Empty Bananas, the first Kindle eBook in the Malinding Village series is, as promised, on free offer for four days from Sunday 22/05/2016. It's the revised, corrected version.
Hope it tempts you to buy the other books and support GOES!
Best wishes,
Tom
Sunday, 22 May 2016
Saturday, 21 May 2016
How it works
Every little helps, they say. Well, here's an example. GOES is funding the travel from a small Gambian village to Dakar in Senegal of a young boy. He needs urgent medical treatment that isn't available at home. So, they asked and we agreed to help. The funding came from the sales of a couple of dozen 'Malinding Village' eBooks, an eBay sale of a couple of donated items, part of a regular monthly gift-aided donation (thanks A - you know who you are!) and a bit of topping up from us.
I received a text message from the little boy's father yesterday - they've arrived safely in Dakar (in spite of the Gambian/Senegal border being closed) and the child will be attended to in the hospital today.
Every little helps! (Please keep buying the books - you never know who is going to benefit!)
Best wishes,
Tom
I received a text message from the little boy's father yesterday - they've arrived safely in Dakar (in spite of the Gambian/Senegal border being closed) and the child will be attended to in the hospital today.
Every little helps! (Please keep buying the books - you never know who is going to benefit!)
Best wishes,
Tom
Wednesday, 18 May 2016
Advert! Buy the bloomin' book! GOES needs your money, we've got humanitarian work to do!
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Monday, 16 May 2016
Gift Aid and dandelions ...
Dandelions are persistent garden weeds or charming wild flowers - depends on your point of view. Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HMRC) are money-sucking vampires or a wonderful body of people who devote their lives to supporting small charities like GOES. Again, depends on your point of view! I'll settle for charming wild flowers (then I don't have to waste time pulling them up) and wonderful people who help GOES!
So, sorry for the desert of time unruffled by my blogging ... I'm trying to convert the back garden to a very small wild flower meadow. I did initially suppose that I could leave nature to her own devices and that one morning I would wake up and see a sight of breath-taking beauty. Not so. I'll try to give M.N. a helping hand.
I knew from past experience that claiming Gift Aid would involve some effort on my part. Oddly, and I know that I'm tempting fate, this time it seems to be going (fingers crossed) fairly well. True, I had lost both my HMRC Identity and password, but I cried for help and both items arrived last week. The GA site opens up, I've managed to download the practice claim sheet. I haven't managed to fill the details in yet, and the form itself looks like gibberish but I'll keep trying. But not any longer today: it's time to watch 'Pointless' and read the paper.
If you're thinking of helping GOES you might like to buy one or more (there are 7 of them) of the Malinding series of eBooks from Amazon. The first one, Empty Bananas, has been re-written recently. It almost makes sense now ... almost!
Best wishes,
Tom
So, sorry for the desert of time unruffled by my blogging ... I'm trying to convert the back garden to a very small wild flower meadow. I did initially suppose that I could leave nature to her own devices and that one morning I would wake up and see a sight of breath-taking beauty. Not so. I'll try to give M.N. a helping hand.
I knew from past experience that claiming Gift Aid would involve some effort on my part. Oddly, and I know that I'm tempting fate, this time it seems to be going (fingers crossed) fairly well. True, I had lost both my HMRC Identity and password, but I cried for help and both items arrived last week. The GA site opens up, I've managed to download the practice claim sheet. I haven't managed to fill the details in yet, and the form itself looks like gibberish but I'll keep trying. But not any longer today: it's time to watch 'Pointless' and read the paper.
If you're thinking of helping GOES you might like to buy one or more (there are 7 of them) of the Malinding series of eBooks from Amazon. The first one, Empty Bananas, has been re-written recently. It almost makes sense now ... almost!
Best wishes,
Tom
Thursday, 28 April 2016
I should be writing another book ...
... but there's a family of Robins between me and the writing shed and I
mustn't disturb the babies!
Sorry the picture isn't brilliant but they chased away the window cleaner too!
However, we have managed to do some work: we finally managed to deliver a donation raised by our friend Stuart to the school he's sponsoring in a small village. Usually Bayba works very quickly, same or next day service, but things went wrong this time and it took a couple of weeks to settle things.
Perhaps you remember the baby boy with a suspected cancerous growth of the eye? With the help of #VRWG (Vale Royal Writers Group) we supported the family on their trip to Dakar (Senegal) to have successful treatment and we've just sent them back for another annual check-up. The little boy is fine but we need to make sure.
More money has gone to families to make sure that this year their homes will be water proof - soon be the rainy season.
I mentioned a while ago we were ready to claim GiftAid (return of tax paid on donations) but HMRC didn't recognise last year's passwords? I've just received new ones from them so tomorrow is Gift Aid Day (as soon as I can find the paperwork ...)
The revised, edited, corrected, apologised for version of Empty Bananas, the first in the eBook series about the imaginary Gambian village of Malinding is back on sale. Yes, I'm dropping hints!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AGQZC96 might find it. (I'm not good at this link thingy - there must be an easier way!
mustn't disturb the babies!
However, we have managed to do some work: we finally managed to deliver a donation raised by our friend Stuart to the school he's sponsoring in a small village. Usually Bayba works very quickly, same or next day service, but things went wrong this time and it took a couple of weeks to settle things.
Perhaps you remember the baby boy with a suspected cancerous growth of the eye? With the help of #VRWG (Vale Royal Writers Group) we supported the family on their trip to Dakar (Senegal) to have successful treatment and we've just sent them back for another annual check-up. The little boy is fine but we need to make sure.
More money has gone to families to make sure that this year their homes will be water proof - soon be the rainy season.
I mentioned a while ago we were ready to claim GiftAid (return of tax paid on donations) but HMRC didn't recognise last year's passwords? I've just received new ones from them so tomorrow is Gift Aid Day (as soon as I can find the paperwork ...)
The revised, edited, corrected, apologised for version of Empty Bananas, the first in the eBook series about the imaginary Gambian village of Malinding is back on sale. Yes, I'm dropping hints!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AGQZC96 might find it. (I'm not good at this link thingy - there must be an easier way!
Friday, 22 April 2016
Odds and ends and starting a new book ...
I had hoped to have sorted the Gift Aid claim (a scheme enabling charities to reclaim the tax paid on money donated and altogether a jolly good idea) by now but HMRC didn't recognise my passwords and ID so are having to issue new ones (I had to prove that I'm me and GOES is a genuine charity ...)
So, I'm using the time to a) re-publish the properly edited version of the first of the Malinding village series, Empty Bananas. This went well and the chapters now read in the correct order. If I can proof that this is a major revision Amazon will give everybody who has bought the faulty version the new edition. If I can't, I'll put it on free offer and inform everyone via this blog.
b) I've started a new book, hopefully not so full of faults :-) about one of the characters, Jodie Sonko.
Jodie is a young Anglo-African woman who has to cope with all sorts of difficulties and set-backs. When I've completed the first chapter I'll give a preview here.
All income from the sale of the books is paid into the GOES account before setting off to The Gambia to help people.
PS - if you haven't yet read Empty Bananas ... it should be safe to do so now!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AGQZC96
ooops! That was supposed to be a link taking you directly to the book. Drat.
Just Google Amazon then search for Empty Bananas
Fingers crossed!
Tom
So, I'm using the time to a) re-publish the properly edited version of the first of the Malinding village series, Empty Bananas. This went well and the chapters now read in the correct order. If I can proof that this is a major revision Amazon will give everybody who has bought the faulty version the new edition. If I can't, I'll put it on free offer and inform everyone via this blog.
b) I've started a new book, hopefully not so full of faults :-) about one of the characters, Jodie Sonko.
Jodie is a young Anglo-African woman who has to cope with all sorts of difficulties and set-backs. When I've completed the first chapter I'll give a preview here.
All income from the sale of the books is paid into the GOES account before setting off to The Gambia to help people.
PS - if you haven't yet read Empty Bananas ... it should be safe to do so now!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AGQZC96
ooops! That was supposed to be a link taking you directly to the book. Drat.
Just Google Amazon then search for Empty Bananas
Fingers crossed!
Tom
Monday, 18 April 2016
Sorry - been a bit busy!
I do apologise for not being in touch for a month!
The re-write of 'Empty Bananas' is complete - the characters no longer change names without warning, Ed no longer returns home while he's still there and I have remembered to say 'thank you' to Adam Vickerstaff for his brilliant cover design. I'll try to persuade Amazon to issue the new version of the ebook to all previous buyers. If that fails I'll put it on free offer for a few days after letting people know here.
The new book, the one about Jodie, is a few thousand words old and I'm trying to be a little more methodical with her story!
I'm also trying to be methodical about the Gift Aid claim this year. It used to be a simple task - I'd make a note of all the donations from people who were willing for GOES to collect the income tax they had paid on the money, add it all up, post of the claim and HMRC would send the 25% tax to the Charity account.
It's all on-line now, coded identities and passwords and downloads and uploads and I'm not given to that way of thought! I much prefer pen and ink and sticking stamps on envelopes and posting letters into a Royal Mail red post box!
You've guessed, haven't you? Yes, I've mislaid the ID code and the Passwords. I've pleaded with HMRC for assistance and I'm sure the lovely people there will be helpful. Eventually.
In the meantime I've got a couple of bikes to sell which should swell the funds! The clinic has money for fuel for the ambulance and antibiotics for the store cupboard. I've passed on a donation to the nursery school at Nema Kunku and the teachers at another school have been paid.
Thanks for your patience - I'll try to post again soon!
Best wishes to all of you
Tom
The re-write of 'Empty Bananas' is complete - the characters no longer change names without warning, Ed no longer returns home while he's still there and I have remembered to say 'thank you' to Adam Vickerstaff for his brilliant cover design. I'll try to persuade Amazon to issue the new version of the ebook to all previous buyers. If that fails I'll put it on free offer for a few days after letting people know here.
The new book, the one about Jodie, is a few thousand words old and I'm trying to be a little more methodical with her story!
I'm also trying to be methodical about the Gift Aid claim this year. It used to be a simple task - I'd make a note of all the donations from people who were willing for GOES to collect the income tax they had paid on the money, add it all up, post of the claim and HMRC would send the 25% tax to the Charity account.
It's all on-line now, coded identities and passwords and downloads and uploads and I'm not given to that way of thought! I much prefer pen and ink and sticking stamps on envelopes and posting letters into a Royal Mail red post box!
You've guessed, haven't you? Yes, I've mislaid the ID code and the Passwords. I've pleaded with HMRC for assistance and I'm sure the lovely people there will be helpful. Eventually.
In the meantime I've got a couple of bikes to sell which should swell the funds! The clinic has money for fuel for the ambulance and antibiotics for the store cupboard. I've passed on a donation to the nursery school at Nema Kunku and the teachers at another school have been paid.
Thanks for your patience - I'll try to post again soon!
Best wishes to all of you
Tom
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