● Exclusive Book Signing: Meet me, Ally Aldridge, author of Ocean Heart and Sky Heart, and get your copy personally signed and an official bookmark. ● Ask away: Do you have a burning question you want to ask an author? I am looking forward to answering any questions on publishing, writing, or my books. Or just come and say hi. ● Fantasy haven: The shop is full of delights to get Fantasy fans excited. There’s something for everyone, so come treat yourself.
Don’t miss out on this magical event to immerse yourself in a love of fantasy. Mark your calendars, gather your friends, and prepare for a mermazing book signing on 31st May!
Location: Fantasy Paradigm, 7 Orwell Road, Felixstowe, IP11 7HE Time: 10am to 4pm
It’s May, the month of Herts Book Festival and I’m sad that I won’t be attending. This Book Festival is special to me because it was the first Book Festival to accept me. Sadly, for 2025 I’ve made the hard decision not to go.
For me, I always do well at this event and make good sales. However, the sales are not enough to cover the expense of doing the event.
Petrol – This cost is roughly £70 there and back.
Hotel – About £240 for two nights, including breakfast
Eating – I tend to take snacks with me to eat during the day and have a proper meal in the evening. This is about £40 for two nights.
Stall – This is £40, a very fair price.
Overall it’s almost £400 for me to do this event before I make a penny. In addition, I often give attendees a good discount on my books which reduces my profit per sale.
In previous years, I’ve written off the loss for a few reasons.
The first time I saw it as a learning experience. I’d never done a festival before and the organiser and fellow authors were so supportive and helped it be less scary. A big shout out goes to author Roxy Eloise and organiser Katie.
Another reason was that I saw this as a good networking opportunity. I love being solitary but appreciate that I have a lot to learn and meeting up with fellow authors is really beneficial. I think of this as a retreat to connect with other authors.
Thirdly, probably the most important reason of all, it helps me to be seen by potential readers. There are so many amazing books out there competing for the spotlight but when I do an event I’m right there in front of people for them to see and meet. And, I love chatting to readers.
If I never did Herts Book Fest, I doubt I would have done many of the events that followed as it was through meeting other authors and building friendships that I got told about other events, like April Grace outing me forward for MK Lit Fest, or Rachel Churcher getting me in with Foreword Festival.
Last year, one of my close author friends couldn’t make Herts Book Fest due to her health and I really missed her. This year another author friend can’t make it as she’ll be heavily pregnant. So, I decided not to go too. The thought of staying at the hotel alone without knowing anyone else in the building makes me extra nervous. Hopefully one day, my hubby will be able to come with me to an event but he is often busy with the kids so I can go without worrying about them.
Previously when I’ve attend Herts I’ve only had Ocean Heart. Now I have two books I hope that it would benefit me to have more to sell. Plus I am writing book three; Maybe, by next year I might even have three books – wouldn’t it be exciting if the launch for Forest Heart was at Herts Book Fest 2026!?
To all the authors and readers going to Herts Book Fest for 2025, I hope you have an amazing time. I miss you all and I hope to see you at the next one.
I had a lovely Valentines Day and one of my kids got an award at school. It was also the start of half term meaning the kids are now off for a week. We haven’t planned much so it’s a chance to recharge.
A writing challenge
I need to write book three, Forest Heart. It’s hard going back to writing a rough draft after working with a polished formatted printed book. Sky Heart released on 7th Feb, so I’ve only had a week to chill since its launch.
To get my head back into Forest Heart I’ve set myself a writing challenge. All I have to do is fall back in love with my novel.
No goals.
No word counts.
No pressure.
Half Term: Saturday, 15th February to Sunday, 23rd February
How did it going?
Sat, 15th February
I’m loving it. Saturday, I announced my challenge and then read through what I’d already drafted. This resulted in me deleting about 3k to 4k words, and only adding about 300 words. It felt a little like I was moving backwards but writing isn’t a linear process.
Sun, 16th February
Sunday my husband asked about the novels ending. Of all the plot points I have already, I don’t yet have an ending. We mulled it over and finally I think I have something. It did get me rethinking the timeline of the novel and I created a spreadsheet to map out where different key events happen in the series and how the books overlap. This doesn’t look like writing a novel, but it most definitely is.
Mon, 17th February
Monday, I actually did some writing and I was really pleased with what I got and feel excited about the direction of the story. As a family we tidied the house ready for the kids to have their friends over tomorrow.
Image created in Canva to represent my main character, Eve
Tue, 18th February
Tuesday, we tidied some more in the morning. Then after lunch, my kids had their friends over today. They weren’t too crazy and afterwards I was very impressed that they tidied up their bedrooms without me having to ask them.
Wed, 19th February
Wednesday was awesome. I’m into Forest Heart and have a clear vision for the upcoming scenes. Finally, my word count is back where I started.
Thu, 20th February
Thursday, wasn’t a good day for writing. We had lots of plans – it felt like everyone wanted to see us and I felt overwhelmed and guilty that I couldn’t make everyone happy. It resulted in me getting a headache. I didn’t write anything. And, I only read enough to maintain my reading streak. In the evening, my son went out with his mates and I managed to read some Onyx Storm to calm my nerves while I waited for him to return.
Image generated in Canva using AI
Fri, 21st February
Friday, no headache. Determined to make some progress, I started my day off writing. Now I have the writing bug I keep sneaking off to write whenever I can. I don’t want to go back to work next week. I want to write, write, write. I’m going to make the most of the time I have. Today, I finished chapter four.
Sat, 22nd February
Saturday, was a busy day and I did lots of authorprener jobs but no writing. My family had some bad news with the loss of someone very important. Keeping busy was my way of handling it. As a result, I didn’t write anything.
Sun, 23rd February
Sunday, I started the day chatting with my sister. Then called my family up North. They don’t live close by so the loss didn’t feel real until I spoke to them. Speaking with them made me accept it and I cried a little.
Me and Uncle Rob
I’m trying to keep this post about my progress with the writing challenge but my emotions did impact me. I think it’s important to acknowledge that life sometimes throws unexpected curve balls and it’s okay to stop what you’re doing to deal with it.
Allowing myself time meant that by the afternoon I was able to add a few words. Adding an extra 600 words means I’ve finished the challenge with 15,418 words.
Did I achieve my goal?
The goal for this novel is to have a final word count between 85,000 and 95,000 words. There’s still a way to go but I have achieved my goal of getting my head back into Forest Heart.
As I’m back to work next week and have a lot on my mind, I think my progress will slow. As for Forest Heart, my mind is clear on the direction of the story and once I’m ready and have time, I’m confident I can get it finished.
This has been a really productive challenge, I think I’ll do this every half term to fall in love with writing. Maybe, next time, you’ll join in.
I’m not a salesperson. Every time I have to approach a bookshop to stock my book, I’m filled with nerves. There’s no way I’m even attempting to pitch if I have the kids with me, which happens whenever my husband has a weekend shift.
First, I waited until I had my copy of Sky Heart to check that there were no issues with the print quality. Then I had to wait for a weekend when I was free. When I finally plucked up the courage to go, I found the bookshop closed. A note was pinned to the door saying he was away on holiday. Nooooooo! But at least this explained why he’d not responded to my email.
,It had felt right to approach Stillwater Books first because they were the first bookshop to stock Ocean Heart. It was released during lockdown so I couldn’t have a traditional book signing. Together we managed to sort something out that worked within the rules allowed.
He should be back the following weekend so I braced myself to try again. Thankfully, when I entered the shop, it was quiet, so I didn’t have an audience. William was absolutely lovely. We got chatting about books, reading, genres, and stocking my books. He put my books on the shelves so I could take some pics and a short reel for social media.
It’s so silly that I get myself so worked up about approaching bookshops. From my experience, they have always been so lovely. There is this fear that they’ll say no, and I’ll have to leave with my tail between my legs.
I’m excited to return next Saturday, 8th February, around 10:45 am, with my signed books for his shop. There will be five signed copies of Ocean Heart and 10 signed copies of Sky Heart. If you want to make sure you get a copy, preorder by letting him know and he will put a copy aside for you to collect.
I have booked no events yet for 2025. I want to organise an event at a bookshop for Sky Heart‘s launch but I only got all the files back yesterday. Uploading those will be my first priority, and then I can start marketing.
But, I would love it to be released on Fri, 7th Feb which is my sister’s birthday. Book one, Ocean Heart, launched on my brother’s birthday during lockdown.
Herts Book Fest is amazing, but staying overnight (due to distance) makes it quite costly. I’m on the fence about going this year. It was the first book festival I ever did and holds a special place in my heart. The location is stunning and I’ve met many fabulous people here. I want to go but need to think about it.
Check out my book recommendations listfrom bookshop.org of authors who attend Herts Book Festival:
Capcon was one of my best events, despite having to go to the first aid tent because of an eye issue making them sore. Sadly, 2024 was their last year, so I can’t book this event for 2025. As you can see in the pictures, the cosplayers were super friendly. Their energy and enthusiasm bring such a positive vibe.
Talking about positive vibes, WAM Fest was amazing. The whole event celebrates women in Arts and Music and their achievements. Together with other women that have self-published, I got to speak on a panel about my author journey.
I’m a big fan of the library. It was exciting to be invited to Stowmarket Library to be part of their YA event. We got to meet teens and chat with them about writing and reading. They got excited about my book which filled my heart with joy.
Check out my book recommendations listfrom bookshop.org of authors that were at the YA Event (Foreword Festival):
Because of the cost of doing in-person events, the ones close to home were more profitable. Smaller events charge less for the stall and therefore the offset means they can make more money even with fewer sales.
I’m having a hard think about what events to do in 2025. Being seen sells books. In addition, I met other authors and learned a lot from them, and they introduced me to more opportunities. I want to do more author events in 2025, but need to be more selective about which ones I do.
Check out my book recommendations listfrom bookshop.org of indies authors:
This morning I was at Great Eastern Square for a photoshoot of people taking part in WAM Fest. Whilst I was there, I checked out the Edible Felixstowe pop up event.
This Sunday 29th September, get down to Great Eastern Square Felixstowe.
There is an exciting event taking place called Edible Felixstowe. There are activities for the kids such as a treasure hunt and potato stamping. There is a bike powered smoothie makers that the Mayor has tested and approves of.
There are some lovely things to buy like the beautiful handmade wooden decorations, or the organic teas and soothing balm made with ingredients found in Felixstowe, and you can get fresh produce like apples, onions, honey, mead, and a selection of herbs. All harvested from Felixstowe and many are just asking for a donation.
I treated myself to the Tea LC Brew that has ingredients to boost your immunity, and a healing balm made with local ingredients. Then I got the Mead which I’ve never tried before, and only heard of in Fantasy novels, but I love honey so I’m excited to try it. I also got the local honey for my medicine cupboard as it helps during high pollen seasons. And I got an onion and some apples and made a donation.
I also took away details about the community gardening initiative where locals meet by the library on a Thursday at 5pm and work together to grow local produce that are free to all. One spot is the triangle in town. I had no idea this was happening but it’s such an amazing idea and I know someone I think would love to help.
Not long now until WAM Fest. Make sure you get your tickets so you don’t miss out on the next event!
Here is a collection of the books of authors mentioned in my Hert Book Fest 2024 series that I could find on Bookshop.org. These are affiliate links that support local bookshops on the high street.
