It is almost the end of the decade and people are reflecting on how their own world and the wider world has changed over this time. I happen to have been thinking a lot about what life was like a decade ago because a colleague of mine from that time died in November.
My biggest concern at the time was balancing paid work with passion projects. It still is.
Activities
Teaching Mandarin and creative writing over the Tutorful website is coming along nicely. You can sign up with me here for lessons in Mandarin, the guitar, essay writing, creative writing, and more.
I have also started working again on the novel (working title The Watcher), having had another round of professional feedback, this time from Fish Publishing. It is a millennia-spanning epistolary whodunit that has just passed the 40,000-word mark.
Output
Ahead of a double album launch at The Lion’s Den in Manchester on April 18, 2020, I am writing and recording both English songs and Chinese songs that will make the final cut. Among the newly recorded Chinese songs is this one:
Wider World
This month, the UK is in the middle of an election campaign. At the time of writing, the Conservative Party is leading the polls, despite the unpopularity of their approach to Brexit. I will be voting Labour (without much enthusiasm) in a key marginal.
If elected, they will hold a second referendum (which I hope will avert Brexit), and massively increase public spending, which could help save the National Health Service and tackle my pet issue, homelessness.
Kevin McGeary 