Van Demal

Congratulations Sandra! An 8-year gestation after a sprint start 🙂 Well done on persevering and turning your dream and idea into a proper, finished book!

Thank you @barny! 🙂

THANK YOU all! I’ve been so moved by all the generous responses all round. The writing community is really the best.

Spent most of yesterday in a champagne-induced haze but now back to work 🙂 🙂

Massive congratulations, Kaz 😁 really well deserved and so glad Ava id finally taking wing in front of a larger audience. Can’t wait to get my signed copy. Champagne and cake all round 🎂🥂

My vote goes to:

“A Lyttle Goes a Long Way”
The Improbable Life of an Ulster Storyteller

I’m intrigued by the idea of an improbable life! Improbable tales abound, but an improbable life really piques my interest.

That’s my tuppence worth, anyway 🙂

Congratulations @sandra! And well done @raine, I’m sorry I didn’t join in as I somehow missed this new version of a comp (great idea btw)…but my fault entirely. I will read all these with relish 🙂 x

Boosting your straw poll stats, Tony, I too prefer your working title – hands down. It’s interesting, unusual and specific – far better than a generic title in my opinion. I would pick it up to see what it meant, if nothing else, whereas I wouldn’t even glance at Limelight, I don’t think.

I also like ‘improbable’ as an adjective – again it’s…[Read more]

Oh wow, BOTH of you? That is just brilliant, I’m so pleased to hear it! A big achievement right there. Congratulations! xx

Thanks, Jim. And I’m so glad you enjoyed the Oath and Crown duology 😊

Most probably true, Richard. There’s a great youtube video showing people wearing full plate armour doing somersaults. Squires were required to master all the courtly and manly arts – combat, riding, tumbling, swimming, dancing etc – and often practised all of them in full armour. (Well probably not swimming because then there would have been far…[Read more]

I think you’re probably right there, Daed. I doubted my own findings so I consulted a few horsey people (breeders, riders etc) A horse can comfortably carry a third of it’s own weight. You’re average destrier of 15 hands weighed 1200 lbs. So they could comfortably carry 360lbs.
Assuming the average height and weight of a knight was 5’7″ and 150lbs…[Read more]

Thanks, Sandra 🙂 re destriers – apparently the modern shire/ cart/ draught horses are descended from them. Basically they bred some warhorses too big to have enough speed for battle and that’s where the latter great horses come from. I too was surprised to learn that a Medieval warhorse was usually only 15 – 16 hands high. (Apparently I also…[Read more]

Thanks, everyone 🙂

I am just about halfway through writing the second book now so the encouragement is much appreciated.

@JaneShuff – that has to be one of the best TBRs 😀

@Bella – I thought I was being flippant when I spoke about lads marrying their mother-in-laws, but having checked, there were cases where families got split up and the…[Read more]

Congratulations, Jules! sounds like a brilliant read. 3-book contract that slipped your mind, eh? 🙂 congratulations for that, too.

Out of interest, who was that with and did you negotiate it yourself?

x

Yay! I’m so glad you posted this, Daed. Highly recommend it to everyone who likes hist fic especially WWII. It’s an excellent novella. Can’t wait for the next one 😁

I think the linking text definitely helped @squidge. As did the editors having a clear idea of what they were looking for and how to make it all fit together. And I think the opening and closing stories gave the anthology shape too. But we weren’t actually given that much of a premise other than ‘demon invasion of Victorian Britain’ which expanded…[Read more]

Glad you’re enjoying it @Squidge I love the interlinking text – it really adds sometjing to the collection. I love the shared world aspect of the anthology too.