Richard surprised me this morning with a gorgeous amethyst ring. It's an unusual setting, with a delicate bow at either end of the oblong stone. I knew nothing about it until he handed it to me in the jeweller's box. That is so like him; he's always buying me little presents all year round, whether there's anything formal to celebrate or not.

Yesterday I put a few more tweaks to a short ghost story, The Homecoming, which is set in Parkgate just down the coast from us. I'll workshop it a Riverside Writers before I call it finished, though, as I'm not totally sure it makes 100% sense yet. Sometimes when an idea is clear in your head you can't always see that the words on the page don't convey that idea clearly enough. That's where Beta readers come in handy.

On Friday last week I was invited back to City Talk radio to record four more of my short stories: The Club, New Year's Day, Clara's Wristwatch and The Faerie Tree. These will be broadcast during Roy Basnett's Zone Unknown show on Fridays between 10pm and 1am (GMT) on City Talk 105.9 FM.

Alternatively, you can hear The Club at any time throughout this week by going to the website at: http://www.citytalk.fm/showdj.asp?DJID=48793 To hear my bit, move the curser almost to the end of the slide.

If anyone is wondering why this LJ layout has been changed back to the original design, it's because the new one "ate" my guestbook. Not than many people have actually signed the guestbook anyway...!!! But it's a sparkly little gadget and I like it.

While I was in Liverpool on Friday, I visited the World Museum (as it now calls itself) on William Brown Street. No longer do visitors hike up mountainous steps to reach the entrance. Grand they may look, but those steps really were a bit scary. Anyway, I wanted to view the new Egyptian Gallery, but effortlessly spent three hours meandering round the entire place, taking in the aquarium (no seahorses now!) and the Romanesque statue section, which used to be bigger, and my favourite sculpture was absent. There was a lively display of Tibetan statues, and a gorgeous Asian goddess with twenty-four arms, and absolutely heaps of interesting, beautiful or educational things to see.

The Egyptian section didn't seem to have much new in it, unfortunately (in fact, I can remember pieces from the old displays which were not on show now, but maybe they're being restored?) However the collection's presentation has been greatly improved.

I was standing beside a mummy when a mother and two small boys approached. One of the boys wrinkled his face and loudly declared, "That's disgusting! Wrapping up dead bodies in bandages! That's horrible!" The other boy kept watching the mummy's fingers for any signs of life. I don't think the tea shop stocked tanna leaves....

A Wirral Otherkin Trilogy has been accepted for publication by Amazon Shorts. I received the contract this morning.

This Dark Fantasy mini-novella comprises of Frog, New Year's Day and Swap, which are all set on Wirral.

This morning was spent giving Frog, New Year’s Day and Swap a final editorial polish. These three dark fantasy stories combined are intended to form a small collection, which will most likely be called A Wirral Otherkin Trilogy. Before I can submit this to the intended place, I first have to translate it into American English and then into the required format, and also work out the actual presentation (title page, preface to explain what Wirral is, plus author’s blurb, etc.) I’ll keep you posted.

Well, I’m glad I didn’t bother hanging the laundry outside earlier, as steady rain is now splattering across the French doors. The fence blew over again last night. Ah well, it had only been propped up as a temporary measure until it can be fixed properly. Rain has put an end to all attempts to fix it.

Interesting, is it not, how society decides how eccentricity and conventionality are defined. Ok, so I like unconventional people. In my experience, they tend to be considerably more interesting than the majority of conservative-minded beige-clad sheep who reluctantly slog away for forty-plus years at a job they hate, in order to ensure they can drop dead in relative comfort. I never could see the point.