There are so many things we have today which were almost beyond imagination in the past. This has been particularly brought home to me this week as I'm making a few trips to our county town (more than 100 miles away), and because we lost the internet which brings home just home much we use it! Technology certainly has its benefits! In fact, looking around the room (and this is a comparatively old-fashioned room) as I'm writing this, there are so many things we take for granted which would simply not have existed even a couple of hundred years ago. You can, of course, discount anything which uses electricity and, more interestingly, all of the paperback books - of which there are hundreds - and none of the MDF bookcases either. There would have been no photographs, although there may well have been paintings and sketches of the people in them. But it's not just about taking away what is here now. It's also about what we have lost since then. Rooms needed lighting, and th...
Looking back always makes me feel a bit nostalgic and there are points in this year that I could relive time and time again. Highlights for me were being there at the launch of Virginia's historical fiction novel Day's Dying Glory in April and then the Perthshire holiday straight after. That was a super relaxing time that will remain in my most treasured memories for years. Here are some pictures of the holiday: Virginia at her book launch for "Day's Dying Glory" Just down the road from where we stayed in Perthshire You may have recognised the ruined house as the one we used in the Ghost Story Competition video . That was another highlight of 2017 - our first competition encouraged about 100 entries and all the stories I read from the longlist were absolutely superb. It was a tricky business creating the shortlist but we got there in the end. I have also reviewed some very good books, and read some super books that I will post throughout...