Taking the show on the road

One of the things I love about being a writer is going on the road for book festivals and events.

I didn’t do much of that in my non-fiction days for some reason but when I started making stuff up I rediscovered my performing mojo.

I had lost said mojo for many years. As a teenager, I wanted to be an actor. This followed early ambitions to be an astronaut, a detective and a garbage collector. In pursuit of the world of make believe, I attended drama classes, performed in community theatre and wrote and appeared in comedy shows for hospital radio.

There was even a bit part in an episode of a TV show here in the UK. It was a drama for the BBC called ‘Sutherland’s Law’ and I played a drunken thief. No, it wasn’t typecasting. And yes, I would say that.

It was an exciting time. Filming for my scenes and others was done over a day and night near Oban on the west coast of Scotland. That episode’s guest star was Brian Cox, before he played Hannibal Lecktor (as they spelled it) on ‘Manhunter’ and answered the siren call of Hollywood.

He is a talented and erudite man who proved to be entertaining, funny and great to be around. There are long moments of inactivity on a shoot, unless you are on the crew, and he set himself up as morale officer as we sat in a mini bus waiting to be called.

It was after I saw myself on screen that I decided the likes of Mr Cox had nothing fear from my thespian talents.

I stopped performing altogether. Life took over; making a living, getting married, setting up a home.

Eventually the very thought of public speaking, let alone performing, filled me with horror.

That was, as I say, until I became involved with the fiction racket and had to get over myself.

Now I do a ten-minute bit when the fridge light comes on.

I’ve been all over Scotland for book festivals, events and shows with the two comedy/crime writing teams I work with. I’ve crossed the border to Newcastle and Bristol, both in England. I’ve even been to Spain for a show, which was great fun. I’ll tell you about those comedy/crimewriting teams in a future Type M for Murder.

Many authors love to meet readers, as long as they’re not telling us our books are nonsense. Some of us like to enteratin audiences not only on the page but on stage. We like to make audiences laugh. Off stage, though, I am actually quiet and reserved and not hugely sociable, which even I think is kinda strange given my antics in front of an audience.

All that activity came to a grinding halt this year, thanks to Covid-19, which has has been such a downer I don’t think I’ll binge watch the first 18. There were no festivals, no bookstore events, no comedy performances.

I had a great year lined up but one by one each of the events dropped like extras in a Tarantino movie. Yes, some have gone ahead in a digital format and they have been huge successes but you can't beat the excitement of being in the room with your audience. There's a  connection with live events that the internet just cannot replicate.

As I said, the suckage of 2020 has been immense.

It has also led to a curtailment of my photography.

Wherever I went I took my trusty Nikon camera (other brands are available, just not in my house) and I would click away like a snap happy chappy. It's landscapes mostly and I’ve included a few photographs here mostly from a trip to the isle of Mull last year, but that has been seriously curtailed this year, too, thanks to the C word.

For me, photography - and the editing of them afterwards - is strangely therapeutic. A writer's life is by necessity a solitary one and so is a photographer's. I prefer being on my own when at large with a lens because - frankly - I annoy non-photographers with this urge, no need, to stop every few miles, yards or feet to snatch a shot. And often more than one. 

So I hope festivals will resume when they can. I hope I will be invited and meet new readers. I hope I will grab new photographs! I hope our governments get on top of this crisis. I hope 2021 will see at least a partial return to normality for us all.

Towards the mainland from the Mull ferry

Lismore lighthouse

Oban

Tobermory

Kilchurn Castle on Loch Awe

Clouds gather on the road from Oban

St Conon’s Kirk

A beach on the isle of Arran

Ayr Harbour looking towards Arran

Wetlands around Wigtown

The marina in Javea, Spain

A medieval bridge in Javea

A winter shot near my home

LA Times Festival of Books

Last weekend I attended the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books held on the campus of my alma mater, the University of Southern California. According to the Times, over 150,000 people attended the two day event. I’m not sure where they got their figures since no ticket is required to enter the festival grounds. I assume there’s some sort of estimating going on.

Tommy Trojan

The event is free. Tickets are required for the indoor panels, or conversations as I heard them called, but there’s no charge. You can get tickets on campus, but I recommend reserving your space ahead of time since some panels sell out fast. If you reserve online, there’s a nominal $1 per ticket processing fee. Quite a bargain IMO.

You never know what the weather’s going to be like. Last year it was in the 90s and sunny. As you can tell by these pictures, this year it was rainy with the threat of lightning. Unusual for this time of year. Still, I think everyone had a good time.

There are all kinds of things to do for all ages. Doesn’t matter what kind of books you like, the festival has it all. Booths and stages are sprinkled throughout campus. There are areas for children’s books, mystery, poetry, cook books. Pretty much everything you can think of. When I was going by one stage, Padma Lakshmi was talking about her book, “Love, Loss and What We Ate: A Memoir”. Even though I'm not that into poetry, one of my favorite things to do is watch the poetry slams.

The Times also posts crossword puzzles throughout the area that people can contribute to. The white boards this year got a little wet, which was a bit of a challenge to write on, but people still had fun.

I’ve been attending for quite a few years. This is my second as a published author. Scores of authors sign at booths from the famous to others, like me, the not so famous. It’s a good opportunity to let people know you have a book out. Here I am signing at the Sisters in Crime/Los Angeles booth.

You never know who you’re going to see at the festival. Henry Winkler was talking about his children’s books one day. T Jefferson Parker, Patt Morrison, Michael Connelly...the list goes on and on. I couldn’t resist getting my picture taken with the LMU mascot, ’cause that’s how I roll.

That’s my report on LATFOB. Hope you enjoyed it. If you’re in the LA area next April 22-23, check out the festival. It’s a lot of fun even when it’s raining.