Festival time

Every town in the land seems to be having a festival these days, and dear old Kettering is no exception. This year's KettFest was blessed with glorious weather (obviously), but could have done with a bit more publicity, and sooner. Nevertheless, a good time was had by all.

I played my part. I hosted a creative writing event in the town library at which people were invited to drop in and create a character based on the prompts I had provided. This was great fun and there were some lovely - and surprising - words written. Then I dashed around the corner to take part in a spoken word event, where I read out a story from Nine Lives and a short piece from Stripped-back Yoga. There were people taking part not just from the town, but also further afield, and organiser Kezzabelle (who took this pic of me) did a great job of coordinating it all.

My turn went down well, but I could definitely do with a bit more practice with a mic. Part of the  problem was that there was no monitor, so I couldn't hear myself through the PA, but the bigger problem was that I found it hard to stay close enough to the stand.

Anyone got any tips for me?

Kettering and New York - what's the connection?

I shall be collecting my World Book Day copies of Rebecca from the library in Kettering, where I live. The library has been in the local news recently because  a          £1 million restoration campaign has been launched, which will include restoring the building’s original parquet flooring. 

Kettering Library

I know that the library is a beautiful and impressive building. What I didn’t know is that it was originally funded by American philanthropist Andrew Carnegie - he of New York’s Carnegie Hall - when he donated £8,450. Fancy that!

I didn't know that Carnegie ploughed some of the millions he made in the American steel industry into building 2,500 free public libraries in the UK, the US and Canada. In May 1904, he broke his usual practice of anonymity by opening Kettering Library in person. During the official opening ceremony, he issued and stamped the library's first ever loan - a copy of his own book The Gospel of Wealth. It just goes to show what interest stories there are to be found under my nose.