For the love of books
What's this Substack all about then?
Welcome to Authorly Fond of Books
A place for bookish chat, author interviews, writing life and sharing an ever increasing stack of books.
Do the sh*t that scares you
Many moons ago I used to write a blog (remember those?) which morphed into a magazine column. The blog gradually died out the more Instagram became a thing and then after eight years, it was time to move on from the column too. When anyone asks me, I always say that I never thought of myself as a writer and that I sort of fell into writing. It’s true. Two friends convinced me that a blog was the thing to find a way to navigate the different version of myself which seemed to appear in the mirror post-baby. I found that my love of telling stories and reading them was my lifeline.
In December, my husband’s grandfather died. He was the loveliest man. The very best of them, in my opinion. Someone I’ve known for more than half of my life. (My husband and I have been together since we were 16 - a story for another time perhaps). Gramps championed my blog from its very first post. Writing can be such a lonely and exposing pastime, especially if you are starting out. It’s one thing writing for yourself, it’s something else entirely writing to read by others. Although some would say anyone writing is always thinking of their words being read by another - we can discuss that one later or drop me your thoughts in the comments.
Gramps gave me the confidence to keep going even when I thought it was possibly the worst thing I’d ever written and WHY was I bothering. An email would pop into my inbox, telling me which bits he’d liked, what had made him laugh or sending an old gin cocktail book from the 50s with handwritten notes to me after he’d noticed I’d shoehorned gin in almost every post. What can I say I was a young mother with two under 5s. He encouraged me to find my writing voice and reminded me that doing the sh*t that scares you can point you in a new and exciting direction.
So….I wanted to honour that and channel his go-getting spirit. I’ve got a novel in a drawer - the last writing in long form I tried my hand at - and an idea for something else if I can ever sit still long enough to let the ideas wend their way onto a page.
In the meantime though, I thought I’d get back on the old blog posting horse once more or should I say Substack Sheltie? I’m pushing myself to do the sh*t that scares me.
What’s this Substack all about then?
The day job these days is all about books. From blog and column, to writing features and then…I ended up interviewing authors. I’ve been lucky enough to chat to heaps of brilliant authors from fiction to non-fiction, from Kate Mosse to Simon Sebag Montefiore. If you want to find out more about the events I’m chairing then do head over to my website for more details.
When I say I love reading, I really mean it. My tastes are hugely varied. I’m always being sent brilliant books so I wanted to give them some space and share book recommendations, whether it’s what’s on my bedside table reading stack or latest book post or diving back into an old favourite. I wanted to share stories with others who love a good read.
What can you expect?
I’ll be posting bookish chat once a week - bringing you a new book or two, some author interviews and the odd thing that’s turned my head whilst reading or listening. I’ll be keeping it FREE for now as a place to share what’s on my TBR pile or what it’s in my head. A place to exercise my writing muscle, if you like. I hope you’ll join me. You can follow me on Threads, Instagram and Twitter (still can’t get used to it being X) @margotgoodlife on all three.
