Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
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June Gardening Tips from Wellie
June is a busy and rewarding month in the garden—little and often is the key. Deadhead roses and early perennials to keep flowers coming, and stake taller plants like delphiniums before they flop. Hoe borders regularly to keep weeds down and retain moisture. Water deeply a few times a week rather than little and often.
Deadlines
Image Credits:- Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes.
Deadlines are a fact of the writing life and apply equally to non-fiction as well as stories of all lengths.
Douglas Adams, renowned for his The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, famously said he loved the sound deadlines made as they “whooshed by”. Hmm… I do feel sorry for his editor and publisher here. Someone has to meet printing schedules etc. Clearly, Douglas Adams left that for someone else to worry about!
Having said that, you would get short shrift if you tried that now. You would have to be a very big name indeed to get away with that and I’m not convinced even by that. There is a greater awareness of how the book market works. Everyone wants their books out in time for the Christmas market and, for certain books, the summer holiday one. You definitely have to meet deadlines to have any chance of achieving this.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 11 — July and August 1949
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
Esther Chilton – Author Interview – Myths and Magic
Image Credits:-
Many thanks to Esther Chilton for supplying author and book cover shots. Other images were created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos or images supplied by Esther. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes, as was the photo from The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick.
It is with great pleasure I welcome fellow Swanwicker, Esther Chilton, back to Chandler’s Ford Today to talk about her second book for children, Myths and Magic. This is part of her Saffy’s Secret Quest series. As well as writing for children, Esther also writes flash fiction and short stories, is a tutor for The Writers’ Bureau and tutors at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick.
[Read more…] about Esther Chilton – Author Interview – Myths and Magic
A Change of Scene
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes, as was the photo of a splendid Scottish loch.
I’ve just returned from a wonderful break in the north-east of Scotland. The scenery there is amazing. Naturally, the change of scene has been rejuvenating (as were the winds!). One highlight here was as we drove through the Cairngorms National Park to get to where we were staying, we saw plenty of snow still on the mountains. In the valleys below them were fields of oilseed rape in full bloom. Quite a contrast!
Now fiction reflects life. So if we need our metaphorical batteries recharging, it is likely our characters will need something similar themselves. Even superheroes have weaknesses (Kryptonite, anyone?) and/or need time to recharge before getting on with their acts of derring do.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 10 — May and June 1949
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
May 1949 The Farm in Full Bloom
Story Essentials
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
The essentials for any story are to have a proper beginning, middle and end. This conveniently helps with this post as it automatically gives me three sections to write about. But the following thoughts will apply to any fiction, regardless of length, and, as writers, we will always be looking to improve our skills. For a story to grip a reader, there has to be something for the reader to be gripped by!
Book Event Tips
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. Many thanks to Janet Williams for taking the images of me at the most recent Hiltingbury Book Fair.
It is with great pleasure I can reveal my third flash fiction collection, Seeing The Other Side, will be published by Bridge House Publishing on 18th June 2026. I hope to share more news as and when I get it but it does mean, for the first time in six years, I need to start thinking about book launches and events.
Six years ago, I was launching Tripping The Flash Fantastic but thanks to the pandemic, all launches and promotional work had to be carried out via online means only. These were a lifeline, of course, and I still use Zoom regularly for all sorts of things and am very glad to do so. But it will be lovely to have more options this time around.
Having said that, and having been to various book fairs and launches of my own (and others), I have picked up various tips so I thought I’d share these here.
Local Author News – Richard Hardie – Podcasting – “Know and Tell with Kosmas”
Image Credits:-
Many thanks to Richard Hardie for supplying poster images and author head shot. Other images created in Book Brush by Allison Symes using Richard’s images and others from Pixabay. AI shots avoided.
“Know and Tell with Kosmas” is a podcast with one of the largest audiences in India and throughout Asia. It’s run by Kosha Shah Chandaria, a celebrated Indian author, and each month she invites two authors to join her on the podcast to talk about how they started writing books and how they plan them.
She tends to choose authors from the same genre and this month I was lucky enough to be asked to join her and Sohil Makwana, who, like me, writes detective mystery fiction, and is one of the most prolific writers in India.
The podcast is done on Instagram and if you go onto YouTube, it can be accessed at www.youtube.com/@_kosmos_85 you can listen in and see us in all our glory!
The podcast lasted about an hour and from my point of view it was fascinating to hear how another mystery writer undertakes his craft. Amazingly, Sonil and I write in very similar ways, though I suspect he’s more disciplined in how he writes.
Overall it was a fascinating experience and I felt honoured to be asked to represent the UK!
Richard Hardie
Author of the Temporal Detective Agency series.
Book Publishing MD of the Year 2026 (UK): Richard Hardie
Most Innovative Book Publisher 2026 – UK
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 9 — March and April 1949
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
March 1949
Early Signs of Spring [Read more…] about Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 9 — March and April 1949
Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC) – Part 3
Written by Graham Jackson
ITCHEN VALLEY PROBUS CLUB PART 3
In the first two articles of this series I looked at the history and formation of Probus Clubs, how and why Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC) was created, the first 30 years or so of the Club, and I touched also on current activities. In this final article of the series I look more at present activities and towards the future.
[Read more…] about Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC) – Part 3
May Gardening Tips from Wellie
Mow lawns weekly and keep edges neat, raise the cutting height in dry spells. Keep on top of weeds in borders – little and often makes a big difference.
Using Old Sayings in Fiction
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
There is a lot of truth in the old sayings. One which immediately springs to mind for this month is Ne’er cast a clout before May is out. It is always a good idea to have a coat to hand until we get into June at least! But can we use these old sayings for stories or as themes for stories? Definitely. Because these things are timeless, that will help give your stories longevity too.
This post then will explore a few sayings and suggest some thoughts on what could be done to use them for creating stories. Bear in mind too, these sayings are often open to interpretation. Also, even where they’re not, you can use them time and again for different characters and situations.
Writing Wishes
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
Every writer has wishes. We work hard to try to bring some at least to fruition. But there are other, bigger wishes going on now and most are centred around Artificial Intelligence (AI). Nobody wants creativity destroyed by it. Many are wary of what it can be capable of.
Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC) – Part 2
Written by Graham Jackson
ITCHEN VALLEY PROBUS CLUB PART 2
In the first of this short series of articles about Probus, I looked primarily at the origins of the worldwide movement, and touched on Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC). This time I look at the creation of IVPC and track it through to 2025. The final article will look at 2026 and beyond for IVPC.
In August 1988 the President of the Rotary Club of Itchen Valley felt there may be a need for another Probus Club in this area. His feeling was based on the successful promotion and subsequent establishment of a new Club in Alresford, and the knowledge that the existing Eastleigh and Chandlers Ford Probus Club had 60 members, and a waiting list.
[Read more…] about Itchen Valley Probus Club (IVPC) – Part 2
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 8 — January and February 1949
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
Podcast Opening Introduction – January 1949
Welcome back to My Mother’s Diaries. Episode 8, January 1949
We begin a brand-new year now — January 1949 — a time when winter still grips the countryside, but the promise of a fresh year lies ahead.
There is always a sense of quiet optimism at the start of a new year… new plans, small hopes, and the simple rhythm of family and farm life continuing day by day. [Read more…] about Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 8 — January and February 1949
Character Moments
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
I love those moments in any fiction where a character stands out. They say or do something which has resonance and, if at the same time, this can provide a laugh, even better.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 7 — November and December 1948
Image My Mother’s Diaries by Andy Vining 2026
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his new podcast. Listen to these beautiful stories on Spotify.
Andy Vining’s parents were John and Peggy (later known as Be Be).
November 1948
November opened in foul weather — rain sweeping across the fields from morning to night — and the children home for half term filled the house with noise despite the gloom.
I went into Winchester for new shoes while John attended Lodge, and there was uneasy talk of foot and mouth in Salisbury — never pleasant news when one keeps cattle.
There were brighter interludes. I went dancing at The Richie Hall, though the gramophone misbehaved and caused some disruption. [Read more…] about Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 7 — November and December 1948
Flash Fiction on Radio
Image Credits:-
Images were created in Book Brush using Pixabay images. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes.
I was delighted to have another story, Out With The Old, recently broadcast on Hannah Kate’s Spring Equinox show on North Manchester FM recently. It was also a joy to hear the other tales too, especially since another was from a dear friend of mine from the Association of Christian Writers.
https://www.mixcloud.com/Hannahs_Bookshelf/hannahs-bookshelf-spring-equinox-special-21032026/
