Coast

Returning from an incredibly sunny weekend in Cornwall (Carlyon Bay pictured left) reminds me how I’ve always been a lover of the sea (and possibly married a native of Anglesey just to guarantee a lifetime of sea-side holidays!) But I confess I had never heard of Mersea island until I was contacted by Juliet Doyle, a reader who spotted a wrong link on my last post and was kind enough to get in touch. Whether you’ve been there or not, I think you’ll like her wonderful photographs of the ‘muddy island’ as well as her views on books, painting and publishing, so do pay her a visit.
Juliet and I have just exchanged views on our experiences of Burns Night which were not entirely happy, but I confess to being impressed with Seamus Heaney’s contribution to the feast, a poem published in the Daily Telegraph  that flatters by imitation. Burns’ metres are so distinctive, I wonder why no-one else has done the same (or maybe I’m just showing my ignorance again?)

Meanwhile the Amazon competition rumbles on, and thanks to all those who have provided me with some lovely reviews to add to the ‘professional’ Amazon crits that have now been posted. From what I’ve seen of other people’s work, there is some good stuff in there, but doubts abound about the ‘selection’ process. It will be fascinating to see if the cream really does rise to the top.