At last – the day has almost arrived. You’ve all been so patient with me taking so long to get The Coal Miner’s Son out to you. I really appreciate your support in Facebook shares, retweets on Twitter, Kindle pre-orders and the list for signed paperbacks is growing fast. If you haven’t seen the link – just click on The Coal Miner’s Son below.

The Coal Miner’s Son 

One week today…

I’m having an online launch party on Facebook next Monday – Publication Day – 9th March 2020 at 7-9pm

If you’re on Facebook and would like an invite, please let me know. It’s going to be fun – guest authors – lots of prizes and virtual prosecco and cake.

Over the next week I thought I’d fill you in a bit about new characters that have been added to The Coal Miner’s Son so watch this space.

In the meantime, here’s my first attempt at a video trailer. Let me know what you think.

https://animoto.com/play/Pb1M1rgsyopTutlg1e1xQQ?autostart=1

Today Swanwick writer, Jules Hartnett, returns to ‘Patricia’s Pen’ with ‘One Hundred  Words’.

That’s all it took, one hundred words. Well, actually, there were ninety-eight – I counted. Ninety-eight. But it was the last five that did it.
We’d argued before, who doesn’t? But we always made up. Not like in the movies; no passionate sex, no post-coital cigarette, just the hours or days of silence and sulking and then ‘normal’ service would be resumed– until this time.
He yelled, ‘And I’m not coming back!’
His last five words.
So, this time I made sure he kept his promise.
The new lavender bush will hide the bump in the lawn.

96 words

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Thank you for sharing this with us, Jules. I for one think Jules’ story is fabulous. What do you think?

 

My special guest today is, writer and poet, Raine Geoghegan. Raine has come along today to talk about her work and writing. Without further ado, it’s over to Raine.

Thank you Tricia for inviting me to write about my work and life.

My Work and Life

Raine Geoghegan

I have been re-reading my journals which I kept for a number of years and have come across an entry for Sunday 8 March, 2012. It reads:

‘A slow moving Sunday morning. I am sitting drinking white tea. Massenet’s Meditation from Thais is playing, a gentle flowing and deeply moving composition. My joints are sore and I am tired. My mind goes back to my Mother’s passing in 1996. This was a period in which I experienced many painful events, the onset of chronic illness and disability, as well as grief and divorce. “We did not come to remain whole; we come to lose our leaves like the trees. The trees that are broken and start again, drawing up from the great roots.” This beautiful quote by John Bly reminds me of our fragility and of our strength.

In 2012 I also wrote about both my excitement and my apprehension at the prospect of studying for an MA in Creative Writing at the University of Chichester. Some of my poems had already been published, but I wanted to take the next step, even though my health was not great. I am pleased to say that I did complete the MA and my Dissertation was based on my experiences of illness and disability, however in 2017 I began writing about my Romany Heritage. I worked with a mentor who encouraged me to use the Romani language (jib) and to research the ways of the Romany people. I had the good fortune of living with my Romany grandparents as a child, along with my mother and sister, following the death of my father, so I began to write about my memories and the rich characters that came and went. My granny, Amy, sold flowers and was a strong woman. She used to travel to Covent Garden on the train, taking her barrow with her.

‘She walks swiftly over Waterloo Bridge then onto Nine Elms market where she buys the freshest, most colourful loolladi. This is where she uses cunning to get what she wants, never paying the full price.’ (Loolladi – flowers). Up Early, ‘they lit fires: lenti hatch o yog.’

My grandfather, Alfie, was gentle; he kept many animals and missed his old life, peg making and hop picking.

‘I used to love going into the woods, cuttin’ ‘azel rods to make the faida, wiv me little churi, the one me dad gave me when I was fifteen.’ (Faida – pegs; Churi – knife) 

My first book ‘Apple Water: Povel Panni’ released in December 2018 was well received and chosen as a Poetry Book Society 2019 Spring Selection.

My second book ‘they lit fires: lenti hatch o yog’ was released in December 2019 and is selling well.

Both books are published by Hedgehog Poetry Press.

I am soon to begin a tour around England and Wales performing work from both of these books and am thrilled that my husband Simon will be accompanying me on some of these readings. I am grateful for the support of family, friends and my publisher Mark Davidson. 

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Thank you, Raine for a fascinating read, and I’m sure my readers will agree. Good luck with the tour and do come back to ‘Patricia’s Pen’ and tell us all about it.

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If  you’d like to know more about Raine and her writing, why not purchase one of her poetry pamphlets. (Links listed below.)

Before I list the links for Raine’s books and social media details, let’s find out a little more about her.

About Raine Geoghegan 

Raine Geoghegan, M.A. is a poet and prose writer of Romany, Welsh and Irish descent. Nominated for the Forward Prize, Best of the Net & The Pushcart Prize, her publications include: Poetry Ireland Review; Travellers’ Times; Ofi Press; Under the Radar. Her pamphlet, ‘Apple Water: Povel Panni’, was launched in December 2018 and was listed in the Poetry Book Society Spring 2019 Selection.  Her new pamphlet, ‘they lit fires: lenti hatch o yog’ also published by Hedgehog Poetry Press in December 2019 is out now.  Her work was featured in the film, ‘Stories from the Hop Yards,’ made by Catcher Media.

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Social Media and Website links

Twitter 

Linked in 

Website

Purchase Links 

   Website       Amazon

  Amazon 

This Sunday’s writing challenger comes from Sarah Howes with her response in the form of a Haiku. Enjoy.

Thank you for that, Sarah. I think this is a subject we all need to be more aware of. What does everyone else think?

After tragedy hits the small coal mining village of Wintermore, nine-year-old miner’s son, George, is sent to Granville Hall to live with his titled grandparents.

Caught up in a web of treachery and deceit, George grows up believing his mother sold him. He’s determined to make her pay, but at what cost? Is he strong enough to rebel?

Will George ever learn to forgive?

Step back into the 60s and follow George as he struggles with bereavement, rejection and a kidnapping that changes his life forever. Resistance is George’s only hope.

Can’t wait to read it? 

For a preview – click here

You can pre-order on Kindle now – click here 

The prize draw to win a copy of House of Grace OR The Coal Miner’s Son was drawn yesterday, 20th February 2020, @ 4:20pm GMT by author Lynette Creswell.

And the winner is…

Gerry Du – Gerry has claimed her prize and chosen a signed copy of The Coal Miner’s Son which will be sent to her as soon as copies become available.

Sad that you didn’t win?

Don’t worry, The Coal Miner’s Son is now available on Kindle for Pre Order – you can make your order here.

If you’d like a signed copy of House of Grace or The Coal Miner’s Son – contact me here.

 

 

Deborah Edgeley has come along today to talk about her writing. Without further ado, let’s go over to Deborah.

My latest poetry collection, Wilkommen Zum Rattenfänger Theater (2019) is about a sister pilgrimage to Germany and follows on from Testing The Delicates, exploring the themes of ancestry, identity, language, mental health, memories, time, truth and spiritual journeys. In 2019, my sister, Syl, and I, went to Germany, to Bielefeld, where our mother was born, and to Bad Oeynhausen, where our parents met, and finally to Hameln, where I went as a child.

The poem ‘Velvet Gelt’ was inspired by our grandmother’s Poesie, a diary entry written on the day the French occupied the Ruhrgebeit, as the country was suffering from hyper-inflation. The poem finds fun things to do with the useless money:

1920s childboy dreams of a giant jade marble

Runs with his patchwork flag that flies with black headed gulls

Scrapes knees scrambling into his bundle hideout

Pow pow paper guns whisper crisp notes

Folded planes glide behind the sideboard

(…)

Velvet gelt, silk banknotes, linen lolly

Stick one to cover that crack in the wall

‘Edelweiss Pirates Against the Destruction of Colour’ is the only flash fiction piece written from a child’s perspective, blending fact and fiction in a sad tale of a missing girl who picked gladioli to make a special, spiced liquid for the soldiers. 

‘If our Ancestors and Ludwig II of Bavaria Could See Us Now’ is about a trip to a local hotel in Bad Oeynhausen, nostalgic for the food their mother used to make:

Wagner drifts through fried air

Faded poster eyes of Ludwig

flicking through paper sketches in his mind

as several screens stream sport

(…)

Grating zweibeln with layered tears

Squeezing out brown water with one hand

Egg the magic binder

Puffs of flour like snow

Sizzle of patted potato

I perform with Mark Sheeky as a poetry and piano duo, ‘Fall In Green’. Our latest EP is about to be released, War Is Over (Cornutopia Music). Tracks include ‘Janus Never Blinks’, a timeless piece of the transition between war and peace. ‘Asylum Flowers’ is based on a true story about a trip to the National Gallery to see art by people in asylums. ‘Struck Lucifers’ explores the clean up at the end of WW2 and the Egyptian demonstrations about keeping the English troops. Mark has also written and performed the explosive track ‘Valhalla’, plays piano throughout the EP, uses his own theatrical sound effects, and created all the artwork on the EP. The cover is taken from one of his many oil paintings, Premonition of War.

Thank you for sharing about your poetry collections and performance, Deborah.

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If anyone has any questions for Deborah please ask in the comments section or contact Deborah via one of her social media links below.

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Details of where you can purchase Deborah’s collections and where you can find her on social media will be posted at the end of this blog. But first, let’s find out a little more about her.

About Deborah Edgeley

Deborah Edgeley is a poet, performance artist, and Editor in Chief for Ink Pantry Publishing. Her debut poetry collection, Testing The Delicates (2017), raises awareness of mental health. Her latest collection, Wilkommen Zum Rattenfänger Theater (2019) is about a sister pilgrimage to Germany. Deborah performs with polymath Mark Sheeky as theatrical piano and poetry duo, ‘Fall in Green’. Their debut, experimental album of Testing The Delicates (Cornutopia Music) was released in 2018. ‘Fall In Green’ are about to release an EP, War Is Over, a series of alternative war memorials performed in the Congleton and Knutsford libraries.

Click on the follow links to purchase Deborah Edgeley’s books. 

Testing The Delicates 

Wilkommen Zum Rattenfänger Theater

Click on the follow links to find Deborah Edgeley on Social Media and Websites.

Twitter

Twitter/Falling Green 

Facebook 

Soundcloud

Facebook/Ink Pantry

Facebook/Falling Green Band

Website/Cornutopia

Spotify

Youtube

Website/Mark Sheeky

Facebook/Mark Sheeky

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today I’m pleased to feature challenger L W Hawksby who has responded to the writing challenge to write a story in UNDER one hundred words with ‘And there she was’.

Even as the fire burned and smoke billowed, she didn’t die. Lucia was so much more than the Lucifer who made her. As a female being she owned his brutality, apathy and betrayals and let them singe and strengthen her. Head high, eyes ahead, she stepped out of the ashes, brushed herself down & walked on, better, braver and bolder. She was more dangerous than his nightmares ever suggested. She would be harder to silence and harder to kill than anyone dared dream.

83 words

Ooh I can see this being expanded into a much longer story. What does everyone else think?

Note: L W Hawksby did indeed make this into a much longer story which can be found in a Memoir Dangerous Normal People: Understanding Casanova Psychopaths and the Narcissistic Virus 

L W Hawksby will return to ‘Patricia’s Pen’ in July as a Tuesday Guest when she will discuss her writing. Don’t miss it.

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Are you up to one of ‘Patricia Pen’s’ Challenges? Take a look at the guidelines for the Story or Haiku Challenge and submit via the online form on this link for consideration.

Check out this great blog by author Lynette Creswell.

How Writers Help Readers Build Their Imagination

 

 

 

The Coal Miner’s Son is now available to PRE-ORDER on Kindle – Click HERE to proceed.

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED – THE WINNER’S NAME WILL BE POSTED SHORTLY AFTER THE DRAW. THANK YOU FOR TAKING PART.

 

 

Fancy a FREE copy?

HERE’S HOW

Fill in the online form below and answer the following question in the ‘comment section’.

Once you’ve done that – Press Submit. 

That’s it. Simple. And you will then be eligible to take part in the FREE PRIZE DRAW to win a copy of House of Grace OR The Coal Miner’s Son in a format of your choosing.

Draw closes on THURSDAY 20TH FEBRUARY AT 16:00 GMT  – COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

Question 

Downton Abbey 

While the Earl of Grantham was referred to as ‘His Lordship’ or ‘My Lord’ by the servants, his wife and mother were in the privileged position of using his given name.

What was that name?

A)      James

B)       Henry 

C)       Robert 

D)       Charles 

Answer in the comment section on the form below and press submit to be entered in the FREE draw to win a copy of House of Grace OR The Coal Miner’s Son.  

Competition terms

Names will be drawn by Author Lynette Creswell after the competition ends. Winners will be notified shortly afterwards.

The winner’s name will be published on this blog.

NOTE:

IF THE WINNER CHOOSES A PAPERBACK VERSION OF ‘THE COAL MINER’S SON’

THE COPY WILL BE POSTED

AFTER

PUBLICATION DATE 9TH MARCH 2020 

 

THANK YOU FOR TAKING PART