Short Story: Manners and the Man

Photos from a visit to Fallingbostel and other German towns, using film, not digital tech, back in 1990. This short story was placed 3rd in the Ormskirk Writers & Literary Club contest in October 2004, and was also published in the small literary magazine, Ouse Valley Poetry, sadly no longer around. Enjoy! Manners and the …

Continue reading Short Story: Manners and the Man

Sale of eBooks in July

Hi, Readers, my eBook, Breaking Faith, is available as part of a promotion on Smashwords for the month of July in their Annual Summer/Winter Sale! This is a chance to get my books at 50% discount so you can get right to reading, or download them to your device for enjoying later. As a taster, …

Continue reading Sale of eBooks in July

Short Story: Lost and Found.

The short story posted below was first published in my anthology ‘Ten Love Tales’ in 2011.The book is available as an ebook on Smashwords, discounted to half price for the month of July.Lost and Found Cathy, my two brothers and I, had all left home when Mum and Dad moved out of their town house, …

Continue reading Short Story: Lost and Found.

Lady Hartley’s Husbands, by Andrea Emblin #BookReview.

A real saga of a novel in which we travel through the life of the female protagonist, Irene, known to her friends as Reene, from her 16th birthday life-changing event to…well that would be spoiling the story. Let’s just say we leave her in her more mature years. There is, as the title suggests, more …

Continue reading Lady Hartley’s Husbands, by Andrea Emblin #BookReview.

Makeover, by Barbara Lorna Hudson: #BookReview.

304 pages, Contemporary Romance. Insightful, and based on personal knowledge of the areas covered in her writing, the author explores themes of academic snobbery, domestic abuse, insecurity, and the search for love in an uncertain world. Having experience in both social care and academia, Barbara brings reality and honesty to this tale of the search …

Continue reading Makeover, by Barbara Lorna Hudson: #BookReview.

The Wages of Dying, by Meghan Purvis: #BookReview.

Set in prohibition America, around the start of WW1, this vampire novel has all the horror, tension, gore, and folklore lovers of the genre will desire from a story. But it has much more than these expected elements.We follow Ruby, somewhat of an enigma that, to avoid spoilers, I won’t explain, and the reluctant doctor, …

Continue reading The Wages of Dying, by Meghan Purvis: #BookReview.

Why That Title? – Breaking Faith.

Titles for works of fiction often cause authors a lot of soul-searching. Ideally, we want to give potential readers clues about content, theme, style, and storyline. Not easy in anything from one to, say, a dozen words. Of course, the best titles are revealed as obvious choices once a book’s been read, so this series …

Continue reading Why That Title? – Breaking Faith.

#Words and #PictureOfTheDay: 18/Apr/22

This spot is a favourite of my lovely wife, Valerie, whose birthday is today. Don’t worry, this post was scheduled so I could spend the whole day with her and treat her.The place depicted is called ‘Janet’s Foss’, and nestles in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, not far from Malham. It’s a popular spot that …

Continue reading #Words and #PictureOfTheDay: 18/Apr/22

#Words and #PictureOfTheDay: 06/Mar/22

Just a pair of pretend bunnies posing in the snow as lovers. Here specially for those who like a bit of the cute. *****…*****A few of my pictures appear in the Gallery.And you’ll find many more here for use in book covers, calendars, greetings cards, jigsaws, advertising, or anything else you fancy in print or …

Continue reading #Words and #PictureOfTheDay: 06/Mar/22

Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen: #BookReview.

Fiction Classics/Literary Fiction288 PagesJane Austen’s first published novel ‘Sense and Sensibility’ manages to capture all her humour and dissatisfaction with the age in which she lived. I felt the language was a little more convoluted and, occasionally, more obtuse than in the better known ‘Pride and Prejudice’, making it sometimes hard work to ascertain her …

Continue reading Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen: #BookReview.

It’s Out! Get it Here.

An Excess Of... The paperback is available now! Have you got your copy yet? Why not? This is the best book you’ll read this year – not that I’m biased, of course! Okay, I’ll try to calm my enthusiasm for my latest novel. But it’s exciting when you hold it for the first time in …

Continue reading It’s Out! Get it Here.

The Time has Come!

I wrote it last year. Started the long, and somewhat convoluted, process of editing, both as self-editor initially and then with my publisher’s editors, early this year. We now have a launch date for my latest novel. So, I suppose I’d better let you all know what it’s called, especially now this information was released …

Continue reading The Time has Come!

Translation: Illuminating Cultural Difference.

Just short of a month ago, I wrote a post about Helen, a Chinese woman, translating some of my stories into her language. My hope was that would place my work before a wider readership. But there has been an unexpected and positive additional outcome.I’m no linguist. But I’ve travelled, both within the land of …

Continue reading Translation: Illuminating Cultural Difference.

Finding Home, by Jackie Weger: #BookReview.

233 pagesWomen’s Humorous/Contemporary/Romance In this romance, we follow the progress of Phoebe as she attempts to find a new home for herself, her siblings, and her parents following their loss of employment. Set in America, it has the usual tendency to reference aspects of life that are familiar only to those who live there. In …

Continue reading Finding Home, by Jackie Weger: #BookReview.

Why Did I Write Breaking Faith That Way?

It occurred to me recently that I’ve never explained what drove me to write the books I’ve had published. My hope was the intention would be clear from the story. But it seems that’s not very realistic. I know what motivated me, so I can hardly judge how effectively that motivation was transferred to the …

Continue reading Why Did I Write Breaking Faith That Way?