My Writing Odyssey

Discovering a new book to read, or finding a new author to stalk follow, are perhaps two of the greatest pleasures a reader can have.  There's something to be said for finishing a book that you have really  enjoyed, researching the author to see what else they have for you, and finding a dozen titles to look forward to.  Of course, sometimes working through this list can result in disappointment, which is why it's usually a good idea not to buy the author's entire collection at once. But what reasons do you have to pick the book up in the first place?  Most people reading this will have picked up a book on the merits of its pretty cover, which a lot will probably agree does not mean the book will be coming home with you.  An interesting title - particularly for a new author - is essential to draw new  readers in.  My favourite personal experience of this would be the thought process that led to my buying The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.  I found...

The first two novels of the Chronicles of A Cosmic Warlord series During my absence from blogging, as I mentioned when I returned, I did a lot of reading.  I got a lot of books downloaded on Kindle, but I bought even more print books.  So much for the Kindle saving me money.... I love going into a bookshop - be it Waterstones or The Works - but my favourite place to go is the Waterstones in my home city of Wakefield.  I've been visiting the shop since it was an Ottakars years before, and I visit at least once a week. Martin and I also walk past the shop regularly, giving me a good chance to look at the signs by the door and keep an eye on the store's 'news.'  It was last spring when I walked past and saw a poster heralding a book-signing.  I'd never attended a book signing before (the ones I was interested in being too far away in the past) so I stopped for a proper read.  The book was called Empire of the Saviours , by an author called A J Dalton. ...

Being married to a gamer - and being with aforementioned gamer for ten years before marrying him - it was unavoidable that I would learn a thing or two about video games!  Happily for both of us, I developed a tiny interest in some of the games that appeared on our screens. The really nice thing about some of the game series is that they remember the reader and publish a book or two.  My favourites at the moment are the very excellent Assassins Creed series by Oliver Bowden, which I have read with as much enthusiasm as any other series.  Oliver Bowden is a very talented author with a very comfortable writing style, which is not hampered in the slightest by his novel's need to tie in with the video game it was published alongside.  Another author of note, John Shirley, enjoyed a little more freedom by writing Bioshock: Rapture  as a fascinating prequel to the hugely popular game series.  This proved to be a bit of a slow starter, but a patient reader was q...

Last week I had an accident whilst waiting for a colonoscopy which resulted in a serious blow to the head and the eventual cancellation of the appointment.  It will never have a place among my pleasant memories, the afternoon in A&E gave me a lot of time to think.  During that time I admitted to myself that no matter how hard I try, I will never be the next Terry Pratchett... ...no matter what I do I just can't grow a proper beard! Beg pardon to all of you for that silly bit of naughtiness.  It has been a long week full of stresses.and recovering from all my bumps and bruises, and it's left me prone to attacks of silliness (although it is true that the most I can achieve in terms of facial hair is a rather sparse moustache, so a beard is completely out of the question!). I have been in a "Poor Me" rut for quite some time, which has also left me with the attention span of a butterfly in many cases.  The last week was just a breaking point, although the blow ...