It’s 23rd December 2016, and the year has almost come and gone again.

As we head forward into 2017, I thought I’d take a moment to give thanks for the wonderful writing opportunities and achievements which have come my way over the last twelve months.

• My biggest achievement, without a doubt, has been the successful completion of my MLitt Creative Writing! After receiving a good grade for my final portfolio, I graduated from the University of Glasgow in November. It was a proud day, and wonderful to look out into the crowd and see my husband, parents and friends cheering me on. I couldn’t have done it without the help of those wonderful people and the other family and friends who provided babysitting, proofreading, or an ear to bend! I’m so thankful to each and every one of them – and thankful to those who helped talk me into doing the MLitt in the first place. It wasn’t an easy decision, with a then-9-month-old baby in tow, but I’m so glad to have done it.
• My local writers’ group, Lockerbie Writers, has once again been an invaluable source of writing support and companionship, not least because they let me produce their anthology in the spring as one of my university projects. I’m looking forward to the next meeting in January!
• Over the year, I have had several short stories published in places including Gutter and From Glasgow to Saturn, and I was also lucky enough to be awarded third place in a poetry competition. Of course, behind the successes there were even more rejection letters and disappointments, but that’s all part of the life of a writer. Thanks go to all the hard-working people who read any of my work over the year, especially those who were kind enough to provide me with feedback.
• Last but not least, an enormous THANK YOU to all of my family and friends, once again, for your unwavering support! I couldn’t do it without you!

This year has been good to me, with several real high points as an emerging writer. I’m pleased to say that I already have one short story accepted by another publication for the new year, so watch this space for full details once the publication date approaches. My novel also continues to be a work-in-progress, and I hope that the new year will give me a bit of motivation to get on with it and get it out to a few agents.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to you all! 2017 is going to be a big year!