We are celebrating a great year for Words for the Wounded. We have launched our new prize, The Independent Author Book Award, and already have entries arriving, both for the book award, and for the shorter length competition. We're most excited.
January will bring a great feature in People's Friend about Words for the Wounded which will spread the word, and Debbie Young, of the Alliance of Independent Authors is going to put us on her own marketing blog Off The Shelf Book Promotions (for which we're heartily grateful) and our lovely Joshua Edwards, who handles our social media, has been 'shooting' us for Youtube.
I think it was when he mentioned 'close-ups' that two of the grannies blanched. The third one, Penny Deacon, was heedless as she was swimming amongst seals around the Galapagos Islands. Meanwhile Jan Speedie and I found ourselves in a complete dither.
You will have to wait until January to view this extravaganza but I give you a taster now.
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| Tony Pain, patron, and our lovely Josh setting up a shot for the moment when Tony talks of the creative arts at Tedworth House Recovery Centre, and what Words for the Wounded means to him. |
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| Here's Matt, one of our trustees, telling the camera about Combat Stress which we support in memory of my grandpa, Percy Newsome, who returned from the 1st World War seemingly untouched, only to take his life a few years later. |
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| Tony reading more about Josh's shooting script, with Jan Speedie catching up on the gossip whilst the 'grands' do their bit. |
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| Josh and the girls having fun as they prepare for their shoot. Josh kept asking if they would like to nip in and find their coats, but they insisted they were fine. He was FREEZING and longed for them to say yes, so he could 'coat up'. They talked of their efforts on behalf of Words for the Wounded and how they had raised money through their loom band WforW bracelets. They then talked to camera about Forces Support. The two grannies walked along to the common at Downley with their director, (Josh) and did their bit as various dogs added to the sound track. We dreaded the close ups and the camera had an exclusion zone. As I was being filmed, there are no more photos here today of our momentous moment. Needless to say, the moment we'd finished all three of us hot footed it to The Bricklayers Arms, just opposite, for a carvery lunch and a medicinal tot. Jan and I welcomed the chance to talk about Words for the Wounded and the skydive. We missed Penny because she enjoyed the skydive so much she'd do it again. We talked of the charities we support. Well, the charities you help us support. As you know, the grannies absorb all expenses so every penny goes to where it should. You probably know by now we feel we must earn our donations. So, as well as the writing competitions that give opportunities to aspiring writers, the grannies took to the sky in the summer. Next year we think we've decided to try and sort out the Mud Challenge, which seems to consist of getting very very muddy as we heave ourselves over, and under, and through various obstacles which go on for several miles. We are hoping that some of the younger members like Matt and Kris join us to help toss us over some of the exceedingly high 'thingies' So, for now, thank you for helping us help those who return with life changing injuries, and not only the wounded, but the bereaved, who we consider are also wounded. A very merry Christmas and a happy new year from all of us here. |
