Vibrant Imaginative People
June 2025, Issue No. 41
Your VIP Newsletter from Soulla's Writing Room
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Hello my VIP!
This last month has been a whirlwind of writing, connecting with new people across the industry and working with some brilliant new authors.
Thank you to those of you who added your review of my books to Amazon! The winner of the prize was Katia and I hope her Zen colouring book brings her many moments of relaxation. And, if you have read any of my books and haven’t had the chance to write your review, I hope you can find a few quiet moments to do that for me over the next few days. I really do appreciate every single one!
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Fishing, Water Crafting and "Us" Time
And talking of relaxation my joy of relaxing was elevated last weekend to a whole new level which totally surprised me (and I like surprises!) Alan and I spent three days together by a beautiful lake, surrounded by tall trees, lush grasses and a gaggle of hissing geese which were delightful to watch.
Alan has been a fisherman all his life. He used to fish as a youngster ad since web have been together he has ventured out on a few weekend trips with his cousin, uncle and a friend. When he asked if I would like to go with him I tentatively said yes. There was something about the photos he used to send me from his locations around England which filled me with a yearning to sit quietly and listen to the lapping, gurgling water at the edge of the lake.
The time we spent together was so special and Alan has admitted how having me there had brought him a different level of peace and relaxation too. He wasn’t obsessed with the lake and “water crafting” but rather losing himself in the joy of being together and our rather competitive games of scrabble on the bank.
We quickly found our rhythm where our early mornings began with coffee for Alan in his enamel mugs, steam rising as the mist lifted off the lake, and me cradling my mug of tea, and the world slowly unfurled into birdsong and stillness. He fried bacon for breakfast and then griddled steak and huge mushrooms marinated in garlic and olive oil for dinner. There was no agenda, no clock-watching, just the gentle unfolding of time… ducks drifted across the water’s surface and seagulls wheeled above us and we sat side by side watching the sun go do
In those quiet hours, I found myself drawn to the simple, grounding rituals of the fishing world… not just the casting of the line, but the watching, the waiting, the deep tuning into nature and the excitement hurtling through me when that bite alarm beeped. I’m not sure I’ll ever be a true angler (those boilies were stinky, even those which smelled of strawberries!), but I understood why this gentle sporting practise has such a hold on Alan.
There’s something meditative about being present with the elements without expectation or hurry, so much so even the scatter of rain felt special as it pitter-pattered over our bivvy.
I read, I dozed, wandered the lake’s edge to keep up my steps. Even the geese seemed to soften toward us by day three, less hiss, more curious tilt of the head. I sketched a little, scribbled in my notebook, and even jotted down a few ideas for my next story, though the goal wasn’t productivity. It was presence. Real, joyful, bone-deep presence.
As we packed up on Sunday afternoon, I felt lighter. Not because we’d done anything grand, but because we hadn’t needed to. We had simply been. Together. In nature. In love. In a bubble of stillness that reminded me how deeply nourishing simple pleasures can be.
Here’s to more weekends like that… and to saying yes to things that surprise us. You never know what peace might be waiting on the other side.
I’d love to know… where have you discovered your peace recently?
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Secrets at Sunset, Discoveries of the Heart
“Sometimes the greatest discoveries are those of the heart" is the opening line of Vanessa Woolley's new book, Secrets at Sunset. Vanessa is a writer of uplifting women’s fiction and we met for the first time in March this year at the London Book Fair. We got on straight away... talking romance and writing and, of course, publishing.
Secrets at Sunset was published by Kingsley Publishers (who are my publishers too!) only last week and a contender for the RNA Joan Hessayon Award 2025.
What the book's about:
"Journalist Kate Harper arrives in Africa to write about poaching just as an orphaned rhino calf is being airlifted to safety. Reeling from the loss of both her parents in a car accident, she is immediately drawn to the calf and the man who rescued it.
Ex-soldier Ryan Brown has dedicated his life to protecting wildlife. When a rhino is killed on his watch, he’s forced to acknowledge there is an informer in his team and he won’t stop until he finds out who it is.
Kate and Ryan are soon thrown into the shady world of wildlife crime and as the investigation intensifies, so too does the chemistry between them.
But Kate’s secret reason for her visit to South Africa and Ryan’s troubled army past threaten to tear them apart. As they close in on the poaching syndicate, Kate makes a shocking discovery and finds herself torn between blood ties and new beginnings.
Will Kate and Ryan put the past to rest and find a future together in the beautiful African bush?"
Vanessa lives in Berkshire. Born in Zimbabwe, she spent the first twenty-five years of her life living in Southern Africa, New Zealand and Australia, before coming to the UK.
She worked for many years in private and state healthcare business management before turning her attention to writing. She has been writing a regular column for the local newspaper for over seventeen years and spent six years presenting a book club show for Marlow FM.
Vanessa loves nature and the great outdoors and is passionate about conservation and protecting wildlife. She is a proud member of the Helping Rhinos’ team, contributing wherever she can to raise awareness of the threat to this iconic animal.
I hope you'll have a read of her fabulous new book and you can keep up with Vanessa, her writing and her other hobbies by following her across her social media:
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Lazy August Days
August is my slowing down month... it's my mum's birthday month and my sisters and I are planning an afternoon tea with her, my dad and all our family to celebrate. We have two family and friends BBQs planned, and my horoscope has predicted:
"This is the best month for asking for
favours and partying.
You will make good progress in
your field of work and don't be
afraid to set ambitious goals."
I will take all of that! Thank you! LOL!
So I wish you all a truly wonderful August
ahead and let me know what you liked most about this month's newsletter!
Sending lots of love always
Soulla xxx
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