Moose Miles

The last 36 hours have been truly hectic. On Wednesday evening both Anna and I were at Blackwells Sheffield Hallam, where she was signing books and talking about her novel. Lesley Glaister, the award winning author was there and was effucive in her praise. The next day, Anna was appearing on the morning show on BBC Radio Coventry/warwickshire at 10am. Due to a no show, I achieved a lifetime's ambition. I was asked to choose a favourite record, a first song that inspired me. Well, it was Tears of a clown by Smokey Robinson. I was 6. In my opinion the percet three minute pop song. Soul at its best. But the real point was for Anna to do her interview about her book, her signings at Waterstones in Nuneaton on Saturday 30th Jan at 12.30 and then at Nuneaton library at 2.30. We left Coventry and flew up the M1 to do an event at Brighouse library at 2pm. Many miles, lots of chatter and lots of people buying books. We will altready have to do a reprint after only 3 weeks after publication. FAlling through clouds is exceeding all expectations.

Son Of Kingsley

They were at it again yesterday, the lit eds that is. Mr Amis, the dimuntive author with the expensive teeth and very, very rich wife, has a new book out. Let the fawning begin. The Grauniad are holding an event where the son of Kingsley will hold forth and talk about his book Times Arrow. He has a new book out and yet is talking about his old books. Why is this newsworthy? Why are our supposed critical literary press giving page after page to an elderly writer who hasn't had anything interesting to say for a decade and a half? Surely there are new writers who are talented enough to warrant an interview. His dad was famous, he slept with some women, he smokes a lot and had a fall out with his agent to get a bigger advance and had his teeth done. Anyone who makes up the word 'edificide,' about the murder of a building concerning September 11th needs leaving in a darkened corner with something damp to mop his ever increasingly wrinkled brow.

School of hard sentences

Off to the Leeds this morning where Anna Chilvers will be signing copies of her novel, FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS at 1pm in Waterstones. The great reviews and ringing endorsements keep flooding in for this 'erotically charged literary thriller.' Anna's book has just been chosen as the Exclusively Independent book of the month for March. EI promotes new writers throughout indie bookshops and libraries in the UK. Next week, Anna will be at Blackwells, Sheffield Hallam on Wednesday at 6.15pm and Waterstones Nuneaton on Saturday the 30th.
I met Mark Hodkinson yesterday, he is the owner and publisher at Pomona and they used to be based in Hebden Bridge. He's publishing some great new stories from Barry Hines and Alan Sillitoe. When the scribes from the Metropolis whinge on about Amis and Barnes and Rushdie, let us not forget they can't hold a candle to these two writers who transformed literature in this country. The three Amigos will be forgotten because they come from the school that doesn't tell stories, merely the corduroy and linen suited litfest school of hard sentences.

World Tour Update

There was a fantastic turnout yesterday at Littleborough library, where Anna Chilvers talked about her debut novel, FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS. She told the story of Gawain and the Green Knight, and then read a passage from her book. Anna received some great comments about her book and there were some incisive questions about independent publishing and bookselling. There was more good news last night when I found out that Anna's book had been selected to be Book Of The Month for Exclusively independent, an organisation which promotes new writers throughout independent bookshops and libraries in the UK. The word is beginning to spread. Anna will be signing books at Leeds Waterstones on Saturday from 1pm onwards. Next week she will be back in her hometown of Nuneaton pressing the flesh, doing radio interviews and signing books at Waterstone's on the 30th.

Hubbologists

The book signing at Waterstones Bradford on Saturday has been rearranged for the beginning of February. I will let you know the date later on this week. There may have been a change at the top of Wats, but the old problems are still there. The book was ordered and arrived digitally. It arrived in a 'tote' and on the Wats Bradford computer system the book was in the store. However, when said tote was opened the cupboard was bare. The system didn't work. Every digital bell and whistle said the book had arrived. But because they have no goods in staff anymore, they were all made redundant, goods in has to rely totally on what the computer says and the computer lied. The Hub didn't work and there were red faces all round. But all is not lost. FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS will become the best selling new title at Wats Bradford this year. I have been promised and that was from a human being. You know the ones, they breathe and speak. IT Directors take note. Totes and systems are not working.

Waterstone's Bradford

There was a fantastic review of FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS yesterday in The Yorkshire Post. www.yorkshirepost.co.uk and today Anna and myself travel to Waterstones in Bradford to do her first book signing. Very excited. I have done many signings with the great and the good. Film royalty, Joan Collins, now she did have a rider and the Duchess of York, she just had motorbike outriders and they can be hit and miss affairs. What is most important is that it is an opportunity to get the bookshop and the local press right behind an author and the book. Despite all the recent bad press about Wats, they have always got behind Bluemoose titles and I thank them for that. Ian Oldfield at Bradford has given Anna's book a tremendous review. He says it is an' erotically charged literary thriller.' That will do me, thank you very much Off to iron the Bluemoose shirt for the residents of Bradford. It's expected don't you know.

Holistic Knee Capping

The Moose and Anna Chilvers, who will be reading and taking questions about her book, FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS, are at The Saltaire Bookshop tonight at 6.15. Chains have been placed on the moosemobile tyres, a thermos filled with wholesome soup and of course the obligatory spade. All tools which are essential for the up and coming author these days. There is a two page interview in The Yorkshire Post tomorrow and Anna appears at her first Waterstone's on Saturday 16th in Bradford at 1pm. Sales have been fantastic so far and the reviews have been very good indeed. Of course there will be one that isn't but we will consign that to the bin and the author of such uninformed drivel will be subjected to some Holistic Knee capping. I am a master in that dark art, so be warned.

Book of the month

The Moose has the blogging rights at www.incwriters.com for the month of January as a part of their Save Our Presses campaign. Two of our authors, Stephen Clayton and Anna Chilvers have already given us their words of wisdom and I have ranted on apace about the shennanigans and practices in the bookselling high street. Publishers 'buy' space for their books. This is achieved with bigger discounts and one off payments. Nothing illegal in that, but when a store publices their book of the month , I think the public should know that a large sum of money has passed between publisher and bookseller for that book to have a prominent position within the store. It is a financial decision not a literary one.

Wholesale Mugging

Getting the book to market is one of the hardest things to do for an independent. There is no point in publishing a book if your readers don't see it on the shelves. This is where the wholesalers come in. They do a great job in distributing titles to every indie bookshop in the country. However, this comes at some significant cost. Discount. A lot. Now, one of them has decided not to stock our titles unless we give them an extra 5% discount. On a £7.99 pbk, that's an extra 20pence off the bottom line. No discussions. Give it us, or we don't stock it and we will only order it on special order. The noose gets tighter and tighter. I could always kill them. Rather radical. Perhaps holistic knee capping will suffice. I may even try and talk to them, but these days speaking to anybody in a big organisation is proving more and more difficult. Our website is the answer. www.Bluemoosebooks.com Go directly there and do not stop at Amazon. If you do, your soul will blacken and my children will starve.

Moose Tour Starts tomorrow

Great launch party last night for Anna Chilver's debut novel, FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS. Despite a few cancellations from people heading from the metropolis and other such snow bound places, the Trades Club was full and everyone was well watered and fed. Great buzz and excitement. Fellow Bluemoose authors were in attendance, Stephen Clayton and soon to be published writer Michael Stewart. Many books were sold and signed by Anna and now the world tour starts off in Halifax on Tuesday and all points North, South, East and West. I will place the link to the Yorkshire Post Podcast next Saturday of Anna reading from her novel,
The Moosemobile is MOT'd today for it's long and arduous adventures. To the Moose Cave and away!

Five, Four, Three, Two, One...It's PUBLISHED

Anna Chilvers' debut novel 'Falling through clouds,' is published today and the reading public are in for a fine old treat. Award winning author Lesley Glaister loves it, and Waterstones are promoting it as an' erotically charged literary thriller.' Even the weather can't dampen our spirits. Once the tsunami of reviews reaches those blinkered old lit eds in London, perhaps they will be able to see a little farther than their Amis's and review a great book by a very gifted writer. Toodlepip, off to make some vol-au-vents!

The Moose and beyond

Yesterday Anna Chilvers was interviewed by Nick Ahad, Literary Editor from the Yorkshire Post. It will appear in The Culture Section of the newspaper on Saturday 16th January. Anna also appeared in The Halifax Courier and Hebden Bridge Times talking about her debut novel FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS. Today she will be appearing on The BBC RADIO Leeds Janothan I'Anson programme at 10.15am , again talking about her novel. It's all about building momentum, to get the word out about what a great read it is. Word of mouth is everything, and so far we have had nothing but excellent reviews.
The launch of the book is tomorrow. There is nothing The Moose can do about the weather, so we just hope that everyone who said they are coming, do, and enjoy what will be a wonderful event.

Moose News

The Moose has contacted the Metereological Authorities and the weather for Saturday the 9th January will be fine and all roads to the launch of FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS by Anna Chilvers at The Trades Club in Hebden Bridge, will be open. Tomorrow, Anna is being interviewed by Nick Ahad, the literary editor of The Yorkshire Post. There will be a two page interview and podcast. Anna is also appearing in The Halifax Courier in The THursday issue and she is taking part in a half marathon at the end of February. The Moose model is to start local, build the momentum, and the wave of enthusiasm will finally get to those who shoul knnow better a few months down the line, but then isn't that how it ever was?

That was the week that was

It's book launch week....Falling through clouds is launched at The Trades Club in Hebden Bridge on Saturday 9th....Anna Chilvers will be doing an interview with The Yorkshire Post today, plus a Podcast where she will be reading from her book. This will be downloadable from their website. www.yorkshirepost.co.uk All the media interviews will be scaled out at the end of the week for maximum exposure.
Bluemoose is also blogging on the Incwriters, Save Our Presses site. Our first blog will be by Stephen Clayton, author of The Art of Being dead. It is witty and erudite, as you would expect. I will be having my say midweek and then Anna Chilvers, Michale Stewart and Mark Radcliffe will be talking about their writing and being published by an Independent Publisher. It's all about getting the word out about what we're trying to do at Bluemoose. Publishing beautiful stories that are wonderfully written. To promote and publish new writing that engages and inspires the reader.

In with the new.

The review pages have been full of,' the best books of the decade,' 'books of 2009,' and what we can expect from the next year. One name was worryingly high on the list for 2010 and already the lit eds are foaming at the mouth. Mr. Amis has his next 'oeuvre' out and the fawning will begin. Martin will create several new words, talk about etymylogical half siblings, go on and on about his teeth, tennis and his father. There, that's his autobiography sorted. Teeth, tennis and father. Heaven forefend. What we should be talking about is all the great new writers, producing magnificent new work, like Anna Chilvers, Mark Radcliffe and Michael Stewart. Out with the old and in with the new, especially when the old have nothing new to say.

World Tour and Book signings

World Tour for Falling through clouds by Anna Chilvers: January 2010

Saturday 9th January 2010 - Launch at The Trades Club Hebden Bridge @ 5.30pm

Tuesday 12th January - Halifax Central Library @7pm

Thursday 14th January - Saltaire Books, Saltaire @6pm

Saturday 16th January - Waterstones Bradford @1pm

Wednesday 20th January - Littleborough Library @2pm

Saturday 21st January - Waterstones Leeds @1pm

Wednesday 27th January - Blacwells Sheffield Hallam University @6.15pm

Thursday 28th January - Brighouse Library @2pm

Saturday 30th January - Waterstones Nuneaton @ 12.30pm

Saturday 30th January - Nuneaton Library @2.30pm


That's all folks.

Year of The Moose

Greetings and felicitations....The Moose has been somewhat indisposed, I will point the finger at computer viruses and cyber hackery....but I'm back in 2010 and we have a very busy start with the launch of FALLING THROUGH CLOUDS at The Trades Club in Hebden Bridge next Saturday 9th January and then the Moose World Tour starts again, taking in several Waterstones for book signings, including Leeds, Bradford and Nuneaton, where Anna Chilvers heralds from. From then on it's libraries and Lit festivals all the way. There will be newspaper coverage coming up in The Yorkshire Post next week along with the local press. Pre pub sales have been fantastic so far and it all bodes well....I have sent review copies to Londinium but don't hold out too much, but to be honest it's such a great read that word of mouth will make it a success....and then we move on to our next publication, GABRIEL'S ANGEL by Mark Radcliffe, another Bluemoose treat. One of our authors, Stephen Clayton has a special birthday on Sunday 3rd January and I wish him well.
So here we go, the year that the Moose goes global....Hahahaha, what fun we'll have. Get to the bookshops and invest in a Bluemoose title, you'll not be disappointed. There, that's the sales plug.
www.Bluemoosebooks.com

Toodlepip readers.