Bookseeker Literary Agency

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Monthly Archives: August 2015


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Can you stick poetry to a fridge door?

Can you stick poetry to a fridge door? If so, then a haiku e-zine called the zen space. would like to hear from you. They are looking for people who can make expressive images, words-and-images, or images-with-words that convey something that is brief and ‘in the moment’. If you reckon you can do that, then why not drop them an email? Find out more here.

kids-alphabet-fridge-magnets-spelling

One idea is simply to use children’s fridge letters like the ones shown here, but according to the zen space there are many, many more ways of tackling this.


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We told you August was going to be a busy month!

… and so it has turned out to be.

Carmen Capuano, as you can see from the previous update, has been busying herself arranging too have her brilliant new novel Split Decision in the window of WHSmith. Carmen actually found time to tweet “I’m so happy I am singing” a couple of days ago. She deserves to be!

Carmen recently featured on the ‘Silver Threading’ blog. Go here if you would like to read more about her and her writing technique.

1Marie Marshall has several things ‘bubbling under’ at present, so we won’t mention them until they come to the boil. However, if you would like to read eight of her poems that have never been published before now, either on line or in print, you might like to take note of this. Marie accepted an invitation from the Texas-based Poets Collective to contribute to their new anthology Collect the Day, in which more than thirty poets have written about various times of day. If you are a follower of Marie’s daily blog of poetic fragments, you will be familiar with her A dem●n’s diary series; well, there are four new poems in that series included in her eight.

Ben Crystal

Ben Crystal

Meanwhile Paul, the mainstay of this agency, has been out-and-about at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and will be until the end of the month. In Edinburgh’s Charlotte Square, Paul has been rubbing shoulders with authors, poets, publishers, actors, academics, TV personalities, and other festival-goers. He was thrilled to meet Professor David Crystal, the UK’s foremost expert in Linguistics, and to have a long chat with his son, Shakespearean actor Ben Crystal, of whom Paul is a great fan.

Paul may write an account of his Edinburgh fortnight later in this update column. He has still to see Meera Syal and to attend a one-woman version of Richard III at a Fringe venue, amongst other things.

The August busy-ness continues!


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‘Split Decision’ for all to see!

carmen smallOur client Carmen Capuano got in touch in great excitement yesterday, with some important news. She’ll be counting the cars racing by on the Aston Expressway this autumn, when the large digital billboard located there is displaying an advertisement for her latest book.

“I really can’t believe that my novel will be up there for everyone to see – it’s almost beyond my wildest dreams!” said Carmen, whose reputation as an author is gaining momentum as her popularity grows. “Thousands of cars pass that spot every day – and now they will see the cover of Split Decision!”

To add further to Carmen’s excitement, WHSmith will be stocking the newly released book on its shelves, facilitating its shoppers’ searches for a good read. Said a WHS spokesman, of the decision to put Split Decision on display in a prime spot in the window, “We are aware of exactly what our customers are looking for in a book. They want something they can fully immerse themselves in; good writing with a great plot. So if they haven’t already discovered Carmen Capuano for themselves, we are happy to bring her to their attention.”

So things may not quite be ‘written in the stars’ yet for our client, but they are certainly getting higher in the sky.

split decision


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August is Festival Month

Bluesman Alvin Youngblood Hart at Perth Southern Fried.

Bluesman Alvin Youngblood Hart at Perth Southern Fried.

It seems that August is a rare old month for festivals here in Scotland, festivals of everything and anything. Bank Holiday weekend kicked off with Southern Fried in Perth, a celebration mainly of American Roots music, but these days seemingly taking in everything from food to hot rod cars. The gigs at Perth Concert Hall and other venues around the town are pretty darned good – you can read reviews of some of them here, here, and here.

Hot on the heels of Southern Fried comes the Pittenweem Arts Festival. This is another event that seems to have grown over the years. From fairly humble beginnings it now takes over the whole of the picturesque town in the East Neuk of Fife, with resident artists opening their homes and studios for the public to traipse in and out, or renting space in shops, halls, lock-up garages, anywhere. As well as the official venues, a strong ‘Fringe‘ has developed, until it seems as though there is no longer any space left anywhere.

Meanwhile, of course Edinburgh Festival has been getting underway in the Capital, with its own famous Fringe too. By the last couple of weeks of the month the Edinburgh International Book Festival will be full swing in Charlotte Square, with talks, book signings, literary discussions, interviews, and many other events. Bookseeker Agency‘s own Paul Thompson has been at Perth and Pittenweem, and will be at the Book Festival too reviewing some of the events and meeting people, so keep an eye open for him. Check the Contact page on this web site for a photo.

So far the Scottish weather has been fairly kind for festival-goers. Let’s hope that continues.

Hot rod cars at Perth Southern Fried.

Hot rod cars at Perth Southern Fried.

Artists Lesley Haycock and Chloe Brown at Pittenweem.

Artists Lesley Haycock and Chloe Brown at Pittenweem.

Flowers, near St Fillan's Cave, Pittenweem.

Flowers, near St Fillan’s Cave, Pittenweem.

Edinburgh Book Festival atmosphere - queues are part of the culture!

Edinburgh Book Festival atmosphere – queues are part of the culture!


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Kurt Vonnegut on the Shapes of Stories

If there is any author whom other authors cite as an influence, or look up to generally, then surely it’s Kurt Vonnegut. It doesn’t matter what genre you work in, Vonnegut seems to be the guiding light of the author’s craft. So, how does he see the construction of a story? The answer is with simple humour, that’s how. Click the picture to find out more.

vonnegut