[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-cheltenham-literature-festival":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt002-ee5270bd84.jpg\">\\r\nStuart and I decided to make a holiday weekend of our trip to the \u003Ca href=\"http://cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature/\">Cheltenham Literature Festival\u003C/a>, and our friend \u003Ca href=\"http://www.garenewing.co.uk/rainboworchid/\">Garen Ewing\u003C/a> was on the same panel with me, and brought along his wife Ellie, so we had a great time. On the panel, I got to meet writer of the graphic novel \u003Ca href=\"http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1406320528?ie=UTF8&tag=rainboworchid-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=19450&creativeASIN=1406320528\">Salem Brownstone\u003C/a>, \u003Cb>John Dunning\u003C/b> and the slightly shy but very lovely and funny host, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.kierenphelps.com/\">Kieren Phelps\u003C/a> (who'd just a couple nights previously been presenting the annual Cheltenham Illustration Awards, where \u003Ca href=\"http://www.simonelia.com\">Simone Lia\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.cabanonpress.com\">Tom Gauld\u003C/a> had given the keynote speech.) Here's a \u003Ca href=\"http://rainboworchid.livejournal.com/49242.html\">link to Garen's write-up of the event\u003C/a>.\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt001-9405ca6fa4.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt006-750e24a1f8.jpg\">\\r\nI felt a little funny plugging a picture book when the panel was about graphic novels, but I showed a lot of my comics work, including my \u003Ci>Vern and Lettuce\u003C/i> strip for \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_DFC\">The DFC\u003C/a>. Most of the audience questions were about making their own comics: how to get their comics published, Photoshop techniques, whether it's possible to make a career of making comics, etc. I briefly mentioned my studio and when I said I shared with Gary Northfield, the guy who creates \u003Ca href=\"http://derekthesheep.blogspot.com/\">\u003Ci>Derek the Sheep\u003C/i>\u003C/a> for the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.beanotown.com\">the Beano\u003C/a>, I saw a kid in the front row jump about a foot and suddenly he was all ears, heh heh.\\r\n\\r\nThe great thing about literary festivals is that you never know who you're going to run into. I got to meet the usually elusive \u003Cb>Lucy Cousins\u003C/b>, creator of the beautiful and boldly graphic \u003Ca href=\"http://www.maisyfunclub.com/maisyframe.asp?section=maisy\">\u003Ci>Maisie\u003C/i> books\u003C/a>:\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt011-fa2661e12b.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt010-2e1eff53e3.jpg\" width=\"280\">\\r\n\u003Ci>Lucy Cousins & me with our books; Maisie in the kids storytelling tent\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nI had a couple of my own \u003Ci>Morris the Mankiest Monster\u003C/i> books in my handbag, and I ended up giving one to Lucy and one to \u003Cb>Cherie Blair\u003C/b>, who was waiting with me in the Writer's Room before our talks. Cherie said, 'oh yes, Giles is the Purple Ronnie guy!' and went through the whole book, laughing, then blanching at the page where Morris looks at the potatoes growing out of his pants. She was really nice, I hope her talk went well. \\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Lots more photos and write-up under the cut-->\\r\nStuart picked a couple talks for us to go to, so we went to a panel about spooks and spying which included \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stella_Rimington\">Stella Rimington\u003C/a>, the person who held the real job behind the character of James Bond's 'M'. I was slightly annoyed at the academic dude on her left who kept interrupting her, but it was great to hear her talk. Just a background note, I met Stuart while he was working for the British Embassy in Moscow, so we're familiar with a lot of the places and job positions that often come up in spy novels. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt012-79ebede83e.jpg\">\\r\n\u003Ci>Stella Rimington at the signing table; you can just see writer Kate Mosse, the seated blond in the background\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nWe also got to hear a great talk by \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Irving\">John Irving\u003C/a> about his latest novel, \u003Ci>Last Night in a Twisted River\u003C/i>, and about the discipline of writing. He talks a lot like my dad, taking a long time to pause and think after each question, and answering in a somewhat pedantic way but delivering lots of thoughtful insight. He talked about how he likes to work backward when he writes, getting a very solid idea about the book's ending, then figuring out how far back the book should start. I took loads of notes, so ask me if you ever want to know more about what he said, but one thing that made me laugh was when he said, \u003Ci>When you start writing, the piece of paper doesn't know who you are; the paper is unimpressed\u003C/i>. Heh heh, even John Irving gets the Terror of the Blank Page. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt018-2b23cb423d.jpg\"> \\r\n\u003Ci>John Irving\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nI went into one of the tents to try out the new Sony Readers. Still not convinced I want one, but I had loads of fun drawing alien graffiti on \u003Ci>Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy\u003C/i> and drinking their free hot chocolate.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt013-0927f579c0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe crashed at lunch time in the refreshments tent and Stuart read the paper while I drew monsters with the kids at our table:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt016-d1a851223b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt025-9f56373677.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt014-59f533207f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThey had fun reading through \u003Ci>Morris\u003C/i> and being grossed out in all the right places. The girl made a fun mucky mess of the table with some rain water she and her brother had collected from one of the fountains, then I got to meet their dad, a Times features writer named \u003Ca href=\"http://cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature-2009/writing-journalism-damian-whitworth/\">Damian Whitworth\u003C/a>, who introduced us to his friend, Times journalist \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Macintyre\">Ben Macintyre\u003C/a>, someone I've always been a bit curious about because of his last name.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt015-b4ee9fd8f0.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt017-6854212998.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAfter our event on the first day, we went out to celebrate Ellie's birthday with a dinner at an ornately decorated Thai restaurant. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt003-2ad09239b5.jpg\"> \\r\n\u003Ci>Ellie and Garen Ewing\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nI almost ordered this dish because it seemed very in keeping with the manky Morris theme:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt004-e02a601e2d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe had lots of veggies carved as flowers and now that I'm an adult, I'm allowed to play with my food:\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt024-75759191d6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a nice photo of which my mother will approve:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt005-2f906074de.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt009-4cda263540.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe other pic is Ellie and me posing next to Cheltenham's rabbit and minotaur, which at night-time look like something out of \u003Ci>Donnie Darko\u003C/i>.\\r\n\\r\nWe went on a walk around town before heading off; it was great to see someone's taken on the DFC and given it new life:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt020-842a139e92.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd we popped into the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.cheltenhammuseum.org.uk/\">Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum\u003C/a> and saw this fabulous, macabre chimney sweep:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt021-172b56cc5c.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt022-9c8ba99a08.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd didn't hang around long enough to find out how to become friends of the local Pig Insurance society, maybe next time.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt023-0c2c84d90b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd a last one of Stuart, the star of our show... \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chelt019-640428aa04.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThanks, all your people who made this festival happen!","2009-10-12T11:30:00.000Z","cheltenham-literature-festival",[],"cheltenham literature festival",1776628733406]