I had a visitor at Black Cat HQ for the beginning of March. My sister and her partner went off on holiday for a week, and so their furry pride and joy came to stay with me. Oscar, my cat, wasn’t particularly keen on sharing his house with a clumsy food-thief, but he managed to cope. Here’s Rocky looking tiny and adorable on the sofa he entirely took over – this is very much in contrast to what he looked like when he realised he could get a good look into the neighbours’ gardens from the top of my shed. It’s not easy to get a twenty-kilogram dog off a roof when he’s decided he quite likes it up there.

What I’ve been working on

I finished off the critique of the horror novella I started in February, along with the copy-edit of a contemporary novel. I moved on to the copy-edit of an epic historical saga set during the Albigensian Crusade. I was glad to have the copy-edit of a cosy(ish) noir short story for some light relief – and I look forward to working on the first novel in the series it introduces. The proofread of a contemporary romance novel and, unusually for me, the copy-edit of a book of travel advice will take me into April. There’s nothing like editing passages about glorious sun-filled holiday experiences while the rain beats against your office window… I also have the critique of a novella that is part of a sci-fi/fantasy series I’ve worked on previously – the other books are definitely epic in scope and length, so it will be interesting to see how the author handles this departure from the norm.

Looking ahead

I’m trying out a new riding school in April – I’ve enjoyed my time at the old one, but it is a long journey for me to get there now I have moved to a different county. The new school is nestled in the countryside, and I have booked a hack as a taster – fingers crossed for some good weather.