At Home With... and more

More often than not the life of a writer is solitary, spent wearing as many fleecy layers as possible to stave off the cold and combined with frantic moments of scrabbling for scraps of paper in the queue at the supermarket because that is invariably the moment inspiration decides to strike. However, as I discovered last week, it isn't always like that...

My wonderful publishers, Simon & Schuster organised an event in London and I was one of the lucky authors who was asked to attend. Stepping out on to the balcony and taking in the breathtaking view Jane Costello turned to me and said, 'today is a good day to be an author' and she was absolutely right! Not only was it wonderful to have the opportunity to be introduced to key media and trade buyers but it was also great to catch up with author pals and meet some In Real Life for the very first time.

It wasn't all smiles though. Jane Costello, Paige Toon and Holly Hepburn (as the photos prove) are all tall, slender and stunning and they were all in heels. Pure hell for tiny little me... next time I'm taking a box for photo calls!

It was a truly memorable evening and I was extremely lucky to be a part of it.

And in other news...

As many of you reading this will know on Thursday I will be travelling to London for my first RNA party. That in itself is hugely thrilling, the fact that I am also in contention for the Joan Hessayon Award along with lots of author pals, has cranked the excited up to fever pitch and I can't deny that seeing The Cherry Tree Cafe, my debut novel, among such esteemed company has made me extremely proud.

I'm looking forward to seeing lots of you there and would like to take this opportunity to say good luck to everyone on the list. 

H x