Whoop! It’s pre-order time for Moondancing – the prequel to Little Boxes – and it’s only 99c until publication day on January 12th.
This is a very proud moment for me, at a time when writing has had to take a definite back seat due to the day job. I love our school and my brilliant work-mates in equal measures, but we’ve been having a very tough time lately, and it’s been getting harder and harder to find time to be able to settle down to anything but depressing Ofsted follow-ups and policies and action plans.
Anyway, before you fall asleep in your tea, let me just say that Moondancing was the very first book I managed to finish. It began as a sample chapter; an assignment for a pre-teaching English Literacy course, and over the years…a lot of years…was one of those ongoing projects that were just for fun and nobody thought would ever be finished. But, eventually, THE END was written and Moondancing (then veering crazily between being called Something For Molly and Start Again) set off on its first journey – to a mystery reader for the RNA New Writers’ Scheme.
Frankly, the reader was underwhelmed. Moondancing was a hot potch of writing styles, multiple viewpoints and quoted song lyrics – it had travelled with me through being widowed, my children growing up and leaving the nest, a new career, marrying again, meeting my wonderful Romaniac friends and lots of other inspiring writers…it was a patchwork quilt of love, loss, black humour, wine and cake. In other words, it was awful. So I carried on and wrote some more books – but faster.
Finally, after the publication of Sweet Proposal, Little Boxes and Living the Dream, I dug Moondancing out again and gave it a complete facelift. It was then edited by the fabulous Mandy James and sent off to my publishers, Tirgearr, where it had another spring-clean by the equally talented Christine McPherson.
Moondancing is a very different book now. It’s still full of unexpressed longing, frustration, love and grief, but it has a purpose, and it leads directly into Little Boxes. It’s a case of ‘What Molly Did First’ rather than ‘What Katy Did Next’. Here’s the blurb:
Together since their teens, Molly and Jake have four children, a house in a sleepy village, and jobs that bore them to distraction. Their marriage is an accident waiting to happen. When Nick arrives in Mayfield, young, disturbed and in desperate need of mother-love, Molly doesn’t realise that he will be the catalyst that blows everything apart. Add a headmaster whose wife doesn’t understand him, and Molly’s unpredictable, frustrated best friend to the mix, and the blue touch paper has been well and truly lit.
I hope you enjoy reading Moondancing as much as I enjoyed writing it, but also hope it doesn’t take as long…
Celia x
The Romaniacs 
Congratulations, Celia! Lovely cover. Just shows you, never give up on a story as you never know what it will become…Wishing you lots of luck with Moondancing. x
I cannot wait to read the prequel to Little Boxes, Ce. Congratulations on your new novel – you’re going great guns – and what a lovely cover 🙂 xxx
Thanks Sharon – crossing everything for this firstborn! Celia
x
Love your cover too Lauraxx
Fabulous cover, Ce! A lovely post too. I loved Little Boxes so can’t wait to read Moondancing. Congratulations 🙂 Xx
Mwa! Thanks Jan xxx
Ooh, the cover is brill! Excited for you and have pre-ordered my copy. Well done my Romaniac friend. I’m looking forward to reading this. It sounds just my cup of tea. xxx