Steve Griffin's Blog, page 16

World Book Day & the ‘Magic of Children’

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I’ve just spent the last two days being reminded of the magic of children.

Yesterday I attended a ‘Better Start’ conference in Blackpool, looking at the role the whole community plays in bringing up healthy children. There were some inspirational speakers, including Trevor Hopkins who spoke about all the things that make people feel safe and happy. His long list ended in spirituality, religion and magic. Remarking on how many in academic spheres often criticise him for adding magic he stated...

The Wandle Geese

The Wandle Geese

Bright brown, white, and black
straining, swift
against the uppermost limits
of the river-channel’s air
honking
and half-honking

come the throat-stretched geese,
nature regenerate,
unmade,
singing the quality
that flies ahead of itself

roll-calling the bounty
of the nettle-thick banks

stamping their mark
on the ducks and the coots

championing the ever-ready

and demanding renewed assault
on the beauty and mystery
grown over within.

My Top 10 Books of 2016

What a year 2016 has been!

Thankfully, there are books to keep us happy. So here’s a round up of my favourite reads from the year:

Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout

To think, I wasn’t even going to buy this. I needed a third book in a 3 for 2 at Waterstones, I was in a hurry, and this was being promoted. A piece of good fortune, and proof that we should always challenge our reading habits.

Here’s what I said about it on Goodreads:

A profound portrait of an individual and a commun...

Rise

Rise

The vegetation, air is damp.
Branches move slightly
and the sky is grey.
Christmas is coming,
feel the mind rise.

A blackbird silhouette
jumping under the laurel.
The cut log stained black
with age and rain.
The robin around,
quick with his feathers.
Christmas is…
…the mind rise.

The river swells, gloomy grey,
and a fox, ears high,
lopes to a sibling,
fidgeting in a daytime dream.
Christmas…
…rise.

A Year in Writing

Season’s greetings and a huge thanks to everyone who has supported me this year, particularly to bloggers, bookshop owners, festival organisers, and above all readers.

I’ve had a great year, and here’s a few highlights:

In January, I received my first review from an American blogger, Maureen, on her Hands Full Mama site. It’s an excellent site for reviews of children’s and YA books, and I was really pleased by Maureen’s write up: “I loved the way that Indian culture, religion, and mythology...

The City of Light’s first Amazon no.1!

The City of Light has reached its first no.1 spot in the Amazon charts!

OK, let me qualify that for a moment. It’s no.1 in Germany, in the chart of free children’s books in English. It also got to no.6 in the equivalent UK chart, and no.13 in the US at one stage, kept off the top spot by The Jungle Book, Treasure Island, and some books on Minecraft.

Anyway, it’s a start – and thank you to all those German readers who are downloading my book!

Interview on Carpinello’s Writing Pages

Just to let you know that I’ve been interviewed by the award-winning U.S. middle grade fantasy writer, Cheryl Carpinello, over on her blog – Carpinello’s Writing Pages. Click here to read it:

http://carpinelloswritingpages.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/meet-mg-english-author-steve-griffin.html

Hedgelayer

This poem was written during a time when I did a lot of volunteering for wildlife trusts and other environmental groups. Amongst other things, I learned how to build a drystone wall, coppice woodland, and lay hedges, in some beautiful parts of the country. There was always something magical about being outside, working with a group of like-minded people, whatever the weather.

Hedgelayer

A man, a man I could have loved
starts to shade, to shade the morning mist.

He is beating stakes, stakes i...

The real “Garden of Rooms”

I have already posted about the amazing ‘garden of rooms’ in Herefordshire that inspired The Secret of the Tirthas here. Now there are two more books out, I thought I’d share a few more photos of the garden, including some of the rooms that feature in those books.

ABOVE: The Wedding Cake Tree in the real Miss Day’s Garden. I’ve no idea who the real Miss Day was though – there’s no clues on the Garden’s original map, so she remains a mystery. In The Book of Life this garden is overgrown, aband...

The Dreamer Falls – proofing

Getting very excited now. Just spent lunchtime in the park reading my proof copy of The Dreamer Falls. It’s amazing that no matter how tight you think you’ve got it, and no matter how many other people have read it through, you still get to find those typos!

Out in a few days now…