Writer/Blogger meet-up, London, 19th March 2016

Although I’ve had this blog since 2009, it’s only within the last couple of years that I’ve thought of myself as a blogger (and a somewhat eclectic one at that, it has to be said) and it’s been interesting to discover that community.  In January, my friend Sue Moorcroft took me along to a writers-bloggers meet-up in Birmingham, organised by Kim Nash.  I didn’t know what to expect, didn’t know anybody else there but I had a great time.  Meeting in the Bacchus bar, it was in a side-room crammed with people who were all chatting at the same time, sharing a love of reading, of books and of communication.  I met Shelley Wilson (we later reviewed each others work), thriller writer Barbara Copperthwaite and reviewer Rachel Gilbey and enjoyed it so much that when another meet-up was announced for London in March, I signed up for it straight away.  As the day came, however, with Sue unfortunately unable to go, my nerves kicked in (shyness really) as I made my way down to London but there was a silver lining - I picked up a hardback edition of Dennis Etchison’s Cutting Edge anthology (the book that changed the way I looked at horror) for £1 in the train station book sale!

Always a tourist - Trafalger Square at lunchtime

"People with heart conditions - use the lift!" Whoops...

The event was scheduled to begin at noon and since my train arrived at 11.26 and I can't go to London and not see some of the sights, I caught the tube to Covent Garden.  As I was heading up, the lift had just gone and people in front of me were talking about taking the stairs.  As hard as it might be to believe, I didn’t know about the Covent Garden steps and even the signs (which almost say 'there’s too many, you idiot, wait for the next lift!') didn’t phase me.  We set off up the spiral staircase, with people flagging in front of me (it’s very difficult to overtake when the inner part of the tread is only an inch or so across), passing the occasional sign telling us how many were left.  I kept going, my legs beginning to hum with a faint ache and passed knots of people, stopped and worrying because they were halfway up and didn’t know what to do.  I eventually got to the top (all 193 steps) without stopping and felt great, though whilst my breathing might have been steady the muscles above my knees were singing!

I had a wander around Covent Garden (I love it there), nipped into Erics Nook to buy a gift for Alison & Dude then walked to Shaftesbury Avenue.  Phil Sloman had told me the Cinema Store was closing but I didn't expect it to be so sudden and was disappointed to find the space empty (with a 'Trust No-One!' poster on the door).  I walked around the corner and discovered Orbital Comics (which I’d never seen before), went in and managed to pick up a vintage Stormtrooper for £12!  I got my lunch from the Fiori Corner deli at Leicester Square (chicken salad sandwich in a ciabatta, made as I stood there and still cheaper - and far tastier - than anything Subway could conjure) and walked up Charing Cross road, nipping into Any Amount Of Books (which Phil showed us on our first Crusty Exterior meet-up) and picking up a cosy mystery I’d been looking for.  With that, I caught the tube back to Kings Cross, walked out of the station and around the corner and The Waiting Room was just along the road.

With Barbara

Underneath a Premier Inn, I went to what I assumed were the main doors and fruitlessly pushed and pulled on them.  Hiding my eyes, I slunk back around the building trying to find the correct entrance (I did, it wasn’t where you expected it to be) before discovering everyone else had done the same thing.  The meet-up had taken over the bar area and there were a lot of people, with me taking the tally of blokes up to the three.  I found Kim and we had a chat, then she gave me my name-badge, steered me towards Barbara and headed off to find more newcomers.  It was good to see her again and after we caught up, she introduced me to blogger Neats Wilson, before Lisa Cutts joined the conversation.

Jan Ellis, Christina Courtney and me

Jan Ellis who I just connected with on Twitter came over, following by Sue’s friend Christina Courtney and we had a long and wide ranging discussion on everything from writing for ebooks, putting passion on the page and the public reaction to 50 Shades Of Grey.  Trevor Williams came over to introduce himself, a few more joined our conversation and it was great - we all wrote different things, we all had a slightly different approach and it was interesting to hear varying viewpoints.  Later, as I stood at the bar, two of my Romaniac chums, Sue Fortin and Jan Bridgen, came over to say hello.  Although we’ve known each other online for a few years (and I read Sue’s book last year) it was the first time we’d met up and happily, our sense of humour seemed to click in right away and we spent a lot of time laughing.  Sue got Talli Roland to take a picture then introduced me to her and that led to another interesting discussion about sub-genre.  Talli headed off to do some shopping, Sue & Jan went to catch their train, I chatted with Barbara and her friend before Rachel Gilbey came over for a natter and then it was time for me to head off.

With the Romaniacs - Jan Brigden (left) and Sue Fortin

As far as I was concerned, the afternoon was great fun and my nerves were pointless - I met some great people, had some excellent writing and book related conversations and made new friends.

Roll on the Brum meet-up next month!