From the 1st to the 5th November I attended an online Arvon course. Writing Radio Drama. It was absolutely brilliant. Course tutors, Olly Emanuel and Lu Kemp, worked well together. We had workshops every morning from 10am until 12.45 covering all aspect of writing drama scripts for the radio. 

I had written something I thought rather good but soon discovered in my 1-2-1 that actually it was lacking in oh so many ways. But...I wasn't at all discouraged, in fact the advice that Olly and Lu gave me spurred me on to edit and improve the script to bring it up to something worthwhile. 

Character, location, sound, words, all making images for the listener to picture in their heads. Which of course is what we all do when we read the written word, or listen to a radio play or podcast. 

At the end of the week we all took acting parts in each others plays and did a little performance for our tutors. It was such fun. I played quite a few parts: a dead woman (with a Scottish accent) a London mother  - leader of a gang, an elderly woman who lived with her slightly bonkers sister, Alan, a fifty-year-old man and a middle class bitch.

Now then, remind me, where is my equity card? 

Even though the course was designed for radio drama, I certainly learnt more skills that I can use in all my writing. What a week. I wish I had more energy and more hours in the day to create all the projects in my head!

I also met a great bunch of like minded people from all over the UK and one from France. We have all vowed to keep in touch and have regular Zoom meetings. Great to have more writing buddies! 

If you want to know more about ARVON and the courses they offer click on the link here 

This is the review I wrote on amazon for this wonderful book

"I read this book in just a few sittings. Once I began I couldn't stop reading. It's compelling. The prose has a novel-like quality, especially as the author occasionally changes the POV, but I found this only enhanced the experience of reading. I know parents and siblings who have lost someone to suicide and I felt for Helen's parents. It's is not difficult to understand her father's attitude, wanting so much for the coroner's verdict to be accidental death. Helen writes about her relationship with her parents, her brother and his friends, showing us how complicated and delicate these relationships can be. Something we can all relate to I'm sure.

When her mother dies, the author finds a letter in which her mother has made a confession. A secret that has been hidden for many years. How many family members knew about this? She's not sure, but Helen is determined to find out. This made me think about my family, and wonder if there are any secrets, which I'm sure there are."

If you check out her website here you can read a great deal more about Helen. Right now she's walking the London Capital Ring Walk to raise funds for the Zero Suicide Alliance, in memory of her younger brother who took his own life in 1981. If you get the book No Place to Lie you can read more about it. 

Please take a look at the ZSA the link is here see what you might be able to do for this very worthy cause. 

There's also a podcast which Helen is now hosting and you can find the link on their website. 

I'm exhausted just writing about all her activities! Good luck with everything Helen. 

The village of Netherbury organised an event for local people to exhibit and sell anything they had created during lockdown. It was brilliant to see the art, jewellery, woodturning, modelling, patchwork, knitting, sewing...do much diversity from a small community. 

I took along copies of Dear Tosh and was able to sell several which was a surprise. I also met several new and interesting neighbours and even had an invitation to join the local drama group. We'll see 😊

I found it fascinating, that even though the hall has been modernised, if you had put everyone in a costume from the late 19th or early 20th century, the 'village hall' has probably not changed one bit. The tea and cakes served through the hatch from the kitchen, the gingham table clothes on the trestle tables, the general chat from the people attending including: bell ringing attendance, local dog walks, prizes for the children's art entries, who's moved into which house, new people in the village. 

There was no actual raffle but they did auction off the last half of a Dorset Apple Cake at the end! 

Fabulous stuff, I loved it. I'll let you know my decision about the drama group. 

Jpeg has been put out lately (and I don't mean in the garden) she often has that 'long face' look. I have been very busy at my desk and The Man has been busy in another room at his desk or away visiting friends, or away working and she does not like it. She only settles properly when we both sit downstairs in the evening, light the fire and then read, listen to an audio book, podcast or watch the TV. Then she happily gets into her bed and relaxes at long last - see photo.  

It's her age I think. Don't we all get a bit of separation anxiety as we get older? 

Thank you very much to H from Essex who sent me this little limerick. I think they wrote it for Jpeg after she had her kennel cough! 

Thank you H and keep them coming!