Very exciting pre-order post today (not least because it’s not officially out until next Thursday!). I’ve been looking forward to being able to read this for ages.

THE GREAT BEYOND Ruby, the daughter of a celebrated 1930s spirit medium, falls in love with the man trying to debunk her mother and must make a life-changing decision about who – and what – to believe. 🕯️Upmarket #HF 🕯️Faith vs illusion vs fraud 🕯️Knotty mother–daughter relationship #QuestPit #Q

Today the order banning #PalestineAction as "terrorists" came into effect. But they are not terrorists. They are protesters trying to stop a genocide. This is a "first they came for ..." situation. Unless we stand in solidarity against this assault on our freedom, they will pick us off one by one.

Highly recommend this book!

The sun is shining, I’m feeling reasonably okay and I’ve got big plans for the next few scenes in my novel redraft. So, I’ve decided to preemptively name today a Very Good Writing Day. Who’s with me?!

I cried reading this letter to @rthonwesstreeting.bsky.social and @ashleydaltonmp.bsky.social. Please, please fund the plan, people with ME/CFS have waited too long already. A huge thank you to Tessa Munt and the other 71 LibDem MPs for this much-appreciated and much-needed support.

A vague whim and an impulse Ebay purchase later, and I seem to have started a new collection of old photographs. (I also seem to have written about it over on Substack).

I have acquired this fascinating little booklet from 1935, filled with all manner of things that were considered ‘general information’ at the time of publication.

For reasons I’m not entirely clear on, I’ve taken an unplanned 7 month hiatus from my Substack. But! I read back through it this afternoon, remembered I’m actually rather proud of it, and have tentatively started writing a new post. …hopefully it will not take me another 7 months to publish it.

I have had to talk myself out of a research rabbit hole about how telegrams worked. But! I did come across a great (unrelated to my novel!) anecdote about Spike Milligan, who, when holed up in his attic writing room, used to send telegrams to his wife downstairs, requesting cups of tea.

Pretty sickened by UK's Supreme Court 🤮 So I'm opening my submission inbox to unagented trans authors in the UK until the END OF APRIL. I'm not currently open to general subs BUT if you're a trans author writing folk horror, weird, experimental, mystery, literary/upmkt fiction, take a look below 👇

Today's news really does show how important trans voices are, and I would encourage any UK based trans authors who have horror books on sub to get in touch with me. I want to read your work.

Today’s Supreme Court ruling is deeply shameful. I want to live in a world that’s becoming more tolerant, not one that’s rolling backwards. Sending solidarity to trans people today and everyday.

In world’s-slowest-doll’s-house-project news, this weekend I have finished painting the railings and have attached them to the pavement.

Keep writing, keep creating, keep making art.

Raising an imaginary glass to myself this afternoon for officially passing the dramatic midpoint of my novel draft just in time for the children’s Easter break. Let me know if you’d like me to raise my imaginary glass to you, too!

Thank you to the many people protesting alongside The Society of Authors today about Meta’s theft of authors’ work. Have you signed the petition yet? #DoTheWriteThing

Last year, I wrote the very first lines of a new novel project just as the daffodils were coming into bloom. A year later, the daffodils are back, and I’m half way through a third draft of that same project. Feels like great progress.

I had a birthday this week and celebrated with flowers, cake, lovely friends, and painting pottery in my kitchen.

Open letter in response to Meta's use of pirated material to train its AI. Authors, writers, creatives, please sign & share! forms.gle/1qebKTV6o7Au...

It’s Friday, the sun is shining and I’m about to edit a scene about a psychical researcher visiting a young woman who claims to be being bothered by a poltergeist.

Writers! When you’re putting a synopsis together, do you capitalise the first instance of each character’s name? I haven’t done previously, but I read something recently by an agent/editor who said it makes synopses easier to read.

We’ve been so moved seeing the #FundThePlan videos over the past few weeks. Now, we want to get our call to #FundThePlan out far and wide. Here’s a little something we’ve put together for the campaign. We’d love your help making some noise with it 🙏

Hayley’s comics about her experience as a cancer patient are so emotionally striking & important. I particularly resonate with this piece about the NHS and how we shouldn’t let our gratefulness stop us striving for better care (or, in the case of many people with ME, literally any care at all.)

Today’s unexpected research rabbit hole: the history of intercom systems for flats. (If you’re interested — from what I can tell — they originated as tube-based systems in the late 19th century.)

On World Book Day a few years ago, my youngest dressed up as a character from a gorgeous picture book written & illustrated by a friend of a friend. I sent the author a photo of my daughter’s costume on Instagram and she sent a super nice message back.

Shouldn’t there be a name for the unsettling and deeply modern phenomena of looking at the changes made to your old home on RightMove?!

There is an awful lot to worry about in the world at the moment, but today I’m trying to focus on the good. So, the sun is shining, I’m wearing my favourite t-shirt and my friend came over with fondant fancies. (Oh, and the writing is going well, too!)

The energy I bring to Bluesky

Knitting progress! I’m hoping to actually finish knitting the sleeves before the end of sweater weather.

I’m writing in bed this morning after a full on (for me!) half term week. There‘s something so wonderful about the way words can transport you somewhere else, especially when you don’t actually have the option of physically going elsewhere.

I loved reading this little Valentine’s story about the Brontë sisters and William Weightman!

Today my editing has largely consisted of adding a pillar box hat and a Japanese silk robe to my MS. I’m now wondering if vintage fashion is the main reason I write historical fiction. (Verdict: probably.)

I was feeling pretty smug about having now made twenty-one tiny books. But then I put them on the bookshelf in my doll’s house and, well. Let’s just say I have a lot more tiny books still to make.

I read this on dark days for a little solace.

I think all of us could benefit from taking more of this energy into our daily writing practice.

The sun is shining, my brain feels far less full of cotton wool than it did yesterday, and it’s late pick up at school. I have therefore decided that today is going to be a Very Good Writing Day.

I had my first non-medical outing of 2025 this morning! There was blue sky and birdsong and bare trees and crocuses and snowdrops and a wide open space. (And, of course, children laughing and den-finding and dogs running about.)

Happy publication day to all of my amazing fellow writers! Beyond / Tu Hwnt is officially out now 🥳 Get your copy now - available at all good book stores! (I've always wanted to say that!) Diolch, Jannat & team at Lucent Dreaming, Bethany Handley, Megan Angharad Hunter, and Sioned Erin Hughes.

We sowed these coleus seeds at the start of the year & tucked them up in a plastic bag to do their thing. I took a peek in the bag today & found all these shoots! Perhaps there’s a metaphor here about germination time & hidden progress, but for now I’m just going to enjoy the lovely new greenness.

I’ll be honest, being tucked up on the sofa with a poorly 10yo and Frozen 2 doesn’t make for ideal editing conditions. (Which, admittedly, may be because I love Frozen 2 and am therefore very willing to be distracted.)

I am not usually one for pondering maths-adjacent questions, but I will make an exception for book maths.

Checked my Office 365 subscription and found the same. I had to click to cancel my subscription before it gave me the option to revert to the ‘classic’ (no AI) option.

We’re currently accepting applications to five different FREE opportunities for #UnderrepresentedWriters as part of the Breakthrough Writers’ Programme! Funded by Curtis Brown Books and our partners. #AmWriting https://www.curtisbrowncreative.co.uk/breakthrough-scholarships Details below ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Today I’ve been both reading about séances at the start of the 20th century and reworking a novel synopsis. To be honest, I’m not sure which of the two involved the most complicated trickery.

There’s a lot to be said, I think, for small, hopeful acts of resistance. There may not be a huge amount that I can do as one single very unwell person, but I can do *something*. So, as a start, I’ve sent a message volunteering editorial support to a cause that’s important to me.

Sometimes (ok, often!) I worry that I’m taking too long to break into publishing. I loved this thread from Imogen as it’s a great reminder that our priority should always be to produce creative work we love and are proud of rather than rushing to meet arbitrary deadlines.

I had my first mentoring session with @clotimms.bsky.social at the weekend. Chloe’s feedback was so brilliant & thoughtful that I made 10 pages of notes! I’m very excited to explore all this inspiration in the next draft. So grateful to Chloe & to @cbcreative.bsky.social for the opportunity 💙

This snowman has officially been in residence in our garden for an entire week. I’ve got quite used to his company, so might have a bit of a Raymond Briggs moment when he’s finally gone.

The death toll in Gaza is even higher than estimated - study by the Lancet. All those sneering comments about "hamas run health ministry" (implying they're inflating the figures) are even wronger than we thought. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...