Authors Electric

A black bed sheet, I should add. Cotton, I expect (I don't think Tesco does satin, does it?) and double sized. And the carrots were in their own little bag with a neat knot, while the lemon was loose. Does that make a difference? I have no idea. So where am I going with this? Well wherever you like, really. That's the point. I was standing in the checkout queue in Tesco with my daughter at the time. Mid-afternoon, just after Christmas. I don't shop much in Tesco as our local branch is small with a limited range of goods (and no clothing), but I was up in Handforth Dean in East Cheshire, having just had a good scramble through the madness that is the Marks & Spencer's sale next door. And I can't help noticing what people buy - it fascinates me, especially when I look at the people, the way they dress and speak. And already I'm imagining their stories. These two ladies were late middle-aged, well-dressed and nicely-spoken. Handforth Dean is probably co...

I wonder if it's the same for Father Christmas. You know what I mean - the speeding up of time. When I was a lad a day was like a week, a day at school more like a term. And as I got older, time began to run amok. This afternoon I was struggling to finish off a novella about Nelson before travelling down to Leicestershire for a pre-Christmas jolly with the rellies. Only about two thousand words to go, and the deadline seemed more than possible. It's got to be done before I leave here, because the village that we're heading for has no broadband to send it off from. Politicians' promises. Aren't they a hoot? The day had been bitty, certainly - but handleable. (Do you like that word: it's not copyrighted). Endeavour Press told me yesterday that Other People's Blood would be going up today (that is, Nov 11) for free until the weekend. I dutifully spent lots of the next few hours twooting and faceboogeringabout and all the other modern jollities. It was...

Feuer und flamme - another of the evening's entertainments           A bout a mon th ago, I had a phone call from Switzerland. The caller asked if I would take part in a 'Lesenac ht.'            This means 'Reading Night', and is something which has taken place reguarly all over Switzerland for some time. A bit of a party is held in the school, and stories are told or read. Some schools take the children on camping trips, and tales a re told around the fire.           The caller, Alan Hess, explained that his school had not taken part previously, as their academic standard wasn't high enough for it to be considered worth while. But, four years ago, he had introduced 'Functional Grammar' i nto the school, as a way of teaching reading and Engli sh La nguage. Michael Halliday           Functional Grammar is based on the theo ries...