One of my more quainter headlines, but that is my billing at this weekend’s inaugural ‘Aberystwyth Steampunk Spectacular’. On Sunday, I am giving a talk between 15.00 and 15.30 at the Old college on… hmm…. have we decided yet? A historical novelist in the midst of alternative history afficionados may not be the most complete […]
Author: Geraint Roberts
Stuck in a limbo and desperate to do something meaningful, what to do? That is where writing began for me. A creative way of expressing myself and a chance to harness my wondering imagination. I close my eyes and I'm there. Wish I'd picked 'there' as a warm sunny day on a sandy beach, with the waves gently lapping on the shore...but I have to let the story load in my mind, then watch it unfold, wherever it may be. Currently I'm on a windy bridge, or a Devon beach, or a Cornish ti mine, or a submarine, or looking towards a Hebridean port...
My publisher, Y Lolfa, has now released the first chapter on their blog, so if you would like to try out the hook, here’s the link! By the Banks of the Rheidol by Geraint Roberts | A taster
By the Banks of the Rheidol was released three days ago on a rainy day, worthy of this land. (but then again it was August Bank Holiday – and anyone who knows the UK, knows that is the time it is guaranteed to rain!). It is set on the threshold of the 19th and 20th […]
After many years of literary silence, i am delighted to be able to announce the publication of a brand new novel. ‘By the Banks of the Rheidol’ is set in Victorian/Edwardian Aberystwyth:. Dafydd, a young lead miner, is forced to flee after being targeted in a violent confrontation. He runs to the port of Aberystwyth […]
Writing doldrums
It’s been a quiet year, all told. Personally, I hate quiet years they lead to a slowing down of creativity and inertia sets in. That doesn’t fit well with me, as the loss of drive affects me in every day life. Writing is an integral part of my life, when it’s not happening, I feel […]
A litany for Aberfan
Imagine a community of working families, living in rows upon rows of terraced houses on the steep valley sides. Nobody’s rich, but they get by. There’s a spirit there, a bond that all small communities have. Everyone looks out for each other. As it always has been. It’s a typical October day. The heavy rain […]
Aberfan’s tragic anniversary
Friday 21st October sees the fiftieth anniversary of the disaster in Merthyr Vale, when a waterlogged mound of coal spoil collapsed. The ensuing flow of slurry engulfed two farmhouses, eighteen terraced houses and the local primary school. Of the 144 killed, 116 were children. We know the story, but why do we return to it […]
We Were Men
We were men, of passion and honour, courage and fear. We did what we were told and were derided for it. Yet still, we did what was asked again and more, so much more. We were boys of the valleys and boys of the town, country boys and townies. We didn’t care, we welcomed all […]
When the writer’s block happens….
It’s all there. You have a story planned, perhaps not all of it is in place, but you have the stepping stones to take you most of the way. Perhaps you know where it will end. It’s all flowing quite well, (that’s very well in writer speak.) You may have discovered a few twists and […]
An editor’s tale
I received this in conversation with Kay Green of Circaidy Gregory Press and I thought it was so good that I had to share it. An insight for us writers about the importance of editing Proof reading is one of the reasons editors are needed – it’s hard to correct your own work because you […]