A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF A SMALL PUBLISHER

In February 2011 we published Kathleen Herbert's Moon in Leo; that in itself quite an achievement since I received it in a chaotic jumble of over a thousand badly typed pages, just over 6 months before. (Read the full story here)

It is February 2012, and we are about to publish our third book, The Boy with Two Heads, so I am in celebratory mood.

 

SEMIOTICS AND COVER DESIGN
 

Our covers have been praised for their beauty and elegance and I hope the new cover will appeal too. It is busier and more "modern" looking than the others, but, like them it has its own story. A cover should tell you as much as possible about the content of the book.   (I wrote an earlier post about how some American covers were misleading) Just as with Moon in Leo and Paths of Exile, the images were chosen for their significance as well as for their look. This is what makes cover design so fascinating: sometimes the semiotic aspects war with the aesthetics! When they both come together it's magical. I hope we have got it right with this one- but I am sure you, the readers will tell us- please feel free!

THE BOY WITH TWO HEADS COVER STORY

Both background photographs were taken by the author: the picture on the front is of the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, built in 1896 to house the first modern Olympics. 

A detail from the map of Ancient Athens. The bridge over the Ilissos (now covered by a modern road) is the spot where both Themis, and over two thousand years later, Suzanne, meet with their accidents. The natural amphitheatre between the hills is the site of the Panathenaic Stadium. In 432 BC, this is where  Athenian youths would practise their sports. 

The girl on the cover (our Suzanne) is looking towards the crossing where her accident occurs. The photo on the back of the book is of the crossing itself and the police accident board (a real board, kindly loaned by my local constabulary) is on the exact spot where the accident occurs. The bronze head (our Themis) is of the Youth of Antikythera in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. When we had problems obtaining permission to use a photo of the statue, Alex, who lives in Athens, stood on tiptoe and held her camera above her head to get the picture we finally used.  Designer Kate worked her magic on it, and finally flipped both heads!

When she turned this-

into this-























we all three knew it felt right. Don't forget to tell us what you think!

HEADS AND TALES - AN UPDATE

Kathleen enjoying a cuddle with my daughter's little dog

Themis with his ipad!

A small portion of Kathleen's MSs

Whilst as far as this blog is concerned, I may have seemed to do nothing for the last few weeks, I have been beavering away, and had no time to spare to write posts.

VISITING KATHLEEN, FINDING TREASURE

Kathleen is now living in sheltered accommodation and her house- (which she once called "Hell Hall", so no regrets there) - is sold, and I have come into a wonderful collection of manuscripts, books, lecture notes, photos, and notebooks.

Kathleen herself doesn't want any of these possessions any more, but I was interested to see that her own copy of Moon in Leo was in her room, sitting by her bed, and very well thumbed. Kathleen and her cousin, who manages her affairs, are very happy for me to take charge of these papers and become, in effect, Kathleen's literary executor.

The estate agent who sold the house very kindly kept the stuff- a full carload- in his office until my daughter was able to pick them up. it took twelve trips to her flat from her car to get them home, where they filled her spare room. They then filled our car, and are now filling my office! And it will take us many months to sort and catalogue the thousands of pages we have got.

Partially sorted papers and books in my office

It is very exciting though: I have already found a beautifully written story about Guinevere called The Once and Future Queen, which I will probably publish as an eBook. It has an unusual feminist angle, and is not at all the normal romantic stuff. Look out  for it! There may also be a fifth novel- we have found several chapters and copious notes, maps and even photos of the settings- all Cumbrian. Meanwhile, work continues on Bride of the Spear and the other books in the Kingdoms of the North Trilogy.

ROYALTY FREE FICTION

I love Deborah Swift's blog- Royalty Free Fiction, with its many posts by different writers. Deborah says, 'History is full of ordinary people with extraordinary stories', and she invites authors to tell the story behind the story. She asked me to tell the story of Moon in Leo, and I was delighted, but found it very difficult to write, as I had to tell Kathleen's own harrowing story. It was painfully difficult to distance myself enough to do it! I will post a notice here when the Moon in Leo story is published, but meanwhile please visit this intriguing blog. You will not be disappointed, but you may be a little poorer, as you will want to read all the books featured! I did.

TWO HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE

The main activity that has dominated my life recently however, has been all-consuming. I have been working closely with author Julia Newsome to bring out her novel The Boy with Two Heads- her first full length novel for young adults. We had originally hoped to get it onto bookshelves before Christmas, but as Julia and I are obsessive perfectionists, it has taken longer than expected. You will soon be able to pre-order it on Amazon however, in plenty of time for the Olympics. More on this soon...

And this blog is due an overhaul too! I will fit it all in somehow, but the Christmas cards might be a bit late!

THE BOY WITH TWO HEADS

The next Trifolium Book is on its way!

I can now reveal the author and title of our next book, out in time for Christmas: The Boy with Two Heads: Olympic Dreaming, by J M Newsome. Julia is the author of the CUP prizewinning book, Dragon's Eggs. She is an experienced writer and editor of books for English learners, so this is a new departure for her.

This is a time-slip novel, set in Ancient Greece, modern Athens and Northern England. It is aimed at young adults, but if you want to buy this book for a young person you know who loves reading, I suggest you get it ordered in plenty of time, so that you can read it first!

The Panathenaic Stadium, Athens

In 432 BC they think Themis is dead. Across more than two thousand years, Suzanne is drawn to keep him alive. Will his destiny be Olympic glory? And will she regain control of her life in the present, or will her mind be occupied for ever by the past?

It is 432 BC and it is 2010 AD. We are in Athens. Themistokles son of Kallistos has just finished his training session. Best friends Suzanne and Bernie from Penrith are on a school trip to Greece, about to leave the Panathenaic stadium.

Themis, quarrelling with one of his class mates, gallops away and, thrown by his pony, hits his head on the stone abutment of the bridge.

In ancient Athens, the priestess calls on Apollo to call back the soul of Themistokles who is lying as if dead.

Suzanne, dazed by a text from her boyfriend dumping her, starts across the road and is hit by a speeding motor cycle.

Themis regains consciousness, but has no memory. Suzanne is taken to hospital and lies as if dead.