His and Hers Rules for Working From Home

Do you work from home? Are you thinking about it? I’ve been home-based since 2007 and I love it – I relish the autonomy, the flexibility and simply being able to look out of my window and see the red kites soaring over the garden.

Like all good things though, it doesn’t come without a few disadvantages. The fact that I am also self-employed means that my income is variable and not guaranteed, domestic responsibilities often compete with my work and one thing I learnt early on is that you definitely can’t work and look after kids at the same time – childcare is still a must.

How to Make a Tipperty (Nativity)

This post has moved!  You can now find it on my personal blog, catherinemosborn.wordpress.com.

Don’t Leave it Too Late – How Social Networking can Kick-Start your Writing

This morning, we woke up to the news that Boyzone’s Stephen Gately had died suddenly, at the age of 33. 

When young people die, it is always shocking but particularly so when it is unexpected.  It is not so much the reminder that we are mortal or that life is short – we all know that don’t we? – but the realization that this was not in their immediate plan.  Like Michael Jackson earlier in the year, Stephen was on the verge of a world tour.  Dying wasn’t on his agenda just like it isn’t on mine.  It’s the thought that I could pop out for milk and never drink that cup of tea on the worktop that I find particularly chilling.

20 Goto 10: Memories of the Technological Revolution

I’m not terribly old but still, I grew up in the pre-internet era.  We used the landline to speak to our friends but mostly, we would take the opportunity when we were together, to make plans for the next time. 

If we didn’t see each other for a few days, we might write each other letters on brightly-coloured note paper and hand them over to read during lessons.  The 1980s equivalent of an SMS would have been a hastily-scribbled note passed under the desk.

Four Tips to Avoid Email Misfortune

If you want to send a newsletter to your clients, there’s nothing simpler – you can sign up to a package and manage your newsletters online. 

When HTML newsletters were new, however, these services did not exist and it fell to me to design a template to be used with the company’s two email clients – Outlook and a sales database with an email add-on.

Uncle Jim and the Poet Laureate

Jim (L) and Gladys (R) digging a shelter

Family legend has it that in early June, 1941, my grandmother Gladys was washing up in her mother’s kitchen when she heard the sound of the garden gate opening and closing.

Then, to her great surprise, she saw her younger brother Jim striding past the window, kit bag over his shoulder.  She ran out to greet him, but he was nowhere to be found.  Not long afterwards, his parents received a telegram with the news that all families dreaded (and my grandmother already knew): Arthur (Jim) Upton was dead at the age of 23.

A Most Horrible Tale of Murder and Messages from Beyond the Grave.

This post has moved!  You can now find it on my personal blog, catherinemosborn.wordpress.com.

Knowing your Audience

When I worked in IT, one of our US clients, who was completely unaware of that variety of English often referred to as ‘British’ or ‘International’, wrote to us to say, “If you can’t even spell properly, how do you expect us to trust your products?” 

Grammar Cops and Crooks

Concerned about my finances, perhaps, a French pal of mine hesitated to teach me the difference between fine wine and the cheap plonk that I was more accustomed to glugging on a Friday night. “If I teach you to appreciate a good wine,” he said seriously, “you’ll never be able to drink that cheap rubbish again.” I decided to take the risk and that sparkling wine with real strawberries, not just nuances, became a distant but happy memory.

Welcome to my Blog!

Hello and welcome to my blog!

I am a freelance writer, living in Berkshire, UK, and I intend to use this site to publish some of my work.  You can find out more about me on the “About” page here.

I look forward to getting to know you!

Catherine