Smorgasbord Blogger Daily – Friday February 28th 2020 – #shortstory Beetley Pete, #Medieval Nicholas Rossis, #Promotion Susan M. Toy

A great story from Beetley Pete (Pete Johnson) in response to a package he received through the post from John Rieber.

Parcel Prompt Story: Writer’s Block

You saw the title? Yes, this is a parcel prompt, a first. A short story, in 1280 words.
I took the photo of a parcel sent to me all the way from California, by my blogging friend, John Rieber – He decided to go one better than a photo, and this was sent including a polystyrene box, to protect the contents.

There was a time when things were good. ‘Demon of The Marsh’ was a huge hit, and smashed into the fantasy market. Top seller on Amazon, and in the front windows of the bookshops that still existed. I was interviewed on the radio, then even a short telly spot on the BBC local news. The Guardian columnist called it ‘A fresh new take on the Demon genre’. Naturally, I was excited. And when it had sold over six thousand copies in hardback, then many, many more in paperback, I was approached by the very keen publisher with a deal for a second book.

Head over to read the rest of this excellent short story: Parcel Prompt – Writer’s Block – Beetley Pete

Get in touch with Pete and discover more about his writing – Blog: Beetley Pete WordPress – Twitter: Beetley Pete

We might have some misconceptions about Medieval England, according to Nicholas Rossis there were shenanigans and a love of brightly coloured clothes…. or none at all.. What!!!

What did Medieval People Really Wear?

Contrary to popular belief, people in the Middle Ages loved color – and could afford it. They also liked to be, well, naked. Which makes sense, considering how much Medieval people liked throwing rotten vegetables at each other.

Some people take the term “Dark Ages” a little too literally. There is a notion in popular culture that the Medieval Period was a time when everyone lived in absolute poverty, wore clothes that looked like they were sewn together by a 6-year-old, and bathed zero times during their entire lives. The dark-filtered movies and shows depicting the Medieval period are supposed to symbolically reflect how bleak everyone’s life was.

Medieval clothes: Holywood vs. reality

A great example of this is the filter used in the European portion of The Kingdom of Heaven, which holds a rather negative view of Medieval Europe.

Raggedy grey clothing and a dark filter (and swords from the wrong centuries, but I digress):

Head over to see what clothes (or not) were trending at the time: What did Medieval people really wear by Nicholas Rossis

Nicholas Rossis, Buy: Amazon US – and: Amazon UK – Blog:Nicholas Rossis – Goodreads: Nicholas Rossis Goodreads

The last post today is blatant self-promotion but also is an opportunity to showcase a book marketing promotion by author and promoter Susan M. Toy. It is important to be seen at the best parties… You will find quite a few of our writing community here on WordPress in the archives. Oh and Susan also winkled out of me what books I was currently working on….

Sally Cronin – Authors – Readers  International

I have enjoyed a nomadic existence living in eight countries including Sri Lanka, Malta, South Africa, USA and Spain, before settling back here in Ireland. My work, and a desire to see some of the most beautiful parts of the world in the last forty years, has taken me to many more incredible destinations around Europe and Canada, and across the oceans to New Zealand and Hawaii. All those experiences and the people that I have met, provide a rich source of inspiration for my stories.

After a career in customer facing roles in the hospitality, retail, advertising and telecommunications industry, I wrote and published my first book in 1999 called Size Matters, about my weight loss journey, losing 150lbs in 18 months. This was followed by 11 further fiction and non-fiction books, including a number of short story collections.

If you would like to read the rest of the post and find out what I am up to behind the scenes: A-R International Sally Cronin with Susan M. Toy

Susan M. Toy, Buy: Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – Follow Susan: Goodreads

Thank you for dropping in today and I hope that you will head over to read the posts in full.. thanks Sally.