Revolution by Russell Brand book cover
If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you’ll know that it’s been an exciting month for me and that I’m now a published author (in the loosest sense of the phrase). Naturally, I’ve been smacked off my tits on the sheer excitement of it all and running around like a lunatic throwing literary quips at anyone who’ll listen and hiding from the imagined hordes who stalk famous author like moi. So, you know, pretty standard stuff really. Getting the book out has been a lot of work (turns out the two years writing it was the easy bit!) so I want to thank everyone who’s contributed to its release and moderate success so far, from the pros who’ve worked on the book to the reviewers who’ve shared their thoughts across the internet, from acquaintances who’ve taken more than a passing interest to friends and who’ve given me words of encouragement, and everyone in between – you’re all unimaginably generous and beautiful. So thank you, I‘d like to say I’d do the same for you one day, but I won’t, because I’m a miserable, self-centred git*. Cheers.

It’s a funny thing, but as soon as you start thinking seriously about writing, you stop reading (there must be some sort of paradox there) so you forget how much you love reading and quite how brilliant authors who aren’t you are! Thankfully, with the publication out the way now, I can get back to being an appreciator of fine words rather than a mangler of them. I’ve still got to write a post about The Bookshop Book by Jen Campbell (which is a lovely little book) so will get that done this month. My big read, however, is going to be Russell Brand’s Revolution. Reviews from the mainstream press have been pretty tepid (at best) for the Essex-born revolutionary – a feat I barely thought possible these days – so I’m intrigued to see whether these are borne out of something other than straight appraisals of the book. Brand clearly divides people but he talks an amount of sense too and I find him really engaging, so I’m loathe to pre-judge the book based on the condemnation of a handful of smug reviewers (bear in mind I will likely join the ranks of these smug reviewers sneering at the shaggy-haired one by the end of the month).

I might well get some other reviews out, but we’ll see how it goes. I’d also really like to put up some sort of puzzle for Christmas – I miss doing those – so might find time for that too, if people find them a pleasant diversion. Until next we speak, have a lovely Christmas all, and I’ll see you in 2015 – space age.


*While I am, obviously, a right git, I will do karma’s bidding and repay all favours to the very greatest of my powers.