I’ve had my manuscript back from another beta reader and, a bit like Jenny the morning after the night before, I’m now walking roughly three feet taller.

A lovely lady by the name of Dana, who I’ve never met, lives in Canada. She has never visited Skiathos and apart from the fact that she likes women’s fiction, has no reason to like my novel at all. But she did like it.

I’m finally starting to understand the meaning of job satisfaction.

Being the lovely lady that she is, she didn’t seem to mind, although she did point out, that I used the word ‘that’ so many times in the manuscript that it’s plain embarrassing.

Plus I hadn’t given my readers a conclusion after telling them one of my characters had got himself in a sticky situation. And I’d forgotten to say what had motivated Hera to revisit Skiathos after twenty years.

I missed all these things. So, this Christmas, I will mostly be writing. And removing ‘that’ word.

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