If you’ve ever walked up a steep hill, or climbed a mountain, or run a marathon, or triumphed over seemingly impossible odds, you’ll know about the moment. It’s hard to define, but it’s a silent sense of wonder and awe and relief and inner joy all rolled into one. My mountain, which became a steep …
Month: October 2012
The return of Sparkle Puss
Stella Benson is a fellow writer, based in Cornwall. Unlike me, she’s also a talented artist who has worked on many prestigious animated films including ‘The Snowman & The Snowdog’ a sequel to the ‘The Snowman’, to be screened on Channel 4 this Christmas. In 2011 Stella combined her love of storytelling, illustration and design …
Mondays with Monika – 2
If you’re new to these Monday posts, pull up a pew. I’m chatting with Monika Spykerman, about the things that matter to her as a writer, mum (or mom, if you prefer), wife and writer. Here, Monika talks candidly about her own blog – Motheroad – and about the ways in which she uses her …
Mondays with Monika – 1
As you may recall, a trainee clinical psychologist, exploring the therapeutic benefits of creative writing, interviewed me. The experience got me thinking about some themes I return to in my fiction, such as loss, separation and sacrifice, and the ways in which fiction comes to be as authentic as non-fiction. But what about non-fiction that …
Bonjour la classe
Once upon a time, not so long ago* – all right then, it was only back in August, Susan Louineau sat in the virtual chair and told me about her ebook, The Chapel in the Woods, which she self-published this year. Unlike me, Susan has a track record in marketing and put all that knowledge …
What goes around
Not the prettiest image, unless you’re a jobbing writer. I’ve said in the past that I’m a big fan of short story competitions. You are usually presented with a theme, a word count and a deadline – and all for no more than a nominal entry fee (we can have that debate some other time).Even …