Piper at the Gates of Dawn

Well, I’m dried off now and rested after staying in a real house for a week while my sister was on holiday. Tomorrow, I head back to Edinburgh for another dousing. While the weather has been particularly Scottish recently, I can’t really complain because sleeping on Arthur’s Seat was a fantastic experience and I managed to get a lot of work done. It was pretty surreal, climbing the stone stairs to bed as others in the city climbed their own sets to do the same in their homes.
Each night I move to a different location to keep a low profile. On one of those nights I slept just below the summit and scared a poor young woman to death as she stuck her head up over this lip in the dark to suddenly see a large green slug rise before her eyes. She screamed! Later, past midnight, a crowd of Americans (around 10) hollered just above my head and blew trumpets ‘cause they could – totally unaware that I was feet away from them. Not great for sleeping, but it was funny. Later, around 4 am, a lone piper stood on the top and practised in my ear, thinking he had the place to himself. I really enjoyed it.
On another night, it was raining lightly and only my eyes showed through a slit in my bag. Although dark, the city reflected red from the low cloud and I could see anything flying in the air silhouetted against it. Just as I was falling off to sleep a bird swooped down and then hovered again, right above my head. It was an owl. Suddenly it dropped and stretched its talons towards my eyes. The hair on the back of my neck prickled and I moved slightly. Just as quickly, with the bird only around 10 feet from its ‘kill’, it peeled off to the side and disappeared, probably as taken with the experience as I was, but too hungry to enjoy it as much as me.
I hope that TC will be included in a programme on Radio Scotland tomorrow evening. The presenter, Muriel Gray, is an icon over here – quite wacky in a good way. Fingers crossed. I also had a photographer from the Times here a couple of days ago and there should be a piece in T2 this week or next about something else I’m involved with (called Utopia). Although not related to my writing, the profile should still offer some exposure. When I get some time, I’ll write something up on the project – it’s pretty fascinating and I’m privileged to be involved.
Tough as the route I’ve taken is, I’m really quite enjoying it and there seems to be a genuine public interest in what I’m doing. I’ve discovered though that without support backing me up, publicity will be won only with hard work and time. I have to contact and talk to people on a one-to-one basis – press releases from an unknown are not magic bullets that allow you to dodge that hard fact. The good news is that I appear to be quite successful with the direct approach. This is no problem as I enjoy the challenge. However I have a commitment to meet to those of you who have shown your faith in me. I’ve therefore decided to approach agents in the hope that they will recognise the commitment I’m making and take a cue from you guys to consider my work for representation. Again, as anyone who has ever tried to get an agent will tell you, I do not expect this to happen overnight, but I’m sure it’s the right thing to do. Wish me luck.

BBC, The Castle and The Future

When I was camping on Arran, power was precious and I used my mp3/radio with care (a solar panel and Scotland can be a hit-and-miss mix) . One of the things I listened to regularly was the Fred MacAullay show on BBC radio, so I was thrilled to be interviewed by him on Wednesday. As far as I can tell, the slot went well - I enjoyed it anyway. I'm a little out of the technological loop at the moment (using a public library in Edinburgh) but will post the recording when I can.

Being in Edinburgh is amazing. I spent all of Friday in the castle - an important part of the setting for Dreamwords. It really is an awesome place and I hope I can do it justice in the book. Over the years, being from the 'other side' (Glasgow) I've enjoyed the capital city with the knowledge that we Westies are far superior. Hmm. Now, sitting in Princes St. Gardens or on Calton Hill, Salisbury Crags or Arthur's Seat, writing and immersing myself in the world that is Edinburgh, I have a whole new appreciation for the place. Just don't tell anyone from Edinburgh that I've said that!

Now that I'm due to move on I've decided to try a little experiment. Just being here has generated a whole new dimension to the novel and I have got to squeeze every drop from the experience that I can. So, I am going to get the city under my skin. I'm going to see it in the rain, feel the wind, the cold, bask in the sun, see the city lights at four in the morning. I'm going to understand the place - good and bad - as much as any outsider can. One of the great things about Edinburgh is that there are hills right inside the city. OK, they're only a few hundred feet high, but that's fine. I understand hills. To get the pulse of this amazing place, I am going to live here for a while; sleeping rough, bivouac wherever I can, to keep me connected 24/7. One of the fun things about Dreamwords is that I get to look into the future. I get to deconstruct the city and rebuild it as it might be in the year 2999. Getting to know the place in this way, I hope will help me visualize the dream and make it real for others.
At my age, you'd think I'd know better, but if I'm to do the best job I can and take the reader with me on this adventure, then I have to give it a shot. Wish me luck!