TFOTK: Chapter One – Josiah

Gareth looked at me with such tenderness, I was almost undone. When he reached across the table and grasped my forearm in an act of silent solidarity, only the iron discipline forged as Overseer held back the floodgates of emotion. Never mind Gareth was the longest serving of the twelve Kings of Gallea, and I …

Feeling Let Down: WIPpet Wednesday

It's been a rough week. We lost a beloved friend to cancer, and it hurt. And in a cruel double-whammy we also saw the legal system fail spectacularly. As a lawyer I've seen it before, but rarely in such a cruel fashion. Going through a week like this makes you realise you need to cherish …

Suffering in Silence – WIPpet Wednesday

Today I felt like licking my wounds and curling up in the fetal position; an hour or so in the dentist's chair will do that to a girl. But when you're a Mum, even if you're feeling fragile, you just have to suck it up and get on with it. At least I was feeling …

A Happy Chaos – Wednesday WIPpet

It was easy to choose a WIPpet this week. Summer holidays are always a chaotic tumble of people coming and going at our house. (Thus the reason writing only occurs very late at night...). Relatives, friends, the kids friends, neighbours... It seems water pistols are stashed all over the yard, and when I asked my …

NoMoWriMo

It's the day after the close of NaNoWriMo, that juggernaut that drives many into a November of frenetic writing. Yet instead of a rough and ready 50K manuscript, I've logged back on to my neglected NaNo account to check out my word count of - drum roll please - 5977.  And no, I haven't missed …

The Best Writing Advice Ever

I know I've succumbed to hyperbole with this title - but I promise I'm not selling anything. *checks pockets* Nope all out of snake oil. But I would like to offer you a story today. A story - one of many that have been told around the tables of Cafe Novella during the course of …