I am excited to be featured in Ash Fitzsimmons' Indie Spotlight!
This is the link to the interview. I hope you enjoy reading it.
And please share. We indie authors don't have the resources that traditional publishers do for marketing and promotion! Thank you.
Here's a short (very short) piece I wrote in ten minutes during a recent on-the-spot writing challenge at an Uxbridge Writers' Circle Meeting. The prompt was 'a meal or a new experience'. I reckon I covered both! (And it's true!).
It's followed by a short update on It's a Fluke. We have a minority share in this racehorse.
Glass of Water
We entered the hotel as newcomers to Canada and were starving. We'd disembarked from the boat at Montreal and had been efficiently shown to the train station and were in Toronto's Union Station before we'd fully taken in that we'd arrived in our new country.
We'd not eaten enough to keep a flea alive, so we dumped our luggage in the room with its grubby shag carpet and almost ran to the restaurant.
It's hard to believe when I look back, but I suppose my English accent was more pronounced (well, is it me who has the accent or everyone else?) because I couldn't make the waiter understand that I wanted a glass of water. Apparently, the word 'water' was incomprehensible to him. However, I did, eventually, get my glass of water.
We were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. We'd just come from England and it was 1973. Meals in restaurants, unless you could go to fancy ones, meaning French usually, were uninspiring with small portions and often over-priced. Coffee was more often than not instant and make half black with half a cup of boiled milk.
So, the first meal we had in Canada opened our eyes to the possibilities which lay ahead for us. We just had to learn to speak more like Canadians. At least, we would do our best to fit in and to seize the opportunities that lay ahead of us.
Copyright Vicky Earle 2023
It's a Fluke
Phew!
It's a big responsibility to take care of animals, and even more daunting when in a partnership.
We are minority owners of It's a Fluke and we had the privilege of looking after him during his winter vacation from Woodbine Racetrack.
He alarmed me somewhat because he loved to play with our young dog, Raven, although the dog was much, much more likely to get injured than the horse! I'm happy to say neither got hurt.
Another concern that led to some debate was the way the temperatures fluctuated this winter. So, it was 'blanket on' then 'blanket off' then 'blanket on', and so on! One night we put two blankets on him because it plummeted to -29C.
But he had a good winter and 'phew' he made it onto the truck without incident and is now at Woodbine. This is a pic of him in our barn waiting for the truck to arrive.
We hope he enjoys training and look forward to a great racing season!
Ted Barris
Don't forget you're invited to hear Ted Barris talk about his new book Battle of the Atlantic on the afternoon of April 4 in Uxbridge.
Please email contact@vickyearle.com for more information and to register.