Monday 30 April 2012

Peril - a serious piece of furniture


Peril is one serious wedge of paper. An inch of the sublime, ridiculous and incredible tales of terrible Ger Mayes. Btw, note the Smashwords mug ;-]

Available in all ebook formats and paperback.

(P.S. Ruby is busy working away on the folllow-up)


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Wednesday 25 April 2012

How do you write? The time, space, support continuum

An extract from The New Author

You’ve made the decision to write. So when, where and how are you going to do it? Here are some characteristic approaches.

The Hemingway - tortured author, tapping away on a typewriter in a mountain retreat. Wild hair, scant meals, sleep-deprived, continuously slightly drunk and chain-smoking.

The Media Junkie – listening to fast music on iPod or laptop, oblivious of the surroundings which might be a cafĂ©, train, family TV room or workplace. Laptop has ten windows open for ‘research’ including email, twitter, facebook and Wikipedia.

The Midnight Oil – when the house is quiet and everyone else’s day is over, this one is just starting work. Typing through the tiredness and pain barrier. Pulling together the inspiration of observations and events from the preceding daylight hours. Pausing to reflect upon the words written, listening to the drip of the bathroom tap, the hum of a transformer in some electrical apparatus somewhere in the house.

The Peacemaker – a scented candle, Buddha Bar on the music system. Pilates exercises performed with control and precision, establishing the inner core. Elsewhere in the house family rampage at a safe distance, out of earshot. Writing flows from the spirit. Characters talk aloud and their dialogue falls upon the keyboard. 

The Early Bird – rising at the hour of milkmen from yesteryear, moving from bedroom to study and pushing the door firmly shut. Chapters formulated subconsciously during sleep are thrown onto the page to be edited during some lull in the day. As the family stirs, heading off to the bathroom and using time under the shower to think a way out of the present predicament of the main character.

What do you think of these approaches? I’ve tried them all at different times over the years. Any consistent method can be productive, providing you ring-fence the time and space. That needs support and understanding from the other people in your life. They need to understand and appreciate your needs as a writer.

The above post is an extract from The New Author, a non-fiction self help guide for writers, social media marketers and self-publishers. Available in paperback and various ebook formats through a wide range of internet stores including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords et al (see Ruby's Shop for full details).








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Monday 23 April 2012

Somebody's husband, somebody's son


Some folks don't like overpowering fragrances. They find them unsettling. Therein lies my olfactory secret. Attar of Ruby could be lavender, camomile or eucalyptus, or a blend of these and other essentials, but none is distinguishable. Like Grenouille's distillation of innocence in Suskind's Perfume, this balm is subliminal. People sense it and feel relaxed, subdued, ready for the otherworld of sleep.

I don't use this precious ointment for all of my guests, only for the restless. Those who arrive with a carpetbag full of life's woes. It works well, too, for those you wouldn't want to share a roof with. The murderous, abusive, adulterous and light fingered. As Tom Russell says, From the death rows of prison to the soup kitchen door, each soul is an equal in the eyes of the Lord.

Everyone rests in peace together, safe in sure knowledge that those who would harm are neutralised by my attentions. Light and gentle, I rub my magic across the chest, back and shoulders of each, virtuous and evil alike. They're all reunited here in innocence, at Ruby's Chapel of Rest and Funeral Home.


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Wednesday 18 April 2012

I need to talk to someone about this book


Last night my wife went off to her local book club and I was so jealous. Not for the normal reason, that her book club is in a pub and I was missing a few pints. No, because she was going to have a chance to discuss with a peer group the book they had all read. I had just finished reading Roz Morris's novel and it has left my head in a spin, with no pub full of cronies to help out.
As a musician, author and reader of literary fiction myself, this book was potentially right up my street. I know the author is a ghost writer and her blog posts are usually along the theme of music in fiction or writing advice. But what if it was crap? What if it was over-stuffed with in-your-face musical references and a writing style like a paint-by-numbers exercise?
I needn't have worried. From the first few pages I was in comfort. Then I began to experience discomfort. Not with the prose or undeniable musical influence, but a shared discomfort with the protagonist as she battled with a debilitating, lifestyle threatening malady. As the literary themes developed it became difficult to put the book (well, ebook, I read it on my kindle) down.
The main themes that came across to me in this book were threefold: how much a life can be impacted by devotion to a single pastime or occupation; the draw of mysticism and the subtle line between belief and cynicism; and the trust that we place in others through relationships.
Being a multi-tasker myself when it comes to hobbies and occupations, I often envy those who can dedicate themselves to one particular pursuit. They achieve a level of immersion and eventual expertise that unavoidably places the 'amateur' label on others less devoted. Morris exemplifies this very well in the character of Carol, yet her very way of life is under threat as the problem with her hands begins to marginalise Carol from her own society.
The overt chicanery of the hypnotist Anthony Morrish contrasts well with Carol's therapeutic experiences of Gene, and the other-worldly setting of Vellonoweth adds sinister elements reminiscent of The League of Gentlemen and The Prisoner. This balance between intrigue, mild terror and charlatanism is perfectly maintained throughout.
Carol's friendship with Jerry is a cornerstone of her life. The Gene thing is dysfunctional but Carol clearly yearns for that excitement. Both she and Gene are pretty screwed up compared to 'normal' people. She's very reluctant to give herself, he's an enigma and the whole thing goes on above a buried nuclear power station.
Metaphors abound in this story. The reader is regularly invited to take things on face value, push them away as fake or adopt a Zen approach to the Andreq future life and Vellonoweth shenanigans.
Morris presents the whole like a crossroads where each and any direction can make sense. My Memories of a Future Life is a wondrous book.


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Wednesday 11 April 2012

Now released - The New Author



Ruby's first release of 2012 is The New Author, a non-fiction self help guide for writers, social media marketers and self-publishers. Many thanks to Jim Williams, author of ten internationally published novels including the Booker Prize nominated Scherzo, for reading my book and writing an engaging foreword.

The New Author is available in paperback and various ebook formats through a wide range of internet stores including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords et al (see Ruby's Shop for full details).









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Sunday 1 April 2012

John Baptist practicing his walking on water technique.


As John's preferred MO is drowning he has to perfect his flotation technique. Don't try this at home.

The Baptist available in all ebook formats and paperback


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