Entries by anne

Amanat: Women’s Writing from Kazakhstan

Earlier this year I had the great pleasure to read this anthology in manuscript. This month AMANAT is published! In the fall of 2018, the Kazakh writer Zira Naurzbayeva agreed to meet me, an English traveller and writer, to discuss her work of nonfiction “The Beskempir,” which I had read online though only in the […]

My best reads to June 2022

2022: The Halfway Point! So far this year, my reading has been overwhelmingly dictated by research for my current manuscript — I am surrounded by piles of pretty dense non-fiction. When I have found time for fiction, I admit I’ve mostly opted for ‘safe bets’, novels I hope and expect to fall in love with. […]

My favourite reads in 2021

Looking back on this second pandemic year, it appears I took a scattergun approach to my book reading — fiction and non-fiction, variously set in contemporary, historical and futuristic times. I took some surprising turns. In the latter half of my reading year, for example, I found myself deliciously embroiled in all-things-Tudor, as though I […]

“All I Asked For” reaches BSFA shortlist

This comes as wonderfully cheering news during a long spell of grey days on the Isle of Bute. My short story “All I Asked For” is shortlisted for the British Science Fiction Association’s Best Short Fiction Award 2020. It’s in grand company, and here’s the full shortlist: Eugen M. Bacon, Ivory’s Story, Newcon Press. Anne […]

My favourite reads in 2020

I imagined at the start of lockdown that I would play catch-up this year by reading all the still-unread books on my shelves. Great idea!  However… new releases inevitably proved too tempting. So my favourite reads during 2020 include both old and new releases. At times, I’ve found it a challenge to read long form, […]

Bridge 108 – Publication Day!

Bridge 108, my fourth novel, is published today by 47North in hardback, paperback, audiobook and eBook editions! I’m over the moon. This is my first novel to appear in hardback. And what a gorgeous hardback it is, with a beautiful dust jacket covering stunning book boards. How to make an author happy! I’m grateful to […]