'Maude, I love that name', he says, the prelude to many unctuously insincere and/or ambiguous remarks. Her psychopathology training didn't include Tennyson, so she won't get the allusion, but she can't have had that particular compliment paid so often. For Peter, it's the first of many verbal ambiguities that keep the atmosphere electric.



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Trigger Thumb and White Finger are the central protagonists in the post-modern spaghetti western script I’m writing in which my main characters are loosely connected by the theme of repetitive stress injury and puzzle addiction.


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As the Strictly Writers know, I have recently returned from a trip to EuroDisney. I also visited five years ago when my children were tiny, plus in 1992 was employed as a member of the Opening Crew. So there is quite a history between me and this centre of ‘Imagineering’ and I’m grateful to it for offering me a wealth of special memories – as a single fun-seeking young woman and as an older Madame, returning to the magic with her husband and children.

My recent trip there was the first time I had visited since I’ve been writing, and it got me thinking, as an author of commercial stories – what is Disney’s secret? No other brand of theme park comes close to Disneyland’s global success, what with the visitor numbers and merchandising revenue created by the gigantic park in Florida, plus the other three in California, Paris and Tokyo...



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Fiona Robyn's debut novel, The Letters, was published on March 2 by Snowbooks. Fiona lives in rural Hampshire with her partner, her cats Silver and Fatty, and her vegetable patch. She blogs at Planting Words and A Small Stone and runs the blogzine A Handful of Stones. Her website is http://www.fionarobyn.com/.


The first story/poem I remember reading was ...
The Very Hungry Caterpillar – a classic.

My family think my writing is ...
something they feel proud about.

The best thing about writing novels is ...
Getting to spend time with my characters.

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Many thanks indeed to the pupils and staff of the Virgo Fidelis Preparatory School, who made me so welcome when I went to spend their School Book Day with them yesterday.

In the morning I visited three separate classes - the Nursery, Reception and Year 1 - all of whom were delightful and very generous with their lovely hugs! After reading Uncle Alonzo’s Beard, I conducted a short quiz on the book. Each correct answer, of which there were many, won an Alonzo badge. Following the quiz, the children were able to turn the tables on me and ask any questions that they wanted to. I then finished the session by introducing them to one of Alonzo’s relatives, My Scandalous Sister Sophia – a terribly badly behaved little girl, who I am certain had little in common with the angelic nippers of Virgo Fidelis! ;-)


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I didn't linger for drinks afterwards, but the Russian lady gave me a story about an elderly female exile who reminisces about her family while walking her dog. It was excellent entertainment for the journey home.

I think I should follow Fagin's advice: 'Make them your models, my dear!'



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About eighteen months after my book was published I was informed it contained a typo. Where it should have said reins it said reigns. Now, I'll not lie to you (how could I - and why would I want to?) - I was gutted. And embarrassed. I'd missed it - and not through being illiterate or sloppy. My book was not perfect. That editors had missed it too, and readers (as far as I'm aware) was no comfort. It really stung.

And I told people about it, I mentioned it to author friends of mine. And most of them said don't worry. It's fine. Lots of books have typos. And although it's not ideal, it's not something that should cause anyone to give up writing.

And their warmth and their words helped. (It's still something that irks me, but I'm over it.)

I received an email from a member of my writing group earlier. She'd had her first poem published and whoever had published it had made a mistake. It was formatted (cleverly) in a specific way and had ended up in the finished booklet wrong. Formatting out the window.

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I am delighted to be hosting the final leg of Elizabeth Baines' "Around the Edges of the World" Virtual Book Tour for her wonderful short story collection, Balancing on the Edge of the World (Salt Publishing, 2007) which is one of those books I had to force myself to put down just so the experience of reading it wouldn't end. I am sad that it did, but looking forward to reading Elizabeth's next book, her novel, Too Many Magpies, forthcoming from Salt later this year.

Much has been said already in praise of Elizabeth's writing, and I urge you to visit the other tour stops where Elizabeth illuminates the writing life and what that means for her, how she writes, what she writes, why she writes what she writes, which is not just short stories, but novels, radio and stage plays and more. She is also the author of two blogs, a personal blog, Elizabeth.Baines.blogspot.com and Fiction Bitch, which contains Elizabeth sharp and insightful take on the oft-perplexing and frustrating world of books and literature. Of course, I highly recommend buying Balancing on the Edge of the World.

So, a dribble interview, what does that mean? In the world of flash fiction, a "dribble" is a very short story of only 50 words (half a drabble!). Since I know how exhausting Virtual Book Tours can be, requiring an immense amount of thought on the part of the author on many questions, often deeply personal, I decided to give Elizabeth a break and require of her that her answers not exceed 50 words. She was, I believe, relieved!

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Current projects include re-establishing contact with the Duchess of York with regards to picking up the thread of an idea for a project we got close to a couple of years ago that never came to fruition. I am also trying to contact a number of celebrities with a view to asking them to read and comment on the Yucketypoo series so that they can be quoted on the cover of either the second or third book. I have somehow become involved with the Earl's Court Literature Festival which takes place in July (long story - tell you about that another time) and I am seeing new chances everywhere I look. All I need now is an agent - sadly that still eludes me and it is not through lack of trying. Eventually I will find one. And a website - which I am working on.

I am offering my services as a writer and critic to anyone that needs it. I am good at what I do.
Contact me. I'd love to help you turn your writing career around, too

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I stumbled across this in a 1924 edition of The Indianapolis Star, while looking for something completely unrelated (which turned out not to be much use anyway). Some things never change:


The Author’s Chances

There is a short story epidemic. All the world, it seems, is writing down its own experience, or those of father, mother, brother or neighbor. And those who have no experiences of their own are making them up out of clear blue air in an effort to break into print...



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