Covid, comfort, and covers...

Hello everybody. If you're in the UK, I hope you're enjoying the sunshine we've had of late. Dare I say my garden is getting a bit dry and cracked...?

I haven't blogged or sent a newsletter for a couple of months. I've had Covid and the post-viral stuff is hanging around rather... a month in and I'm still tired and have cold symptoms. Bit of a pain really! Especially as I thought I'd escaped winter bugs this year... anyway, I'm on the mend slowly. It has been a good excuse to re-watch a few Poirots and Marples on TV huddled under a blanket and clutching a hot water bottle. You can't beat a bit of comforting "cosy" crime!

An update on my social media exorcism: I stopped using all of it for about six weeks or so - which was useful to see if I missed any aspects of it. I did - I missed keeping up with friends and family on Facebook. I'm staying on there, just not allowing myself to waste time scrolling through the endless mush. Easier said than done! But I do want to keep up with people I know, like, and love. So for now Facebook feels like a necessary evil.

Twitter/"X" is an issue for me. I loathe what it's become, and it no longer works as a promotional tool. It used to work wonders, but now hardly anybody sees my posts, especially if the posts have external links. I think everybody is experiencing this. I dip in and out, but honestly can't really see any advantage to being part of it anymore, so I'm mostly out. I do manage to spot useful writing-related posts occasionally, which is good, but I'm not sure it's worth wading through all the nasty stuff on there in the hopes of catching the occasional good post.

On the creative front, I'm giving all my books a new look. Something I do rather regularly... It's taken me a while to find a look that I like and is unifying and representative of the stuff I write and publish. I like a branded look but with a bit of individuality. Also, simplicity is important to me and a focus on the actual words inside. I'm pleased with what I've come up with so far. My covers won't be winning any design awards, but I think the writing inside does what it says on the cover. Or should I have gone to Specsavers?! Let me know!

I'm continuing to publish my sixth novel weekly on Substack. It's quite hard work, but at the same time it's good discipline and means I need to get the novel finished in order to keep posting episodes. Join me over there if you like: the more the merrier. I also write weekly notes to go with each episode, discussing my creative and editorial decisions and other writing things. The notes are paid content, but I make them free from time to time. The novel is always free to read.

I must do some book reviews again soon... I've listened to a couple of good audio books while poorly with Covid, so I'll try to review them on here. I'm really enjoying audio books at the moment. It took me a while to get the hang of them, but now that I have, I love them. They're a bit of a godsend, actually.

Talking of which, Happy Easter! Back soon with those reviews...

Louise x