LIZ FIELDING

It’s been a bit of a steep learning curve but with a little help from my friends, especially Wendy Wootton and Anne Weale, I’ve made it and this is the first of what (with luck and a following wind) will be regular Friday morning posts.

Some of you will know that I’ve spent the summer watching while beefy men built a log cabin in the woods – now known as the Snap & Scribble -- to be shared by me (tiny office in the corner) and the dh (huge photo studio), and years of, ahem, research material (in the loft).

It’s not entirely finished. I’m still missing “the wood” bit. The primroses, lords and ladies and ferns are all in pots waiting to underplant the first wave of trees -- silver birches – which will be arriving next month. Golly, I’m soooo looking forward to that. When it’s stopped raining I’ll take a photograph. (I do have a photograph of some early visitors, but I can't get the picture to upload so that'll have to wait until next week, too!)


The Books (I’ve finished)

In the US, STRICTLY BUSINESS, a 2-in-1 with Hannah Bernard should be on sale now. My contribution is The Temp & the Tycoon -- take one workaholic tycoon who has lost the “wonder”, one dizzy temp who is determined to rescue him, then put them together in New York, a city so vibrant that it becomes a character in its own right.

The Books (I’m writing)

I’ve just finished The Sheikh’s Guarded Heart, my first book for the new Harlequin “Romance” line which is being launched next September – send me an email for a sneak peak – and now I’m working on the eighth (and final) book in a continuity series set around three luscious Italian restaurants.

The Books (I’m reading)

I have just indulged myself in a splurge of book buying. Jamie’s Italy arrived yesterday. (Purely for research purposes of course!) What a beautiful book! Lovely paper, stunning illustrations and the recipes…

And then today the post brought me Sophie’s Bakery for the Broken Hearted by Lolly Winston. I immediately plunged in and was swept away. Confusingly, this has been retitled "Good Grief" and has a different cover on her webpage. Why would a publisher do that? Or was it retitled for the UK market? Enquiring minds want to know.

Next week

I’ll tell you about how I came to write The Marriage Miracle and tell you more about the Lolly Winston book.

Liz