Hilary Seabrook - writer, podcaster, musician

I spent the bulk of today at King's College, London in an Introduction to Screenwriting workshop. The delivery of the course itself was outstanding, but also the course admin was probably the best I have ever experienced. And I've been on a lot of courses. It was easy to find the room and the people, with information provided readily and helpfully. The staff introduced the day both professionally and with great humour. Whether I manage to write anything useful or entertaining is entirely down to me now. I'm feeling inspired and armed with some interesting tools. Watch this space! Posted via my iPad

Breaking free of bad habits is hard and I'm beginning to see how much of life is dictated by the past. Truth be known, my bad habits are really not THAT hideous. I swear more than I would like, talk too much and fail to make the most of opportunities sometimes. If I have more, please feel free to point them out, But recently I've noticed how some things just keep on happening, over and over. Not necessarily to me, but those around me seem to sometimes appear to draw certain things into their cosmos. No naming names, but there's a couple of circular lives going on around me and all I can do is observe (see? That's me trying not to talk too much). When I wrote my car off and metaphorically - although not literally - walked away from it, I was forced to spend time on my sofa in recovery. The drugs allowed me to absorb some really, really rubbish TV and it was some of that which showed my lives made up of drama. Drama that came from nowhere or seemed to be the result of sel...

Press Release 19 May 2014 Cunard tasked FTF Worldwide Event Management to create a 10th birthday celebration in Southampton for a very special lady – Queen Mary 2. It was a very early start for the FTF team – months of planning came to life when sister ships Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth sailed into Southampton to arrive minutes before Queen Mary 2 appeared majestically alongside just before 6am. Immediately the three were together in port, an impressive rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ was played on ships’ whistles. Heard by passengers and crew on all three ships, plus the attending press and locals, the sound was suitably deafening. A glorious day followed, filled with celebrations on all three ships and culminating in a spectacular firework display, planned in minute detail by Fully Fused Fireworks. "It was carefully orchestrated to begin precisely at 10pm and last 10 minutes," said FTF Managing Director Cliff Stonestreet. "We used the music from the Queen Mar...

An entire day on 9 June was dedicated to helping Cunard passengers and crew celebrate the tenth birthday of Queen Mary 2, a beautiful cruise liner. Working alongside the rest of the team for FTF Worldwide Event Management, I was on duty from just after 5am to just after 10pm. Most of the day was spent looking after these guys - the band of the Royal Scots Guards. It was hard work and a long day, but worth every moment. Not only were they accomplished musicians, but fun to be around and no trouble to manage for the day. It's amazing the diverse jobs I get involved in and immensely rewarding. I've written the press release about this event and feel I know it inside and out.

No matter what, I am fortunate in sitting here, on deck nine of Cunard's Queen Victoria. Green tea beside me, a beautiful view all round and technically I'm working. The day began at 4am to ensure I was in position atop a car park, watching the three Queens - Elizabeth, Victoria and Mary - arrive in Southampton in style. As ships' whistles blew a very loud Happy Birthday to Queen Mary 2 in honour of her tenth birthday, I realised that it was a tiny moment in history. Life as a writer is pretty awesome and long may it continue. Posted via my iPad

Whether you are a young British girl on holiday in Portugal or a mother in Northern Ireland or a group of girls pursuing your education in Nigeria, how can you just disappear? How is that even possible? While people disappear really - probably every day - that leaves families and friends distraught. Not knowing whether those men, women and children will ever be seen again. And, quite possibly, someone else knows the secret and fails to tell. Just as culpable as the kidnappers are the facilitators - the people around them who choose to ignore what they know is the truth. And who go on ignoring the truth or hiding it while other grieve. Or Dear all I really wanted to come tonight, but I don't think I'll be able to, feeling rough and unlikely to be back from London until gone 7pm. I sort of enjoyed 'The Great Lover' but, for me, it fell between two stools. Neither biography nor fiction. It's probably why I've always hated historical fiction as a genre. Can someon...