I have been away from my computer for much of the day. An author friend of mine has a Significant Birthday coming up and I got invited to a party, along with a number of other folk I have known for several decades.

Getting their involved trekking into the deep heart of Darkest Somerset, across treacherous Sedgemoor, through wyvern-invested swamps, and around the fabled cider lakes. The party took place at an ancient temple whose exact location is known only to a few expert native guides. I spent a pleasant afternoon sipping champagne with authors, journalists, media people, aging rock stars and the like. It being Darkest Somerset, it rained rather a lot. At one point we thought we might have to call for helicopters to get us home, but thankfully the trackways stayed open, so here I am back at my desk.

In answer to a question on Twitter, no, I did not see any actual vampires. However, I did get to converse with Britain’s foremost expert on vampires, which is close enough.