Dead Inside by Noelle Holten Paperback launch

When possible we like to support authors and go to book events, we also like to meet before hand for a gab and scran. Some of my pals are more book geeky than others but we all love food and chat. So I grabbed my current read "The Pact We Made" and headed in on the bus.




How fab are my pals wee shoes, Disney baddies!




So we headed in, a wee group of us went to hear Noelle talk about her book and be interviewed by blogger extraordinaire Sharon B from Chapter in my life.





Sharon "grilled" Noelle, what it was like getting started as a writer, going from a book blogger to actually writing and getting published.





They had such a good flow and banter, we all laughed and raptly listened to Noelle talk about her past, how she left her job being a parole officer, getting her job with Bookouture.




They opened up questions to the floor and Sharon had plenty incase, for once, we were a shy audience. Think it was a case of we were enjoying listening to them but we did have plenty of questions coming in from the audience.




Noelle told us what is in store next and many of us are looking forward to Bloody Scotland and her taking the stage with Ian Rankin!





After that folk lined up to buy the book and get it signed. Noelle looked glowing and in her element, it was such a great night. If you can, please go to book events - it supports the book community and authors and readers always have a great night!





The book is out to buy in treebook and ebook (only £1.99) format, from AMAZON and book stores. Enjoy!





Incase you missed it, I have a Q&A with Noelle, you can read it HERE and a few days left on the giveaway for x1 copy of the ebook of Dead Inside, UK only as Amazon won't allow me to gift an ebook outside of my country.

Saturday at Edinburgh Book Festival

Finally, I got some friends to come to the book festival with me, it was much easier to be fair after I had written about what to expect at the festival and what it is all about.


We only had one show booked and that was to see author John Boyne. After a horrendous train journey where Scotrail had allowed far more on the train than capacity could handle, we got there in once piece. I did message this which thus far has been ignored, I have photographs should they want it, children and adults on every spare bit of the floor, first class opened to accomodate and still far too many! So unsafe and thankfully no one became unwell, you couldn't get out of your seat to go to the toilet much less someones aid! Not happy.





Anyway, back to the event, the weather was bright, Boyne I have read a few times and this is for his new book "A Ladder to the Sky". The event was chaired by Lee Randall, John sold 9 million copies of "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" the book most people know him for. Boyne joked about almost not making it, his plane was stopped on the runway as the Pope landed at the same time, he jokingly said he considered getting off and having a word.





War is a recurring theme in many of his books, "The Heart's Invisible Furies" had a long passage that didn't make the final but other books centre around war or have some kind of reference or passage in it. He comments on how folk can say (in relation to world war two and the Nazi's) "Oh I would never have done that" but it is easy to say that with time and geography on your side. Lots of those who did things in the war, soldiers etc would have been 17-18 years old and most of that age were signing up. He discussed his protagonists and of them says they are never the ultimate good guy or bad guy but somewhere in the middle, in one book something horrific is happening and the main character is complicit in the knowledge and doing nothing about it.





We were treated to a reading from the book and he discussed his writing, reviewing other books and how he passed on a book as he didn't enjoy it and didn't want to write a bad review. A few months later said author contacted him and dug him out for it, there started a campaign of almost hate again him on Twitter and how not only can you get flack for having an opinion but also for not having one (as such). He didn't name any names but sure is that not shocking!





He spoke of authors private lives and how he isn't interested in what they do, the only thing that interests him is the book itself, the personal life of that author is, to him, irrelevant. Some authors write from the head, some from the heart, Boyne states he writes from the heart. Most of his favourite authors are women, he comments on how grand Maeve Binchey is and had she been Maurice she would have had more respect, awards etc. He actually recalled an author (or was it a critic?) who gave a glowing review and when he found out X book was written by a woman he withdrew his previous comments and slated it, is that not just mind blowing!





He played to a full house and I am not surprised. When asked how he felt, from a pressure point of view with new books against the boy in the striped pyjamas he said he knows nothing he writes now or later will sell more so there is no pressure. He also doesn't believe that is his best book, he chose his best as "The Absolutist" (I have yet to read that so will comment when I have). On plotting he says he never plots out a book in advance, he just writes a sentence and sees where it goes, fantastic, was lovely listening to him and that accent, well, I could listen all day!


After that me and the group went off to Mary King's Close, I have been before but one of the friends it was their first time.





The stairs to get up there almost killed me, my dodgy ankle and my pal who is a smoker!





Mary King's Close is a fantastic tour, 1 hour long and at time of posting £15.50, you learn a good bit about Edinburgh's history, a wee bit of banter and see and walk in old standing buildings. You are not allowed to take any photographs once inside the tour but you get a wee photo to buy if you wish and they sell programs also.





Edinburgh has some pretty amazing history and buildings, you could stoat around for hours to be honest and go back the next day with still loads more. There is almost always something bookish on too and now I am comfortable travelling on the train there I Will certainly be seeking out more!





I finished with a wee read of one of the books I bought at the Edinburgh Book Festival, I also seen this author talk twice so heard his voice the whole time I was reading. Review for this book will follow shortly, keep your eyes peeled.

First ever book festival - Edinburgh book fest

If, like me, you have tons of reader, blogger and author friends/people you follow on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram you always see when book events come up. Lots of people go, have fun, meet amazing authors, bloggers connect, book pals have liquid lunches and generally a blast! I see them all the time and want to go, but have never went, until today that is!


So, why haven't I made it to any? Firstly I didn't really know what it was about, is it free to enter, if you need to pay how much, what happens. The Edinburgh Book Festival is FREE, free to enter guys. There have a ton of events on and the events you do pay for. You can go on your first day, pick up a programme (also free) which gives you a day by day run down of what is on, how much it costs and you can buy online or call. There are wee parts you can buy food and drink, not masses of choice but enough to keep you happy or you can nip outside as it is bang in the centre so you can get food you fancy. There are wee book shops inside you can browse and buy, there is also bars, places you can buy drinks and sit and chill with your book, people watch (I loved I saw so many folks with books, reading or gabbing books).





Getting around from event to event, now I get really anxious about this is I have never been before and don't know layouts (an issue many of us have. Well right in the middle is the whole lay out on a big board and honestly, even with my recovering foot it was no issue at all. The walk from the train station to the festival was a wee bit of a trek (under a mile and flat pavements, maybe 0.7 miles) but there are loads of taxis and bus stops so you can get there no issue.





Whilst it is outdoors with tents, the top over the walkway is covered so even with weather like today where it was chucking it down, once you got inside you were grand.





The toilets are really good, I was worried it was going to be those portaloos you get at concerts and gigs *twitch* I really hate them. Nope and they have ramps as well as two stairs so caters to all. Also available are water stations dottered about.





As well as having issues going to somewhere huge like that I hadn't been to before, the train journey had me a bit twitchy too. However, the train terminates at Waverley station so if like me you fret you will go past your stop you are grand as it is the last stop (from where I travelled from, just check with one of the train staff who are lovely and helpful).





Edinburgh is so beautiful and on route to the festival are some stunning buildings and lots of shops so you have plenty to look at as you go. One thing that helped me was meeting friends there, some first time in person, some I had met before, the lovely Kelly from LOVE BOOKS GROUP Mary from Live and Deadly Joanne from Portobello blog and Katherine from Bibliomanic UK. and author Jane Simpson Anderson joined us for lunch, I owe that lady a drink! If you are a blogger or reader, just reach out, there is always someone going to these things and when you have someone to meet you it takes so much stress/pressure off you. One thing I can say, hand on heart, book folk are some of the best humans out there. I know I will be back at more of the festival, was meant to be tomorrow but I didn't manage to get tickets for the things I wanted to see and I hurt my foot trying to ensure I didn't miss my train. However, I could go otherwise much less stressy because these lovely ladies took me under their wing and showed me what it is all about.


I loved my first day at the Edinburgh book festival, I will do another post about the three events I went to but I cannot recommend it enough. If you are a book lover, get yourself out there, you will love it. Hope you had a great day, I sure did!


My side kick has blagged my press pass :P

Gothic night at Waterstones

So on a pretty cold October night we headed down to Waterstones for a wee gothic night. Three authors, one I had heard of, who hasn't heard of the fabulous Michael J Malone :D Anthony O'Neill and Charles McGarry.





Not my best photograph but some of these I had taken with my mobile. The books all had a wee reading from each author.


Anthony O'Neill read from Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek.





Charles McGarry read from his book "The Ghost of Helen Addison".





And Michael J Malone reading from his book "House of Spines".





All of our authors were interviewed by the lovely Sharon B from Chapter In My Life, if you aren't familiar with her blog please check it out.


There were drinks provided free of charge, wine, water and soft drinks, we partook in a wee orange juice, I was working the next evening and never have a tipple of any kind if on the next day.





For the event I wore my Christopher Lee Dracula T shirt I picked up when I was at Liverpool horrorcon & my wee chain I got from one of the stalls, do you recognise which movie she is from?








When I was leaving these fabulous bookmarks caught my eye, I didn't buy them that night but went back for them a few days later. Stainless steel British Writers, Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and William Shakespeare. You know I love a bookmark so couldn't resist.

Author book launch - The Cry by Helen Fitzgerald

So a friend from my book group noticed that Helen Fitzgerald was going to be at Waterstones to launch her new book The Cry. I had never heard of this author so went off to have a nose, got her first book Dead Beautiful to see what her writing was like. You can read my review of this title by using the search box on the left hand side, I did try and link it in this post but the blog is having none of it today, apologies.

The tickets were free and it is always nice to go to an author event. This was one of the best events I have been to and I have seen a fair few author book events, both in the Waterstones in Glasgow and a few held in Sloan's pub. Normally you can get a ticket for free or sometimes you have to pay, it varies with each one. At Sloan's there is a bar where you can purchase your own drink, the previous Waterstone launches have been later so their wee cafe is closed and you can't get a refreshment. Me and my friends where the first to arrive as everything got set up. One of my friends, Kat, had been to a few of these but for Emma it was her first time.

Well Helen went over and above what any of the other authors did. There was glasses with water, fresh orange and wine available, complimentary as well as home made cakes and sweet pastries, homemade by her sister Rea. She had brought her family with her and they all put some plates and food on the tables and along with the staff ensured everyone had a drink. I believe there was other writers there that night also as I recognized some faces but couldn't put a name to anyone.

Helen gave the audience some background, read a little from the start of her book and then some from later on in the book, then took some questions from the audience. After the event had finished she announced she was going for a few drinks, said where and invited everyone to come along if they wished, how nice was that!

Back to the book, the story is very different from the one I read, this one concerns a family traveling on a long haul flight and they accidentally overdose their baby. The story follows on from what happens from there, I haven't read it but after the wonderful evening at Waterstones and hearing the excerpts from the book I have ordered it. I also bought some of her earlier work too, this is the power authors can have when they interact with their readers. I went there as a meeting point with friends and to hear about the new book and because it was a free event. After being treated so nice, exposed to her family and listening to her talk about her work I have not only bought her new book but bought three of her previous books. My advice to authors doing any events is by showing your readers a bit of appreciation for coming to see you, taking time to make things a wee bit more personable it benefits you in the long run. Even having the offer of a glass of water I feel would go a long way and to no cost of the author, as I say Helen Fitzgerald went over and above that and I loved that her family came and had some interaction with the crowd too. I would definitely go and see this lady again and my thoughts on her works will follow as I get to them.

The Cry is available from Amazon for £5.75 and from Waterstones although I am not sure how much they are charging for a copy as I forgot to buy mine on the night. The book is available to buy now. You can follow Helen Fitgerald on Twitter @FitzHelen she is also on Facebook and has a blog available online.