I Have Returned!

It's fair to say that there has been a small hiatus in my posts to you. Well, some may say you can have too much of a good thing, although whether that is my silence or my return is for you to decide! Some weeks ago, I opened

The Savonarola Stone

You might've met this guy before. If you've read Hiding the Flame, then you will certainly have read about him. This is Girolamo Savonarola, the fiery Dominican friar, who tried to save the souls of Florentines in the late 15th Century. He called out corruption in

Why Florence?

Last week, I had the great pleasure of launching my new book, Hiding the Flame, here in Cardiff. It was an event that meant a great deal to me, as each new book means to every author. It was also a great opportunity for me to talk about my writing,

Christmas Cheer

It's nearly upon us again. How does that happen? We know Christmas always lands on December 25th, and yet still it manages to take us by surprise. Have you finished shopping? Have you sent Christmas cards? (Do you send Christmas cards?) Have you ordered your turkey? Have you

Hiding the Flame

Cover image © Ray Lipscombe Oh, I enjoyed writing this one! After The Rose of Florence, I did wonder if that was my lot, the "one book" that everyone supposedly has in them, but there was more to say, more to explore and more to share. Some of the

A Matter of Taste

My love for Florence is no secret, and whenever anyone asks me what I recommend to see or do, I'm never short of a suggestion or two. Several years ago, I put together my own short guide to Florence, which I've shared with friends. Today, I

An Author's Special Day

I don't know who said "Never judge a book by its cover", but I, for one, love a good book cover. It gives us a first glimpse of the world we're about to step into. Those wonderful designers who create our covers are very

The Sicilian Secret

Why has Angela written a blog about Sicily? She hasn't even been there! Well, this Angela hasn't, but my fellow Cariad author, Angela Petch has. As you know, I occasionally share a blog with fellow authors, featuring books that I believe my readers would also enjoy,

A Little Spark

It's been just over a year since the publication of The Rose of Florence, and it's taken some time to organise my thoughts for Book #2. Should I do something completely different? I considered it (briefly), but unsurprisingly, I kept coming back to Renaissance Florence. It&

Guest Post - Luisa A Jones

As most of you will know, Florence was the biggest inspiration behind The Rose of Florence, and I'm always fascinated by the settings and history behind other authors' books. Today, I'm delighted to welcome Luisa A Jones to my blog, where she shares the inspiration

Happy Book Birthday to The Rose of Florence

We all have at least one book within us. Isn't that what they say? How many of us believe that to be true? I, for one, was extremely dubious. It seemed like an achievement only possible for "real authors", not normal human beings like you and

Food for Thought

It’s a great privilege to share my musings with you, and today I offer some culinary contemplations for your delectation! My debut novel, The Rose of Florence, is an historical fiction, based in Renaissance Florence and includes a mixture of romance, murder and intrigue. These may be the perfect

Award-Winning, Katy Turner!

In August, you may remember I mentioned travelling to Imperial College, London as a contender for the Joan Hessayon Award for debut novelists. It was a wonderful experience, and I met some lovely people there, not least of whom was Katy Turner, who went on to win the award. Today,

A Cariad Collection

Finding your tribe is important in any part of life, and I have frequently mentioned that my "writing tribe" is the Cariad Chapter of the RNA. Inspiration by the bucketload, and more supportive than an underwired bra! What this tribe does particularly well is celebrate success. I couldn&

And the winner is...

Well, it wasn't me! The winner of the Joan Hessayon Award for new writers was a lovely lady, called Katy Turner, for her novel "Let's Just Be Friends". I couldn't possibly be disappointed, because I know what an achievement it was to

My Ramblings On Historical Fiction

Those of you who follow my social media posts will know that I've been lucky enough to be announced as a contender for the Joan Hessayon Award for debut novelists with the Romantic Novelists' Association. (Yes, still pinching myself!) At the time of the announcement, I was

Coming Soon

It's been a while since there have been any posts from me, for which I apologise! You may know that there have been some problems getting these posts out to you by email. You signed up to my mailing list, then heard nothing from me - how rude! However,

Luisa A Jones: My First Book

In the true tradition of every great series, just when you think it's over...it's not! The same goes for my series entitled My First Book, featuring some great local authors (& some not so local), who have taken time out to tell us about publishing

The Pazzi Conspiracy

26th April, 1478 A day like many others in Renaissance Florence. A Sunday. A day when everyone went to Mass, to kneel, to pray, to take communion. But it was also a day when blood would be spilt on holy ground. The Medici family were the de facto rulers of

An Historical Fiction

I was recently asked to write a short overview of The Rose of Florence for a book club, so that they could get a flavour of the story before I go to meet them. Yes, I'm going to talk to a group of book lovers about my book

Jan Baynham: My First Book

In the last of my series of blogs from authors talking about their experience of publishing their first book, I'm delighted to welcome Jan Baynham. Jan is a fellow Cariad member of the RNA and was one of the first people to give me advice and encouragement when

Emma Bennet: My First Book

For the third in my series of "My First Book" interviews with fellow authors, I am welcoming another Cariad Chapter member, Emma Bennet. I am very envious of how Emma has fully embraced all avenues of social media as an author, and it's clear I have

Jane Cable: My First Book - The Cheesemaker's House

This week, I'm delighted to welcome Jane Cable to my blog. Jane is a fellow member of the Cariad Chapter of the Romantic Novelists' Association, and during the time I have been a member, she has helped me enormously. I have always said that authors are the

My First Book!

It's finally happened! My First Book has been released into the wild! To celebrate, I'll be hosting a series of blogs from authors, who will be telling us about their First Book. More of this, shortly. First of all, I'd like to share with