Here’s a pic of the gorgeous giraffes at the zoo:

and a very cute quati:

My writer pals and I had a perfect summer’s day and I think we all enjoyed the opportunity to get away from the keyboard for a while.

Another mid-week treat was our first trip of the year to the south coast where Molly and I chilled out in the sand dunes whilst the husband painted.

Well, it’s back to the keyboard now and my page proofs for A Weekend with Mr Darcy.  It’s so exciting to have these as it really does look like a book now.  Only three months to go before publication…

Another two fabulous Writer Top Tens this week: Julia Golding and Jo Cotterill who both have new books out.

At Waterstones with Lisa Jewell

Then there was a fabulous fiction panel at Notting Hill’s Waterstones which I attended with Helen Salter. It was great fun and lovely to chat with Carole Matthews, Isabel Wolff and Lisa Jewell who has given me a lovely quote for my novel Molly’s MillionApril also meant a trip to the London Book Fair where I met up with my lovely German agent for lunch. There was also time to meet up with Juliet Archer for a writerly gossip on the steps of Earl’s Court.

Then, a surprise trip to Pembrokeshire where I managed to finish the first draft of my new novel, Connie Gordon’s Clan, and completely killed my right shoulder doing so. Ouch! The coast and countryside glowed with yellow flowers: primroses, celandines, cowslips, dandelions, buttercups and the ever-present gorse.

Flowers on the Pembrokeshire coast