Mrs Wordsmith – A New Reading Aid by Dr K Thompson

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As a grandmother of a toddler, I am always keen to explore new ideas to make learning fun, so my attention was captured by Mrs Wordsmith.

This is a series of reading aids for 2-5 year olds, based on research into learning and vocabulary retention. Subscribers receive a monthly pack containing a picture book, a word-of-the day workbook and a pack of word cards.  There is also a word-of-the-day display stand so that the child is able to see it and learn it throughout the day.

The books and cards are beautifully illustrated with amusing pictures to help the child learn. Mrs Wordsmith uses word-pairing – a proven system which links similar words. It focuses on different types of words every month, selecting words most commonly used in everyday speech.

The aids help children navigate the nuanced range of feelings they experience, giving them the words to tell the difference between upset and frustrated, and they help them to be aware of their needs, with words like hungry and sleepy.

There is also a separate pack available for older children (7-11 year olds) called Gargantuan.

If you want to try before you buy, you can download a free sample from the website. I’ve tried it with my grandson, and it is a lot of fun for both of us.

https://www.mrswordsmith.com/products

By Dr K Thompson, author of From Both Ends of the Stethoscope: Getting through breast cancer – by a doctor who knows

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01A7DM42Q http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A7DM42Q

http://faitobooks.co,uk

 

 

 

Special Lighting Ideas to Make Your Big Day Extra Magical

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Lighting is such an important part of a wedding – and yet tragically, it’s often forgotten about. There’s absolutely no excuse for this, though, because at the end of the day, lighting adds to the aesthetic you’re trying to create with everything else, and can even make or break your overall “vision”. 

We also shouldn’t forget the importance of good lighting when it comes to photography. Although you’ll probably make use of natural light, as the evening reception rolls around you’ll want to keep up the momentum from before. To a photographer, good lighting is everything – and for the married couple, the photos complement their memories in the years to come.

Add a little sparkle

A wedding is magical, so your lighting really should be, too. Fairy lights give the whole affair a really special touch, and these days they’re so delicate and elegant that they don’t look too plastic (or worse, cheap).

Take a look at the different kinds available – light bulb fairy lights from lights.co,uk are an excellent choice because they’ve got a fibre optic aesthetic and fit in really well with just about any setting in any season as they come in a warm white, according to their website. The brand have experience in lighting since 1999, so you’re putting your big day in good hands.

It’s important to listen to the experts when it comes to everything related to your wedding day, because a wrong move could cost you greatly. But that doesn’t mean taking the magic out of everything.

Make a statement

You’ve got the daintier aspects of your lighting sorted – but do you want something of a “main event”?

Chandeliers can make something of a statement and come in many different shapes and sizes, perhaps even fitting in with a theme. You could also opt for a feature light of some kind from a particular era – if you opt for the right one, this can be incredibly vintage. 

This can even be a consideration as early on as when you’re choosing the venue – are there any focal points when it comes to lighting, such as chandeliers, that you’re a fan of?

Don’t forget about selfies

Your guests will want to take photos to remember your wedding forever as well – so why not set up a camera, a professional studio light, and set photos to a beautiful backdrop (such as a tasteful rose wall)?

This can be absolutely amazing if done properly, leaving guests free to either use their phone cameras to take advantage of amazing lighting – and upload pics to various social channels using your custom event filters – or to use the camera that you’ve set up instead. These make for lovely mementos afterwards, and you don’t even need to have a photographer manning it, making for the most natural sort of photos.

“KĐIMG_8053” (Public Domain) by KQ liên hệ 0969 33 1936

Lighting in a wedding makes the entire day look more beautiful, which not only helps on the day, but also with your photos of the event. Don’t ever be tempted to neglect it!

 

The White Rose BookCafe’s literary events sparkle in the summer sun. By Milly Adams

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The White Rose Book Cafe have told Frost Magazine about their fabulous programme as the school holidays approach, and then there’s the drift into autumn after a summer which reminds our office of the 1976 glory. Well, those that were born then, anyway.

 

 

The Art of Reading by Damon Young is a celebratory tribute to the power of one of our must undervalued skills – an ideal gift for the avid reader. ‘An engaging enquiry into the transformative power of reading: Melissa Harrison, author of Rain.

 

 

Tel: 01845 524353 to reserve a signed copy of the book. A Free Event.

 

Ripon Festival in September

White Rose BookCafe is delighted to host a couple of events in association with Ripon International Festival.

Tickets are available at the bookshop.

Kate Atkinson: 14th September. Tickets £10 each (student £5) – £5 off the purchase of the book ‘Transcription’

Salley Vickers – 9th September at 2.30  Tickets £7 each

Tickets also from the Festival website where further details can be obtained.

http:www.riponinternationalfestival.com

Books can be reserved at the bookshop

And also, – a roll of drums if you please, maestro – two of my favourite ‘lads’:

The stars of Channel 5’s The Yorkshire Vet will be talking about their books. I’ve read and loved Julian’s so am thrilled to see a third, and having listened to Peter’s whimsical humour it’ll be a good one – who can forget him cornering the cat, I was on the floor laughing, just as much as he was, on the floor I mean, not  laughing.

Julian you can meet in September, date to be advised, and Peter’s book is launched in October, and the party will be at – roll of drums… White Rose BookCafe 18th  October.Author  Milly Adams aka author  Margaret Graham, who will be a new resident of Thirsk by then, will be there, notebook in hand to report on it for the international Frost Magazine.

(Images courtesy of White Rose BookCafe)

 

 

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST EVERYTHING – MENTOR AND NOVELIST CATHIE HARTIGAN

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What was the first piece of publishing advice you received?

The first piece of publishing advice I received wasn’t offered directly, but came in the form of a question. It was over ten years ago now and I was in my first one-to-one with an agent. After she set the timer ticking for ten minutes, and put it on the table between us, she said. ‘Tell me, when do you write?’ This took me completely by surprise; but I understood that she was looking for my commitment to being a professional author.

It also reinforced in my mind, that publishing is an industry, and unless you are that very rare literary writer who sells in large numbers, the commercial market is very likely to want you to write one, or even two books a year.

My answer to the agent by the way was all the time. Not that she took me on. I was disappointed at the time, but thankful now. I had yet to finish my first novel, and I’ve learned a great deal since.

 

What was the most recent publishing advice you gave or received?

Don’t be in a hurry to self-publish. I’m often approached for advice on the back of my own self-publishing success with my debut novel Secret of the Song. It’s impossible to predict how a book will fare once it’s out in the world. I was very fortunate, but I was also well connected within the writing community, as a creative writing teacher, co-author of a successful textbook, and organiser of the Exeter Novel, Story and Flash prizes. I feel sad for people who put so much effort into writing a novel, and then see it become plankton in the ocean of books available. Having said that, self-publishing can be a brilliant option for books that have a limited, but ready-made market, such as family memoirs or books about very niche subjects.

 

What is the piece of advice you’d most like to pass on?

If you’re going to self-publish, it’s important to go through the same steps as a mainstream publisher would prior to publication. Think carefully before using free resources unless you’re convinced about the result. It’s usually worth paying professionals for edits, proofing and cover design.

 

Cathie Hartigan is a novelist and founder of www.creativewritingmatters.co.uk which offers a range of services for writers, including competitions, mentoring and manuscript appraisals. Cathie’s novel, Secret of the Song, was recently shortlisted for the inaugural Hall & Woodhouse Dorchester Literary Festival Writing Prize.

Strictly Briks Big Briks Review

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Kids loving building bricks. I think this is one of the truest sentences in life. So this big set of bricks from Strictly Briks went down well with the toddler. It is an 84 piece set with 4 different colours. They work with all large bricks so you can mix and match brands. This is a great starter set and really lets your childs imagination go wild. Recommended.

Strictly Briks 84 piece set available here.

 

Brooklands Concorde Technical Flight by Penny Gerrard

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What to buy for the husband who has everything? A Concorde Technical Flight at the famous Brooklands Race Track and centre of British aviation fitted the bill and for only £30 each.

Our experience started in the nostalgic club house – unchanged since Brooklands was opened by Hugh Locke-King at in Surrey in 1907 as a banked oval racetrack.   It thrived for 30 years and I remember tales of my father riding the circuit in the 1930s on his Velocette motorcycle.

The original Clubhouse at Brooklands – now a listed building

Vic, one of the many passionate  volunteers who keep Brooklands going today, gave us a fascinating talk about the Brookland’s history.  He spoke about its life as a race track – now only discernable in the sad remnants of the track which appear in small sections on the perimeter – often covered by weeds.

 

Then he described its history as one of the most significant places in the development of British Aviation.  This saw 18600 planes built there through the years when aviation progressed from planes which looked like bicycles with rudimentary fabric wings to Concorde and the Harrier Jump Jet.

Harrier Jump Jet

We were led to the glossy white Concorde which stands in pride of place on the tarmac – looking as if it could take off at any minute.   The last Concorde flew in 2003 having become economically unviable.   We climbed the steps and walked along the cabin which, in comparison with the wide bodied jets most of us are familiar with these days, rather resembles a toothpaste tube!   Once in our seats our imaginary flight began – the seats vibrating and the Mach indicators climbing to more than twice the speed of sound while the captain talked us through the flight.   The experience went a way towards showing us what an adventure it would have been to set off, knowing that you would be in New York in a matter of three hours or so.

Concorde

The highlight was being taken the cockpit where I chose the Captain’s seat, relegating the birthday boy to the status of co-pilot and we had fun moving what our guide called the “tiller” and generally marvelling at how anyone could ever get their heads round the mass of instruments – still analogue in those days of course.

 Concorde’s Cockpit

Once we had mastered the intricacies of how to fly the thing, we visited the flight simulator used to train Concorde pilots – really something.    Now the simulator does not move, but the display through the windscreen does such a good job of moving that you would swear you were flying, climbing, banking, coming in to land.  A marvellous experience and a great birthday present.

The Concorde Simulator

Our main visit complete, we had the afternoon to visit the Art Deco Café for lunch and then explore what else was on offer at Brooklands.  The highlights?   The first was visiting the Sultan of Oman’s VC 10 with its wealth of mustard coloured Dralon (even the TV was upholstered in it).   That certainly took us back to the early days of our married life when you were nobody unless you had a Dralon “settee”.

 

 The Sultan of Oman’s vintage VC 10

The main museum was set up as an aircraft factory.   I clocked in and out for the first time in my life, constructed a model aeroplane, and looked into a Wellington Bomber (particularly poignant as it gave me an insight into what it was like for my father lying in the belly of a Stirling Bomber as a Bomb Aimer in the war).

Bomb Aimer area of Wellington Bomber

And lastly, we had the treat of climbing into the cockpit of the Harrier Jump Jet.    Being instructed not to press any buttons created the illusion that we were moments from firing the ejector seat and being shot through the roof.      We enjoyed a fascinating time with the Harrier volunteer – endlessly knowledgeable about aviation and able to bring things to life brilliantly.

Francis Gerrard in the Harrier Cockpit

We recommend a visit to Brooklands an excellent place for a fascinating day out -see www.brooklandsmuseum.com

Images with the permission of P. Gerrard

 

Stranger than fiction: Q&A with ‘bio-fiction’ creator, Giuseppe Cafiero

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The acclaimed Italian author Giuseppe Cafiero has created a new literary genre that weaves traditional fiction with real-life biography. In this exclusive interview, he tells Frost Magazine what inspired his unique style of ‘bio-fiction’.

Frost Magazine (FM): Your novel, Gustave Flaubert: The Ambiguity of Imagination, describes in detail the life and writing of the famous 19th century author. What is the importance and lasting fascination of Flaubert?

Giuseppe Cafiero (GC): Flaubert’s attention to writing. He was very careful in choosing words. He was very scrupulous in the composition of the sentences. He was very much looking forward to the balance of dialogues.

FM: You are clearly a fan of Flaubert’s writing. Which of your novels or stories would you recommend as the best to read first, and why?

GC: An incomplete book: Bouvard and Pecuchet. This is the book that inspired me to write Gustave Flaubert: The Ambiguity Of Imagination.

FM: Your work is part of the surreal genres and metafictions. Why do you find these genres as satisfying as an author? What can the reader take from these genres that are not offered by other types of writing?

GC: Because it’s suggestive to talk about ambiguity. Because it is very suggestive to speak in a surreal way about the ambiguity of a writer. It’s necessary to engage the reader in different readings by looking at an author under another aspect that intrigues with the surreal

FM: You are the inventor of a literary genre that you have dubbed ‘bio-fiction’. What do you mean by this term and how does it differ from biography or fiction?

GC: My literary genre is neither fiction nor biography. I try to tell a story about the life of a writer in which a surreal element intervenes that modifies reality. This is only an interpretative ambiguity of events that changes what was considered an absolute truth

FM: In your novel, Flaubert presents himself as a rather flawed individual. Do you think that his sexual and mental obsessions were an essential factor in allowing him to write the great works of literature for which he is famous?

GC: Undoubtedly. It is precisely these obsessions that have made Flaubert a particular writer. Without these pathological obsessions Flaubert would have been perhaps an insignificant writer

FM: Which authors have had more influence on your writing and why?

GC: My writing was influenced very much by Jorge Luis Borges, because if Borges has viewed the world and influenced his writings through the use of duplicity, I have believed that ambiguity would be deciphering in the world in a different but also very suggestive way

FM: How do you decide which historical figures to give biofocus treatment? Are there any character traits you are looking for that make an ideal subject?

GC: There are some characters (writers, painters, musicians) that interest me a lot. Certainly these characters have had adventures or have had friends or loves that lend themselves very well to the game of ambiguity

FM: What other authors do you think to give to the “bio-fiction” treatment in the future and why?

GC: The Portuguese poet Mario de Sa Carneiro for the ambiguity of his suicide. Virginia Woolf for the ambiguity of her lesbian love. James Joyce for the ambiguity of the epiphanies. Edgar Allan Poe for the ambiguity of his death for alcoholism.

FM: Your novels address the main theme of “ambiguity”. Why does this concept fascinate you and how does this idea link to what we can hope to understand as “truth” from literature and history?

GC: The theme of ambiguity fascinates me because it’s possible to look at the life and works of an artist in a different way through a keyhole that deforms things just because this keyhole is ambiguity. It is an ambiguity that can show another truth.

Gustave Flaubert: The Ambiguity Of Imagination and Mário De Sá-Carneiro: The Ambiguity Of A Suicide, both by Giuseppe Cafiero, are out now.