The second part of my horror writing workshop is now up over on the Trapped By Monsters site!

http://www.trappedbymonsters.com/2010/08/write-your-own-scary-stories-part-two/

I've just had the finished cover copy through for Furnace 5, what do you think?

I'm still enjoying a bit of a break after finishing Furnace 5. Well, I say a break, but it's actually been a busy couple of weeks catching up on admin (yawn), fan mail (yay), moving into the new office (awesome) and DIY around the house (argh!!!!). I've also been doing a short business foundation course (eek!) which has been really interesting. It's provided by the Norwich and Wensum Enterprise Centre (NWES) for free, and is designed to get people thinking about their finances, especially with limited companies. I figured that as I've got three limited companies, I should probably try and find out what a profit and loss chart is, and what the laws are regarding taxes...

Anyway, the aim of it all is to make sure Inkling is set up properly, especially as we're going for Arts Council funding. I want to make sure the company gets off to as positive a start as possible. And in other Inkling news we've had our first submission, which is awesome! We're taking it away to Centerparcs with us next week so we can start reading it at bedtime.

Other than Inkling stuff and DIY (I finally finished decorating Jamie's room!) I've not been up to much, really. I started work again on a horror novel for adults that I began late last year, and I've been getting into it. However, it's a long-term project and I imagine that after a couple of chapters it will end up back on the shelf while I start the new YA series. Still, it would be cool if something happened with it one day. I've also started learning Japanese again, although as this is the third time I've begun and I've never kept with it before I'm not incredibly optimistic...

Right, I'm off to wrap up a last few bits and pieces before I head home and start packing. We leave for Centerparcs on Monday morning and I can't wait to get in the pool!! Have a great week everyone!!

I'm writing to you all now from my lovely new office in the heart of Norwich (which, for those of you who don't already know, is the cultural, financial and political heart of, well, the world)! It's so amazingly cool to have a proper office again – the last one, inside an amazing old shoe factory, is fast becoming an Asda as we speak. This place is great, an old hotel where Laurel and Hardy once stayed. It's full of weird-shaped rooms and strange, narrow corridors that lead all over the place. I'm pretty sure it's haunted too... Cool!

Anyway, that's my office in the photo above. It's partly mine, and partly Inkling Studios', which will be nice as it means I won't be in here by myself all the time. That's one of the best things about having an office that's separate from the home – you get to speak to real people, rather than just the cats! Essentially, though, an office isn't about having a place to go to work, it's about having a place to go home to. When I work at home, my house becomes an office – I end up spending all day working because there's no divide between work space and leisure space. Now I have vowed never to work at home, only in the office (apart from actual writing, that is, which isn't really work at all). Which is great because I can get home and really enjoy being there, rather than thinking I should be working all the time!

Awesome!

Anyway, aside from moving into the new space I've mainly been chilling. I'm still pretty frazzled from writing Furnace 5, so I'm treating myself to a break. We've been going swimming loads, which is great, and we've been to the cinema a few times too. Karate Kid was good fun, made even more so as we could identify some of the moves from our own classes (yes, it's Kung Fu he learns this time, not Karate). Although the martial arts were better in the remake, and this one had the legendary Jackie Chan, I think I still prefer the original...

We saw Inception too, which is amazing. Just one of those films which is immensely satisfying on every level. Really, really worth going to see. The soundtrack is brilliant too, as you would expect from Hans Zimmer – great writing music!

On the writing front, I have pitched the synopsis for my new series, so I should hear back from my agent about it pretty soon. Faber sound keen on the idea, so keep your fingers crossed for me! I'll let you know all about it as soon as I get some news...

Right, off to unpack some more office stuff!

Oh, I nearly forgot the most exciting news: I booked a week in Centerparcs for later this month, yay!!!