My blog…

Welcome to my blog. This is where I will be posting regular updates to my writing from my home in west Cornwall.

5 Questions to my ‘Stories for the Road’ co-writer Jude Lennon

by Maggie Fogarty | Sep 28, 2026 | Uncategorized

It’s countdown time to the October 10 publication of the short story compilation ‘Stories for the Road’ written by by myself and Jude Lennon. It has been a great collaboration and wearing my interviewer hat, here are a few questions to my fabulous co-writer… 5 QUESTIONS – AUTHOR Jude Lennon You love travelling around in […]

Our fur-legged stars!

by Maggie Fogarty | Sep 14, 2026 | Uncategorized

Our four-legged pets are everywhere – have you noticed how many advertisements and dramas now have a pet dog or cat at the heart of their story-lines? Of course the same is true of books, including the forthcoming collection of short stories, ‘Stories for the Road’, written by myself and Jude Lennon. Not long now […]

Combining author voices and styles

by Maggie Fogarty | Aug 24, 2026 | Uncategorized

How to collaborate on a book of short stories when you have different styles of writing and distinct author ‘voices’? Although the stories written by Jude Lennon and myself differ in style and subjects, they sit alongside each other well. A bit like these two versions of the same Hydrangea plants growing side-by-side in my […]

Holiday reading: Long form or short stories?

by Maggie Fogarty | Aug 12, 2026 | Uncategorized

What to read when you are on holiday? If it is a beach get-away, with hours to lounge on a sun bed, then airport shop blockbusters or easy escapist novels come to mind. As for myself and co-writer Jude Lennon, our holidays are spent touring in a campervan and motorhome. Here is a snippet of […]

TRIBUTE TO LATE PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER MJ NIELS MCGUINNESS

by Maggie Fogarty | May 19, 2026 | Uncategorized

My tribute the late great Birmingham based press photographer MJ Niels McGuinness. His press photography, spanning several decades, included capturing the scenes of devastation following the 1974 Birmingham pub bombings. Throughout his career he managed to combine gritty social realism with photographing celebrities, politicians and local characters in the city he loved. Niels’ […]

Telling Tales and Inspiration – Part 3

by Maggie Fogarty | Mar 23, 2023 | Uncategorized

Many of us treasure memories of a key person, event or simply a ‘thing’ that caused us to take a particular path in our working or personal lives. Someone or something igniting a spark, generating enthusiasm and energy, taking us in a direction that we may not have thought possible. When talking about influential people, […]

Telling Tales and Inspiration – Part 2

by Maggie Fogarty | Feb 15, 2023 | Uncategorized

The term ‘portfolio’ career has been much in vogue recently – the idea of having several separate or interconnecting work roles. For many of us this is nothing new and as someone who has always worn several hats – ‘Television Producer’, ‘Print Journalist’, ‘University Visiting Editor/ Associate’, ‘Broadcast Mentor’, ‘Author’ – how to answer when […]

Telling Tales and Inspiration – Part 1

by Maggie Fogarty | Jan 17, 2023 | Uncategorized

People often talk about ‘sliding door’ moments to describe pivotal life events that could go one way or the other. (The ‘Sliding Doors’ film is a firm favourite). It’s also one of the themes in my current writing project and has led me to look back at my own sliding door moments. Over the years […]

FRENCH ROAD TRIP: BONNIE DOG MISHAP AND HOLIDAY READ…

by Maggie Fogarty | Jul 8, 2022 | Uncategorized

It’s been a while since my last blog post – a busy year! – and having just got back from a 17 day Motorhome trip to France, thought I’d share a few memories of our stay there. This time we travelled from Folkestone via Eurotunnel and I used my new Irish passport for the first […]

Juggling time, Bonnie dog update and giftbox…

by Maggie Fogarty | Nov 12, 2021 | Uncategorized

As my friend often says, ‘time is elastic’. You can stretch it out to fit your priorities and he hates it when people say ‘I haven’t got the time’. His response: ‘Well go and make it!’ To some extent he is right – you can often pack more into a day if you really want […]