Holiday

Holiday ! This might seem a strange thing to say for someone who just started a new job, but 3 days in I can’t seem to shake this holiday feeling. It might have to do with the fact that I’ve spend my breaks in the departure lounge of terminal 2 at Nice airport. My work background noise is a mixture of easy listening and flight departure announcements. My day is spend the way I normally pass the time in departure lounges; by trying out all the perfumes. I clean the shelves and ring up purchases too, but these are minor details. 

I’m still in that honeymoon period of discovery; meeting new colleagues and learning about the products and so far I love it. I might be blogging in a few months about the smell of perfume bringing on a panic attacks or having a fear of departure lounges. I might need to wait till the last minute to clear security and then run to the departure gate on my next flight. I might breathe a sigh of relieve when I’m in the actual plane and they start taxiing. I could startle the other passengers with a wild scream when we commence our take-off; ‘Woohoo, I’ve just survived the departure lounge!’

So far so good, the only snag is the fact that at the end of the day, I don’t get to take a plane to some exiting destination. I do however get to drive my scooter home along the beach, and the weekends; well those I get to spend in the south of France, and how cool is that?

Panic

This Saturday I received an email from my new employer that I will be starting work on Tuesday. This was not totally unexpected as they said they wanted me to start as soon as possible, however the predicted time for the relevant paper work meant that we penciled in the 11th of March. So starting one week early had me a little panicked; there is still so much I wanted to do!

It was also a lovely sunny weekend and I should enjoy my last weekend of freedom, shouldn't I? I managed to have a swim, a walk and a well deserved beer on a terrace. I also did a few more hours of writing and I'm pleased to say the book is finished and I'm happy with it. When I wrote the first draft of my first book, I was pretty clueless. I knew I had a good character, but putting a book together was another matter. My friend and editor Penny guided me a lot during the following drafts and rewrites.

Book two is hopefully equally funny, I certainly think that the copy I now have on my computer is better written, thought out and testament to a more confident writer. I'm starting to learn what it takes and I'm not going to give up on publishing. I know my new job is going to keep me busy over the next eight months but I will try hard to keep my fingers on the keyboard.

It feels like I haven't achieved as much as I wanted, but when I take stock of my two months unemployment, well it's not bad. I have finished the book and I'm happy with the result and I've written 5 short stories. (they still need a bit of work but nothing a few hours without a cat distracting me won't fix!)
It might go a bit quieter but keep watching this space, there will be more releases!

Arguing with science

When I chose to make my character a vampire it was mainly to give total free reign to my fantasy. He is a vampire, they don’t exist therefore I can make him do whatever I want, right?

Not quite, you’re touching on a much used and much loved genre so there are certain myths you have to stick to. I’ve kind of stayed with the old school traits such as, sunlight, a wooden stake through the heart, and beheading kills. Cameron also has no reflection in the mirror and can’t have his picture taken. I’ve added my own slant by stating that garlic can gives a vampire a nasty rash and he can absorb language through the blood. (Hence the title)

With modern inventions we are getting on shaky ground and this has led to a few differences of opinion with my husband and my usual answer of:

                ‘He is a vampire, the laws of physics don’t apply to vampires,’ is not cutting the mustard.

I think a vampire can make a phone call but said conversation can’t be recorded. My husband launched into an explanation about sound waves and well you can’t argue with science, right?

I decided to consult the “experts”, because these days any argument is settled by the internet; and this is what the “experts” had to say on the subject:

Can they be heard over the phone?

According to Buffy the vampire slayer; the experts in modern vampires, a resounding yes. Angel too makes several phone calls in the spin off series Angel.

Can they be recorded?

According to:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OurVampiresAreDifferent 

Somewhat-common additional (mostly modern) rules for vampires are:

• Cannot be photographed or caught on video, often an extension of the "no reflection" rule. This may also be related to the silver rule; mirrors and photographic film are both (usually) made from silver.
• In Moonlight, Mick explains in a voiceover that he could not be photographed when silver was used in film, but digital cameras have changed all that.
• In the TV series Ultraviolet (unrelated to the film), the vampire hunters use sights that pretty much amount to video cameras strapped to their guns in order to tell vampire from non-vampire.
• In the anime Magical Pokaan, Pachira does not show up on a normal digital camera but is perfectly visible when viewed with an infrared camera.
• Cannot be heard over phone lines.

But according to this site my husband is right:

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/separating-myths-from-facts-in-vampire-the-requiem.html

Vampires don't show up like normal people on camera or in mirrors: Fact. Vampires show up with their features obscured in photographic media (including video footage) and in mirrors. They can temporarily counteract this effect, but by "default," their features are obscured. The same is not true for voice recordings; vampires' voices are captured normally on voice recorders.

Luckily I came across this site where you can take a quiz to see if you are a vampire. I think the following three questions vindicate me:

http://www.armory.com/tests/vampiric.html

·  Does your reflection seem to be missing when you look in the mirror?

·  Are you invisible in photos, videos, audio tapes, or any other recording medium?

·  Can you get past electronic surveillance equipment (cameras, microphones, laser trip wires, etc.)?

I see it as follows: Cameron only exist if there is blood involved, hence a human ear can hear him but a machine can't. I also think only natural things can harm him, ea sunlight, garlic, natural drugs and wooden stakes.

I think the moral of this exercise is that regarding vampires there are no facts, only myths. I think if I don’t stray too far from the myths I can do whatever the hell I want, it seems everyone else does!

battered laptop

Despite Clicquots best efforts, the laptop is still working and I'm laying the finishing touches to language in the blood two. I'm still looking for an interesting subtitle and it is far from published. First I have to see if my lovely editor has time to take this project on. Any suggestions for a subtitle are welcome!

Clicquot the cat loves the laptop; scrolling through emails fascinates him but results quickly in a two pawed pounce against the screen. If I ignore him he wanders over the keyboard or starts gnawing on the screen. It's a wonder the poor thing still works the amount of time it has been pounced flat against the table. Needless to say, you have to switch the laptop off when he comes along, so I mostly only get between 2pm and 5pm to get some writing done, when his majesty is enjoying his nap.

The good news is that spring has sprung here. The water is still too cold to brave it without a wetsuit but on a sunny day it is definitely beach weather here. I tried taking the laptop out on to the balcony yesterday and that seemed to work to an extend as Clicquot was busy sniffing and exploring around me. I'm glad he doesn't seem the type to jump over the railing chasing some beasty, but he is only 4 and half months old, so close supervision is still needed.

The start of my work is looming large and there is still so much I want to get done, but sometimes you just need to switch the computer off and enjoy what is all around you. Clicquot will only be a kitten for a short time, when he is a big cat that wants to sleep all day, I'll pick up speed again. Now where's that fluffy mouse!

Bookreview: Snippets by Laura Besley

I've been looking forwards to reading this selection of flash fiction because Laura Besley is like me a blogger and new author. I'm also putting together a book of short stories so I was interested to see her work. The author has lived like myself in the Netherlands and the UK, but I ended up in France and she in Hong Kong. I was disappointed not to read about Hong Kong life in the stories, but that is on a personal note and doesn't take away from a great collection of work.

The Blurb:

Murder, a drug addict, an arranged marriage, a groom on his wedding day, an old couple on a day out: this collection of flash fiction traverses twenty-one lives, giving snippets of their relationships , their highs and lows, their struggles and successes.

My opinion:
This is a great selection of very short stories or as the author calls it flash fiction. They deal with every day situations like death, love, duty and even a dinner party. All of the stories were good but I was often left wanting more from a situation or a character. It is flash fiction and therefore stories are meant to be very short but some left me dissatisfied. However here are some of my highlights:
SPAG BOL
I thought this was very original, a mundane conversation by a couple whilst preparing spaghetti Bolognese for a dinner party. During the conversation you receive the entire recipe.
DOWN THE HILL
About an elderly woman and her wheelchair bound husband, I can't say too much but it had me laughing out loud.
LETTERS FROM THE PAST
A woman sits in her bathroom looking at some letters from her past, reminiscing about someone she used to know. This was a wonderful story about regret.
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
This is about two work friends (girls) discussing the break-up of a mutual friend, the two agree that it is a terrible thing, but one friend's feelings are not sincere.

I was in two minds whether to to give this 4 or 5 out of 5. I had an issue with the genre of flash fiction, as I said it left me at times dissatisfied, but the quality of the writing was good and I would love to see some longer work by this author. So 5 it is:)

Snippets is available on amazon:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Snippets-Laura-Besley-ebook/dp/B00I7I9FR6/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1391399438&sr=1-1

You can read Laura's blog on:
www.laurabesley.blogspot.com

Optimism II

Turned out it wasn't such a bad week after all. The basement is drying out and apart from the Saturday the weather has been fine and at times sunny. I even managed to get that job after all. I'm starting the 11th of March in the duty free shop@nice airport. The airport has an unique atmosphere and I enjoyed my previous season there very much. It's at times unpredictable and you have to be willing to do overtime, but unlike my job in Monaco; the overtime is paid. I'll be working either the early morning or late evening so I should be able to keep writing and get that much needed beach time. I mean tans don't just happen!

As much as you love something and would like to write about it, sometimes it doesn't fit with the character. I have a background in jewellery and a love of gemstones, so it made sense to make Cameron a jewellery thief. I also have a love of anything airplane and one of my most amazing aviation experiences was to go up in a vintage Tiger moth. I was at the time learning to fly and not worried when the pilot suggested we do some tricks. The loop de loop was done at such slow speed that it seemed we would be stuck upside down at the top of the loop. The Tiger moth however is known for its maneuverability at low speed and made an excellent training airplane:

I would love to get Cameron to fly one of these, but to lean how to fly you would have to put in some daylight hours first. Maybe his friend Charley would've had his license and experience of night time flying. On a clear night you could've flown one of these without problems. I might consider an aviation story for book 2. Modern airports are unfortunately a no go for vampires, but maybe some of the passengers stories will inspire me.

I hope to get a lot of writing done before I start the job, but the kitten is doing it's best to stop that from happening. He sleeps between 2 and 5pm if I'm lucky, but the rest of the time he is trying to type on my laptop too.(Or biting the screen!)

To finish of the week we had the excellent ladies 1500M speed skating results. Well done the Dutch girls for getting gold, silver, bronze and chocolate. (One of the french ski team came up with that to take some comfort in coming fourth. I think that is rather sweet; so you came fourth! poor you here's a medal made of chocolate:)

So bring on the week, the sun is shining....what could could go wrong? I also would like to thank Clicquot for his input, that screen really did need to be pounced upon and knocked flat, the blog is so much the better for it!

Optimism

On Monday night I went to bed full of confidence and good cheer. I just had two job interviews which I thought had gone well and the Netherlands were heading the medals table in the winter Olympics. Tuesday morning I got up and after many days of rain, it was a glorious sunny day. I jumped out of bed and told my self: 'this week is going to be great!'
What an idiot I can hear you say, never assume the best, you're setting yourself up for a fall.

First I received a call from one of the jobs; they had picked someone else for the 1st of March start, but they may have something for me in April. Disappointing but no disaster, still in the running for the other job.

Then I looked at how my book promotion was going. Again no disaster but things could have gone better, to cheer my self up I went to Youtube to look at the videos of my kitten Clicquot. As I observed the number of hits I realised that my cat would probably be famous before me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVU8ZeqqJVc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VSMFERu0Uk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-Ddtwioj_U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IfD6H_2-YY
No problem there I still think he is adorable and I wish him well in his acting career.

Then I braved outside and enjoyed a nice walk along the beach in the sun and on the way home I stopped at a cash dispenser to get some Euro's. Transaction went as normal until the notes were due to come out. The machine made an attempt to spew out the notes but didn't succeed, it frantically dinged urging me to take my cash. It was 30€, again no disaster but the surly attitude of the bank staff who just would not believe me, really put me in a bad mood. Now I have to wait for my online transaction statement and somehow prove the BNP bank stole my money!

I just got home when a friendly neighbour informed me that some of our cellars were flooded including mine. They had done work on the heating system and now there was a layer of water in the cellars. Not too much got soaked and I wouldn't say it was a disaster, I mean, how dare I speak of disasters when Somerset  in England has been under water for 8 weeks and most of Europe had to deal with some flooding crisis or another.

Here on the mountainous côte d'Azur we had problems with the unusual weather patterns too. Rain/snow fall is 40% above normal and is creating a lot avalanches, landslides, flash floods and even a train crash;

when the rain dislodged a massive boulder which hit the train and knocked it of the rails, unfortunatly 2 people where killed and many injured.

So all in all my life is still pretty good and I have a lot to be grateful for, but I will think twice about jumping out of bed saying: 'This week is going to be great.'
This week is going to be average and that will have to do, it could be so much worse.

Free book giveaway

In order to get more reviews for my book I'm running another free book promotion from the 7th to the 11th of February. It's the last push to promote this book before I hopefully have something else to put out there. If you haven't read it, this is what it is about:

This funny story follows Scottish vampire Cameron Blair, as he comes to terms with his new ‘life’, from his first days as a hapless vampire in war-torn France to the glamorous modern day setting of the Côte d’Azur. Along the way, he develops a distinctive taste for the finer things in life: jewels, yachts, small dogs and champagne-infused human...

http://www.amazon.com/Language-blood-Angela-lockwood-ebook/dp/B00EMEN1P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391763139&sr=8-1&keywords=language+in+the+blood+by+angela 

Time is running out as the job market is hotting up here. A lot of companies on the Côte d'Azur recruit now for the summer season, and I'm pleased to say that I have 2 interviews lined up. As much as I would like to become a full-time writer; it's not a realistic prospect just now. The seasonal contracts run from about March to October so the race is on to get as much done as possible before that. 

So time for this writer to take off those comfy lounge about the house garments, apply make-up and uncomfortable shoes. To put on that smile that says: 'No writing is just a hobby, I really, really want to work here and in 5years time I see myself in a senior role!'

ISBN

I'm having a very frustrating day looking into promoting my self published book. I'm feeling very overwhelmed by all the advice and information that is out there. One handy site I got was for Bowker.
www.bowker.co.uk
according to their site, Bowker is the world's leading provider of bibliographic information management solutions designed to help publishers, booksellers, and libraries better serve their customers. The company is focused on developing various tools and products that make books easier for people to discover, evaluate, order, and experience. Their service is free and came recommended. I decided to give it a try and went on to register. Soon I came unstuck as I am the publisher and I don't have an ISBN number hence I don't exist as such even though I have published via KDP.  To my surprise I discovered that you can request an ISBN number for an e-book.

Via the same link I ended up on their page to buy an ISBN number at 125$. Even though this was via the UK site it gave me an US form and no way to fill in my french details. After some more research I discovered that you have to request an ISBN number in the country where you live.

My heart sank as I went on the AFNIL (the french agency for issuing ISBN) I encountered a website that could do like a few things here in France, with being dragged screaming and kicking into the 21st century. I tried phoning them as I wasn't quite sure if the 'Agence Francophone pour la Numérotation Internationale du Livre' was quite the right place for my English language book. After trying all 3 options on their automated service I got either referred to their website or could leave a fax number after the beeb. What I have learned here is not lose patience and just start filling out forms, if you do it wrong they bounce them back and you start again. (I know a laborious way of fact finding but it often is as quick as reading all the websites, making calls and getting it wrong anyway.) Forms dully filled out, scanned and dispatch by email and now we have to wait for 3 weeks with baited breath.

Yes I would have liked a nice website with an easy online registration form to get my ISBN straight away, but unlike US company Bowker  who charges 125$ the french registration is free. The French appreciate their art and literature and if you have the patience and determination there is a lot of help to support you in your endeavors. So today I have to say, vive la France; if all goes well you'll have saved me 125$

New reasons not to be writing

To be honest, I haven't done too badly with writing this week as I exceeded my target and now have 4 short stories for a planed co-written bundle. The follow up to Language in the blood is also progressing, but rather than adding words, I deleted large sections and rewrote them.

But the next weeks are going to bring many distractions in the form of Clicquot. Not the brand of champagne but the equally orange little tomcat we decided to adopt from the local animal shelter. He is about 4 months old and as all kittens; very lively. Most of yesterday was spend following the kitten about with a camera. We managed to capture a great video of him attacking the mirror; below the link to Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVU8ZeqqJVc#t=18

He is currently asleep on the chair next to me so I can get some time to catch up with emails and write this blog post. Next week I will have to seriously look at promoting the book, so be on the lookout for another free promotion period coming up. Meanwhile I hope you will enjoy Clicquot's antics.

Book reviews: Dark and Fanaticism by Cody Alan Reel

I down-loaded both these books for free as they are self-published books. A lot of you don’t bother with self-published, but why not? It is not easy to find a publisher these days that will take the risk with an unknown author. More and more writers are now taking the self-published route so amongst the terrible you might find a few gems. With Cody Reel I found both. Let’s start with the gem.

Fanaticism by Cody Alan Reel

http://www.amazon.com/Fanaticism-Cody-Reel-ebook/dp/B00ANUAO8A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390998244&sr=8-1&keywords=fanaticism+by+cody+Reel

This is a short novella about Richard a fanatical sports fan, who spends most of his time following his favourite American football team; the Philadelphia Eagles. He is overweight and apart from a resemblance to the Eagles coach Andy Reid he hasn’t got a lot going for him. It gets him abuse when the team loses, but free beer and lots of it when they win. Then he meets Violet, an attractive woman and the two get along great apart from the fact that she isn’t interested in sports. He is in love and tries to see things her way. He tries new things and discovers gradually that there is more to live than just sports.

I found this a sweet story, Cody describes the sports fan and his budding romance with Violet with humour and warmth. My problem with the story starts when Richard decides to help out at the children’s hospital. He gets mistaken for coach Reid again. The line that had a doctor saying that a sick kid was dying to meet him, had me spitting up my coffee; was it meant to be funny?  Probably not, as the story turned rather serious after this. I did like the story a lot and the ending was heart-warming although a bit naive for my liking. I rate it worthwhile reading and give it a 3.5 out of 5.

Dark by Cody Alan Reel

http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Cody-Reel-ebook/dp/B009R8I8NC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1390998317&sr=8-1&keywords=Dark+by+cody+Reel 

In short it is about the fictional Village of Marion. The sun is slowly dying and when it does murder, rape and mayhem ensues, until a group of children decides to make a stand.  

When I started reading this book I could hardly believe it was by the same writer as Fanaticism, as that was written with some understanding of humanity. I struggled through this book and when there was an alternate ending I screamed. ( but hey, I read this so you don’t have too, just wanted to make sure there wasn’t a good bit at the end) I don’t know if Cody has a 10 year old child, but it feels like it was written by said child. I give you an example from the book:

The rapists were also happy at the cover that the darkness allowed at their arousal. They would pick up women as they screamed: the town in a dark chaos that was sometimes too busy to hear. Most men tried to be heroic and safe her, but a murderer would appear and kill him before he could. Then the murderer would kill the rapist and the woman.

What? Why? Anyway, don’t bother with this one. I rate it 1.5 out of 5.

Get to work!

The holidays are done, the husband is back at work and nothing should stop me from writing? Nothing apart from those dirty windows and...... oh dear that balcony looks filthy. Decided to just spend today going around the house cleaning, tidying and fixing all those little things that needed fixing. The living room has been nearly a year without a proper lamp. That bare bulb on the ceiling was an embarrassment; well no longer! Surly tomorrow I will be able to switch on my computer with a clear conscience.

3PM and I finally get to switch on my computer to catch up on my emails and maybe I can get some writing done before I need to put dinner on. Now the windows are clean and the light is streaming in I can see that the paintwork looks like it has seen better days. It will have to wait. It is too easy to get distracted again as there is always something that needs fixing, so I'm setting myself a target for the week. Maybe if I'm done by Thursday I'm treat my self to a Friday of painting walls;)

Target for the week:
1.Write 5000 words for the book, seems a lot but I'm a quick writer.
2.Write a short story(cheating here as it is done, it just needs a bit of editing) I'm very exited about this project as I want to publish a book with a few friends, featuring our short stories. I only have 2 so far, so some more work needed.
3.Do a book review on the blog.

Not overly ambitious, but there are a few other projects I want to look at like doing another book promotion. Oh and yes looking for a job.....