Local books ... for local people.

Scene setting:

(Because as every good author knows, it matters)

Sitting in an Aberdeen hotel bar on Sunday afternoon, headphones on and listening to Warren Zevon's Werewolves of London on Johnnie Walker's Sounds of the Seventies. Definitely conducive to stimulating the creative processes. Book editing, short story writing and, of course, updating the blog. Too early to start on the Calvados but the coffee is good and almost makes up for it.

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Whilst the national distribution is pretty much dealt with by my publisher Green Cat Books - making sure the books are available at Waterstones and Amazon - there is a fair bit of very important local promotion to be done as well. This has become all the harder over the years of course with the demise of so many local bookshops. Long before the advent of the internet most of these were driven out of business by the supermarkets and WH Smiths (which hardly now counts as a bookshop) who, now their competition has been largely killed off, are only interested in stocking the top few hundred best selling titles.

So in Newark we are very fortunate to still have a bookshop and one which, moreover, has been so willing to support local authors. My Green Cat stablemate and friend Steven P Lee and I are both delighted that Strays on Middle Gate have put our books on sale and are so ready to promote local authors.  

If you live in the area and fancy a copy of Aldwark Tales then do choose to buy it from Strays rather than online. It is important that we continue to support our local bookshops where they still survive.

In addition Newark now has its own book festival. It was at the first of these last year that Steve and I both met Lisa Greener of Green Cat Books which led to our publishing deals and this year we are returning as authors with our own shared stand to promote our books.

The festival runs from 13th to 15th July 2018 and Steve and I will have our stand in the Market Place on the Saturday and Sunday. Pop along and see us. We may both look scary but we are really very friendly. 

Details can be found at the Newark Book Festival website. 

Now, back to some editing. I need to earn that Calvados.