Imbolc: Day 7

It's Groundhog Day! And the final day of our (slightly muted) Imbolc celebrations this year.

Imbolc Dinner

We had our traditional Imbolc dinner tonight... vegetarian meatloaf with spring onion mash, followed by winterberry crumble.

Imbolc Gifts

After dinner, we swapped our traditional Imbolc gifts. We'll save these whiskies up throughout the year, and then enjoy them in December.

Groundhog Day

Time for the seasonal film of choice. It is Groundhog Day after all.

And so the wheel of the year turns... we'll be celebrating again (fingers crossed) at the Spring Equinox.

Imbolc: Day 6

I was in London for a training session today, and while it was a very enjoyable and interesting session, it wasn't really very seasonal. I did make sure Rob and I had a seasonal treat afterwards though!

Imbolc Bun

This isn't technically marketed as an Imbolc treat, but whatever. Raspberry choux bun with added white chocolate winter people (from a reduced-to-clear Christmas selection box... 'tis the season).

Imbolc: Day 5

I think I've just accepted that I'm not going to recovered enough from the horror-cold for big celebrations (and poor Rob certainly isn't), so I guess this Imbolc is all about the little things. I can deal with that - the little things are meant to be the ones that matter anyway.

Castlerea Imbolc Stories

I was at Castlerea Care Home for a seasonal storytelling session with the residents this afternoon. We had some Imbolc-themed poetry, a lot of conversation, a bit of music, and snowballs, iced gems and cream soda! After the session finished, the staff and residents surprised me with a packet of sunflower seeds, so that I've got a project for when winter turns into spring.

Imbolc: Day 4

Another quiet day of recovering from the horror-cold. I was at work all day, so no time or energy for big celebrations.

Imbolc Tea Break

Even though I couldn't manage any big celebrations, I still had a bit of a (sort of) seasonal tea break at work by treating myself to a cinnamon bun.

Imbolc: Day 3

Another quiet Imbolc day, as I've still not shifted this cold properly. I'm a bit too tired to do a lot of celebrating, sadly.

Library and Lunch

I met up with a friend today for a trip to Beswick Library (which I combined with some recording for Hannah's Bookshelf). After we'd checked out some books, we went for lunch at Elnecot.

Imbolc: Day 2

Another day of our slightly muted Imbolc celebrations. My temperature's down again (hooray!), but Rob's still really ill. Fingers crossed we kick this into touch soon.

Bailey’s Wood Imbolc Walk

I ran a seasonal walk for Friends of Bailey's Wood today, sharing Imbolc stories and folklore. We had a huge turnout, and everyone was really up for hearing me talk about Jack Frost, the Green Man, winter lights and weather-forecasting badgers. I read a bit from Lia Leendertz's Almanac as well, when we paused at the site of an old hay meadow - 'The Painful Plough' seemed fitting for the location!

Imbolc: Day 1

It's Imbolc! But, sadly, a bit of a quiet one for us this year, as we've both come down with horrible colds that have completely derailed our plans for the season. I'm gutted, because I really love Imbolc, and we had to cancel a few of our seasonal celebrations last year for various reasons. Here's hoping this isn't a sign of things to come this year. Sigh.

Imbolc Litter-Pick

It was the monthly Friends of Bailey's Wood litter-pick today. Rob wasn't well enough to make it, but I limped on and enjoyed finding some seasonal things in the woods. I'm glad I did, because I found some Scarlet Elf Cups! First time I've ever seen these mushrooms in real life!

Hannah’s Bookshelf Imbolc Special

This afternoon was the Hannah's Bookshelf Imbolc Special on North Manchester FM. I shared some seasonal stories and folklore, and then we had some original seasonal flash fiction submitted by four writers. I also contributed a story this time - 'Two Player Mode', a light-hearted take on the Imbolc season. And there were Imbolc cakes too, which I shared with the volunteers at the community centre where the NMFM studio is based.

Imbolc Stories Wanted for Hannah’s Bookshelf on North Manchester FM

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

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 (winter, Imbolc, Candlemas, Groundhog Day) flash fiction from around the world for inclusion on Hannah’s Bookshelf, the weekly literature show on North Manchester FM.

On Saturday 27th January, I’ll be hosting the first Hannah’s Bookshelf Imbolc 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 22nd January.

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 Imbolc Special at 2pm on Saturday 27th January, on digital radio and 106.6FM.

Events in January 2024

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 21st January
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Hannah's Bookshelf Imbolc Special
Saturday 27th January
2.00–4.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf / North Manchester FM
I'm hosting a special seasonal edition of my regular radio show on North Manchester FM, including Imbolc-themed flash fiction
Submission Link

Imbolc Walk in the Woods
Sunday 28th January
11.30–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a sociable walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Imbolc Stories
Wednesday 31st January
2.00-4.00pm
Castlerea House
I'm running a seasonal poetry and storytelling workshop session for residents at Castlerea care home
Private Event

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Imbolc: Day 7

The last day of our Imbolc celebrations this year. Rob was on shift on Thursday day/night, so I was left to my own devices for the final day. Here's what I got up to on Thursday...

‘Valentines’

Looking ahead to the rest of February, I read the 'Valentines' chapter in Ronald Hutton's The Stations of the Sun today.

Library Visit

Not exactly a seasonal thing, as I do this every month, but I was at the Avenue Library in Blackley this morning. At least one of the books I checked out had 'January' in the title, so that sort of counts!

Snowdrops

Hooray! I was worried I was going to get all the way through Imbolc without seeing any snowdrops, but look what I spotted in Heaton Park this afternoon!

Lunch at the Hidden Gem

Me and my mum went for lunch at the Hidden Gem coffee shop in Heaton Park today. Love this place.

Myst Replay

My brother came round tonight to continue our replay of the Myst games. It was the last day of Imbolc, so we had one last seasonal snack with our game.

And so the wheel of the year turns. We'll be celebrating again at the Spring Equinox.

Imbolc: Day 6

Although it's not quite the end of our Imbolc week, it was the big night for us. Rob was on shift on Thursday, so Wednesday was the night of our Imbolc dinner and festive film. There were a couple of other things today as well...

‘Candlemas’

The next chapter in my seasonal reading (The Stations of the Sun by Ronald Hutton) was 'Candlemas'.

The Nesting

A bit of wintery tram reading today... The Nesting by C.J. Cooke.

Ronald Hutton Lecture

Not strictly seasonal, but I really enjoyed another wonderful public lecture by Ronald Hutton for Gresham College tonight, on Anglo-Saxon Pagan Gods this time. So interesting and informative (and, as always, entertaining).

Imbolc Dinner

Rob did us proud tonight with our traditional Imbolc Dinner of colcannon, followed by pear crumble.

Imbolc Gifts

We swapped our traditional Imbolc cards and gifts tonight. It's the start of another set of seasonal whiskies that we'll save to enjoy in December.

Groundhog Day

And, of course, we watched the festive film of the season tonight.

Imbolc: Day 5

Tuesday was another really busy day at work, leaving no time for any festivities. I did manage another seasonal chapter from Stations of the Sun though.

‘Brigid’s Night’

'Brigid's Night' was next in Ronald Huttons The Stations of the Sun.

Imbolc: Day 4

Another day of celebrating Imbolc! Well, sort of. We were both in work on Monday (Rob was on a day/night shift, and I had back-to-back meetings through till 9pm), so there wasn't actually any time to do anything festive. I still marked the season, but it was only through reading a short chapter of a book!

‘Speeding the Plough’

I returned to my seasonal reading of Ronald Hutton's The Stations of the Sun today. I don't want to skip any chapters, so I'm reading around the entire season (Plough Monday-Valentines) this time, rather than just the Imbolc/Candlemas chapters. So, today's reading was 'Speeding the Plough'.