Thursday 21 July, 5.15pm.
Arrived in Harrogate and had to squeeze my car into a very tight
space under the eagle eye of Val McDermid. Haven't seen
anyone else I know so far but I have been chasing round like a
dervish, trying to find a nude leather clutch bag to wear with the
only pair of shoes I could find to match my coral pink dress. Four
hours on Bond Street and nude was honestly the closest we could
get. But no handbag.
So, immediately after I get a grudging nod of approval from Val
(it was a very tight spot) I raced out. You would not believe how
many coral pink accessories there are in Harrogate.
I now have two hours to go before the big opening party, when I
have to take to the stage with Lee Child, Mark Billingham, Stuart
MacBride, Andrew Taylor and William Ryan to see which of us has won
the sparkly beer barrel. My money is still on MacBride, even if he
did call me a sodding arse monkey on Twitter yesterday. How
naive am I? I had to look it up!
The Hotel du Vin in Harrogate in just gorgeous and I seriously
thought I might drown in the shower. Just two hours to glam
up before i have to leave. Wish me luck!