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Jane Davis's Blog, page 47

January 15, 2013

The Background to my Childhood

Kate Williams’s biography of Emma Hamilton, England’s Mistress, felt very personal to me. Brought up in Merton, our childhood war-wounds were tended at the Nelson hospital’s A & E department (no longer there) and my local pub was called the Emma … Continue reading →
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Published on January 15, 2013 02:01

January 14, 2013

Serendipity

Luck plays a very large part in most writers journeys to publication. Luck, and timing.  If I hadn’t chosen to attend a lecture by Jack Shepherd (of Teacher, Teacher fame) when attending the Winchester Writers’ Conference I would never of … Continue reading →
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Published on January 14, 2013 12:16

January 12, 2013

January Give-away!

Whether you are hibernating, detoxing, poorly or plain broke, you will need something fabulous to read to get through the mid-January slump. Don’t breathe a word of this to anyone but, for five days only, from Monday 14th to Friday 18th, I Stopped Time and … Continue reading →
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Published on January 12, 2013 01:04

January 8, 2013

Top Book Club Picks for 2012…

As voted for by the lovely people at Bookmovement.com: 1. Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience & Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand 2. The Paris Wife by Paula McLain 3. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot 4. … Continue reading →
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Published on January 08, 2013 05:09

Identity Theft

Someone has used my details to take out a mobile phone contract. (Anyone who knows me may laugh loudly at this juncture.) And insurance, because it’s important to be covered. (Laugh even louder). Sadly they got my bank account details … Continue reading →
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Published on January 08, 2013 01:28

January 7, 2013

On Saturday, a former army chaplain who became better-kno...

On Saturday, a former army chaplain who became better-known recently for being Britain’s oldest man, died at his Staffordshire home, aged 110 years and 63 days. It was discovering stories such as Reg Dean’s that led me to develop the … Continue reading →
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Published on January 07, 2013 12:10

January 5, 2013

Writing-and-reading related Resolutions

Word Book Night is promoting a rather wonderful New Year’s resolution: to read more. I managed to double my reading time by opening a paperback at the breakfast table instead of turning on the news. In On Writing, Stephen King has … Continue reading →
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Published on January 05, 2013 00:28

January 3, 2013

Today’s Quote

“A book is a device to ignite the imagination.” Alan Bennett, The Uncommon Reader.
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Published on January 03, 2013 10:23

December 31, 2012

The Daddy of All Storms

Central to the final climax of These Fragile Things is the Great Storm of 1987, an event I felt I could bear personal witness to. At the time, it was claimed to have been the most destructive storm since 1703, … Continue reading →
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Published on December 31, 2012 04:45

December 29, 2012

Churchill, on Authors

“The fortunate people in the world – the only really fortunate people in the world, in my mind – are those whose work is also their pleasure. The class is not a large one, not nearly so large as it … Continue reading →
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Published on December 29, 2012 00:39