a long silence

Gosh, it's been a long long time since I blogged! That's not a blog, it's a fact. Well, I have been writing, but new challenges (I've just become a father) and new distractions (I've started work on another novel) have really kept me away from the whole social thing. Also, my new novel comes out on June 4 so I've been trying to coordinate things for that. Regardless, I hope you'll stick with me during this long silence because when I come back - unlike Dr Dre - I'll keep your fire alarms ringing :)

Good stuff this week?

1. Been listening to Duke Ellington's Black - Brown and Beige, The Roots' - Things Fall Apart, Robert Cray's - shame + a sin, and Vanessa Carlton's - Be Not Nobody
2. Finished edits on a collection of poetry by Roger Robinson
3. Found out I will have work in the special 25th anniversary edition of Wasafiri magazine
4. Did the laundry :)
5. Cleared out a whole box of paperwork so the missus can walk around the house easier!

Bad stuff?

1. Taxes - I think I'm being overcharged, can't afford to pay any more than I already have, but I can't reach the tax payment office; their phones are constantly busy
2. Broke is on the horizon and I just spotted it - that means I have to do more teach-work and less write-work.... arrrgh!
3. Had to be separated from my daughter for a couple of days
   
4. I ran out of palm oil :)
5. Hey, life isn't that bad so the list has to be shorter than the good stuff list, right?
   

So, make sure you preorder my book - all the links below - and I'll blog again very soon...

Tail of the Blue Bird by Nii Ayikwei Parkes
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/d64xs9 | Waterstones: http://tinyurl.com/aqcbbm | WHSmith: http://tinyurl.com/agqs75 | Random House: http://tinyurl.com/bcuu27