Happy New Year!

Happy N'airday from Lokai and I!

The best piece of Galena of the year

So every year I like to release a story for Christmas, publish a new piece or the likes, all to say thank you to the dedicated fans out there. This year has been hellish, hectic and has seen me left prepared for presents but totally unprepared for writing.

So instead of the usual obligatory story I thought I would save some time and put up a highlight of the 'best bits' of my 2018. I have a whole collection of awesome Scotland photo's I never found a home for yet, so I'll put some of them up and give a little background.

I've had about fifteen trips out to Leadhills and Wanlockhead to go gold panning. My last trip was fairly unsuccessful but my first ever trip produced this solid piece of pyrite and galena to the right, one of my favourite finds, even if it wasn't worth money.

Back in July I finally got the hang of driving and the nerves died down. I've only had my license a year so getting out and about is a new thing for me. The beautiful sights of Scotland ended up overriding all else to become the focus of this blog. There are loads of sights I visited where I didn't find any rocks. Auchenstarry Quarry in Kilsythe was one, with a sheer cliff face for climbers and a local fishing spot for those less daring.

I have since found out that there is an old castle (Colzium Visitor Centre) nearby to this so it makes for good tourism.

My first Gold flake! August 2018.

In July and August I spent a lot of time out and about gold panning and rock hunting. On the right you can see the first flake I found, still in the pan and barely visible - but what a feeling! Some secrets will come to the grave with me but what I will tell you is it didn't come from Leadhills or Tyndrum, thus proving that off-the-beaten-track is sometimes best.

I also took a trip out especially to a town called Crawford. My family has big roots there since generations of us took camping holidays there as kids. In the old days they would have 'the men's tent' and 'the women's tent', but fortunately when I was old enough to join in my Nana already had a caravan! Anyway I traced down an old tree that stuck out from memory and snapped a few shots while I was there.

the Crawford creepy tree!

Of course, I had to send the photo on the left to my mum just so she could see I was back there. I've since found out that all five of us kids have driven back out there at some point, which is kinda nice.

In the end of August I finally finished Quicksilver; Dark Science, part three. It took me about a year of working quietly in the background. I also have a kitchen job and work as a freelancer so I have zero free time for anything. That being said a book is written a little at a time. If you do a hundred words a day you will have ten thousand words in a hundred days... so if you keep writing a paragraph a day you will get there in the end.

Kai on the Wanlock Water in July

Other writing success was managing to hold down my ongoing ghostwriting work despite life trying its darnedest to put me off. Getting focused enough to actually routinely write in my blog and to send out short stories as I went has been tricky but do-able. In March I contributed a short story to Rinoa Cameron's Fangs and Broken Bones Collection. In early July I helped a friend out editing his LEGAL guide to Glamping, which was interesting. I discovered I quite like editing now that I have had enough experience with it to know what I am doing.

I edited together 101 Self Care Suggestions in January/February and also , somehow, managed to find time to edit a book of poetry that was donated randomly to ESTEEM Clydesdale, the mental health charity I worked with before my free time dissolved. The book is called 'There is a reason for tomorrow' and all of the proceeds go entirely back to the charity... so if there is one you are looking to buy make it that!

Had a random trip to a Blacksmiths in October!

Well, after all of that it is no wonder I'm so exhausted! Moving forward readers can expect the final instalment of Dark Science by the time the winter rolls round again. I have a Sci-Fi book about the end of the world on the back burner and I expect to work with KC again at some point. I have my first English lesson booked in the diary to tutor a friend's niece, I'm still working in the kitchen and I will still be rock picking!

What I need is locations, beauty spots and photographs from various places in Scotland to go and see. If they are spooky or contain crystal specimens then hook a girl up! Answers in the comments section please!

So once again, Sorry for the lack of a Christmas/New Year story. At this rate it will be July before I get around to it so I wouldn't hold your breath. All that remains to be said is that 2018 was a blast. Let's all carry on the momentum into next year and make it even better than the last!

Happy New Year all; may the roof above ye ne'er fall in and the friends aboot ye ne'er fa' oot!