Author diaries

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18 May 2005 Entry: "Garibaldi gets his legs"

Well, it's finally arrived - the launch date for my new poetry collection Garibaldi's Legs, published by Iron Press. It will be at the Lit and Phil, Newcastle on Monday 27th June at 7pm - and I have legs on the cover, which has made me very happy. According to Pete Mortimer, this has been one of the longest hauls, getting my cover, but I love the colours and the design. Thank you all involved!

I've also been discovering my own legs, well the underused muscles anyway, as I've been "training" for the 5km Race for Life in aid of Cancer Research UK. I am running in memory and celebration of Julia Darling and I have a sponsor page if you would like to add to it just click that link. Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me already. I don't think I will be making running a regular habit, because my right knee is objecting to me pounding the streets. One of those tube bandages is keeping it going, but I don't want to risk major damage, so it will be back to the gym and hopefully some swimming after the race.
It feels strange writing this blog, because it's the first I've done since Julia died and it just struck me that I won't be getting one of her lovely encouraging emails, telling me what she liked or what made her laugh in my diary.
Now that Garibaldi is published, I have been concentrating on short stories again. Comma Press asked me to write around six stories for a series of books they are publishing which each feature three writers. They are supposed to have a theme or connection, and mine is so slight, but I do feel the stories belong together. Sent them off at the weekend, so waiting to hear back...
Next week I am off to London with work for three days (nothing like a couple of nights in a single hotel room to open up your writing time!) and then back home for a day before heading up to Montrose for a long weekend. I am doing a chapbook for Sand with my sister, Kirsten, who is an artist, so this will give us some time together before she heads off for America and I go to South Africa. The deadline will be with us before we know it.
We have the provisional title of Angus Palette and the poems will be about places in that county. I am hoping that the weather will be good when I'm in Scotland. We will be visiting old haunts and top of our list will be Edzell, a little village at the foot of Glen Esk. These are both magical places for us, especially the river with the Shakkin Brig - a suspension bridge that was our equivalent of Alton Towers when we were kids (it probably still is!)