tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25322286834112074712024-03-04T22:38:49.408-08:00Jean GillNews, views, tips and trivia
from author and photographer Jean GillJean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.comBlogger106125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-63158636973292935212021-06-03T00:25:00.003-07:002021-06-03T00:25:34.843-07:00Voice by Jannie<p><br /></p><h1 style="text-align: left;">From Regency lovers to bees and trolls, Jannie creates their voices!</h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuCvKj4M-ONt114SNwV6G4SIzCKaOj8TaeHrP_V8fVGrzdoswD9PuKklwqhHCJVPOAQR8ys1A0q-EVNlFXzh0XodWeN8giqeWfn1jM_mOkYMlt2yZQTAnbsQjhXCixdNIacJtF40CJOQa/s436/Jannie1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="436" data-original-width="356" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuCvKj4M-ONt114SNwV6G4SIzCKaOj8TaeHrP_V8fVGrzdoswD9PuKklwqhHCJVPOAQR8ys1A0q-EVNlFXzh0XodWeN8giqeWfn1jM_mOkYMlt2yZQTAnbsQjhXCixdNIacJtF40CJOQa/s320/Jannie1.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jean Gill, the author of <i>Arrows Tipped With Honey, book 2</i> in the <i>Natural
Forces </i>series, which I recorded recently, has asked me to tell you a bit
about myself. You can watch this interview on video if you prefer. I did add a little more in the video!</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">VIDEO LINK</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: I’m Jannie Meisberger, a British voice actor and audiobook
narrator living happily in the beautiful Pacific Northwest of America.</span></p><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Jean: Can you give me a brief picture of your personal journey as a
Voice Actor (Kind of work you do? When started? </span></i> </p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: My voice acting journey began 10 years ago, with poetry recordings for
LibriVox, a group of worldwide volunteers who record public domain
texts, before I moved on to commercial voice work. I started recording
audiobooks in 2014.
In addition to recording audiobooks, I record on-hold messages and
company videos as well as live performance narration of classics like
<i>Peter and the Wolf</i> for children’s concerts</span>. </p><p><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Jean: You usually record Regency romance and fantasy novels. Why
did you choose these very different genres?</span></i> </p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large; font-weight: 400;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">The majority of the 45 audiobooks I’ve recorded </span>are Regency romance novels.</h2><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: Going to boarding school in Bath, the home of stately Georgian and
Regency architecture and culture, was a huge influence not only on the
books I read in school, but also much later on the choice of novels I
chose to record, which is why the majority of the 45 audiobooks I’ve
recorded are Regency romance novels. During a recent visit to Bath I
visited the Jane Austen Museum and here’s a photo of me with Mr. Darcy. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1N9KCN-Hid8kScqSbGojnt4uLtIznvWAZ4ia29nsXFBMtOEdelKNBGOuTo6WpqcngRQzsVMAuLgwg36BJiSKH_LSLFmWmC8Uhk8jY8vRXy4g8i_-ELZOFAs1B8-Jy86XOLjhxe79SNueT/s320/With+Mr+Darcy+in+Bath.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1N9KCN-Hid8kScqSbGojnt4uLtIznvWAZ4ia29nsXFBMtOEdelKNBGOuTo6WpqcngRQzsVMAuLgwg36BJiSKH_LSLFmWmC8Uhk8jY8vRXy4g8i_-ELZOFAs1B8-Jy86XOLjhxe79SNueT/w300-h400/With+Mr+Darcy+in+Bath.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><i>Jean: That's an impressive number of audiobooks and an even more impressive claim to fame. I think many of us would like to spend time with Mr Darcy!</i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: Unfortunately I’m not properly attired for the occasion but Mr. Darcy
didn’t seem to mind!
While at school, I learned to play the piano, love drama and absorb
several languages, including Latin, French and German, all great
resources to draw upon when I’m researching character voices for
audiobooks. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">My journey into the world of fantasy novels began when I was offered a
series which included dwarves, pixies, goblins, even a German baroness
and many other characters. The series reminded me of the fairy tales I
read to my children and how much fun I had voicing all the characters for
them. On the wall behind me I have a Family Circus picture -‘I hope you
practiced. This book has a lot of funny voices for you to do.’ </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: How do you prepare for recording an audiobook?</i></span></p><h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We are a team. The author’s words are the stars, and I hope my voice allows listeners to be enthralled by the story. </span></h3><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: I always keep in mind that the author has spent many months, even years
researching and crafting each book and it takes a leap of faith to trust a
narrator to bring just the right voice to the story. We are a team. The
author’s words are the stars, and I hope my voice allows listeners to be
enthralled by the story. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As far as the recording process goes, I usually spend 4-8 hours per
finished hour of the audiobook. This involves reading the manuscript,
listing all the characters and voices for each, as well as making short
recordings of each voice for reference, and checking with the author and
online resources for pronunciations of names and places before
recording and producing the final project. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: I don't think authors realise how much time the preparation takes!<br /><br />Jean: For the Natural Forces series you had to create voices for bees,
evil mages and shape-shifters. Which character/s did you find
most challenging and how did you come up with the voice/s? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: Qingzhao’s voice was the most challenging. I first tried out a couple
of voices, which didn’t work. I then researched a huge number of
photos of elderly Asian women online, before I found a photo of an
elderly Mongolian woman that just drew me into Qingzhao’s
personality as described by Jean. Finally I took a long walk, with the
photo on my IPhone and talked to myself until I found Qingzhao’s
voice. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: For what reasons do you turn books down? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: When it’s apparent
the author does little or no marketing of his/her book, so probably
won’t do much for the audiobook version; the cover art isn’t
professional; there are grammatical errors in the excerpt provided.
And, I have to be excited about the storyline! </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: Do you network with other Voice Actors? Are there any sites
you’d recommend? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: I definitely network with other Voice Actors and coaches. The indie
(ACX and Others) Audiobook Narrators and Producers Face Book
page has a wealth of information:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ACXNarratorsProducers </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Karen Commins’ Narrators Road Map is also a treasure trove of
helpful advice: https://www.narratorsroadmap.com/</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: How can an author help the Voice Actor/ Producer of his/her
book? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: Having a list of characters with their characteristics is so
important, as is a pronunciation guide for names and places,
especially if the book is a fantasy. Jean also recorded the
characters’ names for me, which was a tremendous help. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: Are there ways in which an author can hinder or even spoil the
Voice Actor’s recording of a book?</i> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: In a word - Micromanagement!
Wanting input about the recording from friends or family before
deciding whether to approve or request changes. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: Tell me about your working day. Do you work to a routine? Do
you use a recording studio? Endless cups of coffee or tea? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: My husband built me a wonderful recording booth and I usually
record for an hour or two early in the morning then go for a walk
and have lunch before editing the chapters I’ve recorded. I often
drink sips of Throat Coat tea with a dollop of honey as well as
water while I’m recording. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: Who or what has been the greatest help to you as a Voice
Actor? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: Peer support and encouragement from my fellow Voice Actors as
well as excellent instruction from a number of wonderful coaches,
both on the creative side of voice acting as well as the
technological side has been incredibly helpful. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: What has been the hardest thing for you to overcome in
becoming a Voice Actor? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: The technological side of voice acting.
That’s why it took me so long to tackle audiobooks. I’m getting
more adept technologically but need to learn more.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: If you could pick one character in one of your audiobooks, to
spend some time with, who would it be and why?</i> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: It would have to be Qingzhao, the ancient beekeeper in <i>Arrows
Tipped with Honey. </i>I can imagine enjoying tea and biscuits in her
cottage while she sits in her rocker and shares her life story with
me. Not only would I learn so much about her life, her children and grandchildren and her tribe as they moved between the natural
and manmade worlds, I’d also follow her to the beehives and watch
her take care of them. I didn’t know very much about bee-keeping
until I recorded Jean’s books so this has been an added bonus.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: Tell me about your latest audiobook and why we should all buy
it? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: <i>Arrows Tipped With Honey</i> is the second in the <i>Natural Forces
Series</i> and has intriguing twists and turns which will keep listeners
fully engaged. I was always excited to record the next chapter, to
find out what would happen next, and I hope listeners will be just
as captivated as they listen to the audiobook.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Jean: What are you working on next? Do you have an ambition?</i> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Jannie: I’m about to begin recording <i>The World Beyond the Walls</i>, the final
book in Jean Gill’s <i>Natural Forces Series,</i> and I am thrilled to
journey again with Mielitta, her bees and all the wonderful
characters I’ve met along the way. My ambition is to continue
recording many more fantasy and Regency period novels for my
authors. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you, Jean, for giving me this opportunity to talk about audiobooks
and also for entrusting your wonderful series to my voice. Thanks also to
everyone who reads this interview or watches the video. <br /><br /><i>Jean: Jannie, I've learned a lot from your interview and love working with you. Many thanks! And to all my readers, you have to listen to Jannie's voice creation for her favourite character, the aged beekeeper Qingzhao. I think it's brilliant!<br /><br />QINGZHAO</i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Where can we find you? </i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">www.voicebyjannie.com where I’ve included links to my audiobooks. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Contact
Website: https://www.voicebyjannie.com </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Jannie-Meisberger-Voice-Actor-551005521642993</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jannie-meisberger-43243619/ </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Indie (ACX and Others) Audiobook Narrators and Producers FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ACXNarratorsProducers </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Karen Commins’ Narrators Road Map:
https://www.narratorsroadmap.com</span><br /><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: x-large;">Get your copy of 'Arrows Tipped with Honey' <a href="https://www.books2read.com/HoneyTipped" target="_blank">HERE</a></b></div><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk0g65RKfir-exoGx5T3iINlFl7jO4hn_MlwgbLWzfSnpmcpbNOVBP0EjCe2056hl_fpsvbDu6u4x4RPOkW-ZMwCQ3uzSj46Fc18cxF6lXYtqSoD04B6Bg9ghga7GWIyHIwHAPvfuoeUDN/s1200/arrows+forest+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="1200" height="334" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk0g65RKfir-exoGx5T3iINlFl7jO4hn_MlwgbLWzfSnpmcpbNOVBP0EjCe2056hl_fpsvbDu6u4x4RPOkW-ZMwCQ3uzSj46Fc18cxF6lXYtqSoD04B6Bg9ghga7GWIyHIwHAPvfuoeUDN/w640-h334/arrows+forest+.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p>Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-22260508926515083882019-07-02T01:25:00.000-07:002019-07-09T12:58:21.754-07:00Test your bee knowledge against medieval beekeepers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
TRUE, FALSE or WHO KNOWS!? </h2>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Medieval advice to beekeepers and my response as a modern beekeeper. Please do agree or disagree in a comment!</span></b></h4>
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<b>The extracts are from<i> Geoponika: Agricultural Pursuits</i> a collection of books compiled in 10th Century Byzantium</b><br />
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1. Let the intervals between all the trees be filled with roses, and lilies, and violets, and the crocus, which are very pleasant to the sight and to the smell; and they are very useful, and profitable, and they are of advantage to the bees.<b> </b><br />
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<i><b>TRUE</b> An easy one! Planting flowers does attract bees although there are specific links between types of flower and type of pollinator so modern advice is to plant wildflowers. Honeybees love dandelions, clover and, of course, bee borage. If you look at the labels on types of honey, you'll see honeybees' favourite forage foods!</i><br />
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2. Now, as bees produced from an ox come to life on the one-and-twentieth day, so are swarms produced in the same number of days.<br />
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<i><b>FALSE </b>The medieval notion that bees were born from worms in ox or calf corpses was reported as fact by such luminaries as Augustine (5thC CE) Isidore of Seville (7thC CE). FAKE news, people! I bet confusion between maggots and bee larvae led to the story. However, worker bees DO take 21 days to develop from egg to hatching, so this does show good beekeeping knowledge! (24 days for a drone (male bee) and 16 days for a queen).</i><br />
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3. The kings indeed are found in the upper parts of the combs: and it is proper to leave one in every hive, and to destroy the rest; for the bees being divided between them, raise a sedition, and they desist from their work.<br />
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<i><b>FALSE </b>There is no bee king. The medieval assumption was that the beehive was a mirror of the most common human feudal system with a male leader. We now know this is a (female) queen bee and that, in a healthy hive, she is the only egg-layer. Modern thought is that she is no leader - the bees' system of decision-making is complex and democratic. BUT beekeepers will tell you that the queen sets the tone for the hive. If you replace a queen, a hive can turn from being aggressive to being friendly. There is still much we don't know!</i><br />
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<i><b>HALF TRUE </b>The queen cells for a replacement queen are usually half-way up the comb whereas queen cells for swarm queens hang from the bottom of frames. Bees will indeed be 'distracted' during a change of queens and the battles between rivals so some beekeepers do eliminate all the queen cells bar one. This is risky as if the sole queen dies (e.g. during her mating flight) there are no alternatives.</i><br />
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The best indeed of the kings are those of a yellow colour, of a size larger than that of a bee by the half; the second are those that are variegated, rather of a dark colour, of double size.<br />
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<b><i>I HAVE NO IDEA </i></b><i>but it's interesting that in the 10thC different types of honeybee queen and their virtues were observed and discussed. Just by choosing big yellow queens in preference to stripey dark ones, humans were breeding honeybees selectively long before theories of evolution were formulated. There is still huge debate over which strains of honeybees are best. My last purchase included a Frere Adam queen, trademarked for the famous beekeeper monk who worked at Buckfast Abbey from 2019 and who created this cross-breed of Italian bees with African bees.</i><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><br /></i></span></b>
This animal alone seeks a leader, that takes care of the whole swarm; it therefore always honours the king, and it accompanies him with alacrity, wherever he takes his station, and it supports him when he is fatigued, and it carries and protects him when he cannot fly.<br />
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<b style="font-style: italic;">TRUE</b><i> The bee colony does congregate around the queen and 'pay her respect' with a special fluttering gesture of wings. A bee swarm will cluster around the queen. Bees do carry and protect their queen if she is weakened. I saw this on my beekeeping course when a queen reacted badly to being marked. The beemaster put a coloured spot on the queen through the mesh in the tube he'd placed her in but when he released her., she lay quite still on the landing board. A group of bees rushed out, expressed anxiety and carried her into the hive. The story ended well and she recovered, thanks to her courtiers. </i><br />
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<i>Modern thinking does not suggest that the queen takes care of the swarm but her existence and behaviour, plus her scent, sets the tone for the hive. A queenless hive is depressed, suffers disease and decline. The workers stop gathering pollen, become apathetic. </i><br />
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4. If it be necessary for a purchaser, or for some other reason, that they (the hives) should be moved, let the person tie the hives, in the night, carefully in leather (skins), and let him take them away before day ; for in this private manner he will neither disturb the combs, nor harass the bees.<br />
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<i><b>TRUE </b>Night-time is best for moving bees and I will never forget collecting a hive full of bees from a Provençal hillside in the darkness, my husband and I wearing white suits (as many of our friends think appropriate). We used belts strapped around the hive and foam in the entrance to stop angry bees escaping.</i><br />
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5. You will cure them of dimness of sight with the smoke of the leaves of origanum (origano). </div>
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<i><b>FALSE </b>Bee eye-sight is amazing. They have two sets of eyes and see a range of ultra-violets that flowers use to attract their pollinators. Through bee eyes, a flower has a scented target on it shouting 'I'm here!' I am prepared to state that a blast of origano smoke will not improve a bee's eyesight but I must confess I have no evidence to back that up. I DO wonder how a medieval beekeeper figured out that the bees' eyesight was dim (note the plural in the instruction - it seems ALL the bees are going short-sighted). I can think of many possible misinterpretations, for example</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>- a bee uses its waggle-dance to follow its internal GPS to the exact spot where home entrance is - or should be. If you transfer bees from a hive with a low entrance to one with a high entrance, they will at first head for the place the old entrance was.</i><br />
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<i>So you give a blast of oregano smoke and hey presto, within a few days the bees' eyesight must have improved because they're using the correct entrance (as they do anyway after a few days to get used to it).</i></div>
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6. You will also destroy creatures that lie in wait for them and they are wasps, the titmouse (tit family), the bee-eater, swallows, crocodiles, and lizards; and drive away and destroy all things that are pernicious to the bee.</div>
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<i><b>TRUE </b>All these creatures will eat bees.</i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJzb2Vg_DzPTonbtBAY4KDtRzFOBioD3VxU4q_SIGy9YkQW78ioGj_nVZsU4a642CEa5S5_M2_OjsjRS12dRt2pscL-iWV4Zy83igdKamcwA4p5u63nquyXHiff0WW386gKmq1-26Zg-bP/s1600/Barth_l_my+L%2527Anglais%252C+op.cit%252C+1445-1450%252C+Artificiosae+Apes%252C+France%252C+Le+Mans+XVe+s.+BNF%252C+FR+136%252C+fol.+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="453" data-original-width="518" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJzb2Vg_DzPTonbtBAY4KDtRzFOBioD3VxU4q_SIGy9YkQW78ioGj_nVZsU4a642CEa5S5_M2_OjsjRS12dRt2pscL-iWV4Zy83igdKamcwA4p5u63nquyXHiff0WW386gKmq1-26Zg-bP/s320/Barth_l_my+L%2527Anglais%252C+op.cit%252C+1445-1450%252C+Artificiosae+Apes%252C+France%252C+Le+Mans+XVe+s.+BNF%252C+FR+136%252C+fol.+16.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This artist seems to have added an extra pair of legs but I love the way the bees look like flowers.</td></tr>
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<i>7. </i>But it consummately hates the slothful; and they therefore take the slothful and kill them.<br />
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<i style="font-weight: bold;">FALSE </i><i>Scientists have tracked individual bees and found that s</i><i>ome foraging worker bees are very 'lazy', do little foraging and fall asleep in flowers often :) but no chastisement has been observed. However, drones (male bees) have become synonymous with 'lazy creatures' in human vocabulary prior to drone machines. It is true that drones are expelled from the hive (killed) in autumn so that could be interpreted as hating and killing slothful bees.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Are drones 'slothful'? The biological function of a drone is to fertilise a queen (any queen) during her maiden flight. If one succeeds, he dies. Those who don't succeed are the boys of summer, waiting for queens or in the hive so no, they don't do housework, child care, feeding, gathering or honey-making or defence (they have no stings). If necessary, they do help cool the hive by vibrating their wings. Our local nougat museum has a human-size beehive mock-up and the model drones are playing cards and drinking beer so I think the public image is obvious :)</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>BUT without drones, the colony dies. One problem with that parasite we beekeepers hate, the varroa mite, is that it develops on the drone larvae. The resulting weakness in the colony makes it clear how vital drones are.</i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2-iXqsK5sxc9gXeZNMcHWZeYP4iskp9VEbkT6S6Y5qMsuVF9NU0-V7Mcjy0p45w7dWdh6205m-ENtTnDBJLHrSPBSMQDu_v2Bb_Fu0lthd96sr6FeyvVNS-lPJ3s8HwO0c_yiCOBOeAZ7/s1600/Illuminated+Manuscript+BNF+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="515" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2-iXqsK5sxc9gXeZNMcHWZeYP4iskp9VEbkT6S6Y5qMsuVF9NU0-V7Mcjy0p45w7dWdh6205m-ENtTnDBJLHrSPBSMQDu_v2Bb_Fu0lthd96sr6FeyvVNS-lPJ3s8HwO0c_yiCOBOeAZ7/s400/Illuminated+Manuscript+BNF+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Note the traditional enmity between bears and bees</i></span></td></tr>
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8. Its mechanical skill indeed seems to make a very near approach to a rational understanding, for it makes hexagonal cells.<br />
<br />
<i><b>TRUE </b>and the mathematics of nature is a wonder.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
9. Proper harmony is also appreciated by this animal; for which reason, bee-masters bring them together by means of cymbals, or by clapping heir hands with just adaptation.<br />
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<i><b>I HAVE NO IDEA </b>but my bees do not show any signs of obedience. I am happy that they don't attack me when I sing or hum to them and we'll leave it there.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
10. They indeed become unmanageable at the approach of human creatures, and they fall upon them, and they are more severe on such as smell of wine, and of perfume; and they fall upon women, especially upon such as are of an amorous complexion.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhvRu3wrVic9GcF_hdWH0d-cGiTmnO5_DNVvpzqTP5Q_fHenshSmI_swV42_QcuWzjJ55lZCLzOAEhoNkW8qJlX_r8BIpW2BkXJg3jhsun5nlbz1smZakdsHdXQ6d4riJV7OM-s2_-kqK/s1600/1+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="496" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhvRu3wrVic9GcF_hdWH0d-cGiTmnO5_DNVvpzqTP5Q_fHenshSmI_swV42_QcuWzjJ55lZCLzOAEhoNkW8qJlX_r8BIpW2BkXJg3jhsun5nlbz1smZakdsHdXQ6d4riJV7OM-s2_-kqK/s400/1+11.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">I love this portrayal of bees, showing them as bird-like. Medieval thinking considered bees to be small birds, not insects. I think the artist was influenced by this belief!</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
<i><b>SOMETIMES TRUE </b>Bees are sometimes very aggressive and sometimes very easy to work with. Beekeepers will give you many reasons for this: storm coming, high winds, rain, dark colours, woollen clothes. Scent is very important to honeybees and they will kill their queen or each other if the smell is wrong. They do react badly to some perfumes and the venom in their stings gives off the scent of bananas, rousing other bees to attack. That's why the bees attack Mielitta in 'Queen of the Warrior Bees; she's wearing the banana scent delivered anonymously as her 18th year-cycle gift.</i><br />
<br />
<i>As to whether they fall upon women... <b>FALSE! </b>There have been too many women beekeepers for that to be true, including the Irish Patron Saint of Bees, Saint Gobnait.</i><br />
<i><br />I've suffered one attack from my bees and maybe it was because of my amorous complexion but I think it more like to have been because: they were in a bad mood with a storm in the air; I banged the hive trying to get in a frame that didn't fit properly; and I was wearing a snood over my hair that must have smelled wrong (That's the only way I can explain the attack focusing completely on my head and hair, not my face at all.) </i><br />
<i><br /></i>
11. The bee is the most sagacious and the most skilful of all animals, and it approaches man in point of understanding; and its work is truly divine, and of the greatest utility to the human race</div>
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<div>
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<b>YOU DECIDE! </b>The more we know about bees, the more we realise that the hive mind is a super-organism of great complexity and they are now considered essential to the human race not just useful.<br />
<br />
If bees interest you, then you'll enjoy shapeshifting into one, entering a beehive and getting a bee's eye-view of the world through my eco-fantasy novel.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Check out <i><b><a href="https://books2read.com/QueenBee" target="_blank">Queen of the Warrior Bees:one misfit girl and 50,000 bees</a></b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b><a href="https://books2read.com/QueenBee" target="_blank">Together they must change the world.</a></b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><b><br /></b></i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://books2read.com/QueenBee" target="_blank">Buy the book</a></span></b></td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44641405-queen-of-the-warrior-bees" target="_blank">GOODREADS REVIEWS</a></i></div>
<i>5* 'captivating and intriguing'</i><br />
<i>5* 'I loved the bees and the parts about the hive - as a bee keeper in training I appreciate the author’s factual bee knowledge and the imaginative way this was translated into fantasy - just wonderful.'</i><br />
<i>5* 'I was a little dubious going in to the book about the whole bee element. I had yet to read a book where this kind of story line works. But Jean Gill again does it with such ease that I not only believed it, I enjoyed it! The descriptions and the writing style were so potent I could almost believe I was in the book right alongside Mielitta. </i><i>This is a book that I would highly recommend. I will now be going straight out to try anything else by this author!!'</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44641405-queen-of-the-warrior-bees" target="_blank">53 goodreads reviews - average 4.17* out of 5 - see them all</a></b></i><br />
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<div>
Geoponika: Agricultural Pursuits. Compiled in 10th Century Byzantium</div>
<div>
Translated from the Greek by Owen T. (Thomas) 1749-1812<br />
<br />
PHOTOS<br />
1. Douce 88 fol 111v B<br />
2. Bibliothèque Municipale de Reims, ms. 993, Folio 151v<br />
3. The Luttrell Psalter<br />
4. Medieval Bees Hortus Noster<br />
5. Barthélémy L'Anglais, op.cit, 1445-1450, Artificiosae Apes, France, Le Mans XVe s. BNF, FR 136, fol. 16<br />
6. Illuminated Manuscript BNF<br />
7. Koninklijke Bibliotheek, KB, KA 16, Folio 128v<br />
More medieval bee photos can be found on the <a href="https://americangardenhistory.blogspot.com/2019/05/bees-beehives-from-medieval-illuminated.html" target="_blank">American Garden History Blog</a></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-86968062348482350092019-06-07T06:39:00.000-07:002019-06-09T02:02:37.431-07:00Amazing Bee-haviour <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
You would not bee-lieve some of this bee-haviour but it's true!</h2>
To become a registered beekeeper here in Provence, I took a practical course during 2014 and since then I've looked after my hives,<i> Endeavour</i>, <i>Diligence</i> and <i>Resolution </i>(named by my husband).<br />
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Nothing tastes as good as honey produced by your own bees from your own 'terroir' (a French word that is more emotional than 'soil' or 'land'). It's not easy these days to keep honeybees alive but that makes beekeeping even more important, even on my small scale.<br />
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I never thought I'd be brave enough to become a beekeeper but here I am, fascinated by the habits of creatures that have been farmed by humans since prehistory, for almost 9,000 years according to archaeological evidence. And yet there is still so much we don't know. Which is good for a novelist!<br />
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When I realised that my heroine shape-shifted into a bee, I knew I was going to enjoy the research. Here are some amazing bee-facts. Not all of them found their way into <i>Queen of the Warrior Bees</i> but Mielitta's experiences as a bee draw on my own experience too. I shall reveal some of my own experiences in the next blog and I hope you enjoy finding out about bees as much as I have.<br />
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<li><span style="text-align: left;">All worker bees are female. They map out their territory and communicate this by dances, which give exact directions to </span><i style="text-align: left;">e.g. food or home,</i><span style="text-align: left;"> by distance and compass points.</span></li>
<li>The queen is female and on her mating flight she is impregnated by approx 10-20 male bees (drones) with the thousands of sperm needed to lay eggs all her life (6 years if she's lucky). After mating, she doesn't fly again unless she takes a third of the colony and swarms, leaving the old hive to a new queen (one of her daughters).</li>
<li>A queenless hive is doomed but the queen does not make decisions, other than those concerning egg-laying. When choosing a new home, scout bees are sent to investigate options and they dance their findings to the whole swarm. They are more or less enthusiastic according to the quality of the new home's potential. Gradually, one dance is taken up by all the bees and that is the chosen home - democracy at work! Research shows that the chosen home is nearly always the best of those considered - better still, successful democracy at work! </li>
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<li> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkG2FS-67dh70zH2hGkOhPjHgPMua953p5WdzQlrpphfU0n1sHCHEEGrA8CFHmy7SXm1ml6sJwScwT-GzL0esAoQ6Sqyxkvl9PD_BXLhA__Q5hm2b4fqeX47-x7WeMpvGmwFe6mYviNIPg/s1600/bees+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="314" data-original-width="800" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkG2FS-67dh70zH2hGkOhPjHgPMua953p5WdzQlrpphfU0n1sHCHEEGrA8CFHmy7SXm1ml6sJwScwT-GzL0esAoQ6Sqyxkvl9PD_BXLhA__Q5hm2b4fqeX47-x7WeMpvGmwFe6mYviNIPg/s320/bees+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></li>
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<li>Drones successful in mating leave part of their body in the queen and die.</li>
<li>In my region, honeybees prepare for winter by throwing out all the drones. They are left outside to die and in the spring, the queen lays eggs which will become the new season's drones.</li>
<li>Bees can't see red and they can see ultra-violet so flowers look like they have targets and landing-paths, in a purplish world.</li>
<li>When worker bees want to raise a new queen, they feed royal jelly to a worker baby so she grows up as a queen. </li>
<li>A newly-hatched queen will try to kill any other queens in her hive and will sting unhatched rivals to death in their cells. Many beekeepers believe that the murder victims 'sing', aware of death approaching. There are other theories about the song of the unborn queens but nobody doubts the song itself, a high, piping noise.</li>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Extract from <i>The Queen of The Warrior Bees</i></span></b></h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b>Chapter 1</b></h3>
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<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Why was the Forest
forbidden? The very word was unmentionable. Yet everybody knew it was out
there. Otherwise, how could children scare each other with whispered stories of
what might be in the Forest? Gigantic sticky-buds, striped man-eaters, slithery
poison? Their imaginations ran wild in a tamed world. But as each child reached
Maturity and passed – or failed – the ritual test, the word <i>Forest</i> disappeared
from the new adult’s mind, like a leaf dropping in autumn.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;"> Mielitta had tried
to ask adults why the Forest was forbidden but the word tied her tongue in
tangled roots and instead she found herself asking the way to the schoolroom,
or some other question so ludicrous that she was mocked for her stupidity. She
sensed magecraft twisting her words but she could not force a different path
from the one required of good citizens.</span><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now she was the
only child who'd seen eighteen year-cycles and still been told she was not
ready for testing. Her old playmates moved around the same halls as she did,
girls in silken robes, boys in leatherette jerkins and long trews, while she
still wore a tabard over a child’s short britches and stuffed her hair into the
coarse netting of a servant’s ugly snood.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i> Flowers</i><span style="border: 1pt none; padding: 0cm;">, thought Mielitta, as three girls in gowns
like satin petals rustled past her. Grace, Felicity and Espoir had turned into
a golden daffodil, a blue pansy and a violet campanula respectively. Mielitta
knew these flowers from the books in the library, which she was tasked with
cleaning each week. She remembered when the golden daffodil used to play
leapfrog against the stable wall and when the violet campanula had linked
pinkie fingers with her, swearing friendship forever. But even then, her
finding had set her apart. All the other children had been born in the Citadel,
not discovered as a baby by the Mage-Smith. She would always be a foundling, a
freak.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
‘The stones be with
you, Lady Grace, Lady Felicity, Lady Espoir,’ murmured Mielitta, lowering her
eyes. Barely nodding slender necks, expressions stonier than the walls they
passed, the ladies swished past in silence, the better to ignore such a freak.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Had they forgotten
her when they reached maturity? Or did they prefer to forget their broken
promises, made by childish pinkie fingers?</div>
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As the chirruping
gossip started up again behind her, Mielitta was warned of a potentially worse
encounter by the brown scent of peat, a metallic clank and rumbling voices. She
shrank into the shadows of an alcove, held her breath. Whichever route she took
from her bed to the kitchen, there was always the risk of meeting Jannlou and
his cronies.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.books2read.com/QueenBee" target="_blank">Buy the book</a></td></tr>
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I hope you enjoyed this blog, creating a buzz for my new novel. You can find out more and continue reading the first two chapters of <i>Queen of the Warrior Bees</i> <a href="https://jeangill.com/books/queen-of-the-warrior-bees/" target="_blank">here.</a></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-58217439451602707802019-01-10T01:10:00.000-08:002019-01-10T01:10:09.572-08:00A Greater World :Clare Flynn<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Clare-Flynn/e/B008O4T2LC" target="_blank">Clare's author page on amazon</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since I first met historical novelist Clare Flynn at a conference in Oxford in 2016 and felt an instant cameraderie, her books have become bestsellers. Her fans can't wait for their next voyage in the early 20th century in the company of women who suffer and survive and I have great news for them! But what about the woman behind the books? Clare's life has been as amazing as any of her books and each year I discover more of her secret life. One constant is Clare's love of travel and awareness that she is part of a greater world so this story of love, loss and a voyage into the unknown seems an appropriate focus for the interview!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Welcome to my blog, Clare!</i></span><br />
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<a href="https://amzn.to/2RBaadm" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Find out more about the book from amazon.com</a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me a bit about yourself - where do you live and what do you do when you’re not writing?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Thanks for inviting me, Jean. Home is Eastbourne on the beautiful Sussex coast, surrounded by the South Downs and with views of the grey-green chalky sea from my window. I moved here three years ago after twenty years in London, but lived here in my teens so I knew what I was I was letting myself in for. I love it!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I spent my pre-writing career firstly in Marketing where I worked for big global companies like Proctor & Gamble, then latterly working for myself as a strategy consultant. My work took me all over the world with a wide range of fabulous clients from brewers to broadcasters.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Ah, </i>The Chalky Sea <i>is another title I recognise and now I know the inspiration!</i></span><br />
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<i style="font-size: x-large;">I know you lived in Paris for some time. Where else have you lived and what drew you there? Do you think any of these places influenced you and your writing?</i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I lived in Paris on the Boulevard St Germain in the late 80s for two years. It sounds romantic but not when you have to drive round for hours trying to find a parking spot after getting home late from work. It was my first experience of living abroad and it wasn’t a happy one – pity as I’d lap it up now– especially my gorgeous little apartment in the heart of the Latin Quarter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I had a couple of years in Brussels and three in Milan. I adore Italy and speak Italian. <i>The Alien Corn</i> has some flashbacks to the war there. More recently my latest book, which will be published by Canelo in June 2019, has an Italian character and I very much enjoyed writing him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">My other exotic temporary home was Sydney where I worked for six months in 2006/7. I’d been to Australia a few times before and had already started work on my first novel, <i>A Greater World</i>, set in the Blue Mountains.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Blue Mountains</td></tr>
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<i style="font-size: x-large;">What made you choose the different settings in your books (including Canada and India)?</i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Location has a huge influence on my writing. It’s often the trigger point for a story. My second novel, <i>Kurinji Flowers,</i> is set in South India in a fictional hill town, based on Munnar. Unable to sleep in my hotel room one night on holiday there, I lay thinking about who else might have stayed in that room back in the 1930s. By the time dawn was breaking I had mapped out the background to the book and some of the key characters. I found the whole area magical – the endless rolling tea gardens, like a huge piece of corduroy velvet across the landscape, the bright vivid colours of the statues and temples, the flowers, the wildlife, the birdsong, and the visible colonial heritage. My first visit there was to paint so I had to make my character, Ginny, a painter too – albeit a more successful one than I could ever be!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I love your descriptions of place. You have a painter's eye!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What drew you to the early 20th century as a period and how do you do your research?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I read an interview with William Boyd the other day in which he said that he didn’t see the twentieth century as history because his grandmother had lived in the nineteenth century and his great uncle fought in the first war, so it doesn’t feel so far away or alien. He said, “I feel that’s my natural range – say three generations back from my own life and time – it’s not <i>strange</i>.” That exactly reflects my own feelings. I can’t see me writing books set in Tudor England or eighteenth century France.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I do a variety of things as research. Ideally, I visit the location – but my recent trilogy, <i>The Canadians</i>, is set in eastern Canada and I couldn’t get there. Instead I used <i>Google Earth, YouTube,</i> books, websites, maps, films, almanacs, online weather statistics and – best of all – my own private Facebook group consisting of three retired Canadian librarians who answered all my questions, no matter how obscure, and went above and beyond the call of duty to help me.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>We are so lucky these days to be able to connect through social media with experts - and, like you, I've found them so generous in response.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>You write about strong women who suffer and survive, sometimes hindered by the men in their lives. How do you hope readers will react to your novels?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I hope they will see my characters as living within their own period, not ours. I get very frustrated when someone describes a character as being insufficiently empowered when, in the context of the era she lived in, she was pushing the boundaries as far as they would go. We can’t expect the world of the early twentieth century to match our own. Most married women were not even permitted to work outside the home. My character, Elizabeth, in <i>A Greater World,</i> has never worked in the sense we would – she took in violin pupils when her family fell on hard times and later in the book gets involved in understanding the economics of her husband’s failing coalmine. I had one reviewer very snidely remark that a mere violin teacher couldn’t possibly have done that – which is incredibly patronising. Elizabeth never actually takes over the running of the mine but asks enough questions to figure out what its future might be. So, I suppose I’m saying I’d like readers not to assume women in the past had all the same attitudes and possibilities open to them – while at the same time not patronising women because their lives were more confined than ours may be.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>That's a very balanced response to the ongoing debate re women's roles in the past and one that resonates with me as writer of medieval fiction too. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Who is your ideal reader?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Someone who appreciates a good story, with multi-faceted characters and a liking for travel to interesting places – even if it’s vicarious.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could wave a magic wand and change something about your career what would it be?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">That I’d started it sooner. But that said, I have no real regrets. I am very happy with what I’ve achieved so far, and I remain excited about the future. I’m also grateful that my professional life gave me the financial footing that helped me have the courage to go full time as a writer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Congratulations on your incredible performance in Nanowrimo! https://nanowrimo.org/ In 2018, you completed a draft novel in a month for the third year running. How do you manage this in November but not the rest of the year? And what tips do you have for others in tackling Nanowrimo?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Actually, it was the fourth year! Four of my books were partly written in NanoWriMo. I’m a highly competitive individual as my siblings will testify (but then so are they!) and the pressure of hitting that goal – even though I’m only competing against myself – is a huge motivator. And having done it once it’s easier to do it again. I’m quite a fast writer anyway and I’m lucky that my first drafts are already fairly polished before I get into the rounds of editing. It wasn’t always like this – I think it has come over years of practice. Maybe not always in writing fiction but I have long had the need to express myself in words as a cornerstone of the way I made my living.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">My only tips for NaNoWriMo are very simple ones. Firstly, get off to as fast a start as possible so you have some slack to cover any underperforming days. Nothing’s worse than racing to catch up if you’re behind – that’s very demoralising. Secondly, do some planning beforehand so you have a clear idea of where you are going even if, like me, you write by the seat of your pants. I think I’d struggle if I sat down on Day One and had to start from a blank page with no idea of characters, location or inciting incident.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your working day. Do you work to a routine? Endless cups of coffee or tea? How does this change during Nanowrimo?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">No routine! I try to write every day but I don’t beat myself up if I miss a few days. Yes, gallons of tea and a more limited amount of coffee, then wine at six o’clock! I always break for lunch and rarely spend the entire day writing – there’s so much else to do – not least marketing. In Nanowrimo it’s much the same as long as I hit the target for that day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What has been the hardest thing for you to overcome in becoming a published author? What or who has helped you most in the process?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I wasted a lot of time before deciding to self-publish. I had an agent and lost months waiting for her to sell the book, which she didn’t. She wasn’t enamoured of my second book so I decided I’d nothing to lose by giving Self-Publishing a go. And by then I had some self-belief. What I never expected to happen was that it would open a whole new world of friendship and support. Nor did I expect to be so successful – especially as I write Historical with a romantic element (not straight romance) and was warned it was hard to crack. I think I took well to Self-Publishing as I was used to running my own business and hence having control. I see it as more entrepreneurial than being trad published. Although now I am enjoying having a foot in both camps.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">My fellow authors have helped me the most. I have been amazed at the friendship, generosity and massive support of other writers such as you, Jean.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Right back at you! I feel the same as you re Self-Publishing (and time wasted with traditional publishers) and the support of fellow-writers is generous - and practical! - beyond belief. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could pick one character in one of your books, to spend some time with, who would it be and why?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Hector from Kurinji Flowers would be great fun. The drinks would flow, the conversation would be challenging and entertaining. Just as long as we don’t end up fancying the same men!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Haha! Always a friendship spoiler :)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your latest book and why we should all buy it?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My first book, <i>A Greater World </i>is now also my next book! I signed a contract with Canelo for them to relaunch it and for me to write a follow up. I’ve just finished the follow up (yay!). <i>A Greater World </i>is available NOW! The follow up, <i>The Storms Between Us,</i> comes out in June 2019. And why should you read it? I have no idea – unless you like losing out on your beauty sleep! One reader described it as <i>Wuthering Heights </i>meets Australia meets Titanic! Another said, “There is so much going on in this story - everything from rape, death, murder, marriage, divorce, drug taking and every human emotion from loss to joy to reconciliation.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What’s next for Clare Flynn?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">By the time you’re reading this I will be away on a four-month cruise around the world calling at numerous exotic destinations from French Polynesia to Japan. I’m not putting myself under any pressure to write while I’m away as it’s a holiday – but I know while we are at sea, I will probably end up at some point hiding away in my cabin or under a sunshade, bashing away at my laptop! I’ll be back in May in time for the publication of <i>The Storms Between Them.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Happy Launch Day, Clare, for your book and your cruise ship!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">You can connect with Clare via</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://clareflynn.co.uk/" target="_blank">her website</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.canelo.co/authors/clare-flynn/" target="_blank">her publisher's website</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://clareflynn.co.uk/blog" target="_blank">her blog</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://twitter.com/clarefly" target="_blank">twitter</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://instagram.com/clarefly" target="_blank">instagram</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/authorclareflynn" target="_blank">facebook</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6486156.Clare_Flynn" target="_blank">goodreads</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/ClareFlynnwriter" target="_blank">youtube</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>While Clare is on her cruise, discovering a greater world, why not check out her books?</i></span><br />
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<a href="https://amzn.to/2RBaadm" target="_blank">Buy from amazon.com</a></div>
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<a href="https://amzn.to/2Qys77H" target="_blank">Buy from amazon.co.uk</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Greater-World-Clare-Flynn-ebook/dp/B07KD21RYX" target="_blank">Buy from amazon.ca</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Greater-World-Clare-Flynn-ebook/dp/B07KD21RYX" target="_blank">Buy from amazon.com.au</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.kobo.com/fr/en/ebook/a-greater-world-3" target="_blank">Buy from kobo</a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>A Greater World</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>She crossed the world to marry a stranger.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> When Elizabeth Morton's father asks her to travel to the other side of the world to marry a man she's never met, she is stunned. It's 1920 and a woman has rights. But her choices are removed when she is raped by her brother-in-law and thrown out of her own home by her sister.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> When Michael Winterbourne wakes with a hangover after his engagement celebrations, he is about to be the cause of a terrible tragedy that will destroy his family, turn his life upside down and catapult him into leaving England.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Elizabeth, born into a prosperous family, and Michael, a miner, come from different worlds. They would never have met but the<i> SS Historic,</i> bound for Sydney, is a ship with only one class.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Falling in love should have been the end to all their troubles. But fate and the mysterious Jack Kidd make sure it's only the beginning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo credits: Clare Flynn and Canelo </span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-52132097125667585352018-11-13T21:40:00.001-08:002019-12-01T00:49:10.878-08:0012 Mustread Books for Christmas<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>12 authors, 12 HIGHLY recommended books for all tastes</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>- sharp, sweet, cosy, exciting or downright dangerous!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Sing along! </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>(lyrics at the bottom and you KNOW the tune)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Show how you feel by giving somebody the perfect book! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Even if that somebody is YOU!<br />
Treat yourself this Christmas!</span><br />
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For the first book at Christmas, my true love gave to me<br />
<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">a crib scene calamity!</span></b><br />
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<b>Murder in the Manger by Debbie Young</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://viewbook.at/MurderintheManger" target="_blank">amazon</a></b></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">For the second book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">2 haunted lives</span></b></span></div>
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<b>The Chase by Lorna Fergusson</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://mybook.to/LFergussonTheChase" target="_blank">amazon</a><span id="goog_835055130"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_835055131"></span></b></div>
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<b>or<a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=9780957647404&fbclid=IwAR3XVSJq4XciL65jkLWpTte99HGPwA_vAtQZMLFGCOa9u47Vw01xOm2J0RE" target="_blank"> kobo</a></b></div>
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For the third book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">3 French dogs</span></b></div>
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<b>Nici's Christmas Tale by Jean Gill</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="https://amzn.to/2JFfqGp" target="_blank">amazon.com</a></b></div>
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<b><a href="https://amzn.to/2P9X5Ya" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a></b></div>
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<b><a href="https://books2read.com/NicisTale" target="_blank">other bookstores</a></b></div>
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For the fourth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">4 stalking birds</span></b></div>
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<b>Into The Silent Sea by Claire Stibbe</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://smarturl.it/IntoTheSilentSea?fbclid=IwAR2akPgU9ewLUUCsH7DFkVaJbpvKEItoWQ7ZX7pVHiQk6GmMvTa89ccot90" target="_blank">amazon</a></b></div>
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For the fifth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">5 wild flings</span></b></div>
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<b>The Frozen River by Clare Flynn</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at<a href="https://mybook.to/frozenriver?fbclid=IwAR1FbwspTPyCWBGy-zamFP3omHgAKge01enDkINeBARA4ANneByJVi_q4uE" target="_blank"> amazon</a></b></div>
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For the sixth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">6 family strangers</span></b></div>
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<b>Bitter Like Orange Peel by Jessica Bell</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://www.vineleavespress.com/bitter-like-orange-peel-by-jessica-bell.html?fbclid=IwAR0Qra1C9KJLGZAZCt0KrEz3PQEvEm-crtYCbHon3jCuD4hdbTp2bLZk3e4">all</a></b><b><a href="http://www.vineleavespress.com/bitter-like-orange-peel-by-jessica-bell.html?fbclid=IwAR0Qra1C9KJLGZAZCt0KrEz3PQEvEm-crtYCbHon3jCuD4hdbTp2bLZk3e4" target="_blank"> bookstores</a></b></div>
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For the seventh book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">7 savage women</span></b></div>
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<b>Snow Angel by JJ Marsh</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://mybook.to/snowangelebook?fbclid=IwAR09hVdB4kpGv9_XN5Pe29LaJpWY4Fiux7V91-qRQbIYBZxSxfrxlLYMHtk" target="_blank">amazon</a></b></div>
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<a href="https://www.books2read.com/b/mBP7Qp" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank"><b>other bookstores</b></a></div>
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For the eighth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">8 Saturnalia</span></b></div>
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<b>Roma Nova Extra by Alison Morton</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="https://mybook.to/RomaNovaExtra" target="_blank">amazon</a></b></div>
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<a href="https://www.kobo.com/fr/en/ebook/roma-nova-extra" target="_blank">kobo</a> <a href="https://bit.ly/2O0Qwpp" target="_blank">B & N</a> <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/roma-nova-extra/id1438723682?mt=11" target="_blank">ibooks</a></div>
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For the ninth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">9 hearts romancing</span></b></div>
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<b>The Christmas Heart by Helena Halme</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="http://books2read.com/TheChristmasHeart?fbclid=IwAR3rLBmDzeoxltbEYu146Hs0vTQA9bIwGeEhBTodUEQzaQ87rFjrS8QuTvg">all</a></b><b><a href="http://books2read.com/TheChristmasHeart?fbclid=IwAR3rLBmDzeoxltbEYu146Hs0vTQA9bIwGeEhBTodUEQzaQ87rFjrS8QuTvg" target="_blank"> bookstores</a></b></div>
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For the tenth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">10 loves for weeping</span></b></div>
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<b>The Swooping Magpie by Liza Perrat</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="https://www.books2read.com/u/bMQdr7" target="_blank">all book stores</a></b></div>
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For the eleventh book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">11 pirates fighting</span></b></div>
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<b>The Chosen Man by J G Harlond</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="https://amzn.to/2RxVN5K" target="_blank">amazon.com</a></b></div>
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<b><a href="https://amzn.to/2OsKMkm" target="_blank">amazon.co.uk</a></b></div>
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For the twelfth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">12 fine art photos</span></b></div>
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<b>I Stopped Time by Jane Davis</b></div>
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<b>Read more details and buy the book at <a href="https://www.books2read.com/istoppedtime?fbclid=IwAR3yu0DZLTAjdcL_bi78ivBm7UvITU0vzRKcPqfdVC38PAm06NR17PGaFJ0">all</a></b><b><a href="https://www.books2read.com/istoppedtime?fbclid=IwAR3yu0DZLTAjdcL_bi78ivBm7UvITU0vzRKcPqfdVC38PAm06NR17PGaFJ0" target="_blank"> bookstores</a></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Sing along!</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Twelve Books For Christmas - Song</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>For the twelfth book at Christmas, my true love gave to me</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">12 fine art photos</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">11 pirates fighting</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">10 loves for weeping</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">9 hearts romancing</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">8 Saturnalia</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">7 savage women</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">5 wild flings</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">and</span></b></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">a crib scene calamity!</span></b></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-37413696103458533622018-05-21T08:08:00.000-07:002018-05-21T08:28:15.493-07:00Seeing Every Tree - Anita Kovacevic<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Today's blog guest is <b>Anita Kovacevic</b>, a remarkable author whose tireless work on behalf of other authors makes her an unsung hero -so let's do some singing. </span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Tell me a bit about yourself - where do you live and what do you do when you’re not writing?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My family and I live in Croatia, where we are all from. I teach English in a private school for foreign languages to groups of various ages; this is a full-time job. Writing sneaks in whenever possible, usually on breaks and holidays, but when a story is particularly active in my head, it will worm its way even into my dreams at night. Writing makes time for itself, but, for now, it tries to understand my main priority – family. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Can you give me a brief picture of your personal journey as a writer?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Another author friend recently celebrated his anniversary and, as I congratulated him on his success, I checked my own publishing dates. It all still seems so fresh, especially knowing how much I have yet to learn about the craft, but it was only at that moment, when I checked the date, that I realized my books have been in the publishing world for over three years now. There are four of my children’s books out there and, in the world of adult fiction, there’s a novella, two novels, two poetry collections, and finally my stories and poems in six anthologies. If I am doing my math well, that sums up to fifteen titles available online to my own name. It still seems totally surreal at times. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are two wonderful charity projects which came even before my own books and sort of started the whole business of books for me – an educational story book published traditionally a long time ago, <i>Teaching Children from the Heart</i> (currently unavailable) and the international anti-bullying anthology <i>Inner Giant</i> (available on Amazon). I was invited to both by Mr. Letras, an author and teacher, as a member of an online teachers group. These two collections are, in a way, why I dared publish at all. They are linked to my work in education and I am very proud of participating in them. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Most of my books are self-published, because I too have had my share of encounters with vanity publishers, which are way too costly for all of my resources, financially, time-wise and emotionally.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">When I think back to my childhood, I was always writing something, and then it continued throughout my education, as well as my teaching. I often write lesson materials, stories, riddles and limericks for my learners and theatre plays which they perform. This is actually how all of my children’s books started. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As for my current position as a writer, I would say I am still exploring my possibilities and learning as much as I can. Teaching is my primary occupation and it takes up a lot of my time, especially now that the school year is ending, but it also provides a lot of inspiration. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I have not distilled my writing into one single genre, nor do I plan to. There are still too many stories in different genres which I feel should see the light of the publishing world. They are waiting in my laptop and notebooks (yes, old-fashioned hand-writing has its advantages) for their time to come and for me to give them proper attention.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Let’s talk about The Forest of Trees, a book which left a huge impression on me because of the questions it raises and because it is so unusual!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>You know that the title put me off reading the book and that it was only after starting the book and reading your explanation, that I thought about it differently. Why do you like a title that repeats the obvious?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">First of all, thank you very much for reading the book. It means a lot to me, because I admire your work tremendously. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Yes, <i>The Forest of Trees</i> is very unusual and difficult to sum up. Trust me – the blurb was the most difficult thing to write. I suppose when you’ve spent seven years writing something, it is only right that it should be difficult to sum up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But let’s start from the title. I had tried changing it many times during the writing and revision process. It would not be changed. Whatever I tried to do, I’d go back to it. Anything else caused havoc in my mind and a severe stomachache. This book wanted to be called The Forest of Trees from the very moment it clicked in my head, and it feels right to me. The marketability of the title is something I am not yet worried about in my writing career. The obviousness of the message, seeing or not being able to see a forest for the trees, doesn’t bother me at all, knowing that nothing else functioned for me. To be honest, nowadays the obvious needs to be stressed – you might be amazed how many people I’ve talked to who know of this saying, and think it refers to weeds in a garden or forest, without any idea of its metaphorical strength. (Sometimes I wonder if people really don’t see or simply choose not to.) I admire the people who are able to see the big picture still respecting each individual tree, and you know, of course, that I am not only talking about plant life here. I have been privileged to know and work with some of such people. The novel abounds in characters, and their stories are so different, and yet all connected, even when we don’t want them to be. Kind of like life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Forest of Trees </i>deals with a family who move out of a big city, drained from illnesses, unemployment and their son being bullied, and they set off in search of a better life in a small town. Their lives change tremendously, as the children start a new school, the mother starts working and the father is temporarily not the bread-winner of the family. Opportunities abound, and unusual new friendships are formed, but, naturally, nothing is ever perfect. Small towns have their own secrets, some wonderful, some less. It’s how we deal with them that matters, on our own but also together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What makes the story different and special are The Forest and all the characters. The Forest is an infamous wood right next to their new residence, with sort of an urban legend behind it, which turns out to be partly true. In a way, the nature and the magical parts of the story are a reflection of what happens in human reality – nothing is ever totally good or bad, and communication and empathy are the keys to handling things and connecting all the trees in the forest. And again, I am not only talking about plant life here. Speck and Tallulah, the link between the magical and human world, are both tiny, which is how much magic humans allow into this world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I never expected everyone to like the title, cover or the story. I am a writer and teacher, which automatically makes me crazy, but I am not so crazy as to think any book could please everyone. Being at peace with this may be the result of my joining several truly positive author communities, where other authors helped me put things into perspective. It may also be the result of having children and working with them – they teach you very early on that ego is a ridiculous thing and you can never please everybody. The trick is to live with yourself as you are, or else you are living a lie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I felt that the fantasy creatures of the forest highlighted the same problems experienced by the human characters: bullying, peer pressure, violence, and losing touch with nature (in all its senses). Did you write the fantasy thread with this in mind?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Absolutely, they do highlight them. Thank you for interpreting it in this way. I did not write them with this in mind though. They had me write them. From the very beginning of the story, they were part of it. They grew with the characters and developed the relationships naturally. I am pleased they revealed themselves in true form too, not all of them as good or bad, just like humans. I have always believed we are just parts of the intricate tapestry of the universe, and that there is far more to this world, call it magic or nature or whatever you want, than we allow ourselves to see. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As my characters, the fantasy ones and the ‘real’ ones, connected and formed their relationships, it made me feel more complete, more connected, happier. There are several scenes in the book which made me cry happy tears. The initial scene of the boy, Jeremy, whistling in the middle of the forest the very first day they arrive from the city, waking up the slumbering trees and his own soul… this one was so lovely to write, but grew more and more powerful every time I reread it during revisions. Now that I’ve had some time to cool my head from the story, it still evokes strong emotions within me. And that’s just chapter one. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>There are some hard-hitting scenes, showing abusive family relationships and how these affect the wider community, in school, or in the neighbourhood. Were these hard to write?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Horribly difficult to write. I tried not to write some. I avoided them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Old Jackson, the malicious ‘pig’ king, was a special torment for me. The scene where he bullies his youngest grandson and then suffers a just punishment (which should bring some gratification, but doesn’t make you feel good), haunted me as a nightmare for 2 weeks. I would wake up in cold sweat with him whispering in my ear. It is the writer’s horror – the scene repeats itself, word for word, with even more detail every single time. Finally, I gave in, got up one night at about 2 a.m. and wrote it down. I slept like a log the rest of that morning. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">A similar thing happened with the French teacher, Gabrielle, waking up in the motel room, beaten and half-conscious, trying to decide if she wants to try to remember or to forget what exactly happened during the night. This one woke me up after I’d dreamt it, and the entire chapter was dreamed almost exactly as it appears in the book.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Philip, the little boy who uses his talent in computer sciences for his unbelievably malicious plans, was a shock. I’d known from the start he’d be worse than Angel, who is merely a physical bully with learned behavior who needed some love. But the extent of Philip’s wickedness gave me that feeling of defeat. Having almost twenty-five years of teaching experience, I have seen children grow into people I’d hoped they wouldn’t, but this happened really rarely. I love children and their potential, which needs only be unlocked, nourished and inspired by positivity. All the children at Tillsworth seemed to be my learners, so seeing one of them perform such devious acts actually hurt. I remember writing out his final scenes in the book constantly thinking ‘You’re not really going to do that, are you, Philip? Please, don’t. You can do so much better, be so much more…’ It didn’t help. He is very savvy on computers, but uses his power for evil, with total disregard for others or any responsibility. What he did in the end started an avalanche of events which crumbled the town to pieces and tested all relationships. Some might say his deed was eventually productive, but I’d always rather have people water the trees than shake them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These difficult characters and scenes still have that effect on me which you might call 'writer’s PTSP'. Some might know what I mean. I was not just writing those scenes. I was actually there witnessing them and could do nothing about them. It’s a terrible feeling to wake up with the taste of blood in your mouth which is virtual, and yet not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>One layer of the story follows a teacher and her family to a new job and environment. How far did this story draw on your own life, as a teacher, and as a mother?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Well, I am happy to report none of the abuse scenes come from my own life, which is probably why they were so difficult for me to witness and then write. Somehow, putting them on paper makes them real, as if I am admitting these situations exist. They do, but I wish they didn’t. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Whatever we may think, that we are not guided by our own life when we write, that we are not divulging our own thoughts and details in our writing… I believe it is impossible to separate the two completely. There are some scenes related to lessons which probably stem from my own experiences, even some methods Emma uses in class. Emma’s feelings of inadequacy as a mother during her days at home with her firstborn are something I can completely relate to. There are some tiny details in the Stone family life which sneaked into the story with love and honesty, such as Emma not being much of a cook, Dot’s dislike of wearing proper skirts, Jeremy’s art, which must have been inspired by some situations from my own life. Some characters were inspired by the people I know, but never entirely, just in some mannerisms, clothing style, etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Fantasy often presents Good versus Evil in grand battles and in this book you show that battle in both fantasy-style action and in metaphorical human struggles. I loved the section offering youngsters a way to deal with bullying. But you don’t offer easy solutions. One youngster is portrayed as being beyond redemption. I was reminded of Kevin, in ‘We Need To Talk About Kevin,’ and of real teenage murderers. Do you think containment is sometimes all that’s possible?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You are talking about Philip, but also some other children. Bullying is often copied, learned behavior. There is a difference between kids who bully others physically and those who abuse them mentally. Philip’s is the worst kind, I think. He operates from the shadows. I’d hate to see what he grows up to be. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Interesting you should mention containment. I believe it depends on timing. Forgive my bluntness, but it’s like a serious illness – if discovered early, things can be done about it. Philip’s mother Gloria is not a bad person; she herself has obviously been taught that her beauty is her only value, and as it fades, she gets more scared. She knows no better. She never even sees what he is growing into. I’d always felt that at one point she realized his intelligence had surpassed hers and she simply escaped into herself. She may have felt he was not taking the path of positivity, but being lost herself, she was no guide. I have seen this happen – people who are unable to follow their children’s talents or mental development, who are either too weak to ask for help or even too ashamed to ask for help. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is why I cannot stress communication enough. Solutions to problems are never easy, because the problems are not easy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I believe for Philip it was too late to do anything. Regrettably, there are situations like that. I remember seeing this in some children. It is a frightening feeling in the pit of your stomach as you gaze into that child’s eyes and you realize they do know the difference between right and wrong, but it doesn’t interest them – all they care about is what they want. It is one of the scariest feelings in the world, seeing future in that light. You hope you are wrong. And then you meet the source – the parents, and the feeling in your stomach sinks in – irredeemable. Frightful feeling. I am glad it is rare. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But overall, bullying and abuse in children can be handled and steered in the right direction. All my other children characters are proof. The project they work on at school is one I feel so privileged to have witnesses in my mind. It has nothing to do with bullying, and yet demands all the positive things I believe in education – creativity, team work, individuality, respect, problem solving, collaboration with adults… even things getting literally messy in water colours. It is my firm belief that by focusing on positivity and creativity is the way to go.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As for Jeremy’s method to handle bullying by finding his own inner strength, I’d thought a lot about it. For a moment I was even a bit disappointed that he’d chosen such stereotypes (talking to his own angel and demon), until I realized it was normal – children use images we provide them with, so having his own angel and demon was his brain simplifying things for him to a level he was able to handle. The Ready Room is one of my favourite places in the book, but people need to read the book to see why. And it is not even a physical place.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Who is your ideal reader and what would you like him/her to take away from reading your book?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Oh this may be the most difficult question of all. I don’t know what kind of person it would take to like The Forest of Trees, but perhaps that’s part of the magic of writing. I would certainly recommend it to educators, parents, family people, even young adults with interest in human psyche. Anyone who doesn’t mind a bit of magic now and then. The fantasy creatures certainly helped me handle some of the ghastly people in the book. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I hope readers feel good after reading the novel and it makes them think about themselves and others. I hope they realize how much respect some people, for instance the Bosworths (the school principal and his wife), deserve – the modest, non-conflicting people who never steal the show but facilitate life to all around them, despite their own personal tragedy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Everyone has a story. I hope my readers admit that children, and some adults, need to believe in magic, need their own inner world which makes them better people. Tallulah, Speck and the trees, the fantasy elements I mentioned in this interview, they are the links in the book, with the help of the children, of course. They keep the balance. I love my tree characters. I cried over some, and I’d love to meet them in person. I hope my readers will too.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>How do you feed your creative engine? Where do you look, or what do you do, to keep the inspiration flowing?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">With everything else still taking precedence in my life, inspiration flows too often to fit my timetable. I never have to look for it – it finds me. The people at the bus stop, a scent, an image, music, somebody’s laughter, doing the dishes, chatting with my husband or my kids… everything has a story. Everyone has a story.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What comes first –location, plot, characters?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">An entire scene plays out in my head, or even a dream. With sounds, scents and all. When that happens, I know I’m in for a story. Some stories continue right away, playing out scene by scene on a daily basis, some don’t. Those take their time, simmer down and lurk. When their time comes, they simply continue themselves. If they don’t, they just weren’t meant to be.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your writing day. Do you work to a routine? Do you have a dedicated space to write in? Endless cups of coffee or tea?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Oh that would be something – a writing day! Well, that notion certainly gives me something to hope for :) . I had a spot dedicated to writing, but now it’s my daughter’s school desk. Luckily, I am not a slave to a place. All I need is that spark and then I can write on napkins. For instance, a part of <i>The Forest of Trees</i> was written on the back of my old lesson plans. What does happen when I’m in the writing zone is that lack of sleep becomes a routine. I usually eat more and gain less while I write. The perfect diet, huh? And I am generally in a really good mood. Writing makes me a better person to the people around me – must be because I release those demons from my head. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Who or what has been the greatest help to you as a writer?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">As far as my children’s books are concerned, I’d say my own children and my little learners. They don’t know I write books, by the way (my learners, I mean), so when I tell a story they react as kids do – honestly and brutally. If they lose interest, I know I am doing it wrong. Some of my colleagues have offered lots of support and even use my stories in my lessons. Those people are in my dedications.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">My friends and family try to be supportive, each in their own way. My husband has learned to understand my insomniac phases and persuaded me to get myself a very small and very silent laptop, so I could write during the night and not wake him up. I also have been blessed with good friends who tell me my mistakes to my face, not behind my back.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I have been privileged to meet some wonderful authors, yourself included, who help with advice, reviews, promoting, even proofreading and editing. Forgive me for not naming them, but I’d hate anyone to feel left out, and then again some people hate feeling tagged. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Reading helps me a lot. I often remember my English teachers and writing instructors from my university days when I write. They must have done something right, right? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What has been the hardest thing for you to overcome in becoming an author?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Lots of things really. Realizing you can write whatever you want, but once it is in publishing stages, it becomes a business like everything else. I am not much of a business person, so investments, marketing and strategizing are not my forte. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The moment you realize it will take a long time and perseverance is a difficult one. However, it is not as frustrating as I imagined it would be. One has to be at peace with the fact that things need time to happen. Of course, if you give up, you are not allowing yourself that time, so have no expectations.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">One thing I am still trying to overcome… well, not overcome but balance and come to terms with is life’s reality – responsibilities and priorities. Let’s say it’s a good thing – it means I am still learning, and that keeps me young.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could pick one of your own characters to spend some time with, who would it be and why?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Oh I couldn’t. Just one? Can I cheat a bit? I’d love to take a walk through The Forest with my family and see who we bumped into. That would be a treat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What are you working on now - or next?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Oddly enough, or not, I’ve just finished the first version of a non-fiction manuscript. It’s a book about a method I apply when I teach – something I’ve come up with that works for not only my subject, sort of a strategy of learning and teaching which is pretty simple and most effective. I also have several children’s books and adult short story collections in editing stages, and an unusual psychological thriller in ‘lurking’ stage – it wants to be written but knows it requires lots of research.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your latest book and why we should all buy it?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The latest one is <i>The Forest of Trees</i>, which I talked about a lot during this interview, and thank you immensely for this opportunity. Why should you buy it? Because it is really good, ha-ha. Told you I am no marketing expert. I can recommend you tons of books by other authors though, and be spectacularly creative about it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I can vouch for that and it's been impossible for me to interview Anita at a time when she's not reviewing and promoting my books! This has made it harder for me to interview her and to review The Forest of Trees but as she would say, 'Finally I gave in to my gut and I slept better.' My respect for her grows every time we exchange views and, as we've both been teachers for a long time, we share the knowledge of how hard it is to be in the front line of a battle that seems to grow ever more dangerous.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Thank you, Anita!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Where can we find you?</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://anitakovacevic.wixsite.com/anitas-haven" target="_blank">Anita's website </a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://anitashaven.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Anita's blog</a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://twitter.com/anitas_haven" target="_blank">Follow Anita on twitter </a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/anitas.haven/" target="_blank">Anita on instagram </a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://hr-hr.facebook.com/anitashaven/" target="_blank">Anita on facebook</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/jwovbbv" target="_blank">Follow Anita on Goodreads </a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://bit.ly/2GzAjzr" target="_blank">Anita's Youtube channel </a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Buy <i>The Forest of Trees </i><a href="https://author.to/AnitaKovacevicAmazon" target="_blank">on amazon</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">on<a href="https://tinyurl.com/ybfpg9gb" target="_blank"> B & N</a> on <a href="https://tinyurl.com/ycxuds4g" target="_blank">Kobo</a> on <a href="https://tinyurl.com/ydfyn8hq" target="_blank">Apple itunes</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>My review of <i>The Forest of Trees</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What are we doing for and to our kids? This gripping novel makes you wonder!</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is not a children's story although some youngsters would relate to many parts of it. Through a gripping story, the author faces us with some of those big questions behind the news every day, and helps us understand people better. How can we protect our children, sometimes from each other? What drives some adults, and some children to commit horrific crimes? How does our relationship with nature affect <i>our</i> nature, as a human society?<br /><i><br />The Forest of Trees</i> is unusual in the way it links a fantasy storyline that seems almost childish, with a realistic depiction of bullying and abuse, in a small town location. Every detail of school life is convincing, both from teachers' viewpoints and students'. The youngsters and their relationships below the radar of adult intervention are heart-breaking in their potential for both good and evil. I was rooting for Jeremy! I also appreciated the quiet goodness of many of the adults, which I found more moving than any one superhero could have been.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Bad things happen, in the book and in life, and the Ready Room is something we all need. You'll have to read the book to understand what it is and why!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This book annoyed me because it didn't make its mind up which sort of book it was. The title annoyed me until I read the author's explanation for it (which you don't read unless you get past the title). The fairy annoyed me - maybe it was just the word 'fairy' that seemed childish - and yet, the faery folk of legend aren't childish at all. All my criticisms disappeared against the inescapable fact that I keep thinking about this book. It's as important as <i>We Need To Talk About Kevin</i> and <i>Micka</i> in showing us something about youngsters today. We need to talk about Philip.</span></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-76889636998159832682018-05-09T03:40:00.001-07:002018-05-09T07:12:59.348-07:00'Nobody sees how young you are!' Meet Voice Actor Jake Urry<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Jake Urry </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">is a British actor, voice artist and narrator of audiobooks, who already has an impressive list of 30+ audiobooks, and testimonials to make any author hope he'll accept a book for narration. When Jake said 'Yes' to me, I fastened my seatbelt, ready for a new way of living my own novel. I was not disappointed! How could I be when Jake attracts comments like,<i> 'I have listened to thousands of audio books through the years, and rarely have I heard such a versatile talent as Jake Urry.' </i>John D Mimms </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I really appreciate Jake taking the time to visit my blog and record this interview as I know he's a very private person when not being somebody else.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: Tom Barker Photography</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Welcome to my blog, Jake! </i></span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me a bit about yourself - what do you do when you’re not recording a book?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I co-run <i>Just Some Theatre</i>, a theatre company, and spend most of my time working. I share a studio with <i>Tom Barker Photography</i> so have access to this lovely screen, space and lighting. In my spare time, I like peaceful things like walking, the countryside, and eating salmon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">You can watch Jake's interview live, with more detail than on the blog post, </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlpvaiY-wEk&t=2s" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">here</span></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlpvaiY-wEk&t=2s" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Watch Jake's interview on youtube</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your journey as a Voice Actor</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I did a couple of commercial voice-overs but wasn't inspired by reading phone messages for big companies and such-like. Then audiobooks came along and I've had a real passion for them since I started listening about twelve years ago. So, in 2016, my own narrating journey started.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>You produce a lot of thrillers and suspense books. Do you see yourself branching out into other genres in the future?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I have worked on thriller, suspense, mystery, horror - dark themes. I was drawn to them because I like the narration voice I use, which is nothing like my natural speaking voice. I love the 'Vincent Price' way of creating suspense, building on it and keeping that energy going. I love that atmosphere.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;">Recently I have started doing other genres, fantasy and sc-fi, doing things in a completely different accent. I did a book called <i>The Tesla Gate, </i>by John D Mimms, in a sort of American drawl. I really enjoyed it and it's doing very well! </span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;">I do feel like branching out more. This is the first book I've done with as much romance in it. It's not all romance as a story but <i>Song at Dawn </i>has more romantic elements than anything I've done before. I would certainly consider doing more in that vein in the future.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>How do you prepare for recording an audiobook?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">When I get the script, I look for moments of tension, big changes in the script, </span><span style="font-size: large;">how that should push the story along and </span><span style="font-size: large;">what the narrative voice should be like. Then, I'll go through looking for main characters, deciding their voices, before recording anything. Then I start reading and see how it evolves.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>For what reasons do you turn books down?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">If the story doesn't grab me or if I'm not right person for the book. I have to personally want to do it. Financially I can't do it if it won't sell. For instance, if the cover is bad, it won't pay off.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>How can an author help the Voice Actor/ Producer of his/her book?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I've been lucky and worked with some great authors. On the whole, they tend to give me free rein. Some specify how they want a particular character to sound, which is fine. I usually ask for a list of main characters, and if the author can tell me anything to help me find a voice, that's helpful. Authors can give me any ideas they have but if they're happy for me to interpret for them, that's fine too.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Are there ways in which an author can hinder or even spoil the Voice Actor’s recording of a book?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">What would be annoying would be an author not giving me anything at the beginning, saying, 'Do what you want,' and then came back to me after I'd recorded the whole thing with criticisms such as 'I thought the character would sound more like....' If you've got ideas, let me know at the beginning.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could wave a magic wand and change something about your career what would it be?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I'd make more time or get a robot to do my editing, which takes up so much time that i'd rather be recording.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your working day. Do you work to a routine? Do you use a recording studio? Endless cups of coffee or tea?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My days starts with computer stuff. I need time for my voice to warm up so I do editing or paperwork or theatre company work first. I do some warm-ups, then go into my booth. I do drink a lot of coffee, and water as well. I try to relax as that's important. The worst thing is a deadline. You can't rush narrating.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Who or what has been the greatest help to you as a Voice Actor?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It's h</span><span style="font-size: large;">ard to choose. The person who put the spark in me to do narrating was Samuel West, when I heard him doing <i>1984</i> by George Orwell. I was on an acting degree and I thought, 'I want to do that!' I always thought I would have to wait until I was older, more seasoned, but the great thing about audiobooks is that they can't see how young you are. I sound about seventy-two when I'm recording but when people see me, they say, 'That's not the guy who read that!' I started doing it a lot sooner than I thought I could, and that's all down to Samuel West.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Jean: Jake made me laugh when we working on </i>Song at Dawn <i>because he enjoyed himself most when portraying old, male villains! NOT what I'd expected!</i></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Jake on stage. Photo: Tom Barker Photography</span></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">What has been the hardest thing for you to overcome in becoming a Voice Actor?</span></i></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">Technical difficulties. I've had so many problems with microphones and software, spent so much time fixing them. Asking online for help would have saved me a lot of problems but I didn't know that was an option at the time!</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could pick one character in one of your audiobooks, to spend some time with, who would it be and why?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I would love to spend some time with Harlan Ulrich, who is the P.I. in the </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>The Ulrich Files</i><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: large;">by Ambrose Ibson because he spends so much time around abandoned buildings, trying to use his phone torch, and I think if he had someone there to shine a light, it would all be less scary. I could keep him company. He loves good coffee so I could learn coffee-brewing skills from him. I think he'd be pretty chilled to hang out with.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Jean: Now I've checked out </i>The Ulrich Files<i>, I think 'chilling' is a better description than 'chilled'!</i></span><br />
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</i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Tell me about your latest audiobook and why we should all buy it?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;">My latest audiobook is of course</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><i>Song at Dawn</i><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">by Jean Gill. It's wonderful! I had such a blast narrating it. It has so many different layers, so many spectacular scenes. You can really imagine yourself being in those places. So much historical research has gone into it. I used to think historical fiction might not be as engaging but </span><i>Song at Dawn</i><span style="font-size: medium;"> shattered that illusion for me. It wasn't difficult to come up with different voices for the different characters because they are so detailed. the whole thing was a joy to narrate - and even to edit, which I don't usually say!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Jean: I had a blast too, Jake, and even enjoyed editing :) I don't usually like that either! Congratulations on a wonderful first review! </i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i>5* review on audible from Melanie Preston Lewis<br />'Jake Urry provides exquisite narration, and what a task he had, providing voices for female singers as well as the troubadours, French aristocracy and the Jewish and Muslim characters. What an enormous and overwhelming challenge this must have been. Mr Urry rose to the occasion and must be congratulated on his success with so many difficult roles. '</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Where can we find you? </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I want to add to my youtube channel so if you have any audiobook-related ideas for videos, anything you'd like to hear about, please post below or get in touch, through any of these links.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-size: large;">Contact Jake via <a href="https://www.jakeurry.com/" target="_blank">his website</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://twitter.com/JU_AudioBooks" target="_blank">Twitter</a> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jakeurryaudiobooks/" target="_blank">Facebook</a> </span><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTL2w8o_WlB8ud6xQ34QywA" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Youtube </span></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Thank you, Jake, for letting us behind the scenes and for bringing my book to life! </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>The ebook of Song at Dawn is FREE from 7th-31st May 2018 - get it <a href="https://www.books2read.com/Song" target="_blank">here! </a> </b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>If you own the kindle version of Song at Dawn, you can get a BIG discount on amazon for </i></span><i>your copy of Jake Urry reading </i>Song at Dawn <i>from</i></span><br />
<i style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://amzn.to/2jKzdrW">amazon.com</a></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><a href="https://amzn.to/2Iauaf2">amazon.co.uk</a></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Or join audible and </span><a href="https://www.audible.com/t2/title?asin=B07CLKFHGZ" style="font-size: x-large;">get a FREE copy of Song at Dawn audiobook here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><i>Listen to Jake reading Chapter 1 of Song at Dawn</i></i></span></div>
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">Discover the award-winning <i>Troubadours Quartet</i> FREE! </b></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih68Ys_ZkZSbvNNZxTRq_psP1DYQyRP-tREBOYIOVw7NqgN8Feto9yBGDNA6EhIlxlos8pXo7PrNW6CtITiJyzGToT-cIoHEFJY-nuNPftinoOQ0HYNGMhqvXbmpNK-z5qRh-ef8WCzZgn/s1600/Troubadours+awards+sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="1000" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih68Ys_ZkZSbvNNZxTRq_psP1DYQyRP-tREBOYIOVw7NqgN8Feto9yBGDNA6EhIlxlos8pXo7PrNW6CtITiJyzGToT-cIoHEFJY-nuNPftinoOQ0HYNGMhqvXbmpNK-z5qRh-ef8WCzZgn/s640/Troubadours+awards+sm.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.books2read.com/Song" target="_blank">Get Book 1 FREE</a></span></td></tr>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-25995766137151542552018-03-31T02:16:00.002-07:002018-03-31T11:32:26.209-07:00Finding your Voice: Ian M. Walker<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Have you ever wondered about narrating an audiobook? </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">If you read my <a href="http://jeangill.blogspot.fr/2012/04/recording-audio-books.html" target="_blank">2012 blog</a> about my experience as an author-narrator you already know why authors can be the worst narrators of our own books! And why choosing the right narrator is so important. The moment I heard Ian's submission for <i>Someone To Look Up To</i>, I knew I'd found the voice of Sirius and, since publication three weeks ago, listeners are agreeing with me. So who is the man behind <i>Walker's Words?</i> And what's the inside story on being a Voice?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ian M. Walker is a</span><span style="font-size: large;"> Brit living in Los Angeles who broke the shackles of many years in the corporate I.T. world to follow a more creative dream. He is </span><span style="font-size: large;">known for 5* audiobook narration in his <i>'deep, gravelly voice'</i>. He has an upcoming part in a stop-motion film, upcoming animation narration, completed Orcish feast voices and ambience for an upcoming role-playing game by World Tree Studios. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As Ian is a Voice, he decided to answer my questions live for you, on video, so you could see him working and so he could expand on his answers. You can enjoy the full version of Ian's interview here and I can only say that I was moved to tears by the end of it - good tears.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Welcome to my blog, Ian! </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /><i>Tell me a bit about yourself - where do you live and what do you do when you’re not recording a book?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Originally from England, I live in Los Angeles, CA. I’ve actually now been over here for longer than I lived in the country of my birth! When not recording I’m usually playing with my dog, Bailey, reading, swimming, playing a computer game or visiting friends.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Ian and his Catahoula Leopard Dog (with that beautiful coat!) x pitbull, Bailey in McArthur park</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Can you give me a brief picture of your personal journey as a Voice Actor?</i><br />After a long career in I.T. and one too many lay-offs, I started to put serious thought into what I actually wanted to do when I grow up. I.T. had been good to me but it never fulfilled me. I did some traveling and during that time, I came across an ad for a voice assessment. I went along, heard myself recorded in a professional booth for the first time and a fire was lit in my belly. I just completed my fourth complete audiobook and I’m working on the fifth. I may also be voicing <i>Einstein the English Elephant </i>in an independent stop-motion film. Since elephants have always been my favourite animal, that would be fun. I definitely intend to do some voice work for gaming.<br /><br /><i>How do you prepare for recording an audiobook?</i><br />Initially, I read the book. I try to just enjoy it as a reader would but, of course, I’m already starting to think of the voices. I’ll speak with the author in case they have input or I need to clarify anything such as words, accents, etc. When it comes time to record, it varies. Sometimes, the voice(s) will just come to me. With others, I may try a few out and see which I prefer. If there are a great many voices I’ll usually record snippets which I may refer back to.<br /><br /><i>Do you network with other Voice Actors? Are there any sites you’d recommend?</i><br />Absolutely! I have quite a few peers I’m connected with via social media. There are a great many voice groups out there so I’d rather not favour any single one. One thing I would mention, though, is that I’ve always found these groups and my peers to be very helpful. I heard early on that, unlike other areas of the entertainment industry, voice is less cut-throat and more about lifting one another up. So far, I’ve found this to be the case.<br /><br /><i>How can an author help the Voice Actor/ Producer of his/her book?</i><br />Hmm, an interesting question. Though I don’t have a great deal of personal experience yet, from what I’ve read some authors can be quite hands-on whilst others leave it to the Narrator. Usually, though, this IS a partnership so there ought to be some discussion. Steering clear of too much description of tone/flavor would be helpful as it isn’t always easy to understand exactly what the author was going for. One thing which would be nice, though it is likely not feasible, is if the author could consider, when writing, just how long a sentence they are writing (without any pauses) and how that might affect the poor narrator as they attempt to voice it without expiring. 😉<br /><i>Hahaha. Guilty as charged!</i><br /><br /><i> Are there ways in which authors can hinder or even spoil the Voice Actor’s recording of a book?</i><br />Micro-management. Changing their minds causing many re-records.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>If you could wave a magic wand and change something about your career what would it be?</i><br />I’d be a little further along. More established. More known. Because, hopefully, such a position lessens the bane of all creative types – the weakening of self-confidence/belief in oneself.<br /><i>That is exactly how I feel! You say more about this in the video and I can identify with all of it!</i><br /><br /><i>Tell me about your working day. Do you work to a routine? Do you use a recording studio? Endless cups of coffee or tea?</i><br />I have an audio booth I created out of a large (5' x 5' x 8') closet. It has walls treated with Auralex acoustic tiles, thick carpet, etc. Despite being from England, I never had the endless cups of tea habit and now, I rarely drink it or coffee. I’m always drinking water. I always have, thankfully. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I always warm up. First, I’ll do some singing along to music as I’m checking emails and what not, then I’ll follow the routine of a friend and peer, Amy Walker (no relation) immediately prior to any recording session. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auqxLQiT_iE" target="_blank">Try the routine yourself!</a><br /><br /><i>Who or what has been the greatest help to you as a Voice Actor?</i>The helpful people of the forum for the free software I mainly use <i>(Audacity)</i> and of the <i>ACX Facebook group.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What has been the hardest thing for you to overcome in becoming a Voice Actor?</i><br />Lack of self-confidence. This hit me hard over the past year or so due to some personal challenges/events which had nothing to do with my voice work.<br /><br /><i>If you could pick one character in one of your audiobooks, to spend some time with, who would it be and why?</i><br />I can’t give just one, it has to be two. 😊 First of all, Sirius from <i>Someone To Look Up To</i> by an author you may know because I love dogs and I feel I got to know him so well so I’d love to meet him. Secondly, Gon from <i>The Oldest Living Vampire</i> series by Joseph Duncan because - come on! - he is 30,000 years old! How fascinating that would be.<br /><br /><i>Tell me about your latest audiobook and why we should all buy it?</i><br />My first three books are all of a supernatural bent. This is fine for me as my favourite genres are sci-fi and horror. Of course, this isn’t a realm all readers enjoy. Due to this, plus having to overcome the aforementioned challenges to finish this book, <i>Someone To Look Up To</i> is something I’m going to cherish dearly. It is a book which appeals universally and one which became a crucible of sorts for me. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Beyond my very personal reasons, it truly is wonderfully written. There were times I would come out of the booth, interact with my own dog, Bailey and I’d find myself looking at her differently, even asking her if she was doing what I had just read about. I had to keep on reminding myself that this was a book of fiction, not fact! It takes one into the psyche and thoughts of a dog so well. 😊</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir50HsUldSlflRjNQUUysSHXZ_z2f5aCsGRWs5TxMVUYXWoDd8wfoSVfaPeVe3f4tucK_a05g_pGSwx6-3gAdtDDa8qCBYSsVg-CjhgPJH2BfT1WzLKqHpVbAV8Zs9Yu19IS_sY5bt9enU/s1600/26195868_10155929379266411_834226857827326206_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir50HsUldSlflRjNQUUysSHXZ_z2f5aCsGRWs5TxMVUYXWoDd8wfoSVfaPeVe3f4tucK_a05g_pGSwx6-3gAdtDDa8qCBYSsVg-CjhgPJH2BfT1WzLKqHpVbAV8Zs9Yu19IS_sY5bt9enU/s320/26195868_10155929379266411_834226857827326206_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Bailey in her famous pink raincoat (to misquote Leonard Cohen). Ian was fed up of people assuming that Bailey was male so she always wears pink.</span></i></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you, Ian. Your narration brought my book alive for me and I loved every moment. Readers can listen to Ian reading Chapter 2 of the audiobook here and judge for themselves how Ian 'became the voice of Sirius, and made Sirius and the others feel so real'</span><span style="color: rgba(26 , 28 , 29 , 0.650980392156863); font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">. </span>(5* review)</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #020015; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><i><br /></i></span></span><i><span style="font-size: large;">What are you working on next?</span></i><span style="font-size: large;">I have already started on the next in the <i>Oldest Living Vampire </i>series. After that, though, I’m going to try to spread my wings a little. I’d like to go for some computer game or commercial work and perhaps one or two non-fiction audiobooks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Where can we find you? </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The easiest way is via <a href="http://www.ianmwalker.com/" target="_blank">my website,</a> as it has links to all of my social media. </span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-50726789341248839292018-01-23T00:46:00.000-08:002018-01-23T01:03:50.738-08:00NEW Books! GOODREADS Giveaways for US Readers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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</span></b> <b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">'Jean Gill’s spiky humour makes you feel as if she’s caught you on barbed wire and yet makes you smile about it'</span></b><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">– <i>Mike Sharpe, Haverfordwest Journalist </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Strong, fresh, vivid poems from award-winning author Jean Gill, on an astounding range of subjects including adultery, AIDS and the Mexican Earthquake. If you crossed Wendy Cope’s work with Sylvia Plath’s, Jean Gill’s poetry might be the result.<br />
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‘You’re starting to smother me, darling,</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> you’re faded and boring, my dear.</span></i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> It’s my turn to play with another</span></i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> and your turn alone with your fear.’ </span></i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
Divided into two parts, this new edition includes the stories behind the poetry, some personal and some about world events; always surprising.<br />
<b><i>'Moving and varied '</i></b>– Dorothy Tutin<br />
<b><i>'Jean Gill brings off the rare feat of looking life squarely in the eye without descending into dreary cynicism.' </i></b>– HS Milford Haven, Journalist<br />
<b><i>'The author is particularly gifted with poetry.' </i></b>The Wishing Shelf Award<br />
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by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4619468.Jean_Gill" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none;">Jean Gill</a><br />
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<b>Thrilling conclusion to an award-winning epic series. Can be read as a stand-alone.</b></h3>
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<b><i>Amazon 5* review </i></b></div>
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<b>Perfect!</b><br />
"I looked forward to this publication knowing it was the last book in a wonderful series and then put off actually reading it. I so loved the characters that I couldn't bear for it to end. And then I realized that enough time had passed and I could start over with the first book to live it all again. I've never been so pleased with the final chapter in any series as this. The story is so engaging, one almost doesn’t realize the lessons in history, poetry, music and medicine are being taught. The relationships between characters are enchanting, intriguing, and sometimes frightening. And the dog! You will recognize your own special dog in this hero, no matter the size or breed. Bravo!"<br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-78492375995188191402017-11-06T08:47:00.002-08:002017-11-06T08:49:14.614-08:00El Rey Lobo, the Wolf King of 12thC Murcia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">During the 12th Century, there were two crusades which pitted Christian armies against Muslims and Jews in 'the Holy Land' and in continental Europe. However, it would be as naive to think that these faith communities were 'enemies' throughout the 12th Century as to think that Germany was an enemy to the U.K. or to France throughout the 20th Century. Wars and political alliances have never been simple, and the true story of El Rey Lobo, the Wolf King, sheds light on real politics in 1153. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Romantic 19th C painting of a Caliph and his escort, often used to depict El Rey Lobo but NOT of him</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Not a fantasy invention but a real historical figure, the man nicknamed 'El Rey Lobo' in Spanish (</span><span style="font-size: large;">'The Wolf King'</span><span style="font-size: large;">), ruled the kingdom of Murcia from 1147, when he was twenty-three years old, until his death in 1172. He was crucial in the defence of the Christian kingdoms in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, against the Almohad Muslims in the south - and he was a Muslim. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Typical of the complications in real history, his ancestors had converted to the Muslim faith, so he was described as 'muwallad', an Arabic term for 'of mixed background'. Some say his nickname came from the family name Lope, which was abandoned when his Christian forebears converted to Islam.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZoIzAMqtQMiGqgkkgqlyhmPHKrUuMI7p8GCRoXucKhjpd57qUtIoCZH6Wx22Vmpb09sQ8CTOggypqjnwaazexEogthQK1WgifXPmvHapLrdXLj5SxsCv2qMpi4hhSA9viMooR76NayHIc/s1600/spanish_kingdoms_1210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="882" data-original-width="1155" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZoIzAMqtQMiGqgkkgqlyhmPHKrUuMI7p8GCRoXucKhjpd57qUtIoCZH6Wx22Vmpb09sQ8CTOggypqjnwaazexEogthQK1WgifXPmvHapLrdXLj5SxsCv2qMpi4hhSA9viMooR76NayHIc/s640/spanish_kingdoms_1210.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Spanish Kingdoms in 1210</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In 1153, Abu ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Mardanīš (to give the Wolf King his full name) was the King of Valencia and Murcia. For the more romantically inclined, his wolf nickname could have arisen from stories such as his treatment of a relative, Yūsuf, who challenged his authority. Having won a battle against </span><span style="font-size: large;">Yūsuf</span><span style="font-size: large;">, El Rey Lobo threatened to gouge out his eyes unless he gave the order to surrender. </span><span style="font-size: large;">Yūsuf</span><span style="font-size: large;"> refused and lost his right eye. El Rey Lobo then ordered Yūsuf's wife to surrender the castle or else watch her husband blinded. She refused and Yūsuf's other eye was removed. He was then imprisoned. Such was the mercy of the Wolf King. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">His kingdoms were sandwiched between the Christian realms of Barcelona and Aragon (both ruled by the Count of Barcelona, thanks to the marriage coup of the century) and the southern taifas of Al-Andalus (Muslim Spain). Relationships were amicable between El Rey Lobo and his Christian neighbours, with trade links and tolerance of mixed-faith communities. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Tolerance did <i>not</i> mean equality and the laws favoured the faith group in power, whether in Muslim Murcia or Christian Aragon. Jews held positions of high status in both Muslim and Christian kingdoms but were expected to keep to their own community for accommodation, social occasions and - a big cultural division - eating.</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/AVvXsEit0eA-dRkJxlg7u1Xa63G9GSjuhSwst-vavN1Rys1uGPCjYZu69-yxT99YlIFGiX2CJipeDGBFYHX4wlbSDe_vbfYMrx3jhdt27R323wQt8xy32zowbbFAY1pJaHsTqobyPJ4sUZQxIlAk/s1600/12th+c+Aragon+medieval+heraldic+design+-+moor%2527s+head+-+1+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1511" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit0eA-dRkJxlg7u1Xa63G9GSjuhSwst-vavN1Rys1uGPCjYZu69-yxT99YlIFGiX2CJipeDGBFYHX4wlbSDe_vbfYMrx3jhdt27R323wQt8xy32zowbbFAY1pJaHsTqobyPJ4sUZQxIlAk/s320/12th+c+Aragon+medieval+heraldic+design+-+moor%2527s+head+-+1+Copy.jpg" width="302" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The medieval arms of Aragon showing a moor's head in the lower left quadrant</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">One example of a Christian ruler's laws: <i>'I likewise grant to all settlers this prerogative... whether Christian, Moor or Jew, free or servile, [they] should come in safety' </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>[In a court case] the Christian should swear on the cross and the Jew on the Torah. And if the Jew or Christian does not want to swear, he should lose the case. </i></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>(from The Code of Cuença, late 12th Century)</i></span></div>
<div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Relationships were <i>not</i> amicable between El Rey Lobo and his fanatical southern neighbours, the Almohad Muslims. These invaders brought extremist views with them from North Africa and, even more than they hated Christians, they hated their fellow-Muslims. They hated the Almoravids, Muslims who'd been lords of Al-Andalus for centuries until the Almohads arrived. And they hated those like El Rey Lobo, of 'mixed' background.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">In short, Muslims who'd been settled a long time on the Iberian Peninsula, and who now governed peaceful mixed-faith communities, betrayed their own faith, from the Almohad point of view, and were worse than Christians. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">There was no doubt that the Almohads' conquest of southern Spain and advance northwards was El Rey Lobo's biggest threat. An alliance with his northern, Christian neighbours was in both their interests. How was that alliance secured? Did Ramon Berengeur IV of Barcelona and Aragon perhaps take a party of his men to El Rey Lobo's stronghold of Monteagudo? What did Berengeur offer to gain Murcia's defence of his southern border? </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/AVvXsEg_1aCFfrrtCzZ-NeyF0m6FygAioAgznTR3zs_ngh_WR6jmU1sBfgJMGXYKshWg9DTxrhYzNsi6OgyRIsYo7eFNlsZnYO4xHpZ8WGFnOiaxUyO1_aXOV_604HCv8RFz5nkyWI6HF-FRNA4T/s1600/Castillo_de_Monteagudo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="803" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_1aCFfrrtCzZ-NeyF0m6FygAioAgznTR3zs_ngh_WR6jmU1sBfgJMGXYKshWg9DTxrhYzNsi6OgyRIsYo7eFNlsZnYO4xHpZ8WGFnOiaxUyO1_aXOV_604HCv8RFz5nkyWI6HF-FRNA4T/s400/Castillo_de_Monteagudo.jpg" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">El Rey Lobo's Castle of Monteagudo with the more modern addition of a statue of Christ</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">That meeting is the starting-point for my historical novel 'Song Hereafter', in the court of El Rey Lobo, where Ramon Berengeur and his two commanders seek an alliance with Murcia. One of those commanders is Malik, the Muslim from Zaragoza, and one is his friend, the Christian warrior and troubadour, Dragonetz los Pros, fictional hero of The Troubadours Quartet.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPdTOqdn9vuNirUvAf100w-wKvFU7WO8Q2Lp-nlX6ngel9a2g2XS5RFD97GsTwkfko4sKrG5moqA3Ntxt2ooubjDVw2_LYj-LAEq0YDrgQrHme9_D5eR2WcZxJNoyioHHZ_xfbTfwyfzl3/s1600/Song_hereafter_eBcov+sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="914" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPdTOqdn9vuNirUvAf100w-wKvFU7WO8Q2Lp-nlX6ngel9a2g2XS5RFD97GsTwkfko4sKrG5moqA3Ntxt2ooubjDVw2_LYj-LAEq0YDrgQrHme9_D5eR2WcZxJNoyioHHZ_xfbTfwyfzl3/s320/Song_hereafter_eBcov+sm.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
Song Hereafter<br />
1153 in Hispania and the Isles of Albion</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Chapter 1</div>
</h2>
'<span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Usually when El Rey Lobo bared his teeth, everyone in his line of sight
wondered whether to do likewise and call it smiling, or to wait and pray for
invisibility. Men had been killed for doing either. He had earned his nickname
‘the Wolf King’. The men in front of the king today were not, however, his
courtiers but his Christian neighbours of Barcelone: Ramon Berenguer and two of
his commanders. They were not currying favour but seeking an alliance.</span><br />
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ramon was sombre. ‘Without the King of Murcia, we would have the
Almohads in our gardens. I hear they make a virtue of killing.’<o:p></o:p></div>
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‘And of dying, too. In order to <i>‘purge’</i>
this land.’ the king replied. At the mention of the Almohads, El Rey Lobo’s
face darkened beneath his turban, and his mouth pursed as if accustomed to spit
at the name. His swarthy features, oiled beard and flowing robes gave no sign
of his Christian ancestry and it had been many generations since his family had
converted to the Muslim faith of their overlords. <o:p></o:p></div>
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He continued, ‘They will not
rest until all our people are dead. All of our faith who have made this country
our home for generations. We have ‘sinned’, we are ‘unbelievers’ and the
penalty is death for me, for our wives, for our children, for men like your
commander Malik. They will make slaves of Jews and Christians but us, they will
kill. <o:p></o:p></div>
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They are superstitious barbarians from the hills of Africa! They shave
their heads before battle. What pious man would do such a thing? And their
black slaves thump on great drums the size of cartwheels. When you hear the
beat of their war-drums, you hear your own death. This is what my men must
face! Their own hearts beating in fear!’<o:p></o:p></div>
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Dragonetz listened intently to his Liege and the Wolf King, sifting
courtesies from nuggets of information. They were all waiting for the king’s
terms. <o:p></o:p></div>
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El Rey Lobo dismissed the Almohads with a defiant gesture and began the
bargaining. ‘The Almohads are not causing me a problem today. If you want to
solve the problems I have today, go and find me a mintmaster and an expert in
siege warfare.’ He paused for thought, then held up a third finger. ‘<i>And </i>somebody who will repair a paper mill.
<i>These </i>are the problems that take up a
king’s time! When you take away these headaches, we can talk about protecting
boundaries and Almohads!’<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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To continue reading, for more details and buy links for<i> Song Hereafter (</i>the last book in the award-winning Troubadours Quartet) please visit <a href="http://jeangill.com/books/song-hereafter-the-troubadours-book-4/">my website</a> . Book 1 <i>Song at Dawn</i> is on promotion at 99c / 99p if you wish to start this epic saga at the beginning but <i>Song Hereafter</i> can be read as a standalone.</div>
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<br />
<b style="text-indent: 8.5pt;">Further Reading</b><br />
<i>Medieval Iberia, Readings from Christian, Jewish and Muslim sources</i>, edited by Olivia Remie Constable</div>
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<span style="text-indent: 8.5pt;"><b>Photo credits</b></span></div>
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<span style="text-indent: 0cm;">Map of the Spanish Kingdoms, courtesy of the University of Texas Libraries, The University of Texas at Austin.</span><span style="text-indent: 11.3333px;"> </span>Castle of Monteagudo By SergioHC (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 es (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/es/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons</div>
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Arms of Aragon, the Aljaferia, Zaragoza - Jean Gill</div>
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Song Hereafter - cover design Jessica Bell<br />
Painting by Theodore Chaserieu of Caliph Ali Ben-Hamet, public domain</div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-37644341989296410902017-06-30T00:34:00.004-07:002017-06-30T00:34:59.681-07:00A picture paints a thousand … dollars<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyuQeG-x4uANq1K6pS7ErslJ9do8-pZ99RWEfOQhd-qIVogvPxnAv7riRJZNYk4Xhf9ZG5pIMKwL1l4lsUICQXbeLV8d3TjBPITJD34sBtdiQr0iZWBOnZJ-MuSrAfCIo6VWKAK-4B4KTv/s1600/13th+sign+transparent+no+border.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1296" data-original-width="1344" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyuQeG-x4uANq1K6pS7ErslJ9do8-pZ99RWEfOQhd-qIVogvPxnAv7riRJZNYk4Xhf9ZG5pIMKwL1l4lsUICQXbeLV8d3TjBPITJD34sBtdiQr0iZWBOnZJ-MuSrAfCIo6VWKAK-4B4KTv/s320/13th+sign+transparent+no+border.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 13th Sign copyrighted Publisher logo</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As writers, we want images for our book covers, blogs, adverts
and tweets. It is so easy to break the law if I find the perfect picture online.
All I have to do is right-click, save it and use it. Simple! As simple as picking
up sweets in a shop and pocketing them. You probably wouldn’t do the latter
because a) it’s stealing and b) if you get caught, you don’t just pay the price
of the sweets. The same applies to using images without permission and there
are some horror stories doing the rounds about the price of being caught.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m a writer <i>and</i> a
photographer, with a stock portfolio of 3,500 photos at istockphoto and Getty
Images. When you buy a stock image, you pay for a license to use it and have
the security of knowing you are not breaking any laws. The photographer remains
the copyright holder and can earn a living through multiple small sales. If you
use any photo without payment (if required) or permission, you are stealing
from the photographer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">You would be surprised at which photos sell best. How much
do you think each of these photos has earned for me?</span><o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPw_ej0u_kBJ8u1nOXqryfgHyDRDAj8aJas8vq1wBMr3hvcsmmX0GzUjSC6VfJS4DR1F4Z4YdygpPdIOiij3IgoBTvwnYRIYNNsCmG6d9mXtzoxhKdaoAUkqpIvoIumaX0LHwzZXJRUBFJ/s1600/stock-photo-13352928-untidy-wardrobe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="369" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPw_ej0u_kBJ8u1nOXqryfgHyDRDAj8aJas8vq1wBMr3hvcsmmX0GzUjSC6VfJS4DR1F4Z4YdygpPdIOiij3IgoBTvwnYRIYNNsCmG6d9mXtzoxhKdaoAUkqpIvoIumaX0LHwzZXJRUBFJ/s400/stock-photo-13352928-untidy-wardrobe.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Untidy Wardrobe <a href="https://secure.istockphoto.com/photo/untidy-wardrobe-gm157693377-13352928" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5MU4HHTw3wxehxV8Tyl66gO4QI6WkZB_pvSTkQc5-5eE2EDnV3p0-QzTG7-V2h6Bw3I-09ZvGvi1uyRjBeQjNHV92pYdpwKdwzDzd10UVlIC1xYCsJcuxM9UagbmREOlc_yIQ0SIKhBgV/s1600/stock-photo-17890215-swamp-hag-in-magic-cave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="369" data-original-width="556" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5MU4HHTw3wxehxV8Tyl66gO4QI6WkZB_pvSTkQc5-5eE2EDnV3p0-QzTG7-V2h6Bw3I-09ZvGvi1uyRjBeQjNHV92pYdpwKdwzDzd10UVlIC1xYCsJcuxM9UagbmREOlc_yIQ0SIKhBgV/s400/stock-photo-17890215-swamp-hag-in-magic-cave.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Swamp Hag <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/swamp-hag-in-magic-cave-gm143919132-17890215?st=7cb2152" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></div>
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The untidy wardrobe has earned $400 and the swamp hag, which
involved a gutsy paid model, complicated lighting and a unique (!) location -
$20. The wardrobe photo is successful and the swamp hag is not (though of
course I love it). If somebody saw the wardrobe and thought, ‘That’s just an
ordinary photo; why shouldn’t I use it – and I’ll pay if I get caught,’ I’d
lose my income.<o:p></o:p></div>
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All this is a bit heavy when all you want is a little
picture for your blog?<br />
<br />
<b>You have three legal options. </b><br />
<br />
<b>1)</b> You could <b>use a photo that
is ‘free to use without restriction’ </b>often stated to be ‘under creative commons
license’. Here are two of the many sites that offer photos free, even for
commercial use.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://pixabay.com/" target="_blank">Pixabay</a> is a gateway to shutterstock and many of the paid stock libraries offer freebies as a taster. Help yourself!<br />
</div>
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<a href="http://www.nypl.org/research/collections/digital-collections/public-domain" target="_blank">The New York Library</a>
is also one of many sites offering free photos. Be careful. Some ‘free sites’
steal photos. You could be in trouble if you use images these sites should not
be offering.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>A creative commons license</b> does NOT automatically mean that you can do anything you like with a photo. You need to read the terms of each photo, which might limit the use or require credit in a given manner.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>2) </b>You can pay for <b>Royalty Free stock photos</b>. Royalty Free does
NOT mean free. It means you can use the photo in advertising (e.g. book
jackets) and combine it with other images in any way you want. You can
Photoshop it to death. Check the license use if you have a bestselling print
run – you might need an extended license (usually at about 500,000 copies). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Credit your source where possible and, if you can, the
photographer by name. These are your creative colleagues and, if you use one of
my photos, let me know and I will publicise the fact! Photographers are your marketing
friends!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>3) The third option is to use your own (or a friend’s) photos. You
avoid all the legal problems that way, right? Wrong. </b><br />
<br />
Photos that are fine for
personal use might be illegal if used commercially and it is your
responsibility as photographer (and publisher) to obey the law. Your human
subjects have rights so you should have permission from them before using their
photo as e.g. a book jacket. Some buildings are copyright protected so you
could be sued for using a photo of e.g. the Eiffel Tower at night, without
permission. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I mentioned ‘Royalty Free’ photos. Every human subject in my
photos has signed a Model Release permitting sale of their photos. There are no
brand names, logos or copyright places. As a photographer, you could be sued
over any of these issues.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The exception is when you use or sell your photos as
‘Editorial’. This is photo-journalism; travel, news or street photography where
you do not always have model permission. Editorial photos can only be used in a
reporting context and cannot be changed (i.e. Photoshopped or cropped in a way
that changes the context). Laws vary by country but, for instance, even for Editorial,
my companies do not allow photos of one child unless model released; several
children or a child with at least one adult are acceptable.<o:p></o:p></div>
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If these were your photos, which of these could you legally use for a book cover?<o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgc_bz5AWqDLCbXtaYjQEkESAxodfjVybrQ0sfFCC6GBd6jbRUtfJVKgr7VuRpY2bw0BgNocbomIXheX-fYkg4oCqJEg1aQXGIGFqY3kvOZ5cXBdYkZvJbVh-0TvYKOe_UfGf3aD_8XgML/s1600/458675047.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1063" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgc_bz5AWqDLCbXtaYjQEkESAxodfjVybrQ0sfFCC6GBd6jbRUtfJVKgr7VuRpY2bw0BgNocbomIXheX-fYkg4oCqJEg1aQXGIGFqY3kvOZ5cXBdYkZvJbVh-0TvYKOe_UfGf3aD_8XgML/s320/458675047.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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Lyon Old Quarter <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/street-in-old-quarter-of-lyon-gm458675047-15741414?st=d46f654" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwY-six52EZNWBYWAre3vD_yHiqSVmlkUvuZYnfZ1rjNeuMFyhG7PbXZYB29pRtSiwspaMo6x3QdwVK9jdKht4GvFA8-51IsYgENI49C0v_HnX9-vbXmgSPfk2_lPJgBz-EtteXJcynJlB/s1600/157681287.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwY-six52EZNWBYWAre3vD_yHiqSVmlkUvuZYnfZ1rjNeuMFyhG7PbXZYB29pRtSiwspaMo6x3QdwVK9jdKht4GvFA8-51IsYgENI49C0v_HnX9-vbXmgSPfk2_lPJgBz-EtteXJcynJlB/s320/157681287.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Man Hiking <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/active-senior-hiking-on-the-moors-gm157681287-14436757?st=c6afdc9" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi977PbyCxSkPzKVUcyEa9wJzs8u_qVdgG_FSU9DTtcriJZIvmm33fekHTLfnLp-7C5gVelDBuhZ5yVKacZrLcnuf7Z5lyX6CJ_ozwNyXISyz1dEynP5osXc1op41Q2ahRYd1WuP1o1PpBQ/s1600/458280889.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1076" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi977PbyCxSkPzKVUcyEa9wJzs8u_qVdgG_FSU9DTtcriJZIvmm33fekHTLfnLp-7C5gVelDBuhZ5yVKacZrLcnuf7Z5lyX6CJ_ozwNyXISyz1dEynP5osXc1op41Q2ahRYd1WuP1o1PpBQ/s320/458280889.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Collioure Harbour <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/fr/en/photo/village-and-harbour-collioure-mediterranean-gm458280889-29348572" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOErVqinhcl3jz9EZkV5PRybBFkfAWLGAAWPeuGaeIIdWubeIGnepq2lJHQDo2l90ZJgQhOA2p5XA5QvOg4LAzLuUdU_ueAdUWar0Zb2ZVhKW7tqYwTs5cjRK6GgP9Lu11k9eHn5I1dCFd/s1600/458529167.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOErVqinhcl3jz9EZkV5PRybBFkfAWLGAAWPeuGaeIIdWubeIGnepq2lJHQDo2l90ZJgQhOA2p5XA5QvOg4LAzLuUdU_ueAdUWar0Zb2ZVhKW7tqYwTs5cjRK6GgP9Lu11k9eHn5I1dCFd/s320/458529167.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Cordoba <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/fr/en/photo/tourist-horse-and-cart-in-cordoba-spain-gm458529167-16449193" target="_blank">istockphoto file link</a></div>
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<b>Answer:</b> all of them require Model Releases or can only be
sold for Editorial use. This means that you could use them for a non-fiction (e.g. travel) book
but if anybody can be recognised, it’s always safer to have permission from the
subject. Number 2 (man hiking) does have a Model Release so is for sale Royalty Free. </div>
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Because we photographers are lovely people, this photo (<i>Romance in Paris</i>) is a gift to you from
me, free to use without restriction. Credit is always appreciated and if you
let me know of any use, I will publicise that – I love seeing my photos ‘in the
wild.’ Incidentally, photographers still own copyright to a photo even if there
is no name or watermark on it, or embedded identifying data. Those are mere
reminders to viewers that the photo is copyright – they don’t change its
status. <o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASMSeBHQERyr8rWrzpEIaoqOI75V4APMEkWMJTwfdaDKslnpnB8CmBP1ppdl0pS0ugZ6YfHvSBgufrlB8cv0J8ihIxsXvsa0NTACMQhRI8ldSK8To8y1hD4Py4SLsNcXjiSgj-ZFuoNPt/s1600/Lovers+in+Paris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASMSeBHQERyr8rWrzpEIaoqOI75V4APMEkWMJTwfdaDKslnpnB8CmBP1ppdl0pS0ugZ6YfHvSBgufrlB8cv0J8ihIxsXvsa0NTACMQhRI8ldSK8To8y1hD4Py4SLsNcXjiSgj-ZFuoNPt/s640/Lovers+in+Paris.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you’re not sure it’s OK then it probably isn’t, so unless
you’re willing to go to court, don’t take risks. The main rule is to respect
others’ copyright as much as your own and to appreciate that a photographer’s subjects
(human and property) have rights too. Only use photos you have permission to
use, in the way that you are using them.<o:p></o:p><br />
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I am NOT a lawyer so the opinions given here are based on my experience as a photographer, author and publisher.</div>
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You can see my stock portfolio <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/jeangill" target="_blank">here</a> <o:p></o:p><br />
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You can see my fine art photo galleries <a href="http://jeangill.com/galleries/" target="_blank">here</a></div>
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First published in 2016 in <a href="https://selfpublishingadvice.org/how-to-source-and-use-photos-in-self-published-book-covers/" target="_blank">ALLLi's Self-Publishing Advice Centre</a> </div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-80129051346033468112017-05-23T05:15:00.000-07:002017-06-30T00:36:23.385-07:00What kind of photographer are you?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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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/AVvXsEixJrXZveRiUep3KqEatNPNAp7LK3LzXA_8Ud2bUyK6VWrNVNnjE6waiYs4XqGNkWZWtohBSgMyVYJFJiJIrvDGTFgD3F9qnF9ERReMorVbDiBBjd_prSTU3fzeBaVTixBp7FVB778v0Lc-/s1600/glacier+car+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixJrXZveRiUep3KqEatNPNAp7LK3LzXA_8Ud2bUyK6VWrNVNnjE6waiYs4XqGNkWZWtohBSgMyVYJFJiJIrvDGTFgD3F9qnF9ERReMorVbDiBBjd_prSTU3fzeBaVTixBp7FVB778v0Lc-/s400/glacier+car+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Athabasca Glacier, Canadian Rockies, twilight</td></tr>
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In my ongoing search for what sort of photographer I am and how to improve, I've had another professional portfolio assessment, this time from Getty Images. Although focused on stock photography, the comments apply more widely.<br />
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'Your best qualities as a photographer are working with real people, real situations and natural light.'<br />
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<i>You have to love the stock world distinction between glamorous models and 'real people' :) and 'real situations' means acted-out situations that look real. As to natural light, I do </i><i>enjoy fooling around in the attic studio with speedlights but, well, yes, 'let's go outside' is more me.</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhCMO_7n9UnmtQiuNytUfqrD4FfRVh-tTcIh2ZvuYPX_0s_29NziRwp3dMEYpJ-CIorNk0sz1Sf7mBA_344phUK6Jj0OlNq7HnFXQyvTnYm9Z8OsbTNF4Q0za7XbvSNKlc3UCvmyjruIWJ/s1600/axeman+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhCMO_7n9UnmtQiuNytUfqrD4FfRVh-tTcIh2ZvuYPX_0s_29NziRwp3dMEYpJ-CIorNk0sz1Sf7mBA_344phUK6Jj0OlNq7HnFXQyvTnYm9Z8OsbTNF4Q0za7XbvSNKlc3UCvmyjruIWJ/s320/axeman+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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So I know how I could sell more photos as stock but who am I as a photographer, apart from stock? Sometimes knowing who you are NOT is very helpful and I've learned that photography is not just about liking the subject; it's about YOUR personality and lifestyle. So, who are you? Do you recognise who you are - or who you're not? Feel free to add some categories in your comments!</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Landscape Photographer</h3>
You rise at dawn, spend the day complaining about harsh light and too much sunshine, then come alive again during the twilight blue hour and into the night. People exist to show scale as 'figures in a landscape' and are of no interest in themselves. In fact, people are irritating and you prefer there to be no people at all. You love slow exposures. Tripod, patience and natural light are your tools. You're willing and able to hike to impossible places, carrying 50kg of gear, to get The Shot.<br />
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Check out these photographers for great landscapes (and more):-<br />
<a href="http://davidduchemin.com/" target="_blank">David duChemin</a><br />
<a href="http://www.chrishepburn.co.uk/" target="_blank">Chris Hepburn</a><br />
<a href="http://www.ryersonclark.com/Ryerson/Welcome.html" target="_blank">Ryerson Clark</a><br />
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/paula-connelly.html?tab=artwork" target="_blank">Paula Connelly</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD03B_CTFCe8IfaKX_aAwK4YGp5liAdpPAGfiy_EstOvSFtxAmIGeXaOInAimjCPJeVga05mOhKcNwlKhwGjNSok1pN-AX_btne8WudCON8bD6m6B6iNjI0kTWW2UsGYulgbV73InWcUUF/s1600/glacier+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD03B_CTFCe8IfaKX_aAwK4YGp5liAdpPAGfiy_EstOvSFtxAmIGeXaOInAimjCPJeVga05mOhKcNwlKhwGjNSok1pN-AX_btne8WudCON8bD6m6B6iNjI0kTWW2UsGYulgbV73InWcUUF/s400/glacier+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Athabasca Glacier, Canadian Rockies 6 am</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Night Photographer</h3>
You come out at night, seeking places that no sensible person would go in the dark. Your partner is used to you sneaking out of bed, throwing on some clothes and going out. He/she has given up telling you it is dangerous. Whether in mean streets or trackless wilderness, you wear a cloak of invisibility that, along with your tripod, protects you from violent lowlife, human or animal. Your exposures are so slow they make people disappear and only the essential remains. You love stars. You might even specialise in astral photography.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvD-iEgzmOGLJyr7hV4Hol71nAP4bUvOTAehkq_ig2I0qsKqS4Uu4smDBJ24Ctq7AbkewPUoVxf5Emy4oQvwMg7_2Rvr0LQEPLj7FsUUIimd-HdNhkN6h9nOkttD0I4X3XTrYQ32QEmRiy/s1600/la+belle+vie+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvD-iEgzmOGLJyr7hV4Hol71nAP4bUvOTAehkq_ig2I0qsKqS4Uu4smDBJ24Ctq7AbkewPUoVxf5Emy4oQvwMg7_2Rvr0LQEPLj7FsUUIimd-HdNhkN6h9nOkttD0I4X3XTrYQ32QEmRiy/s400/la+belle+vie+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Belle Vie</td></tr>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/EmpatoPhotography/?pnref=lhc" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: normal;" target="_blank">Landscape and night photographer Tommy Dickson</a><span style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"> </span>said 'I love turning night into day.'</div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Wildlife Photographer</h3>
You have inhuman patience. You could watch a patch of grass all day because three years ago a rare insect was seen on that very spot. You are a stalker. You know your subject intimately; how it behaves, where it goes; its mating habits. You have a David Attenborough commentary going on in your head at all times. You are happy to get close-up and personal with creatures that have big teeth. You think photo manipulation is cheating. You need a telephoto lens that costs the price of a house. You can lose the hiking/carrying and financial requirements if you opt for the macro version and shoot tiny wildlife, close-up.<br />
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<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2016/aug/31/2016-wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-finalists" target="_blank">Finalists in Wildife Photographers of the Year 2016</a><br />
Check out the wildlife photos (and more) by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Guenter-Guni-Photographer-179727778776851/?pnref=lhc" target="_blank">Guenter Gueni</a><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Street Photographer</h3>
You have no scruples about shooting strangers' private moments in public places. You shoot fast and have an eye for composing a candid scene, capturing relationships, emotions and urban settings. Usually, nobody notices you sneaking photos but every now and then a subject looks at camera with a smile, or shock or indignation. You shoot with an unobtrusive prime, probably 35mm, and you like black and white processing.<br />
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Apart from the iconic <a href="http://www.henricartierbresson.org/" target="_blank">Cartier Bresson</a>, one of the most famous street photographers is <a href="http://www.mydailynews.co/Service_Provider/0003/?voluumdata=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&zoneid=473791&bannerid=1225127&geo=FR&random=95abd76df9" target="_blank">Vivian Maier</a>, the nanny, who perfected invisibility but whose photos were never seen until after her death. Modesty? Lack of money for prints? Or scruples about the strangers whose lives she presents?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFzmlT-KXfr7539RagaBvDUGMPJxfjKpEw9EQ0cQAmcphL4JELyyEA67N4bmY1SqZ10DdY7L-xKFMKW-sDEJ_T4tXPSkJZz6k1sj3bCfgScSTKlvKgRMSoNv9r4Xjwar72vjT7DXrFrGN/s1600/spectators+b+%2526+w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipFzmlT-KXfr7539RagaBvDUGMPJxfjKpEw9EQ0cQAmcphL4JELyyEA67N4bmY1SqZ10DdY7L-xKFMKW-sDEJ_T4tXPSkJZz6k1sj3bCfgScSTKlvKgRMSoNv9r4Xjwar72vjT7DXrFrGN/s640/spectators+b+%2526+w.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Photojournalist</h3>
You care passionately about human rights, the planet and freedom of information. You want everyone to <i>know</i> what's happening in 'the rest of the world' so you risk police harassment, even rape or murder to portray the truth. You started as a travel photographer but you left your viewers' armchair comfort zone and you want to change their attitudes, startle them, stir them into action. You carry two cameras, no tripod, and you like shutter priority - it's not a question of shooting fast, but rather of <i>how </i>fast you shoot. If you slow down, it's to photograph the people who <i>ought</i> to be in the news, not the people who <i>are. </i>Home can be boring.<br />
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Two outstanding photojournalists:-<br />
<a href="http://www.annapuigrosado.net/" target="_blank">Anna Puig Rosado</a><br />
<a href="http://www.lynseyaddario.com/" target="_blank">Lynsey Addario</a><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Food Photographer</h3>
You buy vast quantities of cookbooks and food magazines for the photos. Eating is a pleasure and you see food as beautiful. An aubergine is sexy and you can see what colours would set it off to perfection. Your house is full of unmatched plates, cutlery, serviettes and other objects bought as food props. Your partner is trained to ask whether you have photographed an item of food before he risks your wrath by eating it. Outdoors/indoors; tripod/free-range; macro/telephoto lens; your choice. As long as you see food items as glamour models, you're a food shooter.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXz8gyh3GoeMOddlB_deZOJVnouQQApUbTLLICJqVTXggfFfSZRU9Ah0XiMzXusPe4m-bchCX0bEbUCFeQEScQ7be0LtVs2l1zDrSahaDqGkIb3WPBUVFnOO43VXAZb3YL-99vbkB55OYx/s1600/cake+w+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXz8gyh3GoeMOddlB_deZOJVnouQQApUbTLLICJqVTXggfFfSZRU9Ah0XiMzXusPe4m-bchCX0bEbUCFeQEScQ7be0LtVs2l1zDrSahaDqGkIb3WPBUVFnOO43VXAZb3YL-99vbkB55OYx/s320/cake+w+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">French buche de Noel / Christmas log</td></tr>
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My food photography inspiration includes <a href="http://www.kclinephotography.com/" target="_blank">Kelly Cline</a>, whom I met online thanks to istock, and <a href="http://www.helenedujardinphoto.com/" target="_blank">Helene Dujardin</a> (what a great name for a French food shooter!)<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Studio Photographer</h3>
You're a perfectionist and control freak. There must be no light or shadow in your image but what you allowed and intended. You can shoot beautiful studio portraits but, if you're honest, people are a little difficult to control and what you like best is a perfectly lit product shot. Your studio does not only have lights and every kind of modifier known, including mirrors and gobos; it has a beam and rail systems. You know how to name and use every piece of technology you have and what you most want is a smoke machine. Your assistant takes his/her shoes off at the impeccably clean threshold and whispers while you work.<br />
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You know who you are :)<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Portrait Photographer</h3>
You're a people person. You can make someone relax in front of a camera; talk, laugh, fool around. People trust you and show you who they are, who they want to be and then magic happens. A portrait is an interactive threesome and, unlike food or landscapes, the subject has opinions and can hate the photo. Relationships can hurt and if you don't know what the other person wants, you can both be disappointed; if you work together, you can have more fun than ought to be allowed when working. Studio or natural light; tripod or not; still or movement; your favourite portrait lens (mine's an 85mm f1.4) Just steal somebody's soul!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOuGa_Gq-2LKoR6QfwUCQ3MtH38FJ_nqc8GQiDhcQWUjdbp9i4UEoK1L-YHJQ4hyB8YHK1F2P7B7oREfH0hglf7ag6iXN7H06vhWfjINQmwqLzC2J-JVMa3ftU_Rmg93ORTFvlOij4TsTL/s1600/claire.smjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOuGa_Gq-2LKoR6QfwUCQ3MtH38FJ_nqc8GQiDhcQWUjdbp9i4UEoK1L-YHJQ4hyB8YHK1F2P7B7oREfH0hglf7ag6iXN7H06vhWfjINQmwqLzC2J-JVMa3ftU_Rmg93ORTFvlOij4TsTL/s400/claire.smjpg.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3seLbZujhKtUGlPCrwZNwUbPzSiL3lMJR1Xy1r13D_zZ-49dYaUZ_2SUzXDByRfSdVFLfFUGejGyuuOkmnJN7d435TV-kFiKniyckEPwke-QpYOzFwjYvkfs9rtioyYh3eSwKHV1mKwuT/s1600/laughing+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3seLbZujhKtUGlPCrwZNwUbPzSiL3lMJR1Xy1r13D_zZ-49dYaUZ_2SUzXDByRfSdVFLfFUGejGyuuOkmnJN7d435TV-kFiKniyckEPwke-QpYOzFwjYvkfs9rtioyYh3eSwKHV1mKwuT/s400/laughing+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Check out the portraits (and more) taken by <a href="http://www.richardclark.dk/" target="_blank">Richard Clark</a><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Architecture Photographer</h3>
You get excited at diagonal lines and architraves. You have the urge to lie on your back and shoot a cupola or skyscrapers. Stairwells induce pleasure overload. You are THE mathematical photographer, always aware of symmetry and straight horizontals. If a human being is in front of you, what you see are circles, verticals and curves. Sorry, did it say something? Your weapon of choice is a tilt-shift lens but you'll settle for a wide-angle that doesn't vignette.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ceiling, The Palace of Joy, Zaragossa</td></tr>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Fashion Photographer</h3>
Designer labels and colour co-ordination make your shutter-finger twitch. You know about handbags. Only young, beautiful people exist and you can charm them into impossible poses to show off the real subjects - clothes and accessories. Star-jumps on rooftops and clinging to a cliff-face are only some of your ideas to display voile floating. You are inseparable from your favourite stylist and make-up artist.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxePQbrEMUmgQ-D6Rzdwq1RjaCQ2K2BLxTxvgPhABnC7-5gL9lGylDhDu7zhyphenhyphenMaG3Ba0zqx_SHY38BAwhxQubrlAuPHpUxy-U6ukQb_-QdThh0qIh38ZS22GP3JPCPyINz_a-eJ2RltdmV/s1600/K+glamour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxePQbrEMUmgQ-D6Rzdwq1RjaCQ2K2BLxTxvgPhABnC7-5gL9lGylDhDu7zhyphenhyphenMaG3Ba0zqx_SHY38BAwhxQubrlAuPHpUxy-U6ukQb_-QdThh0qIh38ZS22GP3JPCPyINz_a-eJ2RltdmV/s400/K+glamour.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Check out three-times-winner of Malta's Fashion Photographer of the Year <a href="http://www.kurtparis.com/" target="_blank">Kurt Paris </a>, and stunning work from <a href="http://www.nilskahle.com/" target="_blank">Nils Kahle</a><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Sports Photographer</h3>
You don't just support one team; you support twenty and you know the rules of every game, underwater, over hurdles and in the sky. You love action, motion, effort and achievement, winning and losing. If it moves, you shoot it. You like panning, tracking and motion blur. Forget the tripod and sell the house for a super-fast telephoto lens.<br />
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Check out<a href="http://www.cmannphoto.com/" target="_blank"> Charlie Mann's</a> work.<br />
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Of course there are overlaps and specialisms within specialisms; timelapse, underwater, lo-fi, baby-mugging and Pellier Noir are just some that came up when I googled photography categories!<br />
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My photographic adventures in 2016 have included organising and shooting professional models in Paris with some amazingly talented photographer friends; giving a ten minute presentation on my work at a Getty Images event; and testing my landscape skills in Zaragossa, Northumberland and the Canadian Rockies. Next weekend I'm attending a portrait workshop with Anna Puig Rosado who lives only 30 minutes from me and is not only internationally respected as a photojournalist but also a warm, friendly person and a great teacher. Watch this space!<br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-32799672688490743082017-04-11T02:38:00.000-07:002017-06-30T00:38:46.395-07:00Benedictines and bubbly; the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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From the village of Limoux, not far from Carcassonne, the road to Saint-Hilaire and its Benedictine abbey, winds through woods and vineyards. In October, the mists and autumn colours add to the sense of time-travel as stone walls loom out of nowhere. This probably means you are lost, as we were, and that you should have taken the much shorter road. But then you would not have seen the cemetery on the hill, blooming with chrysanthemums in preparation for Toussaint, All Saints' Day, a national holiday when the French pay their respects to their dead.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtMSmKA7jSqQLTOX2pSRaKjuDf5ec6rb4LM_rVajxCwU7B6az0a_03zsDZef11WNThVRNKwyrfJdzjRPKBxeOQvHnhTmc64CgEMWTt8vUUQlee68f4b4kTRf8xJDkrjZ4izo7YqK4KzYeb/s1600/cloisters+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtMSmKA7jSqQLTOX2pSRaKjuDf5ec6rb4LM_rVajxCwU7B6az0a_03zsDZef11WNThVRNKwyrfJdzjRPKBxeOQvHnhTmc64CgEMWTt8vUUQlee68f4b4kTRf8xJDkrjZ4izo7YqK4KzYeb/s640/cloisters+fb.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The houses of the village encroaching on the abbey</td></tr>
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The dead were all around me as I walked alone in the cloisters, the only visitor to an abbey founded in the early 9th century, the place where the body of Saint Hilaire was buried. It was mentioned at this time in a charter from Louis le Debonnaire, confirming donations from his father Charlemagne to Abbot Monellus of St-Hilaire. Early features remain in the later buildings and over time, the village has crept from outside the abbey walls to lean over the church itself.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4XFTSGcJdcKO_EIyYoFCbkdOHOV6_-Z02Hz4Et_hZir4Fs45z4JXMOq7YuQRSxLH7nvJpdVzh6ZHQnEogz5vicsZ8EdIveOrCKnr36Hrz5mj0w1suSnlNv8HJ9nrlAS9S4N6RDtjLFWS/s1600/cat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4XFTSGcJdcKO_EIyYoFCbkdOHOV6_-Z02Hz4Et_hZir4Fs45z4JXMOq7YuQRSxLH7nvJpdVzh6ZHQnEogz5vicsZ8EdIveOrCKnr36Hrz5mj0w1suSnlNv8HJ9nrlAS9S4N6RDtjLFWS/s320/cat.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My spirit guide</td></tr>
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If you love medieval history, as I do, you will find treasure here. One of the fascinating characters who has turned up in my 12th century research is the Master of Cabestany but I never expected to find one of his masterpieces in this little village in the Languedoc. Made of one slab of white marble from the Pyrenees, this 'sarcophagus' is more accurately an altar piece because it is far too narrow and could not contain a corpse.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu9zKRbYYu6kKZV6Mrwu_oqYoBsFNA3k0RK3my1_oMB6d79E2NexFEHoLfknz1ptzSoodOD-U_gNq9nv3g7xAeHC3ga6IXRVLKjGq6JYkI1fVZ5-_Efo_P26VEDXgdLa_436Tw4-KcNnZQ/s1600/sepulchre+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu9zKRbYYu6kKZV6Mrwu_oqYoBsFNA3k0RK3my1_oMB6d79E2NexFEHoLfknz1ptzSoodOD-U_gNq9nv3g7xAeHC3ga6IXRVLKjGq6JYkI1fVZ5-_Efo_P26VEDXgdLa_436Tw4-KcNnZQ/s320/sepulchre+fb.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The current setting of the sarcophagus,<br />
which was probably once the main altar, in the choir</td></tr>
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Look at the people, gawking out their windows as the martyred Saint Sernin is beaten and torn apart by a goaded bull. He still manages to bless the two women who pray for him. Medieval brutality and Christianity in all its horrific richness.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREvhkCPPvPZG5gWJ3SC7rEvGK68id36U7xTjUGc3_DSqUbB0ciK4vVssp-d2SuU8weF-36Xysy0TNJEH-XTOlT8nPa1U7krpm1WCzxxPsywc5m9W2yM6wlQ62F2rIb6x1OHvNAhQcDsJ0/s1600/detail+house.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREvhkCPPvPZG5gWJ3SC7rEvGK68id36U7xTjUGc3_DSqUbB0ciK4vVssp-d2SuU8weF-36Xysy0TNJEH-XTOlT8nPa1U7krpm1WCzxxPsywc5m9W2yM6wlQ62F2rIb6x1OHvNAhQcDsJ0/s640/detail+house.jpg" width="510" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Medieval rubber-neckers</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAceZ59ENHdiPzqZ8gjSUr4IrHCYkGV7c2zy2TgmQEV575_VpoVR5UK5Smd-lXq_KIOjdSZVDfLZhnUB7vQbf8jC7NDsQbS2uaXdt1YtV0-ElhCIVCess1JmKfNpd6qQZSryVH2E15swxi/s1600/jongleur.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAceZ59ENHdiPzqZ8gjSUr4IrHCYkGV7c2zy2TgmQEV575_VpoVR5UK5Smd-lXq_KIOjdSZVDfLZhnUB7vQbf8jC7NDsQbS2uaXdt1YtV0-ElhCIVCess1JmKfNpd6qQZSryVH2E15swxi/s640/jongleur.jpg" width="438" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A jongleur on a tight-rope is distracted by the goings-on</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QjX5Bo9njTZu707YmU5oUTrjPoWenYC__sR6Fi2R6i3F9kYx1vndOr5rAs_Yq_Y5FNRR77zcWaMkGKXOfaqHwfPxtEdoii4hyvregg2Zna14AZnc4zeOTqubpBdJQ82mkZOSWWjmiH0A/s1600/bull+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QjX5Bo9njTZu707YmU5oUTrjPoWenYC__sR6Fi2R6i3F9kYx1vndOr5rAs_Yq_Y5FNRR77zcWaMkGKXOfaqHwfPxtEdoii4hyvregg2Zna14AZnc4zeOTqubpBdJQ82mkZOSWWjmiH0A/s640/bull+detail.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The goaded bull and animals representing the bestial nature of the saint's oppressors</td></tr>
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The identity of the Master of Cabestany is a mystery but his - or could it be their? or even her? work is famous throughout Catalonia, known for a certain style. I find it strange that the story progresses from right to left and, having written about left-handers, I wonder whether this was an accidental left-handed reversal of European writing convention? Or deliberate left-handed choice? Or could the Master have been from another culture, where writing flowed from right to left? It seems more than odd for an artist of this quality not to be aware of conventions. Do let me know your theories!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWRcsKQeOR_6WLvAdubPXxPRpSJe6TbB4ag5766v7MgwFp294YIFeUFT4pf6JuK2CxnWv-uXHvbELzjUmB__h3793EzGRpMOHe7IhEpQ6_KWDIjR6yza8lk80Ic2J4R-2RI8dNwKTBo0p/s1600/sarcophagus+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="366" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWRcsKQeOR_6WLvAdubPXxPRpSJe6TbB4ag5766v7MgwFp294YIFeUFT4pf6JuK2CxnWv-uXHvbELzjUmB__h3793EzGRpMOHe7IhEpQ6_KWDIjR6yza8lk80Ic2J4R-2RI8dNwKTBo0p/s640/sarcophagus+fb.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The story of Saint Sernin, reading from right to left (missing the two side panels), <br />
from his evangelical preaching to his gory end</td></tr>
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Mysteries and ghosts were all around me and I jumped when something brushed my leg - a cat who accompanied me with the air of a guide who knew all and wasn't telling. Many monks must have met unnatural ends here and when you climb the pulpit in the monks' refectory, you hear your words of warning ringing out around the hall. The protection of the Counts of Carcassonne was not enough to keep the abbey safe in the madness of the Albigensian Crusade that swept Languedoc in the 13th century and the monks were accused of heresy and merged with Les Frères Prêcheurs, the Dominicans.<br />
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The Benedictines emerged from their troubles and endowments from the local nobles continued. Naturally the Abbot's apartment benefited from such generosity and I was feeling cynical as I walked into a room that took my breath away. The textures and patterns on the ceiling reminded me of those in the Palace of Joy in Zaragossa but the addition of satirical portraits make it look like an illuminated manuscript, with which a scribe has had fun in the margins.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhacjqZzGPhYxPX7MCA7iwGkBiECQQa4p6rXlupmQh3PJoF_EpAnXGJnWPDTWShucnOAsvn7dsbWyB07xbSHs4JVuUfHt0YCysKIGrP2k1mfHt-troFO4BjcvArEhBopS33EAyGwi-2uzZR/s1600/ceiling+faces+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhacjqZzGPhYxPX7MCA7iwGkBiECQQa4p6rXlupmQh3PJoF_EpAnXGJnWPDTWShucnOAsvn7dsbWyB07xbSHs4JVuUfHt0YCysKIGrP2k1mfHt-troFO4BjcvArEhBopS33EAyGwi-2uzZR/s320/ceiling+faces+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Abbot's chamber ceiling, with portraits</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9WtZvNs1nrZLlK8uMwwEb1vN9NMwjWn9wDqRb9YP1aRRwi6hYWRtaukLKHqE_84wEm_4vWYOQ6mifPw6WoYg28_FBRMgAl4vukJ4FE8G8yVj0NE_yL86faE05rbxciRqg6eiJ28JYA9g4/s1600/detail+people.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9WtZvNs1nrZLlK8uMwwEb1vN9NMwjWn9wDqRb9YP1aRRwi6hYWRtaukLKHqE_84wEm_4vWYOQ6mifPw6WoYg28_FBRMgAl4vukJ4FE8G8yVj0NE_yL86faE05rbxciRqg6eiJ28JYA9g4/s640/detail+people.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Detail of ceiling portraits</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrAmjO4zux6V7HpME6QV6l_OlP5dBCMfK69_HNJk5nFuLp6M8q2ophvOjX1I6SgR8mPwst5XQ_IAMDn1Mfl3KpJXYIGoFnMDlR40ZYh2cmp8kEP0fKfpfeSVP50w1XylTbPGUY_UGB78KS/s1600/ceiling+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrAmjO4zux6V7HpME6QV6l_OlP5dBCMfK69_HNJk5nFuLp6M8q2ophvOjX1I6SgR8mPwst5XQ_IAMDn1Mfl3KpJXYIGoFnMDlR40ZYh2cmp8kEP0fKfpfeSVP50w1XylTbPGUY_UGB78KS/s320/ceiling+fb.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heraldic shields on the walls below the decorated ceiling</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTCuA7hk8mfTcNIgPewu-6-JlViE2QPC0mQQbJcB9chfdVaD0n7HSfqux2Q36yMj5RLENSH8o8Xa1cpqzIK_wOgMuEAzoWOdoftk4DIPPlnF5oX5S9TE9xkv45icfF4FpfnXWe_Xj2WGE0/s1600/detail+ceiling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTCuA7hk8mfTcNIgPewu-6-JlViE2QPC0mQQbJcB9chfdVaD0n7HSfqux2Q36yMj5RLENSH8o8Xa1cpqzIK_wOgMuEAzoWOdoftk4DIPPlnF5oX5S9TE9xkv45icfF4FpfnXWe_Xj2WGE0/s640/detail+ceiling.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My favourite motif - a heraldic beast with banner in its teeth</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7cCpHWI-_GTC8xXZdkyY-KA5K7oGfsdaZg2I4YlSgOwoSjNXOhGJj1jAukSOt1duQmOFUrETLbY2JYEWlnDo66IuZUkjBZsmKk6riZ0kE7zm9V1FnAAQb_jf-t2sujWsyR96gRN6FUOQg/s1600/detail+ceiling+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7cCpHWI-_GTC8xXZdkyY-KA5K7oGfsdaZg2I4YlSgOwoSjNXOhGJj1jAukSOt1duQmOFUrETLbY2JYEWlnDo66IuZUkjBZsmKk6riZ0kE7zm9V1FnAAQb_jf-t2sujWsyR96gRN6FUOQg/s640/detail+ceiling+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patterned rows carved in wood</td></tr>
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The walls bear the shields and names of all the Abbots and you can imagine how excited I felt at seeing the dates 1146 and 1154. I get the shivers every time I come across details of the period I write about.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0YBiV4S-bNtFUAsOTs-Fm6OruvNh2DhR60Bf8qvj-MD2tIzXv3LjgYxVAmzXD8c2Rtoay90zU4NENQYRFbyOSOgW75lV89TgtLX_4XtCx19NxECp24uy-JVO7HwQ1SDO5-6CYqsSxXRq7/s1600/shields+1150.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0YBiV4S-bNtFUAsOTs-Fm6OruvNh2DhR60Bf8qvj-MD2tIzXv3LjgYxVAmzXD8c2Rtoay90zU4NENQYRFbyOSOgW75lV89TgtLX_4XtCx19NxECp24uy-JVO7HwQ1SDO5-6CYqsSxXRq7/s320/shields+1150.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Abbots of 1146 and 1154</td></tr>
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Perhaps the Abbey's biggest contribution to the world came in the 16th century. In 1531 the monks created what is claimed here to be the first sparkling wine in the world, the 'blanquette' for which Limoux is now known and I stood in the very 'cave' or cellar where a monk was surprised by bubbles forming in the corked bottles of white wine, as if they were undergoing a second fermentation...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAb2_jLmv_xYeZchpdjjBfXXe1oRnZacbVLMnXdQCmg4C_1L935u7lLd0zfkkpuS9l8_1_c3dm318F9lzkuCns8zHrEkvt0Y5DFdbCxdabl9eThc7-_b9J9xobyUAcREBwiIans2ovFWiB/s1600/cave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAb2_jLmv_xYeZchpdjjBfXXe1oRnZacbVLMnXdQCmg4C_1L935u7lLd0zfkkpuS9l8_1_c3dm318F9lzkuCns8zHrEkvt0Y5DFdbCxdabl9eThc7-_b9J9xobyUAcREBwiIans2ovFWiB/s320/cave.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The birth-place of sparkling wine: the wine cave in St-Hilaire</td></tr>
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From its origin in this cellar, bubbly gained international popularity, leading 17th century Irish dramatist George Farquahar to comment, 'Brut sparkles like the lively remarks of a man of wit.'<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6GCqVPxUk6SCALoFtUU-PiW9hCwnvIpIyIWgH4u6RFbg_kRd506KoEFim4-xzBHJUE4htxQzCEW7M65ElSLwxbdIeiO42Q8qp2aAv4g7TSrnISVwHGrDMaLvrsQHKrQm6YvxYqdTgh8Hm/s1600/Blanquette_de_Limoux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6GCqVPxUk6SCALoFtUU-PiW9hCwnvIpIyIWgH4u6RFbg_kRd506KoEFim4-xzBHJUE4htxQzCEW7M65ElSLwxbdIeiO42Q8qp2aAv4g7TSrnISVwHGrDMaLvrsQHKrQm6YvxYqdTgh8Hm/s320/Blanquette_de_Limoux.jpg" width="237" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The famous 'blanquette'</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Agne27">Agne27</a> at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/">English language Wikipedia</a></span></td></tr>
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As I turned to go, I sensed a lighter presence than the black monks. A faded inscription above a door lintel gave me enough of a clue to work out who used to come here and why. Can you figure it out?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XcfcO74x009ti67fw9rk5G_TurXisct_Ji2gELmZbeCFtYyUhS1C3VayZJn9O2lzR6dRzmpkqZQyc1NDHD_05XiG0vMXMuwmZS_7WlH7vdbKh15jsBzB7dS0KIVDGuHRIZjDLujczhoF/s1600/ecole+des+filles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XcfcO74x009ti67fw9rk5G_TurXisct_Ji2gELmZbeCFtYyUhS1C3VayZJn9O2lzR6dRzmpkqZQyc1NDHD_05XiG0vMXMuwmZS_7WlH7vdbKh15jsBzB7dS0KIVDGuHRIZjDLujczhoF/s640/ecole+des+filles.jpg" width="530" /></a></div>
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A long discussion with the Abbey curator confirmed my guess - this became the 'Ecole Publique des Filles' in the 19th century so the girls and small boys from the village came here for their lessons. The curator also clarified much else about St-Hilaire and played troubadour CDs for me. Now all I need to know is whether Estela and Dragonetz passed this way, and, if so, why.<br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-23169261674519536642017-02-14T08:11:00.000-08:002017-06-30T00:38:20.773-07:00The Moors who stayed; Zaragoza, Spain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Zaragoza: even the name sounds magical, a fantasy city, and the more I found out about its history, the more I needed to see its medieval treasures. What could stones and ceiling patterns tell me about the people who lived in this city a thousand years ago? About the little boy, Malik of the Banu Hud, heir to the throne of Zaragoza, whose life I wanted to understand as he grew to manhood? Was there a spirit of place?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXmydve1V_d_sREmVV-VDJ9fhJ0dCeWjmzppVQ_He7zAnMDTnl91sLgYUKPBfXjfl2kb0URI0PPCJJEfdFrpOtijwTsUvH5aMtkhCvjqdo07uoH9Pxx7NB2wFBgIxs8EsEas9NuuiSn3o/s1600/basilica1+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXmydve1V_d_sREmVV-VDJ9fhJ0dCeWjmzppVQ_He7zAnMDTnl91sLgYUKPBfXjfl2kb0URI0PPCJJEfdFrpOtijwTsUvH5aMtkhCvjqdo07uoH9Pxx7NB2wFBgIxs8EsEas9NuuiSn3o/s400/basilica1+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar and the River Ebro</td></tr>
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My guide books told me what to see and what to think, veiling me in a mental burka, but for this trip I was determined to see through the eyes of a 12th century Muslim growing up in the palace of his ancestors, the Kings of Zaragoza. The 12th century? Not to Muslims, for whom this was the 5th century in the Year of the Hijra.<br />
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Guide books make a big deal about freedom. Places are 'conquered' and 'liberated' but these are often words that can be interchanged, just by changing the point of view. Zaragoza's medieval citizens inherited the infrastructure left by the the Romans for whom it was Caesaraugusta. A city can have many names in its lifetime and each one is a layer of history and language. Caesaraugusta became Saraqusta (Moorish), then Zaragoza (Christian). A visitor is left in no doubt that this is an ancient city, dating back to about 25 BCE (to use the 'neutral' term for the year).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVY5klOol1j4WKX0zjOrnleDhOy54aHnyEUutanExjSYVZ46XyyR_groSbGTSSa-o3zpa22bcP5K12NRWLuUg_rMZ0SKdX1B9_YgTXVh4KtXuIQxdHqbev9FwRqGuVJIKpgALnuYe-tqo4/s1600/roman+walls+1+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVY5klOol1j4WKX0zjOrnleDhOy54aHnyEUutanExjSYVZ46XyyR_groSbGTSSa-o3zpa22bcP5K12NRWLuUg_rMZ0SKdX1B9_YgTXVh4KtXuIQxdHqbev9FwRqGuVJIKpgALnuYe-tqo4/s320/roman+walls+1+fb.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Roman walls in central Zaragoza</td></tr>
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After the Romans came the Visigoths, Then, for 300 years, Moors ruled the city and state of Zaragoza.<br />
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The building I had come to see was the Aljaferia, the only surviving example of a palace from the time of the Muslim Taifas (Kingdoms), legacy of the Moorish Banu Hud dynasty and Malik's childhood home. The oldest part dates from the 9th century and is known as <i>The Troubadours Tower</i>, which got my hopes up for a story - but no, the name was given much later, when the tower features in 'Don Quixote.'<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31IjwQ63XDni125km-xvRZIjMYXClly_UXH9ar_V15kHeRQ6MxYIdTcM1C78jUgnvNnb0ed19r8cvIVQcNsUvXncaOzQMvPs7nbvOuO7zAJZ8zd5AFXOBnpolqE5JwCtGXE9aoTJ7-ESX/s1600/pano+palace+of+joy+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31IjwQ63XDni125km-xvRZIjMYXClly_UXH9ar_V15kHeRQ6MxYIdTcM1C78jUgnvNnb0ed19r8cvIVQcNsUvXncaOzQMvPs7nbvOuO7zAJZ8zd5AFXOBnpolqE5JwCtGXE9aoTJ7-ESX/s400/pano+palace+of+joy+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Aljaferia</td></tr>
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In medieval times, the words <i>Moor</i> and <i>Saracen</i> were used, rather than <i>Muslim</i>, but the faith was implicit in those terms and explicit in the architecture of what became known as <i>the Palace of Joy</i>. This beautiful mihrab, a niche in the wall, was a focus for prayer in the same way as an altar in a Christian church.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD0wpCGirfCtNPMbDI9s6yT_hPp0ZcIVhOjpTzQEV-ZPnCnPE8WvSrYYZttVOchU15RtCh6kSZJdrPhdwp5LBUgSXuohVK2Xv7LENE1hKALhStWIdwK3Kk4iKIC6yIaO10JPZ5hySZoUSK/s1600/niche1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD0wpCGirfCtNPMbDI9s6yT_hPp0ZcIVhOjpTzQEV-ZPnCnPE8WvSrYYZttVOchU15RtCh6kSZJdrPhdwp5LBUgSXuohVK2Xv7LENE1hKALhStWIdwK3Kk4iKIC6yIaO10JPZ5hySZoUSK/s320/niche1.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Moorish Oratory (Mihrab), the Aljaferia</td></tr>
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Calligraphy had symbolic and religious importance equal to images in Christian churches, and quotations from the Koran were used as decor and inspiration. Just as medieval Christian scribes sometimes doodled marginalia in illuminated manuscripts, so did Moorish architects indulge in tongue-in-cheek comments chiselled in alabaster such as, 'Have you seen any mistakes?' as well as the more conventional, 'Allah be blessed.'<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8DNgJReNMRPFRxS0WVIgM9GeHX9NUxHiyE9nH9iY_7JUKegFQyeA5xaEY7lRVFIAgh5_FQ6CGUwj5nTn0ov_p_TW4X8X4KokX9wv_JZVpQONfXesAvNF7VIyrDbtAXcAk3CzaKYU7j4MA/s1600/garden+detail+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8DNgJReNMRPFRxS0WVIgM9GeHX9NUxHiyE9nH9iY_7JUKegFQyeA5xaEY7lRVFIAgh5_FQ6CGUwj5nTn0ov_p_TW4X8X4KokX9wv_JZVpQONfXesAvNF7VIyrDbtAXcAk3CzaKYU7j4MA/s320/garden+detail+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Late 11th century epigraphic fragment</td></tr>
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The gardens of paradise are easier to imagine when you have visited earthly ones, with fruit trees and patterned paving. As in the Moorish gardens of the Alhambra, the water channels are carved in straight lines, ending in gentle water features, spouts and small fountains. In Moorish tradition, the water should bubble in the background and encourage meditation, not explode in high fountains Versailles-fashion.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDlCjfeIFebJt59Or1azNUsUfotAop67mj8ygfT4BM5weU0BDtyjBLQr6-mwAmkW9bPaFWetA6X7PH6nqGG60vGkR848m_UKn7FwdQzxTTY8tf7FRXLYWIKTwXJOD626eLZW4hud9mmjZp/s1600/garden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDlCjfeIFebJt59Or1azNUsUfotAop67mj8ygfT4BM5weU0BDtyjBLQr6-mwAmkW9bPaFWetA6X7PH6nqGG60vGkR848m_UKn7FwdQzxTTY8tf7FRXLYWIKTwXJOD626eLZW4hud9mmjZp/s320/garden.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Known since the 17th century as the Santa Isabella Courtyard, the garden was part of the earliest Taifa Palace</td></tr>
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Malik would have eaten the fruit (oranges nowadays) in the gardens, run his fingers through the flowing water and washed his hands in preparation for prayer. He would have peeked through the windows and arches, watched the gatherings of learned Jews and Moors, heard the poetry, music and debates. Famous for its culture and sophistication, the Aljaferia was known as <i>The Palace of Joy</i>, from lines composed by one of its Moorish kings, Abú Yafar of the Banu Hud:-</div>
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<i>O palace of joy! O hall of gold!</i></div>
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<i>You embody my aspirations.</i></div>
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Historians might disagree about how happily Christians and Jews lived under Muslim rule in 12th century Spain but there is general consensus now that they socialised and traded together, and were all allowed to worship in their own faith. Christians and Jews paid a tax for the privilege. The city boasted a mosque, a synagogue and a church. What is now the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar was then only a small chapel, but it contained the same wooden Madonna on her jasper pillar (dating from the 1st century) and is believed to be the oldest church dedicated to Mary.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE8HphXos65pOkrmYnXavFlZaVmCM3gMh1_JYjApyBi3xSuiAsU1ivKaKW7pudh0i4WzV3TRLphz5fIv7nKocPj5RbcBwtyvQGhk-Cc0fyHTVCGpEbmNn06sUQ4V0X4d3q0YKAOJVrwkk-/s1600/basilica+thru+trees+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE8HphXos65pOkrmYnXavFlZaVmCM3gMh1_JYjApyBi3xSuiAsU1ivKaKW7pudh0i4WzV3TRLphz5fIv7nKocPj5RbcBwtyvQGhk-Cc0fyHTVCGpEbmNn06sUQ4V0X4d3q0YKAOJVrwkk-/s400/basilica+thru+trees+fb.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The River Ebro and view of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar</td></tr>
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Stone does speak. The keyhole/horseshoe arches 'typical' of Muslim Spain in fact developed from an architectural feature used previously by the (Christian) Visigoths. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2A9TITd9zayiYIlcXOZwQHTQbfQGoOhZSWq5CZo8D4UazCJAPwJzfPmZdP47WBuW5qGO2k5CKPNz0DzAdSq0gW75nFe2_WhGdEgRL2BKH0NDc-wXMuJOJdY5ImbqxIhJGks8j6C6zStgZ/s1600/arch+interior+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2A9TITd9zayiYIlcXOZwQHTQbfQGoOhZSWq5CZo8D4UazCJAPwJzfPmZdP47WBuW5qGO2k5CKPNz0DzAdSq0gW75nFe2_WhGdEgRL2BKH0NDc-wXMuJOJdY5ImbqxIhJGks8j6C6zStgZ/s320/arch+interior+fb.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View into the Moorish Oratory, the Aljaferia</td></tr>
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The ceiling decoration of the Muslim palace was replicated in the extension to the Aljaferia built by the Roman Catholic Kings who occupied it later, even to the repeated image of the pine cone and other Moorish symbols. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ceiling of the Catholic Kings' Throne Room</td></tr>
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To build the cathedrals and churches to the glory of their god, these Christian kings employed Muslim architects and, whether you believe in any God or not, the glory of Moorish style in Christian Spain is undeniable. This is what gained World Heritage status for Zaragoza's medieval buildings; the combined vision of Christians, Muslims and Jews, expressed in stone and plaster. Examples of inter-faith collaboration are everywhere.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The ceiling of the 3rd Pacing Room of the Catholic Kings<br />
(Note to self - I need more 'Pacing Rooms'!)</td></tr>
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So how did that little boy lose his kingdom? Did crusading Christians destroy his family and his home? Far from it. Militant Muslims fresh from Africa swept through Spain, attacking the residents who had grown 'too tolerant', 'too integrated'. The Banu-hud could not hold their fortress against the the extremist Muslims and in 1110 CE, the Almoravids took the Taifa of Zaragoza for themselves, only to lose it eight years later to the Christian King of Aragon, Alfonso the Battler. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Side door in the Catholic Kings' Throne Room</td></tr>
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The real twist in the story is that the Moors who chose to stay in the new Christian Kingdom of Aragon were offered work, not just as architects and builders, not just as tradespeople, but as generals and soldiers for the King of Aragon. The Banu Hud were no longer kings but they still wielded power in the Iberian Peninsula. </div>
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Such alliances were not new. Little Malik's grandfather fought alongside the grandfather of Aliénor (Eleanor) of Aquitaine and gave him a precious crystal vase, in token of friendship. The vase was given to Aliénor as a wedding present when she became Queen of France and can be seen today in the Louvre Museum.</div>
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Malik grew up to be a fictional character in my <i>Troubadours</i> series and I understand him so much better from seeing where he came from and what he lost. I know why he rode under Aragon's colours and was part of the political coup of the 12th century which united Barcelona and Aragon to form an unshakeable power in the north. Today, the city of Zaragoza is the capital of Aragon and hosts its Cortes (parliament) in the Aljaferia itself. I think that would make Malik smile. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Room where the Cortes of Aragon meets</td></tr>
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I wonder what stories the local children are told about the palace as it was in days gone by.</div>
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<b>FREE! Song at Dawn, Book 1 of The Troubadours Quartet</b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"><i>'</i></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"><i>Believable, page-turning and memorable.'</i> Lela Michael, S.P. Review</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"><b>Winner of the Global Ebook Award for Best Historical Fiction </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">1150: Provence</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://smarturl.it/dawnsong" target="_blank">amazon link</a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"><span style="line-height: 22.4px; text-align: left;">On the run from abuse, Estela wakes in a ditch with only her lute, her amazing voice, and a dagger hidden in her underskirt. Her talent finds a patron in Aliénor of Aquitaine and more than a music tutor in the Queen's finest troubadour and Commander of the Guard, Dragonetz los Pros. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">Weary of war, Dragonetz uses Jewish money and Moorish expertise to build that most modern of inventions, a papermill, arousing the wrath of the Church. Their enemies gather, ready to light the political and religious powder-keg of medieval Narbonne. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">Set in the period following the Second Crusade, Jean Gill's spellbinding romantic thrillers evoke medieval France with breathtaking accuracy. The characters leap off the page and include amazing women like Eleanor of Aquitaine and Ermengarda of Narbonne, who shaped history in battles and in bedchambers.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;"><i>'One of the best historical novels I've read in a long time.'</i> Paul Trembling, Dragonslayer</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">www.jeangill.com</span></span></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-51464934993709869342016-12-21T02:59:00.000-08:002017-06-30T00:36:49.854-07:00Best Books Ever! What are yours?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I was asked to choose my 20 best books ever for The Book Club, a readers' group on facebook. Impossible of course! This is the list I came up with. Feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments! And help yourself to some Christmas goodies while you're thinking about brain food!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh90eJeFYmZjrRQ97AqBVIi9MYa6NcKpRjEAQUlGgBvKmbueSh295xSogv9r_fQP0TaiZV72nNfbXghFl0O_QQMBYuxJUggJyDTedVEzTDaZfRFeUdagddOHV6aYxx3fN1zahM8OdRExy2p/s1600/biscuits4+fb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh90eJeFYmZjrRQ97AqBVIi9MYa6NcKpRjEAQUlGgBvKmbueSh295xSogv9r_fQP0TaiZV72nNfbXghFl0O_QQMBYuxJUggJyDTedVEzTDaZfRFeUdagddOHV6aYxx3fN1zahM8OdRExy2p/s320/biscuits4+fb.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pink Rheims biscuits</td></tr>
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<b>1. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins</b><br />
<i><b>Book 1 in a trilogy showing dystopian survival</b></i> in a reality TV game where the forced participants can die. Not my type of book, I thought, but I could not put it down. I love the feisty teen heroine who's a deadshot with bow and arrows and no book better captures the post-truth machinations of current politics. (I've been wanting to use the word 'post-truth' since I discovered it was Oxford Dictionaries' Word of the Year 2016.)<br />
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<b>2. The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri Tepper</b><br />
<b><i>Fantasy novel</i></b> that turns what-if into a gripping story. What if there were a way to organise society so women can have great sex with unsuitable men AND also ensure that children are protected and nurtured? I read every fantasy book Sheri Tepper writes, for the way she creates amazing worlds, tells a good story and makes me see our own world differently.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Starry starry blinis</td></tr>
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<b>3. H is for Hawk - Helen McDonald</b><br />
<b><i>Best Autobiography</i></b><br />
Autobiography about two interwoven emotional journeys; grief and training a goshawk. A book to savour for the beautiful way its written, for its passion and honesty, for its expertise regarding birds of prey and their training. A bonus for me is the analysis of received wisdom from the past re training hawks, in particular via quotations from the troubled soul T.H.White (another of my favourite writers).<br />
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<b>4. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry</b><br />
<i><b>Best Children's Book</b></i><br />
The French Winnie-the-Pooh; a children's book with observations on life that strike a chord with adults. Full of quotable quotes! 'People have forgotten this truth,' the fox said. 'But you mustn’t forget it. You become responsible forever for what you’ve tamed. You’re responsible for your rose.'<br />
Goodreads has 659 favourite quotes from this book so I think you'll find one that hits the heart!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">French Christmas log</td></tr>
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<b>5. Mums Know Best - The Hairy Bikers' Family Cookbook</b><br />
<b><i>Best Cookbook</i></b><br />
A recipe book collated from family recipes throughout the U.K. during the Hairy Bikers' television tour. A tribute to Mums and to home cooking, with recipes that all work and that show the whole multi-cultural range of the British people and our food. When my French neighbours sneer at Britain's lack of cuisine, I tell them 'You find <i>world</i> cuisine in Britain' and nowhere is that more true than in this cookbook. It makes you want to write down all your own family favourites; I still use the splotched, handwritten recipe for Grandma's Christmas Cake although my mother is dead now and I am the Grandma. The photos are good too and as I'm a food shooter (with a Nikon D750 as weapon of choice :) ) I have hundreds of cookbooks and am <i>very</i> fussy about the photos.<br />
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<b>6. The Visual Toolbox:60 lessons for stronger photos - David duChemin</b><br />
<b><i>The best photography book.</i></b> From a master of travel / landscape/ wildlife photos who works with natural light. Offers inspiration and guidance, whatever level of photographer you are. In DuChemin's company I gain confidence in who I am as a photographer; I learn what I want to improve and how to do it. His own photos are a joy.<br />
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<b>7. Assassin's Apprentice - Robin Hobb</b><br />
<i><b>Epic fantasy.</b></i><br />
Book 1 of the Farseer Trilogy. Illegitimate and unwanted, young Fitz has to fulfil the only role at court which is offered to him - that of assassin. As the kingdom faces invasion, Fitz discovers his own magical powers and has to learn to control them, for his king and country's sake. The grand, heroic adventure swept me away, I fell in love with the wolf, and I read every Robin Hobb book the moment it's available. Training in magic has become clichéd but Robin Hobb pits the illegal Wit (bonding completely with an animal) against the court-controlled Skill (telepathic communication and control of humans) and, uniquely, Fitz has to master both kinds. The relationship between Fitz and his Wolf is as deep and convincing as those between the various humans.<br />
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<b>8. Chéri - Colette</b><br />
<i><b>Very French love story.</b></i><br />
First published in 1920, when France was where the British went to be naughty, Colette's story of a 19 year old boy and his 43 year old female lover is a sensual classic. Worldly-wise courtesans and pretty young things (male and female) play out their relationships against a backdrop of gowns and soirées. I discovered Colette when I was 18 and the whiff of decadence fascinated me as much as her beautiful, poetic style. She taught me about pearls. She also taught me that a woman could break all the rules, as a writer and as a woman. Colette was the first woman to be accepted into the all-male Académie française, and a poster showing her with her cat in St-Tropez is beside my desk. She was my first inspiration as a writer. Chéri is no longer shocking but this slight volume lingers in the imagination like French perfume.<br />
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<b>9. The Map of Love - Ahdaf Soueif</b><br />
<b><i>The best epic love story.</i></b> Set in colonial Egypt and present-day, the story of a young English widow who meets the love of her life is revealed through the discoveries of her descendant, who also goes to Egypt. The relationship between Anna and Sharif is a heart-melter for any romantic and the exotic background takes you on a voyage of discovery.<br />
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<b>10. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas</b><br />
<b><i>Best BIG 19th C novel. </i></b>Historical romantic suspense set in the 17th C with the best swordsmen in the whole of France. The historical equivalent of shoot-outs and car chases; sword-fights and breakneck horse rides to save the Queen of France. So many characters to fall in love with but my favourite is Milady. The Best Villain ever!<br />
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<b>11. The Zebra Affaire - Mark Fine</b><br />
<b><i>Historical / Literary Fiction.</i></b> He's black, she's white, and in 1970s South Africa their love affair is a criminal offence. There are chunks of non-fiction you can read if you want (I loved them) as a love story challenges apartheid. Totally authentic in time and place with a real love of South Africa despite the horrors. Reminded me of 'Doctor Zhivago' and feels relevant again today.<br />
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<b>12. Shogun - James Clavell</b><br />
<i><b>Best block-busting page-turner. </b></i>The adventures of a 17th century English sea-captain surviving in the violent politics of Japan - and I mean violent. Gut-wrenching (this is the culture of hara-kiri after all!) high adrenalin and romantic. Bushido code, world trade, culture clash and steamy tea ceremonies. The beautiful translator Mariko is wonderful and so much depends on the choices she makes, we agonise on her behalf. An emotional roller-coaster, whether you like historical fiction or not.<br />
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<b>13. The Game of Kings - Dorothy Dunnett</b><br />
<i><b>Best historical fiction </b></i>with fictional heroes in real 16thC events, starting in Scotland. Book 1 in the six-book Lymond series. Francis Crawford of Lymond is, in my eyes, the most desirable fictional hero ever and his complicated adventures are not short of romance. Intelligent, wide-referencing and thrilling, Dorothy Dunnett's books are the ones I'm most flattered at my historical novels being likened to.<br />
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<b>14. Steppenwolf - Hermann Hesse</b><br />
<b><i>Modern classic.</i></b> Appeals to the middle-aged lonely werewolf in all of us, the one who looks in the mirror with distaste and is willing to follow a free spirit into The Magical Theatre and dive into life's might-have-beens to discover what still could be. Wild psychic adventure!<br />
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<b>15. Soul Music - Sir Terry Pratchett</b><br />
<b><i>Best comic fantasy. </i></b>The Grim Reaper's grand-daughter has to learn the family business; Death. Stands alone but set in the many-novelled Discworld where Pratchett fans like me have their favourite characters and set of stories. Death is mine, with his grim sense of humour and his kindness; the character of Death in 'The Book Thief' derives directly from Pratchett.<br />
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<b>16. Sailing to Sarantium - Guy Gavriel Kay</b><br />
<b><i>Best historical fantasy.</i></b> Based on medieval Byzantium but 'given a quarter turn to the fantastic' is how G G Kay describes his technique. He captures the grand sweep and scale of history in all his books, with characters who know they are part of something bigger, characters who make me feel in awe of their nobility, their love affairs, their creative work. He makes me feel proud to be human (not easy!) And there's a heart-pounding chariot race.<br />
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<b>17. Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien</b><br />
<b><i>The first fantasy novel,</i></b> ever, and it's epic. If you've read other fantasy novels you'll recognise the elements: the band of elves, dwarves, men and hobbits, heroes who have to save the land from the forces of evil, with the help of Gandalf the wizard. What keeps it fresh for me is that Tolkien did it all first and there was nothing like this before TLOTR I can <i>feel</i> Sauron's eye seeking me out and I identify completely with the struggles of small people burdened with the responsibility of the cursed ring.<br />
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<b>18. The Distant Sound of Violence - Jason Greensides</b><br />
<b><i>Modern urban fiction </i></b>about British teenagers from different cultures. They have big hearts but the world's against them. You just want to adopt them all but the adults in their life have no idea what they're going through - or don't care :( An ending that stays in your mind, powerful and gives hope.<br />
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<b>19. I Heard The Owl Call my Name - Margaret Craven</b><br />
<b><i>Modern fable.</i></b> A young vicar, who does not know he is dying, is sent to a native American village where the two religions/ mythologies take the reader on a spiritual journey in two cultures. You don't have to be religious (I'm a sort of humanist) to respond to the wisdom in this novel, a metaphor for how to live well and accept death, when the owl calls your name. 'Don't feel sorry for yourself because you are going to so remote a parish. Feel sorry for the Indians. You know nothing and they must teach you.'<br />
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<b>20. The Bees - Laline Paul</b><br />
<b><i>Best novel about bee-ing. Suspense and dystopian </i></b>paranoia drive the story because 'they' are out to get the young bee Flora 717. She tries to keep out of trouble while knowing that something is terribly wrong in the hive. Underlying the survival adventure is an accurate knowledge of bees. I'm a registered beekeeper, having followed practical training for three years in Provence, and the micro-view of the world created by Laline Paul is correct in all its facts and possibilities. If bees could speak human, this is the story they would tell and as well as being a page-turner, it's an important story for the planet.<br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-85644780247422878972016-02-10T03:33:00.000-08:002016-02-10T03:33:16.831-08:00The loveable assassin - Glen Barrera <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I admit to being intrigued by Glen Barrera, the man behind the assassin who can't dance, a man who routinely shoots people and blows them up. (Glen will smile at the deliberate ambiguity - he's a writer who notices nuances.) So who is he exactly?</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Glen, a former partner in a real estate appraisal company, who still takes appraisal assignments from time to time, now writes. Over the years he's edited a company newsletter, written short stories (one a contest winner) and poetry. It wasn't until he divorced a few years ago, however, that he finally found time to take a writing course while working on his first novel. <i>The Assassin Who Couldn't Dance</i> and a follow-up novel, <i>A Capable and Wide Revenge</i> (now available), were tutored by Michael Mirolla, a published Canadian writer. He is now working on a third novel with the working title, <i>Sweet Peach. </i>Glen grew up in Chicago, with college at Western Illinois University, College of DuPage and the University of Illinois, Chicago. He studied Isshinryu Karate for fourteen years, sailed for seven years out of Burnham Harbor, practices Tai Chi and plays classical guitar. A Chicago boy at heart, he now lives in a western suburb.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><a href="mailto:glenbarrera33@gmail.com" target="_blank">Contact Glen by email </a><br /><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #1b8be0; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%; text-decoration: none;">f<a href="http://www.facebook.com/glen.barrera2" target="_blank">acebook</a></span></b></span><br /><a href="https://twitter.com/Glen_Barrera" target="_blank">twitter</a><br /><a href="http://www.glenbarrera.com/" target="_blank">website</a></i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Welcome to the blog, Glen</i></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>You say you started writing classes after your divorce. Was the personal change a catalyst in looking at your professional future? Had you always wanted to write?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I believe the idea to write was an extension of the countless books I’d read, an “I can do that” mentality, whether for better or worse in actuality. My first novel was written in the 1980s, on an Underwood typewriter (yeah, carbon copy), with no recourse other than a full re-type if I screwed up after fifty pages and needed to correct a plot-point back at page twenty-five (I think I still have the rejection slips). With a wife, two children and a demanding career, however, writing had to take a back seat to life. I was still writing, but in a technical environment. But even before the divorce, I knew I wanted to write fiction again. Writing classes, then, were a natural progression, to get me back into the rhythm and structure of the story. So no, there were no ambitions to write as a professional – I simply wanted to write. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I often wonder whether I could have written at all if I'd had to hand-write or type a manuscript - redrafting and edits would have been a nightmare!</i></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><i>I know that you care deeply about work being well-written and well-edited. What have you gained from writing classes? Would you recommend them? Do you still go?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Writing classes were the best prelude to writing fiction that I could imagine. I signed up with an internet class from Canada, twenty lessons, coached by a published Canadian writer. The later part of the lessons took me through most of my first novel. It wasn’t a “gravy” adventure with accolades galore for my brilliant writing. Instead, my tutor, serious about the craft of writing, had no problem in correcting my errant ways with countless raps on my knuckles with his five pound cyber ruler. It stings. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">After two years, with very sore knuckles and a humbled opinion of my genius, I learned. So yes, I recommend writing classes. Taped to my desk is a quote (from Quality of Course): “Nice writing isn’t enough. It isn’t enough to have smooth and pretty language. You have to surprise the reader frequently, you can’t just be nice all the time. Provoke the reader. Astonish the reader. Writing that has no surprises is as bland as oatmeal…” Now, rather than classes, I meet every week with a very talented writers</span><span style="font-size: large;">’</span><span style="font-size: large;"> group of seven, all working on novels. I can bring in my weeks’ worth of writing, six copies, and have everyone read, correct and comment. I still get rapped on the knuckles occasionally, only this time verbally. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Hector is an endearing character (for an assassin :) ) How did you come up with the idea of 'the assassin who couldn't dance' (and of course a great title for the book. Did you know straight away that Hector would be such a key character?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The idea for Hector came about through my belief that a good person isn’t always good – and a bad person isn’t always bad. I had been reading any and all thrillers I could find at the time, and the plots became boringly consistent: the “good” guys always against the “bad” middle-eastern terrorists. I decided to bend the rule. I knew Hector would be a key character. From seven years old until the age of twenty-three, along with classroom studies he’d been taught to kill. His target being the U.S. Army officers responsible for the deaths of his father and brother. He didn’t have a choice. But with little social interaction during those years - friends never made and family hardly known - he is emotionally vulnerable as he sets out on his quest of vengeance. He asks himself at one point in the story: If his family had moved to the States sixteen years before, would he have a girlfriend now? Would he have learned how to dance? It was such an innocent query, so like the character, I decided to use it in the title. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>'A Capable and Wide Revenge' is another interesting title. How did you come up with this one?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It’s been a long time since I’ve read the complete works of Shakespeare, so I can’t say I remembered the line from Othello. But the quote I used (from Dictionary of Quotations by Bergen Evens), which reflected exactly what I had in mind, read: “Till that a capable and wide revenge swallow them up.” Shakespeare: Othello III.iii </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://ww.amazon.com/Capable-Wide-Revenge-Glen-Barrera-ebook/dp/B012LWVTEK/ref=pd_sim_sbs_351_2" target="_blank">amazon link</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Your thrillers detail special ops and Middle East politics. How do you get your background information? Or should I call it 'intel' :) ?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Most of the background information came from books, the internet, and two Marine vets with experience in Iraq. I probably went through four or five books relating to the Gulf War. The internet also offered a wealth of information. In the second book <i>A Capable and Wide Revenge</i> I used an armored Humvee, mounted with a 50 cal. machine gun. Not only were pictures plentiful for research, but videos of the Humvee with the machine gun in action came along as a nice bonus. Articles pertaining to political structure in Baghdad, street views, neighborhoods and militant groups were there for the taking. I’ll confess, I’ve taken many liberties with the truth in the course of my novels, but then again, I don’t feel I was too far from the actuality. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Events in your novels seem to me to be mirrored in events that hit the news. Have you had a moment where you switched on the TV and there it was - your fictional story come to life?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Yes. The first book took place in 2006, the second in 2009. The destabilization and turmoil in Iraq, and its effects, were a given even as I wrote. With approximately one million (+) U.S. dollars funneled into Iraq each day, corruption was rife and militant groups controlled areas police were loath to enter. The U.S. pulled the last of its troops in December 2011, leaving a vacuum to be filled – and it was, as is apparent today. The geopolitical nature of the area would rule out a direct correlation to the Vietnam fiasco, but as a student of military history I’d have to quote Santayana: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Do you worry that your books might attract attention from terrorists or militant groups?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Not really. For the most part I try to be somewhat vague. In Capable and Wide, I noted actual names for the militant groups in and around Baghdad at the time, but the names I eventually used for my “bad guy” groups – Sword of the Righteous Lions and Green Shields of Allah – were made up, using bits and pieces of the others. I can’t get into too much trouble with that…I think (he said, looking over his shoulder).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>What do you hope readers will get from reading your books?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My original theme was the relationship of family and friends within conflict, that they will support each other no matter the odds. But I found myself writing another theme as well – that is, everyone is searching for someone special to love, and when that love is found you don’t want to let it go. In <i>The Assassin</i>, Lucy and Hector/Morgan and Gil were looking for that love. In <i>Capable and Wide</i>, it was Wes Easterly, Darien and Colin, and even twelve-year-old Ashi who needed that special belonging. I guess I’ve always rooted for the underdog, faced-off against the bully that life, and people, can sometimes be. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>What are your future projects?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I’m currently working on a book titled, <i>Sweet Peach</i>. The first line of her introduction to the story is: Sweet Peach (yeah, momma was slugging beers right through the midwife’s delivery) stumbled out of her battered Honda Civic. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The story takes place in Tennessee. Hector, Gil and Morgan, and the others will be back. It’s a bit different from the previous books that used Iraq as a backdrop. I’m currently working on some “bad guys” as worthy adversaries, of the drug-running, cartel type. This time they’re from Mexico. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>What are your own favourite books?</i></span><span style="font-size: large;">Strangely, as I write fiction, many of my top picks are non-fiction. I’ve read <i>The Outline of History</i> by H.G. Wells (originally written in 1920, revised in 1976) three times. Not just for its historical significance, but for its literary elegance. H.G. is a great writer! In contrast, I finally read Gibbon’s <i>History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire</i> three years ago. It was written (first volume) in 1776. The history is good for the period, imbued with the bias and prejudice of the time, but the writing tends to be stifled, flat, and exciting as year-old fruitcake (all the footnotes are in Latin, and even with my two years of study, plus copious notes taken from Google translation, I could only pick up about 60%). Of course, Tolkien is still a favorite. I re-read him every year or two. I’m currently reading a lot of Indie publications, and have found some very good writers. But as I read so many, I can’t recall the title of the book I read last week, or who wrote it. I could give a list of authors I like, but I’d likely leave someone out. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>What about the private Glen Barrera? What are your favourite activities apart from writing and reading? Can you dance?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ha! Yes, I can dance fairly well. I also play classical and blues guitar (although, I don’t pick up my guitars as much as I used to). I sailed on Lake Michigan for a few years on a Rhodes 22 and a Seaward 26. Unfortunately, we had to sell the boat when my ex and I divorced. I still practice Karate kata (formalized movements like Tai Chi, but faster and with full force) and Tai Chi. I was in Florida this past November, staying with my sister who works with horses as a trainer/dressage teacher/coach. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a horse, let alone one showing at a dressage-trained level. It was a very interesting experience, with riding nuances to boggle the mind. A new endeavor perhaps? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Which question do you wish somebody would ask in interview?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Can you sing?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>And the answer is?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Yes. I was a member of the Bogan (my Chicago High School) Boys Choir. Except, our “choir” relied on one of us getting dad’s car, getting an older guy to buy beer for the four or five of us, and then cruise around singing songs on the car radio (okay, and trying to pick up girls). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Assassin Who Couldn't Dance</span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Blue-eyed Hector Munoz (his present name) is fluent in five languages, can kill a man a hundred different ways and yet, at twenty-three had learned almost nothing about life and love. His father and brother were brutally murdered by corrupt U.S. military officers when he was seven. The teacher, a close friend of his father, took control of the boy’s life, as well as the future debt to be paid. Now, after years of rigorous training, the assassin is judged ready. But is he?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The plan to draw out the officers has been set into motion. Hector has only to illegally cross the border from Mexico and retrieve keys to safe deposit boxes containing eight-million dollars and incriminating documents before the officers can respond. It shouldn’t be a problem. But then Hector’s plan didn’t include Mexican bandits; ruthless mercenaries also after the keys and led by a sadistic cowboy; or a sleazy Chicago mob figure. Things get more complicated for him when a third party joins the search for the keys, the crazed leader of a militia group with a secret room in his basement reserved for “guests” – and then falling in love with an escaped guest, Lucy. Hector also didn’t realize that the mercenaries’ target, an ex-Force Recon team holding the keys and the last four men to see his father alive, were far from old and rusty.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the race for the keys, Hector must confront the emotional emptiness in his life that he wasn’t allowed to experience in his quest for vengeance. With time running out, he is forced to make a choice: follow the assassination plan or ally with the surviving recon team, their families, and Lucy before they are eliminated; and, maybe discover who he really is.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65xOCEd2hYgJkX35A4ithFTY0gG1zZ-46jdTdbpS2avTCcKOrNg9bi7bpeGpBAccEO2djtL0mfBZwKdTkI-eCYC4CzL06KghZihefWulzb4Uz068gmeipDaZUORyHR2lAKm92PtCNMYt6/s1600/TAWCD+squared+jpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65xOCEd2hYgJkX35A4ithFTY0gG1zZ-46jdTdbpS2avTCcKOrNg9bi7bpeGpBAccEO2djtL0mfBZwKdTkI-eCYC4CzL06KghZihefWulzb4Uz068gmeipDaZUORyHR2lAKm92PtCNMYt6/s400/TAWCD+squared+jpeg.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Assassin-Who-Couldnt-Dance-ebook/dp/B00ZVEMVW0/ref=sr_1_1" target="_blank">amazon link</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Assassin Who Couldn't Dance</span> </h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>My Review</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Loyalty between friends in all-action special ops thriller</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I was worried the book might be too violent for my taste but Glen Barrera's judgement stayed within what worked for me as part of a fast-paced all-action story. The opening scene is as violent as the book gets so that sets the tone - and gets you straight into the twists of the plot and some of the key players. If the guerilla warfare and killing can be gutsy, the romance is the opposite - tender and implicit.<br /><br />What I think sets this at the top of its genre is the portrayal of loyalty and trust in the midst of warfare. We see traditional military values (and weapons) in the midst of criminal chaos and outright warfare and we care about this band of brothers. I want a new term to replace 'band of brothers' because what the author does really well is to include women as equals in that band. The links of loyalty and trust unite the whole group, with romances being more like special friendships within the overall bonds. Crime novels often show the bond between detective partners but this is the first book I've read which really shows group friendship in extreme duress. Imagine the Famous Five in the army, having adventures in which people are killed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">'The Assassin' and 'A Wide and Capable Revenge' give you no time to draw breath but across the two books the reader gets to know the characters more. The language is suitably muscular and when there is a little description, it always fits the scene and the characters - I'd enjoy more of that but then, I guess I'm reading out of my usual genre and I'm not used to all that gunfire!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Coming Soon! Twisted Tales</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Glen and I will be keeping each other company in this collection of short stories from <a href="http://readersavenuepark.weebly.com/" target="_blank">Readers' Circle of Avenue Park</a>. <i>The Burglar</i> by Glen Barrera is about a burglar's chance meeting with a large unfriendly dog. My story <i>The 13th Sign</i> also features a dog of sorts... Perhaps <i>Twisted Tails</i> may be more appropriate. I'll keep you posted re publication as it looks like great holiday reading.</span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-70312889485741110362015-10-30T07:23:00.000-07:002015-10-30T07:23:16.372-07:00Barred in Paris<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-size: large;">One of the treats for my big forthcoming birthday was to visit the photography exhibition in Paris: 'Qui a peur des femmes photographes' <i>(Who's afraid of women photographers) </i>The tongue-in-cheek reference to Virginia Woolf was echoed by a portrait of her mother, taken by one of the photographers featured. The hint of an allusion to the big, bad wolf was no accident either.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The exhibition challenged, informed and inspired me. We think our digital cameras are state-of-the-art but <a href="http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/photography-ads-1920s">Kodak happily targeted the mass photographer market a hundred years ago</a> with tag lines like 'You press the button; the camera does the rest'. Queen Victoria thought photography an appropriate hobby for ladies and as long as the ladies kept their cameras focused on family and flowers, everybody was happy. But women did not stay confined within their Brownie - or any other - Boxes. Nor did photography remain a bourgeois hobby. If you are lucky enough to see the exhibition, you'll find photography beyond gender as well as imagery exploring gender; from war journalism to smashed dolls.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Maybe the ghosts of Margaret Bourke-White, Lee Miller and Lisette Model whispered in my ear as I re-visited Paris. For many years, I have focused beyond the bars - made them disappear. If I didn't see them, they couldn't stand in my way. When I am described as a 'woman writer' or - ironically, in view of this wonderful exhibition - a 'woman photographer', bars are created. Is the glass ceiling there if I behave as if it's not? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Even if the exhibition hadn't got me thinking about women's exclusion in the past from e.g. The National Geographical Society, being in a city always makes me feel constrained, regardless of gender. I love the explosion of culture and contrasts in cities - for a maximum of five days. Then the feeling of being trapped becomes too much for me. In Paris, this time, I let myself see the bars. Here are a small selection of the images and all twenty-six can be seen in my new gallery. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Paris, the honeymoon city</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Notre-Dame behind locks; Pont de l'Archevêché</span></span></h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QhyWZtFPFNJM_S9Y36Khc7hzI2tKLs25kLRfDHT6cvl3uMCyjkw3Z7P0i-4IdXiYcBZSIrPPwuZZrVt2K-K8PcSiOYajdBDpDoi_ggmsDuWNorVkEC40hupwjm6fw4J04HZDJPHrdRQ3/s1600/1+Notre+Dame.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QhyWZtFPFNJM_S9Y36Khc7hzI2tKLs25kLRfDHT6cvl3uMCyjkw3Z7P0i-4IdXiYcBZSIrPPwuZZrVt2K-K8PcSiOYajdBDpDoi_ggmsDuWNorVkEC40hupwjm6fw4J04HZDJPHrdRQ3/s400/1+Notre+Dame.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since 2010, the craze has spread for couples to declare their love by attaching a padlock (!) to a bridge and throwing the key into the Seine. I'd be tempted to throw the man in with it if he offered me such a 'romantic' gesture. Despite the removal of padlocks from one bridge, which was breaking under the weight, the craze continues and entire bridges are covered. Any railings are now starting to display padlocks. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Seine at Night</span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;">City gardens and parks are forbidding places behind their fences and walls, prohibitive signs and controlled access. Plants and flowers live behind bars.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This sign for 'Keep off the grass' reminds me of political posters protesting repressive regimes. But we are in France...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Don't Kill the Grass in Winter</span></h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5nWi1-d7E5J4jMVO3wwdMq3Gt-4MA9ivagB-HBKB0G0roNL4ECY47ogJHp1DemQqvIIwAeAg_yhcFTD4KwYp2IWhr8k0cDZUhpce4vzboVQ0jeg5TQ4aP2a2o5cxxAgUQEjZNQQzf5O8/s1600/7+Don%2527t+kill+the+grass+in+winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf5nWi1-d7E5J4jMVO3wwdMq3Gt-4MA9ivagB-HBKB0G0roNL4ECY47ogJHp1DemQqvIIwAeAg_yhcFTD4KwYp2IWhr8k0cDZUhpce4vzboVQ0jeg5TQ4aP2a2o5cxxAgUQEjZNQQzf5O8/s400/7+Don%2527t+kill+the+grass+in+winter.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Such signs arouse the instinctive rebel in me. Before I saw the 'Don't pee in public' sign, I never considered doing so.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>The City and the City</i> by China M</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">iévi</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">lle describes two cities occupying the same space, the inhabitants of one city pretending not to see the inhabitants of the other, and that dislocation is what I felt, sitting in a cosy bar, drinking a glass of wine, looking at this window. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Nouvel Arrivage</span></h3>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-49925118734379722882015-09-25T01:34:00.000-07:002016-11-07T01:35:14.200-08:00Part 2 Thank you, Rachel Koch, from those who speak with tails<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Welcome back, Rachel. Last time you visited, <a href="http://jeangill.blogspot.fr/2015/08/part-1-thank-you-rachel-koch-from-those.html">you told the story of Max, a special dog.</a> This time, we're going to talk more about dog fostering and adoption in general.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rachel with her pack</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>How many Great Pyrenees live with you ? </i></span><span style="font-size: large;">I have 7 Great Pyrenees at the moment: 3 males and 4 females.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>How do you introduce a new dog to the pack?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I just walk with the new dog and the rest will follow. I’ve never had any problems. If it is a young Pyrenees with a lot of blabla I present them to the pack and normally the blabla disappears very quickly when they are confronted by 7 other Pyrenees. Behavioural problems like that normally solve themselves.<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br />I remember you once said it was like a man walking into a bar full of really strong people - he doesn't put on a tough act in that situation.</i></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The pack chez Rachel</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>Do you intervene in the relationships between the dogs?</i></span><span style="font-size: large;">After a month or two, maybe three, the pack will find out themselves where the new dog will be in rank. I never intervene. A pack is a pack and I am not a dog, but I am the pack leader so all the dogs stand under me. That has to be clear from day one!</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">I know that you worked with huge packs of hunting dogs in England. How did that come about? </span></i><i><span style="font-size: large;">What did you gain from the experience?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Through friends that I had met through hunting I came into contact with various large dog packs in England and France.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The old saying is 'look at dogs and you will learn'. People do not take the time to observe and they treat dogs like humans and that is where all the trouble is coming from. A dog has a different way of looking at things. I see so many mistakes that people make and dogs going into a shelter because it is allegedly a mean dog who has attacked children. But for a dog, a child can be seen as another dog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is very important - if a child walks by with a sausage, the dog will take it because he thinks that the child is lower in rank than he is. The dog would never try to steal the same sausage from a higher-ranked dog. That is why you should not intervene in a pack and normally they will sort themselves out. A dog that is too late for dinner eats less than the rest etc. Of course it is a difference if you have one dog or 10 or 60 but basically it is always the same. If you want a stable environment, whether you have one dog or many, you must be a pack leader otherwise the dog will take over!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas chez Rachel</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">You have succeeded with all kinds of dogs, including those who have been labelled as dangerous, aggressive with people or with other dogs; what is the secret of your success</span></i>?<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Especially in the beginning with an aggressive dog (by the way not so many dogs are aggressive it is mostly through fear that they developed that behaviour) but the best thing to do in the first encounter with a dog not to look at him and not to touch him just avoid him and give the dog time to come to you. I also think that as a pack leader you need a certain energy that the dog will pick up; do not hesitate and again maybe only 2 or 3% of dogs are really dangerous and the rest is simply bad behavior that you can correct with time.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">How do you cope when dogs you’ve fostered, and loved, go to new homes?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">You simply have to. Of course it is not always easy but as a foster home you cannot keep every dog and I am always happy if they find good homes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>As somebody who offers foster care, you have to work with many organisations. Do you ever find it hard to stay on good terms? If you disagree with their advice? Or if you know that the conditions in which the dogs are kept are appalling?</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It is sometimes not easy. Some organizations are happy that the dog is in a foster home and think that the problem is solved. You have to ask them again and again to find an adoptant. They always think that you will keep the dog but the problem is that if you want to continue to foster dogs you cannot keep them all.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Let’s talk about money. Sometimes thousands of euros can be spent getting one very ill dog transported hundreds of miles to be rescued, while another healthy abandoned dog in a SPA, near the rescuer, is put down. Do you think associations make rational business decisions?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">No I think a lot of organization are not run as a business but are run by people who react from their heart and not with rational thinking. I also think that organizations put sad pictures on the internet to get the most amount of money to finance other things. I had that with a dog from Spain who was in a very bad situation for months and months I was called by two ladies who had already donated 1000 euros to get the dog to France. However the dog was still in Spain and there was always an excuse why the dog could not be transported but they kept putting the most horrible pictures on the internet demanding for money.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So I decided to contact with the organization and informed them that I would take care of transport with the money they already had from the two ladies and otherwise I would expose the story on several sites. I arranged transport and the dog was brought to me the following week me in an extremely bad condition. I am not certain if he had been kept for much longer in the shelter in Spain where he was being fed bread if he would have survived.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I sometimes feel that the money that is spent bringing a dog in from a far away country could be better spent closer to home. Am I against taking dogs from Spain?That depends if somebody falls in love on the internet and wants to pay transport etc. to adopt that dog. There is nothing wrong with it but I am against organizations that use that kind of pictures to gain money even if it is to finance other things because I had the good example of the two ladies who paid 1000 euro for one dog and the dog nearly died in Spain. In my opinion that is bad management!</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">As somebody who fosters dogs, you make loads of money, don’t you? And get lots of other support too?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">never received any money except for the transport of the Spanish dog paid by the two ladies and it took a while to convince the organization! I always pay the vet and the food. I see that as my contribution to help. So as a foster home I have never received any money.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">How do you keep your spirits up while working with abandoned, abused and ill dogs in a world that seems ever worse for them?</span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I always think that one dog saved is one dog saved. As harsh as it may sound, I do what I can but you simply cannot save them all.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twilight barking chez Rachel</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Tell us about some of the dogs who’ve come to live with you. </span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">We kept several dogs mostly because they were already quite old or very difficult to place. Cimba, who tried to climb up the walls out of fear when he first came to our house and Weasson who had been maltreated. Unfortunately they all died several years after they came to us, from causes that began in their ill treatment. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Weasson died from a brain tumor, probably caused by being hit on his nose by his previous owner. He developed a tumor above his nose). Cimba was mistreated with a stick in his mouth when they wanted to move him from one box to another in the refuge. He died from cancer of the jaw probably from the injury. Max died from lymphatic cancer and that was very difficult for me because he finally had a good home but had such a short time to enjoy it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So yes, it is a great joy to be a Foster Home and yes, it is also difficult to lose a dog who in your opinion would have deserved a better life for many years but that is life and it does not always go as you want to.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Thank you, Rachel. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>If you would like to win an ebook of my story 'Someone To Look Up To' just post a comment below, before 30th September, in any of the blog posts about Rachel. If you already have my story from the viewpoint of a Great Pyrenees, please choose another book.<br /><br />Rachel is happy to answer any questions you might have so feel free to post them below.</i></span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-58462133511064879852015-09-17T03:39:00.000-07:002015-09-17T05:06:15.220-07:00Meet horror's dark queen Suzi Albracht<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>I am petrified of my first guest in The Most Excellent Worldwide Book Tour so let's give a terrific chilling welcome to Suzi Albracht, who's only happy when she's frightening her readers. Be warned: this is a writer not to be scorned. 'Scorn Kills.'</i></span><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Children and scaredy-cats like me should not be reading these books so I'm hoping I can make it through the interview without hiding behind the cushions.</i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Contact Suzi: </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #cfe2f3;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">email her if </span><span style="font-size: 18.6667px; line-height: 14.25pt;">you want to be alerted of new book releases.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="mailto:SuziAlbracht@aol.com" style="background-color: #cfe2f3;" target="_blank">Suzi's email</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://twitter.com/SuziAlbracht" style="background-color: #cfe2f3;" target="_blank">Twitter</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #cfe2f3; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="http://author.to/SuziAlbracht">Amazon Author Page</a> </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Pull up a chair and tell us about yourself, Suzi.</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I love to write horror thrillers with intense personal relationships between characters. I started reading earlier in life than most of my friends and spent many hours hidden in closets and under beds, sneaking in just another ten minutes of whatever book I was reading. As soon as I was old enough, my mother would send me to the library to pick up books for her. This delighted me because it opened up a whole new world of books not available in school.<br /> <br /> I read everything I could get my hands on but was drawn to sci-fi, horror and thrillers. As I matured, I would say my main influences became Stephen King, Dean Koontz and William Faulkner. My writing definitely reflects those influences.<br /> <br /> I can honestly say my twitter bio describes me to a T - Write, scare myself, turn all the lights on, write some more. Take a break, play pool, kick butt/get butt kicked, go write more horror, double lock door.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Stephen King, Dean Koontz and William Faulkner. What impresses you about each of these writers? How do you think they influenced you?</i><br /><br />I fell in love with William Faulkner first. I love the way he makes music with words. From the moment you first open my favorite Faulkner book – <i>A Light in August</i> – you find yourself swept away with the melody he plays. Sometimes that tune is dark and gloomy, other times it is wistful and longing. He fills me with emotion. Dean Koontz captivates me with his stories. To me they could be happening right next door. While he is totally a horror writer, he is also a writer of human experiences. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">But Stephen, oh baby, he speaks to my heart. He takes Faulkner’s melodies and Koontz storytelling to a new level of heart wrenching, soul stomping, in your face horror. He weaves his stories of horror in such a way that I feel they are happening to me. The first SK story I read was <i>Salem’s Lot</i>. By the time I read The End I was hooked for life. I felt the desperation, the fear, the need for normalcy, every emotion the characters felt. He also surprises me with this stories. Each is unique and none of them are cookie cutter Stephen King. I especially love him because he hasn’t resorted to the slasher novels that are so trite to me, instead he relies on the readers imagination. He takes you to that dark place where you fear going and then leads you into even darker places. Because my writing is in the style of Stephen King, I only hope I never get boring and can capture your imagination the way SK has captured mine.</span></div>
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How do you think the horror genre is perceived by other writers?</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br />Interesting question. I think true writers, no matter their genre, respect the horror genre. They know the hard work everyone puts into their writing and they know that includes horror writers. There are some writers who look down their noses at the horror genre but to be honest, those individuals are not true artists. Just because someone puts a few words on paper and even self publishes a book on Amazon doesn’t make them a true writer. They authored a book, that’s it. True artists study the craft. They grow with each sentence they write. Each word they put to paper is critiqued in their minds and shined to perfection before it is allow to stay there. A writer like that appreciates other genres because writing is a gift that is earned.<br /><br /><i>Why do you think people actually want to be scared? Isn't fear a negative emotion?</i><br /><br />Let’s start with the negative emotion aspect. Isn’t every emotion that makes you feel something good? Some people just go through the motions of life without feeling anything. No joy, no anger, no fear, nothing. They think they are happy but are they? I say no. As human beings, we were designed to feel emotions. Sure love or happiness make you feel secure but fear makes you feel alive. Once you experience fear in a novel, the emotion of love will be richer and more vivid than before. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I can’t speak for anyone else but when I write or read a novel, I can experience things I’d never experience in real life. And that means emotions too. While I’m not a thrill junkie, diving out of airplanes or jumping onto moving trains, I can get that same heart pounding thrill in a novel. When a novel is really good and puts goosebumps on my flesh, it gets me so pumped up that when I close it, the sheets on my bed feel silkier, the perfume of my shampooed hair hangs in the air and my own breathing is reassuring to me. I feel ALIVE.<br /><br />I think there are many reasons for people to want to feel scared. As I just mentioned, it makes me feel more alive. For others, it is an escape from whatever boredom they live through every day. For still others, they need to forget their car that needs a new transmission and their looks that are leaving them at a rapid pace.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /><i>You've said that what you most want is for readers to feel the emotions of your characters. Do you identify with your characters and their situations? Any that you specially drew you in?</i><br /><br />Actually, I don’t identify with any of my characters or situations. I do wish I could meet some of them in person. Mikael, for instance, is someone I could admire. He is loyal to a fault and has the kind of compassion more people need. He’s also funny and fun to be with. He both loves and adores his wife and son. Hey, I could date him! Teasing, but seriously, both Mikael and Jake are men who are interesting and multi-layered. To be fair, Carl is a very complicated person who would be fun if he wasn’t such a jerk. I think there is more to Carl that will come out in future books. I hope before he meets his end. I like all my characters, even snarky Bill. I find every dimple, every character twitch to be interesting, and even when they are being total d**ks, I want to know more about them.<br /><br /><i>Do you have any little writing habits?</i><br /><br />I just keep a supply of a special brand of pens in purple and hot pink nearby. I can’t go without my neon colored index cards. Whenever I am starting a new book, I start jotting snippets of the story on my index cards. I carry those cards everywhere with me and jot down my snippets in the weirdest places. Once I get enough, maybe three inches, I type them into the computer. I’ll juggle and re-juggle them until I get the backbone of my story and a flow of potential chapters. After that, it’s all champagne and roses as I begin to flesh out and write the story. That part is euphoric for me. I feel all the emotions the characters experience, smell all the scents, even hunger if they do. It’s like living my own personal story.<br /><br /><i>Tips for new writers, especially of horror as a genre?</i><br /><br />Develop a thick skin. There is an abundance of critics who are quick to offer suggestions that may or may not work for you. You have to learn how to decipher whether a criticism is deserved and should be taken to heart, or if that person just has a different opinion from you. It is also critical to your own sanity to keep in mind that trolls are everywhere, even among your fellow writers. You should still keep an open mind, unless it is an out and out attack. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Most importantly, if someone says you have typos in your story, say thank you and fix them. If you are putting your book out there, even if it is free, you are obligated to provide the most honest product you can. That includes giving your reader an enjoyable read that is not marred by typos. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lastly, always, always be true to your character and story. Just because you write horror does not mean you can feel free to throw in gratuitous slasher scenes or gross-out sex lines to sell your story. When you do that, you are lying to yourself and your art. Only put in what moves the story along and tells your story as it is meant to be told. Oh, and have fun. I do every single day and I love it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Thank you for joining me on my blog, Suzi. Your passion really makes me want to read your books. Perhaps a peek. In daytime...</i></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /><i><b>Scorn Kills, Death Most Wicked</b></i> and <b><i>The Devil’s Lieutenant</i></b> are all part of <b><i>The Devil’s Due Collection</i></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSe1F74fSBWpwXBYRK07RY-3RIkGa8OaU6oSmNTTvFk5r_KgIU2sAfbJLwDJYfR7F3VuozhqTLGWWNaKFG-QllGMNCja0kPvwpNWXVdYGUm45QhYD-zUwnLDW3ln59IIaMKGLaMSj32LyF/s1600/death+most+wicked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSe1F74fSBWpwXBYRK07RY-3RIkGa8OaU6oSmNTTvFk5r_KgIU2sAfbJLwDJYfR7F3VuozhqTLGWWNaKFG-QllGMNCja0kPvwpNWXVdYGUm45QhYD-zUwnLDW3ln59IIaMKGLaMSj32LyF/s400/death+most+wicked.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mybook.to/DeathMostWicked" style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;" target="_blank"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS Mincho"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Book link</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Book Description</b><br />The thing Evil craves most is innocence. When small children disappear, you can be assured that Evil has crawled out of its dirty corner. And when those children turn up dead, Evil has clawed its mark on humanity.<br /><br />What if you were a homicide detective and little girls were suddenly being kidnapped and murdered by a devious pedophile? And what if that pedophile left no evidence behind except for the broken bodies? What would you sacrifice to save just one innocent child? Would any sacrifice be too great? What if it cost you someone you loved? What if, by saving that child, you unleash a horrific monster into your own life?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Mikael Ruskoff was living his dream. He was a highly successful, homicide detective working a career he loved. He had a mother who adored him, a son he took skateboarding, and a wife he loved more than words could express. He played a mean drum set every Thursday night with his best friend on guitar. His life was comfortable and pleasurable. Then he caught a case that would change his life forever.</span><br />
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Here are some reviews of Suzi's books to make up for the fact I just can't read or watch horror. I get nightmares and I avoid anything that might spark them off. However, I have every respect for the genre and for those of you who like to feel the fear and read it anyway, these are for you!</span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Reviews</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">Death Most Wicked</span><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/review/R2UFN4SE1GSMOZ/ref=cm_cr_dp_title?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B013L1QJ04&channel=detail-glance&nodeID=133140011&store=digital-text">Wow!</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">By <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A206U2YXGDO96P/ref=cm_cr_dp_pdp">B. Martin</a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This
is one creepy novel. First you have a man who wants a little sister so
desperately he's willing to kidnap children, only to kill them when they refuse
to live inside his shed. Then you have this hellish substance that turns
victims into puddles of bloody liquid. And in the middle of all this is Mikael
Ruskoff, a homicide detective who's charged with solving a seemingly never
ending string of murders.<br />
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Suzi Albracht has a fantastic imagination, and she does a wonderful job
bringing this disturbing tale to life. Twists abound. Characters are connected
in ways you least expect. And it's all presented in a way that will leave you
on the edge of your seat. (or in my case, my bed) Definitely a novel horror
fans will want to check out.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><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/AVvXsEin1YBroXeXNnoA6xyLgPwfv8wGQNFPOk7XUNF0ob7Dhgn5Fb_IPWMU9FLZ2oc4PFWupfiT_C8D1KNMQHf6N1X4S11dEhxjVuhHz-HILrDkEmpjYoCc1jn0z1tS50rIFamtTb6lHiusiXo9/s1600/dvil%2527s+lieutenantjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1YBroXeXNnoA6xyLgPwfv8wGQNFPOk7XUNF0ob7Dhgn5Fb_IPWMU9FLZ2oc4PFWupfiT_C8D1KNMQHf6N1X4S11dEhxjVuhHz-HILrDkEmpjYoCc1jn0z1tS50rIFamtTb6lHiusiXo9/s400/dvil%2527s+lieutenantjpg.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mybook.to/The_Devils_Lieutenant" style="font-size: medium; text-align: start;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS Mincho"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Book link</span></a></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-size: x-large;">The Devil’s Lieutenant</span></i></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/review/R1J663NZ2376HI/ref=cm_cr_dp_title?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00TGA84YE&channel=detail-glance&nodeID=133140011&store=digital-text"><span class="a-size-base"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-size: 14pt; text-decoration: none;">An Excellent Tale of Horror</span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #cfe2f3; font-size: large;"><span class="a-color-secondary"><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;">By</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A3QAONMGVS455E/ref=cm_cr_dp_pdp"><span style="color: #0066c0; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast;">Glen Barrera</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast;"> </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-size: large;">After reading and enjoying Albracht's Scorn Kills, I knew what
was in store when I began reading this novel. I wasn't let down. In fact, after
the first few pages I was convinced the author had taken this tale of horror to
an even greater level. Like any good novel, horror or not, it's the well
written characters that drive the story. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-size: large;">In this department, Albracht didn't
skimp: Jake Holyfield and his pregnant wife, Caroline; his brother Bobby and
friend Max - the good guys - pitted against evil in the form of Carl and
Dimitry Ivanovich. Quite simply, the bad guys want the good guys on their team,
by whatever means. And they do have interesting means. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-size: large;">But this story is also
about the frailty of the human condition. What moral price would someone pay
for unlimited money, youth, or the woman of their dreams? This is a fast paced
read, with unexpected twists and turns, leading to a well-done ending. I
definitely want to read Albracht's next book.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://getbook.at/SCORN_KILLS" style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "MS Mincho"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Book Link</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Watch the Book Trailer if you dare: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPGepsZrm70&feature=youtu.be">The Devil’s Lieutenant </a></span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-65409440380570997162015-08-24T03:38:00.000-07:002015-08-24T03:38:33.969-07:00Part 1 Thank you, Rachel Koch, from those who speak with tails<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">If you know the dog world in the south of France, you know of Rachel Koch. Although she hates the term, forums and associations call her an angel for her work in fostering and adopting dogs, especially the Great Pyrenees she loves so much. I prefer to call her an expert, whose understanding of dogs comes from years of experience, from some sixth sense that defies analysis, and from love. I also prefer to call her friend. As well as a weakness for big furry independent types, we share a shaggy dog story of dubious legality about how we didn't meet in a car park ...</span></i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rachel and some of her Great Pyrenees at home (Max on the left)</td></tr>
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<i style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Welcome, Rachel! I know your first language is Dutch so thank you for responding in English for me. We often talk in French because of where we live so it's a change for me to talk in my own language with you. Please tell us a bit about yourself.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">I gave up my career as a flight attendant because I was away from home for long periods. I had always wanted to have animals around me, and, starting with a wire-haired Daschund, I soon began breeding dogs and got involved in showing and working with them. I followed several courses in the Netherlands in order to become a show and field work judge, and travelled to many countries in Europe in the course of my judging activities. I left judging when I moved to France as I found that it took up too much of my time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I did a quick count of the dogs I have taken in and came to 15 dogs fostered and 10 adopted although I’m sure I have missed a few. Most were of advanced years like old Jake, a Golden Retriever, whose owners were killed in a car accident. He was completely lost when he came to me but found his “maison de retraite” (retirement home) with us and died in his sleep like a gentleman a few years later.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br />It is difficult to send away a dog who finally has found his home at the age of 12-14. I prefer to keep older dogs with me as I want to avoid the stress of adapting to a new environment. Young dogs always find a new home very quickly. Older dogs are obviously harder to place. You also must realise that if you adopt, it can be for up to 15 years. I am 58 at the moment so a puppy will stay with me 15 years. Plan ahead if you want to adopt! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Our meeting in a car park was set in motion when I received a phone call from a volunteer with a dog association. A member had rescued a Great Pyrenees, who was in terrible conditions. She couldn't keep him and I was asked if I could drive him part of the way down through France to a foster home. I could. I did. In fact, my long-suffering-husband 'volunteered' to be the get-away driver on condition that I handled the dog. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>When the fugitive was handed over in a car park, he didn't resist. He didn't care any more. His eyes were dead. I've seen this before in shelter dogs, where they have given up completely and it is heart-wrenching. The foster-carer was of course Rachel, and this is what she saw when she came to meet me in the car park of Aix-en-Provence motorway services. Rachel took over with Max and his story.</i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rachel's first view of Max (and Jean)<br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGbMe5JUwLuIKbS4UZLB4kfmmtw63b9w3A_iTzdcHxvvEXJqtNSKhMCuzoTxLYfyfB-_brCGdyp_xqlAh28ur5ZGRPAok86TM7GGyEFTeaNuuNlofiQc1QIQskpZ-0dFNJnKoSLAcGNwNf/s1600/Jean+%2526+Max.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGbMe5JUwLuIKbS4UZLB4kfmmtw63b9w3A_iTzdcHxvvEXJqtNSKhMCuzoTxLYfyfB-_brCGdyp_xqlAh28ur5ZGRPAok86TM7GGyEFTeaNuuNlofiQc1QIQskpZ-0dFNJnKoSLAcGNwNf/s640/Jean+%2526+Max.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jean and Max during the rescue</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If I tell you that Max is the love of my life of course you cannot compare that to your parents or your husband. A dog is a dog and not a human being. But what I had with Max started probably when he came to our house in a bad state and I knew right away that we were connected. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I was contacted by Adoption Gros Chiens. His story can still be found on their site. It was one of their first rescue operations. They had rescued Max but they did not have a foster home for him so I agreed to take him temporarily</span>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnUaptie2-Jyc5rMBeGEy5lAXZonkbl1QtvkDGereKzj2AZH6gfED2j6WywWvMNWoR4E9TL5kiYkKdZ2y7a9IBtzGwXadZ_bNegT2CoFqbUAui81WG6Ojdf8KdYc4Fn8hEkHcEmcpk1KG/s1600/max+at+the+start.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnUaptie2-Jyc5rMBeGEy5lAXZonkbl1QtvkDGereKzj2AZH6gfED2j6WywWvMNWoR4E9TL5kiYkKdZ2y7a9IBtzGwXadZ_bNegT2CoFqbUAui81WG6Ojdf8KdYc4Fn8hEkHcEmcpk1KG/s640/max+at+the+start.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;">Max at Rachel's being nursed back to health</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPRt5SsRMIRtpDHf6LPaXmhyphenhyphenTWtTHWRwi_K3wic1sZSzXf2J0tStmhHfDeG2C-iiLo8h7WyAMuAAGNectZVbMqV19oOXq8QY1-54kGdNKtI69VtSGE2BYHlu21V-8REdNv2tDUmSgrWhuE/s1600/max+pasha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPRt5SsRMIRtpDHf6LPaXmhyphenhyphenTWtTHWRwi_K3wic1sZSzXf2J0tStmhHfDeG2C-iiLo8h7WyAMuAAGNectZVbMqV19oOXq8QY1-54kGdNKtI69VtSGE2BYHlu21V-8REdNv2tDUmSgrWhuE/s640/max+pasha.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Max after adapting to his new life :)<br /></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As I am a judge for hunting dogs I went to a show not far from my house a few days after and left him in the care of Sven, my husband, and told him to keep Max always on a leash or chain when he was outside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sven phoned me in the evening that Max had escaped and the chain was broken. It was at lunch time. He just went into the kitchen to prepare a meal and returned - no dog. So when I came back next day, Max was gone and the search started. Sven and I put pictures of Max everywhere, drove miles and miles to find him. I searched the entire neighbourhood, putting up pictures and of course informing the Gendarmes and Vet.</span><span style="font-size: large;">People called to say they had seen him walking with a length of chain hanging off him but every time I went to look… no Max.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I had put him a collar with our phone number on but even then you have no idea if the collar is still on and Max had no tattoo or chip. I searched every day and finally I received news after ten days ! in the evening, on the day that there was terrible rainfall in Draguignan. (A lot of people were killed in the heavy rains and floods) On that very day, a lady phoned to say that she had found Max and he was in her barn with the horses. She asked me if she could feed him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I was crying all the time and gave the phone to Sven to try to figure out where he was. It was 75 km !! from our house and indeed he had tried to return to his old place in the mountains but he missed one crossing. I could not wait so we went in a storm with trees falling on the road, floods everywhere. They told everybody to stay at home because people where dying in Draguignan but we went in search of a dog ! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And there he was in the barn. He could hardly walk so we put him in the car and drove home, where I put him in a blanket. I was so happy but then a few days later he escaped again. He jumped the fence with me close to him, and I screamed and screamed, 'Max, no no!' and I was completely - how do you say that? - devastated, disappointed. How could a dog you have given so much attention and love and food leave you again?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But the next day, in all my despair, I saw him next to the fence in the forest. He was looking at me and laying still and looking at me, and at seven in the morning I went up to him in my pyjamas and said, 'You are home,' and he never left me again.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTlm15Ty1-GuPkhCvUr0A3Ejy5pIIt1SLSmU8lQq4mJKJUoxqXp7ykr7TBBQkPnrYF4ml8Talq_cRNj9CtI6ZX129DI3AdXHHUD8hVRu9eKB_DSPZgcC54X2qg6PcIhkOUib6JJQwKfJQ5/s1600/max+starburst.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTlm15Ty1-GuPkhCvUr0A3Ejy5pIIt1SLSmU8lQq4mJKJUoxqXp7ykr7TBBQkPnrYF4ml8Talq_cRNj9CtI6ZX129DI3AdXHHUD8hVRu9eKB_DSPZgcC54X2qg6PcIhkOUib6JJQwKfJQ5/s640/max+starburst.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Max chez lui</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">From that moment on his love was in my heart and it stayed until he died so that was the moment that we had that unconditional love for each other and he became the love of my life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Rachel, you and Max were lucky to find each other and to know such happiness, for the last of his nine years. He is a different dog from the one with dead eyes who trudged across a car park with me and I'm sure his tail thanked you every day.</i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpP36mCttkN_YCYTJ_hbr93PhutO0a5K25c5JlDx8LTxK9zIA9aoFgfphFzgi2Xautj4jiWW4sZa5lTkKLRqcfcwTK-CFZxbx5Z1KkQx6oo-E4HvIQEFl77HwEIT04eOBCWOwuybA4qof/s1600/max+ski+slope.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwpP36mCttkN_YCYTJ_hbr93PhutO0a5K25c5JlDx8LTxK9zIA9aoFgfphFzgi2Xautj4jiWW4sZa5lTkKLRqcfcwTK-CFZxbx5Z1KkQx6oo-E4HvIQEFl77HwEIT04eOBCWOwuybA4qof/s640/max+ski+slope.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Max and Rachel on the ski slopes</td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">The story of Max highlights some of the issues that arise when you foster or adopt a dog. They DO often attempt to run back to the place they know, even if they were horribly abused. We need to be so careful! I am so neurotic about a dog escaping that I take a collar and tag with my phone number on it when I go to the shelter to pick up the dog. </span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Rachel, when you take in a rescue dog, what do you do during the first couple of days? </span></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I keep them in a quiet place away from the other dogs and with food adapted to the need of the dog. In the case of Max, I started with rice and chicken and supplements and vitamins. I also give them a bath and if necessary anti-flea and anti-worm pills. If needed I take them to the vet. I let them sleep a lot and go out with them on a leash, wearing a collar with my phone number on it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first days I always take a dog in my bedroom at night. I think this is very important and I do this with all rescue dogs. Some people are against it but put yourself in a situation that you are lost and find yourself in a house that you do not know, and you are locked up in a kitchen with nobody around you! So I try to bond with the dog, to keep him with me 24 hours a day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Different breeds adapt at different tempos, but with Great Pyrenees it will normally take a month for a dog to understand that he has found a new home. I think this is because they are so attached to the place they live, or the flock they are guarding. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Thank you so much, Rachel. I love hearing your stories and advice. Neither of us will ever forget Max. His story and those of other rescued dogs show us what is possible. In Part 2, Rachel will tell us more about her adoption and foster care of dogs.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Sherlock, my own adopted dog, is lying beside me at this very moment, worried about the thunderstorm. Ditto Blanche. </i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jean with Sherlock (and Blanche's reflection)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><i>If you would like to win an ebook of my story 'Someone To Look Up To' just post a comment below, before 30th September, in any of the blog posts about Rachel. If you already have my story from the viewpoint of a Great Pyrenees, please choose another book.<br /><br />Rachel is happy to answer any questions you might have so feel free to post them below.</i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://smarturl.it/sirius" target="_blank">amazon link</a></td></tr>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-21197786277130416572015-06-18T07:58:00.003-07:002015-06-30T23:11:06.330-07:00Taking Stock as a Photographer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">What do you really want to photograph?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">To answer that question, I spent last weekend in a </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">workshop with Ana Puig Rosado</span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">, an amazing photographer who lives only 30 minutes' drive from me in the beautiful lavender valley of La Roche St Secret. This is my photo of her house, reflected in the window of a typical Provencal cabanon. She maintains two websites to separate her <a href="http://www.annapuigrosado.net/" target="_blank">photo-journalism</a> from her <a href="http://www.bildophoto.com/" target="_blank">weddings and other projects.</a> Both are stunning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Fears that my French would let me down diminished as I discovered that 'RAW' is 'RAW' in French, pronounced 'Roe', evidemment. Camera settings and menus are all in English so it's my French friends who have to get used to S for Vitesse (or for Canon shooters TV, which I always think of as Toute Vitesse).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Ana travels. Sometimes commissioned, sometimes with a project she hopes to sell afterwards and sometimes because she just 'wants to go to Tel Aviv.' She is a photo-reporter, working usually with natural light and an emphasis on getting it right in camera. She is the antidote to stock photography, in which I've been semi-conditioned for the last 6 years. Her notion of editing is to choose a small selection of photos that make a coherent collection.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.annapuigrosado.net/fr/portfolio-19900-0-40-.html" target="_blank">Here's the portfolio that Ana put together</a> showing the workshop behind the scenes as well as mini-galleries from each of us (mine is the first one). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until recently, I saw each photo as a one-off. Albums were 'best of'. Influenced by reading David DuChemin, I have started to think about collections as a whole, in the <a href="http://jeangill.com/galleries/" target="_blank">galleries on my website</a>; in the selection chosen with my Editor for <a href="http://smarturl.it/1sixth" target="_blank">'One Sixth of a Gill'</a>. You can imagine how pleased I was with the reviews from the Wishing Shelf judges; <i>'A worthy finalist... 5 (of the 31) judges thought that the photography was the best part.'</i> It is time to ask more of myself as a photographer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If you'd like a free copy of 'One Sixth of a Gill' <a href="http://blogspot.us7.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=f242d187c63a4c8b7233e00ee&id=09d2e24855" target="_blank">please sign up here for my newsletter.</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">With perfect timing, I received a professional report on the portfolio from LensCulture, whose portrait competition I'd entered. By happenstance, this is also the organisation which featured <a href="https://www.lensculture.com/articles/anna-puig-rosado-dead-season-on-the-edges-of-the-black-sea" target="_blank">Dead Season on the Edge of the Black Sea</a> by - guess who - Ana Puig Rosado! Some things are just meant to be.<br /><br />The opportunity to receive a review was given as a bonus for entry and I was asked to submit a portfolio of 10 photos. I chose the 3 portraits I'd entered for the competition (that hadn't won) and 7 others I liked, showing the range of my work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Don't cheat. look at these photos and decide what feedback you would give. Then read what I was told. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Reviewer Feedback<br /><br />I found some of these individual images very interesting and was drawn in by your innovative approach to self-portraiture. The mix of work here is very eclectic. I can understand it is hard to summarize your work in one edit and you may have wanted to demonstrate the depth and breadth of your practice, but I suppose we are just very used to seeing series of work in photography where you see one body of work explored in-depth. There are many images here that are very singular and beautifully taken shots particularly image 5 and 6. But I would encourage you to move from picking an individual good image to thinking about your work as a series.<br /><br />Editing into a coherent series would enable the viewer to see more of you and how you work and also what you have to say. As we are so saturated by images all the time we need to work out what we are looking at and how to position it easily. I notice you do not have an artist's statement. It might be a very helpful exercise for you to write one. I realise they are hard to do as they in part require you to be concise and clear about what you are doing and you may work in a more organic less premeditated way. But the advantage is they force you to consider what might connect your work, and help you to develop confidence in your own voice.<br /><br />Perhaps that is why the self-portraits interest me, they tell me more about you ( I am assuming they are of you). They make me think of Bill Viola's moving and slow studies of faces which take on a religious or spiritual edge and are very powerful. I like the idea that a single fixed image of self is never enough. We change so much over time and expressions alter our faces completely and you capture this well with this group of 3 images. I hope you will continue with those more in the future.<br /><br />What do I think of the review?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I'm chuffed! And I smile now at my naivete in putting the collection together in such a random way. I'm writing this blog for everybody who's shared in my progress as a photographer - and for others who still think of one photo at a time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Compliments like those in the review are really motivating me to carry on experimenting without worrying about what will sell in <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/jeangill" target="_blank">my istockphoto portfolio</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Thank you to that anonymous reviewer, who made further suggestions. I would love comments from other photographers on the blog, on the review, on the idea of collections. I haven't answered the question of what I really want to photograph but I have some ideas!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">These were the additional recommendations</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Recommended Books<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Family-Man-Edward-Steichen/dp/0810961695">The Family of Man, curated by Edward Steichen</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005EI84DS/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005EI84DS&linkCode=as2&tag=expertphotog-20">The Art of Photography: An Approach to Personal Expression, by Bruce Barnbaum</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.gpsphotography.com/what-makes-a-great-photo-essay">Here is a good article on things to think about when creating a photo essay.</a><br /><br /><a href="http://publishyourphotographybook.com/">Publish Your Photography Book, by Darius D. Himes and Mary Virgina Swanson</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.artbusiness.com/artstate.html">How to write an Artist's Statement</a><br /><br /><a href="http://crusadeforart.bigcartel.com/product/the-artist-statement-say-what-you-mean-and-mean-what-you-say-the-easy-way">The Artist Statement: How and Why to Write Yours by Jennifer Schwartz</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Other Resources to Consider<br /><br /><a href="http://www.photo-berlin.org/5workshops5women/">5 workshops, 5 days, 5 women in Berlin</a></span></div>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-86332153586856936542015-04-07T13:13:00.000-07:002015-04-10T22:18:59.413-07:00Bad hare days and medieval dogs<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Everyone went hunting in
medieval Europe, for fun and for food, legally and illegally, and where the
hunters went, so did their hounds. But what sort of dogs were they, what jobs
did they do and how were they trained? For my current novel, I needed to
imagine myself into a hawking expedition in 12th century Provence and my
interest in dogs led me down research rabbit-holes…</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Were there dogs in the 12thC anything like Blanche, Sherlock and Luca (a friend's Australian Shepherd)?</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 20pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small; line-height: 20pt;">Photos: Claire Hamlisch</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYUlkbqXcDvBR0b7MqmvQndq2dK1XyQ84l2ihbv4j3kwwaHbi5qzk0yPkVEthsEjBQvhSoyKHMJjwqsIJEsMhYlwp5mtB1DbUWUlb3QB74VfAAOVnmKr0-3mTz0UQtI3qn78NrUqxOvTZm/s1600/crop+Luca+reading+colour+adjusted.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/AVvXsEhYUlkbqXcDvBR0b7MqmvQndq2dK1XyQ84l2ihbv4j3kwwaHbi5qzk0yPkVEthsEjBQvhSoyKHMJjwqsIJEsMhYlwp5mtB1DbUWUlb3QB74VfAAOVnmKr0-3mTz0UQtI3qn78NrUqxOvTZm/s1600/crop+Luca+reading+colour+adjusted.jpg" height="175" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4tvJVG37DCvEbmqOXNDGQBschzxV4q-ueGnfr__2UCbQz10lckpVU1-e7go7oYXTlGWy0hHPlwaq47RqfC2y15pb-v7I355tVd1geW4srOr-0qAEYmRHA9s-Acxsp_2g_J9pFTD1XYQka/s1600/someone+square.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4tvJVG37DCvEbmqOXNDGQBschzxV4q-ueGnfr__2UCbQz10lckpVU1-e7go7oYXTlGWy0hHPlwaq47RqfC2y15pb-v7I355tVd1geW4srOr-0qAEYmRHA9s-Acxsp_2g_J9pFTD1XYQka/s1600/someone+square.jpg" height="194" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; line-height: 20pt;">The missing favourites: no labradors, no golden retrievers, no Newfoundlands. These breeds didn't reach Europe until the 19th century so the job of retrieving medieval game lay in different teeth. Neither were there any collies so Luca is out of the picture (although she always manages to be in any we take). Dogs were often referred to by their jobs rather than by breed names. The majority of a kennel consisted of running-hounds, in a pack that gave scent and chased game, looking and behaving like modern foxhounds. In addition to the running-hounds were the specialists:- </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The greyhound</b></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> was the
medieval knight’s all-round dog of choice: a noble dog, swift enough to take down game and
sweet enough to curl up indoors with the family. Commemorated in poetry,on tombstones and in tapestries, greyhounds were prized. Training focused on the chase, with rewards (bloody meat) for catching prey. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Medieval training by fewterers (houndmasters) did not scruple to use crippled birds as easy prey to encourage dogs to try for more difficult targets such as hares. Deerhounds and wolfounds were included in the category of 'greyhound'.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Nowadays, greyhounds are still prized for speed (track racing in the UK) and for hunting but have gone downmarket in social class and they are less likely to enjoy old age by the fire than in the 12thC. Traditional hunting with 'galgos' is still popular in Spain, where each summer the failures are abandoned, tortured and killed - or rescued by greyhound associations across the border in France, whose members wonder whether they are merely supporting this annual clear-out. Also by Spanish tradition, a hunting-dog's performance reflects on his master's prowess, and only a slow death to the dog can restore the human's reputation: hence the torture and death administered as punishment.</span></span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The lymer </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">was the scenting-hound. In a kennel of 60 running-hounds there might be 5 lymers. Typically very long-eared, working on leash, either with nose to the ground or in the air, a lymer would track the quarry in silence. Training would include punishment for barking and rewards for nose-work, finding objects by smell. As with the greyhounds, the handlers would build up from easy activities (find the chopped-up liver a yard away) to more difficult ones (same liver hidden behind a tree or still inside a moving creature).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">A nose with four feet, the lymer also gathered in smells via his long ears as they trailed on the ground. He didn't need to be fast as he could pick up a trail when the prey was long out of sight. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Bloodhounds and basset hounds would have been in this category and you've figured out who my lymer is... Sherlock, my bleu de Gascogne, a Gascony Griffon, who was abandoned in summer 2013 by his hunter owner and has adapted just fine to home life. </span></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The spaniels </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">- perfect bird-dogs then as now - flushed out and retrieved small game. They also had a reputation for being 'quarrelsome, noisy and easily distracted', just as likely to go off and chase a villager's chickens as hunt the rabbits in the forest. The name came from the word for 'Spanish', their country of origin, and medieval English writers didn't hold back on racist comments comparing the spaniels' failings to those of their human countrymen.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Nevertheless these small, plucky and playful dogs were essential to the chase, and their most common liver-and-white colour stands out in images of a hunt.</span></span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 26.6666660308838px;"><span style="font-size: large;">The setters </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">had a fine reputations as quiet stalkers, water-dogs who retrieved game. In medieval England, hunting-dogs of Sherlock's colour were called 'French blues', and speckled blue was seen in spaniels and setters, as today in the English Setter.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The mastiffs </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">were the heavyweights. Wearing spiked collars, they were capable of taking down wolf, boar and bear after the greyhounds had chased the prey to the ground. Often portrayed with large testicles, mastiffs represented raw, male animality, which was allegedly aroused in the humans hunting too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">An apr</span><span style="color: #393939; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, 'DejaVu Sans', sans-serif; font-size: 1.2em; line-height: 15.6000003814697px;">è</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">s-hunt party might start with the traditional innards feast for the dogs, to which the lymer had first entitlement. Then, it was quite likely to continue with a large quantity of alcohol and anecdote. If ladies were present, as they usually were in hawking expeditions, then other kinds of sport might follow. Double-entendres regarding 'losing one's hart' and 'the beauty of hare' were the language of foreplay.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Among the mastiffs were the special breeds, still wearing their spiked collars, who did not hunt but guarded flocks and herds from wolf and bear. The Tibetan Mastiff, the Anatolian Shepherd and the Great Pyrenees were all among these ancient guardians. They were guardians, not herding dogs, among whom you would still recognise the ancestors of my Blanche.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">According to one book on the troubadours, there was 'a rumour that a female troubadour toured the south of France with a large white dog' and this statement sparked <i>Song at Dawn</i>. I couldn't shake off that image of the girl and a Great Pyrenees, who became Estela and Nici. The large white dog plays a key part in the story and he even has his own fan club.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Underlying my <i>Troubadours Quartet </i>is this sort of research, on every aspect of 12thC life and politics but only a tiny part will show in the books. If it's not relevant to the people and the story, it doesn't belong in my novels. That doesn't stop me lingering along the way, finding out about alaunts, brachets, and harriers, and sometimes sharing those findings here with you. Did you know that black dogs were shunned in Christendom as evil?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;">Winner of the Global Ebooks Award for Best Historical Fiction,<i> Song at Dawn </i>will be on promotion from 7th-12th April at 99c/99p so now is a good time to discover the 12thC ready for the 3rd book <i>Plaint for Provence</i> on November 1st. The book trailer starts with the image of a 12thC citadel right beside where I now live. Inspiration out the window!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><a href="http://smarturl.it/dawnsong" target="_blank">Amazon No 1 Historical bestseller <i>Song at Dawn</i></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Do you love dogs too? If you review any of my books you can add your dog to my <a href="http://jeangill.com/dogs/" target="_blank">Readers' Dogs Hall of Fame.</a> Just <a href="mailto:jean.gill@wanadoo.fr" target="_blank">drop me a line</a> with a link to your review, a photo and a brief description of your dog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Further Reading</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Thanks to Robyn Young (writer of outstanding historical fiction) for recommending <i>The Art of Medieval Hunting</i> - John Cummings. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Another good source is<i> Medieval Hunting</i> - Richard Almond </span><br />
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-88902551676674894802015-02-27T06:38:00.001-08:002015-02-27T06:38:57.702-08:00Go East Young Man: William Burton McCormick<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>A two-time Derringer Award finalist, William Burton McCormick's fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine and others. William has lived in seven countries including more than two years spent in Latvia, the setting of </i>Blue Amber.<i> His first novel, </i>Lenin's Harem<i>, about the birth and death of the first Latvian independence, was recently deemed historically accurate enough to included in Latvia's War Museum's permanent library in Riga, a rare honor for a foreign writer of historical fiction. </i></span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><i><span lang="EN-GB">He is a member of the Crime Writers Association, Mystery Writers of America, the Historical Novel Society, and International Thriller Writers. He earned an MA in Novel Writing from the University of Manchester, studied Russian language and history at Moscow State University and was elected a Hawthornden Writing Fellow in Scotland in 2013. He was also Highly Commended for the Yeovil Literary Prize in 2010.</span></i></span></h3>
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<i>Welcome, Bill!</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Thank you for having me, Jean. Great to be here.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB"> </span><b><i><span style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">How did a boy from </span><st1:state style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on">Maryland</st1:state><span style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;"> end up in </span><st1:country-region style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on">Latvia</st1:country-region><span style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">? There has to be a story! </span></i></b><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">Oh, yes, there's a story. In fact several. But the shortest and simplest one is that I was living in Washington D.C., and planning on writing a thriller set in Eastern Europe. I didn't yet have a specific country as a setting for the novel, so I went to the </span><st1:place style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Latvian</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Museum</st1:placetype></st1:place><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;"> in </span><st1:place style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Rockville</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">Maryland</st1:state></st1:place><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;"> and bought some books on </span><st1:country-region style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on">Latvia</st1:country-region><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;"> and its history. I was surprised at what I learned, fascinated and terrified about what had happened there and in the other Baltic States. Later, after getting accepted in the Creative Writing Program at the </span><st1:place style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Manchester</st1:placename></st1:place><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">, I managed to visit </span><st1:country-region style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on">Latvia</st1:country-region><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">. At that point, I knew I'd have to live there if I was going to do any serious research for writing purposes. So, I moved to </span><st1:city style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;" w:st="on">Riga</st1:city><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">, fell in love with the city, and the rest is history.</span></h3>
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<i>What is it about Eastern Europe that inspires your writing? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Many things. The cultural differences, the amazing history, the shadow of Soviets and the various politics of the individual governments, the tension between East and West, beautiful landscapes, beautiful architecture, ugly Soviet architecture, fascinating twists of history, the mix of societies within Eastern Europe (Ukrainian culture is very different than, say, Georgian culture), the changes in a post-Soviet world (if Mr. Putin will allow it), the continuing of religious faith underground during Soviet times, wonderful little nooks and crannies of places I discover walking around everyday.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> On that last point, Mark Twain said real places are never on maps. He was right. Go there, see the details.</span></h3>
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<i style="line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">Your short stories have been very successful: published in top mystery magazines and you’re a Derringer Award finalist, twice. Are short stories your favourite genre? </i><span style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 28.0799999237061px;">I certainly love short stories. Poe is one of my influences, and he believed the short story was a greater art form than the novel because intense emotion can only be maintained in a reader for a very short time. When this is achieved, Poe thought, the story must end as soon as possible. That said, I love novels, and how a longer narrative evolves chapter to chapter. I enjoy the intricate plotting of a novel. So, I'd say they're about equal with me.</span></h3>
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<i>Which elements do you think makes the ideal short story? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I don't think you can say there are universal and necessary elements to a short story, because as soon as you set those rules someone will break them in a brilliant way. Obviously, as a general guideline, a short story should start as much as possible 'in the action" because of its necessary brevity. Though that rule could be applied to novels as well, couldn't it? Most novels are too long by half.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><i>Do you stick to the rule that there must be a twist at the end?</i></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I love twist endings but they're challenging to do. More times than not the reader can see it coming, and, if so, then the twist isn't really a twist is it? There are lots of beautiful short stories without a twist, especially literary ones. How many twist endings does say James Joyce have? That said, especially in the mystery or thriller genres, a twist ending is usually expected. I sometimes start with the twist and build backwards from there.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span lang="EN-GB"><i>What are the greatest challenges in working within a limited word-count? I imagine every word must do exactly that - count!</i></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Having a limited word count is indeed challenging, but in a way it really tightens up your writing. You don't have the luxury of going on and on. It is why I increasingly find myself drawn to flash fiction. Trying to tell a whole story in less than 1000 or 500 words is really a great exercise for writers. You agonize over every adjective, restructure your sentences for brevity, and eliminate anything remotely extraneous. You find out how to imply things you'd otherwise waste space explaining. I think writing three or four flash fiction pieces is a good warm up for a longer short-story or even for writing the chapters of your novel. Less is more. In fact, of all the fiction I've written, my parents' favorite seems to be a 300 word short-short for <i>Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine</i>. It's a complete story with intro, plot, twist and resolution in space only about twice as long as this question and answer.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Does the method of developing character differ? Do you stick to a small cast?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">You certainly don't have the space to develop characters, so, for me, I absolutely have to stick to a small cast. It's also so difficult in a short story to switch points of view. I've done it, others do it, but a lot of creative writing types will tell you that it's better to keep the view to one character in a short story.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Have you ever started writing a short story and thought, this has the potential to be a novel?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">No. In fact, I've often had the opposite experience where I decide while writing a novel that the plot would be better served as a short story or novella.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Let’s talk about your new book, the novella </i>Blue Amber<i>. By the way, I love the jacket ;) and it’s an intriguing title. Why did you choose </i>Blue Amber<i>?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Yes, that jacket is just brilliant, isn't it? Clearly made by a simply fabulous artist who will probably wish to remain humbly nameless despite her stunning talent? Or does she? ;) </span><span class="SubtitleChar"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Blushing and moving on quickly</i><span style="font-weight: normal;">…</span><br /><span style="font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> As for <i>Blue Amber</i>, well, without giving away the plot, I wanted the character of Fricis to find something very valuable on that beach, and a rare form of amber seemed logical. Originally I considered "red amber", as I liked how "red" hinted at the revolutionary connection in the story, but as many types of amber have a reddish hue they aren't too valuable. Blue amber is extremely rare in the <st1:place w:st="on">Baltic Sea</st1:place> (it is more common in <st1:place w:st="on">South America</st1:place>), and I liked how "blue" connected with water or sea, which plays a big part in the story, so I settled on that.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>How would you describe the main character? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">He's a man who has been unlawfully imprisoned, who is going to be executed for his views, and simply wants to survive to help his people and his wife. I think that even with the historical and relatively exotic setting of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Latvia</st1:place></st1:country-region>, every reader can engage with such a character. He's universal. At least, I hope so.</span></h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Amber-William-Burton-McCormick-ebook/dp/B00SCD8E2I/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8">amazon.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/William-Burton-McCormick/e/B006WLNFIK/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1">amazon.co.uk</a></td></tr>
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<i>The story had me hooked and every detail feels real. Was it based on real events?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Sort of. The character of Fricis is based upon a real revolutionary, and he did escape from prison. No one knows how, so I had creative license to do what I wanted. Also, the murder of revolutionaries during fabricated escape attempts was a real thing.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Was it your intention to write a story with a message or a moral? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">No. But if it <i>was </i>my intention to include a moral I wouldn't tell you! </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Wingdings; font-weight: normal;">J</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I believe authors should remain silent and let the readers take what they wish from any story.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /><o:p></o:p></span><i>Your work shows an insider’s knowledge of eastern European politics. Do you have a clear allegiance yourself? Are you concerned about being controversial in your books and attracting unwanted attention? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Well, I only owe allegiance to my homeland, the good ole USA (and maybe the Fallowfield part of Manchester), but I have fallen in love with Latvia, Estonia and Ukraine. And what is happening in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ukraine</st1:place></st1:country-region> now tears me up.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> As for controversy or attention, I couldn't care less. I write what I write.</span></h3>
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<i>How did you come to be a writer? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I've always been a storyteller. At some point, I just decided to start setting all these stories down. Nothing more sophisticated than that, really.</span><i>Who gave you your first encouragement as a writer? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">When I applied to the MA Program at the University of Manchester, I was required to have a telephone interview with novelist Suzannah Dunn, who was then the course's director. She had read three chapters of a novel I'd submitted with the application. In those three chapters I alternated first and second person points of view between two characters, apparently a risky move. She told me she thought this style was really interesting and really bold, and let me into the program. Such encouragement from a very successful historical novelist was a huge boon to my confidence as a writer.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>If you were trying to describe your writing to someone who hasn’t read anything by you before, what would you say? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">People tell me my writing style is "cinematic," whatever that means in practice.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I'd say my writing is usually historical fiction, usually set in Eastern Europe, either with a lot of humor, mystery, action, or politics, though there are a lot of exceptions to all of these.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i><br />Do you find yourself returning to any recurring themes within your writing and, if so, are you any closer to finding an answer? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">No answers. I'm not so intellectual. My crusade against "theme-ism" is about as successful as Don Quixote's crusade against windmills. </span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>I would love to read your novel </i>Lenin’s Harem <i>but it’s out of print at the moment. Can you give us an update on when it might be available?</i><br /><i style="font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">Lenin's Harem</span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> sold very well, but went out of print only because of a dispute with the original publisher, Knox Robinson Publishing. The good news is we have just been awarded a default judgment against them for nonpayment on an advance for the translations rights sale. In my opinion, Knox Robinson Publishing has not been cooperative or in anyway helpful in resolving this issue.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> The good news is I am very close to signing another agreement with a new publisher to put <i>Lenin's Harem</i> back in print. I would expect it by mid-summer.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>What do you think is the greatest advantage of self-publishing? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Well, Blue Amber is the first story I've self-published, so I'm a novice at this. But, I'd say, that compete creative control is the obvious answer. The artist can give the world his or her vision unaltered or unimpeded by any publisher, producer, editor or agent. That's not always a good thing, but it is the most honest one.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Is there anything you feel self-published authors may miss out on? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Well, though it somewhat counters what I just said, a strong editor. Some self-published work, though by no means all of it, could use a good pruning. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> Obviously, also the promotion or distribution a traditional publisher provides would help, though in fairness few publishers do much of the former unless you're a proven seller.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>What are you working on at the moment? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I've got a lot of irons in the fire. Two thrillers, one set in modern Riga, another set in 19th century Odessa (and a full-length sequel to my Derringer-nominated story <i>The Antiquary's Wife</i>). </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> Also, I am editing a war novel I wrote set in Russia, Latvia and the East End of London. The opening of it was commended for the Yeovil Literary Prize a few years ago, I just need the time to edit it and polish up the narrative. I've been saying that for years, though.</span><i>Some authors have one particular person in mind when they write. Do you have a muse – or perhaps an imaginary ideal reader? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I have a friend in Ukraine, who is my muse! She is certainly an influence on my writing. But, speaking generally, I try not to have an imaginary reader in mind when writing something. I do try to play the audience ("like violin" as Hitchcock would say), and imagine what they're thinking. You have to do this if you're going to guide them through your story. But a specific imaginary reader or demographic is a fool's game I think. Yes, I'm aware of the "know your audience" rule, but I think if you write for everyone, you end up writing for no one. I trust my instincts. If I like what I've written, I'm pretty sure there are other misfits out there like me who will enjoy it too.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">It's kind of like the song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJe9msZaGB8" target="_blank">"Little Room" by the White Stripes.</a> I've never heard the creative process and its aftermath summed up so succinctly and accurately. If you don't know it, have a listen. I'll wait. </span><i>No, that’s new to me - nice choice!</i></h3>
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<i><br /></i><br /><i>Have you ever found that a book you were reading was influencing your writing style? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I've never consciously noticed this when I've been reading a book for pleasure. I'm sure my literary influences are all mixed in there when I write, and I can sometimes see them, but not so much with a new book I'm reading at the time I'm writing something else. It takes awhile to filter down, I guess.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I have, at times, decided to write a specific scene or in a specific style and gone back and referenced how others have done it. For example, when I was going to show a large party scene on a Baltic-German manor, I referenced how Margaret Mitchell depicted the American South's equivalent at the opening of <i>Gone with the Wind</i>. When, I wanted subtle horror in my story, I read a host of M.R. James stories to see how it was done.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Some writers need silence, others like the buzz of a coffee shop, the rumble of a train or their favourite music. Which type are you? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I work best at a library. (For example, I'm typing up this answer at<a href="https://www.facebook.com/365316520150776/photos/pb.365316520150776.-2207520000.1424890039./935071359841953/?type=3&theater" target="_blank"> the Latvian NationalLibrary in Riga,</a> a simply stunning place, have a look)</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> When I'm in foreign countries, I like to get out, and I often write in coffee shops too, but only as long as nobody close to me is speaking English. If I can't understand the language, then it just becomes ambient noise, and I can get work done. But if a few people having an English language conversation sit down, it pulls my attention to them and I have to move. I'm sure I've flashed a lot of dirty looks to my countrymen over the years for killing my creativity around the world. Sorry guys.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> In America or Britain, I don't have this problem since the English language doesn't stick out from the background noise. There I can write nearly anyplace. I've finished short stories in some astonishingly loud places, including concert halls and casino sports-books. Music doesn't bother me as long as I like the songs.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> The one thing I can't do is to write while on something moving. Planes, trains, and buses are a no go. And I have to get far away from the internet or television, I'm an addict.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>What point of view do you find most to your liking: first person or third person?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">First person (and second person) are much easier, but often you've got to do it in third person for the needs of the plot/style/twist/conflict, etc.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Do you have pieces of work that you think will never see light of day? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I think all authors have scraps sitting around. But I've got two complete novels’ worth of material, some of it quite good on a few hard drives. It always amounts to how to use your time. And, unfortunately, editing and sifting through old stuff is not as fun for me as writing new stories. I guess it comes down to my being a storyteller more than a writer. Once I've set the story down, I want to be on to the next thing.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>What’s your favourite / least favourite aspect of your writing life? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">My favorite is the sheer creativity. Lying in bed half awake with new ideas floating into your mind, then getting up and making those things a reality, something you can share with others. And when you get that perfectly balance story, it’s a wonderful thing.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> My least favorite aspect would be crashing hard drives. </span><span class="SubtitleChar"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Tell me about it!</i></span></span></h3>
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<span class="SubtitleChar"><span lang="EN-GB"><i><br /></i><br /><o:p></o:p></span></span><i>What advice would you give aspiring writers?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">Do it because you love writing, storytelling or the beauty of prose on the page/screen. Or perhaps because you have something to say about the world in which we live.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> Don't do it for money, fame or because a guy who looks like Salman Rushdie got to date supermodels.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>As a reader, which writers or books are your favourites? Is there a genre you are drawn towards? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">In terms of full-length literary fiction Herman Melville's <i>Moby-Dick</i> is still the greatest novel I've ever read (even though he completely contrasts all I said about "less-is-more" in a book.) John Steinbeck is close behind. <i>Of Mice and Men</i>, <i>Grapes of Wrath,</i> <i>East of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Eden</st1:place></st1:city></i>, the list goes on.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> For full-length genre fiction, I would say that Alistair MacLean's <i>Guns of</i> <i>Navarone</i> and its sequel <i>Force Ten from Navarone</i> got me writing as a kid and Dashiell Hammett's <i>The Maltese Falcon</i> and Arthur Conan Doyle's <i>The Hound of the Baskervilles</i> returned me to writing as an adult. I also like James Ellroy, particularly <i>Black Dahila</i> and <i>L.A. Confidential</i>, (really the whole L.A. Quartet is excellent), and Shirley Jackson, Bram Stoker, Ian Fleming, Brian Dailey and Alan Dean Foster.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">For short stories, as I mentioned Poe is a favorite, as well as Steinbeck, Melville, and Conan Doyle (all again), Anton Chekhov, M.R. James, H.P. Lovecraft, Ludmilla Petrushevskaya, Doug Allyn, Bill Byson, Jack London and Mark Twain.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I was an Ancient Studies major as an undergraduate and fell in love with the classics particularly Homer, Sophocles, and Euripides. I sometimes listen to the <i>Iliad </i>(Robert Fagles translation) on audio-book when I do household chores.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> And I read a lot of nonfiction of all eras and locales. In fact, my nonfiction reading probably inspires my writing much more than other fiction authors do. I certainly read it more often. <i>Killer Angels, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, A Brief History of Time</i>, Ken Burn's <i>The Civil War</i>, <i>Hitler and Stalin Parallel Lives</i>, <i>The Rise of Teddy Roosevelt</i>, <i>With Dance Shoes in the Siberian Snows</i>, the list of good nonfiction books is near endless for me. So many books to read, so little time.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I guess the genres are obvious from the list above, but I'd say literary, horror, and detective/thriller, with the occasional science-fiction and war thrown in. And, of course, again: nonfiction, nonfiction, nonfiction.</span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><i>Are there any authors whose work you champion?</i><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">There are a lot of fantastic authors whose work I'd recommend: Karen Charlton, Jenny Milchman, B.A.Morton, John Floyd, Sarah Schofield, Shirley Bozic, Erik Amaya, Ken Pelham, Frances Kay, CMT Stibbe, J.G. Harlond, Kristin Gleeson, Karen Maitland, Ray Philpott, Jon Land, Lucretia Grindle, Bill Bowen, Ronald Sharp, Martyn Bedford, Michael Sears, the excellent authors of the Prometheus Saga and of course (saving the best for last) Jean Gill. </span><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Flattery gets you everywhere :)</i></span></h3>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><i><br /></i></span><i>What do you do when you’re not writing? Any hobbies? </i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">I like to go places, often on foot, and see the world. Then I get back on the internet and read about what I've just seen. This usually inspires writing or going to see even more places. It's a cycle of sorts.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I'm also a huge classic film buff (Hitchcock and Kurosawa especially). Other hobbies include rambling incessantly about music, astronomy, or history, museums, storyteller's theater, whitewater rafting and swimming (often suddenly and surprisingly swimming during the whitewater rafting).</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> I'm a big fan of the Miami Dolphins and San Antonio Spurs.</span><i>Really useful tips for writers, Bill, and thank you so much for joining me. Let me know when Lenin’s Harem is in print again. I should warn readers, this is a political thriller not concerned with hundreds of women in skimpy clothing…</i></h3>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdd0DtZ5Pw5k8gapzc65YiqwtWRIUOclVavzRo2KsaFK7jVo00tHDXkAWgCd5dIqve_JHNX7UNkKrl_XAXXc_P3DFrp_VoKk8YjI2N1NRR324Yph_laqydYrFgPm01AFV6T-23lJkOKRo1/s1600/Blue+Amber+Final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdd0DtZ5Pw5k8gapzc65YiqwtWRIUOclVavzRo2KsaFK7jVo00tHDXkAWgCd5dIqve_JHNX7UNkKrl_XAXXc_P3DFrp_VoKk8YjI2N1NRR324Yph_laqydYrFgPm01AFV6T-23lJkOKRo1/s1600/Blue+Amber+Final.jpg" height="320" width="229" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Amber-William-Burton-McCormick-ebook/dp/B00SCD8E2I/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8">amazon.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/William-Burton-McCormick/e/B006WLNFIK/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1">amazon.co.uk</a></td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 36px;">My Review of</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="line-height: 36px;"> </span><span class="SubtitleChar" style="line-height: 36px;"><span lang="EN-GB"><i>Blue Amber</i></span></span></h2>
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<span lang="EN-GB">Exceptional thriller: a precision-cut gem</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;">From the moment the sleigh stops in frozen wasteland, the suspense never lets up as Latvian political prisoner Fricis tries to cheat the death coming for him via Russian guards. If I hadn't been caught up in the sheer adrenalin of the escape bid, I'd have lingered over the quality of the writing. Instead, I was gripped by the story, wanting Fricis to come out alive but never knowing what the outcome would be. I've read plenty of thrillers and adventure stories but few which are so convincing.</span><span style="font-weight: normal;"> William Burton McCormick took me to the Baltic Sea, its politics and its savage beauty, where `if the tides were right, with a bit of swimming here and there, a man could walk near five miles out to sea with little difficulty, never getting his beard wet, often with his knees above the lapping waves.' I came out of the adventure a little dazed but so pleased to have discovered an author to add to my must-read list. This short story packed a much bigger punch than its word count and I can't wait to see whether the quality is sustained over a full-length novel.</span><br /><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></h3>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-39115378146584460262015-01-31T22:51:00.000-08:002015-01-31T22:51:56.206-08:00Don't make your books into trailer trash<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Welcome to<b> Rachel
Bostwick</b>, the designer of all my book trailers and also
an author in her own right, who's accepted my invitation to share some tips for authors on making pro book trailers.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEAGAgEXMUFOZegHdxB580Rvrtt2hyphenhyphenOOa27xTq6-6LFKvf0SPJZ_dkmzSek53s47IOm19NEcSR63_lnfGjWAGV893fE_A1ws2VNiufbOLrh6JEq6J4xXzJsQeTkkA_mVNhxxpFR3sl7d59/s1600/JG+rachel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEAGAgEXMUFOZegHdxB580Rvrtt2hyphenhyphenOOa27xTq6-6LFKvf0SPJZ_dkmzSek53s47IOm19NEcSR63_lnfGjWAGV893fE_A1ws2VNiufbOLrh6JEq6J4xXzJsQeTkkA_mVNhxxpFR3sl7d59/s1600/JG+rachel.jpg" height="200" width="197" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://rachel%27s%20website/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">Rachel's website</span></a></td></tr>
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<i style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Graphic designer by day,
aspiring novelist by night, R. L. Wicke explores the fullness of life set
against the compelling beauty of a post-apocalyptic Earth. Her writing has been
described as rich and filled with reverence for the characters who struggle and
fight at the end of one world and the beginning of the next.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">She lives in Amish Country, PA
with her husband, a million cats, and four feral children. She seeks to help
out fellow writers and lovers of fiction by offering her pro design skills and
her natural talent for encouragement.</span></i><span style="font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I need intro music for Rachel
and she is just the right person to choose it. What would you like as your
theme, Rachel, and why?</span></i></b><span style="font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">My husband would choose <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXWbMu4PtpE" target="_blank"><i>Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong</i> by
the Spin Doctors.</a> He always gives me that wicked look in his eye when
it comes on the radio. I would choose <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znWQDsDKpew" target="_blank"><i>Hallelujah</i> by the Newsboys</a> –
it’s about having faith when life gets tricky and it’s the one song that I’ve
always felt was actually written for me.</span><span style="font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">The first trailer you made for me, </span></i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">One Sixth of a Gill<i> keeps
to your basic template ( <a href="http://fiverr.com/RachelBostwick" target="_blank">which can be ordered from Rachel at fiverr
for only $5</a> ).</i></span></b> </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzkB_QzuYqqcoZ7drAdKwtnugJB3VV-ZetNaen6EUyzpD8I6NQjmpGbF-2JLmzFPU0ixFcp-CHKfaC40p-UlQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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One Sixth of a Gill</div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Can you talk us
through your creative process?</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Well, working with
you has been amazing, Jean, because as a photographer as well as a writer, you
have an eye for beauty. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">(I'm blushing here
but thank you for the compliments!)</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I try to get a
feeling for the tone of the book – is it funny or dramatic or sad or compelling
or adventurous? Then I choose music and images that will communicate that
directly to potential readers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">What can authors do
to help you make more compelling trailers?</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Communication is key.
Tell me what feeling you want to pass on to the reader so I can work with the
right ideas in mind. For example, yesterday a client told me that his book
appeals to the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Sex and the
City</i> crowd. That gave me the exact right idea for choosing music. But
even simple things like<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>'My
book is humorous and appeals to women in their twenties,'</i><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>is helpful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">What makes your work
more difficult?</span></i></b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">The hardest thing to
work with is images that are too small. I can have a basic book trailer done in
a single day if I start with the right images. Free images of highest quality
can be found on </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="http://www.pixabay.com/"><span lang="EN-US">www.pixabay.com</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"> or on </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="http://www.pexels.com/"><span lang="EN-US">www.pexels.com</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">. Better yet, if you
want to make a striking impression, you can buy images on one of many stock
photography sites out there. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">If you feel like that’s too much of a time investment, I am able to choose and even license professional images for you.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">(</span><b><i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/portfolio/jeangill" target="_blank">My photo portfolio,mentioned by Rachel, is with istock </a>and that's where I buy images )</span></i></b></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<i><b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Authors can ask you
to customize trailers for a few dollars more. In our work together, I’ve really
appreciated the way you see the story and show it, using my images and your
choice of musical theme. You were especially pleased with this trailer: why?</span></b></i><i><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></i></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dz25EyGioxL23MRpXRiv8qF41rhaOTYK2ToZbKGwf79-MMwqooofnP2RPOfFy-bOjE3lumXQecY3ckFK05g' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Faithful through Hard Times</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">How did you get into making trailers?</span></b></i><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I’ve been a professional
graphic designer since my late teens, but I never did much video. When I
decided to pursue writing, I made friends with many other authors and was
exposed to some book trailers that I felt were poorly done. I started making my
own for fun, just to inspire me in writing my drafts. A good friend mentioned
that he thought it was something I could do professionally, so I started making
them for friends, just to see if I could. And I could :)</span></div>
<br />
<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/AVvXsEhCDp1so0bKJYBXZ22gqlzdGEv2pnJmgigmTS1sj7RFVDaptmKXFrdhBBbMwuwXW79IV1vCMBM4UphwS0zosV8XWGqkuz_4xdIX3SVuST2Wxxlk2LDteEtIr_nQ-wr5H9LOa-RuoNhu4CLe/s1600/book+trailer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCDp1so0bKJYBXZ22gqlzdGEv2pnJmgigmTS1sj7RFVDaptmKXFrdhBBbMwuwXW79IV1vCMBM4UphwS0zosV8XWGqkuz_4xdIX3SVuST2Wxxlk2LDteEtIr_nQ-wr5H9LOa-RuoNhu4CLe/s1600/book+trailer.JPG" height="320" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.fiverr.com/rachelbostwick/make-you-a-stylish-book-trailer" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">Rachel's fivver link for trailer design</span></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><b>You’re a writer too. How
do you combine working at home with looking after young children?</b></span></i><br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Flexibility is the key.
My kids are young enough that they still need me all the time. I set my
deadlines so that I always have extra time to put something off a day or two. I
know that my time with my children is limited, so I try to make sure it’s
always ‘yes’ to them and ‘later’ to work. I fail at that sometimes, but it’s my
guiding principle.</span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Tell us about your own
writing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I am currently penning
the first novel in a young adult post-apocalyptic series, titled The 7th Judge,
set a century in our future. Three decades past, mankind was wiped to
near-extinction overnight by a fatal sleeping sickness. Now a thriving
civilization blooms in the ruins of New York City. Lux is one of the
Undergrounders, a single father trying to raise his daughter in one of the
poverty-stricken subway barrios. When Lux is conscripted by law to be the
consort of a high-ranking official, he becomes involved in a series of murders
that threaten to shatter the tenuous peace of the Boroughs and destroy his new
family.</span></div>
<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="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4162NnTWtSL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-v3-big,TopRight,0,-55_SX278_SY278_PIkin4,BottomRight,1,22_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4162NnTWtSL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-v3-big,TopRight,0,-55_SX278_SY278_PIkin4,BottomRight,1,22_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Rocketship-Presents-Ships-Log-ebook/dp/B00O3V6KB0" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">amazon link</span></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">A prequel short story <i>Fairy Tales for the Very Young</i> set in the world of the 7th Judge was
published in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Rocketship-Presents-Ships-Log-ebook/dp/B00O3V6KB0" target="_blank"><i>The Dragon’s Rocketship scifi anthology, The Ship’s Log</i>, available here</a> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">and a popular free story
prequel, titled <i>The Last Firefly </i>and featuring Lux’s daughter, Summer, is
<a href="http://rachelbostwick.com/last-firefly/" target="_blank">available on my website here</a> </span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">Another story I’m very
proud of is <a href="http://rachelbostwick.com/betrayer/" target="_blank"><i>Her Betrayer,</i> a horror short with a twist.</a><i><u1:p></u1:p><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><b>What are your plans for
2015?</b></span></i></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">In the last half of
2014, I helped approximately 40 authors create gorgeous trailers for their
books. I’d like to help at least a hundred in the new year! I’ve also added
book covers, Kindle formatting, and Facebook banners to my Fiverr store, so I’m
looking forward to helping my fellow writers make a great impression in the new
year. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<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/AVvXsEgL5h_N7S0Z45uR8eQAd5rwBszw3VE6wlFnDR5TnQozAeHvuVPwaWC_Z3t82eLmIxJTEptJ03z88OGbfamfPm26bJe9AJtIvskhjV9XD5WrNhTlB8C_XggirrwHmIj5q0BI65Xtlr1zuUMZ/s1600/book+jacket.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL5h_N7S0Z45uR8eQAd5rwBszw3VE6wlFnDR5TnQozAeHvuVPwaWC_Z3t82eLmIxJTEptJ03z88OGbfamfPm26bJe9AJtIvskhjV9XD5WrNhTlB8C_XggirrwHmIj5q0BI65Xtlr1zuUMZ/s1600/book+jacket.JPG" height="320" width="317" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.fiverr.com/rachelbostwick/create-a-beautiful-book-cover-for-your-ebook" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">Rachel's book jacket design service on fivver</span></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">I also hope to put the
finishing touches on the first draft of The 7th Judge and have it
professionally edited while raising each of my children to individual
brilliance, helping my husband find his true calling in life, and becoming an independent
millionaire who owns her own island castle paradise. But I’ll be perfectly
satisfied just to keep my children safe and happy and get a little writing done
on the side. </span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></i></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><b>Rachel, thank you so much for joining me on my blog and for making these wonderful trailers for my books. Good luck with all your projects!</b></span></i></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><b><br /></b></span></i></div>
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/beteljean" target="_blank">Watch more of my book trailers that Rachel has made </a></i></b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dztW6iXTIolxDJAQtJ5fjWOMWNvMP3lKf9N3rV1X854oTcn8trzsjvbQLUmbIeNdBpF_kDO1QAuyZqWC2v-RQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Someone to Look Up To</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><i><a href="https://www.fiverr.com/rachelbostwick" target="_blank">See more examples of Rachel's work and services on fivver</a></i></b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://facebook.com/RachelNBostwick" target="_blank">Follow Rachel on twitter</a> <a href="http://facebook.com/RachelNBostwick" target="_blank">Rachel's facebook page</a></span></b></i></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6666660308838px;"><b><br /></b></span>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2532228683411207471.post-63675788012321799442015-01-22T22:51:00.000-08:002015-01-23T05:27:48.656-08:00The Princess' 9th Birthday Celebration<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-size: 18pt;">9 years ago today, a puppy was born </span></b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">on a farm in the Pyrenees. </span><br />
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8R56lWCDBzVsEPtmHGTGy9ocmRbHS3u2ky-qBis6Z-pzOot0pUr-KzdpyLPvhcpocSvc1d88BQR_Fb_yN6yl8dUxu7A4bJEVuLDSE2HnwJ-BKSVZ0jBJ1xZxEl4Wz-qQoIpIZMyei0xXz/s1600/14may+JB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8R56lWCDBzVsEPtmHGTGy9ocmRbHS3u2ky-qBis6Z-pzOot0pUr-KzdpyLPvhcpocSvc1d88BQR_Fb_yN6yl8dUxu7A4bJEVuLDSE2HnwJ-BKSVZ0jBJ1xZxEl4Wz-qQoIpIZMyei0xXz/s1600/14may+JB.jpg" height="192" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8nDfJO_tiYY3tOK4xUrbROws1LNrsgTzqHTXSeT9vHYV8yCTiD9Eakb-1_WKBPgV5kezSaM4zqa4xd9ozV3UQAnZi4XPcNmJsiERdoEYlollY2-VQTLDXZS2cbmfF-m8tFjZJA-EALgM/s1600/j+&+blanche.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8nDfJO_tiYY3tOK4xUrbROws1LNrsgTzqHTXSeT9vHYV8yCTiD9Eakb-1_WKBPgV5kezSaM4zqa4xd9ozV3UQAnZi4XPcNmJsiERdoEYlollY2-VQTLDXZS2cbmfF-m8tFjZJA-EALgM/s1600/j+&+blanche.jpg" height="140" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: start;">
<span style="font-size: 19px;">For some reason, her choosing fell through. She was still playing with her siblings when someone on her breeder’s waiting list phoned for news of the next litter and said ‘We’ll take her.’ </span></div>
<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/AVvXsEgSpHzBXdK8eVd3W1y6ZnREYUPhT7ceF77pLvbKDdLL29adeaEf3G_EivrcqEdtc84pFJKXRBOyPy5pVBB9lyJawVPCdEMQ5dC_8ZpRr2SjI7hfTh-AHrimUT-GhmUQgRcOXHq_2CI2iOTD/s1600/jean+and+neouvielles1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSpHzBXdK8eVd3W1y6ZnREYUPhT7ceF77pLvbKDdLL29adeaEf3G_EivrcqEdtc84pFJKXRBOyPy5pVBB9lyJawVPCdEMQ5dC_8ZpRr2SjI7hfTh-AHrimUT-GhmUQgRcOXHq_2CI2iOTD/s1600/jean+and+neouvielles1.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jean and Blanche's family at the Neouvielle kennels</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;">The masters-to-be
drove for 5 hours to fetch her and 5 hours home. Then they suffered hours of Béarnaise folk songs howled until no-one could bear any more and a compromise
on sleeping-place was negotiated (the puppy chose her place and
the people got some sleep). And so Blanche-Neige de Néouvielle
arrived like an avalanche into our lives. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWx6bmWJ8IsNVlLyVQtuBf3-nhyFGpPqNNKErcWxunR6CXoQ1IDcpOSlII1vgPfpdQ5t5kmUaJm7fDs18tAL0G9PnfizAB7jG849-1u8j7MRPg82Ia8wB3f_aRbOLqiCRJxfeagqCzcej/s1600/03+05+crop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDWx6bmWJ8IsNVlLyVQtuBf3-nhyFGpPqNNKErcWxunR6CXoQ1IDcpOSlII1vgPfpdQ5t5kmUaJm7fDs18tAL0G9PnfizAB7jG849-1u8j7MRPg82Ia8wB3f_aRbOLqiCRJxfeagqCzcej/s1600/03+05+crop.jpg" height="171" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">You always
think that having had dogs prepares you for the next one. It doesn’t. If you’re
lucky enough to have known the friendship of an old dog, you are doubly
unprepared for the next puppy, lulled into a false sense of expertise. It’s
like childbirth; if anyone remembered what it was really like, no-one would do
it twice. And with giant dogs, everything is bigger.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Blanche is
the only dog I’ve known who didn’t just devour books; she chose them by
sniffing along the bookshelves. She had a penchant for Terry Pratchett but if
she could sniff out a book one of us was currently reading, and chew the last
pages up on the lawn before we finished it, she was in ecstasy. Just when we’d
established some basic principles of living together, we collected her friend,
Bételgeuse de la Plaine d'Astr</span><span style="font-size: 19px;">ée</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">. And that’s when the fun really began. You’ll note that the humans look much
younger in the early photos.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1-32kiAzGgD9zbmBqFQ1QcePwTEzQYzo5ogH24G1ilEZ3UjNtId7pqSQoTxEcvUt-Wgl-iTXnKHY9h8gUiTK7LfxTS2av1uTGiVPOefvXSZmk-eGyUT-K3nM9y2h8GdQxF9-5pclknZ3/s1600/out-take2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1-32kiAzGgD9zbmBqFQ1QcePwTEzQYzo5ogH24G1ilEZ3UjNtId7pqSQoTxEcvUt-Wgl-iTXnKHY9h8gUiTK7LfxTS2av1uTGiVPOefvXSZmk-eGyUT-K3nM9y2h8GdQxF9-5pclknZ3/s1600/out-take2.jpg" height="200" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out-take1</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHuyQPvmk51S6N7RpGhCQGK69HCCNQgjZQFjTfvagwvp8yO44S9LrEZsYmJYb25mjvV1byp5yG4BNFOyyRwhfFgmiDLxZ-UlZOlb5i3w4zREFtOr0MhcYUlHC5AQEcs3LTjTWRxK1zcvbm/s1600/out-take1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHuyQPvmk51S6N7RpGhCQGK69HCCNQgjZQFjTfvagwvp8yO44S9LrEZsYmJYb25mjvV1byp5yG4BNFOyyRwhfFgmiDLxZ-UlZOlb5i3w4zREFtOr0MhcYUlHC5AQEcs3LTjTWRxK1zcvbm/s1600/out-take1.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out-take2</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyoxQ9bgc3bnsyvhAuOkFS7t0WQWTNMsLT6TJVv0DKL7Id_CoNS0K5vO8gMsRMCB995x-GQAg3dfU7AQ5u1iJyrKicESSCIZXBdQGDOtz36ZnXPwmKKeya8FdppblLhH8eUf3AyWGBB9f_/s1600/jphoto+call1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyoxQ9bgc3bnsyvhAuOkFS7t0WQWTNMsLT6TJVv0DKL7Id_CoNS0K5vO8gMsRMCB995x-GQAg3dfU7AQ5u1iJyrKicESSCIZXBdQGDOtz36ZnXPwmKKeya8FdppblLhH8eUf3AyWGBB9f_/s1600/jphoto+call1.jpg" height="400" width="390" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Official Photo - John with the puppies 2006</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Before allowing us to take her puppy away, Blanche’s
breeder, Nadine, asked us, ‘What sort of life are you offering her?’ I’ve
written about Nadine and her Pyreneans, in </span><i style="font-size: 14pt;"><a href="http://smarturl.it/1sixth" target="_blank">The Dog who cries Wolf (One Sixth of a Gill)</a> </i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">and she can be fierce</span><i style="font-size: 14pt;"> </i><span style="font-size: 14pt;">on her dogs’ behalf.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">I can answer Nadine now; this is the life Blanche has offered us, for 9 crazy years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">We prepared for our puppy.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikqRV95vVy1Tow2HvGGtB5Tyh_jRHHPU_ZjVnWRToWagJHKZG0YXPXSFPvYd74O3WZtxMz8ZN7BlUjpzKYCdnG84v-YLqY10vQSYUGzVI8jOOgYM71Po_Jm6p0CmXtiKS5B_28A4Vl9VNu/s1600/training2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikqRV95vVy1Tow2HvGGtB5Tyh_jRHHPU_ZjVnWRToWagJHKZG0YXPXSFPvYd74O3WZtxMz8ZN7BlUjpzKYCdnG84v-YLqY10vQSYUGzVI8jOOgYM71Po_Jm6p0CmXtiKS5B_28A4Vl9VNu/s1600/training2.jpg" height="238" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daiquiri preparing to train her 4th and 5th Pyrenean Mountain Dogs</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">The puppy had things to learn too.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin6raUPt5XEA_tBlR2S1auEWvUxQHfaRKkhNNE3aBTwEBvt21E0LNQDHxt89iTvY-U82L36jUcXpHUmLrdz4mtjnNjAyRXbx84OlGLfP77BTayZVNQFiiX1yj7P8U99tygVsV5wHDoiD2d/s1600/training4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin6raUPt5XEA_tBlR2S1auEWvUxQHfaRKkhNNE3aBTwEBvt21E0LNQDHxt89iTvY-U82L36jUcXpHUmLrdz4mtjnNjAyRXbx84OlGLfP77BTayZVNQFiiX1yj7P8U99tygVsV5wHDoiD2d/s1600/training4.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So that's a cat!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: justify;">Like most aristocratic demoiselles, Blanche went to finishing school in Switzerland. Here she says thank you to top dog trainer Michel Hasbrouck, at the end of 2 days of Dressage Tendresse (I translated his bestseller into English as <i>Gentle Dog Training</i>)</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjGrmgL3R-H7Ed8Qyu7dAhM4PE30eDFgTgKULdjaiAQbKX7HI8HxrX5FhTqf7dCi15oYUOSoNw5Tq9sws8vvi1vYwiDXgw0cdpj9Akss8QqygurZNgjQL2iL8Sc8GYDGRWY-VODMBPzfn/s1600/michel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjGrmgL3R-H7Ed8Qyu7dAhM4PE30eDFgTgKULdjaiAQbKX7HI8HxrX5FhTqf7dCi15oYUOSoNw5Tq9sws8vvi1vYwiDXgw0cdpj9Akss8QqygurZNgjQL2iL8Sc8GYDGRWY-VODMBPzfn/s1600/michel2.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blanche and Michel</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">The only time I've ever dressed up a dog was when Arsenal reached the Champions' League Final and I became over-excited.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggV_oomWsj9k2Gy-XT1daMlZfniW-vomkTZ_JT1of79IaSnxHFO38yHsLdl2H8CYaUYNO9f7oB1AjTb871VlxBYYc1siSCzR0ecuikQ0R32cWnv9a4qPrgL4NOKm4aSzvDMCcPahB1LtAn/s1600/e+blanche+henry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggV_oomWsj9k2Gy-XT1daMlZfniW-vomkTZ_JT1of79IaSnxHFO38yHsLdl2H8CYaUYNO9f7oB1AjTb871VlxBYYc1siSCzR0ecuikQ0R32cWnv9a4qPrgL4NOKm4aSzvDMCcPahB1LtAn/s1600/e+blanche+henry.jpg" height="254" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thierry Blanche Henry</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">The dynamic duo grew up together... and grew... up. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDPHUB28c7VQoN1BxIFDsBkAGP2ecDAuX1gVxg1CBjXRSj_oXL-BuJ3RAVZkhkhUZM4c2M6blIt9T3BiKg8jTAVXZ50Bmeuz4Axs-vFIhV7RITO8FD-fvekBzHkKdMFlEqv4E5Qr4rD90/s1600/etues19+(10).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDPHUB28c7VQoN1BxIFDsBkAGP2ecDAuX1gVxg1CBjXRSj_oXL-BuJ3RAVZkhkhUZM4c2M6blIt9T3BiKg8jTAVXZ50Bmeuz4Axs-vFIhV7RITO8FD-fvekBzHkKdMFlEqv4E5Qr4rD90/s1600/etues19+(10).jpg" height="320" width="243" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifD-P5Um6aG70AhRTQGTMr_ZKgteIq6JNoy_HIGlRbzQDcXS8vQAFaiD5Rxp_UWD0YRg3jGgw2aPOyqmy-ytRi3Pvgiz7Lt7nKFURAAwQi7SIe5KYX3ZAQz20SyFmmynN1KN12CnfRZ-Wm/s1600/soleil+dessous.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifD-P5Um6aG70AhRTQGTMr_ZKgteIq6JNoy_HIGlRbzQDcXS8vQAFaiD5Rxp_UWD0YRg3jGgw2aPOyqmy-ytRi3Pvgiz7Lt7nKFURAAwQi7SIe5KYX3ZAQz20SyFmmynN1KN12CnfRZ-Wm/s1600/soleil+dessous.jpg" height="320" width="236" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">... finishing at 50kg and 70kg. Weighing a 6 month old male Pyrenean is fun.</span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;"> </span><span style="text-align: justify;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUCFnSCG7oDF_km-C2ry3cNTEgpsQnc0-SD_5RHax6jOMjSeR0BY_v3mHwEE922T6l4JsCczdu3RBVxsDIwSb8LOsBa0U0qnswiq8I8kkiebtzqD-K65EhgsC1xxxlwGG45qUgiK-b83MD/s1600/Blanche+watching+TV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUCFnSCG7oDF_km-C2ry3cNTEgpsQnc0-SD_5RHax6jOMjSeR0BY_v3mHwEE922T6l4JsCczdu3RBVxsDIwSb8LOsBa0U0qnswiq8I8kkiebtzqD-K65EhgsC1xxxlwGG45qUgiK-b83MD/s1600/Blanche+watching+TV.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDFmEuL7T035xSlY9JIpPA1p7aIbzuqwgPwI68rEYpaS10W5XsZ3UOxGWZcueViSmCFrXw5V-3QC1wx32sitZSIwyhRJepN8TpeBcjYnexsKh5DpOUScLNk0UOFma2USllvIIZk505dggC/s1600/great+white.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDFmEuL7T035xSlY9JIpPA1p7aIbzuqwgPwI68rEYpaS10W5XsZ3UOxGWZcueViSmCFrXw5V-3QC1wx32sitZSIwyhRJepN8TpeBcjYnexsKh5DpOUScLNk0UOFma2USllvIIZk505dggC/s1600/great+white.jpg" height="200" width="199" /></a><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">The games </span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Bétel invented with </span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Blanche lived on after we lost him to health problems and visitors can still enjoy being ambushed by white lightning. She hides behind the hedge then surprise-bombs them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">In her middle years Blanche perfected her modelling skills for <a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/portfolio/jeangill" target="_blank">my istock portfolio</a> and can be found on many leaflets and websites, <a href="http://mydogiscool.com/blog/" target="_blank">the face of pet care</a> and <a href="http://www.ask.com/pets-animals/tips-training-great-pyrenees-2048ef51afac61d7" target="_blank">dog training, both on her own</a> and <a href="http://www.pro-vale.com/group-sessions" target="_blank">with her friend Lou.</a></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDFmEuL7T035xSlY9JIpPA1p7aIbzuqwgPwI68rEYpaS10W5XsZ3UOxGWZcueViSmCFrXw5V-3QC1wx32sitZSIwyhRJepN8TpeBcjYnexsKh5DpOUScLNk0UOFma2USllvIIZk505dggC/s1600/great+white.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;"></span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">When I told John my idea for this shoot, his get-out clause was 'You'll never get the dog to do it.' Blanche gave an Oscar-winning performance and I love this family portrait. She was actually obeying a long down-stay but the expression shows total immersion in the role. This photo features in a <a href="http://itineraire.ca/1351-article-les-animaux-de-la-rue-sont-en-sante--edition-du-dimanche-1er-septembre-2013.html" target="_blank">French article about homeless people and their dogs </a></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0-aWFGpMB1q_e8Z5GkYHQBEdExZwz5AoxBRmyW7XmcvuK0IenvEkcTf6NKgeYMxGvgRGYyt4VK42_NkpTCHwlNb6qgXFcVJ7VfcB1q3wSIUOCNK8qJ1dmx_PXWMhAWuUgPhoAozc3_Xg2/s1600/tramp+&+sleepy+dog+blanket+round.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0-aWFGpMB1q_e8Z5GkYHQBEdExZwz5AoxBRmyW7XmcvuK0IenvEkcTf6NKgeYMxGvgRGYyt4VK42_NkpTCHwlNb6qgXFcVJ7VfcB1q3wSIUOCNK8qJ1dmx_PXWMhAWuUgPhoAozc3_Xg2/s1600/tramp+&+sleepy+dog+blanket+round.jpg" height="282" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Blanche has welcomed two shelter dogs into her life, always confident in her relationship with us. We've holidayed together and we've grieved together. A year ago she had a stomach torsion, an emergency which is usually fatal. The operation was successful, despite her trashing her stitches and her cage the next day at the vet's, and refusing to eat until I was summoned to take charge. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEjgqIB2KDOL2haYWut5u-B5E4jDsA1FSDIaixHD8KbX3J5Dw6lvwbnculms79UfI5io9JmF1mkuaIl4qiiUsIvZuXQ-IMJ6rHrGTTAVExUeopw7Qvn-waMAsUJdbIvN-iYeKcqyTCnnZU/s1600/blanche+j+st+c-5-9958red.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEjgqIB2KDOL2haYWut5u-B5E4jDsA1FSDIaixHD8KbX3J5Dw6lvwbnculms79UfI5io9JmF1mkuaIl4qiiUsIvZuXQ-IMJ6rHrGTTAVExUeopw7Qvn-waMAsUJdbIvN-iYeKcqyTCnnZU/s1600/blanche+j+st+c-5-9958red.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blanche and Sherlock on holiday, Lac Ste Croix</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">She has a BIG character and an even bigger sense of fun.She inspired the character of Snow in <i>Someone to Look Up To </i>and committed some of the funny crimes attributed to Sirius. On one occasion, </span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Bétel barked in the middle of the night to alert me; I threw on my dressing-gown, expecting burglars, and I found the door to the spare bedroom ajar. Blanche was curled up on the sofa in there, tucking into a box of dog treats she'd filched from the wardrobe. She still tests me out and she's still happy when I win. Dogs!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Her latest modelling credits include <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug0Pf14oT6Y" target="_blank">the book trailer for <i>One Sixth of a Gill</i></a><i> </i>which also includes some of her photos; and a cameo role in the trailer for <i>Someone to Look Up To</i>, acting Sirius' brother. If Belle in the famous film can be played by a male, I don't see why my star actress can't change gender if required.</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxnS9OGghMGq8XjnduelEM9DTHVS4xKOUYsxi3c_PjK-qdJycEVdYAELuSjiPfZUQsjCPm8m8N1hUxRvM2wmg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">She is even going to be a pin-up girl. The 1st edition of the new International Magazine for Pyrs will be printed in March - with Blanche and </span><span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Bétel featuring on the cover. You can see Blanche. The beautiful male featured on the left is called Romeo.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">The magazine will also feature <i>Someone to Look Up To</i> in serial form. Check it out!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATfmPAJ7BuyJZtjrfD3nCdrZN0Qs3EYDfM55SmV0-_066_71-3uo6UtINliUE1acN5y1eiZDPIeQZOReF8LNPduIbVTeyDAbboJHLph8SW7wgEzDfyWnMpkVqu3iRaivv84ZW00EfYnO-/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhATfmPAJ7BuyJZtjrfD3nCdrZN0Qs3EYDfM55SmV0-_066_71-3uo6UtINliUE1acN5y1eiZDPIeQZOReF8LNPduIbVTeyDAbboJHLph8SW7wgEzDfyWnMpkVqu3iRaivv84ZW00EfYnO-/s1600/Capture.JPG" height="206" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://pyrinternational.com/subscribe.htm" target="_blank">Subscribe to Pyr International Magazine</a></span></h3>
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<span style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span><span style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Happy 9th birthday, princess.</span></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tewuKGXMg65lWoYyZTAkOGuJhXrcYdN3It_GKIO1L5gP0J9Sx2-05oz-1wxu7HYaimhAiPc9w9JuIZnsOnHOre1iS8_of1OrQYoLHJwzbcGV6RexyCNufh6FnKhmnZnmGHHJOVR_7AoJ/s1600/j+and+dog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8tewuKGXMg65lWoYyZTAkOGuJhXrcYdN3It_GKIO1L5gP0J9Sx2-05oz-1wxu7HYaimhAiPc9w9JuIZnsOnHOre1iS8_of1OrQYoLHJwzbcGV6RexyCNufh6FnKhmnZnmGHHJOVR_7AoJ/s1600/j+and+dog.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;">Among amazon.uk top dog books since 2013. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;"><i>'A wonderful dog story'</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 19px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvmaGB5-1ftVUK45AKNeW36DwYsFttwBSDUaFPar1PjWdAyFfr3eZGn5QoFcW_JxdjOb9k_zvW027-zbEJlsiTNN7npxFWyFZU-S5eXugWuRblgc_MIO2RYIz8sZL02_NICifSMXcyuin/s1600/lulu+sirius+all+in+one+cover1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigvmaGB5-1ftVUK45AKNeW36DwYsFttwBSDUaFPar1PjWdAyFfr3eZGn5QoFcW_JxdjOb9k_zvW027-zbEJlsiTNN7npxFWyFZU-S5eXugWuRblgc_MIO2RYIz8sZL02_NICifSMXcyuin/s1600/lulu+sirius+all+in+one+cover1.jpg" height="468" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://smarturl.it/sirius" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Amazon link</span></a></td></tr>
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Jean Gillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14423822543543008594noreply@blogger.com11