Just a quickie: Lynsey and Lucy had free tickets to go and see Bolt yesterday, it was hilarious! Well worth watching, even if just for the hamster!

OMG! Emily from Faber sent me an email on Friday saying that there was something interesting in the post, and she wasn't lying! I was so excited that my Friday night's sleep was plagued with anxiety dreams - including one where I took Furnace out of the envelope and it had the blurb for somebody else's book on the back!

However, Saturday morning came and after a lovely midmorning fry-up with friends I returned home to see a book-sized envelope lying beneath the letterbox! As with both Inventors books I could barely control my hyperventilations as I ripped it open and there it was in all its stunning glory, FURNACE: LOCKDOWN. Yay!

It is so exciting to see the finished book. It looks incredible, with a striking cover that is sure to send chills up a few spines. Thanks to everybody at Faber for putting so much hard work into it, and all the other people who have helped bring the book to life. I'm so grateful to you all!

It should be in the shops very soon, with an official launch date of March 5th. Of course I'll let you all know as soon as it's out there. I've also had a sneak peek at the website, which will be launched in February complete with an Escape from Furnace game that looks AMAZING!

Anyway, I'm off to stare at it for a while longer. But it's great to know that the books are ready.

The incarceration is about to begin...

It's been all quiet on the blogging front again recently, sorry about that. Don't blame me, blame this movie that we are making! I knew film producers didn't exactly have dull, uneventful lives, but I had no idea quite how much work went into organising a movie shoot - and we're still six months away! It's all one great big juggling act, with money, people, props, sets, locations and a million other things all up in the air at once, and it takes so much concentration to keep them all going that you forget about your real life! I do love it, though.

I've spent the last week designing logos, and we've gone for the gruesome one above. I've also built a website, which IS NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED as it has a number of (fake!) severed limbs and the like. But anybody over 15 years of age is welcome to pay it a visit!

Fear Driven Films.

The rest of this week will be devoted to Furnace, especially the edit of book number two, Solitary. The lovely new publicity person at Faber, Laura, has been sending me lots of requests for interviews and things, which is wonderful, and there are a few school visits and festivals lined up too. I can't wait!

And right now I'm off to buy a World War II gas mask and leather overcoat from Ebay so that we can do some photo shoots and video with the terrifying Wheezers...

I could have been shot with tasers the other day, but that would have been a walk in the park compared to what might have happened yesterday! I had to go down to the American Embassy in London, which sounds exciting but it was only to get a tax number for any payments coming from the US. Anyway, Edina at Ed Victor (my literary agency) warned me that security was very tight and that they'd do searches and everything to make sure no weapons of any kind get into the Embassy.

So I went down, walked anxiously through the main gates, which were surrounded by armed police with HUGE guns, and handed my bag to the security guards who proceeded to put it through the x-ray machine. I knew something was wrong when their expressions went stern and they started pointing at the monitor. 'That's a knife,' said one, looking nervous (although not anywhere as nervous as I was looking by now).

'A what?' I said. 'A knife?' Had I actually brought a knife into the US Embassy?!?

I was expecting the police to come racing in any second to splatter me all over the walls, but fortunately the other guard on duty was a little older, and had obviously done some DIY in his time, as he pointed out that it wasn't so much a knife as a utility kit. It was basically my leatherman, which is essentially a pair of fold-up pliers with other tools attached, including a knife. It's less a killing weapon than a fixing one.

Or a bomb-making one.

I must have put it in my bag for some reason and totally forgotten about it. Anyway, after a little spluttered explanation on my part they took it away with all my other metal objects, and my phone, and locked them away, ushering me through into the main building.

So all was well in the end, but it was pretty scary!

After much negotiations with the police and the security up at the University of East Anglia, we finally got round to organising a photo shoot for the movie. Kate, Simon, Jen (the director) and I drove up to the UEA broad at 11 and met with security. It was a beautiful day, and even though the lake was half frozen the sun was shining and it was perfect photo weather.

Unfortunately it was perfect dog-walking, kid-taking-outing and jogging weather too, which meant that the broad was absolutely choc-a-block! Which is fine usually, but when you've got a model in a fake-blood-stained wedding dress holding a very real machete it can cause problems! Fortunately we had a great security man with us in a fluorescent jacket, who kept the passers-by calm! Most people were curious rather than alarmed, to be honest, and quite a few snapped their own pictures. There was just one student who seemed terrified at the sight and scampered off in the other direction with no small amount of speed!

We spent about an hour taking some shots and got some really good ones. We'll be making a website this week, hopefully, so at least we'll have something to show investors! It was a great day anyway, and it left us all feeling really positive about the movie. The pic above is my sister posing between shots!

I'm back doing Furnace stuff this week as there is loads that I need to catch up on after Christmas. I have just written some copy for Death Sentence, the third Furnace book. Have a look and let me know what you think!

Furnace: Death Sentence

In order to escape them, I must become one of them...

We were so close. We had one last shot at freedom and we failed. This time the warden will show us no mercy. This time, our punishment is a death sentence.

Only death won't come for us here, not in Furnace. It wouldn't dare. No, our fate is something much, much worse. Because in the bloodstained laboratories deep beneath the prison lies the horrific truth behind the warden's plans. Down here, monsters are made.

I can feel myself changing, something ancient and evil pumped into my veins. I'm forgetting who I am, and if that happens I'll become one of them, a creature of Furnace. But they are also making me stronger, faster, tougher. If I can control it then I might stand a chance, I might be able to fight my way out. I just have to remember...

My name is Alex Sawyer.

They framed me for murder.

And I will have my revenge.

Only two months to go until Furnace Number One, whoop!!!

The year's off to a good start! One of my new year's resolutions was to finally get round to doing some DIY so I have spent the last couple of days stripping wallpaper in the hall. Yes, yes, I know, writing children's books really is the new rock and roll! I also managed to sort out all of my paperwork yesterday which felt great. Instead of forming one immense pile it's now divided into much more manageable smaller piles. Could my life get any more exciting?!

We were hoping to take a publicity shot for the film today (for those who haven't read previous entries, we are making a horror film next year) but we ran into a little problem. Basically the photograph was supposed to show a woman in a blood-stained wedding dress standing by a lake holding a machete. Yes, a machete. Kate wisely thought it was a good idea to call the police and explain what we were doing, and it was just as well she did as they told her that if we had gone ahead and done it, and somebody had reported us, they would have 'sent out an armed response unit and you would all have been tasered'. They did find it quite amusing, and I thought it would have been a good publicity stunt, but Kate didn't fancy 50,000 volts and so we've had to postpone it till next week.

It was a great move contacting the police, especially considering what happens in the film! If they would send out an armed response team for a machete then what would they do come summer when we are running round the broads with fake shotguns and everything?! Come to think of it, I'm surprised they didn't turn up the other day when I was jumping up and down on a fake-blood covered wedding dress in the garden in an attempt to make it look muddy... At least the police know who we are now, and they were very supportive.

Anyway, I'm off to do more stripping... wallpaper, that is. I should be starting a new book, but there's something so satisfying about peeling long strips of paper from the walls. I'll be back soon, unless I get tasered, of course...

So here we are, in 2009 already. To use the old cliche, I can't believe how fast 2008 shot by, but then it was an exceedingly busy year and, another cliche to hand, time flies when you're having fun!

There were many highlights from last year, but off the top of my head here are a few of the best: doing my first ever festival gigs in Glasgow, Cambridge, Brighton, Hay and Edinburgh; spending the weekend down in Hay with Mum and Jamie; getting a deal for the new series, selling it into the States and writing the next two books; deciding I was going to make a horror film with my sister; going to Centerparks with the gang; Christmas.

I love Christmas, it's my favourite day of the year and this year was no exception. It was quite a quiet one, but really good fun. I spent the morning at Mum's, opening pressies and snacking. Then I popped over to see Dad in the afternoon (although Jamie almost wouldn't let me out of the door)! I haven't spent Xmas with Dad for years so it was great to see him.

New year was quiet this year too. Lynsey and I just chilled out in front of the telly watching the godawful BBC show. I didn't recognise any of the 'celebrities' they had on, or the presenters for that matter. And the music... I mean who was in charge of that?! It's the end of 2008, the start of a brand new year, and what band do they pick to ring in 2009 - Simply Red?! Still, it was good for a laugh.

Yesterday Lynsey, Lucy and I popped out to Cromer in the freezing cold to watch the fireworks from the pier. Jamie would have come, but he sneaked some beer out of the fridge on New Year's Eve so I think he had a hangover... They weren't quite equal to the spectacular show in London, but it was quite magical watching the explosions coming out of the water and raining down from the pier. I ended up queuing outside Mary Jane's fish and chop shop for almost an hour, which was slightly ridiculous, but they do make the best fish suppers. It was a great start to the year anyway!

Anyway, speaking of fish suppers I really do have to lose some weight... Ah yes, you say, I wondered when the new year's resolutions would rear their ugly heads. Well I start my juice diet today, I had a glass of wheatgrass juice and algae for breakfast. No, seriously, I actually did. I tasted like a cow's bottom, but they say it's very good for you. I have to have a six-pack by the end of February or I owe Jamie a small fortune, so I'd better get used to it!

And as for my other resolutions? There's loads I want to do this year, including write another three or four books and produce this horror movie in summer. It's going to be a very busy year, though, with three Furnace books out plus the first one out in the States in October. I can't wait! There are only two months till the first one, whoop!

I hope you all have a wonderful 2009, and that you manage to stick to all your resolutions!

Oh dear, my first blog post in six weeks. The emperor of the Galactic Federation of Bloggers will be round here threatening to deport me to a blogger's prison colony on an asteroid orbiting some far-off star. No, please give me one last chance! I'll make up for it with a long entry right now!

I do have a reasonably good excuse for having been absent, I've been on holiday! No foreign shores for me, though, or exotic volcanoes, or sunny beaches. I was at Centerparcs... I took Jamie and Lynsey and Lucy there a couple of years ago and I've been promising Jamie for AGES that I'll take him back. So we went!

I have to say that I absolutely love Centerparcs. We went to the one in Thetford, Suffolk, as we always do. For anyone who's ever been you'll know what it's like, loads of wooden cabins in the forest, and this huge village in the middle of them packed full of cool stuff. Of course the best thing there is the pool, which really is this vast tropical paradise full of shoots and rapids and wave machines and bubble pools. It's actually better going in the winter than in the summer, as a) it's soooooo nice climbing into the hot water when you've just come in from the cold, and b) when it gets dark outside the entire pool is mirrored in the glass ceiling so it gives the illusion that you're floating underwater. Beautiful!

Jamie and I actually were underwater for parts of the holiday, as we decided to give scuba diving a go. It's one of the best things I've ever done in my life! Admittedly it would have been better if we'd been diving in a coral reef with cool fish to look at instead of the bottom of the pool, but even so it was a real adventure. Being able to glide through the water without coming up for air, or just drift upside down beneath the surface watching the bubbles rise, is so magical. We played tag, threw an underwater Frisbee, swam through hoops and just had a whale of a time, literally.

We're definitely both going to try and complete our PADI open water course now, which will let us dive anywhere in the world. So exciting! Although it is just a little bit scary. I panicked once when my mouth filled with water and I tried to breathe in. It's fine when you're two feet below the surface, but I wouldn't like to be in that position with thirty metres of water above me... Still, I wouldn't let that put me off!

So, other than the scuba diving we spent most of our time in the pool and going down the rapids. Lucy didn't want to go down them, and I kept telling her how much fun they'd be. It was only on the last day that she braved them, then she didn't want to stop! I'm covered in bruises from where we were all wrestling each other to get to the bottom first, including actual fingerprints running up both arms! I look like a leopard.

Other than that we just chilled out in the cabin, playing the Game of Life quite a bit (and Monopoly, which almost resulted in physical combat). There was a quiz machine in the village, which was cool, and Lynsey and I spent hours at a time on that. We won fifteen quid on the first day... then nothing after than. It must have remembered who we were. There was so much to do there, but we were so knackered each night from all the swimming that most of the time we just had dinner then fell asleep by 10!

Oh, and I have to mention the ducks and the squirrel that congregated outside our cabin every morning. They were so cute! The squirrel was so tame that it kept trying to come in, even when it had to climb over Jamie and Lucy to do so! There was even a baby deer grazing outside our window.

It really was a fantastic holiday, especially as it is my first, and only, one this year. None of us wanted to come home, and as soon as we did we all succumbed to flu. Obviously Jamie and I had it worst because we had man flu. Horrible stuff.

So now it's back to work, although I don't have a huge amount to do right now. Furnace: Lockdown has gone to the printers, so it's totally out of my hands now. The most terrifying part of the whole process is when you finally sign off on the finished manuscript, you always think 'but what if I've missed something? What if there are still loads of mistakes? Oh my god I'd better have another read through' and you end up reading it and reading it and reading it until you wouldn't notice an error if it took up the whole page. The American copyeditor did actually spot a chronology error which I managed to change seconds before it got sent to the printers, so thank you for that! Furnace: Solitary has been typeset and I'll be proof editing that next week. Furnace: Death Sentence is with my editor now and probably won't be back until next year.

I've been doing bits and pieces for the US edition, which is now called Escape From Furnace (because, as Wes, my fantastic editor over there, pointed out, in the States everybody has a furnace in their basement which heats up the house and isn't very scary at all!). I love the new title, and the book also has a gripping new prologue. I can't believe that it will be out over there in less than a year. How awesome is that?!

So yes, it's nice to have a bit of time off now before Christmas. I've got loads of DIY that I've been meaning to do for, well, the last ten years or so. I might even go and get the tree today. Yay! I hope you're all looking forward to the festive season.

So, that entry should keep the Galactic Federation of Bloggers at bay for now. I will try and stay more regular from now on. My gran tells me that a glass of prune juice every morning will help, although I can't for the life of me see how...

Just a quick post tonight because I'm sure you're all dying to know how I did on my Japanese test. Right? No? Oh, okay, well I can't tell you anyway because I won't find out until next week! I did seem to forget almost everything I'd learned, though, which isn't good. I'd forgotten how stressful it was to take an exam!

So anyway, it's just been another day of writing. I say 'just' but it is actually really exciting. Furnace 3 is glowing white hot at the moment as the action heats up, but it has become very violent... Even when compared to the first two... I hope my editors (in the UK and the US) don't panic too much! I've just passed the 35,000-word mark.

I'm just having a quiet night in tonight. Last night I cooked a stew and took it round to Mum's to give her a night off the cooking. Me, Mum and Jamie ended up playing a riddle game where you have to solve puzzles. It's called Mind Trap and I'd really recommend it to anyone wanting to stretch their brain power, or for anyone wanting to write mystery books for that matter. It was lovely spending some time with Mum and Jamie anyway.

Oh, and I got such a lovely email the other day from a lady called Lynda in New Zealand. She said some lovely things about my creative writing book, Inspired Creative Writing, which is always nice to hear. But the best part was when she finished the email with this offer:

There is absolutely no need to reply - but should you ever visit New Zealand, drop me a line and I'll bake a batch of scones and invite you to tea :-)

Scones and tea! I think that's the nicest offer I've ever had! Lynda, if I am ever in New Zealand I shall take you up on that, thank you (and I will reply to your email very soon)!

Last night went pretty well, there was a good turn out up at uni and the readers were all great. It was still a shame that mum couldn't make it as her piece of life writing would have been a nice contrast to the poetry and prose, and just as interesting. But we did the best we could without her! Nathan was pretty chuffed with how many copies of the anthology we sold (plus the ones sold the night before in London), which is all money that gets pumped back into the egg box coffers for more fantastic books. Fab!

I have spent most of the day writing, which is good. Passed the 30,000-word mark for Furnace 3 today, which is a huge milestone psychologically as I always see that as the half-way mark (even though the books have tended to be a bit longer). The story has also reached a vital turning point at exactly the place I wanted it to, which is cool. It's definitely been the hardest of the three to write so far, but I'm really enjoying it and things will only get more exciting in the second half...

Now I'm just putting off doing a bit of Japanese revision. Yup, I have started learning Japanese, mainly in the hope that one day I'll have a book translated into the language and turned into a film by Studio Ghibli (the latter in my top five of the most amazing dreams I can think of). This will be my fourth week and it's also EXAM TIME! I think it's a little early for a test, personally, but then I'm not the teacher! I'll crack on with it in a bit, but for now here are some things I can say about myself in Japanese:

Watashi no namae wa Gordon desu - My name is Gordon!
Watashi no shigoto wa sakka desu - I am a writer!
Watashi wa Igirisu-jin desu - I am British!
Watashi no sumai wa Norwich desu - My home is in Norwich!
Watashi wa eigo to nihongo o hanashimasu - I speak English and Japanese... (kind of!)
Watashi wa kekkon shite imasen - I am not married!
Watashi no dengwa bangou wa ... desu - My telephone number is (now that would be telling)!

Anyway, I'd better go and get revising. Wish me luck for my test!

Sayonara!

Just a quick post this evening as I'm running out for the launch of the UEA anthology, which as I mentioned a few posts ago is published by Egg Box. It should be quite an interesting mix of writers reading their work, although unfortunately mum's been feeling ill the last few days so she has decided not to read. It's such a shame as she would have been fab!

Last night went really well. Me, Kate, Simon and Jen went out for dinner with Tania, who is a Director of Photography. She has read the script for the film and she loves it, and we all loved her, so it looks like we've got ourselves a DoP for next year! Tania really knows her stuff, and I think she and Jen will make a fantastic team. Stagnant may only be a horror film, but they are planning to make it look gorgeous!

Oh, and I was good and only had a salad, you'll be pleased to know. Although there was so much oil on it that I might as well have had a pizza... Still, at least it means my diet has officially started... Anyway, I must dash. Check the news page tomorrow for an exciting update!

Oh god, what a horrible night. I thought yesterday was going to be incredibly healthy because Jamie, Christopher, Matthew and I went for a swim up at the university. It was great to have some exercise, but it all went downhill when we got home. I had one of my 'well my diet will start tomorrow so we really should pig out as much as possible tonight' moments and Jamie and I ended up ordering a mountain of Chinese food which we set about devouring with an animal ferocity which, to an outsider looking in, might suggest that we hadn't eaten in weeks. I don't know whether it was that, or the doughnuts we had for pudding, which kept me awake all night feeling like I was going to explode. Blurgh.

So now it's morning and I feel awful and I've promised myself that's the last time I'm going to eat crappy take-away food (I've heard that before). To be honest I think it's Jamie's fault, because we've made a bet that I'll have a flat stomach by my 30th birthday next February. I think I will (well I don't, but I'm eternally optimistic) and he sincerely doubts it. He doubts it so much, in fact, that we have each put 500 squids on it! I think he's sneaking into the house at night injecting fat into all my fruit and veg just so he can win the bet...

Anyway, today is the start of my new diet and I'm determined to stick to it. Partly for the money, and partly because I had loads of dreams last night about having a heart attack and going to hospital, and if that isn't my body crying out for help then I don't know what is!!! I figured that I'll keep track of my weight here online because if you are all watching then maybe I won't eat that last bit of cake...

It's just a shame that I'm meeting Kate and the director and DP of our film tonight in Pizza Express. And I always feel so silly ordering a salad. Maybe my diet should start tomorrow...

Well, so much for blogging regularly! Never mind, I'm here now and that's the most important thing... It's been a bit of a rotten week actually because I've had a horrible case of flu. Not just normal flu either, but the dreaded MAN FLU. It really is rotten. My head has been stuffed full off cotton wool, and my nose is dripping so much I could be a character in my own short story, snot. Gross! I've just been steadily overdosing on Lemsips all week, and am starting to feel a little better. But only a little...

So yes, most of the week has been spent in bed or in front of the telly feeling sorry for myself, which apparently is the most common symptom of man flu. It's not been a total loss. Yesterday Jamie, Lynsey, Lucy and I went to see the City of Ember, which I have to say was totally awesome. I mean the plot was a little too baggy at times, and there were a couple of clumsy moments. But overall I really enjoyed it.

I think what impressed me most was the concept of the city itself, buried underground and powered by a single generator which is on the verge of meltdown. The blackouts, when they happened, were terrifying because of the idea that without the generator these people will live in a world of total darkness. It is effectively a plague of blindness which effects everyone. I won't say if it happens or not, but the threat of it is enough to really drive the film forwards. It's a similar sort of motivation that drives Furnace, to be honest, as you hopefully develop the same hunger - craving - for daylight and fresh air when reading them. I'd really recommend this, anyway. I'm off to buy the book today.

Speaking of Furnace, being ill has given me a chance to crack on with number 3. It's absolutely chilling at the beginning of the book, although obviously I can't say why because it will spoil it! Now I'm about a third of the way through and it's turning from horror into pure, adrenaline-fuelled adventure! The word count currently stands at 24,000.

There has been some great news about foreign rights deals for Furnace as well, really really exciting stuff. I don't want to say too much now for fear of jinxing it, but I'll let you know as soon as I can!

And just one last thing for now. Thanks so much to everybody who has sent emails and letters in the last few weeks, they've all been fantastic to read. I promise I will get back to each and every one of you as soon as possible. I've just been so busy with the book! Sorry for being so rubbish at replying.

I blatantly failed to do any writing yesterday, again! I ended up going round to Jamie's and playing COD (or Call of Duty for the uninitiated) on his 360. It's a great game, very realistic. You can almost feel the bullets zipping past your head. Well, when I play they tend to zip into my head because I'm not very good. Jamie is ace at it, though.

I'm not really a wargame fan. I'm much happier with a survival horror. I love horror, I absolutely do, in all its many forms. But I think the genre really reaches its apex with games. Take something like Silent Hill, for example. The most terrified I've ever been in my life is playing that game. You get the immersive plot of a great horror novel, combined with the remarkably disturbing visuals and music of a film. But instead of being a passive observer you are literally in the game, your very survival depends on your own actions. It's utterly terrifying, but great! I'm currently waiting impatiently for Dead Space, Silent Hill 5 and the new Resident Evil too. I've just downloaded Siren Bloodsong from the Playstation store but to be honest that's a little too scary even for me...

We went out for dinner with Lynsey and Lucy, which was nice. I fancied pasta, but everywhere was fully booked, so we went to Pizza Express in the end. Their Sloppy Giuseppe pizza is amazing, as are their dough balls. It was a very funny evening, and for some reason Lucy and Jamie got a total giggling fit when I said 'would you like a bite of my strudel' in a German accent. I thought Lucy was going to wee herself!

Anyway, I shouldn't play any more games or eat any more pizza until I've finished my own horror story, Furnace 3. I promised myself I'd get up at eight this morning and start writing. I slept in until 10.30!!! I'm going to stop procrastinating with this blog and start doing some now. Maybe it will be easier if you all know my word count, then I'll feel bad for not writing as much as I need to each day. Okay, it currently stands at the 13,000 word mark... Wish me luck!

Yesterday turned out to be an Egg Box day, which is the first one I've had in ages. Egg Box is the name of the publishing company I set up years ago whilst at UEA, and which is now run by my great friend Nathan Hamilton. He's just published the University of East Anglia creative writing anthology, which is a gorgeous looking book full of some incredible writers (including my mum, who has just finished the Life Writing MA).

We spent a few hours up at uni stuffing envelopes, which was kind of fun in a weird way. Then we celebrated by losing a lot of money on the quiz machine... Then by going for a curry. I cooked myself a curry the night before, so I didn't particularly fancy another one, but Nathan was insistent. It was delicious though. He is usually a very messy eater, but last night I definitely won the award for 'most disgusting mess on the tablecloth'.

So anyway, today is my first weekend of being a full-time writer, so I do feel like I should be doing some writing. But then again maybe I'll go to the cinema...

I went on a bit of an adventure last weekend with the gang (for those who didn't read my old blog the gang consists of me, Lynsey, Lucy and Jamie). Lynsey is thinking about writing a children's book, which I think is a great idea. It will make a nice change from the very morbid (but very good, Bridport-winning good) short stories she writes.

So, for a bit of research, we decided to visit a traditional Iceni village in Norfolk. It was a bit of a drive away, but fortified with some Aero Bubbles and Mars Planets we made it in the end. It was an odd place, with not a hell of a lot in it to be honest. I mean there was a village, made in the style of Iceni architecture, but back then villages only consisted of a couple of huts and a place to park your cow, and this recreation was no different. It was fun wandering round the huts, though, until Jamie pulled the hand off a dummy and we ran for the hills in case the rest of the plastic family suddenly came to life to exact some Iceni-style revenge... We might have had our heads put on spikes like these poor souls!

It was a great day, and lovely to see Big L and Little L again. We shall have to plan more adventures soon!

Well I am absolutely shattered after working on the site all day, but it wouldn't feel right if I didn't at least write a little something on my blog. So here it is:

A Little Something.

More tomorrow!

I've just got back from the Hay Festival, and what a weekend it was! Along with most people who are blogging about the event, I'd just like to start by mentioning the weather. I mean it really was like an entire year's worth of seasons squished into two days. Saturday afternoon was as beautiful and balmy as a summer's day, with everybody walking around in T-shirts and whistling chirpy tunes and generally turning rather alarming shades of crimson. By the evening however, it was as bitterly cold as a winter night, with red cheeks in every direction for a different reason.

Sunday saw the heavens open, and I mean really open. I was outside for about five minutes scuttling from the car to the festival site and I got absolutely drenched! Ridiculous! In the course of the day I changed my clothes three times and each time only minutes later it was like Id been for a dip in the Wye. It certainly put a bit of a damp edge on things but being soggy was a small price to pay for being at such a great festival!

My event itself was buffeted by some of the fiercest winds in the history of winds (okay, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but it certainly felt that way)! I was performing in the Book People's Workshop and it was sold out, which was great! But the wind was doing its best to get inside, and the tent was rattling and groaning and whipping so much that I thought it was going to take off! I was convinced that we'd all step outside and find that we'd been blown up to Scotland or something.

Despite the gale, I think it went okay. People were struggling to hear me to start with but then a microphone was wheeled in. It's the first time I've used one and it was difficult to resist the temptation to do a Tom Jones impersonation. The audience were fantastic, and came up with some brilliant inventions. Hopefully some of them will try and write a story for the 'Invent Your Way Out Of Trouble' competition starting soon. Thanks to everyone who came, you were all fab! Oh, and the festival even gave me a rose after I had finished, which was a lovely touch!

Once the event was over I could relax a bit (I still get so nervous before a show, I think I always will). I travelled down with my Mum and Jamie, so we all hung out in Hay for a bit visiting the book shops and a food festival and basking in the sun. Jamie and I played some American Football in a meadow, and I think I broke my finger trying to catch one throw! In the evening we went over to a camp site where some good friends of mine Luke and Sally were camped with Sal's family (in the biggest RV I've ever seen). We had dinner there and chilled out a bit, which was lovely!

On Sunday, despite the rain, we had another good look round the shops (so many books!) and wandered around the festival site. Rather embarrassingly I didn't actually manage to see any of the shows, although I did see some cool celebs in the Green Room (ooh, posh!) including Cherie Blair! To be honest it was just really nice to spend some time with Mum and Jamie, and to get a little holiday!

I've got some time off now before my next show, so it's full steam ahead on Furnace 2. I'll let you know how it goes. But thanks again to everyone at Hay for making me feel so welcome!

Yay! The Inventors and the City of Stolen Souls has just been delivered and it looks sooooooooo great! I honestly didn't think the thrill of having a second book out would match the excitement of seeing the first, but I'm pleased to report that I was wrong. I got the same heart-pounding, sweaty-palmed, tingling-scalp feeling pulling the first copy out of the box Faber sent me as I did last year when I first saw The Inventors!

The best thing about having two books is that I can put them together on the shelf. The Inventors was getting a bit lonely up there by itself (it did have my creative writing books to keep it company, but they didn't really talk to each other much, fiction and non-fiction just don't seem to get on that well). The covers go perfectly, and the spines match as well, making them look like purple and red peas in a pod! I could sit and look at them all day, and in fact have done ever since they arrived. I really should get on...

But I do just want to take this opportunity to say a HUGE thanks to everyone at Faber who worked so hard on the book, especially my editor Julia, her assistant Emily, plus, as always, Helena, Susan and Kate. Once again you've made mine and Jamie's dreams come true and we will be forever grateful!

To celebrate the book coming out we had a lovely lunch at mum's on Sunday, complete with a bottle of champagne (ooo, la de da!) and lots of crisps (that's more like it). It was a really nice excuse for the family to get together, with my sister and her husband coming over and even my gran hobbling up the road to join the fun. The highlight of the day had to be playing Pictionary, although Jamie and I were beaten by Kate and Simon. But they are married, so can probably read each other's minds, which is cheating obviously.

Anyway, I really had better get on. We're driving down (across?) to Hay tomorrow for the festival and I've lost the cable thingy that goes with my sat nav. And if I don't have the nice lady telling me where to go then I'll end up in Bolton.
Hope to see some of you down there!

What can be better, in weather like this, than to take a trip to the seaside? That's exactly what I did on Sunday. I drove up to Sheringham with Kate (my sister), Nathan (poet, great friend and managing editor of Egg Box) plus his girlfriend Jennifer (who is going to direct our horror film next year). We went to my dad's, as he lives about two minutes from the beach, and chilled out there for a bit in his gorgeous garden. Then we all strolled down to the seafront and basked for a while in the glorious weather!

It got so hot that I even decided to go for a swim! It was absolutely freezing when I first got in, like being dunked in a bath full of cold water with ice cubes in it! But after a while it warmed up (either that or I just went numb all over), and it was so refreshing! I stayed in for about half an hour and when I came out I was a very alarming shade of pink.

Afterwards we headed back to dad's for a barbeque, which really didn't do my diet much good at all. Although the double angry wopper I guzzled down after going to Brighton had already scuppered it I think. It was a really relaxing day, and just what I needed! It was great to see dad too, we really don't see each other as much as we should do.

Anyway, The Inventors 2 should be at the Faber offices in a couple of days, I can't wait!!!