Teacher: Class, read and analyse the opening section of the novel Riley. Pay close attention to the imagery the author is conveying. Your answers are due in on Thursday.
Around her, the bedroom was illuminated by half a dozen candles, their shadows dancing on the walls. A delicate vanilla fragrance filled the room. The Gothic Palace lay silent. It was almost midnight. Sitting cross-legged in the middle of the large four-poster bed, Riley sat staring down at the CD in her hands. Her CD. Her debut album that was due to be released worldwide on the stroke of midnight.
A box of CDs had been delivered that morning with a note from the record company saying simply, “Autograph these in time for the launch party on February 29th.” She’d signed her way through two silver Sharpie markers before all the CD inserts were autographed. At Garrett’s suggestion, she’d practiced her autograph on a few sheets of paper before deciding how she wanted to sign it. Initially, it had been fun sitting at Garrett’s huge rosewood dining table signing the insert for each disc but, after the first fifty or so, the novelty swiftly wore off. Two hours later she had finished the chore. Each of the discs had been signed -all bar one. The one she held in her trembling hands.
Her dream was on the verge of becoming reality. Everything was falling into place. Since she’d finished recording the album at JJL back in June, Dr Marrs had worked his magic on the mixes then, together with Jethro, had convinced Jason Russell to act for her and to support getting her signed to the same label as Silver Lake and After Life. For the past few months, Jethro had been acting as her manager but when she had spoken to him last, just before he flew out to Australia with Silver Lake, he’d said that he would need to hire someone else to help him manage her after the launch party. Not knowing who that “someone” might be was adding to her already growing anxiety levels.
Beside her on the pale pink patchwork comforter her phone screen read 12:01am. Her album was now live around the world.
With a final look at the album’s cover, Riley laid it down on the bed. Stepping down first onto the soft dark pink rug then onto the cool hardwood floor, she went round the room blowing out the candles one by one before jumping up onto the bed to snuggle under the covers before the “dark” captured her. She’d never been a fan of the dark.
Thursday- English class
Teacher: leave your homework on my desk on your way out of class, please.
Following Monday – English class
Teacher: (handing back the marked homework to the class) Let’s go over the passage and pick out the key imagery. We’ll start with the candlelight. The author is creating the suggestion that there’s something religious or ritualistic about Riley studying the CD in her hands. There’s connotations that this is a moment of prayer as she dares to hope for a successful music career.
Author – Riley just likes candles……
Teacher: the vanilla fragrance implies simplicity and purity
Author – vanilla is a favourite fragrance.
Teacher- the four-poster bed creates the image that this is all a fairytale to Riley
Author – Garrett likes antique furniture, and it ties in with the Gothic décor theme. The room had a four-poster bed in it long before it was Riley’s room.
Teacher – the author is trying to create an air of mystery when they mention that Jethro would need to hire “someone” to help manage Riley. This raises the tension levels and creates an element of suspense
Author – Jethro tells Riley he needs to hire help as he can’t do it all himself and she’s anxious about working with a stranger
Teacher – the pink patchwork quilt is creating a feminine side to Riley.
Author – it’s an antique handsewn quilt that compliments the décor in the room.
Teacher- the dark pink rug, is creating the suggestion that there’s a dark side to Riley
Author – the rug was a darker shade of pink. A far more practical colour than light pink for a rug.
Teacher- blowing the candles out is symbolic of the end of Riley’s childhood and ties in with the religious implications of the opening sentence.
Author – Riley blows the candles out because it would be dangerous to go to sleep with them lit and there would be too much light in room
Teacher – the author is trying to create a metaphor for Riley’s fears about how her CD will be received by using the “dark” as something that could come and capture her.
Author – Riley is scared of the dark.
All a bit tongue- in- cheek and not intended to offend English teachers. I’d be beyond flattered if anything I wrote became subject a class’ critique. In reality, that scenario is highly unlikely.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that sometimes authors do just write things as they are without the need for any deeper mystical hidden meanings.
If you want to read Riley and judge for yourself, the book is released worldwide on 18 November 2022….ten days to go……
Did you know that 1st November is National Author’s Day?
This literary day of celebration dates back to 1928 when the president of the Illinois Women’s Club, Nellie Verne Burt McPherson (now there’s a name for a character!) proposed that a day be dedicated to recognising America’s authors. The first National Author’s Day was celebrated the following year and in 1949 was officially recognised by the US Department of Commerce and the rest is history…its been recognised far and wide ever since.
So, what is it? How do you celebrate it?
National Author’s Day is day to be dedicated to celebrating/reading books by your favourite authors. It’s a day to appreciate all those characters that you’ve wanted to grow up to be or those that you have fallen just a little bit in love with over the years. It’s also a day to pause to appreciate the hours and hours of work that go into creating those books and that the author spends developing those characters that you know so well.
In reality, there is no hard and fast way to celebrate.
You could simply take the time to read your child a bedtime story.
You could visit your local library or, if you are an author yourself, you could donate a book to your local library.
You could spare a few minutes from your day to leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads or both for a book that you’ve enjoyed. (Hint- authors thrive on those twinkling stars and kind words.)
You could take it a step further an email your favourite author to express your appreciation of their books.
You could try your hand at writing your own piece of fiction. They do say that everyone has a book in them after all.
You could gift a book to a friend. I have actually done this today but the book in question won’t be delivered to said friend for a couple of days so I don’t want to say too much.
Or you could curl up with your favourite beverage, some leftover Halloween treats and lose yourself in a good book for an hour or so.
And so began several hours of poses, standing, sitting, solo, and together. After nearly three hours, Riley needed a moment or two to herself. Without a word, she wandered down to the water’s edge, stopping just out of reach of the gentle waves that were lapping ashore. Her toe caught something, and she bent down to investigate what it was. It was a small perfectly formed conch shell with stunning mother of pearl markings. Carefully, she rinsed it off in the shallows then slipped it into her jacket pocket, a souvenir of the day.
“Sneaky,” laughed Riley. “I never knew you were there.”
“That’s the whole idea,” replied the photographer. “Your band are being herded back onto the bus, by the way.”
“Thanks. Guess I better say goodbye to the ocean.”
“Well, you’re taking a little piece home in your pocket,” observed Neil, referencing the shell. “If you’ve sand in your pocket, you’re never far from the shore.”
“Ain’t that the truth.”
Once back on the bus, Riley sat up at the back on her own. She sifted through her large soft leather hobo bag until she found her lyrics journal, curled her feet up under her and began to scribble furiously. Every now and then she put her hand in her pocket and ran her fingers over the shell. Inspiration had struck when Neil said about taking a little piece of the beach home in her pocket.
Pre-order using the links below to ensure Riley is ready and waiting on your kindle on 18 Nov 2022
His inbox was crammed full of unread mails – most of which were advertising junk. Before this infuriated him further, he tweaked his junk mail filters, then returned to his inbox. There was one email from Maddy that caught his attention. The subject heading was “Silver Lake album and merchandising artwork.” He opened the message, scanning the details about a band meeting scheduled for Friday to discuss the attachments. Jake opened the first of four attachments to reveal the three draft designs for the album cover, each significantly different. Instantly his eyes were drawn to the distinctive signature on the drawings. He opened the other three attachments and found a variety of other designs tagged as t-shirt proposals and miscellaneous. One proposed album design caught his eye – a dragon, with its wings spread out nestled inside an intricate Celtic knot. The twist of its tail reminded him of the Celtic trinity that was in the band’s logo. When had Lori found time to complete this portfolio? Why hadn’t she told him? Suddenly, he desperately wanted to talk to her, but it was four o’clock in the morning. Smiling for the first time since Monday, Jake reached for his phone and turned it on. A barrage of text alerts pinged through – he ignored them for now. Quickly he typed, “Love the designs. Love the Celtic dragon knot. Love you. J x”. He hit send.
(extract from Stronger Within, book 1 in the Silver Lake series)
If you want to read more then check out the Silver Lake series today
Around her the bedroom was lit by half a dozen candles, their shadows dancing on the walls. A delicate vanilla fragrance filled the room. The gothic palace lay silent. It was almost midnight. Sitting cross-legged in the middle of the large four-poster bed, Riley sat staring down at the CD in her hands. Her CD. Her debut album that was due to be released worldwide on the stroke of midnight.
A box of CDs had been delivered that morning with a note from the record company saying simply, “Autograph these in time for the launch party on February 29th.” She’d signed her way through two silver Sharpie markers before all the CD inserts were autographed. At Garrett’s suggestion, she’d practiced her autograph on a few sheets of paper before deciding how she wanted to sign it. Initially it had been fun sitting at Garrett’s huge rosewood dining table signing the insert for each disc but after the first fifty or so the novelty swiftly wore off. Two hours later she had finished the chore. All of the discs had been signed -all bar one. The one she held in her trembling hands.
Pre-order using the links below to ensure Riley is ready and waiting on your kindle on 18 Nov 2022
The cottage garden was sheltered from the breeze and, with the chimnea blazing, the patio felt cosy and intimate. Lit tealights in old jam jars were scattered around the boundary of the paved area, their flames flickering in the darkness. Plucking a gentle melody, Taylor watched as Nana and Jen brought out bowls of crisps and dips and some beers and cider. He smiled over at Ellen, who was sitting on a pile of cushions beside the fireplace.
“You ok?” asked Taylor, noting that she was staring intently at the flames.
“Never better,” she replied with a relaxed smile. “I was just daydreaming.”
“Ghosts in those flames?”
With a wistful smile, she nodded before confessing, “A year ago I couldn’t have sat here. Couldn’t stand to see flames. My dad helped me over those ghosts. Calmed my fears.”
“Shit! I never thought!”
“It’s fine, Tailz,” assured Ellen warmly. “In fact, it’s more than fine. This is perfect.”
Want to know more? Check out Ellen on Amazon today.
When will Riley be released? …. That’s been the question from many of you.
As today’s my birthday, it seemed like as good a day as any to answer that question.
And the answer is…… 18th November 2022
There will be pre-order details for the kindle edition available nearer the time.
And to keep you going until 18 November, here’s another little sneak peek inside.
“I have one last song for you,” began Riley. “I hope you’ve enjoyed yourselves tonight. I’d like to say a few thank yous. Huge thanks to Dr Marrs, to the guys from Silver Lake, to my record label, to each and every one of you for making tonight magical. This really is a dream come true. A Firefly Dream. I have one final extra special huge thank you for Garrett for hosting this party and for giving me a chance, a job and a home. Garrett, I love you.”
As the cheers died out, Riley continued, “This last song was inspired in this very place. I’d never seen a real four-poster bed before Garrett invited me to stay here. You can work out the rest of the story. Folks, it’s been amazing. I’m going to leave you with Jumping On The Bed.”
The light-hearted song was the perfect choice to end the show with and left everyone in a buoyant mood as the lights came back up and the caterers began to circulate with trays of drinks and canapes. Not quite sure what to do, Riley stayed in the alcove tidying up her guitars and her lyrics folder. Suddenly, she felt two strong arms wrap round her. The hint of a familiar exotic spicy aftershave tickled her nose. Without a second’s thought, she spun round and wrapped herself round Todd.
“You were sensational, girl!” he declared before kissing the top of her head. “Awesome set.”
Jake watched her from the distant vantage point of the boardwalk. He had headed for the beach after the end of his shift at the pizza parlour. It had been a roughday and he had decided to walk off his black mood before heading to meet the guys. The last thing they needed was him turning up in a foul mood, stinking of tomato sauce and cheese. He had walked to the south end of the promenade and had just turned back when he saw the girl walking down on the sand. It was the sun catching the golden highlights in her hair that had attracted his attention. He never noticed her crutches at first. Watching from a distance, he had kept pace with her, then stopped to watch as she turned towards the boardwalk. When he saw her stumble, he regretted not following his instincts and going down to walk on the sand with her.
“Shit,” he muttered. “Shit.”
There were no breaks in the fence nearby, so he jumped over the wooden palings into the dune grass and ran towards her, sand immediately filling his shoes. By the time he was close enough to call out to her, she was sitting up and looked to be unhurt. He almost turned away but decided against it and continued to walk down the beach.
“Hi,” he called out. “Are you ok?”
If you want to read more then check out the Silver Lake series today
Coral McCallum 