Spring is coming!

Well, it's March already and the weather is definitely getting warmer. Everything seems more positive and fun when the sun shines!

Fiction: I have just had a story accepted by Liz Smith at My Weekly - the first one I have sent them since their new rules came in a few years back. To be honest, I had almot forgotten I'd submitted it, the response was so slow, but it's a yes, so all is forgiven! It's good to be getting back into successful short story writing. I even won the Write Invite Saturday 30-minute competition last week, with another £40 prize on its way. At the fiction editor's request, I am also having a go at writing some stories for The People's Friend to go with some illustrations -they have a few in stock and need stories to match. One already done, and I'm pleased with it. Using short phrases/themes (as in Write Invite) or pictures as prompts certainly makes me think up some original ideas I would not otherwise have come up with.

Poetry: I hosted my second poetry evening in a local library last month - great fun and surprisingly well supported by people of all ages - from 10 to 80. Poetry is alive and well in Ruislip! I came second in the Writing Magazine ghost poem competition, and the poem is in the April issue with some incredibly flattering comments from the judge - worth more than the £50 prize, in self-esteem alone.

Non-fiction: This area of my work just grows and grows, with 2 or 3 of my articles in every issue of Child Care at the moment, one sold to Nursery World to celebrate 100 years in June since the first ever Fathers Day, and I have been asked to write some practical activities pages for another magazine called Practical Preschool. I enjoy non-fiction more than I ever expected to. It's very structured, needs thought and research, and is just as creative as other forms of writing in its own way... and it brings in a good regular income.

Looking ahead: to the next Writers Holiday in caerleon in July. Paid my deposit, booked my courses, and looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Can't wait!!