Early in the week I attended the funeral of an old friend. It reminded me of the old movie, “Goodbye, Mr Chips”. He’d been a teacher and had just retired at the end of last year. He was one of those wonderful educators who poured his life into his work and into his students, which explains the number of young people who attended his service. They loved him and so they should. He’d wanted to make a difference and he achieved that beyond measure. Inspiring stuff. As I listened to the accolades and noted his accomplishments I was challenged: what have I done to make a difference? What have I achieved? What will they find to say about me when I’ve kicked the bucket? (That’s right: it’s all about me!)

The Old Boy and I made a hasty retreat, before the majority of the mourners had left their seats to put a sprig of rosemary on the coffin. Quite frankly we’ve been to just too many of these events, lately. But, on the way out a friend told me that my writing was an inspiration to him. He doesn’t know it but that made me cry. You see, I’d been wondering in the past few weeks – yet again – if I was wasting my time writing and trying to get published. It was as if God himself said, ‘Don’t give up.’

Then, a couple of days ago I received a call from Australian e-book Publishers (www.australianebookpublisher.com.au). I had submitted to them earlier this year. They telephoned me (I’m so impressed) to see if I would consider their offer and I said, yes. Okay, it’s not a proper paper book. Yes, it’s an e-book. Yes, I’m aware of my previous comments on “real” versus “techno” books. But, you can’t say I’m not flexible. It may be coincidence but I’m choosing to see the hand of the Big Guy in the timing of this.

 Beast-speaker  is the story of two friends who are kidnapped and taken to a foreign city, to become child-soldiers. Their captors regularly capture children from other places to stock their army. One friend has the ability to converse with animals and, when he is sent to work in the stables, he makes friends with the resident camels and dragons. The other lad becomes a Patrol Leader and constantly fights to retain his humanity in an environment designed to reduce him to a killing machine. Both boys must find a way to deal with their suffering and to not let it break them. It’s Book One in a trilogy and now that it’s going to be published I can finally allow myself to write the other two books.

What does this have to do with my friend’s funeral?  He loved literature, history, the theatre and so many other things that I, also, love. We even had the same birth date. He was an inspiration to me. I’d love to be an inspiration to others. He would have been the first to encourage me to persevere, so it seems fitting that it was at his farewell that I was so encouraged to ‘soldier on’.

It’s been a strange week: three funerals in five days, a word of encouragement, a book deal, the American government pulls itself and the rest of the world back from the brink, and our current PM showed his troglodyte tendencies by repealing Carbon pricing in this country while bushfires raged near Sydney. What a roller-coaster ride!

(I’ll let you know when and where you can get my book but I’m told it’ll be out before Christmas. Doin’ the happy dance: point the toes, wave the arms, wiggle the hips.)