Going Travellin'!

Imperial War Museum. Photo by Rae Gee.

At the moment I'm planning. It's one of my favourite things to do. Some people call it day dreaming. I call it "planning". Mostly it involves staring at ebay and debating the universe.

Presently I'm planning for both the Asylum in September and Whitby Goth Weekend in October. Weekends I'm looking forward to, especially as my dear friend Rach will be coming with me. It's going to be great and, out of the two of us, I can't decide who's more excited! (Have you chosen your outfits yet, Rach?!)

They're both still a couple of months away but, as with everything this year, they're going to creep up on us. Suddenly it'll be BAM! And we're on our way! There's so many things to think about. Clothes, hotels (booked!), what we're taking to hand out, what we're going to see, who we're going to see. So if you're going to be at either of them, drop a comment and we'll come and see you. :)

And there's something new happening. Type in www.raegee.co.uk and see what happens!

Well, that's just given me an excuse to do a bit more shopping!
Much love to you all and thank you for reading. And, to those across the pond, Happy Independence Day!

Where's Rae?!

It's a bit like "Where's Wally?", except with me taking the lead role. I've become very good at hiding myself around the internet so here's a list of places to find me. Should you choose to, of course! Feel free to come over and say hello. The kettle is always on so a cup of tea is most certainly guaranteed!

Facebook
Good Reads
Twitter (Veetu Industries branded)

Veetu Industries (the company the series takes its name from) also have their own Facebook. There you'll find clever quips, what the company are creating and recommendations from the characters. Be warned: sarcastic replies are the norm!

Veetu Industries Facebook

Kitty Rescue!

Gosh, you all must see a million posts like this every day, but I'm still going to write it.

This cartoon reduced me to tears, made me find the cat (well, he's not ours. He's the neighbours. But he spends enough time here!) and give him a huge hug. He's a rescue cat, adopted from the shelter when he was about a year old. That's still a kitten to most of us but probably old enough to have not adopted by many.

If you're going to adopt (and we highly recommend it!), think about adopting an older animal. They're just as much fun, and just as loving. The next cat is definitely going to be an older one. Can't wait!

Facebook Updates from Erus Veetu

"Teamwork is a lot of people doing what I tell them to." - Erus Veetu.

Erus Veetu recommends "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-War-Sun-Tzu/dp/161382288X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1340987749&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+war

Erus Veetu recommends "Willing Slaves" by Madeleine Bunting
http://www.amazon.com/Willing-Slaves-Madeleine-Bunting/dp/000716372X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340987784&sr=1-1&keywords=willing+slaves

Follow Erus on Facebook at Veetu Industries

Hell in a Handbasket

Well, not really! It's too hot and sticky to think properly so I'll leave you with this photo. Unfortunately, despite having both cat and handbasket of my own, I'm having to use stunt cat and handbasket.

If you want to understand why this photo is here, you'll have to read the book. ;) Links are in the "Where To Buy The Book" page. Thanks to I Can Has Cheezburger for the photo!

Think this...

... might have to be the new sign for the office door!

May also correct it to "Please Do Not Feed The Weapons Engineer".

(I like putting funny signs on my doors! Suggestions are welcome!)

A Wee Rant on the Cult of the Kindle

I don't rant very often but this one has gotten my goat as of late...

Buy your Kindle now! Available online or from all good stores!

What is it with the Kindle which has taken the world by storm? I wanted an e-reader so I went and did my research. Like everything I own, I brought one which wouldn't mind taking the odd tumble. And the Kobo is serving me just fine on that mark. It gets thrown in my work back, gets tossed onto the desk and has seen the occasional drop of water. Verdict? Perfect for accident prone Rae.

Unfortunately, a lot of the books I want to read, the ones by new and indie authors, never appear on the Kobo website. So I go searching for a purchasable PDF. More often than not, I come up against a brick wall.

They're just not there. So why do so many people seem to publish for Kindle only? Why does it have such a stranglehold on the market? Do publishers stipulate they'll only publish for the Kindle? Or is it some clause which Amazon have? One of the reasons I signed with the publisher I did is because they release it on as many platforms as they can. You can purchase a book from their site and the zip file they send will have formats which work on every reader. If you want a print copy, they'll point you in the right direction. If you want it for the Kindle, the iPad or your mobile phone, they'll point you in the right direction.

So why do so many people seem obsessed with the Cult of the Kindle? Surely one is limiting themselves by only releasing it on a single platform?

One friend of mine had only published for the Kindle and I had to twist her arm to publish on other platforms. Once she did, she found her sales increasing. Others have told me to get the Kindle app for the computer. I have it but I seldom use it. Why? 1. I spend enough time at this machine as it is. And 2. I can't really curl up with my laptop or my desktop (well, I can with the laptop but it's not very comfortable. I've tried!).

I want to read! I want to discover new authors and fantastic books. But sometimes I feel like I'm being a little limited. My fault for buying something other than a Kindle? Or another reason?

Agree? Or disagree? Can you answer any of the questions in the post? Feel free to drop it in a comment!