Thursday 8 March 2018

Writing Books And One Of My Characters: Harry Napalm!!

I have wrote an amusing book of my anecdotes yet to be published and I am still waiting (twelve months) for a reply/rejection.  It will be the fourth one for this particular book.  What do you do with books that will never get published?  Should you turn each anecdote into a blog post or should you try again?  Any way here's one of the characters I met when I use to rent an allotment in dear old Blighty!

Harry Napalm or Harry Weedkiller wasn't his real name.  Like most nicknames given to people.  The person in question, doesn't know they are called it!  

Harry or Harry for short.  Was a man aged about sixty.  He use to let the grass and weeds grow amongst his vegetables for six months of the year.  Then come the merry month of April?  Harry would apply weedkiller ("NAPALM") with a knapsack sprayer on his back, to his allotment jungle.  

Harry, his real name was Harry I think.  Would crank up his Howard Rotavator (like the one on the Good Life) and turn his brown frazzled vegetables into the ground.  The soil would be lovely and friable and he would sow his vegetables and plant his spudatoes.  Then he would apply bags of granulated fertilizer like a Dervish and sit on his allotment deckchair supping cans of lager for the rest of the summer.  Whilst I toiled and sweated and weeded...

Result:  His vegetables were enormous and no doubt tasted like crap!  


10 comments:

  1. Self publish Dave, there's plenty of people that do it these days.

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    1. I want to be published by a large publisher that advertises my books in all the right places Kev. It would be good to start my own press and I have a professional friend who would proof read my books. for me. My only really draw back is distributing from Ireland with postage.. You should send your projects to DIY magazines and book publishers. Especially your can shelf. Thanks!

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  2. Well done for actually getting a book written. As for what to do now? I cannot help you with that one because I have written three non fictions, which I self published. I sold a few but not many, and eventually I took them out of the public domain. I was not discouraged about lack of sales, but did not think that it was the right time for them to be available. But maybe it was mostly to do with lack of confidence.
    I hope to get back on my writing pathway. I do not know what I shall write about. I shall wait for the Universe to post in the subject. I am getting older by the day, so hope the idea comes soon.
    One thing, though, I never wrote for money, just for the need to get the words written. To be a writer you have to write for love of the craft of writing, otherwise the flow of words on the page will not read right.
    Just a thought....if you self published you could advertise the book here, on your blog. That would make it available to all your readers then. Small sales at first, maybe, but from small acorns do oak trees grow.
    Blessings, and wishing you all the best. Vx

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    1. Thanks Vera.
      I think that's why I write blogs Vera. All I want to do is write. I have been published before and had work read out on BBC local radio.. My genre is humour. Its very difficult to get published in this genre at the moment. I like what you say how you never wrote for money. Thanks for your thoughts and ideas.

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  3. Start a parallel blog for Harry Na'Palm. You can then write to your hearts content. If it's just on plain white readers can print it off. Take frequent walking breaks and avoid burnout.

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  4. I mentioned Michael Rosen's Don't Tell the Children on my blog recently I think. He is a children's poet and author but he put together a book of his prose for adults and it reminded me of our blogs. He got it published easily I guess because he was already well known and famous. Keep trying and don't give up always seems to be the word. I was listening to comedy script writers Marks and Gran on Desert Island Discs a couple of years ago who became well known (Birds of a Feather etc) and they said they wrote scripts together for 20 years before they ever had one accepted and were able to give up their day jobs.

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  5. Hmm...? It's a good idea Gwil. The book is full of different characters that I have met and even a few fictional ones. Would love to see it in print. I am going to do lots of walking too. Thanks!

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    1. Thanks Rachel. I think blogging gives all us writers/bloggers a free shop window to show our wares/talents. Thanks for the encouragement and keep drawing and writing.

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  6. I still have another blog, which hasn't been on public viewing for a long time, where I published most of my stories and serialized two of my books. Yes, they were read by followers. You know from my blog that I have given up the ghost, so to speak but that doesn't mean you should. Keep going, while you have the energy and inclination, but don't let it get you down.

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  7. I agree Valerie you should never give up sending off our writing to book publishers. Rejection destroys any creativity. I sometimes wonder if its who you know rather than what you know or what you can do. Thanks and keep writing your stories.

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