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K E Shaw

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first registered 18.07.12

last online 1 day ago

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about me

I'm a freelance photographer, but I've hung up the camera to concentrate on writing for a time.
I live in a seaside village just outside of Cape Town. We always swore we'd move if they put up the first traffic light in the town - and now they have. We might be moving soon.

I did a BA in Archaeology, English and Psychology, and still have an enduring interest in all three, plus a love of celtic mythology. I've poached my author-name from the Irish Mum and Gran. I tend to go through phases where I immerse myself in learning about something new, so my real-world bookshelf is jammed with all-sorts.

Hobbies? All sorts in the past (diving, sailing, drawing, graphic design, Tarot, astronomy, astrology, furniture making etc...) But here's the current list. Surfing. More surfing. Growing herbs for home-made remedies. Occasional surfski-paddling.

As a kid growing up in various locations around the UK, ancient ruins enthralled me- far more than they ought to for a child of that age....
Five years of high-school Latin and a mad Latin teacher instilled me with a love of all things relating to the classical ancient world. She was also our English teacher, the lady who turned me on to Tolkien. Thank you, Mrs Maddock.


The Seventh Gate is complete.
Only a part uploaded here - full MS available on request.
Hoping to find beta-readers here.
Book 2 is nearing completion

Currently seeking representation. My email address is as follows:
piperemcdermot(at)gmail(dot)com

NB! For readers/comments:

Constructive feedback is greatly welcomed. Heartfelt thanks to all who've commented and advised so far - I've learnt so much in a short time.

Happy to read swop. If you ask, please go first. If I ask, I'll go first.
I read plenty of non-fiction off-line, but NOT here. Don't ask me to. Please.

I like to get more pages for my money.
I like Doorstops. BFB's. I need bigger bookshelves, or more doors in my house.

By all means, spam me. I only really get annoyed if I can see it's a splatter-gun approach without the slightest interest in me or my ms. Try to entertain me, or be interesting, or wonderfully sweet. I am busy writing and editing, so I'm slightly behind with my reads - but I will catch up. You'll have a much better chance if you read me first.
If your spam indicates you haven't read this far, I'll be happy to copy and paste my entire bio to your message box.

I shelve books I like - that's it.

favourite books

I am useless at lists - I obsess over them. These books and authors are those that have been an inspiration, in one way or another, in my life since I could first read.

As a child: Elyne Mitchell's Silver Brumby books
Paul Gallico: The Snow Goose (had this on vinyl)

Robin Hobb - most of her work (Farseer & Tawny Man)
Jill Patton Walsh: Knowledge of Angels
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Annie Barrows: The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society;
JRR Tolkien: LotR and The Hobbit
Diana Gabaldon
James Michener
Charles Dickens
Robin L Graham: Dove
Jack London: Call of the Wild
Gavin Maxwell: Ring of Bright Water
Richard Adams: Watership Down ; Duncton Wood
Rosemary Sutcliffe: Eagle of the Ninth
T H White - The Once and Future King
Richard Bach: the Reluctant Messiah, Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Gregory D Roberts: Shantaram
Mende Nazar: Slave
Ursula Le Guin - Earthsea series
Terry Goodkind
Joy Adamson
Carlos Castaneda
Colleen McCullough
Frank Herbert: Dune Series
S R Donaldson: Chronicles of Thomas Covenant
Jane Austen & Charlotte Bronte

And though it's probably not the thing to say for various reasons: Shakespeare.
many, many more.............




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my websites

http://www.facebook.com/theseventhgatebook1    

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my books

The Seventh Gate

Piper E McDermot

Love or betrayal, duty or desire - the right choice should be easy.
Sometimes the right choice is a mistake.


The ancient standing stones on theTor are dangerous. Legends say the Stones can snatch the unwary into the Otherworld. Rumour has it that this was the fate of Elen, one-time heir to the throne of Erintír .
Thirty years later, in the midst of civil war, the Gate-Stones spit out a mysterious foreigner.

Nyani's homeland is further from Erintír than can be measured in miles. Grieving for her dead husband, she’s discovered that ultimately, her mother Elen is to blame for her loss. Now she is seeking both revenge and absolution for her mother’s mistakes.

Donn’s entire life has been shaped by Erintír's conflict with the renegade druid, Athairne. It’s a fight Donn intends to win.

Thrown together by chance and the Gate-Stones, Nyani and Donn are both keeping dangerous secrets. Unaware of the true consequences, each makes a fateful choice - and discovers even the best of intentions can go horribly awry.

And there are other, unseen forces to contend with. Forces that come from far beyond the Seventh Gate.

***Inspired by Celtic mythology, this is the story of two people each struggling to define their own identity and find their life’s course, in the process discovering one another.

 

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latest

judoman wrote 1 day ago

hello matey I hope is well Dean :)

Kaseli wrote 8 days ago

Dear K E Shaw, I was wondering if you'd be interested in giving my ....

Mitfordgirl wrote 11 days ago

Kim Thank you so much for such wonderful constructive comments. ....

Jaclyn Aurore wrote 14 days ago

oh good, the review made sense lol I was thinking I should have rerea....

James Blond wrote 14 days ago

Thank you The hat is very old and has much history. I wish you a....

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my comments

latest

I wrote 11 days ago

Caroline, I popped by your book after seeing you in the forum, and now I’ve just finished all you’ve uploaded. Come on - you just can’t leave me hanging like that - I have to know what happens next! On that note, I was beginning to wonder exactly what David H sees in Kitty - her conversations wi... view book

I wrote 31 days ago

I read this first chapter, many moons ago, and then again dipped in briefly for one of those 3-word only reviews - and I still remember it. I think all that may have been before you made some changes. Now it is just as haunting - and disturbing - but it's grown into something truly special that gr... view book

I wrote 40 days ago

RCG review - My Life without Me 1)Pitch – SP - perfect. LP also great, nothing to add here. 2)Characterization Initially I found it easy to connect to Jamie, but then it all went pear-shaped in the men’s bathroom (detail below)...the humorous moments there were great, but almost not enough to... view book

I wrote 41 days ago

WTF Review - Ebo Hang on! I’ve actually read this ch 1 before several weeks ago - I remember the opening verse and the scene with Mulos in the Tuareg camp. For the life of me, I don’t know where my comment went - I probably did it in a word doc and forgot to paste it to the book. So sorry! On... view book

I wrote 41 days ago

Hi Pat, This is just a quicky return comment as I came by to see how Devereux is doing (I'll come back later for the WTF chapter read). Your pitch is looking fabulous these days. It feels like it has really got to the heart of the story, and grown since Club G days - reads like a charm, very poli... view book

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