Caroline Jordan's Ideal Trip to Dublin #TheBodyPolitic #CarolineJordanMysteries #Dublin #Ireland #IrishBlog #MysteryBooks

 A reader emailed me to ask, as they're visiting Dublin soon, what would be Caroline Jordan's Ideal Visit recommendations!

Well in honour of such a fabulous question here's a blog post to answer, and I hope you enjoy it Amy.
Now, we all know the last 2 years have brought a really hard time for the city centre, with a lot of really cool places have closed down. But there are still absolute gems all over the city and from must see attractions to cool restaurants and everything in between there's something for everyone. This is only a tiny sliver of city life and as Caroline is young and single (so far! The Body Beautiful might change everything...) let's buckle up for a fun day.

Let's imagine Amy has arrived in the city and is staying at a fabulous hotel - maybe she's treated herself to the iconic Shelbourne or Merrion, or is going for the fast paced The Grafton or ultra cool The Marker. She's barely unpacked her bag when she gets a text "I'm at the bar!" and she knows Caroline has knocked off work early to come meet her. Later on Paula and Stephen will turn up, with the duo known as "the twins" and Simon Prendergast will wander down from his art gallery on Merrion Square, and they'll all meet up for dinner. This is shaping up to be an epic first evening.

Where for dinner, though? Well, Caroline would say Red Torch Ginger  one of Dublin's best and great value Asian Fusion restaurants. Situated in the D2 area, and surrounded by other great eateries such as The Cedar Tree or Trocadero it's also near to some absolute iconic bars. The International, (inc comedy club) The Long Hall, The Stand, O'Neills and more are all within walking (or stumbling) distance. Streets like Drury Street and South William Street are packed with restaurants, pubs and very cool independent shops. Before they venture to the restaurant, they can check out Irish Design shops, the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, The Stephens Green Shopping centres, boutiques like Om Diva  and the charming array of shops and stalls in the Georges Street Arcade. 
Amy got a bit over excited shopping and is laden with a load of bags - but Dublin is a small city so it's a quick walk back to the Hotel to drop the bags. It's still bright out, and will be until ten o'clock in early summer (11 in high summer!) and there is no sense of having to rush. The city is vibrant and bustling, but in a friendly way. Plenty of time to freshen up and head out (I think Red Torch will win tonight, lots of other nights to check out all the city has to offer.) People arrive in waves - Paula and Stephen with Marie Flynn to have dinner, Simon and the Twins in time for a glass of wine before making their way to one of Dublin's famous pubs. It's worth the short walk to Georges Street to The Long Hall, where the wall to wall mirrors shine and reflect the twinkling chandeliers, and the reflections in polished wood make the place a reminder of gracious, and raucous, days gone by. 
An earlyish night tonight, because in the morning Amy is going on the tourist trail - hitting Trinity College, The Epic Museum, Dublinia, The National Art Gallery, The National Museum of Archeology, Guinness Brewery, Christ Church, Chester Beatty Library, Kilmainham Jail...oh ok, we're not going to kill Amy with exhaustion. She can spread out the list of Dublin attractions in the city centre alone and fill her week up! The hop-on hop off busses make it easy, and again, Dublin is a small city. Traffic can be bad, but for the excited tourist, it's a chance to sit and enjoy the city as you travel.

By the time she's back in the hotel, Amy is happy to have a shower, and a rest, and then back out! A different restaurant tonight, and maybe a few pints. But the next night Simon and the Twins have a brainwave...they hire taxis to bring everyone out to Johnny Foxes Pub in the Dublin Mountains. Foxes is the highest pub in Ireland, and despite being landlocked is famous for seafood and Guinness! There's a Traditional Irish Music and dance event there most nights, which for a girl from Oklahoma is everything she'd imagined about Ireland. Amy finds herself outside, taking a break from the heat and noise, in the balmy night air, listening to an impromptu sing-song in the carpark. A young man from Clare opens his mouth and starts to sing, shyly at first but with increasing confidence as one by one the people fall silent to listen. It's an old song, of love and loss, of a country under occupation and a determination that the future will be one of freedom. When he finishes the last note lingers on the air until the crowd erupts in appreciation, with shouts of "Gwon ya good thing," and "Good man, there!" 
In her hotel room later on, Amy remembers the song and and falls asleep to it's wild melancholy echoing in her heart. 

End of Part one.

 

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Writing Book Three - a glimpse behind the scenes!

 

The third book in the Caroline Jordan Mystery Series is The Body Beautiful. Taking up the Jordan PR story several months after the The Body Count, we find Paula Hughes preparing for her wedding. But what should be - according to all the romance novelists - a magical time is fraught with worries about her appearance. Paula has always been a little self deprecating about her looks, despite the fact that we know she's very attractive when viewed through the other characters. Both Caroline and DS Alan Doyle remark on her good looks, and most importantly warm and loveable personality. She attracts attention (albeit of a stalker-ish kind) from two of the male side characters in The Body Count. Caroline frequently compares her, favourably, to her very glamourous older sisters. To Caro, Paula is by far the best of the bunch. 

Paula herself cannot see this; she only knows she is "boring" and "unremarkable" compared to her out-going, pretty, sisters.

Adding to her woes is an unexpected issue with Stephen, her fiancé who makes up the third part of the Jordan PR partnership. Loyal and steady, Stephen is the man they all rely on to be...well, reliable. But he's taken to disappearing off, working late, and being unavailable. She can't even admit it to herself but Paula is worried...

The Progress, a new fitness movement that's sweeping across Ireland offers a solution to at least one of her problems. They promise fitness, health, weight loss, all in a community of likeminded people supporting and encouraging you.

But is this really what it delivers? 

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Meanwhile Caroline has her own issues. Her once-boyfriend, now double murderer, Rory has reached out from prison. He wants a favour, but not what she might expect. Apparently he's on the road to reform and needs her forgiveness. Obviously she wouldn't dream of getting pulled back in, not in a million years. So why can't she let it go, and move one?

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DS Doyle is in his usual state of suppressed vexation, mixed with dogged resolution. Political interests are putting pressure on the SCS to investigate things that technically they shouldn't be touching with a barge pole. Minister Lilian Roche is using the Justice department as her own personal fiefdom. But on the other hand Marie has decided they should move in together, assuming she can house her collection of handknits and craft tools. Doyle is bewildered to discover he might actually be....HAPPY?

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A host of minor characters move in the background, living their lives and unaware that a brutal murder is about to throw everything up in the air. 

Obviously as I write and then, gods help me, edit and re edit, some of this will change, some stories step forward and others recede, some characters muscle their way to the front and of course, I still don't know who is going to turn out to be the killer and why (it comes as a surprise to me every time, the joy of unplanned writing.) But I have a plot, a setting, characters and two previous books to draw on in building the world of Jordan PR

One trick I've learned is to create a mood board on Pinterest for the book. Every time I find an image that feeds into the atmosphere, ambiance, or society I'm creating, I save it. It builds up a visual inspiration for all things to do with the book. It might only have meaning for me, but it all contributes to the process.

The Body Beautiful will be out later this year. If these characters get their act together!

THE CAROLINE JORDAN MYSTERY SERIES (Amazon)

Direct signed copies 

Order / Buy in any good bookstore

All Links Here

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Plague and Procrastination...#covid #writing #amwriting #WritingCommunity #Readers #Reading #ReadingCommunity

 

Blank Pages Mocking Me

Well it happened, Dear Reader. The plague has struck our house in the form of two wee boys. The youngest turned 8 on Friday and had a positive test on Monday. What a way to celebrate! The 11 yr old promptly joined in the fun. Symptoms ranged from sick tummies to hacking coughs with a few brief periods between where they felt ok. Thankfully both have had one vaccination so far which seems to mitigate the affliction. 
The adults, including my 89 year old mother remain clear, so far. Antigen tests are being done with what we Irish all a "Flaithulach" attitude, meaning extravagant. I can't wait two days to test, it's every morning and just be grateful I'm not making ye do it every afternoon too. To add to my misery, I have a raging sore throat which is either the dreaded Covid or the antigen test has pushed my general sinus lurgy into my throat. Take your pick,
Of course enforced isolation should mean that I've got lots done. Hah! Goes to show what you know. OF COURSE I've procrastinated like a dithering hen. I find the fact of covid in the house stressful, and 90% of my brain is engaged in resolutely not thinking about all the horror stories of kids in hospital on ventilators. I have two books to work on right now, fiction and non-fiction, and what do I go and do? Start writing a Caroline Jordan Short Story for Valentine's Day. The Case of the Spearheaded Bog Spider is coming soon, unless I test positive in which case I'll be too busy cursing and wailing in the back garden. Fun, either way,
To inspire me I've been playing around with Doodly, a gift from my beloved Mr. I panicked a bit at first, I just couldn't see past the initial learning curve, but thanks to his calm explanation, I have managed to create a rough but not-too-bad video. I'll share it on here later. I'd work on the podcast/vlog but the STATE of me today, no one wants to see this level of swamp-witch. This isn't procrastination, it's an act of charity.
Hope this finds you all plague free and productive but for those who are neither, you are my people. I salute you. 

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So what's New for 22? My plans for the coming year, including new #books and #podcast

The Year Ahead...
Well I hope we all survived the festivities, or lack of them. Ours was a mixed bag - sadness because one family member wasn't with us for xmas, and although he's safe and in the best care, it was upsetting versus the joy of being home with the boys for pretty much two solid weeks, broken only by a trip to visit family or visits from family.

 Conscious of the rising Covid cases here in Ireland, we made a decision to cut contacts as much as possible (and even then Omicron crept closer and closer to our circle.) This made for a bit of a flat run up to xmas but a really nice chilled family oriented break over the new year. There'll be many years ahead hopefully, where we can socialize and make pieces of ourselves running from household to household; this was a year we'll remember for board games, family movies, minding Granny and lots of cuddles. 
So as the dust settled on the boys going back to school (I have an entire rant on that subject but I'll spare ye...) I began to plan out 2022. And I thought I'd keep it simple, but then a few amazing opportunities presented themselves on top of the projects to which I had already committed myself. So here is the amended plan for 2022, wish me luck!

JANUARY 2022

New for 22 -
1. The Body Beautiful, book three of the Caroline Jordan Mystery Series will be out later this year: catch up on the previous books HERE

2. Draíocht Ceoil, The Sound of Magic in Irish Tradition, a non fiction work that will explore the practice of Irish traditions using sound and music will be out later this year, and will have additional online recordings and help to supplement the book. Pre-orders will open in Autumn. This book can be read alone or use it to supplement the classes on Rosc or Draíocht Ceoil at the IPS. 

3.There are exciting plans afoot to host a podcast, featuring both Irish Crime Fiction and additionally the Poetry Series on Alzheimer and the family carer, in two separate blocks. This will require a commitment of time and effort on my part but I'm really excited by this new opportunity and hope to have it up and running in late Spring.

TEACHING
 I will be teaching two brand new classes in 2022 on the  Irish Pagan School (May and October) and you access my previous classes there too. The IPS promotes Indigenous Irish education on folk magic, folk lore, Old Irish and Modern Irish practices and Irish Spirituality. It offers a huge range of free material, affordable packages, scholarships and quality live and recorded classes. Details of the new classes to be announced, so keep an eye out.

As ever, always delighted to hear from you at Author@celebratingwords.com - If you would like to participate in the PODCAST either as a Family Carer or a Crime Fiction Writer or reviewer, please do contact me.

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Bedside Manners ~ #Alzheimers and the #FamilyCarer a new #poemseries

Bedside Manners:Alzheimers and the Family Carer is a poem series exploring the relationship the Family Carer has with Alzheimer's - both the person for whom they care and the larger issue of the disease itself and how it affects every aspect of life.

The role of the carer is often interpreted by outsiders, framed in martyrdom or judged for any perceived heresy to the doctrine of self sacrifice. What carers find most difficult is often the refusal of others to acknowledge their loss, pain, frustration, stress and responsibility.

When we complain, the reaction is often one of denial - a rush to tell us how it's the disease, not the person or how privileged we are to be able to provide home care, how awful it would be if we were to put them in a home and so forth. Spoiler Alert - we KNOW it's the disease. Also we are the ones giving up our lives to care for the person, please don't tell us how it's a privilege.

These poems are based on personal experience and that of other family carers of loved ones with dementia.

They cover a range of experiences from heartbreak to hilarity, moments where we are lost and ones where we find profound meaning.

Each is accompanied on Insta by a fuller explanation, again directly taken from discussion with other family carers. Every poem is based on lived experience of caring for a relative, rather than professionals in the field, or advocacy groups.

BESIDE MANNERS is a series on twitter @gercelt with fuller exploration of each theme on Instagram @gercelt. If you want to add to anything said please do, 

Feel free to share (credit either Geraldine Moorkens Byrne or link to @gercelt) if you have writing to add (from personal experience only please) I'll happily link to it or you can guest post on Insta or Twitter. There is a hope that the full series may make a book to raise funds for Alzheimer's Research.

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Caroline Jordan's #Dublin: Christ Church, Winetavern Street, Dame Street,

 When you meet Caroline Jordan, in The Body Politic, you are thrown right into the deep end - she lives and works in a particular world, one of politicians, socialites, chic restaurants, and modernity, all grafted onto an ancient and enduring city. Dublin, Ireland to many people might conjure up some old world charm with pubs and historical buildings and shops boasting handwoven sweaters (or as we say in Ireland, jumpers or geansaí.) But modern Dublin is a mix of old and new; a skyline that by law cannot rise above 60 metres (197 feet) and which is dominated as much by ancient spires and domes as new sharp-lined, chrome and glass boxes. A European city, with a vibrant muli-cultural feel, but with tradition and history on every street corner. 

The first part of Dublin we'll look at is the area in the city centre, on the south side of the River Liffey, where Jordan PR makes its home. The area is known as Christ Church, because it is home to the Viking era Cathedral  of the same name (now owned by the Church of Ireland.) It is bordered on one side by Dame Street, a long and historic boulevard home to Dublin Castle, the Olympia Theatre and a vast array of pubs, hotels, hostels, and restaurants. At one end of Dame Street, is Trinity College, and the bottom end of the city's famous shopping street, Grafton Street. At the other end, where our story is concerned, is the Cathedral, the well-known Drury's Hotel, and a group of new (for Dublin) office blocks and commercial buildings, which continue down the steep slope of Winetavern Street and onto the Quays. Incidentally, this includes the famous old pubs of The Brazen Head and O'Shea's Merchant Pub (known to generations of Dubliners as the Merchant O'Shea's.)

Caroline's office is a small unit in one of the buildings towards the top of the hill, near to Drury's Hotel and the Synod Hall side of Christ Church Cathedral.  It's an expensive enough area in which to rent space, but cheaper than the more exclusive areas such as Ballsbridge, Pembroke or Leeson Park. Jordan PR is just a fledgling company, and a modern office helps with the image. As Caroline's biggest client is a Government Minister, she would have liked to be closer to the the area around Merrion Square, but this is a good second, and handy for the myriad small events hosted in one or other of the vibrant pubs and clubs around Dame Street, Temple Bar, or Grafton Street. 

After work, Caroline and her friends/colleagues Paula Hughes and Stephen Walsh, might hit any number of cool and funky, or perhaps posh and fancy, places in the area. Gastro-Pubs, Restaurants, cafes, Dublin boasts a wonderful array of choice for any foodie. The greater Dame Street area alone has over 34 venues, with more again on the side streets, and in Temple Bar. Bison Bar and BBQ is a favourite with Jordan PR, as is the Vintage Cocktail Club. But when they want some comfort food they make the trek halfway down Dame St, turn right into Andrew's Lane, and find Red Torch Ginger. Many a client has been discussed (discreetly) while tackling the RTG menu.

Next time: Caroline's political life, Leinster House, The Offices of An Taoiseach and more

Winetavern St. In 1926, with P. Corvan Jewelers and Pawnbrokers Shop, on the left with a statue above holding the traditional balls symbol if the trade.

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What Fresh Hell is this?#writing #crimefiction #fiction #irishwriting #irishdrimefiction #books #editing #marketingbooks

 So I used to think the main problem with writing novels was actually writing the damn thing. If I could get more disciplined, write more words, and generally do the adulting, then I will have a book. OK, obviously there would be pesky re-writes and editing but the most important thing would be accomplished. All I'd have to do then is send it to my publishers, a tiny micro publishing group, who would put it out into the world and the world, recognizing my genius*, would react in a suitably grateful manner.

But Independent publishing isn't that simple. I've published and edited poetry anthologies, and while there is a small audience for the same it's a loyal one. People who love poetry, love poetry books. They buy them, review them, and discuss them. There's an exponentially wider audience for novels, but they have a correspondingly wider choice in books. Genre fiction - in my case, crime fiction - is a popular and very well served category. It your book, like mine, isn't a Noir, with serial killers at large and women with tragic backstories dying in horrible ways, then it's dismissed by a lot of male readers. (Interestingly, of the men who have read it, the majority enjoyed it. It's a fun read. It's not going to haunt your sleeping hours but it will amuse your waking ones. Sometimes fun is what you need.) No matter how good your book is, standing out among the glut of choices is difficult. 

According to roughly half the gazillion emails in my inbox, the key to success as an author is building a mailing list of readers, each email promising to teach me how to do just that. There are offers to edit my book, promote my book, and in one rather bizarre case, make my book into a screenplay for the trifling fee of $10,000. Spoiler alert: if I had 10k to drop on vanity projects I'd spend it on yarn. YARN. 

There are some reliable steps on this murky and confusing road. The Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLI) are the first stop for either self published or small imprint authors. From reviewing competitions and publishing tools to webinars on marketing the site is packed full of helpful services, and the Facebook Group is a lifesaver. Joining costs a small fee, but compared to what you'll waste trying to feel your way through all this unaided, it's well worth it. 

From there I learnt about how to offer content in order to attract the right people to my mailing list; how to recruit readers to preview my next book; how to utilize publishing services like print on demand, other than Amazon, I've been encouraged and helped, and while the learning curve has been steep, it's been productive.

But it all comes back to one thing; you need to get your hustle on. Create that content, or all the marketing seminars on the internet won't get you one single reader, one single sale of your book. At first I felt like it was an imposition; I'm the kind of author who hides in a corner and scribbles, so even online content making exposes little fragments of my soul in ways that make me uncomfortable.

But there are unexpected side effects to stretching oneself. Case in point: against my own inclinations, I took time away from writing Book 2 in the Caroline Jordan series. I wrote a short story, starring Caroline and some smaller characters from Book 1. Half way in, I had to admit I was enjoying myself and when I returned to writing the book, I had a deeper sense of the world I was writing and the characters. So my next projects will be approached in a less begrudging frame of mind, because I am now more open to the possible benefits.

Another piece of advice was to join Facebook groups and communities that like and read your genre. It sounds obvious, like a lot of good advice, but I had not realized just how useful it could be. A reader in one group pointed out an inconsistency in the text that had skipped past all eyes before his. I received criticism and praise in equal measures that have informed my writing of the sequel and made it a better book. Every plea for a review or advertisement of your book exposes you to criticism, and it can be daunting, but it will help you avoid mistakes in the next one.

I'm learning to talk to my readership in a different way. Now, they feel like collaborators rather than targets for a sale. There are things I can offer them, free content, fun rewards, rather than bothering them with unwanted marketing emails. Their feedback is as valuable as their cash and I feel as if they know they are valued and respond accordingly.

Still, despite my best efforts there are days that feel like I'm banging my head off a brick wall. Days go by and not a soul downloads the book. No one joins your mailing list. You send out content and it sinks. Anyone who tells you it's easy or you'll get thousands of subscribers in three easy steps, or promises you a best seller, is a liar. It's hard work, it takes time, you can't do it all at once, and you might never achieve your top goals. 

But it will help, and if you can approach marketing your book as a chance to learn, as an opportunity to say the things you want to say as an author, if your aim is quality rather than quantity or content for the sake of it, then you may well find it rewarding. And if you reach a few more readers who enjoy your work, then that's a bonus too. 

*for genius, read "adequacy" ;)

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Sending out #books to #readers and #bookshops is a great feeling!

 

Not gonna lie, one of my favourite things at the moment is the weekly posting of new orders out to readers. I'll never get over the thrill of seeing someone thought enough of my book to purchase it; I know how many books I browse, how carefully I choose, before buying a paperback and I appreciate the time my reader spends and the fact they are willing to take a chance on an unknown, new author. Even if they've read my poetry, it's still a leap of faith to invest in a paperback at twice or more the cost of the ebook (I keep the ebook price low because I hate to see ebooks priced at almost the same as a paperback that has to be printed and compiled and glued and shipped!)

So every book that I send out from here gets a postcard and bookmark, because I love you the best ;)

It actually looks a bit like summer out there now, and while the next project is the Audio book (for which I am madly excited) it's also time to push The Body Politic as a summer read. It's deliberately printed in larger print with short paragraphs to help visually impaired and dyslexic readers enjoy it, and a few readers have said they found it easy to read on beaches and while travelling! So if you know anyone looking for a summer book, one of our new print run is waiting for them.

In other news, I'm working on Book 2, and it's going well. 

I'm also working on a Remembrance Ceremony, for the many people I know planning to hold Covid-related Memorial Services, to compensate for the tiny funerals we have endured during the last 15 months. When I have it completed, I'm offering it free of charge to anyone who would like to use it. It can be adapted or I am happy to help adapt it, to individual needs. It's my calling, on Celebrating Words, to provide this service and I'm happy to offer it gratis for those who need it. 

Full details will be posted when it's up, but feel free to email me if you want .

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Gods and Radicals "A Beautiful Resistance:Fire" Edition is out now #poetry #poems #writing #literature #feminism

Delighted to see that Gods and Radicals Journal "A Beautiful Resistance: Fire" is out now; and very excited to be included in this excellent body of work with my poem "Eriu Addresses the False Kings" a rosc in the druidic tradition against the (failed) proposed demonstration by a notorious misogynist, rape-advocating, group. 
Please support this excellent publication, at the website below:

https://godsandradicals.org/a-beautiful-resistance-2/

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Pagan Writers Community

Anyone who writes with an eye to alternative spirituality should check out Pagan Writer's Community on Facebook and also the new website on http://grou.ps/paganwriterscommunity/

An excellent resource for esoteric writings, pagan poetry and fiction and to connect and interact with other writers.

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Normal Service...

...will be resumed after I finish Nanowrimo; so far I'm on scedule (day 18, 30101 words and counting) and as usual the plot has dived off the rails, the characters have lost the run of themselves and I'm having a laugh.
Highly recommended :)

nanowrimo.org - it's probably too late now but go for it next year - or read around and if you enjoy reading peoples novels donate to the very worthy Nanowrimo Cause!!

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Mary Bakes Bread by the Fire

Mary bakes bread by the fire, stout hands kneading fleshy fingers tightening and rolling amid folds of white dough. The flames flicker higher on her forearms match the red sweat of her face, fan the flicker of hate in her eyes. Mary is not pretty; Mary is not slender; Mary is not elegant; Mary bakes sweet dainties for sweet dainty ladies who are everything Mary is not.

Fire rises, fire warms, fire destroys, fire consumes. Mary is the light reflected in polished copper, bronze fireplace ornaments, pokers and tongs. Hammers and Tongs, she goes at it, the dirty wench. Mary blinks thoughts from her mind that she wishes were not there; but there they lurk, constant. Mary is not happy to be - Mary.

Fat Mary, Big Mary, Slow Mary. Hail Mary. Priest would not approve, Preacher would disavow. Wise woman says, make bread by the fire.

Mary bakes bread by the fire, sweltering in heat, heart rate raised, flushed and warm and moist, smelling her own body with each movement, enjoying now the sway of buttocks, the roll of fat, the swell and ebb of the heavy mix.
Mary is not alone, eyes watch transfixed, eyes follow buttock, hip and arm, eyes and mouth and nose concur, hands open door, feet cross floor.
Wise woman warns Mary. You don’t know what may happen. Mary doesn’t care. Mary is strong; Mary is brave; Mary is capable; Mary bakes bread for women whoa re everything Mary is not. She is tired of being only the names they choose to call her. She wants new names. Mother, Lover, Woman. The fire is still rising, she will not bank it down.

Someone moves closer, someone who should know better, old enough to know better, better educated, better born. Someone called better than Mary, bends over her, whispers to her, sweet words, soft words.
Fingers intertwined, breath mingling, hearts beating, arms still kneading, twisting, hands exploring soft, yielding - flesh or dough? Mary no longer knows. All she can think is yes, all she can reason is that this is hers, for her, about her. She is the one, the dancer in the centre of the hall, the masked lady performing for the court, she is the centre and the cause. Still the fire rises, eyes meet finally, surprise and intrigue leap between. Mary wonders, but she does not pause. Some things you wait for too long.
Priest would cluck, Goodwives sniff, Wise Woman merely smiled and winked – lascivious old woman enjoying the faint heat from another, faraway Hearth. Wise Woman gave oils, to be rubbed into the folds at the bosom, at the belly, in the soft crevices where leg meets sex, on the pulse; unguents that unfurl in the heat of the fire, mingled with the smell of baking, working their way into the sweat and tears and kisses. Wise Woman did not turn away, did not preach abstinence, did not despise the woman who yearned. Wise Woman merely smiled and winked.
Mary returns to herself, to the moment, to the heat. Spent and panting, bemused and wondering. Strong arms surround her, throaty chuckles into her neck, affection on a face that she thought had never noticed her. Strange words in her ear, words that caress and tease. She is not despised nor discarded. She has been noticed and wanted. She is not invisible in this place, perhaps never has been – dark eyes are troubled by her silence. Dark eyes smile into hers and ask questions men ask only of women whose hearts are not overlooked. Mary is warmed by more than fire. Heat rises from more than flame and coal. Mary feels cool flagstone tile under bare skin, and is suddenly afraid.


to be continued.......

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Some poems published online...

http://www.scriobh.com/

http://www.poetrylifeandtimes.com/current.html

A pleasant surprise this month, both Scriobh,com and the excellent PLT ezine have published my poetry under featured poets.

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Inky Girl! this is the best thing ever....

Some of the funniest cartoons ever, especially if you're a writer :D check it out, but do yourself a favour - don't go look at it til you have a spare half hour or more because you'll get addicted in nano-seconds and end up reading for hours.

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