View from the high tower of the castle. Continuing the account of our recent visit to Bolton Castle, a privately owned ancient monument in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire, England. You’ll find the first part here. We returned to the Courtyard to visit the Guest Tower, most of which is no longer standing. Looking up the north-west …
Continue reading A Rainy Day at Bolton Castle: Part 2
The exterior of Bolton Castle We spent a few days with my brother, Steve, and his wife, Alison, in the Yorkshire Dales. On one of the days, we ventured out in the rain to visit Bolton Castle, a place we’d never visited even though Valerie and I lived in the area for some years. The …
Continue reading A Rainy Day at Bolton Castle: Part 1
Word cloud created via Wordart.com Taking a look at Onomatopoeia and Metaphor, Simile, Collective Nouns, and my Delusional Dictionary. For definitions, click here for the introductory post to the series. This week’s words:Varoom, Vague, Venue, Vagrant. Onomatopoeia: Varoom: 'Varoom!' is usually used as the sound of a vehicle accelerating away; it’s commonly used in comic …
Continue reading The #Write #Words? Post 26
261 pages Gay & Lesbian Adventure/Travel Adventure/Suspense Action Fiction A book I probably wouldn’t have read, I came across this through a recommendation on Twitter from a follower there. Unusually, I bought it without reading the sample, but entirely on the basis of the synopsis. This made no mention that the lover referred to was …
Continue reading The Harvest of Inadequate Lives, by Patrick S. Stokes: #BookReview.
Calm Evening It’s the 1st of the month, so it’s time to remind you that the creative writing contest table has been updated. It lives on the ‘Resources’ page, here. For new visitors: Many contests are free to enter and offer great cash prizes. Some seek either unpublished or beginner writers. The table currently offers …
Continue reading Creative #Writing #Contests Table Updated
Word cloud made using Wordart.com Looking at Onomatopoeia and Metaphor, Simile, Collective Nouns, and my Delusional Dictionary. For definitions of those, click here to read the introductory post to the series. This week’s words:Ululate, Unmoving, Unkindness, Undertaker. Onomatopoeia: Ululate: To ululate is to howl, wail, lament loudly. Although not generally considered onomatopoeic, in the right …
Continue reading The #Write #Words? Post 25
River Wye seen from the viewpoint. This illustrated post is here to help those who want to visit this spot and inform those who’ll never get there. I hope it serves those purposes and entertains along the way. The smaller car park. Where is Symonds Yat, and why is it so called? This local beauty …
Continue reading Walking at Symonds Yat.
Fantastic Books Publshing book store Every year an event celebrating science fiction, fantasy, gaming, technology, cosplay and the enjoyment of life comes up. Fantasticon is a convention drawing equal numbers of regulars and newcomers and I’ve attended every year so far. The audience awaits action on the stage. The event is hosted by Dan Grubb, …
Continue reading The Fantastic #Fantasticon 2019!
The wonderful world we inhabit. Photo courtesy NASA. I’ve slept poorly recently. This time I made a decision during the wakeful period. What kept me awake? Put bluntly; the dreadful state of the world today. Putting the most urgent issue of the environment emergency aside for the moment, in UK we’re now led by a …
Continue reading A Life-Changing Decision?
Image courtesy of pixabay. Looking for your next big story idea? If you're experiencing writer's block, or you just want to come up with something new to write about, one way is to take a cue from a major aspect of culture that’s largely untapped. There are always cultural fads to explore, some of which …
Continue reading Want An Original Fantasy? Tap Into An Obsession
316 pages Space Exploration/Science Fiction An enormously complex and wide-ranging story with a cast of characters from all over the galaxy, this is essentially a tale of survival against the odds. Male criminals, of human and different alien species, are incarcerated on a hostile uninhabited planet as punishment for their crimes. They are treated as …
Continue reading Rijel 12: The Rise of New Australia, by King Everett Medlin: #BookReview.
Word cloud created through Wordart.com Looking at Onomatopoeia and Metaphor, Simile, Collective Nouns, and my Delusional Dictionary. For definitions of those, click here to read the introductory post to the series. This week’s words:Tintinnabulation, Tall, Tassel, Tablet. Onomatopoeia: Tintinnabulation: This fabulous word expresses the tinkling of a small bell, but can be used as a …
Continue reading The #Write #Words? Post 24
Word cloud created through the facilities of Wordart.com. Looking at Onomatopoeia and Metaphor, Simile, Collective Nouns, andmy Delusional Dictionary. For definitions of those, click here to read the introductory post to the series. This week’s words:Susurration, Scarce, Sect, Stupidity. Onomatopoeia: Susurration: Susurration; just say it. It speaks to the ear. It means a whispering, a …
Continue reading The #Write #Words? Post 23
236 pages Short Stories/Fantasy/Science Fiction Anthologies Before you read this, you need to know that one of the 27 stories published in this anthology was written by me. So, a collection of dark, sometimes very dark, speculative fiction with a touch of black humour sprinkled in. The theme of the anthology is Fire and Ice …
Continue reading The Forge: Fire and Ice, by Fantastic Books Publishing: #BookReview.
Gull on the sea wall at Lyme Regis. This final post about our time in this part of England is a short one. (You’ll find the start of the series of five posts here.) Part 2 here. Part 3 here. Part 4 here. Lyme is full of narrow, and sometimes quite steep, and attractive streets. …
Continue reading Lyme Regis No 5: Surrounding Countryside.
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