I'm in love with illusion, so saw me in half...

Salut, mes petites cheres

Finally I'm home from my travels and hopefully staying put in London for a while so I can get on with the book writing. I really hope to be able to tell you officially and properly about my new project soon. I'm very excited about it.

Paris was wonderful. It was a real thrill to go to FNAC (the French version of Borders) and see Diary Of A Crush (or Journal d'un Coup de Foudre as it's known over there) on the shelves, as well as meeting my French publishers and some readers at the Salon du Livre event. Not so fun was throwing up in a Parisian street - I suffer from really bad food allergies to some quite obscure ingredients and after being taken out for l'experience gastronomique, I was knocked for six. It was beyond embarassing.

At the moment I have a friend from LA staying and it's been wonderful to see London as a tourist. We went on the Highgate Cemetary Tour (which is very near where I live and if any of you ever come to London, I implore you to wander around the overgrown grounds and marvel at the magnificient mausoleums.) We also shopped because a week without a visit to Dorothy Perkins (it's the new Topshop) is a week wasted. Then tomorrow we're off for a bit of culture and will visit the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. But mostly today I slumped in Carphone Warehouse, signing half my life away so I could get my hot hands on the new Nokia Chic phone because it's gold and it has pretty flowers on it and I'm such a girl.

Anyway, from next week, there should be the resumption of normal service round these parts. But while I've been away, you lot have certainly been busy! What a veritable slew of comments. So, please try and bear with me as I reply to them here and I will be trying to leave a few comments in your blogs over the next few days too.

So, firstly thanks to everyone who've left comments about Let's Get Lost especially Ellie (I'm afraid I haven't got time to give you any specific writing tips but if you have a poke through my blog archives, I did write a long post on this very topic.) Thanks also to Beth, the eloquent miss_teen_angst and Michelle and yes, the film Virgin Suicides, which came out quite a few years ago now, is based on the book of the same name and actually you've inspired me to re-watch it this weekend. And extra special thanks to Abby - I'm always on the lookout for new bands to fall in love with so I will definitely check out both your blog and your recs. And re: Dylan? They do? Then my work here is done!

And now the results of the film cast competition! Thank you to everyone who entered. Your responses made me smile and in a couple of instances, actually squeak in horror! For what it's worth, I'm impressed at your choices as I couldn't think of anyone who'd I cast as everytime the subject comes up I have such a clear idea of what my characters look like, I get quite side-tracked. The only person that was based on a character from TV was Isabel's Dad who was inspired by the dour and dark Wesley Wyndam-Pryce from the TV show, Angel, but from the later seasons when he was all conflicted and stubbly. Just so you know! Anyway, the winners, after much deliberation are...

PennyLane

I really was taken with the notion of Emily Browning (who I loved in the Lemony Snickert movie) as Molly and I was re-watching an episode of The OC this lunch-time and swooning over the actor who plays Trey!

Beyourowngirl

Again, I adore Evan Rachel Wood for not fitting the mould of most young Hollywood actresses, James Franco is possibly too good-looking to play Smith but he is a fox and you got extra points for Michelle Trachtenberg as Ice Princess is one of my guilty pleasures!

If you haven't left me your email addy, then leave me a comment so I can get your address and limited edition LGL vests will be winging their way to you.

I am going to run another competition with more vest giveaways in the next week or so, so don't be disheartened. And thanks again, to everyone who entered.

Now I think dinner is almost ready and I want to watch Veronica Mars so I bid you au revoir!

Love


Sarra x

London calling...

Hey pop kids

I hope everyone's well after the awful tragedy of yesterday. I had a very slow journey into work on the bus as the tube station was closed, saw lots of ambulances and police cars outside University College Hospital on Gower Street but didn't discover what had happened until I got to the office and watched it unfold on the TV.

It was shocking to see familiar scenes of the city I've lived in all my life wrecked by bombs and panic. I hope all of you and your loved ones are safe. I spent the entire day phoning and emailing my friends, and getting a ton of emails back especially as friends in America woke up to the news. Then a long trek home. Got a lift, walked a mile or so and then got another lift from my sister who'd driven six miles in from the suburbs so she could take me back to my house.

I love London more than anything. My family came here as immigrants from Eastern Europe at the turn of the 20th century to escape persecution and I feel the city flowing through my veins. It's where my family live, where most of my friends are and it inspires me. Now that Let's Get Lost is finally finished I'm working on my first grown-up book and it's all about my London from the Camden clubs of my wild teenage years to the Soho drinking dens of my early 20's and beyond to right now where I live in a beautiful part of North London, a few miles from where I grew up and on a summer's day I can look out and see the whole city laid out before me, sun glinting off the buildings, red brick Edwardian houses all lined up but beautiful woods five minutes away.

And being a Londoner is to be special. To be unflappable and practical in the face of whatever anyone wants to throw at us and to never lose that dry sense of humour that sees us through the bad times. I love London...