A Snippet from the Novel
An excerpt from my novel, ‘Ida’s Children’. LEN’S CAMERA One night he came out, full as a boot and holding up a cardboard box as if it was a priceless antique. ‘I won! I won!’ he kept saying as he came over. He’d won a raffle and had a choice...
A Letter To My Daughter’s Teacher
Dear Miss, You see me and run your fingers through your hair, trying to look nonchalant. I can see that you’re uncomfortable, possibly intimidated: I’m a good 20 years older than you, and my body is rigid, my mouth set. You know that I’ve complained about you and that...
2. Trusting My Voice
I think I’ve learnt to do this. Finally. When I started writing, I was embarrassed to show my ignorance, so I tried to sound literary. I’ll show you: ‘The mountain rose out of the horizon and watched over and nourished the district, like a good mother. She sent...
1. Toss the Plan
Yes, I have a first draft. It’s complete – well, as complete as a first draft can be. It’s printed and sitting on the desk next to me: a pile of A4 paper that looks nothing like a novel. I’ve learnt a lot from writing this draft. Practical things, like how to...
On Squares and Pegs
Oh, to be round and able to fit into that hole that society has for us. Round is neat and smooth and I’m surrounded by round pegs everywhere I look—at my kids’ schools, my old work colleagues, when I go to the shops. People who can slip into the peg holes society...
In Memory of My Father
It is one year today since my father passed away. He had Alzheimer’s and over the preceding year I’d watched his brain and body decline. The day before he died, I walked into his room at the nursing home and did a double take: I thought I was too late. He was lying on...