FAME is a wonderful thing; it overrides ability in so many fields of endeavour. But nowhere more so than in the world of publishing. There the principle is simple: names sell. Celebrity is everything. Much to the chagrin of authors who have spent years honing their craft. Facebook “likes”, Instagram followers, Twitter retweets; these are the factors that matter. All else comes a distant second. A post-publication floodtide of appearances on chat shows, news magazine couches and celebrity panels is a given. An extended fifteen minutes of fame to ensure these literary creations (a very loose description) achieve the greatest… Continue reading

Photo: Warren Wong, unsplash ‘Morning, can I help you?’ The receptionist smiled her greeting. ‘I hope so. At least you look as if you want to.’ A clumsy compliment, Bromo chided himself. But well meant. ‘Makes a refreshing change to where I come from,’ he hurried to explain. ‘Tyllmouth must do strange things to people. So relaxed and slow-going.’ She gave a brief chuckle. ‘Most of them least. Why be niggly when you can be nice? But nowhere’s perfect, not even a place like this. We do have our dark side.’ ‘Intriguing, you must tell me more. In the meantime,… Continue reading