Kigali Catch-up

 

Doing a mammoth catch-up on the past two months in Rwanda. Sharing snippets of life from Guy Fawkes Night, to concert tuning a piano, to the cake we couldn't cut. Plus some ideas of things to do and places to go. 

Rwanda Road Trip 2024

Hi guys. Just heading on a little road trip to try to find a waterfall in eastern Rwanda. Rusumo Falls, right on the border wiht Tanzania. I've skipped over the prep video where I talk about which helmet I'm wearing and what I'm taking with me, but you can check that out here. I'll update this post as each video is released, so check back.

Proofing Sargon and Georgie Re-release

Just received proof copies of Sargon and Georgie. Georgie was the third novel I ever wrote and I'm planning to re-release it, possibly with an audiobook. Sargon is my latest novel, set in ancient Mesopotamia, charting the rise of the Akkadian Empire. Fun times ahead.

Musical Interlude: Chappell Roan

I absolutely get the hype here. This lady is a born performance artist with a really impressive voice. Every one of her songs is a total earworm. Every now and then I'm getting slight Kate Bush vibes, but that might just be a me thing? Really looking forward to more of this. Her live performances on American late night have been pretty show-stopping. 

Romantic poets didn't tend to have long careers. Keats died in 1821, Shelley the year after in 1822, and Byron two years after that in 1824. They were aged 25, 29 and 36 respectively. Yikes!

Also exploring the poetry of James Hogg, with a lovely reading by Alan McClure in the original Scots. 

Check out his YouTube channel Tales Fae the Shed, and his children's book Callum and the Mountain.

Huge thanks also to my friend Jan for her help translating to English.

 

Owen Meredith - The Darkest Poet You've Probably Never Heard Of.

Talking Poe, Shelley and vampires in this little look through the Canterbury Poets collection.

The Best things in Rwanda

Every now and then I run a poll of my viewers to figure out what the best things to do, see and eat in Rwanda are. We're up to episode two at the moment, so plenty of time to join in with future polls.

Ten Years in Rwanda!

 

Today I'm celebrating ten years since I moved back to Rwanda! I was originally a VSO volunteer from 2007-2009, then returned a few years later. I was only passing through, or so I thought, but a decade later and I'm still here! So, I've decided to share some of my favourite memories along the way.

Up a Tree on Lake Ruhondo - Treehouse Adventures

Hi guys. It's been a while - sorry!

Here's a little excursion I went on recently with my friends. We stayed in a treehouse on Lake Ruhondo and swung back past the Ellen Degeneres & Dian Fossey Fund gorilla museum in Kinigi. Enjoy!

Fantasy Library #Authortube Tag

I was tagged in on a set of questions about favourite places to read, fantasy library design, and book conversations by my friend and fellow author Margaret Pinard. If you have a YouTube channel, feel free to join in. If you don't have a channel, you can always drop your answers in the video comments.

Kwibuka 30

Absolutely astonishing to think that it was Kwibuka 13 when I first arrived in Rwanda, and now it is Kwibuka 30! I was 13 years old in 1994 and still remember watching the news coming in very clearly. Find out more about Kwibuka ('remembrance') here. And if you're interested, I've shared a bit about my experience volunteering at Kigali Memorial in 2008, and reflections on how Rwanda has changed over the years.

If Books Had a Party

Road Trip to Gisenyi

 

Hi guys. Sorry I haven't been updating much lately. I've pretty much exclusively switched over to YouTube and just don't have time to write blogs and make videos. Here's a little road trip I took to the north of Rwanda recently - enjoy!

Hugo Awards Need an Overhaul

Wow. The Hugo Awards are trash. I hadn't heard anything about this, but I follow this author as I'm reading their book at the moment. Jaw hit the floor. How can people like that be allowed to judge anyone's work? That's truly horrific - both their politically oppressive stance and their inability to spell the author's name. 

Toki Pona

The smallest language in the world... and utterly fascinating. Reminds me a bit of Talc Alf in the way one sign or symbol can represent so many things. Official Toki Pona site.

Oath, Boast, Toast 2024

For the past couple of years, my annual Oath, Boast and Toast has moved over to YouTube. Let me know if you've made any resolutions in the comments below.