Bookish birthday celebrations

Over the last few weeks I've been at a couple of bookish birthday celebrations  - one for a book and one for a bookshop.

Earlier this month the launch of Kelly McCaughrain's Little Bang was so well attended the venue had to be changed to accommodate everyone. The Cube at the Crescent Arts Centre was packed as everyone gathered to celebrate the launch of Kelly's second YA novel. Kelly doesn't shy away from difficult topics that other writers might not be brave enough or capable of tackling so deftly. 

Astronomical sweetie-filled goody bags went down well on the night. As I made my way through Little Bang I found they also double up as a bookmark. 

Michael's rendition of Sid's song from the book also went down well, really bringing the book and Kelly's characters to life. I'd recommend you check the book out for yourself.

Last weekend I popped down to my local bookshop, The Secret Bookshelf, to join in their 4th birthday celebrations.

I've never been to a bookshop's birthday party before, nor had I written a birthday card to a bookshop, but there's a first time for anything.

The last four years have been difficult for everyone and especially for small businesses. Due to hard work and lots of local support and loyal customers Jo and Chris, the very helpful and knowledgeable bookshop owners have moved to bigger premises during this time. They are hugely supportive to local writers and have built up a thriving bookish community as was evidenced by the number of people who called in to wish them 'many happy returns'.

Here's to many more bookish celebrations. 

Back to routines

Back to Coney we went yesterday. After the Christmas break it was good to get back into a routine again. A crisp, frosty morning turned into a glorious day at Coney with even some warmth in the sun. 

There was lots to catch up on and we eased ourselves back into writing as we heard what everyone has been working on (or not - with many of us taking a much needed rest over the holidays). Over coffee and chocanana muffins we listened and talked.

And then we got down to some writing. After the Christmas break it was hard to get started back to writing. It's easy to come up with so many reasons to procrastinate but being back at Coney and doing some writing exercises has broken that cycle. 

I haven't made any 'new year' writing resolutions this year, but I have some projects I'm planning to work on. In the meantime here's a recent knitting project I finished over the holidays. Happy Moo Year!