STORIES FROM MY DESK | February 2025: A Monthly Update on Writing, Reading & Watching

What I've been consuming in the last month.

How has February been for you? I’m asking because I can’t remember how it’s been for me. It seems to have passed by in a blur, mainly I think because my daughter has been concentrating on her mock exams and it affects the entire household. Roll on Wednesday when they finish (and then we have the real exams to look forward to which begin in May!)

If January was all about me gently coaxing myself back into a writing routine after burnout, then February has been about solidifying this routine a little. I could have two productive days in a row and then be useless for a couple of days. But, I’m learning to go with that, to not beat myself up, and to take the rest when I need it. Which reminds me of a few notes I made in my writing journal. (I try and capture these thoughts when I have them as you never know what will turn into an essay, a piece on social media or even a book).

CREATIVE UPDATE

Speaking of social media my creative updates are all about how I’ve been getting on with YouTube and TikTok. I’ve been creating vertical videos every single day since January 1st. I don’t think I’ve ever been so consistent. I make them primarily for TikTok and then the following day I’ll upload them to YouTube as a Short. What’s interesting is that growth is very slow on TikTok, but the more videos I have, the more chances I have of people discovering me and therefore my followers are gradually going up. At the end of January I had 452 and I’m now on 515. It’s slow but it is still growth.

Secondly, and I might be repeating myself as I’m sure I’ve said this elsewhere, is that by sharing my TikTok videos as Shorts on YouTube my YouTube subscriber count is also going upwards - even though I’m not posting longer horizontal videos (although I did create one in February!). I grew by 102 subscribers in February. Plus, my earnings are going up. Not from my Shorts - they literally only earn me pennies - but the algorithm seems to be pushing my longer form content because I’m active on Shorts.

So, what I’m trying to say is - if you want to grow on YouTube with long form content then try posting lots of Shorts. (Also, if you’re starting out on YouTube let me know!)

You can find me on TikTok here.

WRITING UPDATE

I’ve written eight newsletters on Substack this month. I’m so pleased about that, because I’m being consistent. I skipped one day, but the previous week I’d done an extra one so it all panned out.

I’m struggling to write everything I want to write because of the aforementioned ‘feeling useless’ days but that’s okay. I’m still making steps forward. I have also emailed another agent this month. Which is a huge milestone for me, it’s my first query since the summer of last year. A BIG win.

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READING UPDATE

Lots to talk about on the reading front, as ever.

Firstly, I have to mention one of my favourite newsletters has returned after a hiatus which I am utterly delighted about.

Claire Holden

is one of my favourite people, I adore her writing and all the interconnections she makes between films and TV and books is just so clever and entertaining. I always learn so much from her and it encourages me to read (and watch) outside of my cosy murder comfort zone. Do check out her newsletter and enjoy yourself in her archives - there’s a lot of good stuff in there.

This month I’ve read six books. I seem to have had a run on rom-coms which is unlike me, but I was hoovering up all the books about writers I had on my to-be-read pile.

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The books I read during February were:

• The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (as part of my Agatha Christie project)

• Normal People by Sally Rooney

• The Big Four by Agatha Christie

• The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

• How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang

• 84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie is one of Agatha’s famous mysteries that had a twist that got everyone talking when it was first published. Roger Ackroyd is stabbed in the neck in a locked room. Poirot comes out of his retirement (growing marrows!) to help solve the murder with the local doctor. Skilfully written. I gave this four stars.

Normal People by Sally Rooney has been in my possession for a long time but I was put off by the hype. Sally is a talented writer and I LOVED the first one hundred pages or so. But I had such issues with the characters so I soon began to feel frustrated. I gave this three stars.

The Big Four by Agatha Christie. This had good bits and annoying bits. It felt like many murder mysteries in one, a bit James Bondish at times and how many times was Hastings going to be beaten up and all he can say in response is “I say, old chap!” (Okay, that’s not quite what he said but hopefully you get the idea!) I gave it three stars.

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center. If you like romance between two writers this is a good one. Emily is a wannabe screenwriter with a tragic backstory and Charlie is a successful screenwriter with his own issues. They are brought together by their mutual agent, with Emily teaching him how to write a rom-com. Four stars.

How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang. This is another romance between writers in Hollywood but this one didn’t quite hit the spot for me. I felt a lack of chemistry between the two characters and I had a big issue with implausibility. Three stars.

84 Charing Cross Road and The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff. This has also been sitting on my tbr pile for an embarrassingly long time. When Olatomi of

Olatomi’s Substack

recommended it in the comments of my Why do I Love Novels About Writers so Damn Much? I immediately took it out from the bottom of the pile…and read it in one day. It was gorgeous. A memoir told in letters between a New York writer and a book shop in London. Simple. Charming. Utterly delightful. FIVE STARS.

WATCHING UPDATE

Other than an action film with Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx on Netflix, the new series of Reacher on Amazon Prime and a re-watch of series one of Only Murders in the Building that I’m watching with my daughter, not a lot has been watched…

Except, right at the end of February/beginning of March, I put on the documentary Devil in the Family: The Fall of Ruby Franke (Hulu/Disney Plus). And Oh. My. God. Ruby Franke was a family vlogger from Utah. The family vlogging channel, 8 Passengers, had over two and a half million subscribers on YouTube at its peak. In 2023 Ruby and her friend/counsellor Jodi Hildebrandt were arrested for child abuse. I’ve never watched this channel, never heard of them, never even heard of the case, but I’m always intrigued by the stories behind the scenes of social media. This is obviously an extreme case, a shocking case, a disturbing case but a huge lesson in what you see online is not necessarily what is truly happening.

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED FROM ME

My favourite piece that I wrote in February was for paid subscribers only but for 48 hours I have made it free for everyone to read. It’s called What If She Turns Out Like Me?, and it’s about my concerns that my daughter, a talented singer songwriter, will procrastinate and self-sabotage like I do due to fear (see below).

If you would like to read more vulnerable pieces like this, then do consider upgrading your subscription. If you subscribe to the paid membership, you’ll get full access to the vulnerable, behind-the-scenes paywalled pieces, and, it turns out, I’ve been writing on here for nearly three years so there’s a lot in the archives too.

You can currently subscribe for 20% off annual subscriptions which makes it £3 a month or 37 pence per newsletter - based on eight per month. (I think that’s right, maths is not my strength!)

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Other essays from February include:

My Journals for 2025 and What I'm Using Them For

How I Generate Ideas for My Writing

Why I’ve Started a Reading Journal

Do You Keep Procrastinating on Your Writing Project?

Writing Project Wrap Up for January

And I produced a YouTube video about my current journals for 2025: