Let’s have some news…
There’s lots happening at the moment, and if I’m not careful it’ll whizz by without me mentioning it so here goes... (Does it even happen if I don’t write about it?)
Firstly, my second free monthly newsletter, Everyday Words, went out yesterday.
It’s SO nice to hear from people, so please forgive me if I show off with some of the comments - “Everyday words came into my mailbox this morning and it was the most wonderful start to the day I have had in a long time - thank you! Practical, inspirational, humane with a touch of fairy dust” and “I'm really enjoying your newsletter -- it's like a Christmas stocking full of lovely things.
Thank you for finding and sharing them all.” If you would like to subscribe, then just fill in the form for Everyday Words on this website and I’ll throw a little ‘fairy dust’ your way too! There’s also a paid option, which gives you two extra missives a month, and a chance to meet other Everyday Word-ers too. I’m just starting this adventure (thanks Kate), but enjoying it enormously. I’m using all my teaching material, so if you have enjoyed my classes you might like this too.
And that brings me on to teaching
I’m very pleased to be teaching my first proper on-line course since all this happened! I’ll be running ‘Let Poetry Find You’ via Flow Yoga in March - you don’t have to do yoga while you write, but we’ll be looking at poems and how to read and write them. Places are filling up already, and I can’t wait! It’s a six week course and you can find out more and book here.
Trees in the Grove, Tunbridge Wells - definite friends in my recovery process!
Altogether Elsewhere
I’m so happy to be fully recovered from Covid now, and this book below is one of the things that has helped in my recovery journey. So much so that I wrote about the man who once owned it, a WW2 Pilot and how we both learnt to breathe with trees. A big thank you to Blue Door Press for publishing it. You can read my essay here, but this is mostly an invitation to come and join me and two other writers, Mary Woodward and Steve Roberts at a Zoom launch for the anthology, Altogether Elsewhere on 18th February. You would be very welcome! Tickets are free but need to be booked here.
And lastly, perhaps my biggest news.
I’m very proud to be in training at the moment to help out with the vaccination programme in my area. This time a year ago, I had no idea what was coming my way so it feels even more special to be part of the front-line fight against this virus. It really does feel like spring is coming our way.