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From Day One

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maatbook
Newbie
Posts: 2
Joined: June 2010

From Day One

Post by maatbook » Thu July 8th, 2010, 11:43 am

I understand it is customary to introduce oneself when joining forums; which does strike me as the civilised thing to do. I was born in Stockport in the North West of England on the 25 December 1959. Historically not a particularly momentous year, I believe it was the year that the then Shah of Iran got married and they opened the M1, other than that not a very momentous year.

My mother was not particularly impressed as my arrival did her out of her Christmas dinner. So it was not in any way surprising when she decided to call me Christopher, incidentally with the exception of my mother and my father prompted by my mother they were the only two people who ever regularly called me Christopher. A generally uneventful but on the whole happy childhood followed then college and working life began in a advertising agency based in Manchester.

Not an industry I found particularly conducive to my mental well-being and after some deliberation and arguments I found myself without work and wondering where do I go from here.

Eventually I embarked on a career and I do say that somewhat satirically in social care where in one form or another I worked for the next twenty six years. Yes I did get quite a lot of job satisfaction and it is true to say it is never dull working with people. However, the job changed and like so many of my colleagues I found myself becoming ever more embroiled in administration and less and bless involved with people.

In spite of, what some papers would have you believe local government is certainly not immune from “staff restructuring” and I was offered a redundancy package which I had little or no hesitation in taking.

I now have to make the biggest confession of all until very recently I was almost exclusively a non-fiction reader; consequently I am a novice regarding the intricacies of historical fiction and very much hoping to learn from other people's knowledge and experience.

If that was a big confession my next one is even more so; I have recently completed a historical novel set in ancient Egypt entitled Maat [email=http://maatbook.co.uk/]http://maatbook.co.uk/[/email] and really have no idea about what to do with it now it is complete. Everyone says get an agent but they also say that is a very difficult. So once again if anyone would like to share their experiences I would be very interested.

Chris.

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boswellbaxter
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 3066
Joined: August 2008
Location: North Carolina
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Post by boswellbaxter » Thu July 8th, 2010, 1:24 pm

Glad to have you here, Chris! You might want to look in the section called "The Writing Business" for tips about getting an agent.
Susan Higginbotham
Coming in October: The Woodvilles


http://www.susanhigginbotham.com/
http://www.susanhigginbotham.com/blog/

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LoveHistory
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Joined: September 2008
Location: Wisconsin, USA
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Post by LoveHistory » Thu July 8th, 2010, 1:34 pm

Hi Chris! That's quite an introduction. You've come to the right place. Your to be read (TBR) pile will grow by leaps and bounds.

Also, best of luck with your book. Would you mind sharing the basics of the plot?

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Vanessa
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4378
Joined: August 2008
Currently reading: The Farm at the Edge of the World by Sarah Vaughan
Interest in HF: The first historical novel I read was Katherine by Anya Seton and this sparked off my interest in this genre.
Favourite HF book: Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell!
Preferred HF: Any
Location: North Yorkshire, UK

Post by Vanessa » Thu July 8th, 2010, 1:39 pm

Welcome, Chris. Hope you enjoy it here.

My husband was born on Boxing Day, 26 December, so your mother and my husband's probably share similar feelings as my mother in law went into labour on Christmas Day! LOL. He hates joint presents and I always make sure I buy him a separate gift for Christmas and his birthday. :rolleyes: Trouble is, men are just so difficult to buy for!
currently reading: My Books on Goodreads

Books are mirrors, you only see in them what you already have inside you ~ The Shadow of the Wind

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sweetpotatoboy
Bibliophile
Posts: 1641
Joined: August 2008
Location: London, UK

Post by sweetpotatoboy » Thu July 8th, 2010, 1:58 pm

Hello and welcome. thanks for the detailed intro!

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Madeleine
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 5860
Joined: August 2008
Currently reading: "Mania" by L J Ross
Preferred HF: Plantagenets, Victorian, crime, dual time-frame
Location: Essex/London

Post by Madeleine » Thu July 8th, 2010, 3:44 pm

Hi Chris and welcome, what a lovely intro (beautifully written too).

Have fun on the boards and good luck with your book.
Currently reading "Mania" by L J Ross

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fljustice
Bibliophile
Posts: 1995
Joined: March 2010
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Contact:

Post by fljustice » Thu July 8th, 2010, 4:00 pm

[quote=""boswellbaxter""]You might want to look in the section called "The Writing Business" for tips about getting an agent.[/quote]

Ditto! Welcome to the forums Chris. Please, do share a plot summary. Lots of people here are Ancient History fans.
Faith L. Justice, Author Website
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MLE (Emily Cotton)
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 3566
Joined: August 2008
Interest in HF: started in childhood with the classics, which, IMHO are HF even if they were contemporary when written.
Favourite HF book: Prince of Foxes, by Samuel Shellabarger
Preferred HF: Currently prefer 1600 and earlier, but I'll read anything that keeps me turning the page.
Location: California Bay Area

Post by MLE (Emily Cotton) » Thu July 8th, 2010, 4:50 pm

Hi Maat. With all your experience with people, I'm sure your characters must be very interesting!

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Misfit
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Posts: 9581
Joined: August 2008
Location: Seattle, WA

Post by Misfit » Thu July 8th, 2010, 5:35 pm

Hi Chris, welcome aboard.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be

Carla
Compulsive Reader
Posts: 965
Joined: August 2008
Contact:

Post by Carla » Thu July 8th, 2010, 5:50 pm

Hello and welcome!
PATHS OF EXILE - love, war, honour and betrayal in Anglo-Saxon Northumbria
Editor's Choice, Historical Novels Review, August 2009
Now available as e-book on Amazon Kindleand in Kindle, Epub (Nook, Sony Reader), Palm and other formats on Smashwords
Website: http://www.carlanayland.org
Blog: http://carlanayland.blogspot.com

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