Dear Santa

Dear Santa,
for Christmas this year,apart from the obvious world peace and harmony and an end to hunger (top of all our lists, I'm sure), I just have a few requests.

1 - Please return my sense of humour, which after a difficult 18 months, I seem to have misplaced. Word on the street from Elves Inc is that you may have come across it, left rather neglected and a bit battered, whilst I busied myself with other things. It's time to have it back now, methinks.
2 - I would like my body back too, if you don't mind. I know you don't have it, as I look down and there it is. However, if you can send a bit of will power mixed with a bit of good health then I can get back to the gym in the new year and get myself fit again.
3 - any chance you can send someone how to switch my brain off at bedtime please, as I would like to get a bit more that 3 hours sleep a night! I have ideas for half a dozen other books which keep me awake!
4 - give me a push to finish editing my second book and get it published! Then I need to start the third.

And please know that I am most grateful for
- my amazing family, without whose support I might have literally lost the plot sometime over the past couple of years!
-my lovely friends, whose jokes, gentle teasing and mickey taking have made me laugh, even when I thought I couldn't
-my job, which I love, even though its very difficult sometimes
-my home, my cat, and all the things that I am surrounded with.
-the support I have had from friends and complete strangers during my journey as a would-be author. It's very encouraging!

I doubt that I will blog again this year, mainly because I will be busy with family, Christmas, a holiday in a log cabin and preparations for the new year. So after what I can only call my #Annus Horriblus (well now I have something in common with the Queen!) it's time to move on. So I want to wish everyone here a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I can only hope for better times ahead. New Year, new start. It's all very personal, but it has been a part of my journey, which was the reason for this blog, warts and all.
Deep breath and fingers crossed. Here we go....................


PS  can I also have a new red bag please :)

Goodbye Daddy

1 month ago today I lost my darling Dad to cancer. I know that I am not the only one this has happened to, and yet it seems that my grief is different to everyone else's. After all, he was MY dad. He can't possibly really be gone, can he? It doesn't feel real.

Dad was a tall, strong, proud gentle giant - a larger than life character who I saw at least once a week for my entire life and spoke to every other day. My sisters and I were his pride and joy and we are distraught at losing him. The cancer that he suffered ravaged his body, took away his dignity, left him exhausted and depressed and we knew that he was ready to go.
He first became ill only 18 months ago, which was prompted me to suddenly publish my book, even though I knew it wasn't ready - we half expected to lose him very quickly - the doctor had told him straight away to "prepare for the end of your life". And so I published, warts and all, just so that he could see me in print. It was, he said, one of his proudest moments. He will never see the re-edited version, and right at this moment completing this task is not my priority. I will do it some time, in his memory, but it won't make any difference to him now. Nor will he see my lovingly crafted sequel, which I am taking an age and a half to prepare before I send it off. I would have loved him to be here to see the trilogy completed. But I would gladly chuck the lot in the bin if it meant I could have him back.

My sisters cared for my dad in  his final months (I did what I could between a broken leg and work commitments) and we all spent his final days with him at the hospice. We spent his last night with us playing music and singing his favourite Elvis songs to him. We sat up all night talking and laughing together and although he couldn't speak or move by this time, he kept squeezing our hands to let us know he was still with us. He was in pain and distressed and we asked that he be sedated to ease his suffering, even though this meant that he wasn't awake to be with us. Gradually as the hours passed, he slipped away. We were with him when he died.
The hospice staff were amazing and we owe a debt of gratitude that we can never repay. We are organising a grand charity event in Dad's name in the Spring, with the proceeds going to the hospice, but it will never be enough. Dad wanted to go into the hospice - he had been a day patient, and luckily we came up with this idea before he died and were able to share our plans with him. He gave a proud thumbs up.

At the moment, I can barely bring myself to concentrate on anything for very long. They same that time is a great healer, and I expect that I will learn to live without Dad in my life. But when I look at his photo and remember that he isn't there, it makes me jump every time.

So I know that this is not a happy post, but I wanted to pay tribute to a wonderful man - Dad, granddad, great granddad, partner and friend.
Goodbye Daddy.
I love you.

Book 2 and a broken leg....

I have finally finished the first draft of the second in the Sadie's House series!!! And what a journey it has been. First of all, is the fact that it changed title earlier this year - books seem to have a habit of making their own mind up along the way and it became apparent that the book is so much more that Albie's story. The book is filled with secrets, with two bombshell, hopefully jaw dropping suprises and has now been renamed "Sadie's House; The Secrets" I am now in the process of editing - this will take a while. Those of you who have followed my story will know that I published the first book in a hurry, for very personal reasons and although I have no regrets, it was apparent that there were quite a few errors that should have been picked up in proof reading but were not. So this time I want to take my time and have it as perfect as I am possibly can.

I have had a bit of a delay due to the fact that in May I broke my leg. Have to say I indulged in quite the pity party for a while. We had been due to have a ski lesson the day before (a gift from our children), which I cancelled as I did not want any breakages as we were off to Cyprus the following week. the VERY next morning, on my way to the gym, I fell our of the front door, down two concrete steps and broke my leg so badly that I have endured 5 hours of operations, almost 2 week in hospital, weeks at home off work and now face months of physiotherapy. Needless to say we did not get to Cyprus (note to everyone - GET TRAVEL INSURANCE WHEN YOU BOOK A HOLIDAY! - we did - 3 days before my accident!!). I thought (hoped) I might be well enough for a long planned and much anticipated holiday with our grown children and their partners to Florida in August but 3 weeks ago was told that no, I would be unfit to fly due to the risk of deep vein thrombosis. so I have sulked to the point of getting on my own nerves. I have had a word with myself, as people have much worse things happen, but it has been a crushing disappointment. In all sorts of ways we have not had a good year, but after the initial bout of tears and tantrums, I took advantage of some of the time off and finished the first draft, so some good has come out of it.

In 2 weeks we are also playing host to a little girl from Chernobyl. A group of children are coming over for a month to give a boost to their health, so I am working on the physio and trying to get as fit as possible for then. I will post more about that later.

Hope everyone else out there in in cyber-world is fit and well and that those of you writing are making progress and achieving all that you would hope for.

Have a great day
x

  (This would have been me, only I had to cancel my holidays!)

FREEBIE! giveaway

As part of the promotion for my book, I am preparing some give aways. Happy to send out a paperback copy of  the book to anywhere in the world. Send an email and comment below if you would like a free copy and I will choose one out to send.
xx

new Youtube clip

By the way, here is my new Youtube clip, this time with some text, after taking on board some feedback from fellow bloggers and writers. Have a look and see what you think,

Sadie's House:The Key youtube clip with text

A takeover!

Just to let you know, that for now at least, my son's posh, bow tie wearing Russian blue cat has taken over a blog attached to this one, so you may see posts from him from time to time. He is a bit of a snob, being quite noble and very handsome, so please don't take offence at his fude reference to peasants and commoners and the like. He calls us things like that all the time (well we think he does....!) Hopefully he will make a bit of fun reading.

A little experiement

I have been promoting and promoting, and writing and writing, and have found myself bemused to see that the sequel to The Key, which has always been Albie's Story, has now become The Secrets. It would seem that this is not uncommon, but the full title of the second book will now be Sadie's House; The Secrets, and followed by a third, Sadie's House; The Healing. I am hoping to be completed by Easter so I will let you know how that goes.
Meanwhile, my little experiment involved having a go at making a video, my first ever, so please forgive the quality. However, I am pretty pleased with the result, and I have posted it on Youtube.
Here's the link
Sadie's House;The Key video trailer so please take a look and even share.

I am also excited to say that I will be at a book signing event in Birmingham later in the year! I heard about something called "author swag" which is a new concept to me, but being a keen crafter, it was all I needed to set to and see what I could come up with. I'm not sure yet exactly what I will be doing with these, but they have been fun to make.

And one last thing for now - I have joined lots of writing groups and these have been really helpful in sharing ideas and asking and answering questions. I would recommend to any aspiring writer that you listen to the wisdom of those in the know, and share your own questions and anxieties. I have had some wonderful support from the people in these groups.
Continued good wishes and the best of luck to everyone trying to pave their way in bookland!
x