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31^st December 2010

It’s the last day of the year and as most of us have been doing I’ve been busy all day cleaning the house. It isn’t like the house isn’t clean already but for the bells we spend all day getting it cleaner as if it will bring us something better in the year to come. I remember as a kid wondering what all the fuss was about. It is only now that I see that it is more to do with visitors see your house at its best. Yet the people that we have coming to our houses are the same people that know us and know how clean we keep our homes. So why is it different as the year ends?

I was told when I was younger that it wasn’t lucky to carry last years muck into the next year. I never did work out why that was and if I asked was always told the same thing, “Because it is.” If I tried to question the logic further I’d soon feel the back of a hand to silence my inquisitiveness.

Like me my kids hate this day because of the extra work that is involved in getting thing clean. They have asked the same questions as I used to ask but I have tried hard to make them see that it is just one of the things we have to go through to be ready for the bells and the New Year. As the years have passed and they have grown older them have stopped asking the questions though I still get the look and I now wonder did I have that same look at one time. I suppose I must have.

HAVE A GREAT AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.

24^th December 2010

Hope you all have everything ready for tomorrow. Magz has managed to make our few pennies stretch far enough to make Christmas a good day for the family and I’m looking forwards to sitting back tomorrow night with her after stuffing my face.

Today was my last day of work. I got told on Monday that the job was at an finish at the end of the week. Still I did know it was only temporary but had thought it was to last for a bit longer. Yet I can’t really complain as it did help with getting things sorted for the festive season. And at the same time you never know something else may arise meaning I get a call back. Live in hope that is all you can do in life, give up on that and there isn’t a lot left is there. It isn’t always easy to do as life can be very crushing at times. It is on those times that I have cried out to the big man up stairs and he has seen me through. I suppose that is why I continue to hope that the future will bring the things that I want; why I keep on writing.

Well enough of my reflections and hopefully you all have a great day tomorrow, that all your dreams are fulfilled. God Bless.

17^th December 2010

Still not got the ink for the printer. With the expense of Christmas that isn’t much of a surprise really. Well everything is almost bought for that so hopefully Magz will find the cash for it next week. Of course that all depends on those last minute presents that always seem to appear at the last minute. No matter how well we plan and how much we think we have everyone covered there is always one or two that we forget. Even though we start early in getting things in it seems that there is never enough money to go round yet we still get there in the end. I suppose that I can only put it down to the wife and of course our creator.

Work has been good this week though it has been pretty cold for most of the week. Even though it wasn’t very cold earlier in the week the place that I work has been freezing. One of my co-workers says that it’s always like that but too hot in the summer. It would be good if the job lasted long enough for me to find out myself, I suppose I will just have to hope that lasts as long as possible.

I’ve not done much writing this week though I have managed to write a couple of poems. As I said last week I posted another poem from the Nowhere collection. Check it out its called Christmas Shop and I’m quite pleased with it, see what you think. Hopefully I’ll get some inspiration this weekend and write a couple of more though I’m not sure if I’ll will post another yet maybe in a few weeks time if I create one that I think is as nice as the two I’ve already posted. If I don’t do some more poems then I will play a game of Civ V. I should start getting my ideas down for my next story though I’m not sure how to approach it. Maybe I should just let it ferment inside my head over the festive period and see what comes in the new year.

10^th December 2010

I’ve finished editing Banshee 2 but found that my printer needs ink. So I need to wait till I can afford more before my son can read it through again. It could be after Christmas before I can get the ink though. In the meantime I’ll continue with the poems that I’ve started, which I have written more of. I will post some of them on GoodReads, though not all of them. The ones I like best will find there way onto my profile under my writing that I have posted there. I’m calling the collection Nowhere as they could be set anywhere really. I hope that they will all have that same child like voice so as to really test me. At the moment I have about six or so complete or near complete in the collection. I’m not sure how many I will in the end create but it will be something fun to do over the next couple of months by which time I should have ink for the printer.

There was a leak at work last night. As we were leaving we could hear what sounded like a river running through the main cooking hall. It turned out that one of the main water pipes had sprung a leak because of all the freezing weather. Anyways they had it fixed by the time I got to work today. One of the supervisors seems to be a dab hand at sorting things around the work. Lucky as they would have had a hard time finding a plumber at this time of year.

3^rd December 2010

The snow is falling as it has most of the past week, though I’ve bin luckier than some. We’ve only had a few inches around my way whilst other parts of the UK have had a few feet. The cold has been a bigger problem though as there isn’t a lot of heating where I work, which has made for a very chilly week. Extra layers of clothing has helped though. Mid-week I couldn’t feel my feet, they were like two blocks of ice. I was so glad when my shift was over and I could head home to defrost.

I’ve nearly finished re-editing Banshee 2. Next my son will read through it and see what my wife and I have missed. He’ll also look at punctuation, one of my weak points. I have a book that helped explain some of it but you know how it is. No matter how much study you put into something some of it never sticks, does it? Anyways I’ve done the best that I can which is all any of us can. Well at least I should have it finished this weekend ready for my son to see what he thinks.

I’ve also been writing more poems though I’m not sure of them. I think I’ve managed to keep the childhood voice of Spindly Bob but just think that they need a bit more work. Still it is just for fun and it has been that. Once I’ve done what I have to this weekend I’ll have a look at them and see if I can get them right. Not sure if I’ll post them, maybe just some of them.

26^th November 2010

Posted another poem on my Goodreads profile called Spindly Bob. I thought it up in the way to work. It was just a bit of fun but I got some good comments when I posted on Absolute Write, a writers forum, and have decided to follow the advice to write a series of them. I’ve begun a second but it needs a lot of work; I may post it or others that I have yet to start at a later date. I’m treating it as an exercise in characterisation while I continue editing my book, which is going well. I’ve managed to rewrite a part that was pointed out by Magz that she felt needing expanding. There is still a long way to go though before it’s finished. Though that isn’t really a problem as I still haven’t managed to save enough to think about using Lulu to publish it, so no rush. I will be able to publish the Ebook version once complete through Smashwords but as I said I have the time to get it right.

Work certainly has made this week flyby. It only seems like yesterday was Monday. I know it wasn’t but it does feel like it was. Its funny how that happens sometimes, isn’t it? Yet then again in equal measure at other times a minute can seem like an hour or more. Anyways I got my first wage this week and it was a couple of pounds more than I was expecting. Then Magz pointed out it was because on my first day last week I started an hour early for training. Of course there isn’t much in the way of training as there isn’t a lot to the job. It was pleasant till I got home to think I was making more than I will get next week. Still at least I’m not on the brew.

19^th November 2010

I’m enjoying my new job. It isn’t the most exciting thing in the world but my new colleagues are a cheery lot. It’s good to have a good working environment, it makes a job so much easier. Not that the work is really that taxing, very light actually. All it involves is checking the labels on the tins before sticking them in those small cardboard trays you see in supermarkets. So it is good that my fellow workers are good to get along with.

It being four hours means money is still tight and I have to put in for housing benefit. I handed a form into the work today so they can fill it in then I get it back to hand back into the housing. It’s just so they can get an idea of how much I’ll be earning so they can work out if I am entitled to any help with the rent. Hopefully I will as it would make things a little easier over Christmas. Still at least I’m off of unemployment and that has got to be a good thing. I’ll get the form back on Monday with any luck.

Magz is still not keeping to great but trying to make her take it easier isn’t that simple. She went shopping today while I was working. Fair enough she had my two kids with her. I say two though my son is now sixteen, which means he is now classed as an adult here in Scotland. It’s not easy remembering that he is as old as he is sometimes. You can’t as a parent really think of your kids as your little ones, even when they tower over you, hehehe, which my son does with me now. How did he get so big?

Comments (1):

Lane

good luck to you Billy, great site you have here.

Lane

Posted by Anonymous 22:52:31 20.11.2010

12^th November 2010

Went for a job interview today and two hours later got a phone call confirming that I got the job. It’s only part-time, 20 hours a week and only till the end of January but it gets me through Christmas. The other good thing is that I can still try to make sure Magz takes it easy as I will only be working 4 hours 5 days of the week. I start at 2pm and finish at 6 leaving me the time to be sure she doesn’t over do things. I only applied for the job on Wednesday so was surprised to get a call asking me to an interview yesterday and I wasn’t to sure if I had done to well at it. I have to go in an hour early on Monday so they can run through what my duties will be. All I know at the moment is that it’s something to do with labelling tins. Still it’s a job and I’ll find out more on Monday.

My daughter has been acting up every morning this week when I got her up for school. You know the thing where they want you to believe they’re really, really ill. Of course it all came to a head yesterday morning when she earned herself a grounding. Of course by the time she got home all week she had nothing wrong so was able to go out to her cousins. She didn’t get away with any of it though thanks to the trusty thermometer as well as, of course, the tried and tested back of the hand touch test. Anyways she seems to have got the message as she had no complaints about going to school this morning, let’s hope it continues that way next week. It does make you smile though.

5^th November 2010

After seven units of blood and a week in hospital Magz is home. She still isn’t fully fit but she seems to act as if she was back to her old self. That is until it all catches up with her at which point she tries brushing it all off. Trying to get her to take it easy is a job in its self. Mind I have been leaving her sleeping while I get the kids out to school, of course what else can you do.

Talking about kids it was my sons sixteenth birthday this week. My daughter took over making his birthday cake though Magz had been planning to make it herself. Tammy though wouldn’t let her mother do anything, which annoyed her. Everyone enjoyed the cake though even my sister, who was forced to have a piece. Sally isn’t a big eater of sweet things but did say it was good. She was only given a small sliver so we didn’t torture her too much.

It was also my niece’s birthday this week. Unfortunately with Sally just moving back to Killie recently there was no cake for her or party. She wasn’t happy about the last thing as her mother had said last year that she would get one this year. Well that was before Sally decided to make the move north of the border. But Leslie is only fourteen now and we all know that at that age things are a lot different from what we old one see it as.

As you can tell it has been a very busy week with little time for working on my book. I will need to get on with it as soon as things settle down a bit more. Of course I first have to get Magz to take things easy long enough for her to get back on her feet properly.

29^th October 2010

It has been a very difficult week this week, full of worrying over my wife. She has been very ill and had to go into hospital on Tuesday. She beginning to feel better but is still there. You can imagine how hard it has been as the doctors didn’t know what was wrong. All that we knew was that her blood count fell to very dangerous levels. It should be between 11 and 12, well Magz’s fell to 5.9 on Tuesday. After several transfusions it is now more stable and they seem to have figured out what was wrong, something to do with a stretched bowel. I don’t really understand it very well as she only got told today and I haven’t been able to go out to see her today as yet though I will be there tonight. The most important thing though is that she is that she gets better.

Because of the wife’s medical emergency everything to do with my book has been on hold. I just haven’t had the spare time to do any work on my book. It has been a struggle just finding the time to do an online job search and to check on my email. Mind it wasn’t really worth my time checking for a job as there hasn’t been anything suitable or not that I could do for almost two weeks. You would have thought with Christmas just around the corner that there would be more out there, even if it was only temporary. Mind saying that being unemployed has made it a little easier with my wife being ill at the moment. How much harder would it have been if I was working?

As it is I have been finding it hard to sleep as when I go to bed that is when I start thinking. All day I’m to busy to think about things but at night lying alone in bed, well that is when your mind begins to runaway with itself. When you do fall over it is only for a short time as you seem to wake yourself because the bed is empty. There isn’t that comforting sound of your partner beside you snoring away. I hope she’s well enough to come home soon.

22^nd October 2010

What a day I have had. My sister told me something that shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Apparently my mother has disowned my two kids as she doesn’t reckon that they are mine. Well she might need a blood test to tell that they are mine but I don’t. I do feel a bit hurt buy it but then again she has never had anything to do with them. Now I know why she has never wanted to be a part of their lives. Mind she was never really part of mine either. Well it is her choice as she is the one missing out not me. I just wish things were different for the kids sake, me I’m used to her not really wanting to be a part of my life. But now she saying this, it makes me angry.

My wife finished reading through my new book and I have started re-editing. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I haven’t made too many errors. There is one or two things that need a little expanding, like when Mandy is telling Alice (her sister) and Frannie (the late Mickey’s girlfriend) what she knows of the cottage in the woods. I thought I might need to do that when I was first writing the scene but took the lazy way, serves me right them that I now need to go back and rework it. Luckily there isn’t a lot of areas like that though I’m still not sure of the end, something to look at and maybe change or not. As I said it need some thinking about.

Job hunting is going poorly. I’m searching the internet daily during the week but there isn’t a lot out there. I did get a couple of applications for part time work, which is now off in the post. Well it is better than sitting about on my rear. Mind Magz wants me to get started stripping the kitchen so we can redecorate and I really will need to get it done. So maybe next week, I know I should just get stuck in and no excuses.

15^th October 2010

My daughter made the dinner tonight. She may be only thirteen but we taught her how to cook early n life, as we did with my son as well. My wife and I thought it important that they knew their way around the kitchen. Though I must admit that the dinner Tammy made was very simple, a tuna salad. She tried though and that is the special thing about it. Out of both my kids it is my son that is the better chef, mind he did cookery and passed his SQA in the subject. It is also something he wants to do as a career. I must admit I do like cooking as well, at least sometimes. Anyway Tammy’s salad was very good.

My wife has almost finished reading through my manuscript. That means I better get on with working on the graphics for the front cover. I must admit that I have spent another week playing Civ V. Naughty me. When I haven’t been playing that I’ve been job hunting with little success. I have though applied for a couple of jobs, now comes the waiting time. While I wait to hear if I got one of them or not hear as is the usual case, I continue the great search. It can be depressing but that why we take that little bit of pleasure from those things our families do, as with dinner tonight.

8^th October 2010

Had my interview to resign on this week even though it is a rapid reclaim as I haven’t been in work for more than twelve weeks. You would think that it would be just a matter of turning up and showing proof of who you are well no. I was luck though, the lady I had wasn’t too bad so everything went without any real problems. Unfortunately she couldn’t stamp a form for funding to go on a training course to get my security badge. I have to wait till I have conformation that I am getting my benefits. In the mean time I’ve begun the great search for another job and glad to say that I have already applied online for several. Sadly they are only Christmas jobs, still it is better than the nothing I have at the moment. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

I have been playing and learning Civ V all week. Well at least at night anyways. My wife isn’t in any rush to complete the editing and as I haven’t the money to publish that is fair enough, maybe I might make the book better as she will have been more thorough. Not that she hasn’t been great in the past but I tended to try and rush her more in the past than I have this time round. It is one of the things I would warn new authors about is rushing to get your work in print. Take the time to edit and rework it till it is perfect. It is so easy to think your work is ready and then find errors you had missed and if you self publish as I do that would cost you more in proof copies. Slow down, take your time and get it right, even if that means setting the book to the side for a few weeks so you can look at it with fresher eyes.

1^st October 2010

Well I was right about my job not lasting much longer. Monday was the last day as the orders failed to appear. At least I got six week s out of it, which paid for some of Christmas. Last weekend I got my wife a bracelet in 9ct gold for chrimbo (Xmas). I also got my graphics pad and have now started work on the cover though it isn’t going to well. Still I have the time whilst seeking another job to mess around with the idea I’m working on and if it still doesn’t come to I can try something else.

Magz got me a game for my Christmas, Civilization V. She pre-ordered it but has given it to me early as it was supposed to come with an add-on which seemed to be missing. After two or three days struggling with support and installing the game I still haven’t managed to get the add-on. The DRM in this game means you need to be connected to the net and Steam to install. All add-on, updates are supposed to be automatically downloaded to the game. I’m not sure about you but I don’t like things like that. Call me paranoid or whatever but I like to be in control of my computer and not some faceless company. The game itself is good and I have enjoyed the new look, I’m just not sure of having Steam on my system. Is a game worth compromising the security of home computer?

I know all this is because games companies are trying to stop the pirates but it isn’t them that suffer. Rather it is the legitimate users that suffer while the pirate doesn’t have the same hassles. You can see why illegal downloading is said to be on the rise. Not that I condone piracy but I can see why it is happening and upsetting customers isn’t going to help solve the problem. If anything it may drive some to the dark side and rather than end the problem, make it worse.

24^th September 2010

I got my new graphics pad yesterday from Dabs. It’s a Trust but I have still to really check it out though it does look good. Over the weekend I hopefully put it to some use designing my cove for Banshee 2. I have a couple of ideas in my head which I’ll need to experiment with. Magz is still reading through the book so I have time to work out the cover.

My older sister has been visiting from England over the past few days. It has been good seeing her and getting to know her again. Last month was the first time I had seen her in around 28 years, a long time. As you can guess my family isn’t very close. We weren’t always together as children, one of those stories best left in the past. Though now meeting after all this time we can look back and smile at who we were back then as well as all the things we got up to.

I’m still working next week though I’m not sure how long it will last. Another order is supposed to be coming in but I’ll wait and see. The orders are very slow this year; I suppose that is the sign of the recession. I just hope for more work to come in. I should be grateful for what I have got already, after all it was only for 2 weeks when I started and it’s been almost 6 weeks.

17^th September 2010

I thought my job had come to an end yesterday after finishing the last order. Last night though while playing Civ 4 I got a phone call to tell me I was needed next week after all, which is great news. I was so dreading having to back on unemployment benefit. What makes it worse is that the staff, who is supposed to be there to help, make you feel as if you are something they have stepped in. I know that is unfair as some are helpful but just too often I have had to deal with those that treat the client badly. Well I don’t have to worry about that for at least another week and I have a long weekend to add to the good day it has been.

I still have a touch of the cold I had last week. It seems to just want to hang in the background, but I seem to be over the worst of it now. It really ruined my weekend last week though it had shifted mostly by the start of the new week, that is something to be grateful for. Nothing worse than working when you have a cold weighing you down.

I ordered a new graphics tablet as since my computer upgrade last year my old one doesn’t work with my new system, no serial port. Anyways I have a new one on the way, and I am looking forwards to using it to create the cover for Banshee 2. Talking of which my wife is still reading through it but there will be some editing to some areas near the start before passing it onto my son to read. In the mean time I will soon be able to work on the front cover though I haven’t worked out what I will do for it. Still that is part of the joy of self publishing, isn’t it?

10^th September 2010

I’m running late doing my blog this week as I have the worst man flu you can get. Though it didn’t stop me punishing myself by going to work the past two days, but it was a struggle, especially yesterday. By the time I got home all I could do was go to bed where I swear someone set a fire under me. Unfortunately it hadn’t broken by the time I got up this morning. So it was man’s best friend in these kinds of times, Askit. I took two to work with me and had one before starting and the other at lunch, I just wish I had the foresight to take some to work yesterday. Well at least I have the weekend to get rid of it though my boss had wanted me to do overtime tomorrow. Luckily it was cancelled today, the Big Man upstairs was sure looking out for me there.

I’ll be needing another Askit soon as I can feel my mind wandering into that fog bank. Also my fingers are finding the keyboard hard to traverse, hitting more wrong keys than right. I really need to sweat this out as I can’t seem to concentrate. This must be the most boring post in the history of blogging. Sorry about that.

3^rd September 2010

It has been a great week weather wise as well as working. Only had overtime last night, which made the week fly by. What’s more I don’t have any tomorrow, so a full weekend to relax. Not sure what I will do with time, but I am looking forwards to a long lie in. Though I must admit the extra pennies that the overtime I did last week looked good on my wage slip this week.

I’ve been picking blueberries from my bush I got last year. My wife made a couple of pies from them, unfortunately one ended on the floor. My daughter dropped it in her eagerness to help her mum. As you can imagine my wife Magz was mighty disappointed as the smell wafted up to her nostrils telling how good it would have been. The dog did seem to have a big happy smile on its face afterwards. I might even get enough off of the bush for another pie, yum.

Magz is still reading through my new story. She reads each chapter a couple of times. She says that’s because the first read is to enjoy the tale and the second time is to really look for the errors. When I try that I find the second time the words just mash together and I can’t really see the mistakes. I like to break it down into paragraphs and read them twice. Maybe she just has a better span of attention than I do.

I think I just might do a little gardening tomorrow. I see the weather isn’t to be to bad but may get a bit of cloud as the day goes on. And that blueberry pie needs the berries pickin’.

27^th August 2010

Work, work, work is all I seem to have done this week. Overtime every night this week as well as last Saturday and I have more tomorrow. So as you can imagine I am fairly tuckered out, but in a good way. Because of all the extra work I haven’t had much time for anything else. It’s been one of those go to work, come home and eat dinner before heading off to bed, sort of weeks. As I said work, work, work.

My other half is reading through my story though I not sure how she is getting on. Last we spoke of it was a couple of nights ago and I was telling her to write down her suggestions. My little lemon tree seems to have decided it doesn’t want to live. Even the new shoots that appeared a few weeks back have withered. I don’t seem to have much luck with citrus trees as the wife’s attempt at an orange tree has also faded fast over the past week or two and it was doing well before that. It’s almost like this house has a thing against plants as I have struggled with other plants. There just doesn’t seem to be a place, a window or room for growing things. Usually you find there is such a room don’t you? But not this house. Though my garden plants seem to be doing very well, last weekend I got my first crop of blueberries, Now to wait and see what the wife is going to do with them as there isn’t enough for making wine with, maybe next year.

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20^th August 2010

My old employer phone on Tuesday and I started back at work Wednesday. It is only for two or three weeks at present but they are expecting more orders, let’s hope they get them. My feet are killing me because of my tendonitis but it is so good to be working again, even if for a short time. I have even been asked to do overtime tomorrow, which I am happy to do as it will give me more money next week with my first wage slip. It will help towards Xmas though it might seem a little early to be thinking of that, but I have to start planning for it.

As you can imagine work on editing stopped on Wednesday but I’ll try and get it finish this weekend. Then I can leave it to my family to put in their comments so I can improve it further. While they do their bit I’ll do some gaming and think about the cover. To do it though I’ll need to get myself a new graphics tablet as my old one doesn’t work with my computer after last years upgrade.

Talking of upgrades, my son has done up his computer this week. After saving for months he finally was able to get the parts this week. I felt proud of him earning the money from a small job as admin on some sites that were willing to pay him for the work he does. It isn’t a lot but it teaches him about earning a living, an important thing at fifteen. To add to this he donated the old parts to his sister, who has also benefited now. It is times like this when you feel good. That somehow you aren’t the ogre you sometimes think you are when getting on their case about something minor. That those monster filled times are just you trying to teach them the right course in life.

13^th August 2010

I had an interview for a job yesterday. It meant a trip up to Glasgow so the wife went as well. Unfortunately I don’t think I got the job, the interview went to quickly. To add to the woes I got another rejection letter for another job today, the reason given is my age, apparently I’m too old at forty three. On the ad for the job it said open to all ages yet then they send a letter saying that it is only open to 16-19 year olds, why not just say this. Well that would be the new laws on ageism but isn’t rejecting me because of my age the same thing. Aren’t I able to do the job as good as a younger person? Well it seems not.

The government has also announced that it will be looking at hire private firms to help catch benefit cheats. This sends a shiver down my spine as I can see it now. They will be paid for every person they catch, so it doesn’t take much for people to be falsely accused. Before long you will have a back log of appeals leaving many struggling families hitting a new rock bottom. It is hard enough on benefits as it is and with an advisor like the one I have you’d be permanently on the banned list. Yes there are a lot of people fiddling the system, but to hire private firms as they suggest is dangerous as it will create a larger divide within our society. Of course this is what we expect from a Tory government, we only wonder where the Liberal’s voice has disappeared to.

I’m still not completed editing the new story though I have been working on it most of the week. It seems the more I work on it the slower I seem to get, and I really have to push myself. This has not been that easy with getting the phone call Wednesday night asking me to the interview on Thursday. Wednesday night was trying to find out what I could of the firm, as well as find out what I had applied for. In the end there was little info from the company’s website and I couldn’t find out exactly what the job was but I had a choice of three that it could be. Not the best way to go for a job interview. In the end I did my best and that is all you can ask from someone.

And finally my little lemon tree still struggles on.

6^th August 2010

I was clothes shopping with the family today. Getting the kids school things in, to add to the misery the weather was throwing water down on us. I was soaked before I even got to the bus stop. From then on the damp weather followed us as the wife filled my arms to breaking. There is nothing more tedious than shopping for clothes especially for someone else, even when it is for the kids. Well at least it’s done now.

The lemon tree’s still struggles continue. It now has only one mature leaf left. But it has a lot of new growth. Unfortunately we haven’t had a lot of sunshine round my way and that is what it needs most at the moment. The weatherman has said that it is to get a bit more sun next week, of course we know they’re seldom good at getting it right. I’ll just need to pray and keep my fingers crossed.

Editing is almost at an end, or at least this edit. Once I have I’ll have a rest and a game of Civ 4 or something. While I play I’ll let my family get their first look at it so they can tell me if there are areas that need work. It is always good to get the view of others to give you fresh eyes. At the same time they will find errors that I may have missed. You always miss something when editing your own work, it’s what makes having a family a blessing. You know you can turn to them for the help you need, well at least mine is, my wife and kids that is.

30^th July 2010

Another long week of job searching. I dropped into a place on Monday to see about training. I thought if I can open up options by getting my SIA badge for security work. Well it can’t hurt can it? They took my name, address and phone number then dismissed me like a child, or at least that is how it felt. I still haven’t heard back from them though. How long it will I have no idea, let’s hope not too long.

My little lemon tree continues to fight for life. Almost all the mature leaves have fallen off now. There is only two or three still clinging on. Though new branches are now producing new leaves but they are still small. Yesterday it got a lot of sun, though today it is dull and overcast, which is no help to it. Still at least it is still recovering.

Banshee 2 is still being edited. I didn’t get a lot done this week, just the one chapter. Though the week dragged by I found it filled with one thing after another, but it wasn’t what I wanted to do. You know all those smelly, rotting jobs like cleaning the toilet, or sorting out that cupboard that everything gets tossed into. This was me this week, yet after doing it nothing looked any better, just another, more organised mess.

Remember that my offer to get my book Bublos as a free ebook is still on till the 21^st August when you get it from Smashwords.com Just use the code NV44Z when purchasing it and it cost you nothing. Join the many other readers that have already got it for nothing and see what you think. :~)

23^rd July 2010

As I signed on this week I got pulled for an unexpected interview with the same lady that wanted to sanction me. I pulled my mobile phone and set it to record the interview to protect myself if she decided to be nasty again. At first she try to say that I couldn’t record the interview, but I refused to stop recording. She left me to sit for a bit then returned with a manager to take notes. After this I was allowed to record the interview and everything went very smoothly, none of the nastiness as happened last time. I don’t think the manager was too pleased about it though.

My little lemon tree is showing signs of recovery. It is early days but there is new growth. I was quite pleased to see life returning to it. Over the past few weeks it has been looking very bad for it, and I did think that it wouldn’t pull through. Now it might just manage, of course it has some way to go before it is completely out of trouble. I will just need to keep an eye on it and my fingers crossed.

I am offering another give away for one of my books. This one is open till the 21^st Aug 2010 and you use the code NV44Z at Smashwords.com to get Bublos for free. One person that has already taken up the offer was very impressed by it and gave it a rave review, I hope others like it as much. Whilst offering the free give away, I have also been working on the next book. I still have a long way to go with editing, though I am making good progress. I had a great night last night working on chapter 12, find the fun of building the scene of Munroe finding out that two older ladies and a pregnant girl had been fire raising. Better not tell you too much though. :~)

6^th July 2010

My little lemon tree continues to struggle. Even after repotting it seems to be stressed, and losing leaves. It’s stressed, I’m stressed try to figure out how to save it. Researching on the net has just thrown up the same advice of letting the soil dry out before giving it a good soaking. All of this I am doing, yet no sign that it is recovering, and the soil is still damp from watering earlier in the week. What to do? Hopefully it will recover, only time will tell. How long I have little idea, though I wish it was soon.

I have been editing my new story, Banshee 2. Good progress is being made in this first real full edit. I already did a partial edit when I got a bit of writers block a few months ago. Yet it would amaze you how much still needed more work, and probably need more after this edit. It times it can be a chore. At others it is exciting because you can see it improving as you add some background to the characters that you hadn’t put in on the first write.

My job searching is the same depressing reality, checking the government website daily. Each day the same things are offered that have been on the site for over a month. When there is something new it is for skills I don’t have. I have taken the number of a couple of jobs, and sent away my CV. I also got an application form for another by phoning Jobseekers Direct. Though all of the ones I am chasing I have no experience in, but there is no jobs in the sector that I am used to. Factory work seems to have dried up completely. Not much to do, but keep on looking.

I have also set up an offer on my book, or should I say e-book Banshee angel of Judgement on Smashwords. I have set up another discount code that will mean that you can get the book for nothing until the 21^st of July. Here’s where to go http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7070 and the code to use is CS93L. So if you are looking for something to read why not check it out. Hope you take up the offer, and enjoy the read.<o:p>

9^th July 2010

Got a letter of reply from the Jobcentre two days ago. I still have to write a reply to it as though they touch on my complaint they didn’t seem to read it very well and tried to fob me off. I’m not sure though if continuing with it would be worth the effort, yet at the same time if they think they can get away with treating people like something they would avoid stepping in, you know what I mean. At they same time will it cause my family problems, after all they could get antsy with me and sanction me from the brew. This would mean that I would not get any benefits and would have to apply for hardship payments, that are basically about twenty pounds a week, not enough to live off myself let alone my family. Worry, worry, it never seems to end.

Editing has been slow this week, more from laziness than any thing else. That and watching the semi finals of the World Cup. Now I’m looking forward to a good game of Sunday. My mate Mickey has a bet on Holland so I suppose I should support them, though it doesn’t really matter who wins. I don’t usually follow soccer, but when its international it’s hard not to get caught up in the fervour. I do like a good game of rugby though. Sadly I don’t get much chance to watch, there is always something else to do.

My little lemon tree has had a very bad week. I got some plant food the other week and used it to feed the tree. Come mid week and the leaves were browning, then falling off at a alarming rate. I tried washing the soil out with a good soaking but that did nothing. In the end I repotted it, which seems to have worked. I also got some new fertiliser for it, this one is for citrus plants, so should be okay. It will also do the orange seeds the wife planted, which have now begun to sprout.

2^nd July 2010

I have had a summer cold this week sapping my energy. Nothing worse. It hasn’t stopped me from the daily job hunt with little in the way of success. I expect that when I head to the jobcentre on Monday to get more than the normal hassle after handing in my complaint, not much I can do though. And things look like they are going to get even tougher for those of us struggling to find work with the government announcing more measures to punish those who are deemed not to be doing enough to look for work. They said that people could face up to three years ban from receiving unemployment benefits. Who makes the decision on who is not trying hard enough? A jury? No. A judge even? No. An advisor that is supposed to help the unemployed, that is who. At the same time they will now be able to force you onto training courses with the threat that you will get sanctioned if you don’t take the course. Now if you have never been on a government training scheme then you wouldn’t know how bad most of them are. They are only training in name and then where are all the schemes going to come from? With the expected rise in unemployment and government cuts, they must be dreaming that they will hide the figures as they did in Thatcher’s time as Prime Minister. It reminds me of the Disney song, “The Circle Of Life,” hehehe.

Looking on more enjoyable things I have managed to get on with editing some more of my new story Banshee 2. I have also added some more to it. It seemed to me to be missing Susie McLean in the early part of the story. She is a reporter for the Standard in my tale and plays more of a role later in the story but was needing more of a presence earlier, which I have now done. Though I will need to build on what I have this weekend. I have plenty of time to edit and improve on the story with no job to fund publishing it. Let’s hope that changes soon.

25^th June 2010

It has been one of those weeks, you know the kind I mean. It started out bad on Monday. I had a Back To Work interview at the jobcentre. Well I had the interviewer from the dark side. It began by her telling me that I wasn’t telling the truth, after I explained what I had been doing to look for work. I don’t keep one of those diaries they want you to keep, I see it as an invasion of my privacy and breach of my human rights, after all they only advise you to keep one; you don’t have too.

Anyway, after this things got worse as she accused me again of being a liar. Then came the demand that I change the type of jobs I was looking for. In reality this is not a real problem as I will consider any job I can get, but it was the way in which she demanded that I do this. More demands followed with me being given details to jobs that I would have real difficulty in getting to on time. I rely on public transport, having never learned to drive.

As the interview came to an end I was informed that she did not think I had done enough to find work and that I was to be sanctioned, this means I would have no money until the Jobcentre decided to lift the sanction. When I asked how I would take care of my family, feed my children, I was told to ask for a loan.

As you can imagine my anger and shock at this sort of treatment. I held my tongue, though I must admit I came close to calling her the b word. Instead I said she was a nasty person. This strangely shocked her ad I saw this on her face. Then I asked to speak to her supervisor. She couldn’t find one yet had spoken to a manager, who had decided I would not be sanctioned this time, but I was under warning.

In reply I asked for information on how to make a written complaint. After being given the form I left feeling very much angered and depressed by all of this. I held in a written complaint yesterday, though whither this is a good idea I’m not sure, for these people seem to hold a little too much power over our lives. Someone though has to stand up for what is right. I don’t even think anything will be done about the treatment I received. I was hoping for a receipt for the complaint I held in but was informed that they don’t have any procedure for complaints being handed in. This doesn’t bode well.

Now I worry about how this all may affect how my claim is dealt with in the future. Will they look for or even invent reasons to deny me a means to feed my kids? Will it lead to more interviews for the dark side? I will have to wait and see. One thing though I don’t wish to let this simply drop. I know it is probably cause me trouble I don’t wish, but if I have to write to my MP over this I will.

18^th June 2010

Where has the week gone? Having little to do would make you think that time would drag but it rarely does. Is that just a sign of me getting older? I don’t think so. I think it is more to do with the brain being half asleep because of the lack of activity. The job front hasn’t changed, still nothing seems to be moving. The news was talking of the increase in the numbers of jobless, which reminds me I have another one of those back to work interviews at the Jobcentre on Monday. Why they bother I haven’t a clue as it’s not like they actually offer anything practical. It is more of an extended signing on. Of course we can all come up ideas that we think would change things for the better, but we don’t see the anything other than what is before us, our own small sphere so to speak.

I’ve not started the editing of Banshee 2 yet, another week of messing with Civ 4 instead. In reality it has been so nice this week that I had little energy for more than gaming. My garden has benefited from the good weather and I’ve even picked a few leaves off of my lettuce for the odd sandwich. It tastes so much better when so freshly picked. Mind with the sun the grass is now in need of another cut, well at least it gives me something to do this weekend.

11^th June 2010

As the world cup starts I’ve been playing my own games this week. More precisely Civ 4 and indulging my megalomaniac side. Other than a couple of poems I haven’t written anything or start the great edit of my new story. I will have to get down to it soon but there is no harm having a break before starting.

Was at the garden centre today. The wife wants some plants for the front garden. I’m not really a flower person though I must admit that they do look good. We got Bizzy Lizzies and Petunias’ not that I know what they are, other than hearing others going on about them. Mainly the wife that is, hehehe. Whilst out at the garden centre I got some plant food for my Lemon tree, which has slowed down in growth recently. After searching online I got the impression that this could be due to it needing feeding. Yes plants need there dinner too it seems and there was me thinking that any old food would do. How wrong was I? Apparently you need a fairly strong feed as Lemon trees are rather greedy and sap the nutrients from the soil fairly quickly. The one I got should help the veg as well so another good reason to get it. I had another feed in the house but it’s a bit old plus I’m not sure it was doing much to feed my little tree. One or two leaves have got brown patches from using it. I read that has something to do with iron. You wouldn’t have thought that growing a plant could be so difficult, would you? At least I have the net to help.

4^th June 2010

It has been a really nice week. The sun has been shining and I finished the first draft of my next book. Well it will be if I can get the money to publish it but before that I have a lot of editing, proof reading and all the usual to get through. Mind there is no rush as it will be some time before I can go forward with publishing. That’s all down to have no job for so long. The big cloud in an otherwise good time. Adding to it all is the jobcentre because I have been unemployed for six months now. As if I didn’t know but where are the jobs, they can’t tell me. It’s not really their fault, yet you do get the sense that some of them actually blame you for not having a job. I saw this all back in the eighties as well but there wasn’t much they could do. Now they seem to have power of life or death, well money or empty pockets, same thing really.

It’s alright for them though, on £35000 a year, job secure and union watching their backs. And there is the rest of us on less than £5000 a year benefits for me and the wife. What can we do though but struggle on and hope that I get a job soon. That my former employer needs workers soon.

I’m best not thinking about it, think of the good week I had cutting the grass and hedges. Watching my veg growing slowly and learning for next year how best to get them started. That I finally got Banshee 2 complete or at least down on a memory card. No good thinking on things that aren’t in your power to change. :~)

28^th May 2010

This week has slid past so quickly, far faster than I would have liked. Though I have worked on my book all week I still haven’t finished. As you can imagine I’m feeling a little let down that I haven’t got the first draft out of the way. It’s my own fault as I have been reworking that poem from last week. I posted it on AW forum and received some good feedback that helped me to develop it, I put the most recent edition on my GoodReads “Billy’s writing” so you ca have a look if you wish. I’m now getting help to improve another so I will post some more as time goes by.

I used to write a lot of poetry when I was younger. It was a way to deal with the frustrations of life as a young, long term unemployed man. Life has changed a lot from those times and now my verse is done for a different reason. As I said last week it is mainly as a game but some of it does look not to bad. It is the ones that I like that I’m hoping to improve as another way to explore my writing. That sound airy, pretentious though that isn’t what I’m trying to be.

My plants are doing not to badly, though I had a bit of greenfly to deal with this week. The strange thing was that when I spotted the infestation I was surprised to see ants were acting as guards to the aphids. This is something I have only ever seen of TV so was amazed to see nature so close. Of course it didn’t stop me from treating the affected plant, after all I’m not growing things for the insect life to feast on.

21^st May 2010

Summer has seemingly arrived and winter can now be forgotten. The past few days have seen some great sunshine and with it the grass is growing like wildfire. Though my plants seem to be taking longer to shoot up, still they are doing not too badly. My potatoes have finally started to break through, which brought my wife a smile knowing that in the autumn that she’ll have some home grown taties for the pot.

I’m making great progress now with Banshee 2. I can see the end within the next week, at least of the first draft. Both Susie and Munroe are now ready to be taken to the cottage for the final show down. I’ve decided to stick to the original ending that I had envisioned for the story. I have also thought of a great epilogue that will leave the possibility of a third story. Though I will talk it over with the wife once I have finished the tale and see what she thinks.

I’ve also been writing a lot of poetry this past week. I’ve been doing it as part of a game for one of the writers’ forums I’m a member of. Some of it isn’t too bad in my opinion. See what you think of this one:

Hells Muddy Fields

Stand strong,

Don’t let that knee quake;

Have a bit of backbone

You snivelling little wretch.

Stand your ground,

Don’t let them through.

Open fire:

Let them have it.

Ignore the smell,

Ignore the mud;

The rats;

That your friend is dead.

Fix that trench,

Clean your feet,

So they don’t rot,

We need every man we’ve got.

Have a smoke,

One light,

Two.

Don’t let the sniper see.

Now get ready boy.

This is it.

We’ll win the day.

Let’s go over the top.

Keep on moving,

Don’t stop.

Don’t get caught up,

On that barbed wire.

Run like your life depended.

Kill the other man,

Or he’ll kill you.

So stick him good.

See the mist.

Grab a mask.

Hope it helps,

Or find you’re blind.

Watch the newbie,

As he tries to make friends.

Ignore him,

For soon he’ll be dead.

Duck in a hole,

As steel rain falls,

Tearing at the ground;

Catching the unwary.

And so it goes on,

No end in sight.

Hells never ending

Fight.

14^th May 2010

Well there we have it, the Tories and Liberals have formed the new government. Did you see the joint speech that that both leaders gave on Wednesday. Not something I ever expected to see in my life but life is filled with surprises. I only hope that they can do a good job together and not hammer those of us that are stuck at the bottom of the social system. Being Scottish I fear the return to the days of Thatcher when we saw Scotland England. I know it wasn’t only Scotland that suffered under her government but the Northern England as well, but not to the same degree. The new government in Westminster will need to walk a careful road north of the border for if they don’t it could lead  to more support for the breaking up of the Union. Some south of the border may feel this wouldn’t be a bad thing but what the government fail to tell the country is that much of the electricity produced in Scotland is for  south of the border and then we also have the oil, 60% of which is in Scottish water along with 80% of the natural gas. This is something I doubt that Westminster would wish to lose, so we have Mr Cameron north of the border today with promises to run Scotland with respect, we will see. suffering to save jobs in

As for my writing, I have begun chapter 17 in my new tale and can see how thing should progress to the end. I still haven’t made up my mind on which ending to use but do think that the original ending is still the better of the two. Though there are good reasons to use the alterative one as it would make it easier to open up the possibility of a third book. This though should not be the only reason for going down that road. In the end it is what is best for the story, not whether it makes it easier for me to have a third book. The story has to come first.

7^th May 2010

Did you vote yesterday? I did yet I wonder was it worth it. With a hung parliament well hope that it will bring about change, though it is hard to see how it will. Labour and the Tories are now getting support from Nick Clegg in the hope of getting the overall majority. He of course will make the best deal for his party and so forget many of the promises made to the voters. Sound to me that little has changed and that we will all end up on the losing side.

Another week of fruitless searching for a job. Day in, day out the jobcentre website seems to offer nothing. I have a feeling things may get worse with the election going the way it did. I hope I’m wrong yet really think that things are going to get a lot tighter in the job market. Both the Conservatives and Labour have said during campaigning that there was going to be cuts to public spending. This will lead to greater numbers of people joining myself in the search for work. It feels if I’m returning to the eighties when I couldn’t get a job after leaving school. It took me a very long time to find my first job and I don’t want to wait that long again.

I have, on a lighter note, made good progress with Banshee 2. Editing of what I have already written has gone really well, which is now put me on track to reach for the finishing line on the first draft. I can now see the link to the end that I have visualized. It has also opened the idea of a different ending to that. This is something that may not be as good as what I had in mind but I will need to think about it some more. That might be because I have seen the first one in my head for so long. It isn’t that the other ending is bad though. As I said, I will need to think it over as I carry on writing the remaining chapters, maybe they will tell me what would make the better ending to this one.

30^th April 2010

Editing has continued all week though it has been slow at times. I am making headway, adding in the things that I need to get the story moving again. I still have another seven chapters to work through before I catch up to where I left to rework what I had. When I say rework I really mean is that I added in things to the story, bring some characters in earlier, that sort of thing and at the same time feeding the main plot. Even chapters that I thought I was happy with have seen the hand of the editor to try to make them better. After I do finish the story I will still need to go through it all again a few times to build on what I have, add more background here and there, as well as try to create more visual pictures in words to set the setting or scenes where everything happens.

Editing can be the hardest part for me, as it is with many writers as you can get too connected to what you have already put down on paper. Sometimes you have to move things about, while at other whole chapters get deleted to be replaced. I have already replaced one chapter, as you may know because it was taking the story off in the wrong direction. You have to be ruthless sometimes when creating a tale, just like a sculptor can’t make a beautiful statue without chipping away at a block of rock.

My tubs that I planted are coming on well. I am still waiting on the herbs I planted to start through the soil but all the other veg. have sprouted. The rain we had here helped, I’m sure, though I have been out every day when it was dry to water and check on the progress. I have more planting in the front garden this weekend. Of course this is for my wife. She wants her flowers planted, so I will be out front digging the flower bed. I’m not really a flower person but Magz likes them in the front ands I must admit when I see what others can do, it does make me think how lovely those gardens are.

23^rd April 2010

Work on Banshee has stalled in its forward push to finish it. So to find the track I had a restless night trying to find sleep earlier in the week. I was tracing backwards from the end that I envision and attempting to connect it to what I already have. As I lay awake I could see that I needed to edit what I have already written and so for the past few evenings I have been doing just that, adding more to the tale. Building up the storyline as well as building the characters more. I also hope that by doing this I will get the pace again, leading me through this darker spot in the story.

I usually leave changes till I have completed the first draft yet, this time I find that I need to do tings differently. I suppose that this shouldn’t really be a surprise as each tale you write is always a new adventure. When I begin I always think that I can see the full story in my head but as I write this soon falls short of what I thought I had and so that is when I to search for the path that leads to the end. After I have reached the end then I can edit to fill it out.

I have also been doing more gardening. I got some more seeds, this time herbs to plant in some more large tubs. One of them is American Cress, something I have never heard of but it said on the packet that it was good it salads. As a kid I had cress on egg sandwiches but the picture on the seed pack wasn’t the same thing so I will see how it is in the summer with any luck.

Many of the seeds I have already planted have started to sprout, while I still have about half to show signs that they will spring up. It’s hard not to worry a little when you have spent the time watering and checking each day. Is this one of those things we gardeners are prone to? Not normally but with the seedlings I started indoors fading fast for unknown reasons, I do feel a certain anxiousness about those I have planted outdoors. And now I have added to this by starting a herb tub. I must be a glutton for punishment. :D

16^th April 2010

Planted more seeds this week out in tubs. The seedlings I started aren’t doing well in doors so I decided just to plant more veggies but outside and see how they do there. The weather has been good, plenty of sun and with it has been almost like summer, even though the nights are a lot cooler. I just hope the warm spell last to give the seeds a chance. While I wait to see how they come along my fruit trees I planted last month have really began to make headway, showing real promise. Of course it will be a couple of years I think until they give any bounty. My wife is happy because her two trees are doing the best out of them.

Work on Banshee 2 is moving on nicely. I’ve now pushing on with chapter fifteen though last night was a little bit of a struggle. I can see clearly the final chapter but it is the getting there that is the slow business. I can easily see how to get Susie to the end, as I have said before but DCI Munroe is more problematic. I think it is because as a policeman he is less likely to believe in the supernatural. Still that is the joy of writing, finding how your character get to where you need them to go.

When I start a story I always think I can see the whole tale in my head. In many ways I do but as you write you begin to see the holes, the places you didn’t see. You also see new things that often will lead the tale to where it will conclude. The only thing is that it often leads it along roads you hadn’t perceived. The one thing you don’t want though is it running away to far from the idea you have or as I learn years ago you will lose your way. You need some freedom in the tale so it develops but too much and get lost. When that has happened in the past I have found that a story ends up in the drawer unfinished, not what you want. Don’t worry though I have Banshee 2 in hand, I know where I’m taking it.

10^th April 2010

A day late in posting my blog and the only reason I have is that I simply forgot. I was so into Banshee 2 and a conversation between Susie, a reporter and a neighbour of one of the banshee’s latest victims that everything else seemed to slide to the side in my head. I am now ready to go onto the next chapter tonight and as usual need to think over where I’m taking the main character and when will I bring them together to face the evil that resides in the cottage in the woods. Should Munroe have a visitation or not? So many ideas drawing me further from the plot I wrote down though I did stick to it at the beginning. That is the good thing about plots you don’t have to stick to them, they are flexible or should be. After all do you want to let the ideas flow and not be bottled up or that’s how I see it.

Was out putting a new felt roof on my garden hut today. Finally spring has shown its head, the sun is out and I got some work done in tidying things up around my small garden. I put my seedlings out in the sun rather then leaving them indoors. Some of the have died on me sadly so let’s hope the fresh air helps them. My mate Mickey was round helping with the hut and we both got a good coating of tar paint on ourselves, amateurs eh, what you going to do with us, hehehe.

2nd April 2010

Winter returned to <st1:country-region><st1:place>Scotland this week with a vengeance. Luckily it didn’t last and the snow melted away quickly. But the frost has been nasty for us gardeners. I’m glad I have my seedlings indoors away from the cold. I don’t have a large garden so I use tubs to grow some onions, carrots, parsnips and few other vegs as well as some herbs. Unfortunately the herbs haven’t done very well the past few years. My parsley did quite well last year and has started coming back this year. It’s in the same tub as my Blueberry bush. I like pottering about with the garden but often find I don’t have a very green thumb. In the last few years the onions I’ve planted have all grown but are never that big at the end of the season. Maybe this year?

Banshee 2 has reached the fourteenth chapter. Now comes the part that was never that clear in my mind. How to take Munroe to his confrontation with the banshee. I only have a general idea of how I should bring it around yet need to let another character lead him to the cottage somehow. Something to mull over this tonight, I think that would be a good idea. Have a drink with the wife and relax to let the creative juices blend.

I sometimes read in the forums complaining about having writers block. I always give the same advice. Walk away from what you’re writing and go for a walk. Or go for a bath, anything really that helps you switch off for a bit. Its good way to recharge your batteries. It also works for those times you can’t see the tale to clearly. Mind you we all have our own ways of dealing with these kinds of things.

26^th March 2010

I see there is more trouble for our political leaders in <st1:city><st1:place>Westminster. Three former cabinet members getting three grand a day for pushing through legislation that benefits rich mega corporations. Of course the opposition is claiming that it would never happen under them. Only thing is that it did happen under them as I remember. Back in the eighties and nineties there was the arms dealer scandal, when Conservative cabinet members were involved in taking cash for contracts to furnish weapons to the army and the cash for questions one. It sounds like Labour and the Conservative’s are very much the same when it comes to shady dealings. And then they expect us all to vote for them in the coming elections? No wonder the number of those voting is declining when we see the corrupt nature of those wanting to win our confidence at the ballot box.

I believe that it is our duty to vote, so will not miss casting mine when the election comes. Too many people died to give me the right to have a say in who runs this nation. Though my vote may not mean much on its own when added to all the others it will combine with them, and so will, hopefully send a loud message to those in power. Though wither they will listen is another thing all together. After all they have shown a certain deafness to what the people think recently. We just need to look at their wage increase they awarded themselves and the expenses they seem to think is alright to receive. It just goes to show how the politicians have really lost touch with those they want votes from, doesn’t it?

19^th March 2010

I forgot to mention the great review that I got from LLBookReview.com for Bublos. I meant to mention it in my last past but it slipped my mind when writing it. It is always a good feeling when someone seems to have enjoyed what you have written. I remember the first review I got for Teddy the Bear, it wasn’t very good to say the least, which was a real knock. Though without the bad ones how would we appreciate the good ones?

Banshee 2 is coming along nicely. I’m moving onto chapter 11 and fully enjoying creating my new tale of the vengeful spirit. Mandy has met up with her deepest and worst nightmare. As you may imagine it didn’t go to well for her. Also another character, Frannie has had a not to friendly confrontation with the evil that has already cost her the father of her unborn child. <st1:city><st1:place>Alice, Mandy’s sister had her meeting with the banshee earlier in the story but I’m saying too much. Best be careful or I may give you the whole story, hehehe, and I don’t want to do that. Especially as it still will need a lot of work once I have got the first rough draft down. There are lots of things that need adding as well as smoothing out so the flow is just the way it should be.

Since my interview a few weeks back things have been slow in the job market. The news is that the recession is supposedly over but I think someone forgot to tell employers as I haven’t seen much in the way of vacancies. It reminds me of the mid eighties, when I left school. There was a real shortage of jobs then too and being fresh from school seemed a deterrent to finding work. I was full of energy yet it took a very long time before I actually got my first job. In fact it wasn’t until I had kids that I got work, by which time I had almost given up all hope that I would ever find a job. I just hope that I don’t go through that again, I don’t think I will as now I do have a work history. That is important as it does show employers that you aren’t averse to putting the effort in.

Another week of struggling to get my computer back up and running. Most of that was waiting on the postman delivering the parts. As it turned out my PSU was part of the problem, delivering only power on one of the power looms. My mother board had also blown, which I was able to prove once I had a new PSU. The processor was fine though now I have a more modern one. I finally got my system up and running yesterday and was never so glad, even if it did mean the dreaded reinstall of Windows. Now I can get back to writing again.

The government seem to have gotten away with their wage rise and this week announced that other government workers would have their wages frozen. One rule for us and another for them. Not a wise thing considering that it is an election year. Maybe Labour doesn’t want to stay in power. Though does it really make a difference who is in power? After all they all seem to be only interested in themselves after they have attained our votes. Still what can be done to change things? Can we change anything? I have my doubts. After all I have seen it all before. Last time was when Labour came to power in 1997. Things did seem to improve for a time but not by what was promised, or maybe I just expected more. I don’t believe the Conservatives promises though. Being Scottish I remember the last time they held power and it wasn’t pretty for us north of the border. Yes we have our own Parliament now and that may make a difference, I doubt it though. If anything I thing it make it a lot worse as at heart the Tories were against the idea of Devolved power for the other nation within the <st1:country-region><st1:place>UK. In the end though we have to wait and see how the election will turn out.

5^th March 2010

A nightmare of a week, my computer suddenly stopped working, and I have no idea what is wrong. My guess is that the processor is fried. I know the PSU is working fine as the light on the back is coming on, also it isn’t that old. So that leaves the processor, or the motherboard. I’ve been forced to put a new one on the never, never, what a pain. Now I have to wait for it to arrive, which has left me unable to get at my files. As I said a real pain. I’m using my wife’s laptop to do my blog but find it awkward to use, so I have found myself internetless for the most part, and unable to continue my writing. Though if I find myself without my computer over the weekend I may have to resort to more primitive mean, the dreaded pen, and paper, hehehe. At least I can still laugh about it.
Putting aside my troubles, for once I hear you say, I was disgusted today to hear that politicians have voted themselves a pay rise at <st1:city><st1:place>Westminster. They have frozen many other public sector workers wages yet, they feel they are deserving of a rise. And this after the expenses scandal only a few short months ago. Add to this all those who are struggling on unemployment benefit, who the government often try to paint as nothing more than criminals, and layabouts. Yes, some of them maybe but most would rather be working, and earning an honest living. That is more than I can say for the politicians at the moment. To me it looks like they are the one living the free ride. I think it is time that they were all held to account, and forced to take a major wage cut. After all they should be leading by example, and at the moment they keep telling us all that we have to tighten our belts. Well it should be them that should tighten them first, don’t you think?

26th February 2010

It has been a busy week, one of those unexpectedly busy ones. You know where everything just seems to in a hundred different ways at once. I knew it would be kind of full as my daughter turn thirteen this week, I had to sign on and I had my interview, which I think went well. But then other thing fell out of the blue to add everything that was planned. By the time thing began to settle down I felt like my head was on backwards.

It doesn’t help that I changed ISPs this week. This has entailed its own frustrations to everything else. Internet Providers are never easy to deal with but it always seems worse when you change over, or is that just my take on it? I’m still getting used to the new way of doing things. Last night it took me twice as long to surf through all the sites that I usually visit. Why I have no idea, let’s hope that things get back to normal quickly.

Even with all the head bashing my mind has took this week I did manage to do a bit of writing, just not as much as I would have liked. Other news is that I have been invited to write a piece on one of my books for another blog. The blog in question can be found at http://a305w.wordpress.com/ and is really been set up to show the authors views on another site I go to. He/she doesn’t take many prisoners yet I have found it a diversion just when I needed it.

19th February 2010

I finished reading The Stand by Steven King last night. A great read. I found myself doing something I haven’t done in a long time, sitting in bed reading until in the morning to finish it. Have you ever found yourself doing the? I think it’s the sign of a really good book. A gripping read as some would call it. I know it is a bit old now and does at times show its age. Yet I have read many books older, such as The Day of the Triffids, which are older with great joy whilst losing myself within the words.

My own writing is coming on well this week, reaching chapter 8. As it develops I see that this first draft will need a lot of work to pull it all together. A new character will need to be introduced at the start of the book, with more about the trouble she has cause for Munroe as the story moves on. Who is she? Well she’s a reporter for a local rag by the name of Susie. So as you can guess being a reporter she won’t be really the bee’s knees for a policeman.

Getting a little nervous with my coming interview in the coming week. It will be worse the night before, as always. Until then I can easily put it to the back of my mind but the night before, that is when mind starts to run over it. Even though it’s never like I imagine it I can’t stop running it over in my mind. I’ve always been the same when it comes to that kind of thing. Too much day dreaming as my teachers would call it. Sometimes an imagination can be a bit of a curse, a hard thing to rein in and so of it goes keeping you awake when you really need sleep.

Comments(1):TheBigBookGab

HI

I'd like you to do a Big Book Gab for my blog!
http://a305w.wordpress.com/the- big-book-gab

Posted by Alan Smithee 21:01:40 23.02.2010;

12th February 2010

Another fruitless week of job hunting. I haven’t seen the jobcentre this bad though it does remind of how the boards used to look back in the mid eighties. And the news is that we are supposed to be out of the recession. I wish it would show in the number of jobs available. Mind I did get a phone call at the start of the week asking me to an interview on the 23rd of this month. It’s for a new store that is opening up soon in the town. As you can guess I’m keeping my fingers crossed for that one.

I’ve been tapping away on the computer, as expected, working on Banshee 2. It’s been going well with lots more still to do. I stole a name of one character from the book I’m reading at night, The Stand by S. King. I like Frannie in the book, she’s a strong, with real feel to her. Maybe it was her diary entries or how she feels guilt for the way she didn’t feel the same for Harold. Anyway I liked the name and choosing names for character is not always that easy, after all there are so many. Sometimes the name just comes and you can see the person they are but then at other times you have to work on building them. I think my Frannie will need more work, a lot more. It will come when I have a first draft which is what I need to get on and finish first. I doubt though that she will be anything like the Frannie as in Mr. King’s book other than the name. It will be fun creating her though for she does have a good role in the story though how big it will be I still have to decide but it does look like it may be a large one.

5th February 2010

You may have noticed that last week I put the wrong date for the title. Why? Well I don’t have a reason, just somewhere in the week I must have lost a couple of days. How did I not change it? Simply because I believe if you make a mistake you have to live with it. It isn’t like it’s a real big issue that would bring the world down. It does show one of the consequences of unemployment, losing track of time. Another thing which is strange is that you feel tired even though you struggle to find things to do.

When I was younger I was jobless for many years. The longer I remained out of the job market the harder it seemed to be to find the motivation to get out of bed. Really you would have put me down as a lazy good for nothing. In some ways I am but when I do work I put a lot of energy into the job. Yet when I’m back in the list of jobless I do find it hard to drive myself. There is one thing that doesn’t suffer though and that is writing, where when I work there is less time so less gets done. Of course that is too be expected after all.

We all dream of what we would do if we could give up work because of winning the lottery or something. I suspect that most of us would soon become very bored with little to do. Of course with that kind of money we would soon find some way to fill our days, all you need if the incentive. The opposite is the case for the rest of us I suspect. We may have the incentive but the funds are lacking in many cases.

So what do you do? You pull up your socks and do the best you can with what you have. Or if you seem to lack the motivation then when you realise that you’re wallowing, give yourself a good kick up the rear. If you don’t then get a friend to, though that may prove more painful because they may actually kick you behind.

27th January 2010

It’s almost the end of my January sale on my E-books. There is still time to use the codes if you want one of my books. Just check one of my previous posts for them.

I’m going onto the fourth chapter on Banshee 2. I may change the plot a little just to add more action but that’s only a thought, which is still half formed. So I’ll need to think about it. Should I kill of one of the characters sooner? Will it help the storyline? Maybe. As I said I’ll need to think it over some more.

It is amazing though how much more difficult it is to write a sequel. You have to double check what was in the previous book. Really just making sure that what you remember is correct so as to keep the new book for contradicting the first one. Luckily there isn’t a lot that needs check for Mandy was only in the prologue of the first one and Munroe at the end. Still you don’t want to make a bloomer.

I’ve been having problems with my internet this week. Well really it has been longer than that but usually it sorts itself out. This week my son has been the one affected the most. He has found that a few of the anime sites that he goes to won’t load. The Internet Provider I’m with might need changing soon. The good thing is that my contract ends soon so we’ll get the Mac Number then and see who is doing the good deals. Sky looks good and we do have TV from them, so might be good to go with them. It’s just been a pain phoning the one I’m with every few months because of a problem. We did get it fixed and things are back running not to back, though I have noticed a little lag on my sites now. Not long to go though till I can change my Provider.

22nd January 2010

Another slow week, yet when I look back it seems to have only just been a couple of days. It’s funny how time just flies past as you get older but I can remember when I was younger how time always appeared to drag. Now I wonder where it vanishes to. I suppose that’s what we get for all those times when we were kids and wished it would hurry up and be that special day we all waited for, Christmas, birthdays, holidays or whatever. Now you want it to slow down so you have more time to do all the things that you want to do but there never seems to be enough hours in the day or week for that matter. I hear it only gets worse, I’m hoping it’s just a scare story to worry us middle-aged worriers.

I have noticed a bit of interest in my offer for January at Smashwords, yet there hasn’t been many sales. There is still time if you wish to get an E-book cheap. Just used the codes for my previous posts and get which ever book grabs you for $1.

Work on my next book is moving along steadily. Not a lot more I wish to say at the moment as there is still a great deal to write and even more to do after that. First though is to get it down on paper, out of my head or so to speak.

My son has set up a website, one of those Japanese Anime things. He’s a big fan, as is my daughter though my son is the larger fan. He drove me mad till he got the domain name, AnimeJunkies.co.uk. He paid for it himself but need me to pay for it with my card. Of course it was the wife that got the money to pay to the card.

After he had the name though it caused more of a headache as he tried getting the thing up and running. At least it should keep him happy when and if he can get it going the way he wants.

15th January 2010

I've been writing this week again, working on Banshee 2. It has been slow but I am getting there. There will be the usual work once the first draft is done, as you would expect and then more rewrites to improve it.

There’s still plenty of ice around yet, which is making it difficult when going to the shops. You would have thought our spell of rain that we got would have cleared it all but no. More rain is on the way off of the <st1:place>Atlantic, meaning it will be a bit warmer so it shouldn’t be long before its safe to get around again. It does take me back a few years all this slipping and sliding along, hehehe.

The job hunting is still not going well. You just have to look at the Jobcentre site to see that for yourself. There is very few around my area so the ones that are there are for the east coast or <st1:city><st1:place>London down south. All good for those that live there but not for me with a family. Well I’ll just keeping looking.

My January Sale at Smashwords.com hasn’t been seeing much in the way of success but there is still time to use those codes. Remember that to get the reduced price you have to enter the code when purchasing one of my E-books and you will get it for $1.

Here are those codes again:

BM99Y -- Winter Journey

LM87Y -- Bublos

WY59T -- Banshee Angel of Judgement

8th January 2010

Hasn’t it been a cold beginning to the new decade and they’re saying it’s to last for a bit yet. It makes you glad for central heating yet still there’s a chill in the air that doesn’t seem to be shifted by the radiators. I think it has to be something to do with the concrete floor of our house. The carpet just isn’t enough in this extreme cold snap to insulate our feet against the cold. And you know what you feel like when your feet are icy. Makes you glad though to not be in a colder clime like <st1:country-region><st1:place>Russia. There I heard that it didn’t get above -19c today, now that is cold. The coldest so far here was further north where it dropped to -22.3c last night. I’m glad to say round my way it’s not been quite that bad, about -14c so far.

The other thing that the cold has caused is a lack of salt. My wife and I were shopping yesterday and when we got to the salt shelf there was none. We used ours like so many are at the moment for the path so are very low on the valuable commodity. The supermarket though had none and so we’ll to be very careful with the little we have, saving it only for cooking. No more salting the path to free it of the ice.

Job hunting is very slow though I did phone the Jobcentre about one the other day. Now I’m just waiting for the application form coming through the post. It’s for a new store that is opening in the area. There was little detain on the job itself and the woman on the phone told me almost as little as was on the web page I saw the job.

Remember that my January sale is still on so head over to Smashwords.com and use one of my codes to get my e-books at a dollar.

1st January 2010

Happy New Year, I hope that it has started well for you all and that the coming year bring you great happiness. Mine started quietly with just me and the family staying up for the bells. Boring I know but as the saying goes, family is everything. As the old year came to the end we all look back on how the year has been. Or at least that is how we writers would like to think of it but really few of us do. There are times in our lives when we do yet for the most part we look forward with a hope that what is to come is better than what has went. Not that it has been that bad, just that it can always be better, right. No matter how good things maybe for us humans we look for more, we want things nicer, we never have enough. It is not greed, it isn’t even selfishness, what it is, is just the drive that keeps driving us to provide for those we love. It is very much what drove our ancestors’ in the hunt for food. Without it would we have the will to continue? I don’t think so. I think I may have had one to many tipples for I’m getting a little deep in my thinking.

Anyways this week I set up some discounts for my e-books on Smashwords.com. This means that if you go there and quote the code when buying one of my books you get it for one dollar. The discount codes last until the beginning of February. You have the choice of e-book formats, so you can find the one that is right for your reader. Here are the codes and next to them the book they are for:

BM99Y          A Winter Journey

LM87Y           Bublos

WY59T           Banshee Angel of Judgement