Confessions of an Author

The Sword Pierced Heart  The Sword Pierced Heart by Anne E. Thompson I watched my son die today. My beautiful boy, beaten, battered and left to die. And my heart broke. I held my cloak close and I remembered the weight of him as a babe, like a boulder on my hip, wriggling to be free, to run and jump and climb. Those legs will run no more. Those limbs, I was so proud when they grew. I remember when he grew as tall as me, then taller even than Joseph. I remember watching him, stretched out as he ate, those long limbs seemed to go on forever. “I grew him,” I used to think with pride. Those limbs will not sprawl relaxed in my home ever again. I watched his hands, the hands that used to pat me cheekily on the head when he’d grown tall. Those strong hands which laboured with wood, which helped me carry heavy loads, which lifted young children playfully. They are no longer strong. I saw them bang nails through the flesh, felt that I heard the sound of bone shattering ove...

An Extract From Hidden Faces As it’s nearly Christmas, and  Hidden Faces  begins as the staff prepare for the Nativity play, I thought I would share an extract with you. I hope you enjoy it. Chapter One Cynthia Mott was late. She slotted her key into the solid front door and pushed it open, stepped into the front room, brushed her feet on the mat and hurried under the low beam into her kitchen. She dumped her bag in the corner, keys on top of the fridge and bent to retrieve her forgotten lunch. There was a thump. She froze, all her attention focused on listening. It came again. A dull, low thump. Wood on wood. It came from the cottage garden, which should have been empty. She glanced at the clock, irritable, there was no time for this, had not really been time to even collect her sandwiches. Another thump. That decided her. She dropped the lunch box into her bag, kicked off her shoes, struggled into the wellingtons by the back door and marched across the law...

Mary’s Story Mary’s Story by Anne E Thompson “I travelled to Bethlehem in a small cart. Every bump (and there were many) was agony. As I was jolted along, I was racked with pain. The baby’s time was near, you see and the pain was almost unbearable. Later, they would sing songs about a cute donkey carrying me. Nice thought! I don’t think there’s any way you could’ve got me on a donkey. As each contraction cramped every muscle in my torso, I huddled up like an animal, and prayed for it to be over. I could see Joseph, watching me as he walked alongside. He really didn’t have the first idea what to do. Oh, how I wanted my mother. I yearned for her to be there, holding my hand, telling me everything was alright and would be over soon. When we arrived at Joseph’s uncle’s house, the women folk came and helped me inside. The room was crowded. All Joseph’s male relatives from miles around had come to the house, for shelter and food. The women were busy cooking supper and the m...

Henry Wants to Fight It was a beautiful summer’s day. Annie was in the aviary, feeding the chickens. They all crowded round her, pecking at the corn and kicking it around. They were very messy eaters! Annie sat on the clean hay and watched them. It was a very happy group. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain on her arm. “Ow!” she said and jumped up. Next to her was Henry, one of the cockerels. He had fluffed up his feathers, stretched out his neck, and was hopping from side to side. He wanted a fight. Annie stood up very quickly and went back to the house. Every day after that, whenever Henry saw someone, he would try to peck them. It hurt. Annie had a big bruise on her arm. He tried to peck Annie. He tried to peck the boys. He tried to peck Husband. He tried to peck the girl. They were all very cross. When he tried to peck them, they would push him away with their boot. This made Henry worse. He would make himself very tall and dance from side to side. Once, Husband wen...

Pumpkin Story Pumpkin Story Once upon a time, there was a farmer. He was old and wise, and he knew all about growing plants. One fine spring day, he took a long flat seed, and planted it in the soil. Month after month, the seed grew. First it grew a small shoot, then leaves, then more shoots until it was a whole plant. The rain watered the plant, the sun gave it energy, and the roots grew deep into the soil. One day, a flower appeared, then a tiny fruit. The farmer watched and waited. The tiny fruit grew bigger and bigger, until one day, there was a fat round pumpkin. Then the farmer took his sharp knife, and cut the pumpkin and carried it inside. Inside his house, the farmer looked at the pumpkin. It looked very beautiful. It was orange and shiny and round. The farmer sighed. He took his sharp knife, and cut a hole in the top. It hurt the pumpkin. Inside, the pumpkin wasn’t so pretty. The pumpkin was full of gunky mess, and the farmer knew that if he left it there, i...