Publication News: New Novella

It’s been a busy couple of months, but I have now published a brand-new novella with Fiction Express: Crash Course. It was nice to work with the platform once more, and the feedback from readers has been lovely as always. Whenever I’m feeling bruised by silence and rejection for my longer novels, writing for Fiction Express is a real balm... Here's the gorgeous cover for the book:

I’ve not had much time to rework the YA thriller. It’s still on the to-do list. But that’s my next job, so hopefully I’ll be able to get a second draft finished before the end of the year. I have done a little more research, and I’m excited about all the changes that I want to implement.

In other news, I’m up to five hours of private tuition, so I’m getting close to my goal of quitting at the school. Thanks to everyone who has shared my posts advertising the tutoring service! Ending the teaching assistant job will also free up time and flexibility which will all be helpful for getting the writing projects off the ground. I’d also like to get back to doing some voluntary work for Grimm & Co soon, which hasn’t been possible while I’ve been managing about four different jobs since September! 

Draft Complete (and other updates)

Yesterday, I reached the end of a first draft: the YA thriller that I started to develop in October last year. The 78,000 words are very much a ‘messy’ draft. While I’ve been writing, I’ve put together a list of things that need to be reworked, including aspects of plot and characterisation. I’ll be tackling these areas in the coming months, and it won’t be until that point that it will be ready to share with early readers.

With After Isla, I shared the first draft exclusively with my agent. I have yet to learn its fate, but it has been several months, and the more time passes, the more I’m steeling myself for rejection from the major publishing houses. With this new one, therefore, I’ll try a slightly different approach: gather feedback from a small group of readers, revise, and then share with my agent. I might be able to get the second draft to her at the start of 2026, and hopefully it will be a ‘tighter’ one that can go to editors at publishing houses more swiftly than After Isla.

September and October will be busy months. Alongside novel revision, I will be working for Fiction Express to publish a novella called Crash Course for their 12+ audience. I will also be back at the school doing reading intervention with small groups on Wednesdays and Thursdays. The school made my temporary contract permanent, and it makes sense to stay there while I’m developing my tutoring business. I have one tutee, but I need between five and ten to make quitting at the school a viable option (or to receive a book deal, of course!). Much like the new novel, my employment goals are very much works in progress!

In other news, my agent is now operating independently at Solas Literary Agency. My profile can be found here.