A few years ago our book group read Trumpet by Jackie Kay. I’d organised an event with her at the library the previous year and still had her mobile number in my phone. We all loved Trumpet and we drank lots of wine, and late in the evening I thought it was a good idea [...]
I love Karen Russell. I would like to meet Karen Russell. I would like to be her friend. I would like to tell her how much I love her writing , how when I read her collection of short stories St Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves I was so excited – thrilled that [...]
This week included an overnight hospital visit and lots of waiting about as well as the launch of Tainted Love, my second novel. So anxiety levels have been a bit higher than normal. I wanted a book to read whilst waiting, but it had to be one that was going to grab me and hold [...]
I’ve just finished The Children Act by Ian McEwan. I’ve read quite a few of McEwan’s books, and enjoyed most of them. I love his writing. It’s precise and exact. He knows the way his characters think and why they behave the way they do, and he describes it to you perfectly, intricately, so it [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
Tomorrow I’m off on an adventure I’m working on a novel which touches on the story of St Etheldreda, the daughter of King Anna of Anglia in the seventh century. Determined to be a nun, she managed to keep her virginity intact through two marriages and go on to found Ely Cathedtral. She travelled from [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
The man who checked our tickets on the train to Leeds this morning asked us where we were going – Newcastle – and what we were doing there – Walking. He looked out of the window at the rain and gave a chuckle – the sort that said, well you’ve chosen the right day for that haven’t you. [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
I don’t think I’ve laughed so much in a day in years. In the woods I nearly wet myself laughing at this photo of Poppy. At the side of the road the dog and I were playing with the lead and Poppy tripped over the dog (which she insists was my fault), and fell onto the verge. [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
This was such a long day. The walking was varied. The first three and the last four miles were awful. The twelve in between were OK, sometimes lovely. We left Murton. The only way to leave Murton is along roads. Busy straight roads with roundabouts. Neither Poppy nor the dog were impressed. To be honest I wasn’t either. [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
It’s become apparent that Poppy and I have very different body rhythms. It’s not just because she’s younger and me and therefore gets up later and goes to bed later. It’s to do with energy patterns and food requirements. If it was only up to me we’d get up early, get ready to go, have breakfast and leave, [...]
in East Coast Story – the blog
Today can probably best be summed up with pictures. The sun shone and the day was beautiful. The sea was blue and calm, a vast expanse always there on our left, simultaneously calming and terrifying, beautiful and completely other. We left the Saltburn Spa Hotel, haven of white sheets and carpeted corridors which smelled of shampoo [...]