I went to Blackpool – fantastic to meet readers and writers there. I did one reading with Jane Costello then read her very funny The Nearly-Weds on the train home. I highly recommend.


Tragically, I don’t have any photos of the brilliant Girls Nights In at Portlethen or Fort William (if anyone wants to send me one, please do!)

Portlethen was a family event as I took my daughter and my Dad. Dad was giving me a lift and I’d forgotten all about his punctuality issues and the fact that the Land Rover can only go at a certain speed, so we arrived just 15 minutes before kick-off, but everyone was incredibly calm! Claudie was all dressed up and looking lovely as she worked her way steadily through the many snacks provided. Can I just say how incredibly glamorous everyone looked: sparkly pink shoes, pink tops and jazzy scarves, it was very fashion-forward. We talked lots about writing. I think they are a very keenly creative lot up there. Thank you for inviting me along!

Fort William… is a long way away! I took the train from Glasgow and it took almost four hours. However the weather was beautiful and the scenery was picture postcard Scotland. Seriously, there were stags leaping from the tracks, then posing in front of blue lochs, velvety brown mountains and Rowan trees full of berries. I was trying to work on the train, but the views were so amazing I kept getting totally distracted.

I got an unforgettably warm Highland welcome from the library and so many people came along! No wonder, there was a chocolate fountain (!) food, drinkies, two makeover ladies. We all had an absolute hoot. I have been told to spread the word, if any writer is even thinking about making the trek to FW, it is totally worth it, I promise.

We went fishing at the weekend – a family first. We drove north to this beautiful little loch in the Highlands and it was a day of two halves really (you can tell I have to listen to far more football commentary than is good for me).

In the morning, the wind was bitingly cold and we stood in the grey water forlornly casting, casting and casting again. By the way, casting – flicking the line into the water and pulling it back – is really hard work and I’d thought we’d just be standing about holding our rods in the water… but I still got so cold that when I embedded a fish hook in my finger, I didn’t even notice.

We broke early for lunch, huddled round an Aga and got some feeling back in our toes, before setting off out again.

This time, the sun broke through the clouds, light danced on the blue water and suddenly every view around us looked stunning. Even the prospect of going home without any fish didn’t seem bad, because we’d had such a great day outdoors.

Then, just as we were about to pack up, Claudie’s line began to twitch! With some help, she reeled her little trout in and didn’t have any qualms about bashing his head and taking him home in a plastic bag for breakfast. Poor Sam just about died of envy!

And just to prove what I was writing about last time (Claudie’s spooky sense of style), her fishing outfit which she chose then laid out on her bed for me to pack included co-ordinating pants and a leather hat which she got from the dressing up box. She wore these all day along with her sunglasses, making her the coolest chic on the loch. Although Sam’s slightly serial killer get up of combat jacket, aviator shades and baseball hat came a very close second.

All I can say about myself is that duvet coat with a life jacket? Well, it’s never going to be a good combo now, is it?