My thoughts about books, writing, life and so many other things….Judy Leigh/ Elena Collins.
When I started thinking about writing The Wicked Lady, the dual timeline was a central focus. I knew what I wanted to write about Katherine Ferrers. Her story has been sketchily recorded in history, with plenty of gaps for me to fill with creative speculation. But I needed a modern character to parallel her story. …
It’s a question we’re often asked, as a light moment of humorous reflection. If you hosted a dinner party, which famous celebrities, living or otherwise, would you invite? I’ve researched a few of the top answers. I suppose people's responses tell us something about the host. After all, if we’re inviting them to our table, …
Continue reading Which Celebrity Would You Invite to a Dinner Party?
Well, dear friends and readers, hopefully the summer is round the corner. I keep picturing the sizzling cover of that Stevie Wonder album, Hotter than July. Here in the south west of England, it’s lukewarm, to say the least. Cooler than April, most mornings. But I won’t be deterred. This is what I’m up to …
June was a heck of a month. Apart from being the month of my birth, the month of the solstice and the month with the longest daylight hours in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s the month that’s supposed to be the best time to buy a laptop and the worst time to buy a barbecue. Father’s …
I love this term – the oxygen of publicity. Although - didn't Margaret Thatcher come up with it first, in the context of learning to starve the oxygen from terrorism, or something? I'm using it here to refer to negative views and comments that seem to fill the internet and the airwaves and come to …
At the last writing group meeting, I was thinking about using voice to create character, and what sort of style goes with what voice. It's just a little twenty minute writing exercise I took to the group - I'm not sure where to go with it - but here it is. Have a read and …
Continue reading A little piece of scribble for the writing group…
We don’t ask to be born into privilege. But privilege is something we have in varied amounts, whoever we are. Perhaps being male, being white, being educated, being wealthy are privileges. It depends on complexities, who you are, where you are, and what your situation. There are, of course, many more privileges than this. Certainly, …
Winston is a rat. He lives somewhere near my garden. He’s brown, with a very long tail. He has a sweet little face. He’s not very old. He’s cute. And he’s very naughty. I think he must also be hungry. He spends a lot of time mooching around outside looking for food. And he steals …
When I first started writing, I was delighted by all the positive reviews about older protagonists. There weren’t enough of them. Evie Gallagher in A Grand Old Time was seventy five. Nanny Basham in The Age of Misadventure was older. The Five French Hens were in their seventies. Then an anonymous negative comment on social …
Continue reading Life is short. Smile while you still have teeth.
I spend a lot of time writing novels and editing them. I write four novels a year, so that’s twelve edits too. It’s nice when they come separately and a bit scary when they come together but I enjoy what I do so much and I never worry about looming deadlines. I do have to …
That quintessence of dust 