Thank you, thank you, thank you to all you lovely people who turned up for the launch of Plashy Fen last Saturday at Washingpool Farm Shop, Bridport.
There were lots of familiar faces as well as people I’d never met before.
To be honest, it was all a bit overwhelming.
First through the doors was Carol, a People’s Friend reader, and her friend, Sandra, who came all the way up from Cornwall and stayed overnight to be at the launch. How amazing is that?
Carol not only brought her lovely self, she also gave me a beautiful card and a book of short stories about her neck of the woods. I’m very much looking forward to reading it.
Reaction to the novel has (in the main) been wonderful.
I think the influx of characters at the start of the book has been a bit of a roller coaster for some but I make no apologies for that – this is what moving into a new village can be like. Lots of neighbours clamouring for attention.
But as those readers ploughed on, they soon came to know and love Plashy Fen and its inhabitants, or so they tell me.
Here’s a review from a reader of my Maddie’s World column:
Every week when my People’s Friend magazine arrives I turn to Maddie’s World – Maddie Grigg’s article about life in Lush Places – so when I saw this book had been published I got it straight away. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading about Plashy Fen and all the characters who live there. For me, it was a bit of a slow start but once I got into it I thought it was brilliant.
Why, thank you.
And here’s another, from someone who bought a paperback on Saturday:
I finished your book on Monday, in fact I hardly put it down once I had started!
It is one of the best reads ever. Beautifully crafted, warm and full of mystery. I enjoyed every bit of it…Well done on a great triumph –and thank you.
I’m still bursting with pride at that one, which is dangerous because you know what pride comes before, and I’m just about to start a day’s creative writing course in The Shed of Dreams so it could all end in tears.
But anyway, thanks for all the encouragement and, as Winston Churchill once said, I will KBO.
