2025 didn't exactly start with a bang. The whole family was ill during the holidays and into the first week of the new year with a short respite on New Year's Eve when we had visitors from Sicily and had a lot of fun celebrating with them. But slowly, life is returning to the old …
Best reads of 2024
The year that is nearing to a close has been a year of quite a few good reads. I don't read the newest releases so if you're looking for a list of 2024-published hits, this is not for you. In fact, I tend to avoid the most hyped books until the dust settles and only …
On a Cliff Edge
Yesterday, Litro published a short story by me. It's a short excerpt from an unpublished novel and it deals with the grief of losing a loved one. We all search for relief in different ways. Sometimes those ways are strange and unexpected, sometimes they're downright crazy and dangerous. I've been through a couple of the …
The Pirate Tree free activities
I don't know if it was Elf on the Shelf or some other troll that removed the file for The Pirate Tree free activities from my website. So I've uploaded them again and you can access and download them below. 😉 The Pirate Tree - activities & board gameDownload
Heartbreak
I got another rejection today. This is the second one for this novel and funnily enough, both agents loved the concept but didn't fall in love with the writing - quite the opposite of the previous novels I queried with. I seem to not be able to put together a great concept and great writing. …
New essays
This seems to be the year for essays. The word 'essay' goes back to the 15th-century verb which was used in the sense of 'test the quality of something'. That verb, in turn, was borrowed from Old French 'essay, essai', from Latin 'exagium' (weighing, testing, ascertaining). Although I tend to express myself easiest through fiction, …
The Pirate Mums by Jodie Lancet-Grant @jlancetgrant
Everyone knows I adore pirates. I mean, I wrote a book about a girl pirate! So when I came across The Pirate Mums, I had to read it. And what a delightful picture book this is! Billy's mums are not exactly, well, normal, their pet parrot is loud and rude, and their clothes are not …
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Essay on writing in a second language
At last, sixteen months after my PhD viva, part of my critical essay is now published in LOGOS. Hurray! The Challenges, Advantages, and Consequences of Writing Prose in a Second Language. According to Homi Bhabha, hybridity in the context of identity where two cultures or languages collide is a third space where new views and …
Ever Rest by Roz Morris
I recently had the chance to read an advance copy of Roz Morris's Ever Rest. What first attracted me to it was the fact that it was about musicians (I used to date a bass player once upon a time) and that it was about grieving. Here's the blurb: Twenty years ago, Hugo and Ash …
The Pirate Tree in different forms
I'm very lucky to have brilliantly creative friends. One of them has transformed The Pirate Tree into a kamishibai form, which is a form of Japanese street theater that became popular during the 1930s Depression and the post-war period. It's becoming increasingly popular again and it's no wonder because it joins the best aspects of …
Brigita Orel 