The Well-Tempered Clavier

Idle Tom the publisher calls for our morning conference.
“Hey!” he says. “Have you seen this stuff in Eve magazine?”
“Certainly have.”
“But we’ve never had a hit before in Eve magazine! It’s brilliant!”
“Well … very sweet of you to say so Tom.”
“Come on - tell me how you did it. What strings did you have to pull?”
“Just […]

Soon I am to find out if my bracing style of Blog writing has paid off: Will Idle Tom the Publisher give me a second book deal?
Some readers have commented on the abrasive style of the blog, in so far as Idle Tom frequently gets it in the back of the neck. Some, like Mad-dog […]

Easter … three days without having to hear from Idle Tom the Publisher … my cup runneth over.
I’ve been down in Hampshire, where my parents live. Margot and I had decamped to the pub, the better to get away from our two sons.
It was rather disconcerting. Because for the first time, I was introduced to a complete […]

That young scamp Idle Tom the Publisher had been mischief-making again. And purely for my own benefit.
 
Or so he claimed.
 
"Got a good one just come in!" he said. "National newspaper coverage for The Well-Tempered Clavier!A big, prestigious Sunday newspaper! In fact - the more I think about it, the better it looks!"
 
"Hmm," I said. Ever […]

Soft - the phone rings. Tis Idle Tom the Publisher.
 
Though for some reason, not quite his usual perky self.
 
"What’s cooking Tommy?" I said. "What you got for me today?"
 
"Well …" He sounded a bit mournful. Almost teary, as if he were about to start piping his eye any minute. "We finally got that Fiction Flirting […]

I don’t see Idle Tom the Publisher so much these days. Maybe just once a month, when we exchange notes. Discuss tactics. It generally feels like a balloon being deflated of its air.
 
Also in attendance, by the way, was Diligent Judith, the woman who is going to turn my damn book into a G-G-GOOOO! Judith […]

Saw something that I’d never seen before during my book-signing session in Banbury’s Waterstone’s.
 
I only wish I’d had a camera there to record it for you.
 
It was a fight - a spot of verbal jousting between a woman in her late 30s and some doughty chap in his 50s. It went on for about 15 […]

"GREAT NEWS!"
 
It’s Idle Tom the Publisher on the phone. Again. "FANTASTIC NEWS!" he said.
 
"Really?" I said.
 
Forgive my scepticism. It’s just that Idle Tom’s version of "great news" is very slightly different from my own. Or, for that matter, anyone else’s.
 
"No, Bill, this is good. This is hot. Perk yourself up because you’re just going […]