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colin smith

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first registered 19.02.09

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about me

Writer and sometime performer of short stories. Winner of 2008 Frome Literary Festival short story competition. Day job: picture framer. Abode: a country cottage in the Vale of Pickering, North Yorkshire.
Having spent my youth and much of my middle-years in the unsuccessful pursuit of hedonism and successful avoidance of responsibility and achievement, Acts of the Servant is my first major venture into novel writing. It is now almost complete and I have sketched out the next volume in the series, Works of the Master.

Unmarried, I appreciate beautiful women, wood-burning stoves, red-wine, old boats, lithology, conversation and starlight.

Note to any looking to swap reads etc.
I will look at your book if it is the sort of book I would normally consider reading. Essentially this includes historical fiction, literary fiction, and grown-up fantasy. At a stretch I can do YA fantasy as I enjoyed Pullman's DM series. For a clearer idea look at my favourite list below.
Thrillers, children's books in general and pretty much anything about ordinary people just struggling to lead their ordinary suburban lives (AKA the Irvine Welsh, Nick Hornby, school) leaves me cold. That said, if your novel is set on the side of a nice green hill or in a wood I will look at it since setting is a big thing for me.
On a more positive note, when I do get interested in a book I give a decent crit.

favourite books

French Lieutenant's Woman, Fowles. Cloud Atlas, Mitchell. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Clarke. The Shipping News, Proulx. The Owl Service, Garner. Rings of Saturn, Sebald. Waterland, Swift. Castle Keep, Eastlake. Another Roadside attraction, Robbins. Sailing Alone Around The World, Slocum. Passage to Juneau, Raban. Coasting, Raban. More Than Human, Sturgeon. Voyage To Arcturus, Lindsay. Forest Of Hours, Ekman. Titus Groan, Peake. Lavondyss, Holdstock. Cryptonomicon, Stephenson. Solomon Gursky Was Here, Richler. The Last Voyage Of Somebody The Sailor, Barth.

my websites

http://bardoftweedale.wordpress.com/     

HarperCollins is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Self-publish with CreateSpace

my books

Acts of the Servant: Volume On....

Tamburlaine MacGregor : Edit....

A curse and its journey

Disfigured, neglected, and feared, such is Beathan's life,
unless his affliction finds one for whom it is a blessing


A novel of unfamiliar history: Spring, 1860: Isle of Skye

“He is taller than most on the island, though not remarkably so, and blue eyes and yellow hair are common enough. He might even pass for handsome from what can be seen above the scarf. Even as a babe his mother had him cover his face. It stopped folks staring at the blood-red splash across his cheek, the Devil’s Hand as they called it; though it did not stop them crossing themselves behind mother's back. He wears it still, even here where none can see, for he knows his mark is unhallow.”

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Prince William, heir to the crown of Scotland and Angaland, is violently killed. How and why are unknown, though rumours abound of Russian and Irish plots. Fearing scandal those closest to the crime keep silent, for nothing shall disturb the Royal House of Stuart.
Only one man determines to discover the truth. William's uncle, Lord MacDonald of Skye who travels south to Winchester to attend his nephew's funeral.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Nineteen lives interconnect as Beathan's curse seeks the one whom it may bless, revealing their thoughts, deeds and memories, and a world both familiar, and strange.

 

Saltus : The Submission of The....

Colin Smith

Kit Zachariades is content to live alone, until new challenges force him to review his life and ultimately question what it is to be human


R.H.E
____

The United Nations established the Repository of Human Experience in the year 2053 CE. Housed in impregnable ground stations around the globe, the RHE will provide a deep time post-extinction record of human accomplishment and knowledge for the benefit of the next intelligent species to evolve upon or visit the earth. It is a vast undertaking and the work is ongoing.

The RHE has recognised and recorded the lives of many worthy individuals. Its criteria for selection have been prominence, achievement in a given field, and uniqueness of experience. Millions more, whose lives might otherwise have passed unrecorded, were selected by lottery.

________________________________________________________

Submission No. GK37729/2081

DECLARATION___ I, Khristos (Kit) Zachariades, come into the first, the third, and perhaps the last of these categories and now in my sixty-fourth year, in the small hours of the morning I begin my story.

01:17:43 European Standard Time
09-22-2081
Common Era

 

my friends

mcgroarty7
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Weaver Reads
Weaver Reads
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Branestawm's cat
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bunderful
bunderful
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leelah
leelah
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RK Summers
RK Summers
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leave me a message

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latest

CaileD wrote 3 hours ago

Thanks :-) Looking forward to a comment :-) DJC

CaileD wrote 4 hours ago

Hiya Colin! Could you please have a peek at my new piece? http://ww....

Layla Harding wrote 5 hours ago

Thank you so much for backing The First Cut. And for the comments. Ve....

bunderful wrote 6 hours ago

Done.

bunderful wrote 7 hours ago

You can see the list on the column on the right: http://renarossner.....

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my comments

latest

I wrote 23 hours ago

Hi Layla. backed because the opening chapter is powerful stuff and gripped me. Horrible, but compelling and believable. The suggestion that the father is involved is subtle and very well done. I found no faults so have no comments. Colin PS: I'm reluctant to read on since (a) it's not my sort of bo... view book

I wrote 8 days ago

My turn. A Stranger in the Nursery – S Parrish. PLC review. This is going to ramble, sorry about that. I also critted as I read, rather than reading and critting ‘after the fact’ since we don’t read with hindsight. General comment. I rarely become emotionally engaged by reading and this book... view book

I wrote 12 days ago

Interesting. I don't think I can help much with comments, since basically, I liked what I read of the prologue. Backed. Good luck view book

I wrote 56 days ago

Well, that is a surprise. Normally I resent being messaged go look at a book, but this is really rather good. The child's voice took me straight back to my own childhood and feels really authentic. I also like the vague undertones of trouble: the unmown lawn particularly signalled something wrong. ... view book

I wrote 59 days ago

I am not a Christian but were I a Christian I might suggest there is the whiff of dishonesty about some of your backers - all those similar names and shadowy faces suggest they may not be entirely real - and that such practise will ultimately backfire on you. However, I am backing your novel becaus... view book

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