Woke up this morning with a strange kind of shooting pain in my right shoulder and the usual (well, usual since the op) numbness in my left. All very odd. It’s as if my shoulders have decided that, rather than share the burden between them, they’re each going to go for opposite ends of the pain spectrum. So today I am distinctly lop-sided – hmm, so, once again, there’s no change there.

Had a lovely time on the way to work – I’d got bored with Radio Two (didn’t like the song – I’m never bored with Terry W!!) and switched to Classic FM. Still bored – I hate the morning presenter. So I went over to my usual third choice of Radio Three. It was piano music, which I’m not a particular fan of (I’m a big orchestra kind of girl, you know …), but I kept it on as it was relatively pleasant. A few minutes went by and I found that (whilst paying due attention to the road conditions of course!…), I was listening with great attention, and that in fact the piece I’d assessed as “relatively pleasant” was actually totally charming, beautifully understated and curiously gripping ...


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The writing group last night was all about words. All about writing. Not about proofing anthologies or stressing about printers or money. And it was brilliant. As brilliant as putting out anthologies of the group's work is (and that is brilliant) you can't beat what it's there for - and that's for writers to get together and share their work, and help others with their own.

I am looking forward to the reading night we'll be doing next month though, I must admit.

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Dear Kitty,

I love you. I thought you were mine alone.
But now I hear something about you being nominated in the Manchester Blog Awards

I’m stunned. Who are these people? What do they know of your witty fonts or your enchanting hypertext links or the way your hair curls over your polo neck just so?

I don’t want to share you. I can’t. I won't. Not after what happened with my last girlfriend.

So I’m afraid it has come to this: give them up or the dog gets it.

Your No 1 Fan



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There are generally three levels of block encountered by writers and other creatives.

All are relatively easily curable - permanently.

The first type of block you may encounter is where your creative juices temporarily dry up. It can happen on one of your book writing sessions or when you just have to get that sales proposal out or that blog written.
You can sometimes just run out of ideas. Your Creative Muse has left you.

Don't fret, it happens to all writers.

Just take a break, make a cup of tea or ideally go for a walk. Don't think about what you are writing, just pay attention to where your consciousness lies. Is it in the front of your head? If so move it back to the centre - to your third eye. Remember to use your dream-time too. These are techniques explained more in the workshop and home study course.

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Came back on Saturday with a camera full of photographs after a 12 hour round trip with friends and dog to Scotland. Stopped at Tebay services (M6) on the way up. Must be set in one of the best locations in the UK with a view of the Cumbrian hills and a large pond with ducks right outside the window. The coffee was good too.

Drove through floods and ... (more)

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Had the best night’s sleep last night that I’ve had for well over a week. Still feel tired though (dammit), but serious bliss, nonetheless. I was beginning to think I’d lost the ability to sleep properly at all. Mind you, the fact that the cold seems to have all but cleared up and I can therefore breathe again does help.

Had a wonderful, but bizarre, dream too: I was part of a husband and wife private detective team (with me being the man, as ever …) in a fantasy setting. We’d had to move from Paris (a city I’ve never enjoyed, but never mind – it was perfect in the dream) to London because of my job but, although the work was good, it wasn’t as enjoyable as before. I don’t think the cases we were getting were as exciting. Anyway, on our latest case we had to take a trip back to Paris to try and solve it and, once there, everything fell perfectly into place. The streets and buildings were beautiful and – for the first time – I could hear the song of the voices in the city in my head, in a way we never could in London ...


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It looks as if my mother will be given the all-clear to return home after cancer surgery ten days ago. She's had a rotten time of it despite the operation being a success (as far as we know at this stage), but I'm hoping she's turned a corner at last. Adding to the stresses of last week, I've been wrestling with the revisions to the novel. Thanks to the input from the agent I know what's right and wrong with it but the more I edited, the more it slipped away from me.

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Find out and experience the difference between internal and external thought by getting one of the last three places at the next Unleash the Book Inside workshop on the 20th & 21st of October - near Guildford, Surrey - UK
You will experience at least three different modes of consciousness and thinking that will transform your world forever … as well as …

… experiencing what happens when you integrate mind maps directly into your neurology

… experiencing the difference between internal and external thought and how to channel

… finding out how you can access all past emotions with detachment and disassociation

… learning how to become inextricably entangled with the future version of yourself who has achieved success as a published author

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Just seen the voting chart wossname of what people thought of my short story, How Do you Solve the Cube?. And it's pleasing, though I did have a typical writer moment; when I saw there were a fair number of 'Wows' I thought: they must be from people I know. Well, whether they were or they weren't, they're great to have. Thanks to all who read and who voted. I'm really happy you enjoyed it.

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Angry? Try furious. That was something I never want to repeat; listening to a priest pontificate about religious politics during a funeral service. This doddering old man wandered across the scriptures to give himself a jumping-off place so he could rant about the credit crunch and how greedy people were for wanting more and more money - what did that have to do with Anne's life? I think he mentioned her twice; some of the family missed it!


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