Hanging with thriller authors + doing research

Mike Grist Life, Writing Leave a Comment

On Monday night I went to the First Monday Crime group, which meets at City University, and is sponsored by the MA course they run in only writing thriller novels. I checked out the course website. It says something like- The only MA course which allows you to complete a full novel! That’s an odd boast. I don’t need someone to allow me to write a novel. I can write a novel whenever I want. I don’t need your permission! Anyway, there were some speakers. Fiona Cummins who wrote Rattle. I read the first few pages in advance and thought …

London Indie Authors group November Meetup

Mike Grist Author Group, Life, Marketing, Writing Leave a Comment

I haven’t yet mentioned on my blog about the group I co-organize on the Meetup.com website, called London Indie Authors. I joined the group some 2 years ago, back when it was just about still being run by Orna Ross, who founded ALLi, the Alliance of Independant Authors. A year later I was invited by then-organizer and my bud Jerome to co-organize alongside him. We meet monthly to discuss marketing of our books. The group has changed a little in the last year, largely in the way we plan the agenda. We used to get speakers in about half the …

Boycott the clickbait Trump news

Mike Grist Life, Politics Leave a Comment

I had the hope that US media would start reporting Trump’s ridiculous nonsense differently after the mid-terms, but it’s pretty clear they still can’t resist. No doubt, the more outrageous things he says, the more people click it. Yes, so that is our fault – the readers who fuel their advertising budget. We are amplifying his message with our insatiable curiosity. He knows this. He’s playing the Twitter outrage game with the media, and we are all playing along. So we have to stop. We are his megaphone. We must stop clicking on clickbait BS articles and take the temperature …

Praise be reality!

Mike Grist Life, Politics Leave a Comment

Thank reality, the fever in America last night showed signs of breaking. The Democrats won the House, and while the Republicans strengthening their hold on the Senate will present plenty of problems, this feels like a massive step forward, and a huge relief. I am extremely hopeful the rhetoric is going to get turned way down now, or be far more ignored, or both. I, like many others I’m sure, have become sick of hanging on every word Trump says. The man is an idiot. He won an election by the skin of his teeth, which he didn’t even want …

Cowboy formal style

Mike Grist Life 2 Comments

I promised pictures of my new cowboy formal style – here they are (essentially involving the addition of a waistcoat). Black style, with watch chain. I need a pocket watch to put on the end. Blue style with a Henley shirt. I do wear shoes. These are different waistcoats, though in these photos they do look the same. So far getting positive comments from colleagues at work, which is very new – I’ve rarely worn anything interesting enough to get comments before!

Replaced kitchen taps/faucets

Mike Grist DIY, Life Leave a Comment

Yesterday I dug in to swapping out my taps/faucets – the biggest part was probably just moving the washing machine. It is of course heavy, and very tightly squeezed in to its slot. I’ve done it plenty of times though, so it’s smooth enough. The old tap, with the stopcock turned off and just dribbling the last water out. Removed – easy enough, only one bolt held it in place. The new tap – its so much better, with much improved water pressure and no roar. In other news, I killed a bear last night in Red Dead Redemption. When …

Collapsing shed

Mike Grist DIY, Life Leave a Comment

2 weeks ago I mentioned my collapsing shed – in the solution of the mosquito mystery. To catch you up – the shed roof had collapsed, so I replaced it with tarps as a temporary solution. The offshoot of this was that the tarpaulin caught all the rainwater, weighed the shed down, and forced the shed to bow inward. A secondary offshoot was that all this standing water let mosquitos flourish – they were always in the house. I started bailing out the roof and the mosquitos disappeared. Today I took some pictures, after fresh rainfall on Friday. All bailed …

Cowboy clothes at work?

Mike Grist Life Leave a Comment

I’ve been playing Red Dead Redemption 2, and have fallen in love with cowboy style. Not the cowboy style you’re probably thinking of. No to tassles. No to spurs or chaps or even the hat, because though it does look cool, and makes sense for extreme sun in the West, I can’t pull it off in London. Yes instead to smart-looking jeans or dark khakis. A plain white or gray button-up collar or Henley shirt. A cotton/twill/wool/denim waistcoat with some brocade. A long jacket or duster. It looks awesome. I’ve been into waistcoats for a while, but not found one …

Roaring taps in the kitchen

Mike Grist Life 1 Comment

When I turn the hot water on in the downstairs bathroom, the pipes roar. Sometimes the hot water cuts out for no obvious reason. Sometimes they vibrate very loudly, sometimes they whistle. What the heck? Some time ago I figured out what was causing this phenomenon. The kitchen mixer tap is two years old and the ceramic washers inside it, or the cheap rubber washer that seals them, have perished. This also explains why the hot tap is constantly leaking. When those pipes are roaring, it is because air is getting sucked in through the dripping tap. What a pain. …

Carpal Tunnel update

Mike Grist Life Leave a Comment

Yesterday I promised an update on my carpal tunnel situation in my right wrist, and lo today it appeareth. I went in to see the doctor on Tuesday to get the news and have a consultation – this is a week after they did an electromyogram on my right arm. What an electromyogram involves is electric receivers on your wrist while the doctor gives you electric shocks in your elbow. It gives a speed, which, combined with the length of your forearm which the doctor also measures, gives you an idea of your nerve conductivity. I suppose that tells them …