Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

A very busy few weeks lately. Not only getting the new novel ready for publishing, but there’s the running. Esther Chilton sent me the final edit of my book and as always she has done such a wonderful job. Now begins the formatting and final examination. Hopefully it will be published in the next two weeks.

Anyway… back to the plot. Yup yours truly is a winner (twice in fact) We had the Nothern Relay Championships here a couple of weeks ago and I found myself in the A team. No pressure then! Three in a team, and each one of us ran 5k each. Guess who went last of the three? When you take over as last man in a relay and your team is ahead, trust me its not fun haha. But best foot forward as they say. We won with a margin of five minutes.

The following day I had a 10k race, and I wasn’t sure how much the previous day had taken out of me. There was only one way to find out, I guess. An undulating road race with forecast rain, not something I was looking forward to. Luckily the rain held off and the undulations were not as high as I’d expected. Once again it was best foot forward. To have a team win one day is fab. To then have an indivdiual win the following day? Well what can I say! There was a bottle of red wine opened that night. 😂

News of the new book has been social media’d. Hopefully it will be well recieved.

Have fun and happy trails x

A Greek Hike and a Marketing Idea

I like Kalamaki on the island of Zakynthos because they have turtles. This means there are no late night flights. I guess if I was a turtle meandering up a beach, to lay my eggs, I wouldn’t appreciate being buzzed by a Boeing 737. Suits me fine as I like early morning flights in and out. I’m a lazy git on holiday, I lie around reading and soaking up the sun. Although I’ll fit in one run and hike, and so decided to hike up Mount Skopos to the monastery.

There’s something about a long run or a hike that frees your mind, but also helps you ponder. I guess that’s an oxymoron? Which as a child, I thought was a stupid donkey. Anyaways, I’d taken a copy of my first book, The Siege of Mr Khan’s Curry Shop on this holiday with a mind to read it. As I walked I had an idea, more of that later because this is the hiking part. It was a great trail, and so quiet.

I’ve seen some peculiar viewing points over the years but never graffiti and sunlounger halfway up a trail.

Once you reach the top there are spectacular views of the island and of course the monastery. The exact date the monastery was built in is unknown but 1453 was a guess by a local I spoke to. It was destroyed in the earthquake that shook Greece in 1953 and rebuilt in 1962-1963.

After a rest in the café, yup there is an actual café up there run by a lovely lady, who kindly offered us a glass of water when we reached the top. After a bite to eat it was time to head back down.

Getting back to the idea I had earlier, with my book. I wrote a note inside the front cover and left it on the hotel library shelf. It disappeared for a day then reappeared and disappeared again. It’s still there now. I’m not sure if this is a good marketing ploy or been done before, but I thought over a thousand holiday makers visit the hotel every year, so why not? I’ll leave a book in every hotel I visit from now on with a little message. 😉

Happy trails, folks. x

The Heat Is On

I should be able to publish my second book in August and my third book is underway, but I have another challenge in one weeks time. After six months of various injuries I have missed so many runs. This affects my writing because a lot of planning is done on long runs. Now I’m back, I managed to secure a place on the Yorkshire Wolds Ultra. It’s a 55k race with 4,100 feet of elevation. So, a little recce was required. The Millington Loop is only 34k with 3,000 feet elevation, but it gave me chance to assess fitness, the views from the top of the Yorkshire Wolds are lovely, and in 27 degrees of sunshine it was a warm one.

Needless to say five hours out in the middle of nowhere, on your own, certainly gives you time to think. I killed a character off and then resurrected them, changed the plot completely, reintroduced an old character, and decided on an ending for the next book 😂 I guess it’s a little like therapy, but on the move and without a therapist, haha. My wife has told me I could benefit from therapy, but never to do it. She feels I may leave the practitioner with some form of traumatic disorder 🤷

Five hours was a bit slow, but that’s what happens when you stop to take photos and admire the view. I thought the circles at Thixendale were a mystical, archaeological site dating back thousands of years. But they were created by the artist Chris Drury in 2011. Oh well, I didn’t waste too much time praying to the long lost God’s of my ancestors 😉

So, if you do ever feel a little down, I can suggest getting out into the countryside, wherever you live. Run, walk, crawl, if need be. But in comparison to concrete, tarmac and the facilitation of life, it’ll certainly help.

Happy trails, folks x

Whitby Wanderings

I was supposed to be running a 74k Race on Saturday 5th July, but missed the deadline for entry. It was at that point my wife asked what we were doing for our wedding anniversary? Ooops. I quickly booked a hotel Dunsley Hall just outside the seaside resort of Whitby. I thought a few hikes (which means I get to think about my own book), some good food and maybe a glass of wine or two, would get me some brownie points.

You may not have heard of Whitby, but you will have heard of Dracula. Whitby is most famous for, apparently, Count Dracula, Captain James Cook, and Jet Jewellery. Personally I think the stunning scenery, the Abbey, the fab hikes, and the Fish and Chips outweigh the other three.

What about Dracula, or should I say Bram Stoker? Good old Bram stayed in Whitby in 1890 and I guess he was rather struck by the Abbey and the graveyard. He’d read about Vlad The Impaler and six years later his book was finished. In the book there is a ship wreck and Count Dracula comes ashore at Whitby disguised as a dog, well you would wouldn’t you? The rest is history.

There isn’t much to say about the other two, unless you are a Captain James Cook fan or a lover of black jewellery. Capt., Cook went to Whitby to sign on to a boat when he was 17 and Jet is a black gem stone. So, moving onto the hikes. I love running, but you know that. I also quite like a hike. So this is what trundling around in the Whitby countryside looks like 😉

Happy Trails, folks x

Messing With FlexClip

Have you ever heard of a book trailer? They are similar to film trailers and the idea is that the public get very excited and can’t wait for the release. My second novel is very nearly finished and my wonderful editor Esther Chilton is doing the final edit and proofread. I’m not Tom Clancy or Stephen King, so I doubt there will be a hullabaloo in the literary world, but I thought I would give it a go. Neither do I have the backing of major publishers, so it had to be a DIY job.

I then spent a few hours researching free to use book trailer companies (like we all do). FlexClip popped up a few times and so I gave it a go. It was very easy to use, and I was pleased with the outcome. Bearing in mind I am but a simple Yorkshireman. We are renown for being miserable, no idea why, I’m quite happy most of the time. I’m not putting my “masterpiece” 😂 out into the world of social media just yet. I think if it goes out to early my fan will probably forget about it. I would be interested in any comments before it goes public though. Oh! it’s better with the sound up, probably the best bit 😂

Happy Trails, folks x

Do I Need My Book To Sell

People often ask me, ‘How many copies of your book have you sold?’ Which, I suppose is natural. I always give the same answer, ‘I don’t know.’ They seem perplexed by this. How could I not know? I have to go on to explain, I wanted to write a book, if it sells, then yippee! If it doesn’t I’m not going to lose sleep. My debut novel, The Siege of Mr Khan’s Curry Shop, was 20 years in the writing so I’m just so happy that I did it.

My next book took me 3 years, so I am getting better. I recently sent the first 300 words of my upcoming second novel to Writing Magazine for James McCreet to critique. My editor told me I was “brave” he doesn’t pull any punches. For me the first two lines of his summary was good enough. “I wouldn’t be at all surprised to read this at the start of a novel published by a best selling thriller author.” I’ll take that ☺️.

My editor, Esther Chilton, is a Godsend. I am very lucky to have found her as she helps turn an OK manuscript into, what I consider, a good book. So, maybe this second novel will sell and help to eliminate the perplexed look from peoples faces. I’m sure like all things, time will tell. If you have written a book and it’s published but not selling, hey! You have achieved, something so many other people dream of. Give yourself a pat or a high five, or what ever your cultural praise is. I’ve just started playing around with FlexClip where you can create a trailer for your forthcoming book. I’ll let you know how I get on next time.

Happy trails, folks. x

Italy, a Volcano, Capri and Pompeii

As places go I like Italy, there again I like anywhere that’s hot, so not much of a recommendation. The people are great, friendly if you know what I mean. Now Capri, well that’s a different matter. Someone said. “Go to Capri, you’ll love it. It’s a beautiful island. It has cultural and artistic treasures. The ‘Bay of Naples’ with Clark Gable and Sophia Loren was filmed there. Of course that same someone must have told everybody else too!

That’s the moan over with. We could see Mount Vesuvius from our hotel and as you know I do like a volcano, so it had to be climbed.

It wasn’t a particularly difficult climb, nothing like Etna, but the views from the top are worth it.

Then it was time for Pompeii. If you are an archaeologist I can imagine Pompeii is absolutely fascinating. I’m not an archaeologist 😂Aye, it was interesting, there are quite few murals on the walls and we also saw the first ever (so I was told) Fast Food Takeaway.

I had previously thought they had been covered in lava but in fact it was ash. Now that doesn’t sound too bad, I mean a bit of ash? The problem was it amounted to about 20ft deep, and in 79AD donkeys were a common mode of transport, not the speediest of animals. Which answered my question of why they didn’t get away. There was also the fact that they underestimated the eruption, it was very sudden, and with all the ash and stones falling everywhere, the roads were probably unpassable.

So, if you ever get over to Sorrento in Italy, you might want to pop over and have a look. Pompeii is 42 sq hectares, so you need a lot of time or book a tour, and they show you the best bits.

Happy Trails, folks x

Critiqued

When I told my editor I was going to have the first 300 words of my forthcoming novel critiqued in Writers Magazine she said. “You’re brave!” James McCreet does a wonderful job of stripping your writing down to the bare bones. So I offered it up with some trepidation.

But, I am so glad I did. I’ll take his comments on board but overall I was so pleased with his summary. The phrase ‘Keep the Faith,’ springs to mind.

All I have to do now is complete the final edit of Who’s Got The Biscuits (I love the title but may have to tweak it, dunno)

Set in Bradford and Morocco it’s a thriller but with humour. I had so much fun writing the characters and hopefully will be published this August.

Happy Trails, folks x

What a Difference a Day Makes

I probably don’t need to tell you, but nature is such a phenomena in so many ways. I have started my new book a few weeks ago and was really struggling with the theme. I had the first half of Chapter One written, but I wasn’t sure what it was I was trying to write. The answer? Hike, get outside, climb the hills and let mother nature give you the peace and inspiration you need.

After two hours of hiking up, what we call, the 7 Hills I had the storyline mapped out, This will be the third book featuring Billy Lynch, his friends and family. The trouble that boy and his father get into is… believable, well kinda 😂

After the tranquillity of the forest and the hills and the turn in the weather I decided this week a trip to the coast would be in order. There is something awesome about rough seas. As a young man I once had the privilege of spearfishing during a storm in Gran Canaria. These days when I look out to sea I wonder if I was actually quite mad. But the today’s trek served it’s purpose as I walked I was inspired to write the darker side of the next book. Needless to say not everyone will survive. Ah, days can be so very different 😉 Happy Trails, folks x

Santorini

I was told Santorini was the most beautiful of all Greek Islands. I often wonder who comes up with this information. I mean yeah… it’s beautiful, but more beautiful than Kefalonia? I suppose it could be. It has whitewashed villages chiselled into the hillside with their blue… sorry AZURE rooftops. Apparently if you use the word AZURE instead of blue it gives you a heightened state of relaxation🤔. There are, of course the sunsets, these are the best sunsets in the world. So I am told.

If you’re seeking culinary delights on holiday then Kamari in Santorini won’t disappoint. The Voodoo Bar has a fabulous menu so, we had to go back twice. As an avid fish and seafood fan, a Greek island is always a food adventure for me and this place didn’t disappoint. Crispy calamari and whole sea bream was lush.

“What about the running?” I hear you ask, or not but you should know me by now. There are some great places to run or, if you’re not a heat lover like me, you can walk. I found a hill and I love hills, it was at the far end of the village. It led to Ancient Thera, built in the 8th Century BC at the top of the hill (although they call it a mountain) so, my wife suggested we walk it the day before and hide a bottle of water at the top. What a great idea! Ancient Thera is a surprise for you at the top, though. Quite a vast ruin and steeped in history.

The day before I planned to run, as I say, we walked to the summit, the mistake we made was walking up the road and down the trail. It would have been much better the other way around. The road was fairly easy.

The trail coming down… not so much 🤣

The following day I found running up and down that hill looked tough but was a lot easier than it looked and in the heat of a Grecian sun was so enjoyable.

On the final day we visited the volcano at Nea Kameni, this is nothing like Etna as the crater is underwater but sparked the legend of Atlantis. It’s main eruption around 1645BC wiped out the Minoan Civilisation with columns of ash and gas reaching kilometres into the air and and a massive tsunami.

So that’s about it my friends, we got to see the famous sunset from the boat as we headed home and I guess as sunsets go it was OK (bearing in mind I am a Yorkshireman 😉)

Happy Trails x