life of a street dancer

It's officially winter time! Hello fur coat and scarves. I actually like this weather when it's crisp and the sky is clear and I was those annoying people moaning about the heat so I figured I should just enjoy the cold! This month was Breast Cancer Awareness Month and of course Black History Month! I did my annual post of the books that I have at home with a black main character written by a black author for children/YA and it has grown! There is way more to get but my to read pile is actually a joke right now. Actually my submission pile is a myth right now. I am literally whizzing through to make sure I don't miss any gems and I am reading a manuscript now for Hashtag BLAK and am really into it. Fingers crossed Helen feels the same! Our book Ticking off Breast Cancer by Sara Liyanage became a bestseller on Amazon and Waterstones!!!!!! I am so so happy for her and I think this is our 4th bestseller so I am well chuffed for our little pub house. We took part in #...

Happy October! I swear I blinked and we're here. I'm currently on annual leave—forced to take by Helen. I feel like I just need a day or two off, she said, “Take a week. Book a holiday!” I am trying very very hard to not work but it I am finding it difficult. Usually on my birthday I feel well rested during August but this August just seemed full on for some reason and I didn't feel like work slowed down at all. So I'll try to enjoy my time off. I have a title for my third Emily Knight book. Are you ready? It's Emily Knight I am...Becoming. Yay!!!!! And I got my editors notes back and I dread editors notes. The email actually said 'Don't dread the notes. This manuscript is so strong.' Ya'll I almost fainted. I was reading through them and it's stuff that at the back of my mind I did think have I said enough about this? Should I have more on this character? And basically my thoughts were right. For once I'm excited to work though the notes ...

How has a year gone by so quick? Last year I was in Wakanda for my 30th and now I'm 31. I'm trying not to moan too much about it cause every time I say, “Uh! I'm 31!” I get a side eye from people older than me. At least all the kids keep telling me that I look 24. It's what a girl needs to hear! For the first time, I think in years, I was so not excited for my birthday. The weather was on a mad one. It was either crazy hot or raining. What is the point of being born in August if you don't get guaranteed good weather? Luckily I have amazing people who planned the best stuff. Aleta and Alisha started it off first with taking me to this super gorgeous cake place in S. Kensington. The cake was everything! On my actual birthday (6th) Helen and I went to Lille. See we were meant to go to Paris but the price doubled a few days after we decided to go. I had never been to Lille so I didn't mind going. Helen brought a whole feast on the Eurostar including a birthday ...

The Lion King was EVERYTHING!!!! I swear me and Ebz were acting like we were in a sing along, a talk along, laughing too damn loud. It's visually such a gorgeous film  and there are a few different lines but it's still the same movie. I wish Rafiki was more fresh though. He was a bit more turnt in the animation and I wonder why Whoopi Goldberg didn't do the hyena's voice. Timon and Pumba are even funnier in this one. Ebz: Oh my gosh, Timon is you! (To be fair everything Timon said was defo something I would say) Me: Does that make you Pumba? We stayed to the end because you know that Marvel has programmed us to think that there is a bonus part. There isn't but the soundtrack is live! We were getting side eyes from the stewards but we didn't care. Hakuna Matata. This is the look of a woman who's officially in Leo season. It''s my birthday in 7 days. Let bear month begin :) The Open Pitch Day at Hashtag BLAK was ...interesting. First of all...

Do you know I've been featured in Cosmopolitan UK Magazine?—yes I was in Cosmo!  https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/worklife/careers/a14471156/changing-careers-tips-advice/ Just wanted to throw that out there :)  I'm back in dance! No where near the life I was living before. I want to have the choice of filming myself for the Beats book and I figured if I give myself a year of training I will kind of, maybe where I was. I've made myself accountable to two people who I know will ask me what classes I've done so no excuses. So Monday came along and I was planning what classes to do for the week and Aleta tells me she's teaching back to back and I should do it. I'm not gonna lie, I did think wtf? TWO HOURS! Then I remembered I used to dance for four hours back to back so if I can't do two then I really have fallen. The first routine was to Diva, Beyonce Homecoming album which is actually one of my fav songs so I really loved that one. I was done after that class...

I have a home for Girls Can Do Anything! Four Communications who completely saved my ass by offering a free space for my last event when Library messed up have agreed to host my future events. Isn't God good? So I'm thinking to bring it back for the release of Sara's book Ticking off Breast Cancer that we're publishing at Hashtag Press. We have an idea for a great panel with AMAZING women and I think that would be amazing. Now my schedule is super packed BUT I'm ready to take my career to the next level. I love and am so proud of how I have forced my way into publishing but I just don't want to be stuck in publishing. I love when creative people get to do other things in a different creative field and that's what I want to do. Then I had a dream that I was in a meeting with Helen but she was dressed like Kris Jenner! Securing the bag. It hit me! I've been working with different people for different parts of my career but really Helen is my Kris freaki...

We are officially in July. That means summer, summer, summer time (but it's London sooo....) and it also means my birthday is next month and 31 is looming closer and closer. Going from the best Wakanda themed 30th birthday party to now turning 31, which is just a blah age, I honestly don't know what to do. I was thinking of a day trip to Paris but the tickets went from £80 to £150 pretty much overnight which is some next joke. So I don't know whether to try another city or just do some fun stuff in London. Oh Paris would have been the best. I wanted to go to that Cuban restaurant again! This week has been a really good one. Hashtag BLAK officially launched on July 1st to do the best responses. I can't even believe that I have an inclusive publishing house! I just feel so damn proud that I'm actively making a differennce in publishing and will hopefully affect the shit statistics coming out. Merky Books (Stormzy's imprint) wished us congrats, which was really ...