The month when everything changed

COVID-19 has changed everything. It has not just changed the way we live - the lockdown. From now on, the people who experienced it will ask whether an event happened before the epidemic or after it.
Novels dated before January 2020 will be regarded as historical novels - just like novels dated before or after the First World War.
I have been writing a set of novels set in the present day. They describe the political situation in the Middle East. Should I rewrite them so they are set after the crisis? But how will the epidemic change the political situation?
The alternative is to write a historical novel. Some time ago, I drafted a novel set during the Roman Empire. I abandoned it because it needed extensive revision. I may go back and rewrite it.

Eastercon cancellation

Eastercon, the British national science fiction convention, was due to be held in Birmingham this year, over the Easter bank holiday. The Eastercon this year was named Concentric. One tradition of these conventions is the dealer's room, where small-scale publishers and other dealers can rent a table and sell their books and other merchandise.
I was looking forward to this convention as I had booked a table for myself and expected to sell a few of my books. 

The convention committee has just sent out an email to advise all members, guests, panelists and dealers that the convention has been cancelled. The government has orderd all bars and restaurants to close. The bar is the social heart of every convention, so the government's announcement meant that the hotel could not meet its obligations.
The committee's decision is is not a surprise, given the developing Corvid-19 crisis, but it is still a disappointment. I have booked tables at several conventions in the past, and had hoped to sell a few of my books at Concentric. 
The other major British convention this year, 'Satellite 7', to be held in Glasgow in May, has been postponed to February 2021.
I also regularly attend Novacon, whivh is usually held in Nottingham. I am hoping that this convention will not be put off.

Working from home

I have not been able to add much to my novel over the last week days. On Tuesday, my employer asked all their staff to work from home. This has completely disrupted my schedule. Our employer expected us to use our personal Cable Boadband setup to maintain contact with the office. At our own expense. The trouble is - I never bothered to get broadband. I'm a writer, not a gamer. I didn't neet ultrafast acess. Until now, that is.
So I had to improvise. I'm using a colleague's smartphone as a personal hotspot. The link keeps failing, so I have to stop work to re-establish the link.
Hopefully, I'll be able to establish a new writing routine next week.

Research at a pub

Yesterday, I jumped in my car and drove halfway across England to visit a very pleasant pub, the Barley Mow, on the Thames. As you can see, it is photogenic. The interior is as picturesque as the exterior, with low ceiling beams and a huge open fireplace.
A word of warning: the road is busy, with blind corners, and the car park is on the opposite side of the road.
The justification for this extravagance was that I was carrying out research for my latest novel. Several characters meet up there. The two Americans are astonished at the age of the building.
The warm and cosy interlude at the inn is followed by grimmer scenes in the Middle East.

s.,

The editors of the anthology asked the contributors to supply a short intro paragraph to introduce their stories. This is my first draft:

When Constance was thirteen, she discovered that she was a Firestarter. The man from the Guild told her that the only way she could protect her family from harm was for her to go to the secretive Castle School.
She learned other forms of magic, which was fun. The other girls forced her to learn deportment, which was not fun at all. She joined the officer cadets, so she could learn how to abseil down cliffs. But then the army learned about these children. They turned up at the school gates ...

Acceptance of a short story

Last November two authors, Chris Nuttall and L. Jagi Lamplighter, asked for contributions to a new anthology of 'Fantastic School' stories. They have both written a series of novels set in schools of magic. 
I remember the date very well, because I had just arrived at the annual British Science Fiction and Fantasy convention 'Novacon'.
I was writing an Urban Fantasy novel at the time. One of the characters was an adolescent girl who had found she could do magic and, as a result, had been sent to an English residential school. I realised that this setting could be used for a short story that might fit within the editors' guidelines.
I described my concept to Chris, asking for his opinion, and he said it sounded good. So I started writing.
This imaginary world already existed in the notes for my novel. One difficulty for me was to explain this background to the reader within the word limit of a short story. I kept adding scenes until I realised the story was getting too long. It was also unbalanced, with too much buildup, which outweighed the final act. So I had to prune it back again. I completed my story, and eventually decided on a name, 'A polite request from a tough soldier'. I sent it off at the beginning of February.

The editors have just informed me that my story has been accepted. They hope to publish the anthology in May. You will understand that for a struggling author, this acceptance is very encouraging.

Stories interesting places

My latest novel is set in present-day Baghdad. 

The political situation changes from day to day. There are protests, riots and bombings. This is very dramatic - which could be very useful for a novelist. I could incorporate these events into my story. My characters could participate in the protests or be trapped by a riot.

But the political scene is changed by these events. Should I adapt my story to reflect these changes, or should I ignore them? 

Writing and publishing my novels

I am writing a series of five Urban Fantasy novels. 

They are based in England, but action tales place around the world.  

Publication

I have to decide whether to publish them all at once, or several months apart. Publishing them no more than three weeks apart will have a greater effect upon publicity, but will involve more effort on my part.