January 2025 - Musicals, New Photos & Querying Fun. (And by fun, I mean hell?)
Life Updates
I don’t know about you guys, but I love the start of a new year. It’s like a fresh slate and a brand new counting point for so many things (for example… My yearly Goodreads challenge ha ha!)… And yes, I know you can pick ANY time of year to make new resolutions and start new patterns, but something about doing these things in January is so delicious. I’ve decided this year to try and take the pressure off myself and stop feeling this impending ticking clock to get everything done RIGHT NOW. 2025 is about slow and steady progress. I’ve also got a new mantra that when I start worrying about stupid shit (which, let’s face it, is something I do most of the time), I tell myself NO, you are NOT ALLOWED TO in 2025. That’s the rule. In 2026, you can worry about all the stupid shit again as much as you like, but this year you are forbidden from it. Sorry brain, that’s just the rules this year. So far, my wacko tactic is sort of working, so I’m going to keep going with it for as long as I can…!
At the start of the month, Matty and I had a lovely weekend up in London where we saw two shows in a day - first up was The Devil Wears Prada which was such a fun, campy musical that really did justice to the iconic film! The second show was a play called Barcelona starring the real life Emily In Paris herself, Lily Collins. This was a really different vibe from TDWP - a mix of comedy and drama with two characters in one setting for 80 minutes. I adore watching plays with minimal production like this and find them so inspiring from a writing POV. The show explored all sorts of themes from love and regret to international politics. I LOVED seeing Lily Collins live too, it’s such a zing to watch someone so famous performing up close and personal!
We finished our weekend away with late night cocktails followed by Korean BBQ for lunch the following day (SO GOOD). It was such a perfect way to start the year and I always love spending time with Matty and having adventures together!
I also went to see Dear Evan Hansen at The Mayflower this month with my cousin Erin - this is the second time I’ve seen the show (well, third if you count the movie), and I always find it the strangest, most sinister story ever, whilst also being simultaneously charmed by the absolute BANGER of a soundtrack. We had a blast revisiting it, even with the show randomly pausing for ten minutes with no explanation during Act 1. I am convinced someone in the cast had diarrhoea and needed to run offstage. Or maybe it was technical issues. But for some reason I prefer the diarrhoea explanation, so I’m sticking with it.
Oh yeah, in other news… I have purchased a walking pad! I decided I wanted to try and up my step count in daily life (especially when it gets too rainy and gross outside to walk home from work) and figured this was a good way to exercise more. The first time I used it, I kept getting too near the front of the pad and it emergency stopped and dramatically threw me off. This happened about 10 times and I started freaking out and threatening to pack it up and send it back… Well, once I learned to walk AT THE BACK of the pad and try and keep a better rhythm going, I got on a lot better with it. Who knew exercise could be so bloody dangerous?!
Other than that I’ve just been getting back into the swing of work again and slogging my way through the 1057 days that seemed to make up January. Seems like it’s finally over, HALLELUJAH.
Oh yeah and I’ve been diagnosed with fricking CARPAL TUNNEL. So that’s fun. I am going to be given a splint and then possibly a steroid injection which according to my fellow CT-sufferer friend Leah is HORRIBLE. Oh joy, welcome to impending middle age and watching your body fall apart from merely typing on a keyboard etc. etc.
Creative Updates
The Querying Journey so far…
So I’m now 2 months into my search for a new literary agent… annnnd, yeah, I’m going to be brutally honest, this whole process has been torturous.
Despite refreshing my email approximately 396 times per day, my inbox has remained, excruciatingly, cavernously, echoingly empty (with the exception of one fresh new rejection hooray), and it turns out that checking for updates every waking second doesn’t actually make anything exciting appear (who knew?)
I know that this is the worst time of year to be querying, and I know that many people are probably only just getting on top of their slush piles now, so I just have to remain calm and patient and wait my turn in the queue… But the narrower some of the waiting windows for certain agents are getting, the more I’ve been starting to panic. I’m looking back on the Becky of November, that total idiot who was soooo confident and la dee da without a care in the world as she brazenly pitched out her manuscript and I’m thinking YOU UTTER FOOL. DID YOU NOT REALISE WHAT YOU WERE FRICKING IN FOR?! DID YOU THINK YOU WERE GONNA SKIP THE QUEUE OR SOMETHING AND THIS WOULD ALL COME SO EASY, HUH?? DID YA PUNK???!
Anyway, not to be dramatic, but the despair and desolation has been lapping violently at my heels this past week. Pursuing a career in publishing is incredibly isolating because there is so much that is out of your control and it’s so hard to explain to anyone outside of this world about the pain of it all. It’s this weird thing that no one can see and no one can truly advise about, and you just feel completely alone and like you’re going slowly mad as the seconds and days and weeks and months of silence tick by.
BUT… all my apocalyptic moaning aside, I am choosing not to give up hope yet. I still feel confident in my query and in my writing CV and I still have faith that the right person is out there for me. I know it’s just a matter of ‘right place, right time’ and being the exact thing someone is looking for at the exact moment they happen to be looking for it. All I need is that one person who really gets me and believes in me and then together I know we’ll achieve incredible things. Nothing good in this life comes bloody easy. I want to document all the ups and downs of my writing journey so that hopefully one day I can look back on this post as inspiration to never give up.
Here’s hoping February will wield better news…!
And everything else…
I went up to London at the end of my Christmas break to get some new headshots taken with the amazingly talented Siobhan at SJX Photography - it was such a fun shoot and I am so happy with the results! Thank you to everyone who left lovely feedback on their favourite shots… Manifesting that book sale in 2025 so I can use one of these babies for the back jacket!!
On the continuing topic of books, I received a PLR (Public Lending Rights) report this month, informing me of how many people loaned The Songs You’ve Never Heard from their local or school library. I was chuffed to pieces to discover there had been 1161 borrows between 2023 and 2024!!! That’s such a lot of people! So amazing to know people are still enjoying our little booksical, it really made my whole day!
Later in the month, I helped my friend Matt film a promo video for a Portsmouth Mystery Guide company - oh my gosh, this was such a laugh to make, especially when I had to look like I was talking on camera so started screeching “WOW, IT’S A CANNON, OH MY GOD, A CANNON!” and some people passing by gave me a dirty look (oops hahaha). I think “Geeky Girlfriend” is clearly the role I was born to play, and I’m thrilled to have acting officially down on my CV now. What is hilarious is that an old workmate from my Homebase days spotted the video on her Facebook feed and was like hmm your husband Mat looks a bit different…! (He was actually helping film behind the scenes lol!!)
Ooh - this month, I also entered my campy, B-Movie horror mutant shark YA book Strange Waters into the Faber Action Prize. This is a competition my lovely author friend Louise Finch told me about and it’s specifically looking for high-octane, bonkers books with multi-gender appeal. I really hope that I might be in with a shot for a prize… This was my lockdown project and although it’s completely off the wall, and could use a bit of professional polish, I LOVE it and think in the right hands it could be a hit. The judging panel at Faber are exactly the right kind of audience for this story so FINGERS CROSSED for some positive feedback!
Other than that I’ve been working on more library music and session singing jobs - it would be amazing to hear my vocals used on some children’s TV shows in the future so I’m keeping everything crossed!
Movie Recs
We Live In Time - This was an emotional romance starring the super hot Andrew Garfield and equally super hot Florence Pugh who were just such an adorable couple who zinged with chemistry. The storyline goes back and forward in time throughout their relationship, documenting all the ups and downs that they face. It’s a weepie, and I think it could have gone a little deeper into the subject matter, but it was still worth a watch! I’m just really glad movies like this are back up on the big screen again.
Babygirl - Nicole Kidman is a hot, mega powerful CEO who starts an affair with a much younger intern who bosses her around and makes her drink milk and scurry around on all fours like a dog. It’s kind of like 50 Shades Of Grey, but all a lot more awkward. Mat found it cringey as hell, but I loved it, sorry not sorry hahaha
A Complete Unknown - My third cinema trip of the month was to see the new Bob Dylan biopic which I absolutely LOVED. This is a real musician’s kind of movie and completely immerses you in 1960s boho New York City. I loved all the songs and Bob’s entire journey (and rebellious nature) - it was just brilliant!
His Three Daughters - Sorry, I couldn’t pick just three movies this month - this one stayed with me so much that I had to include it. Three sisters who love each other, but don’t necessarily like each other, come together in a cramped NYC apartment to look after their dying father. Very dialogue-heavy and heart-wrenching, exploring the complications of family dynamics in hard times. I absolutely loved it.
TV Recs
The Traitors (UK S3) - The best reality show on telly returned this month and Season 3 was totally addictive with plenty of wicked twists and turns! I was OBSESSED with Linda and Minah as Traitors and as the show continued so did all the edge-of-your-seat drama! SO GOOD. Also, Claudia’s outfits were all as epic as ever.
The Masked Singer - My favourite silly singing competition is back baby, and whilst it’s not as exciting as some years, we did get incredible scenes of Macy Gray having a massive tantrum whilst dressed as a Toad In The Hole, all because she got voted out before Sonia from Eastenders dressed as a bush. Only on British TV, eh…
XO, Kitty (S2) - The To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before spin-off series is back for a second season and follows Lara Jean’s iconic sister Kitty through love triangles, friendship drama and unfurling family secrets whilst at school in Korea. This is the perfect fluff watch, I love it!
Book Recs
One Book Of Fudge by Paul Lees - My bestie Paul aka. One Box Of Fudge has released his first ever recipe book with all proceeds going to local Gosport charities. This lovely little book is packed with so much love and personality, and many of the recipes have connections to real life people in Paul’s life. The perfect gift for anyone in your life who loves baking or simply giving back to other people!
November 9 by Colleen Hoover - I am cracking through CoHo’s whole back catalogue and finally reached one of her most famous novels. This story follows Ben and Fallon who after a chance meeting, continue to meet up only once a year, on November 9th, over the space of 5 years… But Ben is hiding secrets from Fallon that threaten to blow up their unusual relationship and threaten it from evolving into more. I honestly loved this like I love all of Colleen Hoover’s stories. It was juicy, soapy, easy to read and really cinematic!
Noah Could Never by Simon James Green - I am bit late to the party for this YA sequel which was first published in 2018 - but bloody hell it is SOOO funny! Noah is such a geeky and awkward (but loveable) protagonist and this caper sees him navigating his first boyfriend whilst also getting mixed up in a diamond heist and a multi-level protein powder illegal pyramid scheme. There are also warring drag queens, sexy French exchange students and a violent, hungry goose, what more could you want from a teen novel?!
Music Recs
Two Shades Blonder by Devon Cole - A little collection of super fun, poppy tracks from an artist who has been floating on my radar for ages now. If you like strong melodies and playful, witty lyrics, you’ll love her music! I can also really recommend her 2021 EP “Party For One”.
Louder, Please by Rose Gray - Another great new pop girly with a really fun, melodic and sassy album. There have been a few artists launching in this vein lately, and Rose really stands out as one to watch for me!
Demons by Corinna Jane - My friend Corinna Jane has just released the score and soundtrack to the drama movie Mr. Hyde including this epic, cinematic theme song which she wrote, recorded and produced herself. I really love this track with its beautiful atmospheric vocals and evocative lyrics. It has even been featured on official Apple Music playlists - congrats on a hit song Corinna!!
Thanks to everyone who catches up with these monthly updates! I’ve been thinking about this newsletter and how to improve it in the new year… Perhaps slightly less waffling moving forwards, but I mean, this is me, it’s kind of impossible for me NOT to waffle. But anyway, do let me know what you’d like to see more or less of! And wishing you all a very productive, creative and joyful year ahead! :)
Love your updates!!
Eeeeekkk! What a month January was!!! Love the sound of Noah Would Never 🤣🤣🤣 Adding to my list immediately ❤️❤️❤️