The weather has returned to normal parameters–clouds, rain, and wind with an occasional outbreak of sunshine. Right now, we have gusts up to 33 mph, or as the locals would say, a fresh breeze. The rain has started again and is supposed to be with us most of the day.
The price of gasoline (petrol) remained the same at £1.37 to a liter, while diesel increased a penny to £1.46. Meanwhile, the exchange rate has tilted in the favor of the pound against the dollar. As a result, a liter of gasoline decreased four cents to $6.54, while a liter of diesel dropped a cent to $6.95.
The monthly small business market began on Friday and finished today. So far, I’ve sold ten autographed novels, while Sylvia has sold eleven of her laminated poetry sheets and seven of her bookmarks. Considering the mall has been quiet, these are decent numbers.
“If you are in difficulties with a book, try the element of surprise: attack it at an hour when it isn’t expecting it.” – H.G. Wells. Compliments of https://press.barnesandnoble.com/bnpress-blog/inspirational-quotes-writing/.
I received good news on Monday.
Ultimate Escalation, which is competing for the 2023 
Chanticleer International Global Thriller Book Awards, has move from the short list to the semi-finals. There’s still a long way to go in the competition, with the finals, the announcement of the seven first in category winners, and the genre grand prize winner. The final results won’t be announced until 20 April 2024 at the annual Chanticleer Authors’ Conference, but I’ll keep posting updates as Ultimate Escalation moves through the competition.
So who was born on this date in history? Let’s find out who in the writing world was born on February 4, the first Sunday of the month. (Compliments of https://www.onthisday.com/birthdays/).
Franciscus Aguilon, Belgian Jesuit physicist, mathematician and architect (book on Optics “Opticorum Libri Sex); Jakob Balde, German poet (Jephthe); Isaac Newton, English physicist, mathematician and astronomer (Gravity, Laws of Motion); Henrik Constantijn Cras, Dutch lawyer (Laudatio Hugonis Grotii; Jacob Grimm, German philologist, folklorist and editor of “Grimm’s Fairy Tales”; Louis Braille, French educator and inventor of a system of reading and writing for the blind; Isaac Pitman, English teacher and inventor of Pitman shorthand (Stenographic Soundhand); Casimiro de Abreu, Brazil, poet (Meus oito anos), novelist and playwright (Camoes e o jau); Svend Fleuron, Danish writer; Alfred Edgar Coppard, English short story writer (Black Dogs & Other Stories); Wilhelm Lehmbruck, German painter, poet and sculptor (Seated Youth); Max Eastman, American critic/essayist and editor of The Masses; Lourens Baas Becking, Dutch botanist (Baas Becking hypothesis); C. L. R. James [Cyril Lionel Robert James], Trinidadian historian (The Black Jacobins), journalist, intellectual and socialist; Amitai W Etzioni, US sociologist (Active Society); Gao Xingjian, Chinese-born French novelist and dramatist, Nobel laureate, years); Doris Kearns Goodwin, American historian and writer (Team of Rivals, No Ordinary Time); Alicia Garza, American writer and civil rights activist (co-founded #BlackLivesMatter); and Nabila Jamshed, Indian writer.
Any names familiar to you? There three for me this time: Jacob Grimm, Louis Braille, and Isaac Pitman. Whether you recognize anyone on the list or not, if today’s your special day I hope you have a great one!
My Work In Progress
As I previously mentioned, I penned chapters 22-30 of Mission: Yemen, Xavier Sear Thriller Book 2 during the Xmas market. I’m slowly typing up and posted them to the two online subscription writing sites I use. This week I completed, chapter twenty-six and about half of chapter twenty-seven.
Reviewers provided another thirteen critiques, bringing the total to 499. As always, they’ve provided plenty of recommendations for me to consider, and I’m always appreciative of the time and effort people put into reviewing my work.
I’ll have to wait until next time to post another snippet as I need to head to the mall for the final day of the small business market.
This brings us to an end for another week. I hope you found something of interest. If you have any suggestions for a topic you’d like to read about, please send me a note. Until the next time, thank you for reading and hope you drop in again.
© Copyright 2024 Randall Krzak. All rights reserved
