Hope always?
We’ve waited and waited for the summer up here in the north. Over the last couple of days it seems to have come. There are concerns I know about cop failure yet nature is cellar still working. During our trip to the Lake District a few weeks ago the flowers were glorious, both the cultivated ones in the many gardens we visited and the wild ones. At the verges of roads and in some of the gardens of the big houses we visited the grass isn’t cut back so much and you see swathes of yellow, purple, blue and pink form the wild flowers growing there. This is giving the bees and the butterflies a chance, and thereby our planet isn’t it?
In my French conversation class we can become quite political and quite philosophical, often veering towards the doom and gloom, but one lady declared she would just sit in the garden with her sun hat on and enjoy the sun. This reminded of me being astounded when one fine spring day we went to Kew Garden with my husband’s grandmother and she remarked that the spring had also come that early one year during the war. Nature went on regardless of the pickle that we humans were getting into.
Do most of our stories have an upbeat ending or even one that gives the possibility of hope? Some don’t of course and they can be quite dramatic and challenging but on the whole don’t they usually leave some space for optimism? Is this what we are to do? And in fact don’t even those challenging ones get some of our fears out into the open so that we can face them?
Happy reading and writing, everyone.
Writing news
I’ve just started the ‘get rid of clichés’ edit of Peace Child 6.
I have three articles on Talking About My Generation
I review:
a rather interesting book that gives another view of Manchester - https://talkingaboutmygeneration.co.uk/review-something-rich-and-strange-manchester-edited-by-paul-dobraszczyk-and-sarah-butler/?utm_
a performance of Lord of the Dance at Manchester’s Palace Theatre - https://talkingaboutmygeneration.co.uk/review-lord-of-the-dance-at-the-palace-theatre-manchester/
the Bolton food festival https://talkingaboutmygeneration.co.uk/review-the-bolton-food-and-drink-festival-2024/
On My Blog
I’ve talked to two writers and an artist this month. I chat to PamPottinger and India Rose about their book The Sea and the Moon. I also talk to Linda Morse about her collection of monologues, And I Said
I’ve added an article as well about a book I’ve worked on and how it deals with time: Significant Dates.
The Young Person’s Library
I’ve added two new books this month. A Celebration of Beatrix Potter on Arts and Letters is perhaps also for adults though can aid some younger readers with project work.
The Taexali Game by Nancy Jardine is a YA text that combines video gaming with time travel.
Recommended read
I loved The Lost Diary by Rose Alexander.
Two riveting stories form the past combine with a more recent dilemma.
This story covers three of the
grimmest aspects of World War II, aspects not often covered in mass market lit:
the Death Marches, German civilian refugees and rapes by Russian soldiers.
The personal story of Katja and Lou is gripping and we
are kept guessing right until the very end.
The framework is of Katja at last
telling her daughter Jo the true story of what happened to her and of Jo
reading Lou’s story in the forgotten diary.
There is surprise after surprise.
Jo too has her problems but realises
that they are of little significance compared to what happened to her parents.
Yet Katja’s narration of what
happened also helps to solve Jo’s problems.
A fantastic read
Find your copy here
Note, this is an affiliate link and a small portion of what you pay, at no extra cost to you, may go to Bridge House Publishing.
Giveaway
This month I’m giving away The Prophecy.
Grab your copy here. You’ll find two different e-book files and a PDF plus a lot of other free materials here.
Kaleem Malkendy is different – and
on Terrestra, different is no way to be.
Everything about Kaleem marks him out form the rest: the blond hair and dark
skin, the uncomfortable cave where he lives and the fact that he doesn’t know
his father. He’s used to unwelcome attention, but even so he’d feel better if
some strange old man didn’t keep following him around.
That man introduces himself and begins to explain the Babel Prophecy – and
everything in Kaleem’s life changes forever.
Please leave a review on Amazon, if you’re allowed to, on Good Reads and anywhere else you can.
The Schellberg Project
The posts may be helpful for teachers who are familiar with the Schellberg stories or who are teaching about the Holocaust. They may also be interesting for other readers of historical fiction.
The month I have written about Christian Resistance to the Holocaust and the NaziRegime
Some notes about my newsletters and blogs
They do overlap a little but here is a summary of what they all do.
Bridge House Authors For all those published by Bridge House, CaféLit, Chapeltown or The Red Telephone or interested in being published by us. General news about the imprints. News for writers. Links to book performance. Sign up here.
The Bridgetown Café Bookshop where you can buy my books and books published by Bridge House Publishing, CafeLit, Chapeltown Books and The Red Telephone. Visit us here.
Gill’s News: News about my writing, The Schellberg Project, School Visits and Events. Book recommendations and giveaways. Find it here.
Pushing Boundaries, Flying Higher News about conferences and workshops to do with the young adult novel. (infrequent postings) Sign up here.
Red Telephone Books News about our books and our authors. Sign up here.
A Publisher’s Perspective Here I and some other editors blog as a publisher. Access this here.
The Creative Café Project Listings and reviews of creative cafés. See them here.
CaféLit Stories Find these here
Gill James Writer All about writing and about my books. View this here.
Gill’s Recommended Reads Find information here about books that have taken me out of my editor’s head and a reminder of the ones I’ve highlighted in this newsletter.
Gill’s Sample Fiction Read some of my fiction here.
The House on Schellberg Street All about my Schellberg project. Read it here.
Writing Teacher All about teaching creative writing. Some creative writing exercises. Access this here. I also invite other writers to provide prompts and work for critique.
Books Books Books Weekly offers on our books and news of new books. Find them here.
The Young Person’s Library The children’s book catalogue. Access it here.
Fair Submissions Find it here.
Opportunities for writers are added several times a day. Roughly once a month I send it out to a list. If you would like to be on that list, sign up here.
Happy reading and writing.
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