Amazon will allegedly be publishing 122 books, fiction and non-fiction, in the autumn.   This is far more than many traditional publishers produce in an entire year - or two or three years, even.  Not only can authors already self-publish with Amazon's Create Space (for paperbacks) and Kindle (for ebooks), not only are all authors offered virtual shelf-space and dedicated pages on Amazon's massive - and always growing - site, now Amazon is diving into the role of a traditional publisher.  And I say good! Does this action finally kill off the myth that ebooks, including self-published ebooks, don't sell?  If there wasn't money to be made then a hefty company like Amazon wouldn't be expanding further into this field.  While many businesses take chances, the successful ones only take informed chances.  If a product works and is wanted and is affordable, it will sell.  If a system, no matter how long-established, ceases to provide what is wanted it's customers

Wirral's annual Bookfest began today, with a chick-lit event at Bromborough Civic Centre with authors Lesley Pearse and Judy Astley.  Tuesday sees Professor Stephen Hawking at Birkenhead Central Library, talking about a replica Viking longship named Draken Harald Fairhair, which will sail to Wirral from Norway next year.  Wednesday brings Sir Andrew Motion, a former Poet Laureate, to Bromborough Civic Centre.  There are two events on Thursday 13th.  Elizabeth Williams, of the Gaskell Society, will give a talk at Bebington Central Library about the role of love in Jane Austen's and Charlotte Bronte's fiction.  The history of Birkenhead will be the subject of a talk by Elizabeth Davey at Upton Library. The event which interests me the most will be held at Wallasey Central Library on Friday, when Gavin Chapell will give a talk about the infamous Wirral privateer called Fortunatas Wright.  Personally, I suspect Wright might just be a pseudonym used by Spanish Jones....  F

Apparently, former SNP leader Gordon Wilson wants a referendum on the government's proposals to allow same-sex marriage.  In  a nine-page document he allegedly described same-sex marriages as an assault on Xtian values which could lead to social disintegration and sexual confusion. Excuse me, but exactly how can two people loving each other and deciding to get married bring about the end of life as we know it?  Who is anyone to declare how love should be expressed or where love should blossom for anyone other than themselves?   And how do gay people become a social hazard through marrying each other; does this mean that by remaining unmarried they're somehow more safe?  How ridiculous. As for Xtian values, how about:- “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.” Matthew 7:1 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 Ac

Have you ever loved a story so much that you wanted to visit the place where it happened? Have you been so involved in a scene that you felt like you were really there? Well, a new innovation means you almost can be there - almost. When an ebook's tale is set in a particular place - a cafe, a theatre, an historic location, a bowling alley etc., - then readers can click a link to learn more about the factual place. This opens up a new angle in virtual tourism, which could potentially result in readers of a story booking into a hotel or diner where their fictional heroes stayed. So what we have here is another way of writers gaining an income. Just as sports people are sponsored to wear trade logos, then why couldn't writers be sponsored to include linked-to places/businesses in their ebooks? The principles are fairly similar. Blind Fate by Patrick Brian Miller and Dixie Noir by Kirk Curnutt are the first of these innovative ebooks to be published on Kindle (which c

Hazel and Adele, a long time ago... There are some photos which simply make you smile.  They might not be the most professionally done or the most artistic, but they're precious in their own way.  Like this one, above, which shows my sister and I paddling somewhere near Southampton.  I totally forget the name of the place; it had three shallow pools in a row, and I recall feeling incredibly adventurous for walking through each of them all by myself.  We visited this place more than once during various visits to my Aunt Kathleen and Uncle George's home.  My four cousins were probably paddling not too far away, just out of camera shot.  My first typewriter, a Smith Corona, which was a Xmas present shared with my sister.  I used to type poetry on this before mailing it off to various magazines.  Some of it got published, too...  This machine worked well for many years until the carriage developed an annoying habit of jumping spaces or of not moving at all.  This didn't exac

Enjoy!   

Learn about the history of tattooing, and about Liverpool's famous tattooing family, of which Richie Tattoo Artist is a member, in this interview with Richie broadcast on Radio Merseyside in 1996.