Tag Archives: Fiction

The Business of Books: A Sense of Place – Jane Cable on how fact and fiction can easily blur

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Writers are inspired by many different things but for me it always starts with a place. A little over two years ago I found myself in the middle of the steam punk festival in Lincoln. People in amazing costumes were everywhere, breathing life into the city’s cobbled climbs and quirky coffee shops. It felt as though I had walked into the beginning of a novel and very quickly I realised that I had. It was just down to me to write it.

Last week I went back. The latest round of editing is almost complete – it won’t be the last, but I’m finally satisfied that the manuscript is almost in good enough shape to be found a home. I have a couple of agents in my sights and a shortlist of three publishers who take direct submissions and whose criteria it fits. This time I’m going to be very careful.

The story has two main locations, the city of Lincoln itself and the picturesque village of Winteringham on the banks of the Humber. I construct the settings for my stories very carefully; I know where the characters’ houses, flats – and barges – are; the places they work; the bars and restaurants they frequent and where my heroine Rachel goes running. In my own mind I create details so rich I inhabit the settings myself – so it comes as something of a shock when they are not quite as I remembered.

Much of the Lincoln part of the story takes place along the Fossdyke Navigation which joins the heart of the city to the River Trent. I think I surprised my husband by saying, “That’s Rachel’s flat” – and surprised myself by having forgotten it has a balcony overlooking the canal. But the story doesn’t need a balcony so I won’t be adding one. The apartment in my mind is so very real it would feel uncomfortable anyway.

I don’t think this is especially strange or odd – no more than is normal for writers anyway. The best of fiction is so much about the richness of the characters, to create them I think you need to actually walk in their footsteps, inhabit their world. For me, once I’ve grounded them in a physical setting, everything else falls into place. I am completely in awe of authors who can imagine and populate whole new worlds.

But I’m having to accept that my memory is far from perfect. I needed a male character who was a without doubt a local man so I picked an unusual surname from Winteringham’s war memorial. On a return visit to the museum in Lincoln I thought it such a co-incidence a Daubney was quoted on one of the display panels. When we arrived in Winteringham, the name wasn’t on the memorial at all. I read it three or four times with growing disbelief. Was another of my characters, the enigmatic Nick, up to his tricks again?

It seems so… either that or subliminal recall is far stronger than we think. I needed to name one of the properties close to the village centre. Not anything too twee, but something comfortingly rural, so I decided on Bramble Cottage. This visit I noticed that the alleyway running up the side of the houses is called Bramble Lane. I leave you to draw your own conclusions.

 

 

Catherine Balavage’s Poetry Book What Do You Think?: A Collection of Poems Free Until 27th January

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poetry, poetry books, poet, female, women, Catherine Balavage, what do you think? writer

Some good news for poetry fans, you can get Catherine Balavage’s poetry book, What do you think?: A collection of poems, for free until the 27th January 2017. It is free on Amazon Kindle across the world. The book has received good reviews and has reached no 1 in the women’s poetry fiction chart on Amazon. Get your copy of What do you think?: A collection of poems here.

Flash Fiction: A Cuckoo in the Nest by Author Jane Carling

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Flash Fiction- A cuckoo in the Nest by author Jane Carling.

Sitting at the back of the Crematorium, the handcuffs that bound her to two prison guards chaffed Josie’s wrists. She watched her husband’s coffin being carried to its final resting place to ‘I did it my Way’. Only one wreath adorned the casket, red roses, like his blood.

Rachel Hunt, dressed in a black, sat alone in the front pew, where Josie should have been.

How had it happened? They tell me I killed him, but I can’t remember.

It was last May, when spring hailed the first call of the cuckoo, that Rachel had returned from the Costa del Crime in the guise of a deadly blonde, now calling herself Samantha. That’s when the friend requests on Facebook began, and it took a while for Josie to realize from the profile that Samantha was actually Rachel, or rats’ tails as she was known in school.

Out of curiosity Josie clicked the accept button, a click she would live to regret.

“Why the new name?”  Josie replied.  A few minutes later messenger popped up.  “I’m a widow and want a new way of life in the countryside, a whole new beginning.  Don’t you ever want to reinvent yourself?”

Josie pondered,  “Why would I? I must go, Roger’s favourite risotto is ready, will talk soon.  Stay in touch.”

As the service continued Josie clenched her fists. The handcuffs rattled. I should have known better, she thought, and so should Roger. He was a successful businessman, for goodness sake, so how could he have been taken in by this woman? Had he always wanted a blonde in his life, was that it?

She winced as she remembered the simpering. “Oh Roger you are so clever, oh Roger, you are so witty. Oh Roger…”

Then the texts.  “Good night my love, good morning darling, and laters babe…”  Laters babe?  Oh perlease. The lights reflected off her handcuffs. She should have checked his mobile sooner. Josie bit her lip. She recalled Roger’s denials and accusations when she’d confronted him. He’d argued that it was all in Rachel’s head, totally one-sided and that he loved her, Josie. Oh Roger what a big dick you were.

There was a draught as the door opened and the detective in charge sat down behind her.  Now what?  Can’t I just have today?  He whispered to one of the guards and as the vicar signaled for the curtains to begin be closed. Her cuffs were released and Stairway to Heaven began playing. Confused, Josie rubbed her wrists. ‘You’re free,’ whispered the guard. She placed her head in her hands as the curtains began to close and wept.

Rachel was hurrying out before the curtains closed. Too late though. She was arrested and bundled into a police car.  The detective waited until Josie had composed herself, then explained that formerly undiscovered CCTV footage had captured a blonde at scene of the crime, wielding the knife. It was Rachel Pratt, hustler, renowned con-woman and now a murderer.  Josie was free to go.

Later, sitting in her garden watching kites soar into the deep red sky as the sun set over the Chiltern Hills, images of that fateful day finally returned.  Roger had stepped in front of the blade that was not meant for him. Her husband had saved her life.

The distant call of a cuckoo broke the silence.

Flash Fiction- A cuckoo in the Nest by author Jane Carling.rubynewcoat

Jane Carling 2015 ©
www.janecarling.co.uk

 

 

It Takes Two – The Idea Behind KISHBOO by Sharon Boothroyd

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It was my husband Keith who had the idea of producing an e-magazine in the summer of 2014. He has pro web design experience and I had written all the text for his corporate client websites, so we were used to combining our skills and working together as a team.

We called our publishing brand Ryecorn Digital Publishing, after Ryecorn, the fictional Yorkshire town in my kindle chick- lit novella.
Keith designed all the unique graphics for the chapter headings and he also designed the book cover for me, too. I was really pleased with his design. The free android app version looked great too.

To keep costs down, we set up a free website to help promote it: www.ryecorn.orgfree.com

We had already enjoyed minor success with another online project of ours called ‘A quick read.’ This entailed uploading stories onto our website and onto the accompanying free android app.

We didn’t charge writers a fee for publication, and the website cost around £60 a year. Even though we were overwhelmed with work, as time passed, we couldn’t see how the project could develop, so sadly in 2014, after two years, we decided to close it down.

So – we had published online,on kindle and on the android app format. We both really warmed to the idea of publishing an e-mag on 3 digital platforms.

It Takes Two - The idea behind KISHBOO by Sharon Boothroyd


What could we call our magazine though? We thought of hundreds of names, but the domain names were all taken, so we hit upon the idea of blending our names to create something truly different. We really hoped that the name ‘KISHBOO‘ would stick in people’s memory.

It would be non- profit making project. We’d fund the competition prizes through the competition entry fees, and we now realised that we could use online advertising to help cover the cost of our website.

pic.KISH_2In August 2014, we were ready to launch the project! However, the actual magazine wasn’t published until October, as we needed stories and articles to fill it.

I began to send press releases out and my network of writer friends helped spread the word  for us via social media. Keith worked hard on search engine optimisation, and I began to tweet for the first time in my life.

I was worried that we would receive no articles at all because at the moment, we are unable to pay writers. However, we can offer them free promotion of their kindle books and blogs within their articles. I wasn’t even sure we would get anyone entering our competition. I needn’t have worried – the comp entries and articles began flooding in!

Back issues are easily available – here’s what the first KISHBOO looked like:

pic.KISH3Here’s the cover of the second issue, which was published in January 2015: pic.KISH4

We are now very working hard on our third issue, which will be published in April 2015. It’ll be packed with even more features.

Please visit: www.kishboo.co.uk
Find us on facebook: www.facebook.com/kishboo.mag
Follow us on Twitter: @KishbooMag

 

 

Callum Fox And The Mousehole Ghost By AC Hatter Book Review

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AC Hatter bookI do have to confess to a love for young adult fiction. When done well there are few things better in life than getting lost in a book which is written with a young imagination in mind.

I am pleased to say that Callum Fox And The Mousehole Ghost By AC Hatter is one such book. A gripping page turner that is the holy grail of young adult fiction: a book that is enjoyable to the young and old alike. Well-written, intelligent and well thought-out. The characters are highly likeable and well rounded. The historical parts, as we flip from the past and present of the Mousehole ghost named in the title, Jim A World War II evacuee, are very well written and researched. I was really drawn into the story and read the entire book in one day. We already included Callum Fox And The Mousehole Ghost in our Perfect Holiday Reading article.

This book is also funny with great observations from the characters. I really felt like I knew the characters and I found them loveable and amusing. Although the book is also about ghosts as well as real people I didn’t have to suspend my disbelief.

Callum is a great character. A very modern boy indeed, loving Facebook and listening to his iPod. He goes through a very interesting journey in this book, making Callum Fox And The Mousehole Ghost a truly wonderful coming-of-age book. Brilliant stuff and I cannot wait to see what AC Hatter does next.

Callum Fox’s summer holiday in Cornwall isn’t working out quite as he’d expected. His Grandad’s turned out to be a miserable old git and Sophie, the girl he met on the train to Penzance, seems to view him as more of a liability than anything else. However, his time in Mousehole starts to get a whole lot more interesting when he meets Jim, the ghost of a World War II evacuee. Seventy years separate Callum and Jim, but as their stories unfold Callum realises they have more in common than anyone could have imagined, and that some secrets last a lifetime… Callum is a fabulous, funny and feisty character who takes us on a roller-coaster of a ride around Cornwall.

Callum Fox and the Mousehole Ghost by AC Hatter is available here.

 

 

Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction Events At Southbank Centre

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London’s Southbank Centre will host a series of events in June celebrating the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2014.

The first event, an evening dedicated to aspiring writers, will take place on Monday 2nd June. The Baileys Women’s Prize and Grazia Writers’ Evening will be hosted in Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room and will provide budding authors with some of the best advice in the publishing business.

Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2014.

Kate Mosse, Baileys Women’s Prize co-founder and international No 1 bestselling novelist, will chair a distinguished panel who will be sharing their writing tips, giving advice on achieving publishing success and taking questions from the audience.

 

Kate will be joined by Sarah Waters, award-winning author of Tipping the Velvet, Affinity, and The Night Watch, as well as literary agent Felicity Blunt of Curtis Brown; Baileys Prize shortlisted and 2014 longlisted novelist and Picador editor Charlotte Mendelson; and debut novelist Emma Healey.

 

The following evening, Tuesday 3rd June, will see the return of the popular Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2014 shortlist readings.

 

The event, hosted in Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall from 6.30pm, will see this year’s shortlisted authors reading and discussing their work with Helen Fraser, chair of the 2014 Baileys Prize judges.

 

The 2014 shortlist is Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie for Americanah, Hannah Kent for Burial Rites, Jhumpa Lahiri for The Lowland, Audrey Magee for The Undertaking, Eimear McBride for A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing and Donna Tartt for The Goldfinch.

 

Now in its nineteenth year, the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2014 was set up to celebrate excellence, originality and accessibility in writing by women throughout the world. It is the UK’s most prestigious annual book award for fiction written by a woman and also provides a range of educational, literacy and research initiatives to support reading and writing.

 

For more information on the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction 2014 events at London’s Southbank Centre, head to www.womensprizeforfiction.co.uk. For ticket information and purchase, visit www.southbankcentre.co.uk

 

Should You Take Vitamins?

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Andy_Murray becomes forst man in 77 years to win Wimbledon. It is hard to know what is the best for your health and the media always seems to be giving conflicting stories. I take a multivitamin but recent press has said this is not a good idea. So, what is fact and fiction? Let’s try and find out.

In response to an article in the Daily Mail on Thursday July 25th posing the question as to whether vitamins can take years off your life, the Health Supplements Information Service (HSIS) is reminding the nation about the many benefits behind vitamins and minerals that are needed daily to fuel our bodies and keep us healthy.

SORTING OUT THE REAL FACTS:

Vitamins and minerals perform a variety of vital functions in the body, mainly due to their participation in biochemical processes including:

ü working with enzymes to help in the release of energy from food

ü helping to maintain the health of body systems and organs such as the brain, heart, blood vessels and nervous system.

Vitamins and minerals work together to maintain our health and the body cannot function without them. They are essential nutrients and a lack of such vitamins and minerals can lead to poor health.

Vitamins and minerals can be obtained from food, but modern diets are often lacking in these nutrients due to poor food choice. This is amply demonstrated by the findings from the large UK Diet and Nutrition Surveys, which methodologically are among the most robust surveys in the world.

These surveys continue to show a lack of essential nutrients to some extent across population groups but particularly in young women whose mineral intakes may be severely compromised and in children and older people where vitamin D intakes fail to match recommendations.[1]

The most recent data from this survey[2] shows that mean intakes fell below the Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) for a number of minerals, in particular iron, magnesium, potassium and selenium. This was particularly the case for boys and girls aged 11 to 18 years. Mean iron intake was 58% of the reference nutrient intake (RNI), the same proportion as in the previous survey of this age group. Mean intakes of magnesium and potassium also fell below the RNI for both boys and girls aged 11-18 years, as did zinc, calcium and iodine for girls.

Substantial proportions of older girls had mineral intakes below the Lower Reference Nutrient Intake (LRNI; a level at which deficiency is likely); 46% of girls aged 11-18 years had intakes of iron and magnesium below the LRNI; the equivalent figure for potassium was 30% and for zinc 15%. Among boys of this age group, 26% failed to achieve the LRNI for magnesium.

Intakes of calcium were of particular concern in 11-18 year old girls, an age at which calcium is particularly important for bone development. More than one in 10 girls in this age group failed to achieve the LRNI for calcium.

Significant numbers of adults also had low intakes. One fifth of adult women failed to achieve the LRNI for iron, while one in 10 men and one in 10 women failed to achieve the LRNI for magnesium.

Intakes of selenium fell below the RNI in both older children and adults. Adult women overall achieved 72% of the RNI while adult men achieved 74% of the RNI. Around half of adult women and older girls and a fifth of men and older boys had intakes below the LRNI.

It is clear that UK dietary surveys continue to show that significant numbers of the population do not achieve recommended intakes of essential nutrients. In the light of this continuing dietary gap, it is misleading to imply that vitamin pills are unnecessary.

A 2010 report entitled “Towards a Healthier Britain”[3] found evidence that vitamin and mineral supplements boost intakes and increase blood levels of these essential nutrients with fewer people taking multivitamin and mineral supplements having intakes below recommendations.

NUTRIENT SPOT LIGHT:

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is the collective name for a group of fat-soluble compounds that exhibit antioxidant activity. Antioxidants protect the body cells from the damaging effects of free radicals, which are molecules that contain an unshared electron. Unshared electrons are highly energetic and react rapidly with oxygen to form reactive oxygen species (ROS). The body forms ROS when it converts food to energy. The body is also exposed to free radicals from environmental factors such as cigarette smoke, air pollution and UV radiation. Free radicals damage cells and may contribute to the development of body organ damage.

In addition to its activities as an antioxidant, vitamin E is involved in other essential functions such as immune function, chemical messaging between cells, regulation of gene expression, and other metabolic processes.[4] Vitamin E inhibits the activity of protein kinase C, an enzyme involved in cell proliferation. Vitamin-E–replete blood vessels have been shown to be better able to resist blood cell components adhering to the blood vessel surface so helping to maintain the health of the blood vessels. Vitamin E also increases the activity of two enzymes that influence fatty acid metabolism, which again helps to maintain the health of the blood circulation.[5]

Vitamin E is one of the essential nutrients for health. Several studies, including the two studies mentioned in the Daily Mail article have evaluated the role of vitamin E in large doses, often 40 times and more greater than the RDA. These studies have involved methods similar to those used in drug trials to see if vitamin E and other essential nutrients can prevent or treat disease.

However, vitamin E, like all essential nutrients is essential for the maintenance of health and prevention of deficiency. Such drug-like trials may be of interest to researchers looking for mechanisms of action but are of no relevance for the daily health maintenance of the UK population where intake of vitamin E should follow recommended amounts. Recommended daily amounts of vitamin E have not been associated with adverse effects in healthy populations. Anyone taking medication or with any disease should ask for the advice of their health care professional about their nutrient intake.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an essential vitamin required for the formation of collagen in bone, teeth and blood vessels. It also helps to maintain the optimal activity of several enzymes and is involved in the synthesis of several physiological compounds in the body such carnitine and noradrenaline. Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant and helps in the absorption of non-haem iron (iron from plant sources).

Low vitamin C intake has been associated with conditions such as stroke[6] and periodontal disease.[7] Studies in which people have taken vitamin C supplements on a regular basis indicate that vitamin C may reduce the duration of colds.[8] Vitamin C may be useful for reducing the development of colds in people exposed to brief periods of severe physical exercise.[9]

Calcium

Calcium is an essential nutrient that plays a whole host of vital roles for health in the skeleton, blood and neuromuscular system. The essentiality of calcium for bone health is indisputable and as many as one in 10 young women in the UK have an intake which falls below the Lower Reference Nutrient Intake (LRNI),[10] an intake at which deficiency is likely with consequences for bone health throughout life.

The Journal of the American Medical Association study[11] mentioned in the Daily Mail article in which calcium was linked with cardiovascular disease (CVD) was not a randomized controlled trial (RCT) but a prospective study from which a cause and effect cannot be established with certainty. There was also no information in the JAMA paper on the duration of supplement use and a lack of information on family history of CVD. Calcium intake was self reported by the study participants and therefore subject to error. In addition, calcium intake was only measured at baseline; so change in dietary or supplemental calcium intake could not be assessed during follow-up.

Selenium

Selenium is an essential trace mineral which functions as a part of several seleno-proteins and enzymes involved in essential metabolic processes. However, In the UK, intakes of selenium are low. Data from the 2006 UK Total Diet Study showed that the mean intake of selenium is 48-58 micrograms a day which is below the UK reference nutrient intake of 75 micrograms a day for men and 60 micrograms a day for women.[12] Similar findings emerged from the latest UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) [13] in which intakes of selenium fell below the Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) in both adults and older children. Adult women overall achieved 72% of the RNI while adult men achieved 74% of the RNI. Around half of adult women and older girls and a fifth of men and older boys had intakes below the Lower Reference Intake (LRNI). Such low intakes are associated with reduced blood levels of selenium and significantly increased risk of mortality in both Europe and the US.[14],[15]

Summary:

Overall, there is ample evidence to suggest that many people in the UK have a poor diet with below recommended intakes of essential nutrients. Though these nutrients should ideally be obtained from the diet, it is clear that this is not happening. A multivitamin and mineral supplement in recommended amounts represents a useful means of helping to bridge this dietary gap.

[1] Bates B, Lennox A, Prentice A et al. (2012) National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Headline Results from Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 (combined) of the Rolling Programme (2008/2009-2010/2011). Department of Health

[2] Ibid

[3] Mason P, Ruxton C. Towards a Healthier Britain. Proprietary Association of Great Britain (PAGB) 2010

[4] Traber MG. Vitamin E. In: Shils ME, Shike M, Ross AC, Caballero B, Cousins R, eds. Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease. 10th ed. Baltimore, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2006;396-411.

[5] Ibid

[6] Myint P, Luben R, Welch A et al. Am J Clin Nutr 2008 ;87 :64-69

[7] Leggott P, Robertson P, Rothman D et al. J Periodontol 1986 ; 57 :480-485

[8] Hemila H, Chalker E. Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013 Jan 31;1:CD000980.

[9] Ibid

[10] Bates B, Lennox A, Prentice A et al. (2012) National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Headline Results from Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 (combined) of the Rolling Programme (2008/2009-2010/2011). Department of Health

[11] Xiao Q, Murphy R, Houston D, et al. Dietary and Supplemental Calcium Intake and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality. The National Institutes of Health–AARP Diet and Health Stud. JAMA Intern Med. Published online February 4, 2013. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.3283

[12] Food Standards Agency. Survey on measurement of the concentrations of metals and other elements from the 2006 UK total diet study. Food Survey Information Sheet 01/09. London: UK. FSA 2009:16-17, 37-45

[13] Bates B, Lennox A, Prentice A et al. (2012) National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Headline Results from Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 (combined) of the Rolling Programme (2008/2009-2010/2011). Department of Health

[14] Bleys J, Navas-Acien A, Guallar E. Serum selenium levels and all-cause cancer and cardiovascular mortality among US adults. Arch Intern Med 2008;168:404-10

[15] Akbaraly NT, Arnaud J, Hiniger-Favier I et al. Selenium and mortality in the elderly: results from the EVA study. Clin Chem 2005;51:2117-23.