The cover fairies have been good to me. I saw this today for the first time. It's the cover for the large print edition of The Farmer Needs A Wife - which is coming out in February.

Isn't it pretty? I just love the colours - and I think it really does have an Australian feel.

What a fabulous way to end a pretty momentous year.

I'd like to wish everyone a really joyous Christmas and may 2010 be a very good year for all.

I know I've talked (complained?) before about how long it takes for things to happen in the authorial world. Many months to write a book. Many more months until I see the cover and then a few more months until it's in the bookshops. But just occasionally, things happen in a rush.

My editor at LBD has read my newest book - and she just LOVES it. Woo Hoo! I'm always terribly nervous when I hand in a new book... thinking maybe this time I got it wrong. But - according to my editor - I got it just right. There are a few little bits to polish, but not much at all. It's on track to be released in July next year!

Then - along came the cover of the German edition of The Farmer Needs A Wife - or Bauer Auf Brautschau. My first thought - he looks like Noel Gallagher dressed to play a role in Oklahoma! (That would be worth seeing.) It's coming out in April.

The large print English edition is coming out in February. I should see that any day now. I'll post the cover here when I do.

The mass market paperback of Loves Me, Loves Me Not is also out in February. The trade paperback edition which came out while ago is doing really, really well!

And to top it all off, Jean Fullerton, my good friend and fellow member of Lets Talk About Love, has just had her second book - A Glimpse at Happiness - long listed for the RNA's Romantic Novel of the Year Award. I have read the book and it's very good - and definitely deserves the nomination. Good luck Jean.

As a dedicated writer, I will go to the ends of the earth for my art - almost literally.

Last week, webmaster John and I headed north. We flew to Norway - to the town of Tromsø, which is just north of the Arctic Circle. Then we climbed aboard a ship and headed even further north into the Arctic night.

We cruised around the top of Norway, stopping to climb the northernmost tip of Europe, and then on almost to the Russian border.

I discovered some important things...

         Reindeer have funny feet.

         It's easiest to let the huskies just run. They know what they are doing.

The Northern Lights are stunning, but hard to photograph.

And what has all this got to do with writing a book? Lots. But as it will take nine months to write the book, then another nine months until it's published, you're going to have to wait a while for the detail. Sorry.

I've just got my first review of The Bachelor and Spinster Ball...  and Wow!

I really, really liked this book when I wrote it. My editor at LBD loved it. Webmaster John loved it. But that's not the same as a 'real' person loving it (if you know what a mean).

I just saw the review from Donna, on the Bookishly Attentive website.

She totally got what I was trying to do with the book... she understood the characters and the town and the relationships...

She said...

"Fast paced and well-written, The Bachelor and Spinster Ball provides a glimpse into everyday life in the remote Australian outback... I really enjoyed the characters - and how, just like in any small town, they really do care for each other. "

Then she said...

"Highly recommended"

And THEN she said...

"The Bachelor and Spinster Ball is yet another winner from Janet Gover and Little Black Dress."

Wow! Right now, I'm about ten feet tall (really I'm about five foot three, but you know what I mean).

Libraries are among my favourite places in the world - even better than shoe shops.

Why? Well, the books are part of it. Hundreds and hundreds of books - and you can read them for free. It's such a great place to go to discover a new author. I can lose myself in a library for hours at a time.

The other great thing about libraries is the people you find there - people who love books.

Librarians have the second best job in the world. They get to read books and talk to people about books. How good is that? The only thing better is writing books.

As for readers - they are the reason people like me spend untold hours staring at words on a computer screen, and wondering how to make them better.

I think there are three parts to storytelling. First, there is the person telling the story. The second part is the story itself. Then there is the person who reads the story.  Without them, the story has no purpose.

Last Thursday, I met a group who love books at Yateley Library in Hampshire. What a friendly welcome I had. The plan was that I would talk for 45 minutes, then take a few questions. A few..?  There were so many questions that I think we might have gone on past curfew... and that is just great! I love sharing this passion I have for books, and reading and writing.

Thanks to everyone for making it such a lovely evening.

As I'm just starting a new book - I thought I'd share its progress with you over the next months... but don't worry - there'll still be plenty of room for the shoe blog.

I've spent most of this week struggling with names for my characters.

Names are so important. Would we have fallen in love with Professor Jones if his first name had been Fred, not Indiana? Would Luke Brown have become the same Jedi hero? 

It's surprising how many characters there are in a book. There might be six or eight or ten major characters, but when you add in everyone who speaks, that quickly becomes twenty or thirty or more... eeek!

Even if they only appear briefly, I think everyone who speaks needs a name. In my head, if not on the page. It makes them real. A barmaid who appears in only one scene might only have a first name, but she still deserves a name.

For the new book, I've already met about fifteen people who are going to have speaking parts, and I've only been working on it for a couple of weeks.

Names must suit the character - their age, their personality and their nationality.

Where would I be without a book of baby names? You know the ones I mean - 7,000 baby names and their meanings. I'm also a frequent visitor to websites that list the most popular baby names for each year. Then there's that fabulous resource - the phone book.

Sometimes it's easy. The moment I found the name Eudora in the name book, I knew it was perfect for the school teacher in The Bachelor and Spinster Ball. Other names are harder.

My new book has a character who appeared in my mind as 'the mysterious passenger in cabin 67'.  He's tall and dark and...  In this case, I am happy to leave him without a name for a while. Why spoil the fun?

Writers talk about the 'second book blues'. The second book is the toughest to write. The first gets written in the hope of finding a publisher, but no real expectations. The second is written with a deadline looming, and an editor who isn't looking over your shoulder, but it sometimes feels like she is. Whatever it was you did right in the first book - you have to do it again. It's the first 'professional' book - and pretty scary.

Writing The Bachelor and Spinster Ball wasn't easy. I got half way through, had a crisis of confidence, went back and started again. Well - all that stress and hard work was worth it. The Bachelor and Spinster Ball hit the bookshops this week. Yea!

I spent Thursday evening in East London - with my writer pals from Lets Talk About Love - signing books in Waterstone's Bookshop, at Romford. The staff and shoppers there were very friendly and it was a great way to launch the book.

We were chatting about our heroes a lot - now there's a surprise! We've put some writing tips from that discussion up on our joint blog.

I've also made a guest appearance on the Romantic Novelists' Association blog this week. I'm talking about language - and how to translate from Australian to English. There's a couple of photos from my research into The Bachelor and Spinster Ball.

Next - the Loves Me, Loves Me Not launch and cocktail party. I have always thought writing was just THE best job - but some weeks are particularly fine!

I accidentally started writing my new book this week.

I didn't mean to. The plan was to have a bit of time off. Relax. Read some books and launch The Bachelor and Spinster Ball. Then I was going to start some gentle research for book 4.

It didn't work out that way.

I was in the middle of sending an e-mail to a friend, when I had a stray thought about the new book. That's not bad, I thought. I'll write that down before I forget.

I started what was supposed to be a quick note. It ended up being a quick scene and now that I've started, I won't stop.

Not that I'm complaining. I love this part of writing - all the excitement and unlimited possibilities of writing a new book.

I will still be taking time out to launch The Bachelor and Spinster Ball.

Along with two fellow writers, I'll be at Waterstone's in Romford on Thursday, signing books, from 5.00-6.30. For details check the Lets Talk About Love blog. There's the good chance of a small celebration afterwards.

I sent the manuscript for my next book to my editor this week. Woo Hoo!

I've been working on it for eight months - and now there's nothing to do but wait until I hear back from her.

Today I plan to curl up on the sofa - read a book and watch Strictly Come Dancing. I've earned a day off.

While I'm watching TV, I'll also be making small bow ties out of a black plastic bin liner - and stitching pink feathers to a strip of silver elastic. "Why?" I hear you ask.  Well... it's got a lot to do with the upcoming launch of The Bachelor and Spinster Ball.

Stay tuned.

It doesn't happen often - but last night I was rendered speechless. By a box of chocolate.

Through Facebook, I've become friends with another Janet Gover - who lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan. We got to chatting about chocolate, as you do. We were joined by another friend here in the UK, Kelvin - a C of E Vicar and fellow chocolate lover.

It turned out that US Janet's father has a connection with Hershey's chocolate.

A couple of weeks later, a huge parcel of chocolate arrived on Kelvin's doorstep - half of which has now been delivered to me.

How great is that? BUT - it gets better.

US Janet's father had included a special treat just for me... a personalised chocolate computer - something every writer needs.

It's just wonderful! I smile every time I look at it - and am starting to wonder if I'll ever be able to eat it. It's just too cool.

Thanks US Janet and Mr Gover - you made my day.

         It came!

It's beautiful.

It's in the bookshops in just 23 days.

Woo Hoo!

         I'm going to out myself - I watch Strictly Come Dancing.

I love it - the dresses, the drama, the tears and the romance.

I hadn't realised this before, but just like books and songs, dance tells a story too. There's Cinderella. Or Romeo and Juliet.

         I love it when bad boy Brendan stormed off during the judging so partner Jo wouldn't have to hear Craig's cruel jokes.

I love the sequins and lace; Ricky with his shirt open; Ian's red trousers; the flash of a silver shoe; the energy and sex appeal.

         I don't have a favourite couple. Well, not just one. I love watching Ricki dance - what female doesn't. Zoe and James just sizzle. Jade and Ian... wow! Then there's...

I wonder if, in the weeks ahead, I'm going to be the only viewer reaching for a tissue during the dance off.

Very nearly there.

The Bachelor and Spinster Ball went up on the LBD forthcoming releases page today.

http://www.littleblackdressbooks.com/new-releases.html

Hoorah! It looks just great.

Only 30 days to go...

Any day now, the postman will knock on the door with my preview copy. I shall be very cool, and not jump up and down and make high pitched girlie squealing noises - well, not until after I've shut the door.

Yesterday, I was at Waterstone's at Uxbridge for Lets Talk About Love - an event with fellow authors Jean Fullerton, Victoria Connelly and Juliet Archer.

We talked about books and writing - and somehow two hours flew past. It was such fun.

We've been friends and talked about our work for years, but we never stop learning new things about our craft - and never miss a chance to share these thoughts with other writers and readers.

Jean and Victoria both do chapter outlines. They start each book by writing the numbers 1 - 20 down a page. These are the chapters and then, next to each, they writes a line or two about what will happen in that chapter. Suddenly, there is a plot. It may change, and as it does, they write that down too. They might write more chapters. Or fewer. But the list is there as a guide throughout the many, many months it takes to write a book.

I'm more a 'seat of the pants' kinda girl. I know how the book starts and finishes, but the middle is a bit of a mystery until I write it. And when it's done - it's a mystery to me how I did it.

We'll be talking again at Waterstone's in Romford on November 12th. That will be a special occasion, as both Jean and I will be signing our new books for the first time.

Next Saturday - I'm going to be at Waterstone's Bookshop at Uxbridge - talking about books, romance and heroes.

There'll be four romance writers there - and we'll all be signing copies of our books.

We each write slightly different styles of romance - from romantic comedy to family sagas and Jane Austen tributes. I think there'll be a lot to talk about.

It's going to be a lot of fun, so if you're anywhere near Uxbridge - drop in and say "Hi".

We'll be at Waterstone's in The Chimes Shopping Centre - from 2 PM until 4 PM.

Over dinner the other night, I talked about books with a couple of friends - for about three hours. And it occurred to me that I don't talk here about the books I am reading. Well, let's change that...

It's not uncommon for me to be reading more than one book at a time - there's the reading in bed book, the train book and the reading in the bath on a Sunday afternoon book.

         I'm currently reading two collections of short stories. There's the fabulous Loves Me, Loves Me Not, a collection of stories by members of the RNA. And Just After Sunset by Stephen King. You might think they are a strange mix - but I don't think so. King is one of the great storytellers of our time, and his short fiction is a master class in the art. He hasn't published many short stories recently - and I'm loving this selection.

Yes, some of his monsters are scary - and some of his monsters are just human. He has an incredible ability to tap into our emotions. And for a man, he's very, very good at getting inside a woman's head - be she his character or his reader. But most of all - he spins a great yarn.

         I'm commuting to London all this week, so am in need of one or two train books. I'll be taking an older Jeffrey Deaver (I'm partial to a bit of crime) and Jodi Picoult. Let's just hope I remember to get off at the right stop.

I finished the first draft at my new book this week - Hoorah! It felt so good to type THE END.

Then I sat at looked at it for a minute. What did I mean - the end? The end of what?

It's not the end of Alex and Kier's story. They've got a whole life ahead of them.

It's not the end of my work. I've got re-writes and polishing to do - not to mention spell checking and there's all that punctuation to look at...

And it's certainly not the end for the book itself. I think a book's life hasn't actually begun until someone other than the author has read it.

So - it's not really the end of anything yet. Is it?

I deleted THE END. That can go back in later.

I usually don't write on the weekends. The weekends are my days off.

This weekend, I attended an RNA chapter meeting in London, which was great fun as always.

I am also testing exercise machines I might want to buy and looking up an Arctic cruise that I could take in December (which will not be a holiday; it's book research - honestly!).  There's also the matter of doing something about the broken front gate. And a huge pile of ironing, and...

It's all displacement activity - because I'm now within about 6,000 words of finishing the first draft of the new book. When I'm that close to the end, I get totally caught up in that world. There's also the not inconsiderable matter of the next book which is starting to take shape at the back of my mind.

I wonder if this makes me difficult to live with... It might explain why webmaster John and the cat are both avoiding me.

Ideas happen in the strangest places.

Last night, while cleaning up after dinner, I was thinking about the book I'm almost finished writing. I've been unsure about just how the closing chapters should fit together.

Then suddenly, it was all in my head. I could see the final scenes - it was like watching a movie. It was heartbreaking. And joyful. I almost cried.

I raced into the office to write down the key points, before continuing with the drying up.

Tomorrow I'll start writing those closing chapters. I'll keep a box of tissues handy - just in case. I needed them during the final scenes of The Bachelor and Spinster Ball. That's either a good sign - or a sign that I really am a little bit crazy.

I'm having a wonderful time talking about settings on my friend Janice Curran's Facebook page today. It's the first time I've done a Q & A session via Facebook - and it's fun.

I've posted some thoughts about settings on Janice's wall. Her friends are joining in with questions.

We are talking about how to use settings to develop characters and plot. How to make sure you get enough description in - without going overboard.

It's still early in the US - where they all are. I'm expecting some more questions when her friends start getting home from work. I shall stay up late to answer them... well, I may have to answer one or two of them tomorrow morning, my time.

If you'd like to join in, get in touch with Janice on Facebook (she's the Janice with the chain saw, carving ice) and tell her you want to join the chat. She'll add you.

On Wednesday, I'm doing an online Facebook guest appearance for a US writer friend - Janice Curran. The topic: Settings.

A lot of authors say that settings are unimportant, and should be kept to a minimum on the page. I totally disagree.

Settings can contribute so much to a book.

Yesterday, I was looking for a new book to read, and picked up 'Dangerous Lies' written by my friend Anna Louise Lucia and read the first line.

The sun was a beast, a curse.

Wow! How good is that? It throws the reader straight in to an adventure set around Morocco and the Sahara Desert. It throws you right into the sizzling attraction between our hero and heroine - and the gripping suspense of the plot.

All done by setting the first scene.

If you want to join in our chat about settings, come find me or Janice on Facebook and we'll add/invite you.

         The postman bought it this morning.

It's just gorgeous. I've already re-read my story. And one (well - maybe two) others. There are so many more to read, it's possible I won't get much work done today.

The Anthology has its own blog and facebook page - please join us.

Being a writer is not a job for the impatient. Nothing happens quickly. In fact, some things happen so slowly, I just want to scream.

Different writers work at different speeds - but for me, it's nine months per book - roughly. That's not counting the weeks, months (maybe even years) the idea has been floating around the back of my mind before I start writing it.

Once it's finished, I have to wait for it to be published. It takes a long time for a book to be edited, proofed and cover art done etc etc etc...

I'm not complaining - honestly. Well - not much. I would rather be a writer than anything else in the world! But I'm not the world's most patient person.

In 2007, I wrote a short story that won the RNA's Elizabeth Goudge Award. At that time, the RNA was talking about compiling an anthology of short stories to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2010. I offered the story to them (knowing that I'd have to wait a long time to see it in print) - and was very proud to be included with some of the great writers in that book. Two years later, 'Loves Me, loves Me Not' is done and it looks wonderful. I've ordered a copy from an online book distributor. I ordered it almost a week ago, and it's still not here.

Aargghh!!!

Did I say the waiting was killing me? I may just murder my postman if the book doesn't arrive soon.

I'm back from my trip to Tunis. It was fun, but hard work and I was pretty tired when I got back. I only had a day at home, before I headed off to a music festival for the weekend. It was great - but didn't do much for the level of exhaustion.

I'm back at my desk now - and realize I am a bit behind where I need to be on book three. I've done 56,000 words, but my deadline for the finished book is the end of October.

Eeek!

Time to really focus now.

I've just noticed that my lovely cover for The Bachelor and Spinster Ball is now up on Amazon. It looks great! Exactly what I need to inspire me.

It took the Romans 100 years and three wars to conquer the Punic city of Carthage. I did it in a morning - but, unlike the Romans I had a taxi driver to help me get about.

Byrsa Hill was the heart of the ancient Punic city - and then the Roman's built their temples there.

Runs of both civilisations remain - perhaps not the most spectacular ruins I've ever seen - but awesome in their setting overlooking the brilliant blue of the Gulf of Tunis.

The colours - white marble, blue sea and sky, and the brilliant wildflowers were really something.

The site is littered with bits of Roman statuary - its like rubble. Some was used to build a wall... and other bits to decorate what I can only assume (from the smell) was the groundsmen's toilet.

These days the hill is dominated by a French cathedral built in 1884. It's been deconsecrated and now acts as an art space - and tourist draw.

Most of Carthage is now expensive suburbia - the Tunisian Presidential Palace is there - but wherever there is no housing - there seems to be some ruins.

When the heat started to get to me, I retired to Sidi Bou Said. This town sits on top of the next hill - its white buildings and blue shutters giving it an almost Greek appearance (but I wouldn't say that to the locals).  It's a nice place to relax after stomping around the ruins...

And I made a friend.

Tomorrow - back to work. Sigh!

I had a day off from work - and headed straight for the Bardo Museum - the main museum in Tunis. I love museums - and this one was quite amazing.

Even without its contents - the building is fabulous. Once the palace of the Husseinite Beys who ruled the city, it's fallen on hard times. The paint is peeling. The roof appears to leak, but that does nothing to diminish the place - with its marble halls and spectacular ceilings.

There are extensive renovations currently underway. This means some of the exhibits are not on display - but oh... what you can see...

The Bardo houses possibly the world best collection of roman mosaics - all from the cities Rome founded here in North Africa.

I could have stared at them for hours.

There was so much expression in the faces on the walls... and on the statues.

And the animals seemed almost alive...

Next stop - the ruins of ancient Carthage.

         I'm in Tunis - once one of the great trading cities of the Mediterranean region.

In keeping with the spirit of times past, this evening I went to the medina (the old city) and the souks.

         The Tunis Medina is a World Heritage Site.

It was fascinating - a mix of French and Islamic architecture... old narrow alleys and of course the glittering souks.

         What a great place for people watching.

My favourite place was the street (well, alley) of spice sellers - or maybe herb sellers.

         The shops were filled with dusty bundles of what looked like dried twigs and grass... but I'm sure they were something really interesting.

If only I spoke Arabic, or French, I could have found out more.

I am about to visit ancient Carthage - and possibly the home of Luke Skywalker. I'm talking about Tunisia. I'm off on Monday for a week working there - but if I get some free time (and I'm going to make sure I do) - there's so much to see and do.

Tunis is the site of ancient Carthage - home of Hannibal and his elephants. For about a century, the Carthaginians fought wars with Rome. They lost and Carthage was obliterated. The Romans however, built some lovely cities there, as they did everywhere and there are now some fabulous ruins to explore.

The south of the country is desert - part of the Sahara. There is a town called Tataouine. Yep - Star Wars was filmed there - or at least large parts of Star Wars. There are sets still standing... Luke Skywalker's underground home is now a hotel.

So - here's my dilemma... If I get just one day off - do I do Roman ruins - or Star Wars?

Either way - there'll be photos here shortly.

This week, I got a wonderful review of The Farmer Needs A Wife from Donna at Bookishly Attentive.

All writers love good reviews.

One of my first pieces of published fiction was a story about an elderly man who played a lovely theatre organ (you can read it here). When it was published, I received a letter from a reader who said the character had reminded her of her late husband - and the story had brought a tear to her eye. Wow! I was somewhat awed to think that my words had touched this woman's heart like that. That was probably the best review I have ever received.

The Farmer Needs A Wife is now also on the web as a forth coming release in large print. It will be out in February from Ulverscroft.

Now I'm waiting to see the new cover. New covers are always exciting - so far the cover fairies have been very good to me and my covers have been lovely. I'm sure this one will be too.

It's taken me the best part of a week to recover from the RNA conference in Penrith. It was such a busy three days - so many people to talk to and lectures to attend, not to mention the light nights in the kitchen. Then, there was the long trip home on a train that was terribly crowded with music festival fans returning from Scotland.

         Books were to focus again on Thursday evening at Waterstone's in Notting Hill - where my friends Victoria Connelly and Judy Astley were speaking on a Summer Fiction panel, chaired by the lovely Jane Wenham-Jones.

I'm diving back into the Work In Progress first thing Monday morning - renewed and refreshed by a week totally devoted to books and writing.

But, in case you think I'd forgotten... shoes.

         The conference dinner saw some great shoes on display in friendly competition...

But the blog shoe award goes to Anna Louise Lucia and Cat Marsters for their delightful combination of shoes and dresses - creating the very essence of romance.

This is the FAB cover for my new book...

Isn't it just beautiful?

AND - it's got a cat on it.

His name is Cat - and he does have a speaking part in the book. Well, more of a meowing part.

I really really loved the little blue tractor on the cover of The Farmer Needs A Wife and I didn't think the next one could be anywhere near as great - I was wrong. A cover with a cat is just the bestest cover ever.

There's more about The Bachelor and Spinster Ball on the Book Page. It's scheduled for release on November - that's 122 sleeps. I am just going to die waiting.

What do you call a gathering of more than 100 Romantic Novelists... apart from noisy?

If it's a murder of crows, perhaps it's a passion of RNA members. Or a heartbeat? Or a flutter?

One thing for sure - it's fun.  I'm at the RNA conference in Penrith - with a large group of like minded writers... having a wonderful time talking about books - writing them and reading them.

         The conference kicked off with a lovely session at the Penrith Library - and we are now hard at work (honestly) at the University Campus.

We have had some great speakers - full of humour and sage advice.. and its only Saturday.

Tonight is the gala dinner - there will be shoes!!!

And tomorrow - more talking about writing and reading books.

But we still don't have a collective noun for Romantic Novelists. Any ideas out there?

One thing writers do as much as they write - they talk. And when it's romance writers... well, they talk about love.

I've joined forces with three friends from the London RNA chapter to form Lets Talk About Love - new voices in romantic fiction.

Individually, or as a group, we'll be out and about talking about our books and the romance genre that we love so much. We'll be popping up in libraries and bookshops - mostly in London, although we can be tempted further afield.

We've even got a new blog - where you can find out about those appearances. I'll mention them here as well. Why don't you pop over to the blog and meet my good friends Jean, Juliet and Victoria.

Speaking of appearances... Jean, Victoria and I will be talking at Penrith Library on Friday afternoon, alongside other RNA members. Love in The Library is being staged in conjunction with the RNA conference. I'm heading towards the lakes tomorrow, so stay tuned for news of romantic novelists at play!!

And - an exciting discovery today - my short stories are being used as examples on a teaching site - http://teachmetonight.blogspot.com.

I was very chuffed! I wish I could show it to the teachers who didn't like the way I day-dreamed my way through school. There is a lot to be said for Dragons, Fairy Tales and Romance.

One of the great things about being a writer is that I get to hang around with other writers. We talk about books and writing and shoes. We even occasionally quaff champagne.

         This week's champagne was for my friend Nina Harrington - whose first romance novel is published this month.

Nina is writing for Mills and Boon - and her novel "Always the Bridesmaid" has a great opening line...  "Amy Edler had three problems.  All female."

It's gone straight to the top of my To Be Read pile.

And speaking of TBR piles - they are soon to feature on the Romantic Novelists' Association's new blog - http://romanticnovelistsassociationblog.blogspot.com/ - which went live this week. The blog will be THE place to hang out for news of all things romantic - including the RNA conference next weekend at Penrith.

There'll be lots of talk about books and writing and shoes. And as for the champagne...

It will take me several hours on the train to get there. What a perfect time to start reading a new novel!

I've spent the past few days camped in a cow paddock in Somerset with 150,000 other people, stomping up hill and down dale... getting muddy, sunburnt and exhausted.

Glastonbury Festival is one of the greatest places in the world for people watching... and the music isn't bad either.

Bruce Springsteen was just awesome. Two and half hours of solid rock and roll from an artist just dripping charisma and sex appeal.

A pleasant surprise - Tom Jones. The Welsh sex bomb brought about 80,000 people to their feet on the hill to sing "Why, why, why, Delilah?"  Not bad for someone who turns 70 (eeek!) next year.

On the fashion front - pink was THE colour for girls - pink clothes, tutus, wellies and hair. For men, it was lime green - for face paint, tights and only one (thank goodness) Borat swimsuit.

Unusually the wedding dresses were mostly worn by women, although there were a suitable number of men in frocks.

I'm exhausted, my feet have blisters, my face is red from the sun and I think I could sleep for a week. I'm getting too old for this... but then, I said the same thing this time last year.

Earlier this year, I was in Australia promoting my first book, and doing research for my next. I did a book signing in Toowoomba, in Queensland, where I grew up and went to school. The local TV station sent a news crew to do a story on me.

After nearly twenty years as a television reporter, standing behind the microphone, it felt very strange to be in front of it. I really was a bit nervous.

They ran the story that night on the main news. My Dad was very proud!

A friend of mine has posted the video here if you want to have a look.

http://vids.eu.org/view-id-4659379.html

I was thinking the other day about the first book I wrote.

It was all about a girl and her pony. The pony was called Sunbeam, and so was the book. I must have been about ten or eleven when I wrote it.

I published it too... just like a 'proper' book.

My mother had a small portable typewriter, and I carefully typed up each page. I bought a piece of light white cardboard from the stationery shop to make the cover. Then I carefully traced and coloured a picture of a girl and her pony onto that cover. I can still see that drawing. It wasn't very good.

The book title was in red and blue in a fancy font taken from a school copy book. Then I stapled the whole thing together.

My very first book - the first (and only) edition of "Sunbeam".

My Dad used to have it in a box of old bits and pieces somewhere. I wonder if he still does?

It would be nice to read it again.

I've needed a new phone for ages - not only is my old one a fashion nightmare - it is also not working very well. I've been putting it off - too busy, can't be bothered, too hard.

         Until I saw this...

This is a friend's phone - with my book on it. The entire book!

You can buy the book from www.GoSpoken.com

It's sooo cool!

Point me at a phone shop now.

Last week, I saw the world's tallest man-made structure; soon to be the world's tallest building - but destined never to be the world's tallest tower.

The building in question is the Burj Dubai. When finished, it will be over 800 meters tall - which is pretty amazing.

         Apparently, there is some dispute among the people who decide these things as to how to define the world tallest... whatever.

Should the radio masts on the top be included? Does it count as a building is it's not yet officially opened (the Burj opens in September)? How much habitable space does it need to be a building rather than a tower? And what about buildings rising out of the water - do they get to count the underwater bits?

However you settle the argument - I imagine the view from the top of this one is going to be spectacular. The desert on one side. The blue waters of the Persian Gulf on the other. And at its base, probably looking like a shoe box - would you believe - the world's biggest shopping mall.

I am working in Dubai this week - and found time to visit the Kinokuniya bookshop - which was huge and wonderful!

They had a really big romance section - featuring lots and lots of fab LBD books.. including mine.

On the subject of writing, while I'm here, I've found out how to write my name in Arabic - this is what it looks like.

I think Arabic text is really beautiful - calligraphy has long been an art form here- much like it is in China.

Thanks Nadia and Noor for teaching me.

Last night's RNA Summer party was the greatest fun. Writers spend most of their time alone with their computers - they don't let us out much. But when we do get going...

The library of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers has a lovely atmosphere. There's not much romance on shelves of books about metal stress limits and pump design, but the crowd on the floor more than made up for it...

The highlight of the night was the announcement of the winner of the Joan Hessayon New Writers' Award. You've heard the expression about herding cats? That not half as hard as herding romantic novelists into some sort of photo shoot line-up, but they got us there in the end...

Congrats to Allie Spencer (3rd from left), a fellow LBD writer, for winning with her soon to be released book Tug of Love. I can't wait to read it...

A wonderful surprise was a sneak preview of the RNA's 50th Anniversary anthology Loves Me, Loves Me Not. Well, it was a mockup - but the cover is real and looks wonderful. Sue has done a fabulous job of getting this together, and last night gave me a copy of the paperback cover - which will be framed and on my wall shortly...

Of course, I kept my eyes downcast...

Biddy's boots were fab!

Cat Marsters and I were both sporting suede - loved her pink heels...

But the blog's shoe award goes to Julie Cohen for these uttterly wonderful sparklers... with bonus points to the anonymous woman with the green toenails, who had the courage to do what most of us were desperate to do by the end of the evening...

On Wednesday the RNA is holding it's summer party - at which they'll present The Joan Hessayon New Writers' Scheme Award.

This is for the best novel that has been helped on its road to publication by the new writers' scheme. I'm one of seven people on the award shortlist.

So - I have a new outfit, new shoes of course and on Tuesday I'm getting new hair - having just discovered that my hairdresser has me listed on her website as a 'celebrity client'. I don't think I've been called a celebrity before (she says with a very big grin).

On Thursday I'll come crashing back to earth - I have to go to the dentist (boo hiss).

But I'll post news and photos of the party on Thursday too. Expect spectacular shoes!

Are you sitting comfortably? Let Merlin cast his spell. The Moody Blues sang that in their 1969 album On The Threshold of A Dream... linking forever in my mind a comfortable seat and the magic of storytelling.

But - I am not sitting comfortably any more. My old office chair has passed its use-by date. Time for a new one. You wouldn't think that would be so difficult. It shouldn't take as much time as, for example, as buying a new handbag.

Wrong.

I have sat on, bounced in, raised, lowered, swivelled and generally poked and prodded dozens of office chairs. In the best Goldilocks fashion - not one of them is just right.

Except - possibly the ones guaranteed in the sales catalogue to be perfectly comfortable for twenty-four hour use. I'm not sure if that means 24 hours straight sitting - or those 2 AM moments when I just can't go to bed because I have to write.

Either way, I asked the salesman if I could sit in one to test it. No, was the answer. They don't keep any samples of that range in the store.

Do they really think I'm going to spend over £300 on a chair that I have not tried out?

I could, the salesman said, buy it and return it later if I didn't like it. I don't think so.

The chair I want has lots of knobs and levers to adjust height and back and seat and arms - and I'm not handing over my credit card until I've played with every single one of them.

In the meantime - the old chair is still holding on, and I'll keep using it... just as soon as I move the cat.

I spent a day walking the streets of New York - and I met an angel in Central Park.

The Bethesda Fountain is an iconic image. The "Angel of the Waters" statue was unveiled in 1873 - to celebrate the clean water brought to the growing city by the Croton Aqueduct.

         She's just beautiful - a symbol of the purity of the water, and the benefits it brought to the city...

But I see something different when I look at her.

Before the arrival of fresh water, the city was plagued by disease. Fires raged out of control through the wooden buildings - because there was no water to fight them with. People died in their thousands.

The aqueduct water supply solved those problems - and gave the city the chance to grow into what we see today.

When I look at the angel, I see a memory of the terrible past. She holds a lily in one hand - but in my mind's eye a see a sword in the other.

I went to Saks's fifth avenue. It's HUGE and full of the most amazing stuff! It was also very crowded and while trying to find my way around, I spotted this...

Now that's a store that understands women's shopping habits.

And the shoes!!!!

But OMG - the prices...

I went up the road to a bookshop and bought books.

I finished writing chapter four of the new book today... Yeah Me!

So now I can think about my trip to New York. It's mostly work, unfortunately, but I do have one day free...

Museum or Macy's?

Art Gallery or Bloomingdales?

The Statue of Liberty or Sak's Fifth Avenue?

Memo to self - take a half empty suitcase.

I was browsing Amazon today - and suddenly discovered that my second book is now listed as an upcoming title.

I guess I can now confess that it's called The Bachelor and Spinster Ball.

This is what it says about the book...

         Another gripping romance set against the fabulous backdrop of the Australian outback, from one of LBD's fastest rising stars.

         Sexy Nick, feisty Bec and dreamy Hailey all grew up together in the tiny, one-horse town of Farwell Creek. In fact, Nick and Bec were the town's teen-dream couple, until Bec made a break for it and shook the small-town dust off her heels for the big-city lights. Now she's back - but Nick doesn't have romantic feelings for her any more ... does he?

         Sweet, idealistic Hailey is caught between her old friends, but has too many problems of her own to be able to worry about theirs. Devastated at the loss of her parents, who died in a crash a year earlier, she's too wrapped up in her own thoughts to even think about leaving town or finding love.

         It will take a devastating bush-fire, a black-tie ball under the stars, and a road-trip to help all three friends work out who and what they want - and what they need.

Wow! I want to read it again - and I already know how it ends.

The new book was going brilliantly last week - but came to a screaming (almost literally) halt in mid chapter four. I had just begun writing the first scene with a new major character - and I couldn't find her in my head. I knew who she was and what she wanted to say, but I couldn't hear her voice.

Then I spent the weekend at the Gosport & Fareham Easter Music Festival.

I tapped my feet to jigs and reels, sang protest songs and traditional ballads. Somewhere along the way, as a fair maiden tunefully lamented her lost love, my character started speaking to me. I could hear her voice as plainly as I could hear the music around me. Well - almost. Very few of my characters speak loudly enough to drown out an enthusiastic Irish fiddle player.

The important thing is - I found her.

Chapter four here I come...

I just got a call from my lovely editor at LBD. I sent my second book to her in January and had been waiting since then to hear what she thought...

I had a terrible case of second book blues. I decided the book was rubbish and that my editor would just tell me to do the whole thing all over again. I even shed a tear or two.

I was so wrong!

She just loves it. She said the nicest things - and was so excited and enthusiastic. She said it was absolutely fantastic!

I confess - I shed another tear or two, but for a very different reason this time.

Wow - this is just the best feeling in the world!

I've just returned from ten days in Dubai. It was a work trip, but also gave me a chance to catch up with my friend and fellow writer Liz Fenwick. We spent several enjoyable hours talking about books, and writing.

It rained almost every day - pretty unusual for a desert. The rain plus the sand disturbed by the wind made for some unusual lighting around the new skyscrapers on the city skyline.

My journey home was - well, remarkable I guess.

I was working- really involved and excited about what I was writing when the battery on my laptop went flat. There's no way to recharge in economy. Cursing, I put it away. I am normally grumpy and quiet on planes, but most unusually for me, I was drawn into a conversation with the two very cheerful people sitting next to me. When I mentioned how disappointed I was about being forced to stop writing, they immediately starting thinking about how they could help. One realised her lap top was the same as mine, and immediately gave me her battery to use for the last couple of hours of the flight.

What a kind and thoughtful thing to do. Thank you Lorna and Aden for a rather special trip.

So impressed was I by such generosity, that a character who appeared for the first time while I was writing on the plane is now called Lorna.

I just heard that there is to be a large print editon of The Farmer Needs A Wife. How great is that? The large print editions mostly go into libraries. Having spent so many happy hours over the years browsing in libraries, and reading books from libraries,  it will be a real treat to see my book on the shelves of one. Well - hopefully more than one.

This also means I'll probably get a new cover design. My LBD cover is so fabulous, I wonder this one will be like...

Farmer is also now available in electronic format as a download designed for phones. I have never read a book on my phone. It's too old and basic for that. This might just be the excuse I need to buy a flash new one.

I woke up this morning at 04:15, and for a change it wasn't the cat who woke me. I woke up because it was time to start the new book.

Being careful not to wake webmaster John, the cat and I crept downstairs and turned on the PC.

My notes and research photos were waiting for me. More importantly, my heroine was waiting for me. I created a new folder called Version 1 - and a new document called Chapter One. Then I started telling her story.

Half an hour later, as I was showing no signs of feeding him, the cat went back to bed.

The first thing I saw through my heroine's eyes was the boy she fell in love with when she was fifteen. So I wrote about him too.

1,036 words later, I had to go and get a cup of tea and some toast. I probably won't do any more today, but that doesn't matter. I've started and it feels just great!

Only 88,064 words to go.

I love travelling... Well, all right, sitting on an aeroplane for more than 20 hours isn't much fun, but the rest of the travelling experience is great. I love going to new places, meeting new people, seeing old friends.

Australia is such a long way to go, that each time I plan a trip I say - we have to stay for at least four weeks. I'm not going all that way (paying all that money) just for a few days.

But...

A month is a long time to be away from home. By the end, I am always desperate to get back. To sit in my comfortable old chair. Drink my brand of tea out of my favourite mug. Sleep in my own bed. And then there's the cat...

Aahh... Home is great!

The Australian trip is over and we are heading back to London.

It's been great fun - and ended with an exciting few days in Toowoomba, and around the area where I grew up.

On Tuesday, I was at Radio 4GR to do an interview with Graham Healy - a very well-known radio show host. He was very nice and we had a great chat. I left a couple of signed books for the station to give away to their listeners.

I also dropped into Warrego Wines. A visit there two years ago gave me the idea for the diamante-studded wine glasses Leigh has in The Farmer Needs A Wife. I thanked Kevin for the idea and gave him a book. He gave me a bottle of wine. What a deal!

On Wednesday I was interviewed by the Toowoomba Chronicle for a feature to run next weekend.

Thursday was a book signing at Dymocks - which gave me a chance to chat to some local people. Thanks very much everyone who came along and made it a success. The highlight was the arrival of a film crew from the local WIN TV station - who shot a story for that night's news.

After so many years as an interviewer myself, if felt a bit strange to be on the other side of the mic, but it was fun.

There won't be much fun for the next 24 hours - on a long flight back to London. Still - I am taking back some really good memories.

The last day of the research road trip took us from Gundagai to Goulburn.

The countryside along the way was very different from the mountains, and it was desperately dry. The paddocks were bare. I had to wonder just what the sheep were eating. I guess they are being hand fed.

We stopped for lunch at Cootamundra. The great Australian Cricket legend Donald Bradman was born there, and the town has taken all things cricket to its heart. 'The Don' and other Australian cricket captains past and present joined us for lunch in a local park.

         Then it was on to Goulburn - where the road trip ended at the feet of the Big Marino. For many many years it was said that Australia rides on the sheep's back - a reference to the importance of the wool industry for most of the 20th century. Riding this sheep's back looked a bit too dangerous.

The trip was great - fabulous landscape to see and great people to meet. The next bit is even better - now I start writing the book!

The photo should give you an idea of where I am.

Need another hint ? I got sunburned taking these photos.

It feels good to be so far away from the snow!

I love coming back to Australia. I get to see family and friends, and I also get a trip down memory lane. Yesterday I went to visit the tiny town where I grew up. It's been a long time since I was there - but not much has changed.

It really is a holiday - except for one small thing.

My books are all set in Australia and every time I come back, my mind starts buzzing with ideas for the next book. And the one after that. By the time I get home to London, my notebooks will be full. Then it will be time to start some serious writing.

The Romance Novellists Association has released its "Sexiest Thing on Two Legs" list for Valentine's Day - and as I was reading it, I realised that my first entry in this blog was last year's list. The blog is a year old. And what a year is has been, with the publication of my first book, my selection for the RNA anthology as the highlights.

Here's this year's sexiest men list -

1.         Richard Armitage

2.         Johnny Depp

3.         Hugh Jackman

4.         George Clooney

5.         Daniel Craig

6.         Sean Bean

7.         Alan Rickman

8.         David Tennant

9.         Pierce Brosnan

10.       Gerard Butler

Richard Armitage has overtaken Johnny Depp and Hugh Jackman - a controversial result. I may have to get out a few DVDs and think carefully about this.

The newcomer is Gerard Butler, who played King Leonidas in '300' - and Gerry in 'PS I Love You'. Nice to see new face - but sad that the lovely Colin Firth has been displaced. Goodbye, Mr Darcy.

Last week, we celebrated the launch of my friend Victoria Connelly's new book - Molly's Millions.

Victoria made a cake covered with pink icing and white flowers to match the cover.

I have just finished reading it and I loved it. It was a delightful read, and the heroine was such fun. Well done Victoria!

I finally did it - I sent the manuscript of my new book to my editor this week.  It's really, really hard sometimes to let it go.  The next bit is also pretty hard - waiting to hear what she thinks.

On Saturday, I joined my friend Victoria Connelly in celebrating the launch of her book Molly's Millions. This is my first chance to read one of Victoria's books - as up until now they've all been published in German.  One has just been made into a film.  We watched the DVD - which didn't have English subtitles. Luckily one of our friends speaks German.

Speaking of which, The Farmer Needs A Wife looks like having a German edition too - which is very exciting. It is quite strange to think of people reading my book in a language I don't speak...

Webmaster John and I buy a lot of music CDs. We are a marketing manager's dream. We always buy the excessively over-packaged CD, the one with the bonus disc. These bonus discs usually have such interesting stuff - out-takes, previously unreleased songs, live versions of favourite tracks. The sort of stuff sad fans (that's us) really like.

We decided to do the same for The Farmer Needs A Wife. The Book Bonus shows you some of the places which I used as inspiration for the book, and hopefully will add a little more flavour to your reading. Of course, looking at the Book Bonus most definitely does NOT mean that you're sad.

In the meantime - almost is the word of the week..

- almost finished book two, which has to go to my editor by Friday.

- almost on holidays - we leave in the second week of February.

- almost due back at the day job after three months of writing.

I'm also almost certain I'm getting a review of The Farmer Needs A Wife soon on an internet romance novel review site. That's exciting. More on that when I know more.

My life is slowly getting back to something approaching normal - or what passes for normal around here.

I'm almost finished the final polish on book 2 - and hopefully by the next time I blog, it will be on its way to my editor at Little Black Dress.

Fellow LBD author Nell Dixon interviewed me for her blog, which was great fun.

I have trouble trying to view this on Internet Explorer - but it looks OK on Firefox. The vagaries of computers!!

Another friend has posted a lot of photos of the launch of The Farmer Needs A Wife. They are fab and really capture the mood of the moment.

Webmaster John and I are currently planning our trip to Australia in February. I am so looking forward to being warm again!

I've just learned that one of my short stories is to be included in an anthology - alongside some authors I have read and admired for years - authors like Eileen Ramsay, Joanna Trollope, Katie Fforde, Judy Astley, Elizabeth Chadwick - the list goes on... and on. All fabulous writers.

I burst into tears when I read the e-mail. To be included in the same book as writers like these is beyond my wildest dreams.

The anthology is to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Romantic Novelists' Association. The story to be included is "Waiting for A Wish", which won the RNAs Elizabeth Goudge Trophy in 2007.

         The anthology will be called "Loves Me, Loves Me Not" and will be out towards the end of this year.

And it's got the most fabulous cover!

Just when I thought the start of 2009 could not get any better...

It's been big such a big week...

First my own book launch, which was great - thanks to everyone who came or sent me congrats.

The very next night I was off to the East End of London for the launch of "No Cure For Love" - the first saga by my friend Jean Fullerton. I forgot to take my camera (sorry), but London turned on a lovely murky fog which made the evening very atmospheric.

Then Saturday was the London chapter of the Romantic Novelists Association meeting - with a character workshop led by my fellow LBD writer Julie Cohen. Julie's aim was to get us all back into the swing of writing after the holiday madness.

It worked.

When you achieve a dream, it's supposed to feel good. Last night wasn't just good - it was the most wonderful, amazing, stupendous night - as I launched my first novel The Farmer Needs A Wife.

This is the culmination of so much hard work ... and it feels just GREAT!!!

So many friends and family and fellow writers were on hand to share the celebration with me - as well as my lovely editor from Little Black Dress.

         On the table while I was signing books ... MY books ... was the cutest little blue tractor - just the like the one the cover. It was a celebratory gift from Webmaster John.

         Two of my colleagues from work turned up with Janet Gover Fan Club T-shirts! They were a total hoot! As they are such tall, handsome men, they attracted a fair bit of interest from the romance writers present.

Thanks to everybody for sharing the day with me... and thanks to everyone who supported me during my journey.

Now - on with book two. But first, I might just have to walk past a bookshop or two to see my book sitting on the shelves...

The glasses are ready. I've bought some bottles of Australian Wine. There are nuts.

On Monday I plan to ransack my wardrobe - and probably try on everything I own. I may have to allow two days to make a decision.

On Wednesday I have an appointment with my hair dresser.

You guessed it - it's almost book day.

On Wednesday evening, The Farmer Needs A Wife will be launched at my local Bookshop.

How excited am I?

I promise to have photos for you on Thursday - but not too early. I image the celebrations may last quite some time on Wednesday night.

Christmas was a venture into the unknown for me.

I hosted lunch for seven people, and for the first time cooked a turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Don't get me wrong - I have enjoyed my fair share of Christmas dinners, but being Australian, I am more used to prawns, salads and swimming on Christmas day.

Having decided to go all out, I discovered the joys of cooking chestnuts, parsnips, turkey and Christmas pudding. I did, however, draw the line at bread sauce! My failure to understand bread sauce is legendary - and the subject of at least one short story.

Not surprisingly, the gift giving around my table involved a lot of books - everything from romance to fashion design, from history to the wit and wisdom of great thinkers. You can never have too many books!

It's very cold outside now. I have the fire going and my thoughts are drawn back to Australia, which means back to my books.

"The Farmer Needs A Wife" is released in just over a week.

I have finished the first draft of the next book, and am at the point of reading it through, polishing the text before submitting it to my editor.

And in the back of my mind, I can see a little red sports car and two girls with their hair blowing in the breeze. That's book three calling. I'd better get to work...

There's a portal to another dimension in my back garden... near the top of the biggest tree, to be exact.

Whenever I am in the garden, this doorway opens and a princess from another world comes down to talk to me.

Of course, in this dimension, she takes the form of a very sweet silver tabby cat called Habibe, but in her own world, I'm sure she must be a princess.

I think she's a bit keen on my handsome NicNak. I do hope he doesn't follow her back to her world. I would miss him.

I got a book in the mail this morning. My book. With my words in it. Lots and lots of my words.

The cover looks absolutely fab! The whole thing is just beautiful.

After all that hard work, and a wait that seemed to take forever, it's such a great feeling to actually hold it in my hand.

Only 26 days to go until it's released.

And... by Monday I will have finished the first draft of the new book, and the whole thing starts all over again. I just love being a writer.

I'm feeling quite sad after learning that Oliver Postgate has passed away.

Growing up when I did in the Australian bush, we didn't have much in the way of television, so as a child I didn't get to meet any of Oliver's creations.

A few years ago, wandering around a London bookshop, webmaster John pointed out a middle aged man signing things at a small desk. That, he told me with some awe in his voice, was the great Oliver Postgate.

Who?

We immediately purchased the complete Clangers on DVD. I met some small pink people and fell in love.

One of my recent short stories featured Clangers. I wanted to evoke a sense of innocence and delight, and Clangers seemed perfect.

It was published a few weeks ago. I shall post it on my Stories page this weekend - with thanks to Oliver Postgate.

It's not just an excuse to shop. It's not just the lights and the window displays. One of the best things about this time of the year are the Christmas parties that give me a chance to catch up with people I see far to seldom during the rest of the year.

Yesterday it was the London and S-E Chapter of the RNA. We had a lovely lunch and chatted about books and reading and writing, with the occasional sidebar into clothes movies and... all right, books.

The festive season is also a much needed distractions from counting the days until the launch of The Farmer Needs A Wife (32), worrying about the deadline for my next book (January 31st) and getting stressed about how many more words I still have to write (about 25,000).  Eek!

I need another Christmas party.

Last night I was at another RNA function - this time with friends from the Reading chapter.

Special guests at the party were a reporter and photographer from Berkshire Life magazine - who came to find out all about us and what we do. We're getting a double page spread in February or March. Very Cool!

So - romantic novelists...   glossy magazine... What else would that lead to but SHOES!

Ray-Anne Lutener gets the blog's award this week - with fabulous dots (or are they spots?)

But fellow LBD writer Julie Cohen and Jan Sprenger are close second - with the sort of shoes you can wear to walk all over a pile of money!

It was a late night talkfest - which had me running for the last train home.

I sprinted out the door surrounded by offers of a bed for the night if I missed it - that's romance writers for you! Thanks ladies.

I made it with a couple of minutes to spare.

I've just had my Goth phase. It started about nine o'clock last night and lasted for roughly two hours.

I'm not new to Gothic novels. I grew up loving Victoria Holt's dark threatening mansions and dark sexy heroes. Steven King and Peter Straub take up significant space on my bookshelves. And as for movies... I love 'From Dusk Till Dawn' (George Clooney with tats) and 'Van Helsing' (Hugh Jackman with a hat tipped over one eye) and 'Constantine' (Keanu Reeves in a wet shirt)... I guess there is a pattern developing here. Which brings me back to last night.

I was in a glorious Art Deco theatre in East London to see Aussie Goth Rocker Nick Cave. This wasn't black lace and velvet Goth. Nor was it wild makeup and black leather Goth. This was murder and blood, tortured souls and doomed love, all set to a driving rock beat. That sort of thing is not normally my cup of tea. Nick Cave is a tall skinny man with a receding hairline, a bad moustache and a tendency to trip over his mic. cable. BUT... he performs with such passion and talent and is so involved in his music that he is mesmerizing on stage. Hmmm... There's that pattern again.

Next week's concert is different ... folk music. Protest songs performed with such passion and belief that it's easy to forget the singer is an aging Essex lad with a receding hairline...

Last night, the Romantic Novelists took on the world in fine style at the Coleman Getty PEN Quiz.

The quiz is all about raising funds for PEN's work promoting literature and defending freedom of expression around the world. It's also about good company and friendly competition, and when you have romantic novelists involved involved, there is glamour as well.

Team Captain Liz Harris bravely boned up on Booker Prize winners. As it's the 40th anniversary this year, we were sure there'd be some questions - sadly, not a one. But she did save us with Schubert's unfinished symphony.

The team featured Liz Bailey, Catherine King, Phillipa Ashley and Louise Allen. Literature is obviously our forte - and after the first two rounds, we were in 8th place out of 30 teams... which was cause for celebration. Perhaps that was our downfall.

Sarah Duncan shone in the picture round. I got the Led Zeppelin question right - but the Star Trek question wrong (to my everlasting shame). Audrey Willsher and Pia Tapper-Fenton kept us focussed - but we began to slip backwards, despite Katie Fforde's brilliant Fred Astaire answer.

We didn't come last. We had a fabulous time, and all in a good cause.The bonus came during the raffle - Katie won a wonderful holiday in an 18th century Devon Longhouse.

After the event, we retired to the hotel where the out-of-towners were staying. The night porter was more than willing to provide copious quantites of tea to lubricate our throats as we talked into the wee small hours.

The blog's shoe award goes to Pia - for tartan and black patent leather - with matching handbag.

Roll on next year!

Mechanical engineering and romance don't immediately seem to go hand in hand.... but last night the RNA held their winter party in the library of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers in Westminster. It's a lovely venue, even if the books on the shelves were more high tension cables than sexual tension.

Noise levels were pretty high too...

We were all met at the door by Jan Jones and Roger Sanderson who do such a great job of organising our RNA functions...

Roger's gorgeous tie, by the way, comes from San Louis Obispo which is half way between LA and San Francisco. We should have guessed that by just looking at it.

It was great to catch up with friends from near and far - including Liz Fenwick, who regularly flies in from Dubai for RNA events...

The London chapter was well represented...

RNA Chair Catherine Jones predicted a cheery future for romantic fiction as we raised a glass to the holiday season.

As always - glamour was the order of the evening. These killer heels score Cat Marsters a second shoe appearance on this blog.

While all this was going on, webmaster John was handing out "Farmer Needs a Wife" bookmarks in the mosh pit of a heavy metal concert. Romance knows no bounds!

I was shopping in Windsor, when the police closed the road in front of the castle to allow for a parade of castle guards. Despite many, many shopping trips to Windsor, I've never seen the changing of the guard, so I thought I'd watch. Nothing like men in red uniforms with gold braid and bear skin hats to cheer a girl on a gloomy day.

With a flourish of trumpets they emerged from the gate... The leader was resplendent in gold braid and the rest were wearing... long grey overcoats.

It wasn't raining and it wasn't that cold - surely these elite servicemen could manage without the overcoats, just for the pleasure of watching romantic novelists! It was a bit of a disappointment.

The high heeled black boots I bought a few minutes later, however, are not a disappointment.

I have another 61 days until The Farmer Needs A Wife is released.  I'm going mad with anticipation... that's on top of the going crazy working so hard on the new book.

A touch of sanity crept in this week when I joined some friends and fellow writers at the Reading chapter of the RNA for a good chat. We talked about the books we are writing and reading, the US election - and I seem to remember some mention of party clothes for the festive season.

The next day - a box arrived on my doorstep, filled with goodies. There were bookmarks with my gorgeous new cover on them - and likewise my new business cards. They look great!

I got 1,000 bookmarks made - here's hoping there are that many people out there who'll want one.

I was (note the past tense) 50,000 words into my new novel, and thinking it was going all right.

A fellow writer who is a good friend, a great writer and an equally great teacher and critic read the first four chapters last week - and found it to be... well... not the best thing I have done.

Aaaaggghhh!

I re-read it and instantly saw the flaws. She was right - and now I'm busy re-writing. It's working too. I have tossed a gorgeous rogue into my heroine's path, burned down the school teacher's house and added a dark secret into another character's past. And that's just in the first three chapters. This is so much fun!

My deadline for this book is January - so I'm going to have to work pretty hard for the next few weeks - but this time it really is going very well.

I need to keep focused as the release date for The Farmer Needs A Wife draws closer.

The cover of my first book for Little Black Dress has arrived. It's fabulous.

The tractor is so cute. It looks just like one I used to drive when I was growing up in Australia. On the back of the book, it says...

"Helen Woodley, editor of Australia's top magazine, had no idea how successful her new column would be. Who knew that if the country's lovelorn farmers were profiled each week, readers would queue up to date them?

Get ready to meet:

The Artistic farmer: Greg, who'd rather be doing something creative with his time.

The Confused Farmer: Peter, expecting a nanny for his twins, not a pretty girl wanting romance!

The Unsuspecting Farmer: Matt, who has no idea his photo's been published... yet.

And finally, Leigh, the beautiful wine grower, who deserves a new chance at romance.

It's not all haystacks and pitchforks, girls - get ready for a scorching outback read."

Wow. I just love what LBD have done with my book. And there's only 75 days to go till it's out there.

I can hardly wait.

I finished my project in Leeuwarden this week.

I've been working with a team at Omrop Fryslân - the Frisian language broadcaster.

To celebrate the successful end to the project, and to say goodbye, they gave me some lovely flowers - and some gifts, including some traditional Frisian foods.

What a great way to end the project.

Thanks everyone for all your help and hard work.

I'm home now - settling down for some writing time. The characters in my new book are calling me to get on with their stories.

I am finishing off my project in Leeuwarden.

On Thursday evening, determined to have a bit of a break, I picked up a book, put down my mobile phone, and went for a long slow meal. After some fine food, a glass of wine and a couple of chapters of Kathy Reichs, I went back to my room to find four missed calls from my editor at Little Black Dress ... and a long voice mail message about last minute checks.

There was an even longer e-mail.

It was after 9 PM local time, and she needed an answer the next day.

I want The Farmer Needs A Wife to be the best book it can possibly be - so I sat down for some late night spell checking. I'm so glad there are online dictionaries, because I didn't have one with me.

By midnight I was done, and my e-mail was winging its way back to the Headline offices in London.

I confess that on Friday, I dozed off during the three hour train journey from Leeuwarden back to Amsterdam airport for my flight home.

I've got another week in Leeuwarden... then I have several weeks at home, just writing. What fun that will be. Writing... and trying not to count days (88).

I have sent the copy edits for "The Farmer Needs A Wife" to my editor. There's nothing left for me to do now. My part in the book is done - from here, it's in the hands of the publisher and printer.

I've been working on this for such a long time, it's a bit hard to let it go, but I've had book two on hold while I did the edits - and it's calling me back.

I'm still waiting with breath bated to see the cover for "The Farmer Needs A Wife".

In the meantime my friend Nell Dixon has just got her new LBD cover... have a look.

It's just lovely. The parrot's name is Dave.

I'm suffering from hyphen-related-anxiety.

I've spent this week going through the page proofs of The Farmer Needs A Wife.

A very patient copy editor has been through it line by line, checking my punctuation and spelling - and we disagree on the subject of hyphens.

Here's a sneak preview of the novel...  There's a character, young and handsome of course, who lives and works on - you guessed it - a farm. He grows sugarcane. Or maybe sugar-cane. Or possibly even sugar cane.

So - is he a sugar cane grower? A sugar-cane grower? A sugar-cane-grower? Or a canegrower?

What do you think?

Whatever I end up doing with the hyphens - Greg is kind and gorgeous and falling in love - and that's the most important thing.

I'm still waiting to see the cover art... but my friend and fellow LBD author Julie Cohen has just got the cover art for her new book. Go and have a look at it - it's just great.

As soon as I get my cover - you'll see it here.

I'm back from Galway. The journey took forever - knowing what was waiting for me when I got home.

I confess - I did shed a happy tear or two. It's starting to feel like a real book now.

I'm spending my evenings now checking it.

Next step - the cover art!

Hi, John the webmaster here - Janet is still in Galway.

This came in the post this morning...

I'm still in Ireland - and its looking lovely now.

I found a tiny cemetery overlooking the water.

Many of the crosses were carved with celtic design.

It was a truly beautiful place.

I'm in Galway on the west coast of Ireland. It's beautiful. Wild and rugged. Impossibly green fields with grey stone walls and white cottages overlooking rugged rocky shorelines.

Each day I drive for an hour along the shores of Galway Bay to get to where I'm working. On my first day here, it was a lovely sunny day, and I decided I had to take some photos. I didn't have my camera.  Never mind, I thought, I'll do it tomorrow. Or the next day.

It hasn't stopped raining since.

The locals tell me one sunny day a week is about the best I can hope for. I'm here for another week - so I might get lucky.

In the meantime, rain or no rain, I'll have to go looking for a newsagent later in the week. I don't know if People's Friend is sold over here - but it would be nice to see one of my stories on sale while I am still here.

After my rant yesterday about how long I have to wait for the release of "The Farmer Needs A Wife", the pre-publication copy of one of my short stories dropped onto the mat with the mail today.

For those with a long memory, or a passion for cult children's TV - "Close Encounters" features Clangers.

It is in the issue of People's Friend dated September 20th - and should be on sale a couple of days before that.

And now there are only 122 days to go...

A year is a very long time- and this year is proving a lot longer than most.

In late January this year, I got THE call - that Little Black Dress wanted to publish my first novel.

It will be released in early January next year - 351 days later.

At first, I was busy. I had to finish the book and do some re-writes. Then I handed it over to my editor at LBD - now all I can do is wait.

That's the hard part. I'm sure each week has eight or nine days. Each month has at least six weeks, and 2009 will never get here.

In the meantime, I am having a fab time writing the next book - tentatively titled "The Bachelor and Spinster Ball".

You can see it's going well - compare the number of Post-It notes around the screen now with when I started!

BUT, there are still 123 days to go...

Sigh.

I had four days to write this week - I did 8,375 words of the new book.

Some of them were pretty good words too... I think.

It really is the greatest job in the world!!!

Janet

Heading for breakfast, in the hotel foyer I bumped into (well - almost) an elderly couple who had their dog staying with them in the hotel.

It was small and cute and well behaved - and had brought its own bed.

I suppose you just have to ask for - one room, non-smoking, dog friendly.

When we go on holidays, Nic Nak the cat stays at a cattery - which he really doesn't like.

He'd much rather be indulging his new-found love of climbing the biggest tree in the garden.

Janet

I love shopping in a new country. New shops. New brands. New STUFF!

I'm working in the Netherlands, and yesterday I indulged one of my favourite pastimes.

There are a lot of names that appear everywhere you go - not just McDonalds, but other international companies - and the clothes and make-up and shoes on sale are the same everywhere.  But in a new country, there are also shops and brands that I've never seen before - and I love it.

Leeurwarden has a really pretty city centre, with a canal running down the middle. There was an old fashioned organ on the back of a small lorry driving around playing music. I thought it was pretty cool - but I imagine for the shop keepers must get very sick of hearing the same tunes over and over again.

Cafes line the canal. When I stopped for lunch, I couldn't resist the cranberry beer (I love cranberry juice). What can I say except - I didn't have a second.

As for the shopping - well, a shopping trip isn't a success without at least one small purchase. However, there were no shoes involved. I did have some trouble with my English credit card - but there's always a way around that when there's a pair of fab black pants in the balance!

I really won't need to buy an extra suitcase to come home - at least, I don't think I will.

Janet

I've had a busy few days!

First - to Stratford-Upon-Avon to see David Tennant (Dr Who) and Patrick Stewart (Cpt. Jean-Luc Picard of the Starship Enterprise) in the RSC's production of Hamlet. Two of my favourite actors on stage together - it was mesmerizing!

Then it was off to Norfolk for a touch of touristing. I went underground in Grimes Graves - actually a neolithic flint mine, with lichen that gave it a lovely Borg-green glow.

Then to Castle Acre Priory - one of the religious orders dissolved and destroyed by Henry VIII. I'll say this - Henry left us with some facinating ruins. On the ceiling of the private rooms of one of the priors, you can still see the painted roses of the houses of York and Lancaster, which Henry united as the Tudor rose.

And finally - a few days sitting in the rain listening to music at Fairport Convention's Cropredy Festival. Something I witnessed at Cropredy 2006 inspired me to write a short story - which has recently been published. It's here if you'd like to read it.

The highlight of this year's festival, for me, was the moving tribute to Sandy Denny - with her music performed by those who worked with her before her tragic death 30 years ago. Sandy was the only woman ever to sing on a Led Zeppelin record - not bad for a folk singer. Zep's Robert Plant was the surprise guest for the night, where he sang "The Battle of Evermore" - the track he sang with Sandy. Wow! He still sounds great.

Now - back to work.

Janet

We are heading up to Statford upon Avon next week - for a little Shakespeare.

We have tickets for Hamlet - starring the gorgeous David Tennent - otherwise known as Dr Who.

The bard made an appearance in an old TV series I am currently watching on DVD. Beauty and the Beast is based on the fairy tale - but is set in modern New York. Well, I should say the New York of the 1980s, when it was made. One of the key writers was George R. R. Martin; I think he is one of THE greatest fantasy writers - ever. I'd pay to read his shopping list!

In an episode I recently watched, one of the characters is given the line - "Shakespeare knew everything."

George - I think you're right.

Janet

Some of my friends think my writing life is easy. That I just sit at the computer and words somehow magically find their way onto the page. They are almost right.  There is magic in writing, but there's also a lot of hard work - mostly to make sure the words on that page are all good words.

It takes a long time to write a book. At best, a few months. Sometimes a year or more. Then the exhausted writer sends it off to her editor - waiting for her to reply that it is wonderful, and exciting and funny and the readers will love it.

When I sent The Farmer Needs a Wife to my editor at Little Black Dress - she said all those things. BUT... (Why is there always a BUT?)...

The editor's job is to spot the things a writer never sees, because she is too close to her work. It's called the revision letter - pointing out where the writer may have gone a little off track. We all get them - and our books are all the better because of them.

I've sent my revised manuscript off to my editor, and am now waiting for her reply - which hopefully this time won't have a BUT...

In the meantime, she tells me the designers are working on the cover of the book. It might take them a few weeks to get to just right - no BUTS this time.

As soon as I can, I'll post it here to show you.

Janet

I hate airports. I know I'm not the first person to say this - but I REALLY hate airports.

There's something about them that turns normally polite and happy people into psychotic demons. Maybe it's fear of flying - or suddenly not flying any more. Maybe it's fear of who might be sitting next to you talking at you for the next three hours.

On Friday evening, I was flying home from Dublin. I made it to the airport with plenty of time for my 7.50 flight. But through a combination of broken airport radar, broken aeroplanes and bad weather - my flight was delayed.. and delayed... and delayed again.

I could feel myself turning into the Wicked Witch of the West on a bad hair day - so I headed for the DVD shop, where - joy of joys - I found a three-disc set of Julia Roberts chick flicks for just 10 Euro.

I settled into a chair, inserted "America's Sweethearts" into my laptop and plugged in the headphones from my ipod. The best part of two hours passed pleasantly enough. The movie finished just as they called for passengers to head for the boarding gate.

I finally got back to London a bit after midnight - better than some of my fellow travellers who didn't get home at all that night. I do hope they had a DVD in their bags.

Janet

I've just returned from the Romantic Novelists' Association's annual conference - held this year at Chichester University.

The conference is one of the most important - and enjoyable - weekends of the year. More than 100 novelists gather to talk about writing, our books, other people's books and the publishing industry in general. Any suggestion that there is merrymaking, drinking and even possibly some late night singing is entirely true.

Some of those attending are best selling writers, with a long list of successful novels. Others are just starting out - including those who are not yet published. The important thing is we all love  what we do - and we all support each other.  We share tips and experiences, commiserate when things go wrong and celebrate when they go well.

The undoubted highlight of the conference were the shoes worn by Cat Marsters for Saturday night's dinner...

Now that's romance!

Janet

I was right! The pandas at Washington Zoo were even cuter than I had imagined.

Everyone who went near them had a smile on their face.

Can you blame us? I bet you're smiling now too.

Janet

In Warsaw all last week, I was greeted by a giant panda every morning outside my hotel.

It was a blow up Kung Fu Panda promoting the movie.

It was kinda cool - brought a smile to my face.

In Washington this week - I'll be meeting pandas of a different kind... these will be smaller and furrier I expect they will be amazing.

Stay tuned

Janet

I am working this week in Warsaw (sorry about the excessive alliteration - I'll stop now).

My favourite building in the city is the Palace of Culture and Science - the tallest building in Poland.

It was a gift from the Soviet Union to their Polish comrades during the communist era. The locals hate it, probably because it reminds them of a difficult part of their history.

I like it for much the same reason.

It used to completely dominate the city skyline, but now it has competition from gleaming high rise hotels and office blocks.

The huge square around the building is now littered with outdoor bars and cafes featuring umbrellas with beer ads on them.

There's also a supermarket in the car park and a multiplex cinema inside the building, which is now one of the city's premier tourist attractions.

I think that says it all.

Janet.

Years ago, a friend and I were discussing music. She said she thought Bruce Springsteen was really sexy. I disagreed. I liked his music - but he didn't do it for me.

On Saturday, I saw him in concert - and boy - was I wrong!

On stage he was dynamic, and entertaining and sexy. He owned the stage and had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand.

But... the gig was at the Arsenal football stadium, and the sound was terrible. Probably the worst sound I have ever heard at a concert. It was such a disappointment. Bruce deserved better. I hope I'll see him again some day with better sound - but I doubt I'll go to another concert at that stadium. And as I hate football, I guess that was my first and last appearance at Arsenal.

On a happier note -

I have just received my copy of 'That's Life Fast Fiction - the 2008 Winter Special with my short story in it. I can see those of you who live in the UK raising an eyebrow - Winter Special? It's an Australian publication and south of the equator temperatures are dropping.

When I wrote the story, I called it "Fairy Godmother's Need Not Apply" - because it's a twist on a fairy tale. It's now been published twice, in different hemispheres - and both times the title has been changed. In Australia it's called "The Family Thing". You'll see why when I post it on the stories page on this site in a few weeks.

I still like the original title - it might just end up being the title of a future novel.On the subject of novels and changes - I have also just received my revision notes for "The Farmer Needs a Wife". The editor really loved it, but has found a couple of places where she thinks it needs just a touch more work. Polish a scene here. Change the dialogue somewhere else. This is all part of the process of getting the book ready for publication. I want to produce the best book I can - so the revision process will start on Monday.

Janet

I have been working at Pinewood Studios this week.

There are always a couple of movies in some stage of production there. At the moment - one of them is B22.  That's Bond 22 - otherwise known as Quantum of Solace.

Yes - the gorgeous Daniel Craig is on the site. While walking to and from the car park every day, I kept my eyes peeled. Nothing.

On Friday, a colleague (male) left the building where we were working quite early to catch a plane. A little later - I got a text. He had walked past Daniel Craig just outside our door.

He described him as 'a blonde bloke in a nice suit'. Nice suit? I personally prefer those swimming trunks!

We are not allowed to take photos at Pinewood, but here is a link to a publicity shot that looks very much like it was taken at Pinewood.

I won't be back there for a few weeks - by which time the shooting might all be over.

Oh well - there's always B23.

Janet

I spent last week in Warsaw, and walking through the old city one evening, I stumbled across more than 100 bears in the square outside the Royal Palace.

Each bear was identical - but totally individual.

The bears have been decorated by artists from many different countries - and are on a world tour to promote understanding and friendship between peoples and raise money for charity.

The results were both beautiful and thought provoking, reflecting images from so many different cultures.

The bear from Australia had been decorated by Ken Done. The design was not dissimilar to Ken Done fabric I made into curtains for my bathroom some years ago. Not that I mean that to imply anything about the design!!

I have to confess to embarrassing myself in the restaurant of the Warsaw Hilton hotel. I was reading Pandora's Box, the novel by my friend Giselle Green (mentioned in last week's blog). There was a moment in the book which I found profoundly sad, but at the same time very uplifting and I shed a few tears into my continental breakfast. The businessmen all around were giving me curious looks as they talked into their mobile phones. Honestly - I thought I probably had a far more enjoyable breakfast than they did.

AND - Giselle has just won the Joan Hessayon NWS Award presented by the Romantic Novelists Association for a debut novel that has been reviewed under the New Writers Scheme.

It's well deserved - the book is delightful, and I do recommend it.

Janet

On Saturday I had the great pleasure of attending a party to celebrate the launch of Pandora's Box - the first novel by my friend Giselle Green.

Like me, Giselle is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association, and quite a few friends from the RNA joined Giselle to celebrate her big event.

Writing is a solitary business - many, many hours sitting alone at a computer. It's also very hard work. It's important to have support from friends and family. Some of the best support comes from other writers, who understand the journey we face when we start to write a book.

Several of my friends at the RNA were, like me, unpublished when we first met. It was wonderful to realise yesterday how far many of us have come since then.

Henriette Gyland (left, with Giselle and me) has just won the Katie Fforde Bursary.

Victoria Connelly has had several books published, and a German movie studio is about to starting shooting the film of her first book.

I am flying to Warsaw on Monday and working there for a few days. I shall take "Pandora's Box" to read on the plane.

And I am so looking forward to inviting Giselle and my other RNA friends to join my big day, when "The Farmer Needs A Wife" is published in January.

Janet

I've been waiting a long time to tell you about the publication of my novel 'The Farmer needs A Wife'.

The book will be published very early next year (probably January) by Little Black Dress - an imprint of Headline books.

The journey started in July last year, when I attended the Romantic Novelists' Association's conference at Leicester University.

One of the speakers was Cat Cobain, the editor of Little Black Dress.

Cat talked about the new line, and it seemed to be just the sort of thing I like to read - and to write. I had a meeting with Cat, and told her about a book I was just starting to write. Set in Australia, I thought it might be what she was looking for. She agreed and asked me to send her the first chapter.

Editors are busy people - and it was some time (not to mention a couple of lost e-mails) before Cat and I talked again. By this time, the book had grown - and she asked to see some more.

Four nerve wracking (for me at least) days later, Cat called. She loved the book, and wanted to publish it as part of the Little Black Dress line. I was overjoyed - and terrified, partly because the book still wasn't finished.

It is now - Cat has it and it has started the long journey that will lead to a place in the romance section of a bookshop.

I'll tell you a bit about that journey in this blog over the coming months... and give you some hints about the book, which will be just the first. I hope my second novel will be published later next year.

Janet

I remember the first science fiction book I ever read. It was Farmer in the Sky by the great Robert Heinlein.

         The book told the story of a young boy growing up on a farming community on Ganymede - one of the moons of Jupiter.

At the time, I was growing up in a farming community on the Darling Downs in Queensland. It wasn't quite as remote as Jupiter - but at times, to the teenage me, it felt like it.

Like all the best Sci Fi, Heinlein's book wasn't about science - it was about people. The science simply created the world in which they lived, the problems they faced and the journey they had to make.

I kept the book and re-read it many, many times.

When I first started seriously writing short stories, I tried to write Science Fiction. Those stories were pretty bad, and none were ever published.

I moved on to women's fiction and romance and discovered I was much better at that. However, I have always retained a love of Sci Fi and fantasy.

I started writing fantasy stories last year. Several of those have been published, or will soon be. This week, the first 'real' Sci Fi story I have written for many years was accepted by My Weekly magazine, who are now including Sci Fi and fantasy in their new look publication.

I don't think I'll ever be a Sci Fi writer, but it is nice to think that in a very, very small way, I am a part of the genre that I have always loved so much.

Janet

I just received in the mail a preview copy of my next short story to be published in The People's Friend.

It's called "Do You Believe in Fairies?"

People sometimes ask where I get the ideas for my stories. I usually say anywhere and everywhere.

This story grew from a moment at a music festival last year. The festival at Cropredy in Oxfordshire is staged by the band Fairport Convention, who have been playing and recording folk music since 1967.

We go to the festival every year and join a few thousand other people for three days of relaxing on a hillside, eating and drinking and listening to some really great music.

In 2007, while queuing for food, I saw a very pretty young blonde girl dart through the crowd, to kiss a started young boy on the cheek before running away again. It was a picture that just stayed in my mind.

"Do You believe in Fairies" isn't their story. It's the story of a two totally different people. But I hope the experience is the same.

You can read the story in the May 3rd edition of People's Friend - which should actually be on the shelves of your nearest newsagent or supermarket on May 1st.

Janet

I have just finished reading 'Blaze' - a recently published book by Stephen King.  Recently published - but not recently written. In his foreword, King says it was written from late 1972 to early 1973, when he was writing as Richard Bachman.

It's what he calls a trunk book. I would call it a bottom drawer book.

Every writer has them - the things we write that never see the light of day. It could be that the idea doesn't pan out. Or that we don't finish them. Or we like them, but our editors don't.

They get consigned to old trunks (to use King's expression) or to cardboard boxes or to the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet.

The most important thing is that they never get thrown away.

Mine sit on my computer in a folder called - strangely enough - bottom drawer. It holds odd short stories and books from the last ten years.

Those folders are home to some characters and stories that I rather like.

A young female archaeologist with a passion for all things Egyptian discovers a great treasure - and a great love.

A woman travels to Iceland to unlock secrets from her father's past.

There's a story about a granddaughter's love for her dying grandfather - they just both happen to be dragons.

There's also some old attempts at writing horror - inspired by Stephen King. The genre might not be for me - I am much happier writing romances - but I have always admired King's ability to tell a tale.

Maybe some day one of my bottom drawer stories will find a home. I can only hope that my readers will enjoy that story just as I enjoyed reading a piece of King's literary past.

Janet

I set out on Saturday morning to go to London, to a meeting of the South East Chapter of the Romantic Novelists Association . I didn't get very far. A technical fault at Waterloo Station left trains stacked up at the stations. I made it about four stops toward London, before giving up and coming home. It was a shame. The group is great fun. I hope I get to the next meeting in June.

Like most people, I woke up on Sunday morning to snow.

The garden looked amazing.

I hadn't seen any snow at all this winter - until today. The flakes were so big and fluffy.

We didn't get a lot of snow in Queensland, Australia when I was growing up, so I still feel a bit like a kid when it snows.

I want to get out and play in it.

The cat, however, has a very different idea.

He didn't venture outside until it had stopped snowing, and most of the white stuff had melted.

The other big achievement this week was to get tickets to Glastonbury Festival . Yes - the one with all the mud.

I've been to three Glasto festivals. Twice the weather was good, but last year - well the photo says it all.

Despite the mud, I still had a great time.

The music was amazing, and the whole festival atmosphere is great.

For a long time, I've been thinking out setting a novel there.

I will one day - but first there's the one I'm currently working on, and the one after that, and...

Janet

I e-mailed my novel to my editor a week ago. She'll look at it and let me know where I've gone wrong - what needs fixing or changing. But not for a while yet. She has other books to edit and she's on holiday for the next two weeks.

So - now what? That novel has taken just over a year of my life to write. Suddenly, there's nothing else I can do to it for three or four weeks./p>

Three or four weeks without writing is just not an option. So I have started writing the next book./p>

Starting a new book is an exciting time - and a little bit scary. The idea has been wandering around the back of my mind for a while, now its time to give it some shape. The characters too have been talking to me for a while and now they need names and faces so they can tell their story./p>

This is how my desk looks as I start the new book./p>

It will get messier as I go along./p>

The number of post-it notes stuck to the screen grows rapidly as I get new ideas, and write them down quickly before I forget. To the right side of the keyboard is the sketch pad on which I am drawing a map. This new book is set in one small Australian outback town. The map will help me keep track of what is where in the town, and who can see whose front door from their kitchen window./p>

As well as the essential dictionaries and punctuation guides, I have a book of baby names - that helps me find names for my characters./p>

The mug of tea is essential, as are the CDs I listen to as I write./p>

The silver cup on top of the CD player is the Elizabeth Goudge trophy awarded to me at the R.N.A. conference last year. It continues to inspire me./p>

I've got less than a year to write this one - time I set to it./p>

Janet

I confess to taking the Easter long weekend off - well, almost. I did take my laptop with me to the Gosport and Fareham Easter Festival - and I did get some work done on the new novel.

Most of the time, however, I spent listening to folk music and I even tapped my toe with some Morris dancers. Although I write contemporary fiction, I am a history buff, and I will now openly confess to having a bit of a soft spot for Morris Dancing.

When I was at primary school back in Australia (age 8-9 I guess), we had 'folk dancing' sessions. The boys in the class hated them, but the girls loved them. For me, it was a chance to hold hands with a boy I was sweet on. I didn't know it at the time, but the folk dances they were teaching us were actually Morris Dances. We were not allowed to take great swipes at each other with sticks - but the moves and tunes were much the same.

So I joined the shoppers in the streets of Fareham to watch and applaud the Morris Dancers - hardy people that they are - who even braved a bit of sleet for their art.

Inside the somewhat warmer confines of the Ferneham Hall, I was treated to some excellent music. The festival featured some wonderful singers of traditional songs. It was a treat to listen to the Young Coppers. This is the latest generation of a family that has been collecting and singing traditional English songs for hundreds of years. The Young Coppers present their songs presented exactly as they were sung four centuries ago. I strongly recommend them to any lover of English tradition.

I'm back home now. I rescued Nic Nak the cat from the boarding cattery where he'd spent the Easter break. They take good care of him, but he's very happy to be home.

While I work this week, he'll be indulging in that most feline of pastimes - sleeping and being excessively cute.

Janet

My first piece of fiction published in Australia is out this month - in That's Life! Fiction Special.

I won't see it for a while - the magazine isn't published in the U.K. Until one of my friends sends me a copy via snail mail, I won't know what it looks like.

When I sent the story to them, it was titled "The Romance Writer", but I don't know if they will keep that title.

When a magazine buys a story, the writer usually has to grant them the right to do minor edits - mostly for length. They may need to trim a few words that don't fit on a page. Some magazines also change the story title. You can see some of mine that have had the titles changed on my published stories page.

Sometimes my response is - That's so good! Why didn't I think of that? Sometimes I like my own title better.

I once had an editor change the name of two characters in the story for no reason that I could see. And the worst thing that has happened - so far at least - is that one magazine spelled my name wrong when they published the story. I was so disappointed.

I am, however, never disappointed to see my words on the page, and to know that people are reading my stories. That's why I keep writing them, and why I'll keep posting them on this site after they are published.

And this week, the That's Life! decided they wanted to use another of my stories in their Winter Fiction Special. I will be asking my friends in Oz to buy some more postage stamps.

Janet

When do you finish writing a book? It should be when you type "The End" after the last line of the last page of the last chapter, but it's not.

I have written the last line of the last chapter - but I can't stop there. Immediately after, I printed out the whole book - and it's sitting in on my bookshelf.

On Monday, I will start at word 1 and read the whole thing - all the way to word 84,978.

By the time I am done, I expect the word count will have changed somewhat, as I find errors and things I want to change. Like most writers, I can always find something I want to improve in any piece of my work. But at some point, I do have to type THE END. I have an editor waiting for the manuscript - and she can't have it until after those two small words are on the page.

It's hard to let go of something that has consumed your thoughts for so long. You have to say goodbye to characters you have come to know, and leave them to get on with their lives - while you start the next book.

I needed a bit of distraction after the last chapter, so I drove down to the South Downs, to the Footlights Folk Club - to see Steve Knightley perform.

Steve is best known as one half of the popular duo "Show of Hands". I first listened to them a couple of years ago, and now have 13 CDs and 2 DVDs of their music.

Steve is the songwriter - and his songs tell stories. Some of them will bring a tear to the eye. He is also one of the sexiest men I have ever seen behind a microphone - if you are into the unshaven, passionate and angry West Country guitar player look... Sigh!

Short stories have always been one of my favourite forms of fiction.  The first short story I ever read was in a school English book. It was called 'The Maltese Cat', and written by the great Rudyard Kipling. The Cat of the title is a polo pony, and the story still brings a lump to my throat when I re-read it. I do recommend you give it a try.

The Cat got me started and I've been reading and writing short stories ever since.

The Romantic Novelists Association is planning an anthology of short stories to mark its 50th anniversary in 2010. The aim is to showcase the diverse range of talent within the organisation, and to promote the genre of romantic fiction. I have just been told that one of my stories is on the long list for inclusion in that anthology. The list includes some wonderful and successful writers, and it it an honour to share it with them. The story is 'Waiting For A Wish'. It's the story which won the Elizabeth Goudge Award at the RNA conference last year. I won't know for a while if I am going to make the final cut. The anthology is expected to be published late 2009 or early 2010.

In the meantime, another of my stories will be published in March - this time in Australia. It's a piece inspired, in part, by the rather gorgeous Hugh Jackman, and an early film of his called Paperback Hero. For those in Oz, the That's Life Fiction special will go on sale on March 17th. Look for the story called The Romance Writer - although they may change the name. Editors do that sometimes. For those not in Australia, I'll post the story here on my Published Stories page after the magazine has had its run.

As a writer, a short story presents a particular challenge - how to tell your story in a very few words. Depending on where it is to be published, that could be less than a thousand words. With that few words, every single one must be the best word for the job. Some time soon I will post some thoughts on how to do that, from my short story writing workshop.

Janet

It's a great feeling - starting the last chapter of a novel.

I think the best chapters to write are the first and the last.

The first is great because I'm just starting out and there is a whole world of possibilities ahead for me and my characters. My mind is buzzing with ideas.

The last chapter is exciting because it's the climax of the story. True love is winning over adversity, or the bad guy is getting what he deserves, the hero is saving the world or my characters are simply moving on to a better place.

The last chapter of this novel is particularly thrilling for me - because this is going to be my first published novel. I can't say too much at this point, but I hope to be able to give you some details soon.

It is enough at this moment to know that I have an editor waiting to read my manuscript. I have a deadline I have to meet - Eeekk!

I also know that some day, people will be reading this novel - sharing the adventures and the lives and loves of the characters created. That is a wonderful feeling.

It's all part of storytelling - the audience or reader is as important as the storyteller.

On the subject of story telling, I have been listening of late to a lot of folk music - and much of that is all about telling a story. I was at a folk club this week listening to Steve Ashley play. He sang a lovely story about his grandfather, and how he kissed goodbye to his wife on the day he died. It was beautiful and very touching.

I think I'll be listening to that again as I write this last chapter.

Janet

Well, this is my first blog entry. And it is starting with some good news...

I've just had another short story accepted for publication by People's Friend magazine. This one has a touch of fantasy about it, involving Clangers. You might remember them - the little pink space creatures from the Oliver Postgate TV series.

I don't know when the story will be published. It usually takes three or four months. I'll let you know when it appears, and later on, I'll post it on this site.

I see the Romantic Novelists Association members (of which I am one) have voted Johnny Depp as their number one Romantic Hero for Valentine's Day. I am in complete agreement. I sometimes work at Pinewood Movie Studios, and saw Mr Depp about the place while he was making Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He really is as gorgeous off screen as on!

Daniel Craig was number two. Despite being at Pinewood during the making of four Bond movies, I have never seen either Daniel Craig or Pierce Brosnan (who was number 8 on the RNA list). Still, I live in hope.

Here is the full list...
1. Johnny Depp
2. Daniel Craig
3. Sean Bean
4. Richard Armitage
5. Hugh Jackman
6. Colin Firth
7. Alan Rickman
8. Pierce Brosnan
9. George Clooney
10. David Tennant

Wow! Who wouldn't like to see one of them on the doorstep on Valentines day. Clutching flowers and a box of chocolates. On second thoughts, who needs the flowers and chocolates!

I'll write more soon,

Janet