Media interest..?

BBC Wales have commissioned two half hour programmes, each one to focus on a Welsh community in the Great War. One of the towns is Swansea and I have been approached to see if I would want to contribute to the programme in some way.

Production begins in early May and is estimated to take six weeks to complete from research to editing.

I might be able to help though, after sweating blood for a year on 'Swansea in the Great War', any efforts on my part have to be made worthwhile by the BBC. Not keen on handing over my research for a 'token gesture' on the part of the BBC!    

We'll see...

Evening Post article today...

An article I wrote a while back was re-featured today by the Evening Post as part of its ongoing Great War coverage.

It was the story of Captain John Stanley Strange and his service in the Swansea Battalion.

There will be more articles in the Post as the months go on to August 2014.

NOTE: NOT ALL THE ARTICLES THAT APPEAR IN THE POST ARE INCLUDED IN THE BOOK!

I CAN'T DRIP FEED THE UNPUBLISHED BOOK TO THE NEWSPAPER...

Bernard Lewis
18 February 2014 

Swansea in the Great War

Draft book now being proof read prior to publication in October 2014.

I will be contributing occasional articles on Swansea in the Great War to the South Wales Evening Post in the coming months though some of those will be stories which didn't quite make it into the book. If anyone has any queries or is interested in getting a copy of the book when published, contact me here!

Bernard Lewis
14 February 2014

Off to the publisher!!!

'Swansea in the Great War' (81,000+ words and 243 images) goes off to Pen and Sword Books on Monday, 13 January 2014, for publication in October 2014.

Too late for new information now but if you think you'd be interested in the book please send me a message via this blog.

Feet up for a bit now!

Bernard Lewis

The final lap...

All stories now sorted, chapters defined and intro written. Its now just down to a final edit, indexing, choosing the images (about 200 of them) and writing the captions. Not counting at present but in excess of 80,000 words.

A writer's lot is not (always) a happy one...its been a hard, but enjoyable, slog. Almost ready to send off the final draft to the publisher by 6 January 2014 for publication in October 2014.

'Swansea in the Great War'...out next year!

DORA...its not a lady!

DORA was the Defence of the Realm Act 1914 (with a few subsequent amendments).

It gave the Government a lot of powers over the lives of the citizens of Britain. Public, factory, and shop etc. lighting in some parts of the country had to be dimmed to minimise the risk of German Zeppelin airships using the lights as a guide as to where to drop their bombs. It was also forbidden to sketch in some parts of Swansea - the docks and Mumbles being examples. One chap was arrested at Mumbles when it was realised that he'd been drawing the fort...he might be a spy!

'Swansea in the Great War' - chapters decided upon...

Now up to about 60,000 words (and I've got lots of illustrations, too) on 'Swansea in the Great War' which will be published in October 2014 and the chapter topics have been decided on as well.

They are (apart from the usual acknowledgements, introduction etc.,):

Recruiting and Conscientious Objection; The Treatment of Foreign Aliens; Medical Services in Swansea; The effect of the War on Industry; The Problem of Food Supply; Women and the War; Relief Efforts for those at Home or at the Front; Tales from the Front (Swansea's two VC winners; other short stories on those who served on land, on sea or in the air); Swansea's Foreign Legion; The War According to Captain Blackadder; Remembrance.

Now in the final stages of writing and correcting.