Come Along to the Next ABCtales Live Event!

ah well, have a great night you guys. Liana, take that pic of me and stick it to a pint glass will ya? (cover up the fish)... (the fish in my pic, not THE FISH)... (unless she gets drunk and naked and needs covering of course)...(but I guess you'd do that anyway as a mate so no need to tell you that)

We're all looking forward to meeting and greeting you and then falling over. It should be a splendid evening.

Camera charged and ready for blackmail pics. Oh sod it, I'll video the crimes as well. I suppose I'd better have a shave and wash my hair, I can't allow Lofty too much room for criticism. (James, I'll send all incriminating pics over the weekend.)

Abctales events have taught me that prose can be performed just as effectively as poetry. I've heard some really, really good stuff there - the standard is sometimes nerve-rackingly high.

I'll be there. I went once and Fish and Martin T were there. We got told off for laughing and mucking about at the back. Heady days...

KJ, Unfortunately our reasons for asking Jason Peglar to appear at the ABCtales event are the complete opposite of the worthiness you attribute to us. He's someone we know, like and respect who's written a bestselling book and is happy to come and read for us. That said, we unashamedly don't and have never claimed to promote 'pure writing, or the pursuit of imagination, characters or indeed form.' We're not against those things either but the point of ABCtales is, and has always been, that everyone has a story to tell and the site (and by extension, our live events) provide a forum for them to do so. This can mean poems or short stories. It can mean life stories. It can mean rants or anything else people want to post on the site. But the reason why Jason's reading for is that he's both increasingly well known and also very good.

Since it looked like the moon was just about full last night I expect it to be a very interesting occasion and I'm sorry that I will not be there to join in the fun... I look forward to the accounts, reports and photos though :)

KJ - first and foremost Jason is coming to read because he's written a very good book and one that is both informative, witty and stimulating as well as profoundly dark. I think you will be pleasantly surprised if you come along - and I hope you do. As for the other readers - they are some of the very best of ABC and I think you'll enjoy them. These are most definitely NOT pompous, pious or worthy events. They are relaxed, informal, fun and very good. We do have a social mission at ABC and I'm proud of that. Talecatching is fundamental to our reason for starting the site in the first place. I do try very hard to make ABC a place where self empowerment, self confidence, free and interesting discussion and other such 'worthy' aims are pursued - but I also try to make it happen without ramming my philosophy down anyone's throat. Use ABC as it suits you, sir, and take what you want from it.

plus it's fun when stormy takes a tumble, grown men falling over is always funny

For one exhilirating moment I thought I was being described as 'worthy'. Kj - I am really looking forward to the event - you should go if only to see a grown woman's face tremble like a recently decapitated chicken. Seriously though, abc - to me - has always been 'worthy' in the best sense of the word, and *also* about writing. I like that combination. I like the fact that this is the only place on the web I can go and know that the core of it, the reason for it's existence, is not for a group of pompous self congratulators to spout on about the great import of literature. It seems to me that the management here - who I have never met and can only go by what they post here and other projects they are involved with - are all avid readers, interested in words, imagination, ideas AND about promoting a fairer society where everyone's say is as important as the next persons and where words are there to empower everybody, not just the overtly uber-literate few. I like that. It makes me come back. It makes me tell everyone I meet about this site. And it makes it the only place I feel truly happy and genuine about posting my work. So - forget about splitting 'worthy' and 'imaginative' down the middle - they can co-exist, and that might be something that makes Thursday even more enjoyable than your typical literary back-pat.

ooh, someone hit me - I used it's instead of its.

Well I'm probably off now and might not get on here tomorrow before the evening. So see you all there. Yehhaaa.

*struggling with large pontificate hatum in windum* Blessum Abc eventum...pip-pipum...cardinalum...much boozeum...Hallelujaum... *sprinkles holy abcmugful of Famous Grouse into mouth*

So are you coming, KJ, or no?

Or arriving even.

ha! I meant: Are you going to the event? *coughs*

Yes, honey we all KNOW what you meant, I just can't resist the cheap shot.

Nothing wrong with a cheap shot. I'm all for them.