This Writer's Life...
When a hat might help...
I had a terrible night's sleep last night. I was wide awake at 3 a.m. and happily listening to music on my iPhone. At 7.30 a.m. I was dead to the world. However, I staggered out of bed and happened to glance sideways. I backed away in horror and wondered who'd stuck the picture of the scary mad woman with the sticking up hair on the mirror.
But no, it was me.
I dashed into the shower before I frightened the dogs. …
Things I'm loving about this week...
1/. I had a new bedroom carpet fitted at the weekend so my bedroom now smells of new carpet. Gorgeous (so much nicer than smelling of dogs).
2/. The sun is shining and this unseasonable weather could last until Thursday or Friday.
3/. This morning, I queued in the sunshine at Turf Moor to renew our Burnley FC season tickets and collect tickets for Wednesday's night FA Youth Cup semi-final clash between Burnley and Blackburn Rovers. …
1, 2, 3 Wallanders...
I heard this week that Shades of Evil had been reviewed by Manic Readers. Now, I don't know how other authors react but I take a big breath, a very big one, force myself to visit the site, find the review and go straight to the last line. That's where I read "Shades of Evil is one of the best books I've read this year". Yay!
Okay, so it's not the end of March yet…:) There was more though: …
Happy Monday!
This weekend, I pretended I had a proper job. I took the weekend off.
I didn't go near my computer all weekend and I really can't remember the last time that happened. The result? My Inbox is overflowing. I have a To Do List that makes Everest look like a bit of a bump. I'm way, way behind on my words per day quota.
I was thinking that instead of working through that To Do List, I'd rather be somewhere exotic. …
Bring on the dogs … it's time to party!
There's a lot to celebrate this weekend. It's Mother's Day on Sunday here in the UK. My mother died several years ago and the day barely registers with me. In fact, I'd forgotten all about this year until my lovely daughter - well, let's just say that she wants her mum on calorie overload and who am I to deny her? I have the most gorgeous, gorgeous chocolates. I mean really scrummy gorgeous. …
My mum told me...
…to never, ever, EVER mark a book's page in any way. By the age of two, I already knew that if I turned down the corner of a page to mark my place, a public flogging would be scheduled for dawn.
I wonder what my mum would have made of these amazing works:
(By Australian artist Rosie Miller)
(By Su Blackwell)
(By Hubertus Gojowczyk)
(By Guy Laramee. I love his work!)
What makes a good book?
The reviews are coming in for Silent Witness and - huge sigh of relief here - they're all good so far. Several reviewers have said that it's the best book in the series. That's wonderful. I hear that and I do a Snoopy Dance knowing that I've got something right. It's my favourite in the series too.
But…
What exactly is it that makes one book better than another? I know some people prefer Agatha Christie to Henning Mankell … but what makes one Agatha Christie better than another Agatha Christie? …
Thank you … and goodbye!
First, I must say a huge thank you to everyone who made Silent Witness's release day (week) such fun. A special thank you must go to the wonderfully supportive group of authors published by Carina Press. Great publisher and lovely authors.
I decided against a blog tour with this book mainly because I think people get sick of hearing about one book. There's a blog tour on at the moment and it seems that everywhere I turn, I see …
This book wot I wrote
Whoa. Where did last week go? It just vanished. I didn't get any reading time, and I didn't visit your blogs.
I think the whole leap year thing throws me. Mentally, I believe I have an extra day. I don't, of course. It's an odd sort of day though and I do feel sorry for anyone born on February 29. It must be one of the worst days to have a birthday. I suppose you could choose whether to celebrate on the February 28 or March 1 but that's not really the point, is it? …
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