My first 'author talk' of 2026 took place at a local venue for a Women's Institute group. An audience of 40 ladies were present for the session and they took much delight in hearing my journey from secret scribbler to publish author.
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As always, the book chat, laughter and stories flowed as I spoke for near on 90 minutes about my experience. There were a couple of questions at the end but I think most people were amazed to hear the specifics of my publication journey.

Topics mentioned were:

Cardboard Library tickets                                    Bank clerks
Jane Austen                                                            Spare bedrooms
C.S. Lewis                                                               Writing retreats
​Confessions                                                            Dreams
Nappies                                                                   'Girl on a Train' book
Tap dancing                                                            Women's lives 
St Ivel trifle                                                             Acceptance of situations
Paint stippling                                                        Cake
The World Cup 1994                                               Writing groups
Big screen computers                                            Euston Train station
Bottom drawers                                                      Romantic Novelists' Association
Love, life, laughter and loss                                   Amazon website
Mortgages                                                               One million words
Pride & Prejudice                                                    'Plodding'

Once upon a time, way back in 1996, a young woman planted five seeds. Five Bird of Paradise seeds, of which three germinated and produced seedlings. She promptly gifted one plant to another – who killed it by over watering. So, two young plants remained. She cared and nurtured those two plants for many years in the hope that they would bloom, producing the most gorgeous tropical flower she’d ever seen.
 
Now, the young woman owned cats, who were not supposed to go near the Bird of Paradise plants due to the plants' toxicity, should a leaf or stalk be eaten or mouthed. But the cats couldn’t resist. The cats were naughty. They frequently launched themselves at the plants' giant stalks and leaves while chasing flies at the window or during enthusiastic games of ball or cat-chase.
 
The result was the two Bird of Paradise plants had a hard tough life competing with the energy of playful cats. Five cats, in total. The result was broken stalks, clawed leaves and the endless removal of new growth ruined by the felines. Sadly, over time one plant succumb to the trauma and died. One Bird of Paradise plant remained. 
 
Despite the woman's best efforts that single plant never retained more than four leaves, on one occasion she was cut back to a single stalk - until Moses, the fifth cat arrived in 2019. Moses was a gentle soul. Moses preferred to rest than run. Fly catching, ball chasing and destroying houseplants was never his thing. In the five years that the woman had Moses, the precious Bird of Paradise plant had chance to grow healthy and strong. The woman watched in amazement as her plant produced and sustained five, six … seven healthy leaves. 
 
The appearance of each unfurling leaf became a mini celebration in her home. Each new leaf became a sign of hope for the future. The possibility that 'one day' what was planted in 1996 might become a reality.
 
Today, that thirty year old plant has 10 leaves … plus, two very strange stalks! Yes, I know! I can hardly bring myself to believe that 'something' is actually occurring. I daren’t type the words I wish to type for fear of jinxing my beautiful plant. Oh yeah, that young woman was moi! Could 2026 be the year when something spectacular happens to my precious plant after 30 years of nurturing? 
 
I’ll keep you updated. If the strange stalks turnout to be two incredibly large new leaves, then I’ll celebrate as usual but … they don’t look like leaves to me. Such a pity my beautiful boy Moses isn’t here to enjoy what he allowed to grow.  

Happy New Year to you and yours! I’m delight to welcome 2026. I ran around my home opening the back kitchen door, waving goodbye to the old year, before throwing open the front door eager to greet the new one. Who cares what the neighbours think! 

Recent weeks have been spent unpacking, re-organising and creating my ideal environment for this new chapter of my life. By the end of each day, I’ve been totally whacked so have literally crawled towards sleep, which has been instant and deeply refreshing. I have never physically ached as much as I have this past fortnight, though I’m grateful to my health and fitness levels for carrying me through.

But now, my focus is the brand-new, sparkly year ahead - in which I get to work, rest and play … and play, I will!
I always make resolutions, that’s how my daily habits have been formed but this year will be slightly different. My intention is to return my attention whole heartedly to the things that I love. No half measures, no compromises, no distractions. My time will be spent on what I love. Simple! 

I hope you’ve also had a wonderful celebration and long may this fabulous vibe continue!

​I enter my reading books into Goodreads and each December look forward to the end of year-round-up delivered by the app. Well, there were no surprises for me in this year’s review. I have had an utterly rubbish year regards reading. I read 15 books! A grand total of 4,350 pages. I can’t remember a previous year when the number has been so low, but then my mind and energy has been spent elsewhere.
 
I could have skipped this blog post. My reading review could have been forgotten but I wanted to share as it acts as accountability for me. My intention is for 2026 to be very different. I want next year’s Goodreads reading review to reflect a healthy reading habit, not the dismal efforts of 2025.   

Recent weeks have been busy, busy, busy - so I intend to chill this Christmas and thoroughly enjoy the festive season. Below is a previous blog post outlining my Christmas traditions, including my reading habits during the festive period. This year, I won't be waiting till Christmas Eve but instead starting today, 23rd December! I wish you all the merriest of Christmases filled with love, life and laughter! 

​For me, Christmas officially begins at home on Christmas Eve. All preparations such as gift wrapping, delivery drop-offs to friends, food shopping or last-minute bulk buying of big bottles of Bailey’s liqueur has to be completed by the 23rd. If it hasn’t crossed the doorstep by that date - I can live without it!
   Such measures came into play after ‘lockdown’, when I admitted that my love of Christmas was being ruined by the corporate marketing teams and their seasonal guilt-tripping. I refused to buy into their reinvention of my Christmas. I was happy with my tried and trusted family traditions, so I made a stance! I stole back my Christmas from the corporate Grinches – along with one additional tradition especially for Christmas Eve! 
   Three years ago, I’d learnt about the Icelandic tradition of Jolabokaflod (meaning the Christmas Book Flood) where families present each other with a festive book and spend the evening embracing the ‘togetherness’ of reading whilst cosy and warm, accompanied by lashings of hot chocolate! I have whole heartedly nabbed and extended this tradition to fill the entire day! 
   Christmas Eve in my house is now a snuggly reading day, of self-care and seasonal pampering, in preparation for the big day. It’s no coincidence that I feast entirely on mince pies, stollen, Turkish delight and the big Bailey’s gets cracked open! 
Let’s be honest, some Christmas books are simply ‘December books’ where the setting coincides with Christmas time, and nothing more. I like genuine Christmas books where the story starts a day or two before December 25th and ends near New Year. I need to ‘meet and greet’ a cast of characters who remind me of love ones, with their quirky mannerisms, their bizarre yet unfunny jokes and their numerous allergies to turkey, plum pudding or Brussel sprouts.  
   When I dive into the pages of festive mayhem, I wish for a cosy, idyllic setting, waist-high snow drifts and unfinished arguments from yesteryear simmering beneath the festive smiles and threatening to erupt during the King’s speech. I need secret desires, mountains of chocolate treats and characters who plan to return and exchange their unwanted gifts for store vouchers. I want to read about complicated heart break, New year fears and witness gut-wrenching tears beneath or beside a real Norwegian spruce.
   This festive reading confession probably explains the reasoning behind the plot twists and seasonal ingredients crafted within my own Christmas books. My aim is to provide my readers with a traditional family Christmas, as outlined above. Sadly, I always ruin my characters’ festive break by crafting numerous trials and tribulations that ignite conflict and calamities that aren’t welcome anywhere near my own doorstep during my twelve days. Call me ‘festive-selfish’ but I want the best of both worlds! To indulge in a great Christmas book filled with chaos, mayhem and possible romance whilst experiencing a memorable yet peaceful Christmas of the Dickens variety, whilst counting my blessings, albeit with a festive coffee or three! This year, I’ve selected two classic Christmas books ready for my ‘Jolabokaflod’ reading fest.
     Wishing each and every reader, the Christmas of your dreams overflowing with festive ingredients and traditions of your choosing!

I've been off-grid for a week or so, due to moving house but I can now reveal my new writing room. I've upgraded to a downstairs office, which is helpful for both myself and my aged dog. Another advantage is being able to enjoy a view of the garden plus, I'm nearer the kettle! It hasn't been an easy few weeks, I wouldn't advise anyone to move house just before Christmas but I'm winning in the battle of the packing boxes, so can joke about it now. 

My writing desk is positioned in the nook of an old fireplace, which seems the obvious place and hopefully my stories will add to those previously told around this hearth in days gone by! The room is vast with plenty of floor space for a second larger desk, which I can use for my other pursuits. And for the first time ever, I'm surrounded by the majority of my favourite reading books. Not all but the majority! There was a moment whilst unpacking when I did wonder 'do I have too many books?' But that crazy question was answered in a heart beat so I let it pass as a moment of madness! 

The only thing I haven't got in this writing room, and am missing from my previous one, is my wild birds. I've set my bird feeders and tables in the garden so finger crossed, I attract some wildlife but at present not a single bird has been spotted. I visited my old house to collect a few forgotten bits and my beautiful doves were lining the roof, the only thing I had to hand was a box of Weetabix so I crumbled and scattered several of those - which they flew down for. I'm not sure of the intelligence of birds but I'd like to think they have missed our feeding routine.

Anyway, having been without broadband for days, I managed to join London Writers' Salon first thing this morning so my usual routine can resume, yeah! I've broken up for the holiday from my college role so I can indulge my creativity in the coming weeks. 

I wish you all a happy and healthy festive holiday filled with love, life and laughter! 

Firstly, I need to start with a writing confession. In the third week of November, I dropped the baton regarding my 50,000 writing goal but for good reason. Boy, what a month I’ve had! I’ll explain. From 1st November I was happily writing towards my goal each day and then life took over. 
 
Throughout this year, I have strived to juggle my writing, teaching and home life. And during the final week of November, ‘The Universe’ decided to show her hand; a Royal flush from where I’m standing. In just five days, I’ve managed to finalise every situation. I have purchased a newer car, found somewhere to live, applied and been accepted by the landlord. Landlord? I hear you mutter. Yep, this girl is free to live where ever she wishes … but how do you decide on a location when the world is your oyster? I’ll take a year to decide and then opt to lay down roots in 2027 – which makes sense to me.

​My creative brain hadn’t the ability to juggle all the fast-paced decisions bombarding me so my writing pace suffered. I'll proudly take 41,328 words. This is the first year in 13 years that I haven’t written 50,000 or more words. It’d have been foolish to continue, I’d have pushed myself too far. This girl knows her limits!

​I will continue my writing challenge into December.
 
I’ll remember November 2025 with fond memories but my focus is firmly on December - hoping it's the icing on this year’s cake!   

My memory recalls dragging my sorry ass through the motions of a hectic day. I’d spent each hour talking myself through each step, from appointment to appointment, from place to place. Facts, details and health worries swimming around my head. Unanswered questions that no one wanted to help me answer in case they influenced my decision – the important type, the big ones. 
 
Finally, I reached the end of a horrible day. And that’s when there was one small moment of sunshine. Just one glimmer. My instant reaction surprised even me – I burst out crying in the middle of a public place ruining the moment.
 
Over the years, I’ve referred back to this particular day, time and time again. And today, with my health restored 100%, and despite dreading the dark memories, I’m hoping for a day filled with sunshine.