25 October 2014
6 October 2014
I've lived in
Manchester since 1990, which was the year my family moved from Blackburn in Lancashire to a suburb of South Manchester. Unbeknownst to me at that time, our new home was located in an area of the city which was also the home of the team behind Danger Mouse; it was a dream come true for a fan of the series (I hope my arrival didn't precipitate its end!).And I've been visiting the Curry Mile ever since.
I guess the Mile must have have slowly, imperceptibly, percolated away in my head until the novel was produced. The idea for the story actually came to me when I was living in France, bien sur. However, since the novel's publication, my muse hasn't stopped bubbling away, granting me tantalising glimpses of other stories.
It has taken much longer that I would have anticipated to get the next book published, but let me share one tale about the adventure of getting the second book onto the shelves.
Soon, after The Curry Mile was published by Suitcase, agents came a-knocking and I signed up with a London-based agency (aren't they all London-based? Well almost), and my agent was sending out manuscripts and letting would-be publishers believe I was a woman.
You see, my agent, a junior at a large agency was ambitious and keen to cut her teeth in a competitive industry and she must have thought it would fast-track the book to publication. However, it was a deceit too great for me, and shortly after she shared her cunning plan with me, I asked the Agency to release from the contract...
You might think it was silly of me, that I should have gone with the flow, and maybe it was a mistake on my part. Following the debacle, I needed to take some time out to think things through. And I have.Since then, I've been working on a series, in fact, on a series of series. I'm nearing the end of a prequel to The Curry Mile and I've been planning the follow-up to the novel itself...you know, that big question, "So, what happens to Sorayah after she takes over the business?"
The original version of The Curry Mile was a trilogy. I cannot say for certain that it will be a trilogy, but the story continues.
Since the launch of The Curry Mile, I've been working on some children's stories and I've also penned some YA (Young Adult) fiction. My aim now is to dedicate more time to writing and publishing and just, well, to share my stories. Life is richer for it.
ZHZ.
29 September 2014
I was particularly moved when I heard this as the selection of this theme is a "nod" to the centenary of the outbreak of World War I, a war which transformed the world and brought about the modern age, and it was in this crucible in which fine poets such as Rupert Graves, Thomas Hardy, Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon - to name a few - were forged.
Of course, poetry itself is a form of remembrance, of moments that have passed which we hope to cherish, crystallising an emotion, a glance...
Today, we live in the world of social media so I thought it would be great to suggest a few social media web sites that may be of interest:
National Poetry Day on Facebook
If you are keen to learn more about this years's National Poetry Day then visit the Forward Arts Foundation; they're doing lots of fine stuff and you can post your own events on their site.
The Poetry Society has also produced information on this year's National Poetry Day.
I'm looking forward to this year's National Poetry Day and remembering and hoping that, through the power of story and poetry, we can connect with those who have passed, and retain the harsh and cruel lessons of disharmony so that we can produce a lasting peace.
ZHZ.
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