Steps up to the Poet’s Seat at Allen Bank, where Wordsworth composed an ode or two. All by myself; a cuckoo calling. Sign said ‘you might catch a glimpse of a red squirrel’. I did not. Did it matter? Only a little.

Was Jane Boleyn really Tudor history's mean girl, or a scapegoat for the real (male) plotters and schemers behind the beheadings of two of Henry VIII's queens? #janeboleyn #tudors www.oliviahayfield.com/jane-boleyn-...

Watching #Serena on Netflix and I love the mountains and the eagle and the vibe of doom, but Mr Bates from the Post Office is the sheriff and Spike from Notting Hill is a mountain man so … Also I have no idea what's going on

This is gonna hurt! Bracing myself. #anneboleyn

Happy book birthday to this little belter! 🎉 #2 in our series of romcom novellas, Miss Lovelock's Agency for Broken Hearts. Pure escapism, lots of fun, plus some pass-me-my-fan spice, but beware of some groan-out-loud puns. You've been warned. @cjrauthor.bsky.social

Now on my blog, Edward IV. Gluttony? Womanising? His grandson, Henry VIII, didn't come close! www.oliviahayfield.com/edward-iv-th...

So I made my new novella $3.75 in the US, which is about 25% more than in all the other countries, like Canada. Authors – who's with me? #tariffs #Canada

Just got the nice little annual Authors' Licensing payment for copying/use of my work in the UK. Wouldn't it be nice if NZ did this? Authors - if your work is published in the UK make sure you register, every little helps, right? www.alcs.co.uk

"But … but …" Today, a lesson from @cjrauthor.bsky.social in how romance book titles work

That’s me sitting there looking across Lake Pukaki to Aoraki Mount Cook thinking, 30 years since we moved to NZ and I reckon that was a good thing to do 💙

Spooking NZ school kids via Zoom for #NZReadAloud this morning 👻

Slightly belated thoughts for International Women's Day. Imagine if … Kamala was in charge, not Trump women were in charge, not the Taliban women were given the chance sort out Gaza a woman was in charge of Israel a woman was Russian president women ruled Iran. #InternationalWomensDay

New Zealand: sacks its UK High Commissioner for questioning Trump's grasp of history France: youtu.be/TEjKctHQvn8?...

Tonight I'm hosting a Zoom chat for the NZSA on 'The art of editing'. If you're a member, hop on and smile encouragingly at me, I get nervous on Zoom. 7.30pm, check your emails for the link.

Saturday nights don't get better than this! On the purple carpet for the launch of Six the Musical last night. Don't miss!

Do people not realise what a sanctuary libraries are? They're vital to communities. This is so shortsighted. Close a sports stadium for a change or a bloody conference centre.

Ghost earrings ✅ Copy of book I wrote a loooong time ago and reread last night to remind myself what happens - even spooked myself ✅ Great fun Zoom-chatting with the #NZReadAloud schools this morning. Told them all about the eruption of Mt Tarawera and the phantom waka. What a (true) story that is!

"Everyone must go."

Train of thought re woman coming towards me on morning walk. Cool leggings, brave colour. Mind you she’s got the legs for it And the fa- Oh. It’s Rachel Hunter.

My foray into writing romance going well so far - message from a Booksprout reviewer in the US who gave me 5⭐️ 😃 (more ‘sexy times’ on the cards then) 😂

Anyone else in Auckland having problems with the whole Ongas to Elgas thing? Can't log into my account. Can't change password. Can't do anything much!

At Auckland harbour just now I met a fisherman who'd caught a ray & was trying to pick it up from where it lay on the pavement. He was afraid it'd sting him. The curses! Funniest thing I've seen in ages 😂 Happy to report he got there in the end, threw it back and it swam away.

This demonstrates how difficult it is to forge a career as a children's writer in NZ but how, if you stay true to yourself, persevere (and have real talent) there can be a happy ending. Elena is one of the nicest writers in NZ but doesn't blow her own trumpet so I will instead. Go read her stuff!

Email to authors from CEO of Penguin RH in the US. Well said that CEO.

My gardening friends back home in the UK sometimes ask what I mean by ‘subtropical’

It's not often I get to write this sort of editorial comment. Looking forward to my (male) author's response! #editor

In Term 1 my children’s book The Ghosts of Tarawera will be read simultaneously by a group of schools as part of #NZReadAloud. And the teachers are discussing it online 😭😭❤️❤️

Identifying an author's tic is totally the most fun part of being an editor 😈

They’re waterblasting the Auckland Harbour Bridge and there’s a little help yourself to earplugs thing. Only in New Zealand! 🥹

A bit of Elizabethan scandal for you - an edited version of a piece I wrote for Royals Monthly is now on my blog 'The Tudors et al - the real people behind my characters.' #Tudors www.oliviahayfield.com/an-elizabeth...

An uptick over the hols in people reading my 1st novel, WIFE AFTER WIFE, so I thought it would be fun to share the piece I wrote for 'On the Tudor Trail' about how I set out to bring Henry VIII down, but ended up doing something quite different: onthetudortrail.com/Blog/2021/02...

Everyone in UK & US posting snowy pics so here is Ngauruhoe, NZ (aka Mt Doom) from my car window yesterday. Snow fell on this road, in the height of summer. ‘Unusual’ said the Met Service 🙃

Love it when readers get my obscure Tudor Easter eggs! This is the 1st time anyone's told me they made the connection between Ana's slip-up with the office guillotine and what happened to her historical counterpart. 💐 I think you'd enjoy English undergrads Will Bardington & Kit Marley in the sequel!

Help! They’re taking me back to the Manawatu! Son and cat on their way home today.

Heh. Best bits of Jackie Collins and a stop-gap between Rivals seasons. Love this recent review - what author could ask for more? (OK one more star but I’m happy)

Our visitor for the holidays, the moment before my husband switched on the pond fountain

“And they all lived happily ever after because, although she married a loser, publishers still paid the Duchess many pounds for putting her name on books written by peasants.”

Auckland getting its Christmas on

I have no words left so I can’t tell you how good this feels

THIS! 👇

For the past 2 years, Daughter (Kiwi, living in Edinburgh): MUM WHY IS IT SO COLD Yesterday:

Daughter (24), who lives in Edinburgh, has been invited to the Scottish Firefighters Christmas Ball. The firefighters will be in kilts. With my occasional-romance-writer hat on, I'm wondering what to do with this information. @cjrauthor.bsky.social

Apparently it’s already Christmas in NZ. Seasons greetings! (Rest of world - that’s a pohutukawa, which flowers ‘at Christmas’.)

Merry Christmas, New Zealand! 😵‍💫

Blue Sky today

This would’ve taken me probably half an hour on Canva. Amazon’s new AI tool took seconds. We are all going to lose our jobs and end up stupid, but wow, that’s pretty!

I had a lot of fun answer these curly questions. Thanks so much to Claire Mabey and the Spinoff for inviting me into the confession box. thespinoff.co.nz/books/24-07-...

Leaving a copy of my book in the cottage in which the denouement takes place, hoping future guests enjoy the experience #lighthouse #queenkingace #kingarthur

After 3 nights here in the lighthouse keeper’s cottage (where the drama in my latest, Queen, King, Ace unfolds) it really is time I tagged @katydidnz.bsky.social