You don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone, or so they say. I’m currently discovering that this isn’t a wholly accurate statement!
Ever had that weird feeling of missing something before it’s even gone? That’s me all over at the moment.
It’s no secret that the Wells family will be moving house soon. In fact, after more than ten weeks of nail-biting, hair-tearing anxiety, we have finally exchanged contracts and confirmed a moving date. 19th June is ‘M’ day for us!
But this isn’t simply a move up the road (not that there’s anything simple about any move, but there’s little moves and big moves. This is definitely a big move). The Wells family, including this here author, will be moving to the Middle East.
Eeeeek, got ya! Well, sort of. Technically, we are moving to the middle east—of England. Our new home is a three-and-a-half hour drive up north east in sunny (or so I’m told) Lincolnshire.
Even though I’m plenty used to moving, this is a different experience. I have been settled here like I haven’t been settled anywhere since I left home at nineteen. Specifically, I will be leaving behind eight years of building friendships. A house that my husband and I lovingly painted and painted all over again (on the inside, I hasten to add). A house that saw the arrival of two children, two years apart. With everything that entails: wee on the walls (well, how was I supposed to know that a boy infant can pee in every which position, every which way, in every direction?), sleepless nights, first steps, first foods, bumped heads, dents in walls and floors from thrown toys. Laughter and joy, sickness, tears and frustrations. Many a tantrum.
Memories, in short. A house and a life filled with memories, and we’re leaving it all behind. Although arguably, we’re taking the memories with us–we’re just leaving the setting behind.
So as I go about my daily business, I find myself in the throes of premature nostalgia. “I’ll miss the walk down the lane to school,” I was thinking this morning. “Look at those lovely daffs nodding their heads over that wall.”
“I’ll miss the village and the river Trym, sometimes so docile, and sometimes offering a bit more oomph in the fast-flow department.”
“I’ll miss the coffee shop on the corner that does the best tuna melts.”
And so on. Nostalgia before the fact. A sense of heightened perception that seems to make everything clearer, sharper, more in focus. I suspect that that’s the purpose of the phenomenon, a kind of memory-factory to ensure that you take with you all those feelings and impressions that mattered to you in a certain environment (and some that don’t, presumably).
Anyway, there it is, and it’s getting steadily more pronounced as we are counting down the days now. The children are feeling it, too, probably even more so than me.
So my question to you is: what’s your instance of nostalgia before the fact?
PS: of course I wiped the wee off the walls. I even repainted the offending patch, the very same day, having previously disinfected it. And I fixed all the dents, too. I’m emphasising this point just in case you happen to be our purchaser and you’re getting nervous about the house!
Roll out the red carpet! Open the champagne! It’s time to enter the Hall of Fame!
Yes, today it’s a double celebration as not one but two of my amazing fellow authors over at Sapphire Star Publishing celebrate the launch day for their books. Meet Linn B. Halton and Amy Gregory! Grab a cup of tea (or something sparkly, if it’s late enough in the day!), sit back and enjoy as you get to meet two fabulous new authors….
Welcome to the Hall of Fame: the lovely Linn B. Halton! Linn launches her novel, The Quintessential Gemini today…
I’m so honoured to be here with one of my favourite authors, the effervescent Nicky Wells! This is one rocking lady for sure and she always keeps me smiling.
I thought I would ask Katherine Dale, who is The Quintessential Gemini, to introduce herself first…
“Where do I start? It’s all rather messy actually; my life is falling apart simply because I chose NOT to listen to the fabulous astrologer Mark Ainsley-Thomas. He’s been telling me for a while that there are big changes to come in my daily horoscopes. I know I’ve buried my head in the sand and put my own spin on what that might be – now I’m paying the price. No job, no man in my life except for No. 4, my faithful cat, and when I need Mark to tell me how to put it all back together, his forecasts have become obscure … after 25 years of being my one daily ‘constant’, I feel he isn’t there for me anymore – how will I cope?”
So over to the revered Mark Ainsley-Thomas himself, I have to know what’s happening…
“Well, since acquiring a new agent, the dreaded Harriet Wensworth “Agent to the Stars”, she thinks my future lies in the US. How on earth does the woman think I can produce daily, weekly and monthly forecasts if I’m jetting around the world all the time? I’m an astrologer for goodness sake, not an A-list celebrity! The woman is driving me insane with all these talk show appearances. We’re taking on a new astrologer to help out, but I really do hate letting go of the reins – even though he’s very talented and I knew his late father, an eminent astrologer. I never thought fame would turn me into a TV face, I’m not even sure I like this new role of mine.”
Ah, I’m beginning to understand what Katherine has instinctively picked up on; there is a new guy writing the daily and weekly forecasts. His name is James Kingman and I’ve met him briefly, what a hunk! But not only doesn’t he know it, he’s fragile – he lost his business, most of his money and his long-term girlfriend has moved out now she no longer considers him to be successful.
“A new job helps take my mind off my financial worries, but can I deliver? My style is so different to Mark’s and he’s a really hard act to follow. He’s not only a brilliant astrologer (and astronomer) but he’s so … charismatic. My readings are good, I know my stuff, but I don’t wrap it up in the same way, it’s rather plain by comparison. I also answer the Emails that come in to the website and there’s a woman who keeps asking questions. Her name is Katherine and even though she is one of our paying customers and receives all her personalised forecasts by Email on a daily basis, she’s a real pain. I don’t know what this lady wants, but I’m getting rather exasperated. She can’t really live her life according to her daily horoscope, surely?”
The Quintessential Gemini is available in paperback and e-book from Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.
Linn B Halton lives in the UK, in the small Gloucestershire village of Arlingham, on the banks of the River Severn in the UK with her adorable husband and cat with attitude – Mr Tiggs! She writes about: Life, love and beyond … but it’s ALWAYS about the romance… Linn signed with the amazing Sapphire Star Publishing in 2012.
Many of the paranormal events that feature in some of her books are real life experiences. Linn is also a featured Author on http://loveahappyending.com/ and Editor of the feature ‘Author & Associate Catch-Ups‘on the website’s magazine-style blog.
Wow, thank you to Linn for introducing Katherine, Mark and James. I can’t wait to meet them!
And now it’s over to the amazing Amy Gregory: Welcome to the Hall of Fame! Amy is launching Racing to Love ~ Carter’s Treasure today…
Amy, I think I heard you say that there’s a lot of ‘you’ in your books. Tell us some more!
Something I’ve always wondered over the years when I read a book is, just how much of what is written on the page is from the author themselves. Not one to read mysteries or suspenseful books, I stick more to the light-hearted, fun love stories. When reading those, you can see personalities emerge: how much of that personality is directly from the author?
Well, (as I blush) I have to say in all my books, my personality is glaringly obvious. I have a wicked smart-mouth, that I don’t apologize for very often, and a naughty sense of humor…yeah,I don’t apologize for that much either. I love to laugh and want nothing more than for those I’m around, either in person or clear across the Internet, to laugh with me. I’ve learned to tailor myself to be polite around those who I might offend, and I have my close friends who I can totally just be myself around, all varying degrees of me.
That’s really fascinating! Is this a conscious choice, a strategy that you have, or does it just kind of… emerge?
My characters are all very different and I don’t think long and hard about their personalities before I start writing, I have a premise and I just go. I see them come alive as I type, but going back and reading each scene, then each chapter and finally the book as a whole, I’ll start laughing. Looking at things they’ve said or done and I’ll think to myself…oh I have soooo done or said that! Or they’ll do things I can totally see myself doing, then I’ll start cracking up. Just me and my laptop, a cup of coffee and silence, but I’ll have tears running down my face as I picture the scenes in my head.
What can I say…life’s short, enjoy it!
LOL, I like your style. Let’s hear some more about the book you are launching today: Racing to Love ~ Carter’s Treasure
From the outside, Molly West had everything, beauty, brains, and a career she’d retired from not once, but twice. Being in the limelight and in a sport that was male driven, she was often surrounded men. She ignored first the boys, and as she got older, the men. Unfortunately, they were all the same, all after one thing, and she had absolutely no use for them. Her cold shoulder and patented not a chance in hell look were usually enough to get her point across. Occasionally, she had to resort to her sass—and her brother.
Molly had no plans in changing what was a perfectly good system. That is until she walked into the pits. When she stood toe-to-toe with the sex in jeans, she knew right then and there that the man her adoptive mother always told her was out there, was now standing right in front of her.
Carter Sterling had traveled the racing circuit since he was a boy. He’d heard all the old standbys, She’s out there somewhere, love comes along when you least expect it. Good things come to those that… Yeah, he’d heard them all. The last place he expected to meet the love of his life was on a pro track. All she did was smile, and he knew, looking into her sapphire blue eyes, Molly West was his. Forever.
If it was only that easy. From the moment he laid eyes on her, he had a gripping feeling in him. An overwhelming need to protect her. A girl he’d just met. Carter had learned a long time ago that gut feelings are almost never wrong.
Molly now held his heart in her hands, but it was going to take a lot more than just love to protect her from the past she thought she’d buried a long time ago.
And here’s the really exciting bit! Racing to Love ~ Carter’s Treasure is now available in from amazon.com and amazon.co.uk!
Amy Gregory leads an incredibly active lifestyle in Kansas City with her husband and their three fantastic kids who keep them running in three very different directions. When she’s not rushing her oldest daughter to tumbling, her youngest daughter to music lessons, or sitting track-side watching her son practice motocross, she’s taking the few minutes in between to scribble the next pages in her Racing to Love series. When asked, “When do you have time to write?” Amy Gregory giggles. “In bits and pieces,” she says.
Amy is known for her snarky, off the cuff sense of humor, which you’ll find shining through in the characters she’s created. I’ve spent my whole life trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up, and now I’ve finally found it. – Amy Gregory
Welcome again to CentreStage! CentreStage showcases fantastic authors from around the world, often introducing fellow featured authors at loveahappyending.com as well as my fellow authors in the Sapphire Star Publishing family. On CentreStage, these authors might write for you about their lives, or their writing journey, or anything else that matters to them. Every feature will be different in format and flavour, so watch out for a variety of stories and tales.
Today, it is my great pleasure to welcome a loveahappyending.com featured author… Introducing: the amazing Richard Holmes!
Richard says: “You Can’t Beat A Bit Of Inspiration”
First of all I would like to thank the wonderful Nicky Wells for having me as a guest on her blog. I know that she has had a number of amazing authors as guests and it’s an honour for me to follow in the footsteps of those who have gone before.
**Nicky blushes** Thank you for your kind words, Richard, it’s lovely to have you visit today. 🙂 Sorry to interrupt, please continue….
I have chosen as a theme for this short post, “inspirational quotes”. I don’t know about you, but I love a bit of inspiration and I do get fired up by the thoughts and musings of the world’s great “quoters” both past and present. Some pieces of inspiration are self-explanatory, such as this masterpiece from Marie Curie:
“Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood”
But there are other gems of wisdom that are open to interpretation and may need a bit of pondering before the meaning becomes apparent, such as this piece from Charles Dickens:
“Have a heart that never hardens; a temper that never tires; a touch that never hurts”
On the surface he appears to be contradicting himself with his talk of a temper that never tires, but if you think about it, it seems that he is actually talking about desire and enthusiasm; the fire one gets in the belly when one gets their teeth into a project. The drive to keep going right to the end.
I would like to share with you a couple of my personal favourites, and also my own slant on them. Firstly, this wonderful quote from Sri Sathya Sai Baba; I will never forget the feeling I had when I first came across this because it is so true and apt:“In your heart you will find peace, everywhere else you will find only pieces”
These words are just so true. If you think about it, when we take the time to find a quiet space and sit with our own reflections, we can and do find that inner peace that passes all understanding. But in the helter-skelter of the outer world everything seems so disjointed. We are always running here, there and everywhere; sometimes achieving nothing in the process, and the noise can sometimes be deafening. Life really can seem like a 1000 piece jig-saw at times with the pieces scattered all over the place. But when we find that inner peace nothing else seems to matter and we can experience that blissful feeling of being an impartial and silent observer, unruffled by all the chaos in the world.
Pesky me, interrupting again: so sorry! Just had to say how much I adore that quote. It’s beautiful, and I am happy that you’re sharing it here today. End of interruption, I promise!
Another quote that really inspires me is this one from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Someone gave me a picture as a gift back in 2003, when I was moving to Wales, and this quote was on it:
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”
I only recently found out it was one of Ralph’s and it really makes me think whenever I’m having one of my “woe is me” phases.
Lastly, I very recently saw an American female singer being interviewed on TV. Her name is Melody Gardot, and she had been involved in a terrible car crash. She used her time recovering in a hospital bed to learn to play the guitar. Although she recovered she was left very sensitive to light and sound, but when the interviewer asked her about her ordeal she said the most wonderful thing. She described the whole experience as the universe “opening its arms” and giving her the most amazing opportunity which she grasped with both hands. It made me think of that quote and how she was a classic example of someone who dared to tread where most people would not and because of this she became a shining example for others to follow.
That’s just such an amazing story! Anyone interested in finding out more about Melody’s story can visit her website here or take a peek at her potted history on Wikipedia.
Well, all that remains now is for me to say thanks again to Nicky Wells for having me as a guest on her blog……. Thanks Nicky!
The pleasure is all mine, Richard. I am humbled and delighted by the quotes and thoughts you are sharing today. Thank you! Now, I believe there’s a book you’d like to tell us about at this point?
I do indeed! I’d like to introduce the first book in the Fragments Of Divinity series. This is an innovative publication of blog style articles that deal with potentially complicated spiritual subjects in an easy to read and understand way. Based mainly on my own actual experiences, these delightful articles will provide both inspiration and insight to the reader, and will also answer many of those nagging questions that you thought you would never receive answers to. A truly inspirational read.
And here’s Richard’s bio and amazing life story:
Richard was born in London in 1955 and has lived a very topsy turvey life that hit rock bottom as we entered the new millennium. “I always felt like a bit of a misfit, not really belonging anywhere. This is illustrated by the fact that I left school at 15 with no qualifications and would have been asked to leave had I not done so voluntarily. By the time I was 17 I’d had 24 jobs and was just not able to settle anywhere.”
Out of frustration and boredom Richard joined the army in 1976, but this did not work out either and he left at the end of 1979. After a three-month interim period Richard went off to Germany to work and remained abroad for six years. It was during his time in the army and in Germany that he succumbed excessively to the temptations of alcohol.
Richard returned to the UK in 1986 and by the mid 1990’s found himself in a pretty sorry state. Things came to a head during the latter part of 2000 when Richard’s life seemed to sink down to an all-time low. “Finally, out of the darkness there came a light and in 2001 I found my spiritual pathway giving me a purpose in life“.
These days Richard lives in Tetbury, Gloucestershire and has been working as a medium for over ten years. He runs workshops in various spiritual topics, gives private consultations for guidance along life’s pathway and also tutors on a one-to-one basis in meditation and spiritual awareness. He is a Reiki healer, psychic surgeon, spiritually inspired artist and gives profound interpretations of dreams.
Well, I have to say I am positively reeling from all these insights (in a good way, of course!). Wow! Over to you, dear reader. Which quote speaks to you loudest? Do you have a favourite inspirational saying or quote? We’d love you to share!
It’s the Jubilee weekend. So what could be more fitting to post on Music Monday than this classic? And what song could be more appropriate?
No further comment or lyrics needed, methinks. Have a great Jubilee Bank Holiday, one and all. Oh, and don’t forget to tell me what you’re up to by way of party…..
Do you know that old saying, “what a difference a year makes”? Well, it’s not even a year–it’s just under eleven months, actually–since I started my publishing journey. Lately, I’ve introduced quite a lot of changes and have blogged about them as I went along. I felt it was time to take stock and consider how this here ‘hapless duckling’ has morphed into… well, not quite a graceful, soaring swan, yet, but perhaps one that is poised and ready to fly.
That was then…
The day is 9 July 2011. It’s Monday morning, 9:30 a.m., and my debut novel, Sophie’s Turn, has just this minute appeared ‘live’ on Amazon Kindle. After four months of writing, several rounds of editing, seven years of maturing, and a frantic few weeks preparing my masterpiece for self-publication, it is finally ‘out there.’ I shed a tear or two; it is a very emotional moment. Unsurprisingly, however, nothing much happens. No, Sophie’s Turn does not hit the bestseller lists within days, or go viral.
This was my author platform then:
A cover, lovingly, expertly and painstakingly crafted by hand…
…and a photograph (well, a cut-out).
Nicky’s author image, mach 1
That’s it? you say. Uhm, yes. But fear not, I have learned a few things along the way. Take a look at…
This is now!
I’m a fast learner, and things changed quickly. I reached out to friends for advice, and then to bloggers. I started building a network, garnering reviews and visibility, making new ‘virtual’ friends. In October, I was honoured to join the unique and interactive reader/author project, loveahappyending.com. And in February 2012, I was thrilled to sign with trail-blazing US publisher, Sapphire Star Publishing. So let’s take a look at my platform as it is today. Spot the difference?
My slogan.
My glamorous author photo (if I say so myself). Find out here about the provenance of this photo!
Romance That Rocks Your World! Meet Nicky Wells, Author.
My brand. Read all about the unveiling of the Rock Star Romance brand here.
My stunning cover. Find out about the people who helped create this cover here.
My social networking platform.
(still under construction… ever expanding)
So, it does feel like I have come a long way. Hopefully, I am poised and ready to fly when Sapphire Star Publishing is launching Sophie’s Turn on 6 September 2012. Thank you to all the many fantastic people who are helping me along the way, not least: Amy and Katie at Sapphire Star Publishing; Jessie Dalrymple; Shirley Mukisa; Shaz Goodwin; Sue Fortin; Linn Halton; everyone at loveahappyending.com; Deborah Smith; my gorgeous husband; and the many, many wonderful bloggers who support me: know that you make this author’s world go round!
After all this, it still makes me uncomfortable to ‘boast’. I don’t mean to boast, as such. I abhor boasting, and would rather hide in a corner. So why this post?
Well, for one, I simply mean to share my joy and excitement. And for another, I hope that sharing my experience may perhaps help new and aspiring authors find a shortcut to building their own strategies and platforms.
So here’s the question for the day, Id’ love to hear your thoughts:
All you amazing established authors out there, what was YOUR biggest ‘aha’ moment along the way?
All you wonderful aspiring authors, what is YOUR biggest challenge on the road to publication?
CentreStage showcases fantastic authors from around the world, introducing in particular my fellow featured authors at loveahappyending.com as well as fellow authors in the Sapphire Star Publishing family. In this new, exciting feature, these authors might write for you about their lives, or their writing journey, or anything else that matters to them. Every feature will be different in format and flavour, so watch out for a variety of stories and tales.
Today, it is my honour and my pleasure to host a fellow Loveahappyending.com author, namely the one and only Owen Carey Jones!
First of all, let’s have the official low-down on Owen, the author… Introducing: Owen Carey Jones
Born in Belize in the Caribbean, Owen Carey Jones is a former banking professional who decided on a change of career at the age of 45 and studied for an MA in Screenwriting (Fiction) at the Northern Film School in Leeds in the UK.
On completion of his Masters degree in 2000, Owen established Carey Films Ltd and went on to become an award winning independent feature film maker whose most recent film was screened in cinemas across the whole of the UK before being taken on by film distributors in both the UK and the USA.
As well as being shown in cinemas, Owen Carey Jones’s films have been seen by more than 40 million people on television in countries on four continents including China and the USA and in 2004, as a result of his work as a film writer, producer and director, he was elected to membership of the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA).
RoughCut is the first novel by Owen Carey Jones but comes after more than ten years of writing the screenplays for his films during which, he says, he has learned a lot about storytelling.
Owen has so far undertaken 21 book signing events for Rough Cut with Waterstones branches around the country and has another nine signings scheduled before the current tour comes to an end. After that, he will be focussing on getting his next feature film through development and into production, hopefully in 2013.
Thank you for introducing yourself! There’s quite a lot to take in here. Let’s backtrack a little. Tell us how you came to be a writer…
Having spent twenty-five years working in financial services, ending up as a publisher of several specialist magazines for the sector, in 1994 I underwent emergency heart surgery (quadruple coronary artery bypass). Three weeks later I was back at work and at my six monthly appointment with the cardiologist was told to stop or I would soon be dead! I closed down the publishing company the next day and wondered what to do with the rest of my life, quite quickly deciding to do what I had always wanted to do: write. When I had left school with no A-levels (I found school work incredibly boring!), I told my father that I was going to be a poet. Of course he suggested that I get a ‘proper’ job, which I did. But now, with time on my hands, I decided to write a novel.
That would be Rough Cut, I assume: Wow! Tell us more about Rough Cut.
Rough Cut starts when a New York dealer in gemstones discovers a number of top quality synthetic diamonds in a batch he has bought, industry watchdog, the Federation of International Diamond Traders calls in Belizean, Carter Jefferson, to trace their origin.
Carter, a synthetic diamond specialist who recently quit working for the FIDT to concentrate on writing but who still works for them on an ad hoc basis, is reluctant to take the case until he finds a reference in the file which takes him back 25 years to the time when he was a geology student at Oxford University. Old relationships are revived and family secrets emerge as an attractive English girl and a passionate young Frenchman are sucked into the web of deceit and death surrounding the illicit gems.
Owen, what an intriguing story! And quite an amazing career change from banking to writing: wow! How did your writing career evolve from there?
After getting professional feedback on the first draft, I realised that if I was serious about writing, I needed to get some education, so I applied to the Northern Film School in Leeds and two years later graduated with an MA in Screenwriting (Fiction). From there, I got involved in directing films and went on to make three feature films which have now been seen in cinemas and on television by more than 40 million people in countries on five continents including the UK, China and the USA.
A double career change with a sideline (or main line?) into film making. I take my hat off and stand in awe at such determination! But take us back to the evolution of your masterpiece…
At the beginning of 2010, I decided to rewrite my novel, Rough Cut, which I had been developing as a screenplay over the years, taking into account everything I had learned about story telling in the years that had passed since I first wrote it. When writing, one of the things I learned early on is that it is easier to write about places you know well, so I tend to set my books and screenplays in familiar places and, in the case of Rough Cut, places I have a particular fondness for.
Write what you know; I am certainly familiar with that concept! How do you fit all your projects and ambitions together?
My current life involves various things, including doing research for international banks (to pay the bills!), developing future film projects, and writing. So writing has to be fitted in around my other activities but I can usually set aside periods of a few weeks when I can concentrate on one specific project, be that a film or a book.
Hee hee, I know what you need… what every writer needs! A spell on a desert island! What would you do, if?
If I were stranded on a desert island, I would be so thrilled to be living near the sea that I wouldn’t really need anything else, but I would probably like to have a book of Times crosswords (and a pen of course!) and a stock of thriller novels (in the vein of John Grisham rather than Kathy Reichs). And I’d make sure my iPod was fully charged up so that I could listen to my collection of music ranging from Sandie Shaw’s 1960s songs through to Diana Vickers’ more recent songs, with some Human League favourites in between. And it would probably be a good idea to have some pads of paper so that I could carry on writing about my experiences on the island when my laptop ran out of juice!
Fantastic answer! Owen, it’s been a pleasure to find out the backstory to Rough Cut. Thank you for visiting CentreStage today and letting us peek behind the scenes.
Now then, my question for YOU, dear reader, is obvious, isn’t it. What would YOU do if you came into the possession of gems, however illicit or rough cut?
It’s Music Monday! And what better way to start the week than to honour the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest.
I love Eurovision! I can recall watching it being very young, curled up on the sofa with my Mum and Dad. Consequently, to pass on the tradition, we let our children watch the whole programme with us yesterday, and my 5 year-old nearly managed to stay awake through it all. A real family occasion!
We had great fun discussing the artists, enjoyed Jedward’s bizarre performance and the highly entertaining Russian grannies. But what we were really looking for was a voice that would captivate us, irrespective of whether we understood its words.
The Wells family is in agreement: our favourite vocalist is Željko Joksimović!
Here are the lyrics in English, and the voice below.
Better luck next time
You say that so easily
I can see we’re over now
But it could have been so good
Know that even if you leave
Something of yours will stay.
Love is not a thing
That I can just give back to you
This is only me, I’ve only ever loved you
Love is not a thing
That I don’t know what do to with
I wish you just the best
This love is my sinking ship.
Your love is not a thing
That I can just give back to you
This is only me, I’ve only ever loved you.
Go,just, just go
Fly away, sing
Give your heart to someone else
But know
That goodbye is not the end.
So here is your challenge! Irrespective of the rankings… who was YOUR favourite and why?
Turns out that I am beautiful, versatile and full of sunshine. Or if not me, exactly, then my blog. Needless to say, I am completely blown away by these accolades for my humble blog and I’ve done the happy dance and celebrated quietly for a few days already. Now it’s time to say Thank You to the wonderful bloggers who passed on these three awards to me in the past few weeks, and to spread the joy by passing on further. Get ready for the tripleaward ceremony!
SUNSHINE AWARD
The Sunshine Award was passed on to me a few weeks back by the amazing Marina Sofia. Thanks, honey, your poems and music bring sunshine to my life, too!
The award rules are:
Write five things about yourself
Include the award’s logo in a post
Nominate 5 other bloggers
Link to your nominees
Link the person who nominated you
I’m streamlining the ‘write five things about myself’ and combining it with the other awards at the end of this post. (Otherwise I’d have to write my life history, and you really wouldn’t want to trawl through that…) However, here are my five nominees with their links, in no particluar order:
I received the Beautiful Blogger Award from Donna over at My Life. One Story at a Time. Thanks, Donna-you know how much I love catching up on your lifestories!
I’m not entirely sure about the rules for this one, but I assume that they are as for the Sunshine Award above. For random things about me, see below. Here are my nominees, in no particular order:
It is with tremendous pleasure that I receive my third Versatile Blogger Award from Anneli at wordsfromanneli. Thanks, Anneli, it’s always a pleasure visiting your blog and finding out about hot potatoes, grizzly bears and other life essentials over in your part of the world.
The Versatile Blogger Award is a little more involved, and here are the rules:
Thank the person who gave you this award. Include a link to their blog. Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly. (I would add, pick blogs or bloggers that are excellent!) I’ve found that it’s a bit of work to list 15, but please don’t feel that being nominated should be a burden. If you only want to nominate 8 or 10 bloggers, that’s fine too. Nominate those bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award (you might include a link to this site) and let them know that you’ve nominated them. Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.
So once more, here are my nominees, in no particular order:
AND FINALLY: A LIST OF RANDOM THINGS ABOUT ME (AGAIN)
I hate chainletters. I do. I never participated in them as a child, and I avoid them like the plague now. So, you ask rightly, what’s with these blog awards? They’re not too dissimilar to chain mail, surely? No, you’re right: they are the blogosphere equivalent of chainletters. But they serve a different purpose. They are visible and fun, and they connect bloggers with each other that might otherwise not find each other. It’s all about visiblity and passing on the good vibes!
I love being on the radio. That’s a recent discovery, but I get a real buzz out of it and could quite happily visit a radio station every day. Perhaps I missed my career vocation?
I sweat the small stuff, but am handy in a crisis. Little, trivial things make me lose sleep, tear my hear out, and howl in despair. Throw me a major life crisis, especially involving blood, splinters or broken limbs, and I am calm, cool and collected.
I love all seafood except squid. Oh, and oysters. Enough said.
I used to be allergic to hazelnuts. I did! It was a family joke; Nicky doesn’t need botox to plump her lips; she just needs to eat hazelnuts, or pralines containing even traces of hazelnuts. (I hasten to add that I have never, nor will I ever, resort to botox, my lips are fine as they are, thank you!). However, since my second pregnancy, that allergy has disappeared. Don’t ask me how that’s possible, but it’s gone. Instead, I struggle with sesame seeds now–which is a pain, considering I adore hummus and prawn toast.
One day, I want to travel all the way around the world. Can you tell I missed out on my gap year? There’s no such thing as a ‘gap year’ in Germany; at least there wasn’t when I left school. It was a completely alien concept to me when I arrived in the UK and found most everyone had taken off to go travelling for a year. I wil lcatch up with you–soon!
I can’t take the heat. Clearly, I’m a precious Northern European shady flower. That doesn’t sound right, does it? Anyway, I can take heat. I wasn’t born to take heat. Even the modest heat waves that befall the UK from time to time are enough to send me over the edge. Most people head for hotter climes in their hols (or retirement); me, I crave Iceland, or Newfoundland, or Canada. Maybe Alaska.
Enough about me! Congratulations again to all the nominees today. I hope you get a chance to take up your well-deserved awards some time soon.
Meanwhile–do tell me something random about you, right here, right now. I’d love to hear it! 🙂 xx
Welcome to CentreStage! CentreStage showcases fantastic authors from around the world, introducing in particular fellow authors in the Sapphire Star Publishing family as well as fellow featured authors at loveahappyending.com. In this new, exciting feature, these authors might write for you about their lives, or their writing journey, or anything else that matters to them. Every feature will be different in format and flavour, so watch out for a variety of stories and tales.
Today, it is my tremendous pleasure to welcome fellow Sapphire Star Publishing author Amy Gregory to this latest edition of CentreStage!
Hello, Amy! I am so thrilled that you are visiting today. What have you got for us?
What have I got for you…? Well, let me see. Here’s a story about stories and voices in my family. I call it:
Too Many Words???
As a mother of three children I’ve have often found myself trapped in places with one or more of them trying to talk to me. When they were around the ages of three to five years old they started telling stories. I figured out by the third child it was coming and I could not escape! These stories would often take several long moments to tell as I would stand, force a smile and nod, waiting for the end that would take seemingly forever to make an appearance.
Then I would shake my head and wonder where they came up with it. Most times their little stories were cute, some made me laugh my ass off, some just made me think they were telling me something just to hear the sound of their own voice as parts were told over and over again.
And then, um….oh yeah and, and, and…..
Well, as my people have grown older their stories have become more important in their lives and mine. They’ve been published in school literary journals, have been asked to share with the rest of their school, have been nominated to student council because their stories and ideas are beneficial to others.
Recently my two younger children took part in an essay contest sponsored by our school district that feeds into a much larger program put on by the metro area. They were asked to write about a person in their lives that matters to them and is a wonderful person to those around them. With no help allowed, they were to explain why their person makes a difference to those around them.
So as a writer, it was quite an honor to have not one, but both of my children’s essays chosen. Their stories, their words, and their voices that were put down on paper. Their talent for writing that was selected amongst those in their classes.
With Mother’s Day approaching here in the States [editor’s note: at the time of writing], it reminds me of those little voices in the backseat of the car…um, oh yeah…and then you know what happened, Mom? The giggles that would follow, the long pauses as they found more words to make up more parts to an already never-ending story. Yes, I always knew what happened because they always told me, always had the words. Always had another story ready when they finished the one before it.
Those stories seemed to take forever back then, but I can see for myself now how their creativity has found its way into their school work, and into their hobbies. As a writer, I couldn’t be more proud. As a mother I grin, hearing their little voices replayed in my head, their stories told over and over. Pieces of the past I still giggle at every now again.
Um, um…and then you know what happened?
Amazing! So that’s what happened! Thanks so much for sharing…
🙂 Now, then: tell us more about your upcoming novel, Racing to Love: Carter’s Treasure!
From the outside, Molly West had everything, beauty, brains, and a career she’d retired from not once, but twice. Being in the limelight and in a sport that was male driven, she was often surrounded men. She ignored first the boys, and as she got older, the men. Unfortunately, they were all the same, all after one thing, and she had absolutely no use for them. Her cold shoulder and patented not a chance in hell look were usually enough to get her point across. Occasionally, she had to resort to her sass—and her brother.
Molly had no plans in changing what was a perfectly good system. That is until she walked into the pits. When she stood toe-to-toe with the sex in jeans, she knew right then and there that the man her adoptive mother always told her was out there, was now standing right in front of her.
Carter Sterling had traveled the racing circuit since he was a boy. He’d heard all the old standbys, She’s out there somewhere, love comes along when you least expect it. Good things come to those that… Yeah, he’d heard them all. The last place he expected to meet the love of his life was on a pro track. All she did was smile, and he knew, looking into her sapphire blue eyes, Molly West was his. Forever.
If it was only that easy. From the moment he laid eyes on her, he had a gripping feeling in him. An overwhelming need to protect her. A girl he’d just met. Carter had learned a long time ago that gut feelings are almost never wrong.
Molly now held his heart in her hands, but it was going to take a lot more than just love to protect her from the past she thought she’d buried a long time ago.
Absolutely intriguing, Amy, what an unusual setting! This is so high on my wishlist!! I adore the cover, by the way, what a wonderful image for your book. Wow! Now tell us more about yourself…
About Amy Gregory
Amy Gregory leads an incredibly active lifestyle in Kansas City with her husband and their three fantastic kids who keep them running in three very different directions. When she’s not rushing her oldest daughter to tumbling, her youngest daughter to music lessons, or sitting track-side watching her son practice motocross, she’s taking the few minutes in between to scribble the next pages in her Racing to Love series.
When asked, “When do you have time to write?” Amy Gregory giggles. “In bits and pieces,” she says.
Amy is known for her snarky, off the cuff sense of humor, which you’ll find shining through in the characters she’s created. Her debut novel, Racing to Love, Carter’s Treasure, is set for release June 7, 2012.
I’ve spent my whole life trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up, and now I’ve finally found it. – Amy Gregory
Thank you so much, Amy, for visiting today and introducing yourself and your novel, Racing to Love: Carter’s Treasure. It’s totally intriguing and I can’t wait for launch day. I look forward to welcoming you back on 7 June in my Hall of Fame as part of your launch party!! Rock on! 🙂 xx
Now, dear reader, it’s your turn. Have you ever been told, “Too many words…?!?”
This past week I have been thinking about emotion. In my deliberations and ruminations, I recalled a fantastic song whose lyrics and melody portray raw emotion like few other songs I’ve known. The song is unbelievably sad and yet, in a strange way, I find it uplifting. Perhaps it’s a sorrow shared; perhaps it’s the knowledge that sadness complements happiness like sunshine follows rain.
The song speaks for itself, and I give you today a masterful piece of poetry and music by one of the greatest songwriters the world has known: the haunting Jacques Brel.The lyrics are in French, obviously, but I offer you my feeble attempt at a translation, not always literal. I don’t know if it can touch the original, but it’s the best I can do. There is imagery bar none here, and I wish I had the power to convey emotion in this manner.
As always, if you like this song, please honour the artist and buy it for your own use through the appropriate channel.
Ne Me Quitte Pas by Jacques Brel
Ne me quitte pas / Il faut oublier / Tout peut s’oublier / Qui s’enfuit deja / Oublier le temps / Des malentendus / Et le temps perdu / A savoir comment / Oublier ces heures / Qui tuaient parfois / A coups de pourquoi / Le coeur du bonheur / Ne me quitte pas
Moi je t’offrirai / Des perles de pluie / Venues de pays / Où il ne pleut pas / Je creuserai la terre / Jusqu’apres ma mort / Pour couvrir ton corps d’or et de lumière / Je ferai un domaine / Où l’amour sera roi / Où l’amour sera loi / Où tu seras reine / Ne me quitte pas
Ne me quitte pas / Je t’inventerai / Des mots insensés / Que tu comprendras / Je te parlerai / De ces amants là / Qui ont vu deux fois / Leurs coeurs s’embraser / Je te racont’rai / L’histoire de ce roi / Mort de n’avoir pas / Pu te rencontrer / Ne me quitte pas
On a vu souvent / Rejaillir le feu / De l’ancien volcan / Qu’on croyait trop vieux / Il est paraît-il / Des terres brûlées / Donnant plus de blé / Qu’un meilleur avril / Et quand vient le soir / Pour qu’un ciel flamboie / Le rouge et le noir / Ne s’épousent-ils pas / Ne me quitte pas
Ne me quitte pas / Je ne vais plus pleurer / Je ne vais plus parler / Je me cacherai là / À te regarder / Danser et sourire / Et à t’écouter / Chanter et puis rire / Laisse-moi devenir / L’ombre de ton ombre / L’ombre de ta main / L’ombre de ton chien / Ne me quitte pas
NOW THIS IS WHERE THE VIDEO WOULD BE. However, I have run into embedding restrictions on this occasion so bear with me and click through to the link instead. It’s well worth it!
And here’s the English translation by yours truly.
Don’t leave me. Let’s forget, for everything can be forgotten that has gone. Forget the time of misunderstanding, and the time lost determining how those hours sometimes killed the very heart of happiness by questioning “why”.
Don’t leave me. I will give you pearls of rain from countries where it never rains. I will dig up the earth even after my death to cover your body with gold and light. I will make a kingdom where love will be king, love will be law and you will be queen. Don’t leave me.
Don’t leave me. I shall invent meaningless words which you’ll understand. I shall tell you about those lovers who found their hearts ignite twice. I shall you the story of this king who died because he failed to find you. Don’t leave me.
One has often seen erupt the old volcano believed extinct. They say there are scorched lands yielding more wheat than the height of April. And when evening makes the sky burst into colour, don’t the red and the black marry well? Don’t leave me.
Don’t leave me. I’ll cry no more, I’ll speak no more, I’ll hide here to look at you dance and smile and listen to you sing and then laugh. Let me become the shadow of your shadow, the shadow of your hand and the shadow of your dog, but don’t leave me.
Photos and images used on this blog stem from one of two sources. Either they are Nicky Wells' own images or photos, or photos and images supplied by, and used with permission of, the author(s) featured in a given post. Logos and blog award images are used with permission of the originating organisation(s). Occasionally, the blog will feature images used under a Creative Commons license, which will be clearly indicated and credited. Copying, sharing or distribution of these photos and images is not authorized unless prior written permission is given.
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