Under pressure!

Hurrah! It's February! So what's been happening? Well, nothing out of the ordinary, really, but just lately I've noticed the journey to and from work is not so dark. The birds are singing more loudly. If only it wasn't so darned chilly, we could almost be fooled into thinking that Spring has arrived.

It's my birthday soon, too, so I've asked for a fitness tracker, and as part of my new healthy eating regime I'll be trying to get out for more walks. I've cut out the carbs (mostly) and increased my vegetable intake (by a lot), so my clothes are more loose after the excesses of Christmas. If I could only get my dastardly blood pressure under control, things would be tickety-boo. When I visited the doc two weeks, it was so high they doubled my medication, so it's a matter of playing the waiting game and taking my BP every day on the monster below. Great.

It's not all doom and gloom as I'm doing much more writing. A short story here, a competition entry there, editing my last two rejections, and getting ready for my romance writing course in Fishguard, Wales, with Kate Walker. I first went on one of Kate's courses in 2014 at Weetwood Hall, near Leeds, where I met a fantastic bunch of ladies, most of whom I have stayed in touch with via email, or social media. Kate's advanced writing course is one of the highlights of my year, so, Andrea, Ingrid, Kate, Marie, Melissa, Nerys and Vasiliki - can't wait to see you all again xx

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I've been working on my hero, Jake Caballero.  Here's a little excerpt from my notes:

Jake’s mother died from eclampsia whilst giving birth to him. Before that his father crashed the light aircraft he was piloting - killing both him and Jake's older sister.  Brought up by his cold and unfeeling grandmother, Jake was starved of the upbringing he deserved. 

Although not fully rejected - she did, after all, give him a home and a private education - she never showed him a scrap of love or affection.  She never stroked his hair, kissed his face, or held him in her arms. Maybe she was grieving herself, or maybe her young grandson reminded her too much of the son she had lost? But the worst thing of all? She blamed him for his mother’s death, so imagine that being dumped on a young boy’s shoulders? Sent to an all boy’s day school, his only example back then of how the opposite sex operated was his grandmother.

As an adult Jake feels empty and incapable of love. With nothing to offer a woman - apart from his money - he has a love ‘em and leave ‘em attitude. He is determined never to have children, too, as he fears history may repeat itself, and he never wants any child to have to go through what he went through. The one thing Florence did instill in him was to always keep a stiff, upper lip - to remain strong even during the most challenging of situations. This, he knows, has got him where he is today, especially in the business world, but his private life is a joke. What woman would ever want a man like him?

Until next time.

Kim x