Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it’s time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of the book upon which The Exorcist was based, Possessed: The True Story of an Exorcism by Thomas B. Allen. Click the image to find the book! Possessed was published in June 1993 by Doubleday and is 259 pages long. The PlotThe book follows the reported possession and exorcism in 1949 of a 14-year-old boy (referred to under a pseudonym to protect privacy) whose disturbing behaviour—violent outbursts, strange markings on his body, alleged supernatural events—led his family to seek help from Catholic priests.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge, you can find the topics for 2026 here. If you'd like to read others' responses to this week's topic, you can find them here. Something I Can't Live Without and Why Phone/LaptopBarring any humans from the equation… I regret to say that I couldn’t live without my phone or my laptop.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. I'm sharing another poem with you today, and I hope you enjoy it! Autumn’s Slow Approach I wait on autumn’s slow approach,Its coolness brushing summer’s heat,The hush that gathers overhead,The crunch beneath my feet. The heavy air of August wanes,The sky becomes sharp and clear;As golden sunlight paints the ground,My season’s almost here. The trees prepare their grand display,A show of amber, rust, and flame;I ache to see the world this way—Changed, yet beautiful just the same. Thank you, as ever, for reading my words! Until next time, George © 2026 GLT

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of Jennette McCurdy’s memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died. Click the image to find the book! I’m Glad My Mom Died was released by Simon & Schuster in August 2022 and is 320 pages long. The PlotThis book explores McCurdy’s life from childhood to early adulthood as a child actor best known for her role as Sam Puckett on. At its core, though, this isn’t a showbiz exposé.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, meaning it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge, you can find the topics for 2026 here. If you'd like to read other people's responses to this week's topic, you can find them here. One of my Pet Peeves So, I know I’m supposed to talk about “one” of my pet peeves; however, as you’re about to discover, that was incredibly difficult.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. I’m sharing another poem with you today, and I hope you enjoy it. The Plight of the Pigeon Why have you abandoned me?I just don’t understand.I flew through bombs and bullets,To bring messages across the land. I carried words of courage—Of hope, of love, of fear;With every beat of weary wings,I knew my duty clear. Through smoke-filled skies I travelled,Through thunder, fire and rain,I flew headlong into danger,Again and again and again. I crossed the fields of battle,

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of Una McCormack’s Star Trek: Picard prequel tie-in, The Last Best Hope. Click the image to find the book! Star Trek: Picard: The Last Best Hope was published in 2020 by Pocket Books and is 335 pages long. The PlotJean-Luc Picard is called upon to lead one of the greatest humanitarian efforts in Federation history: a massive evacuation of Romulan civilians ahead of their sun going supernova. The Romulan Empire faces annihilation, and the Federation must decide whether to extend help to a former enemy.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it’s time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge yourself, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, then you can find them here. Book/Movie/TV Characters I'd Invite to Dinner I’d love to invite Ebeneezer Scrooge to dinner.Scrooge (after his transformation from a miserable miser to a healed man) would be an interesting character to have dinner with.

Hi everyone, I hope you're all well. Today I'm talking about beat sheets and looking at what they are and why they're useful. What a Beat Sheet Actually Is (And Why It's Worth Doing Before You Draft) If you've hung around writing advice for more than five minutes, you've probably seen the word "beat sheet" thrown around like everyone already knows what it means. But not everyone does, especially new writers. So let's explore! What it actually isMany people recoil from the very mention of a beat sheet, considering it a sure way to stifle creativity.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of the graphic novel, Copenhagen, by Anne-Caroline Pandolfo and Terkel Risbjerg. Click the image to find the book! Copenhagen was published in 2024 by Dargaud and is 295 pages long. The PlotThe story opens with a woman fatigued with her teenage daughter and craving a break. On a whim, she jets off from Paris to Copenhagen for a one-week getaway that turns into something much more unusual.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge yourself, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, then you can find them here. Books Set Near Where I Live There are lots of books set in the north east of England. Being on a beautiful section of the British coast helps to provide atmosphere, and there’s plenty of history to write about too.

Hi everyone, I hope you're all well. Today I'm exploring the benefits of using that olden-day writing tool, the human hand. So, without further preamble, let's jump in. Why You Should Try Writing by Hand If you've ever sat in front of a blank screen with the cursor blinking at you, you'll know how easy it is to get stuck. You write a sentence and instantly delete it. You click open a tab to look something up. An hour later, the page is still blank because you literally have the entire world at your fingertips.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week I’m reading Star Trek: Voyager: The Farther Shore, the concluding volume of Christie Golden’s post-series finale duology. Click the image to find the book! Star Trek: Voyager: The Farther Shore was published in June 2003 by Pocket Books, and is 275 pages long. The PlotFollowing the events of Homecoming, Earth is hit by a terrifying epidemic: a “Borg plague” that slowly assimilates its victims on a cellular level. Naturally, suspicion falls on the newly returned crew of the U.S.S.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. One Sci-fi Item or Ability I Wish Really Existed I couldn't just think of one. When I thought about it for even a moment, my head swam with things from sci-fi I wished were real.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. I’m sharing another poem with you today, and I hope you enjoy it. But… If you say, “I’m not racist, but…”You’ll leave a heaviness in the air,For all the words that follow nextUnmask what’s truly there. If you say, “I’m not homophobic but…”You’ll split that mask you wear in two.Hatred hides behind your false smile,But your venom still leaks through. If you say “I’m a feminist, but…”Then your prejudice is plain to see;You don’t really want all people…

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of the 5-issue comic book mini series Star Trek: Voyager: Homecoming by Tilly Bridges, Susan Bridges, Angel Hernandez, Charlie Kirchoff and Neil Uyetake. Click the image to find the book! Star Trek: Voyager: Homecoming was published in comic book form, released monthly by IDW Publishing from September 2025 to February 2026. Each issue is approximately 32 pages long. The PlotThe story begins just moments after the final scene of the 

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. A Weird Fact I Learned from Reading Fiction My grasp of this week's topic was weak, to say the least. I guess I didn’t really understand it, or else it was too broad.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m looking at whether or not all writers need agents. So, with that in mind… Do All Writers Need Agents? As a writer, the question of whether or not to hire an agent is an important and complex decision. While some writers prefer to take charge of their own careers, others recognise the value that a literary agent can provide. Today, I’m exploring some of the pros and cons of working with a literary agent, as well as the factors that writers should consider when making this decision.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of Before Eden by Arthur C. Clarke. Click the image to find the book! Before Eden was originally published in 1961 in the science fiction magazine ‘Amazing Stories’, and it is 37 pages long. It was also collected in one of Clarke’s short story collections, Tales of Ten Worlds, published in 1962. The PlotThe story follows a small scientific team stationed on Venus, studying its geology and extreme environment.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you'd like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. Foods from My Geographic Area that I don't Like Black PuddingThis is called blood sausage in other parts of the world (gee, I wonder why they changed the name…).

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m sharing another poem with you, and I hope you enjoy it! Yellow Wellies I had a pair of yellow welliesBrighter than the sun,I wore them through the puddlesThat I’d jump into for fun. I wore them when the sky was blue,When rain had stayed away,Just in case the clouds were planningTo change their minds that day. I’d stomp across the garden path,Over gravel, grass, and stone,They made the world feel safe somehow,Like it was mine alone.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of Star Trek: Voyager: Homecoming by Christie Golden. Click the image to find the book! Star Trek: Voyager: Homecoming was published in June 2003 by Pocket Books and is 262 pages long. The PlotIn the first of this Voyager sequel duology, Voyager has returned to Earth. Still, the celebrations are brief, the debriefings relentless, and the sense of relief is quickly complicated by politics, trauma, and unfinished business.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you'd like to read other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. Foods from my Geographic Area that I Love I can only think of a few Geordie foods off the top of my head (Geordies are people from…

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m exploring melodrama! Let’s jump in! Is There a Place for Melodrama in Fiction? Most people have encountered melodrama at some point in their lives. Whether it was a book, movie, play, or television show, melodrama has been a staple of the entertainment industry for centuries. But what is it exactly? Is there still a place for it in fiction? And if so, how should you employ it in your writing? Let’s explore! What is Melodrama?Melodrama is defined as an extreme form of drama that emphasises heightened emotions and often includes larger-than-life characters.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of the novelisation of Star Trek: Voyager’s finale episode, Endgame, by Diane Carey. Click the image to find the book! Star Trek: Voyager: Endgame was published in 2001 by Pocket Books and is 240 pages long. The PlotAs with the TV episode from which it’s adapted, the novel opens with an older Kathryn Janeway reflecting on a future shaped by loss. Dissatisfied with how events unfolded—particularly the deaths of several crewmates—this future Janeway undertakes a dangerous plan: travel back in time and change history.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you would like to read other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do that here. Reasons I've Stopped Reading or Watching a Series The Magicians Book series by Lev GrossmanI loved the first book. I loved the characters, the world-building, and the way the story pulled me in, but the second book didn’t have the same effect.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m delving back into “drafting”, and this week, I’m looking specifically at the idea of writing a first draft (or even a zero draft to get your creative juices flowing) using only character dialogue. So, without further ado, let’s jump in. Dialogue-only Drafting Often, the fastest way to get unstuck in a novel draft is to stop trying to write a novel. This may come across as counterintuitive, but go with me. When a scene feels flat, forced, or overworked, one of the best tricks I’ve found is to draft it a bit like a screenplay — using only dialogue.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of Red Dwarf: Titan by Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall. Red Dwarf: Titan was released on 16th July 2026 by Gollancz and is 416 pages long. The PlotWe're a long way from the show as we know it here: three million years earlier, before the accident, before the Cat, before any of it. The Red Dwarf is parked in orbit around Titan, and everyone's itching for some much-needed shore leave.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here, and if you would like to read other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do that here. My Life in Photos or GIFs I don’t really take many photos, but I’ll share a few from my phone's camera roll that I like, along with some of the GIFs and memes I use regularly.

Hi everyone,  I hope you're all well. I'm sharing another poem with you today, and I hope you enjoy it! Ba-bum ba-bum… ba-bum. A heart beats Strong.Ba-bum… ba-bum. A determined choice.Ba-bum… ba-bum. It’s been so long.Ba-bum… ba-bum. But I found my voice. Ba-bum—ba-bum. Am I right to speak?Ba-bum—ba-bum. I’m small, scared.Ba-bum—ba-bum. What will they think?Ba-bum—ba-bum. Will anyone care? Babumbabum. Just make a move.Babumbabum. You’re allowed your say.Babumbabum. You’re allowed to be scared,Babumbabum. But do it anyway. bu-bum… bu-bum. A heart beats steady.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of the short horror story The Voice in the Night by William Hope Hodgson. Click the image to find the book! The Voice in the Night was published in 1907 in Blue Book Magazine and is 12 pages long. The PlotOne foggy evening, the crew of a small cargo ship encounters a mysterious rowboat approaching from the mist. A man within it refuses to come into the ship’s light or reveal himself, but begs for food.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it’s time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you want to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here, and if you would like to see what others had to say about this week's topic, you can do that here. Books I Wish I'd Discovered Sooner There are so many books I wish I had discovered earlier in life. Here are just a few:

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m examining that age-old writerly problem of starting over again and again. So, let’s jump in! Why You Keep Restarting Your Novel You sit down. You’re excited. This time it’s different. You open your draft, and you’re certain you know what you’redoing now. You rewrite the opening. You tweak the voice. You change the POV. You feel that familiar rush — this is the version that’s finally going to work. And then, a few chapters in, the energy drains away. Something feels wrong.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of the novelisation of A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge by Jeffrey Cooper. Click the image to find the book! Freddy’s Revenge was first published in 1987 by St. Martin's Press. It was featured in the collection of novelisations of the first three films, The Nightmares on Elm Street Parts 1, 2, 3: The Continuing Story, where each story is approximately 70 pages long. The Plot…

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Somehow, today is Wednesday again, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you would like to read other people's thoughts on today's topic, you can do so here. Would You Go Skydiving? Why or why not? Hmm…. Would I throw myself out of a tin can moving at a hundred miles per hour at 14,000 feet and aim myself toward the ground… uh, no thank you!

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m talking plot holes. I’m examining what they are, why they occur, and how you can address them when they inevitably do. So, without further ado, let’s explore! Plot Holes: How to Spot, Prevent, and Patch Them Few things pull a reader out of a story faster than a plot hole. One moment, they’re immersed. Next, they’re frowning at the page, thinking Hang on a minute… why would that happen? Or worse: That doesn’t make any sense at all! So… What Is a Plot Hole Really?

Click the image to find the book! Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m reviewing Star Trek: Red Shirts, a 5-issue comic book mini-series by Christopher Cantwell, Megan Levens, Charlie Kirchoff, and Jodie Troutman. Star Trek: Red Shirts was published from July to December 2025 by IDW Publishing. Issues run between 28 and 32 pages long. The PlotRed Shirts is a gritty sci-fi adventure set on the frigid, hostile world of Arkonia 89, where a contingent of security officers from the U.S.S.

Hi everyone! It's Wednesday, and it’s time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you're interested in reading other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. Stores or Other Physical Places I Wish Still Existed Book shops. Book shops, Book shops.There used to be loads of bookshops between my town and the next two towns over….

Hi everyone,  I hope you're all well. I'm sharing another poem with you today, and I hope you enjoy it! Devastation. Decimation. Depravation. If I stop to catch my breathThen the cloud gets inExhale, inhaleDevastation. Each moment of peaceful thoughtSkips right to unrestSkip skip skip skipDecimation. When I lie awake for hoursA sea of thoughts churnsWaves crash, drowningDepravation. Thank you, as always, for reading my words! Until next time, George © 2026 GLT

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. This week, I’m sharing my review of Richie Tankersley Cusick’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Harvest, the novelisation of the two-part series premiere. Click the image to find the book! Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Harvest was published in September 1997 by Pocket Books and is 146 pages long. The PlotBuffy Summers has just moved to Sunnydale, hoping that a new town might mean a normal life. That hope doesn’t last long. Sunnydale sits atop the Hellmouth, a mystical hotspot that draws vampires, demons, and assorted nastiness like moths to a flame.

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well. Today, I’m exploring the idea of using one’s own life as a well of inspiration for writing strong, compelling stories. So, without further ado, let’s jump in. Mining Your Past: Turning Personal Experiences into Compelling Fiction: Part 1 Have you ever wondered how some authors can write stories that feel incredibly real, vivid and alive? Here’s a little […] Mining Your Past: Turning Personal Experiences into Compelling Fiction: Part 1

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge yourself, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you'd like to read other people's responses to this week's topic, you can do so here. Websites I Wish Still Existed Open DiaryOpen Diary was a great social networking space originally launched in 1998. It closed down in 2014 before being relaunched 4 years later.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m exploring the idea of author surrogates, so without further preamble, let’s jump in. So, What Is an Author Surrogate Exactly? In essence, an author surrogate is a character who stands in for the author within the story. They might share the same background, your voice, your values — or simply your sense of humour. Sometimes this is wholly intentional, and sometimes, you discover it long after the book is finished when readers politely (or not-so-politely) point it out. A surrogate might be:

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it’s time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of Roald Dahl’s The Magic Finger. Click the image to find the book! The Magic Finger was initially published in 1966 by George Allen and Unwin in the UK and is 64 pages long. The PlotThe Magic Finger is a quirky and imaginative tale narrated by an unnamed girl who possesses a mysterious power: when she gets angry, her "magic finger" activates, and strange, transformative things happen to the people who upset her.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. It's Wednesday again, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge yourself, you can find the list of topics for 2026 here. If you are interested in what other people had to say on today's topic, you can read their responses here. Have You Ever Attended Your High School Reunion? Why? My high school has never held a reunion, which is good because if it did, I certainly wouldn't go.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I’m exploring The Pomodoro Technique, and in particular, its value to writers. So, without further preamble, let’s dive in! Writing Using The Pomodoro Technique We writers love a bit of drama. We love the thunderbolt of inspiration. The candlelit marathon. The myth of the tortured genius who writes for fourteen hours straight, fuelled by coffee and unresolved feelings. The brain, however, prefers tomatoes. Not real ones, unless you love munching on a tomato while you write… No, I mean metaphorical ones. Let’s talk about the Pomodoro Technique.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it's time for another review. Today, I’m sharing my review of the play, Shirley Valentine, by Willy Russell. Click the image to find the book Shirley Valentine was published in 1986 by Samuel French Ltd and is 36 pages long. The Plot42-year-old Shirley Bradshaw, née Valentine, a Liverpool housewife, feels her life has shrunk to the size of her kitchen walls. When her best friend wins a package holiday for two to Greece, Shirley grabs the spare ticket, leaves her husband a scribbled note—“Gone to Greece - back in two weeks”—and uncovers a world and a version of herself she thought she'd left behind.

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well. Today is Wednesday, and it's time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you would like to participate in the challenge, you can find the topics for 2026 here, and if you would like to see what others have said about this week’s topic, you can do so here. Something To Know Before Visiting My Country/City This is a hard one to answer. England is a lovely place to look at, and most of us pride ourselves on being a multicultural, welcoming nation—but there are a growing number who feel the opposite.

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today, I'm concluding my short ‘story engine’ series with this post about how to write a story that strikes a balance between a plot-driven and character-driven story. So without further ado, let's jump in! Story Engines: Balancing Plot and Character Some stories sweep you along with twists, tension, and high-stakes action. Others linger with you because of the emotional truth of the characters. The best ones? They do both. Welcome to the sweet spot: stories that move and matter. When plot and character feed each other, you create that addictive mix of momentum and meaning: the kind that keeps readers hooked…

Hi everyone! I hope you're all well. Today is Friday, and it’s time for another review. Today, I’m reviewing the novelisation of the 1979 film Meteor by Edmund H. North. Click the image to find the book Meteor was published in 1979 by Warner Books and is 226 pages long. The PlotA comet strike shears a five-mile-wide fragment from an asteroid, and the splinter is now on a collision course with Earth, preceded by a lethal shower of smaller debris. To stand a chance of saving humanity from a potential extinction-level event, the U.S.