Welcome The International Writers Magazine JANUARY 2013

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Have a Great New Year Readers
Many thanks to the contributors past and present from all over the globe who help put Hackwriters together each month.

Jan 16th: Snow. Looks pretty and it's kinda fun watching cars slip slide all over but darn it, now I can't to London as the road over the Wolds is under pretty deep snow and to be honest it's not safe driving or sensible. The beach is covered in two or three inches of snow too at the moment, this stuff is here to stay. *Image: Barnaby discovers snow in Belgium Those utitlity bills will be coming into your inbox right now. You may need to hide. Sadly ours came in and it's huge. One of the many downsides of living at home all the time is keeping the heating on instead of letting your employer keep you warm.

Wasted some time watching Gangster Squad last week. Amazing so much money going into the making of a movie and they just can't be bothered to make a good one. Watch 'The Untouchables' and compare. I note that 'Lincoln' has made it to the top of the Oscar list. How predictable. Hasn't opened here yet, but like the Hobbit - most likely something to avoid. Thinking back to 2000 when 'Being John Malkovitch' and 'Magnolia' came out in the same year and I was thinking wow, fresh ideas, something to blow us away and we end up in 2013 with an episode of Dragnet maskerading as a movie in Gangster Squad. Maybe cinema is dying and we just can't see it - like music hall. Let's hope not. One thing that is dying, is retail on the high street. Rumours tonight at that HMV is going into adminstration. As long as Amazon doesn't pay tax on its profits it will wipe out all rivals and one day very soon we shall live in a ghost world wondering where ALL our jobs went. *Blockbuster went down today as well. I realised that I didn't even know it still existed. How things change.

Jan 1st: Well it turns out that a dog is only for Christmas - not a lifetime. Barnaby came to call for Christmas and New Year and has proven to be a major distraction from considering the non-event of the 'end of the world' and the Fiscal Cliff shennanigans. Lots of urgent walks needed on the bitter cold beach and it's amazing just how many dedicated dog owners there are out there trailing behind their hounds - poo bags in hand. But it's been a lot of fun having a mini-schnauzer here at the office and he will be much missed in the New Year. We checked our stars in the Sunday Times for the year ahead. Seems we might as well not get out of bed in 2013. Thanks Shelley - needed that. Oh well will get up anyway. Old person to feed - dogs to walk and magazine to run. The usual. The world continues despite everything. Year of the Snake coming up: conflict seems to be the main theme. Sigh.

Big plans for a new limited edition Sam Hawksmoor e-book in March. It is being proofed as we write this and cover under design. It's a new original time travel adventure that will hopefully appeal to those who have read The Repossession and The Hunting and anyone else who might be curious. Talking of which French, Brazillian and Turkish editions will be coming out in 2013 - starting in Turkey in March. So that is excellent. And oh yes, my editor Beverley Birch is retiring this month. She will be much missed by Hodder and all the children's writers she has nurtured over the years.

Kit and Barnaby departed on Friday and suddenly living up North seems a lot more isolated. But we have found some great places for coffee and only a darn pity that the dog is not allowed in. They allow kids - why not dogs?

I am avoiding any pontificating about the state of the world. My fervent hope is that Syria finds a way to peace in 2013 but perhaps that might be a wish too far. We live in uncertain times and all we can do is survive them I guess, live the best way we can. We could wish for some honest politicians though.

Our thanks go out to Kate and Christine who took the trouble to do our 'Charts' for 2013. Might not turn out to be so bad after all. We shall try to remember all the days when it says 'try not to have a family dispute' .... arghhhh.

We shall not be making any resolutions this year. Too easily broken. But here's our advice for what it is worth:
Live well - be generous to others - be optimistic that things will turn up. That's the mantra.

Happy New Year from Sam and Kit

© North & Hawksmoor January 2013 - The Editors

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Sam North is the author of Diamonds – The Rush of 72 (Print) The Great Californian Diamond Rush of 1872 - a grand American West true life story that made many rich and ruined the lives of almost everyone it touched. ipad (iTunes version)

The Repossession by Sam Hawksmoor. View the Trailer here - a fast paced edgy romantic thriller 'The Repossession... will blow your mind and keep you guessing until the very end'. A Dream of Books (SJH) 'Smart, dark and graceful, this story is sure to send chills down your spine...one of the best, and most fascinating, debut novels I've ever read'. Evie-bookish.blogspot Now shortlisted for the Leeds Book Awards 2013 And longlisted for the Amazing Books Awards in Sussex 2013 Out Now - The Hunting - the thrilling sequel - order yours from Amazon or Waterstones See Sam's previous guest editorial here: Hawksmoor

'The Repossession is an absolutely wonderful sci-fi mystery... that will never let you go.’
http://thoughtsandroses.blogspot.co.uk -

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