Riverside Writers’ meeting last night was unusually well attended, largely due to the coverage given in the local press about an event I'd organised. We were joined by Gary Smailes from Bubblecow http://www.bubblecow.com/  who delivered an information-packed talk about today’s publishing business and the value of social networking. First Gary talked about the pros and cons of self-publishing, and the various options available. These roughly fall into two categories - the kind you pay for, or the web-based sort where you upload your MS to a print-on-demand site. Self-publishing is really only a valid option if you plan to sell a limited number of copies to a pre-established audience, such as friends and family or a circle of acquaintances who share a specific interest relevant to your book. Increasingly, mainstream publishers instantly reject any self-published works unless they have sold an absolute minimum of 3,000 copies, and very few achieve this. Gary then moved on t

Events listings leaflet for Wirral Bookfest 2009; reproduced with permission. To view larger, simply click on either image, then click on 'All Sizes' in the menu bar. The countdown to this year's Bookfest begins! We will be presenting New Tales from Old Byways at 7pm on Wednesday, October 14th at West Kirby Library. All our stories and poems will have a local Wirral theme, which means they will be set locally or have some link with the area. This is the second time Riverside Writers has taken part in this week-long festival, which will see twenty-one events taking place in libraries across the peninsula. The head librarian at West Kirby Library, told me there has been a lot of interest in New Tales for Old Byways already.

Richard took this photo of me yesterday. It was taken in our garden; you can see part of the thick curtain of glossy ivy which climbs up the wooden fence by the contorted hazel tree, right by the entrance to the Grove or "circular lawn" as I obliquely describe it in my latest Hubpage: http://hubpages.com/hub/Adeles-Garden The photo was taken for use with my author's bio for a horror/dark fantasy anthology to be edited by Raven Digitalis , who started this project two years ago. Raven intends to submit the MS to an interested prospective publisher on October 1st. My contribution was Spanish Jones , part one of which was broadcast live on 7 Waves Radio in October last year. It's a tale of pirates, selkies and witches fighting to the death on Hilbre Island and Middle Eye. Anyway, here's hoping that the MS will be accepted. Meanwhile, Riverside Writers have now received one quote for printing our anthology. Obviously we're waiting for other quotes to come in, b

While Richard spent the morning trying to sleep off one of his infamous migraines, I wrote more of Seth’s Basement , my effort for this month’s Riverside Writer’s project which was set on the theme of The Artificial Head. It’s been fun to write, and as far-fetched as my story may seem it’s actually based on a guy who had a similar set-up in his own basement. Truth can be stranger than fiction, for sure; I named one of my fictional mannequins Anton after the real-life character. Riverside Writers’ next meeting is tomorrow night, and we’re going to be joined by editor Maurice James who’ll be giving a talk about the kind of things editors look for in submitted MS.   Maurice runs the annual Coast to Coast writing competition. It’s been raining constantly here today, and both dogs are restless. It’s walkies time and they know they’re going nowhere. If it was just a light shower I’d dress Emily and Ygraine in their little raincoats and off we’d go. At least the fickle English weather

Photos from Parallel Dimensions, the Fantasy and Science-Fiction event organised by me, which took place at West Kirby Library, Wirral, on 11th July, 2009. Adrienne Odasso David Tallerman Hazel Dixon David Clements Adele Cosgrove-Bray

After the recent horrific heat, now we have charcoal skies, strong breezes and monsoon rain. All hail the English summer…! So who’s been watching Torchwood ? The longer story format works well, I think; better than the one story per episode format, as the plot is much more rounded. I prefer Torchwood to Dr Who --not that with our resident Dr Who fan I don’t end up watching both. Usually, anyway. I’ve been reading Laurell K Hamilton’s  Skin Trade (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter)  and there’s only one thing wrong with it--I’ve got stacks of work to do and I keep thinking about what’s happening in that instead. No, seriously, it’s an excellent detective story. The prose is tight and the plot fast-paced, and so far (¾ through the novel) Anita’s kept her knickers on. No doubt they’ll fly off at some point. However, the emphasis of this novel is firmly on hunting down the bad guys. A great read. I was chatting with someone recently--no names to be mentioned--and she was complaining about t