I’m a huge comedy fan. Thanks to my lovely mam, I have tickets to see Steve Coogan in December - I was a very big fan of his until he described some of his fans as ‘bunny boilers”, but have decided to give him another chance. However, today, I was disappointed to read that Victoria Beckham may be appearing in an Alan Partridge film as Lynne! I really do hope that this is a joke!

While you are all excitedly stoking up the barbecues and sloshing on the sun cream, spare a thought for the odd (take odd in any way you choose) person like myself that absolutely hates the summer. In the same way as some people are affected negatively by the nights cutting in and the cold weather, I feel my mood sinking as I smell the scent of freshly mown grass. It could be because it’s now allergy season, and my sinuses are more congested than Next on the first day of a sale, or because I simply can’t tolerate the heat.

I have a tendency towards hermit-like behaviour during the summer months (yes, that probably does explain my colour: the palest foundation that Max Factor can offer leaves me looking as though I’ve had a spray tan) and if I do HAVE to go out, I walk the fine line between wearing few enough clothes to stay cool and indecent exposure! I’m so sensitive to sunlight that I’ve been known to wear sunglasses in the Metrocentre (if you’ve been there, you’ll know where I mean: the upstairs bit between Starbucks and Debenhams), and I’m contemplating a sun hat (cool, but uncool, if you know what I mean).

I also hate the way that fine weather can make people forget their manners. I don’t really want to hear someone’s loud music, played, full volume in house so they can hear it in the garden, and I hate my freshly dried clothes smelling of barbecued food…though the dogs love it!

I haven’t turned into a female Victor Meldrew (What? “You don’t believe it!”) but I’m just S.A.D. Take the Victor Meldrew test here.

I’m now a real writer, having received my first rejection! I thought I’d feel awful but, I didn’t feel anything, which is probably worse as it implies that I have lost any love I had for my book.

As I’ve explained before, usually people get agents before they have their books published, but this wasn’t how it worked out for me (due to the competition win). After all these months going it alone, I really understand why people value agents: basically, you can get walked ALL over without one, and that doesn’t sit well with me. I know nothing about agents, so only submitted my book to the one that I’d heard of. To be fair, it’s a biggie, and there was little to no chance of my work being accepted, but it was worth a shot. Turned out to be a shot in the dark (at least it wasn’t a shot in the foot…)

Anyhow, a very nice lady has given me another agent to try - I feel that this will be the second and last one, as I just can’t afford to keep doing this. I understand that tenacity is good, but bankrupcy isn’t! I have to BUY copies of my own book in order to send to agents, competitions and reviewers and, with postage, it’s too much. I could be spending that money on non-generic food and sunglasses that don’t have to have the legs bent so that they stay on my head!!!

In other news, a HUGE congratulations to Rae Earl, as her book, My Fat Mad Teenage Diary, looks set to be made into a TV show by Tiger Aspect - I’m thrilled to bits and jealous as hell!

30 days until the abseil…