The Finder continues . . .

The Finder continues . . .

The people who asked for me to help them were not being cruel, oh no, it is just that finders are not cheap to hire. Every town has a finders bureau where you take your problem, it is assessed and graded, when the fee has been paid a finder will be chosen and the job will be done. Not always a quick fix to a problem but it sorts out the time wasters and lazy people from the genuine cases. Most people however know about the ‘back door’ where small requests could be handled without the bureau knowing – ‘under the nose’ it is called.  If you have access to a four year old finder who is happy with a small gift of fruit or a packet of sugars, then I guess that’s what you do.

Don’t get me wrong, though, when I was four I loved visiting other people’s homes, seeing what their houses looked like from the inside- I was very curious- or nosy- so it suited me, this popularity. I enjoyed the cakes, drinks, sugars and fruit, I felt important and special. There were some requests that scared or puzzled me, but generally I was happy to help, when I could. It was very tiring though, and I never had trouble sleeping, not when I was four.

But after a few months the whispers began, it seemed that my talent was not consistent and my speciality was hard to determine. There was anger when I failed to find something for one person but managed to help their next door neighbour. Favouritism was spouted and my parents were often confronted with red faces and spluttered insults when they arrived home from a long, tiring day at the factory where they worked.

My best friend lost his toy hover car in the shared garden, it was his favourite red one. He cried when I could not find it and refused to speak or play with me for a week. We were friends again, briefly, until I found his kitten drowned in the stream that ran behind our houses. For some reason, his parents said, it was my fault that the kitten was dead, I should have found it sooner.

The Finder - the start of something new - comments please

A new story began in my head the other night, I'd love some comments.

Gracie -The Finder

 

I am a finder, and as the name suggests we finders find things.

Finding is a natural ability that emerges between the age of two years and six years. By the time I was four my parents were proudly telling everyone in our street that I was a finder. This ability of mine was a surprise because normally it was passed down through generations, but there was no one else in the family, or in our extensive family stories who was a finder.

The majority of finders have one speciality, some two and the very rare finder has three. We are very much in demand in this world of ‘do everything at top speed’, and ‘use whatever short cuts you can to achieve a better life’, better in what way I still haven’t discovered. The general attitude is - why spend some time looking for something or someone when you can pay a finder? And even better why pay a finder if you can coerce or persuade, through whatever means at your disposal, a finder to work for you free gratis?

My parents proud bragging meant, of course, that many in the neighbourhood were jealous and wanted to prove my parents wrong. I was suddenly a very popular little girl, invited into everyone’s home. Finding a babysitter was no longer a problem for my parents, in fact they had a queue of eager people who suddenly had the time, time that they never had before, to look after me.

My dear parents blinded by their pride, excitement and keenness to find out what speciality I had, encouraged me to say ‘yes’ to any requests, without always checking what the people wanted me to find. I remember being asked to find a ‘huge pile of money’, well the town only had three banks at the time so it was quite easy for me to direct my neighbour’s zoomer to the nearest one. I did ask him why he hadn’t thought of it before asking me, it did seem fairly obvious, and I was only four. He wasn’t very happy, he pushed me out of his expensive, fast car saying something about being made a fool of or not and he left me there, in town, in the dark, on my own.

Of course I had no problems finding my way home, although I had never walked the shortest route before. It took me through the, shall I say, interesting part of town, my innocent eyes absorbed many a not so innocent sight. I didn’t understand what I was seeing, but my father turned red in the face when I asked him why some people liked to roll in the streets with not many clothes on, or rub themselves together up against a wall. They didn’t seem very comfortable as most of them were groaning. For a while my parents were more careful who I helped. But they had short memories.

6 ways to promote your book

6 ways to Promote your book

Don’t be as naive as I was - I snuck DragonZ Eye into the world in December 2013 with no fanfare, no build up and expected it to be noticed.

I have been on a huge learning curve. This is what I have gleaned from many different sites and blogs.

Time of year for launching. -December is not the best time of the year to self-publish a book – People are spending money on presents, some buy books but there are usually popular, well-known authors rather than first timers. Summer can be problematic with people paying for holidays. Spring is a good time- February or March. There is a positive mental state in Spring, a time for change and new choices.

Tell people before launching - use social network sites twitter , facebook, goodreads, and local media. Write a press release in third person with local interest and send in some photos with it. If possible do a coming soon poster for local book stores, libraries (and schools if your audience is children.)

Get some endorsements from more established authors to quote- find them via social media sites. Not so easy to do, but worth the effort.

Use visual methods to promote the book – photos, videos, - book cover launch, leak some illustrations if you have them.

Find people to read and review your book from your social sites, have them primed to put the reviews on amazon as soon as the book is available.

Create competitions to win a signed book or other promotional items such as pens or t-shirts.

Where would you like to write?

Sorry, I have neglected this blog.
I have began a free online writing course, here is a sample of an exercise.

Writing spaces

 

I would like to write in -

A light and airy round or hexagonal place set within the grounds of a private garden. A large table at perfect laptop typing height and a cushion comfortable chair. Wall space for inspirational pictures but lots of windows too. Sounds of nature only, maybe a quiet wooden wind chime in the distance.

 

A beam of sunlight filtered through the slightly dusty windows, creating a patch of gold on the honey coloured floorboards. A slight breeze entered the open door carrying birdsong, a lazy buzz of a fat bumblebee and the faint clack of a wooden wind chime. Her fingers clicked over the laptop keyboard, an unconscious huff of upward breath removed the falling fringe that threatened to disturb her concentration. Her nose twitched and she sneezed. She straightened her back slightly in the soft cushioned chair as her eyes focussed on the inspiration board placed between two large windows. A soft sigh and a wry smile. Her thoughts and fingers returned to her story.

 

I would not like to write in –

A crowded café. Small table and a hard chair. Table and chair getting knocked, coat being brushed from the back of the chair as people squeeze by. Chat. Laughter and the swish of newspapers being opened. The noise of the coffee machine and cash machine. The door opening to let in bursts of cold air and new disturbances.

 

She put her pen down and supressed her frustration as another full shopping bag pushed past the small round table. She lifted her bottom slightly from the hard seat to relive the numbness that was spreading down her legs.

            ‘Sorry,’ said a loud voice above her head. She picked her coat up from the floor and draped it awkwardly across her knees. Taking a deep breath of coffee and rain infused air she looked around. A man was juggling a hot coffee and a slightly damp newspaper that refused to open or fold in the way he wanted it to. She glanced away quickly as he looked at her with a frown. Her eyes were drawn to a group of young girls, crowded around a table, giggling at something on a phone. The gurgle and swish of the coffee machine and cash till created a musical background as she picked up her pen and sketched the scene in words, briefly.

The door opened, bringing in a fresh gust of damp air and new inspiration.

Sky / weather Dragons
 

Others became almost translucent as they guided the winds that swirled around the world, ensuring that clouds were moved to where they were needed before dropping their load of water, ice or snow.

 


Do you watch the clouds, scudding across the skies above your head? Do you lie on your back on a summer day and see all manner of creatures and shapes in the blue expanse?
If so then no doubt you will have glimpsed air or weather dragons.








Discover more about dragon sightings on the page opposite-
Dragons in the real world

Atmosphere Dragons

Others flew high in the atmosphere cleaning and repairing it when it was buffeted by solar flares, they became as brightly coloured as the aurora borealis, rarely coming to land on solid ground.

 

The Aurora Borealis - I have not had the pleasure of seeing this yet, but many photos have been taken.

This one shows the trail left by a dragon's tail while it flew high protecting our earth. They absorb the harmful rays and stir the natural colours with their passing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are even more compelling pictures on the page - Dragons in the real world- check it out if you have any doubts.

Evidence of Tree Dragons

Some planted great forests to keep the air fresh and full of oxygen, they dwelt within the leafy boughs. Their skins becoming bark-like, their wings veined like leaves.

How observant are you? How many times have you scuffed through the autumn leaves and not see the baby dragons fly into the air and flutter back to the ground ? They look very delicate, but they are tough little creatures, they hide in the leaves for fun. Listen carefully next autumn and you may hear their crackling squeals of delight as you propel them high with your feet.

Read more on the page -  Dragons in the real world