Busy, busy!

It has been ages since I last updated my blog, but let me share my latest news with you all:

• Yoga teaching - I am now a qualified adult yoga teacher and have spent the past few months setting up a variety of classes. They are all going well so far!
• Carole Lombard - I am still researching the Carole Lombard book, but taking my time, planning it around the other projects I am doing. It will take a few years to complete this mammoth task, but I will get there one day!
• Novel - My novel is coming along slowly but surely. I am still working my way round some questions and structure within the story, but I am definitely enjoying working on it.

Yoga News

I am happy to say that my yoga teacher training course is going very well - in fact I have just completed the last assignment and am about to sit my exam. Eek! All being well I should be fully qualified very shortly and after that I am starting a series of adult yoga classes, and classes for teenagers too.

As well as that I am also attending a Foundation course in a town close to where I live, which will lead to a certificate and will also lead to another teacher training course starting next year. In my opinion you can never have too much yoga training, so I am really looking forward to the next teacher training course. In the meantime the Foundation course is wonderful and I am learning loads and enjoying every minute of it. Long may it continue!

My Brother met Kiss!

My brother has been a huge fan of the rock band Kiss for many, many years and last week finally got the opportunity to meet them. I'm so happy that I just had to post one of the pictures here!

Barbara Payton

I was absolutely delighted recently to find a new friend in the shape of John O'Dowd, who is a respected biographer and author. He has recently had a book published on 1950s starlet Barbara Payton, and I'm happy to say that I have just ordered my copy and am anxiously awaiting its delivery!

I'm ashamed to say that I had never heard of Barbara before speaking to John, but now that I've read a little about her at John's website and also on the Internet in general, I'm very keen to know more.

If you'd like to find out more about the book, please visit John's website:

http://www.hollywoodstarletbarbarapayton.com/

You can also order a copy of the book from http://www.amazon.com/ or by emailing the publisher at: books@benohmart.com

Marilyn Lives Society Back issues

As you know, The Marilyn Lives Society newsletter has closed its doors, and I am now left with a large variety of back issues. These issues are currently sitting in a large drawer in my desk, but I need room so they must go!

I published the non-profit newsletter for 16 years and had 160+ newsletters in all. While I don't have all of these issues left, I do have quite a few different ones, so if you are interested in either adding to your Marilyn collection or finding some newsletters that you don't already have, look no further!

If you are interested in back issues, please email me. Each one is being sold for 50 pence (about 1 dollar) and if you are looking for a specific one, please let me know.

Thanks!

Easter in the Morgan household

We all had a lovely Easter. Rather shockingly It was snowing when we woke up but that just added to the fun, with lots of snowballs and snowmen - after the big Easter Egg hunt of course!

Daisy had a wonderful day with egg hunts all over the place. Screams of 'Hey' and 'Wow' could be heard for miles around!

All in all, a great day was had all round.

My Yoga Baby

My daughter did a great modelling job today, for an article I've just written about the benefits of yoga for children. She will be appearing in the article, which is published in a local magazine, and she is extremely proud!

Yoga Teacher Here I Come!

As most of you know, I'm a children's yoga teacher, teaching up to the age off 11 at this moment. However, several years ago I embarked on an adult yoga teacher training course too, but was unable to finish it because of the time needed for my Marilyn Monroe book. I am very happy to say that I am now in a position where I'm able to continue on my yoga teacher journey, and have just completed assignment 5 of my course. The complete course is 15 assignments, so I have 10 more to go. I'm hoping to get those finished by the end of the year.

I am also going to attend a Yoga Teacher Training for Teenagers course in the very near future, which will enable me to teach in secondary schools, as well as primary.

This part of my life is very exciting. I can't wait to get qualified as an adult teacher and start sharing my knowledge with the parents as well as the children!

My projects

MY NOVEL

Never content with just working on one project, I've started to write a novel too. I have actually had this idea in my head for quite some time, and I began writing shortly after Christmas. The book is still very much in the early stages, but I am very happy with what I have written so far. The character is someone completely unlike myself - in fact he is male and a lot older. But that is all I can say for now. I'll give more details and keep you all informed, when I have written more.

MY CAROLE LOMBARD BIOGRAPHY

My Carole Lombard project is going slowly but surely. I say slowly because so far I've been unable to interview anyone who is related to or knew Carole in any way (or is related to someone who knew her). I have acquired many items that are rare and unknown so far, but interviews are a very big requirement for my books - as demonstrated in 'Marilyn Monroe: Private and Undisclosed', where I interviewed 100 people.

So if you know anyone out there who is related to, or knew Carole in any way, please get them to email me - I'd love to hear from them.

I have had a huge response and much help from Carole's fans, and I'm so happy and grateful to you all. You will be acknowledged in the book, when it is complete.

MARILYN MONROE: PRIVATE AND UNDISCLOSED

My Marilyn book is still selling steadily. There is no news yet about translation rights, but I'll let you all know when I hear anything.

I'm very excited!

I am a huge fan of Sex and the City, especially Sarah Jessica Parker's character, Carrie Bradshaw. For the first few weeks after giving birth, I spent many hours watching Sex and the City on DVD, while Daisy slept beside me. It helped keep me sane in those difficult first weeks of being a mum! Of course as a writer I was always inspired by Carrie's job as a columnist, and now it seems very strange (but also very cool!) that I too am now a columnist!

I'm really excited about the Sex and the City film, and was thrilled to discover the official website, located at www.sexandthecitymovie.com/

I am counting down to the film's opening in May, but for now surfing the website will help pass the time!

The Marilyn Lives Society update

Hi Everyone

It is with great sadness that I must announce my decision to stop publishing the offline Marilyn Lives Society newsletter, as from now.

This decision has not come easily and I have thought long and hard about it for many months. But I think the time has come for me to move on and let other clubs take over where MLS left off. We have two new Marilyn clubs springing up soon – one by Emma Downing and one by Andrea Pryke – both MLS members. I would like to encourage all members to join these clubs, to keep in touch and keep up-to-date with all the Marilyn-related news. I will certainly be joining the clubs, and will look forward to taking a back seat to enjoy the newsletters!

It has been increasingly hard for me to keep up with the Marilyn Lives Society newsletters, but I would still like to stay in touch with Marilyn's fans and MLS members. Although I won’t be publishing the newsletters anymore, this does not mean the end of MLS as a whole. I have my blog at which has a special MLS section, for all up-to-date news. This will be up-dated far more often than the newsletter and will help keep all members abreast of the latest developments in the Marilyn world. I am also hoping at some point to have a meeting, and will of course keep all members' addresses so that I can keep in touch. Of course the MLS discussion list will continue.

There is also the possibility of doing an internet-based newsletter, which will arrive in your mailbox as an attachment. This will be FREE to receive, and if you are interested in this possibility, please send me your email address so that I can add you as a subscriber. It would certainly be a lot less work for me than an offline mag – so it is a definite possibility.

I am so sorry to be saying goodbye to the offline MLS newsletter, but with two fan clubs on the way, it does seem an ideal time for me to step down and let someone else breathe some fresh air into Marilyn’s fan club world.

Thank you for all your support, help and understanding over the years.

Love

Michelle.

Daisy's birthday

My daughter is now four years old, and we celebrated with a party at the local play centre, and a family tea-party at home. I even managed to bake her a cake, covered in sweets!

Brand New Fan Club

I am thrilled to announce that my friend - and fellow MLS member - has created her own UK Marilyn Club. It is called Mad About Marilyn and will cost 20 pounds (for UK members), and publish 6 issues a year.

If you would like more information, please email Emma at emmadowning@blueyonder.co.uk or visit her website at www.myspace.com/madaboutmarilynuk

I would like to wish Emma all the very best with her club and look forward to becoming a member myself!

The Mmm Girl by Tara Hanks

I have just started reading 'The Mmm Girl' by Tara Hanks, and it is wonderful. The book is a fictionalised account of Marilyn's life - i.e. it is a biography but written in Marilyn's words, complete with conversations, memories etc - as if it is written by Marilyn herself. I have not finished it yet, but from what I've read, I can highly recommend it.

If you would like to find out more, please visit Tara's website at:

www.tarahanks.org

The MLS Blog

The Marilyn Lives Society now has its own blog, located at http://marilynlivessociety.blogspot.com/

There you will be able to read Marilyn news, MLS news and more.

2008 is here!

2007 was a terrific year for me: I moved into my dream house (which we actually discovered a year ago this very day!); I saw my book published to terrific reviews; my daughter settled into pre-school very successfully; I became a columnist and I spent a lot of time on the radio!


Now 2008 is upon us and I continue to be busy. I am writing a new biography, this time about Carole Lombard, the wonderful actress who tragically died in a plane crash when she was very young. It's very different to researching the Marilyn book, because I didn't know much about her when I started research, but it is a hugely interesting project none-the-less.Along with that, I am working on various other projects and continuing to enjoy being a wife and mother. My daughter is growing bigger every day, and is taking a huge interest in clothes and make-up already. I guess my husband is thanking his lucky stars that we have three bathrooms in our new home!

Talking of my husband, I'd publically like to thank him for everything he does for me. Without his support my writing career would not be as successful as it is now, and I am very grateful for his help and the way he continues to look after both myself and our dear daughter.

Please check this blog often, as I will let you know about my latest projects, and keep you up-to-date on my progress. Incidentally, the latest news from here is that 'Marilyn Monroe: Private and Undisclosed' is to be given some press in Australia - so if you are based there, let me know if you see it!