This morning I woke up early to  bright sunshine and mist in the river valley. Yes we’re definitely having an Indian Summer at the moment. We’ve had an exceptionally dry month so far; any rain has been falling during the night leaving the days dry and sunny.  However no doubt we’ll be back to wind and rain by October which will shake the trees and start bringing the leaves down indicating that autumn really has arrived.  I’m a little sad that summer is over. 2014 has been an exceptionally good one especially during June and July. In fact both our weeks away during those two months were perfect weather-wise. It made such a difference to the holiday especially being able to eat outside – something we Brits usually have to fly to the Med to experience.  It’s such a shame UK weather is subject to the whims of the jet stream and we are not able to guarantee a hefty dose of sunshine to make our summers more enjoyable. It’s very much a case of enjoy it while it is here!
Currently we are on count down to a mid week break, our last holiday of 2014. We’re flying out to Guernsey for a few days. We were there in April as a late celebration for my OH’s birthday. Now it’s the turn of the wife of one of our friends. I love Guernsey; less commercialised than its sister island of Jersey it has a much gentler pace of life than mainland UK and the islanders are always friendly and welcoming.  Today once the writing session is over I’m off to sort out clothes to pack. We have three days, the first of which will be spent browsing around St Peter Port, the capital. What we do on the other two will depend very much on the weather. There are some amazing coastal walks but, of course, that’s a bit of a no-no if it’s blowing a force seven gale! As this is our fourth visit we’ve seen most of the attractions there like the Shipwreck Museum. I’d love to take one of the small ferries out to nearby Herm or Sark but at this time of year there is always the possibility of sea fog which can have you stranded there overnight or maybe even longer.
Guernsey is a very small island, you can drive around it in a day but hey! we’re on holiday and chilling out so I’m sure we’ll find something to do even if it’s sitting drinking wine and watching the world go by. This time around we’re not staying at our usual hotel in St Martins but in St Peter Port. Not sure what The Duke of Normandie will be like – am hoping we’ll like it as much as our usual hotel, La Barbarie. We’ve grown so used to the great accommodation, food and service there but as we’re not planning to hire a car this time round we opted to stay centrally and use taxis or public transport to get around. Unbelievably this comes out cheaper than short term car hire.  Below I give you a taste of the island…can’t wait!
An Update on Summer Moved On
As I leave for the holiday in a good place with my current WIP. Yes, the first draft of Summer Moved On will be completed by the time I leave next week. It’s never a good idea to get too complacent when writing. When I first started this novel at the end of 2013 it went like a dream and I held my breath because dream writing is not a long term thing; it’s a case of making the most of it while you can. Predictably it began to stall during the summer and I hit pockets where for whatever reason the whole thing seemed to drive into a cul-de-sac and stop. As I had set out the whole thing like a series of connecting boxes – each box being a separate scene – I simply moved on and began on another section of the story. Walking away from a difficult scene is, I have found, the only 
way to resolve the problem There is no point banging your head against a brick wall. The harder you try the more elusive the solution becomes. More often than not I’ve found if  things aren’t working then it’s either got to be written in a different way i.e. choosing a new location or taking it from a different character viewpoint or it’s not meant to be and should be scrapped and rethought.  The good news is, however, that everything has now fallen into place and I have only a few more hundred words to go before journey’s end. This means I’ll be able to start work on edits as soon as I return. Editing is probably the worst but most essential part of writing a book. I don’t think I know anyone who really enjoys it.  It will mean several months of checking, amending and rewriting before the manuscript is ready to be placed in the hands of my editor in January.  I am hoping for publication sometime in Spring 2015 and after that well I’ll be getting down to writing the sequel!
JO LAMBERT 