Prologue
HIS THOUGHTS
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The original definition of the phrase ‘Heard it through the Grapevine’ is:
The term originated in the USA and comes from the telegraph system invented in the 19th century by Samuel Morse. The system required thousands of kilometres of telegraph wire to be installed above the ground by telegraph poles placed at regular intervals along the telegraph route. People thought the wires and poles looked like the strings used to train vines, so the telegraph lines became known as ‘the grapevine’. During the American Civil War rumours were often spread via the telegraph lines. When people were asked whether a particular story was true, they would often reply ‘I heard it through the grapevine’.
The definition was mentioned by Susie Dent on the British game show ‘Countdown’, a few weeks ago. I’ve mentioned Susie Dent before, a very knowledgeable wordsmith, with her unassuming ways. ‘Countdown’ is one of the longest-running game shows in the world, along with the original French version. Countdown is a British game show involving word and number puzzles. It is produced by ITV and broadcast on Channel 4.
We’ve all the heard song ‘Heard It Through the Grapevine’ but you may be interested to read the history.
‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine’ is a song written by Norman Whitfield and Barret Strong. The first recording of the song to be released was produced by Whitfield for Gladys Knight and the Pips and released as a single in September 1967; it went to number two in the Billboard chart.
The most popular version of the song, to mind, was Marvin Gaye’s. It was placed on his 1968 album “In the Groove”. It went to the top of Pop Singles chart for seven weeks, and became for a time the biggest hit single on the Motown label. The Gaye recording has since become an acclaimed soul classic.
However, the song has nothing to do with the historical explanation above. I quote the last verse of the song.
I know a man ain’t supposed to cry
But these tears I can’t hold inside
Losin’ you would end my life you see
‘Cause you mean that much to me
You could have told me yourself
That you loved some one else
Instead I heard it through the grapevine
Not much longer would you be mine.
One of the definition of the word ‘history’ is: the whole series of past events connected with a special person or thing.
I think Marvin Gaye falls under the classification as ‘a special person’, don’t you?
#Newbook Death by Pumpkin: Rhe Brewster Mystery (Rhe Brewster Mysteries) by N. Granger (@rhebrewster) If you are a big fan of pumpkins and mysteries you shouldn’t miss this one http://ow.ly/s6jl503CzBO
I’m blowing my own trumpet this week, because I received an email from a reader of ‘Where Lies My Heart’ (winner of the Ian Govan Award, 2015). She dowloaded it to her Kindle and here is what she said in her email.
‘I downloaded your book and was bowled over by it. I found it very gripping and very enjoyable. I’m interested to know how you researched east Africa.’ I replied to her saying I researched all the countries mentioned in the book for customs, food, history, etc.
I also received fantastic 5 stars reviews on Amazon for my book. Here is one of them.
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book
By Susan Henderson on 7 Aug. 2016
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoyed Where Lies My Heart. Just when you think you know where the book is heading you get another twist in the tail. You never can predict what is coming next. I have just had to stay up until nearly midnight to find out the ending and I am so pleased that I did.
Well done to the author please can we have more like this.
The following article appeared in a local paper, the Costa Blanca News, written by Joy Lennick, author, and a member of Wordplay Writers’ Forum, Costa Blanca, Spain.
WEEKLY WORDPLAY
‘Costa Blanca News regular feature supporting local writers in conjunction with WordPlay Writers’ Forum. Welcome to Weekly WordPlay. Each week WordPlay provides news, views, and examples of writing by authors and poets, local and beyond. Founded in 2010, WordPlay’s purpose is to encourage writers to write and then get them read.
Keep Writing!
Hello Readers and Writers!
A drum roll this week, please, for WordPlay author K.J. Rollinson. No stranger to the written word, having produced several, colourful, fantasy books for children, plus “JOHN RODE” a book of exciting detective stories, KJ has crowned them all with her latest book: “WHERE LIES MY HEART.” With spot-on research work woven into the fabric of the story, there is an immediate sense of presence in the narrative and the plot is a clever one; which any reader will agree is vital to any worth-while book…The pace of the story also flows well, with no long, unnecessary, pauses between action and description..
Set in war-torn East Africa, the tale charts one: Ian Cornwall, from boy to man. And what a life it proves to be! The ‘Romance-.road’ is paved with stones, until he loses his heart… but you must read it for yourself! And the journey? Imagine travelling from the suburbs of Birmingham, UK to East Africa, through Eritrea, Sudan, across the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia and on to Egypt! Fascinating when peaceful, but fraught with dangers lurking during the time of war depicted in the book.
If you enjoy good characterisation, and desire to feel empathy for the protagonists; also require a few twists and turns, surprises and excitement… you will find them all between the covers of “WHERE LIES MY HEART.”
“WHERE LIES MY HEART” is available from Amazon and Kindle. K.J. Rollinson’s short stories to be found in WordPlay’s many anthologies.’
I had two battles with Amazon.com about reviews and short links. I quote one of their original guideline.
‘After your first purchase you’ll be able to review any product on Amazon regardless of where you purchased that product. We don’t permit reviews of the same product from customers in the same household’. This arose because I got a 5 star review on Amazon.com for my book ‘Where Lies My Heart’ from a colleague. I wrote to her asking whether she would copy/paste the same review to Amazon.co.uk. She wrote to me saying that Amazon.com wouldn’t allow her to put a review on Amazon.co.uk because she hadn’t an account with them. I sent an email to Amazon.com including the following. ‘I would point out that you don’t say Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk, or any of your other companies – you only say Amazon.’
They have now altered the guideline to read: ‘To post a review, customers must spend at least $5.00 using a valid credit or debit card. Prime subscriptions and promotional discounts don’t qualify towards the $5.00 minimum. Customers in the same household cannot submit a review for the same product.’
Strange they didn’t include in their replies they had changed the wording! But they allowed the 5 star review to stay on Kindle, even the Kindle book costs only $1.93, paperback $11.93, and on Amazon co.uk £1.46p and £6.50p respectively. I assume Amazon.com means spending $5.00 at some time.
Again, I had another battle with Amazon.com about my short link to my latest book ‘Where Lies My Heart’. (I wanted to put in Twitter, and the long link would have taken much of the total syllables Twitter allows).
Amazon.com wouldn’t give me a short link to my book as I hadn’t bought a book from Amazon.com. Although they gave me a short link to my author’s page on Amazon.com. I wrote an email to Amazon.com saying they had given me a short link to my author’s page; why they couldn’t give a short link for use on Twitter? Included in my email I said I felt it was very short-sighted of them not giving me a short link to my book, because they will lose out on income.
What do others readers think about my comments to Amazon.com?
(By the way, if you are interested to read my author’s page on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk here are the links.) Here is the link to Amazon.co.uk http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B009ATNOQO and Amazon.com https://t.co/JB5M7Lgggp and the short link to ‘Where Lies My Heart’ on Amazon co.uk, https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1533039097
#Booklaunch DESTINY’S FAVOR. ORLOSIANS WARRIORS Book 2 by Dariel Raye (@Pendarielraye) Excerpt, giveaway and wings! http://ow.ly/E95T502KnIe
My latest book ‘Where Lies My Heart’, winner of the Ian Award, 2015, (an adult book) is now published on Amazon and CreateSpace. I’ve got a five-star review on the e.book version, on Amazon.com, even though I haven’t publicised it. Here is the review:
Rollinson joins the big boys! By QUIRKY GIRL on June 26, 2016
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it in two sittings. A worthy winner of the Ian Govern Award, this book should propel KJ Rollinson into the top league.
Covering the life of Ian Cornwell from a youngster who supports Birmingham City Football Club to a caring thoughtful adult who lives and works in Africa, this book is well researched into African and medical affairs. Rollinson appears to have a strong attachment to Africa and I would suspect has lived there, or is a well travelled author.
This is a love story, but not a conventional one, with a thought provoking moral twist near the end.
Best so far from this author – more similar adult fiction, please, KJ
If you go to the link to my author’s page on Amazon.com and click on the front cover of ‘Where Lies My Heart’ it will take you to the book. https://t.co/JB5M7Lgggp. Here is the link to my author’s page on Amazon.co.uk http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B009ATNOQO
Michael Barton, Publisher, Freelance Writer, and Author, formatted the book for me for free, as part of my prize for winning the Ian Govan Award, 2015, together with 250 euros. I made a feeble attempt at formatted the book myself to assist Michael, who has a very heavy workload, and I said he could change ‘published by K J Rollinson’ to his name, but generously, he allowed my name to stay. I do not think I would have published the book by myself, and I wish to give my grateful thanks to Michael for his invaluable assistance. I’ve designed the cover myself, which you can see at the top of this page. Again, thanks to Michael Barton who printed the title.
Here is the synopsis of ‘Where Lies My Heart’.
ACTION. ADVENTURE. ROMANCE.
Against an exotic background of war-torn East Africa ‘Where Lies My Heart’ charters the life of Ian Cornwell, from a boy to a man.
Even as a young boy, Ian is drawn to help his fellow man.His strength of character, however, has one flaw – his weakness? Women. A handsome man, he attracts women like flies to a honeypot.
Following two disastrous romances, he goes to Eritrea, East Africa. Here he meets a woman he truly loves, only to lose her. His one regret all his life that he never told her he loved her.
Together with an Eritrean family, he flees from the despotic Eritrean government only to find their situation worsens.
The rich tapestry cleverly weaves fact and fiction in a fast-moving plot. Traversing a vast panorama from Birmingham, UK, to East Africa, through the countries of Eritrea, Sudan, crossing the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia,and Egypt. The story encompasses the traditions and beliefs of different cultures, including female circumcision, still practised in many parts of Africa.
Filled with exciting action, Where Lies My Heart will thrill readers and make their imaginations and hearts soar.
“A worthy winner of the Ian Govan Award, ‘Where Lies My Heart’ takes the reader through the whole gamut of emotions while begging him or her to question the fabric of societies and lives the author explores.” Michael Barton, WordPlay Writers’ Forum.
And here is ‘The Note to a Reader’.
I have dedicated the book ‘Where Lies My Heart’ to Ian Govan. I would hasten to add that, although the main character in the book is called Ian, he bears no resemblance to Ian Govan, with the exception that the real Ian supported Birmingham City Football Club, and had distinct social views.
This is a faction book, fiction based on fact. Some of the characters are people who exist, or existed, or resemble them closely, but this is not the case with the Cornwell family. The family described in the book bears no resemblance, to my knowledge, to Ian Govan’s family.
Unfortunately, some of the facts concerning female circumcision and all the inhumane torture depicted in the book, together with the sale of illegal human organs, actually happened and is not something dredged up from a lurid imagination.
The medical details depicted in the book are also based on fact.
I am having a book signing in Spain and a leaving party at the end of July, there will be free wine and nibbles for all my friends and colleagues. I’m leaving my apartment in Cabo Roig, and moving to Ciudad Patricia, Senior Resort, Benidorm. As some of you know, I have suffered from two cerebral aneurysms during the month of June, so my blogs have been ‘reblogged’ from other bloggers. I’m feeling a little better now, but with taking three tablets a day I don’t have much energy.
Today I am pleased to welcome author
Thea Hartley (Phillips)
as my guest at the end of her blog tour.
I think you will agree, once you’ve read about her journey to writing, that she is a remarkable lady.
Thea was born and bred in Merthyr Tydfil, and attended Cyfarthfa Castle Grammar School.
Thea Hartley Author
She married young, and lived on the local Gurnos Estate, having three children by the age of twenty. Aware that she had not explored her educational opportunities, she became a mature student, obtaining a Psychology degree from The University of Glamorgan, followed by a Masters’ and PGCE at Cardiff University.
Thea became a practicing Psychologist and lecturer, a career which spans over thirty years.
During this time, she had research and educational papers published, plus some fictional articles and inclusion in two poetry anthologies.
Unfortunately, in 2007, Thea developed a degenerative eye disease, which deteriorated…
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New novel, a paranormal/mystery/romance, How Far Is Heaven, written under J.E. Spina – is now here from Jemsbooks!
I started this book back in 2009 and kept it on the back burner while I wrote and published several other books. Now is the time, I believe, to publish this book. It is in a new genre for me and completely different from my previous novel, Hunting Mariah.
How Far Is Heaven is now available at CreateSpace.com and Amazon and soon to Barnes & Noble and other online stores.
Synopsis for How Far is Heaven
Priscilla and Parker Wilfork are college sweethearts happily married with two children, Deanna and Robbie, and life seemed perfect and peaceful until one day Parker goes on a business trip and does not return. Priscilla searches for how and why her husband disappeared to no avail but Deanna cannot accept the fact that her…
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