It seems to me that:

The world's still crazy but we seem to be safe in our little bubble here in New Zealand. It’s scary listening to our medical experts who warn us that this is only  one of many pandemics we are bringing on ourselves I wonder what the world will be like in 10 years time and feel we are slipping back a few centuries to be like our ancestors who feared the various forms of plague with no knowledge of what it is or how to conquer it. Just like today really as our experts are struggling to find out how to give us a vaccine to protect us.  As a writer the experience of listening to people who have the knowledge and skills to work with this virus and yet hear their frustration as the virus slips away and does something unexpected and they have to add that into their efforts has been a learning process.

The church fiasco remains hanging around the parish’s neck. I do feel supported by the angry three quarters of the parishioners but that means they are set against the vicar and small clique. It’s all a horrible unchristian mess and hurts us all. I’ve put the problem into the Archbishop’s hand. He, at least, has his secretary reply to my letters. The bishop doesn’t, nor does his archdeacon. They’ve just been try to squash the dissent but the rumours fly. More and more parishioners are telling me they believe that the vicar deliberately organized her supported to attack me. It’s a horrific thought and depressing to think that the Anglican church now has different values from the ones I grew up with.

The ‘Tales from Japan’ anthology is now at the pre-order stage. I’ve been doing the preparation work, work which differs from paying the editor and proof reader sand cover designer to do their skilled work. This involves spending hours on websites working out algorithms and key words, sorting out the proper approach by email to my beta readers and reader pals and the most attractive offers for new readers. It’s like painting a room, all that time spent cleaning and masking and taping up, floor clothes down and then it takes a couple of hours to paint. It’s the same sort of preparation work before launching an e-book. Print copies are much easier.

The novel is still at the proof reader, cover designer stage – I’m having problems getting the right people. But it is going out on pre-order for October/November publication. I’m still not sure but the working title is now: Try To Remember  a novel about A Wild Colonial Venture. I shall be pleased to get it out to the readers who’ve been asking for it for a year.