2016: The Year we’d mostly like to forget.

Well, hasn’t 2016 been a truly terrible year? War, politics, death have all been busy this year which makes me doing a wee review of my writing feel somewhat unimportant. I entirely understand if you have more important things on your mind.

That said, there has been the odd nice thing this year. I got engaged for one.

via GIPHY

Another nice thing was my writing. It has been very patchy this year with the muse coming on me in fits and starts but I did get three stories published.

First, in January was The Past Does Not Watch Over Us, a story of science, General Relativity and willful stupidity. That can be found in The Speculative Book

Next up in May was More Certainty In Your Shopping, a story of how to cope with the apocalypse while not believing everything supermarkets tell you. It can be found in  Kzine Issue 15

Then, in September the Glasgow Science Fiction Writer’s Circle celebrated their thirtieth anniversary with their anthology Thirty Years of Rain I managed to sneak a wee collection of passive aggressive letters into it under the title of The Lodger.

I’m deeply happy with all of these.

I also had a great time at conventions (waffling about writing rather than doing it, obviously) and even had a couple of reading occasions which were great fun, if nerve-wracking.

Looking forward, next year is due to start brightly as I have a new winter story coming out in KZine in January. Have no fear, I’ll annoy you about it when it does.
Beyond that the aim is to keep on keeping on. I have a first draft novel roughly three quarters done that needs finished and several stories I’m hawking around the place so here’s hoping that I can find the time for them.
I’ll also be going to Worldcon in Finland and must say I am very much looking forward to it. A place I’ve never been.

As is now tradition I’ve added a new story to the blog for you to read. It’s a story of fairy cakes called Unexpected Visitors that I got published a few years back and if you’ve not seen it before it can be read here. It includes a free recipe for some very nice cakes.

I hope you all have a good festive period and an improving New Year.