Cymera: Edinburgh Launch for Queens of the Crone Age
Attending Cymera Festival in-person in Edinburgh was a long-held ambition - I've previous convened and participated in online panels, but it really didn't prepare me for the festival phenomenon in person. Held amid the historic cobblestones of The Pleasance, Cymera is a literary festival in beautiful, bookish Edinburgh that embraces genres from horror to fantasy. Venues were packed, audiences were cheerful, volunteers were helpful, and it was a really wonderful way to catch u
QUEENS OF THE CRONE AGE (2026, PS Publishing) - cover reveal and pre-order links
Back in 2021, writing QUEENS OF THE CRONE AGE was something that wasn’t in my five-year plan. I’d taken an unpaid sabbatical—my first career break in thirty years– born from exhaustion, and the strong desire to make a reckless change. So in October 2021, I started on a dream residency in Cill Rialaig, County Kerry. And that’s where I met the Hag, and all my carefully-laid plans fell apart. On Bolus Head, on the edge of the Atlantic, I sat in the cottage of the village story
Sweet Smell of Success: Winning the Rubery International Book Award 2025
Photography by Suzanne Thompson 2025, www.circusphotography.com I'm absolutely delighted - and a little stunned - to reveal that I've won...
Anthology Appearances
It's always a lovely moment to have an acceptance email land in your inbox, and it is with great pleasure that I can say that I have...
Cove Park Residency- a Room With A View
I'm shockingly behind on this blog - but here's a late thank you to the wonderful Cove Park . I spent a week there in February, on the...
Manifesting
I'm a positive psychology junkie. So when I got a copy of Roxie Nafousi's Manifest: 7 Steps to Living Your Best Life, I couldn't resist a...
Shortlists and what they mean
It's been a strange and frantic time, transitioning from two years as a freelance writer back to academia. It's been amazing to be back...
At the Irish launch of THEY SHUT ME UP
Huge thanks to all involved in the Ennis International Fantastic Film Festival for hosting the Irish book launch of THEY SHUT ME UP. In...
Irish book launch of THEY SHUT ME UP; in conversation with Martina Durac as part of EIFF festival
The Season of the Witch is upon us. I'm excited and very much looking forward to the Irish book launch of THEY SHUT ME UP as part of EIFF...
Let's Not Shut Up
So far I’ve looked at some of the physical factors around THEY SHUT ME UP – the research venues, the settings, the writing process… But...
