I suppose, as with every other blog out there, I ought to add a post about the coronavirus and the lockdown, and how we’re dealing with it here.

We have been very lucky, in that we came back from Spain in our motorhome on 20th February, a few weeks before things started getting serious there. We had a load of plans for more travelling this spring, which of course have all been cancelled.

Our home is a large house with a garden, near the cliff top and beach in Bournemouth, which means we are very priveleged compared with some. Our younger son had come home for a fortnight’s holiday in early March, and as things ramped up he decided to stay here, as his acting course was of course suspended. Our older son decamped here from his flat in Birkenhead on the day the lockdown began, and he’s been working from home since.

I realised the other day that at Christmas I always look forward most to having both my boys with us, having time to play games, go for walks, watch movies, bake cookies with them. And so now, in lockdown, we are doing a tremendous amount of all that so I really can’t complain! We’re also catching up with friends and relatives via Zoom.

I’m also writing, of course. About half way through a new novel, and awaiting structural edits on another. Ebooks and audio books seem to be selling well which is nice.

So – life goes on. We’ve rediscovered so many small local shops which are often a better bet than the larger supermarkets. Catering for four means we’re needing quite a lot more food than usual – the breadmaker is in use most days. There was a minor crisis when we ran out of yeast but after posting on facebook a friend sent us some, and then I discovered a small shop still selling it. If lack of yeast is our biggest issue during this crisis then there really is nothing to complain about!

So far no one close to us has had the virus, though I do know a number of people in the writing community who’ve had it, including the very wonderful Rachel who organises blog tours for my new books. She was hospitalised for a while but thankfully is back home recovering now, and I wish her all the best.

I hope you’re all coping ok with this horrible situation, and I send best wishes to you all, especially those with the virus or who have someone close who has it. Keep well, keep safe, and let’s all look forward to the time when all this is behind us.