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| From my website. Gender ambiguity as well as a high last initial. Win! |
When I published my first book, Carry the Beautiful, I spent approximately six seconds deciding on the name for the cover. It was my work, I was proud of it, so my real name should be used. Easy. For other's, it's not so simple. Nor would it be for me in their position. If I were writing sexually explicit erotica - and who's to say I'm not in my spare time - I'd probably choose a different name. For the anonymity as well as the sexy-sounding-ness of the author. If I were a non-fiction writer, commenting on weighty and important topics, I might go with the OG, Nicola. It always sounds serious to me, being used solely by teachers who didn't know me, and in NHS waiting rooms. But I digress. On Thursday I was listening to the Oh God What Now podcast, with guest Jonathan Freedland. He's got a non-fiction book coming out under his own name, but has previously written a string of thrillers under Sam Bourne. His choice of pen name was deliberate. He said...
'First, you always want to have a surname in between A and F in the alphabet... (a) high, eye-level book in the bookshop... but also if you can have a gender ambiguous first name, that's always good.'
So despite me giving it zero thought at the time, my gender ambiguous Nicky coupled with my A-F initialed Bond, ticks all sorts of boxes in Author World. So that's nice.
There's been no cinema trip this week, due to The Batman taking over the world and the screens. Booooo. But I've watched some decent TV instead. The Ipcress File on ITV is nicely filling the Sunday night drama slot. I've never seen the original so I've no clue what's happening, but I like it that way. The Witchfinder on BBC1 (all episodes available on iPlayer) is also excellent. Daisy May Cooper continues to be one of the people on my 'Want To Get Pissed With' list so watching her be brilliant for six episodes was a good use of my time. Then there's Get Back. Yes, I know everyone talked about this months ago. I've finally got round to starting the Beatles documentary on Disney +. I wasn't sure it my thing, what with me not being an obsessive Beatles fan, just someone who likes some of the songs, type thing. But then it started and it was brilliant. So yes, I'm jumping on the Get Back bandwagon. It was fully immersive and like being in the room as they created their art. I've only seen the first part so far, but I'm very much onboard for the entire shebang.
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| This is not the small ramekin I'd assumed it would be. |
I took my niece and neph out for tea last week. When it came to pudding and they cracked on with the kids' menu ice cream, I chose a Black Forest Chocolate Pot from the Adults' section. I assumed I knew what it would be. A small ramekin of chocolatey cherry stuff, yeah? No. Let me break it down for you. A dinner plate arrived, containing a scoop of berry sorbet, a scoop of whipped cream, a white-chocolate pot filled with chocolate mouse, several chunks of chocolate brownies, a scattering of blueberries, a carpet of biscuit crumbs, and edible flowers strewn about. It was bat shit. I think I laughed as it was placed in front of me. On the one hand, it was a creative work of genius that I hadn't expected from the family pub I was in. On the other, I'd not wanted pudding in the first place but was just joining in with the kids. Life really can surprise you.
Out and About
An inadvertent diary clash meant I went for drinks with an old mate on St. Patrick's night. In the end, both events were able to coexist peacefully without issue. In fact, the pub band that opened with a Crowded House song was a nice nod to our sixth form days in the nineties, so all was well.
Next week, it's all kicking off with birthdays, nights out, and meals all over the show. Hopefully your own weeks are as busy or quiet as you would want them to be.
Have a lovely week, folks.
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