Edward Fleet Memorial

When Dave Wiseman, an enthusiastic reader of Shillingstone Station, emailed me a few months ago to suggest that a memorial should be set in place (as a marketing exercise) in the station garden as per the novel, I originally thought it was a nice idea that would be laughed at by the trustees. How wrong I was. Everybody I spoke to thought it would be perfectly feasible and, yes, would be a great promotional tool and not just for the novel.

Yesterday I saw the results of the work, mainly of Patrick Law and Beryl Beecham and the gardeners, I believe: a perfect little memorial stone to Edward L Fleet, with engraved brass plaque facing the afternoon sun just like I described it! The surrounding rosebushes are due to be planted imminently.

I am still a little surprised (and I imagine Dave Wiseman is too) and sincerely grateful to those who helped to turn a fiction into a reality, notably Derek Lester-Jones, Alan Wiseman (no relation) and Patrick.

Photos taken on 29th October below:

Blandford Rotary Club competition

It was an honour and a pleasure to attend the Blandford Rotary Club’s Short Story Competition 2016 Prizegiving Evening recently as a guest speaker. It was the first time I have ever been invited to do anything like that, and certainly the first time I have ever been introduced on stage as “a successful local author”.

I enjoyed listening to a dozen or so finalists reading out their stories to the audience of around a hundred, then I tried to come up with some encouraging words, reminding them that, as judging of writing is so subjective, there would be winners on the night, but there would be no losers.

Congratulations to treble winner Paula Harmon (below, with hands full) and thanks are due to Adrian Ford of the Blandford Rotary Club for organising an excellent competition, an inspiring evening, and for inviting me to attend in the first place.

Tolpuddle Street Fayre Sunday 29th May

Looking forward to selling a few books on Sunday in Tolpuddle. Hope it stays dry all afternoon.

Street Fayre Poster