Lit Walk called off

Sadly, my last Literary walk of the season had to be called off today because of the weather. Strong wind, pretty well continuous rain, and cloud obscuring the mountain..... even if a few people had turned up. it would not have been a pleasant day on and around the summit. A pity, but if any avid readers of the saga really want a walk on the mountain, they can always give me a ring and fix a date with me. I'm happy to do a walk at any time of year so long as there are ten people at least.

Books in Print

I'm often asked how and where my titles may be obtained -- it's still the case that many bookshops are hopeless at obtaining books for customers if the titles concerned are not on one of the big publishers' catalogues. there is no excuse for this --. all good bookshops should now have access to the Nielsen-Bookscan database, and should be able to get any of my titles within a few days. Above is a list of all my titles in print. Click on the image to enlarge it.

The easiest way to get any of the books is to go to either of these sites, and go to the "buy books" section -- there you will be able to purchase via Paypal with justr a few clicks of the mouse -- and the books you have ordered will normally be off to you on the same day.

http://www.brianjohn.f2s.com/greencroftbooks21.html

http://www.angel-mountain.info/shop.html

On visualisation

I got an interesting message the other day from a lady who has been reading "On Angel Mountain". She had been scanning this blog, and expressed the view that she was not sure about me using many illustrations in the normal course of events -- it sounded as if she preferred to have her own mental picture of what Martha looked like, what the Plas looked like, and what everything else in the stories looked like. So that got me thinking. Is it a good idea for an author (or anybody else, for that matter) to issue an image that happens to portray one particular impression or perception of a face, or a place that features in a story?

People do like to have their own mental images, which they hold in their mind's eye as they work through a book. Children like vibrant images in their books -- these are a means to sparking their imagination and whetting their appetite for the written word. Adults clearly like to inhabit their own imaginary worlds without too much interference from outside. But I've learnt that there are two (only two? I hear you cry..) groups of readers who enjoy the books of the saga -- those who know nothing about the local area, and who imagine everything, and those who know North Pembs, Cilgwyn and Carningli intimately, and who identify strongly with the stories for that very reason. Is there a right and a wrong on this issue? I doubt it -- after all. Every publisher who decides on a book jacket, or a promotional trailer or video, or even a poster campaign for a novel, is flagging up one particular vision -- no better or worse, and no more valid or invalid, than any other.

Martha's Dungeon

I post these two pics because I like them! The bottom one is an old painting of Haverfordwest Castle as it appeared in Martha's day -- the prison cell in which she was incarcerated was one of those in the castle wall, high above the town. The other painting -- very romantic indeed -- is "Hope in a Prison of Despair". This summarises Martha's mood -- and her dilemma -- very nicely. In spite of her despair there was hope, standing behind her, unnoticed....

September Literary Walk

My last Literary walk of the 2010 season will be on Friday 10th September, starting at 2 pm. The walk on Bank Holiday Monday was very pleasant -- a group of nine keen readers, with lots of questions, and perfect walking weather..... flaming autumn, with the colours at their best.

Literary Lunch - St Davids

Enjoyed a pleasant lunchtime event today in Oriel y Parc, the splendid gallery / information centre / cafe in St Davids. I met up with a small group of enthusiastic saga readers for a lunchtime talk and discussion on the theme of "Mistress Martha Gets Really Wild" -- as part of the Festival Verge, leading to this weekend's Really Wild Food Festival. The weather was so good that we should all really have been on the beach, but it was a jolly occasion nonetheless. Sold some books too......

Three Great Pleasures

Three great pleasures on the mountain this morning -- simple things become even more pleasurable when one reaches the moderately advanced age of 70 than they were before. Number one was breakfast on the summit, in the sun. Number two was a plastic container full of blackberries, which are now coming thick and fast. And number three was a grandstand view of a protracted dogfight overhead between a male hen harrier and a pair of red kites who were clearly not welcome in his territory. He was pretty angry with them, but it must be said that they were not terribly bothered by his attacks. With that very distinctive light colouring, I thought at first that he was a gull, but then the characteristic form became clearer. He was about the size of a buzzard, but with slightly slimmer wings and a more elegant and agile flight. Magnificent! And good to know that the hen harriers are still nesting on the mountain.