Spreading faster than Paris Hilton's legs after a night at the casino, the Circle of Friends Awards have been doing the rounds and I have surprisingly been awarded one by David Barber; an aspiring author (or so he says on his blog) from Scotland. In my books, he is a damn fine bloke and a damn fine (aspiring) writer. You can find his excellent blog page HERE.
The downside to this award is trying to pick only 5 blogs/writers to pass this award on to. It is never easy to pick "favourites" as there are so many people who contribute to the writing of certain stories, but my list is for the people who have had the biggest influence on my writing; people who have taken the time to encourage me and people who have read my writings and offered useful and contructive comments.
My five (in no particular order) are:
Absolutely*Kate - At The Bijou
Kate has been, from the very beginnings of my time at 6 Sentences, one of the few people who has not only encouraged my writing (even if she does have to close her eyes at the scary bits) but has also been a great friend in matters other than writing. She has mojo and moxie - bucket loads of it, in fact. She has a writing style that has no equal, and a personality to match. She has a brilliant sense of humour and knows also when to be smart and serious. You rock Kate (as usual, said in my ultra-cool accent!!)
Daniel Stine - Daniel's In China
My mate, Big Red, and I have a passion for music and Mustangs. We also like to dabble in writing as well. He has always been more than happy to read manuscripts (if I can be so cheeky as to call what I write a 'manuscript') and offer advice that is always spot-on. Even with his busy life, he always finds time for a quick hello and we have even found time to write a couple of 6S pieces together. Dan is THE MAN!!!
Harry Sanderford - Posterous
What can I say about Har? The man who christened me a Phillipstine? We both have a liking for James Lee Burke (to the point that we sent books to each other across the damn big ocean!!); we talk about the NFL; we discuss the shortcomings of modern society; we have also been known to occassionally discuss writing. Like Daniel, Harry has always been eager to read pre-posting stories of mine, always offering helpful advice and encouraging commentary. He may love a surf (I can't swim), he may like the odd flutter on the gee-gee's (gamblings bad, m'kay?) and he may live in the world's largest retirement home, but to me, Harry is fantastic value and a great friend indeed!!
Erin Cole - Listen To The Voices
Now, I realise that Erin probably has more than her fair share of awards by now (and if she doesn't, she damn well should!!) I have always found visiting Erin's blog page to be a thrill. She writes like I wish I could (and I think a lot of us feel the same way!) and I find a nicely dark and disturbing place to haunt when the mood strikes me. It was an absolute honour (yes, spelled with a 'u'...we do use the proper English language down here!!) to be asked by Erin to contribute to her 13 Days Of Horror late last year and to be included amongst some of the best writers I have come to know on the web. Erin's writing sometimes scares the shit out of me...and we wouldn't want it any other way!!!
Mike Whitney - Livin' In The Hills
Mr. Mike "Mongo" Whitney...having a fantastic sense of humour doesn't necessarily make it's way on to the page but Mike, through Mongo, does it flawlessly. Mongo is character that needs to be experienced to fully understand but once you know him, you wanna keep going back. Aside from Mongo, Mike pens some wonderful memoir-style pieces on his life on the road as a musician, or just his life in general. His music writings are fascinating - some things are better not knowing (especially with an aspiring musician for a son!) but always told in Mike's brilliant voice. He is also a gifted musician and often blogs videos of performances, or new songs as he records them. A damn fine guy and a pleasure to know!
Having done that, I would like to make special mention of the websites that have published my writings these last 12 months:
MicroHorror
Powder Burn Flash
Six Sentences
BlinkInk
6 comments:
Pssst. You were on my list too.
Excellent picks, Paul.
Too kind Paul, It's an honor to be included with the ones on this list and when I finally get around to circling the wagons you are definitely in my circle!
Hey Paullie ~ You're so much more than a sexy Aussie accent to me. You were around 6 to start'up The Big*Clink with me before it got obliterated in sinister'Septemberings ... You and I go back to pages of Dear Diary'ing where your innermost thought-rants on the negative border got some snappy comebacks from the comeback*kid. You were a joy of a trio to write with the Har guy and I ... and of course a fresh (crushable) Mustang.
You're heart. You scare me when you go terror-tales, but I close my eyes when I read them ... because they came from you, and your talents deserve encouragements. You wear size humoungous shoes to stomp on stupidity when you see it being nasty and insipid. And ... I mentioned the accent, right? And you're my friend past one of my grand writing colleagues, Paullie. (Shhh, don't let anyone know I called you that - word may get around.)
THANK*YOU Mr Philipstine. Honoured indeed I am... uh, but on the "Bookshelf of waiting patient" books, how come I didn't see any Shakespeare or Fitzgerald?
I love'ya man,
~ Absolutely*Katie ... waitin' patiently for you to showcase up AT THE BIJOU ... spotlights & popcorn, baby
I am pummeled by your generosity and kind words! Thanks so much Paul. It was fantastic to have you on my 13 Days of Horror and to be amongst your circle of writing commrades.
Sure hope you win the FH Passenger Contest; I still think it's the best one!
Thanks again for all your support.
Hey MM, thanks for the inclusion and kind words. I'm not real sure how or what the Circle of Friends" thing is but you'd be a list topper. I do have a question, when did we get related? Phillip Stine?
Paul, I missed this post somehow, But thanks for the great write-up. You are a star, mate.
Regards, David.
P.s. Love what you've done with the place. :-)
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