Have you met Iris Oratoria? At first, I thought she was a piece of classical church music, but that’s an oratorio. She could be a drag queen, I suppose, or the punchline of a limerick, but actually, she’s a Mediterranean mantis, and she was out on the razzle last night. I think she’d had a bit too much already because when we leant in to get a closer shot, she swayed from side to side, then proceeded to climb onto the phone. We popped her onto a nearby plant, so she didn’t get squashed by a beer glass.
So… Off into the dark depths of another weekend, and I am approaching the end of the last draft of the next story and have booked in the proof reader for next week. I have the cover which, if you keep an eye on www.jacksonmarsh.com and my Fakebooks pages you will no doubt see before long. It’s a dark tale this time involving child exploitation in Victorian times, Grand Guignol (a few years before it was first seen, but…), and stage illusions. It’s been a fun research project what with London sewers, vanishing ladies, The Egyptian hall in Piccadilly, Maskelyne and Cooke’s home of English mystery and so on. I can’t tell you the number of books, articles and old newspapers I’ve read. I only wish I could retain all the information that passes by my eyes. Once found, used, and written in, I tend to forget it to make room for something else.
Oh, Iris is back…
So, that’s what I am doing this weekend. Finishing a book and writing my author’s notes and blurb. Whatever you are doing, have a good one, and watch where you put your beer glass.
