Genesis of a story Part 3 – Celebrity Status
Celebrity Staus This story is also set in East Belfast, where I moved following my marriage. We bought a three-storey terrace house which was quite up-market of its kind -…
Britain’s Tudor Maps
Some time ago I was invited to a Book Group which had just finished my second novel A House Divided as their monthly read. I gave a wee talk and…
Story Genesis No 2. Gulls Calling
This story goes way back - it's the first story I had in print in a magazine for which I was paid the going rate. So it has a special…
Dust Blowing – Story 1.
Afghanistan is a country that has fascinated me since I was about 8 years old. The vast open spaces, the austerity of the landscape, and the relationship of that area…
Now why did I never see this before?
Almost a year ago I spoke at Ayr Writers' Club on creating a sense of place. And being an historical writer for me that includes period, but the principles apply…
Isolation Part 2
Reflections on a Writing Fellowship. What do you call six total strangers immured together in a 17th century castle for a month, with minimal mobile phone reception, no internet…
The joy of isolation.
Isolation Part 1 Some of you may know that when I was stalled in the middle of writing A House Divided a kind person, who didn't at that stage know me from…
The latest challenge – a character interview.
Thank you to the History Imagined Blog for inviting me to interview one of my key characters. I chose Kate Munro and it was a fascinating exercise for me as…
Looking back -My reading at Waterstones for the launch of Turn of the Tide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZx1rqD-mMA
What am I doing now Part 2. – Amazon.
Amazon - Those of you who've popped in here before will know there have been a few glitches with Amazon, and the latest was an email last week alerting me…