Katherine Givens has nominated me for the Silver Quill Blogger Award! It is a genuine pleasure to be so honoured by a young up-and-coming author and poet. Thank you, Katherine.

Honours always come with obligations so I will take care of these right away.

As per the award’s rules, I have answered the following questions:

1. Do you prefer rhyming or non-rhyming poetry?

I enjoy both, but do prefer the wonderful resonance and rhythm of rhyming poetry.

2. What is your favourite Shakespeare play?

I will have to go with Hamlet. Being bipolar, I strongly relate to all that “to be or not to be” gloom.

3. Who is your favourite author?

What a question! Most people who read a lot have more than one. On the sci-fi side, I adore Gene Wolfe’s fabulous “Sun” novels. My favourite among the rest of his work is There Are Doors, or maybe Castleview, or…. So I have to put him on the list. In the fantasy category, I especially enjoy E. R. Eddison’s rather overblown, but wonderfully lyrical prose. Once having read it, who could ever forget The Worm Ouroboros? On the literary side, I will go with Hermann Hesse, D. H. Lawrence, and Virginia Woolf. Just for fun, I will mention my all-time favourite novel: Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain.

4. Name three people you admire.

I see no point in admiring for the sake of admiring. The people I admire are the people who have influenced me. Chief among these are Carl Jung, Charles Darwin, and Hermann Hesse.

5. What is your favourite music album?

Without a doubt, Caravan’s classic “In the Land of Grey and Pink” is my all-time favourite album. I never tire of hearing “Nine Feet Underground,” a twenty-three minute mellotron-heavy extravaganza of lilting and lyrical underground (the old name for “alternative”) rock. Now I have mentioned it, I will have to listen to it again tonight!

6. Which colour do you most dislike?

Pink. This is the case despite Pink Floyd being one of my favourite bands and “In the Land of Grey and Pink” being my favourite album. Go figure.

7. Name a song or poem that makes you feel emotional.

My answer here is both a poem and a song. The words are from William Blake and the music to which they are set is Hubert Parry’s achingly beautiful anthem “Jerusalem.” I am not religious, yet hearing the majestic choral piece always chokes me up.

By the rules, I must nominate five other bloggers. Here are my nominees:

1. Anti View – If you have yet to discover Max’s unique blog, here is your chance to go have a look. Yes, it does sound a bit “negative,” but Max is a first rate journalist who knows how to draw out his eclectic range of interviewees in the most interesting ways.

2. Fabulous Realms – Ash Silverlock is a fantasy author. His blog is a fascinating mix of insightful posts about mythology, fantasy novels, and fantasy authors. You can also sample his work.

3. Just Scribbling – This is Sally’s blog. She is an aspiring writer who teaches English in Indonesia. Originally from Britain, she shares her poems and stories, personal anecdotes, thoughts on life, and travel tales.

4. Mari Biella – Mari Biella is (mostly) Welsh, has an Italian husband, and lives in Lecco, Italy. In her blog, she writes intelligently about the writing process and engagingly of her life in the north of Italy. She has published a horror novel and has other works in progress.

5. Lucinda Elliot – Lucinda has written what she calls a “cod gothic” novel. Her entertaining blog highlights the amusing novel’s plot, characters, and setting. Her approach provides great insights into the writing process, especially where historical gothic novels are concerned.

To Accept the Award Nominees Must Follow These Simple Rules

1. Copy the award logo and paste it onto your post.

2. Thank the person who nominated you and link back to them.

3. Answer the seven questions about yourself.

4. Nominate five more people.

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