Cora Ruskin

*Blushing*

Got a lovely little idea for a flash fiction piece but don't know when I'll have time to write it. Might have to do a very rough and ready first draft then let it stew for a bit.

Got a really nice rejection email(!) from The Ex-Puritan, telling me I made it as far as the editorial table. I've been submitting to them since they were The Puritan, so it's good to get some encouragement from one of my white whales.

My blog post on the third novel in the Aubrey/Maturin series is up now. This novel is one of my favourites and I have many thoughts on Stephen going feral, nature being more dangerous than the French, and the notable lack of "angst" in these novels. corastillwrites.wordpress.com

@brecht_dp I can't be the only one thinking the bird is going to shit on her, right?

May this week bring you all good news...

The bots are at it again. I posted about 'A Tale of Two Cities' on insta and got a comment saying "I'd love to help spread the word about books like this." Yeah, don't think Mr Dickens needs much help getting the word out about one of his best novels.

Just found out that Alt-J did a version of 'Hares on the Mountain' and the words somehow sound like Alt-J lyrics.

Monday is Blog Day and this week I offer you A DAFFODILESQUE DALEK, THE FIRST MOW, AND THE MUSE… soopoftheday-soo.blogspot.com/2026/03/a-daff…

Saw my first bee of the year today. A big fat bumblebee.

Ep 227 out today - We meet human frailty, dockyard corruption, rain-soaked letters from home, and an unborn porcupine. A Tory and a Radical debate the value of a human life. Finally, as the invasion of La Réunion begins, lives are saved by the Voltairean Stephen Maturin.

ohhh! update: my book is now closer to being #1 in the united states! it's now #2 so freaking happy! happy world poetry day!!!

Today's Sea Shanty Sunday is 'Spanish Ladies', performed by @TheLongestJohns. There's a whole subgenre of British and Irish folk music about how hot Spanish women are, but this song is mostly an ode to life at sea. corastillwrites.wordpress.com

Lol, a teenage guy just tried to buy a child's ticket for the bus while holding a beer.

I started watching 'Young Sherlock' last night and the main actor is called Hero Fiennes Tiffin. Benedict Cumberbatch was so influential, it's now illegal for the character to be played by anyone with a normal name.

Wondering if I can cancel my dentist appointment on account of being too emotionally fragile for it today.

I saw a 2-day-old baby at work today, it was the teeniest thing ever!

Oh dear, I forgot the past tense of 'think' for a second and it came out as 'thinken'. I'm not fit for human company before coffee.

Hey UK people! You've got two more weeks to order anything in stock (even irl & Poems to Stage Dive to!) and select UK Saver Shipping at checkout. You'll save many a quid on postage & I'll send you everything via Royal Mail from West London on Wednesday, April 1. No foolin'!

I'm wearing cashmere for the first time (got a secondhand jumper for a tenner) and holy hell, it is like baby clothes for adults! So soft and snuggly.

the linktree has all the links to order and remember, it's available worldwide on the amazons (sharing is caring) linktr.ee/poetjohncompton

For today's (slightly belated) Sea Shanty Sunday, we've got 'Haul and Bale' by @SkinnyLister The perfect song for when life is a shipwreck but giving up is not an option. corastillwrites.wordpress.com