tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74796167758039386222024-03-19T05:42:38.079+00:00Sheila Norton - the BlogSheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.comBlogger147125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-55812307780555325752017-03-31T14:28:00.001+01:002017-03-31T14:28:26.433+01:00Flawed characters - and why I love them.<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Ever since I wrote my first novel – and even before that, when I was
writing short stories for women’s magazines – I’ve loved to make my readers
laugh and cry, often at the same time. My early novels were romantic comedies,
so you might think that the laughter would be understandable but why would I
want my readers to cry? Well, I couldn’t seem to help myself.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikFLxZRQPVWCfwq-qbM0FBsPjj07su8-yDwhWBWzYkycL-_O5XGRAhKdbTJmaIiAU8wC7C5gK6zDlRUfGmNG3IRyslLLRGCCZK-fCOHK8dMwZwvC5EeNvSUqWoMy2v7h5Uob67YuHWBP1D/s1600/laughing+pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikFLxZRQPVWCfwq-qbM0FBsPjj07su8-yDwhWBWzYkycL-_O5XGRAhKdbTJmaIiAU8wC7C5gK6zDlRUfGmNG3IRyslLLRGCCZK-fCOHK8dMwZwvC5EeNvSUqWoMy2v7h5Uob67YuHWBP1D/s200/laughing+pic.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Funny moments</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcUBIoOLINnScSQwNypQC1N2qsQ6GcCKPHHAu0x-MFIlK6N-IujaJFn4UmpVuoa04WQ-vhiF_2fxF86bU6yIHOdDSzyfp3Nbio-6AbSp79-34c45vWlv-d4Kr0RAj6VF7JsSBvDuEPaAO/s1600/crying+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcUBIoOLINnScSQwNypQC1N2qsQ6GcCKPHHAu0x-MFIlK6N-IujaJFn4UmpVuoa04WQ-vhiF_2fxF86bU6yIHOdDSzyfp3Nbio-6AbSp79-34c45vWlv-d4Kr0RAj6VF7JsSBvDuEPaAO/s200/crying+pic.jpg" width="191" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And sad ones!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Let’s face it,
life is never </span><i style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">all</i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> fun and laughter,
neither is it ever all sad. For a story, and more importantly the characters,
to feel real, and for the reader to be really engaged in what’s happening, I
instinctively felt the need to have moments of pathos in the rom coms. And in
the novels I’m writing now, which are marketed to be light, cosy stories, there
are inevitably some episodes to make my readers chuckle, moments to give them that
warm and fuzzy feeling, but I still can’t resist including some moments of
sadness Without these emotional ups and downs, I’m sure you’ll agree, a story
would be very dull and flat.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBneM1784j3SaEic7AlozDb4rzRi_Os_wqVzk5_f33dsQGz0zRbSGKuwdHBkoBewzPEnwWBQ8nvKjhtgPssMwCF9Op36QdC1S-Fjk203qjHjleTtaPmZCF8f6x44Rmh7aDxkNBr5q6bk0/s1600/sad+cat+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBneM1784j3SaEic7AlozDb4rzRi_Os_wqVzk5_f33dsQGz0zRbSGKuwdHBkoBewzPEnwWBQ8nvKjhtgPssMwCF9Op36QdC1S-Fjk203qjHjleTtaPmZCF8f6x44Rmh7aDxkNBr5q6bk0/s320/sad+cat+pic.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even the animals in my stories have to be sad sometimes!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large; text-indent: 17pt;">In the same way, to my mind a character who is all good
or all bad is not only frankly unbelievable, but can also be dreary and boring.
I’ve occasionally been criticised for creating a plot line where my heroine
behaves in a way that some readers might find reprehensible. Not all the way
through the story, of course! – or it would be difficult to root for her as a
heroine. But I can’t bear to write – or read – about people who seem to be
faultless and perfect, whether they’re secondary characters or the main
protagonists, heroes or heroines. It’s just not realistic. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1LcQTafezjkSSh6uBZFy5Dr3f-moS-ERO3FxFtEkjv_Bw1BK7WjUrOYrPBPn1Qz5FLppFlFQEZ66dPAIkkbtQHQKEtu5Fho3rxkj_Zlv4DmDkjAk23lyZowOchdSeLsEb-TogpVLJ272/s1600/devil+pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1LcQTafezjkSSh6uBZFy5Dr3f-moS-ERO3FxFtEkjv_Bw1BK7WjUrOYrPBPn1Qz5FLppFlFQEZ66dPAIkkbtQHQKEtu5Fho3rxkj_Zlv4DmDkjAk23lyZowOchdSeLsEb-TogpVLJ272/s200/devil+pic.png" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We're all capable of being a bit naughty sometimes!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large; text-indent: 17pt;">I’ve lived for a long time, and so far
I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t have any faults, or who doesn’t occasionally
behave in a way that others find unacceptable – but that doesn’t mean they’re
horrible people, or that I don’t like them. After all, in real life I don’t
stop liking my own friends if sometimes I think they’re being a bit daft, or
doing something I might not do myself. And I’d hope they feel the same way
about me!</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So I won’t apologise for the fact that my basically
nice, ordinary, heroines, have flaws just like the rest of us. They have
problems in their lives, as we all do – otherwise there would be no story.
They’re dealing with pain, loss, trauma, loneliness, fear, unhappiness of some
kind – otherwise there would be no happy ending to hope for. So if they never
stepped out of line – got drunk, swore at somebody, kissed somebody they
shouldn’t, lost their temper, acted childishly or selfishly or stupidly –
they’d be ridiculously unrealistic and personally I wouldn’t be able to believe
in them or even like them very much!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54fgziTyuaH9GRc2LU7RYMxo0jZWZUdPzQVplQBRCggzulK5AQTSKyj8IngID__2UxFFaYhck4v8VmPZxIeONszrCJm4ZzElvDAYS4FpmktQr9ujYP6H4UCTjCi_XWBVvDJQ5VxSXC5uy/s1600/angel+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54fgziTyuaH9GRc2LU7RYMxo0jZWZUdPzQVplQBRCggzulK5AQTSKyj8IngID__2UxFFaYhck4v8VmPZxIeONszrCJm4ZzElvDAYS4FpmktQr9ujYP6H4UCTjCi_XWBVvDJQ5VxSXC5uy/s1600/angel+pic.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nobody likes a goody-goody!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large; text-indent: 17pt;">Just as, if I’m reading crime stories, I like a villain
to occasionally betray an unexpected human side – perhaps showing tenderness to
their mum, or a puppy, despite being a killer – so I like my heroines to show
that they have their faults, make mistakes, but can still come good at the end.
Laughter and tears, people being kind and unkind, good and bad, happy and
unhappy – we want to </span><i style="color: blue; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 17pt;">feel</i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large; text-indent: 17pt;"> something
when we read a story, and for that to happen, it has to be believable.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So my latest stories might be light, they might be easy
reading, but I certainly hope nobody finds them dull or unrealistic. I’m always
pleased when people say they laughed out loud at a funny part or cried at a sad
part. But the readers’ comments that please me most, are those that say they
really sympathised with the heroine and could understand how she felt. Yes,
even if during parts of the story she wasn’t very sensible !</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgua9x_gu3SclMqtN887mG0ftNrjJNHUDYzyxRhGRE2lFQRZD2wnnVTHAkkC022nnR_1mT1vEHazTClYBGUlzAC5VK3Sjq0k9oOZMKzHhYGCa5hMIQuOEbmGlzYwvFydwz2fb24puAtUde9/s1600/Vets+at+Hope+Green+pb+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgua9x_gu3SclMqtN887mG0ftNrjJNHUDYzyxRhGRE2lFQRZD2wnnVTHAkkC022nnR_1mT1vEHazTClYBGUlzAC5VK3Sjq0k9oOZMKzHhYGCa5hMIQuOEbmGlzYwvFydwz2fb24puAtUde9/s320/Vets+at+Hope+Green+pb+cover.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The paperback edition of THE VETS AT HOPE GREEN will be published by Ebury on 1 June 2017.<br /> Meanwhile it's being serialised in four digital parts on Amazon: Parts 1 to 3 available now, Part 4 available on 16 April.</td></tr>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-71799027170575132532017-02-07T15:17:00.000+00:002017-02-07T15:17:09.911+00:00When do we buy books?The other week, I was looking at the statistics for those of my earlier books that I self-published, and those I re-published that were originally with my first publisher. Having downloaded December's figures I could now see the trends for the whole of last year - and I started comparing my sales and Kindle Lending Library loans, month by month.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_S6DDcS9pWPiucBzJicZ_Wk5TeRu9S3t6AfT_pOKk4MZOABuiTIfjLPubAvan8O28f8-DBNjgyDOJrK5Tc1CCxCO5qqT9Ooygj6av4nXSd8SECd1EVbNsLGxjkdcJHf5iG531YnE_mdFF/s1600/pic+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_S6DDcS9pWPiucBzJicZ_Wk5TeRu9S3t6AfT_pOKk4MZOABuiTIfjLPubAvan8O28f8-DBNjgyDOJrK5Tc1CCxCO5qqT9Ooygj6av4nXSd8SECd1EVbNsLGxjkdcJHf5iG531YnE_mdFF/s200/pic+3.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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And it started me thinking about my recent books, being published by Ebury, and the time of year each of them has been published. Is there a time of year that people read more or buy/download more books? What's the best time for a book to be published? Or does it actually make any difference, as these days the digital edition will remain available, presumably, for ever?<br />
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I'd always thought most people (including me!) read the most when we're on holiday. Away from the constraints of work, and other responsibilities, with time to sit on the balcony or lie on the beach or whatever you do to relax when you're away from home - surely that's when we finally get the chance to read some of those books that have been languishing on our to-read pile, or on our Kindle, for ages.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8m9KyBxA5KJ4VxhAdIRTrSEOUFMG1624VkBpUzzdl0dKwA0xlEVxlkUKiErtrRO_Eahakj5cJS7NWD5hIXaGxBFbUuptMp3bKNyTkb-HBW9p6U9XeE1upd7gT_UH1E-Iejj_lmPv1ZIhS/s1600/reading+pic+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8m9KyBxA5KJ4VxhAdIRTrSEOUFMG1624VkBpUzzdl0dKwA0xlEVxlkUKiErtrRO_Eahakj5cJS7NWD5hIXaGxBFbUuptMp3bKNyTkb-HBW9p6U9XeE1upd7gT_UH1E-Iejj_lmPv1ZIhS/s200/reading+pic+8.jpg" width="192" /></a></div>
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On the other hand, perhaps in the summer months people are more likely to be outside, doing their gardening or going for healthy walks in the sunshine, whereas in the depths of winter they might spend more time snuggling down on the sofa with a good book. Is that actually still something most people do, or is everyone much more likely to be watching TV or on the internet?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZWUFWM4WKVnByBzW5JUWFvV6EnIGc2AJPr2YMcazVaLEJsS4dO-Ymha58G6b_ySylq0PUUt-_GnzOBePmq71e_eYo0V73eW285xY66maFD0mlqfhwFI3H6Qms4eIHzjlYCo1I5gTkUHAJ/s1600/reading+pic+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZWUFWM4WKVnByBzW5JUWFvV6EnIGc2AJPr2YMcazVaLEJsS4dO-Ymha58G6b_ySylq0PUUt-_GnzOBePmq71e_eYo0V73eW285xY66maFD0mlqfhwFI3H6Qms4eIHzjlYCo1I5gTkUHAJ/s200/reading+pic+7.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
And what about actually <i>buying </i>books? Again, I normally make sure my Kindle is well stocked up before I go on holiday (so much easier than carrying enough books for a fortnight in the suitcase!).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXPJyYqRCi09w66-ZfEGVBGZ_a7nUicMYFIExMLdjxKgvoGwXBMYwKVgN7ljFBA5fEMiFN3el3rFyWN1jyQ6S_vgS1yKaKAHqUhkexqPkdPpPhjjSZxP0hkA33Bdr5bAnfR6SHiX16UdZL/s1600/reading+pic+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXPJyYqRCi09w66-ZfEGVBGZ_a7nUicMYFIExMLdjxKgvoGwXBMYwKVgN7ljFBA5fEMiFN3el3rFyWN1jyQ6S_vgS1yKaKAHqUhkexqPkdPpPhjjSZxP0hkA33Bdr5bAnfR6SHiX16UdZL/s200/reading+pic+10.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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But then again, books are still a favourite present for Christmas, so perhaps that's when sales really peak.<br />
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So there were a few surprises in the statistics for my self-published Kindle books. The best months for downloads last year were actually May and November - so that might tie in with my theory about buying in time for summer holidays and again before winter sets in. The worst months were August, February and October. Flicking back through my records for previous years, I discovered that December too, was usually one of the worst years for downloads . . . but of course, as these are Kindle books, people wouldn't be buying them for Christmas presents, and were probably too busy doing their shopping and preparations, to read much themselves!<br />
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I realise the situation is different with physical books, so it was very interesting that the first of my new books with Ebury - 'Oliver, the Cat Who Saved Christmas', was published in hardback in October of 2015 (not a good month according to my research with Kindle books but of course it was published for the lead-up to Christmas), and then it was re-published in paperback in November 2016 - and has sold well. Obviously the title was the attraction at that time of year, and the fact that the hardback edition sold well, suggests lots of people bought it for presents.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglk4SjGxmdkXfbSloVgah5cotC_ikjp2zx7SXTg5s1zO4nC3HUHFbM0TtgFRD8RA2U98xmi7HNFX7qopDoyuCn7Bafm61GbJOfjPqixNbs5tv-G6pytNzl7m2ux73EhL97s_o9Mu5eMrW_/s1600/Oliver+front+cover+pic+paperback.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglk4SjGxmdkXfbSloVgah5cotC_ikjp2zx7SXTg5s1zO4nC3HUHFbM0TtgFRD8RA2U98xmi7HNFX7qopDoyuCn7Bafm61GbJOfjPqixNbs5tv-G6pytNzl7m2ux73EhL97s_o9Mu5eMrW_/s200/Oliver+front+cover+pic+paperback.png" width="126" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Oliver-Cat-Who-Saved-Christmas-ebook/dp/B00YK765QW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1486479961&sr=1-1&keywords=oliver+the+cat+who+saved+christmas" target="_blank">'Oliver the Cat Who Saved Christmas'</a></div>
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The follow-up, 'Charlie, the Kitten Who Saved a Life', was published straight into paperback in August last year - again, not a good month according to my other stats - but I'd have thought a paperback at that time of year would do well, for summer holidays - and it's a holiday story too. It hasn't matched Oliver's sales yet, though, but of course other factors could be at play here, such as the market trends peaking and changing.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNovQcvvfpr3nXGtcufnubS7dNug8L05hoGwN2M1WS3U9pYFXhULx1Ihl0hFkXVnM0gE_1p1l3zpWrgLLKF5SsVou9Gf5KAaODmRTFPX-XXa3aupblHwlU8U_XpXIl7cESkixpgXl5QiN/s1600/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNovQcvvfpr3nXGtcufnubS7dNug8L05hoGwN2M1WS3U9pYFXhULx1Ihl0hFkXVnM0gE_1p1l3zpWrgLLKF5SsVou9Gf5KAaODmRTFPX-XXa3aupblHwlU8U_XpXIl7cESkixpgXl5QiN/s200/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" width="138" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charlie-Kitten-Who-Saved-Life/dp/1785034197/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486480037&sr=8-1&keywords=charlie+the+kitten+who+saved+a+life" target="_blank">'Charlie the Kitten who saved a Life'</a></div>
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The sales of my latest book 'The Vets at Hope Green' will be particularly interesting as, while the paperback is being published in June - surely a good month, pre summer holiday reading! - the digital version is being released first in four parts, as a monthly serial. Part 1 came out in January and has sold really well. Bearing up my theory about snuggling down with a book in winter? So how will the February, March and April instalments compare?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuCAhmwCbaH6ef9ITgG41UlNLsdc6JNFGOTqtZIkEbubreopop_XU2_P2uVp-1Cn_Q7YpvRG_5642VD1U9tBH4UI9MIcjfpLS5ltN642ihQC0tGM2iG55E-9wB-fUN7CAzIuHjZOBqgyP/s1600/51IYAo5JKtL+plus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpuCAhmwCbaH6ef9ITgG41UlNLsdc6JNFGOTqtZIkEbubreopop_XU2_P2uVp-1Cn_Q7YpvRG_5642VD1U9tBH4UI9MIcjfpLS5ltN642ihQC0tGM2iG55E-9wB-fUN7CAzIuHjZOBqgyP/s200/51IYAo5JKtL+plus.jpg" width="127" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZrp8yQnt0hRjbam54x-enO_bd4m9-mHqm9O_jvHbQUjGK6PVw7ZZa9GtaZuKw-WGtgXJ8rBYhj8KaiK11BsDB8rYERpg0G53IpTaiaFC_Qws5e5bGQwqm02INTT3Cb9xqnubz4FJgfSb4/s1600/Vets+part+2+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZrp8yQnt0hRjbam54x-enO_bd4m9-mHqm9O_jvHbQUjGK6PVw7ZZa9GtaZuKw-WGtgXJ8rBYhj8KaiK11BsDB8rYERpg0G53IpTaiaFC_Qws5e5bGQwqm02INTT3Cb9xqnubz4FJgfSb4/s200/Vets+part+2+cover.jpg" width="127" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vets-Hope-Green-Escape-Country-ebook/dp/B01LZDWBH3/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1486475832&sr=1-1&keywords=the+vets+at+hope+green" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">'The Vets at Hope Green Part 1'</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vets-Hope-Green-Follow-Heart-ebook/dp/B01LYERPZ5/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1486480416&sr=1-2&keywords=the+vets+at+hope+green" target="_blank">'The Vets at Hope Green Part 2'</a></div>
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I'm sure the lovely people in the marketing department of my publishers know exactly how to target the publication dates of various books, and I'm fascinated to know whether these decisions normally work out right. If you're a self-publishing author, I'd love to know whether you think about the month of publication at all, and whether you find it makes any noticeable difference to sales.<br />
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And as a reader, when do you buy, download, or read the most books? Does the time of year make any difference?<br />
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Happy reading!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQsO4T2goJ3-DnYV7g7dd4UOJkW7ZoBHlKxe8EwCecPRyf30XeDpGspC-5sEa20SAVB-7BOQpQs-HUnaTKsfnUMaX_pbYjknO4htVgKaMX3032Q2ANP1KsdtjQEbzIkFsqPhX386Tiv2jT/s1600/reading+pic+9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQsO4T2goJ3-DnYV7g7dd4UOJkW7ZoBHlKxe8EwCecPRyf30XeDpGspC-5sEa20SAVB-7BOQpQs-HUnaTKsfnUMaX_pbYjknO4htVgKaMX3032Q2ANP1KsdtjQEbzIkFsqPhX386Tiv2jT/s200/reading+pic+9.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-9455531223337374122017-01-08T16:37:00.000+00:002017-01-08T16:37:49.517+00:00We all need our dreams<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">'We all need our dreams'. That's what Sam, the heroine of my new book '<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vets-Hope-Green-Escape-Country-ebook/dp/B01LZDWBH3/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1483876631&sr=1-1&keywords=the+vets+at+hope+green" target="_blank">The Vets at Hope Green</a>' says to her boyfriend near the beginning of the story when he thinks she's being unrealistic - and she repeats it, much later, to her grumpy boss. On both occasions, Sam's expressing a wish for something she realises she might never have: a different lifestyle, a home of her own, a dog ... And on both occasions, those men in her life seem to be scoffing at her for not being realistic. </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBUAnE0MLLUAvMY9vHZIrpsl4_oU5o4FiQ6WX44L7iVUUGocCDpILn4eH0dVk3XKrvQ0Pm0XqxtU9Q_SpX1VorH3IMN0H8r_fEgwLdYTQsQNHFF5jAcXnj5rQJFXrJIZCjuQUt6xveOUiI/s1600/Pic+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBUAnE0MLLUAvMY9vHZIrpsl4_oU5o4FiQ6WX44L7iVUUGocCDpILn4eH0dVk3XKrvQ0Pm0XqxtU9Q_SpX1VorH3IMN0H8r_fEgwLdYTQsQNHFF5jAcXnj5rQJFXrJIZCjuQUt6xveOUiI/s200/Pic+1.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I won't give away the plot by telling you whether any of Sam's dreams come true, but her habit of imagining a different life for herself is such an important element of the story that it set me wondering: do we all have these ideas in our minds about what we'd like to happen in our lives? Is it a good thing, or does harbouring fantasies that might be unrealistic, about 'better' lifestyles for ourselves, actually stop us from enjoying the here and now?</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I guess dreaming about our futures is more common in younger people, near the beginning of their life's journey. Let's face it, by my age, most of us have either achieved what we hoped to, and feel content with where we find ourselves, or we're beginning to run out of hope that we'll have time to get there! And of course, each individual's dream will not only be different from everyone else's, but they'll differ in how modest and achievable, or ridiculous and unlikely, they are. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPaEwvSopelT7OaQXT9TSduYwxyR79zX779oIjV6pNEfpUoAd8WsVL7akeLs70yZGoqoBexXwudz0Y-yd2gd9Cx1oStVTUdZ1X3Xkc_hRs5CAR9AnFOQYu9D5MpI89Zxih3XOWDKeT6g3M/s1600/pic+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPaEwvSopelT7OaQXT9TSduYwxyR79zX779oIjV6pNEfpUoAd8WsVL7akeLs70yZGoqoBexXwudz0Y-yd2gd9Cx1oStVTUdZ1X3Xkc_hRs5CAR9AnFOQYu9D5MpI89Zxih3XOWDKeT6g3M/s200/pic+5.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Speaking for myself, as a younger person I never dreamed of being rich or famous, nor of achieving any kind of greatness (so that's just as well!). I certainly never dreamed, as a child, of getting married and having a family - that ambition only surfaced when I actually met my husband-to-be, and from then on, having a family and looking after my children pretty much took precedence over everything else for a long time. If I had any dreams for the future at that stage, it was probably to see all three daughters happy and settled in their lives - which, thank God, is going well! - and to be free of financial or health worries.</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">As for travelling the world - a common enough dream these days - when I was young, hardly anybody even had foreign holidays. So my younger self would be gaping in amazement at the amount of travelling I've ended up doing in my very much more mature years. We couldn't do it when we were young, so we're trying hard to make up for lost time.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPaSRdNKZBzIAV4aaCwG2SaiegmPuMjcAzZFTV-x3T52tZE0Xc6Hmf6RH8D22VMZjbkoMM5hzP1riCISMUtNit_dm5HNFO0W496ka6Majq1EXZDzS3bO1h-o8wrpYNk2_W4TH0nC0B5rmJ/s1600/Pic+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPaSRdNKZBzIAV4aaCwG2SaiegmPuMjcAzZFTV-x3T52tZE0Xc6Hmf6RH8D22VMZjbkoMM5hzP1riCISMUtNit_dm5HNFO0W496ka6Majq1EXZDzS3bO1h-o8wrpYNk2_W4TH0nC0B5rmJ/s200/Pic+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Career-wise, my only real ambition was always to be a writer. What kind of writer, I wasn't very sure. I thought I might be a journalist, but instead I worked as a secretary, and wrote in my spare time. It wasn't till relatively late in life that I finally became a published novelist, and I'm constantly having to pinch myself because I'm so thrilled that this particular dream came true. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwAncKG6y9WPvHheK8XRjfpcnp572ROWsUAN1w5Lk5WhAma-3rE6z00nzlyeRnpHTvu7XRvy51TWd5vgtsYFezAaYgZqkoW2fzu-EF-VwsZpj_RI78Z-RrDHJFT9SQJgrYBkeJhAMcBxJN/s1600/Pic+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwAncKG6y9WPvHheK8XRjfpcnp572ROWsUAN1w5Lk5WhAma-3rE6z00nzlyeRnpHTvu7XRvy51TWd5vgtsYFezAaYgZqkoW2fzu-EF-VwsZpj_RI78Z-RrDHJFT9SQJgrYBkeJhAMcBxJN/s200/Pic+4.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">And I think that's the whole point: although I hoped for it so much, I never actually expected it to come true, so I enjoyed the dream but got on with my life anyway. I guess it's fine to have these fantasies and dreams, as long as we're happy enough, in our way, </span><i style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">without </i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">them coming true. It's only when longings and dreams take over from our real lives so much that we become miserable if they're not happening, that it can turn into a problem. </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I worry about contestants on TV talent shows who say, when they're voted off, 'But it's my dream! It's all I ever wanted to do!' - as if the depth of their passion should be enough to make the judges vote for them. Sadly, we don't all get what we want, and I think children should be taught that, if we want them to be happy in life. Without a combination of talent and luck, desperate ambition and longing simply aren't enough. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt7xXyrkR26kbAjIdHcEBbPi5XJ-HIrL7MMuxN-rWHTHZ60Vd36R1KuOfvp4ySxqkHU7uV3aOAAMcJv5Ti5e1U0NL3rcv68NLeAgm_mXP0svXcvvFGzBO6hPvUaK811vH4Dl-Hqdb8BNUR/s1600/Pic+3.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt7xXyrkR26kbAjIdHcEBbPi5XJ-HIrL7MMuxN-rWHTHZ60Vd36R1KuOfvp4ySxqkHU7uV3aOAAMcJv5Ti5e1U0NL3rcv68NLeAgm_mXP0svXcvvFGzBO6hPvUaK811vH4Dl-Hqdb8BNUR/s200/Pic+3.gif" width="168" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So should we all give up our dreams and just settle for what we are, what we have? Surely not! Dreams, ambitions, hopes for the future are wonderful, aren't they, as long as we can recognise that they might </span><i style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">not</i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> happen. And meanwhile, old-fashioned though I'm sure it sounds, I do think we should try to be content with what's good in our lives already, whether it's good health, a happy family, a job that doesn't actually make you totally miserable - after all, those modest blessings that we often take for granted </span><i style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">are</i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> desperate dreams for many, many less fortunate people in the world. Starving, homeless people in war-torn countries would be at a loss to understand someone crying hysterically because they didn't win a TV talent show, wouldn't they!</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">What were your own dreams when you were growing up? And have any of them come true? I'd love to hear about them!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1GK4eyA8xQmb8jRWo9FBb5nxlTWN9HvjYXsZ7Pgoahi8MX3n4QPTbXNMj3Q8fmMLzMngcRp8W4-xp3aaRgDVkhz5aoPE8vXwEoIJ_jO1NSHmy2iWVKl-NoSstqV31GXd-Ek5ChsACwn0/s1600/51IYAo5JKtL+plus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1GK4eyA8xQmb8jRWo9FBb5nxlTWN9HvjYXsZ7Pgoahi8MX3n4QPTbXNMj3Q8fmMLzMngcRp8W4-xp3aaRgDVkhz5aoPE8vXwEoIJ_jO1NSHmy2iWVKl-NoSstqV31GXd-Ek5ChsACwn0/s200/51IYAo5JKtL+plus.jpg" width="127" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>'The Vets at Hope Green', Part 1 - 'Escape to the Country' is published as a digital part-book on 19 January. Parts 2 to 4 to follow. </i></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vets-Hope-Green-Escape-Country-ebook/dp/B01LZDWBH3/ref=pd_sim_351_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=PHY8ADT7HFTRPW8K24YG" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Order here</span></a> <i style="font-size: x-large;">from Amazon now.</i></div>
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<i style="font-size: x-large;">The paperback edition of the whole story will be published on </i></div>
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<i style="font-size: x-large;">1 June.</i></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Happy dreams! </span></div>
Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-68955112243356720742016-08-06T12:31:00.001+01:002016-08-06T12:31:23.657+01:00My friend Charlie (by Oliver the Cat)<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;"><b>(This post has been translated from Cat by Sheila Norton)</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">Hello, all my human friends. I hope you remember me - Oliver the Cat. I live in the pub in Little Broomford with my human, George. If you've read my story <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Oliver-Cat-Who-Saved-Christmas-ebook/dp/B00YK765QW/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470480922&sr=1-1&keywords=oliver+the+cat+who+saved+christmas" target="_blank">'Oliver the Cat Who Saved Christmas'</a>, you might remember that after my very exciting year when I saved Christmas for the humans in my village, I found myself a new little friend. His name is Charlie and he lives with one of my favourite families in the village - Julian and Laura and their human kitten, Caroline.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjATMj1SK4Cv7DIy-08ZPhbsWfvi3wzQA0hfSZDxgsQUII7vqRxJjr9MfcBl922xvM_MrmZT_BrsmllZgWyZbTSAF3Yi0fNFAUWTfwhZjfYxJZ8jMhO2i21p71QZn0NaT_ukICj677Ho_3t/s1600/Charlie+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjATMj1SK4Cv7DIy-08ZPhbsWfvi3wzQA0hfSZDxgsQUII7vqRxJjr9MfcBl922xvM_MrmZT_BrsmllZgWyZbTSAF3Yi0fNFAUWTfwhZjfYxJZ8jMhO2i21p71QZn0NaT_ukICj677Ho_3t/s320/Charlie+cover.jpg" width="192" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charlie</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue;">When I first met Charlie he was a tiny little kitten, hardly big enough to get out of his bed without falling over. His father, Tabby, is a very good friend of mine but I knew he wasn't the kind of cat who would help Charlie as he grew up, giving him the sort of advice about the bewildering human world that little kittens need and deserve. But I loved little Charlie and wanted to do my best for him, so I kind of took him under my paw, spending time meowing with him and teaching him everything he needed to know. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">As Charlie began to grow up I soon realised he was a little cat with a lot of spark and personality. He could be a bit cheeky, but I overlooked that, guessing that he'd grow out of it as he matured and settled down. After a while he sometimes became frustrated by me continuing to treat him as a little kitten - even though, as far as I was concerned, that was what he still was. To be honest, I think I'd always have referred to him as 'Little Kitten' if it hadn't been for what happened last summer.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNovQcvvfpr3nXGtcufnubS7dNug8L05hoGwN2M1WS3U9pYFXhULx1Ihl0hFkXVnM0gE_1p1l3zpWrgLLKF5SsVou9Gf5KAaODmRTFPX-XXa3aupblHwlU8U_XpXIl7cESkixpgXl5QiN/s1600/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCNovQcvvfpr3nXGtcufnubS7dNug8L05hoGwN2M1WS3U9pYFXhULx1Ihl0hFkXVnM0gE_1p1l3zpWrgLLKF5SsVou9Gf5KAaODmRTFPX-XXa3aupblHwlU8U_XpXIl7cESkixpgXl5QiN/s320/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" width="222" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">Everything changed for Charlie then, and I can definitely say that after it all, he wasn't a Little Kitten anymore - he was a very special cat, who ended up saving the life of the human he loved most in the whole world - his half-grown human kitten, Caroline. I have to admit that even I, with all my years of experience of the human world, have never been through the kind of trauma that Charlie endured during that time. But somehow, despite it all, he's still the same loveable Charlie he always was. I'm a very proud cat to count myself as his friend, and I hope you will all enjoy reading his amazing and exciting story.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charlie-Kitten-Who-Saved-Life-ebook/dp/B01CHNXBJ4/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470482606&sr=1-1&keywords=charlie+the+kitten+who+saved+a+life" target="_blank">'Charlie the Kitten Who Saved a Life'</a></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglk4SjGxmdkXfbSloVgah5cotC_ikjp2zx7SXTg5s1zO4nC3HUHFbM0TtgFRD8RA2U98xmi7HNFX7qopDoyuCn7Bafm61GbJOfjPqixNbs5tv-G6pytNzl7m2ux73EhL97s_o9Mu5eMrW_/s1600/Oliver+front+cover+pic+paperback.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglk4SjGxmdkXfbSloVgah5cotC_ikjp2zx7SXTg5s1zO4nC3HUHFbM0TtgFRD8RA2U98xmi7HNFX7qopDoyuCn7Bafm61GbJOfjPqixNbs5tv-G6pytNzl7m2ux73EhL97s_o9Mu5eMrW_/s200/Oliver+front+cover+pic+paperback.png" width="126" /></a><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">With lots of love and purrs - </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> Oliver x</span> <br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-18356977872589308692016-07-21T12:35:00.000+01:002016-07-21T12:35:07.302+01:00Currently Catless. (But maybe not forever?)<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
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With my second ‘cat’ story soon to be
published, I’ve been asked by several people whether I’ve got a cat myself. It’s
a fair question. Some might wonder how someone who doesn’t have their own cat
can possibly know enough about them to write this kind of book – especially as
my stories are told from the cat’s point of view! <o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="text-indent: 0in;">Those of you who’ve read previous posts on here
will know the answer. I’ve been privileged to share my life with three cats in
the past, but no, sadly at the moment we are a catless household. Our last cat
passed away four years ago at the ripe old age of 15. He was a chocolate
Burmese called Charlie, a real little character and yes, I thought of him often
when writing my new book </span><i style="text-indent: 0in;">Charlie, the
Kitten who Saved a Life</i><span style="text-indent: 0in;">, but my fictional Charlie is a young tabby, despite
sharing a few of our own Charlie’s cheeky characteristics!</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCf8yhY6dff2IEip6mAGZfYogZQcYs1U3bGwlY3l_v8-Ldef2WFxnjzvxfY7ei73em8O3Ag4Xb4bmKn1GApQBQQ8EHNO0OAEkk63gydjdp0UoRkbRPf35XNCaN96Zb84WuBl259YjjQ_e/s1600/Clip+art+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCf8yhY6dff2IEip6mAGZfYogZQcYs1U3bGwlY3l_v8-Ldef2WFxnjzvxfY7ei73em8O3Ag4Xb4bmKn1GApQBQQ8EHNO0OAEkk63gydjdp0UoRkbRPf35XNCaN96Zb84WuBl259YjjQ_e/s200/Clip+art+1.jpg" width="181" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Life is hard for a cat author!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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We lost our previous two cats in traumatic
circumstances. Misty, our lovely Devon Rex, died in a road accident outside our
house. And Oscar, Charlie’s brother, a lilac Burmese, went missing along with
Charlie after we moved house. Both boys were microchipped and we eventually got
Charlie back after two weeks’ absence but never saw Oscar again. So the fact
that Charlie survived into old age, eventually dying in his sleep at the
cattery while we were on holiday in Australia, was of some comfort by comparison.
But still, of course, the end of the human-pet relationship is always tough. We’ve
had two dogs during our time, as well as the three cats, and it’s never easy to
lose them, no matter what age or what the circumstances. As well as our own
shock and grief at learning about Charlie’s demise when we came home from
holiday, we felt bad for our family who coped with the news and kept it quiet
from us while we were away, and bad for the cattery staff, especially the girl
who’d found him. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK3WMF7tBQh9TJmpH4aVngpzYgyX-lsI5b86w5vCCBQkBUGBtXIPIZcTMPLrdkw6_xnqkH9eONVSt74jmtygQcSVtbtVap9yYdPZpYOZTKZcnhGI-I89hBrlxeWetWG5Smv6qT3jiekZjh/s1600/6+m+7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK3WMF7tBQh9TJmpH4aVngpzYgyX-lsI5b86w5vCCBQkBUGBtXIPIZcTMPLrdkw6_xnqkH9eONVSt74jmtygQcSVtbtVap9yYdPZpYOZTKZcnhGI-I89hBrlxeWetWG5Smv6qT3jiekZjh/s200/6+m+7.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our grandson as a baby, with our Charlie cat</td></tr>
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So, over the years I learned a lot about cats’
behaviour, and their interaction with us humans. In fact, I’m currently writing
a series on my Facebook author page (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/SheilaNortonAuthor">https://www.facebook.com/SheilaNortonAuthor</a>)
which I’m calling Charlie’s A-Z of Humans, describing what Charlie the Kitten
might think about us! Luckily I also
still have ‘access’ to a few cats – not least those belonging to two of my
daughters and their families: lucky black cat Freddie, and black and white kittens
Winnie and Wilbur.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNU-eqxRlAX5MsgZl5N6szBMHKC33lKlpLpQOLn6yxRgwKir71fRu2EuRRd5zhVcvmt_csN6VPlAXPh8mebsvosfURZKIOCF09NnFpmlyu2y-mC-tb4KGJfkkm2Tx7iGU5hXBnQUWibSr2/s1600/12+Nov+kittens+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNU-eqxRlAX5MsgZl5N6szBMHKC33lKlpLpQOLn6yxRgwKir71fRu2EuRRd5zhVcvmt_csN6VPlAXPh8mebsvosfURZKIOCF09NnFpmlyu2y-mC-tb4KGJfkkm2Tx7iGU5hXBnQUWibSr2/s200/12+Nov+kittens+2.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winnie and Wilbur</td></tr>
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<span style="text-indent: 0in;">But for now, we’re remaining catless – and dogless
too, for that matter. Why? Well, now we’re both retired from the day jobs, like
a lot of retirees we’re doing a fair bit of travelling and holidaying before we
become too aged and decrepit to do so. Most of us ‘oldies’ rarely, if ever,
went any further than their nearest bit of British coast when we were younger. (I
remember once, as a schoolgirl, getting a postcard from a friend who was in
Cornwall with her family, and being absolutely amazed that anyone went so far
away for their holidays). In a way, I wish we’d been able to get the ‘travel
bug’ out of our systems at a younger and fitter age, but it wasn’t within our
means so we’re trying to make up for lost time now. And we don’t want to start
a new relationship with a furry companion, only to end up putting him or her
into a cattery all the time. The fact that we weren’t there with Charlie at the
end of his life has influenced this decision a little, but it’s not just that.
When I do get another cat, I want to spend as much time as possible enjoying
him.</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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So is that a ‘yes’ for a future four-legged newcomer
to the Norton household? Let’s just say I find it very hard to close the local
paper after looking at the pages from the Cats’ Protection League showing pictures
of cats needing loving homes. And yes, I’m one of the many who drool over cute
kitten pics on Facebook. So I’m certainly not ruling it out. I’d be quite happy
to end up as a mad old cat lady!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Meanwhile I’m happy to have, at least, written
another book narrated by a cat<i>. Charlie,
the Kitten Who Saved a Life</i>, a sequel to <i>Oliver, the Cat Who Saved Christmas</i>, will be published by Ebury on
11 August 2016, in paperback and ebook editions. Here’s a link to the book on
Amazon, where you can already pre-order:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charlie-Kitten-Who-Saved-Life/dp/1785034197/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1468680238&sr=1-1&keywords=charlie+the+kitten+who+saved+a+life">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charlie-Kitten-Who-Saved-Life/dp/1785034197/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1468680238&sr=1-1&keywords=charlie+the+kitten+who+saved+a+life</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWbhZxyI0hvfYOzFUjODCHgm-YRkGUPaQPQf0L4T4hmAvuxQDyWFhb_4zIE3JqDY19NW7aUB7WQa-qNM2_ad_PfB6EIlkTPbWkCT6r_fF7456jgaMO9CcGH_DaUWATwtHGyMK_0EW0Tdq/s1600/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWbhZxyI0hvfYOzFUjODCHgm-YRkGUPaQPQf0L4T4hmAvuxQDyWFhb_4zIE3JqDY19NW7aUB7WQa-qNM2_ad_PfB6EIlkTPbWkCT6r_fF7456jgaMO9CcGH_DaUWATwtHGyMK_0EW0Tdq/s320/Charlie+front+cover+pic.png" width="222" /></a></div>
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<o:p>Charlie hopes you will enjoy his story!</o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-8141439527506901132016-04-21T15:17:00.000+01:002016-04-21T15:17:29.275+01:00Is your man doing too much for you?!?<span style="color: blue;">Anyone who knows me well will probably think the title of this post must be a joke. A man doing too much for me? Am I joking?! Well, bear with me ... because it's not a joke, and in fact I think it's quite important that some of us women start thinking seriously about this, sooner rather than later.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">I've said <i>some </i>of us, because I'm sure there are plenty of women to whom none of this will apply. Those who aren't in any sort of marriage or partnership with a man, for a start. Possibly most younger women - (although read on anyway, because I'm willing to bet some of it will still apply to you). Those whose partner is less able, for whatever reason, to take care of things than the woman is. Those who are just very strong, independent women who do absolutely everything for themselves. And if you're nodding enthusiastically now, confident that this last category includes you - good for you. I thought it included me, too, but recently I've been taking a more honest look at what goes on in our house and yes, I have to say: he's started doing too much for me. And I don't think I like it.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;"><i>What? </i>I hear you cry. What is he, some kind of super-husband who vacuums the mattresses and irons the curtains? Does he cook our meals, do the weekly shop, put on the washing and clean the toilet? Well, no, obviously not. He doesn't do any of those things, and that's partly my own fault because I'm so used to doing them myself, and I carry on doing so, out of habit. So I'm lucky if he just slices the occasional mushroom, under my guidance, and makes me a cup of tea once in a while. But the point is this: if I weren't here, he'd be able to do all those things, no problem. Or not too much problem, anyway. How long would it take him to learn how to twiddle the right dials on the washing machine, or how to put a pie in the oven rather than try to grill it (as he once did when I was away)? I know he can iron. He can hoover. He'd soon learn how to clean the loo and find out where I keep the clean bed linen.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7eqbf-lYv7hrzfqeeG6PObJEmboZn6-zdNUQk25a9tANLXtbAEgYv25YwkPUsLRgB_Iuup4RNBS3oRhS_ZLUc81qHRItk4ZEqy3XLo2gs2f3joJoEhmxGI8Y6-yHONzQ8f_oqrXao9fbT/s1600/pic+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7eqbf-lYv7hrzfqeeG6PObJEmboZn6-zdNUQk25a9tANLXtbAEgYv25YwkPUsLRgB_Iuup4RNBS3oRhS_ZLUc81qHRItk4ZEqy3XLo2gs2f3joJoEhmxGI8Y6-yHONzQ8f_oqrXao9fbT/s200/pic+4.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No-one can honestly say they enjoy housework, can they?</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue;">Yes, like a lot of women, especially of my generation, the household chores were always mostly my responsibility, and oh boy, over the years, especially when I was working, I admit I've done my share of moaning about that. But since we both retired - he from running his own business, I from my day job but not of course from my writing career, we've </span><i style="color: blue;">kind of</i><span style="color: blue;"> shared them - as is only right, in the circumstances. Well, OK, to be more accurate, I still do most of them but he helps a bit more. So why the hell, you must be wondering, am I now saying I think he does too much for me?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">I don't just mean that he does the gardening, and the DIY - although yes, he does. I used to get far more involved in both of those than I do now. I was pretty good at wallpapering, although I say so myself, and I regularly mowed the lawn in a long garden we used to have, with an ancient push-mower. Now, though - well, he's a lot stronger than me. And he has more time, too, these days, that's my excuse - I have book contracts, with deadlines, I can't be expected to wield lawnmowers and paintbrushes for God's sake! But if he weren't here, I'd have to take up the brush again, fair enough. Or pay someone to do all that stuff. Or move to a house with a smaller garden!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZ3VBBWlotZxc0ovXg41DShPITNOY2IcG8AjPDjPqhlcyOSlQiqHptaBiax58Q-rbRmUDFecOn8UgAbYQ5_rc67nY4_nvsuLa55i4y9lfA2H56kluN0p9WL3ZsZcvr7S0Ij_8g_QBIPde/s1600/pic+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZ3VBBWlotZxc0ovXg41DShPITNOY2IcG8AjPDjPqhlcyOSlQiqHptaBiax58Q-rbRmUDFecOn8UgAbYQ5_rc67nY4_nvsuLa55i4y9lfA2H56kluN0p9WL3ZsZcvr7S0Ij_8g_QBIPde/s200/pic+2.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If someone gets satisfaction from doing a job, far be it from me to take it over from them!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: blue;">No, it's not those things that concern me. It's that since we've been retired, there's been a gradual creeping takeover of the other things I used to do myself. Booking holidays. Arranging things like boiler service, household appliance repairs and services, looking on-line for new things we need for the home. Comparing deals with utility companies, insurance companies - even sorting the car insurance for my own car. These days I don't know how to deal with simple problems with our boiler or television because he sorts them out. When I realised recently that I don't even know where </span><i style="color: blue;">he</i><span style="color: blue;"> - yes, </span><i style="color: blue;">he</i><span style="color: blue;"> - gets the replacement filters for our Hoover, it finally occurred to me that this has gone too far. I'm losing control, and it worries me. If he suddenly disappeared, I'd have trouble sorting out those of our financial arrangements that he controls, because ... he's been quietly doing it on his own. Don't get me wrong - I'm grateful! I </span><i style="color: blue;">like</i><span style="color: blue;"> not having to organise my own car insurance, for example, because let's face it, it's a boring job and I'd rather write the next chapter of my new novel. But at the same time, it leaves me feeling vaguely uneasy.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue;">I've discussed this recently with some of my female friends who are of a similar age to me - and have been shocked to hear that some have relinquished even more than I have to their men's control. Some don't know where their husbands keep important papers. One has <i>never</i> put petrol in her own car. One or two don't even know how to access their joint bank account on line, don't pay their own credit card bills, don't even access email, believe it or not. All of these things seem quite incredible to me and fill me with horror, but am I, God forbid, headed in the same direction?</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrvFEO-2ZuoYDwJ9xs-FmxPpkp-4eR0qWSN_5KrkMpwOnisUmlmyZ9iWufq75oan5ng17nzdycr3jXvbDzqKqKTsUzjii1iKdx4g5TYok6aIj6l8lEEnrJ4zbOtVO2JGD4xiMK206QyRpQ/s1600/pic+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrvFEO-2ZuoYDwJ9xs-FmxPpkp-4eR0qWSN_5KrkMpwOnisUmlmyZ9iWufq75oan5ng17nzdycr3jXvbDzqKqKTsUzjii1iKdx4g5TYok6aIj6l8lEEnrJ4zbOtVO2JGD4xiMK206QyRpQ/s200/pic+3.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Household accounts - definitely not my favourite thing, but of course I'd do them if I had to ... wouldn't I?</td></tr>
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<span style="color: blue;">And if you're a woman in her thirties or forties reading this, and thinking smugly that this kind of (how I hate the word) </span><i style="color: blue;">dependence,</i><span style="color: blue;"> only happens to us, the older generation, and will never happen to </span><i style="color: blue;">you</i><span style="color: blue;">, think again. Because I really do admire the way you run your careers as well as your homes and your children's lives, and the way your men cook, clean, change nappies and come home early for school open evenings. But even so, I've heard some of you making those joking references to </span><i style="color: blue;">blue jobs</i><span style="color: blue;"> and </span><i style="color: blue;">pink jobs</i><span style="color: blue;">, referring for instance to taking out the bins or getting the children's tea, as if we were still living in the pre-gender-equality years of <i>my</i> youth. Yes, I realise you're just joking about it - for now. But please don't be too confident that it'll always feel like a joke. Before you know it, he'll be buying the Hoover filters and you won't have a clue where to get them from!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;">OK, it's not the end of the world, is it, if someone loves you enough to insure your car for you. But I actually do think there's a serious side to all this. If any of us - young or old, male or female - can say we're not sure how we would manage certain aspects of our lives if our other half wasn't there to do it for us, then we're potentially setting ourselves up with a problem for the future. Or, perhaps worse, potentially setting up a worry for our <i>children</i> because one day we might not be able to cope on our own. And as a mum who hates her daughters being worried, that's an unacceptable scenario for me. So I think I need to get a grip on those Hoover filters - and a few other things too - before I finish that novel. Take a look at what your man's doing for you, ladies, and be honest with yourselves. In some ways, we all know it'll never be enough! But on the other hand - is it actually too much?</span><br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-79623474824614972812015-12-23T21:48:00.000+00:002015-12-23T21:48:19.150+00:00The DOCTOR Who Saved ChristmasAround this time of year I always think back over my various family Christmases during the years. It was especially moving to see a recent programme on TV about Christmas in past decades - starting with the very austere wartime years of the 1940s and moving on through the 1950s and 60s of my childhood and youth. I have to say, the homes featured in those two parts of the documentary were a lot more upmarket than I, or any of my friends, lived in during those decades! But otherwise they were reasonably accurate and it made me feel quite nostalgic about the 'old days' when we were content without just one or two presents, and when almost everyone I knew went to church at Christmas. Most people didn't overeat or drink to excess, even at Christmas. There really wasn't the money to spare. No TV, no phones, no internet: the family played board games. But that doesn't mean it was perfect, of course - life never is.<br />
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There are some lovely Christmases among my memories. The one in 1966, for instance, when I'd just met a new boyfriend at a Christmas dance, had a date with him on Christmas Eve and was wondering whether it was going to last. Four years later we were married and next year it will be 50 years since that meeting. Then there was the first Christmas, in 1975, with our first baby girl, 5 months old when we celebrated Christmas as a little family of our own at last. A year later she was a chatty little toddler and I was about to give birth to her sister, born on 29 December. And another two years on, our third daughter was born on Boxing Day. There were Christmases when my brother and his family were home from Australia, another one when we'd just moved to a bigger family home on 20 December, and recent lovely Christmases with our grandchildren - now six of them - all in the perfect age group for Christmas, still believing in Santa Claus, eyes still wide with the wonder and excitement of it all. And then, of course, there were the ones clouded by not-such-good memories.<br />
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Well, we all have them, don't we? Christmas arguments - like most families, we've had a few. And Christmases at sad times, particularly the one that came only a month or so after we lost my dad at the age of just 61. I felt guilty for even trying to enjoy myself, but Mum put on a brave face throughout, bless her. I missed her terribly the first year she wasn't with us either. There were Christmases when it snowed. One when the boiler broke down. One when the cooker died on me, halfway through cooking the turkey. One when I forgot to buy the vegetables. And several when somebody was ill. That would often be tonsillitis with one of the children when they were young, or chest infections, or the all-too-seasonal colds and tummy bugs. But the worst was six years ago when our middle daughter was rushed into hospital.<br />
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She'd had major abdominal surgery some years earlier, and that Christmas morning when her problems recurred, her baby boy, our first grandchild, was three months old and we were all looking forward to his first Christmas with us. The rest of the family was gathered at our house, and then came the phone call from my son-in-law. Our daughter was in terrible pain and being very sick. He'd phoned the hospital and needed to take her straight there. Could we possibly come over and collect the baby?<br />
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I was so frightened as we drove the 20 miles to their home, I couldn't even speak. It was awful to see my lovely girl in such a bad way. Our son-in-law carried her out to his car and sped off to the hospital, leaving us to take charge of baby Noah. I was pretty sure our daughter would need further surgery, and suddenly Christmas had completely lost its importance as I tried to face the rest of the family without collapsing in tears. We ate the dinner which other family members had finished preparing in our absence, unwrapped presents, played with the baby, constantly wondering what was happening at the hospital. Finally, our son-in-law called, relief evident in his voice. A wonderful doctor had apparently given her a massive anti-inflammatory injection, to be followed by oral anti-inflammatories, and had told them that this was the correct way to deal quickly with her condition rather than leaving it (as had happened that first time, at a different hospital) for days, to escalate to such a life-threatening stage that drastic surgery had been the only option. She was now exhausted but OK, and they were on their way!<br />
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Her recovery took time. She spent Christmas Day lying on our sofa, and had little more than soup. But thanks to that doctor's approach, surgery had been avoided and, thank God, has not been needed since. As I've already mentioned, we've had other hiccups at Christmases since, but as a mother I don't think anything could ever match that one for scariness. So having spent a large part of this year going on and on (as we authors do) about my book 'The Cat Who Saved Christmas,' I'd now like to dedicate this blog post to that unknown hospital doctor who, for our family on one special Christmas Day, was 'The Doctor Who Saved Christmas.' Maybe we'll raise a glass or two to him this year! And may all your Christmases be happy and healthy ones.<br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-63435866948485845622015-12-16T18:04:00.000+00:002015-12-16T19:21:13.343+00:00The sum of my difficulties.I recently read a very interesting feature in one of the national papers. It was about <i>dyscalculia</i> - a condition described as <i>a specific learning difficulty for mathematics, or, more appropriately, arithmetic. </i>'Recognition at last,' I thought - because although everyone these days knows about dyslexia, very little is acknowledged about those of us who have similar problems with maths. And, as the author of the feature said, whereas dyslexia elicits sympathy and (usually, I hope, these days), understanding - if you mention being useless at maths it normally just seems to make people snigger.<br />
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The author of the feature was a woman - a professional writer - who had difficulties with numbers herself, although she mentioned that she had managed to get a GCSE in maths at school, which I could never have done in a million years. I know this for a fact because at my (very academic) grammar school, I was deservedly placed in a small exclusive group for those considered such no-hopers in maths that we weren't even allowed to attempt 'O' level. Instead, we were all given a 'basic arithmetic' test which was supposed to give us a mediocre kind of qualification that at least proved we could weigh our cookery ingredients and make curtains. Although this kind of sexism was still rife in the 1960s, I have to say my school was generally not like this at all, encouraging us girls to aim for university and 'careers', (albeit there were fewer career choices available for us than there have been for girls in more recent decades, and certainly less pay than for boys!). However, the maths teaching staff must have decided my little group of remedial maths girls deserved nothing better than curtain making and cooking from recipes - neither of which I've ever particularly enjoyed, to this day.<br />
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I tried my best with that test, honestly I did, but even those questions I knew how to work out took me so long, I got less than halfway through the paper in the time. My result was a miserable 29% and nobody was particularly surprised. I knew I wasn't stupid, because I'd always been very good at English, and reasonably good at foreign languages - I got A levels in English and French. I'd passed the 11-plus, so I must have got a fair proportion of the arithmetic questions right at that time, but I can still remember that it was at about this age I began to have panic attacks in the classroom when doing 'mental arithmetic', and particularly 'problems' (involving a bewildering combination of words and numbers concerning, for instance, how many men it might take to mow a lawn of a certain size, or how long it might take a train to get from A to B if it stopped at 15 stations).<br />
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So I can say with some degree of certainty that my maths ability is about that of a 10 to 11 year old. From that age on, it was all downhill, Long division is still a mystery to me, sums involving pounds shillings and pence used to bring me out in hot sweats, (thank God for decimalisation), and how anyone can add two numbers together without using 'carrying figures', I fail to understand.<br />
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In some ways I do manage better now I'm older. For one thing, I thank God I was forcibly made to learn my 'times tables'. I never have to work out what 12 times 12 is, for instance, because it's glued into my memory. And in the same way, over the years I've <i>learned</i> that, again for instance, half of 50 is 25, half of 100 is 50, and so on, so I don't have to wonder how to work these things out. So I'm not completely useless with everyday money situations, although larger amounts still remain difficult. I have to count their digits to work them out.<br />
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I've never been allowed to forget one occasion when my friends rather foolishly allowed me to take control of 'doing' the bill after a night out in a restaurant. We'd all had a few drinks and nobody wanted to do it, but I must have had the most to drink or I'd never have agreed. I couldn't make the amount right, no matter how many times I tried - I didn't have enough, and had to ask everyone to put in some more money, and then some more again. Nobody seemed to mind, and finally I seemed to have the bill and the tip covered. I felt quite proud of myself. It wasn't till the middle of the night when I woke up with a sudden shock, that I realised why I'd been short - I hadn't paid for my own meal!<br />
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Of course, in today's world we maths dunces are lucky - we have calculators, we have Excel spreadsheets, we don't have to do the hard stuff in our heads. Perhaps I do genuinely have dyscalculia and deserve more sympathy. Or perhaps it's simply that the 'Language' part of my brain is much more developed than the 'Numbers' part. Or it might be because of the flashbacks to my schooldays, the feeling of dread on days when we had double maths lessons, the humiliation of never knowing how to do the wretched calculations, the shaky, panicky feeling when it was my turn to have a question fired at me in class. Whatever the reason, I've never lost my horror of having to deal with sums. Just looking at a page of numbers gives me the creeps. Doing my tax return - even though in the logical part of my brain I know it isn't actually very difficult to do, on-line - is an ordeal every year.<br />
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So all I can say to the taxman is: if we self-employed people are going to be expected to do our returns four times a year in future, shouldn't there be some concession for people like me? I'd be spending half my life worrying and putting off looking at all those figures. How about, on medical grounds, 'prescribing' an accountant's services for all dyscalculics? Not too much to ask, is it ... but then again, how much is too much? I wouldn't know!<br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-34650342704918921952015-12-06T16:34:00.000+00:002015-12-06T16:35:21.408+00:00Public humiliation : Been there, done that!<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">Some of my writing friends and I, at a recent function, were talking about giving talks. More specifically, we were talking about the humiliation of giving talks when hardly anyone - or even no-one at all - turns up. It was a hilarious conversation, and afterwards I found myself thinking how nice it is that with fellow authors, we're able to laugh off these humiliations and not feel shamed or depressed about them. And then I thought: what if it happened the very first time you did an author event? Would you realise it's actually something that most of us experience, and accept it as just another disappointment along the road of disappointments that often make up much of a writing career - or would you be devastated and feel like giving up?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">With this in mind, I decided to write this little warning as an 'open letter' to new writers or newly published authors who may be considering starting to give talks and author events. Not to put them off, but on the contrary to welcome them to our world: the world of the survivors of public humiliation!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">A few years ago I was given a book as a present which opened my eyes to this phenomenon and at the same time, reassured me. It's called 'Mortification', edited by Robin Robertson, and the sub-title is: 'Writers' Stories of their Public Shame'. It's full of very funny anecdotes by writers about events where they faced empty auditoriums, indifferent organisers, bored audiences and badly advertised events. It was reassuring because it made me realise it happens to far better-known authors than me, and if they can laugh about it, so can I.</span></div>
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<i> At a signing of my first published novel, 2003. I sold one or two books!</i></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">Don't get me wrong: I've had very successful author events - fortunately, far more of these than the other type! And I love giving talks. I hasten to add that I didn't at first. We writers tend to be better at expressing ourselves in the written word than the spoken word - that's fairly obvious - and like many of us, I found my first few public engagements terrifying. Fortunately the memories of these have dimmed, but I'm pretty sure I wasn't very good. Probably my voice shook, and I mumbled and stumbled and spoke a lot of rubbish. I think the audiences were predictably small, probably boosted by my family, and I'm sure it's a good thing these were library talks so I wasn't charging a fee. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">But I'd been firmly advised that it was A Good Thing for a new author to Give Talks, so I soldiered on, and I got better at it. </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">As my career progressed I had more to talk about, more experience to call upon, and got to know what people liked to hear about. I realised one day that I was actually being paid to chat to people about what I love doing best - can't be bad - and I started to relax and enjoy it. </span><span style="color: blue;">We don't get out a lot, do we, glue to our computers as we tend to be - and it's nice to meet people who are interested in writing and in books and might even want a signed copy at the end of the meeting!</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">I don't do as many talks or events as some of my writing friends, but I have sometimes spoken to halls so full of people that some were standing at the back. Now, I don't kid myself that I'm that popular - those were meetings of very popular clubs, where the same number of people probably turned up to every meeting! And that's the key, if you don't want the humiliation of empty rows of chairs - offer yourself as guest speaker to clubs and organisations where you have a 'captive audience'. Then you'll only get an empty room if all the members are on holiday or if they all, to a man or woman, genuinely hate books, or talks by authors. Even then, you shouldn't take it personally. The speaker secretary shouldn't book something that their members aren't going to want!</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">On the other hand, giving a talk in a public venue such as a library, or doing a book signing in a bookshop, for instance, is asking for trouble if you're not very well known. In these circumstances, if you don't fancy humiliation I can only suggest renting your own crowd. Bribe a few friends and relatives to come along and behave enthusiastically, then there's just a chance their presence might attract a few more curious passers-by to hang around. But don't count on it. At a book signing a few years ago I behaved exactly like a stall-holder at Romford market (my native town) - bellowing out in my best barrow-boy tone: 'Come and meet your local author! Get your signed copies here!' One person wandered over, but only to ask where the toilet was. One of my trusty friends stood outside the shop, trying to encourage people in, without a lot of success, and I think I sold a total of three books - one to the friend, and the other two probably to staff of the shop. But I was pathetically grateful that I'd finally got a branch of the major bookseller to let me have a signing. I'd been asking for years. Oh no, I don't mind how long I humiliate myself for!</span></div>
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<i>At 'that' bookshop signing.</i></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">But people won't be persuaded into things if they're not interested. We wouldn't, so why should they? It hurts, when you put yourself out there and try your best - but that's life. Worse things happen. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the ... bookshop! Or the library, as I did recently after waiting 20 minutes in front of the rows of empty chairs arranged there, more in hope than realistic confidence, by the librarian who had already admitted it didn't look like anybody would turn up. I'm past being mortified. It's just sometimes the way it is. It can be just as crushing if someone in the audience falls asleep during your talk - even if they're very elderly, in a warm room, and don't look in the best of health. You could choose to be offended, I suppose - but I prefer to think of it as another little anecdote to laugh about with my writing friends.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><i>At a library Panel Event with fellow authors and good friends Maureen Lee, Fenella Miller</i></span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"><i> and Jean Fullerton. Panel events are a good way to share the humiliation!</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">It might feel good to be able to show off about the big audiences - the applause, the requests to come back, the compliments and sales of books at the end - of course that's what we all want, and it's lovely when it happens. But it's the funny stories about the times you persuade the two or three people who turn up to move forward from the back row so that you can have an informal chat instead of a talk, or when half the elderly audience get up and leave before the end because their bus is due - they're the stories that will make people warm to you, to laugh with you (not at you) - and will allow other writers to welcome you into the charmed circle of the humiliated. Because we've all been there, learned to shrug it off - and lived to tell the tale. </span></div>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-85079443960665923662015-11-01T15:01:00.000+00:002015-11-01T15:01:49.948+00:00High Tea at the Cat Cafe!<span style="color: purple;">'How about we celebrate your publication day with tea at one of London's cat cafes?' my lovely editor Emily suggested during the lead-up to the launch of <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/178503183X/ref=s9_simh_bw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-2&pf_rd_r=1THYJFGK9S377FKHGA0F&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=714144347&pf_rd_i=266239" target="_blank"><i>Oliver, the Cat Who Saved Christmas</i></a><i>. </i></span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">I frowned in puzzlement as I read her email. Tea sounded good - tea is one of the things that always sounds good to me! But what on earth was all this about a cat cafe? As a cat lover, and having so recently finished working on one of the most enjoyable stories I'd ever written, that sounded good too, but I couldn't quite envisage what it entailed. So of course, I promptly Googled it - and up came this link: </span><a href="http://www.ladydinahs.com/" target="_blank">www.ladydinahs.com</a><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">Of course, as soon as I saw the adorable pictures on the website, that was it. I emailed Emily back to say it was a great idea, and very appropriate for my publication day celebration!</span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">'Good. I'll invite Juliet too,' she responded. 'Lady Dinah's is actually the one I had in mind.'</span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">Juliet is my agent, and also fortunately a cat lover, and was just as surprised and excited by the idea of the Cat Emporium as I was. High Tea at the Cat Cafe. (Why does that sound so much like the title of a cowboy film?!)</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">And so the date and time were booked, marked in red in my diary, and I got back to the important task of the pre-publicity promotion for <i>Oliver</i>. As all authors know, this is an essential but time-consuming part of the job, and one which can't be skipped or skimmed these days, when every book has so many competing titles whose authors and publishers are busy doing the same thing. But the thought of the approaching publication date and High Tea at the Cat Cafe was keeping me going, the circled date in my diary urging me onward like a beacon of light at the end of the tunnel.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">And then, four days before the date, I couldn't move. If that sounds a little dramatic, believe me, the words don't come anywhere near doing justice to the state I was in that morning. My back, which had been 'niggling' with pain on and off for a few weeks, had become much worse the previous evening and I'd spent nearly all night awake, trying to get into a position that was less painful. By morning I was almost climbing the walls, groaning and sweating in agony. Anyone who's ever had disc problems in their back will now be wincing in sympathy. The inflammation from the ruptured disc was sending shock waves of white hot pain down my sciatic nerve, from buttock to toe. What made it worse was that I'd been in this situation five years previously, and the pain in my leg had lasted for nearly a year, despite all manner of analgesic options. I was terrified that this would happen again - and I realise now that the fear was making my muscles seize up, intensifying the whole thing. It was so awful, my husband called our GP and asked her to come out.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">I have to say right here - I have a wonderful GP. She not only turned up, knelt by my bedside and commiserated very sympathetically with my plight, she also told me quite firmly what I needed to be told, and wouldn't listen to from anyone else: whether I liked it or not, I had to take strong drugs. I <i>don't </i>like it, because they usually upset my stomach badly. But there was no alternative. As well as strong anti-inflammatory painkillers, she also prescribed Diazepam to relax the muscles which had gone into spasm. I must have been almost delirious at this point, because looking back I can't believe I was even thinking about it, but before she left, I asked her in a pathetic pitiful voice: </span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">'But will I be able to go to the Cat Cafe?'!</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">How ridiculous. A woman in such pain she can't move from the bed, talking about a Cat Cafe! Most doctors would probably have dismissed it as the ramblings of a bedridden old fool. But my lovely GP put her head on one side, considering it carefully, counting the days till The Day, and nodded thoughtfully.</span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">'If you take the drugs properly, I think you might be up and about by then.'</span><br />
<span style="color: purple;">'Really?' It was more than I'd dared to hope for, and I couldn't quite believe it. But it gave me what I needed most at that point - a flicker of hope that this wasn't going to go on for a whole year again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">Two days later, the drugs were doing their work. I was up, moving around slowly and carefully, treating myself like a piece of delicate china. Should I call Emily and warn her that there was a possibility I might not make our date? No - that was negative thinking. I started planning my journey. My husband would drive me to the station. I'd allow myself loads of time to manoevre the steps, and make sure I got a seat on the train. I'd get a taxi at the other end rather than walking, and be careful to start heading back before the rush hour. By the day before publication, I'd made up my mind. I was going to make it. Cats, here I come!</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium. If you didn't know it was there, and you passed it in the street, you'd be intrigued straight away, wouldn't you. It's on the main road in Shoreditch, East London, and don't even think about taking a chance on getting a table for High Tea if you haven't booked - it's so popular. As soon as you go into the reception area you know this is something special. All sorts of cat memorabilia is on sale for a start, and when you're shown through to the next room, you're asked to wash your hands and told a couple of house rules. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVa6JK01xAjHMIKys1wBUr9pvi7fJAGFZjMuaexEyB9mjDs-fh4tfYhW_AUXDMvfHDyjMPZwuKGZd07ba131SzuQUr6D1HXUG-rmWJzY9pTpKUZBjYNc90SdQhqttaLye7Q-JipFwL73dF/s1600/cat+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVa6JK01xAjHMIKys1wBUr9pvi7fJAGFZjMuaexEyB9mjDs-fh4tfYhW_AUXDMvfHDyjMPZwuKGZd07ba131SzuQUr6D1HXUG-rmWJzY9pTpKUZBjYNc90SdQhqttaLye7Q-JipFwL73dF/s200/cat+5.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You mustn't wake me!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: purple;">The cats mustn't be picked up - they can of course be petted, but not if they're asleep or eating. To any cat lover, this is pretty much common sense anyway unless you want your hand bitten! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8HSi8M8T3_38d-dT9If_wPs7vwFZ2pTQI_7bMHAQ2QYHDL8jMbthtB6JwBA6eNuZVxaPWLJGZhFpOgacS7j-2Bgoi-8HDshnx4YXtuRMb8cMXNfeAsAvreIawmm71G7OGPKlQCm43KgI/s1600/cat+6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8HSi8M8T3_38d-dT9If_wPs7vwFZ2pTQI_7bMHAQ2QYHDL8jMbthtB6JwBA6eNuZVxaPWLJGZhFpOgacS7j-2Bgoi-8HDshnx4YXtuRMb8cMXNfeAsAvreIawmm71G7OGPKlQCm43KgI/s200/cat+6.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sssssh!</td></tr>
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Lady Dinah's is a very responsibly run cat cafe where the cats are allowed to behave naturally, not encouraged to interact with humans in an unnatural way or against their wishes, so for instance, nobody is allowed to feed them titbits from the table. If they don't want to play with you, you just have to watch them doing their own thing.<br />
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<span style="color: purple;">And so we were shown through into the cafe area, which has two floors, both strewn with cat beds, cat toys, tunnels, scratching posts, multi-tiered platforms - and if you're lucky, an assortment of up to a dozen beautiful cats awake and wandering around the tables. Of course, several were sound asleep for the whole of our visit - that's the chance you have to take, given that cats spend such a great proportion of their lives sleeping! And all the cats at Lady Dinah's are so used to strange humans coming into their territory every day, they aren't the least bit bothered by us. But a couple of them were kind enough to show us some interest - and this one (below) was a particularly discriminating cat who knew a good book when he saw one being advertised!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SohQjvbv-xhQGSkW3W4ZwdGDMGvyoJBj01vgV5O5UaNENAf0luyB371Fbl3ApY_IaR5KBkzB3hAdl_L3faLYj3ZMYQweCzGQs7NlvoCZFjEh4elanwWQJM9mkY7bjaeDUsYm_sI8H2y7/s1600/cat+%252B+Oliver+flyer%2521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SohQjvbv-xhQGSkW3W4ZwdGDMGvyoJBj01vgV5O5UaNENAf0luyB371Fbl3ApY_IaR5KBkzB3hAdl_L3faLYj3ZMYQweCzGQs7NlvoCZFjEh4elanwWQJM9mkY7bjaeDUsYm_sI8H2y7/s320/cat+%252B+Oliver+flyer%2521.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hmm. Must add this title to my cat-alogue!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEEI72DIgqtIv_F75Q59JoA1nrZUUvxHNOHkufdO9PVQQ213sF_FiumXMOPpRVtVYtQzQUPrYDQVN2u_VAO74qkd-vBv-zKPbAAJicZHnvnrSpjxCYRX5IuISyYHUXav7Hflq1ht300hkG/s1600/cat+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEEI72DIgqtIv_F75Q59JoA1nrZUUvxHNOHkufdO9PVQQ213sF_FiumXMOPpRVtVYtQzQUPrYDQVN2u_VAO74qkd-vBv-zKPbAAJicZHnvnrSpjxCYRX5IuISyYHUXav7Hflq1ht300hkG/s200/cat+2.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This one didn't show so much interest in the book ...........</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXAyFX9Ff6Ao93AJEgrjqlK0MOUGRAA7NNH6TYLyHHj899xZdNb1ATpIqmVxfgJRXhddqcYMCg3zCti5RiuxQY3rDRF2waW-zcRmAd4xEIhDF5lo5O09xW4HGP2cUIl_iU-a-J1RD7Uvmt/s1600/cat+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="148" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXAyFX9Ff6Ao93AJEgrjqlK0MOUGRAA7NNH6TYLyHHj899xZdNb1ATpIqmVxfgJRXhddqcYMCg3zCti5RiuxQY3rDRF2waW-zcRmAd4xEIhDF5lo5O09xW4HGP2cUIl_iU-a-J1RD7Uvmt/s200/cat+3.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... in fact I think we can surmise that fiction isn't his thing!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: purple;">And then there was the tea! Well, that was amazing. First a glass of sparkling elderflower drink, and some nibbles as an appetiser - I loved the hummus - and then a cake stand with all three layers full of gorgeous tempting muffins, scones, carrot cake, cupcakes, brownies - what a selection. My mouth was watering so much it was hard to choose. But we needn't have worried; when we were too full to force down another crumb, the staff brought us boxes so that we could share out the remaining cakes to take home. </span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">When I told our server what the occasion was (never being one to pass up a good PR opportunity!), she was very interested, and happy to take some of my promotional cards for <i>Oliver</i> to display at the cafe. It was a great opportunity for Emily, Juliet and I to have a chat about reactions to the book so far, and future plans. The time passed so quickly I was slightly alarmed to realise that if I needed to be back at Liverpool Street station before the trains started to fill up with rush hour commuters, I'd have to get a taxi quickly. It was such a shame to say goodbye to each other, and to the cats of course, in a bit of a rush - but we'd had a really good time and were three very happy cat loving book lovers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">Looking back, perhaps it was a risky thing to do so soon after such a severe problem with my back, but thank goodness, I didn't suffer any deterioration, and my progress since has been slow but steady. I won't be getting down on the floor to play with any cats (or grandchildren) any time soon, but I've been able to continue with my writing work and my promotional activities, including a radio broadcast, with a library event still to come this Saturday. So I'm feeling optimistic. And I know that however many more books I'm lucky enough to have published, I'll always look back on the publication day of <i> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oliver-The-Cat-Saved-Christmas/dp/178503183X/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1446380948&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Oliver, the Cat who Saved Christmas</a></i> with a smile on my face. Thank you again, Emily, and <a href="http://www.eburypublishing.co.uk/" target="_blank">Ebury Publishing</a>, for our High Tea at the Cat Cafe!</span><br />
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-72813150318907632162015-10-17T16:33:00.000+01:002015-10-17T16:33:21.383+01:00Why cats?<div style="text-align: justify;">
'Why cats?' someone asked me recently after I'd been describing my new book 'Oliver, the Cat Who Saved Christmas'. I could only presume he wasn't a cat lover. I mean, why would you <i>not</i> want to write a story about cats? Anyone who has shared their life with a cat or two, or more, will know what I mean when I say you can quite easily idle away an afternoon or evening just watching them. As Sigmund Freud said, 'Time spent with cats is never wasted.'! They're clever, funny, interesting and absorbing - all the things we authors want our books to be!</div>
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Some people think everyone is either a cat person or a dog person - but I've had both, and loved both. However I do appreciate the huge difference between owning a dog and being owned by a cat! A dog will love you slavishly; a cat will make you his slave. I know some dog lovers say that this independent, aloof reputation of cats puts them off. You know where you are with a dog - his devotion is unquestioning. Our Springer spaniel used to wag her tail and smile at us lovingly even when we were telling her off. </div>
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But to dismiss cats as being standoffish Prima Donnas who make use of us for food and shelter, and then go about their separate lives without giving anything back, is to completely misunderstand them. Our three cats all had different personalities, but they all gave us lots of affection. Rather like children, they were sometimes rude, noisy or difficult, stayed out late, took us for granted and indulged in sulking sessions in their beds rather than play nicely with the family. But as with kids, all those things are forgiven when they jump on your lap for a cuddle and tell you they love you.</div>
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<i>Tell</i> you? I can hear the cat detractors laughing now. But if you haven't experienced the soft, gentle purring in your ear of a contented cat who nuzzles your face, licks your hands with his little rough tongue and blinks kisses at you, it's hard for me to explain and I'll probably never be able to convert you. Cats and humans make perfect companions. They don't expect our exclusive, undivided attention, to be 'the one and only', or for us to give everything up for them. That's an immature version of love, isn't it? We live our lives, they live theirs; but like humans who are happy living together because they give each other space, we're able to take huge pleasure and comfort from each other's company when we're together. The rattle of the cat-flap is like the key in the door when your partner/child/parent comes home. You put the kettle on (or dish up the Whiskas), settle down together and talk about your day. No-one is the boss; you choose to be together. <i>That's</i> grown-up love!</div>
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And of course - as we all know - cats can understand Human language. As Oliver says in my book, it's just such a shame that we humans have never learned to speak Cat!</div>
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<i>Oliver, the Cat Who Saved Christmas</i> is published by Ebury and on sale from 22 October in hardback and ebook editions. You can see it on <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oliver-Cat-Who-Saved-Christmas-ebook/dp/B00YK765QW/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1445095607&sr=1-1&keywords=oliver+the+cat+who+saved+christmas" target="_blank">Amazon</a> or buy from bookshops. And if by any strange chance you're <i>not </i>a cat lover, I'm sure you know someone who is, who'd like a Christmas present from you!</div>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-91847066838286991782015-08-14T14:53:00.002+01:002015-08-14T14:53:22.948+01:00Ten ways for writers to procrastinate - and pretend they aren't!Following on from my previous posts, which listed ten things you should never say to a writer, and ten things you should never do if you live with a writer, today I'm going to offer you ten suggestions for how to procrastinate. I know most of us writers don't need any excuse to procrastinate, if the words just won't flow or we've got to that point where we hate every word we've already written and frankly want to give up. But these suggestions come with the added benefit of <em>excuses</em> for procrastination, <em>reasons</em> for procrastination, so that in fact you never need to apologise again for putting off your writing . Of course, you should treat some of these with a hearty dose of salt!<br />
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1. <strong>Go for a walk. Or a run, a swim, a session at the gym - or whatever you do, or pretend to do, for fitness</strong>. <br />
Excuse: This is your Thinking Time. Also, you need to keep fit so that your body doesn't atrophy as well as your brain, and so you don't suffer serious obesity-related health issues before finishing your masterpiece, thus depriving your readers of your best work yet.<br />
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2. <strong>Make a cup of tea or coffee, pour a drink, make a snack</strong>. <br />
Excuse: Every great literary mind needs feeding. Wine and chocolate are known to be good for the brain, aren't they? Also, frequent breaks for small boosts of nutrition will prevent the need to stop for much longer to make a proper cooked meal, after which you'd need to wash up and probably fall asleep.<br />
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3. <strong>Phone a friend for a chat, or invite someone round (can be combined with No.2 above).</strong> <br />
Excuse: Writing is a solitary occupation. Your vocal chords might atrophy if you don't speak to someone at least once a day. Also, you need to keep up with the gossip, or how can you be expected to write realistic dialogue?<br />
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4. <strong>Spend a bit of time on social media.</strong><br />
Excuse: You are simply doing your promotion. But on the other hand, if all you do on social media is your promo, people will unfriend you, so it's necessary occasionally to spend some time posting pictures of your cute kitten/your cute baby/your dinner, and to enter into discussions about politics/the weather/the latest scandal about a well-know celebrity, thus maintaining interest in you as a human being and showcasing your literary prowess. (For this to be an effective excuse, you should if possible avoid 'CU2morrow', 'LOL', etc).<br />
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5. <strong>Do some housework</strong>.<br />
Excuse: This might sound like you're really desperate to get away from your writing. But the truth is, if your work is as successful as you hope, there will probably be photographers coming round from the local, or even national, press, and how would it look if there was three years' worth of dust on top of the cupboard behind your smiling face in the paper?<br />
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6. <strong>Go out shopping for a new outfit/get your hair done/have a long soak in the bath and put on some decent clothes</strong>.<br />
Excuse: You suspect the photographer might actually be coming today. If not, you'll need to repeat this process tomorrow.<br />
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7. <strong>Watch a little TV</strong>.<br />
Excuse: Obviously, this is for research purposes. You definitely need to watch re-runs of 'Dad's Army' in order to write your romantic fantasy novel. And 'Breaking Bad' helps to provide background for that pre-school children's story, doesn't it?<br />
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8. <strong>Have a nap</strong>.<br />
Excuse: Writing is exhausting, as we all know. And while asleep, your subconscious will work out the next part of the story for you so that when you wake up, the tricky area of plot you've been stuck on for two months will be completely resolved. If it isn't, you will of course need another little nap, possibly after a glass of wine and some chocolate.<br />
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9. <strong>Read a book/magazine/newspaper/children's comic/travel brochure/mail order catalogue/back of a cereal packet/that bit of paper that came through the door advertising tree lopping.</strong><br />
Excuse: It's a well known fact that reading is essential for any successful writer. Reading your own work is counterproductive and can be depressing, therefore a supply of other material is required at regular intervals.<br />
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10. <strong>Plan a holiday</strong>.<br />
Excuse: Well, needless to say, this is also for research. You're going to set your edgy urban dystopian fantasy in a beach resort in the Maldives, aren't you. Or the travel feature you're going to write about Scotland requires you to take a flight via Australia. This is all good practice in creative thinking. Just don't try extending it into creative tax avoidance. Setting down first class fares to Sydney as expenses won't look good when the fee for 'How to Spend a Cheap Weekend in Glasgow' sits opposite it in your Income and Expenditure records. <br />
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So, you've already tried all those ruses? OK - now forget them, stop reading blogs, and <em>get back to your writing</em>!<br />
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-57005551680856086342015-03-21T16:54:00.003+00:002015-03-21T16:54:58.525+00:00Grandparents - this is for you!It only seems like yesterday ... well, it <em>was </em>only a few years ago! ... that my other half and I paced the living-room floor in a mixture of excitement and terror, waiting for that phone call from our son-in-law to say everything was fine, that our first grandchild had arrived safely and our daughter had survived the experience. Since then, we've been through a similar situation five more times, giving us a total of six small grandkids with our three daughters. And it doesn't get any easier, or of course any less exciting. <br />
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In some ways, it's harder, isn't it - being the mother of the mother, knowing what your daughter's going through, having all those memories come flooding back, no less wonderful, no less painful, no less <em>life-changing</em>, for being over thirty years ago. And so it continues through the new-born period, remembering how it felt to be exhausted from lack of sleep, scared about how you're going to cope, and euphoric with love for this new little scrap of humanity, all at the same time. And then into the toddler phase, worrying about their tantrums, their fussy eating, all their little fears and fads and funny sayings that make up their developing personalities. And on to their first term at school and all the excitement and worries <em>that </em>can bring. Yes, the world might have moved on, technology might have altered everything, fashions change in child rearing just as in everything else - but basically, it's all still the same. And seeing it all over again through the eyes of a grandparent, when you're older, perhaps a little slower and creakier, with possibly more time to spare, a lot less energy but hopefully a bit more patience than first time around, is a joy and a blessing beyond words.</div>
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I was lucky in that I'd retired from the day-job before the first grandchild came along - and although I'm still, of course, working as a writer, it's the perfect home based job to fit around visits from the family, child minding dates and the occasional emergency. And the perfect way to use some of my experiences in a novel!<br />
<br />
I'd noticed a while back that there don't seem to be many novels with grandparents as the main characters, and I can't see why not. Older people apparently buy the most books, and some of us, I think, would like to see stories that don't <em>only </em>depict senior members of the family as old fools sitting in the corner muttering to themselves and being ridiculed! Most of us give an active and (I hope) valuable contribution to our young families, and three-generational family life can be rich in pleasure and laughter, to say nothing of arguments, worries, and all the other emotions that make up relationship dramas.<br />
<br />
This was the thinking behind my new book 'A GRAND THING', available now in paperback from <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/A-Grand-Thing-Sheila-Norton/dp/1508917523/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1426943443&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Amazon here</a>, and for pre-order as a Kindle ebook <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Grand-Thing-Sheila-Norton-ebook/dp/B00USBH98M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-1&qid=1426943443" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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It's the story of Kate, whose son and daughters drive her mad with their constant arguments, especially about whose children she looks after the most. The only time they agree on something is when they believe Kate's losing the plot after she gets involved with three other grandparents: Bob, who struggles with his arthritis as well as his secret feelings about Kate; Jackie, who has become a grandmother earlier than usual and isn't too sure she likes it; and annoying neighbour Pam who seems determined to be nasty and interfering. Kate doesn't <em>think </em>she's getting old and forgetful - she's just busy, but she loves all her family and wishes they'd get along together!</div>
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I hope I've managed to reassure my own three lovely daughters that nothing in this story is based on them, or their lives - and especially that they're a lot nicer, less argumentative, selfish and demanding, than Kate's offspring! </div>
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I also hope my fellow grandparents will enjoy this light-hearted story about family life - but of course, it isn't exclusively aimed at my generation, and I think mums, dads, aunts, uncles and anyone who understands the pleasures and pressures of the extended family will also find it an enjoyable read. </div>
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And if you agree that there aren't many novels with grandparents at their heart, please let me know. Perhaps in due course I'll write another one!</div>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-2401379042715827502015-03-10T14:31:00.003+00:002015-03-10T14:33:37.846+00:00How to live with an author (and not end up killing each other)<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not that we authors are difficult
to live with, of course – but I’ve occasionally heard strange and unfounded
suggestions that we might sometimes be snappy when the book’s going badly, and
frustratingly unavailable when it’s going well. I’ve even heard it said that we
frequently ignore our other halves completely and forget about mundane things
like getting dressed, going to the day job, or buying food. To counter these
absurd and malicious slurs on our characters, I’ve come up with ten basic rules
for those fortunate enough to share a home with an author, and whose fault it
must obviously be if such problems arise. I can only suggest the following
points be taken on board, and if all else fails, just stop complaining and
think yourselves lucky you live with a creative spirit. ;)</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’ve referred to the author
throughout as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">she, </i>simply because <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">he/she </i>and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">his/her </i>are so tedious. But with some obvious amendments, the rules
and suggestions are applicable to every age and gender of author, so no
excuses!</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Continually checking her Amazon ranking, and/or
her sales figures, hunting for reviews and Googling her own name to see if
anyone has mentioned her, is of course <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not
</i>self-obsession, it’s part of the job. If she becomes famous or a bestseller,
you’ll be doing it too, and basking in the glory, so don’t sneer.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There will be days when no writing happens. On
these days, just be grateful for the fact that she might have time to cook
meals, mow the lawn, play with the kids, walk the dog. Make the most of it and
whatever you do, don’t comment. She may be having a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">thinking </i>day, a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">planning </i>day,
or just a bloody awful day when the book’s going so badly wrong, she hates
every word of it, can’t understand why she ever thought it was a good idea to
write it, is close to deleting every version of it and giving up writing
altogether. Trust me, unless you want to be hated and deleted yourself, don’t
ask. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
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</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On a good writing day, when it’s flowing like
magic and she finally believes she might actually get to The End with this one,
(you’ll be able to tell by the look on her face), try not to stand behind her
looking over her shoulder asking if she’s planning on sitting there all day,
whether she’d like to go for a walk, watch you play golf, go shopping for screws
or light bulbs, or make other similarly annoying suggestions. If you do, don’t
expect answers, or certainly not polite ones.</span></div>
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</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
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</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If she’s excited or pleased about something that
doesn’t seem too earth-shattering to you – perhaps a chapter has worked out just
right, or she got a 5 star review, or had a great idea for the next book, try
to sound as impressed as you would be if one of your mates scored for Man
United. Pour her a glass of wine. Congratulate her. Whatever you do, don’t let
your face say ‘<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is that all</i>?’ </span></div>
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</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
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</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If she’s crying over the middle part – or the
ending, or the beginning – offer chocolate. There’s always a chance she’s
crying with happiness, or because she’s writing a very emotional part of the
plot. But the chocolate won’t hurt anyway.</span></div>
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</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please don’t ever refer to her writing as her <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">little hobby, </i>even if at the beginning
that’s all it appears to be. If you do, it will be remembered when she gets a
bestseller and starts earning mega bucks, and you’ll wish you’d never opened
your big mouth. (That's if she hasn't left you by then.)</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don’t offer plot lines unless she asks you to.
And if asked, do try to bear in mind the type of book she’s writing. If you
suggest a tribe of flesh-eating aliens wreaking havoc in the middle of her
romantic comedy, don’t be surprised if she ignores you.</span></div>
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</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When introducing her to friends or colleagues,
it really isn’t funny to make cracks about her writing the next <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">50 Shades of Grey</i>, or claim that you
give her all her ideas, or that she bases her sexy heroes on you. It’s
particularly not funny the tenth time you do it.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writing can be exhausting. The trouble is, it doesn’t
look like hard work, because it’s only the brain that’s being strained. But if
you don’t believe it is, try it for yourself. That’s a better strategy than
snorting derisively about her hours of writing compared with the digging you’ve
been doing in the garden. </span></div>
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</span><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<li style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s never been harder to succeed as a writer.
So if she has any kind of success, whether it’s finding an agent, achieving
publication, producing her own self-published book, or just actually finishing
the damned thing – be proud of her, and let her know it. We authors need every
confidence booster we can get. Be the one who gives her that self-belief, and
you’ll get your reward in the ‘acknowledgements’. Or at the very least, you
won’t have that horrible vague suspicion that the villain in the next book is
based on you.</span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<div style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-top: 0cm; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Any authors reading this are welcome to print out this list and leave it casually lying around where their other half can't fail to see it. I take no responsibility for any resultant arguments!</span> </span></div>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-55705379417435166762015-02-14T14:43:00.001+00:002015-02-14T14:54:27.818+00:00Ten things you should never say to an author ...We all know the feeling. You've given a fascinating, witty, entertaining talk about your writing, to a receptive audience who seemed suitably impressed, laughed in the right places, and mostly managed not to fall asleep. Basking in the glow of their smiles of appreciation, you close by saying you'd be happy to answer any questions ... and if you're lucky, a few hands are raised straight away. With even greater luck, there'll be some good questions about interesting aspects of your talk - why you do or don't use a pseudonym, whether you choose your own cover images, and so on. You respond, pleased again to note the hushed attention in the hall, the way your words are obviously enthralling your intelligent audience. And all the time, you're kind of holding your breath, waiting for it, because sooner or later it's going to come ....<br />
<br />
<br />
'Where do you get your ideas from?'<br />
<br />
<br />
Actually, I don't really mind that one, even though I've heard it compared to asking a carpenter where he gets his wood from. It's a fair enough question, and an easy one to answer (ideas come from everywhere - from being alive, from being observant, from talking to people, from reading, from watching the News ... I could go on, and frequently do.) Sometimes I've joked that my ideas come to me in dreams, simply because people seem to prefer that answer to the mundane 'Everywhere, life, (etc).'<br />
<br />
<br />
But there are other, far worse things you can ask an author, or say to him/her. I've had most of them said to me, and have on occasions had to grit my teeth and force my face into a sweet smile in order to give a reply that isn't a snarl of irritation.<br />
<br />
<br />
So if you want to avoid upsetting your favourite famous author when you're lucky enough to meet her at a festival, or even upsetting your friend, neighbour, brother or wife who happens to be a not-at-all-famous author and might be more likely than the other kind to bite your head off, here's a list of comments and questions to avoid:<br />
<br />
<br />
1. (My most hated one): <em>'I'd write a book too, if only I had the time'</em>. I wrote six of mine while working full-time and looking after kids, home, etc, so Don't Talk To Me About Having Time! As if time is all you need, anyway, to be able to write a novel! Oh, I'd be a brain surgeon and play football for Man United if only I had the time. Grrrrr.....<br />
<br />
<br />
2. (In a similar vein): <em>'I've got an idea for a book but I don't know how to start writing it/haven't got time to write it/don't want to write it. If you like, I'll tell you and you can use it. It's my life history ...'</em><br />
And ... don't tell me, you're convinced it will make me rich.<br />
<br />
<br />
3. <em>'Is it autobiographical?'</em> No. It's fiction. I made it up. That's what I do.<br />
<br />
<br />
4. <em>'Am I in it?'</em> No. But if you were, I'd get you murdered off. <br />
<br />
<br />
5. <em>'I haven't heard of you' </em> aka '<em>I haven't seen your books in Tesco.' </em>No, because I'm not in the best seller list, I'm not a celebrity, there are thousands of other authors competing with me and you've just rubbed my nose in it.<br />
<br />
<br />
6. <em>'Why are you still working</em>?' This was a common one before I retired from the day job. People seemed to think that, because I'd had some books published, I'd be selling up, moving to Antigua or the Azores and living in the lap of luxury. Hello? If an author has a day job, it's because he needs it, because most authors don't earn their living from writing. Trust me, I didn't work for the NHS for the fun of it!<br />
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<br />
7. <em>'How much do you earn?'</em> I mean, honestly - would you ask a plumber, or a postman, or an accountant that question?<br />
<br />
<br />
8. <em>'Why don't you write science fiction/erotica/a TV series/a serious literary novel? </em>Probably for the same kind of reasons YOU don't.<br />
<br />
<br />
9. <em>'Would you like to see one of your books made into a film/ a TV mini series/ a best seller? </em>Do I really even need to answer this one? Should I try a sarcastic 'No, I'd hate it', or is that too mean?!<br />
<br />
<br />
And finally, of course, there's always:<br />
10. <em>'I've written a book too. Can you tell me how to get it published?'</em> Certainly. It might take a while to tell you, though. About 40 years, in fact - that's how long it took me to learn how to do it myself.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
I should finish by saying that this is all, of course, a bit tongue-in-cheek. I really love talking to people about writing, and I've never actually been known to get irritated enough by any question, or comment, to want to murder the person making it ... even as a character in my next book. So feel free ... ask away. Er ... but maybe just don't get me started on the thing about not having enough time ... <br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-37612888412444786212015-02-07T20:44:00.000+00:002015-02-07T20:44:19.567+00:00Traditional versus Independent - fors and againsts?It struck me yesterday, as I emailed my completed and edited new novel to my agent, that I am, quite frankly, a Crazy Mixed Up Author. Why? Well, here I am, on the one hand hoping the new book will enchant and excite an editor in one of the big traditional publishing houses enough to earn me a new contract. On the other hand, I'm getting ready to self-publish it anyway, and I honestly don't think of this as the second-best option.<br />
<br />
<br />
What's going on? Do I really want a new publisher or don't I? It's not as if I haven't been there, done that, already - it was my lifelong ambition to be published, and I did it, eight times over. Now, I'm loving the experience of self-publishing, and to be honest, I earn more from it than I ever did when I was with a publisher.<br />
<br />
<br />
So what are the points in favour of being with a publisher - or without one? As someone who's sat in both camps for some time now, I have my own views - others may of course disagree.<br />
<br /><br />
<br />
<br />
1. One of the joys of self-publishing is the speed at which it happens. Obviously the writing and careful editing takes the same amount of time! - but from the time you have everything, including cover image and blurb, ready to upload, it's SO quick, your book can be published before you've even finished telling everyone about it if you're not careful! <br />
<br />
<br />
2. Getting paid also happens a lot faster. However much, however little, you earn from Amazon, it comes to you every month, as opposed to six months with a trad publisher. And there's no waiting to 'earn out of the advance' (because there's no advance - just royalties, straight off - and to be fair, some traditional publishers have scrapped advance payments too now). <br />
<br />
<br />
3. Communication! Questions, queries, problems ... I've found Amazon great, and fast to respond. To be fair, my editors at the publishers were brilliant, very friendly and helpful - but some of the other departments take forever to respond to an email, and it's really hard to find out, in between six monthly statements, how your sales are doing. With Kindle Direct Publishing, you can see literally every day how many copies of each book have been sold and how much you've earned. That's a real plus.<br />
<br />
<br />
4. It's all about taking control of your own career - that's what a lot of Indie authors say, and yes, to a certain extent that's part of the pleasure. All decisions, for a self-publisher, are your own. Cover image, selling price, and especially publicity and promotion - all down to you. But it's hard work, and it takes time away from the actual writing. I enjoy it, but I also think it can be a mixed blessing.<br />
<br />
<br />
5. Not having an editor ... that can be a real problem for self-publishers. You either pay for an editing service, or you're lucky enough to know someone suitably qualified and capable, or you do it yourself, which is risky. And an editor is someone on your side, someone who actively likes your work and wants you to succeed. It can be hard not having that relationship.<br />
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6. Physically publishing the book isn't always easy. It was a steep learning curve for me, although after the first couple of times with KDP I found it a lot easier. I've found CreateSpace (for print editions) more tricky. Some authors are completely put off by having to learn these processes, and they either pay someone to do it for them, or choose not to self-publish because it's too challenging. But I'm proud of the fact that I've mastered it (apart form occasional hiccups), considering the fact that I'm 'Not Young'!<br />
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7. Self-publishing is still looked down on by some people. Yes, it's become a lot more respectable these days, and yes, most of us 'in the business' know, and understand, that there are loads of good books being self-published, just as there are plenty of not-so-good books being brought out by publishers. (Think about all those celebrity authors ... !). But while so many people 'wannabe an author' without actually being able to write, and while they're able to put books up on Amazon that aren't good, it's hard not to get tarred with the same brush. <br />
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8. In the same way, it's hard to stand out from the crowd - especially hard for those writers who haven't already acquired a fan base before self-publishing - because of the sheer numbers of books 'out there'. It's a gamble whether huge amounts of self promo on social media will help; some get lucky, others struggle away and only sell a handful of copies of what might be a very good book that just doesn't get noticed.<br />
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9. But traditional publishers expect us to do most of the PR ourselves these days, anyway!<br />
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10. Bottom line, for me, is that the offer of a contract from a big publisher is still the 'proof'' that your book is considered good enough. It's damned hard to be taken on by an editor these days, everyone knows it, and that email saying your book has 'passed muster' is the ultimate approbation. Likewise, seeing your book on the shelf in a bookshop - that's such a thrill. Seeing it on offer on Amazon because you put it there yourself is immensely satisfying - but having done both, I admit I wouldn't have missed the thrill of that first 'bookshop experience' for anything.<br />
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So which is best? Hmmm .... Well, a new contract would have to be a good one, to tempt me away from self-publishing now, although I'd be thrilled and excited to be offered one. The potential earnings would need to be better than I'm doing with self-publishing. But I'd probably be far more desperate for the mainstream experience if I hadn't been lucky enough to have experienced it already.<br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-56133581357841217452014-12-10T16:31:00.002+00:002014-12-10T16:31:55.116+00:00Can't choose a book by looking at the cover.... ?Or can you?<br />
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Some of my re-published backlist books have been around for a while now, so I decided to give them a facelift, with new cover images. Perhaps sometimes a different image might make people notice a book for the first time - what do you think? Do you choose a book by looking at the cover? (Or cover image in the case of an ebook?).<br />
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Here are the new images so far. It's been fun choosing new ones anyway!<br />
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-85691596258147283752014-09-05T17:17:00.000+01:002014-09-05T17:17:05.188+01:00Child migrants - a sad background for my new bookIt was reading a book called 'Empty Cradles' by Margaret Humphreys that first focused my mind on the plight of the child migrants. As a Sunday Times review of this shocking, haunting, real-life story quite simply stated: 'The secrets of the lost children of Britain may never have been revealed if it had not been for [the actions of] Margaret Humphreys'. Margaret devoted many years of her life to uncovering the facts about these children, fighting the authorities who had tried to bury the truth, supporting the adults who had spent their lives in a kind of bewilderment about their origins, and eventually setting up the Child Migrants Trust and provoking an apology from both the Australian and the British governments.<br />
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Some of you might have seen the subsequent film of the book, 'Oranges and Sunshine', and like me, been moved to tears by the revelations of a scandal that somehow seemed to have bypassed the consciousness of an entire nation - in fact an entire world, as these children were transported to Australia, Canada, South Africa and other countries where at the time there was a requirement for 'good, white, British stock' to supplement their populations. <br />
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Most of the children involved were taken from children's homes, often without the permission of any family they may have had, sometimes told falsely that their parents were dead and given fictitious stories about being sent on a holiday, or being sent abroad for a better life as nobody wanted them in the UK.<br />
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Shocking as I found all of this, even more shocking was the fact that this transportation of innocent children had been going on from the mid 1800s and didn't stop until the 1960s. The 1960s! It only feels like yesterday! I was a teenager at that time, and the whole ethos of the decade was of the dawn of a new era, of youth and freedom and openness. What a terrible irony it was that during those years when we were dancing to the Beatles' first hits and cavorting as mods and rockers, little children were <em>still </em>being sent off on ships to a new and frightening life thousands of miles from everything they'd ever known. In some cases the migrants were lucky enough to be taken into new homes where they had a good life. But in all too many cases the opposite was true - they were used as child labour, housed in worse conditions than those they'd left behind, and many were physically or sexually abused. <br />
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My own experiences of Australia have been a far cry from these unhappy stories. My brother emigrated as one of the 'Ten Pound Poms' in 1968, married a girl who was travelling out on the same ship, and has had a great life there, raising a family, working hard and having lived in several different parts of the country. I've been lucky enough to visit twice, and on the second occasion just two years ago, I was already planning a new novel to be set partly in Australia. By then I'd read the Margaret Humphreys book and seen the film, and had decided the child migrants theme would be part of the background of my novel, but not its entirety. During my stay I was able to visit an exhibition about the child migrants in Melbourne, and also the docks at Fremantle where many of the children first set foot in Australia, and where this statue stands as a permanent reminder of that shameful part of the history of both our countries:<br />
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Because I wanted my new novel TICKET TO RIDE to consist of two separate stories which become linked during the narrative, the child migrant theme is only one thread. The other concerns a rock musician who mysteriously goes missing towards the end of the 1960s. If you'd like to find out how these two themes become linked and what happens to the two (fictitious) children featured in the prologue to TICKET TO RIDE, you can pre-order the Kindle edition right now on Amazon <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/TICKET-RIDE-Sheila-Norton-ebook/dp/B00N6QYBE6/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1409933045&sr=1-1&keywords=ticket+to+ride" target="_blank">here</a> , and it will be delivered to your Kindle or other e-reading device on the publication date of 3 October. Amazon won't charge your account until then. Or you can watch for another announcement very soon when the paperback edition will be available, also from Amazon.</div>
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If my story helps to make more people aware, as I was that first time I read 'Empty Cradles', of the unbelievable cruelty imposed on thousands of innocent children by corrupt officials within our governments who thought nothing of using them as pawns - then I'll have achieved a little more, this time, than simply writing and publishing another novel.</div>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-39321655659864625102014-04-17T09:39:00.002+01:002014-04-17T09:39:58.239+01:00YESTERDAY is here!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Anyone would think it's my first book, not my twelfth! But I'm making no apologies for the excitement I feel on the launch of YESTERDAY - my first book that's set in the 1960s.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: red; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><strong>It's available from today (17 April) on Amazon for Kindle or Kindle app – and
you can purchase it </strong></span><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/YESTERDAY-Sheila-Norton-ebook/dp/B00JKOM7YY/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397121026&sr=1-4&keywords=sheila+norton"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="background-color: white; color: red;"><strong>here</strong></span></span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: red; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><strong> now, for
the launch price of £1.99.</strong></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: red;">YESTERDAY is the story of Cathy, an ordinary teenager
growing up in the Sixties, who finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong
time during those turbulent times. The events that follow will haunt her for
the rest of her life, until – forty years later – she has to revisit her
troubled teenage years, face her memories and try to work out what actually
happened back in 1964.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: black;">But as well as being set against the backdrop of the Sixties, arguably one
of the most socially interesting periods of recent history, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">YESTERDAY</b> is also very much a story
about growing up, about friendships and love affairs, relationships within
families and the fall-out of bigotry, jealousy and revenge – all of which, of
course, have affected every generation since time began. So I hope the story
will appeal to all readers, not just those of us who remember seeing the
Beatles live in concert and riding motorbikes or scooters in our leather gear
or our Parkas! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">There’s already been a lot of interest in YESTERDAY in
the media, </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">with several magazines and
newspapers publishing articles I’ve written for them about my memories of the
1960s, the Mods and Rockers, and how I used those memories in writing the book.
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">And I’ll be talking about the book on BBC Radio Essex on Tuesday 22 April at
3.30pm.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">I’m also appearing on a blog tour </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">where there will be interviews, pieces I’ve written
about YESTERDAY and the 1960s, and some book reviews.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Here are the details of the tour if you’d like to follow it:<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">17 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://compellingreads.co.uk/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://compellingreads.co.uk</span></span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">: Review and interview</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">18 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.brookcottagebooks.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">www.brookcottagebooks.blogspot.com</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">: Feature about my best Sixties memory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">19 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://mebookshelfandi.co.uk/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://mebookshelfandi.co.uk</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">: Review, and feature about growing up in the 1960s.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">20 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.areadersreviewblog.com/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">www.areadersreviewblog.com</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">: Review, and feature about the global influence of the Sixties decade.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">21 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://erins-choice.blogspot.co.uk/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://erins-choice.blogspot.co.uk</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">: Feature about why I wrote about the 1960s – a decade of changes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">22 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://theromaniacgroup.wordpress.com/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://theromaniacgroup.wordpress.com</span></span></a><u><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">: Interview</span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">23 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.jeanfullerton.com/jean's-blog"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">www.jeanfullerton.com/jean’s-blog</span></span></a><u><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;"> </span></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">: Interview</span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">24 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://fenellamiller.blogspot.co.uk/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://fenellamiller.blogspot.co.uk</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> : Interview<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">25 April:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://authorsophia.wordpress.com/"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">http://authorsophia.wordpress.com</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> : Interview<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: red;">You might also like to catch up with all the latest news and gossip about
YESTERDAY on the <strong>Facebook page </strong></span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/YesterdayTheBook"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: red;">https://www.facebook.com/YesterdayTheBook</span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: red;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">So please go and have a quick look at </span></b><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/YESTERDAY-Sheila-Norton-ebook/dp/B00JKOM7YY/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1397068576&sr=1-4&keywords=sheila+norton"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="color: blue;">Amazon
UK<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>here</span></span></b></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">-<span style="color: red;"> </span></span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">or browse the Kindle store for YESTERDAY now while it's available at the launch price of £1.99!</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">And as this book is so different from all my others, I’d love to hear readers’
reactions. If you enjoy YESTERDAY, please give me some feedback by leaving a review on Amazon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;">Thank you - and happy reading!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-35698410934731663512014-04-08T16:31:00.000+01:002014-04-08T16:32:10.048+01:00Writing from personal memoriesI've been asked several times recently, during the lead-up to publication of my 1960s themed novel YESTERDAY (being published next week), whether I wrote the book using my own memories of the period. Of course, I'd like to pretend I'm not old enough to have any such memories, but I'm not vain enough or deluded enough to bother trying! <br />
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The answer is yes - of course, a lot of the fun of writing about the era was the fact that I was a teenager myself back then. And yes, the heroine of my novel - Cathy - is a girl of about the same age I was then, growing up in the same area of Essex, even going to a school which was similar to mine in some ways. So it's natural for people to ask me (as a newspaper interviewer has in fact just asked me today) whether I based Cathy on myself.<br />
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In fact, I didn't. Not consciously. But as all writers of fiction will be aware, there's quite a fine line between writing a story based on our own memories and experiences, and writing something that's almost autobiographical. That's why we have to be so careful when writing fiction which has been inspired by real life stories concerning friends or acquaintances - they might recognise themselves, however much we try to disguise them, and they might not be happy about it!<br />
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Cathy's story is not my story. So although the background details of her life - the fact that she was a Mod, and a Beatles' fan - were the same as mine, this isn't particularly surprising as nearly all young girls in 1963-4 were Beatles' fans, and most teenagers were either Mods or Rockers, or at least sympathetic to one side or the other.<br />
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But the serious things that happen to Cathy and the other characters in YESTERDAY didn't happen to me - they are my invention. Cathy's family is nothing like my family and her friends are nothing like my friends. By placing her in my home town, and at my own age, it was easy for me to imagine myself walking in her shoes, experiencing the things she went through - and I hope this, as well as all my memories of 1960s events, music and fashion, has given the story an added dose of realism. <br />
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You can catch up with all the latest news and gossip about YESTERDAY on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/YesterdayTheBook" target="_blank">Facebook page</a> for the book.<br />
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I wonder how many other authors have written novels based on their own personal memories? <br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-30818825456371317952014-03-29T10:37:00.001+00:002014-03-29T10:37:33.203+00:00How I started out as a writerLike most authors, I'm often asked when I give talks 'How did you get started?' Understandably, aspiring writers are always looking for help and advice, which I do try to give whenever I can. But I have to say, my path to publishing success wasn't a straightforward one!<br />
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I always wanted to write - from as far back as I can remember it was what I did for fun. (Some might say I was a strange child!). It remained my hobby all through school, through my teenage years when I scribbled endlessly in diaries and wrote experimental poetry, right to the time when I had my three daughters and wrote stories for them. But I never seriously considered becoming a published author at that time. It was certainly a dream - but I didn't think it was a realistic one. Even back then, I knew how hard it was and probably didn't think I was good enough.<br />
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It was a story for children that became my first publication - I'd seen the little stories in the 'Brownie' magazine that my girls enjoyed at the time, and for the first time, thought: 'I could write one just as good as that'. But I was still completely stunned when it was accepted! I remember I was paid £28 - this was in the mid 1980s. I went on to sell them quite a few more short stories and serials, and when my daughters were a little older and took 'Today's Guide' magazine instead of the 'Brownie', I sold stories to them too. <br />
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At this stage, I started wondering whether I could try something more ambitious. I had no idea where to start - but then I saw an advert in the paper for 'Writing Magazine'. At this stage I still felt quite self-conscious about the whole thing, like I was being ridiculous even expecting to be taken seriously as a writer. I didn't tell many people what I was doing - it wasn't so common then to have these kind of aspirations. Nobody in my family had done anything like it, I hadn't got an relevant qualifications apart from an A-level in English, and I'd never been to a class, writing group, a talk of any kind or asked anyone's advice. <br />
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But there was a short story competition every month in 'Writing Magazine' (there still is) - and something made me have a go. And to my amazement, I won first prize. A year or so later, I entered another one, won first prize again, and was then judged their 'Winner of Winners' for the year - which involved me attending a big posh 'do' in London where I received a shield, and a very nice cheque.<br />
And it was there I met Dawn, another prize-winner, who's been a good friend and fantastic support ever since although we live at different ends of the country. Dawn was already having short stories published in women's magazines and talking to her, I decided I was ready to try going down the same route. I suppose the competition wins had given me the confidence I'd been lacking.<br />
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My first submission, to 'Woman's Weekly', was accepted - and then I was on a roll. I finally believed I could do it, and that other people might take my dream seriously. Over the course of the following ten years or so, I would have over 100 short stories published in the various women's magazines, but my best market was 'Woman's Realm'. I was earning a nice, fairly regular extra little income, and was chuffed with my success. But when 'the Realm' went out of circulation, I suddenly had a vision of the future. Fiction in magazines was becoming less popular. The other magazines weren't publishing so many short stories. I needed to investigate other possibilities. <br />
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I'd tried a few times before to write a novel - but it had somehow never worked. Looking back, I think I probably tried to be too serious, or too clever, or to produce something that I thought people ought to like. This time, I just wrote what I wanted to: a very light-hearted story about an ordinary working mum approaching her 50th birthday whose life was hectic and difficult but also very funny. <br />
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I approached agents, then I approached publishers direct (some of them still allowed direct submissions at that stage). For about 18 months it was a continual stream of rejections - but I was heartened by the positive tone of some of them. ('I loved it but it wasn't right for us', etc). So I kept going. And in February 2002 my first novel 'The Trouble With Ally' was accepted by Piatkus Books.<br />
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That was the start of my career as a novelist. I was working full-time in a busy job, so I'd still never done a writing course, joined a group, or read any how-to books and still didn't have an agent (I have now) - so I had absolutely no idea what I was doing at any stage of the process! Luckily my editors were very helpful, and so was the Society of Authors, who checked my contracts for me. And after the first few books had been published, I heard about the Romantic Novelists' Association. Joining the RNA introduced me to my best writing 'buddies' locally, and they've been a fantastic support through good times and bad.<br />
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Now on the verge of producing my twelfth book YESTERDAY - which is in a completely different genre - I've taken a couple of twists and turns along the road including the big change to self-publishing, which has worked out well. As you can tell from my 'career path', it's quite difficult to answer that question about how I got started ... it was a very gradual process! I was obviously not young by the time my first novel was published! And although in some ways I wish I'd had the confidence to try to make my dream a reality when I was younger, in other ways it's been fantastic to have enjoyed this success later in life - doing what I've always enjoyed. <br />
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-85754252101285895602014-03-22T11:56:00.002+00:002014-03-22T11:57:43.780+00:00Changing directionI've sometimes been asked, when I give talks about writing, which were the most exciting moments of my writing career. So far it's been quite easy to answer. There was the day in the early 1990s when I went to a posh event in London to receive an award and very nice cheque for being the 'Winner of Winners' in a national short story competition. Then, of course, the day in 2002 when I got the email from a publisher telling me that there was a contract in the post to me: my first novel had been accepted. That was the best moment of all! It was exciting, too, when my editor suggested, on accepting my sixth novel, that she'd like me to take on a pseudonym (Olivia Ryan) for a series of three books. And it was also exciting (if a little nerve-racking) when I decided to start self-publishing.<br />
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Now I'm approaching another of those moments! In less than four weeks I'll be publishing another new book on Amazon (as a Kindle ebook) - and for the first time it's NOT contemporary fiction, NOT a RomCom - in fact it's something so different from all my previous books, it's almost like I'm starting a brand new career!<br />
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YESTERDAY is set in the 1960s - one of the most exciting and socially interesting periods of recent history, and the heroine of the story, Cathy Ferguson, is an ordinary teenager growing up during the years of the Beatles and the Mods and Rockers. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGe17c88Bu_mPPV9vxd12fxh_7vSUztMwvocJs3PddA-nybSx8ipkht1sj2Gfl39-WFbsc5W8_ky2zzH18shd-VGwbYG8Klf5hHvHmieAMXSsByVgJ8CpymQPOD0LPbMQAEg04BXFJm3CO/s1600/YESTERDAY+cover+jpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGe17c88Bu_mPPV9vxd12fxh_7vSUztMwvocJs3PddA-nybSx8ipkht1sj2Gfl39-WFbsc5W8_ky2zzH18shd-VGwbYG8Klf5hHvHmieAMXSsByVgJ8CpymQPOD0LPbMQAEg04BXFJm3CO/s1600/YESTERDAY+cover+jpeg.jpg" height="320" width="230" /></a></div>
<em><span style="color: blue;"></span></em><br />
<em><span style="color: blue;">Cover image for YESTERDAY</span></em> - <em><span style="background-color: white; color: blue;">publication 17 April</span></em><br />
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The publication date will be 17 April - this Easter - to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first violent clashes between the Mods and the Rockers at Clacton-on-Sea, which took place at Easter 1964 - and there will be more information about the book on this blog over the next few weeks.<br />
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But why did I choose to change genres - and why choose the 1960s? Well, I was given a piece of advice a few years back my an ex-editor of mine - that I should try writing historical fiction. I laughed. I've got so much respect for my author friends who write historical novels - they love what they do, and the amount of research needed is unbelievable. But history has never been my 'thing' and I couldn't imagine doing it.<br />
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- 'Only if the 1960s ever became history!' I replied to the editor at the time.<br />
- 'It is, already,' she said.<br />
I was quite taken aback. I was a teenager during the Sixties and it doesn't feel like history to me!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzG95-Y9ZCUqt-iw7Z57HRk3Hsjf3Q2mZqJhL-4OZI5s2rTWUE3t9fdv41FjVqMylK6idq9-PFyjSKe8L14HpKvqrOMWXI7lyrcmrKsa4D6sPsyIIFkkDklIw5m9KFh8OJu11Dt9qSK-Gt/s1600/Sheila+Norton+pic+1960s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzG95-Y9ZCUqt-iw7Z57HRk3Hsjf3Q2mZqJhL-4OZI5s2rTWUE3t9fdv41FjVqMylK6idq9-PFyjSKe8L14HpKvqrOMWXI7lyrcmrKsa4D6sPsyIIFkkDklIw5m9KFh8OJu11Dt9qSK-Gt/s1600/Sheila+Norton+pic+1960s.jpg" height="320" width="249" /></a><br />
<em><span style="color: blue;">Me during the 1960s</span> </em><br />
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But the conversation kept coming back to me, and the idea of writing a novel set in the Sixties became more and more attractive until I couldn't resist it any longer!<br />
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I've been very lucky that my contemporary books have been popular and I have many loyal readers who might be surprised by my change of direction. So, at the same time as promoting the new book, I'm letting everyone know: it's going to be <u>different!</u> And I really, really hope my readers will enjoy the change as much as I have!<br />
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Watch this space for more info about YESTERDAY.Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-43142838756653100102014-03-04T16:38:00.000+00:002014-03-04T17:42:06.955+00:00Made to last?Does anyone else, like me, still live in the past in terms of how long we should expect things to last? By 'things' I mean gadgets, electric and electronic items, household appliances and so on. I hate sounding like I'm continually going on about the 'good old days' (which often weren't), but ... come on! Kettles and irons etc now don't get repaired because it isn't worth it - we chuck them out and buy new ones. Washing machines, dishwashers and so on - if they last more than five years you're told you've been lucky. (We've had our washer and dryer for about twelve years and I have no intention of getting rid of them). Some people seem to replace their TV sets or lounge furniture every time they redecorate the room! No wonder they say they haven't got any money!<br />
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When we got married in 1970 (here's the 'going on about the good old days' bit), we were given my parents' old fridge, black & white TV set, iron, and hoover - because they were then in a position to replace them with new ones. Mum and Dad had had them for God-knows how many years, but they still served us well for the first few years and we replaced them gradually as they conked out. They also gave us a couple of half-worn-out carpet squares for our first flat, and some old curtains which I altered to fit the windows. I still have the 'curtain' habit - our bedroom curtains in our current home came from our last house. We've been here ten years and they still look fine. A lot of our crockery, cutlery and so on were cast-offs too, and I still use a few things I had new as wedding presents, to say nothing of ancient items I've inherited from Mum and my auntie when they passed away. <br />
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We also have a range-style cooker in our kitchen which is over 30 years old. It came with the house - the previous owners had inherited it from the people before <em>them</em> - and it still looks fantastic and cooks like a dream. When we had our kitchen refurbished last year, the boss of the company doing the fitting said if we'd been getting rid of it, he'd have it himself! But we weren't, obviously - in fact we weren't changing any of our appliances. They're still working - why would we change them?<br />
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I don't think I'm particularly thrifty - it's just the way we always managed, for most of our lives, without credit cards or loans. I suppose the problem is that technology is moving on so fast, things we buy today will already be out of date next year. I don't really care if there are better versions of my Smart phone, for instance (although I'll change it when the contract's up), and I don't care about having the latest PC, laptop, tablet, Kindle ... as long as the ones I've got do the job I want them to do efficiently. But this situation was brought home to me again recently when I wondered about getting a new digital camera. My old one had a bit of a delay between pressing the button and taking the picture - annoying when trying to capture a baby's smile or getting a toddler to pose! - and everyone told me the latest cameras are much better. 'But I've only had this camera for seven years,' I told the guy at the shop, feeling guilty and extravagant for considering trading up already. 'Seven years?' he scoffed. 'That's a really long time to have a camera.'<br />
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I bought a new one. And yes, it <em>is</em> much better. But it still feels extravagant. It must be my age, or my upbringing during the hard-up days of the 1950s. Anyone else feel the same?<br />
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<br />Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-46427364978447461842014-02-18T15:01:00.001+00:002014-02-18T15:01:59.112+00:00Writing Retreat Day<span style="font-family: Arial;">Last week our local chapter of the RNA (Romantic Novelists' Association) held a one-off special event. We normally meet once a month at a pub/hotel in Chelmsford for lunch. They're very informal affairs where we just get together, catch up and discuss our writing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">This time, we hired a conference room and held an all-day event. Each RNA local chapter had been offered some special funding to organise a 'writing retreat day'. We spent quite a bit of time deciding how to plan our day, and agreed that we wanted it to be of benefit to all of us, whether were published or not. We have a mixture of writers in our group - some very successful multi-published authors, some self-published, others aspiring writers and members of the RNA's New Writers Scheme - but we felt sure there were areas where we could all learn from each other.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">What we eventually agreed on for the large part of the day was a 'Q&A' session, where questions were collected from all of us in advance, about any problems or queries we had with any aspect of writing whatsoever. These were then directed to whoever in the group was most likely to be able to help - and then discussed at more length around the table. Even the more experienced or more successful writers among us, of course, often need help or advice and it was really interesting to consider the different responses and ideas being expressed in response to the various questions. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">As you can imagine, this stimulated a lot of lively discussion, which carried on through the fantastic buffet lunch we'd ordered. After lunch, we spent a little while discussing books we'd recently read - and then went on to take part in a 'flash fiction' game which was designed as a bit of fun and really made us have to think fast, as well as giving everyone a good laugh when we read out the results!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I'd contacted our local paper, the Essex Chronicle, before the event and they published a short feature about our day, and gave some welcome publicity to the RNA, as well as printing a picture of some of us, taken outside the meeting place waving copies of our books! You can see the feature on the Essex Chronicle On-line </span><a href="http://www.essexchronicle.co.uk/s-love-thing-ladies-write-romantic-fiction/story-20613493-detail/story.html" target="_blank">here</a> .<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The event took a bit of organisation, but I had a lot of help from a 'mini committee' of four of the other longstanding members of the group. The best bit about it was that everyone seemed to enjoy the day so much, and I think we all went home feeling that it was really worthwhile. In fact several of the members have said they'd love to do the same kind of thing again. Just one of the many benefits we get from belonging to the RNA!</span>Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7479616775803938622.post-52888230399053201122014-01-23T12:30:00.002+00:002014-01-23T12:30:14.811+00:00Girls and boys ...<span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A rather belated Happy New Year to everyone! </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm very pleased to say, 2014 has started off well for our family, with the arrival of Grandchild Number Six - Eloise Jessica, who was born a few days early on 6 January. It's always exciting, and lovely, to have a new baby to cuddle and to watch them grow and develop their own little personalities. We've certainly had plenty of that over the last few years! Our three daughters now have two children each, and all six have been born within four and a half years. We feel very blessed and fortunate that we had three healthy and perfect children of our own, and now have six healthy and perfect grandchildren, close enough in age for the siblings and cousins to play together and (we hope!) grow up as close as our girls still are to each other.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having had no sons ourselves, we are very used to little girls - which is just as well, as five of the six grandchildren are also girls! It goes without saying, none of us (parents or grandparents) minded one iota what sex any of the babies were - but it has been somewhat surprising that Noah, the first of the six, who was four in September, has turned out to be the only boy. (Perhaps I should add 'so far'???) If the genetic background of our own family was responsible, it would be more understandable, as my husband was also the only boy in his family, with three younger sisters. But I've always understood the baby's sex is determined by the father's genes and has nothing to do with the mum's family!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, Noah is really good with his two year old little sister Kitty, as well as with the other two year olds - his cousins Caitlin and Alice - and now the two babies - Eva, who's now six months old, and new baby Eloise. I hope he'll always be as kind and protective to them all as he is now, and perhaps his reward will be - one day in about 10 or 12 years' time - getting to know all their friends! </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #e06666; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And as I grew up with a big brother myself (and two of his mates were among my first boyfriends when I was a teenager), I should add that the five girls might well, one day, be fighting each other over Noah's friends! But ... let's not think about any of that, for a long time yet. I actually hope they'll stay children for as long as possible. Kids grow up far too fast, don't they!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSA3Hl9lWfDayoT-nb9toyVTLexm8bztk4RkCB8wyXpIwu6S0wyP4ZAoSl2g_g-mCYSVQ6JQBqTxkx84Rg29u5CfHJf2Uu00bhQA-0aKWhgrXAQno3-UUIf0He3ntFQFWb7CNupeB5x0ei/s1600/5++7+Apr++Piano.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSA3Hl9lWfDayoT-nb9toyVTLexm8bztk4RkCB8wyXpIwu6S0wyP4ZAoSl2g_g-mCYSVQ6JQBqTxkx84Rg29u5CfHJf2Uu00bhQA-0aKWhgrXAQno3-UUIf0He3ntFQFWb7CNupeB5x0ei/s1600/5++7+Apr++Piano.JPG" height="235" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Growing up together</td></tr>
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Sheila Nortonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13997206301877289623noreply@blogger.com0