My mermaid daughter created this during the month when I was writing Flower Moon. As our world continued to the rocked we were relying heavily on the Northumbrian landscape save us, especially the sea. Readers describe Twelve Moons as mystical and other-worldly, and I think my family has created a world to inhabit that is certainly often removed from the mundane realities that life often throws at us. I like to think that the longer we immerse ourselves in the natural world around us, the more we become part of its fabric, our tears soaking the sand as soil sinks beneath our fingernails and wild winds tug at our hair.
If you haven’t read Twelve Moons, it is structured so that it covers a year in my life, and each chapter is named after the moon I write under. This bookclub has been created as a way to connect with readers and writers and share some special extras and inside information about the writing of my book, as well as further exploring some of the themes within it.
Lots of readers have told me they are reading the book chapter by chapter, under different moons, slowly and intentionally. Others have gobbled it up in less than 48 hours. Many of you are enjoying the audiobook, recorded on two chilly days in a Newcastle basement. Others have written to me to tell me they are going to read it with friends in a book group. So many different ways to absorb one story.
When I really get into a book I want to delve deeper, try to understand where the story came from and consider why it has affected me. What is it about these words that has made me feel this way? This Substack bookclub offers you the opportunity to meet other readers and writers and dive into a different world. Get cosy with a drink and maybe a cat on your knee. Join me every month to think about the big stuff. Ask me questions, tell me your stories. Each monthly bookclub includes the following:
A video of me reading an extended extract from Twelve Moons
Written words about themes within the book
Background information about my creative process during the writing of the book
Writing prompts
Q&A opportunities
Creative recommendations
Archived book club episodes
Flower Moon is the sixth chapter in Twelve Moons. There is a sense that the darkness is shifting as the solstice approaches, but I feel even more vulnerable as I lose my cloak of darkness.
In this video I read to you about feeling messy and lacking as a mother, and reflect upon what it means to love and be loved.
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