Have you ever been on holiday somewhere so peaceful, so wonderfully, soul-restoringly beautiful, that you carry the place away with you, tucked somewhere deep inside yourself, to escape to later for succour and refreshment in times of stress?

Well, for a novelist, that process of escape is part of the job description. It might be for purposes of creation and not of mental restoration, but it is very much the same thing. And for me, recently, the two functions coincided blissfully in one, with the writing of my novel, The Tapestry of Love.


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CV help for graduates – Research shows nearly 70 graduates chase every job
With research showing that nearly 70 graduates chase every job, graduates need help to write the best CV. Are you a graduate that needs help writing your CV? Are you looking for a job, following your graduation? Does your CV leap off the page?

There are now nearly 70 graduates chasing every job, according to the biannual survey published by the Association of Graduate Recruiters. (AGR)

Carl Gilleard, the AGR’s chief executive remarked “Two consecutive years of decrease in vacancy levels is a familiar pattern during an economic downturn and this latest fall mirrors the two-year drop in graduate vacancies prompted by the dot-com crash in 2001-2002. Today’s findings suggest that the recovery is going to be slower than previously thought”.

“Recruiters are under intense pressure this year dealing with a huge number of applications from graduates for a diminishing pool of jobs” said Gilleard.

The simple truth of it all is that graduates now have to present themselves to their prospective employer from the CV stage of the application, or even the telephone call to the company requesting an application form or futher details. It is a buyers market which will present problems for employers who will be faced with a massive increase in applications and CV’s.

Former University Lecturer and now successful business man, Sam Deeks says “When I was an academic, I would reduce the pile of applicant CV’s by selecting out the dreary, the badly spelled, the difficult to read. In business, I do the same. Not because I am horrible, just because I can’t deal with 100 cv’s. Personally, when I am looking at CV’s, after selecting out people who can’t spell, can’t lay out words in a legible way, I’m looking for curiosity, passion and self awareness”.

The bottom line is that your CV has to be perfectly presented and accurate in every dimension. DO NOT LEAVE IT TO CHANCE. Words make a difference!

Call yourself a writer? Just another spin? Do you know where your career is going? I have heard it all. I love writing and I do not really care what people think. Many love my work and are pleased that I have something to occupy my mind - Others are cynical and damm right nasty about it. Writer? Are you having a laugh? What have you published? - Mmmm, I am determined to get work published because I would like others to gain pleasure from my written work but if I don't manage to achieve my goal, then I will still have enjoyed the process of expressing myself, and being creative on paper. I just wondered what my fellow writers and authors think? Have you had any similar comments? and the big question - When can you call yourself a writer?

Of everything I've posted here, I think my blog on procrastination has been one of the most linked-to, and nearly two years on it still pops up in the stats from time to time. But an article in The Author by psychotherapist and author Edward Marriott has confirmed my suspicion that 'procrastination' is the wrong word for what we all do, and some of us rather too often from time, to time, to time, to time...

Of course in the basic sense what you're doing is putting off the writing. And if what you're not doing is your tax return then it's very understandable: you just don't want to do it. What's more puzzling is when you procrastinate about something you do want to do. It baffles others: when you moan they say, 'You just need to get on with it.' You do, of course, to the extent of opening the file... But then you're back on Twitter, or making a cup of tea, or writing this blog post... Anything, in other words, which doesn't feel like abandoning work, but isn't actually doing it.

What this really is is displacement activity. Britannica says that "Displacement behaviour usually occurs when an animal is torn between two conflicting drives": The minor activity diverts the mind and body from the anxiety of something which is profoundly difficult for humans to cope with: the uncertainty and instability which accompanies a choice. And the more powerful the drives - fight, or flight, say - the more frightening it is to commit to one choice or the other, and the more furiously we cling to the displacement activity between them.

So what are the drives we can't bring ourselves to choose between obeying?

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A few days before I was due in Brighton for the recording of my radio story, Cecilia the producer rang to say that the story did, after all, feel a bit short: could I make it a bit longer? When it comes to revisions I'm basically an adder, not a cutter, so it's not an inherently unnatural process, although you always worry that you're adding fat rather than muscle to the bones of the story. I didn't so much add, as develop latent moments in it, and I was pleased with the result. I read it for time - slowing down to my best guess at performance speed, and it was just right: 13.30 minutes. But, just in case, I marked some bits that could come out if necessary.

On Tuesday morning I hopped on a train and wizzed down to the headquarters of Pier Productions. Pier may occupy a house which one of Georgette Heyer's heroines would recognise, but at the top is a radio recording studio and there, reading my story aloud, was actor Philip Voss, with Cecilia and the production assistant, stopwatch in hand. As you'd expect in a stalwart of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Philip has the most wonderful voice; full and flexible.

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This excellent revival was a reminder of how Greek Tragedy achieved its so-called 'cathartic' effect,i.e. put the audience through the wringer, by imposing strict rules or 'unities' on the form of the play. The action must happen within 24 hours, which sets a pace as demanding as any modern thriller. Unity of theme demands the story concern an individual or small group, here the royal house of Thebes, concerned with one big issue,in this case patriotism.

The main strength, though, derives from the rule about unity of place, or having to stick to one location.


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...but then I received this. Try reading it in the context of writing, subbing and being recognised:

Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

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