Judging the Warminster Writers Circle poetry contest was great fun as prize-giving was convivially combined with their annual party, so having picked my favourites from a dozen enjoyable submissions I was free to pick at smoked salmon and sauvignon. Here's me with Meerkat and A.Paternoster, worthy winners.

It's been a good week for anyone planning to stay home and polish their new year resolutions, though less good if any of these plans involve getting the car out.
Niamh and I managed one of our walk-and-talks at Stourhead before everything writerly not in trudging distance was cancelled. No need to ask if our journeys were Really Necessary, they were impossible, as Frome like the rest of the southwest sparkled in subzero temperatures. So here, instead of a lively update on meetings and a contentious review of Hansel & Gretel, is the world according to January:


Appreciations to Rosie Jackson for her inspiring session at the Library on setting targets for 2010, here's mine - I've achieved the first already!

In 20-10 I decided to lose that lisping ‘thousand’ and give this year a name that chimes.
In 20-10 I went back to my roots, and fertilised them organically.
In 20-10 I found gems in old notebooks, and threw them away.
In 20-10 I found the path through the forest
In 20-10 I surprised myself.
In 20-10 I finished books I started, and reread Winnie the Pooh.
In 20-10 my private life was so glamorous I nearly forgot to write.
In 20-10 I found what I wanted to say, and found how to say it.

Tenuous link time: Cakes - but with writing on them! If you want to send a heartfelt message, ice it....

And finally: sugar-free congratulations to Sebastion Coe for scooping the Financial Times end of year award for mixed metaphor. Sebastian pulled out all the spades, levers, and lenses in his autobiography The Winning Mind to create “There are times when there is a need to dig deep and find another gear – while never losing sight of the bigger picture.” Thanks for the winning words, Seb.