Books

A Secret Scottish Escape
21 May 2021

How I spent my lockdown by Julie Shackman, author of A Secret Scottish Escape
2020 will be a year that none of us will forget. Lockdown has brought anxiety; reflection; confusion; frustration; sadness; loneliness and even to some people, elements of enjoyment. For me, ...

Emmet and Me
20 May 2021

Seven things I’d like my readers to know about me by Sara Gethin
My most moving experience as an author was visiting a book club in a men’s prison. The group of inmates had read my novel, Not Thomas, about a neglected five-year-old ...

Rosa's Choice
20 May 2021

Safe and gentle ways to release the trauma of baby loss by Debra Kilby, author of Rosa's Choice
Where do you start when writing about baby loss? What words are able to adequately capture the deep sense of shock and trauma that follows from this experience? Where do ...

The Nurse
20 May 2021

Seven things I learned while writing The Nurse, by author J. A. Corrigan
-  I’m probably a shopping addict: I had great fun creating the character of Anna who uses shopping as a coping mechanism. In the process I discovered I’m truly a mall-rat! ...

Taking Up Space
19 May 2021

Why we need to write about disordered eating by Alyson Gerber
For most of my life, I minimized my disordered eating. I was just “being healthy.” Sure—food, weight, and body image took up space in my mind. What I ate and ...

You Can Upcycle and Craft
18 May 2021

Why having fun doesn't have to cost the earth by Wastebuster
Just thinking about the enormity and effects of climate change is hard for us to digest as adults, let alone if you are a young child! Breaking down such an ...

Conscious Dreamer
18 May 2021

Seven things I'd like my readers to know about me by Tree Carr, author of Conscious Dreamer
1. My formative years were spent living on a commune in the 1970s: there was no television, radio or pop culture. I spent a lot of time playing in nature ...

Blood Stained
18 May 2021

Seven things I'd like my readers to know about me by Rebecca Bradley, author of Blood Stained
1. I was born on the Gibraltar rock and yet (strangely, for a writer) I often spell Gibraltar wrong on my passport, using an ‘er’ at the end. It’s never ...

Her Family Secret
17 May 2021

Seven things I'd like my readers to know about me by Melissa Wiesner, author of Her Family Secret
-  Melissa Wiesner is a night-owl who began writing novels about five years ago when her early-to-bed family retired for the evening. In 2019, she won the Romance Writers of ...

Image courtesy of Pixabay
14 May 2021

The Female First Write, Share, Be Read "Poets of Merit" Awards
-  THE POETS OF MERIT for competition one are... Shalom Galve Aranis ...

Image courtesy of Pixabay
13 May 2021

Winners of the Female First Write, Share, Be Read “The World Awaits” poetry competition
-  The lady comes out of her glass bell to stretch his legs, ...

Because of Brett
13 May 2021

A view of grief without pigeonholes by Sarah Woodier, author of Because of Brett
I was a professional life coach, in what now feels like a previous lifetime. I used to write very uplifting, feel good blogs. The happy, woo-hoo variety, “you can do ...

The Energy Alignment Method
13 May 2021

Let go of lockdown - how energy alignment can help us move on
Have you ever wished you could find the delete button and erase last year? We’ve all felt the immeasurable impact of lockdown on our energy and our mental, emotional and ...

Off-Road with Clarkson, Hammond & May: Behind the Scenes of Their “Rock and Roll” World Tour
13 May 2021

Things you didn’t know about Top Gear Live by Philippa Sage
It was mainly fuelled by alcohol: Jeremy Clarkson’s preference – Organic Léoube Rosé (Lady Petrol!!). He only puts the purist of substances into that temple of a body. James May’s ...

Under the Italian Sun
13 May 2021

Why I set Under the Italian Sun in Umbria by Sue Moorcroft
Umbria’s known as ‘the green heart of Italy’, a region of mountains, vineyards, olive groves, sunflower fields and wild woodland punctuated by towns and cities. Each summer for seven years ...

Perfect on Paper
13 May 2021

Seven things I'd like my readers to know about me by Gillian Harvey, author of Perfect on Paper
I always wanted to be a mum, but was told by a fertility doctor back in 2007 this wasn’t likely to happen without IVF. When my first IVF failed the ...

The Secret Bridesmaid
13 May 2021

Seven things I’d like my readers to know about me by Katy Birchall
There were signs I was going to be a writer from an early age. In order to torture me in later years, my parents kept several copies of The Birchall ...

The Night We Met
13 May 2021

How a missed opportunity with a mysterious stranger shaped who I am today by Zoë Folbigg
It all started with a glance out of the window, on a bus on a dusty highway. I was 18 and backpacking around Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, ...

Madam
13 May 2021

Seven things I want my readers to know about me by Phoebe Wynne, author of Madam
-  ...

Mike Craven / Picture Credit: Gary Barton
12 May 2021

Ten things you may not know about bestselling author, Mike Craven
Mike Craven is a brilliant author who has written many wonderful and tense novels; his Poe and Tilly series is especially popular. He is an award-winning author and is one ...

Image courtesy of Pixabay
12 May 2021

Winners of the Female First Write, Share, Be Read “The World Awaits” poetry competition
Female First is proud to announce the poets of merit in The World Awaits competition.  The sadness in me walks, every bat step ...

Beyond Birth: A Mindful Guide to Early Parenting
11 May 2021

The impact of a new baby on a father’s mental health
Becoming a father is arguably the biggest transformation a man can ever experience in life and one that is little supported. Expectations are high of themselves, from partners, families, friends ...

Love is Blind
11 May 2021

The power of tough love by Ruth E. Vallis, author of Love Is Blind
Although there are many who ascribe to the “tough love” approach to life, there are also many detractors, but this may be owing to an experience where the emphasis was ...

French Countryside Cooking
11 May 2021

Seven must have ingredients for French cooking by Daniel Galmiche
When it comes to French cooking, there is a lot to say! What started in the 5th century went through changes and evolutions, from different households to different regions, passing ...