Okay I admit that sometimes I worry I might be turning into Bridget Jones. Not because of an addiction to smoking and Chardonnay but because of my fantasy of true romance, which has been clouded by countless happily-ever-after films mixed with my cynical view of love, thanks to broken hearts and bad dates.

Sometimes I can picture myself singing ‘All by Myself’ with mascara running down my cheeks ….

So when I spotted ‘The Lonely Hearts Club’ by Elizabeth Eulberg in Waterstones, I eagerly picked it up. I couldn’t help it – the words spoke to me and when I read the cover and saw it was about a girl called Penny Lane Bloom (her family are Beatles fanatics) who is so annoyed with how boys treat her, she starts an anti-dating club, I had to buy it.

This book is funny and realistic in its take on the battle of the sexes but what I liked is what starts out as an anti-boy club, actual turns into a female empowerment one. Girls who were once afraid to be who they wanted to be because they were so caught up in what boys thought about them, suddenly felt empowered to do what they wanted to do. The main character grows from hating all men into realising what she actually wants from a relationship and that being true to yourself, means you find friends and love for all the right reasons.

Sometimes I get so caught up thinking about being single and that I’m so unlucky in love, I forget to remember the control I have over the situation. That I don’t need to sit around and wait for a man to sweep me off my feet, I can work on being who I want to be and not worry about what people think.

Lots of people tell me I should try online dating, to go on Match.com and get myself on dates. But what I’ve realised is, I don’t really want that yet. I barely have much spare time as it is with my full time job and long commute, and that spare time I want to use to write. What is important to me at the moment is to finish my second manuscript and make my start as a published writer, before searching for that elusive true love.

And if I have to be the sole member of my own Lonely Hearts Club until then, then fine, I’m not going to worry. I want to accomplish other dreams first and I know then the whole relationship thing will fall into place because I will be happy and ready for someone to come into my life and share it with me.

Have you ever wished you could join an anti-dating club? Have you ever chosen career over love or vice versa?

Vix x