Freedom From The Mundane

Fiction
* Write 20K words on BACCARA BURNING – part-done; 5k
* Write one new short/flash story per month – done
* Re-submit any rejected/recalled short stories – done
* Submit more fiction/poetry competitions – done
Poetry
* Write at least one poem per week – done (plus lots more)
* Complete MS for SILLY POEMS FOR WEE PEOPLE VOL.2 – done
* [...]

February 28th, 2010 | Tags: Books, Dreams and Resolutions, Editing, Fiction, Freelance, GDR's, Goals, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Reading, Writing | Category: Books, Fiction, Freelance, Poetry, Reading, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (1)

Image: J Greig

As I write this you are sleeping. The sun is far beyond the horizon, the birds are asleep, and not a house light is on as far as the eye can see. Except, that is, for the one in my office. The smell of coffee being made in my automatic coffee machine is [...]

February 27th, 2010 | Tags: coffee shop, Day Job, Editing, flood warning, GDR, overtime, Publishing and Marketing, rain, Sleep, Water of Leith, Weather, Writing | Category: Day Job, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, I.T., Publishing and Marketing, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (1)

Image: AHI

Suddenly, I am back up to full speed without even noticing. After my recent lay off I decided to concentrate on one project at a time and to clearing my outstanding GDRs from last year. Now, I find I have several projects all running at once—they kind of crept up on me—all these plates [...]

February 11th, 2010 | Tags: chapbooks, Day Job, Editing, Eternal Press, Fiction, GDR's, poems, Poetry, projects, Publishing and Marketing, royalties, sitcom, stageplay, Stella, Writing, writing competitions | Category: Books, Day Job, Fiction, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (3)

Image: Dennis Wong

Yesterday was the kind of Saturday I’ve needed for quite some time. If I could have wished for a better feeling come the twilight of the afternoon, then I got what I desired. It was a nice day but not all that exciting. It was low level boring stuff to most, but for [...]

January 17th, 2010 | Tags: alarms, Arab Strap, Boots, chapbook, Coffee, computers, DVD, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Editing, External Hard Drive, Freelance, iPod, Me Time, moleskin notepad, movie, PC World, pizza, poems, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Samuel L Jackson, Saturday, Scotland's Treasure, scrabble, security, Starbucks, Ten Years of Tears, Tesco, The Cleaner, writers, Writing | Category: Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Family, Film & TV, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, I.T., Music, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Reading, Travel, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (2)

Image: Edinburgh.gov.uk

I took Tuesday morning off work for one reason or another. I worked from home but it was a bit of a drag having to go in at all through all the ice and snow come lunchtime. Such is the way, I suppose, but I discovered that Lothian Buses have made some New Year [...]

January 7th, 2010 | Tags: Council Tax, Day Job, design, Edinburgh City Council, Edinburgh.gov, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Editing, Leith Walk, living in Edinburgh, Lothian Buses, New Year Resolutions, Publishing and Marketing, Ranfurly Review, snow clearing, working from home | Category: Day Job, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Editorial Comment, Publishing and Marketing, Scotland | Comments (3)

Image: NRK

We had our department Christmas lunch at Time 4 Thai on Castle Street in Edinburgh yesterday afternoon. I must have walked passed this restaurant a million times and never noticed it, but after a great meal I can imagine being back sometime soon.
As far as Thai food goes I’m not an expert. I know [...]

December 11th, 2009 | Tags: beer, Christmas meal, Depeche Mode, Editing, GDR, live music, Madness, party, Queen's Arms, Ranfurly Review, Reading, restaurant, St Mirren, Thai, Time 4 Thai, wedgie, work party, Writing | Category: Day Job, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, Music, Writing Process | Comments (4)

Image: noellium

Pretty tired this morning. Not from being up extraordinarily late last night but from a very early start this morning. There’s a lot happening today ranging from training courses to writing and a fair bit of website work, so I wanted to get a head start on everything.
I’ve just wolfed down a roll with [...]

September 25th, 2009 | Tags: Assistant Editor, Coffee, Day Job, e-zine, Editing, egg & black pudding roll, Fiction, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, frreelance writing, gig listings, Hairspray, Leith, live music, London, macaroni, musical, online magazine, plotting, Publishing and Marketing, Punk, Ranfurly Review, Scottish Parliament, Scruffy Dog Review, short story, Submissions, The Leither, The Vibrators, Theatre, Tottenham Court Road, webmaster, websites, work, Writing | Category: Day Job, Fiction, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, Freelance, Internet, Publishing and Marketing, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (1)

Image: FruitFly

I found myself dealing with more numpties than I would normally expect to during my day job, yesterday. I mean, one has to wonder where we get the staff from at times. On one hand it boosts my profile, but on the other it is so infuriating to have to lead people by the [...]

September 23rd, 2009 | Tags: acceptances, Day Job, e-zine, Editing, Fiction, flash fiction, Freelance, GDR's, idiots, Internet, League Cup, numpties, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Ranfurly Review, Reading, rejections, Scottish football, security, St Mirren, Submissions, The Leither, Website, Writing | Category: Day Job, Editorial Comment, Fiction, Freelance, Internet, Interviews, Photography, Poetry, Reading, Sport, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (1)

Image: JK Butcher

I took a bit of a blow in the day job yesterday when some behind the scenes politics took some juicy work out of my remit. It was the kind of work that goes a long way to consideration for promotion, and helps to push you to the forefront of more senior work, [...]

September 18th, 2009 | Tags: Banksy, Day Job, Editing, Fiction, Hitler, Oasis, Poetry, Short Stories, Submissions, Writing | Category: Day Job, Fiction, Poetry, Writing | Leave a comment

Image: Sarah G

I didn’t really have much to say about Tuesday so I skipped a blog post. Hope you don’t mind. No point in writing about nothing, thought I, and instead put my efforts into making sure it didn’t happen again.
It rained for the best part of Tuesday, all through the night and all day [...]

August 27th, 2009 | Tags: clients, competitions, credit crunch, Day Job, Editing, Fiction, Freelance, Internet, magazines, Parkinson's Disease, rain, Ranfurly Review, submission tracking, Submissions, Tim Andrews, Weather, websites | Category: Day Job, Fiction, Freelance, Internet, Poetry, Publishing and Marketing, Reading, Writing Process | Leave a comment

Image: Mel Blanc

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, [...]

June 16th, 2009 | Tags: Blackpool, Blogging, book review, Books, Day Job, e-books, Edinburgh Book Festival, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Editing, Fiction, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, Freelance, giest blog, good times, Internet, News of the World, novella, novels, Reading, Short Stories, Stella, traffic chaos, websites, Writing | Category: Books, Day Job, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Fiction, Freelance, Internet, Interviews, Writing | Comments (1)

Image: Roger Price

I’m delighted to advise that my guest blog went up today over at Love, Romances and More. In it, I talk about the pleasures to be gained from writing to music, so pop over and have a read, and if so inclined, leave a comment.
The STELLA blog tour is still on over at [...]

June 14th, 2009 | Tags: and More, Blogging, Day Job, Edinburgh Book Festival, Editing, Fiction, guest blog, Indian meal, Internet, love, mobile working, overtime, Romances, Stella, Writing | Category: Books, Day Job, Edinburgh: the City & the Festivals, Fiction, Film & TV, Food, Drink, and Bevvy, I.T., Publishing and Marketing, Writing | Comments (2)

Image: Eternal Press/Colin Galbraith

Shattered. I was up late last night doing the promotional artwork for my impending Stella marketing campaign. I’ve ordered a whole bunch of juicy stuff that I will be using to promote the book from one week before it launches to the end of the Book Festival in August.
I’ve got postcards, flyers, [...]

May 26th, 2009 | Tags: competition, cover art, Day Job, design, e-book, Editing, flash fiction, freelance writing, gig review, Jean Michel Jarre, literature, marketing, Mods, News of the World, prizes, promotional material, publishnig, Quadrophenia, Reading, Stella, The Who, Theatre, Writing | Category: Art, Books, Day Job, Fiction, Freelance, Publishing and Marketing, Writing, Writing Process | Comments (1)