Yesterday was this blog’s 13th birthday! Yes, it’s officially a teenager and any minute it will go moody and spotty and flounce around saying, ‘I hate you!’
The blog was ‘launched’ (if that’s not too grand a word) on 14th October 2010. I can hardly believe it. In that time I’ve written 779 posts, including this one. That’s a lot of words!
If you want to buy me the blog a birthday present, you could always download my debut novel, A Wartime Secret, STILL only 99p on Kindle! Or the first in the series of the Highland Girls – book two’s on its way – or, if you’ve read them both (I’m sure you have), you could always leave a review on Amazon. Preferably a nice one, but I’ll leave it up to you!
I know some of you have been following from the beginning, so thank you for sticking with me. Many of the blogs I followed back then have folded, as people have moved onto TikTok and author newsletters and posh websites but I’m still plodding along posting on here – albeit (as you may have noticed) not quite as often as I used to!
I’ve Been Down South
In my last post, having just come back from Bath, I said it was time to stop gadding about but I lied.
I have been to Sussex for a few days, to stay with friends and had a lovely time. We caught what was probably the last warmth and sunshine of the year. Walking along Worthing promenade, next to the sea, as the sun shone down (and people were in shorts!) it was hard to believe it was October.
And then we came across a monument to the Canadian servicemen and women who were based in and around Worthing in WW1 and WW2.
And there was a picture of the Canadian flag – the red ensign – NOT the maple leaf flag, which wasn’t introduced until 1965 and which I had erroneously featured in my book ‘The Highland Girls at War’ until my good friend and fellow HQ author, Jane Bettany*, read the book on Netgalley and alerted me, very kindly to the fact.
And we got it changed before the book was published. Phew, that was a close one. But who knew, eh? It’s always the things you don’t think you need to check, that catch you out!
*Jane’s new cosy crime ‘Murder at the Book Festival’ is out in January and I’ve just pre-ordered it here.
Canada’s Red Ensign, the flag BEFORE the maple leaf!
Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Competition – c/d 6th November 2023
I think I must have written about this quirky writing competition before but, just like Christmas, it’s come round again!
It’s now been running for 6 years and the organiser(s) are looking for stories of a maximum of 350 words which are about Christmas, or any other winter festival/season and which are festive but also weird. (‘Ha, ha!’ weird’ or ‘Oh Jesus, no!’ weird, as it says on the website).
You’ll have to read some of the stories on the website that have won/been placed, to get the idea. The winning stories will appear on the website but also on the organiser’s podcast.
It’s free to enter, there are cash (US dollar) prizes, you keep your rights, you can enter multiple times and you need to email your entry, so it doesn’t even cost a stamp. What’s not to like?
All the details are here and it’s fun, so good luck if you decide to have a go!
Blog About Writing 
Happy Birthday! I’m one of your fans whose own blog has fallen by the wayside, except for the very occasional post. Readership dwindled and I lost my enthusiasm, so I admire your tenacity. Love the weird, so I’ll definitely have a go at the comp. Thanks for the link. Here’s to the next 13 years!
Hi Julia. Yes, it’s difficult when no-one responds (and that still happens to me with some posts, which just seem to disappear into the ether! You feel like you’re talking to yourself, don’t you?!). I think blogging has become rather unfashionable too, over the past 13 years and it’s been superseded by podcasts and author newsletters and the like. Maybe I will do a newsletter one day but for now, I’m happy pootling along with this.
I’ve sent in my entries for the Weird Christmas comp. Such fun!
That’s great news, Julia! Good luck with your entry!
Happy blog birthday, Helen, and thanks for the mention in your latest post. 🥰
Thank you, Jane! x
Happy birthday blog! It’s good that you’ve kept it going. I would find it a bit of chore, to be honest, but I prefer to read blogs than watch videos or listen to podcasts. It’s been good to read about your publication journey, Helen and I’m sure your next book will sell well.
Thank you Sharon. I suppose if it ever does become a chore, I’ll stop doing it. It’s not a chore so far…! But sometimes I do struggle to find time to do it. But, funnily enough, I can always find something to say! Thanks for your kind words.
Happy birthday to your blog, which I suspect I may have been following close to its creation!! Also, I can’t believe you were in my part of the world. I run along Worthing prom, and past the Canadian memorial all the time – how lovely to know you were here. Weirdly, I was probably in Kent on an anniversary jaunt so actually out of the county when you visited 🙂
Hi Tracy! How funny that you run along there! I actually remembered that you – and Wendy Clarke – live in that part of the world and I did wonder if it was anywhere near Worthing! The friend that I was staying with lives in Storrington, just a short drive away. It’s so beautiful around there. The South Downs are fabulous! Would love to live near the sea, too! And yes, I definitely count you as one of my ‘long serving’ followers!
Well done on the 13 years of blogging! Always a pleasure to read even if to some blogs may be Old Hat. Interesting about the Canadian flag, even though I feel I ought to’ve known this, somehow… it is strange how some emblems can vanish so completely from memory.
Thanks, Penny. I must admit, it hadn’t even occurred to me that the Canadian flag wouldn’t be the maple leaf one! It’s so iconic, isn’t it? But it’s only been Canada’s official flag since 1965 and definitely wasn’t around during WW2.
Happy birthday to your blog! Always enjoy reading it. Will definitely have a go at the Christmas comp.
Thanks Helen and good luck in the weird Christmas competition!