Every year that goes by since I first wrote this, I am more certain that the quotation that opens this post is increasingly important to remember. August 23, 2012 “Never put in writing anything you don’t want people to read.” V.V.Verrill (1913-2005) That is not the only quotation from my mother indelibly enscribed onto my […]
Dreams & Aspirations – Repost
During my tenure as director and editor for Honno: Welsh Women’s Press, I encouraged my mother to write her World War II memoirs. I presented my siblings and my sons with a privately published copy on her 90th birthday. These memoirs were subsequently published as an ebook, Following the Troops: Life for an Army Wife, […]
Among Friends – Repost
Shortly after Avalon Books published my debut novel, the sale of Avalon to Amazon’s imprints was announced and finalized. This was my short farewell to my editor, Lia Brown. For most of us, losing an editor is one trauma we don’t anticipate. In my case, I found an editor and a publisher in one year and […]
Meet Avalon Author Leigh Verrill-Rhys by Rebecca L. Boschee – Repost
This post first appeared two months after my debut novel debuted in April 2012. I hope you don’t mind that I’m including the interview that my colleague, Rebecca L. Boschee, did for the Avalon Authors Blog. I haven’t changed a word! June 20, 2012 Today we’re talking to Avalon author Leigh Verrill-Rhys about her novel […]
Title Search – Repost
This repost contains some music links to artists and songs that were inspirational to me for some personal, as well as professional, reasons. Again, this was part of the promotion I did for my debut novel. February 23, 2012 Forget blurbs. Forget synopses. Forget even writing a novel or composing the jacket cover biography. The […]
Self-Promotion & Me & All Those Who’ve Played Their Part – Repost
You may find this particular repost about self-promotion of value. As the date confirms, this was first posted three months before my debut contemporary novel was released. January 23, 2012 While watching Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, I noticed the frequency of the self-promotion opportunities taken by the artists and writers (portrayed according to Allen’s story) […]
Interview with L. W. Rogers – Repost
The opportunity to interview the Avalon Books western novelist, L W Rogers, came after I had read two of Zane Grey’s novels. January 11, 2012 Today, I have the pleasure of talking to L W Rogers, author of several Avalon Westerns whose latest novel, Superstition Trail was released just before Christmas 2011. I would like to thank […]
A Few of My Favorite (Seasonal) Things – Repost
This article listed some of my favorite films and stories at Christmas. In it I’ve mentioned Dylan Thomas’s story, A Child Christmas in Wales. This year, if you’re in San Francisco, on December 10th 2014 or Livermore, CA on December 14th, you can hear this delightful story read at Merced Public Library (near Stonestown, SF) or […]
Interview with Ilsa Mayr: The Widow – Repost
Disclaimer: This interview appeared shortly after the publication of Ilsa Mayr’s novel, The Widow, a book about one woman’s experience of illegal immigration. There are always circumstances that humanize a situation that is fraught with difficulties. This story is imaginary and does not address the reality of the millions of illegal aliens who have crossed […]
The Tyranny of Popularity
From the time we begin the socialization process of leaving the cosseted safety of our family home (sometimes as early as a few weeks old), we are encouraged – even coerced – into wanting to be popular. Popular means that we fit in, follow the crowd, don’t stand out; stay in line, do as you […]