A Rasch of Newtes

Have you ever found yourself, so-called 'multi-tasking' and suddenly finding that you are not paying attention to the tasks in hand but a further thing...?

So, there I was trying to prepare a document for Kindle Publishing whilst tiddling about with some marketing collateral. The radio was on. This isn't that unusual...working with the radio on as background noise, I mean. Normally, in these circumstances, I may have set out to listen to a specific programme whilst doing something routine. On other occasions, the radio really is background noise that goes out of my consciousness as soon as I'm engrossed in the work I'm on. It is a rare moment during such activity when, mid-programme, my focus veers off my work and instead onto what is being broadcast. That happened today. What subconsciously caught my attention was a word. I didn't realise this though. I can tell you it was after 2pm in the afternoon as I had allowed The Archers to play. Normally, this gets shut off long before the intro music has finished playing. I had let it go on as I felt too busy to get off my seat to deal with it and knew, in any case, that I was in 'ignore extraneous noise' mode. The Archers had played to deaf ears and some other play was in full swing. This play, as you will have gathered, had broken through the noise-shield. It concerned the rather contorted subterfuges undertaken by a woman playwright in getting her work performed by the BBC. 'Ah yes', I started thinking....focus on work already gone...'I have fond memories of 'that' actor'. Mention of his name brings back quite clear images of my pre-school self, my grandmother's 'cup-of-tea' cake and Sundays spent in her parlour. He was Derek Nimmo and the programme I was listening to was a dramatization of how All Gas and Gaiters, written by Pauline Devaney and Edwin Apps, was presented by them as authored under the singular pseudonym John Wraith. How interesting, thinks I....checks internet for programme notes...that's an interesting voice, I note.....who is he? Who is he playing.....Ah ha Frank Muir...another of my childhood favourites from Call my Bluff....I listen more, and wait for the spoken programme credits. It wasn't anything said here that proved to be the 'cocktail party' word that got my attention. It was Noote...the character Derek Nimmo played in All Gas and Gaiters. Noote was the bumbling chaplain Rev. Mervyn Noote. Written down Newte - the family name of an author and his ancestors who are the subject of my latest book - would appear to have the same sound when spoken. The Newte of my interest also had a particular interest in service as a churchman, both in his fiction and possibly in real life too. Historically his surname was pronounced Knewte or Canute...and there lies quite another story.....in my print book, of course! The print run for the book is relatively short owing to the inclusion of some images that won't make it into further editions. If you want one of these first editions, send payment of £8 (£6.50 + £1.50p&p) to LDHS, Forest Villa, Staples Road, Loughton IG10 1HP

 

 

Ah yes, here we are

Well, it's been a year. Time for an update. Seems like e-publications and self-publishing are becoming more of a real prospect. I thought I'd give Kindle a whirl - both to read and publish stuff. A nice piece of equipment it is too. I'm sure it's only going to get better. So, I've paid for some stuff and tried that. How's about releasing something of mine into the big bad world.

Alright then, so after a bit of jiggery-pokery and one or two amendments we have a new version of my second novel loaded onto Amazon - available world wide and cheaper than getting it in print. Haven't quite worked out how to get the best pricing yet as the start off point is US $'s and then VAT gets added, (that's a bit of a bummer when print is zero VAT). Nevertheless, there I am on the biggest booksellers' website. That's quite pleasing!

Hero Worship

I don't know what they're grinning about!

I've met some notable people in my life, but honestly, I didn't think I'd ever get the chance to meet Nick Park. I've admired his creations since the very moment I saw them. What a delight it was to be given the opportunity to sit and watch him draw a Gromit just for me. He was lovely.

Create books with Wikipedia content

I'd wondered about this myself. In researching my latest piece of writing, I've been compiling bits of information from various sources. Not unusual that. Writers are, I'm sure, amongst the most prominent book and print media buyers. My own shelves and cupboard space is testament to this at least! What I really wanted to do was put all of my connected bits together in a neat little book. Seems like this is possible after all. The US Lightning Source POD publisher has linked up with ">Wikipedia to bring about the PediaPress. It's given me an idea (oh dear that's another diversion from the BIG task isn't it?) Oh, well, I'm certain it will all come right in the end! (I can't help being excited though : ) )

PDF to e-Book DIY

There are so many different e-readers and portable tech where you can read books, news on and so on, I'd wondered what to do for the best. Do you buy a Kindle and miss out on stuff you can only get on an iPhone, iPad, Sony Reader etc...? Well, it turns out you don't have to worry. Eh? Well, have a look at Calibre. Its an amazing bit of software that allows you to convert your documents to the right format for your device. Amazing! 

Aaaaagghh Owwww...

I've been reading. I've been reading something I wish I'd had access to some years ago. Somehow, I don't think anyone would have written so honestly about the topic even a couple of years ago. Things have changed. Yet, things are the same. What are we supposed to think? I'm afraid I have to to warn you that Lynn Price's very readable book is terribly depressing in its forthright advice. She has gathered together lots of people with vast experience and  asked them direct questions. Their answers spare no feelings. Gulp! So, this is the real situation regarding getting published is it? Oh well, and here was Garrison Keillor, (he of Lake Woebegone fame), telling us it's all different now!

Writers write for writers

Attending the LBF10 this week I picked up a review magazine that held my attention for longer than 30 seconds. I took it home and left it on the breakfast table. This meant it got another look. It was well worth it. I found a couple of titles I'll definitely seek out, but also, a great editorial from Teresa Scollon. It's so good I'm going to reproduce it here. Full citation at the bottom, for those who want to get the original.

Please Persist

One of the astonishing things about teaching English composition is the poverty of ability one encounters. We have truly abandoned our young: we have not taught them to read or write. Forget about exposure to great literature or poetry. Little did I know, when I began teaching, that some students in a 300-level college course would not know how to match subject and verbs, or how to put a period at the end of a sentence. My fellow professors commiserate; admit to a rueful voyeurism, the gallows humor of tortured English; and compare the funniest appalling mistakes, like "the Appellation Mountains." Worse than the technical mistakes, however, is a certain lack of depth and a "failure to persist".

Writers about the Teacup Generation say that many young people are so reliant on protective parents that they can't navigate learning by themselves, and I do see evidence of that. Older students often seem better prepared, not least because they are more likely to have the fortitude required to look up an unfamiliar word in a dictionary. No doubt all of us humans, in our infinite varieties, differ in what we do well. Not everyone is going to love language. Not everyone loves engineering, either, or ice-cream. Maybe it was ever thus.But I wonder: why are we pretending that substandard skills are worthy of a college degree?

Next to this question, however, stands another astonishing thing. All of my students, I dare say want to write. They have things to say, funny stories, sobering perspectives. They try to see things differently and know themselves better. This morning, we read Naomi Shihab Nye's poem, "Kindness," and one student said, "I think she is saying that you have to lose everything before you appreciate the ordinary things." Yes, absolutely. And I want that student to be able to unfold her thoughts before a rapt audience, to possess the tools she needs to make the world pay attention to what life has taught her.

After class, I come to the ForeWord offices, where bins of books await me. We live in an age in which nearly anyone who wants to write a book can publish it. At ForeWord, we get great books; we get good books; we also get a fair amount of not-good books. Some are written poorly. Some need a good editor. Some are well written but don't go beyond the author's individual experience. Anyone who doubts that writing is a healing process should read Gregory Orr's wonderful Poetry as Survival, in which he suggests that writing helps us make meaning of disorder. It was important for all these writers to write their books. But what makes a book important to read?

 We want books that blow our minds open, that as Rob Baker wrote a couple of issues ago, blast us into "emotional atmospheres,"  but these books are hard to find. Too many, these days, are cataloguing of events: first this happened, then that happened. He said this to me; I said that to him. And so on. At the end of a day of reading this claptrap I want to throw my hands up in the air. For what are we cutting all the trees down?

Please, please, persist. If you are going to write a book, give it your all. Write! Write like the wind! Write until your fingers drop off. And then work on it some more. Hawthorne said, "Easy reading is damn hard writing," and he knew what he was writing about. Practice and practice. Get a decent editor. And don't just tell us your story, tell us our story. It's critical to our survival, and we need every single voice to be trained in song.

Teresa Scollon, Editor's words, ForeWord Reviews Mar/Apr 2010 page 8  
ISSN 1099-2642