Sale of Digital Books in July

On 27/06/2024 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, Creative Writer, Fiction, ME/CFS, ReadingLeave a comment

Hello, Readers!I’m excited to announce that my books, Breaking Faith: But, Baby, It’s Cold Outside: Heir to Death’sFolly: M.E. and me: Ten Love Tales: and Ten Tales for Tomorrow, will all be available as part of apromotion on Smashwords for the month of July as part of their Annual Summer/Winter Sale! This is a chance to …

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Love Your Fear, by Joel Schueler: #BookReview.

On 12/05/2020 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, ME/CFS, Reading, Review

I came across Joel Schueler via a post on LinkedIn. From that, I went to look at his work on Amazon and discovered ‘Love Your Fear’. As usual, I used their useful ‘Look Inside’ feature to gain an insight into the style and content. I suffered ME/CFS for ten years and, although now rid of …

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What’s it Like to Run the Great North Run?

On 11/09/201630/07/2017 By stuartakenIn Author, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, opinion, Running

I'm reminded by this morning's BBC1 TV showing, that a year ago I ran the Great North Run. It struck me that others may be wondering what that's like for the ordinary person. I wrote an account after the race, and you can find that by following this link. I'm resurrecting this post for a couple …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 56: The End

On 17/09/201511/09/2016 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running1 Comment

So, how went the event? In case you didn't know, I completed the course in 2 hours, 47 minutes and 50 seconds. That simple fact is for those without the time to read a longer account, but I'd encourage you to drop to the foot of this post for some other information. For everyone else, …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 55

On 15/09/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running5 Comments

A very brief update. I did it! I'll fill you in on the details over the next couple of days. For the moment, let me simply tell you that I completed the race in 2 hours, 47 minutes an 50 seconds. I'll provide the gory details in the next post. If you’re so minded, now …

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Running for #ME/CFS no. 54

On 11/09/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running2 Comments

This is the penultimate post on the run. I've completed the programmed exercise for this week. Tuesday (my usual Wednesday session was programmed for Tuesday this week) required a 30-minute easy walk. So, Valerie and I took a lengthy walk amongst the hills of the forest. Lovely to watch the squirrels, songbirds and buzzards. Today …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 53

On 06/09/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Running2 Comments

One week today at this time I'll be recovering, hopefully with a local pint and some tasty food, after running the 13.1 miles of the Great North Run along the roads from Newcastle Upon Tyne to the seafront at South Shields. I've done all the training. Run a good many miles along local roads and …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 52

On 04/09/201504/09/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running2 Comments

Today, I’ve made the last training run before the actual race. For the remainder of the days between now and 13th September, I’m supposed to ‘rest’ the muscles and build energy for the race itself. This means some shortish walks only, to keep the joints moving and feed some work into the muscles without causing …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 51

On 30/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running

It's getting close to the event. In fact, 2 weeks today I'll be pounding the tarmac for 13.1 miles. Progress this week? Wednesday I was due to run for 4 minutes followed by 1 minute of walking, repeated 7 times. That's 35 minutes of exercise. I chose to do this along my 3.3 mile loop …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 50 and #Free Books

On 24/08/201524/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fiction, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Running

Raising money for Action for M.E. Charity Registration No. 1036419 Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.) is a disabling and chronic illness, devastating the lives of 250,000 people in the UK. Action for M.E. provides support and information for those touched by M.E., and campaigns for better services and invests in research to ultimately find a cure. I'm …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 49

On 22/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running

Three weeks tomorrow I'll be running the Great North Run. A half marathon that's been going for a long time now. I'll be one of 57,000 participants and, like most of them, I've been training now for a few months. This week's programme involved a reduction in distance and time spent running. I suspect this …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 48

On 17/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running

A brief update for those readers who expect one of these posts on a Monday. First, let me direct you to the two previous posts for more details. You'll find post 46 here and post 47 here. Suffice it to say that training last week went according to plan and I'm well on track for …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 47

On 16/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running

It's happening! It's really happening, 4 weeks today! My runner's pack has arrived from the sponsors. It includes my number and a timing chip, which will track my time from the moment I pass the starting line to when I stagger across the finishing line some 7 or 8 hours later! Joking: if I can …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 46

On 13/08/201513/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running

This series will draw to a natural close once I've run the Great North Run, on 13th September, and posted my final piece with the results. However, from now to the actual run, I'll be increasing my posts on an ad hoc basis when I have something new to report. So, yesterday, I did my …

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Running for ME/CFS no. 45

On 09/08/2015 By stuartakenIn Author, Book, charity, Fundraising, ME/CFS, Progress, Running3 Comments

The race is 5 weeks today. And this week's blog post is on time, for a change! Wednesday's session consisted of 6 runs of 4 minutes, alternating with 1-minute walks. I covered 3.3 miles in 35 minutes, taking a loop through the forest and averaging just over 10 minutes per mile. Friday, I was required …

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