If you’re dreading the upcoming holiday season, you’re not the only one. It’s OK to lean into the discomfort. Once you’ve done that, put your best foot forward and continue on your journey. This, too, shall pass.
Navigating Stress: A Guide for Writers and Creatives Read More »
As a writer of feel-good books, I realise fiction offers a temporary escape from the madness–but we cannot let imagined realities substitute for wrestling with the world as it exists in all its maddening complexity
Conspiracy theories: The siren song of simplicity Read More »
My mind is overwhelmed. I didn’t think it would happen. I was always proud of an ability to compartmentalise. But the news of war on Ukraine has me overwhelmed. Images of violence, refugees, death… I try to focus on writing, but my thoughts keep straying. I should be working on my next novel, but all
I look back on 2021 as the year I reduced my reading materials and suggest things you might also like to consider no longer reading.
My top five don’t read list for 2021 Read More »
The stresses of moving home and the nightmare NIMBY neighbour from hell I can’t wait to leave behind.
Any recovery programe starts in the same way. You admit you have a problem and it consumes you. In my case, it was drink. It could easily have been any of my other self-destructive behaviour patterns, but as a starter for ten, my body decided to tackle an unfettered love of jar. For every success
Beating an addiction helped process growing up an outsider Read More »
I keep hearing how life is looking up. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Freedom is on the way. So why do I feel more burdened than ever. Why can I complete no project? Why would I rather lie in bed scrolling through the news and social media than settle to something
Finding your pandemic flow Read More »
In the (hopefully) near future, I’ll look back on this time and tell myself lockdown wasn’t so bad. I just want to be sure I remember it was
Covid lockdown madness – recording history Read More »
It’s tough not drinking in a society where alcohol rules. Especially during lockdown. Every Friday Zoom meeting ends with someone saying how much they can’t wait to pour a gin and switch off.
Alcohol and me: An uneasy mix Read More »
My mother died in February. At the time, the virus that now traps us in our homes was little more than a rumble. Second or third story on the news, rendered insignificant by reports of heavy rain or Boris Johnson’s latest infidelity. We were lucky in many ways. We had the funeral she planned, she
Grief: A visit to the museum Read More »
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