originalfiction
I'm currently working on a series of four short stories on the subject of 'That Day' based on events I've seen or experienced, some fleeting, some played out over time.
The stories are all surprising in their own way - and at least one of them comes into the 'you couldn't make it up' category. All of them, however, have a basis in real human drama - and they could happen to any family up and down this land or any other.
I have dabbled in the past and, lurking somewhere in the depths of the Leanpub e-book platform is my one published work so far, Eric The Stuntcat.
Having spent the last seven years reading to my nephew, and with two nieces and another nephew joining the fray, I'm working on a plan to update Eric in the style of a picture book.
To that end, I recommend the BBC's Maestro series of online courses, from which I am shamelessly picking the brain of national treasure Julia Donaldson.
Happy to talk to you more. Give me a shout.
travelwriting
'Press trips' used to be quite a feature of life on a regional evening newspaper, when travel companies worked out that hosting a journalist for a few days probably cost less than a full page ad in a local tabloid.
I was lucky enough to get on a few, including a memorable visit to Ontario, Canada, on one of those 'if this is Tuesday, it must be Niagara' flying visits. All the more remarkable, because at the time I was going through my 'fear of flying' phase.
Another memorable trip took us to the Ardeche in France via Eurostar, where a visit to a vineyard on the slopes of the Rhone Valley was one of the triggers for my particular fascination with viticulture.
It was where I also took my first balloon flight. "Look," I said to the pilot, "the farmer is waving to us." "Not really," he said. "He's telling me to **** off because we're scaring his cows."
These days, travel blogging is a thing. I'm more than open to that. I still take notes wherever I go. Old habits die hard.
Happy to help if you need an experienced take on travel writing.
shropshirevineyards
Promoting the vineyards and winemakers of Shropshire is a passion project that I'm hoping can become something more.
Finding out that an Indian family from the unlikely environs of South Telford had created a vineyard not a mile from our then home between Telford and Shrewsbury was the catalyst for me to find out much more about the vineyard scene in Shropshire.
I already knew about the vineyard at Wroxeter, south east of Shrewsbury, from which the late David Millington became such a strong supporter and advisor for those who came after him. I was also aware of the Halfpenny Green vineyard between Wolverhampton and Stourbridge. I didn’t know that, as a county, Shropshire was in the top 15 wine producing areas of the UK, nor that there were, at that time, no fewer than 10 vineyards in the SY postcode alone. Now there are 11 - and those are just the commercial ones.
Latest cabernet on the rank is the Rowton Vineyard on the Welshpool Road out of Shrewsbury, planted by the Evans twins, Zoe and Melissa just a couple of years ago. They expect their first crop in 2022.
Find out more here...