honour was satisfied, as Chris from the EG (well done, Chris!) cracked the case and won the bottle of champagne by a stroke of pure genius. Whereas the booby price (a lemon for me, hurrah!) went to Yours Truly for an off-the-wall and I think brilliantly inspired solution to the murders, in which the true culprits were the camel and Mustafa in a tale of ambition, lust, revenge, despair, loss, grief, love and ultimately redemption. Just sounds like the usual weekend then, really ... Anyway, it was great to catch up with the Egypt Group, as ever, plus we managed to create a group salute (no, I really can't describe it) which we then taught to the acting troupe. Never say I'm not meant to be in the world for a purpose. Not only that, but Lord H and I spotted sky-larks, a red kite and swifts, so I think that at least two of those are new birds for this year.

Oh and we all had a trip out on Saturday afternoon (free non-murder time!) and had a great time at the Yellow Hat Tribe Gallery which is a truly wonderful place with a lovely artist who was very happy to chat with us and who is a genuinely nice woman. I bought teatowels, cards and a marvellous canvas bag. The yellow hat motif and what Irene Tyack makes of it can't help but make you smile.

Back home, I discover that I have a rejection from some people with apparently very poor taste for a selection of poetry (what can they be thinking??!), but also that two of my stories have been published over the weekend, so that's perked me up for sure:

The first is a romantic comedy - The Driving Force about a kind-hearted taxi driver and a rather confused couple.

The second is a somewhat darker piece of flash fiction about the end of a relationship - The End of Winter.

I suspect that you'll either love one and hate the other, or hold to the other and despise the one. As they say.

And let's not forget this week's haiku:

Directing traffic:
red kite over the M4
with triangle tail.

Today's nice things:

1. Murder Mystery weekends
2. The Egypt Group, and all who sail in her (as it were!)
3. The Yellow Hat Tribe Gallery
4. Story publications.

Anne Brooke
Race for Life - helping Cancer Research