Thanks so much, Emma, for having me on!

The hero in my new book, New Beginnings at Christmas Tree Cottage, is a glass artist. A portable skill was a necessity so he could up and leave London and relocate in the sunny Dorset town of Lullbury Bay and begin his new life.

First, I had to do the research!

There are lots of videos on YouTube for research into making glass art and they are useful but nothing beats doing the thing for gathering research on smells, textures and the total experience of what you’re trying to write about. When I saw a light catcher making workshop advertised, I booked a last-minute space. My hero makes stained glass panels but, for various reasons, he’s been making smaller items like the ones I would learn how to create on the course.

We began practising cutting glass, beginning with straight shapes. The pen-like tool is a glass cutter with a diamond nib and an oil reservoir. Choosing a shape, we used templates. Sue, the tutor, explained the greater the accuracy at each stage, the better the end result.

Once the glass is scored, it’s snapped using grozing pliers. This was immensely and surprisingly satisfying and the group decided it was because we’re always told not to break glass as it’s a) unlucky and b) dangerous. Speaking of health and safety, we wore visors whenever cutting the glass as the shards can end up everywhere.

We moved onto to curved shapes – much harder! I kept forgetting to cut in a straight line and tried to follow the line of the shape. Once the rough curved shape is cut it can be sanded using a sanding sheet or, better still, using the grinder. The grinder has water which absorbs any particles flying about. I loved using it as I could feel the shape becoming smoother and less ‘nubbly.’

The next step is to use the Tiffany copper foil method. Invented by Mr Tiffany to use when making his lamps, this is where the shape will begin to bind together as a finished form. Copper foil is stuck around every edge and the pieces are placed together in the way you want.

Flux is dabbed on the corners and solder is applied to the same place. More flux is painted over the copper foil joins and more solder is spread to fix the shapes together. I really enjoyed the soldering, so much so I was told I was a little heavy-handed!

All that’s needed then is to attach a hanging loop which is soldered on. We made practice pieces to work our way through the entire process and I had a go at an angel. Don’t look too closely! She’ll go on the tree this Christmas.

In the afternoon we moved onto to making another item and I chose some beach huts. I’d seen them in Sue’s online shop and loved their look.

After a clean and a polish, here are the final results. I had to have some help from ‘Miss’ when putting the beach hut components together as I hadn’t cut them accurately enough and there were gaps. Back to the grinder to create that perfect fit. I also lost track of which piece was going where and ended up with a blue hut and roof when it should have been red. Ah, the best laid plans. Remember having to pay attention to the details?

The basic techniques aren’t too tricky but you have to be dextrous and have good hand strength. You also have to have great attention to detail and take your time. It’s not something which can be rushed. My downfall! To make anything as lovely as the stuff Sue (and my hero Jago) produces takes hours of practice.
Love,
Georgia x

About the book:
The little town of Lullbury Bay goes all out for Christmas and teacher Honor Martin loves it. After a bad break up she’s settled into the simple pleasures of seaside life and Christmas is the high point of her year. Glass artist Jago Pengethley, however, doesn’t share her enthusiasm. A new arrival in town, he’s here with his mother and sister to start anew after a devastating family tragedy. He doesn’t want to celebrate Christmas ever again. But, to help his sister replace bad memories with good ones, he accompanies her to all the various wild and wacky festivities Lullbury Bay offers. They keep bumping into Honor and, as Jago gets to know her better, might she be the one to teach him how to love Christmas again?

About the author:
Georgia Hill writes warm-hearted and up-lifting contemporary and dual narrative romances about love, the power and joy in being an eccentric oldie and finding yourself and your community. There’s always a dog. It’s usually a naughty spaniel of which, unfortunately, she has had much experience. She lives near the sea with her beloved dogs and husband (also beloved) and loves the books of Jane Austen, collecting elephants, and Strictly Come Dancing. She’s also a complete museum geek and finds inspiration for her books in the folklore and history of the many places in which she’s lived. She’s worked in the theatre, for a charity and as a teacher and educational consultant before finally acknowledging that making things up was what she really wanted to do. She’s been happily creating believable heroines, intriguing men, and page-turning stories ever since.

You can find her here:
Twitter/X @georgiawrites
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/georgiahill
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/georgiahill5681
Website www.georgiahill.co.uk
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.co.uk/georgiawrites
Buying links for New Beginnings at Christmas Tree Cottage:
https://geni.us/ChristmasTreeCottage
https://mybook.to/Lullbury1

For anyone who doesn’t know, NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. It takes place in November every year. Writers can set their own challenges for the month, but traditionally they attempt to write 50,000 words of a new project in 30 days.

It was definitely strange to sit down this morning and finally begin writing the book I’ve been plotting away at, and typing the first sentence felt quite momentous! I was thrilled to get down 2,691 words today! I was aiming for 2,000 because I didn’t want to push myself too hard on the first day, but the writing was flowing really well. I’m already looking forward to tomorrow, and I love my new heroine, a ballet dancer called Jessica.

You can follow along with my NaNo journey on my YouTube channel, where I will have a dedicated NaNoWriMo playlist: https://www.youtube.com/c/EmmaBennetRomanceAuthor Pop over and say hi and let me know how your projects are coming along!

I can also be found on the NaNoWriMO website under Emma Bennet and I’d love to have some more friends over there!

x

This is because it only takes about 2 minutes to write before I go to bed. I just jot down 3 things that I’m grateful for that day, some people do more or less. Sometimes they’re big things, like having a husband I love or having a nice house, other times it’s smaller things like a cup of coffee I really enjoyed, or that the rain stopped so I didn’t get soaked when I walked my dogs. It doesn’t matter how big the things you’re grateful for are, the point is that you appreciate them.

The gratitudes don’t need to be detailed at all, I literally write three sentences a day. Some people write more. Some people like to have a new gratitude journal each year, but I just use mine until it fills up.

It’s best to write your gratitudes either in first thing in the morning, or last thing at night. I do it at night because I like to think back over the day. It’s so vital to remind yourself that it doesn’t matter how small your gratitudes are. We all have bad days, sometimes terrible days, and sometimes it can be hard to step outside of the upset and find something good. On the day my dad passed away I was grateful for my dog because I needed quiet and took him for a long walk while I processed what had happened.

It’s also really important not to just be grateful for the same things all the time, search your mind for different good things, particularly pertaining to that particular day.

I don’t tend to look back over my gratitudes, it’s more of an in-the-moment kind of thing.

You can buy some absolutely beautiful notebooks specially designed to be for gratitudes, but I just use a pretty notebook that a friend got me because as Marie Kondo would say, it brings me joy.

Regular journaling has been scientifically proven to improve well-being, but it’s making the point of writing down what we’re grateful for that is particularly powerful. Benefits shown to be associated with gratitude journaling include better sleep, improved self-esteem, increased happiness, decreased stress and increased positivity. Because you’re choosing to see what’s good about your life, you’re choosing positivity over negativity, and so giving less power to negative emotions. Writing the positives down makes them more concrete. You sleep better because you’re thinking positive thoughts rather than worrying and your self-esteem improves because you’re recognising your achievements and being present with them.

And all this for just 3 minutes a day!

1: Borrow books from the library – every time you borrow a book from a library the author of that book gets a tiny amount paid to them. In the UK, this comes from the ALCS which stands for the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Authority. If your local library doesn’t carry your favourite author’s books then request that they order them in. Librarians love to know what readers want and will usually do their best to get copies of requested books, especially if the author happens to be local to the library.

2: Recommend one of your favourite author’s books to your local book group – if the author is local, you might even be able to convince them to come along to the meeting! A book group gets people talking about the author as well as guaranteeing sales or library loans when the members need to get hold of their copies.

3: Share the author’s social media posts if they post something you think your own followers would enjoy or benefit from.

4: Sign up for the author’s newsletter – this is completely free and means you keep up to date with their new releases and any events they might be doing. Sometimes extra chapters are given to subscribers for free, and there are usually special offers and competitions to take advantage of. Details of my own newsletter can be found on my website at: https://www.emma-bennet.co.uk/keep-in-touch

5: Post reviews on Amazon! These reviews make a huge difference to whether or not Amazon recommends books to shoppers and how they are seen in the search results. You can also leave reviews on Goodreads, or on your own social media (make sure you tag the author if you do!).

See? Super simple, and completely free, but if you do even one of these things for your favourite author, it can really help them out!

To watch the YouTube video related to this post, go to my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKJKt8kmDXrWQAGkTV1VHMQ

Isn’t ‘Twixmas’ a great word to describe this time of the year? I only heard it for the first time this week and love it.

Oh, and do you like my llama (in the featured image)? His name is Larry and my husband made him for me when he couldn’t find me a llama decoration in the shops.

I hope you all had a lovely, peaceful Christmas, and were healthy and able to spend it with loved ones.

I’ll be honest, I’m going to find it tough to give up the cheese and get back to normal, but my tummy will thank me!

We started our holiday pretty early this year, our eldest turned 18 (still can’t believe that) on December 13th, and we kind of just opened the panettone straight afterwards and settled into the festive season. We did a pretty good job of stepping away from everything and focusing on family time, dog walks, Christmas movies and eating. I think it’s actually the lead up to the big day that’s my favourite part – especially going to get the Christmas tree from a local estate we go to every year and making sugar cookies.

It’s been wonderful, but I’m also looking forward to taking down the decorations tomorrow and getting everything back to normal before the New Year. I’ve secretly already begun sneaking a few bits back into the decorations box upstairs!

Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year.x

If you’re in need of a little treat, my romance ‘Her Sister’s Baby’ is still on special offer for only 99p for the eBook: https://amzn.to/3z9TRrj

In our current situation, this escapism is more important than ever before, and I don’t think I have ever been more grateful for my book collection, especially now libraries have had to be temporarily closed.

I find that all the stress and uncertainty around has led me to lean upon old favourites, characters as familiar as friends, tales I can trust to not disappoint, and, to a certain extent, which provide the happy ending we all so need right now.

So, in no particular order, here’s my Top 10 Classic Escapism Reads – it was not easy to compile, but they all leave me with a happy, contented feeling, maybe because I’ve loved them since childhood, or because they make me laugh, or because they inspire me. Are there any you’d add?

1: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott – Just so lovely, and Jo is such a brilliant character – when she turns down Laurie! I haven’t seen the latest film, but will soon. https://amzn.to/3dtODeH

2: What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge – My mum won a copy of this when she was at school and lent it to me to read when I was 12. I haven’t given it back yet… https://amzn.to/33Jqa0m

3: Blandings Castle by P.G. Wodehouse – anything by P.G. Wodehouse really… also really enjoyed the television series of this. https://amzn.to/2vNb6ST

4: The Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder – So sweet and gentle, we could all do with a bit of Ma and Pa’s wisdom. https://amzn.to/33MC3mm

5: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen – the humour, the language, MR DARCY, what’s not to love? https://amzn.to/39gpi4I

6: Three Men in a Boat by J.K. Jerome – Laugh out loud humour from a bygone age. You’ll never be able to look at a tin of pineapple slices without smiling again. https://amzn.to/33JCCgR

7: Tell Me How You Live? by Agatha Christie (Mallowan) – Agatha Christie’s memoirs of her time spent working on archaeological digs with her husband. It’s warm and funny, with some charming vignettes. https://amzn.to/2JdyFYb

8: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte – I get so indignant by how Jane is treated, I can’t stop reading until she gets her ending. Completely engrossing and unputdownable. https://amzn.to/2Ug2HRk

9: Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell – Scarlett has got to be one of the most inspiring heroines ever written – she might not always make the right choices, but by crikey does she have gumption! https://amzn.to/2JgiV6I

10: The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde – my absolute favourite play, mainly because of the fabulous Lady Bracknell, but also because it’s extraordinarily funny and cleverly written. https://amzn.to/2xmYaUg

Look out for my Top Ten modern feel-good reads to keep us all entertained while we’re stuck at home.x

P.S. My links are generally to my ‘dream editions’, there are many cheaper options available, but I love me some book porn!

I knew that pirating went on, but it was only when I discovered my own work had been pirated that I took the time to look into the issue. I was amazed to discover the UK government’s Intellectual Property Office estimates that 17% of all ebooks – that’s 4 million ebooks – are consumed illegally. There seems to be the feeling that by pirating, readers are only harming big corporations, but this is simply not the case. There are authors who’ve lost contracts because piracy has driven their sales down so much. Series authors are particularly at risk because after paying for the first book, some unthinking fans are apparently happy to pirate the rest!

It takes an enormous amount of time and effort to write a manuscript, and even more time and effort to turn that manuscript into an actual finished, published book

Of course most people can’t afford to buy every book they’d like from their local indie bookshop, but at least if they’re borrowed from a library, the author gets a small remuneration through the PLR, and money goes to a good cause if the book is purchased second hand through a charity shop. And something which costs nothing, but means a great deal to authors is leaving an Amazon review whenever you can.

It takes an enormous amount of time and effort to write a manuscript, and even more time and effort to turn that manuscript into an actual finished, published book – physical or electronic. Often the process requires several people’s work – all of whom need to be paid. Rates of pay for those in the publishing industry are already far below those of comparable jobs in other industries. This means that talented editors, marketers and graphic designers leave the industry they love because they’re lured away by higher salaries. This is only going to become a worse problem if the current level of pirating persists.

Issuing a ‘take-down notice’ is something an author or publisher can do if they discover a site containing a pirated version of their book. However, it is worth noting that one of the most persistent ebook pirate sites has been taken down several times, only to reappear again under a slightly different domain name. At least 120,000 take-down notices have been issued against it already. It’s also quite a complicated process. There is an easier option though, which I found a really helpful guide to here, giving an easy to follow, step-by-step guide to removing a pirate site from search engine results. It only takes a few minutes, costs nothing, and is immensely satisfying!

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to establish an International Anti-Pirate Day when all authors, publishers and agents remove as many sites from searches and issue as many take-down notices as possible to make it clear just how big a problem pirating is? There could be certificates and bookmarks issued when you hit 10 take-downs! (Any excuse for a new bookmark…)

Writing for a living can sometimes seem an incredible luxury, but there are other times, when a deadline is looming, or you’re completely stuck with a scene, when it can be pretty hard work, and lonesome! That’s when the tea and biscuits kick in for me!

Now I know plenty of writers who swear by coffee, but when I’ve got to really focus coffee’s caffeine hit is just too much. A gentle, but pretty constant infusion of tea is what I work best with. Strong, no milk and no sugar, please. Usually a Twinings English Breakfast teabag hits the spot, but a proper teapot tea is always much appreciated.

Now for the biccies. These can cause a problem because they need to be homemade, which sort of requires me to take time off from writing to bake. Then again, with four hungry boys running around, a fair amount of baking is inevitable.

I don’t want you to think I’m forsaking cake. For celebrating AFTER a writing session, cake is very necessary, but cake crumbs, icing and a keyboard? Also, if I had a beautiful red velvet cupcake next to me, it would definitely require my full attention; I couldn’t just casually take a bite every now and again while I work!

Ideally, the biscuit should be quite plain and suitable for dunking. Absolutely no melted chocolate on top when I’m working: chocolatey fingers and typing are not a good combination – an oat and raisin cookie would be just about perfect. Energy provided from the oats and a fruit and veg point from the raisins, maybe? Leave the tin, and close the door behind you thanks! I’ve got work to do…

I’d never read a ‘proper’ romance until I was introduced to them by my mother-in-law – she’s a bit of a Mills and Boon fanatic, and has shelves and shelves full of romance novels. I’d just had my first baby and was looking for something to flick through whilst feeding him, something fun, entertaining and engaging. I settled down to read, and was amazed by how quickly I became engrossed – that’s the thing with romantic fiction you see, because it’s usually fairly short for a novel, it’s imperative that the author gets the reader straight into the heart of the action as quickly as possible. It’s vital to make use of each of those 50,000 or so words!

Another characteristic of the romance genre is that the books contain relatively few characters – only the two protagonists and then a few ‘extras’ (none of whom usually play a pivotal role in the story). The novel IS the couple and their love story, and is therefore extremely focussed, and often very intense. The reader becomes hooked and carried away by the tale, and only truly comes back down to Earth again once the book is finished.

Romance novels also always have a happy ending, but this doesn’t mean they have to be predictable, an accusation often thrown about when discussing the genre. On the contrary, a good author will lead you through twists and turns and ups and downs in their tale so that you honestly doubt sometimes that a happy ever after can be achieved! And oh, what a wonderful feeling when it is, and the two people you’ve been so involved with, who are so right for each other, finally end up together. There’s no feeling quite like it!

Not everything that we read has to be terribly ‘high-brow’ and, frankly, hard work to get through. Romantic fiction may be easy to read, but it’s also very good for the soul. It offers a little bit of escapism and brings a smile to the face of the reader. And it’s not just me who thinks so: millions of people read romances, and if you haven’t already, I really suggest you give one a try. You might just surprise yourself.

Perhaps the most obvious place for me to knuckle down to writing is in my kitchen. It’s warm, the kettle and biscuit tin are nearby, and I can hear when the dishwasher’s finished. But, not surprisingly, I find it really hard to work in my kitchen. I get distracted by the piles of washing up and beeping machines! There are also far too many comings and goings with little people needing drinks and snacks, the phone ringing…

I have a sort of half-office affair going on, which works quite well as long as I close the door, but again it’s on the ground floor of the house and there’s just too much happening around me.

I’ve always worked quite well in libraries, they’re nice and quiet and have a proper ‘serious’ feel about them, not so much in coffee shops (where there’s the added danger of crumbs and icing near the laptop!). Funnily enough, I find that no wi-fi equals a big increase in output!

General notes I make whenever I can – whilst watching a Doctor Who episode with my boys for example, or whilst I wait for them to finish a judo lesson. I always carry a notebook and pen with me in case I get a spare minute, and they’ve proved invaluable time and time again!

Bizarrely, my most productive writing session takes place in my local Scout Hut, whilst one of my little ones is at Cubs. Providing I’m organised, and actually remember to take everything I need with me, I’ve been known to get a couple of thousand words down in that one and a half hours!

So, what is it that makes the Scout Hut work for me? Well, while there are other people in the building, I’m generally left in peace. There are no distractions – no internet connection and no little jobs waiting to be done. It’s also not the most comfortable place in the world to write! While this wouldn’t be much fun if I were to be stuck there for hours, I can’t get too relaxed and comfy which makes me stay focussed. It can be a wee bit nippy in the winter months and, as much as I loath being chilly, unfortunately seems to help me concentrate. Weird eh? But whatever works!