You want more of the saga? Here it is

First Sunday in October. Checking out the connection between Earl Rivers and Carisbrooke Castle shows me once again he is overlooked. I own two postcards showing the Woodville Gate but in current books it is shown as the Entrance Gate (not the same thing at all) English Heritage has completely overlooked his Lordship of the Island and his work there and the postcard person who has a website has it wrongly designated. I’ve sent emails … and will proceed with the plan to write a small local booklet about Earl Rivers and his Island association. I’ve sent an email to a publisher who has small slim booklets in the local Tourist Information to see if I can interest them. They have one just on the church which belongs to Osborne House. That’s a pretty narrow market by anyone’s standard. Next visit will be to Carisbrooke Castle, not been there yet. I wanted to wait until the tourists had gone home, I need to walk and absorb and I can’t do that if it is over run with people. It’s open all year; I can go any time. I do know they need a decent guide book, the one I bought is pathetic. Just been on line and there is no other. I’ve just emailed them to say hey, look, your book is pathetic, how about getting yourself a decent one done and by the way, you left Earl Rivers out completely and have changed the name of his tower! See what answer I get.

Follow up: publisher said it was an interesting concept but not sure if it was commercially viable. I emailed back with all bookshops, WH Smith, the Castle itself, all Tourist Information Offices … and pointed out the fact that their booklet on St Mildreds is very much a limited market. See what I get back. Nothing else has come in, yet.

But – I misfiled an email the other day and went looking for it by starting at the top, looking in the first folder which is dedicated to abebooks.com and that reminded me that the bookseller had not been able to supply The Wardrobe Accounts of Edward IV. Yes, deadly dull and boring, but it refers to the Earl being given a gown, so I need it. The bookseller’s car was stolen, allegedly, with all books in it … he is supposed to be giving me a refund. I am still waiting … so that set me looking for the book. My first trawl through abebooks.com turned up nothing, so I went to Questia and spent an hour reading and copying pages from some very obscure books indeed, by entering yet another spelling of the Earl’s name. I’ve now checked him out under Woodville, Wydeville, Wodeville, Rivers and Ryvers. This last one produced yet more references which are downloaded and printed.

Then, armed with the correct title of the Wardrobe Accounts, (earlier I typed in Wardrobe Book) I went back to abebooks.com and secured a copy of the Privy Accounts of Elizabeth Grey and the Wardrobe Accounts of Edward IV. Now I’ve covered three people, the earl, Edward IV and his queen, all of whom are to be written about at some point in my writing future, before I finally metaphorically lay down my pen (mouse) (keyboard). That then meant adding these titles to the bibliography of the biography, because if I don’t keep a constant running list of what I am reading, there is no way I will remember when I get to the end of the book. One small diversion cost me an hour’s writing time but what invaluable items have come out of it! (Apart from spending yet more money on books…)