KREATIV Blogger award

Over the past couple of days I have been nominated twice for the prestigious KREATIV BLOGGER AWARD. I'd never heard of it, so I looked it up.

Apparently the winner gets about a brazzilion dollars, eternal fame, astounding good looks, endless wit and a few more people visiting their blog. As I already have all but the latter (except for the first 4) I decided to take part and in order to do so I have been told I have to reveal 10 of my darkest secrets and nominate 6 other bloggers in return.

So here goes, the 10 things no-one knows about me:

1. I toss and turn in bed, so I sleep inside out to save wear-and-tear on my skin

2. There's something very wrong with my nipples: the ones on my back are bigger than the ones on my legs

3. After 18 months I've almost finished my second book. Okay, so I'm a slow reader!

4. I am undefeated at Wii Mariokart (except for those times when my daughters beat me, and they don't count)

5. I smoke. Yeah, I know. I once read a leaflet about the dangers of smoking and immediately gave up: I haven't read a leaflet since.

6. At school Mr Taylor, the English teacher, voted me the boy least likely to complete a coherent fish sorbet topped with I showed her wrong

7. I like to think I'm funny, but your reaction to the first six answers will be the acid test.

8. I didn't get into software development until I was 37. I took a course in a Microsoft language and the company teaching me offered me a job as a tutor after 15 months.

9. I am hopeless at DIY

10. I'd much rather write than watch telly. In fact, I can't remember the last time I just sat and watched a film without the laptop in front of me.


Now for the 6 other bloggers I admire (in no particular order):

Dawn Torrens is a lady who has been through so much in her life, yet is such a wonderful friend, not only to me but to many others. She dotes on her daughter and her debut book Amelia's Story is the harrowing tale of her life, from birth to her late teens. www.dawnsdaily.com @Torrenstp


Mike Wells gave me some great advice when I first joined twitter, and I've regularly poured through his blog for a greater insight into how writing really should be done. He was good enough to exchange a few emails with me when I was a Twitter newbie and for that I am most grateful. www.thegreenwater.com @MikeWellsAuthor


Scott Bury has been a friend on twitter for some time now (well, some time considering I've only been on there for 7 months). I got some sound writing advice on his blog, and one of his posts was just in time, preventing me from uploading my debut novel with over 200 typos. I corrected them and uploaded it with just 120 typos, but that's a different story! scottswrittenwords.blogspot.com @ScottTheWriter


Rob Guthrie What can I say about Rob? He is the founder of www.rabmad.com, a site created to let authors give something back and make a difference to the lives of the less fortunate. Rob himself donates a percentage of the profits of his book sales to help pay for the tuition of a young man called Ben, whose fees at The Joshua School are higher than normal due to his special needs. Never have I met such a selfless man as Rob Guthrie. www.rsguthrie.com/ @rsguthrie


Cinta Garcia was an early follower on Twitter and one of the very first people to read Gray Justice and realise what a fantastic book it is (he says, tongue firmly in cheek). Since then we have become great friends. I even received a Christmas card from her, all the way from Spain! Her blog is fantastic and she is probably the most prolific retweeter I have ever known!cintascorner.wordpress.com @Austenite78


Michael R. Hicks was one of the first blogs I visited when I first joined Twitter as a virgin author. I read blog after blog hoping to learn a few of the inner secrets, but this one stuck with me. As Michael rightly pointed out, there are around 6 Billion people on the planet, and if only a quarter buy English-language books, there is more than enough to go round. That is why I am happy to retweet or mention books written by what some will call rivals. I realise that if my work is good enough, it will get onto enough Kindles and Nooks eventually. Thanks for opening my eyes to that fact, Michael. authormichaelhicks.com @KreelanWarrior

Okay, all done. Vote for me because I need the money so that I can quit work and buy a sound-proof, kid-proof study and get some actual writing done!