
It has been a year of hardships, with loss and anxiety and frustrations. There have also been achievements this year and it is, overall, a year I’m proud of. Hard work and perseverance have been rewarded.
The last quarter of the year saw a sudden rush of stories I’d been working on get released in their various anthologies.
All In A Row – featured in Behind Glass Eyes: A Haunted Dolls Anthology, published by Fantasia Divinity. Dolls are creepy, and the idea of haunted dolls terrifying, so I tried to write a lovely haunted doll story, one that ended with a sense of hope or peace.
Under Barrow Downs – featured in Footsteps in the Dark, from Flame Tree Publishing. A Gothic folk horror that explores the ideas of consent and sexuality.
Nansi and the Dragon – featured in Fairytale Dragons, published by Dragon Soul Press, an anthology of fairytales reworked to feature dragons. I turned an African folk story about the spider-god Anansi into a work of speculative fiction.
Witherwood Farm – featured in All Dark Places 2, published by Dragon Soul Press, an anthology of horror stories. I love the title of this (along with Under Barrow Downs, it’s one of my favourite titles), and it has a similar isolated setting and small cast of characters.
As a final rush of celebration before Christmas, I have reached the longlist of the Writing Magazine Chapter Book Prize. My book is called Sophie and the Big Balloon Race, and I’ll be nurturing positive thoughts in the New Year for it to do well.
I’m also going to be thinking about this blog and what to do with it. I’m happy to share and celebrate achievements, but I’m pondering what other content might be useful. Maybe some insight into the writing and publishing of a story, for authors who are still working towards that? We’ll see.
I hope there was something from this year that you can celebrate.