Been a long time…

And this is a bit how I feel after emerging from two months of heavy-duty editing/major surgery on novel #3, which I can now happily announce is to be called TARNISHED.

I’ve been working on Editor Leah’s brilliant and comprehensive notes on my first draft, as well as a bundle of rather more haphazard and gut-based queries of my own.

I had fully intended to post weekly with lessons learned while editing, but I found it quite difficult to lift my head from what I was doing.… read more

Neurotic

Last night I sent novel #3 to Agent Simon.

I am already obsessively checking emails for his reaction, although I tell myself not to be so cocky – if he’s read it so quickly, it must be quite literally unputdownable. And he clearly hasn’t read it because he hasn’t emailed me yet, so it must be putdownable.

Or worse. Unreadable.

He probably thinks it’s unreadable.

But then again, he probably hasn’t even looked at it yet.… read more

Going Dutch

I’m just lifting my head from the final stages of editing the first draft of novel #3 to tell you this:

My author’s copies of Verbroken Belofte, the Dutch translation of Every Vow You Break arrived today. Aren’t they chillingly lovely? They’re published by the very classy Bezige Bij. I love all my covers, but these are just so haunting.

I’ll now get back to it. Normal service should be resumed in about one week, when I will have handed novel #3 in.… read more

The Back Burner

So just a couple more name-drops here. I went to the exceedingly fragrant Charleston Festival with my friend Ruthie and we heard Esther Freud and Edward St Aubyn talk about drawing from their lives for their work. Then, after lunch by the marquee, we went for a big old walk up Firle Beacon. After that it was Joanna Trollope being interviewed by (and at times making mincemeat of) William Nicholson.

I love Joanna Trollope’s writing – it is so clean and clear and well-structured – a bit like her, in fact.… read more