Katey Lovell

My family didn't grow in the way I thought it might, turns out it was only ever meant to be me, David and Zachary. Instead, the pitter patter of tiny feet came from our guinea pigs, Wally and Percy, and our feline friend, Clarence. I gained a niece, a nephew, a god daughter and a promise daughter and a host of special little people who I hope will always call me Auntie Kate. Zach started and finished primary school and adjusted well to life at secondary, making new friends to add to those he already had. He has gone from being an exuberant livewire tot to an exuberant livewire preteen, which only goes to show that some things don't ever change. We started the decade in a house I loved with great neighbours, ending it in one that's served us well but has never really felt like home, surrounded by boxes ready for a move in January. Bring on the bay window! In 2010 I'd been poorly for a number of years but given no diagnosis, by 2019 I'd officially been a Crohnie

January 9th, 2020 - save the date! My new novel, Make Do and Mend a Broken Heart, is being published in the new year, which is perfect for a book with an overarching theme of new beginnings. What's that? You want to know more? Well then, I'd better share the blurb with you ... When you know how, you can make anything from scratch, including a new life after love... When Leanne and Richard bought a dilapidated old seaside cottage to renovate together as their forever home, their future was full of hope and promise. But heartbreak was just around the corner: fast forward a few months and Richard is gone. With his death, Leanne finds herself stony broke, faced with an uninhabitable home and lacking even the basic skills to do it up herself. With the help of the friendly woman who runs the library and the reluctant assistance of the man who works in the local hardware shop, the cottage is lovingly restored. But broken hearts aren't so easy to fix... are they?

There's nothing better than a good writing day, one where the words flow without stutters or false starts. On a good writing day being a novelist is the best job in the world. Pride flutters in my chest when I've not only met my wordcount but nailed a chunk of text that drives the story forward, or includes a sentence or image that I'm particularly proud of. Those highs are addictive, they're what I'm striving for on a daily basis. Of course, words don't always come easily. There are times where I'm frozen in fear as I look at a blank page, terrified that the ideas in my head won't translate to the page, or when all creativity eludes me. Sometimes I'm tired after a day at work and staring at a screen is the last thing I feel like doing. Writing can be painful, exhausting and sometimes near impossible. However, now I've been writing 'seriously' for a good few years I've come to accept that both good days and bad days are

Better late than never, as they say! I didn't read as many books as usual in 2018 - one side effect of my anxiety is an inability to focus on reading, and I hardly read any rom-com/women's fiction. It's funny that my six stand-out books of 2018 all share themes of resilience, perseverance and overcoming. They're all out now, except Daisy Jones and the Six which is released on March 7th. Call Me by Your Name - Andre Aciman   Andre Aciman's Call Me by Your Name is the story of a sudden and powerful romance that blossoms between an adolescent boy and a summer guest at his parents' cliffside mansion on the Italian Riviera.  Each is unprepared for the consequences of their attraction, when, during the restless summer weeks, unrelenting currents of obsession, fascination, and desire intensify their passion and test the charged ground between them. Recklessly, the two verge toward the one thing both fear they may never truly find again: total intimacy. It