Skies, sweaters, soup

Approximately-weekly news, #75

Hello! In the most important news of the week, Harris likes his new work bed.*

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I don’t mind January. I lean in to the grey and don’t expect too much of myself. This year, January held the first anniversary of Lou’s death, which asked for quiet and gentleness: and, among those of us who loved her, an acknowledgement that she would be proud of us for the way we have walked through this year, taking care of each other and feeling our feelings.

Of course, this is only visible, looking back. If you are in grief, please know: you are doing just fine. Where you are today is where you need to be today. Hold on. Breathe deep.

The January skies have been wonderful.

And soon, there will be snowdrops.

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This week’s permission slip:

You have permission to be tired.

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Services-for-writers update (details of what I do here):

• waiting lists are open for manuscript assessments, developmental edits and line edits. (I can also look at partial manuscripts, so if you feel as though your book ran into a wall, this could help.)

• I can usually fit in one-off mentoring sessions and submission package reviews within two weeks of your enquiry.

• mentoring alert! A mentee has had to postpone their sessions so I have a space now. We could even have our first session this week! Is this your sign to get in touch?***

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I’ve been knitting socks which, now I look at them, have been the perfect January project. The pattern is the one I keep in my head, plain and straightforward. The yarn is beautiful: grey, with snatches of colour. (It’s from The Little Grey Girl, who makes beautiful yarns and project bags.)

I’m now knitting more socks, which I can’t show you yet as they are a gift. They are fancier, and a gorgeous blue-green colour, and in making them I am getting to do something wonderful: add love for the person I am making them for to every stitch.

And, now we’re on the subject of knitwear**: as you didn’t think I was weird for giving away hardly-worn shawls, I’m going to do the same with sweaters/jumpers/cardigans.

To remind you of how it works: if you or someone you know would like one of the sweaters below, reply to this email and let me know and I will send it to you. (If there are multiple enquiries I’ll pull a name from a hat.****) Like the shawls, all of these have been worn a couple of times; they will all need TLC when it comes to washing and might pill under the arms; they are all genuinely lovely, just not quite me.

I’m a UK size 16/US12/EU44, but some of these came up a bit small for me. So the best way to see if they will fit you is to take a favourite sweater/cardigan of your own and measure its width from underarm to underarm, and its length from back neck to bottom hem. Then you can see how that compares to these babies.

Red v-neck:

underarm-to-underarm: 72cm, neck to hem: 60cm

Pinky-purple heathered cardigan:

underarm-to-underarm: 58cm, neck to hem: 50cm

Green colourwork sweater:

underarm-to-underarm: 54cm, neck to hem: 60cm

Blue open-front short-sleeved cardigan:

underarm-to-underarm: 67cm, neck to hem: 66cm

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‘Found In A Bookshop’ is currently 99p on Kindle in the UK and 99c in the US. So if you want to give my books a try, this is a good time to do it.

Also, did you know you can gift e-books? I genuinely didn’t until I was gifted something recently. I should have done, really, there’s a ‘gift this ebook’ button RIGHT THERE.

(Please don’t think I mind that it’s 99p/c. I don’t,***** as I’m a huge take-a-punt 99p Kindle book purchaser myself. I think it’s a great way to try reading something new.)

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Yesterday I made this chicken soup. I put basil and crispy chilli on top, rather than dill, but otherwise followed the recipe to the letter and oh my days. It is easy to make, and perfection to eat.

Also, these chocolate cookies (recipe from Edd Kimber) are fudgily divine and highly recommended. I happened to have some rye flour in the cupboard - I dread to think how long it’s been there - but I’m sure regular plain flour would work just as well.

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That’s it from me, this week. Next time, reading and writing. (Tell me what you have read that is amazing!)

Be well, stay well. Spring always comes.

Stephanie x

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*Harris’s work bed is his bed in the studio. He also has a dog bed in the house, obviously, as well as a small sofa that he commandeers most of the time, the big sofa that he sleeps on at night, and a double bed upstairs that he retires to sometimes when being downstairs with us is Too Trying

**let’s face it, we are never far away from knitwear around here

***this January is being a time of signs and wonders for me

****Mug, probably

*****I mean, I mind end-stage capitalism.