Cameron’s lament…?

“I studied ancient Greek at school until I encountered the οἱ πολλοί, whence I took the Common Exit.”

Jungian Synchronicity is alive and kicking

On Tuesday there occurred what Jung might call, perfect synchronicity.

I visited for the first time my brand shiny new about-to-be agent, Ian Drury, at Sheil Land Associates’ office in London.

At the same time my son, Ben, was sent an email invitation asking if he would like to be represented by the literary agent, Piers Blofeld from the very same address.

Piers has been a long-time admirer of my son’s ‘Cosm’ page in the Metro Newspaper. Deciding to look him up on the internet, Piers discovered Ben’s ‘Cosm’ website and also that he had authored a book for Dorling Kindersley and, wondering if he had an agent, contacted him.

Neither agent knew what the other was doing. Each was as surprised as the other (and as Ben and I were) when we each told them the next day of the serendipitous coincidence.

At the same time as I was chatting to Ian Drury about my Gothic horror/ghost story, ‘The Flight of Birds,’ a publisher whom I had approached last November asking if they would like to consider that book emailed me to say that they would and asked for a copy.

Synchronicity or just co-coincidence?

iCloud, my Cloud: Pie-in-the-Sky Cloud!

Over a week ago I reported my migration to iCloud threw up some issues with my address book not translating in either direction, or only in part.
After two sessions that resolved some issues, it was migrated to LEVEL 3 troubleshooting in which they gave me a temporary password so that they could monitor live the transactions.
Well, one week on, I still have problems.
First, in my Publishers category, one of my main clients Penguin Group, had been deleted from my iPhone (which I only discovered while in London trying to contact them re. a meeting), while it remained intact on the iCloud and all other devices.
Today I discovered that, in my Printers category, half the list is missing from the iCloud version, as seen through Safari, whereas it was complete on all devices!?
Contacted my level 2 adviser to inform him of this today.

iCloud - migration – two days and counting

It’s only a matter of minutes to transfer to iCloud! It’s so easy.
Or is it? I migrated all yesterday.
I have three Macs (27" iMac, 15" MacBook Pro, 13" MacBook Air), an iPad2 and iPhone 4S.
I’ve been on to AppleCare for over 4 hours yesterday and a couple today, gone from level one to level two (a very helpful Polish gentleman from Cork, Ireland) and has now been upgraded to level three: given a temporary password so that they can monitor progress and behaviour.
Firstly, iCal worked fine with everything entered on every machine (except the iPad) uploading to iCloud and then to each other machine within seconds/minutes.
Secondly, AddressBook data entered on iPhone and iPad uploaded instantly to iCloud and thence to the other, but not to any of the three computers.
Nothing entered on any computer uploaded at all.
After 4 hours round and deeper into the iMac system, we packed up at 7.30pm, very tired and hungry.
Today around 2.30 - 3 we started again.
This time, we first experimented by creating an admin account then copying the Archived Addressbook onto Address book. Didn’t upload either.
Next, back on normal identity,  exited iCloud, deleting the data so that both Address book and iCal on computer blank. Then logged back into iCloud and both Address Book and iCal downloaded.
Next, created new iCal item on the computer calendar – uploaded immediately.
Next, created new Address Book item on computer address book. Took up to 15 mins to upload – though it did now upload eventually. Having uploaded it then spread very quickly to other devices.

So awaiting the monitoring to see why the uploading of Address book data takes so long (and slows computer down ridiculously).

Then we have to discover why the iPad won’t upload data on iCal and why all computers takes so long to upload data from Address books.
THe original situation of no communication between the 3 computers and iCloud either way has gone but its cause remains a mystery (to me at least).

Of smelling salts and other re-agents…

After three winters treading my lonely path in the wilderness, acting as author, illustrator, designer,  publisher, publicist, promoter and salesman and 8,000 Curd the Lion and nearly 3,000 Flight of Birds later…

A pleasant surprise to usher in this Spring: I have somehow acquired me a literary agent, it seems.
(hence the need for smelling salts)


For which I have to thank Ian Drury of Sheil Land Associates…

For agreeing to represent me – and even being “happy to” – what a nice chap!

Sheil Land Associates also happen to represent some of my own favourite authors
(who deserve at least a line each):

Peter Ackroyd


Susan Hill

Rose Tremain

and

Barry Unsworth.


[It’s called making oneself feel better by association]

Mark this day with a White Stone.

A ‘Limericked’ look at rude reviewers and venting one’s spleen.

When someone is inordinately rude, I find it healing to vent my spleen in a Limerick.
So here’s:

A review, for all that it’s worth.
Of reviewers, from the Bight to the Firth,
Who ‘peruse’ but prefer
To condemn and concur
That the ‘Vine’ is for strangling at birth.



Thus, to a Triad of anonymous reviewers:

In Edinburgh there was an old Dearie,
Whose obsession with Carroll and Leary,†
So coloured her view
She couldn’t see through
Her own specs, the leery old Dearie.

A fewocious old Wolf-man called ‘Wuss’
So kow-towed to that Edin-Bag Puss.
Not to “twead on her toes,”
He pwaised her in pwose,
So sycophantic she died of the fuss.

There once was a frumpy Welsh Kitten,
By Carrollian tales so smitten,
She, on finding my ‘Curd’,
Pronounced: “Quite absurd
Such nonsense could ever be written!”
..................................

† as she called them.
The second person wrote a creepy letter to the first
before doing a ‘demolition’ as he saw it of my illustrations.

(The sheer vindictiveness of some people does flabbergast me, though.)

And my verdict?

What better place than the loo
For reading a book review?
So pungent and trite,
Just like my sh***,
And as quickly flushed away too.

[In case you are wondering, the ‘Vine’ is a jungle mechanism quite suited to the abilities of apes.]

The Red Baron –v– The Tiger Moth

The Red Baron (aka Ben Gilliland) provided the model for…

My Caterpillar (from Curd the Lion), in training to be a Tiger Moth