Knox Box of Miscellany

Managing Expectations

Have you, like me, been thinking about the New Year and the possibilities it holds? My last post was about making new year’s resolutions, and I mentioned two alternatives. The ideas came from my friend in Hawaii, David Jones. Check out his blog, Dancing Tree Frog here for more interesting, thought-provoking posts.

A few days ago, Paula RC Readman, a writer friend of mine, published an interesting post on her blog. In it, she discusses wishes, and specifically her wish for the new year and beyond. You can see Paula’s post here. and find out what her wish is!

Wishes, hopes, dreams. These are usually at the forefront of my mind at the start of a new year and having decided against the traditional resolution, I wondered if perhaps I wasn’t taking things seriously enough. A vague intention of trying to view things through more appreciative eyes is not easily measurable. How would I know if I’d succeeded? Worse, how would I know if I’d failed? And that thought brought me to the dreaded concept of failure.

Now, I have to admit to being a coward when it comes to failure. Yes, I understand that if you never fail at anything, you are unlikely to achieve anything either. The likelihood is that you’ve been playing safe and have not actually attempted anything. Still, I have a horror of failing. If I set myself a specific goal with a timeframe, I wouldn’t want to fail and that would mean I put myself under pressure. And if there’s one thing I dislike almost as much as failure, it’s pressure!

Perhaps, I wondered, was there a better way of dealing with things? Something to work towards but nothing that would break me with its demands.

So, I began to wonder about what I wanted to happen – my wishes and dreams for 2023. To me, wishes and dreams are kinder than goals, deadlines and demands. No pressure because a wish is just a wish – sometimes wishes come true and sometimes they don’t. I suppose, the responsibility is removed from me and placed more in the realms of fairy godmothers. How can I be considered a failure if my wish didn’t come true? A fairy godmother somewhere simply slipped up.

However, that throws up a whole new set of problems. Wishes and dreams can be rather unrealistic. They ought to be unrealistic. What’s the point of wishing or dreaming for something that’s almost certain to happen anyway or that’s well within your grasp? So, if you’re going to wish, wish big! But that is undoubtedly going to lead to disappointment. Along with failure and pressure, disappointment isn’t high on my list of must-haves.

Having been an extreme optimist for most of my life, I think I’ve now found a solution to dreaming big and then finding that my dreams were completely unrealistic. I’ve learnt to manage my expectations.

I suspect that people might find this rather a gloomy prospect because when I say I manage my expectations, I mean that although my dreams are stratospheric, I expect nothing. That sounds like a contradiction and perhaps it is, but in my mind, the two things are quite separate. For example, when I publish a book, I dream of it becoming a number 1 bestseller. However, if I manage my expectations, then I don’t expect it to sell a copy. ‘Not sell a copy?’ That sounds like extreme pessimism! And possibly it can be considered as such. But if I don’t expect to sell any copies of my new book and someone buys one, imagine the joy! And if I sell another one, I’m thrilled to bits! Two books sold when I didn’t expect to sell any!

However, if my dream had been to sell a dozen books and I only sold two, I’d be disappointed.

It’s all a matter of perspective and managing expectations. I have limitless dreams. I try to achieve them but I have zero expectations.

And how’s that working out for me so far this year? Completely against my expectations, it’s working rather well. Remember I said I had a dream of having a number one bestselling book? Well, a few days ago, The Finding of Eden the second book in the Lady Amelia Saga (see more about the books here) hit the number 1 spot in its category on Amazon and the first book in the series, The Duchess of Sydney was number 8.
Had I wished for that? Oh yes!
Did I expect it? Absolutely not.
Am I happy? Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

How do you manage your expectations? Let them run riot or keep them under check? Let me know…

New Year’s Resolutions

I must admit to finding birthdays and the start of a new year rather daunting. They’re both times to reflect on past successes but also to dwell on the previous year’s failures. Even more disturbing than what’s already happened is what’s likely to take place during the coming year. However, once my birthday is over, or it’s January 1^st in the new year, I don’t feel so bad. I think it’s the prospect of the unknown looming that alarms me. Once it’s begun, I’m fine and just carry on.

In the past, I’ve made new year’s resolutions: to get fitter, to eat a healthier diet, to be kinder – the usual things. But then real life takes over and the further into January I go, the less likely I am to remember my resolutions.

This year I decided not to make any new year’s resolutions. I thought I’d simply try to do my best at everything. Easy to say. Not so easy to do and even harder to measure to see if I’m achieving anything!

However, recently, I saw two interesting alternatives to making new year’s resolutions. The first suggested that you should write yourself a letter (see the post here) 
It suggests asking yourself the following questions: 

• What are the fears you plan to tackle, those things you believe are holding you back?
• What are the adventures you will embrace in the year to come?
• How will you connect or reconnect with others in your life?
• How will you plan to grow?
• What can you do to serve others?

The letter should be opened at various times during the year to remind you what your key values and goals are and to assess your progress.

The second idea is to adopt a different mindset, described as ‘Benign Alien’. When I read that, it sounded rather intriguing, so I explored further. The idea is that you adopt the persona of an alien who’s just landed on Earth. Imagine focusing on all the wonders that humans see every day–and probably take for granted. If you inspected each one as if you’d never seen it before, you’d probably derive much pleasure from all you encountered. So, everything that humans usually filter out as they carry on about their daily business becomes an object of fascination and marvel–including other humans!

The ‘Benign Alien’ idea reminded me that I see the world through ‘new’ eyes when I go out with my camera. My focus is on searching for something interesting to photograph. That means I look harder than I’d usually do and notice more than if I was simply out for a walk. If you want to see what I did on my walk around Soho, here’s part 4 of my day in Soho with my camera. There are links on the post to the previous three parts.

Perhaps it would be a good idea for me to get out with my camera more this year? That’s a new year’s resolution I could enjoy!

How about you? Have you made any new year’s resolutions for 2023?

Throughout my life I’ve always loved meeting people from other countries and when I heard Stefania’s Italian accent on a recent Zoom meeting, I was intrigued. Not just intrigued – I was extremely impressed that she’d had short stories and Pocket Novels accepted for publication in English! So, when I had the opportunity to find out more about her, I jumped at it.

Stefania is the next Pocket Novelist to take part in my series of interviews.

1. What made you first decide to write a Pocket Novel? 

I was attracted by the short wordcount and the variety of themes, eras and genres that are accepted for Pocket Novels. I write a lot of short stories because l enjoy change and I get easily bored and demotivated if I don’t get frequent gratification (like that marvellous feeling of completing a story), and the Pocket Novel felt like only a small step away from that. I’m quite risk averse and I’m daunted by the prospect of investing months on a 80K words novel that might not turn out to be a success. I felt that writing a 37K words Pocket Novel for The People’s Friend was a risk I could take. And even if I got bored with it along the way, I could grit my teeth and finish it. I wasn’t wrong: when I wrote my first Pocket Novel, last August, I flew to the end without a moment’s boredom. Now I’m looking forward to writing many more.  

2. Do you usually submit to My Weekly or People’s Friend or do you submit to both?

I’ve only started submitting recently, and so far, I’ve sent one Pocket Novel to My Weekly and two to The People’s Friend, who have accepted the first one (it will be out just before Christmas). I’m waiting for feedback on the other two. Fingers crossed!

3. Are all your Pocket Novels set in the same era? 

No, but I think that in future they will be! So far, I’ve set two Pocket Novels in present day Italy and one in 1930s Singapore. For the last one, I was inspired by the location, which I was familiar with (I’ve lived in Singapore for a while), but I had to do a lot of research about the time period. The research slowed down my writing enthusiasm so much that finishing this Pocket Novel was a struggle, and by then I was already getting excited about the next project. So, going forwards, I’ll stick with the here and now!

4. Do you have any books published? If so, where are they available?

I’ve just published my first collection of festive short stories, which is entitled A Season of Goodwill and it’s available from Amazon in ebook, paperback and large print. It’s part of a series of collections of humorous and heart-warming short stories set in Sicily, Sicilian Stories. Before that, I published a collection of 31 short stories, entitled Tales from the Parish. It’s set in a rural community in the Cotswolds, heavily based on the town where I live. 

5. Tell us something surprising or interesting about yourself! 

English is my second language and people are surprised when I tell them that I write fiction in English. I surprise myself, too, to be honest! Sometimes I pinch myself and I can’t believe how lucky I am to be able to write stories that people like to read when, not long ago, I couldn’t read a newspaper article without stumbling on too many words to understand it. Still, my strong Italian accent is a constant reminder of where I’ve started from. It’s taken a lot of hard work and patience, not only mine but also of the people around me who corrected me and explained why we say “head over heels” and not “head over hills”! To this day I sometimes come up with a turn of phrase that isn’t quite the way English speakers would say it, and I’m grateful to my editors for saving me from embarrassment!

You can find A Season of Goodwill by Stefania Hartley available as Kindle, Paperback and Large Print. Find it here on Amazon

If you’d like to find out more about Stefania, her blog is here

Find out more about some of my other Pocket Novelists friends:

Enid Reece here
Alan C. Williams here
Sue Cook here
Carrie Hewlett here

The fifth part in the Lady Amelia Saga was published at the end of October 2022 and is now out as paperback, Kindle and Kindle Unlimited on Amazon, here https://mybook.to/ThePearlOfAphrodite

The first parts are ‘The Duchess of Sydney’ which you can read about here, ‘The Finding of Eden’ here, ‘The Other Place’, here and ‘The Dolphin’s Kiss’ here.

An honest heart is no protection against the lies and deceit of friends.

In 1790, three-year-old Charlotte Jackson is transported with her convict mother from London to Sydney. Twenty-one years later, Charlotte is offered the chance of a new life in London by the mysterious and brash Ruth Bellamy. Charlotte yearns to belong. A new start in a new country might be just what she needs.

On the perilous voyage, she falls for handsome Alexander Melford, also seeking betterment in London.

Fate throws them together. But the deceit of those they trust threatens to tear them apart. Will they ever escape the lies and finally be free to love?

Previously published as a My Weekly Pocket Novel under the title ‘Aphrodite’s Pearl’.

Cover designer Paul Burridge of PublishingBuddy designed a super new cover for the book and the manuscript was edited by Wendy Ogilvie of Wendy Ogilvie Editorial.

You can find the all the books in the saga on Amazon:

The Duchess of Sydney – https://mybook.to/TheDuchessOfSydney
The Finding of Eden – https://mybook.to/TheFindingOfEden
The Other Place – https://mybook.to/TheOtherPlace
The Dolphin’s Kiss – https://mybook.to/TheDolphinsKiss
The Pearl of Aphrodite – https://mybook.to/ThePearlOfAphrodite

Introducing Carrie Hewlett

I first met Carrie Hewlett on a Zoom meeting and was amazed at how many short stories she’d had published. I have yet to meet her face to face but perhaps next year?

I asked her a few questions to find out about her Pocket Novels and how she’d got interested in writing them.

What made you first decide to write a Pocket Novel, Carrie?

I wanted to know if I could write something longer. I’d written loads of short stories and poems, but wanted to push myself. It’s nice to explore characters in greater depth too, and see where they lead you.

I was nervous about writing so many words – 50,000 sounds a lot! But with encouragement from fellow writers, in the end, I had to cut the story. I’ll always be grateful to the then Pocket Novel editor of My Weekly, Maggie Swinburne, for her words of wisdom and support too. And, actually, it was she who gave me the idea for my second Pocket Novel that’s due out next February, Written in the Stars. I’m a lover of astrology so the idea of having an astrologer solving a mystical puzzle and crime seemed too good an opportunity to miss! 

For my first Pocket Novel, I based it on a short story I’d written that hadn’t sold. It was set on a cruise ship, and I think wanted to be made into a much longer read. As I’ve been lucky enough to go on four cruises, I could picture the ship in my head as I wrote. The characteristics of the protagonist and other characters grew – do characters talk to others? They seem to with me! I had a notebook (always useful presents for writers) and wrote down the salient points, adding bits as I went along. And I loved it so much I couldn’t wait to write another. The writing longer length fiction bug had most definitely hit!

Do you usually submit to My Weekly or People’s Friend or do you submit to both?

I’ve only written Pocket Novels for My Weekly so far, but I’d like to try writing one for The People’s Friend too. Though in saying that I think you have more leeway with writing grittier stuff with My Weekly. They’re longer, but subject matter does count and I rather like adding some danger. Still, never say never. I wasn’t sure I could write one Pocket Novel let alone two so who knows what I’ll do next!

Are all your Pocket Novels set in the same era?

Hmm. Yes, I guess they are. But it’s something to think about for the future. All books require research, so you have to factor that in as you don’t want to make any faux pas. My first Pocket Novel was set at sea. My second is on dry land. But both are set in modern day. Maybe I should write more historical short stories first and see how I go? I have written some short stories set in wartime eras, as well as one set in the 18^th Century. I’ve also set short stories in the sixties, seventies and eighties. I like to stretch myself so maybe I could see if I could come up with a good idea.

Do you have any books published? If so, where are they available?

I have one Pocket Novel published so far which came out in June 2022. My second book comes out next February, 2023. Both are with D.C. Thomson. I have written some children’s/YA books but as of yet no takers, though I’ll keep plugging away. In fact, I’ve just finished writing a children’s chapter book (again based on a short story.) In saying that, my first Pocket Novel has just been accepted by Ulverscroft for their large print Linford Romance range, so that will hopefully appear in libraries soon. I also have a short story included in the Writers for Ukraine book, available from Amazon. And short stories in several annuals with My Weekly.

Which is your favourite of all the pocket novels that you’ve had published and why?

 Can I say both of them for different reasons?! I loved writing and almost reliving my cruising days (though I hasten to add there was no murder on board as far as I’m aware when I was sailing!) And with astrology being so close to my heart it was lovely to expand on the subject. In fact, anything mystical or magical grabs my attention. Hmm. Maybe I should write a Pocket Novel based around a magic show?!

Finally, Carrie, what are you currently working on?

I’ve just finished writing a children’s chapter book but I also write a lot of short stories. It’s quite a different discipline writing shorter, punchier stories to being able to let loose with a longer theme and letting the characters grow. I’ve been lucky enough to have had short stories published in all the main women’s magazines and loved writing each and every one. 

I have a website which my nephew kindly set up for me as I’m a bit of a dinosaur and am being dragged into the technological age!  Carrie’s website can be found here

As for writing another Pocket Novel – yes. I’ve written a synopsis (which will change as I write I’m sure) I just need to make a start.

Thanks so much Dawn for inviting me onto your blog – it’s been fun 😊

If you’d like to know more about the Pocket Novelists who I’ve featured, you can find their details here:

Enid Reece here
Alan C. Williams here
Sue Cook here

Carrying on with my interviews of fellow Pocket Novelists, this time, I’m introducing Sue Cook. I first met Sue on Zoom meetings during lockdown. As well as both being Pocket Novelists, we belong to the Romantic Novelists’ Association (RNA) and have both attended several excellent online courses run by the RNA. In July 2022, I met Sue face to face for the first time at the RNA’s conference in Newport.

I asked Sue a few questions so we could discover more about her.

1. So, Sue, what made you first decide to write a Pocket Novel?

It was the WOMAG (women’s magazine) writing community. I always wanted to be a crime writer because those are the books I love to read. But I don’t know any police officers who could give me some insight, and there’s no way I’m going to write a cozy containing a cat with supernatural powers of deduction. The pocket novels seemed a perfect solution – a romance with some crime in it. I’d already joined the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writer Scheme, so there was no reason not to write a pocket novel.

2. Do you usually submit to My Weekly or People’s Friend or do you submit to both?

I submit to both and have been published by both. It just depends on the story and how long I think it will be. I find it excellent to discipline myself to write for different markets – because they are slightly different even though they are owned by the same publishing company.

3. Are all your Pocket Novels set in the same era?

No. The most historical one I’ve written, Murder at the Monastery (out this month with My Weekly), was set at the time of the Dissolution, and Thomas Cromwell puts in a token appearance. Another was set in the time of William IV. The others are contemporary.

4. Do you have any books published?

Tara’s African Adventure is out in eBook (including Kindle Unlimited), and also in large print in libraries.
Tara has been stranded in Botswana, terrified of the wildlife. Her best bet for getting home is a handsome safari guide who seems like a disaster waiting to happen. But Tara discovers someone is trying to sabotage his company, so they work – and  grow – together as they try to find the perpetrators.
It’s a fabulous blend of romance, exotic location and intrigue.
You can find Tara’s African Adventure on Amazon here.

5. Which is your favourite of all the Pocket Novels that you’ve had published, and why? 

That’s a hard one, but I’ll have to plump for Murder at the Monastery, which is published as a Pocket Novel on 27 October 2022. I love the Tudor period and am obsessed with abbeys. I spent a long time researching authentic recipes (Agnes, my heroine, is a cook), including how they made bread and what the monks would be allowed to eat in Lent (not much). Throw in a few murders, accusations of witchcraft and a dishy abbot who is determined to keep the infirmary going once the abbey is closed, despite the havoc raging around him, and I think it’s a ripping good yarn. I loved writing it and was sorry to say goodbye to Agnes, Mark (the abbot) and Simon the gossiping kitchener. 

6. What are you currently working on?

My main writing project is a serial for The People’s Friend, set on an art retreat in Umbria. Villa Davide is deep in a tinder-dry forest at the height of summer. The hostess is a few hundred Euros off losing everything, the art tutor is trying to overcome the negativity of her last relationship and knows that failure here will cause the retreat to close, and a fire chief guest is terrified of fire. Of course, the last two will fall hopelessly in love despite the tutor being told to show no favouritism…

My thanks to Sue for taking the time to tell us about her writing. If you’d like to find out more about her, you can find her on her blog here www.suecookwrites.wordpress.com and Amazon Author page here. And don’t forget to look out for Tara’s African Adventure on Amazon. Her next Pocket Novel, Murder at the Monastery will be in your local supermarket or stationer for two weeks from 27 October 2022.
If you ‘d like to know more about writing Pocket Novels, why not comment on my blog, contact Sue on her blog or check out my previous two guests’ details, Enid Reece here and Alan C. Williams here.

Introducing Alan C. Williams

Continuing with my conversations with fellow Pocket Novelists, I put some questions to Alan C. Williams who writes Pocket Novels as A.C. Williams but also other books under the name Alan C. Williams. As you can see, he ran riot, answering the questions in his own inimitable style! Read on…

1. What first made him want to write a pocket novel?

 Interesting question, Dawn! Alan supposes that it was a challenge. He’d been writing short stories for women’s magazines reasonably successfully for six years, mainly selling to That’s Life in Australia where they appreciated his quirky, zany, slightly scary writing style. But Alan wanted more. He was in a short story group with other writers (now also Pocketeers), Niddy Reece (read Niddy’s interview here), Sue Cook and Carrie Hewitt from memory. The idea came up from them. In the fullness of time when accounts are tallied and responsibilities taken, Alan feels that they should share the blame for the ensuing chaos that was created.

The longest story he’d written was about 3k. The idea of writing 50 k was terrifying – all those characters, plots and sub plots. He already had a few health issues but was diagnosed with sleep apnoea in mid 2017. His wife’s loving comments about his brain (or lack thereof) were true. He wasn’t getting enough oxygen up there (possibly due to overdosing on Vegemite in his formative years). Within two weeks of using a CPAP machine in France, he could see the entire novel in every detail in his mind. Alan submitted the first three chapters plus synopsis and was encouraged to finish it.

He wrote the whole novel Lost in the Outback in about ten weeks and it was accepted. For My Weekly, no less. Fantastic. He doesn’t write notes or plot breakdowns or have post-it notes with little arrows on a cork board. He’s lucky. He sees the novel in his head and can often be heard chatting to his characters whilst shopping or wandering along the lack of sea side that is Southport’s so called beach. This probably explains why dogs run away yelping and fellow humans cross to the far side of the street upon seeing him. His trouble is that he’s a one-finger typist so that is frustrating as his little brain is replete with too much to type.

Over the following three years, he sold ten novels, meaning that 1 in 7 of the My Weekly Pocket Novels during that time was written by him. He was grateful to have the support of the editor, Maggie Swinburne, and the publisher (neither of whom have had the dubious pleasure of meeting him in person).

2. Does he write for People’s Friend or My Weekly?

Only My Weekly. His style is grittier than the People’s Friend want. Alan humbly suggests that the People’s Friend editorial team might have serious misgivings about an author who refers to himself in the third person. He’s not really great with mushy kissy kissy stuff, being a bloke and an Aussie and married. Alan’s more into murders, robberies, kidnappings and explosions. Alan loves his explosions. Yeah. Sad, isn’t it? A romance writer who doesn’t like romance. Nevertheless, his heroines are usually strong women. If asked during one of his few lucid moments, he’d say that he’s proud of that. 

3. Are all his Pocket Novels set in the same era?

To date, Alan has had eleven Pocket Novels published with two more scheduled for 2023. Many are set in the sixties and seventies, several set at present. He loves to weave his own experiences into the rich tapestry of the novel. However, he has done a wartime WW2 romance/espionage set in Lancashire. There are quite a few explosions in that. Also a wild west Australian novel set in 1877 with bushrangers, gold robberies and insurrection. Oh … and Ned Kelly makes a very enigmatic appearance. Generally, he’s not great on research being, in his own words, ‘a lazy old bathtub’. 

Some are in Australia and some Britain. One, Green Skies at Night, was set in Tulsa USA but that was down to his editor saying that he’d caused too much chaos in Australia and could he set it in Alberquerkey. Alan, never the sharpest tool in the workshop, couldn’t spell Alberquekey so set it in Tulsa instead. Yeah … ‘Anything for an easy life’. That’s his middle name.

4. Does he have any books published? If so where?

Alan had a short story collection published in Australia. The Rain, The Park and Other Things by the Cowsills was a favourite song  back in the sixties and the anthology is divided into those three themes. He painted the cover too. It’s on Amazon and reviews would be welcome. Find The Rain, The Park and Other Things here.
Also many of his books are in libraries throughout the world in large print, Linford Romance under the author name Alan C. Williams. You can find his Linford Romance books here.

5. Which is his favourite novel and why?

Alan’s favourite would be Christmas Down Under because it’s based on his and his long-suffering wife, Anne’s, romance in Sydney way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Saying that, Moonlight Rising is based on Anne’s happier days (before she met Alan) when she worked as a croupier in the swinging sixties in Manchester.

6. What is he currently working on?

Truthfully, quite a lot. Moonlight Shadow set in 60s Manchester, Lauren’s Strange Aussie Romance set in 70s Sydney, Love and the Ice Princess set in 2000 Antarctica and a time travel story in 2023 Southport where he now lives. Many days see him switching from one novel to the next. Alan’s brain is not a logical one and is best summed up by his brother, Bruce, who kindly suggested that there are a whole herd of kangaroos loose in Alan’s top paddock. Alan is not sure if this is complementary.

Alan was born in Sydney but has spent twenty years in England, fourteen years in France and seven years exiled to Tasmania as a convict in Port Arthur for wearing a Superman costume while wandering the streets of Manchester. He speaks four languages fluently, English, French, Australian and Tasmanian. He’s currently learning Liverpudlian but is really struggling with that.

Physically, he’s 73 years old according to his tattered birth certificate. As to his mental age … suffice it to say that the jury is still out on that one. 

Finally, Alan would like to thank Dawn for sharing his story and love of being a Pocketeer on this page. She is a true friend and helps keep him sane whenever his little brain goes walkabout into his fantasy worlds. He sincerely hopes that whatever madness he is infected with isn’t contagious. 

***

Since Alan refers to himself in the third person, Dawn feels she’d better follow suit. She’d like to thank Alan for taking the time to answer her questions and she’d also like to say she’s read many of Alan’s books and particularly loved The Rain, The Park and Other Things. She loves his sense of humour and his timing, even if he can’t spell Albuquerque! A great book. Why not check out Alan’s blog for more mayhem and madness here but hopefully, no explosions!

Introducing Pocket Novelist, Enid Reece.

During the next few weeks, I thought I’d feature some of my fellow Pocket Novelists on my blog. 

By ‘Pocket Novelist’, I mean someone who has had a Pocket Novel published by D.C. Thomson in either The People’s Friend or My Weekly. The People’s Friend Pocket Novels are about 40,000 words long and have large print whereas the My Weekly ones are normal print and are about 50,000 words long. A new Pocket Novel comes out each fortnight and they are sent to subscribers through the post although you will also find each one on the shelf in supermarkets and stationers for a fortnight. If you would like to find out more, information about The People’s Friend Pocket Novels can be found here  and information about My Weekly Pocket Novels can be found here

I first met Enid Reece, or Niddy, on Zoom meetings during the pandemic but recently had the pleasure of meeting up with her in person at the Romantic Novelists’ Association Conference in Newport. Niddy has kindly agreed to tell us a little about herself and her writing.

1. What made you first decide to write a Pocket Novel?

I’d been writing short stories for some time with moderate success. At first, it was a struggle to write a thousand words but as time went by, I wanted to write longer stories and decided to try NaNoWriMo, writing 50k words in a month. This turned into my first Pocket Novel when a writing friend and myself decided to sub our novels – We were both successful.

2. Do you usually submit to My Weekly or People’s Friend or do you submit to both? 

My Weekly. I have never tried to write for The People’s Friend but am considering it as most of my short stories have been published with them.

3. Are all your Pocket Novels set in the same era?

At the moment, yes, but that doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t consider a historical one.

4. Do you have any books published? If so, where are they available?

I have two published by Ulverscroft  Large Print which are available in libraries. Deep Secrets and On the Case. You can also find the books here on The Reading House. 

5. Which is your favourite of all the Pocket Novels that you’ve had published, and why?

Difficult question as I love them all but On the Case holds special memories for me as it was written for a friend of mine who gave me the idea for the story.

6. What are you currently working on?

The Golden Dolphin is set in Malta. An adventure love story about a couple seeking a mythical treasure. This is the first time I have set a story in another country so there was quite a bit of research which is fun.

Niddy doesn’t have a blog but you can see both Ulverscroft books here on Amazon On The Case and Deep Secrets 

Visit to Paycocke’s House in Coggeshall, Essex

The other day my husband and I passed through Coggeshall in Essex. We were on our way to the National Trust Medieval Grange Barn to watch a brilliant performance of Pygmalion by DOT Productions (check out their website for future performances here). I’d previously looked up Grange Barn on the National Trust website and seen another historic site in Coggeshall – Paycocke’s House – and as we drove through Coggeshall, I spotted it. Not a mansion nor a stately home but a Tudor merchant’s house with an intriguing façade. See National Trust site here. Something interesting that I learnt from the site is that ‘Paycocke’ is the Old English for ‘Peacock’.

A few weeks later, on the spur of the moment, we decided to go back to Coggeshall to have a better look at Paycocke’s House and some of the other Tudor buildings in the town. When we arrived at Paycocke’s House, the garden and teashop at the back were just opening and we discovered there were guided tours taking place throughout the day. Although they were full, the guides kindly allowed us to join the first group of eight.

Anne was our voluntary guide and she led us from the garden into the street to admire the façade and the many wooden carvings on the beams. She pointed out the fool and the mummer figures over the coach entrance. It’s not known why Thomas Paycocke, the merchant who built the main part of the house, had those particular figures represented on the front of his house. However, links can be seen with many of the other carvings depicted on the beam that runs from one side to the other. The ermine emblem that Thomas Paycocke used as his merchant’s mark on the woollen cloth that he produced can be seen, as well as his initials. There’s also an upside down dragon (possibly showing it’s dead), a cat, a child looking as though it is being swallowed by a flower, a phoenix and the two headed swan of the Vintners Guild who are associated with swan-upping each summer along the River Thames, to name but a few.

Our tour continued as Anne unlocked the front door and we entered the Great Hall where she pointed out more carvings in the ceiling beams including the initials of Thomas and his wife Margaret.

The room leading off the main entrance hall is called the Panelled Room with magnificent linenfold panelling on the walls and a desk set up to look as though it were ready for the merchant to do business. It is covered with a carpet, as was the custom in those days, and on top are items such as Thomas might have used while conducting his business.

We then went upstairs to the Great Chamber, a room containing a dining table and chairs, and Anne explained how important the wool trade was to the area, with the many different trades involved from rearing sheep to spinning, carding, weaving, fulling and so on. She demonstrated how to card wool, repeatedly combing the wool between two brushes and teasing out the lengths of wool to ready them for spinning into yarn. She allowed us to touch some of the white, woollen cloth such as Thomas Paycocke would have produced and which would have earned him a handsome profit. I was surprised that to the touch, it was rather like felt. From there, we passed into a smaller room containing more woollen samples and then into a bedroom. The last part of the tour was the solar containing examples of lace. If you’d like to see more photos of the visit, you can see them here.

Anne told us that the house had undergone many changes over the years – at one point, even being split into three cottages and it is possible to see the bricked up doors in the façade. In 1904 the house was in a poor state and Lord Noel Buxton paid for it to be completely renovated. He subsequently gifted it to the National Trust. She also told us that the interesting windows were not original features, having being added many years after Thomas Paycocke had the house built.

Anne was an excellent and knowledgeable guide and brought the house to life. Definitely worth a visit if you’re anywhere near Coggeshall in Essex.

Although I’ve never written anything set in the Tudor times, it’s wonderful to be somewhere so old and to soak up the atmosphere! Perhaps Paycocke’s House will inspire me to write a story!

Blists Hill Victorian Town Visit

I was recently fortunate enough to attend the Romantic Novelists’ Association Conference in the Harper Adams University, Newport. My husband and I arrived in Telford a day before the conference and we decided to explore Blists Hill Victorian Town. I certainly wasn’t prepared for such an excellent time and if I ever have the opportunity to go again, I will grab it. Check out ticket prices and other details here

As we entered the grounds, it was as though we had just come out of a railway station and the town opened up in front of us. I was surprised to see, not only buildings, but people in period costume. The first ones we saw were a bobby on the beat and a delivery boy on a horse drawn delivery cart. They both chatted with visitors whilst keeping in character. The first building we came to was a Lloyds Bank into which one could go and exchange today’s money for old currency. Items for sale in the shops display the price in old money and new, so you can pay in either. Although it has the appearance of a ‘town’, the ratio of shops to houses is greater than would be normal in a town. However, there were examples of houses, both rich and poor that one could wander through.

There were many examples of shops represented in the town, from the apothecary full of interestingly-named jars and bottles, to the photographic studio. There were butchers, bakers where real bread was sold, and a candle maker’s!

Inside the Candle Maker’s, the man explained that the shop in which we were standing had been dismantled brick by brick from a neighbouring town and rebuilt up as it had once been. They were making candles as we watched and selling them there too.

In the Post Office, there was also a Post Office museum with some very handsome antique post boxes on display and a rather interesting Postman’s bicycle! 

As well as a huge array of shops, there were several houses – from humble cottages to homes owned by wealthier people and we were able to wander from room to room and see how people lived. In one fine house, a woman was cleaning the grate and in another two women were crocheting, all of them explained what they were doing to the visitors. One of the houses contained a room that was fitted out as a doctor’s surgery.

There was even a fairground with an old fashion merry-go-round! If you’d like to see more photos, you can see them here on Flickr 

If you’re anywhere near Telford, Blists Hill Victorian Village is well worth a visit.