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Monday 9 January 2012

So far this year...

Ten things I've learned so far this year:

Some days it takes me hours to write about 300 words. On those days it is not helpful to log on to facebook and read about people who have just spent the morning dashing off a quick short story or writing the next 5,000 word chapter of their novel.

I like running. I like running to The Killers - Jenny Was Friend Of Mine, Mr Brightside, Smile Like You Mean It, Midnight... I like the words, and listening to The Killers makes me feel about 10 years younger.

I don't dislike using a Kindle as much as I thought I would, although definitely I still prefer real books.

You can get Grimm's Fairy Tales, The Happy Prince and Other Tales by Oscar Wilde, The Witch and Other Stories by Chekhov, English Fairy Tales, Welsh Fairy Tales and Indian Fairy Tales free on Kindle.

When it comes to my children's education I need to be a lot more vocal and assertive than I have been.

I dislike the blunt instrument of the 5 star GoodReads rating system so much that I've decided to stop rating books.

Douglas Thayer is an interesting writer and I need to read some more of his work.

The big, lakey bit of marsh not far from my house (that features in the opening chapter of my novel) actually has a name: Junction Pool.

Short-eared owls hunt voles during the day.

If you want to change the name of a passenger on a Jet2 flight *before* you have checked in online, it will cost you £94.50, even if there are still tickets available on the same flight for £78.98 each.

4 comments:

  1. Carys, I agree on Goodreads' rating system - I was about to review books for the first time there yesterday and was surprised I couldn't award three and a half stars, or any fractions for that matter. I decided not to review at all. I'd be a terrible reviewer anyway - I'd worry too much about hurting other writer's feelings if I didn't love their book. They're delicate souls ;)

    PS. The Prodigy is great to run to!

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  2. Surprised you like The Killers given the lead singers religious persuasion :)

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  3. Hi Anonymous,

    I like plenty of people of Brandon Flowers's religious persuasion, including my parents, in-laws, nieces, nephews and several childhood friends; I didn't stop liking them when I stopped sharing their ideology and I *hope* the reverse is also true.

    Additionally, The Killers' music (Human, When We Were Young etc.) resonates with me and makes me feel a certain nostalgia for some of the good things about the community I've left.

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  4. Adam, I gave you 5 stars before I decided to stop reviewing - I'm looking forward to reading another 5 star collection of your stories soon :)

    I will have to try The Prodigy. I tried a Radio Four podcast the other evening and it was a disaster!

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