Weekend catch up
I must fill you in on the weekend. Now then, what happened…?
Well, I approved and uploaded the new cover for ‘The Judas Inheritance’, and you can see it below. Amazon is still showing the original cover as it takes a few days for the changes to filter through their system, but new copies ordered after, say, Thursday, should show the new cover – and that goes for the Kindle version as well. When I can afford to, I will probably also change the covers for ‘Lonely House’ and maybe ‘Remotely.’ I proofread some more chapters for The Saddling, and we are now definitely looking at a release date in May, earlier rather than later, I hope. The cover is done, we are just proofing the final 20 chapters, and then will work on the final layout and uploading. More news will follow on that, of course.
We also went to a barbeque, where it was hot in the sun but cooler in the shade when the sun went down. This was one of those wonderful events where everyone takes something to eat. I was cooking gigantes from nine in the morning, and also added a mushroom quiche to the table; Neil made his famous garlic dip and some fairy cakes for afters.
I spent the weekend up in the village, even finding the time to pop out for a coffee at the Rainbow in the morning. As I tend to work in the mornings at home, I don’t often get out and about before lunch and yet I should. It’s always a treat to walk around the village and see it in morning mode: the bakery being popular, people shopping on their way back from church, men working on repairs and the outside of buildings, in this case getting them ready for summer. There are also the smells of cooking wafting from houses, always a treat. It’s always calm and quiet. Unless you go to the supermarket where things can get a little noisier. I was in a queue at one the other day, the proprietor was chatting on at great length and with great passion about the painting of the steps behind one of the churches. The lady he was talking to had her shopping piled up on the counter, as is usually the case, and neither showed any signs of slowing down or bringing their Great Matter to a conclusion. I was aided and abetted by the assistant behind the deli counter who tried his best to interrupt on my behalf (I only needed a dozen eggs) and, together, we managed to get there in the end. I handed over my couple of euros, and I was on my way, leaving the great debate to rumble on.
A while later, I was having the coffee when the assistant drove through the square carrying four packs of water we had ordered the day before. He gave me a toot and a wave, and I knew exactly where he was going. Others joined me at the table and, after a couple of drinks, I finally got home to find the water waiting on the step. We’ve often found it there after ordering it, sometimes a few hours after it was delivered, and it’s always still been there. That’s one of the good things about living on Symi; your shopping is safe if left outside your door – unless it’s something that might go off in the sun.
So, basically, I had a very pleasant weekend. Some work, some socialising, some sitting and watching and thinking of the next book (loads of ideas, nothing yet that grabs me and drags to towards plotting, as the three recent novels have all done) and some sitting in the sun too. This afternoon (Monday) I may be going for a walk through the Pedi valley if only to get some photos. I’ve not been that way for a couple of weeks and I/we want to see the flowers before they start to fade. Others will take their place, and the valley should be green for a while yet, but soon the summer will start proper and time will slip away, as it does.
