I haven’t published anything on this site for quite some time. I have been working on a follow up book to ‘The Things You Think You Cannot Do’, which takes the story of Jess though her pregnancy to childbirth and beyond, as the world emerges from the grips of the Covid pandemic. I have also been continuing my attempts to find a publisher for the first book; those of you who write will not be surprised to find that this was unsuccessful. No matter how often you read that this is the norm, not to give up, it’s hard to keep reading rejection e- mails, no matter how nicely worded they are. So, I may continue with the follow up and self-publish, but if I’m honest the momentum has dropped.
I miss writing. Against expectations I continue to work part time and I’m also training as a life counsellor, which takes up a considerable amount of time, but I have missed the quiet time in my study when I sat with my iPad and put done my thoughts ‘on paper’.
Recently, we took a five week holiday, a cruise across the Pacific to New Zealand and Australia. It was a retirement gift to ourselves, originally booked in 2019 and cancelled and rescheduled several times for reasons with which you will all be all too familiar. We had a considerable number of ‘sea days’ to relax and unwind, and I read numerous books and also articles on art and history. In addition, there were a number of enrichment lectures provided, covering a wide range of topics, including Michelangelo, the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamen, Pavarotti and opera, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Bermuda Triangle and the voyages of Captain Cook. Some of these are topics about which I have some knowledge, allowing me to ascertain the quality of the content and presentation, which was very variable. As I read my art and history articles, I realised I had a number of interests which would make excellent topics for such a presentation. And so, I decided that was what I would do.
I have no formal qualifications in either art or history, beyond a life long interest, many holidays to Florence, much time spent reading, attendance at University evening classes and a month spent in Florence studying with the British Institute. I thought if I wrote some relevant articles it would help focus my knowledge and help when I make a planned trip to Rome, or revisit Florence, ensuring that I see as much of the art and history in which I am interested as possible.
As I do so, I intend to publish them here. Perhaps there are some people out there who share my passions and will find something of interest therein. At the very least, I will be able to remember the public works of Caravaggio and where I can find them. There’s a clue to the first article. Coming soon…
Alastair’s Books 