31 Days of Halloween: Day 4

Day 4 of celebrating Halloween month, and I was home from Cumbria after a really productive (and gorgeous) writing retreat.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Cinema)

First order of business when I got home was going straight back out again to watch the film adaptation of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Halloween Gifts

When I got home properly, I was greeted by a lovely array of Halloween gifts from my mum and my mother-in-law.

Musk Ox Postcard

And I unlocked the Musk Ox postcard on my The Conqueror Arctic Circle virtual walking challenge!

31 Days of Halloween: Day 3

It's the third day of our month of Halloween, and the last day of my writing retreat in Cumbria!

Forest Walk

Today was mostly about writing for me, but I did get out for one final gorgeous walk in the forest and down to the river.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 2

It's the second day of our month of Halloween, and I'm still in Cumbria on my writing retreat! I was mostly reading and writing today, but I did get out for a lovely seasonal walk during the day too.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

I finished reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes this morning, ahead of going to see the rereleased film adaptation at the pictures when I get back.

Mushrooms

Saw some awesome mushrooms in the woods on my walk this afternoon.

Chocolate Digestives Tea

Spent the evening writing with a cup of Chocolate Digestives tea from Bird and Blend.

31 Days of Halloween: Day 1

October begins! And it's time for our usual month of spooky season celebrations. It's a bit of an unusual start this time, as I'm away in Cumbria on a writing retreat. I was so focused on my writing today, there wasn't a lot of Halloween celebrations, but I tried to mark the season a little bit.

Snowball Tea

Okay, this isn't quite seasonal. I was writing about Christmas, so I had a cup of Snowball tea from Bird and Blend. Very nice... not very spooky though!

Lentil Soup

I attempted to find something a bit more autumnal for tea though!

Autumn Equinox Stories Wanted for Hannah's Bookshelf on North Manchester FM

Submit your seasonal flash fiction to be played on Hannah’s Bookshelf this September!

Can you tell a seasonal story in just 3 minutes? Want to have your work played on the radio? This month, I’m looking for seasonal (start of autumn, harvest) flash fiction from around the world for inclusion on Hannah’s Bookshelf, the weekly literature show on North Manchester FM.

On Saturday 19th September, I’ll be hosting the annual Hannah’s Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special, and as part of my seasonal special, I’ll be playing a selection of my favourite 3-minute stories on the show (broadcast on FM and on digital). Want to be part of it? Submit a recording of your seasonally inflected story (maximum 3 minutes) by midnight on Monday 14th September.

All genres welcome – be they cosy, romantic, scary or sad. The only rules are that stories must be your own original work, have some connection to the season, and be in English (the language of the broadcast). And please ease off the swears – stories have to be radio friendly! All you need is a microphone and a story – once you’re ready to submit your story, click on the ‘Start Recording’ button on my website to record your story and submit it. Remember to enter your name and email address when submitting your story.

If you aren’t able to submit via a recording and would like another method of taking part, please message via my website for more information.

Please share this call with anyone who you think might be interested – I’d like to cast the net as wide as possible. My favourite seasonal stories will be broadcast on the Hannah’s Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special at 2pm on Saturday 19th September, on digital radio and 106.6FM.

Lammas: Day 2

It's the second day of our Lammas week. Today was a work day - and not an easy one in the slightest - so it was all about remembering that it's the start of harvest season.

Blueberry Smoothie

I made a smoothie for breakfast on the way to work today. If I'm honest, I should've blended it for longer, but I didn't want to be late for my tram!

Cauliflower Steak

For dinner tonight, Rob made purple cauliflower steak with red wine sauce. And yes, it was amazing! The purple cauliflower was from our recent Groobarbs veg box, by the way.

Lammas: Day 1

It's the first day of this year's Lammas celebrations. We've not got a lot of huge celebrations planned, but we have some nice little treats lined up to celebrate the high point of summer and the start of harvest season.

Walk in the Park

I took one of the residents of the care home where I volunteer for a walk in Heaton Park today. We saw beech nuts, bindweed and balsam, plus ripening rosehips and holly berries. But my absolute highlight was when my companion pointed out a family of swans, including cygnets who haven't got their grown-up feathers yet.

Summerween Picnic

Yesterday, I celebrated Summerween (for no real reason, except I thought it would be fun). The resident I took to the park asked if we could have a Summerween picnic, because he really liked the Halloween picnic we had last October. I did my best with what I could find!

Blackberries

Brambling season has begun! I made sure I had a box with me so I could pick some blackberries while we were in the park.

Corn on the Cob

First of the season, from our recent Groobarbs veg box.