Hello! I hope you enjoyed your November and are ready to welcome December. We had a deluge of rain (102 mm) overnight so the garden is happy. Now it needs to soak into the parched ground to be truly useful.
November is epiphyllum flowering time at my place. Look at these stunning blooms! They only last a couple of days but make a joyous display while they are out. I have plants that flower in different colours – one each of hot pink, white, pink, and cream – and, somehow, they stagger their flowering. I’ll write more about these next month.
Books and reading
Six months ago, I started a Facebook page with the description “Inspiration for readers and writers, compiled by Erica Spinks.” I often came across interesting articles about writing and reading and couldn’t find anything local that collated such links for other people to read. That’s the librarian in me, always wanting to share information.
The page hasn’t gained many likes yet but that’s ok. It’s there and I keep adding to it as I find items that appeal. I figure that, if they interest me, they may interest other people. You can pop over there to see if it’s of any use to you.
As another part of my “if it doesn’t exist, then maybe I can create it” philosophy, I have, in conjunction with Rose from Community Circles Wingecarribee, initiated a local writing group. I’ve been looking to have an informal group, where we chat and then work on our individual writing projects in a public space.
Rose organised a fabulous venue – Berkelouw Book Barn, Bendooley Estate at Berrima – where we can meet, network and be productive. The first get together is next week, so I hope someone else turns up!
My favourite novel this month is Richard Osman’s The Last Devil to Die. It’s important that I feel some emotion when reading and this book did that. For me, it’s the best in this series so far. His next book will begin a new series and I can understand why he needs a break from The Thursday Murder Club books after book 4.
Have you read Benjamin Stevenson’s novels? It took me a while to get into the style of his two murder mysteries but, once I did, they were rollicking reads. His second, Everyone on this Train is a Suspect, is set on Australia’s famous train, The Ghan, and is my favourite.
I’ve been exploring the posts of some book-related writers on Substack. There are treasures there and I’ll share some I’ve discovered next newsletter.
Quilts
I’m taking baby steps with my unfinished quilts. There are so many to complete but there is progress. One benefit of having so many is the variety. If I want a change of pace – say, machine piecing, hand piecing, appliqué or quilting – it’s easy to swap. The temptation is still there to start new projects, though.
Are you making progress with your unfinished quilt projects? Even a few stitches a day helps.
What are you enjoying? Are you making quilts, nurturing your garden or reading good stories? Let me know!
