Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Something for the weekend

So this is what we call work. I think you'll probably agree that it barely passes muster as hard graft. A lot of chat. Even more laughter. At Wigtown, an awful lot of lobster-consumption as well. And if only I was more technologically savvy, I could do all that cool linking hyperlink stuff and people's names would come up in blue and you could click on them and whizz off to their webpages, but....

I'm still at the level of using a bit of burnt stick to draw images on the cave wall. The little video clip above is proof positive of this. So - apologies to Renita Boyle, storyteller extraordinaire, whose retelling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was masterly. Mistressly. Atmospheric. Had us all, large and small in thrall. Apologies to Shoo Rayner whose mastery of all things Youtube is stellar - I am in awe of your abilities, not to mention your dynamic and ridiculously need-a-change-of-underwear funny telling of your Olly and Olympia stories. Apologies also to Sarah McIntyre who is a complete delight, a pirate Queen of Queens, an illustrator of great wit and talent and a joy to share a stage with. I cannot wait to be entented with you all again.

And if only I had a techno-brain, all of these brilliantly talented people would be only a click away. Must learn how to do this stuff. Must. Must. Must. Aaaaargh. Beats self round head with pointy burnt stick of willow charcoal. But for now, must go feed family, water greenhouse, light fire, feed dog, gather apples, help with homework, work out how to get from King's Cross station to the Bloomsbury 25th Birthday party in Bedford Square and then back to Euston to catch the sleeper home tomorrow.

Oh, and have a wardrobe crisis. What to wear? Oh, what to wear?

5 comments:

Mel said...

I love that "moody" got subtitled. Brilliant little interview.

Unknown said...

Isn't Shoo good? Multi-talented, that man. I am in awe. Shall now go and see the subtitles. They weren't there when I looked.

Alwen said...

All right, this is something I'm good at: telling people how to make the links, step by step.

So there you are, in your composing window. You've typed someone's name, like Mel's, in a sentence.

-Highlight his name (or the text you want to become the link).

-Wander off to the website that you mean to link to, like his blog.

-Copy the URL, the whole thing, in this case
http://cabezalana.blogspot.com/

-Back on your blog, with the text highlighted, find the little icon that looks like a link of gray chain on a tiny green ball. Click that icon.

-A little window will pop up that says "Enter URL". Click in the box and paste the link you copied, and click OK.

Et voila!

Mj Gillot said...

My 10-year-old son and I just finished reading "Pure Dead Magic." The story is so engaging and charming, and I cannot help but think that you are, also. Now we are looking forward to discovering more of your books!
Your blog is lots of fun, too.

M.J. Gillot in Indianapolis

Unknown said...

Alwen - a thousand thanks for this. I'll write down your instructions on ye olde paper and apply them as best I can next time I blog. You make it sound disarmingly simple, but to a fumbledethumbs like me, they do sound like entry level Serbo Croat with bolt-on Sanskrit. But I shall overcome my fear of all things technological, I promise. And thanks to your good self, my blog will shortly be peppered with blue hyperlinks.
Mj Gillot - you are kind, but I suspect my children would tell you that I bear far more resemblance to Tarantella on a bad day than to the engaging and charming writer you would like me to be. I'm delighted you and your boy enjoyed the book, though. I never tire of hearing that my books have found new readers. Thankyou for making my evening over here in rainy Scotland, a happier one.