Well, Marrying Max went through without any problems – in fact, I had the most enthusiastic and encouraging response I’ve ever had, so I’m revoltingly pleased with myself at the moment.  It was a fantastic email to get from an editor, and it gave my confidence a much-needed boost.  The only drawback is the new title, The Honeymoon Prize, which I’m not that keen on, I have to say.  I still prefer Marrying Max , but, hey, what do I know about marketing?  My job is just to write the book.

So, satisfaction all round, and I was able to relax for all of five minutes before agreeing December 1st as the deadline for the next book.  Since I’d previously agreed 30th September as a deadline for a chapter of my thesis, I am now feeling even tenser than before, especially as I have absolutely no ideas for a new book at the moment.    The old shoulders are like boards, and I’m frantically trying to clear the decks of everything else I’ve got to do, think up a new plot, go down to Oxford for a completely unrelated job, and finish rewriting new website pages all before next Thursday, when I’ll have to switch modes.

Updating the website has taken much longer than I thought, but I have had quite a good time finding background photos, selecting excerpts and explaining what the different books mean to me.  As you can imagine, I got quite nostalgic leafing through some of them!  Where readers have told me their favourite books, I’ve included their comments as well to add a different viewpoint and make it more interesting to read, so if you’ve got a favourite, why not send me a message and tell me which Jessica Hart you have enjoyed most.