A Busy Year!
2015 was probably Mascarandy’s busiest year to date!
Not only was 50 Gems of the Yorkshire Dales released but 25 Great Walkers’ Pubs of the Yorkshire Dales was commissioned and 5-9 microadventures became the norm!
In March, the first of those 5-9 microadventures didn’t quite go according to plan. A visit to Ingleborough in full winter conditions had us retreating in a whiteout. Knowing when to turn back is a vital part of being a competent walker.
I was also invited to join the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild – a great honour!
The wintry weather didn’t beat me in the end though and at the end of the month a bivvy at the Cheese Press Stone was a real highlight of the year.
The Stone is one of the 50 Gems of the Yorkshire Dales and that book was officially launched at Inglesport in May. Several copies were sold as visitors to the area discovered some gems they hadn’t known about!
The Store wrote:
We were delighted to be contacted by Mike Appleton, the author of 50 Gems of the Yorkshire Dales, as a book signing was definitely something new for Inglesport in our 37 years of trading.
The publisher Amberley Books were in contact every step of the way supplying us with flyers and posters for the store window.
Mike and Amberley books built up the tension and suspense via Twitter, Facebook and local press and the Yorkshire Post produced a great two page spread on the area a week before the event.
Before the launch we had people coming into the store, calling via telephone and contacting us on social media asking for a copy to be reserved.
On the day of the event Mike turned up about a hour before launch, introduced himself to the staff explaining his passion for the area and the reasons for promotion.
He also explained the following day that he intended to lead a walk to one of the gems and everyone was welcome to come along.
All in all we noticed an increase in footfall of customers old and new and the publication has been a good seller for ourselves and will be enjoyed by many over the coming years.
We would like to thank Mike and Amberley Books for making the launch a success and also for choosing our store for the event.
Good luck with any future ventures.
You can read about one of the Gems here.
Positive reviews for the book followed in June with both the Yorkshire Post and Westmorland Gazette featuring it heavily in their publications.
Wanderlust also carried the book on its website in a special feature and will cover it in a special guide to the UK released in the new year.
In July, another microadventure followed as well as a spot of iPhone caving and a month later some serious underground travel followed – this time to Buttersett Mines.
25 Great Walkers’ Pubs of the Yorkshire Dales was also commissioned by Amberley.
In October, a visit to one of those pubs – the iconic Tan Hill Inn – brought probably the best bivvy and microadventure of the year.
And another pub visit to the Game Cock Inn in Austwick saw a fantastic bimble around Norber and its erratics.
25 Pubs is now with its proofreader and there will be an extract here shortly!
Just a few highlights of a busy here year… more to follow in 2016!
Remember…
Prices in the Mascarandy Shop are cheaper than Amazon – and the money goes direct to the author rather than a huge corporation!
Yorkshire’s Three Peaks – The Inside Story of the Dales is now just a tenner too.
