I logged on to the Edinburgh Book Festival website first thing yesterday morning, but my hopes of an early scan of the 2010 events programme was dashed when I found out it was a 12 noon launch. I had to wait. It was tortuous.

Eventually the EBF launch press release was announced and by 1pm I’d had my first tentative scan through the PDF version of what August has in store. My first thought: deflating.

My first look at the programme is usually quiet an exciting moment, as I find out which local and Scottish authors are on their way to Charlotte Square, which of my personal favourite authors are coming, and which big names will be treading the boards. But there was none of that. In fact, it’s a pretty dire programme from a personal angle.

There’s a couple of notable exceptions such as Philip Pullman, Fay Weldon, Seamus Heaney and Lionel Shriver, but that’s pretty much where it ends. There’s nobody to get really excited about, no authors I’ve never seen that have always to meet, and many of the regulars I would always make the effort to see are notable in their absence.

The theme for this year’s event is “the new world order” and it seems there is a new order in the Book Festival management with new director Nick Barley making an immediate mark. U.S. writers will play a prominent role among the 750 authors from 50 different countries that will be available.

Barley aims to hold “an ambitious survey of American contemporary writing,” with more than 45 authors coming under the American theme, including Garry Trudeau, Bill Clegg, David Vann, Willy Vlautin, Leanne Shapton, Simon Rich and Adam Ross. They aren’t names I recognise so I’ll be looking to my Stateside writing buddies for recommendations. And how can anyone talk about contemporary American writing without Paul Auster being involved?

The next step is to get a hard copy of the programme and plan out my August in fine detail. There’s obviously going to be a lot more research to do before I order my tickets but in the lack of there being any magical “must-see” events, I still intend to get a lot out of it. It IS the Edinburgh Book Festival after all, and it IS my end of writing year, so there’s bound to be something good to come out of it—there always is.

My royalty statement came in from Smashing Press yesterday and it would appear there has been a rather hefty boost in my sales. It makes for odd reading.

Sales of my latest poetry book, SILLY POEMS FOR WEE PEOPLE VOL.2 matched sales of FRINGE FANTASTIC, so even though FF was released five years ago it still matches my newest work in terms of sales. What is really odd is that sales of POOLSIDE POETRY outstripped both by double the amount. It was traditionally my weakest selling book but for some reason has become popular. Long may it continue!

If you want to join in the mass celebration of my books head over to my website (or the BOOKS page on this blog) and order some copies. Here’s something to make it more tantalising for you: type in this offer code when you get to Lulu and you can get free ground shipping on purchases up to the value of £25. Offer ends 30th June. The code is: FREEGROUND305.

It promises to be a busy weekend when I get done with the day job later today. I’m hoping to grab a couple of pints in Clark’s and catch the England World Cup match against Algeria, and tomorrow I have a to-do list as long as my leg before my parents arrive on Sunday for a visit and a nice roast dinner.

If you’re an e-book fan, then you might be interested to know that my book, STELLA, is now available to purchase from Kindle. Click here to buy a copy of STELLA, the Kindle Edition, priced $5.29.

Gail Galbraith Photography is offering portrait shoots for £25 (knocked down from £40) if you book before 31st August 2024 and you use the word “Leith” in your query. For that you get a 1 hour session in her new studio in Leith, 1 free 8×6 print, an online gallery to show off to friends and family and where images can be purchase direct from, and all images from the shoot on a free low-resolution CD. (Subject to max of 4 people per session; each additional person is £5 each). You can contact Gail at gail@gailgalbraith.co.uk and view her website at: www.gailgalbraith.co.uk

That’s all for me just now. Peace out!

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Get this. Yesterday I mentioned one of my short stories was rejected on Tuesday after 3 days and that I’d sent the piece straight back out. That same piece was returned to me YESTERDAY—1 day on submission!!! Obviously it’s already back out there but come on! It’s a good story, people! It’s called WHISKY SNATCHING—doesn’t that whet everyone’s literary appetite? I feel sorry for it being abused in such a way and I’ll be keeping an eye on those markets concerned for the future.

My sister sent me Marian Keyes’ latest newsletter, her first for quite a while. It seems she’s been having a terrible time this year, which is a shame because she’s a great author and I’d been hoping to catch her at this year’s Edinburgh Book Festival. I doubt that will happen how. You can read Marian’s newsletter here.

Speaking of the Edinburgh Book Festival, the programme gets announced today at 12 noon. I’ll be online then checking it out and will grab myself a hard copy for analysis. Let my August planning commence!

Also in the news, David Murray has announced that Rangers FC are no longer for sale because he “has been unable to find a deal that benefits the club itself, its shareholders and its fans”.

What he really means, and what Celtic FC would also mean if they had to try and sell up to survive, is that nobody wants to own companies rotten to the core. Bigotry, it seems, just isn’t paying off as much as it used to. £30 million in debt tells its own story. God bless St Mirren.

I was so tired after work last night I accidentally fell asleep for an hour on the couch. I was so tired, in fact, I lost my appetite and could only stomach a toasted bap and cup of tea for dinner. I never wrote/rewrote anything—I just couldn’t drum up the energy and went to bed early, but then, as you might expect would happen after my foolish slip into sleepiness earlier on, I couldn’t get to sleep when I needed to. It was so hot last night that I just couldn’t nod off and was still sitting up wide awake at 1am.

When I woke up this morning my skin had started peeling off my head. Despite days and nights lathering after-sun cream on my head to try and stave off the drying out, yesterday I had several twitchy moments as the scalp itching started. I remained in hope, but alas, when I looked in the mirror shortly after 6am there it was, peely wally skin falling off my head like feather light snow flakes. Typical. My head looks like The Cornflake Man.

If you’re an e-book fan, then you might be interested to know that my book, STELLA, is now available to purchase from Kindle. Click here to buy a copy of STELLA, the Kindle Edition, priced $5.29.

Gail Galbraith Photography is offering portrait shoots for £25 (knocked down from £40) if you book before 31st August 2019 and you use the word “Leith” in your query. For that you get a 1 hour session in her new studio in Leith, 1 free 8×6 print, an online gallery to show off to friends and family and where images can be purchase direct from, and all images from the shoot on a free low-resolution CD. (Subject to max of 4 people per session; each additional person is £5 each). You can contact Gail at gail@gailgalbraith.co.uk and view her website at: www.gailgalbraith.co.uk

That’s all for me just now. Peace out!

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I spent most of yesterday lathering after-sun cream on my pink forehead and the back of my neck. I was positively glowing as I walked around Edinburgh in the morning and stopped for a coffee and pastry to read the paper. No wonder people were looking at me and tourists were confused.

My neck is worst because it constantly rubs against my shirt and it wasn’t the sort of weather for walking around topless. It rained most of the day.

So after checking in on the work going on at Gail’s photographic studio (I wasn’t needed) I got on with my own work back in my office. First up was to turn out the remaining fiction on my list that needed to go to market. Everything is now out including work to some new magazines and a bunch of carefully selected (and at times reworked) poems.

I rewrote some of my short fiction (quite a lot of it, actually) before turning it back out. One of my favourite but as yet unpublished stories (although it got to the short list of a very prestigious magazine once), was refurbished and sent out proudly into the world again. I think it’s perhaps the best work of short fiction I’ve written and I simply WILL get DAFFODILS published eventually.

I had to laugh when heard BBC commentators talking prior to the Germany versus Australia World Cup match last night. Despite only managing to scrape a 1-1 draw against the USA, and despite a passionless performance that included a fumbled and embarrassing goalkeeping manoeuvre, they were actually Discussing Germany as England’s Round 2 opponents!

Come on guys! Being positive and supportive is one thing but being disrespectful to the nations the viewers had tuned in to watch by talking about England is another. Further to that, what kind of arrogant assumption gives the BBC the right to assume England will even BE in the Second Round? Even further than that, you’re broadcasting to more then London!!

If you’re an e-book fan then you might be interested to know that my book, STELLA, is now available to purchase from Kindle. Click here to buy a copy of STELLA, the Kindle Edition, priced $5.29.

Gail Galbraith Photography is offering portrait shoots for £25 (knocked down from £40) if you book before 31st August 2010 and you use the word “Leith” in your query. For that you get a 1 hour session in her new studio in Leith, 1 free 8×6 print, an online gallery to show off to friends and family and where images can be purchase direct from, and all images from the shoot on a free low-resolution CD. (Subject to max of 4 people per session; each additional person is £5 each). You can contact Gail at gail@gailgalbraith.co.uk and view her website at: www.gailgalbraith.co.uk

That’s all for me just now. Peace out!

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Early rise yesterday morning after a series of really weird dreams. Lost in on stormy ocean with Lenny Henry was one, friendship betrayal another and sex with a fictional character from The West Wing the other. I woke up feeling amused, tearful and very horny.

I got handed two Easter Eggs, both of the Crème Egg variety, one of which was wolfed down immediately after a dinner of roasted chicken with carrots and mashed potatoes. Drool.

I found yesterday to be a bit of a struggle to do anything, I think because I knew it was my final day of being on holiday. I still have a few days to take so I don’t lose them from my annual allowance, but my 9-day break gave me what I wanted so I began to miss it early.

I submitted two e-books into this year’s PSH Great Poetry E-Book Giveaway: SELEKTION and SILLY POEMS FOR WEE PEOPLE VOL.2. On May 1 for 24 hours you can download each for free as part of the annual free-for-all run by Rick Lupert. SELEKTION is an amalgamation of all my previous poetry publications and the latter is an absolute steal, as it is the electronic version of my new kids book out this week. I will expect you ALL to download both.

On settling down to work on GREENER IS THE GRASS I noticed it’s been 11 months since I last made a change to it. There are two oddities regarding this: 1) It doesn’t feel that long, but it feels just right, which is probably why I am raring to get into it, and 2) I can still see the full plot in my mind. Does this mean it’s simplistic? I don’t think so because it’s one of my darker books and comes with a cool twist at the end. It’s the most traditional mystery book I’ve written if you consider the standard formula of: introduce; fill through the middle dropping hints and red herrings; twist to reveal the truth. It’s longer than I remembered, too, sitting at roughly 32,500 words.

Anyway, I worked through the first chapter so I’m off and running—it felt goood!

Until tomorrow, peace and out!

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Today, I’m delighted to welcome fellow Eternal Press author and romance writer, Cate Masters, to Freedom from the Mundane.

Cate’s short stories and flash fiction has appeared at Eternal Press (2009), Wild Child Publishing (2009), Freya’s Bower (2009), Shadowfire Press (2009), The Battered Suitcase (2008), The Wild Rose Press (2008), A Long Story Short (2008), Dark Sky Magazine (2008), Cezanne’s Carrot (2008), The Harrow (2006), Flesh from Ashes (2005), Quality Women’s Fiction (2005), Phase, and The Writer’s online edition.

In 2005, Pennwriters awarded her second place in its annual Short Story contest. Her freelance articles have appeared in The Sentinel, Carlisle. A fifth novel is slowly making its way from her head onto paper. She currently lives in central Pennsylvania with her husband, three children, Benji the dog and their dictator-like cat, Chairman Maiow.

Visit her online at www.catemasters.com, www.catemasters.blogspot.com or follow her on Facebook. Also blogging occasionally at popculturedivas and The Susquehanna Writers.

Cate’s New Book: One Soul For Sale

Instead of the standard blurb at this point, here’s Cate’s awesome book trailer for her new book, available from Eternal Press now…

Interview with Cate

Hi Cate – great to have you on Freedom!

Thanks so much, Colin! Glad to be here Across the Pond with you! (Wish I could be there literally – someday, maybe…)

Please tell us a little about your new book.

I’d love to! My novella, One Soul for Sale, is one of my favourites. It’s actually a light-hearted treatment of the age-old “sell your soul” tale, though Madelyn’s motivation isn’t money. She’s an artist who wants to live the artist’s dream and spend her days creating. When she lists her soul on uBuy, two forces battle for her soul. She assumes the winning bidder plays for the Dark Side, but he’s so gorgeous, she almost doesn’t care. The end contains a few twists, and Madelyn’s a stronger person for the experience.

It’s a little unusual in that I wrote it in present tense, third person. I only know of one other story written that way – Ian McEwan’s Saturday (Soul was long completed when I learnt this). I hoped present tense would better engage readers in the action as it unfolds. Maybe that was Ian’s thinking too.

One Soul for Sale is available at Eternal Press or in print from Amazon.

Where did you find the inspiration for One Soul for Sale?

Inspiration’s a tricky thing, isn’t it? I like Neil Gaiman’s explanation of where he gets his ideas – a little shop downtown. But sometimes, when I’m lucky, stories will formulate in my head of their own accord, and it’s my job to simply write. One Soul for Sale was one of those. Probably after I read of someone attempting to sell their soul on eBay, then I applied the old ‘what if.’

Is paranormal your favourite genre to write in? Why do you like it?

I do love it. Urban fantasy more than any other, although I write across a spectrum of genres. Why? Because you’re reading about an apparently normal, everyday situation, then wham! Nothing is as it seems to be, and you’re off on a great literary ride.

How do you go about creating your plots?

I’m pretty much a pantser. I begin usually with an idea of where I want to end up. Sometimes there’s a rough outline, but very rough, so my characters have lots of room to play. They’re a bit devilish sometimes in attempts to hijack a plot, but unless the tangent gets too extreme, I usually follow. They know much better than I do.

When new characters come along, how much time do you spend “getting to know them”? Do they develop and surprise you as you write?

I flesh them out as much as possible. I like stories with quirky secondary characters with fully developed arcs of their own. It adds a nice extra layer or two to a story. Yes, sometimes they surprise me with details I wouldn’t have initially suspected.

John Irving posts the final paragraph of a novel in progress on the wall next to his desk, so even if it takes him 6 years to write it, he always something to aim for. How do you go about keeping a focus on a novel you are writing?

Oddly enough, I find that not placing complete focus on one story helps me better see the broader picture. Working on a few at a time also prevents writer’s block, because if I become stuck on one, I can switch to another story while I puzzle out what’s holding me up on the other.

What is your typical writing day like?

Before work, I’m on the computer about two hours emailing, blogging, social networking. After work, I check emails quickly, then switch to my laptop for writing (or revising, or edits). I stop long enough to make dinner, then I’m back at writing until sometimes 8 or 9 at night. On weekends, unless I’m compelled to run errands, I write as long as possible.

Do you write to music?

No, I’m very much in my head when I write. If I play any I tend to block it out anyway, otherwise I’d get too caught up in it. In addition to writing, I’m a fanatic about my music.

How much does television and movies influence your writing?

Hopefully not much. Few TV shows hold my interest and lately, I haven’t watched nearly as many new movies as I’d like.

Have you ever written yourself or a close family/friend member into a story but kept it hidden?

Never. I’m a big believer in karma, and I don’t believe in writing for revenge. What I like to use are names of those I know, or very limited character traits. It’s fun to throw in things that have special meaning to me, but never in a harmful way.

Describe your muse as though it were a person.

About 5’5”, brown hair, brown eyes. Not much to look at on the outside, but inside, she’s all effervescence and sparkling light.

How would you define success as an author? Cash, fame or recognition?

Interesting question. It’s evolved as I’ve evolved as an author. Initially, I aimed for getting published, and had some success with literary magazines and webzines. But after the stories were out there for all to see – crickets. I received zero feedback, and zero cash. So I realigned my sights for e-presses, and it’s been great to see my stories released. March of this year saw the first, so I’m just now getting in some reviews. So far, very good! Eventually, though, I would like to be able to make a living from my writing. It’s the basic writer’s dream.

If the Writing Genie could grant you a single writing wish, what would it be?

Lately, I’ve been wishing someone (a genie would be great for this) would invent a USB port to connect my head to the CPU so I could download stories in full. I’m a very visual writer, the story’s playing like a movie in my head as I go, so sometimes it’s a challenge to get all the elements on the page.

What else are you working on?

About ten other stories (give or take), with about fifty other premises jotted down that I hope to live long enough to develop. Again, across a wide spectrum of genres.

Who are your favourite authors and books?

Wow, too many to list. All-time favs include Michael Chabon, Neil Gaiman, TC Boyle, Margaret Atwood, Charles D’Ambrosio, Tom Robbins… this could take all day, so I’ll suffice to say there are hundreds of others. (Can you tell I’m no good at picking favourites?)

What are you reading now?

Stardust by Neil Gaiman, Justin Gustainis’ Black Magic Woman and Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko. Reading’s a luxury right now because I’ve been writing pretty much every spare moment. My TBR list is extremely long.

Competition

Cate is going to give away a free PDF copy of One Soul for Sale to a randomly selected commenter who tells us what s/he’d be willing to sell his or her soul for! You have until this Sunday 28th when Cate will select the winner, who will be announced here on Monday 29th.

Good luck everyone, and thanks Cate for being such a fantastic guest. And don’t forget you can purchase One Soul for Sale at Eternal Press or in print from Amazon.

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STELLA received a wonderful review from romance author, Ginger Simspon, over the weekend. This is the first official review of my new book and I’m delighted it was so good! Click here to read.

If you missed it, please pop over and have a read of my guest blog at Love, Romances & More, where I discuss the pleasures to be gained from writing to music. It’s already prompted some interesting comments.

Despite being on the bus into Edinburgh at 6:45am yesterday morning, I still managed to get gnarled up in tram works and traffic chaos. A Glasgow bus had broken down westbound on York Place, but with half the road already dug up it meant traffic was down to an involuntary single lane. When we finally got passed, the driver was so flustered he missed my stop, but alas, was kind enough to drop me off further along the road.

I wasn’t feeling my best by the time I got to work. Truth be told, I was feeling rather pissed off with life even before I’d left the house. These feelings usually cement themselves after a long weekend of being on standby and having to work. I get pissed off watching other people having a good time and me not being able to do anything. Not even the curry I made on Sunday night helped, because the family rushed into the kitchen, wolfed it all down then buggered off back to the telly again.

But when I look at my week ahead I have to ask myself, “what’s your problem, dude?” STELLA is getting good reviews, The Book Festival tickets are about to go on sale, I’m having beers on Thursday night with a good friend, I’m on News of the World business when I go to see The Beat on Friday, and on Saturday I’m going to a 30th birthday party.

Looking further ahead next week will see my 18th annual trip to Blackpool with my best mate, and shortly after I’ll be away on a Mediterranean cruise. Things are never quite as bad as they seem, I suppose.

I finished polishing another short story today: SAMSON THE GREAT is now totally done. I also continued work on BRIEFS and dedicated some thinking time to BACCARA BURNING; I can’t seem to get past this little hurdle so I’m trying to hear the characters. They’ve gone a bit quiet – think I might stir them up.

I finally got my website client sorted out with her transfer and finished moving her to her new hosting company. I told her I wasn’t billing her and that I would foot the costs seeing as it took so long to get sorted.

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I spent most of yesterday trying to lift myself out of a lag. My back was sore, my eyes tired, and I just felt like lying down and never looking at another computer screen ever again. But, STELLA won’t sell itself so it’s on with the show and on with the promotion wagon!

The weather here in Scotland isn’t helping either – it’s too nice! Today was another lovely day and if it keeps like this I think we are in for an extraordinary summer. Of course, I keep forgetting I have a Netbook now and can sit outside and write and email whenever I like. That’s a culture shock I’ll have to get used to.

Can you believe I got pitched a book about depression and getting out of debt because I Twittered about how tired I was after the book launch yesterday? Unreal! Ideally it should have been a book about how to come down off cloud nine without hurting yourself.

I had a total blast over at Sage Cohen’s blog, Writing the Life Poetic – stop two on my World Blog Tour for Stella! If you missed it why not pop back over and have a read at what you missed? It includes a competition for a free giveaway of STELLA and it runs until Friday.

Next stop on my World Tour for STELLA is over at Ye Olde Inkwell tomorrow, where my host for the day will be the awesome romance fiction writer, and personal friend of mine, Michelle Miles – you might remember her from last week as she was a guest here!!

I’ve bagged myself a fantastic promo opportunity at this year’s Appolo Con in Houston, Texas. A fellow author on the Eternal Press Authors’ Forum offered the chance to have promotional material included in goodie bags at a stand she managed to secure at the convention. Fifty STELLA postcards will shortly be winging their way to the States along with much grateful thanks.

My whole evening was spent on the phone or typing up written website interviews. People are sending me different sets of questions to add to the ones in the media kit, which is great, because it helps to vary things and keep it interesting.

I couldn’t believe it when I read that Rubina Ali, one of the child stars of the Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire, is to publish her LIFE story! Transworld Publishers said the girl’s book will tell the story of her life in the shanty town where she grew up. She’s nine years old – how much is there to tell? It’s things like this that take the piss out of the publishing industry and what serves to make it harder for non-celebrity writers to make a go at it.

I finally caught up with my old pal whose brother died on Friday. My friend’s funeral is on Thursday morning, which will mean some jigging about of schedules at work and home. I’ve been asked, if I was needed, if I would mind helping to carry the coffin, which is an incredible honour.

On a brighter note, The Specials are touring again in November!! This time the lads are coming to Edinburgh’s Corn Exchange on Thursday 12th November, tickets for which go on sale on Friday morning. Oddly enough, Friday 13th is blank, so I reckon there’s the chance of another gig just like they did in Glasgow.

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I’ll be appearing over at Sage Cohen’s, Writing the Life Poetic blog as part of my STELLA blog tour later today. Tune in for some fun and a fantastic giveaway!

Boy, did I judge yesterday’s book launch wrong! There was me thinking an online launch party would be a relaxing day answering a few emails, posting some promotional activities, and getting involved with the celebration of my fellow Eternal Press authors’ books. No siree! It was exhausting work keeping up with all the emails and requests that came in, as well as staying on top of the three competitions I ran throughout the day.

The day started off slow enough; some house cleaning, clothes washing and of course, Sunday morning coffee and toast. The house was all mine, what with Gail having stayed at her friend’s house after Ladies’ Day at Musselburgh Race Course, and Laura being away to Guide Camp for the weekend.

At noon I logged on and sent my first couple of introductory emails to the EP Readers Forum. The emails began coming back and reached a peak of about 5 per minute – mostly UK readers at this point. At the same time I was advertising a Twitter-only competition, preparing and sending out a special edition of my newsletter, updating my blog and website, and thinking what competition to run on the EP Forum.

One quick lunch later and I decided to post three short excerpts at different times of the day so as to catch as many readers as possible. I would post three questions later with the prize being a free copy of STELLA.

Still the emails, Facebook replies, PR responses and Tweets came in. When east coast North America climbed out of bed – five hours behind me – the emails really started to flood in, peaking at around 17 per minute – or every time I hit Refresh! Seriously, I couldn’t keep up and several times I had to just break away from the computer and walk around the house, or make a cuppa to retain my sanity.

The Twitter competition was a massive success. I posted an easy question shortly after 4pm and by the 4:30pm deadline had over 50 Tweeted entries! The EP Readers Forum wasn’t so successful; nobody entered by the deadline but after a couple of late entries did come in I decided to leave it open overnight. When I checked my email this morning there were about a dozen or so new submissions.

Some of my friends and family popped in for a wee chat along the way – a huge thanks to Binny, Devon, Clare, Scott and Stevie. And to everyone who bought a copy during the launch day, a huge thanks from me for your support and for making the launch day such a success.

The best feedback of the day came from the winner of the Twitter competition, who read the whole book start to end durnig the day! Here’s what Ragna Brent said after reading STELLA: “I loved it! It’s not the kind of thing I would normally read but I totally loved it!! Seriously!!”

And that, dear readers, is why we do it.

Another side to the day that I hadn’t contemplated was the possibility of networking with other authors. It simply hadn’t crossed my mind that the other new authors would also be looking to make new contacts. And so it proved. I came away with two copies of newly released books (swapped for mine), four new blog tour spots, and two web interviews!

I finally called it a night from my bed when I signed off from my Netbook unable to keep going. It was almost midnight and I’d been promoting for almost 12 hours. I needed sleep!

Yesterday’s Competition Winners:

• In the ‘Excerpt Competition’ on the EP forum, one free copy of STELLA was won by: TBA
• In ‘The Patter Mailing List Competition’, one free copy of STELLA and signed promotional material, was one by: Fiona Young-Brown
• In the ‘Twitter Only Competition’, one free copy of STELLA and signed promo material was won by: Ragna Brent

Congrats to all!

If you missed all of yesterday’s festivities, don’t forget it was only a launch and you can buy STELLA the e-book from the Eternal Press website any time. Click here to buy Stella

If it’s the paperback you’re after, I’ll release purchasing details once I have them, but the book will be available from Amazon and various other outlets very shortly.

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The blog tour for STELLA kicks off loud and proud today, with my first stop over at Words on the Page. My host today is the fantastic Lori Widmer, so please pop over to her site and have a good scout about (after you’ve read my article!)

I did the first of two presentations to the full IS department I work in yesterday; one of those ‘who we are, what we’ve done and where we are going’ kind of things. The original slides my boss gave me consisted of two charts and lots of words. He wanted my talk to stand out in order to promote the team, so I changed it and managed to work in Pink Floyd, Jeremy Paxman (complete with jokey insults), and a Transformer robot. I think it came off quite well. Part two comes next week.

I’ve done all I am going to do in this phase of my promo for the book. The next phase is to administer the tour, leave strategic flyers around town on Saturday, launch the book on Sunday, and try to get some local interest in Leith.

I popped into register my vote in the European elections on the way home, not having a clue who I would be voting for. There is such a dull cloud over politics just now, what with one scandal after another – kind of like the last days of the Conservatives in the 90s but this time it’s Labour’s turn. But there’s no alternative. Nothing. I stared at my ballot paper for a full five minutes before I eventually placed my X.

Blazing Trailers have posted a STELLA page. It’s a great site for people who are addicted to book trailers. Check out the link and have a browse – it’s addictive. though, you’ve been warned.

Remember I had problems with my sound card on my PC, which was preventing me create podcasts? Not any more thanks to my Netbook. Watch this space!

Before I sign off for today, check this hilarious video footage of London Mayor Boris Johnson cleaning a river yesterday. This guy has to be the next PM; bring some fun and laughter back into politics.

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Hope you all enjoyed yesterday with Michelle Miles – isn’t she a wonderfully spirited and entertaining author?

Yesterday saw the temperature finally drop to more acceptable levels. Tuesday was cloudy but still extremely humid, but yesterday, thank goodness, was far more bearable. It’s such a relief, because the last thing I enjoy is having to walk around in such heat wearing my black trousers, boots and work shirt. Not pleasant and only leads to smells and stickiness.

I received an odd email from Lulu; my book had been “selected for Amazon”. It didn’t say which one, and I know FRINGE FANTSTIC is already available so I assumed it would be STELLA. Turns out it was for POOLSIDE POETRY. Excellent!

SLICK was rejected by Black and White Publishing here in Leith; don’t know what they’ve done, if you ask me, but hey, bring ‘em on!

I submitted a poem to a competition and sent back out my short story, THE ENGLISH TEACHER to a magazine. Fingers crossed.

I’ve had four positive responses to book review queries I’ve sent out so far. The promo machine is cranking away nicely now, well oiled and puffing steam clouds at a steady rate.

I’m delighted to be sponsoring the 2009 Poetry Super Highway Poetry Contest again, through two separate channels. On an individual basis I’ve offered two signed copies of FRINGE FANTASTIC, and as editor of the Ranfurly Review, I’ve offered a feature in the December issue, just as I did last year.

Check out this brilliant little film about Flip Flops in Kenya, called Flip Flotsam – it features poetry from the wonderful Elspeth Murray.

If you’re feeling charitable my younger sister, Lindsay (aka Binny Bag of the Baggers Tribe) is running in this weekend’s Race for Life to raise money for Cancer Research UK, and would really welcome some financial support. You can donate online by Paypal, credit or debit card, at the following address: http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/lindsaygalbraith

I had to agree with Paolo Nutini’s comments in the Evening Times about the ridiculous state Paisley has been allowed to degenerate into.

PAISLEY-born like me, he said: “Something has happened to Paisley. It’s just about to fall down” and that the council should be “ashamed for themselves.” He said: “The mentality is – let’s build more student accommodation and knock down more landmark buildings, that’s a good idea. Let’s turn Paisley into a housing estate off Glasgow. People used to come into Paisley for a night out. But there is nothing to do now. It’s bad for drink and drugs and gambling.”

I couldn’t agree more. Paisley isn’t fashionable or popular any longer and has become a built of a ghost town. I still have a major soft spot for it – always have done, having lived in it, attended university in it, and had more nights out than I care to remember in it. It’s a crying shame given its history.

And what was Derek Mackay’s response, the SNP councillor and leader of Renfrewshire Council? “My challenge to Paolo is come and meet us and learn about what we intend to do to regenerate the area.”

Here’s my challenge to Derek Mackay: Get off your fat arse and stop talking about what you WILL do and actually DO IT!

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Anyone who lives or was visiting any part of the British Isles over the past two days, will know it is no understatement when I say the weather has been nothing short of Mediterranean. Even today as I sit in my squalid office, I look outside and once again the skies are blue and the temperature is rising to unfathomably high levels for Scotland. Can you believe it reached the 70s – in Scotland – in May?!

Unremarkably, the weather had an impact on my work output as I spent little time in my office. I never blogged other than a few Tweets here and there, I never wrote any fiction, no poetry, and I never polished up the short stories I wanted to finish and send out.

Most of what I did revolved around being in the garden, and you know what, it was heaven. I chilled big style, and when I say chill I really mean bake. Our back garden is a sun trap at the best of times but it was good just to sit out in it, have a drink, talk with Gail and the family, and just ENJOY it.

I did pop into town on Saturday morning but wasn’t there for long. I spent just enough time for a walk from Haymarket back to Leith, stopping in my coffee shop for the usual order and a read of the paper. Yesterday I had intended to get the bus into town early in order to pick up some pet supplies, but when I got to Leith Links I realised I’d forgotten the Edinburgh Marathon was on. I watched it for a bit then decided to take a walk through Leith instead.

Sunday morning Leith is much more pleasant than midweek afternoon Leith. It’s not too busy and there are no drunks or jakies hanging around stinking the place out. It actually looks very pleasant and welcoming. I took some photos and will post them tomorrow.

Elsewhere, I did some gardening, hacking away the massive overgrown hedge of ivy and stranglers on the high wall that runs along our garden. I cut my arms and legs to buggery doing it. Note to self: wear long sleeves next time.

I’m unsure how much my rabbits enjoyed the weather. I did put them out at one point but they looked far too hot so put them back into the shad of their hutch. Hot weather like this is really not good for them because they can’t cool themselves down as easily as other animals. They looked far more comfortable being in their house. They slept through most of both days, coming to life again in the evening when the sun went away.

Speaking of coming to life, Pippin (the white one) nearly lost hers on Saturday. I’d just gotten out of the shower and was walking through the kitchen when something white flashed passed the window. I suddenly realised I’d not seen any white cats around these parts, and when I moved slightly to see if my suspicions were correct, there she was. My rabbit, Pippin, running freely in the garden.

My stomach lurched. Play it wrong and Pippin would be gone, her life with only hours left after one of the many interested cats or local fox in the area would undoubtedly get their paws and teeth into her. Slowly – and unfortunately nakedly – I slowly opened the conservatory door and stepped out into the garden. The hutch was lying open, the litter tray on the ground, so I figured I must have left the door unlocked last night and Pippin had fallen out after sitting on the tray which had been shifted over the ledge by their movement. I had no idea how long she had been running free and that was scary.

She was sitting on the patio ledge, and as I moved closer she moved forward to meet me. At that point I thought it would be easy, but the sudden sight of me in my birthday suit startled Mopsy, who bolted inside the hutch causing Pippin to react. She also bolted and ran behind the garden hut, out of sight and now probably gone forever.

My heart sank. I heard a rustle so quickly I filled a tray of food – her favourite pellets – and placed them on the ground, knelt down, and waited. Out she came, slowly but surely edging forward. I crouched to meet her, and gently pulled the tray further towards me and further away from the hut. She started eating, and when I saw her body settle into “I’m here to eat and nothing else” mode, I grabbed her and put her back in the hutch. She was not happy, banging her feet for some time after.

For me, though, it was not a nice thing to happen and I’m still baffled about how it did. There’s now an extra lock on the hutch door and a letter of apology has been delivered to the neighbours if I happened to ruin their Saturday morning breakfast.

Back on the work front I did manage to complete some vital tasks this weekend. Late on Saturday and same again on Sunday, I completed preparing my June newsletter and posted it for submission this morning (you should already have it if you are a subscriber – if not go here). I also sent out quite a few requests for blog tour spots and book review requests for STELLA – this latter task took long that you might think. I have three unconfirmed dates now lined up. As I write this.

Today I have a full shift at work to do then I will no doubt go home and try and enjoy what’s left of the afternoon sun. This evening I have work to do. I will probably cook dinner and then get down to more writing on Baccara Burning.

On Wednesday romance author Michelle Miles will be visiting for a chat. Oh, and I have a book coming out this week – how I’ve waited to be able to say that sentence!

To finish up, my ever so slightly later than usual monthly GDR wrap up. Have a great day!

Fiction
* Complete 2nd draft of Greener is the Grass – complete
* Start work on Stella sequel – IP; titled Baccara Burning
* Complete errata document for EP – complete
* Write four new flash/short stories – 3 of 4 complete
* Re-submit any rejected/recalled short stories. – never resubmitted anything this month
* Enter at least one writing/poetry competition – never entered any but several lined up

Poetry
* Write at least one poem per week (1/5 – 28/52 overall) – only 1 poem written
* Read more contemporary poets, local if possible – done via PSH Free-for-All

Editing
* Stay on top of RR submissions – complete
* Complete RR issue 7 for June – complete

Web
* Complete amalgamation of web design and freelance writing sites – not done; low priority this anyway
* Recommendations to property client – done, including small coding fix
* Complete transfer and updates for B&B client – client has lost vital details; trying to progress
* Update of photographer’s website pending – complete

Marketing and Promotion
* Publish May newsletter – complete
* Prepare June newsletter – complete
* Prepare May GDR Review – complete
* Prepare June GDR Plan – complete
* Keep website(s) up to date – complete; Stella promo added to etc.
* Keep involved in EP’s company promotion scheme – slow going; trying to build up for June 7th
* Work on Stella marketing plan – complete and IP; (Blog tour, reviews, PR, media kit, updated trailer, web banners, web ads, posters, fliers, magnets, newsletter competition)
* Bring Podcast ideas to life – not done
* Bring YouTube ideas to life – not done
* Record MIS sound bites – not done

Reading & Learning
* The Grave Tattoo by Val McDermid – IP; not a lot of reading time

Non-Writing
* Keep diet going (-4/14lbs as at 17/3/09) – this has been a flop ofer the past few weeks – need to pick this back up after all my good work last year.

Things That Turned Up
* Asked if I wanted to be the News of the World’s “Man in the East” for gig reviews.
* Release date for Stella in: 7th June.
* Guest listed press tickes forJean Michel Jarre gig – review of gig also published.
* Ordered a Netbook for writing more mobile

Submissions Made
None

Outstanding
Novels
Slick

Fiction
Wheelhouse 1
Saint Ann’s Review 1
Virtual Tales 1
Drunken Boat 1
Lyrical Ballads 1
Ruondtable Review 1
The Beat 1
One Story 1

Successes
The amount I’m running with: book release pending, marketing prep, NotW gig reviews – there’s so much happening but the balance is right – and that in itself has to be the biggest success; that I’ve addressed the balance problem, got it right, things are moving, and I’m now enjoying my writing more than ever.

Failures
Nothing I would class as a failure. Anything that went wrong this month I’ve learnt from.

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I was kind of glad the weekend finished when it did. It was all over the place and at times not in the least enjoyable. Parts of it were, though, so they are the bits I’ll talk about. Even for a Monday morning my bad mood is pretty advanced, and not even the roll with sausage and tattie scone I’ve just wolfed has helped lift my general feeling of apathy.

I skipped my usual Saturday morning due to a faulty mobile phone. I rushed up to town early and after a quick browse in HMV popped into the Vodafone shop to buy a replacement handset for my current knackered one. It was literally falling to bits and now that the battery has stopped recharging, I needed something quickly so my work could get in touch for my standby rota.

I took the cheapest effort they had going and swapped the SIM card in. £20 for a simple phone that can text and make calls; nothing else, no fancies, and it suits me fine. I was in and out in a flash, which was lucky because the town was very busy with fans arriving from Ireland and England for the Heineken Cup Final between Leinster and Leicester.

I zoomed straight back home to help Gail get the house tidied up for some potential clients coming round to discuss their wedding photography requirements. They have other photographers to see but I think she’s hopeful. If you haven’t checked out her site yet please do, and if you are local and know someone who is getting married please spread the word because her reputation is spreading fast, which means her prices won’t stay so competitive forever. Her site is at: www.gailgalbraith.co.uk

Despite getting beat at home by Falkirk, St. Mirren managed to avoid the big drop thanks to results elsewhere in the SPL. They were very, very lucky to stay up, but the fact they did made me very happy on Saturday. I celebrated with a chippy and a bottle of Irn-Bru.

I spent my Sunday morning doing what I would normally have done on the Saturday. When I arrived up town the streets were warm and quiet other than the rattling of suitcases of bleary-eyed rugby fans. I bought a couple of papers and popped into my favourite coffee shop to read them.

My Jean Michel Jarre gig review was published in Sunday’s News of the World A-Listed Scottish music supplement, which you can also read online here.

After that I headed out to PC World at Corstorphnie with the intention of purchasing the Netbook I’ve been eyeing. They had none in stock and can only buy from them online, so I popped in to check out what bunnies were up for adoption then jumped on the bus back home.

In the end I ordered my new Netbook from an online company. A white Samsung NC10 Netbook is winging its way to me as we speak – well it will be on Tuesday when the English Bank Holiday is over.

In the UK Charts announced on Sunday, the new Madness album, The Liberty of Norton Folgate, managed a top 5 placing, the first time they have done so since their 7 album of 1981. It’s a great achievement in today’s climate of manufactured guff and is a giant V-sign to those critics still waiting on them to release another Baggy Trousers. Those days are gone and Madness has evolved into something really special. Well done lads!

Less than two weeks now to the launch of Stella and I’m starting to get a bit nervous about the whole thing. I’ve been here before but it’s that same stomach churning feeling one gets if I think about it too much. It’s all the usual stuff: will it sell; will it get good reviews; will the people around me like it?

Of course, there’s nothing I can do about it now so I should just try and enjoy the experience. Easier said than done, though, but I’ll give it my best.

One thing I know I’ll enjoy is the theatre tomorrow night. I bagged 2-for-1 tickets for Quadrophenia at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh. Should be great!

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Another day and another brace of ballistic baw heids. Where oh where do they come from, and why oh why do they keep crossing my path? Is it a national thing or is it just Edinburgh? Is this the price we pay for our schools having more holidays than term days? STUPID PEOPLE ARE EVERYWHERE – BEWARE!!!!

Honestly. Narrow mindedness and parochialism is something one gets used to living in Scotland, we are after all, a minority within this island race. Yet there is no reason why sheer ignorance and plain dumbness should be so rife. How hard is it to read a book? How hard is it to educate oneself? How hard is it to find stuff out for oneself? How many times can I use the word ‘one’ where ‘I’ might do? The truth is we are a lazy race until somebody steps on our toes.

Here’s a non-day job example:

I was standing at the bus stop early this morning; it was cool, cloudy, and the ground fresh from the overnight damp. There was nobody else around and only a car or two had passed the bus stop. Through the clear air I heard a woman screaming in a most distressed manner: “will you lot shuuut uuuup!”

Just then, a small white van approached from my left, as did the sound of barking dogs. As it turned the corner in front of me, I could just make out the face of a woman in the driving seat surrounded by what appeared to be dozens of dogs, leaping around and barking like crazy inside the small white van. As the van passed by, all I could see were dogs licking the back window and tails flapping with wild excitement, accompanied with the relentless sound of hysterical barking and a woman almost in tears.

Meanwhile on a nearby sane planet, I edited two short stories over lunch: Samson the Great, which will still need more work, and Shallow, which was already further on and is now almost ready to go. I also did a bit of background reading on Jean Michel Jarre for reviewing his gig tomorrow night.

I got my 2000 word quota down on Baccara Burning today, which felt really good as it took a while to get going again. Dr Hirsch is back and making an impact in his own indubitable way. He’s a fine character – I may actually use him in his own story somewhere.

My email still isn’t back – worry is now a major factor as to what exactly is going on down in web hosting land. I’ve emailed some of you from work, everyone else wil have to wait.

Tonight I’m off to Glasgow to see Jean Michel Jarre in concert, a gig I’m also reviewing for News of the World. I’ll be staying over in Glasgow so I’m not sure how much writing I will be able to squeeze in around it.

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I had a packed day yesterday; no day of rest for moi, put it that way. After getting up early (6am kind of early) to work on day job stuff, I gave the back garden a complete overhaul: cut the grass, binned garbage, weeded, swept, hosed, and stuck the bunnies out to play for the afternoon.

As you may already know, DIY isn’t quite my thing but I stuck my oar in and ended up sanding the ceiling and walls in the kitchen. For sanity’s sake, though, I need the house to be finished, so I rolled up my sleeves and did what I could. Sanding – the DIY Gods idea of a joke – I was white by the time I finished, and my lungs, nostrils and mouth were choc-a-block with dust. But by evening the walls and ceiling had been sanded, prepped and whitewashed ready for painting – a big step forward to the finish line.

All the while the sun blazed down and the sky scattered wispy clouds across its panoramic, the bunnies bounded about the garden from one end to the other, and my mind constantly drifted to Stella and Randolph.

I enjoyed a very nice lunch with Gail during the DIY fun and games. She made Cajun chicken baguettes with fresh coffee, which considering I hadn’t eaten since my 7am bagel, I was more than ready for when it came at two o’clock.

Later in the afternoon I finished up and dusted off, then got back to the computer to figure out how to plan the rest of my day. I figured the most important thing to do was get Baccara Burning back on the road again. Some more good progress there.

A quick shower and I made the Sunday dinner, then went back on the computer for a while. While Twittering, I came across this remarkable website: French Fry Diary. It does what it says on the tin, and browsing through the pages, I was reminded how I felt while watching Supersize Me, and why I have never eaten a McDonald’s ever since. Bogging, but one has to admire the passion – kind of.

I’ve also selected the Netbook I think I’m most likely to purchase at the moment: the Samsung NC10 in white. It has everything I need and is sturdy and reliable according to independent reviews.

This week my priorities are to get at least 10,000 words down on Baccara Burning, complete, polish and submit the short stories I have on the go, finalise the June issue of the Ranfurly Review, and I’m covering the Jean Michel Jarre gig in Glasgow for News of the World.

Lots to look forward to!

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