ΑΝΕΞΑΡΤΗΤΟΙ ΠΑΝΑΘΗΝΑΙΚΟΙ
Το blog απευθύνεται αυστηρώςPublished on: 24.04.2012
The Vikings are back!
16 May 2012 09:07:00
On a day of glorious sunshine the Vikings returned last Saturday to Rothesay Castle. This time the islanders welcomed them as part of a weekend conference and fun day organised by Discover Bute.
This free event, with demonstrations of age old crafts, attracted people from Bute and beyond and provided entertainment for adults and children alike, especially as so many of the helpers were in costume.
The photos below give you some idea of the variety of the attractions, but for more photos go to
http://www.pbase.com/rothesay/discoverbute2012
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| Some of the fair damsels |
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| A young knight |
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| A fiercesome warrior |
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| ...and another one |
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| The Vikings fight to the death...over a melon! |
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| Woodworking for beginners |
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| Or perhaps basket making? |
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| A coracle in case the ferry isn't running |
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| ..and instructions on how to make one! |
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| Not forgetting the techniques of spinning. |
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| The flag of the Stewarts at the time of the first Vikings! |
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| And meanwhile the swans (and their ten cygnets) swim in the castle moat. |
A DIFFERENT KIND OF WRITING
28 April 2012 04:44:00
Excuses for not blogging? I've been editing... and that's before the editor's report. As I haven't looked at Last Dance at the Rothesay Pavilion for a couple of weeks I decided to do a bit of revision, which turned into a lot of revision. And once I'd started, I couldn't stop.
At least it provided a good excuse for a trip to Bute last week and I thought I'd post some photos of the Ettrick Bay tearoom where some of the action takes place ( in all the Bute books). I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has read either of the first two Bute books if the tearoom is as you imagined it?
Inside the tearoom
The tearoom at Ettrick Bay
April at Ettrick Bay
Blog it!
23 March 2012 02:41:00
A big thank you to Janice Horton for featuring me in her author showcase on her blog today. It all helps to keep the momentum going, especially towards the end of the week when ideas are slower than usual. I'm very pleased she has taken the time out of her own very busy schedule.
You can read the interview at
http://www.janicehortonwriter.blogspot.com/.jpg)
And thanks to everyone who has bought the latest book - Last Ferry to Bute. We went to Bute on Tuesday and did catch the last ferry -I was a bit apprehensive,but fortunately nothing untoward happened!
Suitably inspired, I'm back to Last Dance at the Rothesay Pavilion.
Back to Work
18 March 2012 12:28:00
After the great chat and excellent events at the Scottish Association of Writers conference last weekend it's most certainly back to work this weekend.
Everyone who was there enjoyed this action packed weekend and the three days of 'writing talk' was stimulating and thought provoking.
But of course it's easy to talk about writing and not so easy to settle down to doing it, in spite of all the good ideas I came away with. Conferences like the S.A.W. are a great boost for those of us who spend a lot of time closeted with imaginary friends - it's good to meet some real ones!
I was fortunate to receive several 'honourable mentions' including winning the Book Review trophy and the prizes were presented by Alanna Knight who always makes you feel special.
And there were many winners among friends at Writers Scotland and Erskine Writers -congratulations to everyone.
The photos below are by Chris Longmuir -you can tell I had nothing to do with them because none of the heads are cut off! You can find out more about Chris at her website http://www.chrislongmuir.co.uk/ -she writes great fiction as well as being a very able photographer!
Receiving the Book Review prize from Alanna
The happy prizewinners!
Now to find out what the bearded man in Last Dance at the Rothesay Pavilion has been up to in my absence.
One step forward.....
22 February 2012 07:34:00
The blog has been neglected in favour of using any available time to progress the new novel. I suppose I should be pleased I've managed to avoid a number of distractions (though not all by any means).
As this story is also set on Bute, the research about what happened there during the last war has been very interesting. It's amazing how you think you know a place really well and then when you do some digging you find out all sorts of things.
The story of Last Dance at the Rothesay Pavilion concerns what happens when the Pavilion is being renovated and among other snippets I discovered that The Canadian Barn Dance, that stalwart of many a Scottish ceilidh, was first performed in the Pavilion,written by a young commando who was training on Bute.
And the Scottish Country dance evenings were so popular the doors had to be closed at 8.30 p.m.
I can now understand why some historical novelists find it so difficult to finish their books!
The Rothesay Pavilion at its busiest during the 'Big Man' event - when everyone turned out!
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