TEMPLAR FICTION IS NOW ON FACEBOOK!

Worldshaker’s UK publisher, Templar Publishing, has made a Facebook page especially for all you avid teen fiction readers. Watch out for great giveaways and fantastic features, and discuss all your favourite books with other fans. You can find the Templar Fiction page here!

UK TOUR DRAWS TO A CLOSE

I thought I could finally upload photos onto this blog, but I’m on a PC, not the mac I’m used to, and the connection to my camera doesn’t seem to work (= I don’t know how to work it). Oh, well. We’re now in Melrose in the Scottish Borders country – home of a famous ruined abbey and also a writer’s festival. We arrived yesterday, staying at a delightful guest house nearby. Yesterday evening was a reeception and sitting around talking – I was a bit daunted in advance, because of course everyone knew everyone else, and Aileen and I knew noone. But everybody was very friednly and welcoming, so we soon got over that.

The UK tour is rushing to a close – I do a presentation today, travel to London and catch up with my relatives over dinner, then travel south to have lunch with my UK publisher, on further to Brighton to meet Ian Miller – then the next day is back to London and over the Channel to France. I mean, UNDER the Channel, by train and Chunnel … very appropriate, since WORLDSHAKER history begins when Napoleon digs HIS tunnel under the English Channel to invade England. I ought to be tired with all the travel and presentations, I MUST be tired – but right now I feel as if I could keep doing this for weeks and months non-stop!

Richard

Last School Presentations

I love it when kids get carried away with questions – when more and more of them put their hands up, more and more enthusiastically. That’s what happened today at Altrincham (pronounced Altringam) Grammar School.

It took me back to the school I went to in England, long long ago, when all-boys grammar schools were far more common than now. The students even wore a uniform similar to Sudbury Grammar – green jackets with red piping round the edges. Ours was more a carrotty red, and we had caps too. (Imagine, requiring schoolkids to wear caps – isn’t that a surefire way of getting caps pinched off heads, thrown, chased, hidden – guaranteed chaos!) There was a traditional feel about the school in general – in a good way. Or maybe it was just nostalgia on my part.

This morning I counted numbers of socks, shirts, undies, pants. Getting towards the end of the trip – only 2 weeks left! – and I’d hate to do more hotel room washing than I had to. Funny how some things work when tested under travel conditions and others don’t. Like my microfibre shirts  – they dry so fast. And my washing line for hanging above the bath. Other things that weren’t worth the bother – like my tailcoat and top hat, which I’ve hardly used, my steampunk cap and vest are much better.

I always think I’ll remember and plan and pack better next trip, and somehow I always forget.

Cheers, Richard

END OF FIRST WEEK OF UK TOUR

From the blog pen of Richard Harland…

Now in Newcastle, where I did a workshop with a class of kids who are doing a steampunk project, building an old-fashioned-y steam-age construction. Such a treat to talk to converts!

While I was doing schools in Scotland, I learned one important lesson – don’t alk about my early life growing up in ENGLAND. (Or at least, don’t mention that it was in England.) There’s no great love of the English in Scotland, ever since the days of Maggie Thatcher. (I can understand why.)

The weather has turned sunny after a cloudy morning. Not warm, exactly, but really pleasant. A sort of brisk summeriness.

Still no chance to put up photos. I’ve got some good ones to put up, but right now I’m borrowing the computer at the hotel reception desk, no way can I do more than a brief blogette.

Over the weekend we’re travelling to Workington on the other side of north England to visit relatives of Aileen. Then back to Edinburgh for the start of the next week.

Cheers

R

ON THE ROAD WITH RICHARD HARLAND

Direct from the author’s blog. We bring you the latest from Richard Harland’s UK tour.

Blogging, freezing, eating

By richardharland

Hi! British internet at hotels has gone into swift decline. At London, we had our own internet computer in the room. At Bristol, only a hotel computer to use, and expensive. In Edinburgh, no computer in the hotel – no access, not even for the laptop I haven’t brought. It’s a fair trek to the nearest internet cafe, but here I am.

What the hotel has is an incredible location right alongside the towering Walter Scott Memorial on Princes street, this amazing 19th C gothic structure, as black as if charred by fire. Our bedroom window looks out onto that and also the whole skyline of the Royal Mile, very dramatic.

Edinburgh is brrrr-ugh – very cold. Lots of fine drizzly rain, which we had in Bristol too. Now, for the moment, the sun has come out – but wait till the next time I look out the cafe window. Can’t trust any weather to hang around long.

We met up with a friend of Aileen’s on Tuesday evening and went to an amazing pub – only the local, but it had stained glass windows, a coffered many-coloured roof and tile pictures, framed like oil paintings. All of this stuff is just standard in Edinburgh – or not very unusual, anyway. The whole city is old and sandstone-y. We haven’t eaten haggis yet, though it’s on many menus – we’re going for the less traditional form of Scottish cuisine known as Indian.

Schools are interesting – I’ve done 2 primary schools, but primary goes a year later than Australia.

Cheers, R

Bristol airport

By richardharland

Very quick blog while waiting  to plane from Bristol to Edinburgh. Did two school visits yesterday – really good kids. Bristol area is West Country – lovely accent, all green fields and on-off rain to keep it that way. I met Philippa, who’s been doing a wonderful job organising the tour. This morning we wandered around St Nicholas Markets – old bric a brac and everything. I saw a metal steampunky construction I really craved, but couldn’t have managed the weight for plane flights. Got Aileen an amazing art nouveau style necklace instead.

AUTHOR TOUR JUNE 2010

Author Richard Harland is on tour in the UK this June. He’s got a busy schedule of school visits and events, and you can catch him talking about Worldshaker at one of these public events below.

Wednesday 16th June 2010
4pm at Simply Books, 228 Moss Lane
Bramhall, Cheshire SK7 1BD
Phone: 0161 439 1436
enquiries@simplybooks.info

Sat 19th June at the Borders Festival
Harmony Marquee
Age 9+
3.30pm

Click here for more info and to book tickets

Borders Book Festival
Harmony House
St Mary’s Road
Melrose TD6 9LJ
http://www.bordersbookfestival.org/