Where I'm at in 2009 ...

I really should remember to come here more often to update readers on what's happening with my writing ...

Work on my 6th book had been progressing really well. But then life got in the way, as it has a habit of doing. I was contacted last November by a woman who is making a documentary about the revolution in Grenada. (If you've seen my biog page, you'll know that I lived in Grenada on and off between 1982-1986.)

Anyway, as a result I decided to turn my blog over to documenting those years. As you might imagine, this is no easy task and brings up a lot of painful memories. So all other writing, fiction and bloggy, has been put to one side for the time being.

It's only a temporary blip and meanwhile, I hope you'll find the Revo posts interesting. At this point, I'm up to the 13th post in the series, publishing one a week.

If you click here, you'll see links to the previous posts and can follow the devastating story as it unfolds.

Pipestock meets Slipperfest

Pipe & Slippers is a quarterly South London lit/music event usually taking place at the Ivy House pub in Nunhead.

This Sunday, 7th Sept, promises to be a bit different - the first ever Pipe & Slippers festival, taking place in Brockwell Park.

Not only have I been asked to read, but they also describe me as a 'local hero'!

Details from the P&S site here.

Yet more for Tatiana

Sue Guiney has published a wonderful review of Trading Tatiana on her blog.

For the clickphobes, this is what she says:

One of the unexpected joys of becoming a part of this blogging world is the way I have met authors I might never have come across and have become familiar with their work. One of these authors is the talented and funny,

Debi Alper and one of those books is her novel, Trading Tatiana. This is neither Debi's first nor most recent book (which is why I chose it, to be honest). It was published in 2004 and has everything a political crime thriller should have: drug-addicts, Eastern European thugs, S&M devotees, mysterious foreign women, oppressed single mothers, dangerous and ruthless men. It is fast-paced, expertly constructed, written with an acute eye for detail and facile use of language. In short, it was great fun to read. I, quite literally, couldn't put it down. But there is something else about this book which makes it more than a terrific beach read and I believe it is the heart and soul of all of Debi's work and, probably, Debi herself. Trading Tatiana is steeped in the difficult political issues of our urban community back in the UK -- political asylum, the plight and exploitation of Ukrainian refugees, the abuse of women. It is about how one single person can change the world and be changed by it by refusing to turn a blind eye. And so Trading Tatiana is more than "just" a great read with a terrific plot. It creates a world of living characters and forces them to do what so many of us "real" people refuse to do, namely, "the right thing." At the heart of this work is an investigation of the problems and power of political activism, and so Debi's work becomes not only exciting and captivating, but also challenging to us all, to the way we live our own lives and the roles we are willing to play in our own communities. An excellent find indeed!

River Reviews Tatiana

It's some time since Trading Tatiana was published, so it's great to know she's still attracting new readers.

It's even better when they go to the trouble of posting a review.
And better still when the review is as positive as this one from Riverwillow.

In case anyone is linkophobic, this is what she had to say:

Like Debi's previous book, Nirvana Bites, this book is set in South London and is full of local colour and we do end up back at the Nirvana Housing Co-op, which is wonderful. The book is fast and furious, Debi has a great sense of humour, the scene where Jo first meets Bare Botty Man's botty (you have to read this) is wonderful. What is also fantastic is that, as anyone who's met Debi or has read her blog knows, she has a very strong sense of social justice which comes across in this novel. If you can get your hands on a copy of this and read it, do, you will be entertained, terrified and ultimately moved.

The Book Cook

Having recently finished The Gene Pool, I've just begun to cook a new character and plot.

Karen Townsend would be known as Kaz by her friends.
If she had any.
A woman with a tragic past gradually revealed in a series of flashbacks, Karen finds it difficult to engage with other people.
Her vivid Virtual Life is a lot more interesting.
But when a sinister stalker makes the terrifying leap from cyberspace into Real Life Karen has to decide how hard she's prepared to fight to stay alive.

I haven't started writing Karen's story yet, but she's moved in and I'm getting to know her.

Watch this space ...

Tatiana has a new friend

Sarah Salway, who has been described by Authortrek as 'one of Britain's best writers', has posted a wonderful new review of Trading Tatiana, which you can see here.

It's always great to receive a good review, but when it's written by someone you admire and respect, it's especially sweet.

My hero!

It's a very strange feeling when you hear one of your books is going to be translated into a language you don't speak.

When I heard Trading Tatiana was going to be published in Spain, I was of course delighted on one level.
On another, I was filled with dread.

Who would do the translation?
How could I expect anyone to agonise for hours over the correct word to use ... the right image ... the most powerful phrase ... in the way that I had?
What if they didn't get the voice and the intentions behind it?
What if they hated the book, as I'm sure must happen sometimes to translators?
Or - perhaps even worse from my point of view - what if they had very different politics and subtly changed the slant in ways undetectable to the editor who presumably had never read the original English version?

Eventually, via Steve Redwood whose wonderful book, Fisher of Devils, has been translated by the same person, I had a name - Frank Schleper - and the reassurance that he was one of the good guys.
And people I know who have seen both versions have told me it's a faithful translation.

Then, in the dying embers of the old year, I received an email from the man himself.
And I knew at last that my baby had been in a safe and caring pair of hands.

With Frank's permission, I'm reproducing part of our conversation that lead me to say the man is a hero of the first order.

Hi Debi,
this is Frank, "your translator" into Spanish (of Trading Tatiana). I meant to write earlier but somehow never got around to it. But now that I finally finished reading"Nirvana Bites" there's no way to put off writing any longer. I very much enjoyed the book, maybe even a bit more than Tatiana because in many ways I "feel" a little closer to Jen than to Jo, but basically I enjoyed the story, the suspense and the wit just the same in both books. One of the things Jen and me have in common is that it is not easy for us to cry, but I finally did last nite when her drugged schizophrenic brother finally recognizes her.

Oh hi, Frank! How wonderful to hear from you. I feel a bit like I’m making contact with someone I donated one of my kidneys to … or maybe a child I gave up for adoption …

Hi Debi, I like your comparisons with kidneys and adopted kids, especially the second one, and your "safe hands" expression. And I am glad to hear (from what you wrote further down) that there's somebody out there who thinks I am a good adoptive parent.
I have been in love with books for most of my life. I would not mind to be able to write (I mean, as good as you or Steve, for example), but since I am not, translating as well as possible is the least I can do to pay you guys back at least a small part of what I have received spiritually, emotionally, humourously and a bunch of other -lys, too. It was a real privilege for me to translate Tatiana, after having read it first and written the reader's report.

Frank - Ah now you see this is the point you got me and I fell hopelessly in love with you. Starting with such a passionate love of books would have had me weak at the knees on its own but then spicing it up with the concept of paying something back – something I believe in passionately in every area of my life …. My heart is yours forever, Frank!

Nirvana Bites its long tail

Nirvana Bites was first published nearly 5 years ago, but it continues to demonstrate the length of its tail with two new recent reviews.

The first is by Riverwillow, whom I've met in Real Life a couple of times but only just realised she has a blog.
You can see her review here.

And the second is by Suzan Abrahams, who used to blog here but has moved here now.
Click here to see her review.

New year, new reviews and new links.
Goody - starting the way I'd like to carry on.