Tag: Writing
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The Writing Life…
Lots of people say it, and it’s true – writing is one third actual writing, and two thirds all the other ‘stuff’ – editing, arranging promotions, thinking and plotting, editing, organising cover images, learning how to do things with your computer that you’d never hear of ten years ago, editing… you get the picture. This…
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Cornwall…
…is the setting for my second novel. Which, as of today, is also my seventh novel… The Cold Cold Sea was re-released today with a fab new cover by The Cover Collection – I love it! I have lovely memories of Cornwall, especially the north coast around Newquay, so here are a few pics of…
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A Fractured Winter… with Alison Baillie
It’s lovely having guests on my blog, and even better when I know them in person as well as on social media. Alison Baillie lives a short train journey away from me, so she’s a ‘close’ friend in more ways than one, and here she is to tell us about her new book. Thank you,…
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Places in – pictures? Or words??
When I was seven or eight, our next-door neighbour – an elderly lady – had an ash tree in her garden, right on the border with ours. Her garden was half-wild, and to my great joy there was no fence between the two properties. Under – and halfway up – that tree became my special…
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2017 – the best of times and the worst of times… (a minimalist’s version)
Another year bites the dust, and like most years, 2017 had its ups and downs. Here are a few of mine: Best decision – turning some of my old magazine stories into a charity anthology for a year. All profits made by The Saturday Secret up until mid-February will go to Doctors without Borders. Worst breakage…
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Spooky old house revisited…
Back in the nineties, I spent a week with a friend who had just moved to Biddenham. It’s a good area for a visit from Switzerland – Bedford just a hop down the road, and Cambridge and London less than an hour away. I made the most of my UK shopping and culture week. One…
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Buster & Moo: Everything in its place
One day a few years ago, I was searching around on Twitter and came across Geoff Le Pard. His then-new book title was attention-grabbing: Dead Flies and Sherry Trifle. After a brief Twitter-chat, I went to look at his blog, and have followed him ever since. Today I’m really pleased to welcome him here to…
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How much romance do you need in your thriller?
A thrilling romance… or a romantic thriller??? Romance in a thriller can be problematic, as I found out when I was writing Ward Zero, and my editor advised me to change the sex of one of my main characters… So who comes to mind, when we think about crime fiction and romance? Dorothy L. Sayers…
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2016 – the best of times and the worst of times… (a minimalist’s version)
The death of David Bowie on January 10th was a shock to many people, including me, and 2016 did seem to provide us with more than usual ‘famous deaths’. It’s been a big year in politics, too. But here’s my personal take on the past 12 months: Best book moment: Holding Chosen Child for the…
