juliachalkley

One More Time

As February rolls into view, I have those three little words on my mind. Twenty-nine Plays Later. The good people at The Literal Challenge have been running this marathon write-in for ten years, and they have decided that ten years is enough. Once more, and then no more. Initially, they said they were keeping itContinue reading “One More Time”

For Max

Today would have been Max’s nineteenth birthday. Two years ago today he and I walked up the garden together. He leapt up onto the raised beds, followed me around and ran back down the garden with his tail straight up in sheer joy. He hasn’t made it to nineteen. I left a lantern burning overContinue reading “For Max”

Self-Defence for Gardeners

There’s been some long gaps between postings this autumn and winter. So what have I been up? In brief – a lot of writing, a most enormous amount of wall-building and not enough gardening to save us from a Zucchini Tsunami and the Giant Monster Squash. The wall in question is the second wall forContinue reading “Self-Defence for Gardeners”

Gone

This isn’t the post I intended to write tonight. I’ve just heard that the famous sycamore tree at Sycamore Gap has been cut down. Deliberately, and not for safety reasons; as an act of vandalism. A sixteen year old boy has been detained for questioning tonight. Not making any guesses as to whether he wasContinue reading “Gone”

This Is Danny

I haven’t been allowed to say anything about this up to now. I was shortlisted for the 2023 Jane Austen Literary Foundation’s short story competition. Didn’t win – the story that did was very clever and a touch spooky, whereas mine was pretty clunky (it was a last-minute substitute for a much darker story thatContinue reading “This Is Danny”

Just Another Day in Paradise

We had a few days in Ironbridge recently, visiting all the places we didn’t get around to last time. Including places we didn’t realise existed (like the street named Paradise – we visited Hell in Norway some years ago, so this was the logical destination). This time, we headed for the Jackfield Tile Museum andContinue reading “Just Another Day in Paradise”

The Joys of Mowing

It seems to be the majority of my time in late March and early April – on the rota for mowing the grass in the community green space and spending my time finding where the key was hidden by the previous mower, lugging fuel down to refill the empty can, working out why the mowerContinue reading “The Joys of Mowing”

Sycamore Gap

The previous post was completely full up with all the goings on in Scotland – hard to believe that we were there for just two days. Northumberland took up just one full day, but I think this post will be just as long. We were watching the weather forecasts with a bit of concern asContinue reading “Sycamore Gap”

Coming Up Blank

Can my close friends look away now, please. I don’t want to bore them. But this was an absolute high point of the year, and we’re just eleven weeks in. I entered five competitions at the Scottish Association of Writers, some more as an exercise in hope than with any real hope of getting somewhere.Continue reading “Coming Up Blank”

28 Plays – Encore!

That feeling when you wake up and another month has gone, and somehow you can’t remember what you did? That’s February, in this house. I spent a large part of the month head-down at the laptop, writing plays. Not as impressive as it sounds, as they will accept even one page wonders and utterly dudContinue reading “28 Plays – Encore!”