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Sorry I’ve been quiet lately. Family events took over. My dear step-father went into hospital in October for a cancer operation. After three hospital stays and traumatic times at home, he finally died in hospital on 8 December. I was with him up until an hour before he died. The funeral was yesterday. It was… Continue reading Sad Times

I’m living in nanoworld at the moment. I’m working on my latest manuscript “Written in the Coffee” and taking part in the annual NaNoWriMo challenge – National Novel Writing Month 2012. This means that I need to find constant stimulation for my plot and novel content.   As I drive my son to school, I… Continue reading In Nanoworld

Remembrance Day   How would I feel if it were you? My lovely healthy strong young son. Yet if times were different You would have no doubt gone To foreign fields of death and pain. Grown up quickly, become a man. Seen things no sane person should have seen. While I spent my time wondering… Continue reading A Poem for Remembrance Day

Walking down the road today, it was lovely to see how many people were wearing poppies. There were a fair number of cars and lorries sporting them too. It struck me that so many people from so many different walks of life are united by the simple act of buying and wearing a poppy. One… Continue reading United by Remembrance

Sue Johnson, Heather King and I visited Croome Court, a National Trust property in Worcestershire last Friday. Even the shuttle bus seemed to know that we were writers.   Shuttle Bus We were blessed with a lovely day. Heather King writes Regency novels and kept scribbling madly in her notebook about things like fan etiquette! Heather has… Continue reading Writers’ Outing

I’ve been missing! My guilt at not posting on my blog is growing HUGE! Then I tell myself that everyone has times when everything seems a little overwhelming. Step-Dad got through his cancer operation okay. My mother has found it hard, especially as she likes her space and my step-brother and step-sister have been staying… Continue reading Morton Gray – AWOL

We had a wonderful weekend. Saturday morning found us striding around Attingham Park in Shropshire. We even had a close encounter with some deer. I’ve often seen them in the distance at Attingham, but never this close. Hubbie then headed for Chirk Castle. I had forgotten the breath-taking view and the glorious gardens. This year… Continue reading Making the most of every day

I attend a term time writing class at No 8 Community Centre in Pershore, Worcestershire. It is run by Sue Johnson, who featured on my blog in August 2011. Her website can be found here. Pershore is a lovely place to visit and shop, with its Abbey and large park. Ellie Swoop and I joke… Continue reading Why I attend a regular writing class.

So what have I been up to? Writing-wise, there was the wonderful RNA conference (I still have more sessions to share here), the return of my critiqued RNA New Writers’ Scheme manuscript and lots of fun writing. My critiqued novel made me think about my direction as a writer and I am now on a… Continue reading Where Has The Summer Gone?

Guest Author – Donna Douglas Today I am pleased to have an interview with author Donna Douglas. We met at the RNA conference in Penrith and I was fascinated by the background research she has been doing for her books. Donna’s novel The Nightingale Girls is published by Arrow on 16 August 2012.   Donna’s… Continue reading Untitled