2015 - Double the blessings!

I can honestly say, hand on heart, that this year has been flipping awesome! I was writing down all of the cool things that have happened and I was so surprised that it was literally double the blessings from last year. 2015, I went into it with big dreams and less fear and it worked. God has been amazing and I have had so many fun and new opportunities. I feel that I have grown a lot and I feel more zen, which is a great feeling. I cannot wait for 2016! I'll be releasing my second book! Can you believe it?? And my aim is to have at least three books out by the time I am thirty. Here are my highlights for the year

- Launching The Author School with Helen, the launch party at Beaufort House, the first session with the amazing speakers
- Launching The Lil' Author Skool
- Finishing my dance story, hopefully to be released by 2017
- Finishing the second book in the Emily Knight series
- Funding from Virgin StartUp and going to Virgin HQ
- The London Book Fair 2015 and being offered a publishing deal (not the right one but still very cool)
- New York Book Expo
- Speaking events and realising that I am pretty good at it! Hope to do more next year
- Lox - Emily Knight Warriors pop-up blog - success!
- Keeping up the Wireless tradition with my girls. Went to their 10th birthday party with Drake headlining AND got them for thirty something quid instead of eighty. Holla!
- Being in The Bookseller, The Mirror and Love Sunday Magazine
- Getting Janet Jackson tickets for Melissa bday for 2016
- Getting AMAZING tickets for my brothers bday (can't say what incase he reads this but it's dope)
- Having the best Bear Birthday month - Harry Potter studios, Matilda the musical, Benihana
- Spoken to by Prophets about my future
- Actor, Taye Diggs following The Author School twitter (OMG)
- Discovering the amazingness that is Bubbletea. You haven't lived unless you have it in Belgium. Yum
- Bournemouth Beach
- Belgium with my sissy
- Growth in all the dancers that I teach and creating some of my best dance pieces
- Free books. I legit have no space on my bookshelf anymore
- Meeting JUDY BLUME!! AAAAAHHHHHH
- Costume party as Cruella De Ville
- Getting the best cover art in life for Emily 2
- Winter Wonderland
- Fergie becoming a cat model. You go Fergz

Even just looking at these highlights gives me goosebumps. Jackie Collins passing away was so heartbreaking as she is one of my fav authors but what a legacy she has left and I can only pray that I can achieve what she did. I now go into 2016 with an open mind, gigantic dreams and faith. Let's do this!

Thank you so much for reading my blog and to everyone that is supported me and my book in anyway. Thank you. Even if not everything you wanted didn't happen in 2015, go into 2016 with your mind set and don't let fear block you. Remember, some people didn't make it to the end of the year and you did!
Lastly, WISHING ALL MY BEAUTS A HAPPY NEW YEAR! See you in 2016 xxx

I have a new book out!

That's right book 4 is out! This is my first anthology and it's absolutely gorgeous. I was asked to be part of The Very Merry Murder Club maybe a few weeks after my dad and I remember just thinking why is this opportunity coming now?! And it's with Farshore and imprint of HarperCollins. There's no way I can do it. I literally couldn't write. My agent Gemma spoke to me and the editors knew what had happened to me so it was really up to me. I prayed on it and God said to me you're not going to feel this way in October so I said yes. I won't lie I was worried that I really couldn't write this book but thank God for his strength and amazing agent and now it's here! I've been ill all week but I saw loads of pic on social and my copy hasn't come yet so I dragged myself to Waterstones Islington to take pics of the book on the shelves. The booksellers were looking at me like are you going to buy this book. HA! The amazing thing is I have even more ...

In the words of Carrie Bradshaw and just like that I was a YA author

It feels like the right time but this will be my last entry. I know! I've been writing in this blog for TEN YEARS but this year it just felt off. I couldn't pinpoint why that was but the other day I realised I started this blog because I was a dancer who was trying to understand the publishing world. I also was so scared of anyone reading my work hence why I started a blog. Ten years later I have fulfilled my goals! Back in May I had finished my first YA book, a love story based around a Black owned bookshop in Stoke Newington. How I wrote this book when I was heartbroken I have no idea. I vaguely remember sitting on the couch with headphones on playing O Holy Night on repeat at 3am writing. I made my deadline and I wasn't sure if the book was good. My first round of submission for another book had very conflicting feedback and honestly I didn't have it in me to experience that again. I just wanted a deal. Fast forward to September 21st and my book was sent on submissio...

My meeting with an agent

Those of you who have been following this blog from the beginning will know that I've been trying for years to get an agent. Well I have the best news...I HAVE A LITERARY AGENT!!!!!!!! Omg I was in so much shock when they responded and it wasn't the rejection letter I was used too. You're probably wondering how did this happen right? Remember when I went to The London Book Fair? My PR told me to go through the exhibition directory and message all the literary agents for a meeting. Whilst I was doing that, most of them had links to their sites so I figured why not submit for the thousandth time, you never know. The directory is super long so I got bored doing it and Helen (PR) kept emailing 'Have you finished it?' All I can say is thank Jesus that she did that because that's when I submitted to Raimondi and Campbell. I got a response to read the whole of the novel. Now I've been at this position before and it usually ends there, so I sent the book in. Th...

life of a street dancer

Search This Blog