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November 2007
I have made a start on the 6th Cotswolds story, set in Lower Slaughter. The Baring-Gould biography has made very good progress lately, and might even be finished during 2008. My subject has turned 50 and written his two most popular novels.
3rd December 2007
Far too much rain forecast for comfort. Having dug channels and ditches all over the place, I have good reason to hope the water will flow away from the house, but I cannot help feeling nervous. Half of England must be feeling the same after the past 12 months.
More Baring-Gould than Cotswolds on my mind these days, but have steady feedback from A COTSWOLD MYSTERY, with a lot of readers reporting high levels of enjoyment from it, which is nice.
2nd February 2008
Candlemas Day - the equivalent of Groundhog Day. Last year there were three lovely warm sunny days early in Feb, followed by the most disappoitning summer I can remember. Today is freezing cold and grey, with rain forecast for tomorrow. I am hoping this presages a decent summer.
On the weekend of 7-9th March 2008, I’m running another of my residential writing workshops, in Ludlow. There are still two vacancies, to bring the group up to 12. These weekends are always very refreshing, full of games and exercises designed to bring out images and connections which can form the basis of new stories and poems. The venue is the Bishop Mascall Centre, which is very economical, and handy for the interesting old town. (Later - the weekend was tremendous fun, with some fantastic writing achived. Another similar workshop weekend is booked, 28-30 November)
There is good news on the book production front. paperback of DEATH IN THE COTSWOLDS (which is sold out in hardback) due April 08. BLOOD IN THE COTSWOLDS due in hardback in July, and the paperback of A COTSWOLD MYSTERY scheduled for August. And I am told that Waterstones have committed to taking the Cotswolds titles, at last, so perhaps this is another optimistic sign for 2008.
29th March 2008
SLAUGHTER IN THE COTSWOLDS is very nearly finished. The action takes place between Lower and Upper Slaughter, two very beautiful villages in the middle of the Cotswolds region.
The animals have survived the very wet and windy winter quite well. I can''''''''''''''''t recommend January in Herefordshire, I must admit, and might find myself seeking the sun next year, if I can get away.
There is a new member of the household - Selena, a small black cat who is a great asset. Funny, clever, well-behaved and very beautiful. I have never known such a very likeable cat before.
30th April 2008
A lot of public appearances (see that section) have been organised to mark the publication of two new paperbacks and a hardback this summer. DEATH IN THE COTSWOLDS, which is the third in the series, is out now in paperback, and selling very well. The Cotswold Bookstore in Moreton-in-March has raised considerable interest in the area, with magnificent sales.
I have just had a short holiday in Berlin. I had never been there before and had little idea what to expect. I loved it! A modern, relaxed, efficient city, with friendly people and a wide variety of places to visit. We met a lot of people who go back there repeatedly, being hooked on it.
Rubbish weather throughout 2008 so far. Cold, wet and windy. But the garden is looking good - this is always the best season for it.
The sixth Cotswold novel is almost ready for my editor to see. SLAUGHTER IN THE COTSWOLDS is still my preferred title. It is set in Lower Slaughter. And I have an outline for a seventh FEAR IN THE COTSWOLDS, where Thea and her dog have to spend a month in midwinter in Hampnett - a strange little place with a most remarkable church.
15th May 2008
The book signing in Moreton-in-Marsh was a huge success. Possibly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, given the enormous sales that were made in the week before and after the event. The staff at the Cotswold Bookstore are amazing - they actually read books, make genuine recommendations and are impressively committed to the business of selling books. This is, for reasons I have never understood, quite astonishingly rare.
The Murder Mystery evening at Evesham Library this week was also a lot of fun. I gave a little talk and sold some books.
My computer was struck by lightning on 4th May. The storm was right overhead, and I am not the only person affected. But mine processor and other bits of hardware died, causing a long and expensive repair job. Luckily, nothing crucial seems to have been lost.
SLAUGHTER IN THE COTSWOLDS is now official - no publication date yet, though.
1st June 2008
Two preoccupations just now - the weather and my attempts to arrange a trip to Mongolia, to coincide with the solar eclipse on 1st August. There has been a major cock-up there, with no scheduled flights to the west of the country, where the eclipse will be visible. Clearly, an adventure looms.
Sheep shearing time again. They are hot and itchy and their bottoms are not a pretty sight. How many animals are completely incapable of keeping their own backsides clean? At least cows and horses use their tails to good effect, and cats and dogs seem to constantly attend to this task.
10th June
CrimeFest in Bristol was a great event at the weekend. Very well attended, with numerous panels discussing all aspects of crime writing, it provided an excellent opportunity for networking. I also discovered advance copies of BLOOD IN THE COTSWOLDS in the bookshop there, much to my surprise. It looks great, with red lettering on the cover, and a sinister sky.
The sheep are shorn, just in time for a few days of blazing hot sunshine. I have mountains of wool everywhere, and am dyeing a lot of it.
The garden is a sea of buttercups, which although embarrassing since they are undeniably weeds, it does have a certain drama.
Much of my attention this month is on Baring-Gould. He is now 58, his last child just born and his first three daughters attracting offers of marriage from all sides. His novel Mrs Curgenven of Curgenven, which I have just read for the first time, is magnificent. Probably the Praxis title for 2009.
July 2008
''Well at least it is better than last year,'' - is what everyone is saying about the weather. Cold, windy, wet, but nobody has been flooded yet.
Less than two weeks until I go off to Mongolia. Trying not to worry about late flights, missed rendezvous, clouds obscuring the solar eclipse on 1st August - and excessive prices. The initial cost of the trip has doubled, which is no joke.
JOHN HERRING is now available. One of Baring-Gould''s most popular novels, this is a chunky work, with a great cast of characters and some wonderful Victorian riffs on missionaries and spurious gold mines... £12.50. Email orders direct to me.
SLAUGHTER IN THE COTSWOLDS is provisionally scheduled for next February and FEAR IN THE COTSWOLDS is under way. Think snow, and computers and homesick au pair girl...