Daynote - Wed 23 Jul

Up very early this morning (well, the regular time, but I had to move faster than normal to catch a train) as I'm staying in Edinburgh for the next few days to look after my friend's dog. I'm still buzzing after yesterday's announcement that I've sold another book to Headline! Check that link out for the details.

ON DECK: A svelte 401 words this morning once I'd arrived at my dogsitting destination and got settled. It's going pretty well, though I'm behind my planned pace. But I'm doing what I can with travel, family and other commitments. Keeping the ball moving gradually forward is sometimes all that's possible. And 401 words is 401 times better than zero words.

LISTENING: I really enjoyed this interview with historian Hallie Rubenhold on Always Takes Notes - it's fascinating hearing how the journey into publishing in non-fiction can be so different, and also how she goes about her research and the advisory work she does on TV shows.

WATCHING: We thought we'd give THE VEIL a try on Channel 4, a new spy thriller with Elisabeth Moss playing an MI6 agent. It's got an interesting opening episode but the ropy accent from Moss is quite a distraction to be honest.

READING: More of the blurb read spy thriller last night.

LINK: The Scots Whay Hae Podcast interviewed myself and the other Bloody Scotland Debut Prize shortlisters and the interview is now live. See below for the embedded Youtube version:

UP NEXT: A few days of dogwalking and running around Edinburgh dealing with stuff, plus catching up on reading and writing. Ideally I'd like to get back on my pace with this novel but also I've never looked after a dog before, so we'll see how that goes. He's an adorable little fella, so I'm really looking forward to it.

Onward!