New Year resolutions! – Get my book of short stories Subtle Seductions (perhaps  will change the title) published, complete my novel based on my Indo-French-Portuguese-roots and of course blog more!  

Shall start with Tessie, who is currently taking care of my home in India whilst I am away! She is the sole survivor from a litter of three from a stray cat who adopted me.

While Tobias, Toby for short, or Mr. Darcy (Pride and Prejudice) as a friend calls him, keeps me company in the U.A.E.

People wonder at my fascination for cats.  Simply put, they are self-reliant They do not need to be walked daily like dogs specially to do their jobs. Cats can be litter trained. Incidentally, my children love cats and dogs in that order!  One can guess why.  

I write at a desk from where I can look out onto the walled garden with random flowerbeds for inspiration. They bloom depending on the vagaries of weather in this country.  It is no wonder that without this stimulation – I often suffer from the dreaded writer’s block.

 

My first attempt at writing won the short story competition in, ‘’Femina ‘’ a magazine for Women in India in India) way back in 1968, albeit II prize. 

 Encouraged, went on to write more, some were published and some rejected. C’est la vie.

 

The Dropped Handkerchief followed in the same magazine.

 Am afraid, it is a ragged moth eaten copy. Just put up the sketch for effect.

Intend to include it my next book of short stories, if I can remember the ending!. By the way, does anyone use handkerchiefs these days?  

 Marriage and three kids later stopped me from writing any more stories.  They became my real life story.  

 

Perhaps you could check out my yarn, ‘Stone House’ - in an anthology of short stories titled “’More Voices on the Verandah”. For more details please contact www.Blairw.org.    The book is published for a worthy cause.