This has been a busy, busy week. My feet look like hooves and my boots need reheeling, thanks to the miles of trekking around London I’ve done – mainly in search of those outdoor ad posters. Yes, if you’ve been in a railway station this week and you saw a mad woman taking phone pics of walls and cackling, IT WAS ME.
Reports of sightings are coming in from all over the country, from Peckham Rye to Newcastle – let me know if you spot one! Vicky, the excellent marketing guru at Transworld, is tracking down a full-size monster poster for my house, so I can recreate the whole ‘pointing, smiling, sighing’ experience at home. Sorry, family. You’ll have to do the station announcements for me. I’m also now frequenting bookshops and supermarkets, because the thrill of seeing those little dachsies in the end papers never gets old.
This week – publication week, when the book is finally available in the shops – is on a par with Christmas for writers. I’d say the Top Three Weeks are:
1. Publication week
2. Week after you finish the final draft
3. Week after you finish the first draft and your agent has it, and even if there are many many things wrong with it, there is NOTHING YOU CAN DO so you might as well just nap it out.
Like Christmas, publication week often involves a delicious meal out and, if you’re lucky, presents. Yesterday I had Lunch with the team at Transworld and my agent, Lizzy Kremer, and top editor Francesca Best gave me this brilliant celebration gift:
I know! It’s beautiful – and so topical for the plot! My knitting skills aren’t yet up to creating a woollen dachshund that doesn’t look like the tragic result of an ill-advised cross-breeding programme in a nuclear facility but I’ll keep practising and maybe outsource to one of the skilled knitters in my book group. I found some beautiful crocheted rose corsages online so the whole Transworld team left looking as if they were off to a Longhampton wedding.
Where the Light Gets In has had some lovely reviews in the Daily Mail, the Daily Express, Red online, Prima, Bella, Woman and the hardback is still only £5 in Asda and Tesco, so why not treat yourself this weekend, since the summer looks like it’s been delayed? It’s also HALF PRICE in WHSmiths too – so that’s cheaper than a paperback. Cheaper than a paperback! Amazing.
And if you haven’t entered the Sophie Allport competition yet, then why not click the link – you could win a £250 giftcard to spend on anything at all you like! It’s all so beautiful: bees, swallows, dogs, cows, sheep, the whole countryside. Maybe there’s a furry someone at home who’d like one of these?
There’s also an interview with me, and some fascinating facts about dachshunds!
And finally (this post really has gone on a bit, sorry), thank you THANK YOU to everyone who’s bought Where The Light Gets In, especially those who’ve emailed or tweeted about it. I really appreciate your support so much, and love to hear from you. Just don’t ask me for knitting tips, please…
Have a fantastic weekend!
Got it at Tesco yesterday and just started it, love your books. Tried to enter the competition but can’t see a question or form for some reason. Your dog looks just like our George!
Dived Into Tesco. Bought it. My birthday treat . Can’t wait to start reading and lose myself. Just waiting until visitors go on Sunday!!