I have never attended a writing festival before. There was always an excuse. I didn’t have money to spend on such an extravagance, I wasn’t a proper writer (this one worked for many years until I actually got an agent in 2019), I didn’t have time, between renovations, working and looking after holiday makers (this …
My Jericho Writers York Festival of Writing 2022 takeaways Read More »
The legend goes that Abraham, the father of the three Abrahamic religions, married Sarah who was barren. By God’s grace, says the Old Testament, Sarah gave Abraham a son, Isaac, when Abraham was one hundred years old. The same God later asked Abraham to show his faith by sacrificing Isaac. But the story goes that, when …
Once upon a time, I had the pleasure of interviewing writer Lionel Shriver at the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival. I remember how nervous I was when I saw her sat in a rattan chair, luscious tropical background behind her, sending lazy clouds of smoke into the air from an electronic cigarette (one of the …
It’s a beautiful summer evening and my husband and I enjoy a drink on our terrace. An enormity of green stretches in front of us as far as the eye can see and the songs of the cicadas compete with the reassuring sounds of the river. We’ve just finished renovating the farmhouse next door, the …
A short history of personal rejection I once went out with this guy. I thought he was all right, you know, nothing to write home about, just a regular Joe, good looking and nice enough. But he seemed distracted. Like he was just being polite in having a drink with me, even though I …
Don’t you just hate Valentine’s Day? If you’re single, you wish you had someone to share it with, someone to bring you flowers and chocolate (or to bring to) and kiss and cuddle with on a cold February evening. If you’re in a couple, then you feel like you ought to do something special, but …
Today marks the two-months anniversary since we got on a one-way flight from Stansted to Biarritz to begin our new life in France. But it feels more like two years. Here’s how I celebrate it. I wake up to see rain falling in millions of tiny droplets outside my window and my mind is empty …
Everyone who knows me, would 100% testify that I am the most chilled, friendly and calm person in the world. And if you asked that question, say, five years ago, the answer would have been 100% right. As a the only child of an alcoholic and abusive father and a submissive mother, I grew up …
On a rainy and umbrella-turning typical London Monday evening, I went to see Cheryl Strayed at the Emmanuel centre, near Victoria. The How To: Academy had invited her to talk about being wild and being brave and I was there, propped on the second row, clutching my copy of Wild, surrounded by a few hundred …
I am delighted to announce that I have been invited by relationship counsellor Pamela Custers to take part in her programme: The Right Love. We’ve had great fun filming for the programme and talking with her about important issues such as: patterns of behaviour, forgiveness, conflict and negotiating difference when dating or in a relationship. …
