well, still having problems with the final chapter of my novella, I'd hoped to finish it by wednesday evening but not getting too far with that. On the plus side, I've managed to make a good start on something that's been floating about in the back of my mind for several years and the good news is that for me at least, it's something of a departure and even more shocking, it looks like it might just be heading for of all things, A HAPPY ENDING! (now that will be a first!)

Here's an extract for anyone who fancies a read:

Once, long ago in a land ruled by a queen with pale marble white skin and flowing red hair there lived a young girl and her mother. Their lives were not in the main unhappy and though they were poor, they managed somehow to get by. Every morning, the girl, Angela (for that was the name given to the young woman by her mother on the day of her birth, so blue were the baby’s eyes and so blonde was the hair on her small head that it seemed to those present that she must have been sent from the heavens above) would wake, go downstairs, drink the mug of mead her mother would leave on the table and eat the heavy bread her mother had cut for her from the loaf the baker in the nearest village would send, refusing payment as often as not. Then, having eaten she would change from the woollen slip she slept in, pulling on its place a coarse dress that had once been her mothers and she would go to work at the nearby monastery. There she would clean and serve food to the monks, always smiling and remaining polite as they helped themselves to the wine and cheese she laid out for them on the long wooden benches in their hall. Being the well mannered person she was and knowing her place in the world, she never complained when they cursed her for the poor vinegary taste of the wine she poured them just as she would stand silently, eyes downcast as they berated her for the mould on the cheese she fetched from their store rooms. She even remained quiet, only letting out the smallest cry of pain on the rare occasions when the abbot, red faced with wine and frustrated by her deft avoidance of his uncouth advances towards her, beat her and when, sweating and panting with effort, he would dismiss her, telling her to bath in clean water and wash the sinfulness from her, she would bow, nod and back quietly from his chamber before making her way down to the one part of the monastery where she could relax and enjoy herself, the stables.

Well, let me know what you all think and please leave feedback, even if it's negative! Also, I'm still not sure what stuff people put on these things so let me know what you think of the blog itself, am I boring? long winded? is there stuff that you'd like to read that I'm not putting in this thing?

Till next time!

james

recently read:

This month I have mostly been reading:

Robert Holdstock, the merlin Codex.

gotta say, unusal series but damn good! I'd have never thought of mixing the idea of greek mythology (Jason and the Argonauts) with the legend of Merlin but it actually works really well!
The three books, Celtika, iron grail and broken kings were great and rate amongst the best fantasy I've read in one heck of a long time. not only does it have believable characters and motivation, really well described settings and great action scenes, it also has the feel of an actual account, as if it's some-one's recollections rather than a work of pure fantasy!

If you're looking for something a bit different and like good well written fantasy, give it a try!

On a more personal note, I've recently finished a short story based on the new order song 1963 and featuring Anya, an evil, a-moral half demon who enjoys screwing up people's lives! it's been nice to finally get back to writing after six months of writers block!

She'll also feature in the novella I'm working on, a tale of revenge, ruined lives and love that overcomes boundries and obstacles you wouldn't believe! I've just gotta finish that and add the last chapter before it's ready to send off to the first publisher so wish me luck!

Well, until I've either read something else worth reviewing or have more news on my own stuff, bye for now and feel free to comment and have a look at the extracts and examples of my work on my web site. I'd love to know what you all think! be warned though, I do deal with adult themes so just be aware that not all of it is suitable for kids!