Gloriously warm week and some great book jackets sent to me for the reprints

19th July

I can't remember continuous fine weather like this for ages. I'm told it was in 2006. It's been glorious though I have to say I've been shade hopping. Can't cope with the heat of the sun these days. The sweet peas have been fantastic but are already shortening their stems and it must be the weather. The roses have bloomed and then drooped. Again the weather.

Dear old Only the Wind is Free has been renamed After the Storm by Random House with a smart new jacket. It comes out for a 2nd showing  in August this year and it will be interesting to see how it does. I'm very fond of this book as it was my first and I based it pretty much on mum's life. I always think of her when it's mentioned
and can see her so clearly. What I hope it contains is the essence of her. She was enormously gutsy - well she had to be to survive. In fact I have the main character going into captivity in Singapore in the 2nd World War, which mum avoided as it fell before she arrived, but many of her friends were less fortunate and I wanted to show what it was like.

I've just seen the jacket for Annie's Promise which retains the old title. Phew, less chance of confusion. It is similar. I was talking to Matt about the change in title and he made a good point. He suggested that fashions change and what worked in 1988 might not be appropriate for today. Presumably Annie's Promise has travelled better!

Otherwise I had a short story to write this week for a Sunday newspaper magazine who would like to use it in a December edition when they mention Annie's Promise. It was fun and I used Maeve, from Maeve's Afternoon Delight, my ebook. Nice to work with her again.

Today my lovely mentoring group and I went for lunch after our last session for this term. We ate in the garden of the local Downley pub and it just seemed perfect. Weather makes such a difference and talking about something we're all interested in is the icing on the cake.

Fingers crossed this weather lasts for longer. Kris and Lee do the triathlon for W4W on Sunday and I don't want it as hot as it's been. I don't think it's good to do hefty exercise in such conditions. Fingers crossed on that too.