As I type these words, my hall, landing, and stairs are being painted. (NOT A EUPHEMISM.)
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| My home |
Morning! I've decamped to Costa - because paint fumes, strangers in my home, and the fact I don't trust myself not to get concussion by walking into the scaffolding, means it's better I'm here and not there. I'm sure it'll look marvellous when it's finished and the hassle and upheaval will be worth it.
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| The colour my comprising-self has agreed to. |
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| Look what I could have won! Nicked from the internet but stunning. |
A friend of mine recently commented that she thought my hall could handle a deep burgundy. She told me this when I was already too far down the beige route to back out. But OH how I can't stop thinking about it. BURGUNDY. Can you even imagine? Think of Christmas, with fairy lights, flickering candles, and snow falling outside. Burgundy! I wish I'd chatted to her sooner. Back when I was choosing colours for me, not for imagined estate agents and buyers of the future. Burgundy! It would have been spectacular.
Take this as a timely reminder. Live for the day! Don't put off doing excellent things! Paint your hallway burgundy (metaphorically or literally) and choose bold not beige, however that manifests in your life. Burgundy for the win! Burgundy forever! I WISH I'd chosen burgundy.
Writing News
A lovely thing happened last week. The woman who owns the nail salon I visit, posted from her business account how she'd enjoyed my Leeza McAuliffe books. It was lovely - a genuine thrill to see someone I like buzzing off my stories. But then that post was seen by a woman who knows my sister-in-law. She sent a screenshot to the sister-in-law, who sent it to my partner, who showed it to me. How FAB to see the little journey that post made, amidst some people who know me. I wonder what other journeys it made that I don't know about.
Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat, posted on Bluesky recently. 'Unsolicited writing advice no 7410: This is a conclusion drawn from over 30 years' observations of publishing. Reviews don't sell books, What sells books is human-to-human communication, via reps, booksellers, author events, word of mouth from readers.' And ain't that the truth. I've chatted to strangers in the flesh, told them about my characters, and they've had the book ordered from Amazon before I've finished talking. It's definitely the way to sell. Likewise, to everyone else who has shared a conversation or post about my books, thank you so much. It helps sales and my ego, as well as deep down reassuring me that I'm not wasting my time. Thank you everyone!
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| The last few reads on my app |
Culture
Remember this is my mad reading year? I decided in January to make a concerted effort to read more. I didn't want to chart my progress or stick to a self-imposed goal, I simply wanted to make the most of not being in the middle of my own book-writing for a bit.
Well, goals, schmoals. That's gone out of the window. I can tell you, with alarming precision, that we're in the middle of the 27th week of the year and I've just finished my 30th book of 2026. Let's be clear, I don't like that I know this. I don't like that I felt a buzz when my reading tally overtook the weekly count. I add my completed books to my reading app and then move onto the next one. It's still enjoyable, I'm still in control, but I'm aware it's a slippery slope.
Food and Drink
Consider this a gift for the word-of-mouthing you've been doing about my books. It's a proper recipe and the best thing I've eaten in ages. It's a pudding! I don't even like puddings, but this is FIT.
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| The pudding of dreams |
(I merged a few recipes together to get this one. Feel free to adapt with flavours of your own.)
Ingredients (serves 4 )
- Six brioche hotdog buns, split in half lengthways
- Marmalade
- 3 eggs
- 1 tbs caster sugar
- 375mls milk
- 1 tbs vanilla extract
- roughly cut chunks of chocolate, I used about 40g - you do you
- 1 tsp Demerara sugar
OK, ready? It's easy peasy.
Method
- Spread marmalade on the cut edge of each half of hotdog bun.
- Cut the buns into bite sized chunks and put in an ovenproof bowl.
- Mix the milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a jug.
- Pour the milky mixture over the buns making sure they're all soaked.
- Push pieces of chocolate into the soggy mixture, between the gaps (or anywhere you like.)
- Sprinkle the Demerara sugar on the top.
- Put in the oven, 170℃ electric, 150℃ fan, or gas mark 3, for 45 mins.
EAT WARM. Or you know what? Eat cold! It's fit either way. And experiment. I want to try dark chocolate, slithers of marzipan, and cherries with apricot jam, but I fear I'll get carried away. As a non-sweet toothed woman, it's not ideal to get into this sort of thing at my age. You, however, can do as you like. Enjoy!
Out and About
Now that every day is accompanied by a stiff breeze, normal service has resumed. Last week saw the usual food shop in Warrington Asda, brunch in Childwall, Costa in Aintree, and writing group in Liverpool. As much as I'm setting my expectations low for the next Prime Minister - it's the best way to avoid disappointment - it's been quite a revelation to see Andy Burnham's social media be so local and relevant to my life. His current days, like mine, are heavily North-West based. It makes a nice change.
So what wisdom have I imparted today? Nothing? Yeah, fair enough. Just remember that quote from Dead Poets Society... Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Paint your halls burgundy.
Have a lovely week, folks.
