The Saga of Libby and Lesley

 Well, Hello! Did you wonder where I was? NO? Oh, all right... I'll tell you anyway.

While waiting several weeks for my edits on Libby Sarjeant Book 27, aka Murder and The Crooked Horse, I had re-published my famous (!) Alexandrians trilogy. The Alexandrians Lovely covers are courtesy of the talented Rhoda Baxter.

 

Just after I'd managed this, with a lot of help from friends, I developed a severe eye infection. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say I lost the sight in my good eye (the other one's already - er - crap) and spent a good deal of time going backwards and forwards, courtesy of daughters Lousie and Phillipa, to the Urgent Eye Treatment Centre at the William Harvey hospital in Ashford, who were brilliant. Anyway, four days after this happened, the edits and the offer of a new contract came in. Timing, eh?

Meanwhile, son Miles had been creating a new shower room and loo downstairs in my little house and was about to move on to the refurbishment of the office. This entailed me sorting through every bit of paper that had accumulated over the 25 years I have lived here. I'm surprised I could actually move in the place! As you can imagine, with compromised eyesight, this was no easy task. I had also had to ask my publishers to wait for both the edits and signature on the contract.

However, there is a happy ending. By last weekend, my eyesight was just about up to the task of the edits, which I completed in a record three days - I may have missed a few things... - and Miles had got the office almost finished. So am now sitting at my new desk, at my beloved old Big Mac, just about ready to finalise Murder and The Crooked Horse and to make a start on Libby Sarjeant Book 27! Yes - publishers Headline have seen fir to ask for two more Libby books, which will take us up to 28 full length stories and 3 novellas. She's been very patient, but oh, how I've missed her. Yes, I know, I'm a sad old bat who lives through my imaginary characters.

So that's where we are at the moment. I wish I could show you a picture of the new cover, but it hasn't appeared yet. I can tell you that Book 27, which I have given the working title of Murder and the Magician's Nephew, is due to be delivered by the end of October, so I have to get my writing muscles primed. Good job it isn't my back, which is killing me - all that heaving boxes and piles of paper around, not to mention the bending, isn't good for a woman of my advanced age. Oh, and if anyone wants a fairly cheerful musician who can create shower rooms and offices, I'll give you his number.

Bye for now,

Lesley

It's Panto Time!

Oh, yes it is. But before that, a small announcement. As a special treat (?) Accent Press will be releasing a Libby Sarjeant short for Christmas.

It was difficult to cram a full blown murder mystery into 16,000 but I managed, more or less. Here's the link to Amazon: Murder Most Fowl.

And on another tack entirely, it has just been decided that I shall be doing next year's pantomime at my local theatre. This is diving back in with a vengeance, as my involvement in all things theatrical has been downgraded significantly over the last few years, so I'm going to attend the last few rehearsals of this year's production, by kind permission of the director, and start reading a few modern scripts, as my own Sleeping Beauty will need updating. I shall also be coercing every technician, set designer and Musical Director I've ever worked with to come and show me how everything works these days. I'm not proud.

Talking of pantomimes, my announcement of a few months ago about my own being taken on by a new publisher seems to have been premature. I haven't heard a word from said publisher since then, so, if I can be bothered, I shall have to find out how people go about selling their scripts in this e-publishing age. Luckily, all my original scripts are on on my hard drive, so will be available for re-formatting.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, everyone.

Writing on the sofa

Gloria and Lady Godiva, to give her her full name, no longer cuddle up on the sofa, perhaps because it now has a new overcoat. They still sit here, but not together. In the mornings, Godiva sits beside me and drapes herself over my left wrist, despite the fact that she gets jiggled up and down while I'm writing. Gloria sits on the cushion behind my back, gradually wearing a groove in it and occasionally eating my hair.

This is my new regime. I tried working at the kitchen table, but it was hopeless, so I went back to the office and my back suffered. So here I am in the sitting room, working on the sofa with the cats. It's slightly tidier in here, there are grapes and chocolates to hand and a vase of daffodils on the table. And I've actually got more done over the last few days than I have in the last month. I may well abandon the office for ever.

It reminds me of two things. One - the summer I spent with a cracked foot up on the sofa finishing a writing project and two - finishing the first Libby Sarjeant after Hazel Cushion had asked for it. I've always maintained that I needed a dedicated office space to work, and of course, in the past, I have. In our last house, my late husband and I actually had an office each once we'd chucked the two elder children out. Even before that, he had one and I worked in our large utility room. This was essential with four children with ages ranging over ten years, and my liking for working to music probably dates from that time - in order to block out extraneous noises.

But now I've realised I don't need it. I do have one returning child - the current slave - living with me, but he spends most of his time in his room composing music and poetry, only coming out to eat, take the bins out and get the coal in. And it's much more comfortable here, and surprisingly, less distracting. So - advice for writers. As if I'm qualified to give advice... Write where you're comfortable and not where you think you should. No, I'm not going to remind you of Jane Austin, but I might remind you of the opening line of my all-time favourite novel: "I write this sitting in the kitchen sink..."

Sixth Libby on its way!

Thank you, Leigh! I'm sure you must have done the trick.

Yes, Hazel Cushion, MD of Accent Press, rang me yesterday to say they would like a 6th Libby Sarjeant novel. That's good, because I'd already done most of the research. So, next March 8th, Murder in The Green will make its appearance. I have actually started writing it, so with a bit of luck I won't end up in a mad panic at the end.

I shall try and continue with the stand-alone along side MITG. I know writers who can do this, the indefatigable Penny Jordan, for instance, who not only writes her three M&Bs a year, but one for Avon and another for HC under the name of Annie Groves. Don't know how she does it. I think I'm much lazier.

Now looking forward to the RNA Summer party next Wednesday, and my own little launch party on May 18th. Such larks.

Girls, shed and new Libby

Spontaneous snap of us in the garden taken by son-in-law on his Blackberry. Show off. Ghastly of me, as usual, but the girls look pretty. My shed/summerhouse is behind us where I sleep - sorry, work - occasionally in the afternoons, and where yesterday I began research for a new Libby book, suggested by Lou on Monday while we watched May Day celebrations (a lot of people stamping and waving sticks and hankies) in Whitstable. Will now offer it with great trepidation to Accent Press and hope they want me to go ahead. Please all email them and say how much you want a 6th in the series! Not if you hate them, of course.

Oh, and congratulations to Christina's TBT on passing his CBC. Hooray!