February was a reasonably quiet month for me as we scaled back on activities while getting ready to release The Makarov File at the end of the month.
So what had we quieter month than usual. The weather had started to warm up and we had some amazingly sunny days (like Waitangi Day).
I had a week at home looking after my son who was recovering from major surgery, which was nice to spend time with him and the dogs, but also to catch up on editing and writing. At the beginning of the month we were successful in our application to attend the Waitangi celebrations at Government House in Wellington. The event was well attended with New Zealanders from all across the country attending. We saw the Governor General and met lots of interesting people. The food was great as was the wine.
We had been planning our 25th Wedding Anniversary celebrations and later in the year meeting friends from the UK (who are sharing theirs at the same time) in Koh Samui in Thailand, then late November having a week in the Whitsunday Islands in Australia. The Whitsundays was where we wanted our original honeymoon, but the travel time from the UK was just too long. But now we are in New Zealand, it’s a lot easier to reach. However, with the Coronavirus outbreak we’ve put those plans on hold until next year when we’d not be exposing ourselves unnecessarily to a virus.
Instead I booked a trip to walk the Abel Tasman track in December where we’ll camp rather than stay in huts. We’ve walked the Abel Tasman track (staying in DoC huts) and we’ve kayaked around (camping) for 5 days and it’s absolutely fabulous.
We’ve also firmed up plans for our daughters’ graduation ceremony in Christchurch where she secured a first in Software Engineering. It’s going to be a great event for her where she’ll be able to catch up with her friends who she studied with.
I also participated in Casi McLean’s Winter Games Readers Challenge which organizes authors and readers to engage with each other and for authors to network. The objective is for authors to gain reviews. The event was well organized and the events ran well. I will say they were very fast paced and frantic, but great fun. I started with 2 reviews on Defector and by the end I had several very good reviews, so I was happy at their reaching out to me and my making the effort to participate. Though I was asked whether I’d write romance…not as far as I know.
We keep walking our Labradors who need their daily exercise.
Then it was get ready for the launch of The Makarov File which had several last minute edits. The good news was I found the process far less stressful than when I released Defector and Double Cross.
March should be a good month for me where we get back to normal. I hope it’s a good month for you too.