Hi,

So, another Christmas hits the dust. A fairly quiet one for us, with no relatives to share it with, and a fairly gloomy prognosis for the immediate future. Lockdowns in Ireland have damaged many small businesses beyond repair, yet according a report I saw recently, the 1% of super rich have become 25% richer just in this last year, as a direct result of COVID, while everyone else has been struggling. Conspiracy theories abound, of course, but I don't doubt there have been many grubby-handshake contracts made on the back of the pandemic. It's one rather nasty side of politics.

In the meantime, I have now finished the first draft of Legend of the Selkie, which I started a few years back, and put aside for various reasons. I'd be really pleased if a few people would like to take this as a Beta read. This does mean I'd be hoping to receive some structural suggestions as well as a catalogue of errors... This could be an opportunity to air your analytical thoughts before the novel is published, rather than provide one-star reviews afterwards! This novel is a little more literary in style than The Silence of Children, being internalised and emotional rather than action-based. It's definitely a standalone novel. Set in West Cork, it is the story of a trawling tragedy, and its aftermath for one family. If you're interested, grab this now, as the downloads have been limited. First come, first served. I'll offer it to everyone else once it's been edited.

My storyboard this month is another chapter in the House Project. Down to the nitty-gritty. Before we could put in running water, and the associated luxuries, there was a bundle of infrastructure work to be done in the garden.(Click on the image). And yes, we were living in the red bus...

SWEEPSTAKE - FREE E-BOOK READER TO WINNER

And now for something completely different. I've entered into a Book Sweep Promotion to increase my Bookbub followers, and I haven't a clue whether I've done it right. There are 32 books in the prize package, which includes an e-book reader. It's free to enter. Just click the link, and follow me on Bookbub to enter. And tell your friends...

This month's Books on offer (Click any image).

I can't vouch for quality, but if you do read something you really like, authors truly appreciate an online review.

You're probably receiving this email as you subscribed via a book offer. Or you're just lucky. It's easy to unsubscribe, via the link below, but you're welcome to stay with me, if only to follow my storyboards... I love to have feedback. Let me know you're out there, listening... writing is a lonely old business.

All the best

Chris