Radio 4 interview, new books, weddings and glass

Current work: fiction (deadline mode – am still at the ‘this book is pants and my editor will hate it’ stage)
Listening to: Corelli
Reading: Fiona Harper, Blind Date Baby (enjoyed this one a lot – her books are always a treat – and yes, this is yet another from my weekend reading-fest. Have been way too busy to read this week!)

Thanks to everyone who sent me sympathetic emails yesterday. It helped. I was pretty miserable and growly, but my bounce is back today. Amazing what a bit of sleep can do. (Have warned DH if he messes up my sleep again, I will go on strike.)

I have a Radio Four interview at lunchtime today. Chris, the journalist, is coming to see me. Should be fun – will post later when I know date/time of being aired. It’s about blogging and how authors use it to promote their books.

Actually, yesterday (after the horrible morning), things started to look up again. I had a lovely email from my editor re my next contract. I am so much happier when I have things planned out in advance: it’s the ADHD thing. If I don’t have a structure in place, I feel as if everything’s sliding out of control, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. She said some really sweet things that made me feel a lot better about my work. Apparently readers like my – as she put it – ‘very individual ideas mixed with classic themes’. I also have permission to be clever with an idea I’m toying with (and I fully accept why my original pitch can’t work – at least in M&B terms – but she may regret giving me said permission).

And I sorted out some backstory I needed to know: where my hero and heroine got married (here). It’s a reunion book, so it doesn’t take place on the page, but I needed to know for later plot purposes. I enjoyed exploring the house online, and it’s sparking off other ideas.

Oh, all right. I admit that I chose the house for the staircase, which is an architectural rarity – apparently there are only two of these suspended staircases in the world. How amazing must it feel to walk down a suspended staircase in a swishy dress?

It’s the kind of place I wouldn’t have minded getting married. Though my own wedding took place in a tiny country church (here – or if you want to see more info on Simon Knott’s fab website, here). The entrance (for bridal parties, anyway) is actually round the side of the building, not the door you can see in the pic. But I can remember family and friends lining that path and the photographer yelling ‘let them have it!’ and confetti going everywhere…

I also discovered something exciting, during a sort-of coffee break. Regular readers (or those who know me in real life) will already realise that I have a bit of an obsession with glass (particularly 14th-century stained glass and certain 19th-century art, aka Burne Jones). A few years back, we had this wonderful ecclesiastical museum in the redundant church of St Peter Hungate in Norwich. Then it closed. I was very sad about this (this was in the days before I admitted having the churchcrawling bug – I just used to do it and keep quiet about it). Bu-u-ut – last year I heard that it was becoming a heritage centre and the initial phase would be stained glass. I very, VERY nearly applied for a job there; however, as I don’t have time to breathe as it is, taking a second job and making life difficult with school runs etc would be a very bad move, so I was sensible and didn’t give in to the impulse. (I did get as far as printing off the application form, though… it was that serious.)

I knew the centre was due to open this month some time: and I’m delighted to say that the Hungate Centre is open RIGHT NOW, from Thursdays to Saturdays. Given that next week I’ll be starting my Venice book (which involves glass, and lovely Michelle Styles has taken lots of location pics for me and is willing to be grilled mercilessly), I really think I need to visit sooner rather than later. Especially as a conservator works there on Saturdays and I can see the work in action. I’m going to be tired on Thursday, post-London, so that might be a nice way to settle back in to work...