Recently Rated:
Stats
AmeriCymru - An Interview With Ceri Shaw
An absolutely fundamental requirement for any writer is to discovertheir own. identity,their own unique voice. So many aspiring authors out there are focusing solely on becoming the next J.K. Rowling or attempting to mimic the success ofFifty Shades of Grey. What you write must firstly reflect who you are. Who you are will determine what genre or genres you are most comfortable with. What genre you choose will define your audience or readership. Whatever other people think or whatever the current trend might be should not influence or deflect you from being who you really are.
Ceri Shaw left his native Wales to live in America. Having a strong sense of identity led him to create, along with his partner Gaabriel, the website AmeriCymru. I will let Ceri speak for himself as someone who has most emphatically 'to his own self been true'. It might be a good idea to take a quick tour of AmeriCymru before reading the interview.
Q: What inspired you to get AmeriCymru up and running given all the hard work that it would inevitably entail?
We're working on a plan to expand our content over the next year with even more on Welsh writers, poets, musicians and other artists than we've already got and articles on Welsh history and profiling Welsh emigrants outside Wales. We'll be taking a look at what we can do that could be a resource for Welsh societies and groups also what we can do to benefit individuals - education? Community? Genealogy? We'll also be expanding the online eisteddfod we do. This year's online competitions are open for entries in short story ( http://americymru.net/group/west-coast-eisteddfod-online-short-story-competiti ) and poetry ( http://americymru.net/group/2012-west-coat-eisteddfod-online-poetry-competitio ) until September 30th. Next year we want to increase the prize money and spend a lot more time promoting these competitions. We plan on changing the live event we do but there will still be a West Coast Eisteddfod live event.
In passing I'd just like to encourage any writers of short stories or poetry to take a look at the competition pages linked above. There is still time before the deadline for entries and your participation is welcome. If the rules seem in any way confusing please feel free to email me at americymru@gmail.com
The first line of the novel that I will never write is this..."There is nothing that I want to do."
FREYA 800 A.D. | "Stunning first book in a new historical series." Freya lived more than a thousand years ago at the beginning of the Viking raids on Britain. Home was a longhouse, one of several in the settlement; a stockade protected the small community from bears and wolves roaming the vast glacial wilderness.Freya's husband, Olaf, hungered for wealth. He sailed the longship, Odin's Thunder, across the Norse Sea to wreak havoc on the Picts of northern Britain. Freya, haunted by images of her husband's rapine and cruel infidelity, prays to pagan gods for his return. With the settlement almost deserted, Knut, a man of the mountains with a warped and cruel mind, crossed the threshold of Freya's longhouse, with devastating consequences. In a dreadful twist of fate, Freya is forced to live in isolation. It takes all her willpower to survive a dark and frozen winter with only Brock, her favourite hound, for company. When Olaf had been missing for two winter seasons, Freya sailed to the shores of Britain to find him. Betrayal and tragedy lie ahead. Signed copies available contact: jean@jeanmead.wanadoo.co.uk |
THE WIDOW MAKERS | Jean Mead's novel The Widow Makers is inspiring reading: a classic tale, full of all the ingredients which make for the finest of novels. Based in the mid-19th century, it tells the story of the young Standish family, who move from the coalfields of Lancashire to the slate quarries of North Wales in search of a better livelihood. Daily life is much like their Welsh neighbours': death comes in the cruellest form to the village, but those who remain thrive, despite desperate poverty, barbaric working conditions and the cruel winter climate. The eldest Standish boy, Tommy is something of a changeling; he desires a different life and ruthlessly goes in pursuit of his dream of the grandeur and riches of the landowners' class. Mead's exceptional talent as a raconteur lets us share the family's emotional rollercoaster ride, as they lose their eldest son, as he grasps the riches that are so important to him, regardless of the hurt and misery he causes his family and anyone who dares to step in his way. Joe, his father, is a gentle giant of a man and through his eyes we see the beauty and majesty of the Welsh countryside, thus giving this book a greater substance. My only criticism of The Widow Makers was that it ended too soon; I felt bereft! A sequel please |
Fan's of Jean Mead's first novel in the Widow Makers series will love this, the second in the saga of the mining Standish family. Set in the mid-19th century, it continues the tale of the family's fortune in the slate quarries of North Wales. The eldest son Tommy Standish is now the hard and ruthless manager of the Garddryn Quarry, while his father Joe and younger brother Frank are quarrymen. The family find themselves pitted against each other as Joe fights for fairer working conditions and pay for his fellow workers, while Tommy is determined to grind every last bit of sweat and toil out of them to further his own ambitions and wealth. A nasty character through and through, Tommy treats everyone equally badly - from his depressed and opium addicted wife Henrietta to his young son Edward and his parents, who remind him of his embarrassingly humble upbringing. You find yourself caught up in the struggle of those he is oppressing, hoping that his scheming will be foiled and that someone will stand up to him, as Jean Mead sweeps you along with her vivid descriptions of 19th century life and the harshness and beauty of Snowdonia. A compelling vivid account that leaves you finishing the last page with regret and hoping for more. | |
You can visit Jean's Website HERE |
We wish Jean every success in the future. Continuing with our Welsh theme here are some more mutual Twitter followers who are also Welsh authors or authors based in Wales.
Click on each authors image to visit their blog. Hopefully they will all decide to join AmeriCymru. Here are some of their excellent books. | |||||
Diolch for posting Philip...this Ceri Shaw bloke seems to know what he's talking about Sorry I didnt comment earlier but we have been very busy here at the North American Festival of Wales which has been a huge success and a thoroughly enjoyable event. The event finishes around 2 pm tomorrow and we hope to be able to spend tomorrow evening posting interviews and reports.
Nice interview. As for an interview with SJ, you would need to write a book.
Gwych Phil & Ceri-now an interview with Americymru Legend Swansea Jack would be the icing on the cake!!
About time someone interviewed Ceri and very interesting it is too. I think Ceri has tremendous energy and I wish him every success in his plans for Americymru.