A Day in the life of Adam Burgan, Arts & Entertainment Manager at The Octagon Theatre

Posted on May 28, 2018 by Margaret Graham

Adam Burgan, Arts & Entertainment Manager at The Octagon Theatre in Yeovil.

One of the joys of managing a busy regional theatre is that there is no such thing as a ‘normal day’. While some tasks and duties remain the same you never really know what opportunities, challenges and, at times, rather surreal moments will come your way. At the moment we are in ‘pantoland’ with a spectacular pantomime production of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’. The show runs for 49 performances (our biggest ever run) with two performances a day so the theatre is a hive of activity with large school groups in the day and then family audiences in the evening.

Over the next few weeks over 25,000 people will ‘climb the beanstalk’ with Jack on a magical adventure and my job is focussed on ensuring that everyone has a happy time at the theatre and to lead and support my team in delivering their roles effectively in order to achieve this. Theatre is a ‘leisure choice’ and though I would consider it essential to living a happy and fulfilled life it is important to recognise the various barriers that people feel may be in their way. It is our job to try and make patrons entire experience of visiting the theatre the best it can be, from the moment they pick-up a brochure, to booking a ticket, making their way to the theatre to the time they step through the door and until they leave. I feel that a large part of my day is spent speaking to staff and trying to ‘keep the team happy’ something that isn’t always possible but we know the key to success is communication and trying to keep the team focussed and working together to achieve a common goal – making our customers happy. Using the word customer I also mean the artists who perform at our theatre – it is important for us to ensure they are happy and have everything they need to give the best possible performance.

Much of my day will be spent speaking to agents and producers and local companies looking to bring their performances to the theatre. Programming is one of my favourite parts of my job and the most satisfying. Booking in an artist I know will prove popular (especially if I’ve been trying to book them for a while) is very rewarding. A number of meetings normally looking at future events and projects will always be on the agenda and one of the things we have grown very successful at is building partnerships with organisations we have a shared agenda with and who can help us to achieve our goals.

Throw in some budget monitoring, a walk around the building to check on our maintenance, checking figures for last night’s show and a look ahead at sales figures for the shows on sale and a trawl through the endless amount of emails and phone calls and the day quickly fills up. ‘Theatreland’ certainly isn’t a ‘9-5’ job and nor should it be. Evenings are often filled with the choir I teach at the theatre on a Monday night, popping in to see some of the performance (even if I can’t stay for the whole show) or supporting local events – I judged ‘Strictly Come Langport’ last weekend! There is never a dull day at the theatre and though it is long hours, and as with every job, there are ‘ups and downs’ I still consider myself very lucky to work in a place that brings joy and happiness to thousands of people every week. I have the pleasure of working with a very talented and dedicated team of people who share my passion for theatre and I try to remind myself that there really are dream jobs and I am one of the lucky ones who found mine.

A Day In The Life of Shelagh Mazey

Posted on May 25, 2018 by Margaret Graham

For years I’ve been a frustrated story-teller, never having the time or peace to be able to concentrate and hurtling through life from one crisis to another, but now every day is like a blank page, here in my thatched cottage in Somerset.

I met Margaret Graham years ago, at a writing circle in Yeovil. We have been friends ever since and good grief, the adventures we’ve had, as awe snatched moments from the home-front. I remember with fondness a trip across Ireland on a coach, enlivened by two America Baptist Ministers. We’ve seldom laughed so much, alongside absorbing the history of the place for a book Margaret was writing. It was here I kissed the Blarney stone. Perhaps that’s where the story telling began.

As time went on the sleepless nights with newborns; the back-breaking, lifting and chasing of toddlers; the homework of school years; the endless chauffeuring of teenagers, and the frantic the frantic worry of them prematurely experiencing the joys and heartache of the opposite sex, drunkenness, drugs and all-night raves became a memory.

No more renovating the derelict cottage sold long ago. No more rising at 6:30am to rush off to work as a practice secretary. At last my ship, with its rather bedraggled rigging, has sailed into a harbour of refuge. I am retired. Whoopee!

Now I listen as my husband leaves for work and lie in bed for a few more minutes, where in a state of alpha I’m able to dream. Then I soak in the bath, empty my mind and plan the trials and tribulations, love stories, intrigues, and let’s not forget the murders and rapes of my 19th century stories.

After breakfast I type out my bath-time plots. I usually write or research on-line, with a short lunch-break, until about 3.30pm and then I need to take a breather. I might do some gardening; mow the lawn, weeding or dead-heading just to breathe some fresh air.

Yes, my life has indeed reached peaceful harbour; my daughter-in-law takes the ironing each week and I take the grandchildren. I’m lucky, they’re lovely.

Of course, aside from the writing, I do have to participate in marketing the books and I’ve made many friends, particularly on Portland, through this. Every now and then I take a friend with me and drive down to the coast to deliver to my outlets there. We usually enjoy lunch at the Lobster Pot on Portland Bill.

The tales my father told, as a born and bred Portlander have inspired my writing, and my first two books are based around that area. Somehow it makes me feel closer to my parents.

I’ve now published two books with Matador. The first is Brandy Row (A love triangle and family saga set on Portland, involving smuggling and the preventive service).

The sequel is Dawn to Deadly Nightshade (continuing with the family, but adding witchcraft in Somerset to the mix).

My third novel is located partly in Dorset, Somerset, Tasmania and Australia. It tells the tale of the ex convicts who were transported to the antipodes and involves the excitement of the Victorian goldfields. I’ve finished the first draft and I’m busy doing the revisions. I hope to bring out Legacy of Van Diemen’s Land next spring.

I totally love my life now. I am a writer. It is my dream come true.

A Day in the Life of Sharon Bennett

Posted on May 24, 2018 by Margaret Graham

I have always enjoyed making things; getting messy and creating atmosphere, whether with paint, fabrics, light or furniture. I am inspired by beautiful countryside, buildings, colour, water and places that I love!

As a child I continuously annoyed my younger sisters by trying to capture them on paper with my pencils. After that I mostly drew and painted flowers in watercolour. More recently I joined an Art Group where I eventually developed a style of painting with which I am very happy. Also I have a great love of photography, my recent works merge photos with collage, acrylic pallet, watercolour and pen work.

For texture in my work I often use different types of paper, including tissue, corrugated and foil. One of my artworks ‘The East London Skyline’ was created during the 2012 Olympics. I incorporated cuttings about the Olympics from London newspapers into the painting itself. In my Venice paintings I have used handmade Venetian paper, tickets from train and boat trips! The painting then becomes alive and personal!

A painting will begin by the taking of an inspiring photograph. While out walking, holidaying or just shopping, beautiful buildings, waterways, boats, countryside, simply demand to be photographed! I take many – thank heavens for digital photography.

The next job is to search through the photos to see which will work well with my style of pallet knife painting and collage. The selected photographs are then enlarged, pixilated and often form a part of my paintings and become merged with collage, mixed media and acrylic pallet knife painting. I also usually include newspaper cuttings, tickets, wood, paper, anything which makes the picture more personal and unique! The result of these combinations create some powerful pieces of work. By using collage and many different textures it helps me to capture the vibrancy and atmosphere of the scene. I always like to work from my own photographs although I have created a couple of commission pieces.

I photographed St Paul’s from the Tate Modern on one of those perfect winter days. My daughter had bought me ‘high tea at the Tate’ as a birthday present last year. The weather was a perfectly crisp and sunny February day! A very rare treat in the middle of an awfully wet winter. I took the photograph from the restaurant on the top floor of the Tate. The resulting photograph was stunning and I hope you like the painting that emerged too! Margaret Graham did, and bought it when Easterleigh Hall was published. This is what she does – buys paintings to celebrate.

Six nights booked in Venice. We hoped for lovely weather as we were going in February! The first three days we had non-stop rain! This did not stop me taking tons of photos and the results were stunning. The rain just seemed to enhance the colours of the beautiful Italian buildings and made the water a very deep green.

I was very pleased with the resulting painting, which also incorporated collage of matchsticks, our ticket from Venice to Verona and pieces of handmade Venetian paper.

I have lots of gorgeous atmospheric photographs to work with. A very familiar sight of a gondola full of Japanese tourists. The buildings over this canal are such a beautiful colour and I have tried to, and hopefully have, captured that! This is one of my most recent paintings.

I have some work going into a new pop up shop in Maidenhead called Craft Coop, located in Nicholsons Centre, in an ex jewellery shop, across from Icelands, from 22nd Nov till the 4th January 2015.

For a further look at my work:

Website: www.mashup-designs.co.uk……..then…….Sharon’s Art.

My contact email is shazben58@gmail.com

THE BUSINESS OF BOOKS: THE KITCHEN CLASS OF 2017

Posted on May 23, 2018 by Jane Cable

Jane Cable catches up with RNA friends

There is a tradition at Romantic Novelists’ Association conferences that the really important stuff happens in the kitchens of the shared accommodation. And for me (and I’m sure I’m not alone) the really important stuff was making friends with other writers. Almost a year later most of us have kept in touch and there have been many successes to celebrate. To be honest, I haven’t had the best year of my writing career but being able to cheer on my new friends had been a pleasure which has kept me going.

Jan Baynham, another writer from my home city of Cardiff feels the same: “No exciting publisher or agent news from me, I’m afraid, but I’ve been delighted to read about others’ successes this year. There’s been so much to celebrate! I’ve spent the time since the Conference submitting my first novel to publishers. Two recent rejections have given me very encouraging feedback and spurred me on. One editor said my novel fell into ‘the nearly-but-not-quite’ category, telling me why, but said she would be happy to consider further submissions from me. A second was even more complimentary about the quality of the writing and has asked to see my second mother-daughter saga that’s partly set in Greece. I’m working hard to get Whispering Olive Trees ready to submit to her.”

Jan’s travelling companion last year was Sue McDonagh whose debut novel has just been published by Choc Lit, but it hasn’t always been an easy road. “I wrote, learned and submitted until that magical ‘Yes’. There was joy – until the edits came in. Christmas to February, Writing Boot Camp, I rewrote almost every word, hacked back rookie errors of over-blown baddies and plot lines that went nowhere. My timeline was a joke. I despaired that the ending would ever work. I couldn’t do it. I could, and it did, miraculously. I painted the front cover, another highlight. Published five days ago, Summer at the Art Café is already earning a slew of 5* reviews. I’m still learning – it’s a steep curve!”

Another kitchen compatriot discovering the joy of a publishing deal was Cornwall based Kitty Wilson. “My writing life has been a whirlwind since we all sat around the kitchen table at the RNA conference last year. I have gone from wannabe novelist used to micro-expressions that flashed sympathy and suggested delusion to fully fledged author. By January I had landed myself my dream agent, had to choose which publisher to go with and spent a lot of time pinching myself – it was all so dreamlike. With my first book coming out next month, the second nearly completed and a whole series to write, 2018 is going to be a very busy, but very happy, year.” The cover of the first of her Cornish Village School books has just been revealed, ready for publication next month.

When we met last year Susanna Bavin already had her deal with Allison & Busby, and her writing career is going from strength to strength: “It’s been a year of dreams coming true for me. My debut saga, The Deserter’s Daughter, has been published in hardback, e-book, audiobook, large print and paperback. My second, A Respectable Woman, will appear in the same formats; and I have a contract for another two. The best moment? Out of a year of ‘best moments,’ the very best was listening to The Deserter’s Daughter as an audiobook read by Julia Franklin. I’ve listened to audiobooks for years and Julia is one of my two favourite readers, so having her as ‘my’ reader is wonderful.”

Last but not least, Kirsten Hesketh feels she’s on the verge of something big too: “What a year! The main thing I have learned over the past year is not to submit your work too early to agents! After a round of ‘good’ rejections last September, I spent the next few months editing, restructuring, polishing and then getting a critique from the marvellous Alison May whose advice made all the difference. Then I did it all again! The result is …. I now have an agent! I am thrilled to be represented by the wonderful Felicity Trew and have just had the excitement of having my book taken to the London Book Fair. Fingers crossed!”

A Day In The Life of Author Frances Colville

Posted on May 22, 2018 by Margaret Graham

I’ve always been an organised sort of person; writing lists, making plans and generally achieving whatever I set out to achieve. Then I took early retirement and expected to devote hours to writing. But… But… There are, suddenly, all kinds of people making demands on your time. And there are so many things of interest calling to you.

All of this means I no longer have a typical day. But there are some typical elements.
I always make time to read. Have you ever worked out how very few books you can actually get through in a lifetime? A scary thought when there is so much wonderful stuff on my list and in my teetering pile. Then, if it is at all possible, I make time to walk down to the sea.

It takes me twelve minutes to reach my local beach of Seatown. I like it best when it is wild and stormy, when the waves crash in along the shore line and the cormorants have to battle to stay airborne. But whatever the weather, there is inevitably something different to see, something to provide writing inspiration.

And that is the other constant. I try each day to make time for whatever writing project is uppermost in my life This year there have been several main threads. I’ve organised a Story Slam in my local town of Bridport,

I’ve taken part in various performances and competitions, and I’ve been working on my Sixty List ( a project to do sixty new things in my sixtieth year and to write about them). But the biggest project and for me, the most satisfying, has been working on a local First World War story. I’ve researched it thoroughly, curated two exhibitions, talked about it on radio and TV, written about it for magazines and papers.

It’s the intriguing story of a young woman who contributed fresh eggs to the National Egg Collection for wounded soldiers and who decorated those eggs with paintings, poems and her name and address. In return she received thank-you letters from many soldiers. Now, as well as dealing with the factual aspects of the story, I’m trying to develop it as fiction.

So far, a couple of short stories have been successful and I’m working on a novel. But there’s a long way to go yet. And never enough hours in the day!

NEW BLOOD BOOSTS BRITAIN’S GOTHIC FANG CLUB

Posted on May 21, 2018 by Frostie

From Bram Stoker’s Dracula to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Britons have been devouring gothic literature for over 200 years. But after more than two centuries is our appetite for the gothic finally starting to wane? To hell it is, writes novelist Katja Brown – it’s more alive than ever.

I’m often asked why the gothic still appeals. The genre is a creation that compels everyone from a lover of romantic fiction to a lover of blood and guts. Whilst it doesn’t hinge on these elements they add to it and create something that is constantly reinventing itself. The gothic is essentially the presentation of a ‘terrible beauty’, a collection of literary conventions that come together beautifully to scare, entrance and hook the reader. In what other genre could a character such as Dracula exist? He is a character you love to hate, the greatest anti-hero that has been thought up and is so loved by readers and authors alike that he has been revived ever since in one incarnation or another.

The gothic appeals because inside every reader there is still a spark, a need, a deep desire to be scared by something beautiful, something obscure and otherworldly. I think this genre inhabits the part of your imagination that wants to see the world differently, that imagines alternate possibilities to the norm and much like a vampire it doesn’t stay down for long. Once you pick up a gothic book it’s like a budding romance: you feel as if you have to know how it ends and the truth is… no one really knows why. It happens with other genres, sure, but the gothic has something special about it. You’ve heard that girls are attracted to the bad boys? Well it’s the same idea.

Throughout history the gothic has been the mother of great tomes and literary works of genius, manipulated and reshaped to fit the changing times. From Bram Stoker’s famous fanged fiend Dracula, to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, we’ve watched as this genre has survived the stress of time and made it here to 2018. Thanks to a wealth of fabulous new gothic books, and also to the Twilight series, I’ve no doubt that it will keep kicking long after.

It has endured because we as humans want a thrill, we actively seek out the new and terrifying because we want to feel our hearts quicken, our palms get sweaty and the hairs on the back of our neck stand on end. It is the gothic that provides those sensations, every page walking the razors edge between dream and reality.

What’s so loveable is that behind the things that go bump in the night, behind the sublime descriptions, the complicated characters and the narrations I guarantee there will always be something to learn – from a moral lesson to something more practical (‘don’t go down the scary-looking corridor by yourself late at night). The gothic has and will probably always be used to impart some sort of wisdom from one person to the next and it doesn’t matter what piece of gothic literature you pick up, it’ll be there between the lines. All you have to do is look.

The gothic helps define us as people, understand our own identity by understanding what we are not. We are not immortal, so, unlike Dracula, we learn to live like there’s no tomorrow. We shape ourselves based on what knowledge we assimilate, but the gothic gives us imagination and way to step out of our lives for a few hundred pages, a chapter each night, a page between coffee and cake. That is why it appeals, why it still appeals, why it always will.

Katja Brown is an acclaimed gothic novelist. Her seat-of-the-pants debut novel, The First Bride (Austin Macauley) is out now in paperback and eBook from Amazon UK.

Book of The Month: Love on the Waterways By Milly Adams

Posted on May 18, 2018 by Frostie

New to Frost is the Book of The Month. We review a lot of books at Frost so picking one will be hard but we do not mind. It is our job to bring the best to our readers. The first ever book of the month is the latest from Milly Adams. The second book in her new saga, it is yet another corker.

THE SECOND NOVEL IN MILLY ADAMS’ BRAND NEW SAGA SERIES. Perfect for fans of Daisy Styles and Nancy Revell.

March 1944, West London: it’s been five months since Verity Clement fled home for a life on Britain’s canals and she could never have imagined how tough it would get. Yet hauling cargo between London and Birmingham is far easier to face than the turbulence she’s left behind.

When Verity’s sweetheart returns unexpectedly from the front line, she dares to dream of a brighter future. But life aboard the Marigold is never smooth sailing. New recruit Sylvia is struggling with demons from her past while crewmate Polly must carry on in the wake of devastating news. Verity does her best to help, but a shocking discovery is about to turn her own life upside-down.

As the realities of war begin to take their toll, the waterway girls will have to pull together if they are to survive the uncertain times ahead…

Available from Amazon.

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST, EVERYTHING – DEBUT NOVELIST & PERFORMANCE POET CLAIRE BALDRY

Posted on May 16, 2018 by Jane Cable

What was the first writing advice you were ever given?

The first piece of writing advice I was given goes right back to my early childhood. Not everyone can recall their primary schooldays in detail, but my memories of that stage in my life are crystal clear. The classroom environment suited me, and I wanted to please my teachers. I was, I think, destined at an early age to work full time in education.

So when my infant teacher told the ‘six year old’ me to think harder about who would be reading my work, and to stop starting every story with ‘Once upon a time’, I took her advice seriously. She had given me my first sense of audience. This was a major step forward in the life of a young writer who was beginning to develop her craft. That advice has lived with me ever since. Even when my job required me to deliver dry and often unemotional reports, I always tried to write in a way which would catch the reader’s attention. After all, if I couldn’t be bothered to interest my audience, then why should I expect anyone else to read my words?

What was the most recent writing advice you were given?

I would describe myself as a ‘half full’ person. I like to focus on the positive and build on my experiences. I loved writing my first novel and was more than happy to receive feedback after publication to further develop my skills as a writer. However, I do sometimes fall in to the trap of focussing too hard on how I need to improve my work. This can very quickly turn into self-doubt and slow down, or even stop, the flow of my writing. The most helpful advice about writing, which I have received recently, was to remember to believe in my ability. Writing, for me, is a massively enjoyable activity, and the very best way to improve is simply to keep writing.

What is the piece of advice (writing or otherwise) you would like to pass on?

I’ll be sixty-three next month. I’ve had a professional career in education, run my own business, been married twice and brought up a family. I now use that experience to support my work in the voluntary sector, raise money for good causes and take on new challenges. Sometimes friends of a similar age suggest I should slow down a bit. Although I have had to learn to say ‘no’ on occasions, my advice to anyone, who is polite enough to listen to me, is, whatever your age, stay active and keep embracing new challenges as much as you can. No one knows what lies ahead or how long their health will last. So set aside fear of failure and make the most of your abilities. I wanted to write and perform poetry. I gave it a try and discovered I could do it. I wanted to write a novel, and, amazingly, I managed it. Life is not a dress rehearsal. Jump over the obstacles and create your own opportunities. It is unlikely that anyone will create them for you.

Claire has self-published four booklets of lighthearted poetry and is a popular speaker and performer at clubs and other venues in the South East. Her debut novel ‘Different Genes was published by Matador in 2017. Claire’s next poetry booklet ‘Simply Modern Life’ will be published later this year. Claire and her husband, Chris, were awarded the Diabetes UK South East Inspire Award for their fundraising work in 2017.

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