Now that The eBay book is making its way in the world alone and England are out of the footy, my stress levels are down. I can’t think of many better ways to spend a summer evening than listening to the new Wilco album while investigating the joyous thing that is issue thirteen of McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern. This is a huge poster of a comic with a free, beautifully bound 264 page hardback book of top quality comic art and articles. I’d heard of McSweeney’s for years but, until the last issue, edited by Michael Chabon, it wasn’t published in the UK and cost an extortionate amount to subscribe to, so I read the online version (which is fun) instead. You unwrap the poster sized…

The book I’ve been working on since February goes to press this week, and is officially published on June 15th, with a launch at the Lowdham Book Festival on June 19th (a day of great free events). It’s my first non-fiction book, and it’s a guide to using the auction site eBay.co.uk. Why did I write it? I got an email from an old friend at the end of January. We’d discussed eBay on holiday last year. He asked whether I’d be interested in writing a guide. By the middle of February, I’d agreed to do it. From start to finish, the process will have taken four months, some kind of record for me. The book’s aimed at people who want to start using eBay…

Martin’s in New York and I’m jealous. Somehow, the fact that people can send me emails and update their blogs while they’re away doesn’t seem a positive development. Not when spring hasn’t sprung and I’m getting up an hour earlier than usual because we’re having the outside of the house painted and sleeping in the spare bedroom because we’re having the bedroom painted as well, to give the painters something to do when it’s raining… and I must remember to go and water Martin’s plants. Oh, enough moaning. This morning, there is no pressing university business and I got an email from the editor of my non-fiction book that, for the first time, didn’t give me any more work to do! Final proofs should arrive…

I didn’t hear the crash, or the scream. I was in bed, drinking my second mug of tea while Radio One described the problems people were having buying Glastonbury tickets. The festival web-site wasn’t working and the phones were constantly engaged. Then Sue yelled my name in a terrible, scared voice. I pulled on my dressing gown as I hurried downstairs. Sue was outside with two people. At first I thought they were our next door neighbours, who have a car that colour. As I got to the door, however, I saw that the front of the car at the end of our short drive was wrapped around the tree just to the right of our house. The young woman was sitting in the driver’s…

I’ve got a brief respite, having sent off the first draft of the book I’m working on (rewrites next week and publication in May is the plan, but I suspect it’s more likely to be June. When there’s more definite info, I’ll stop being mysterious about it). Time for a quick catch up then. Lots of people showed up at the reading in Beeston two weeks ago, which was a friendly, relaxed event. OK, Nigel could hardly be described as relaxed, being a claustrophobic giving his first full reading in an overcrowded room, but he read brilliantly. There’ll be more in the autumn, with readers like Matthew Sweeney, Lee Harwood and Clare Littleford. Clare, who joined us for dinner afterwards, is a former NTU Creative…