February Book Club

Snow Moon

Tonight the full moon will rise, which means it’s time for another lunar book club. This month we are exploring Snow Moon. I took this photo when I was running across the place my children call ‘the middle of nowhere’ with my mother to watch the full Snow Moon rise in 2021. In the video taster I sent out yesterday I describe the red lights of the industrial north, the way that on a clear day you can see right across County Durham to Newcastle and Sunderland. And I describe the moonlight illuminating the reservoir, the pockets of snow we run through and catch in the light of our head torches.

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. I wanted to create 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 exploring further 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 will include 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

• Bookclub questions for you to explore with me or take away

• Writing prompts

• Q&A opportunities

• Creative recommendations

In Snow Moon I reflect upon the years I spent in London as a young woman just finding her way in the world. I want to talk to you about the role the past and nostalgia can play in memoir, and how I wove those moments in. Here is a video of me telling you a story about my wedding ring: