I recently read a book by Aja Barber called Consumed which caused me to take a long, hard look at the clothes I wear, their provenance, and how the clothing industry is helping to fuel the climate crisis. I’ve really never been into fashion and have always been good at picking out great items from […]
Looking back at my reads from April – June, it appears I read a whole lot more then than the July – September months. I’m not entirely sure why; I would have thought I’d had more time for reading over the summer holidays. Perhaps it was because I was outside far more during these past […]
As I mentioned recently, I won first prize in Trip Fiction’s Voyages by Verse poetry competition. I decided to record myself reading it, so have a listen below.
I’m delighted to welcome on to my blog today Dr Christopher Hopkins, my step-great-uncle (less complicated than it sounds!). He may be turning 94 this year, but Christopher is probably the most energetic person to feature on my blog: he is an author, still plays tennis, swims and dances and answered some of these questions […]
I am over the moon to have won first place in Trip Fiction’s Voyages by Verse poetry competition. It is only more recently that I have been spending more time with poetry – both reading and writing it – and I feel really honoured to win this prize, especially as the three judges were people […]
It was really fun to be interviewed by Julie Morris, book blogger of ‘A Little Book Problem’. Like my previous interview with Jill of Jill’s Book Cafe, there were some great questions provided by Julie, such as which two famous people I’d invite along for drinks, one male and one female! Click below to discover […]
So how do I decide which books I’m going to read in this journey of only reading BAME authors during 2021? I have several pages in a big notebook where I have two lists of books that I ‘must’ read this year and books that I will ‘maybe’ read. I’m always adding to the lists […]
I loved these unusual questions I was asked by Jill Doyle of Jill’s Book Cafe Blog, such as what are my top 5 pieces of music, 5 things I can’t live without and 5 pieces of advice I’d give to my younger self. It was really fun and thought-provoking to put these answers together. Click […]
Recently, my third novel The Secret Life of Alfred Nightingale was selected by an independent publisher Backlash Press as one of their ‘curated indie’ titles. Backlash describes itself as a small, independent press publishing house dedicated to releasing work that narrates a contemplated resistance to obedience and trend. As part of their work, they take […]
There is a great deal documented about the process of writing a novel: crafting a plot and characterisation and the story arc or the editing process, for example. There has also been much written about the finished product of a book: working with an agent who then finds a publisher before cranking into life the […]