Counting my lockdown blessings

What should have been a triple celebration of this momentous occasion in a writing career spanning four decades, however, has turned into something of a nightmare. The coronavirus pandemic has effectively closed all bookshops and massively disrupted distribution, marketing and sales. Up until 10 days ago I had a European and Brazilian tour lined up, a television interview, book launch parties, literary festival appearances, radio slots, public speaking engagements, and a creative writing course to host. Instead, as publishers and publicists, the media and festival organisers have decamped to their homes to juggle schooling with the day-to-day running of the business we all earn our crust from, everything has fallen away. To add insult to injury, Amazon has warned publishers that books may be considered "non-essential" items, and that the "Buy" buttons could disappear from many book listings from 1 May.