So There Goes Another Year!

Well, would you Adam and Eve it – another year has passed and here I am, once again, typing up an ‘End of Year’ post. Although, given the regularity (cough!) of my posts, most of you are probably thinking ‘Blimey, she’s written a web-post… It must be Christmas…’

I have to be honest though, I didn’t realise how long it had been since I’d last shown my face around these here parts. That’s kind of what happens when you get lost in your writing – everything else falls by the wayside. I can assure you, however, that I have not been sitting idly by, twiddling my thumbs. As I type this, Lovestyle #3 has been written and is now going through the editing process. I have also re-edited ‘A Rock ‘n’ Roll Lovestyle’ as it had a few flaws I wasn’t happy with and, because writing one book at a time is not enough, I’m also approx a quarter of the way through a standalone thriller. Well, as the old saying goes, ‘Too Many Books to Write, Not Enough Time to Write ‘Em!’

What more is there to tell you? Not much, to be honest. We live a fairly quiet life here at Moggy Towers. If you have missed the updates in Facebook, then I can tell you that our moggy count went from five to six after a rescue mission at my slave job brought us a new kitten. The poor little mite was found half-frozen in one of our warehouses. Someone thought I was the best person to help revive him and he became our new addition within a very short period of time. He’s been called Charlie and was approx eight weeks old when he was found. He’s now double the age, triple the size and a little bundle of non-stop energy. He’s been accepted by the other moggies and is already a firm member of the family. It has to be said that, for a feral kitten, he sure does love his cuddles as you can see from the photograph below. 

2018 also saw a sharp increase in friends within the book community. These are authors, bloggers and readers who provide a great network on both a personal and professional level. They are there to pick you up on the down days, celebrate with you on the good days and pass on your efforts to their friends and followers. It has also been an absolute pleasure to re-establish contact with some old friends. The downside of locating to new parts of the country is that good friends can be lost along the way. Being back in touch with my original Jordie Ray is definitely one of the highlights of my year.

One of the lowest points, however, is the very sad loss of another dear friend – Jeff Rowland. His long fight with cancer came to an end on the 16th November although he played fisticuffs with it until his last breath. At only 54 years old, this was a tragic loss. Not only was he an incredibly talented

artist, he was – more importantly – a kind, generous, funny, lovable man. Everyone who knew him, adored him and many are feeling the pain of his absence. His alter-ego continues to thrive, however, in the Lovestyle series and I smile when I recall how thrilled he was to be one of my characters. We chatted over how he wished his character to be portrayed. I was given carte blanche to do with him as I wished although, if I could make him look like his idol, Clint Eastwood, he would be very happy. Well, his wish was my command and Jeff Rowland, the Hollywood A-Lister Doppelganger, has a whole other life within the pages of the Lovestyle series. 

So that was my 2018. What will 2019 bring? Goodness only knows. With Brexit a mere three months away, and the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing, the next twelve months are going to make for interesting living. For now, however, I wish everyone all the  best. I hope every one of the 365 days ahead brings you something good. Life is short so grab every moment and wring every drop of  love you can from it. Appreciate the good stuff and find something positive in the bad stuff. Don’t make resolutions for they only make you feel like a failure when you break them. Instead, simply make a point of enjoying being alive for that in itself is one hell of a gift! 

I will finish off by saying a MASSIVE THANK YOU to everyone for your support throughout 2018 and I look forward to hearing from you in 2019. 

Keep smiling and stay happy.

Lots of love

Kiltie J.

xx