The real world is chaotic. It’s also not fair. One of the reasons we tell each other stories in the first place is to make sense of the chaos. In the real world the bad guys don’t get their comeuppance,…
The smallest shoe shop in Britain
Despite being a Londoner for over 25 years I will never stop thinking of Hartlepool as home. It was the place I was born, the place I grew up, and the place where I made many of my naughtiest memories.…
The strangest book I’ve read in a while
The book of Disquiet By Fernando Pessoa Translated by Richard Zenith Narrated by Adam Sims Length: 17 hrs and 28 mins Publisher: Naxos AudioBooks Genre: Classics There are bad books. There are good books. And then there are great books.…
Sometimes a headline is all you need
When I’m feeling short of story ideas I often turn to headlines for inspiration. For example, consider the following: “Father jailed for four months after punching Asian man at protest” Evening Standard News – 15/10/2024 Despite not reading the story…
Julietta Henderson on writing – podcast of the week
Julietta Henderson, the author of 2 books which I have not yet read, was interviewed on this week’s Writer’s Routine podcast. I’d never heard of her before but this was a fantastic podcast and I will definitely be giving her…
The TBI blazes a trail for tories to follow
For a long time after his resignation in 2007 Tony Blair’s name was derided across the political spectrum. I never really understood why since he seemed to be a decent enough guy who did a better than average job given…
Struggling with insomnia – try napping
As Shakespeare might have said, if he’d thought of it before me,”Sleepeth maketh the maneth”, or rather “Sleepeth maketh the (enter appropriate gender here then add eth)”. We’ve all heard the stories of politicians and geniuses (or is it genii?)…
Jimmy Carter’s UFO
Back in 1969, while attending some event or other in Leary, Georgia, Jimmy Carter, US President from 1977 to 1981, saw a UFO. I appreciate that this is not exactly breaking news. Nor is it one of those stories hidden…
The accidental divorce
While I was browsing my feeds this week a story caught my eye from the London Evening Standard. Apparently a top law firm inadvertently pressed the wrong button on an online Government portal and accidentally divorced the wrong couple. The…
Holidays
It’s only the middle of January but my Christmas holiday already feels like a distant memory. Of course, as I’m approaching the end of my first half century, it’s just possible that my memory isn’t what it was. But I…