Novel

I’m very proud to say that in 2018 I took the plunge and self published my very first novel on Amazon Kindle Publisher. This is one of my greatest achievements in life and although I’m not currently fighting for the top spot on a Waterstone’s shelf, I’m one step closer than I was before.

‘Birdcage’ grew from a creepy dream I once had (I have quite vivid dreams and can always remember them) and I really enjoyed developing the plot and characters. Once I had nailed down a rough timeline, I found that the story flowed easily from my pen. It took over a year to get a publishable version up and running and despite not knowing what I was doing, I uploaded my first copy of ‘Birdcage’ just in time to enter the Kindle Storyteller competition. I didn’t win but this deadline was definitely the motivation I needed to get me to click the upload button.

Since then I’ve revised my novel and ebook cover. This is mainly down to the fact that in summer 2019, I attended a women’s writing weekend hosted by the magazine Mslexia. This consisted of two full days of workshops, talks and interactive sessions in which I learned loads about life after the first draft. I was mainly interested in how to package my book to send to agents and let me tell you, I’m pleased I did because my initial attempts were absolutely crap! We also got the chance to ask questions and interact with real life editors and agents – this was a really valuable experience as the world of publishing felt so out of reach to me before then. I’ve since sent my book off to quite a few agents and although I’m yet to receive any offers, I’m happy that I’ve gave it my best shot and will use this knowledge for my future novels.

‘Birdcage’ is a bit of a ‘who done it’ sort of story – it will have you guessing who it is that taunts the main character Joanne. Relationship troubles, mental health struggles and creepy goings on, ‘Birdcage’ is an intriguing read guaranteed to keep you hooked.

If you wish to purchase said novel, you can do so at Amazon.co.uk or follow this link.