Is this best time of year for reading and writing? Out there is uninviting; even my visit to the exhibition of Rembrandt’s Late Works was hampered by rain, the dismal thought of battling through a downpour, arriving with wet clothes. An excuse for a treat of coffee and praline Danish at Le Pain Quotidien and to […]
The Angel Child is gaining an audience; I say ‘audience’ although others will talk of ‘readers’. Or is this an exaggeration? An audience is associated with theatre; a play where there is a visual ensemble. The scene or scenes are presented through someone else’s imagination. The characters are played by actors, entering the emotions, the dynamics of […]
I recently came across an article on Pick The Brain called Pen or Computer: Which is Better for Writers? which made me think about which was my preferred tool. Both I would say. The dangers inherent in both match the ease they each offer. The pen affords a more fluent thought process, I find, but […]
Valuing books; are reviews the best way forward for writers? A good promotion through someone else talking with praise about what you’ve written is gold dust, wind in the sails for any writer. To hear or read the pleasure something you’ve written has brought to another person is pure joy. It vindicates that scary moment […]
Dreary days, dark evenings, plenty of time to read and right. And as I sit at my computer, fairy lights flashing on Christmas trees, outside lights bright on the pavement, I realise that I don’t want to close the curtains and shut the world out. Ideas, the imagination live in my head but are fed […]
Nicotiana sylvestris – with a head of slim white trumpets, exuding a powerful and sophisticated scent, beloved of moths. Tall and elegant by day, with huge green leaves displaying it’s genus; by night an ethereal flower, perfuming the darkest hours. From the first gift of seeds twenty years ago I have sown, nurtured, protected, encouraged and […]
Remembering and commemorating, telling the stories which mingle to bring out some truth; of going off as if for a carnival, the excitement of a trip abroad and then the appalling truth of war. It was not over by Christmas, the horror of blowing up, shooting, cutting up other men even after a Christmas truce, […]
‘A fascinating novel, which was a compulsive read exploring a whole host of complex relationships.’ A story of obsession and redemption. 4.7 out of 5 stars On the anniversary of its release in the Apple iBookstore, I thought I’d celebrate with a giveaway. For a chance for you to win an iBook* copy retweet the tweet below […]
How fortunate I was to meet a group of women on a further education writing course, prior to my MA. We decided that our assessment of each others’ work was more valid and valuable than that of the tutor in the overcrowded evening sessions. The Monday Group we became; Henrietta Branford, a brilliant children’s writer, […]
Posted onI have had work published which means it’s been read and appreciated and considered good, more than good. But why do I find it so hard to say that I’m a writer? ‘Only little things’ I’ll say. I have all my children’s certificates, bygone letters and cards received, notices in newspapers of their achievements preserved […]