Cold Comfort
Busyness and art exhibitions
Has anyone missed me? Sorry I’ve been away for a while. Nothing personal, you understand, I’ve just been so busy. Busy finishing the first draft of the screenplay for a feature film called The Choice, finishing a spell of social media promotions for another publishing company, busy not finishing my historical novel The Judas Curse (but making good progress with it), busy editing and publishing a fabulous crime novel by Tony Glover called Cars Just Want to be Rust, busy teaching a new crop of students at Northumbria and Newcastle Universities, busy helping to lead an Alpha Course at Heaton Baptist Church, busy ferrying my daughter back and forth to her gymnastics lessons, busy vising my mum who hasn’t been too well, busy starting to sort out my study but not finishing it (and now I’m working surrounded by boxes), and, most excitingly, busy preparing for the launch of the Young David Books Art Exhibition this Friday! Oh, and by the way, you and your friends are cordially invited – if you live in (or are visiting) the North East of England.
The exhibition will be of Amy Barnes’ original watercolours for the three books in the Young David Picturebook series so far: David and the Hairy Beast, David and the Kingmaker and David and the Giant as well as the work in progress on our next book, David and the Lonely Prince. Amy and I will be there to sign copies and talk about the books and there will be free cheese ‘n wine. Yes that’s right – free!
So if you have plans, cancel them, or risk missing the art exhibition of the year! (Well if I’m not going to talk it up, who will?)
Where? The Holy Biscuit, Newcastle upon Tyne
When? Friday 9 November
Time? 7 – 8.30pm
Cost? FREE!!!!!!!!!!!
The exhibition will run 12 – 25 November, 11 – 4pm daily.
Reading at summer market
I will be doing a reading of David & the Giant at the Made in Newcastle Summer Market at Trinity Centre Cafe, Gosforth High St. on Saturday. You’ll find me at the children’s craft corner doing readings at 12 noon and 2pm. Between then I’ll be signing copies of the book. So if you missed the reading at CLC last Saturday, here’s another chance to come along and get your copy! Hope to see some of you there. http://madeinnewcastle.org/
Book launch of David and the Giant a juicy success
On Saturday 4th August an enthusiastic group of Young David fans crammed into CLC Bookshop in Newcastle to hear the latest story in the picture book series. They enjoyed colouring-in and juice ‘n’ biscuits along with the story. Illustrator Amy Barnes and I are so happy that there is a growing following for our little hero. For more on the books and a list of the bookshops that stock them visit www.craftypublishing.com. If there isn’t a bookshop near you you can order directly from the Crafty Publishing e-shop.
David and the Giant book launch
I will be reading from my new book, David and the Giant, at CLC Bookshop, Newcastle on Saturday 4 August at 2pm. Bring along your 3 – 7 year-old sprogs. There will be juice, biscuits and colouring. Please share this with anyone you know with children / nieces / nephews/ grandchildren in that age bracket who live in and around the Newcastle area.
If you haven’t yet managed to get your hands on the first two books, David and the Hairy Beast and David and the Kingmaker, they will also be available to purchase on the day, signed by the author. If you can’t make it to the reading, you can buy the books from Amazon and many other bookshops around the UK.
Here’s a little sneak peek of one of the pages from the book:
Shoes, chickens and Hebrews
I really enjoyed preaching at Heaton Baptist Church yesterday. Shouldn’t have worn those shoes though, my feet were killing me! I’ve been told the sermon is on the church website if anyone’s interested. Of course, you won’t be able to see the clip of Chicken Run which was the real highlight of the day. The sermon was called ‘And now that we’ve got that all sorted …’ and is a summary of 20 sermons on the Letter to the Hebrews. It deals with how we can still keep Jesus as our focus in a post-modern world and how despite the challenges we face we can still look forward to amazing things to come http://www.heatonbaptist.org/?publications/notes/archive/?SermonNotes-2012-07-08-am.mp3
