Publishing date, training and my new projects!

I won’t bother apologising for my absence the last few weeks as I’m pretty sure that’s how I’ve been starting every post this year. . . SORRY.

This year is whizzing by. It’s been full of work to be honest, which is something I can’t really complain about. HOWEVER, it does mean that I have to knuckle down and get stuff done. It also means that occasionally I get to the end of a week and wonder if I’ve done anything that you’d like to hear about. I know my blog on here was never meant to become a weekly diary though, and more a collection of thoughts. So I’ll just get on with it.

I’ve finally been allowed to reveal that my next novel will be published in hardback on the 16th November. It’s called SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL and is about a lady who’s trying to rediscover who she is after being ditched by the love of her life just as he’s about to propose – he’s literally waving the ring around in her face as he does it. Eeek… It’s been lovely to return to fiction and lose myself in the world of make-believe. Lizzy, my central character, has a brilliant family and best mate. It’s always nice when I create characters that I really like and relate to too, as I love hanging out with them every day and don’t feel quite so isolated.

I’ve recently been involved with Fisher-Price’s Little People’s Big Emotions campaign, and took part in an event they were doing in Chelsea. Essentially they’re trying to highlight the importance of Emotional Intelligence, and show that it’s just as important as IQ. It’s something I’d never given much thought on before, but of course a child learning to be kind and show empathy is just as crucial as them learning to count to ten. It was great to talk about the topic with Annie from Netmums and meet some other mums and their babies.

There are other projects I’ve been working on that I’m not allowed to say anything about yet – but more on that very soon. Although, I feel I should point out that I’m not pregnant. It’s sad that I even need to state that, but it seems every time a woman declares she’s working on something special that’s where people’s minds go. Not preggers. End of. BUT, I’m hoping you’ll love the creative projects I’ve been working my arse off for.

Talking about arse working off – TRAINING! I’m still having regular sessions with Pmac and even managed to be crowned ‘client of the week’ last week. Hurrah! November is fast approaching and soon I’ll be up that mountain in Oman with sixty other people for CoppaFeel! – I want to be as fit and ready as I can be. I’m not about to become Wonder Woman, but I am actually enjoying my training sessions. I’ve also started going to my local David Llyods to use their equipment every so often. The team have been thoroughly welcoming and showed me how to use everything – so once the current project I’m working on is complete I can head down there for a solo session when the boys are asleep. From September I think I’ll be stepping up my fitness another gear. . . Eeesh! Even the thought of it terrifies me.

Oooh, on the house front – the work is almost complete. We’re just waiting for a dining table and a coffee table to arrive. We haven’t actually picked the latter as we simply can’t decide what we want. I think something that’s 110cms wide and either square or circular. If you’ve seen something – tweet me! On the plus side though, our stairs now look great and are super safe. We had a team from Fred Safety come over and fit one of their clear stair gates. It looks pretty, but it’s also super sturdy.

My life at the moment has been all about Tom and the boys, work and training. However, we do have a little trip booked soon. I’m looking forward to the break!

Big love!

Gi. Xx