Roland Clarke's Blog, page 63
July 30, 2014
Interview With Author Roland Clarke
An in-depth interview by an Australian writer colleague that had me delving deep into my brain for memories, motivation and muses. Read more about me at Ashleigh Galvin’s Blog.
Originally posted on Ashleigh Galvin:
This week I interviewed Roland Clarke, Author of ‘Spiral of Hooves’.
Let’s see what he had to say!
Greetings Roland. How long have you been a writer?
Depends on what counts towards being a writer. Although I have a few dim memories of trying to create stories as a child and inventing scenarios with my toys, the only distinct memory is writing my own tale when I was about 7, based on a book called ‘Old Mr Fox’ – I still have the book, but not my story sadly. The first original pieces, excluding composition at school, were some fantasy/sci-fi shorts in my late teens. These included a fantasy novella when aged 18 – The Unicorn & The Prophet – but the draft got lost in Canada, where I lived briefly. Despite such brief forays into fiction writing and thoughts that it would be cool to become a full time…
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July 28, 2014
The Problem of Pain
This article is excellent and addresses an issue that some dismiss. But living with the MonSter’ s pain, and knowing how others suffer, I have to reblog this.
Originally posted on Zen and the art of tightrope walking:
The Problem of Pain
There is a problem with pain. Other than that it hurts, that is.
The problem is that we each experience pain in a personal and unique way. My pain is not your pain. Pain tolerance and pain thresholds are different for every person.
Not only that, our experiences are different. A man cannot fully understand the pain of a woman in childbirth; a woman cannot fully comprehend the pain of being kicked in the balls. We don’t have comparable parts. Not only that, every birthing experience is different too (for example). I’ve heard of women who have had a pleasurable and even (gasp!) orgasmic birthing experience. I’ve heard of plenty for whom the pain was enough to make them pass out, and scream for days. My own experience of giving birth was one of unimaginable agony. People say you forget the pain when you hold the…
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July 12, 2014
Sam Griffiths: Interview with the 2014 Badminton Winner
Sam Griffiths & Paulank Brockagh winning Badminton ~ Photo by Kit Houghton
I am very pleased and immensely honoured to be interviewing Australian Sam Griffiths who on May 11th 2014 won the prestigious Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials on Dinah Posford & Juliet Carter’s 11-year-old mare Paulank Brockagh (Brocks). This was Sam’s first four-star eventing title, landing £80,000 pounds (US $134,000), and the Mitsubishi Motors Trophy.
Watching one of the most demanding Badmintons, I was elated when Sam and Brocks jumped from twenty-fifth after the dressage phase, to first after surviving the attrition of a tough cross-country and having just one fence down in the final show jumping phase. This was not only because Sam’s such a great guy but also because he was riding a mare. As readers of my novel “Spiral of Hooves” will know, mares hold a special place in my eventing world.
When Sam became the sixth Australian winner in Badminton’s 65-year history, he said, “This is the ultimate dream. When I was a little boy we used to wait for the video to come out to watch the highlights of Badminton. To win it is the completion of that dream.”
So Sam, where did you grow up, and what was your first encounter with a horse?
Originally from Melbourne, I am the middle sibling of of a family of three boys, I grew up on a farm on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula and has been involved with horses all my life showing my parent’s homebred Welsh ponies and being very much part of the Pearcedale Pony Club, which to this day still holds its rallies on my parent’s farm. Along with both my brothers I started taking eventing very seriously in my teenage years and had quite a bit of success with young rider competitions including finishing 2nd at the notoriously tough Gawler CCI*** in Australia at 18 years old. I continued to event whilst studying at Monash University, gaining a BA Hons degree in Geography.
You moved to the UK in 1995, the same year I started the South East Eventers League, and also when I first interviewed you. What made you move to the UK?
Well, I slightly fell into it really! I had been travelling with a friend and had run out of money so needed to find some work – quick! I had heard of a job as a groom with Blyth Tait so thought that could be an option for a month or two to get together enough money to continue my travels…I never did continue my travels! I realised that my passion lay in eventing and it was obvious that the UK was the place to be to make this my career.
Where were you based, and what made you choose to move to Dorset with one of our best eventing photographers?
So I started off grooming for Blyth , which was an amazing experience as his attention to detail and professionalism is second to none but really I wanted to be a rider not a groom and after a while I moved to Matt Ryan’s yard to be his ‘stable jockey’. It was here that I began to build up a little business and got one or two rides of my own which was enough to ‘go it alone’ so when I heard of the opportunity to base myself in David Hamilton’s yard I grabbed it as it would enable me to have more competition rides and grow my business further – although at this stage I only had one saddle to my name! Nevertheless, one thing led to another and some fantastic horses came my way, including Private Colin with whom I came 6th at Badminton and was reserve for the Athens Olympics. As my business grew I found myself with too many horses and not enough stables so I made the big move to Hoplands Equestrian Centre – an amazing facility with everything every event rider could ever wish for – indoor, outdoor, gallops, cross-country schooling course, accommodation etc! It cost me an arm and a leg to be there but it was worth it! Shortly before moving here I had met my now wife Lucy – we still joke that she only liked me for the facilities at Hoplands (She was still competing from her family home on the Isle of Wight! So when she saw Hoplands she moved in pretty quickly!! ) . However, as much as Hoplands was the most fantastic training facility, the rent was beginning to cripple us and we realised we could put that rent money towards a mortgage so after 5 years at Hoplands, we started looking for our own place…we originally looked in the central south area but the prices were huge so we ended up looking further west where we could get more value for money and that’s when we found our perfect Symphony Farm on the Dorset/Somerset border.
Sam Griffiths & Paulank Brockagh at Symphony Farm
The Posford family have been great supporters throughout your career. How long have you been riding for Dinah Posford and her daughter Juliet Carter? How long have you been riding Brocks for them? Did you ride her in her first events?
Dinah Posford was my first EVER owner – her daughter, Jules, had been having lessons with Matt Ryan but had not wanted to carry on eventing. Dinah, however, had become hooked on the sport and wanted to see the horse she had brought for Jules progress and so I got asked to ride it as Matt was too busy! So that was around 1995/96. Brocks came to me as a 7 year old, having competed at novice level in Ireland with Heidi Hamilton. She progressed well and that year, having only been with me a few months, finished 8th at Le Lion D’Angers CCI** World Young Horse Championships – Dinah Posford had seen her out competing with me and liked her so much that she brought her just before we went to Le Lion.
You have clearly built up a great rapport with Brocks saying, “She is one tough nut with a massive heart. She tries and tries and tries. I cannot speak highly enough of her”. What else is special about her?
She is incredibly powerful and scopey – I have never, yet, felt her reach her limit in her jumping – she really would jump anything I pointed her out and just wants to go between the flags. She is incredibly brave and bold – so much so that I often have to really ‘anchor’ her on course! She just has a real ‘no fuss’ attitude to life and takes everything in her stride and funnily enough so goes even better when she’s in season!
I believe Brocks is only the third mare to win Badminton, which in many ways is because the greater proportion of event horses are geldings. That may be because too many riders deem that mares are temperamental and difficult. Yet from talking to those riders that have a special rapport with mares – from Open European Champion Lucy Thompson with Welton Romance, to 2007 Badminton winner Lucinda Fredericks with Headley Britannia – they can be exceptional. What can a mare bring to a partnership?
If you click with a mare, keep them confident and gain their trust – I do believe that they try harder for you than many geldings. Yes, you have to have a ‘way’ with mares – you can’t dominate them, you have to negotiate but if you understand that and the mare wants to work with you then they can be exceptional.
One major advantage of successfully competing on a mare has to be her breeding potential, a huge drawback with geldings. Do the Posford Family have any breeding plans for Paulank Brockagh as a proven mare? Are they considering embryo transplant (ET) so Brocks can stay in competition work or is ET a problem? Of course there is the more expensive even controversial cloning route, which even geldings can go down. [For readers’ information, “the ET process involves breeding a donor mare to a stallion and then transferring the resulting embryo into a recipient mare which carries the foal to term and nurses it until weaning.”]
Brocks has actually got two embryo transfers opportunities now – one from Burghley and another offer has come since Badminton however the Posfords do not want to rush into anything – her focus at the moment needs to be on competing – she’s at her prime and there is plenty of time to go down the breeding route. Even though ET has proved very successful, each mare takes it differently and the last thing we would want to do would be to change anything about her. All the pros and cons would have to be very carefully looked into before any decisions were made. Having said that, if she goes to WEG this year, then there is a long gap until the start of the 2015 season so who knows…maybe that would be a good time…
I’ve been implying that the win is down to you & Brocks, but a successful eventing challenge requires a great deal of support in all weathers, from grooms to owners. Tell us about the unsung heroines (& heroes) of Team Griffiths that were crucial to the Badminton win, and will be central to your World Equestrian Games campaign. How will the Team prepare? [Sam & Brocks are one of the six horse and rider combinations selected to comprise Australia's World Equestrian Games (WEG) Eventing Team.]
Well this really is a team sport and I simply could not compete successfully without my back up team – so crucial to my success is my headgirl, Imogen Mercer, who not only runs the yard on a daily basis but also comes to all the major competitions with me. She knows each horse inside out and knows me very well now too! She is incredibly calm, capable and organised, which allows me to concentrate on my riding – not worrying about whether I’ve placed a recent feed order or whether I have the right tack packed for the next event. She is exceptional at her job and we are very lucky to have her. Then I have the main core of the home team which consists of 6 or 7 grooms/working pupils during the season and I have a very good stable jockey too – a young French rider called Gireg Le Coz who helps school the horses at home when I am out competing. Each and every one of the home team are fundamental to my success and keeping the show on the road month after month. Then there is my wife Lucy – having previously ridden at three star level before having our son, Ollie, she too helps school the horses at home whilst I am away but also does the bulk of the admin work – entries, invoicing, booking in training sessions, liaising with sponsors, owners, press and supporting the staff here on site – more often than not she is the one dealing with any issues or problems that crop up as I am on the road so much (I’m also not great at answering my phone as I’m usually on a horse so everyone calls Lucy!). So what with that, looking after Ollie and somewhere in there doing her photography work, life is pretty full on for Lucy too! As well as all these people that keep things going for me I do of course have some wonderful owners who have supported me through thick and thin and were all so thrilled with the Badminton result as many of them have supported me right from the early days and I am so grateful to them for sticking by me through all these years. Finally, I have two exceptional trainers – Gareth Hughes for dressage and Ros Morgan (nee Bevan) for jumping – both of these people are a huge support to me as they both really understand me and, more importantly, they understand what makes Brocks perform at her best and they have always believed she is a star – luckily both Ros and Gareth could be there on the Sunday of Badminton and we could share that special (and very surreal!) moment with them. It is such a great feeling to have really ‘brought home the goods’ for all of my team.
I am presuming that WEG will be the focus of your summer, and we wish you lots of good fortune. I follow you and the Team on Twitter and on Facebook, but are there other ways that people can follow the exploits of you and Team Griffiths? Websites? Other Social media?
Yes, I have a website www.samgriffithseventing.co.uk and on there you will find links to my Facebook and Twitter pages as well as a link to my monthly newsletter where you can just click on the link to subscribe to the newsletter and get a copy of it emailed to you every month.
Thank you very much, Sam. It’s been a great pleasure to interview you. And thanks to Lucy for arranging this. Best of luck to you, Brocks and Team Griffiths for WEG.
Anytime!
Finally, my apologies that my Badminton preview failed to mention the real winner, just the far too obvious contenders. Although, prompted by my fiction, I did say, “…but also watch out for the outsiders and the hidden agendas. There might be a mystery there.”
Sam Griffiths and the Mitsubishi Motors Trophy
Other Sam Griffiths articles & interviews well worth checking out:
At home with the Badminton Champion
Badminton win a dream for Australian rider
Announcement of the six horse and rider combinations selected to comprise Australia’s World Equestrian Games (WEG) Eventing Team. http://www.equestrian.org.au/?ID=35710
For Lucy Griffiths’ amazing photos of Horses, Landscapes and Gardens & Plants, visit http://www.lucygriffithsphotography.co.uk/
July 11, 2014
Second Daughter
NEW RELEASE
Second Daughter (The Dharian Affairs #2)
Assassins, skyships, and royal intrigue…
Kindle, Kobo, AllRomance
Second Daughter is the second book in The Dharian Affairs trilogy (Third Daughter, Second Daughter, First Daughter). This steampunk-goes-to-Bollywood (Bollypunk!) romance takes place in an east-Indian-flavored alternate world filled with skyships, assassins, royal romance and intrigue.
Reviews of the first book, Third Daughter:
“The author fuses carriages, steam trains, airships and clockwork with the rich eastern culture that underlies Bollywood storytelling…” – Cherie Reich
“The political intrigue, the steampunk gadgets, and the beautiful costumes kept me in wonderment.” – Tony Benson
“Third Daughter is vividly breathtaking. Quinn delivers royal intrigue, exotic locations, and sweeping romance. Not to be missed!” – Pavarti Tyler, author of Shadow on the Wall
ON SALE – 99cents until 7/21
Third Daughter (The Dharian Affairs #1)
Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iTunes, AllRomance
(also available in print)
The Third Daughter of the Queen wants her birthday to arrive so she’ll be free to marry for love, but rumors of a new flying weapon may force her to accept a barbarian prince’s proposal for a peace-brokering marriage. Desperate to marry the charming courtesan she loves, Aniri agrees to the prince’s proposal as a subterfuge in order to spy on him, find the weapon, and hopefully avoid both war and an arranged marriage to a man she does not love.
NEW
Both books now have a map!
Download the map free here
Tweets to Share:
NEW RELEASE: Second Daughter (Dharian Affairs #2) Assassins, skyships, royal intrigue #steampunk #fantasy #romance http://bit.ly/SDAmazon
Skyships, saber duels, royal romance: Third Daughter (Dharian Affairs#1) ON SALE 99cents http://bit.ly/ThirdDAmaz
Thank you so much for helping me get this book out in the world!
check out the gorgeous formatting of the print book!
July 1, 2014
I’m Fine… but the MS is not
What should I say? Do I remain polite? Or complain?
But it’s good manners to say “Good morning” and ask how someone is, then remark on the weather. People don’t really want to know how I am, any more than they want to learn about my writing.
My wheelchair is invisible and all they see is the smile on my face… the smile that keeps me going, along with my writing. Depression, openly demonstrated, doesn’t sit well with MS, even if it lurks behind me most of the day.
I have real friends that understand, many writers that I met online, some even suffer with invisible illnesses and know the secret of hiding the pain. Yet there are days when the pain gets too much and I scream aloud, my body jerking with uncontrollable spasms. On those days both writing and thinking are jumbled. But I’m not the only sufferer that writes.
Writing is a healer and a distraction. Without writing my brain would have ground into a snail slither. Writing keeps my ‘little grey cells’ devising new ways to kill people, and new motivations for deviousness. Sadly, I can’t write down everything that flickers along the scrambled pathways.
So I’m Fine… on the outside, but I’m suffering inside, struggling to get the words out whether by voice or keyboard. The MS is taking time to emerge because the MS is making my life a daily struggle. But I will win, given enough time.
Yes, I flinch when I read MS. To me it is not a ManuScript, but a MonSter called Multiple Sclerosis.
And others live with their monsters and triumph.
*
This is my monthly post in the Insecure Writers Support Group Day and there are many words of wisdom out in cyber-space. I’m only number 108 among 297 other bloggers. If you click here there are links to all of them and you can visit as many as you want. All thanks to Ninja Captain Alex J Cavanaugh and his co-hosts Krista McLaughlin, Kim Van Sickler, Heather Gardner, and Hart Johnson!
June 26, 2014
Tag-tease!
No, it isn’t a new kind of deviant game (shame! shame!) It’s a writers’ game and I was delighted to receive this invitation on Facebook, from my author friend, Ailsa Abraham – this links to her post… and more.
WIP-tease: Post any paragraph from your work in progress, then tag three others.
Thanks for naming me, Ailsa, although I was torn between my ‘NIP’ and my ‘WIP’. NIP meant trying to find something from my Novel in Progress – “Fates Maelstrom” – but that needs WORK. So this is from my WIP = World in Progress.
Photo of a cloud illuminated by sunlight. ~ by Ibrahim Iujaz from Rep. Of Maldives
The opening paragraph from the first tale in the “Gossamer Flames” series, provisionally entitled ‘Ghost Light’.
“Darkness should grant Arati the same protection as the others stealthing through the night. Darkness was perfect for keeping unwelcome eyes blind to their activities.But unwelcome eyes were in every shadow, she warned herself. They had always been there, one reason not to go outside after sunset. Besides, without light it was impossible to see the insects. Life was too precious to blunder blindly into the night, even to find seclusion for personal necessities. Someone moved ahead of her and she stiffened. Fellow dissident or police? Or something worse?”
‘Ghost Light’ will be available free, when revised, to all those that subscribe to my newsletter.
I am re-posting this on FB so that my tag-mates are properly invited. They are: Jane Bwye, Ashleigh Galvin, and Awen Thornber.
June 24, 2014
Horses for Courses: My Descent Into Crime
My first Guest Blog invitation was a chance to delve into my memories of an equestrian past. So today you can find me in the fresh air and wild exotic vistas on Jane Bwye’s website:
Originally posted on Jane Bwye:
Join me today as I welcome Roland Clarke in a jolly mood, reminiscing about his life with – and without – horses. I judge dressage regularly at Borde Hill, Roland; never knew you were so closely involved with eventing there. My book also contains the beat of galloping hooves, albeit in an African setting. But your “Spiral of Hooves” is a joy to read for any horse-lover.
With my mother, Nidia Clarke, at Borde Hill Horse Trials 2005
Over to you, Roland…
I wonder what my grandfather would think about my life. Would he feel that I had ignored his example? Have I failed to make proper use of my private school education? Would he approve of my involvement in crime? Hard to say, but I’m sure that he would be pleased that I hadn’t totally abandoned horses, but then he had predicted that I wouldn’t.
I…
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June 20, 2014
The Teatime Author Interview…with Roland Clarke
I got invited to do this challenging interview for A Woman’s Wisdom – challenge was deciding on who to have Dinner with. Let’s say it was an electrifying experience. Read more and please add your thoughts – thanks.
Originally posted on A Woman's Wisdom:
This evening it is my pleasure to welcome author Roland Clarke to A Woman’s Wisdom.
Roland Clarke is a retired equestrian journalist and photographer, who used to be a regular contributor of articles and photos to various equestrian media. In 2000, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which clipped his wings as he was unable to meet deadlines so easily and found it increasingly hard to attend equestrian events. Roland Clarke’s debut novel, Spiral of Hooves, is a mystery-thriller that will leave you feeling exhilarated. Read this exciting novel and follow Armand Sabatier’s journey in trying to forget his painful past by creating a new life for himself on a beautiful stud farm, only to be lured by the need to uncover truths and to protect the innocent, tumbling directly into the hazards of trust, friendship, and love.
As well as writing crime mysteries, Roland also writes science-fiction and fantasy…
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June 4, 2014
News Worth Sharing
For the first three of my monthly posts in the Insecure Writers Support Group I expressed my insecurities, concerns and general fears about my writing. Today I want to be positive as our monthly posts are also supposed to be offering encouragement. There are usually some excellent words of wisdom out there. I’m only number 207 among 320 other great bloggers. If you click here there are links to all of them and you can visit as many as you want. After months of prevarication, I have drafted my first newsletter and taken the first step on the MailChimp route – and I don’t regret it. This won’t be a MailChimp Guide since there are excellent ones available, like Jeri Walker-Bickett’s post “How to use MailChimp – From Sign-up To Send”. All I’m attempting to do today is to explain why I decided to go down the newsletter path and what I hope to find. Letter writing was not something that came easily to me, whether writing Thank You letters as a child, or staying in touch with friends as I grew older. However, during my career as an equestrian journalist I produced a 12-24 page quarterly newsletter for a carriage driving club. An interesting challenge as I had to master design software and PDF production. So no excuse when it comes to a simple one page newsletter in MailChimp.
Dick Lane and his team of Lipizzaners at Brighton Driving Trials
The design options are more basic than Publisher but I can see the potential to offer readers the following – in no particular order:
Links to recent Blog posts
Updates on published novels, like “Spiral of Hooves”
Research thoughts and Links relating to my Worlds & Work In Progress
Books read, reading and recommended
Interviews with authors I follow
News about my current writing projects
Other people’s Tweets, Blogs and thoughts that have inspired me
Most of these don’t make interesting blog posts and yet they can be very useful to followers, when phrased right. The Gossamer Wings Newsletter will allow me to keep in touch better with you… better than sporadic posts that give a snapshot of my life. I want to make this work and I believe that having a newsletter is part of the way forward, not just for me but also for other authors. What would you expect to see in my newsletter? Would you be interested in receiving a copy? How often would you want to be sent one?
It might take a week or two perfecting a newsletter that is worthy of being sent but, if you are interested, please sign up below. [I tried adding a Widget to the site but it seems that MailChimp and WordPress haven't sorted out a compatible code.]
But I have now found the solution and you can sign up here: http://eepurl.com/V3mq5
June 2, 2014
My Main Character
Snowdon Night ~ by Juanita Clarke
This is one of those blog themes doing the rounds and it was Ailsa Abraham, after blogging about her Main character, that asked for volunteers as so many of us had already taken part. :-) I was hesitant to step forward but Facebook writer friend David W Robinson encouraged me to have a go – although I had to confess that it might be another means to put off my outstanding editing. In fact that’s been outstanding for eleven months.
First I should say that David is the opposite of me, as a visit to his ‘My Writing Process’ post at http://www.dwrob.com/2014/05/my-writing-process/ should make clear. He’s also a very prolific writer and one of the awesome Crooked Cat authors, which is in contrast to my single novel in print. Or can I count all those magazine and newspaper articles… guess not.
However, we share a passion for crime, even if his novels see the world outside his productive mind. Please check out his site and enjoy his writing.
Beyond the words ‘sporadic’ and ‘erratic’ there is a pattern to my writing. At specific times of the year, mainly during November and NaNoWriMo, I focus on getting a first draft down on paper. I usually aim to plot this novel out in detail during previous months, leaving room for the characters to introduce their own direction to the tale. Sometimes I manage to fit the draft for another novel into a year, and write that in the same way – outline and fast first draft.
That means that it’s tough to choose a main character, especially as I’ve also been working on the various shorts set in my “Gossamer Flames” world.
Enough prevaricating, time to talk about about My Main Character. But I need to answer the ‘set questions’ about the draft most likely to be read by my devoted fans ;-) – “Fates Maelstrom”.
Snowdonia ~ Juanita Clarke
1. What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person?
Although there are two POVs in “Fates Maelstrom”, the plot revolves around Twyla Locke, a fictional young woman in her last year of college in North Wales. Although she is a creation of my imagination, I am sure that I have taken some traits from people I know.
2. When and where is the story set?
Set in or just before the present. In the first draft of “Fates Maelstrom” the story was set predominantly in and around the fictional village of Hawktrewen on the edge of Dartmoor, with some climactic scenes around Lake Como in Italy. However, I am relocating the Dartmoor scenes to Snowdonia where I now live. The setting plays a key role as the story unfolds, with ancient standing stones and 18th century follies as well as natural landscape weaving into the plot, along with the rich legends of the area.
3. What should we know about him/her?
Twyla was just a baby when her parents died in a boating accident on Lake Como, so she has been brought up by her mother’s sister Ruby Horn in the Romany community of Horn’s Furrow, which has earned a place in the village, despite prejudices about ‘travellers’. However, her father was born into the local English landowning family, the Lockes, themselves seen as interlopers by the native Welsh.
4. What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?
The murder of Twyla’s grandfather Aubrey Locke exposes the deceptions that lie behind the prejudices of a divided village. Twyla becomes the prime suspect not only because she is seen as a ‘typical gypsy’ but because there are witnesses to her being at the murder scene at the right time. Either someone is impersonating her, or she has a split personality. The latter becoming more likely as she suffers blackouts, and fears that she is becoming like her ancestor Mad Geffron Locke, whose spirit haunts her. American journalist, Brogan Keyes gives her an alibi but his relationship with her cousin Yazzi Locke arouses her suspicions and drives her closer to a breakdown. .
5. What is the personal goal of the character?
Before she was accused of murder, Twyla was aiming to obtain her degree and help her aunt Ruby with the horticultural business that keeps the Romany community thriving. However, beyond clearing her name, Twyla now needs to ensure that Horn’s Furrow survives the threat to its existence that is caused by the death of Aubrey Locke. Also, are her health problems a sign that she is going mad? Or has someone framed her for murder?
6. Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?
The working title is “Fates Maelstrom” and I will keep my followers informed of its progress on this website. When I have revised the first draft to reflect the new setting of Snowdonia, I will probably add another page, as I did with “Spiral of Hooves” and “Gossamer Flames”.
7. When can we expect the book to be published?
I have to work around my health problems, and my inclination to distract myself, so it will probably be some time in 2015… and that will also depend on a publisher.
Anyway, whatever I do to prevaricate, you all know what I intend to work on – as well as the “Gossamer Flames” shorts. Suppose that means that I have no excuse now. Tomorrow I must start on revising something – or maybe next week.
Please can I also ask for volunteers to take on the “My Main Character” torch – thanks and good scribbling.
