Working Mums and Edits

It's a good thing I checked on-line yesterday....because I discovered a wonderful article in The National (UAE) by Alice Haine...A Mother's Dilema.  The article features four different mothers and I'm one of them. You can read it here. If you scroll through the pictures at the top I'm the third one (the one with all the books behind me)....

This past week I met with my editor to discuss the edits...and despite my nerves it was brilliant. I am so excited about about them now that we have talked them through and done a bit of brainstorming. For so long as a pre-published writer I have worked hard in my own little head battling out scenarios....now I have two people (my editor and my agent) who will listen to my ideas and help me figure out which one is the best. Brilliant.

The other big news that came out of the meeting is that THE CORNISH HOUSE will be out in May 2012! Gulp.

No time to think about that...edits to do on TCH and a complete overhaul of AUGUST ROCK...

Filling The Well and Edits and Books

I haven't posted in ages...exam revision (DS1's  and DS2's) and general STUFF. However I have been to Cornwall which was glorious and it did refill my well so to speak. Below you'll see some photos I took on a walk with DS1...this walk was for my work on AUGUST ROCK (did I tell you that AR is book 2?). I also did some work on THE CORNISH HOUSE and a posted a little bit about that over on The Heroine Addicts blog here.

Also to replenish my inner resources I have been reading. First up was the biography of the writer Mary Wesley - WILD MARY by Patrick Marnham. WOW - she packed about ten lives into one.

Next up was GETTING AWAY WITH IT by Julie Cohen. Now Julie is a great friend so i suppose my view is biased but it is a fab book that deals with hard issues with such humour...her heroine is very kick ass too. I have always loved Julie's books but this one was a real step up in emotion, issues, and she made me cry (and blush too as I was reading one scene at the breakfast table when DS1 wandered in...I hasten to add I was blushing before his arrival!).

I am working my way through Stephen King's ON WRITING (enjoying it) and have just started reading the SOMNAMBULIST by Essie Fox and would be engrossed in it now but last night the edits arrived for TCH....a touch distracting....but I may just put the edits aside and enjoy the book for the rest of today....












I'll leave you with a glimpse of beauty...

Post Cards From Vienna

I have two days of Vienna to catch up on...the first day



This lovely carving guards the outside entrance to the catacombs



the outside entrance to the catacombs

Then yesterday we were treated to a wonderful evening of sightseeing and good food and wine

The big wheel which was over a 100 years old

More champange

The Spanish Riding School

a dinner serenaded by a string quartet....with the sound of hooves on the cobbled streets below...what century???

The tack room was amazing

Lipizzaner Stallion

This Is What A Romantic Novleist Looks Like

Interrupting my postcards from Vienna to join the campaign....on Twitter in responce to the Daily Mail's article here there is a Hash Tag #thisiswhataromanticnovelistlookslike thanks to gorgeous RNA member Kate Johnson. Her post is here...

So in case you did know...here's is what a romantic novelists looks like -

and here's a picture from the party in question. It's me with the winner of this year's Romantic Novel of the Year JoJo Moyes

And just for the record I was wearing pearls at the party....(but with Pucci not with support tights and twinset). For a brilliant reply to the article see Julie Cohen's responce here.

Lazy Sunday Morning in Vienna

DH had an all day meeting yesterday...so I went to Mass at the cathedral then roamed the quiet streets of the city before the crowds appeared....

Vienna

Well, my life is rarely quiet...on Friday morning we flew to Vienna...(DH has a conference here this week and well he needed company!)

Here's a few pics from days one and two and as you can see I'm still keeping this champagne thing going (and will try and spread it out for as long as possible)...

Friday's lunch

This sign caught DH's eye

Fabulous restaurant on Friday evening

Moi with yet another glass of champagne!

Just outside the Spanish Riding School (watched them practice - so beautiful)

A little morning music

The rose garden in the Volkspark - the scent was amazing

In the courtyard where we had a lovely lunch

Discovered the realities of carriages on cobbles

St Stephan's Cathedral