Daniela Sacerdoti

So Dreams is out…a month early! Head-spinning, exciting, and oh, so nerve-wracking. My baby is out into the world. I’m lucky enough to have the support of Waterstones, who decided to make Dreams Bookseller’s Choice for the month of May in all Scottish stores. This is a huge honour for me – I can’t quite believe it yet! Dreams will be officially launched on Saturday 12th May in Waterstones Argyle Street, at 5pm. This is the lovely display that they have prepared for me: At the launch, Edinburgh singers songwriters Kirstyn Knowles and Jenny Masterson will unveil the song she wrote for Sarah, Do This Alone – I can’t wait to be able to share it with you all. In the meanwhile, enjoy this beautiful song she wrote, one of my faves: Sea. Also, I’ll be doing a signing in Waterstones East Kilbride on Saturday 5th May from 12 noon, it’d be lovely to see you there, if you’re around. It’s my husband’s home town, so it will be good – the whole family will come and say hello. And I’m not done with the good news: the Scottish Book Trust have kindly offered to make Dreams their Book of the Month. I’m incredibly grateful for how Dreams is being received, and for all the people who are working so hard to help Sarah make a mark into the world! If you want to see what the fuss is all about, you can buy your copy of Dreams from – among others – Waterstones and Amazon. I’d love to hear what you think! And keep your eyes peeled, because I’m going to do a giveaway soon – a signed copy of Dreams, a promotional booklet and a launch invitation will be up for grabs. Dani x

And here it is, disgracefully late as ever…you know me, I’m always chasing deadlines! A chat with my friend and fellow Kelpie Roy Gill, whose debut novel The Daemon Parallel was launched last month. Enjoy! When and why did you start writing? I think I’ve always been writing… stories based on the books I read or the telly I watched, at first. By the time I was a teenager, it was probably mainly gloomy Ray Bradbury pastiches! I studied English Literature & Film at university, and I think, oddly, that made me write less (fiction, anyway). I became very wrapped up in thinking & writing critically, and was intent on pursuing a career as an academic. When I was about to turn thirty, I sort of shook myself… I knew I secretly still wanted to be a fiction writer – and realised I’d never be happy if I didn’t give it my best shot. Skip over several years of novel drafts, angst, opportunities, mis-steps and competition shortlists – and my first novel is published this month. I still don’t quite believe it… What gave you the idea of the Daemon Parallel? A particularly vivid dream! I dreamt about a boy, living with his Gran in Edinburgh, and the city outside was all twisted and strange, and filled with monsters… I wanted to know what kept these two – very different – characters together, and what had happened to the city. When I worked out the answers to those questions, I knew I had the beginnings of a story. I wrote, “It was over coffee and biscuits that Grandma Ives offered to return Cameron’s father from the dead…”, and it all unfolded from there. How much of Cameron is there in you, and viceversa? That’s an interesting question! All characters – [...]

Cameron never came to visit his grandma when his dad was alive – and he’s just found out the reason why. Sent to stay with her after his father’s death, Grandma Ives soon reveals their family’s extraordinary abilities, and introduces him to the dark side of Edinburgh he never knew existed – the Daemon Parallel. Cameron is sent on dangerous missions in Edinburgh’s daemon underworld to find the ingredients for an ancient spell that will bring his dad back to life. Cameron befriends a werewolf, bargains with a giant bat-like beast, and struggles to escape the clutches of a powerful spider daemon. But will he survive long enough to finish the resurrection spell? And who can he trust in a world where nothing is what it seems? It’s always a bit weird to read and review a friend’s book. I was quite anxious when I received this, in case I didn’t enjoy it, or I didn’t think it was very good. Sure, the extract I’d heard the night of the Kelpie’s Prize was brilliant, but reading the whole book was a different story. My worry dissolved after I read the first page: the writing was beautiful, and the story as promising and yummy as a piece of cake you’re about to sink your spoon into! And it got better and better. Cameron, the main character, is a loveable, thoughtful, brave little boy whom I fell for at once. As a child, Cameron can be your hero – but as a 38 years old woman who was, once upon a time, one of those children who don’t quite fit it, I saw all the layers of him. This is one of the things I love about this book: it’s an action adventure, full of magic and danger and werewolves, but it’s [...]

My very first school visit: Lenzie Moss Primary, a brilliant P5 class of clever, articulate, imaginative children. I couldn’t have had a better start to my new role of visiting author! Just like teaching…only even better:) I read an extract from Weird Removals.com, the chapter about the stranded mermaids in the Clyde, because they’re working on the River Clyde as their topic. After the reading they asked me a few questions – where I get my inspiration, if I’ve always wanted to be a writer, my favourite book…it was great to share with them and listen to their comments and ideas. We then did a brief re-enactment of the mermaid rescue as a drama workshop, which was a lot of fun. The children are now writing their very own rescue mission: once finished, I’ll choose the two best stories, and they’ll be published on the Weird Removals.com website (coming soon). Here’s to more school visits to come!

RAVEN – BLOOD EYE by Giles Kristian Osric has been living with a small English community for the last two years, apprentice to a modest carpenter; he can’t remember anything of his life before he got there. One of eyes is red because of a blood clot, and this makes him an outsider wherever he goes. One day his village is destroyed by a band of Norsemen, led by their chief Sigurd, and Osric is taken prisoner. Some of the Norsemen accept Osric as one of their own, and teach him to fight, believing that his red eye is a sign of being marked by the gods. Others, though, see him as a jinx, or a source of bad luck. Until he’s betrayed, and has to fight for his life… Once in a while, I need something I can sink my teeth into – plain, old style adventure. And with Raven, that’s exactly what I got. I enjoyed every minute of it, because of the setting, the plot, and the writing style which is exceptionally vivid and uncompromising. I actually had to finish it in a hurry because my husband, having heard me talking about it, couldn’t wait to read it! I’m so looking forward to the next instalment and my next journey into Kristian’s Norseworld. I wish there were more books like these…If you know of any, give me a shout! Visit Kristian’s (gorgeous) website.

One of the best things about social networking is how easy it’s become to widen my horizons in terms of books and music. While exploring twitter and its follow suggestions I came across Roddy Hart, a singer-songwriter from Glasgow. I’d heard his cover of Most of The Time and absolutely loved it, and I was keen to know more. I’m absolutely crazy about Take Me Home, a love song full of emotion and without a hint of sentimentality, and a super-cool black and white video. That’s how I found out about his music pledge. This is what Roddy and the Lonesome Fire have to say about their choice: For our new album, we want to create something truly special – bigger, bolder, and better than anything we’ve ever done before – and we want you to be part of it. The songs have been written and we are ready to record in November, but we need some extra help this time to get into a studio and work with a brilliantly creative team who are just as passionate as us about making a great album. Our independence means that we have to find different ways of funding our albums. (quoted from Pledge Music) I find his choice fascinating – though I’m not really sure of its reasons. Roddy is clearly any record company’s dream, so it’s not like he can’t get signed up. So is his choice one of artistic independence? Wanting to be in control of the process? As someone who has experienced the joys and tortures of editing, I can see why. If you have a strong project and decide that you need to keep ~complete~ control of it – either you set up a record/publishing company, or, more easily, you hire your own producer/editor. I have such [...]

So, Sarah is on her way out into the world. I can’t begin to express how delighted I am about my unruly daughter being ready to fly. I’ve lived with Sarah for such a long time now – four years, from when she was first conceived, in Italian, to when she was translated into English and a whole universe was created around her. Until last summer, when finally, Sarah’s story was accepted for publication, and our editing journey started. For the last year I’ve lived and breathed Sarah – the plot, the characters, the alternative history of her universe. I’ve played little films of her story in my head for months, some of which ended up on paper, others are out-takes that I might, or might not share. Many times I’ve woken up at two in the morning with sudden revelations and thoughts about the characters. My long suffering husband and children have been accepting – quite generously, I think – to share me with Sarah and Harry and Elodie and Niall and Mike and all the crew. They’re so real to me, all of them. I am Sarah, of course, in many ways (though I was never tall, slender and green eyed, nor I ever had supernatural powers!). I’m in love with Harry – I always fall for the heroes I’m writing – I feel such tenderness for Elodie, with all she went through, and Mike and Niall are old friends of mine. I’m sure I’m in good company when I say that sometimes they speak to me, they tell me their story, they come to me in my dreams; I know that many fellow writers will know exactly what I’m talking about. And with two books to come, my head is full of the stories yet to happen, [...]

Oh, ask me how much this EXCITES me? Well, a lot. So I applied to be part of it, overcoming the HUGE technical conundrum of “how on earth do you post a logo onto a website?”. I did it in a roundabout way, let’s hope that Kristian and his people accept it. I’ll let you know if I’m allowed to be part of the challenge! Soooo…here’s the logo! And here’s the link to Giles Kristian’s website. Wish me luck!

I’m delighted that my Author of the Month, Alette Willis, has agreed to give me an interview. Enjoy! 1) Where did you get the inspiration for The Golem from? I first came across golems ten years ago. A friend gave me the book, “He, She and It” by Marge Piercy, a novel that weaves together the traditional Jewish tale about the Golem of Prague with a near-future science fiction story. For me, the golem story is about the problems that arise when people make choices from a place of fear. There is a great deal of fear in the world today. Children feel it and they suffer from it. I wanted to write a book for them about dealing with fear, so of course there had to be a golem in it. 2) How do you feel your writing into your busy life? Besides being a writer, I work as a researcher at the University of Edinburgh and I also a storyteller, mostly telling stories related to nature, the environment and science. I’ll be honest, I actually find it very difficult to fit writing into my life. I managed to be extremely disciplined last year, sacrificing most of my spare time and some of my favourite activities, so that I could get “How to Make a Golem” finished in time for the Kelpies deadline. I’ve found it more difficult this year to make time, as there are also many activities involved with having a book published that are now also keeping me away from my writing desk. I am managing to get some writing done though… 3)Are you working on anything else at the moment? I am working on a couple of things right now. First, a picture book about quantum physics. I think it will be a hard sell, [...]

Edda’s nickname is Mouse, and she is a very, very frightened little girl. Her house has been broken into, her most secret possessions – among which her precious sketchbook – have been violated. Edda doesn’t feel safe in her own home any more, in spite of her loving parents and best friend Lucy. And what’s worse, because of the break-in her parents are planning to move house once more. Enters Michael Scot, the mysterious boy whose identity is never fully revealed: he guides Edda into a new, dangerous world, the world of alchemy and, broadly speaking, witchcraft. Together they build a Golem, a huge creature made of clay who’s supposed to lurk in Edda’s garden and defend her from her enemies. But how can a creature of clay distinguish between friends and enemies? And is the Golem taking Edda’s fear away, or just transform it into something else, something worse? I enjoyed this book very, very much, for a few different reasons. First of all, the writing style: careful, deliberate, full of detail. Then, the plot: I came to really care for little Edda, and so did my son Sorley, with whom I’ve been reading it. Third, the message: for me it was an invitation to let go of your fear, instead of building yourself a cage to hide into, or a monster to defend you. To find the strength to face the world’s many threats into yourself. My verdict? Read it, it’s a brilliant book for both children and their parents, perfect bedtime story material, if you enjoy reading a novel a chapter a night like we do. To follow next week, an interview with Alette Willis, who, with this book, won the Kelpie’s Prize. In the meanwhile, if you’d like to know more about Alette, you can visit [...]