The guide book for the parent hasn’t been written yet As your kids grow up you don’t know what woes you’ll get Sometimes it’s a breeze and life just fumbles on And before you know it your children have up and gone But sometimes children meet the bullies that’s when life gets tough As aContinue reading “The Right Way”
The snow is falling gently, it’s quiet all around Everyone’s in their own world, on the streets there’s not a sound, Lights are twinkling brightly, indicating there’s life within But not in Gordon’s heart, he’s soaked to the skin His feet ache with the frost bite, his clothes have seen better days A cardboard boxContinue reading “Life so fragile”
Deborah surveyed the blank spaces on the calendar – what a difference a year had made. Last December she had been inundated with parties, meals and nights out, but this year it was a different story. Her New Years Resolution had seen to that, it was the one and only resolution she had stuck to.Continue reading “The easiest person to forget”
I’m watching you sitting opposite me, but you are totally oblivious, you have no idea and I reckon you wouldn’t even care if you did. I saw you a few minutes ago, your bodies morphed into one as you both shuffled down the tunnel to catch the tube. His arm draped around your shoulders, bothContinue reading “First Impressions”
The dark moody sky made way for a spectacle that Alice had never witnessed before, the sky came alive and danced before her eyes, swirling and shimmering with such majestic colours. She could hear the sound of the water cascading down the rocks into the ice blue water beneath. She could almost taste the freshnessContinue reading “Picture this”
Ping – my phone ignites and I wonder if it’s you, Messaging me with an update on your life Sadly not, it’s been a while. I think of you often and wonder if you think of me too. I’m sure you don’t because you would call or message or find some way of reaching out.Continue reading “Lost Friends”
Amelia stared down at her iPad in disbelief, there he was, but more to the point there it was. A cold shiver coursed down her spine, sending her brain ricocheting in all directions. Suddenly her chest felt tight, and her heart pounded inside her rib cage. How could he do that? Amelia zoomed in onContinue reading “The Revenge”
The full glass stands on the table, solitary but powerful A leader in this battle Its magnetic force silent and unseen Will you be defeated? Will you surrender? Or will you fight back harder You are face to face with your enemy One false move and the battle is lost You give the dictator theContinue reading “The battle”
The Memory Box by Kathryn Hughes Kathryn has a unique way of bending the rules, but at the same time making it work. This book is written partly in the first person and partly in the third person, but it works so well. The characters are engaging and you can’t help but like them. ItContinue reading “A Book Review”
Last year I achieved a childhood dream – to meet Martin Shaw aka Doyle in The Professionals, Judge John Deed, The Chief and recently The Long Call. It happened by chance on a day trip to Duxford War Museum, in Cambridge, a favourite with my family. It was a beautiful day in August and weContinue reading “A Professional through and through”
Marcus sat looking out over the beautiful shimmery water It felt good to have the sun on his weathered face, it had been cold for far too long, it was a good day to be out lapping up the sun and he had no intention of budging.. Not even for the couple who had satContinue reading “The Bench”
Like so many things that creep up on you unawares, I never saw this one coming. It was a bit like walking in front of a bus and thinking, ‘well it didn’t drive off and run me over’, only for a car to come up from behind and do exactly that. I thought I wasContinue reading “Dodging a bullet?”
Years ago, I was going through a bit of a rough patch, so I started reading ‘The Secret’ by Rhonda Byrne. Part of the healing process was to make a vision board. On the board you can put a picture of anything that you want in your life, whether it be a new house orContinue reading “Wealth?”
Phil stood in front of the large blue front door, something he had done so many times before. The difference was he used to use his own key to gain entry, it didn’t seem appropriate these days though, especially after such a long time. He could feel the impression of the key digging intoContinue reading “The long goodbye”
Many years ago, I worked in the account’s office of a shipping company in Lowestoft. Every lunch time I would walk home and sometimes on my way back to work one of the lads from the docks with a van would stop and give me a lift. We will call the man Anthony for theContinue reading “Embarrassing Moment”
You’re too thin, you’re too fat You’re too tall, you’re too short You’re self-opinionated, you’re too shy You’re too loud, you’re too quiet You’re not caring, you’re too caring You talk too much, you don’t talk enough These are things I hear every day about people. Why can’t people appreciate people for who they areContinue reading “Make someone smile”
The snow is falling gently, it’s quiet all around Everyone’s in their own world, on the streets there’s not a sound, Lights are twinkling brightly, indicating there’s life within But not in Gordon’s heart, he’s soaked to the skin His feet ache with the frost bite, his clothes have seen better days A cardboard boxContinue reading “Life so fragile”
Greg felt invincible since getting his brand new car. He had been through a speed trap, parked on double yellers and driven the wrong way down a one way street. He was invisible, there were no repercussions. “Your cars booked in for its service, just remind me of the make, model and colour please”Continue reading “The wrong side of the law”
Why do I care what people think? Why do I care what people say? Why do I care if people are upset with me? Why? I wish I had the answer to this question. Is it in my DNA? Is it down to how I was bought up? Or is it just plain and simply,Continue reading “Why do I care?”
I am so angry that energy providers are once again hiking up prices to bail them out because oil prices have gone up, especially the major players. We are all taught to budget and put money away for a rainy day. Well this is their rainy day. British Gas profits rose to £172m for theContinue reading “Energy Company Greed”
I’m about to sit down for a coffee with an old school friend, well I say that, but we weren’t actually friends at school, he was way too popular to talk to the likes of me. He was tall and sporty, and everyone knows the sporty ones are always popular. I was not – notContinue reading “Forgettable”
She sat and stared at the two lines, both tests said the same, it was positive, that was definite. For so long she had wished to see two lines now she was filled with joy, mixed in with trepidation. She wasn’t sure what to think. Who should she call first? Should she jump up andContinue reading “Positive”
Having spent the past 20 years not working I have sometimes felt like a nobody. I reckon 90% of my friends have no clue what I did for a living before becoming a full time Mum. When you meet people the first thing they say is “What do you do?” When you say I’m aContinue reading “The business of being a nobody”
Oh errr, I’m now finding myself in the strangest of situations. One I thought I would never be in. I have procrastinated over writing for many years. Told family and friends I wanted to be a writer but never actually putting pen to paper. I sat down at my laptop many times only to getContinue reading “Lockdown writing”
Tony tossed in his bed, was that three times he heard a tap on the floor, or was he just dreaming. The girl was sending him crazy, he couldn’t think straight, he couldn’t eat and sleeping, well that was just about impossible. He just needed some kind of indication of how she felt. Many timesContinue reading “Knock Three Times”
I am proud to say I have completed #3ChapterChallenge, writing 3 chapters in 3 weeks. I thought I wouldn’t manage it but it was easier than I thought. I have also been participating in #WRITE2021 and am pleased to say I am 95% of my way through the challenge and should be finished in theContinue reading “Success”
The disco was very crowded but she spotted him standing over by the dance floor, with a group. She had a knack for spotting them now. It wasn’t just the clothes that gave them away, it was their whole demeanour, the way they stood, the way they laughed, but more importantly what they drank. SheContinue reading “Material Girl”
Katie stood next to Billy with her head nestled on his shoulder, the pain of his departure was almost too much to bare. Her heart ached with each passing minute, she couldn’t bear the thought that this was the last time she would seem him for a while. The thought that he might never return,Continue reading “Billy Don’t Be a Hero”
I would like to introduce Ali who has recently set up Enterprising Writers https://www.enterprisingwriters.com/, a website full of information for aspiring writers. She introduced #WRITE2021, last year, which encourages you to write 2021 words a week. She has also just launched the #3ChapterChallange, which starts on Saturday 31st of July and ends on Sunday 22ndContinue reading “An Interview with Ali from Enterprising Writers”
Any one starting out in the writing world will understand, it can feel like a very lonely road. It is very isolating and at times you can feel like no one understands. People don’t look on your new found profession as a proper job, it’s just a hobby, however much you protest. Then the ImposterContinue reading “A new writing website – Enterprising Writers”
Joseph Green sat on the front porch, the wooden veranda creaking with the forward and back motion of the sturdy swing. He loved to sit there penning poems, the gardenias filling the air, offering inspiration.
Mickey laid on the ground, the grass tickling the nape of his neck as a kaleidoscope of colours filtered their way through his half open eyes. His mouth dry and parched from the night before but cured by a sip of the remnant Harvey Wallbanger that sat in a tall glass beside him, nestled inContinue reading “Lazy Sunday”
It seemed like days since she had been standing on the shore welcoming William home again. Two months at sea was torture but the parting after three weeks together was far worse. The harbour lights twinkled through the stubborn tears that welled, holding onto her lashes like her love for William, refusing to let go.Continue reading “Harbour Lights”
I would like to thank Matt for talking to our writing group and giving us an insight as to how he writes and what makes him tick. He started by telling us a little bit about himself. Matt comes from Norfolk. He has always been interested in writing and started independent reading from an earlyContinue reading “Interview with M.B. Blissett (Part 2)”
What inspired you to write initially?There was an intense curiosity about how it was done. I used to read Stephen King stories on aportable cassette recorder and copy them out. For the longest time, I procrastinated, because Iwas frightened of doing it badly. Then I decided to embrace the fear and go for it. ItContinue reading “Interview with M.B Blissett”
I was talking the other day to someone about degrees of goodness. We all like to think of ourselves as good in principle, whether it’s charitable work, looking after someone or just not being a bad person in general. But is it so black and white? Just because you do charitable work does that makeContinue reading “Degrees of goodness”
Jack lined up all his utensils on the table. He had been sure to lay plastic down first in preparation. He didn’t want any splats on the furniture. Neatly spaced out with none touching, he was certainly methodical. He didn’t have a lot of time to prepare. Time was of the essence, but the jobContinue reading “Epilogue to dessert”
Summary This episode is also available as a blog post: https://tinaswriting.wordpress.com/2021/03/02/interview-with-author-kathryn-hughes/ Transcription
Once, twice….. dare she do it three times? Katie looked at Sophie with big, wide, brown eyes that danced with eagerness. “Go on……..go on.” Katie’s devilish smile egging her on, but all the while her sensible side resisting. “You’ve stopped, now you’re going to have to start again or it won’t count.” Sophie thought aboutContinue reading “Three times round the tree”
As she shuffled down the street, pulling her ripped shopping trolley, she reflected on where she had come from and where she had been. A far cry from where she was now. Her fat, chubby wrist which was once adorned by fine, sparkly diamonds, ached through pulling the trolley. All that wrapped around her wristContinue reading “Riches to rags”
I never wanted to be a writer but I always wanted to write a book
One upon a time there was a man called Trainer Tim, he loved bright coloured trainers. He was very proud of them and people used to email him from across the world requesting personalised trainers, that was until another craze came along and orders started to dry up. One night before going to bed heContinue reading “Trainer Tim and The Little People”
I’ve realised that miracles don’t have to be big things, they can be small and that doesn’t make them any less of a miracle. Miracles are all around us. In the Oxford dictionary it says “an act or event that does not follow the laws of nature and is believed to be caused by God”Continue reading “What is a miracle?”
Alice sat on her favourite chair in the bay window. Her eye sight wasn’t what it used to be; she couldn’t see things with clarity anymore. But then that was to be expected at her age, especially as she had Age Related Macular Degenerate. Her eye sight had been failing for many years, she hadContinue reading “A Window to the World”
“If I were you.” The words rung in Celeste’s ears. They were the words she had heard so many times, each time they undermined her integrity, her self-worth and her confidence. What ever she did it never stood up to the ‘If I were you’ author. She had spent her whole life trying to liveContinue reading “If I were you”
As we entered 2021 it was not with as much gusto as when we entered 2020. Little did we realise at the start of last year, what would be cast on us and that for many, life would change out of all recognition. The emotional cost has probably not been as bad as this sinceContinue reading “2021”
The familiar “plop” of the mail dropping on the mat made Sarah rush to the front door. Mixed in with the latest bills was a red envelope. She discarded the bills in favour of the plump scarlet packet. It smelt like it had been dipped in a gallon of aftershave. She drew the shimmery paperContinue reading “The Postman”
I look at my phone, your words infiltrate me and I want to sterilise my phone. It feels infected by your words, but as hard as I try nothing will anaesthetise me from the harsh statements. Your words have entered my conscious mind and they sting. Until enough time has elapsed and they enter myContinue reading “The Text”
The snow is falling gently, it’s quiet all around Everyone’s in their own world, on the streets there’s not a sound, Lights are twinkling brightly, indicating there’s life within But not in Gordon’s heart, he’s soaked to the skin His feet ache with the frost bite, his clothes have seen better days A cardboard boxContinue reading “Life so fragile”
Tina’s writing 