ceeteejackson

[ceeteejackson]

How to survive ...

Just over a year ago, I was asked by Summersdale Publishers (part of the Hachette UK group) if I’d like to ghost write two ‘gift books’ for them. It’s not the kind of thing I’d even contemplated doing before, but the opportunity of working with bona fide publishers was too good to dismiss. Though being a ghost writer I don’t get a cover credit, there is a little acknowledgement inside. I was…

[ceeteejackson]

Talk is Cheek.

The word today was ‘talk.’ TALK IS CHEEK. “Why did you never talk before?You’re three years old, going on four!”“Coz the food’s been okay,But this muck today?I ain’t eating it anymore.”

[ceeteejackson]

Drunken Intent.

The word today was ‘rent.’ DRUNKEN INTENT. I could no longer afford to pay the rent‘Coz all my savings had been spent On whisky and beerThroughout the year.So now I get pissed in a tent.

[ceeteejackson]

'You're Doing It Wrong' by Michael M.

(A five of five star read.) ***** What a terrific read! Just as I’d have thought a book by Michael M would be – full of self deprecating humour and sarcasm. But also with a touch of personal introspection. ‘You’re Doing It Wrong‘ is a brilliant insight to the life of a gigging band. In my younger years, I always imagined this to be a glamorous, easy lifestyle. It was only when my own two sons…

[ceeteejackson]

India Times - (Part 2) - Mumbai.

Mumbai is only an hour’s flight north of our apartment in Goa. Never-the-less, it still meant a 4 am departure by taxi to Dabolim Airport. Thankfully, our plane left from the older, though recently renovated of Goa’s two airports, and was reached after only a twenty-five minute drive as opposed to an hour or so to Manohar (Mopa) International Airport. I had wanted to visit Mumbai for many years…

[ceeteejackson]

'How To Survive ...' - exciting news!

EXCITING, OR WHAT?While on holiday, I received word from my publisher (Hey! Get me! ‘Publisher’ eh?) that the two books they asked me to ‘ghost write’ have now been sent to the printers. Each book has an initial print-run of 5,000 copies! That kinda tickles me, that does. 😀 It’s still a wee while till publication date as the distribution will have to be sorted and the promo work stepped up.…

[ceeteejackson]

Hello ... I wish to register a complaint.

Hello. I’m British. So, of course, it’s a ‘given’ that I should incessantly complain about the weather. “It’s too hot; it’s too cold; it’s too wet; it’s too dry; it’s too windy; too icy; too snowy; to dreigh.” We even do, “Isn’t it lovely today today … tomorrow’s bound to be crap though.” But wait.. I’m also Scottish. This means it’s hard-wired into my psyche to complain about not only the…

[ceeteejackson]

Hi - my name's CeeTee - and I'm a Pickleball addict.

Yeah, ok – well, I am kinda obsessed with my new-found sporting love, but I’ve still not lost my passion for football (soccer) and athletics (track and cross country, especially.) In my younger years, I competed in both to a reasonably high level. And that was the trouble – I was equally (quite) good at both – not so much as to gain any national recognition or anything like that, but decent…

[ceeteejackson]

India Times - (Part 1)

. Well – that’s a wrap. Or as they (might) say in India, ‘that’s a dosa.’ Twenty-four hours, an hour-long taxi ride to the airport and three flights later, we arrived back at Glasgow airport, Scotland, on Sunday evening. By the time we got to bed later, it was 46 hoiurs since we last slept – other than dozing the odd ten minutes or so on the planes. Knackered? You bet! But it was all so worth…

[ceeteejackson]

Wild animals ... well, they sure wouldn't be happy!

The Weemon Haggis. Do I ever see wild animals? Well, yes … and no. Sadly, they’re in a bit of a squishy state and surrounded by turnip and potato when I see them, but I bet they were more than a little bit wild when caught. These little critters don’t go without a fight, you know. There are several species of Haggis native to Scotland, generally all found in the more mountainous regions of the…

[ceeteejackson]

My Favourite Place.

I’ve been very fortunate to have visited so many wonderful places, near and far. Here in UK, the holiday town of Blackpool in north west England gets a bit of a bad rap for being ‘cheap and tacky.’ But I love it! There is just something so quintessentially British about it. Then, here in Scotland, the beauty of our countryside, especially to the north, is simply breathtaking. However, I guess…

[ceeteejackson]

Sorry ... what was that? (Part 3 - Thank you. Goodnight.)

(Fight Like Apes) (Continued from Part 1 , here.) (Continued from Part 2, here.) THANK YOU! GOODNIGHT! During the years I combined writing for Artrocker magazine with my own Loud Horizon blog, I received in excess of 1500 promo copies of CD albums, EPs and singles. Every one was listened to with a view of reviewing. I resolved however, it was sometimes better to say (write) nothing at all…

[ceeteejackson]

Sorry ... what was that? (Part 2 - Open House.)

(Some of my Apollo era ticket stubs.) (Continued from Part 1 , here.) OPEN HOUSE. So, Bo Ningen would be last band I’d see ‘live.’ That was back in 2012, coincidentally around the same time as I stopped writing for Artrocker magazine. (I had some time earlier interviewed Bo Ningen for a three page feature.) Artrocker specialised in new music, art and fashion. The featured music, as the name…

[ceeteejackson]

Sorry ... what was that? (Part 1)

(Ticket stubs from a fraction of the gigs I attended between 2000 and 2012) I don’t suppose I should be at all surprised my hearing is so crap! All those years of gig-going have taken their toll. It was fun while it lasted, though! A post I read at the weekend on the Glasgow Apollo Facebook page, prompted me to think about the number of concerts I had been to. But, you know, I couldn’t put a…

[ceeteejackson]

'We Solve Murders' by Richard Osman.

(A four of five star read.) ***** Well! You know how it is when you SO WANT to love a book; you SO EXPECT to love it, and … meh! Yeah, hashtag ‘awks’. Look, it’s still a lovely, entertaining read. It’s also a nice, light read with some funny lines and a gentle humour backing the whole story up. It’s just, I feel at four hundred and forty-four pages, there must have been a lot of padding.…

[ceeteejackson]

Tiger Tiger, burning bright ...

Tiger at a wildlife sanctuary in Karnataka, India. I have to say, I’ve forever held a special affinity with animals of all sorts. As a kid, I recall rescuing rats and mice from playful (murdering!) cats and picking up frogs and toads from the road and returning them to local ponds or burns (streams.) I was allowed the usual domesticated pets and before leaving home to get married, we as a…

[ceeteejackson]

Job's a good 'un!

Job done! My first ‘ghost writer’ assignment is done and dusted. The initial assessment and structural edits are finished, the publication date’s been set … and I’ve been paid! 😀 This is not the kind of thing I ever thought I’d be involved with, but if an established, ‘traditional’ publisher comes knocking, well … When asked if I’d be interested in producing these two books, I looked at the…