Sticky Toffee Pudding a la Glennys
When I asked if anybody had any photos of recipes they have cooked from the Old Fools series to be added to the new recipe book coming soon, I wasn’t prepared for a response like that of Susan Franey!
Continue readingCookbook pictures
TWO OLD FOOLS IN THE KITCHEN is almost polished and ready to launch, probably in September. But then a friend of mine had an idea.
Continue readingFast Minestrone
Continue reading“Minestrone soup from your book, Two Old Fools Down Under! Along with tapas, lovely on a rainy British day!”
Linda Powdrill
Golden soil and honey
When you don’t know the words to a song, what do you do? Take some advice from my littlest granddaughter, Winter.
Continue readingA book cover is born
I thought you might like to watch a book cover being born, right from the first idea and the initial sketch.
Continue readingTraditional Garlic Mushrooms
Have you ever wondered which of the Spanish recipes in the Old Fools books gets most mentions and positive feedback? Well, it’s this one! Six steps to heaven…
Continue readingThe most beautiful photo, ever
My heartfelt thanks for all the wonderful emails and messages voicing concerns about the recent bushfires, smoke and Joe’s health. By an amazing stroke of luck, Joe was overseas when the bushfires took hold, and there he was forced to stay.
Continue readingBushfires, bags and bugs
When we moved to Australia, I knew it would often be hot but, I confess, droughts and bushfires scarcely crossed my mind. Then, last week, a “catastrophic” fire alert was issued, and it was terrifying.
Continue readingOfficial. The best, most loyal readers in the world.
It was a tricky one, this book. Two Old Fools Down Under took me two years to write and is the sixth book in the Old Fools series. I laughed and cried all over my poor laptop as I worked. Parts of the book were painful to write, while other bits made me chuckle all over again.
Continue readingDecember Caption Competition
Can you think of a caption for this picture and win a prize?
Australia is heating up, and everybody is finding ways to cool off. This is Lola with her three feisty little friends, Benny, Sylvester and Gracie.
Continue readingOops, she did it again
Two Old Fools Down Under is available to pre-order on Amazon now. If pre-ordered, it will magically float onto your Kindle on December 1st 2019, launch day. Continue reading
Two Old Fools Down Under nearing completion…
It’s been nearly three years since the last Old Fools book was published, and a lot has happened. Now, I’m closing in on the last chapters of “Two Old Fools Down Under”, and as usual, they seem to be writing themselves. Things I had forgotten come flooding back and pour out as I type.
Continue readingUncle Archie’s Australian Adventures
If you’ve read Horizon Fever 1, you’ll know that my Uncle Archie was not just a famous explorer but also a bit of a rogue. In fact, as Joe was going through Archie’s old scrapbooks, he discovered that Archie was sentenced to three months hard labour by a judge in Innisfail, Queensland.
Continue readingYou found the Secret Page!
COMPETITION CLOSED MIDNIGHT 14TH FEBRUARY.
Yayyy! You found the Valentine Tree!
To win a prize, all you have to do is say “Hello!” or “Found it!” or something in the comments below. (That tells me that you visited.)
Then go back to the We Love Memoirs Facebook page and tell me which book you’d like to win.
That’s it!
I’ll give you a number, and the random number generator will do the rest after the party.
Thanks for playing! Here are the prizes on offer. Or, for more choices, scroll down.
- Chickens, Mules and Two Old Fools
- Two Old Fools – Ole!
- Two Old Fools on a Camel
- Two Old Fools in Spain Again
- Two Old Fools in Turmoil
- Two Old Fools Down Under
- One Young Fool in South Africa (Joe and Victoria Twead)
- One Young Fool in Dorset
- How to Write a Bestselling Memoir
- Or, if you’ve read them all, (thank you!) choose a title from one of these below!
Don’t forget to tell me your choice on my VALENTINE TREE POST in We Love Memoirs!
Win the next Old Fools book
The whole Old Fools series has been updated and reformatted with chickens walking through the pages… However, there are not chickens, but sulphur-crested cockatoos in the latest book, Two Old Fools Down Under.
Continue readingAlice, one hundred years old
If you have read Two Old Fools in Spain Again, you may remember that the Salvation Army contacted us and introduced us to Alice.
Continue readingDon’t Do It Like This!
Ever dreamed of a new life in Spain? These three hilarious bestsellers might make you think again. This Kindle boxset is on pre-order at a massive discount. Grab it before 6th June 2018!
***** “Probably the best book I’ve read this millennium!” ***** ***** “Packed with humour and feel-good factor.” ***** ***** “I laughed and I cried.” *****
Let me autograph your ebook!
Did you know that I can now autograph your ebooks? Sounds impossible, doesn’t it? If you have read any of my books and you have them on your reading device, I’d love to sign them for you. All you need to do is click Go!
A new Sixpenny Cross tale
When I finish an Old Fools book, I always feel elated, but exhausted. That’s when I turn to my village and friends at Sixpenny Cross and lose myself in weaving a story that I hope keeps readers guessing.
Stages of a book cover
When I asked my cover artist, Nick Saltmer, to design a cover for C is for the Captain, book 3 of the Sixpenny Cross series, all I said was, I’d like a typical English village pub, please. Within days he had come back with the initial sketch.
The Old Fools series as Audiobooks
Very exciting news! I’ve just signed a deal with the very nice folk at Whole Story Audiobooks. This means that the Old Fools series is going to be recorded and made into audiobooks!
The books will be professionally narrated and then CDs will be manufactured and put on sale. Not only will the CDs be available all over the world, but anybody will also be able to download them from Audible or a host of other retailers, or borrow them from their own library.
I can’t wait!
Lola the Spoodle and her new treasure
Just in case you were wondering how Lola is – here’s an update. Of course I don’t mean Lola Ufarte, the young lady who frequently shocks El Hoyo. No, I’m talking about Lola, our gorgeous but completely insane cocker spaniel/poodle mix.
Two Old Fools in Turmoil is on Amazon
The deadline was Christmas, and we made it with time to spare! The fifth in the series, Two Old Fools in Turmoil, is on Amazon! If you order it now, you’ll get it at a discounted price and on 22nd December it will appear on your Kindle, as if by magic…
Free Old Fools Photo Books, help yourself!
Over the years, we’ve taken loads of photographs and it seems a shame not to share some. So I’ve created some albums, one for each Old Fools book, and I’d love it if you’d like to see them. I’ve also included some photos of the recipes in the books, in case you need serving suggestion inspiration.
My magnetic granddaughter
My littlest granddaughter, Winter, is walking now, and very mobile. She still pops everything in her mouth which is always a worry.
The Old Fools are back!
Last year, when Joe was twice rushed into Intensive Care and put on a life-support machine, everything changed.
The shock was profound and his recovery has been slow and arduous. Thank goodness, Joe is not one to give up, and he is now almost as strong as when the viruses attacked. Thank you so much to the many readers who have been in touch wishing him well.
It’s been nine months since our last newsletter but writing has had to take a back seat. Usually it takes a year to write an Old Fools book but, the latest, Two Old Fools in Turmoil, has taken much longer.
However, I’m on the last chapter and we hope to launch it in a couple of months.
Lola’s boyfriend
No, this is not about Lola Ufarte, the badly behaved young lady in El Hoyo that I’ve told you about in my books. However, Lola the Spoodle (or Cockerpoo) is named after Lola Ufarte. I was looking for a name that would suit a golden, very beautiful, naughty dog. A name that would remind me of Spain. “Lola” seemed like the perfect choice.
Protected: Running round in circles
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
A random page from Two Old Fools in Turmoil
The bat and the mayor – a random page from Two Old Fools in Turmoil, the next book in the Old Fools series, to be published this year. *fingers crossed*
Something black shot out, swooped round the room and clung sootily to a picture frame.
“Aaaagh!” I yelled. “It’s a bat!”
I’m not at all frightened of bats outside in the fresh air. I think they are wonderful creatures, and they certainly did a grand job of devouring El Hoyo’s flying insect population. I loved the way they flitted round the lamp posts, and their tiny squeaks made me smile. But I have to admit, I don’t like the idea of bats flying round my head indoors. Specially scared, sooty bats.
“Quick, open the front door,” Joe ordered.
I flung the door open but the bat was too frightened to move, and merely blinked.
“Perhaps we should throw something over it,” I suggested, using the royal ‘we’ as I had no intention of doing it myself.
“Hmmm… Good idea,” said Joe, grabbing my favourite white T-shirt which I’d foolishly left lying around.
He hurled it at the poor creature, but the bat sat tight, its tiny hands gripped… Continue reading
Lola to the rescue!
It’s been crazy hot here in Australia, and we are very lucky because we have a swimming pool. Lola is half cocker spaniel and half poodle, so she’s a water dog. It’s hard to keep her out of the pool.
Piggy is her favourite toy, and as you can see, she’s not going to let him drown!
Forty-eight seconds – new Chickens trailer!
Chickens, Mules and Two Old Fools has a brand new trailer! It’s only 48 seconds long, but I hope it captures the essence of the book. All the pictures come from our personal photo album.
A rollercoaster year
I’ve been looking back on 2016, and it’s been a real rollercoaster of a year. Joe arrived in Australia on January 1st so the year began well. House renovations began.
Then baby Winter, my new granddaughter, arrived in April. And what a joy she is! Full of smiles and naughtiness, she is an absolute delight and her big sister Indy adores her.
B is for Bella, the second of the Sixpenny Cross series, was published in July. Then Joe’s book, One Young Fool in South Africa, followed in September.
It was almost as though Joe used the last of his energy to complete his book. At the end of September he developed a severe chest infection and was rushed into Intensive Care. Three times he was put on a life support machine, and we all thought the end had come.
Joe surprised everybody, except himself, by beating the infection and battling until he was released from hospital. It was a frightening time, but Joe is home now and coping brilliantly.
Through all this, house renovations continued. As I type, we still have no kitchen. I don’t really care because it’s midsummer and we have a barbecue, and… Continue reading
Two baths a day
Now that Lola is one year old, you’d think she’d have outgrown her passion for muddy puddles.
Not so.
Easy Strawberry Mice
Hard to believe it, but it’s true. My granddaughter Indy will be 4 years old on Monday. Her mum organised a cat theme birthday party, and all the food and activities had something to do with cats. My contribution was strawberry mice, recipe below. Continue reading
The other young fool
Here’s a date that’s written in red and underlined on our kitchen calendar. September 9th 2016. Why? Because that’s the date when Joe’s memoir, One Young Fool in South Africa, will be launched.
A baby secret
I have a confession. I’ve been keeping a very big secret. The reason for my silence was just that I couldn’t bear it if something went wrong. But, thank heavens, nothing did.
B is for Bella launches
The second book in my new Sixpenny Cross series is now finished, polished and up on Amazon for pre-order. It’s called B is for Bella and if you’ve read A is for Abigail, you’ll recognise many of the characters and places. If you pre-order from Amazon, the book will magically spirit itself onto your Kindle on July 1st 2016.
Puppy problems and papier mâché
I didn’t know much about Spoodle puppies before, but since Lola came into my life, I have become quite an authority. I now know that Spoodles are very bright, very affectionate and have limitless energy. So I set about finding toys that would occupy her.
Chickpeas and Paprika
Spanish chickpeas are great for making a simple side dish, tapas dip or ingredient in a salad. Here’s a delicious recipe using chickpeas with paprika.
Italian Chickens
Chickens, Mules and Two Old Fools has now been translated into Italian. I love the title – Polli, muli e due vecchi pazzi… Italian has such a ring to it, doesn’t it? Chickens was sold to Polish and Hungarian publishing houses a couple of years ago, and is currently being translated into Spanish, French and Chinese.
Wareham Quay
Big thanks to Zoe Marr who took this fab picture of Wareham Quay this week as she passed through on her way to Swanage. Why do I love it?
Sit!
VT thinks I’m super smart!
It’s only my first full day away from my mum and sisters, and I cried a lot last night, but today VT discovered that I’m a very intelligent little dog. I can’t understand why she’s so surprised.
I’m Lola, and believe me, I’m cute.
I’m eight weeks old and I’m a Spoodle. Some people would call me a Cockapoo. Whatever, I’m a cross between a Cocker spaniel and a poodle, and people pretty much drool over me whenever they see me because I’m very cute.
A secret
How lucky am I? I’ve skipped winter again and I’m embarking on yet another summer. Spring has sprung, but this time not in Spain, but in Australia.
The creation of Sixpenny Cross
The notes for the next Old Fools book are all set up, and I even have a title, but events have been so intense these past months, I haven’t actually started writing it yet.
Instead, I’ve taken my mind off things by doing something I’ve never tried before.
Look out, Australia!
You remember the charming young couple I told you about last newsletter? The ones that loved our house and put in an offer for it?
Well, it’s all going ahead…
Old fools on the move
At last! My latest book, One Young Fool in Dorset, is published. Thank you to the hundreds of you who pre-ordered it. By now it should have appeared magically on your Kindles, iPads, Nooks, or Kobos. It’s also available in Paperback and Large Print. I do hope you enjoy it!
So, what else has been happening?
Naked in Public
Writing a memoir and publishing it, exposing yourself and your innermost thoughts to the scrutiny of strangers is very hard. It’s like taking all your clothes off and walking around in public.
Old Fools’ home for sale
This is probably the hardest village update that I’ve ever had to write since I began in 2008, so forgive me if I keep everything brief.
A Sneak Preview of “One Young Fool in Dorset”
One Young Fool in Dorset is finished! My latest baby is in the hands of my trusted editors and advance readers, and Nick Saltmer has created a beautiful cover. It will be launched 12th June 2015, but is already available for pre-order on Amazon.
And yes, that is a rabbit on a leash on the cover…
Here’s a little excerpt:
