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An Ex-Ex-Pat Writes…

14 Aug

Foreign Flavours, the anthology from Writers Abroad, is now available on Kindle. All the contributors either were or are ex-pats. I Foreign Flavours Anthologyused to live in Albania, and my piece in the anthology is about Turkish coffee. It’s part recipe, part cultural and historical introduction to Albania.

I just heard today that I will have a piece in the new Writers Abroad anthology, too. The anthology will be called Foreign Encounters, and will take the theme of relationships around the world. My contribution is a non-fiction piece is called “Sounion”, which features a bit of Greek mythology. Look out for it in October.

‘Running for Cover’ Published

24 Jul

Running for Cover by K C MurdarasiJust a quickie, to say that I have uploaded a free short story to Smashwords. It’s called Running for Cover, and concerns an injured athlete trying to escape the Olympics by retreating to an isolated Derbyshire village. Topical and free – what more could you ask for?

It should be available in Amazon soon, and other ebookshops later, but you can get it in a wide variety of formats at Smashwords, including Kindle, and PDF (good for reading on computers).

Any comments or questions about this story? Please feel free to contact me using the message form to the right.

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Office Life (and Death)

18 Jun

This is a semi-exclusive for readers of my blog. My new ebook of short stories, Office Life (and Death) is available now from Smashwords and Amazon. In due course it will be available in all ebook stores, and at that point I’ll announce it to all and sundry. For the time being, though, I’m just announcing it to some and sundry – including people who are reading this.

There are five stories plus two pieces of flash fiction, and they concern the nine-to-five grind, although taken from a bit of a strange angle. There are fatally efficient PAs and mysteriously ambiguous companies, as well as an inquiry into the Company Policy on Screaming.

It costs about £2 to download, and you can get 50% off at Smashwords until the end of July with this code: TZ56S. You can also enter a competition to win £50 (ooh!) by forwarding me your receipt. See the Office Life (and Death) page for details.

If you enjoy it (which, of course, you will), do consider writing a nice review on the site you bought it from. But more important than that, do just go and buy it. If you’ve ever worked in an office, and have a sense of humour, you’ll find it decent value for a quid or two.

Albanian Approbation

20 Apr

It is with some relief that I have received the first responses to Leda from Albania, one from an Albanian and one from an American living there. The American lady thought it captured life in Albania, while the Albanian lady mistakenly thought it was a true story, which certainly seems to confirm its realism. They also both liked the book.

It’s reassuring because, for one reason and another, I wasn’t able to have the manuscript read before it went to press by anyone who knew Albania intimately. This left me with the lingering dread that, even though I wrote most of Leda while living in Albania, there would be something in the novel so outrageously wrong that Albanians would find it ridiculous – which would rather undermine a novel that purports to inform the reader about Albania. That dread is now put to rest.

An aside: If you think “approbation” in the title is an inappropriate word for a post about people approving of my book, you probably need to look up the definition. It’s a word that’s more misused than used correctly, to the extent that I think it is doomed to change its definition and mean exactly the same as “opprobrium” (with which it is confused). In that case, this post may have historical value; it may be the final place on the internet where it is used to mean approval rather than disapproval. You read it here last!

Book Touring and Village Craving

23 Mar

I am back from my mini ‘book tour’, taking in three venues in Sheffield – CLC bookshop, All Saints C of E and Sheffield High School. All the events went well, for which I am grateful to God, and a little bit embarrassed about my preceeding lack of faith.

My trip was nearly derailed before it started, however, due to the route I took to get to Sheffield. I unwittingly got on the slow train from Manchester instead of the fast one. Time wasn’t the issue because I had plenty to spare, but the slow train goes through the Hope Valley, the location of some of the most beautiful scenery and most charming looking villages in Derbyshire.

One of them is Edale, a lovely place all nestled below impressive hills, just asking to he climbed, and with an inviting pub right next to the station. Half the train seemed to get off there, people with rucksacks, maps and smiles, and even though I was due in Sheffield, it was as much as I could do not to follow them off the train and into the pub.

Duty prevailed, of course, as it always does with me, but I’ll have to go back to Edale sometime. Maybe I could set a story there and then I’d have to visit for ‘research’. In the meantime I’ll just add it to my list of astonishingly achievable life’s ambitions.

 

Update: I haven’t set a story in Edale yet, but I have set one in the charming fictional village of Haddleford. It’s currently free at Smashwords.

Running for Cover by K C Murdarasi

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Leda Grows Legs

7 Mar

I’ve just been looking at all the places my novel, Leda, appears on the internet, and it’s quite surprised me. Not only is it available in Australia and New Zealand (with free shipping, apparently), it’s also in the e-catalogue of Jefferson County Public Library in (I presume) the USA.

It feels quite strange seeing my book fending for itself in the big, wide world. The first hundred copies or so were sold directly so I knew who bought them. Now I just see numbers on a screen and have no idea where they’ve gone. I haven’t seen it in physical bookshops yet (well to be honest, I haven’t looked yet) but I expect that will be quite a weird experience, too. It’s strange enough seeing books by Robert Low in Waterstones, and he’s only a friend’s husband. (He writes war sagas – vikings, Robert the Bruce and so on. Not for haemophobics, but a good read for those with strong stomachs.)

I know that eventually, for Leda to be a success, it has to be bought by lots of people who don’t know me. They may know a little about me (I’ve had articles in the Glaswegian, Yorkshire Post and Housing Scotland Today, so far) but I can’t turn on the emotional pressure with these people I’ll never meet, to persuade them to buy. Leda will have to stand on her own two feet – or fall. I’m pretty confident she’ll stand. She’s a tough wee girl.

The End of a Chapter

31 Jan

I have given up the day job; today is my last day at the office. Although I’ve spent as long there as I did at university, neither the job nor leaving it feels momentous in the way matriculating and graduating did. In my head it was always a temporary job, you see, despite evidence to the contrary.

In fact it’s not strictly true that I’ve given up the day job. Really I’ve just swapped it, since I will now be looking after my beautiful baby niece a few days a week. But not only is this part time, giving me more time to concentrate on writing, babysitting is also more conducive to writing than an office job – especially during her two hour nap. Even when she’s awake she’s wonderfully portable, and can come with me if I need to meet someone or even go to the library. I’ve found a baby opens doors, both in the literal sense (you’ve really got to watch her) but also with booksellers.

So now I really have to commit myself to my writing career, and the uplifting but also scary truth is that I can nevermore say I didn’t have a go. I’ve left safe predictability behind, and I may crash and burn, but you never know – I may discover I can fly.


Copies of Leda Available

25 Jan

At long last I have many paperback copies of my children’s novel Leda in my possession. Of course, I would like to have fewer copies, so please do buy it. Copies are available from me or direct from the publisher, Troubador.

It will soon be available in a number of bookshops in Glasgow, and I’ll let you know on Leda‘s page which are stocking it, once it’s confirmed. There will be book signings too – again, details will follow.

(It will be more generally available after May because that’s the official release date.)

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Cwrtnewydd Scribblers Anthology 2011 – A Way with Words

20 Dec

The Cwrtnewydd (no, I can’t pronounce it either) Scribblers Anthology, A Way with Words, has just been released, and it contains my short story “A Recipe for Summer”, which is very good, if I say so myself, and nothing like as twee as it sounds.  The anthology has sold out its first print run but they’re doing another.  Check out the Cwrtnewydd Scribblers homepage for updates.

 

Update: This anthology is now available as an ebook on Amazon priced at 77p. And it turns out Cwrtnewydd is pronounced court-NEW-with.

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Writing on Water

20 Nov

Writing on Water - Earlyworks AnthologyThe poetry and flash fiction anthology Writing on Water has just been published by Earlyworks Press.  It’s £8.49 including postage and you can buy it using the link above.  I have a small piece in it, called “Laser Eye Surgery” (which, incidentally, I have had.  It’s well worth it and you can read more about it in my Suite101 article).

The rest of the work in the book looks great, from my quick flick through.  There’s a touching piece about the elephant in the room (Sarah Cluderay) and a quirky little poem called “Vote of Thanks” (Phil Powley), as well as a Christmas poem, “Christmas Cards 2010” (Christine Collette).  That’s just a selection of my favourites from the ones I have read so far, but I have only dipped in.  It’s worth considering as a Christmas present for a literary-minded aunt, or similar.

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