Amazingly inspiring post from Writer, Lecturer and Broadcaster, Pandaemonium on global access to books and libraries. This is a must read for all bookish souls.
Ronovan Writes, Weekly Haiku Challenge: Foul and Sweet Haiku
RonovanWrites Weekly #Haiku #Poetry Prompt Challenge #37 Foul&Sweet
“Welcome everyone to the Weekly Haiku Prompt Challenge. You may have found your way here through The Daily Post pages, the WordPress Reader, Twitter, Google+, or however you found us, we’re glad you came. I’m not just saying that. After you have been with us for a time you will realize we aren’t just a place to share a three line poem. We are a community of friends here. That doesn’t mean you have to talk to us. Just visit the various Haiku and click Like if you actually like something.”
The Weekly Haiku challenge is from Ronovan Writes: https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2015/03/23/ronovanwrites-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-37-foul-sweet/
Some Ronovanwrites tips on how to write a haiku poem:
https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2014/07/03/how-to-write-a-haiku-poem/
Here’s my attempt at Foul and Sweet Haiku:
Foul porridge – ain’t nice
Bear taste buds shift in uproar
Sweet porridge – just right.
Foul porridge ain’t nice, bear taste buds shift in uproar.
Bear taste buds shift in uproar, sweet porridge just right.
© Marjorie Mallon 2015 – aka, Kyrosmagica.
Haiku is my very own!
THIS BLOG claims no credit for any images posted on this site unless otherwise noted. Images on this blog are copyright to its respectful owners. If there is an image appearing on this blog that belongs to you and you do not wish for it to appear on this site, please contact or e-mail me with a link to said image and it will be promptly removed.
My Friday Post: Sea Urchins Ouch!
This guys waving at you and that’s ok, he’s quite beautiful from afar but you sure don’t want to get up close and personal and you definitely don’t want to stand on him. He’s a sea urchin, also archaically known as a sea hedgehog.
You can see the resemblance. But this guy’s kind of cute.
This hedgehog really is a bit of a sneaky fellow, hiding away, a bit like his cousin the Sea Urchin.
Don’t mess with Sea Urchins, guys, I’m talking from experience, well second hand experience. My youngest daughter stood on a Sea Urchin whilst on holiday in Greece. The Sea Urchin may have great senses but it had no idea she was about to make this mistake, as they don’t have eyes. Shame, they can move with their adhesive tube feet but how was the urchin to know? It was a terrible experience. She ended up with thirty spines on her foot, and each one of these little darlings had to be removed individually by hand with the sharp point of a needle. No anaesthetic. My husband had some job holding her down. She looks slim and delicate but don’t let that fool you she’s wily and strong. She screamed the resort down. The resort doctor didn’t seem at all sympathetic, maybe this happens so often she’d just anaesthetised herself to any emotional response, too many unprepared tourists standing on sea urchins. But, my poor daughter was so disturbed by this unfortunate event that she developed a bit of a phobia for needles. Well, a massive phobia and this fear of needles continued for some time.
After all that, you’d think that she would have hated the holiday but no, she loved it. It was a wonderful opportunity for her to join in the watersports, hang out with new found friends, but it was one of those holidays when every possible accident that could happen did happen, and they all happened to her. In the space of two weeks she stood on a Sea Urchin, cut her foot on glass, banged her head on the pool, had an asthma attack whilst out swimming (in the middle of the ocean, as she tried to swim back to the boat we were on.) She managed to get a tick in the ear, and even got stung by a fairly innocuous jelly fish. Yes, it was such a memorable holiday, a veritable catalogue of accidents! Amazingly she still had fun, and kept on smiling, kids are so resilient aren’t they? But I have to say it wasn’t one of my favourite holidays.
So it’s no surprise that I have a bit of a love hate relationship with these creatures. I love them with their spines removed, but I hate them with their spines intact.
These spineless cute darlings.
Having said that there’s no doubt about it Sea Urchins are beautiful in their own way, even with their spines. But don’t forget to view them from a safe distance!
Look at this Zebra Urchin:

The Spined Sea Urchin
makes me shudder.

They come in all shapes and colours.

And some of them are Giants!

Sea Urchins like to impress,
they’ll wear a Tuxedo to show off!

Poisonous, eek Urchin!

This guy kind of looks a bit like an alien!
A Dalek one!
Some people like to get creative
and use them as plant pots!
Maybe You Might Like To Plant a Sea Urchin Cactus?
Or Create Pretty Sea Bed Mats
Interspersed with colourful sea urchins
How about a Sea Urchin Snowman?

Or a Sea Urchin Lamp?

Bored? Grab some pencils and make a Sea Urchin.
Hungry? Some people even like to eat them, in the West Indies, slate pencil urchins, are eaten. Sea Urchins are commonly eaten by the Alaska Native population around Kodiak island. It is commonly exported, mostly to Japan. So I could get my own back by eating an unsuspecting Urchin but somehow that doesn’t appeal.
Here’s some pictures of other places in the world where you can eat Sea Urchins if the fancy takes you!
Barbeque anyone?

I’ve no idea how you’d eat these?

At least you get some slices of lemon and lime
and chilli sauce to wash these down with!

Anyway don’t knock what you’ve never tried, apparently eating Sea Urchin is good for you, and their roes are considered to be an aphrodisiac in some parts of the world – Japan.
So remember the next time you dip your feet into the ocean if you expect that there might be Sea Urchins lurking in the seabed, waiting to stick their spines into your poor, unsuspecting feet, please buy a pair of these, they’re don’t cost much and they’re well worth the money!
So have a wonderful Friday, watch out what you do, and where you might step. See you again soon!
Links:
http://healthbenefitsofeating.com/sea-food/health-benefits-of-eating-sea-urchin/128/
http://www.oceanlight.com/purple_sea_urchin_photo.html
Coronado Island: http://webebalanced.com/portfolio/southern-California/
THIS BLOG claims no credit for any images posted on this site unless otherwise noted. Images on this blog are copyright to its respectful owners. If there is an image appearing on this blog that belongs to you and you do not wish for it to appear on this site, please contact or e-mail me with a link to said image and it will be promptly removed.
My Kyrosmagica Review of Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour Bookstore
Goodreads Synopsis:
The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon away from life as a San Francisco web-design drone and into the aisles of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. But after a few days on the job, Clay discovers that the store is more curious than either its name or its gnomic owner might suggest. The bookstore’s secrets extend far beyond its walls.
My review:
Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore is the debut novel by Robin Sloan. It started off as an on-line 6,000 word short story which received so much attention that Robin Sloan decided to publish it as a novel. The premise of the novel is a mystery surrounding a 24-hour book store. It sounds fabulous but did it live up to my expectations?
Yes and No, I’m a bit torn. I enjoyed Mr Penumbra’s 24-hour Bookstore but I have to say it will not be one to grace my favourites shelves. There were times in which the story line really captured my attention, particularly at the beginning of the novel but there were also moments most notably in the middle section when my mind wandered and I have to admit that I kind of lost the thread of the story.
I have a feeling that Mr. Penumbra’s will appeal to a certain type of person who will bust a gut when they read this:
“He has the strangest expression on his face- the emotional equivalent of 404 PAGE NOT FOUND.”
Ok, I admit it I laughed, but I don’t quite fit the profile. I reckon if you class yourself as a computer geek you will relate to this so much more than I did. No offence intended to those computer geeks out there, we need you, I need you, where are you when my computer’s playing up?
Somehow, at times the novel seems a little emotionless, and the characters’ relationships appear a bit flat, the lack of a real connection in the romance between Clay Jannon and his girlfriend, Kat, springs to mind. Possibly this is intentional? Has technology taken us so far that we have forgotten the human touch?
“This girl has the spark of life. This is my primary filter for new friends (girl- and otherwise) and the highest compliment I can pay. I’ve tried many times to figure out exactly what ignites it — what cocktail of characteristics come together in the cold, dark cosmos to form a star. I know it’s mostly in the face — not just the eyes, but the brow, the cheeks, the mouth, and the micromuscles that connect them all.
Kat’s micromuscles are very attractive.”
So, even Clay’s thought processes regarding Kat are technology generated. Ok, I get it, I see where you’re trying to take us in your geeky world, but this particular boyfriend, girlfriend pairing just seems to fizzle out without so much as a backward computer generated glance, a little disappointing. Alright, romance isn’t intended to be a big part of the novel so I’ll stop harping on and move on.
The “bad guy” leader, the first reader, Marcus Corvina of the black robes isn’t as strongly a defined character as the star of the show, our very own, you’ve guessed it, Mr Penumbra.
Of course, Mr Penumbra’s 24-hour Bookstore does have some redeeming features, the concept of the novel is interesting, opposing the fellowship of the Unbroken Spine means, you will be “burned!” Sounds dramatic, as do the hints of dark rituals, and the ranks of Novice, and Bound. The threat of the “ultimate Sacrifice,” gets the old Bookish Cult imagination going. The ending of Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour Bookstore is presented in a slide show format, a very different way to present the conclusion of the story, but very in keeping with the ethos of the novel. So some clever touches, and a nice twist towards the end.
It certainly is an amusing read in parts, as the following quotes illustrate:
“I have one (kindle) and I use it most nights. I always imagine the books staring and whispering, Traitor!”
Me too! Don’t you just get that guilty traitorous feeling?
This one kind of made me smile too: “If this sounds impressive to you, you’re over thirty.”
Oh and Mr Penumbra is definitely my favourite character, “Oh boy,” did I enjoy Mr Penumbra, everything Mr Penumbra does and says is spot on. Also the creativity of Mr. Special effects artist, Matt, is a nice touch.
My rating:
So a bit of a mixed feeling on this novel. Liked it, but didn’t quite have the wow factor I was hoping for.
Very difficult to rate, not quite a four star, yet not a three either, somewhere in between, let’s say,
3.5 stars.
So would I recommend it? Yes, give it a go. I’d say if you enjoy a mysterious fantasy with a bookish theme, and especially if you are technologically minded this one is most certainly for you.
The following quotes are my favourites, some little gems celebrating the allure of books:
“Walking the stacks in a library, dragging your fingers across the spines — it’s hard not to feel the presence of sleeping spirits.”
“After that, the book will fade, the way all books fade in your mind. But I hope you will remember this:
A man walking fast down a dark lonely street. Quick steps and hard breathing, all wonder and need. A bell above a door and the tinkle it makes. A clerk and a ladder and warm golden light, and then: the right book exactly, at exactly the right time.”
“…this is exactly the kind of store that makes you want to buy a book about a teenage wizard. This is the kind of store that makes you want to be a teenage wizard.”
“Some of them are working very hard indeed. “What are they doing?” “My boy!” he said, eyebrows raised. As if nothing could be more obvious. “They are reading!”
Have you read Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour Bookstore? Do leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you.
Bye for now,
Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx
My Friday Post: Celebrating Dragon Delights
Golden Dragon
Oh,
Mighty Dragon
Your fiery dare,
Gleams in a challenge,
No Childish mask,
Highlights your eyes.
Golden elixir promises,
Hang in the air,
Lining up,
To slide off the curve of
Your celebrated tongue.
A challenge!
Adventuress, take a ride.
Will I or forever still,
Remain in this moment,
Too fearful to slip on,
Temptation’s back.
To sail the secretive seas,
Witness the wonder of sunsets,
Smell the sweet aroma of Waterfalls,
Discover Dry Deserts
And Tempting Temples.
Cavernous Canyons,
Concealed Caves,
Resplendent Rainbows,
Rippling Rivers,
Incandescent Islands,
Languid Lakes,
Majestic Mountains,
Too many splendours,
To describe.
I step back from,
Tempestuous skies.
Foolish, I.
Must I question
when I can do.
Trust my,
Ever growing,
Heart’s desire Dragon,
Please.
Take me,
with
you!
Link:
The Incandescent Britania Islands: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/467819/the-incandescent-britania-islands
Cuevas del Drach, in Porto Cristo, Mallorca.

Dragons Lair
I took a risk,
Now I am here,
In Lair,
With you.
Enchantment,
Lingers,
Tapering Black Stalagmite,
Promises.
The still water,
Quietens your flaming fire,
Softens your gentle gaze,
Oh Dragon.
Porto Cristo,
Golden dragon,
I’m forever,
Yours.
Porto Cristo Prisoner,
So In Lair,
With,
You.

Dragon Tree
To fly above the Dragon Tree,
You and Me,
You laughed,
At such suggestiveness.
A Tree yes, a dragon no,
An imposter,
A preposterous,
Poisonous Asparagus.
Hidden Bright Red Resin.
Dragon’s Blood,
Fire once omitted,
No flame.

Oriental Dragon
You grace my table,
My steps and temples,
For 7,000 years
Such splendid majesty.
Meeting you in a cave,
My deepest fears disappear,
For 7,000 years,
Such Enlightenment.
Your creativity,
Is renowned,
For 7,000 years
Such Good Fortune.
Flames of pearl power,
Light up your lightning path,
For 7,000 years,
Guarding Gods palace in heaven.

Bearded Dragon
“I should have had a shave,”
said the Dragon,
“No Need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just caress my chin!
“I must curl my whiskers,”
said the Dragon,
“No Need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just tickle my toes!
“I have to file my nails,”
said the Dragon,
“No Need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just buff my back!
“I forgot to shine my scales,”
said the Dragon,
“No Need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just brighten my blush!
“I forgot to floss my teeth,”
said the Dragon,
“No Need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just clip my claws!
“I should have worn a bow tie,”
said the Dragon,
‘No need,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just crank up my collar!
“I should have had a little slave,”
said the Dragon,
“No need,’ said the Bearded Dragon.
Just be my big slave.
“Huh, Cheeky Beardy!”
said the Dragon,
“No nicknames,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just be respectful.
” Enough Nonsense! “
said the Dragon,
“I’ll fix your bow tie,” said the Bearded Dragon,
Just be Cool and High Five!
© Marjorie Mallon 2015 – aka, Kyrosmagica.
Words good or bad, are my very own!
Have a fantastic Friday and a very good weekend. Hope you like my celebrating dragon delights. I’m writing about a dragon in the draft of my second novel so that’s why dragons are on my mind!
Links:
http://www.krakow-info.com/smocza.htm
https://the-dragons-lair.com/index.asp
http://www.mallorca-spotlight.com/guide/sightseeing/caves_drach.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracaena_cinnabari
THIS BLOG claims no credit for any images posted on this site unless otherwise noted. Images on this blog are copyright to its respectful owners. If there is an image appearing on this blog that belongs to you and you do not wish for it to appear on this site, please contact or e-mail me with a link to said image and it will be promptly removed.
A Writing Award To Give Yourself: Do What You Love
Sometimes we need to give ourselves a little pick me up, a reminder to Do What We Love, even if that particular thing that we love seems difficult to achieve. Just recently I have been querying agents, and been getting some knock backs. This is all part of becoming a writer, in fact it’s almost like I’ve completed my first test in an initiation ceremony, up until this point I wasn’t a fully fledged member of the writing society. Once you suffer rejections you join the club. So, instead of being disappointed maybe I should view this as a positive rather than a negative step? I’ve joined the Esteemed Authors Never Give Up Club, yippee, it’s got a certain ring to it, even the likes of J.K. Rowling can claim to be a member.
“J.K Rowling was famously rejected by a mighty 12 publishers before Harry Potter and The Philosopher’s Stone was accepted by Bloomsbury – and even then only at the insistence of the chairman’s eight-year-old daughter.”
The publishers who got it wrong: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/05/16/publishers-who-got-it-wrong_n_1520190.html
So, whatever your dream may be, remember to always Do What You Love. Somehow if you follow that simple rule I’m sure you will never go wrong. So, whether you like to sing, dance, act, write, read, draw, paint, cook, eat, travel, photograph, laugh, blog!!!! Ok, that last one crept in there without my noticing. JUST DO IT!
Whatever it is you love to do, keep on going…..
If you need a bit of encouragement right now feel free to share the sentiments of this blog post, give yourself a pat on the back, why not? My only request is that you confess any setbacks you are currently experiencing, but remember if you really love what you do, don’t ever, ever, give up!
This blog post was inspired in part by a discussion I had on Facebook about the difficulties of getting published. The FB chat I had was with Virginia Bergin author of the YA, science fiction, dystopia, The Rain, (the Rain#1) and The Storm, (The Rain #2.)
This is Virginia’s inspiring reply: “It’s a tough old business! I’d been doing my own writing (alongside all kinds of other jobs) for about 20 years before The Rain happened. It was pretty much the first novel I’d written, and certainly the first YA novel. I thought it would get rejected. For sure! I think we have to love what we do so much that we do just keep going . . . and I suppose we learn more with everything we write. That definitely happened with me; I had a LOT of practice! Keep going . . . Best wishes! Vx”
Virginia is so right, we never stop learning, so that means we have enormous potential to keep on improving. There is an abundance of hope on the horizon, though a few rain and storm clouds are brewing too!
I’d like to highlight an article that Virginia Bergin suggested to me that might be of interest to female writers who are new to the industry, who may feel that they don’t quite fit the typical writer’s profile, may feel a bit lost, or isolated, and would benefit from a writing mentoring service:
Womentoring: http://www.lbabooks.com/my-own-womentoring-womanifesto/
“WoMentoring aims to offer help to female writers who would otherwise not have access to support. Although it’s a project set up to redress a gender imbalance in publishing, my personal hope is that it will act on other imbalances too – race, class, household income, cultural tradition, schooling – because there must be some overlap in the perceived lack of opportunity there.”
Cambridge Writers:
“Cambridge Writers is an organisation of both published and unpublished writers in Cambridge (U.K.) and nearby towns and villages. It has been in existence for about 60 years. Currently it has about 80 members.”
It just struck me today that I have been a member of Cambridge Writers since June 2012. How time flies. I am so very glad that I joined and would like to encourage other budding writers to join a writer’s group.
There are so many benefits of joining a Writer’s group. First of all, you meet like-minded people of varying ages from many diverse walks of life. I have found the Children’s Writing group, to be a wonderful source of support and advice. Whether you need someone to give you constructive criticism of your work, advise you on finding an agent, or explain how to structure a picture book, there are members who are happy to do what they can to help. We are lucky to have writers within the group who have either become published since joining the group, or who have come ready-made!
Several new members have joined this year, one of whom, Isabel Thomas, is an experienced children’s non-fiction writer who has now started writing fiction. Alex Mellanby published the second book in the Tregarthur series, Tregarthur’s Revenge, in June. This followed excellent reviews for the first book, Tregarthur’s Promise. Lesley Hale has self-published the following books: Witness, (Matthew Reed, Tudor Adventures #1), An Act of Treason, (Matthew Reed, Tudor Adventures #2) and A Wry Smirk at The Dark Side (four short stories on supernatural themes.) Ruth Hatfield’s first book in her trilogy was published in November by Hot Key Press (UK) and Henry Holt (US). The Book of Storms was officially launched in the UK at Heffers in Cambridge. The sequel to The Book of Storms, The Colour of Darkness, is coming out in November, again published by Hot Key, Books.
Update: Alex Mellanby has now published a third book – Tregarthur’s Prisoners – Book 3: Amazon Buying Link for Alex Mellanby’s Books. Ruth Hatfield has now published a trilogy – Ruth Hatfield Blog. All three of Ruth’s Book of Storms novels have been reviewed on Kyrosmagica – A – Z Review List
Cambridge Writers comprises these diverse groups that meet on a monthly basis in member’s houses: Short Prose, Long Prose, Travel writing, Children’s Writing, Poetry, and a Commercial Editing Group for those amongst us who have already published or self-published novels. So there are masses of ways to get involved.
As well as these monthly sessions Cambridge Writers holds meetings on the first Tuesday of the month in which we invite authors to come talk to us, share their wisdom, and on the 5th of May there is to be a Writer’s resources evening. So what are you waiting for, check out the local writing groups in your area, and if you live in Cambridge, England, here’s the links to find out more: http://www.cambridgewriters.net/.
and come and support us by liking Cambridge Writer’s new Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cambridge-Writers/345409578859167?fref=ts
I am looking forward to getting more involved in the group.
Late Blooming Authors
To conclude my Do What You Love post I’d like to focus next on several famous authors who started later in life. How encouraging!!! This is to encourage my fellow potential late bloomers. I only started writing seriously about three years ago!
Here’s my list, I’m sure there are many more, but for the purposes of this blog post, I’m sticking to these inspiring guys and gals:
Mary Alice Fontenot wrote almost thirty books in her lifetime, and her writing career began at the age of fifty-one. Fontenot’s first Clovis Crawfish book, Clovis Crawfish and his Friends was published in 1961.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/11/writing-career-late_n_1196625.html
Anthony Burgess never pursued writing seriously until he was thirty-nine, aware that it was not a stable income, when he published the first installment of The Long Day Wanes: A Malayan Trilogy (1956’s Time for a Tiger).
Laura Ingells Wilder. As a child, Wilder lived in a little house on the prairie, no surprise there! She actually began writing around the age of forty-four, whilst she was working as a columnist, and had a pretty successful freelance career. But it wasn’t until 1931, when she published Little house in The Big Woods, that Laura Ingells Wilder really made a name for herself. She was the ripe old age of sixty-four. The when I’m 64………, Beatles song lyrics come to mind.
Helen De Whitt., DeWitt’s excellent debut novel, The Last Samurai, was published in 2000, when Helen De Whitt was forty-four years old. Apparently she attempted to finish many novels, before finally completing The Last Samurai, her 50th manuscript, in 1998.
George Eliot, Mary Anne Evans, published her first novel, Adam Bede when she was forty.
Middlemarch would not be published for fifteen years!
http://flavorwire.com/349249/10-great-literary-late-bloomers
Bram Stoker! Stoker didn’t publish Dracula until he was fifty! Imagine!
Dame P D James published her first novel, Cover her Face, in 1962 at the age of forty-two.
The Private Patient marks the fourteenth case for her ageless detective, Adam Dalgliesh. She also wrote Children of Men, a dystopian story adapted to the big screen with Clive Owen. http://writeitsideways.com/offbeat-lessons-from-three-late-blooming-writers/
William S. Burroughs. Sadly, it took accidentally shooting his wife in the head to get Burroughs focused on writing. In the introduction to Queer, a novel written in 1952 but not published until 1985, he stated: “I am forced to the appalling conclusion that I would never have become a writer but for Joan’s death, and to a realization of the extent to which this event has motivated and formulated my writing.” He began writing Queer while he awaited trial. He was convicted of culpable homicide, given a two-year suspended sentence and moved to Morocco and started writing like mad. He was thirty-nine when he published his first confessional book, (Burroughs was a heroine addict.) In 1953 he published Junky, and he was forty-five when Naked Lunch was published, in 1959.
Charles Bukoski quit his day job to devote himself to writing at age forty-nine, saying, “I have one of two choices-—stay in the post office and go crazy … or stay out here and play at writer and starve. I have decided to starve.” He did not, in fact, starve. He had finished his first novel, Post Office, at fifty-one years old, within four weeks of leaving the post office and just kept going from there, eventually publishing thousands of poems, hundreds of short stories, and six novels.
http://litreactor.com/columns/10-authors-who-prove-its-never-too-late-to-start-writing
Margot Finke didn’t begin serious writing until the day her youngest left for college. She writes mid-grade adventure fiction and rhyming picture books. Margot said, “I really envy those who began young, and managed to slip into writing mode between kid fights, diaper changes, household disasters, and outside jobs. You are my heroes!”
Margot Finke is a member of Indie Writers Support: http://indiewritersupport.com/
Late Blooming Writers can Succeed, Margot Finke: http://www.underdown.org/mf-late_blooming.htm
Mary Wesley published a few children’s books in her fifties, but people didn’t notice her talent until she published her first novel, “Jumping the Queue,” at seventy years old. Jumping the Queue takes place mainly in Cornwall, and follows a middle-aged woman’s struggle with guilt and self-reproach after the death of her husband and her determination to jump the queue by committing suicide. The book was turned down by several publishers, but James Hale of Macmillan saw something special in her work, and by the time of her death at ninety years old, she was widely popular.
Lee Child: At the age of forty he sat down to write a book, Killing Floor, that became the first in the Jack Reacher series. The book won the Anthony and Barry Award for best first novel.
“To anybody who is an aspiring writer,” Child said, “this is a great career because not only can you, but you should, start late.”
“I think it’s the ideal career to do later in life,” Child said. “You know, by the time you’ve experienced stuff and read stuff and seen stuff–just wait. Wait ten years, wait twenty years, wait until it’s ready to come back out. People who start writing too young, it’s essentially a hollow thing, you know, they haven’t lived enough, they haven’t experienced enough, they haven’t learned enough.”
http://www.astralroad.com/author-lee-child-on-starting-a-writing-career-later-in-life/
Raymond Chandler was forty-five, when he began publishing pulp crime short stories. Six years later, he published his first novel, “The Big Sleep,” which launched his stellar successful crime writing career.
So, late-blooming writers are quite an amazing bunch. Don’t you agree? Just hope I might have a tiny smidgen of this late-blooming talent, still of plenty time!!!!!
A final quote:
More Links:
An interview with Zezi Matthews – Cloth Doll Designer and Author, who passed away in 2010 : http://hopevestergaard.com/writers/publishing-resources/kezi-Matthews/
Thank you to Sacred Touches blog for the Do What You Love picture:
THIS BLOG claims no credit for any images posted on this site unless otherwise noted. Images on this blog are copyright to its respectful owners. If there is an image appearing on this blog that belongs to you and you do not wish for it to appear on this site, please contact or e-mail me with a link to said image and it will be promptly removed.