Wisdom in Earls Court
CORONATION
To be honest, I did not expect the coronation weekend to be so memorable. It started a day before with two splendid double page article on Charles and Camilla in the Evening Standard. On the day itself, I watched it on a large screen in St Cuthbert’s church, (Linda watched it with her father in Plympton). I then had three friends share a sausage and Prosecco Coronation lunch in the flat; it went extremely well; conversation was very easy between these friends of mine who had not known each other.
On Sunday I preached at Holy Trinity Prince Consort Road, taking some key points for the Evening Standard articles, followed by another Coronation lunch! Monday was a grey day, but we still had a party with more Prosecco in the communal gardens with live music and good chat. All in all, an Event!
Have you got special memories of the Coronation? Do email me about them.
WRITING
Writing two books at the same time is not something I would recommend. I have to parcel out the time so one week I concentrate on one, the other week on the other. Precious little time to think about marketing.
I started the month with writing something for ‘Daily Prayers from the World’s Faiths’, namely my summery description of Alcoholics Anonymous and my introduction to the book. I then met Rabbi Helen and asked her to write a summary of Judaism, though I also did a brief survey of Jewish history. Try as I might, I could not make it less than 250 words. I now await Helen’s contribution.
One significant advance was that I decided to include photos to accompany the various types of prayers, morning, thanksgiving etc. I was delighted to find that I have photos I took myself that I can use – abstract but appropriate, such as the view for Bolton castle to accompany saying sorry. I also told my friend Nat what I would like for the cover, I.e. a night sky. Progress!
On Monday15th I started on my blog ‘Transformations’. It meant speed-reading 500 pages of my copy of ‘The Varieties of Religious Experience’. I know that no one had read it since its purchase in 1911 because some of the pages were still uncut. It was a really enjoyable piece of work, though it meant that I sent out the blog on 25th May, a bit late.
Part of the process was to interview the pastor of my church, Sam Follett, and take down his own conversion story. I had heard him tell it in a sermon some time ago and had thought it an excellent example of what I wanted to show. I had just finished it apart from a conclusion, when I happened to meet an East End priest called Sabine who gave me my ending!
Finally, as you know, I was fired up enough about the lack of readings on the Holy Spirit after Pentecost that I sent out my own suggestions. Several people have told me that they are using them. So pleased.
MARKETING
At the beginning of the month I had a meeting with Chris my publisher on the top floor of the Hilton Hotel. I had sent him a load of questions about marketing and social media etc. The key thing that came out was to provide good press releases leading up to the official launch. Also to get some articles in Christian periodicals. And not to rush it!
In terms of the Wishpond marketing I am paying for, the results seem pretty minimal. I shall stop at the end of June but may well start again for a short time to promote ‘Daily Prayers from the World’s Faiths’. But the most important thing for that is to send out press releases to all and sundry.
SOCIAL MEDIA
I find it virtually impossible to think about Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn when I am absorbed in writing. I did do posts on the Ascension and on Pentecost.
PERSONAL
At the beginning of the month I made my application for a German passport , and I got it in three weeks! So now I am all set to go to the Kirchentag in Nurnberg in June. Really looking forward to it.
On 25th I went to a special lunch for old pupils of Rugby School (and I use the adjective ‘old’ advisedly). Old but full of vim. I sat next to someone I knew from my schooldays, who turns out to live next door to the Greenbelt Festival – a total fixture on our calendar. And next to him was Alan, a fellow Greenbelter. How likely was that?
At the end of the day I walked to the station and popped into our old family home, which is now a Family Support centre. So good to know that it is there and being used to improve people’s lives.
FILM etc
Linda and I had a fun evening out with Eurovsion at a local cinema. It was done brilliantly with a party basket of whistles, score cards etc and a free drink. Linda’s favourite song was Poland, mine was Armenia. I was sad that Germany came bottom, because I thought that their hard rock song was good; just not Eurovisiony.
The next Saturday we were in a cinema again watching Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni’ from the Met in New York. Wonderful. But I noted that whereas in Eurovision we were probably the oldest in the audience, at ‘Don Giovanni’ we were the youngest.
Two good films this month. ‘Full Time’ (à plain temps) was a gripping and tense drama about a young mother trying to get to work during the train strikes in Paris. Linda and I disagreed about the meaning of the end.
The must-see film of the month is ‘Are you there God? it’s me, Margaret’, an utterly delightful film based on the 1970 novel of a twelve year old girl navigating the problems of puberty and of the religious tensions of her mixed-faith family. Highly recommended.