Check-In > April

Monthly musings, memories & moments

Apr 30, 2025

Welcome to another monthly check-in friends!

What delights did April bring you? I welcomed in creative momentum, quiet joys and reflecting on what really grounds me. I’m noticing a shift in my energy with the early morning light and enjoying long walks outside under the bluest of skies. The UK really is beautiful this time of year! Here’s what I’ve been up to…

"Art is like breathing - you don’t need permission."
- Emily Powell

April Musings

Writing a book might seem glamorous (spoiler: it’s not) but I always love seeing the sticky-stuff behind-the-scenes. In Plot holes, panic and problem solving I share some of my own tricky moments with outlining the final book in my kids middle-grade series set in Minecraft and what I learned from the process.

In a deep and meaningful post about the three things that, even on a wildly busy day, bring me peace and ground me, I shared my Triangle of Joy (and other geometries of happiness) and an experiment I’m doing to reduce the amount of time I spend on social media and my phone in general.

Two more authors joined me to share their creative journey from draft to debut on the Behind the Debut podcast - Nikolas Allen and Kate Tremills were so fun to have on the show - and in An obsessive organisers guide to podcasting I walked through how I plan and run the show.

I also realised that Substack doesn’t share the launch of subscriber chat spaces with… um… subscribers. So I popped up this little note to let you know more about Chapters & Checklists exclusive subscriber group chat and how to join. Come and say hi!

If you missed any of these do pop over and, if you have time, leave a comment - I love to hear from you. (N.B. you can also just hit reply to any of the emails I send you from Substack.)

Personal Moments

Here at the Barn, the daffodils have come to an end and the grape hyacinths are not looking their best anymore but the weeds have come into their own! A garden tidy-up is definitely needed. I also want to sow some seeds for summer flowers and get new plants for the patio now that the early blooms are gone.

We took a trip to Audley End House & Gardens, one of the great houses of the early 17th-century. In the 1600s Thomas Howard (1st Earl of Suffolk and cousin of Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of King Henry VIII) took an earlier house created by his grandfather Lord Audley on the site of Walden Abbey (dissolved by Henry VIII), and rebuilt it on the scale of a royal palace. It’s such a beautiful place to visit with opulent state rooms, a magnificent great hall, and an impressive library, ancient trees and gardens designed by Capability Brown.

I also just have to share how much I’m enjoying re-watching old(er) films. This month I chose ‘Erin Brockovich’ with Julia Roberts, ‘Thelma and Louise’ (yes I cried and punched the air at the end) and ‘You’ve Got Mail’. I adore most of Norah Ephron’s screenplays and I just love Meg Ryan in this one. The facial expressions when her and Tom Hanks are typing emails to each other are perfect! “Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday…” (I’m also old enough to remember internet dial up. Gulp.)

Creative Moments

This month was all about Helen C Stark’s three week Still Life Challenge. I cut up postcard-sized watercolour paper for each day’s work and learned so much about myself and my mark-making. And I adored every moment of it! I’m still processing everything and will be writing a separate post here soon, but in the meantime here’s a little video of the pieces I made.

Writing moments

Woo hoo! I finally finished outlining the final book in the Rescue Quest trilogy in April and after a huge sigh of relief, I popped it to one side for a couple of weeks to percolate. I’m now starting the writing proper—the epilogue and chapter one are done and I’m enjoying bringing the outline to life. More on this soon.

In an author life moment, I was flipping back through the second edition of my non-fiction book The Happiness Habits Transformation this week and realised that the links at the back of the book no longer work #facepalm. With slightly shaking hands I checked the links in my two Rescue Quest books… thankfully they’re fine but it was a salutary lesson. (Note to my fellow authors: check and update your book links!)

I also realised quite suddenly while adding some new writers on to the Author Resource Hub this week, that we now have 70 debut authors there! Do pop over and click on the ‘featured author’ link at the top to explore their books.

Reading moments

The Art of Living by Thich Nhat Hanh - I’ve been exploring more about Zen Buddhism following on from reading Secular Buddhism: Eastern Thought for Western Minds by Noah Rasheta last month. It’s fascinating, challenging and I’m asking myself a lot of questions as a result.

Wild by Cheryl Strayed - Finished this one and loved it so much. Not an easy read in some places but so worthwhile. Highly recommend it.

I’m now reading two advance copies of coming-soon books by author pals - Atonement, the second book in The Bloodstone Legacy series by V.E. Huntley and Someone Like Me, Pacific Northwest Boys Book Two by Sara Elisabeth. I’ve already read the first books by these fab writers and I know these are going to be just as good.

Finally, this gorgeous book arrived by

Emily Powell

and Sarah Moore. I bought it second hand, mostly to flip through Emily’s paintings inside as I’m in love with her use of colour—then I found out it’s signed!

Some of the Substack articles I’ve enjoyed this month:

One of my Instagram favs Ciara Winters from Our Little House In The Country is now on Substack, so I’ve been diving into her lovely posts for a dose of calm, intentional living. I particularly enjoyed Not the life I planned - but the one I needed and 10 simple ways to slow down and enjoy the season.

Lynn Hardin

is a new discovery and I’m drinking in her soul-filling posts about the creative life. Why you still matter (even if you never finished that art course) and Why Creative Women Don’t Finish (or Even Start) the Art Courses They Buy Online are two of my favourites so far.

I enjoy reading articles that challenge me and

Kern Carter

usually delivers! In Our vulnerability has become transactional he poses some really interesting questions about how much we share of ourselves in the name of audience attraction.

In On Being an Unglamorous Female Author

Emily Buchanan

shares so vulnerably about being seen as she prepares to release her book this year. This line so powerfully reflects how we measure ourselves as women: 'But when people started posting pictures, my achievements paled in comparison to the way I scrutinised my face, my body, my inability to pose'.

Finally, if you’ve ever had a dream that didn’t come true, read Kate’s wise words in Some Dreams Build the Bridge (not the Castle). Perhaps you’re building the bridge too…