Acceptance Speech

I've been handed The Versatile Bloggers Award, by my good Blogland friend Deborah Barker. Thank you Deborah for nominating me, I feel truly honoured. Deborah's site 'Living Between the Lines' is a good tonic. Once you've visited you will be sure to go back. The best way I can describe Deborah's blog is it has all the nourishment of 'Chicken Soup for the Soul' by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen seasoned with all the Englishness you can get from 'Cider With Rosie' by Laurie Lee. I find Deborah's writing inspirational, motivational and heart-warming.

Now for the VBA rules. First I have to thank the person who nominated me. I've done that, thank you Deborah. Then I have to nominate blogs for the award that I believe are excellent.

Blog Nominations

http://www.mikefrenchuk.com/ I met Mike French at a writer's conference this year. He was a good companion and lunch buddy. We exchanged url's and email addresses and I bought Mike's book, 'The Ascent of Isaac Seward.' Little did I know what an amazing writer Mike is. His book took me on an incredible journey into another dimension that I could never have dreamed of. I strongly recommend you put this book on your bucket list. If you don't you will have missed out on something  mind-blowingly good. Mike's next book Blue Friday will be published in a digital edition on 1 September 2012 and launched in paperback on the 10 November 2012 at the Novacon science fiction convention. Mike is also editor of the literary magazine 'The View from Here.' http://www.viewfromheremagazine.com/

We are at the dawn of a new era and generation of writers. With the advent of the electronic book, it would be foolhardy not to embrace it as a supplement to cherished collections that are stored on bookshelves. This has brought about a number of book blogs sites with reviews from ordinary readers. I, for one am finding it is almost second nature for me to write a review when I have finished a book. I will be honest and say that if I don't enjoy a book I'm unlikely to write a review to avoid writing something negative, but that's me. These alternative sites have broadened my reading preferences towards books and genres that I may never have noticed whilst browsing in the High Street or on Amazon. I would like to nominate a couple of my favourites.

http://bookishwhimsy.blogspot.co.uk/ A delightful site with a broad cross section of genres.

http://www.goodreads.com You may choose to rate 20 or more books to get personalized recommendations

http://readingunderthewillowtree.blogspot.co.uk/ A massive amount of content here. Clearly a lot of thoughtfully laid out work has gone into producing this site. When I get round to reading the Hunger Games, I think this is the site that will get my review.

There are many more, I could mention, and I'm sure they will be nominated by others soon enough.

My final obligation under VBA rules is to tell my nominator (Deborah) seven things about myself. So if your name is not Deborah Barker, please look away.

1)    I have loved reading for as long as I can remember. I also enjoyed creating my own stories. At school, for a short while I was writing a James Bond type serial and my father used to tell me his mates at work were following it too.

2)    I equally love art. For me painting and writing are closely linked. I painted for a number of years but my real passion was, studying the old masters. Everything from Renaissance through Flemish schools, Impressionists, Pre-Raphaelite, to contemporary. If I didn't have to work for a living, I think I would become a perpetual student studying art history.

3)    I'm not looking to make money from my writing, but I would like to have something published, even if it is only for my nearest and dearest to pass down the line, I would be happy.

4)    World history I find fascinating. I suppose I could link this with travel, because once I have had that hands on experience of visiting a historical site, it will continue to haunt me, to find out more, and perhaps write a little too.

5)    Something I may talk to you about some day Deborah, is that like you, I too have connections to the Raj. My mother was born in India in 1924 and did not come to England until 1948 during the partition. She sailed on a troop ship around the Cape of Good Hope to get here. She was raised by her aunt, my Great Aunt Gertrude (who lived until I was 21 so I knew and loved her very much), who was governess to a local ruler's (the Khan of Calat) children. My sister and I have many old photos from my mother's time of living in the palace.

6)    I would love to go to India, but am very afraid of getting ill. I have been ill twice before in different countries. My sister Jean went to India this year, determined to take great care not to get the dreaded Dehli Belly, but she did, poor thing.

7)    I have two lovely grandchildren. What more can I say, Life is pretty good really. You just have to know what are the important things and value them dearly.

Okay that's the end of my acceptance speech. No... please... you don't need to stand up. J