Ciao a tutti! Hi, everybody! Thanks for dropping by for this week's Thursday Thirteen. Since I'm very busy, preparing for my trip to the US next week and wrapping up all the work on 27 Stages, I thought I'd share a few pics which have inspired me throughout the long slog from start to finish. So, yeah, it's a blog of cyclist photos. *clears throat* Anyhoo... Please, allow me to present to you Thirteen Photos Which Inspired 27 Stages! 
A rider cleans off post-race in the famous Paris-Roubaix velodrome shower hall.
Post-crash recovery.
Philippe Gilbert's legs after winning a stage of the Vuelta a Espana.
I'm endlessly amazed at how closely they can ride together in the group.
A peek inside a team bus during the Giro d'Italia. The "crash pad" for Alta VeloCidad's bus is based on this shot and a few other team buses I've found online.
This is *literally* the moment where the story started taking shape in my head. As I watched Cancellara receive the maillot jaune, I was speaking to my husband on the phone (he was in Italy, I was in the US). When the camera panned out and showed Cancellara on the podium, I said, without thinking, "I want to lick his legs." My husband didn't miss a beat and said "If you can catch him, go right ahead." That moment, combined with the team politics on display by the Astana riders (specifically Contador and Armstrong) led to the creation of 27 Stages.
Fabian Cancellara's legs as he stands atop the Paris-Roubaix podium after winning the race in 2010.
This is one of my all-time favorite photos, and even now, looking at it makes me want to write a story for it.
There is a scene in 27 Stages which was written before I saw this photo, but which mentions a photo Abby takes over her shoulder without even looking, after sensing someone is watching her. When she looks at it later, she finds Federico was in the crowd after all. This is *literally* the sort of image I imagined her capturing.
Riding in the rain isn't just wet, but cold, too. No wonder they all look so miserable, eh?
In my next life, I want to come back as a fly so I can spy on the boys in the bus.
This year's Milan-Sanremo race proved that there is nothing - absolutely *nothing* - I can write which will ever compete with real life. But I will keep trying.
Cancellara falls to the ground after winning this year's Paris-Roubaix by a bike length.
And there you have them: Thirteen Photos Which Inspired 27 Stages. Of course, there were many, many more photos than this to inspire me since 2009. I simply can't share them all, though. Which is a bit of a shame, really. And I know I owe you at least one more pic, so... I hope this will do. 
Gilberto Simoni. Cyclist.
Hello, all! While I'm excitedly making preparations for a visit to the Museo del Ciclismo in Magreglio, Italy, I didn't have a lot of time to prepare a full-bodied Thirteen for today. So I've decided to share a portion of my TBR pile (that's "To Be Read" for those unfamiliar with the term) with all of you, as I've well over the requisite number of books waiting for my attention. Shameful, I know. So now, please allow me to present to you: Thirteen Books (and e-Books) on My 'To Be Read' Pile   1) John Irving: In One Person (Hardcover)   2) Stephen King: The Wind Through the Keyhole (Hardcover)   3) Stephen King: Full Dark, No Stars (Paperback)   4) Matt Shaw: 9 Months - Book One (9 Months Trilogy) (e-book)   5) Tim Krabbe': The Rider (Paperback)   6) Margaret Atwood: The Year of the Flood (Paperback)   7) David Nicholls: One Day (Paperback)   8) Kurt Vonnegut: 2 B R 0 2 B (e-book)   9) Matt Seaton: The Escape Artist (Paperback)   10) Jonathon Budds: Consumed (ebook)   11) Simon A Forward: From Evil With Love (ebook)   12) Graeme Obree: Flying Scotsman (Paperback)   13) Amanda Egan: Diary of a Mummy Misfit (ebook) And there you have them: Thirteen books which are currently resting atop my TBR pile. Maybe you'll feel compelled to check them out, too, now you've seen them listed here? At least you'd be reassured of a lovely selection of books for yourself as the autumn nights grow longer and cooler. You could curl up on the sofa with a cup of cocoa, or coffee, or tea... And then, you know... Select a good book and... Enjoy. 
Ciao for now!
Hello, all! This week, I thought I'd continue the bookish themes from previous weeks and give you another glimpse into the creative mind of an indie writer. This time around, I've interviewed my new friend Jill Pennington, author of the slightly unusual ex-pat memoir The Diary of a Single Parent Abroad. So, here are: Thirteen Questions for Author Jill Pennington 
Jill hard at work on her home in the Apennines.
 1) First, please tell us a little about yourself. I am a ‘Britalian’ Originally from Yorkshire (England) I have been living in Italy for 8 years, I have three teenage children and far too many animals. We live in the Apennine mountains and love it. 2) Could you sum up your book in one sentence for us? An expat story with a difference. 3) Had you ever considered being/Were you a writer prior to writing this? I have always written about my life and observations since childhood. I thought everyone did it but apparently not. 4) What was the hardest thing about writing the book? Re-living the hard times. 5) Since The Diary of a Single Parent Abroad is a memoir, did you have to resist the urge to fictionalize any of it? Oh no, the material just piled up in a corner, in fact there is still so much that I didn’t capture. My friends say that more things happen to me in a week than happen to most people in a year! 6) Have you considered writing fiction? Why/Why not? Yes, I am currently considering this idea. 7) Is this book traditionally published or self-published? I self-published. 8) Why did you choose that route to publication? It appears in the current publishing climate, that unless you are a celebrity or already published there is very little chance of being taken on by a traditional publisher, so I decided to try going it alone. 9) What has been the most challenging part of publication for you? Marketing, the hard work starts after you publish. 10) Are you considering writing another book yet? Yes, I hope to write many more. 
Hey, guys - over here!
11) What will it be about? Probably a sequel to the first but I have other ideas to explore as well. 12) What is your favorite book you've read this year? Ooh I would have to say ‘Ask Me if I’m Happy’ by Kimberly Menozzi (sorry I am biased due to living in Bella Italia) 13) What is your favorite book ever? Stig of the Dump by Clive King –My favourite book as a child, I read it over and over, then got the chance to enjoy it again as a parent. 
Digging up an old well for 'free' water.
  To order Jill's book, click on the image above! Or use the following links: Amazon.com Amazon.co.uk Paperback You can also follow Jill on Twitter (@jillipen) and Facebook. Her promo for the book can be found on Youtube. I hope you've enjoyed this conversation with Jill, and that you'll consider having a look at her book. I'm sure you'll enjoy it, as it's an entertaining and sometimes enlightening look at life in Italy. In the meantime, I offer you a chance to reminisce about last summer's Olympic events. Why? I hear you ask. Do you really need a reason? 
Filippo Magnini - Italian Swimmer
Ciao for now! :)
 Hello everybody!
I'm so excited to share this news about my dear friend and critique partner, Nell Dixon's latest release. I had the pleasure of working on this with her, and I'm delighted with the end result. I dare say that you will be, too. Renovation, Renovation, Renovation is the new release from multi award winning author, Nell Dixon. Overworked, over budget and just so not over him! Kate would like an engagement ring from Steve but instead he's lumbered them with a thirteenth renovation project, and doing up Myrtle Cottage disturbs a ghost from the English Civil War who has romance troubles of her own. Available from Amazon UK, and Amazon.com! Renovation, Renovation, Renovation is a contemporary romance with a twist. One of the residents at Myrtle Cottage, a fifteenth century house is a rather mournful ghost called Mary Ann. She was resident during a turbulent period of English history when Oliver Cromwell was coming to power and civil war raged throughout the country. Mary Ann’s story becomes entwined with that of Kate, the current owner bringing glimpses of the past into the present. Here’s a small excerpt. “Hey, Kate, can you get me the torch from the kitchen?” Steve’s voice was muffled but excited. I went and collected the torch from the junk drawer and passed it to him. “What have you found?” He’d pulled a crate into the fireplace and balanced on it, shining the torch into the flue. Knowing my luck he’d happened on some protected species of bat and we’d have to abandon the whole project or live in the Hammer house of horrors for evermore. I could hear him scrabbling around. “This is so great.” “What?” My curiosity was piqued in spite of myself. Maybe he’d found treasure – some previous owners nest egg of sovereigns perhaps? Decorated with yet more dust and soot, he emerged from the fireplace clasping a small dirty brown object in his hand. “I never thought we’d be lucky enough to find one of these. I’ve heard about them but never, ever thought I’d find one.” An excited grin split his face and he looked like a small boy who had just been given the world’s biggest treat. He held the object out towards me almost reverently. “It was on a ledge, quite high up inside the chimney.” As I looked more closely I could see that what he’d found appeared to be a child’s shoe. Much worn and filthy dirty from its time in the chimney. I failed to see why Steve was so excited. “You do know what this is, don’t you Kate?” Steve touched it carefully with the forefinger of his other hand. Again a cool movement of air swirled around my feet and ankles. “It’s a shoe.” “It’s a spirit trap.” © Nell Dixon 2011 |
Kimberly MenozziAuthor. Happily Married. Survivor of life with two deranged kitties. Please note: Thanks to an increase in spam comments, I'll be approving the comments before they post. Sorry!
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